LEAH EVANS AND DREW STOECKLEIN LEAD AFTER FIRST DAY OF SUBARU US FREESKIING NATIONALS AT SNOWBIRD SKI AND SUMMER RESORT, UTAH
Watch the action from the Finals and Super Finals LIVE tomorrow on www.freeskiingworldtour.com, www.newschoolers.com, www.backcountry.com and www.powder.com beginning at noon MST
Snowbird, Utah, March 13, 2009- The second stop of the 2009 Subaru Freeskiing World Tour (FWT), the Subaru US Freeskiing Nationals (USFN) kicked off with a bang at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort, Utah, on Wednesday, with two days of qualifying on West Baldy. Approximately 65 athletes advanced through the qualifying rounds to join the approximately 50 pre-qualified athletes. Leah Evans of Red Mountain, British Columbia, battled her way through, winning the first qualifying day as well as the FWT Day one today on Silver Fox. Drew Stoecklein of Alta, Utah, one of the lucky pre-qualified athletes, sits in first going into tomorrow’s Finals and Super Finals on North Baldy.
It was a stellar day with incredible clear skies and perfect visibility. Silver Fox offers notoriously technical terrain and the strong women’s field impressed the Announcers, spectators and most importantly the judges. Mountain Sports International Winter Sports Director and Announcer Dak Williams claimed this is one of the deepest fields of women skiers he’s seen in over 12 years of Event Direction. Leah Evans, who flashed her line through North Chute, leads the charge ahead of 2008 Subaru US Freeskiing Series Champion Crystal Wright of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Emily Teague of Telluride, Colorado, sits in third while Subaru Freeskiing World Tour Qualifier Champion Claudia Bouvier of Vail, Colorado, sits in fourth. The women’s race is extremely tight as less than four points separates all 19 women who advanced to tomorrow’s Finals and Super Finals.
“Conditions out there were interesting,” said women’s leader Leah Evans. “I was able to edge well so I skied the top of North Chute before doing a double drop which worked out well. I’ve taken a step back, and usually go 150 percent but I feel like I’ve only gone about 90 so far.”
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. Several big names fell victim to the punchy snow conditions including defending USFN Champ Dylan Crossman. The door is open for a new USFN winner and Drew Stoecklein, who skied an extremely tight and fast line riddled with airs and exposure is in the drivers seat going into tomorrow, but with only three points separating the top 12 men, the competition is just heating up. Julien Lopez of La Plagne, France, and Brett Crabtree of Whistler, British Columbia, sit just behind Stoecklein tied for second. Aaron Schmidt of Fernie, British Columbia, is in third and former USFN Champion Nick Greener of Snowbird, Utah, rounds out the top five.
“I have been really concerned about my friend Adrien, who was badly hurt in France yesterday,” said second place finisher Julien Lopez. “I actually puked before my run. I was skiing for Adrien because he always told me about this line and I finally got to ski it. It worked! I did it for him.”
A former USFN Champion, Adrien Coirier was injured yesterday while skiing in a competition in France. Throughout his years on the FWT circuit, Coirier is also a Sickbird Champion. Lopez was nominated for his extraordinary run today.
Several Backcountry.com Sickbird nominations were awarded today and many more are expected tomorrow. The coveted Backcountry.com Sickbird 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.
The stage is now set for the Finals and Super Finals. Dubbed Super Saturday, tomorrow will take competitors to Snowbird’s North Baldy. One of the longest venues on the FWT, North Baldy is packed with rocks, steep chutes as well as wide open “Fields of Glory”. Watch all the action LIVE tomorrow at noon MST on www.freeskiingworldtour.com, www.backcountry.com, www.newschoolers.com and www.powder.com.
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 11-14
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 Snowbird. 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.