Rockstar Ski Cross Grand Prix 2010

World Cup Ski Cross is coming to the east coast!

The Rockstar Ski Cross Grand Prix is being held at Blue Mountain Resort THIS JANUARY!

It is part of the FIS Freestyle World Cup and will showcase the world’s best ski cross racers to the east coast – including Canadian World Cup and World Championship medalists – just weeks before the 2010 Winter Olympic Games on Jan. 19-20, 2010.

The Canadian Ski Cross Team, such as Ashleigh McIvor, the 2009 FIS Women's World Champion and Stanley Hayer, the 2009 Winter X-Games winner and multiple World Cup medalist, will be racing in front of a home crowd for the first time ever at Blue Mountain.

The Rockstar Ski-Cross Grand Prix will hit the slopes then as a tune-up to the Olympic games in February. An added highlight will be the announcement of the 2010 ski-cross team by the Canada Ski Cross Association.

Ski Cross is a relatively new form of racing that combines elements of skiing and moto-cross. Four skiers at a time plunge down the specially-designed course in a multiple race reminiscent of short-track speed skating or roller derby on skis, said Blue Mountain Resort Marketing Director Paul Pinchbeck.

"It's going to attract the world to Blue Mountain," he said, "and show we have an attitude to match such a fresh, exciting event. It will likely be the most exciting event at the Olympic games, it's as spectator-friendly as they come, and we're very much looking forward to hosting it. It's another step on our journey as a true icon for tourism."

In the past 10 years, the sport's been phenomenally successful, going from novelty to official Olympic event.

"Our goal is to showcase ski cross as the coolest winter Olympic sport in Canada," said Cam Bailey, president of Canada Ski Cross. "Having the sport's Olympic debut at home presents a tremendous opportunity for us to igniate a passion for ski-cross in the hearts of all Canadians."

"It's the most explosive and innovative sport," added Gordie Bowles, SRC Magazine's Editor-in-Chief, during a news conference Tuesday at Blue Mountain.

There's been a dearth of World Cup events in eastern North America because the slopes here aren't generally suitable to meet the technical requirements demanded by the association. Locally, only Georgian Peaks is capable of hosting even a qualifying race for prospective World Cup racers, but can't host a World Cup race itself.

That's not a problem with ski-cross, said Pinchbeck, which has somewhat different requirements that traditional skiing.

"It's the coolest and most exciting of sports," said Chris Robinson, president of the Canadian Snow Sports Association.

The official training and qualifying will be completed on Jan. 19, 2010 with the heats, semi-finals and finals on Jan. 20, 2010.

Cam Bailey, President of Canada Ski Cross, will officially name its 2010 Olympic Team shortly following the Rockstar FIS World Cup Ski Cross event.

“Our goal is to showcase ski cross as the coolest winter Olympic sport in Canada,” Bailey said. “Having the sport’s Olympic debut at home presents a tremendous opportunity for us to ignite a passion for ski cross in the hearts of all Canadians.”

“This is where it starts for us; winning medals at this venue is an extremely powerful tool for us to give the sport the credibility it needs to build a solid foundation from which to develop the next generation of athletes, and engage future partners for the sport.”

The Canadian Freestyle Ski Association has also just received a six-month, $124,200 grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, which is an agency of the Government of Ontario. The funding from the grant is being used to help with the hosting of the event with regard to promotion, training for volunteers, community school programs, course building expenses and other equipment costs.

“The world’s best are coming to compete in the Blue Mountains and that’s great news for our area,” said Simcoe-Grey MPP Jim Wilson. “This will be an exciting event and I’m pleased that the province was able to support this initiative.”

Blue Mountain, a long-time supporter of snowsports events, is ready to host the world for the event. “Blue Mountain Resort is extremely proud to be host to the FIS Freestyle World Cup. The whole resort is buzzing with anticipation over introducing our area to the world,” said Paul Pinchbeck, Director of Marketing, Blue Mountain Resort.

Dave Giancoulos, Vice-President of Rockstar Energy Drink in Canada is pleased to announce a new partnership with the resort and this event. "The Rockstar Ski Cross Grand Prix is the perfect platform to showcase this emerging sport which we feel reflects our brands personality and speaks to our core consumers."

The World Snowsports Events Group, headed by event co-chairs Chris Robinson and Mark Kristofic, have planned a spectacular event that will feature a ski cross track designed by Jeff Ihaski, who has constructed a handful of World Cup and World Championship courses and will be the course designer for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

“Our first priority was to ensure that this is a high level athletic event,” said Kristofic, also the publisher of SRC Magazine. “The athletes are fine tuning their preparations for the 2010 Games so it was appropriate that we brought Jeff in to design the course. Those that have not witnessed ski cross first hand will be in for a real treat; it is hands down the most exciting spectator winter sport.”

The Rockstar Ski Cross Grand Prix will be broadcast on Rogers Sportsnet across Canada in two one-hour shows on February 6th and 7th. Show times in each region can be found by clicking on 'FIS Freestyle World Cup' at www.SkiTelevision.com/broadcastschedule.aspx .

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ABOUT BLUE MOUNTAIN RESORT
Blue Mountain, Ontario’s largest mountain resort is nestled on the shores of Georgian Bay, located 90 minutes north of Toronto. Spanning over 700 acres, Blue Mountain has become the four-season destination of the North, visited by more than 1.5 million guests a year. Winter at the resort boasts 36 ski and snowboard trails enhanced by a world-class snowmaking system. Summer months offer the largest downhill mountain biking facility in Ontario, Monterra Golf course and a private beach property among other seasonal attractions. Year-round the resort attracts visitors to over 900 luxury accommodation units and 40 unique concept restaurants, bars and retail stores in our pedestrian village. 37,500 square feet of state-of-the-art conference space caters year-round to corporate meeting groups. Blue Mountain is 50% owned by Intrawest ULC. Visit www.bluemountain.ca for more information.

For more information:

Kelly O’Neil
Public Relations Specialist
Blue Mountain Resort
Tel: 705-445-0231 ext: 6052
Email: koneil@bluemountain.ca

Gordie Bowles
Press Chief
World Snowsports Events Group
Tel: (778) 836-7700
Email: gordie@bkmedia.ca

All updates for the event will be posted on www.SRCmag.ca.

For more information, directions and further event details check out the Blue Mountian website.