MOUNT SNOW, Vt.– Tara Dakides saved the best for last.

In Sunday's Women Snowboarding Big Air finals, Dakides waited until her last run to regain her title. Needing something huge to claim the top spot, Dakides lined up and nailed a backside rodeo receiving a 89.00 to overcome silver-medalist Barrett Christy and the rest of the field.

Tara Dakides goes big and grabs gold.

Dakides medaled in her third consecutive Winter X Games, capturing gold two years in a row to bring her Winter X Game medal count to five.

"I was a little uncertain because I had a bad day at the Slopestyle course so I wasn't feeling as confident as I usually am," said the 25-year-old Dakides. "My first and second jumps I crashed and so I'm just glad I was able to pull it together with my third."

The Californian is known for her daring resolve to pursue any and all tricks she imagines or sees. As a result, she is one of several snowboarders leading the charge to bridge the trick gap between men and women.

"I just see somebody do something, whether it be a girl or a guy and I just want to do it too," Dakides said. "And if it scares me then I just want to do it more. I don't like being scared and I don't like thinking that I'm not going to do something because I'm scared of it."

Christy, who turned 30 on Feb. 3, was running the risk of not medaling for the first time in her X Games history. Finishing fifth in Slopestyle and 10th in the SuperPipe, Christy landed a 540 to claim silver.

"It feels good because I definitely didn't come close the last two events," said Christy, who did not medal in the event last year. "It was really, really nice to finally get it (a medal) at the last minute."

Christy hit double digits in medals with this silver, bringing her total number to 10 X Games medals and giving her the title of the most decorated snowboarder in X Games history. Christy's final run score of 86.67 took over the gold medal position momentarily, but Dakides still had one final shot at the jump.

"I'm stoked to be here," Christy said. "Everyone was pushing one another. It was a great time."

Jenna Murano claimed the bronze medal in just her third contest as a professional. The 25-year-old nailed a switch backside 180 on her second run which was good enough to edge out Jessica Dalpiaz for third place.

"I don't know how I was feeling," Murano said. "I was in some kind of zone. Actually it got to a point where I didn't really care and it just happened for me."

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