DAY 1 OF THE FREESKIING WORLD TOUR
For Immediate ReleaseDylan Crossman and Hannah Whitney lead field after first day of Subaru US Extreme Freeskiing Championships at Crested Butte, Colorado
Watch all of the action from the finals LIVE on www.freeskiingworldtour.com beginnning at noon MST
Crested Butte, Colorado, February 20, 2009- The first stop of the 2009 Subaru Freeskiing World Tour (FWT) kicked off with a bang in Crested Butte, Colorado, on Thursday, with the Juniors finals and the men’s and women’s qualifier day on the Headwall.
Nine junior women and 30 junior boys tested the waters of extreme freeskiing with a phenomenal showcase of the young talent in the sport.
In the end Alex George of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and North Parker of Sun Valley, Idaho, took the junior women and junior men’s titles respectively. Leo Ahrens of Alta/Snowbird, Utah, stomped onto the scene taking home The North Face Young Gun Award. The Young Gun recognizes skiers 18 years and younger. Ahrens won this after executing a double back flip off of Box Rock.
In the FWT qualifier, 19 women and a staggering 95 men lined up on Headwall for a chance to advance to the main event. After all was said and done 11 women and 41 men made the cut and joined the list of pre-qualified skiers for the official start to the FWT today.
It was a stellar day with incredible snow conditions on the Staircase/Slot Rocks/Body Bag/Dead End Chutes area of Crested Butte Mountain. Thanks to the work of the Crested Butte Professional Ski Patrol the venue was closed the day prior to the event offering up soft snow in the notoriously technical terrain.
The competitors pushed the envelope charging through the area nearing 50-degrees in pitch and rife with rocks and trees all sitting above cliffs 80-feet high.
Second place finisher of the 2008 FWT Dylan Crossman of Utah picked up where he left off last year setting the bar high. Crossman flashed the top of Body Bag and straight-lined the final 100 feet skipping over rocks and rubbing elbows with trees to rocket himself into first place with a score of 41.25 and earn a Backcountry.com Sick Bird nomination.
The coveted Backcountry.com Sick Bird buckle is an award, which is given out at the end of each FWT event, to the athlete with the most spirited run. These runs usually include super-human talent and agility.
Canadian Luke Nelson made the most of his first day of skiing in the Lower 48. Nelson charged into the bottom of Dead End Chutes, hopped across a shear rock face gully and threw a 50-foot spread eagle off of Cheeseburger Rock to post a score of 39.38 to take second place on the day.
“I wanted to ski safe and fast as usual,” said Nelson. “I was planning a big spread eagle off of Cheeseburger from the top and it worked out better than I thought.”
Julien Lopez, the Flying Frenchman, of La Plagne, France, earned a Backcountry.com Sick Bird nomination as well sticking a 60-foot air at the bottom of his run that put him in third place overall with a score of 37.75.
Hannah Whitney of Alta, Utah, led the charge in the incredibly tight women’s field. Having finished second overall in the 2008 Subaru US Freeskiing Series in, Whitney knows how to impress the judges. Whitney maintained her steady and smooth style in Body Bag keeping her skis glued to the snow and moving forward before sending a 15-foot exit air at the bottom to take first place with a score of 32.75
“It’s always about staying on my feet,” said Whitney. “I wanted to be at the front of the pack so I feel like I’m in contention but not get too rowdy.”
Whitney, who fell and hurt herself last year on the final day in the Bermuda Triangle/Big Hourglass, is looking for retribution this year.
“I’m back for a little redemption,” said Whitney. “I’m super excited to get back into the finals and get back to the Bermuda Triangle but still keep it smooth and safe.”
Crested Butte skier Pip Hunt finished the day with a score of 31.13 to take second place and Ariana Stefano of Whistler, British Columbia, finished the day in third place with a score of 30.88.
The stage is now set for the super finals. Dubbed Super Saturday, tomorrow will take competitors to the Bermuda Triangle/Big Hourglass area of Crested Butte Mountain Resort. It’s only the fourth time in the Extremes’ 18-year history that the venue has been opened for the finals.
A total of 12 Women and 62 men will be dropping in tomorrow for a shot at the title, tour points and possibly the Backcountry.com Sick Bird Award.
2009 Freeskiing World Tour Schedule of Events
Subaru Telluride Freeskiing World Tour Qualifier, Telluride, CO. February 5-8
Subaru US Extreme Freeskiing Championships, Crested Butte, CO. February 17-22
Subaru US Freeskiing Nationals, Snowbird, UT. March 10-15
Subaru North American Freeskiing Championships, Kirkwood, CA. March 18-22
Subaru Freeskiing World Championships, Alyeska, AK. April 8-12
Mountain Sports International will be satellite broadcasting LIVE from Crested Butte. Live coverage of the best freeskiing in the world can be viewed from the comfort of your desk chair. MSI’s content creation team will be producing and posting same-day, world-class photography on its newly redesigned website, www.freeskiingworldtour.com and media partners www.powder.com and www.skipressworld.com.
Special thanks to our sponsors:
Subaru of America
The North Face
Corona
Powder Magazine
Emergen-C
Ski Press Magazine
Sports Insurance
Grabber
Beyond Coastal
IFSA
Special thanks to our resort partners:
Telluride Ski and Summer Resort
Crested Butte Mountain Resort
Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort
Kirkwood Mountain Resort
Alyeska Resort
For more information log onto www.freeskiingworldtour.com
MEDIA INQUIRES AND FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT
Cara Williams
Media, PR & Communications Manager
Mountain Sports International
801-349-4608
cara@mtsports.com
Justine Chellel
Marketing & Sales Coordinator
Mountain Sports International
801-349-4606
jchellel@mtsports.com
REGISTRATION INFORMATION AND ATHLETE INQUIRIES CONTACT
Sara Pinsoneault
Mountain Sports International
Athlete Communications
801-349-4650
sarap@mtsports.com
About Subaru of America, Inc.
Subaru of America, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan. Headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 600 dealers across the United States. Subaru makes the best-selling All-Wheel Drive car sold in America based on R.L. Polk & Co. new vehicle retail registration statistics.
About MSI
Mountain Sports International (MSI) is a private company, founded in 1997, to develop and produce action/adventure sports events and programming in North America. MSI owns and produces the Freeskiing World Tour, in addition to several other properties and concepts.
MSI provides event management services for Burton, Salomon, and Red Bull and has provided infrastructure and expertise for the NBC Gravity Games and ESPN Action Sports Projects, including the Tony Hawk Gigantic Skatepark Tour. MSI specializes in matching clients with events for brand penetration into target demographics, developing product identification and loyalty. MSI matches brand and culture, company and credibility to create sought-after events that help to define the action sports culture.
