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Redbull COLD RUSH at Red Mountain

J Dogg — Sat, 03 Feb 2007 20:32:05 -0500

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COLD RUSH: A PROGRESSION OF SKIING TO FIND THE BEST IN SKIING
Multi-discipline event includes a summit approach, abandoned mine ski through, freeskiing component and backcountry slopestyle.

Red Bull presents Cold Rush, a progression of skiing that brings together 20 of the sport's top athlete skiers with one objective: to find the most versatile and best all-around skier. The event will take place on Red Mountain Resort in Rossland, BC, where the entire venue sits on top of countless miles of abandoned mining tunnels. To commemorate the gold rush dreamers of yesteryear, Cold Rush will launch from an above-ground mine site, with the duration of the event spanning Feb. 9 - 10.

On Day One, skiers will drop in and ski through the old gold mine and onto a service road that will lead to a trail head. At the trail head, athletes will prepare for and commence a summit approach on Mt. Roberts. Once athletes reach the top of Mt. Roberts, they will prep for the next day by identifying and inspecting their preferred line of choice.

With Day Two brings the big mountain portion, where skiers will hit their favourite line down the face of Mt. Roberts. The afternoon on Mt. Roberts brings a backcounty slopestyle where 3-4 big features will be built and shaped to allow for a rider-judged jam session.

Rider feedback will be crucial in determining our winner, with points awarded for each component: Summit - maximum 20 points; Freeskiing - max 40 points; Slopestyle - max 40 points. The athlete who records the highest score out of 100, also takes home the top and only prize: $10,000.

The athlete roster for Cold Rush represents some of the top talent in the world, including: Mark Abma who skis out of Whistler, BC; Rory Bushfield, Whistler; Eric Hjorleifson, Whistler; Andy Mahre, Yakima, Washington; and Chris Rubens, Revelstoke, BC.

The high-level roster mirrors what Cold Rush aims to bring to North America's freeski scene. Although Canadians are renown as innovators in the sport, and our mountains premiere playgrounds, the freeski scene flourishes in the backcountry away from the eyes and minds of the general public. Cold Rush aims to bring the incredible skills of the participating athletes to a resort that accommodates their talents and to an audience that appreciates their performance.

Additional supporters of this event include K2, Diamir, Colltex, and of course, Red Mountain Resort.

For a full athlete roster, additional information on Cold Rush, and post-event images and video, please visit www.redbull.ca/coldrush.

Molson Canadian Freeskiing Championships 2003

J Dogg — Fri, 04 Apr 2003 00:00:00 -0500

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If Britney Spears were a freeskier, she'd live in Rossland, BC.

Well, uh, who knows what tickles Britney's fancy, but any skier lookin' for a good time should definitely hit Red Mountain sometime soon.

After last year's Freeskiing Challenge, rumours have been circulating around ski towns everywhere about Red Mountain... how sweet the terrain is, how deep the snow is, how empty it is... you name it. Next thing you know, most of the competitive freeskiiers in Whistler and the rest of the Pacific Northwest had packed their cars and B-lined it east for the 2003 Molson Canadian Freeskiing Championships.

We almost lost a few competitors along the pilgrimage, with at least 4 cars spinning out or crashing somewhere along the way, 1 being a total write off. But everyone made it alive... so many in fact that you'd think it was a stop on the World Tour of Freeskiing. Only difference... real prize money.

With packed powder and sunny skies, the qualifier was held on Lynx Line, right under the Motherlode chairlift. The day kicked off with a poach by a legendary 70-something year old guy who apparently skis Lynx Line every day, every run. Tryin' to make us look bad I guess. All the competitors skied hard and did their best to strut their freeskiing steez on this mellow but featured run, but only a few advanced. There were so many prequalified athletes in attendance that only the top 10 men and top 4 women made the cut to the competition. Another 5 guys were placed in the 'bubble', and would be allowed to compete if time allowed.

Day one of the competition went off on Mt Roberts; a sweet backcountry peak beside the Red Mountain resort. With its unreal amount of steeps, drops, gullies, ridges, and other terrain features to play with, Roberts makes for an awesome venue. Holding a freeskiing competition on this peak is like feeding chocolate doughnuts to a baby... the outcome is unknown, things will get outta control, and someone's gonna have a lot of fun.

All the competitors charged hard on day one, but you could tell Mt Roberts was out to punish most of the competitors. The run was so long that more than a few competitors were beggin' for Mommy towards the end of the run, but overall the level of skiing was high all day. Whistler's PY Leblanc skied a super solid line to score 1st position for day one, followed by Geoff Small from NZ and Guerlain Chicerit of France. Highlights included Daisuke Sasaki's retarded airs to flat landings, and Bob Kitchen emerging from the 5 person qualifier 'bubble' to ski a really strong line.

But then came Day 2. Hands down one of the most entertaining competitions in a long time. When Day 1 competitors Ian MacIntosh and Chris Mansbridge hooked up a microphone and some heavy metal, we knew good times were ahead. Skiers were givin'er all day, the carnage ensued, and the announcers weren't letting them off easy. Mathieu Imbert of France won DOGLOTION.com's vote for the Sillygoat Award (if there was won), by losing his ski half way down the run and continuing to rip the run on one ski, finishing with a tricky 1 ski straighline. Leif Zapf-Gilje pulled off the world's first backflip-to-phone-grab, one of those 'ya had to be there' kind of things. After losing his ski while landing a sweet backflip, Leif actually answered a call on his cell from announcer Chris Mansbridge who had called to joke about the lost ski. Doesn't get much better than that.

Moss Patterson scored the highest for Day 2, with a huge air at the top followed by some aggressive skiing and a laid out backflip at the bottom. Brett Crabtree skied the 2nd best line with fast, fluid skiing, followed by Eric Schmitz with his fast skiing and creative airs.

But nobody could catch up to Geoff Small who came 1st overall, followed by Eric Schmitz in 2nd and Moss Patterson in 3rd.

The ladies were chargin' it on Roberts as well. DOGLOTION team rider Marja Persson was leading after the first day, with AJ Cargill and Kim McKnight close behind. AJ skied a sweeeeet line on Day 2, but couldn't quite hold it together. Whistler ripper Karla Rizzuto scored 3rd for the day but it wasn't quite enough to bump her onto the podium. Lynsey Dyer of Montana skied the highest scoring line of the day, earning her 1st overall, bumping Marja to 2nd, and Kim McKnight held onto 3rd.

Pretty much everyone was stoked on the competition. The 2003 Molson Canadian Freeskiing Challenge went off without a hitch, the sun shone all week, and Mt Roberts showed us all who's boss.

But it wouldn't be a Rossland trip without a little extra curricular activity. Red Mountain is full of natural and unnatural obstacles to play with... old mining tunnels weaving through the mountain's innards, rock quarries providing an amphitheatre of double drops, and an abandoned industrial building that makes for some quality billygoating.

Meanwhile, the hilly town of Rossland is an urban playground for jibbers alike, with roofs, rails, and roadgaps just askin' to be hit. Only in Rossland can you slide rails in a stranger's yard... late at night, without permission... while that stranger casually watches you from their window above. That part might worry Britney, but it was all good with us.

Check out the VIDEO. (Sorry, video currently offline, back soon hopefully).

Maintaining the Vibe

J Dogg — Mon, 25 Feb 2002 00:00:00 -0500

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Maintaining the Vibe at the Molson Canadian Freeskiing Challenge 2002

The DOGLOTION.com crew showed up at Rossland BC in a staggered convoy of cars and trucks full of skiers and gear, eager for the Molson Canadian Freeskiing Challenge. Seemed like everyone and their dog had made the 10 hour pilgrimage from Whistler to Rossland, and no cheap motels were to be found. So we headed further east to the zinc-refining jewel they call Trail, BC, where our tracks led us to the seedy Crown Point Hotel. Our instant dizziness might have been from the fumes drifting through town, but we were convinced the walls and hallways were slanted just enough to make anyone queasy upon arrival.

After a night's sleep on the flea infested shag carpet floor, the convoys reassembled and we headed to a better place. On the way to Red Mountain, we couldn't help but ride the brakes as we rolled through the neighbouring town of Rossland, BC, where funky little shops and restaurants are surrounded by an endless playground of urban jibbing potential. Our shag carpet nightmares were soon a thing of the past, and the stoke factor was riding high.

At the mountain we hooked up with local ripper and snow-phone star Stefan Hood, who let us tag along for a fast-track tour of Red's sick terrain. The pea soup visibility was working against us all day, making the high tree line a key ingredient for good times. The Jedi knight scene was on all our minds as us Whistler boys tried to rail our big mountain skis through Red's notoriously tight trees. We bagged gullies, straight-lines, log slides, pillows and wicked tree runs all over the mountain, blindly led through the fog by Stefan's 'local' sensors. Below is Bob Kitchen making the most of the mountain, with style.

The next day brought bluebird skies and wicked scouting conditions for the Molson Canadian Freeskiing Challenge. 150 competitors showed up from around North America to compete in the Challenge, and the vibe of enthusiasm and excitement was unreal. Everyone dialed their lines for the Lynx line qualifier and the Mt Roberts final venue, only to be ambushed by Mother Nature on Day 1 of the Challenge. The women finished their runs, but Red's notorious mid-mountain fog forced event organizers to postpone the men's heat, using up their weather day right off the bat.

Day 2 of the Challenge turned out just as nasty, but the quick thinking organizers and mountain staff managed to pull off mogul/GS race from the top of Cliff's dive. It was far from ideal for anti-gate-bashing freeskiers, but nobody complained and the positive vibe held strong. Local boy James Heim nailed the fastest time of the day to win the qualifier.

Yet Mother Nature continued to tamper with conditions, forcing both final days of competition to be held on Lynx line under the chair. P-Y Leblanc smoked the competition in the semi's, only to take a roller in the finals for a third place finish. Caleb Martin from Telluride had really solid runs both days, and came home $5000 richer by winning the men's category. Local speed demon James Heim managed to bump up to 2nd place overall with his solid display of how it's done Red Mountain style. Ingrid Backstrom won the women's category, followed by Jen Ashton and Stephanie Gauvin.

The coolest part about the whole Challenge is how stoked everyone was, regardless of the lame weather and venues. The organizers did a killer job of pulling off a comp that was doomed by mother nature; local skiers were ecstatic to have all the competitors trample their hill; competitors charged hard everyday; and everyone strutted their stuff at apres and the after parties. All that combined with epic freeskiing sessions and side events like the Extreme Springboard Championships made the Molson Canadian Freeskiing Challenge a huge success overall. If Mother Nature is a little nicer next time, this could be standout competition on the schedule for sure. Check it out next year if you missed the action this season. If you did come out this year, you already know how much potential is brewing in the Molson Canadian Freeskiing Challenge.