udging for the event is based on smoothness, creativity, turn quality
and difficulty of line. "The Triple Crown, and the Unconventional
Terrain Competition in particular, seem to attract the best skiers from
all over,"
said Mad River Glen marketing director Eric Friedman. The event has
developed a reputation for the wildest ski competition in the East.
The Triple Crown is three days, three events, and one skier. The Triple
Crown combines the results of the Unconventional Terrain Competition,
the Vertical Challenge on February 25, and the Mogul Challenge on March
19, to crown the king and queen of the mountain. The winners of the
Triple Crown series will be named in the Basebox Lodge after the Mogul
Challenge.
This year the Unconventional Terrain Competition is part of the Ski The
East Freeride Tour (STEFT). The mission of the STEFT is to synchronize
the eastern freeride community by providing a completely unique platform
for the collaboration, competition, recognition and progression of East
Coast freeride skiing. By integrating each event into the collaborative
STEFT, we've created the opportunity for additional camaraderie,
competition and exposure for the events, mountains and contestants. The
STEFT has been officially sanctioned by the International Free Skiers
Association (IFSA), the governing body of the Subaru Freeskiing World
Tour. By doing so, the STEFT overall male and female point winners will
be awarded prequalification in the 2011/2012 Subaru Freeskiing World
Tour. This provides an incredible opportunity to allow the top eastern
talent to compete in the world-class event series. The Ski The East
Freeride Tour has created the opportunity for additional awards,
including an increased cash purse as well as heightened media exposure
for each event. The STEFT will help facilitate event awareness on a
larger scale through garnering mainstream print, television and internet
medias. Additional STEFT awards include the coveted Ski The East Shot
Ski Trophy, presented to the male and female first-place finishers of
each event, as well as a Bern Helmet for the Cliff Huckstable Award,
which will go to the athlete who executes the best air at each event.
@SUBHEAD = MRG & Sugarbush Team Up for Mountaineering Race
Mad River Glen and Sugarbush are once again teaming up to host the only
New England's event in the United States Ski Mountaineering
Association's
(USSMA) prestigious Randonnee Rally Ski Mountaineering Race Series. The
Mad River Valley event will take place on Sunday, February 6, 2011. The
Randonnee Rally Race Series is a series of ski mountaineering races held
at some of the premier resorts in North America. The Race Series test
the competitor's endurance, equipment and skiing skills while skinning
up and skiing down some of the toughest terrain that these resorts and
their surrounding mountains have to offer. This year's race series
includes stops in Sunshine Village, Canada; Crested Butte, Colorado;
Kirkwood, California; Alpental, Washington; and Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
The Mad River Valley Randonnee Race is a unique cooperative effort among
the Mad River Valley's neighboring ski areas. "The Mad River Valley is
home to the Monroe Skyline, one of the most spectacular stretches of
Vermont's Green Mountains. The Rally is a great way for Mad River Glen
and Sugarbush Resort to show off the Mad River Valley's amazing natural
beauty and challenging backcountry terrain," says Eric Friedman Mad
River Glen's Marketing Director.
"The terrain that lies between Sugarbush Resort and Mad River Glen is
extremely challenging; it ranks up there with some of the most technical
descents I've done around the world," remarked adventure skier and the
head of Sugarbush Resort Ski and Ride School John Egan.
There will be both a race and recreation class for both men and women at
all the races. The racing division competitors will be able to earn
points towards the overall series championship. Registration will take
place at the Mad River Glen Basebox from 8 to 9 a.m. with the start
scheduled for 10 a.m. For more information about the United States Ski
Mountaineering Association's
(USSMA) Randonnee Rally Ski Mountaineering Race Series visit their website at www.ussma.org.
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