Snowboarders take on VERTICAL slope

This is the heart-in-mouth moment three daredevil snowboarders dice with death - and become the first people in the world to conquer a vertical slope. The adrenaline junkies - John Jackson, Travis Rice and Mark Landvik - hurtled down the peak in the 3,000ft Tordrillo Mountains, in Alaska, in a matter of seconds. Risking the prospect of sparking deadly avalanches through their rapid 80mph movements, the brave trio zig-zagged their way down the 50 degree angle. And for their piece-de-resistance the trio decided to pull off some big-air tricks for the camera as they plummeted towards the bottom. The epic descent booked the speedsters a place in the record books by becoming the first people to successfully conquer the perilous peak. Photographer Scott Serfas, who was watching from the safety of a helicopter, said: 'It was amazing to watch. I knew I was witnessing snowboard history in the making. 'These guys are all top pros and some of the most well respected in the business, if anyone could do it it was them.' The three professional snowboarders - who each have 20 years experience - were dropped off at the summit by helicopter. They faced the daunting prospect of ten foot snow drifts and temperatures plummeting to a chilly minus 13C. But armed with just a shovel, back up CO2 canisters and transceivers should anything go wrong, they launched off from a knife-edge ridge in pursuit of the record. And within seconds they reached speeds of up to 80mph before vanishing out of sight - resurfacing thousands of feet below where Mr Serfas caught up in his helicopter. Mr Serfas, 39, a professional photographer from Vancouver, Canada, added: 'Descents like this are always dangerous, but you try to minimize that by playing smart. 'But at the end of the day, no matter what safety gear you have on, nothing is going to save you if something goes wrong.' The Tordrillo Mountains are a range found 75 miles west-north-west of Anchorage, and stretch 60 miles to the north. It is primarily a volcanic range, with its most recent eruption occuring in June 1992.