Max Melvin-McNutt’s season didn’t finish as planned.

After the 21-year-old successfully raised $8,000 through crowd-funding to attend a variety of events on the World Cup slopestyle circuit, his year was cut short by injuries sustained while snowboarding.

While practising for his first event in Stoneham, Que., in February, Melvin-McNutt crashed on his last run, badly injuring his right ankle.

“I badly strained and sprained a lot of my ligaments and muscles,” he said. “It was the most painful sprain I’ve ever had and it ended up taking a really long time to heal. So that put me out for that contest.”

With tickets already booked for a subsequent World Cup event in Park City, Utah, Melvin-McNutt attempted to gut it out, but eventually found he was unable to compete there, either.

Frustrated, he returned to Whistler where he worked hard to regain his strength. Satisfied, the Whitehorse native boarded a plane for the Czech Republic in early March, where he logged his only result of the season – a 28th-place finish at the Audi Snowjam.

“I did the contest, but my ankle was still injured,” he said. “I just taped it up and didn’t end up doing too well.”

Melvin-McNutt then attempted to compete in the Pamporovo Freestyle Open in Bulgaria, but sustained a season-ending concussion during a practice run that ultimately knocked him out of the Canadian national championships.

Melvin-McNutt, a member of the national development snowboarding team, has twice broken his collarbone in previous seasons.

Last year, he finished the season ranked 14th in Canada.

Because of his injuries, last year’s results will be frozen, allowing the snowboarder to retain his contest points from last season into next year.

“I got bumped down to 18th in Canada,” said Melvin-McNutt, who will continue in his attempts to become the first Yukoner to make Team Canada.

“I’m going to keep going for sure,” he said. “I have all the ambition and the talent for it, I’m pretty sure. It’s gotten me this far. I just have to keep going with it.

“I’m just grateful that people supported me and I’m sorry that it didn’t turn out as well as I hoped it would.”

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Meanwhile, freestyle skier Miguel Rodden, who in January was seeking votes to attend the B&E Invitational in France, failed to earn a wildcard position despite a good amount of support from his Yukon fans.

Rodden, 21, said despite failing to make the grade, he was still “super stoked” about his top-five placement in the online contest, thanking everyone who took the time to vote.