PRESS RELEASES & NEWS FLASHES

SKIING LEGENDS WILL RACE FOR CHARITY AT TREMBLANT

Mont-Tremblant (QC), Canada (Mar. 19, 2001) - The Canadian Ski Museum, in conjunction with The Laurentian Ski Museum, will be hosting the annual "Legends Classic" ski race at Mt. Tremblant on Friday March 30, 2001 at 6:00pm. Many of the most prominent skiers in Canadian history, including Peter Duncan, Jean-Guy Brunet, Rhoda and Rhona Wurtele, and Remi Cloutier will be competing under the lights on the incredible Mt. Tremblant trails. For the first time ever, this popular annual event will be a night race. The revenue generated from this evening of fun goes to support the Canadian Ski Museum and the Laurentian Ski Museum.

If you are over forty and would like to test your skills against the legends, enter this fun giant slalom race where you can ski with some of the greatest skiers in Canadian history, and at the same time support the ski museums.

The entry fee is $50.00 per person, and includes your lift charges and the race itself as well as a dinner with the medal presentations at the Chalet des Voyageur. There will be a cash bar at the medal reception. The price is reduced to $35.00 for Mt. Tremblant season pass holders.

For pre-event registration, send checks payable to the
Canadian Ski Museum
1960 Scott St.
Ottawa, ON K1Z 8L8
fax: (613) 722-2914
email: skimuseum@magma.ca

Registration on the day of the race begins at 8:30am at the Chalet des Voyageur. Historic skiing attire is encouraged, but no racing suits are allowed.

For more information, call (613) 722-3584 or visit http://www.skimuseum.ca.

BIG WHITE ANNOUNCES NEW $20 MILLION RESORT

Big White Resort (BC), Canada (Mar. 19, 2001) - Big White Ski Resort Ltd. announced last week a new $20 million dollar resort condominium development called Stonebridge Lodge Resort. This development, the second to be launched at Big White Ski Resort for the 2001 summer building season, will feature 75 fully equipped two bedroom, two bathroom condominium-style suites that include fully equipped kitchens, gas fireplaces, private hot tubs and balconies.

Located in the southeast corner of Big White Village on Easy Street, the Stonebridge Lodge Resort will feature such guest amenities as a secure, heated parkade, fully equipped fitness centre, health spa, restaurant, lounge, concierge/guest service desk, gift shop, internet café, heated outdoor pool and spa all in an exceptional ski-in ski-out location.

Stonebridge Lodge will be developed by Lindenhome Corporation of Kelowna, B.C. with over $100 million dollars in completed projects, the most recent being the $18 million dollar Monticello in Westbank, B.C. "We are excited to unveil Stonebridge Lodge today as we feel there is no other ski resort more suited to develop first-class, resort-style accommodation in Canada than Big White." commented Mr. Dennis Skuter, President, Lindenhome Corporation.

"My family and I are very proud to welcome Mr. Skuter and his family into the group of prestigious developers that the resort has worked with over the past five years. It's companies like Dennis' that contributed to the substantial growth and popularity of Big White Ski Resort," said Peter Schumann, President, Big White Ski Resort Ltd. "We will be announcing many of our own resort improvement projects in the near future which will include accelerating the summer slope grooming with aggressive rock and stump removal and slope regrading, all of which has been in the works over the last three years."

"With some 9,200 beds now in use, and an additional 1044 scheduled for construction this summer, we are ecstatic by this announcement as it fulfills exactly what our American, European and Australian markets have been asking for," said Michael J. Ballingall, Vice President Resort Services.

SILVERTON PROPOSALS TO BE CONSIDERED SEPARATELY

Silverton, CO (Mar. 19, 2001) - As the saga of Colorado's newest potential ski area continues, The Silverton Outdoor Learning and Recreation Center (SOLRC) will proceed through the public lands (long term lease) process alone.

The Silverton Standard newspaper reported this past Thursday, "From a cell phone on a gondola in Aspen, Jim Jackson, owner of Velocity Peak, Inc. stated that he was not prepared to submit an application and was not going to be pressured by any time limits."

The deadline for submittal was March 12. This means that SOLRC will not be subjected to the delays that the larger Velocity Peak proposal might have caused, according to SOLRC spokesperson Jen Ader.

OLYMPIC LEGENDS SET TO BATTLE IN FIDELITY INVESTMENTS LEGENDS CUP

Squaw Valley, CA (Mar. 19, 2001) - In its second year, the Fidelity Investments Legends Cup moves from the future home of the Olympics in Deer Valley, Utah to the Olympic past of Squaw Valley, California on March 21, 2001. Olympic Gold medalists Phil Mahre (USA, 1984), Franz Klammer (AUT, 1976), and Tommy Moe (USA, 1994) are confirmed to compete on Resort Run for a chance at the Legends Cup.

"We are thrilled about the 2001 roster of ski legends," said Amanda Cohen, Vice President of TWI, the New York-based television production and event management company for the event. The Fidelity Investments Legends Cup brings together the world's best alpine skiers of all time for some fast and furious competition.

The event will take place on the Resort Run at the Resort at Squaw Creek in Squaw Valley, California on March 21, 2001 at 1:00 PM. A giant slalom relay format sets the stage for Austria, Canada, and the two United States teams to showcase their speed. The four teams, divided by country, will compete against each other in a round robin with the top two teams advancing to the finals. The teams will be comprised of the following athletes: Phil Mahre (USA), Diane Roff-Steinrotter (USA), Billy Kidd (USA), Steve Mahre (USA), Debbie Armstrong (USA), Tommy Moe (USA), Franz Klammer (AUT), Sylvia Eder (AUT), Franz Weber (AUT), Steve Podborski (CAN), Laurie Graham-Flynn (CAN), and Felix Belczyk (CAN).

The Fidelity Investments Legends Cup will be televised nationally on NBC as a one-hour sports special. The show will air on March 31, 2001 at 2:00 PM (EST).

VAIL SKI PATROL TESTING PROSPECTIVE HIRES FOR NEXT SEASON

Vail, CO (Mar. 19, 2001) - Skiers interested in becoming a member of the Vail Ski Patrol next year can test their ability and find out what it takes to be on patrol by participating in the Vail Ski Patrol Ski Test and Hiring Academy in March and April.

Ski Test
The first step in becoming a patroller is passing the ski test. The ski test will be offered two more times -- Sunday, March 19 and Saturday, March 25. Prospective patrollers should meet at the Lower Patrol Room, located on the lower level of the Vail Village ticket offices near the Lodge at Vail, at 8:30 a.m. on any of these days. Participation is free and limited to alpine and telemark skiers only.

Ski Patrol Academy
Participants who pass the ski test will be invited to attend the four-day Ski Patrol Hiring Academy held April 1, 2 and April 8, 9. Candidates will learn about and be observed executing necessary skills such as first aid, CPR, toboggan handling, lift evacuation, avalanche rescue drills and beacon rescue. Skiers must successfully complete the academy to be considered for the 2000-2001 Vail Ski Patrol staff. Cost for the academy is $100.

For more information on the Vail Ski Patrol Ski Test and Hiring Academy, call the Vail Ski Patrol at (970) 479-4610 and ask for Steve.

CRESTED BUTTE HEATS UP FOR ITS TWO HISTORIC EXTREME EVENTS THIS SPRING

Crested Butte, CO (Mar. 19, 2001) - The time of season has come to celebrate the Crested Butte "Extremes", the two now-legendary events that popularized extreme skiing and riding and showcased to the world some of the most daring in-bounds big mountain terrain in the U.S. The events, officially called the 10th Annual SAAB U.S. Extreme Freeskiing Championships presented by Magna Bloc, and the 7th Annual Magna Bloc U.S. Extreme Boarderfest presented by Subaru, will run back-to-back at Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) from March 25 - April 5.

Some 300 competitors, mostly young skiers and riders hoping to launch themselves further in their sport and possibly into stardom, will come to test their athleticism in Crested Butte's rugged, backcountry-style Extreme Limits- 824 acres of double-black diamond, ungroomed, experts-only terrain.

"Crested Butte's competitions have always been open events-- any skier or snowboarder can qualify to enter, based solely on ability-- and have repeatedly identified future stars," said Gina Kroft, CBMR's Director of Public Relations and Special Events and co-founder of both events. "Some of the best known freeskiers in the country, people like Dave 'Swany' Swanwick, Seth Morrison, Brant Moles, Shane McConkey and Alison Gannett, were either unknowns or 'up and comers' until they came here, competed and took top honors in the U.S. Extremes."

SNOWBOARDING BLOWOUT

The two extreme weeks begin with the U.S. Extreme Boarderfest, a four-day, three-discipline snowboarding open now in its seventh year. The ultra-popular Boardercross and Triple Big Air contests kick off the competition on March 26th and 27th respectively. The fast-speed action and flips are easily viewed from intermediate terrain under the Goldlink and Teocalli Lifts.

The two-day classic extreme competition begins on Wednesday as riders tackle Crested Butte's experts-only bowls, glades and steeps, earning points for aggressiveness, form, fluidity, line choice and control. After the first day, the field is reduced by half, and the remaining riders are left to duke it out on one of the most difficult sections in the Extreme Limits.

Winners of the 2001 event take home a total in cash and prizes of $35,000, with $1,500 each (men's and women's) to the first-place winners of the Boardercross and Big Air comps, and $2,500 each for the winners of the Extremes.

SKIING EVENT CELEBRATES TEN YEARS

The season's grand finale is a special ten-year anniversary celebration of the U.S. Extreme Freeskiing Championships, March 29 - April 5. Inspired by the late Bob Gillen, a former VP of Marketing Communications for CBMR, this landmark event will also be a "homecoming celebration" for the sports media, sponsors and founders of the extreme and freeskiing movements.

The event will open with a first-ever Novice Extreme Clinic, March 29 - 31, led by four-time U.S. Extreme champion Jill Sickels Matlock and several other veteran freeskiing instructors and competitors. Extreme wannabes will develop and test their skills for three days to earn a chance to compete in the legendary U.S. Extremes course.

An Extreme Summit seminar will take place on March 31. Discussions on the sport's transition from "extreme" to "freeskiing" and its ensuing diversification will be led by a panel of industry leaders including Jason Naumoff, ESPN X Games Asst. Director of Marketing and Communications; Peter Oliver, Skiing Magazine Contributing Editor; Michael Jaquet, Freeze Magazine Publisher; John Egan, extreme skiing legend; Brooks Parsons, Exec. VP and Julie Sowold, VP of Sports Marketing for Paul Mitchell Systems; and Uncle E, forefather of the skiercross movement. John Meyer, columnist at The Denver Post, and John Sandy Santucci, president of John Sandy Productions will moderate.

The tenth annual U.S. Extremes begins April 2 with the Swiss Army Skiercross event, introduced just two years ago. The head-to-head competition brings high speed action to the slopes under the Goldlink Lift, easily accessible for viewing. Then the venues change-- from man-made berms and banks to the natural hazards and solitude of the Extreme Limits-for three days of extreme competition. A field of 160 skiers will charge down super-technical steeps with pitches from 39-45 degrees to determine the next U.S. Extreme champion.

Winners take home $6,500 each (men's and women's), the most prize money ever for an extreme/freeskiing competition. A total cash and prize purse of more than $45,000 will be awarded to the top finishers in each category, including juniors, masters and disabled.

SEE IT ON TV

John Sandy Productions (JSP), the video production company and co-founder of the U.S. Extreme Freeskiing Championships, will film both events for televising on ESPN, espn2 and in network syndication nationwide.

Scheduled Air Dates:

Magna Bloc U.S. Extreme Boarderfest

ESPN Monday, April 23 4:00-4:30pm EST
Espn2 Monday, April 30 5:30-6:00pm EST

SAAB U.S. Extreme Freeskiing Championships & Swiss Army Skiercross

ESPN Monday, April 23 4:30-5:00pm EST
Espn2 Monday, April 30 6:00-6:30pm EST

TO ATTEND

For more information or to register for the Novice Extreme Clinic, call the Crested Butte Ski & Snowboard School at 800-444-9236. For lodging and lift ticket packages, call Crested Butte Vacations at 800-544-8448.

ATTENTION ATHLETES: To register for the 7th annual Magna Bloc U.S. Extreme Boarderfest or the 10th annual SAAB U.S. Extreme Freeskiing Championships and Swiss Army Skiercross, contact Janel Price at 970-349-2303, or e-mail jprice@cbmr.com.

KEYSTONE'S SECOND ANNUAL SNOWSPORTS SPRING FOOLS TRIATHLON COMING MAR. 31st

Keystone, CO (Mar. 19, 2001) - Keystone Resort is looking for a few “fools” for its Second Annual Snowsports Spring Triathlon on March 31. This is no joke. “This is your chance to get in the spirit of April Fools’ Day,” said Elizabeth Tobias, special events coordinator. “Everyone is welcome so come and join us for this zany triathlon.”

“Keystone’s Spring Fools’ Winter Triathlon” will feature a steep snowshoe up the Last Hoot ski run to the transition area near Packsaddle Bowl/Lower Go Devil. Participants will then hop on skis, board, or telemark skis for a ride down Lower Go Devil to the bottom of the Mountain House base area and an obstacle course to the finish.

Spectators are encouraged to come and cheer on their friends and other “fools” at the Mountain House Base Area. The awards party is set for 4:30 p.m. at The Mountain House and will include prizes and raffles, as well as food, beverages and music.

Participants are encouraged to wear a helmet for the downhill portion of the race. The race begins at 3:00 p.m. on March 31. Free parking is available at the Montezuma parking lot located in River Run. Shuttles run from River Run to the Mountain House all day long.

For more information or to register, contact Julie Ogden at 970-496-4628 or pick up a registration form from the Keystone Cross Country Center, Keystone Village Adventure Center or Mountain Guest Services starting Monday, March 12. Pre-registration is only $15 a person. Registration will also be available the day of the race and will cost $20.

NEW TOP OFFICIALS TO LEAD TELLURIDE INTO THE FUTURE

Telluride, CO (Mar. 19, 2001) - Following the recent agreement to purchase 100 percent ownership of the Telluride Ski & Golf Company (Telski), Hideo “Joe” Morita of Morita Investments International (MINT) has outlined his management structure for the ski company.

Chief Operating Officer Johnnie Stevens will run the resort, overseeing all aspects of day-to-day business, and will report directly to Telski’s executive board of directors. The board - a team of passionate skiers, snowboarders and ski industry veterans - includes Carol Templeton, director of MINT; Betsy Cole, chief financial officer of Booth Creek Ski Holdings, Inc. (Booth Creek); Ron Allred, Telski chairman and chief executive officer; Jim Wear, president of Morita Properties and Telski executive vice president of real estate; and ski industry veteran Chris Ryman, assuming the title of president of Telski. Ryman’s responsibilities at Telluride are in addition to his role as president and chief operating officer of Booth Creek.

The board will be involved in strategic planning and positioning of the resort but will place the decision-making power and daily management of resort operations in the hands of Stevens and his management team.

Stevens has worked in a variety of capacities within the ski company for more than two decades. In fact, Stevens’ first day on the job at Telski was Aug. 22, 1971, just months before the ski area first opened. As a member of numerous organizations, including the Telluride Adaptive Ski Program, Hospital District, Rotary Club and Chamber of Commerce, Stevens is an extremely active and integral part of the Telluride community.

“The board is pleased to build upon the previous owners’ vision,” said Morita, of Ron Allred and Jim Wells. “We are equally thrilled to be a part of the community and to place the company in Johnnie’s very capable, caring hands. Johnnie’s knowledge of the ski mountain and commitment to the community make him the ideal candidate to head up the experienced management team that will lead Telluride into the future.

“We strongly believe in on-site ownership and representation,” Morita continued. “We are thrilled to empower such a strong board and management team that treasures Telluride’s community, history and tradition. The leadership is committed to preserving Telluride’s authenticity and charm while ensuring its prosperity and providing a world-class mountain experience.”

Last month, MINT committed to a $14 million investment for the 733-acre Prospect Bowl expansion area, which includes three, high-speed detachable quads, infrastructure and buildings, trail work, snowmaking and construction of guest service and dining facilities. This new ski terrain nearly doubles the amount of lift served terrain available on Telluride Mountain.

7th ANNUAL RUBBER LEGS 150 COMING TO VAIL NEXT MONTH

Vail, CO (Mar. 19, 2001) - Vail’s Mountain Madness – A Marathon on Skis & Boards, is gearing up for the 7th Annual Rubber Legs 150. For the past six years the organizers of Warren Miller’s Mad Mountain Marathon have brought a little madness to the slopes of Vail, Colorado as they celebrate with the community the end of another great winter season.

The Mad Mountain Marathon got started with a crazy idea that Warren Miller had, to ski from the top of Simba Run to the bottom without stopping, don’t forget to add in the 150 gates set up in-between. Hence the name: RUBBER LEGS 150.

With a new Millennium, comes a new look, and also a new name for this Wild and Crazy event; Vail’s Mountain Madness – A Marathon on Skis & Boards. The resort has said goodbye to the events namesake last year as Warren Miller moved to Montana. But the more than 2500 loyal snow fanatics weren’t quite ready to retire to the Rubber Legs 150.

In comes Wells Fargo Bank. “This an exciting community event that’s fun for the entire family” said Ron Rozga, President of Wells Fargo Bank. “ I hope everyone comes out and joins us for a fun filled day on the slopes.”

Hailed as the largest downhill ski/snowboard race in the world, the Wells Fargo Vail Mountain Madness will challenge skiers and snowboarders to weave through a course of over 150 gates in hopes that they can make it the finish line. Over the years participants of the Mad Mountain Marathon have skied, boarded, slid and even fallen through over 1500 gates to cross the finish line of this wild and wacky race.

The “Rubber Legs 150,” the longest top-to-bottom on-snow racecourse ever run, highlights the daylong celebration of fun on snow. The 150-gate course starts at Vail Mountain’s Adventure Ridge, continues down the intermediate-level Simba trail and ends near the bottom of the Eagle Bahn gondola in Lionshead. The course covers 2,100 vertical feet, or two miles, of snow sliding for each participant. The $60.00 entry fee includes a full-day lift ticket, a spot in the race and an entrance to the post-event party hosted this year by Gravity, including the Vail Daily’s annual Costume contest.

According to organizers, this year’s event will be the biggest, longest and wildest Marathon yet. “This event,” said Margie Plath, President/CEO of the Colorado Ski Museum-Ski Hall of Fame, “has a life of its own. This is one of the few family events that’s fun for everyone. We expect to have up to 500 Marathoners of all ages to run the 'longest great race in history.'

“The three things that make this race successful are the participants, the sponsors and the volunteers. It takes over 150 volunteers to pull off this race and each year everyone shows up with a smile, their skis and boards ready to work hard, but most importantly they are ready to play hard," said Plath.

As for the actual race, “if Vail Resorts permits you on the lift, you can ski the course on whatever you’ve got on your feet,” said Plath. “The course has something for everyone, including our youngest racers. Last year, our youngest racer was 5 years old and the oldest was 85.”

This year, the longer course and larger field will mean extend hours of racing. The first racer will push off at 11:00 a.m. and the last will cross the finish line at 3:00 p.m. For those interested in taking the Team Challenge, teams of four can compete in the Marathon, using their aggregate for bragging rights and inscription on the Team trophy, on permanent display at the Colorado Ski Museum-Ski Hall of Fame. Competitors will be racing for time and the chance to win some awesome prizes valued at more than $20,000. All their entry fees and additional sponsorship dollars for this fund-raiser, however, will benefit the Colorado Ski Museum and Ski Club Vail. Over the years this event has raised over $250,000.

Every racer completing the course will receive the commemorative Vail Mountain Madness T-shirt. Event partners contributing prizes as well as financial support over the years for the Vail Mountain Madness Marathon, include: Vail Resorts, Pepsi-Cola Company, Ocean Spray, Bolle, American Airlines, Coors, Motorola, Vail Daily, Graebel Companies, The Skiing Company, AT&T Cable Services, Peregrine Press, High Sierra, Hawaiian Tropic and the Vail Cascade Hotel and Club. Beneficiaries for this year’s event include: Colorado Ski Museum – Ski Hall of Fame and Ski Club Vail.

The role of the Colorado Ski Museum is to bridge the gap between the past & the present. To foster an appreciation of skiing and snowboarding and its great legacy. To honor the individuals whose dedication to sportsmanship, character, and superior performance in all aspects of the sport be preserved and appreciated. The mission of the Colorado Ski Museum is that the history and legacy of skiing and snowboarding in Colorado is preserved and appreciated.

Ski Club Vail was founded in 1964, and is devoted to athletic and personal development through the sport of ski and snowboard racing. The dominant force in ski racing in the Rockies as well as nationally, the club has placed many of its members and staff on the United States Ski and Snowboarding Teams.

The 2001 Wells Fargo Mountain Madness Marathon schedule:
Saturday, April 7th, 2001
Vail, Colorado
7:30a.m. – 9:45 a.m. Race Day Registration Trail’s End, Lionshead
9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Race Clinic for all participants
11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Rubber Legs 150
4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Awards Reception and Post-Race Party - Trail’s End, Lionshead

For entry information or additional information about the Marathon’s sponsors and beneficiaries, or to sign-up for the race, write or call Jennifer Bruno, Colorado Ski Museum, P.O. Box 1976, Vail, CO 81658, (970) 476-1876. E-mail is Skimuse@vail.net. For on-line registration, click to www.vailsoft.com/museum.

NORTHSTAR-AT-TAHOE OFFERS TELEMARK CLINIC APRIL 1st

Truckee, CA (Mar. 19, 2001) - Free-heelers of all ability levels are invited to take advantage of Northstar's Telemark Clinics Sunday, April 1 from 10am - 3pm. From aspiring to advanced Telemark skiers, Northstar's professional instructors will offer participants new techniques to build confidence and improve their overall skills.

The Learn to Telemark clinic is an introduction to the basics of Telemark skiing on beginner terrain. The cost is $52 which includes a beginner access lift ticket and instruction. The Improve clinic is the ticket for free-heelers in learning to link smoothly timed turns, use poles, and improve body position and dynamic skills on blue runs. The Advanced clinic will take more experienced skiers to the next level. This high energy clinic will focus on moguls, off-piste terrain and building confidence on the steeps. The Improve and Avanced clinics are $75 and include a full access lift ticket and instruction. All clinics begin at 10am at Northstar's Cross-Country, Telemark and Snowshoe Center. Telemark ski rentals are available for an additional $20 per day.

VAIL RESORTS LAUNCHES NEW "SPACE NOT SPEED" SAFETY CAMPAIGN ON THE SLOPES

Avon, CO (Mar. 19, 2001) - As the ski industry entered the official start of the spring break period this past weekend, “Space not Speed” is the new safety education campaign that skiers and snowboarders noticed on the slopes of Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone.

“Space not Speed” is designed as an extension of Your Responsibility Code and the National Ski Area Association’s “Heads Up” campaign. This new initiative is part of a continued effort to educate skiers and snowboarders about the necessity to control their speed and to maintain a safe buffer zone between themselves and other skiers, snowboarders, trees and stationary objects.

“Safety is a top priority at each of our resorts,” said Andy Daly, president of Vail Resorts. “We’re continually fine-tuning our on-mountain education and enforcement programs, and this new initiative is yet another tool for making skiers and snowboarders aware of their responsibility on the slopes.”

Bright yellow banners, posters and lift tower signage with the message “Space not Speed” will be displayed at each of the four resorts. On-mountain employees will sport buttons that read, “Ask me about Space not Speed,” as part of an effort to interact with guests about the subject.

“Skiing and riding is much like driving,” Daly explained. “You may drive on the same road everyday but adjust your speed depending on the conditions and amount of traffic given the time of day. It’s no different for skiers and snowboarders, who need to use the same common-sense practices when sharing the slopes.”

Following are the key message points of the campaign that appear on posters and banners in various locations at the base of each resort and on the slopes:

• Always ski and ride within your ability.
• Learn to turn to maintain control.
• Check your speed.
• Give yourself enough space to avoid other skiers, snowboarders, trees and stationary objects.

As a reminder to all mountain users, Your Responsibility Code states:

• Always stay in control.
• People ahead of you have the right of way.
• Stop in a safe place for you and others.
• Whenever starting downhill or merging, look uphill and yield.
• Use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.
• Observe signs and warnings, and keep off closed trails.
• Know how to use the lifts safely.

X NIX U.S. SNOWBOARD CHAMPIONSHIPS VISIT SUNDAY RIVER

Bethel, ME (Mar. 19, 2001) - Maine already boasts its share of trucks on the road, but there will be two more added to the fleet as the X Nix U.S. Snowboard Championships truck into Sunday River March 21-26.

Not only will national champions be crowned in slalom, parallel giant slalom, superpipe and snowboardcross, but two riders will take home new trucks as the event doubles as the Chevy Truck U.S. Snowboard Grand Prix Finals.

The event opens Wednesday, March 21 with a snowboardcross that was not found on the original schedule. It was moved to the Sunday River stop after the Grand Prix snowboardcross at Mammoth Mountain, Calif. on Feb. 10 was canceled due to heavy snowfall. It will serve as the first snowboardcross of the Grand Prix season and will also be part of the International Snowboard Federation’s (ISF) World Series.

Riders will compete in time trials on the course Wednesday and hope to qualify for Thursday’s finals. Competitors that were slated to ride at Mammoth will automatically be entered at Sunday River. The event will not be the national snowboardcross championship, but will award Grand Prix points.

Thursday will be a busy day as the hardbooters begin action with men’s and women’s slalom races. Parallel giant slalom, one of two 2002 Olympic disciplines, will follow Friday. As usual, the best North American riders are expected to compete, fresh off International Ski Federation (FIS) World Cup Finals in Ruka, Finland.

Last season at Okemo Mt., Vermont, Anton Pogue (Hood River, OR) and Rosey Fletcher (Girdwood, AK) won the U.S. slalom championship, while Chris Klug (Aspen, CO) and Sondra Van Ert (Ketchum, ID) were tabbed the U.S. champions in the giant slalom.

Entering the Sunday River alpine events, Canadian Jasey Jay Anderson leads the Grand Prix alpine standings. He won a parallel giant slalom and took second in a giant slalom already this season. For the women, Stacia Hookom (Edwards, CO) is on top after winning a parallel GS and finishing fifth in a giant slalom. However, Van Ert is right on her tail, just 50 points shy of Hookom.

Saturday brings about the superpipe event and the field is sure to be stacked as riders will come to Sunday River from the U.S. Open at Stratton Mt., Vermont, held the previous weekend. Among the competitors will be reigning U.S. halfpipe champions Adam Petraska (Andover, VT) and Kim Stacey (Stratton Mt., VT).

As far as the Grand Prix pipe standings go, 18 year-old ripper Danny Kass (Hamburg, NJ) leads the pack after winning superpipe contests at Okemo Mt. and Breckenridge. Kass, who took the gold at this season’s X Games, has been going huge all winter and pulled what could be the biggest air-to-fakie ever at Breckenridge. Kass is not quite the odds-on favorite as ’98 Olympic bronze medalist Ross Powers (S. Londonderry, VT) has turned it on as of late and is just 200 points behind Kass. Powers won the most recent Grand Prix at Mammoth and was second at Okemo Mt.

For the women, veteran Tricia Byrnes (Stratton Mt., VT) has a solid lead as she won at Okemo Mt. and Mammoth and was second at Breckenridge. She’ll face stiff competition in Maine, most notably from U.S. teammates Kelly Clark (Mt. Snow, VT) and Gretchen Bleiler (Snowmass Village, CO).

The U.S. snowboardcross championship event is Sunday. Last year’s winner Seth Wescott (Farmington, ME) will miss the event after recent knee surgery, so a new champion will be crowned.

The overall Grand Prix winners, both men and women, will drive away from Sunday River with a brand-new truck. Currently, Kass leads the overall men’s standings with 2,500 points and Powers is second with 2,300.

It’s not a two-man race, however, as Canadian Anderson, last year’s overall winner, is third with 1,800 points. Anderson holds the trump card as he has proven to be an all-around rider. At last season’s Grand Prix Finals, he needed to finish second in the snowboardcross to win the title and he did just that. Primarily an alpine racer, Anderson can also ride the pipe if need be.

Byrnes appears to be the favorite for the women’s Grand Prix title with 2,800 points. Clark is second with 2,000 and Bleiler is third with 1,750. The closest alpine competitor is Hookom with 1,450 points but she has two races to collect important points.

The Sunday River extravaganza concludes Monday with a second superpipe contest. It will have no bearing on the Grand Prix standings, but riders will compete for important FIS points that could earn their country Olympic quota spots.

X Nix U.S. Snowboard Championships/Chevy Truck U.S. Snowboard Grand Prix Finals
Schedule of Events (all times EST)

Wednesday, March 21
10:00 a.m., snowboardcross time trials

Thursday, March 22
9:00 a.m., slalom
1:30 p.m., snowboardcross finals

Friday, March 23
9:30 a.m., parallel giant slalom qualifiers
12:30 p.m., parallel giant slalom finals

Saturday, March 24
9:00 a.m., men’s superpipe qualifiers
1:30 p.m., women’s superpipe qualifiers
7:00 p.m., superpipe finals

Sunday, March 25
9:00 a.m., snowboardcross time trials
12:30 p.m., snowboardcross finals

Monday, March 26
9:00 a.m., superpipe qualifiers
1:45 p.m., superpipe finals

GEAR UP FOR SPRING BY "SNOW GOLFING" AT GORE

North Creek, NY (Mar. 19, 2001) - Gore Mountain's 5th Annual Spring Classic "Snow Golf" will be held Mar. 24-25 at this Adirondack Mountain ski resort. This two-day event is just like golfing, only made more fun with skis! Golfers are on a nine-hole, 1.5-mile snow course where good aim can earn excellent prizes from several local golf courses. A professional golfer will be available to assist participants with their technique.

"Snow Golf" promises fun for both teams and individuals. Participants will have one chance at each hole to come as close to the flag as possible. A shot in the outer circle of the bullseye around the flag earns two points, the middle circle five, and the inner ten. Tiebreakers will be determined by a sudden death golf-out.

Guests can sign up for tee times that range from 10 a.m. through 3 p.m. Prizes for teams and individuals will be presented at an awards ceremony in the Tannery Lounge at 4 p.m. each day.

Gore Mountain is host to several events throughout the spring, including the Pole Pedal Paddle quadathalon Apr. 1st, Pond Skimming Apr. 7th, and a free Easter egg hunt for children Apr. 15th. For more information, click on http://www.goremountain.com or call (518) 251-2411.

INTERESTING FACTS & FIGURES FROM THE WORLD CUP SEASON

(Mar. 19, 2001) - Some interesting facts and figures from the 2000/2001 World Cup season:

Teenage winners: Two months after her 19th birthday, Janica Kostelic of Croatia won the overall World Cup standings at Are, Sweden. She is the fourth teenage winner in history, but not the youngest.

Annemarie Moser-Proell of Austria was exactly 18 years old when she triumphed in 1971, Michelle Jacot of France was 18 years and three months when she clinched the title in 1970 and Michela Figini of Switzerland was not yet 19 when she went to the top, in 1985.

With her nine wins for the season, Croatia’s first world-class ski-racer, who collected her first win at the age of 17 when she took the St Anton combination, brought the average age of the winners down to under 25. Régine Cavagnoud of France was the only winner over 30 - the French athlete started collecting victories only after her 28th birthday.

"Older" winners: Anita Wachter of Austria, who managed to grab a victory last year at 33 years of age, could not follow up in this, her final season, and had to be content with a best of eighth place.

On the men’s tour, Michael von Gruenigen of Switzerland, Austrian Stephan Eberharter and Sweden’s Frederik Nyberg were three successful racers of the “old“ generation. They all celebrate their 33rd birthday within the next few days.

However, they were beaten by Hannes Trinkl of Austria, who, at the age of 33, became the oldest World Champion in history when he took gold in the downhill in St Anton, and Swiss skier Paul Accola, 34, who became the oldest World Championship medal-winner ever when he clinched bronze in the combined.

A few statistical details: Austria topped the nation’s standings for the 12th time in a row, but in terms of podium places the upward trend was broken for the first time since the season of 1994/95.

After 107 podium places last season, the Austrian racers won “only“ 80 this year. The number of victories decreased from 39 to 30, the women’s wins from 14 to six. However, 39.6% of the podium finishes were taken by Austrian racers. In other words, in each World Cup race there was an Austrian among the top three.

Thirteen victories: This was Swedish skiing legend Ingemar Stenmark’s record set in 1978/79, which was tied by Austrian Hermann Maier this season. The Swedish racer set his record by winning ten giant slaloms and three slaloms.

Maier would have very likely beaten this record were it not for the number of races cancelled this season: six men’s races and three women’s had to be cancelled – more than ever before.

Eight slalom races in a row: These were taken by Kostelic, plus a combination. With her winning streak she tied Swiss skier Vreni Schneider’s record. The Swiss woman had won seven slalom races in the 1988/89 season, plus the first in the 1989/90 season.

Schneider remains the only racer to win all the slaloms events in one season. Kostelic, however, has actually won ten in a row: before winning eight races this year, she won two others at the beginning of last season before being sidelined for a full year due to a torn ligament.

Series: At Are, an incredible series almost ended. Von Gruenigen slipped with only a few gates to go in the giant slalom but was able to remain standing thanks to an acrobatic move. The incident cost him the World Cup crystal globe, but von Gruenigen can continue to prolong his series: since 1992, in Adelboden, he has not been eliminated once in 76 World Cup giant slaloms. His last failure occurred in the Lillehammer Olympic Games in 1994.

High numbers I: Running number 35, Austrian Heinz Schilchegger won the first slalom of his career. Only two racers managed to win from further behind: Mario Matt of Austria had number 47 at Kitzbeuhel last year, while Italian Piero Gros ran number 47 at Madonna di Campiglio in 1972. The Italian managed a very rare achievement as it was his first World Cup race ever.

High numbers II: There were only two more winners with numbers higher than 30: Christoph Gruber of Austria took the Bormio giant slalom with number 32 and Maier the Kvitfjell downhill with number 31.

High numbers III: On the women’s tour, all the downhill winners had numbers between 22 to 30, as Austrian Renate Goetschl and Italian Isolde Kostner always choose high numbers. These tactics failed at Lenzerheide and Are, where Kirsten Clark of America and Hilde Gerg of Germany won with number five.

US podium finishes: US racers finished on the giant slalom podium for the first time since Phil Mahre in 1984. Two racers were successful: Bode Miller (3rd place at Val d'Isère) and Erik Schlopy at Bormio and Are. Schlopy is the most prominent racer who came back to the World Cup from the US Professional tour (1996 - 1999).

Slalom juniors: Three years ago the men’s slalom was clearly dominated by older racers. At 29 years and eight months, Austrian Thomas Sykora was by far the youngest World Cup winner then as Alberto Tomba of Italy, Austrian Thomas Stangassinger and Finn Jagge of Norway were over 32.

Now, however, Schilchegger, 27, is by far the oldest. Austrian Benjamin Raich, Matt and Pierrick Bourgeat of France belong to the young carving generation.

First wins: Apart from Schilchegger, Hans-Petter Buraas of Norway also celebrated his first career victory. The Norwegian has been Olympic Champion, but in the World Cup he had never been lucky. It was only well after the race that he knew about his victory as Schilchegger, who had posted the fastest time in the Sestriere slalom, was disqualified.

First victories were also realized by Italian Alessandro Fattori in the downhill, Gruber in giant slalom, both Petra Haltmayr of Germany and Clark in downhill, as well as Carole Montillet of France in super-G.

Moving up I: Bourgeat is a specialist for moving up from behind. Two years ago, when he won his first race at Park City, he jumped from 14th to the top, and this season, in Shigakogen, he leaped from ninth to first.

As well, he came from behind to finish on the podium another two times: in 1998 at Grajnska Gora he moved up from 18th to second, while at Sestriere this year he finished third from 21st place. However, he has proved he is also able to win from the top position: in the second slalom at Shigakogen, he won after posting the fastest time in the first run.

Moving up II: Even more successful than Bourgeat was Germany’s Martina Ertl: she won the opening giant slalom at Soelden from 17th place, which is the record on the women’s tour.

The all-time best is held by Raich, who won at Schladming two years ago, moving up from 23rd place. Even 27 places were made up by Austrian Karin Koellerer (from 30th to third at Berchtesgaden last year). Also impressive is Switzerland’s Urs Imboden who moved up from 30th to fifth at Park City.

Record margins men: Only six out of 32 men’s races ended with a margin of a second or more. Four times the winner was Maier, with 1.74 seconds being the largest lead, once von Gruenigen (1.64 at Les Arcs) and once Raich (1.29 seconds in the Wengen slalom).

In the speed events, however, the margins were as small as never before: the downhills were never won by a margin larger than 0.5 seconds, while in the super-Gs – with one exception – it was 0.32 seconds at best.

Record margins women: In the women’s races the margins were even smaller. In only four races out of 33 was the winner more than a second ahead. Sonja Nef of Switzerland took the Are giant slalom with the season’s best of 1.79 seconds. Kostelic managed to win three slaloms with a margin of more than a second.

Smallest margin: Twice there was only 0.01 seconds between the winner and the runner-up, strangely enough in the two Garmisch super-Gs. The men’s race was won by Gruber 0.01 seconds ahead of Maier, while the super-G was taken by Goetschl ahead of Montillet.

Brands: The brand standings were clearly won by Atomic (men) and Salomon (women). Men: 1. Atomic 10,536 points. 2. Salomon 3,130. 3. Head 2,284. 4. Fischer 1,650. 5. Rossignol 1,461. 6. Nordica 1,197. 7. Stoeckli 948. 8. Völkl 699. 9. Elan 641. 10. Dynastar 341. – Women: 1. Salomon 8,172. 2. Rossignol 4,325. 3. Völkl 3,223. 4. Fischer 2,330. 5. Atomic 2,019. 6. Blizzard 1,957. 7. Dynastar 800. 8. Elan 397. 9. Nordica 330. 10. Head 138. 11. Stöckli 5.

JUNIOR OLYMPIANS FLIP AND FLY

Whitefish, MT (Mar. 19, 2001) -Nearly 170 young skiers converged on Big Mountain in Whitefish, Mont. to compete in the Chevy Truck Junior Olympic Freestyle Championship. The event, held March 8-11, previewed the future of Olympic skiing as teenagers with mature command of the bumps below and airspace above turned in showcase performances in disciplines for moguls, dual moguls and upright/inverted aerials.

"This year, we raised the bar for quality at this event," said Steve Knox, Big Mountain's Freestyle Events Coordinator. "In addition, beautiful, sunny weather made for high excitement and great energy."

Stefan Turkula of Eden Prairie, Minn., combined two very difficult tricks, including a 540 Iron Cross for his inverted jump requirement, to capture gold in the aerials for men. Bill Kelly of Minneapolis, Minn., finished second overall with Matt Matuskowitz of Carnelian, Calif., following. Maryann Skraba of Steamboat Springs, Colo., topped the women, with Brittany Biebl of Carbondale, Colo., and Amy Deneen of Cle Elum, Wash., finishing with the next best scores in the overall lineup.

Next up was the mogul competition, where Baylor Harris of Mount Desert, Maine, with speed and style, edged out John Eaton of Morrison, Colo. Stefan Turkula again showed up on the scoreboard for a third overall. McKenzy Golding of Reno, Nev., won the gold in women's, with Amber Ramos of S. Lake Tahoe, Calif., and Alison Levy of Denver, Colo., following to take second and third overall.

Male Dual Moguls brought Nick Hanscom of Ketchum, Idaho, to the podium for gold, while David Beck of Tahoe Vista, Calif., finished second overall and Eric Lehman of Littleton, Colo., settled for third overall. In the women’s division, Alison Levy of Denver, Colo., beat out Heidi Degenhardt of Hayden, Idaho in overall scoring. Ani Haas of Missoula, Mont., finished third.

RESULTS

1. Maryann Skraba, Steamboat Springs, Colo. 93.70
2. Brittany Biebl, Carbondale, Colo., 92.72
3. Amy Deneen, Cle Elum, Wash., 92.44

(Mar. 8) Men’s Upright Aerials

1. Stefan Turkula, Eden Prairie, Minn., 145.09
2. Bill Kelly, Minneapolis, Minn., 132.82
3. Matt Matuskowitz, Carnelian Bay, Calif., 126.85

(Mar. 9) Women’s Moguls

1. McKenzy Golding, Reno, Nev., 23.54
2. Amber Ramos, S. Lake Tahoe, Calif., 22.67
3. Alison Levy, Denver, Colo., 21.23

(Mar. 9) Men’s Moguls

1. Baylor Harris, Mount Desert, Maine, 25.44
2. John Eaton, Morrison, Colo., 24.93
3. Stefan Turkula, Eden Prairie, Minn., 24.14

(Mar. 10) Women’s Dual Moguls

1. Alison Levy, Denver, Colo., 30.00
2. Heidi Degenhardt, Hayden, Idaho, 29.40
3. Ani Haas, Missoula, Mont., 28.81

(Mar. 10) Men’s Dual Moguls

1. Nick Hanscom, Ketchum, Idaho, 30.00
2. David Beck, Tahoe Vista, Calif., 29.40
3. Eric Lehman, Littleton, Colo., 28.81

HAGER REPEATS, BAHRKE WINS FIRST DUALS CROWN

Waterville Valley, NH (Mar. 18, 2001) - Garth Hager (Bothell, WA) warmed-up for a Hawaiian vacation Sunday by successfully defending his dual moguls title while Shannon Bahrke (Tahoe City, CA) collected her first national crown on the last sun-splashed day of the Chevy Truck U.S. Freestyle Championships at Waterville Valley resort.

ESPN will broadcast coverage from the championships March 31 at 7:30 p.m. EST.

Hager edged unheralded Mike Friedberg (Boulder, CO) in the final run to collect $3,400 first place money. The bronze medal went to Waterville Valley Academy product David Babic (Breckenridge, CO) with Jesse Jenison (Tahoe City, CA) fourth.

"It was a nice day and I needed some redemption from singles day," Hager said. He finished a badly disappointed 12th Friday in moguls on the first day of the championships, which returned to Waterville for the first time since 1984.

"I'm just going..."

"The competition is supplied because it's visual - there's a guy beside you. He's going fast and there's no way I'll let him get in front of me," he explained. "In duals, I don't analyze a thing. I'm just going to the bottom."

The bright sunshine and temperatures in the low 30s started to wear on the Lower Bobby's Run course as the skiers progressed through the head-to-head ladder, chewing atthe abundant snow cover. "The course held up pretty good, but a few bumps started to get a little softer and a little deeper, but luckily they weren't key areas - like right before the jumps - where everybody's trying to slam on the brakes," Hager said.

He flies home Monday and leaves the next day with his wife, who's finishing college exams, for a week or so at his family's place on Maui. "Time for some surfing," he smiled.

In the women's event, Bahrke narrowly edged another U.S. Ski Team athlete, Jillian Vogtli (Ellicotville, NY) in the last run with Laurel Shanley (Olympic Valley, CA) defeating Jaclyn Paaso (Bethel, ME) in the matchup for third place.

From death cookies to a gold medal

"I thought the course got better and better each run," Bahrke, who finished a short while before the men's final run, said before the awards ceremony. "This morning it was very firm with a lot of 'death cookies' [small but firm snow chunks] on the landings, but every run it kept getting better.

"It softened up and got a little more direct [as the moguls were eaten away]. The landings were a little rough, but other than that it was really good."

Vogtli, who took the bronze medal in the opening moguls contest, added, "It was a great day - not only today but [Friday]. I feel like I made a lot of great breakthroughs with my jumping and my confidence, keeping my eyes up and just trusting myself."

She'd like to see a few more events, Vogtli said. "The season's ending too soon, way too soon. With so few World Cups, you start to get your momentum and then it's done. It was too short a season."

Coach Don St. Pierre gave high marks to the organizers for the championships. "The organizers did a great job," he said, "and Mother Nature sure came to the party [blue skies and warming temperatures 10 days after a storm left two feet of snow in this section of the White Mountains], which is always nice.

"The event went very well and it's always nice to see new kids come along, which shows the depth of the [moguls] program. It says a lot for the coaches, who motivate, and for the parents, who support the kids. The sport's in good shape in this country, which is not the same elsewhere, as we see during the winter when we go overseas."

One of the highlights on the final day of the Chevy Truck championships was a brief, pre-event exhibition by the "Founders of Freestyle," headed by Wayne Wong and Doug Pfeiffer, who were honored for their participation in the inaugural pro event - at Waterville Valley in March 1971. (In addition to his role in helping establish freestyle, Wong coached at Waterville for a half-dozen seasons in the Seventies.)

CHEVY TRUCK U.S. FREESTYLE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Waterville Valley, NH - March 18
Dual Moguls

1. Garth Hager, Bothell, Wash.
2. Mike Friedberg, Boulder, Colo.
3. David Babic, Breckenridge, Colo.
4. Jesse Jenison, Tahoe City, Calif.
5. Travis Cabral, South Lake Tahoe, Calif.
6. Donovan Power, Missoula, Mont.
7. Michael Morse, Duxbury, Mass
8. Michael Stevenson, Whitefish, Mont.

Women

1. Shannon Bahrke, Tahoe City, Calif.
2. Jillian Vogtli, Ellicotville, N.Y.
3. Laurel Shanely, Olympic Valley, Calif.
4. Jaclyn Paaso, Bethel, Maine
5. Ann Battelle, Steamboat Springs, Colo.
6. Jill Norman,Durango, Colo.
7. Shelly Robertson, Reno, Nev.
8. Heather McPhie, Bozeman, Mont.

WOMEN'S CHEVY TRUCKS SUPER SERIES SEASON ENDS

Snowbasin, UT (Mar. 18, 2001) - The women’s Chevy Truck Super Series season came to an end Sunday with a downhill race on the 2002 Olympic course at Snowbasin. Austrian Michaela Dorfmeister won the race while Canadian Anna Prchal won the overall series title.

The second of two downhills finally got underway Sunday after being postponed twice. It was first moved from Friday to Saturday due to a forecasted winter storm and then moved from Saturday to Sunday because of fog and low clouds hanging over sections of the course.

Dorfmeister mastered the Wildflower course and laid down a winning time of 1:45.83. Swede Pernilla Wiberg finished just .06 behind with a time of 1:45.89 and ’98 Olympic super G champion Picabo Street (Park City, UT), who won Thursday’s first downhill, was third in 1:46.19.

Dorfmeister, recently crowned the world downhill champion, finished second behind Street in Thursday’s race.

“It (the course) was much better today than yesterday,” said Dorfmeister, who also captured the Super Series downhill title for the season. “However, from everyone slipping it yesterday when it was soft, it was bumpier than yesterday. It’s a fast downhill and you need a lot of concentration from the start to the finish, especially when you can’t see anything.”

Kirsten Clark (Raymond, ME) finished in the top-10, taking fifth with a time of 1:46.51, while Julia Mancuso (Tahoe City, CA), last season’s overall Super Series winner, finished 11th as the top junior.

Prchal picked up a check for $10,000 as the overall Super Series winner. Perhaps more importantly, she also won the overall Nor Am Cup (which the Super Series is part of) title and earned a World Cup start spot for next season. Primarily a technical skier, Prchal finished 28th in Sunday’s race and did not start Thursday’s downhill. She was on the podium in all four races (giant slalom, slalom) last week at a Super Series event at Snowbird, Utah.

“The downhill was kind of a first for me this trip,” said Prchal, who hadn’t competed in a downhill race in three seasons. “The course is good, it’s fun and fast. It’s challenging for me. The four podiums at Snowbird were great and I’m really happy about this check.”

Street finished the season atop the Nor Am downhill standings. Prior to Snowbasin, she swept four Nor Am races, which included a pair of downhills, at Whistler, British Columbia. Thursday’s win on Wildflower was her fifth downhill victory of the Nor Am season.

Tatum Skoglund (Bellevue, WA) finished 15th Sunday, but ended up third in both the overall Super Series and Nor Am standings.

A super G that was originally scheduled for Sunday was canceled and will not be made up.

The U.S. women left after the race for Big Mountain, Montana, where the Chevy Truck U.S. Alpine Championships will be held March 22-28.

CHEVY TRUCK SUPER SERIES FINALS
Snowbasin, Utah
March 18, 2001
Women’s Downhill

1. Michaela Dorfmeister, Austria, 1:45.83
2. Pernilla Wiberg, Sweden, 1:45.89
3. Picabo Street, Park City, Utah, 1:46.19
4. Daniela Ceccarelli, Italy, 1:46.42
5. Kirsten Clark, Raymond, Maine, 1:46.51
6. Anne Marie Lefrancois, Canada, 1:46.61
7. Lucia Recchia, Italy, 1:46.75
T8. Martina Ertl, Germany, 1:46.76
T8. Brigitte Obermoser, Austria, 1:46.76
10. Ingeborg Helen Marken, Norway, 1:46.97

FINAL OVERALL SUPER SERIES STANDINGS
1. Anna Prchal, Canada, 218
2. Sara-Maude Boucher, Canada, 185
3. Tatum Skoglund, Bellevue, Wash., 141
4. Britt Janyk, Canada, 135
5. Sarah Schleper, Vail, Colo., 133
6. Lauren Ross, Stowe, Vermont, 111
7. Jessica Kelley, Starksboro, Vermont, 106
8. Lindsey C. Kildow, Vail, Colo., 103
9. Genevieve Simard, Canada, 95
10. Julie Langevin, Canada, 88

FINAL OVERALL NOR AM STANDINGS
1. Anna Prchal, Canada
2. Sara-Maude Boucher, Canada
3. Tatum Skoglund, Bellevue, Wash.

PACK, COOK COLLECT AERIALS GOLD AT WATERVILLE

Waterville Valley, NH (Mar. 17, 2001) - New Hampshire native Joe Pack (Park City, UT - via Hopkinton, NH) made it a triumphant return to the Granite State Saturday, knocking off World Cup champion Eric Bergoust (Missoula, MT) to win the aerials contest at the sun-bathed Chevy Truck U.S. Freestyle Championships. Emily Cook (Belmont, MA) earned her first title in the women's event. Pack was less than a point ahead of Bergoust after the first round of jumping on Phil's Hill at the Waterville Valley base area. But he put up a nearly flawless second jump - including a 7.0 from one judge - while Bergoust had a couple of breaks in his form.

The result was a two-jump total of 247.23 points (and $3,400 top prize) for Pack with Bergoust, who had de-throned '99 champion Pack a year ago, taking the silver medal with 241.27. Brian Currutt (Park City, UT) - Pack's former landlord - took the bronze medal at 239.63. Mariano Ferrario (Park City, UT), another of Currutt's housemates, was fourth with hometown favorite Wes Preston (Thornton, NH) fifth.

At the awards ceremony, Bergoust - sporting a bit of a retro-Seventies look with a thicker David Niven moustache - was the first to sound the cry, "Spring Breaaakkkk," which was echoed a few more times as athletes and friends noted the final aerials meet of the winter.

"These were optimal conditions for us," said Pack, who finished second to Bergoust in the World Cup standings and was surprised by his mother showing up unannounced for the national title competition. "Blue sky, no wind, great snow...and everyone was jumping well: Curdog [Currutt] jumped the best in training and Bergy and Mar - it's great to see everyone jumping so well. I'm psyched.

"I thought Bergy was gonna take it. He was jumping so well all week, so good [Friday]...but I put two [jumps] to my feet, two good ones."

U.S. aerials Head Coach Matt Christensen said, "Bergy hit a good takeoff, but I think the jump was a little sticky and you almost have to give it a little more gas for your jump. It looked like Joe, going right after Bergy, realized that was able to step it up a little bit and he hit it."

In the women's event, Cook - performing in front of "about a million family and friends" - finished with 163.50 points to 159.28 for defending champion Kelly Hilliman (Tonawanda, NY). Kate Reed (Montrose, CO) was a distant third at 130.03.

"I was ready. I woke up a was feeling this was going to be a great day. It's a perfect ending to a great season," said Cook, who finished sixth in the World Cup aerials standings. "I'm so happy to come out and finish with a win."

Hilliman said, "This was pretty much a pressure-less meet for me. Last year wasn't expected and I won; this year I didn't think about 'defending my title' so there wasn't that pressure. I wanted to have a good time and put down two good jumps, and I did. And I'm so pleased for Emily because she's had an awesome year, been so solid and deserved it."

Cook said she was looking forward to preseason training - after a week-long trip, for the third year in a row, with her father to Belize. "I landed every competition all season," she said, "and I was very consistent, so now I was to step up the degree of difficulty."

"It was a great event," Christensen said. "The guys really jumped well and the top two girls did well, too. And I think everyone felt good about the Preston boys doing so well in front of their hometown fans; it's always nice to see someone do well at home." He was referring to the sons of Waterville Valley Academy founder and ex-U.S. Coach Nick Preston, Wes (fifth) and Tim (eighth).

The Chevy Truck U.S. championships conclude Sunday with dual moguls.

CHEVY TRUCK U.S. FREESTYLE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Waterville Valley, NH - March 17
Aerials

1. Joe Pack, Park City, Utah, 247.23
2. Eric Bergoust, Missoula, Mont., 241.27
3. Brian Currutt, Park City, Utah, 239.63
4. Mariano Ferrario, Park City, Utah, 223.21
5. Wes Preston, Waterville Valley, N.H., 195.65
6. Jeret Peterson, Boise, Idaho, 194.72
7. Ryan St. Onge, Winter Park, Colo., 192.57
8. Tim Preston, Waterville Valley, N.H., 182.72
9. Tyler Decol, Park City, Utah, 167.10
10. Lance Field, Westminster, Mass., 157.19

Women

1. Emily Cook, Belmont, Mass., 163.50
2. Kelly Hilliman, Tonawanda, N.Y., 159.28
3. Kate Reed, Montrose, Colo., 130.03
4. Jaime Myers, Boise, Idaho, 129.54
5. Heather La Hart, Lake Placid, N.Y., 123.16
6. Jana Lindsey, Black Hawk, S.D., 113.80
7. Sarah Ratcliffe, Simsbury, Conn., 112.28
8. Tracy Evans, Park City, Utah, 109.59
9. Christina Craddock, Newton, Mass., 105.32
10. Amber Riethmuller, Australia, 99.97

SNOWBASIN DOWNHILL #2 MOVED AGAIN

Snowbasin, UT (Mar. 17, 2001) - St. Patrick brought fog and clouds to Snowbasin Saturday and organizers were forced to postpone a Chevy Truck Super Series Finals downhill race until Sunday.

The second of two Super Series downhills on Wildflower, the 2002 Olympic speed run for the women, was scheduled for a 10:00 a.m. MST start Saturday. It started out promising as seven racers left the starting house, but the fog and clouds quickly enveloped parts of the course. Around 1:30 p.m. (after several lengthy delays and jury meetings), the decision was made to postpone the race until Sunday.

The downhill is now slated for a 10:00 a.m. start Sunday. With the move, a super G that was originally scheduled for Sunday will be canceled and not made up.

Approximately eight inches of new snow fell on sections of the course Friday night, but that didn't cause a problem as the storm moved out of the area and there was plenty of blue sky early Saturday morning.

The first downhill of the Super Series season was held in bluebird conditions Thursday at Snowbasin. Olympic super G champion Picabo Street (Park City, UT) won the race among a top-notch field of World Cup-level racers.

The original Snowbasin schedule called for downhills Friday and Saturday with the super G Sunday. The forecast for Friday's storm prompted organizers to move the first race to Thursday and the second to Saturday.

SNOWBOARD WORLD CUP SEASON ENDS WITH SBX

Ruka, Finland (Mar. 17, 2001) - The 2001 FIS Snowboard World Cup finished up Saturday as Canadian Jasey Jay Anderson and Austrian Claudia Riegler won a snowboardcross in Ruka. Anderson and France's Karine Ruby won the snowboarcross and overall World Cup titles.

The battle for the titles came down to the wire as Anderson entered the race just 30 points behind Sweden's Pontus Stahlkloo, last season's champion. Both riders cruised through the brackets and met up with eachother in the finals for the crown. They both got out of the start gate together and after several seconds of neck-and-neck riding, Anderson finally pulled away for his fifth straight SBX win and the title.

"Stahlkloo just took my last bit of energy," Anderson said. "This was a real battle. I had a better start and then was kind of celebrating already but Stahlkloo had momentarily passed me and I feared to lose it again. So we started elbowing a bit and for the next couple of banks it was a fight for the best line but I stood my ground. When I crossed the finish line I was just thinking 'where is Stahlkloo' - I didn't know if he was right behind me. It feels great."

France's Thomas Bourgault took third and Austrian Lukas Gruener was fourth. U.S. Snowboard Team rider Jeff Greenwood (Hartford, CT) finished 20th.

The race for the women's SBX title came down to Ruby and Germany's Sandra Farmand. Ruby needed to finish at least fourth to be safe, but she crashed and opened the door for Farmand. However, the German crashed in the semifinals, giving the crown to Ruby.

"I'm so relieved," said Ruby. "And I'm happy that I finally got it. I was so upset when I fell since I thought that I lost the second title this week after the one in parallel. I then watched the race kind of from around the corner but, to be honest, didn't want to see anything. When Sandra fell it was a mixed feeling: I was happy that I got it but we are really good friends so I also felt sorry for her. The season has been so long, very tiring and I had wished it to be finished after Park City. I'm glad it's done now. I will take a month off and then get back to training."

A trio of Austrians filled the podium as Riegler was first followed by sister Manuela and Doris Guenther. Kate Fletcher (Girdwood, AK) was the top American in 19th.

The men's overall title was won by Anderson and he was followed by Italian Walter Feichter and France's Nicolas Huet. For the women, Ruby was first, Italy's Carmen Ranigler was second and American Rosey Fletcher (Girdwood, AK) was third.

The Swedish team won the men's Nation's Cup over Austria and France while France won the women's ahead of Italy and Austria.

FIS SNOWBOARD WORLD CUP FINALS
Ruka, Finland
March 17, 2001
Snowboardcross

1. Jasey Jay Anderson, Canada
2. Pontus Stahlkloo, Sweden
3. Thomas Bourgault, France
4. Lukas Gruener, Austria
5. Joni Vastamaki, Finland
6. Alexander Maier, Austria
7. Alex Lien, Norway
8. Guillaume Nantermod, Switzerland
9. Jonas Aspman, Sweden
10. Mathieu Chiquet, France
--
20. Jeff Greenwood, Hartford, Conn.
22. Eric Warren, Bennington, Vermont

WOMEN

1. Claudia Riegler, Austria
2. Manuela Riegler, Austria
3. Doris Guenther, Austria
4. Marie Laissus, France
5. Sandra Farmand, Germany
6. Ursula Fingerlos, Austria
7. Victoria Wicky, France
8. Julie Pomagalski, France
9. Karine Ruby, France
10. Emmanuelle Duboc, France
--
19. Kate Fletcher, Girdwood, Alaska
20. Lynn Ott, Bend, Ore.

Final World Cup Snowboardcross Standings

MEN
1. Jasey Jay Anderson, Canada, 5800
2. Pontus Stahlkloo, Sweden, 5630
3. Alexander Maier, Austria, 2920
--
18. Jeff Greenwood, Hartford, Conn., 1300
30. Adam Smith, Bend, Ore., 650
33. Anton Pogue, Hood River, Ore., 594
36. Seth Wescott, Farmington, Maine, 500
60. Graham Watanabe, Sun Valley, Idaho, 130
68. Eric Warren, Bennington, Vermont, 90
T79. Rob Kingwill, Jackson, Wyo., 40
T79. Ricky Bower, Park City, Utah, 40
88. Jonathan Laurence, Rockport, Maine, 24
109. Brent Meyer, Dillon, Colo., 1

WOMEN
1. Karine Ruby, France, 6290
2. Sandra Farmand, Germany, 5750
3. Marie Laissus, France, 4210
--
25. Lynn Ott, Bend, Ore., 630
27. Sondra Van Ert, Ketchum, Idaho, 600
49. Kate Fletcher, Girdwood, Alaska, 120
61. Claire Cetera, Sun Valley, Idaho, 28

Final World Cup Overall Standings

MEN
1. Jasey Jay Anderson, Canada, 1207.5
2. Walter Feichter, Italy, 892.1
3. Nicloas Huet, France, 794.2
--
14. Chris Klug, Aspen, Colo.
30. Jeff Greenwood, Hartford, Conn.
40. Tommy Czeschin, Mammoth Lakes, Calif.
52. Anton Pogue, Hood River, Ore.
77. Seth Wescott, Farmington, Maine
83. Ricky Bower, Park City, Utah
87. Adam Smith, Bend, Ore.
90. Ian Price, Manchester Center, Vermont
95. Rob Kingwill, Jackson, Wyo.
96. Ross Powers, S. Londonderry, Vermont

WOMEN
1. Karine Ruby, France, 1370.0
2. Carmen Ranigler, Italy, 1147.3
3. Rosey Fletcher, Girdwood, Alaska, 980.0
--
9. Sondra Van Ert, Ketchum, Idaho
41. Kelly Clark, Mt. Snow, Vermont
43. Stacia Hookom, Edwards, Colo.
46. Gretchen Bleiler, Snowmass Village, Colo.
51. Lynn Ott, Bend, Ore.
54. Lisa Kosglow, Boise, Idaho
59. Tricia Byrnes, Stratton Mt., Vermont
75. Michele Taggart, Salem, Ore.
88. Erin O'Malley, Mammoth Lakes, Calif.
90. Shannon Dunn, Tahoe Vista, Calif.

SNOWBOARD WORLD CUP HALFPIPE SEASON ENDS

Ruka, Finland (Mar. 16, 2001) - The final halfpipe contest of the FIS World Cup season went to Swede Markus Jonsson and Switzerland's Fabienne Reuteler Friday in Finland. Swede Magnus Sterner and German Sabine Wehr-Hasler won the halfpipe season titles.

Jonsson posted the highest of the finals field in each of two runs. The 43.9 he earned in his second run was good for the win. However, the second place finish for Sterner (41.2) gave him the title. Japanese rider Takaharu Nakai was third with a 40.8.

"It has been a long season and it's nice to finish it with the overall win," said Sterner. "My favorite contest this season was Asahikawa since we had a very good pipe there but I also liked the one in Park City with all those top riders in the competition and a good battle there. I'm looking forward to going home now, spend a little time with my friends and also go out snowboarding - just ride as much as I can, starting next Tuesday."

Four American men competed and Burton team rider JJ Thomas (Golden, CO) was the top finisher in sixth.

Defending World Cup halfpipe champ Wehr-Hasler finished fifth, but it was good enough to take home the crystal globe.

"I'm the happiest woman on this planet today," said Wehr-Hasler. "It would have been nice to conclude the season with a podium but I'm glad I could ride at all. I didn't think that I was able to since I almost couldn't walk yesterday after a bad crash in training. I was super nervous at the start for the first qualification run but when I got that one down I was so relieved."

Reuteler won with a score of 42.0 over Norwegian Kjersti Buaas (37.7) and Swede Anna Hellman (36.2). Michele Taggart (Salem, OR), a '98 Olympian, finished 28th as the lone American woman competing.

Many of the top Americans did not compete in Ruka as they are at Stratton Mt., Vermont for the 19th Annual U.S. Open.

The World Cup Finals conclude Sunday with a snowboardcross.

FIS SNOWBOARD WORLD CUP FINALS
Ruka, Finland
March 16, 2001
Halfpipe

MEN
1. Markus Jonsson, Sweden, 43.9
2. Magnus Sterner, Sweden, 41.2
3. Takaharu Nakai, Japan, 40.8
4. Jan Michaelis, Germany, 39.6
5. Daniel Nordin, Sweden, 38.5
6. JJ Thomas, Golden, Colo., 38.4
7. Heikki Sorsa, Finland, 37.0
8. Markus Hurme, Finland, 36.7
9. Iker Fernandez, Spain, 36.6
10. Risto Mattila, Finland, 35.3
--
Did Not Qualify for Finals
11. Ricky Bower, Park City, Utah
14. Luke Wynen, Reading, Penn.
18. Erik Leines, Sandy, Utah

WOMEN
1. Fabienne Reuteler, Switzerland, 42.0
2. Kjersti Buaas, Norway, 37.7
3. Anna Hellman, Sweden, 36.2
4. Nicola Pederzolli, Austria, 36.0
5. Sabine Wehr-Hasler, Germany, 35.2
6. Yoko Miyake, Japan, 32.0
--
Did Not Qualify for Finals
28. Michele Taggart, Salem, Ore.

Final World Cup Halfpipe Standings

MEN
1. Magnus Sterner, Sweden, 4685
2. Stefan Karlsson, Sweden, 3662
3. Jan Michaelis, Germany, 3620
--
6. Tommy Czeschin, Mammoth Lakes, Calif., 2068
32. Ricky Bower, Park City, Utah, 820
35. Ross Powers, S. Londonderry, Vermont, 690
37. Rob Kingwill, Jackson, Wyo., 650
39. Luke Wynen, Reading, Penn., 610
43. Keir Dillon, E. Stroudsburg, Penn., 566
45. Danny Kass, Hamburg, NJ, 500
50. Shaun White, San Diego, Calif., 450
51. Zach Horwitz, Carbondale, Colo., 440
54. JJ Thomas, Golden, Colo., 406
58. Seth Wescott, Farmington, Maine, 380
63. Erik Leines, Sandy, Utah, 290
86. Steven Fisher, Minneapolis, Minn., 130
106. Eric Warren, Bennington, Vermont, 36
115. Adam Petraska, Andover, Vermont, 14
130. Brent Meyer, Dillon, Colo. , 4
132. Raul Pinto, Santa Fe, NM, 3
137. Matt O'Connor, Park City, Utah, 1

WOMEN
1. Sabine Wehr-Hasler, Germany, 4650
2. Stine Brun-Kjeldaas, Norway, 3800
3. Lesley McKenna, Great Britian, 3610
--
10. Kelly Clark, Mt. Snow, Vermont, 2216
15. Gretchen Bleiler, Snowmass Village, Colo., 1770
21. Tricia Byrnes, Stratton Mt., Vermont, 1412
26. Michele Taggart, Salem, Ore., 960
37. Shannon Dunn, Tahoe Vista, Calif., 600
57. Autumn Rose, Olympic Valley, Calif., 276
59. Kim Stacey, Stratton Mt., Vermont, 200
73. Jaime Macleod, Andover, NH, 80
82. Amy Johnson, Rochester, NY, 35
83. Alisa Mokler, Mammoth Lakes, Calif., 32
84. Bianca Berger, Park City, Utah, 26
91. Jana Manfredi, Santa Fe, NM, 12
97. Tiffany Marshall, Salt Lake City, 9
99. Karyn Jacobsen, White Horse Station, NJ, 8

HARDAWAY, RILEY CAPTURE GOLD IN U.S. MOGULS

Waterville Valley, NH (Mar. 16, 2001) - Hannah Hardaway (Moultonborough, N.H) ignored growing back pains an Ryan Riley (Steamboat Springs, CO) paid attention to what he'd been telling himself as each won the gold medal in mogul Friday on the first day of the sun-splashed Chevy Truck U.S. Freestyle Championships at Waterville Valley resort.

ESPN will broadcast coverage March 31 at 5:30 p.m. EST.

Riley wowed the judges with a helicopter maneuver off the bottom jump that included two spreads (legs kicking sideways). He finished with 28.55 points to overtake Toby Dawson (Vail, CO), who won the final World Cup moguls event Sunday in Finland; Dawson had 27.78 and Jeremy Bloom (Loveland CO) was third with 27.68. Defending champion Evan Dybvig (Tunbridge, VT) led the qualifying round but had problems with his second jump and finished fourth.

"I did a one-eighty [180-degree spin]-spread, one-eighty-spread. We call it a 'Bronco'...so I guess I did a double-Bronco," Riley said, referring to his extra spread trick. He's done it a few times but it's not part of his regular repertoire, he added, explaining, "The jump has to be pretty big because otherwise it looks cheesy - you can't pull it off unless you're pretty high...

"I was trying to accomplish something special or learn a valuable lesson; I did both."

His jump was special and the lesson learned, Riley said, "was how to put all the elements together in one run." Sometimes he just skis "on instinct," he said, and at other times he takes copious notes on multiple pieces of paper. He has learned to consolidate all the notes on one piece of paper "and to believe that paper...to believe myself."

The WV course has a couple of intricacies, including large jumps - "the one we have on the World Cup are smaller, but these are like a loading dock; you get super jumps" - and bigger spaces between the moguls than they normally see on the World Cup, he said.

"It gave me problems for a day and a half, but [Thursday] afternoon I started to figure some of it out."

Dawson said he had a little bit of a problem with his turns "but Ryan deserved it. He skied so well. I got the jumps I wanted but my turns weren't where I wanted 'em...

"I nailed both airs, I'm happy about that but my turns were not as good as I wanted."

Hardaway, who lives about an hour from Waterville, won the morning run which cut the field of 36 women to 16 for finals. Then she successfully defended her moguls crown from a year ago with a run that earned 26.02. Second place went to Donna Weinbrecht (Killington, VT), the former Olympic, world and five-time World Cup champion, who scored 25.67, with Jillian Vogtli (Ellicotville, NY) third at 25.35.

"My back's starting to feel a little sore," Hardaway said, referring to a compression she suffered during a World Cup event in Japan last month. "But the second run the snow was softer, more forgiving, so that helped...

"My first run was kinda ho-hum, a little casual, so I tried to step it up for finals...tried to get psyched-up listening to my music, like dancing - I love dancing," she told reporters.

"I felt really good up-top and I tried to carry speed through the middle but my feet got out in front of me so I had to back off a little before the second air, and then ski fast through the finish."

Weinbrecht, a seven-time U.S. champion who returned to World Cup skiing this season after two years away, was pleased with her silver medal. "This was an emotional year. It's nice to end on an up note," she said.

The championships continue Saturday with aerials followed by the final episode in Captain Morgan's Freestyle Adventure, a quarterpipe big air contest.

CHEVY TRUCK U.S. FREESTYLE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Waterville Valley, NH - March 16
Moguls

Men
1. Ryan Riley, Steamboat Spring, Colo., 28.55 points
2. Toby Dawson, Vail, Colo., 27.78
3. Jeremy Bloom, Loveland, Colo., 27.68
4. Evan Dybvig, Tunbridge, Vt., 27.64
5. Travis Mayer, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 27.17
6. Mike Friedberg, Boulder, Colo., 26.91
7. Matthew Odlin, Bethel, Maine, 26.56
8. Chris Hernandez, South Lake Tahoe, Calif., 26.43
9. Jesse Kenison, Tahoe City, Calif., 26.37
10. Tony Basile, Olympic Valley, Calif., 26.16

Women
1. Hannah Hardaway, Moultonborough, N.H., 26.02
2. Donna Weinbrecht, Killington, Vt., 25.67
3. Jillian Vogtli, Ellicotville, N.Y., 25.35
4. Ann Battelle, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 25.18
5. Laurel Shanley, Olympic Valley, Calif., 24.90
6. Emil Heller, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 24.70
7. Kathleen Dougherty, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 24.54
8. Shannon Bahrke, Tahoe City, Colo., 24.46
9. Jaclyn Paaso, Bethel, Maine, 24.17 (higher on tiebreaker)
10. Lindley Hord, Denver, 24.17

MAIER, RANIGLER WIN WORLD CUP FINALS PSL

Ruka, Finland (Mar. 15, 2001) - In the final parallel event of the FIS Snowboard World Cup season, Austrian Alexander Maier and Italian Carmen Ranigler won the parallel slalom Thursday at World Cup Finals in Finland.

The battle for the parallel title came down to the wire, but Ranigler and France's Mathieu Bozzetto held on for the crowns.

Bozzetto, who entered the race leading the standings, needed to finish at least second Thursday so his teammate Nicolas Huet nor Swede Richard Richardsson could catch him. The unexpected made the race super exciting as Bozzetto crashed in the qualifications. Everybody thought the title run was over for him, but more surprises were to come.

In the round of 16, Huet faced German Mathias Behounek and beat him handily in the first of two runs. However, Behounek attacked in the second run and knocked Huet out of the race. That left the title Richardsson's to win if he could finish first or second. The Swede met up with France's Charlie Cosnier in the semis and Cosnier sent Richardsson to the small final (consolation) by beating him in both runs - hence the title was Bozzetto's.

Maier, who won a parallel giant slalom in Park City, Utah at the beginning of March, met Cosnier in the finals and won both runs for his second win of the year.

"I really like head-to-head racing and I'm much better once I make it to the finals than in individual runs," said Maier. "I started my way up slowly and now I'm more used to being in the top. I like to be there and will try my best to keep it like that. When I won in Park City it was my father's birthday, today is my mother's, maybe that's an omen."

It was Bozzetto's third straight parallel title.

"At noon I thought I was an idiot and I was sure to lose it," said Bozzetto. "Nobody would have expected Nico (Huet) to drop out in the first round - I thought he would even win the race - and Richardsson was riding consistently so I didn't calculate it anymore. It was crazy and I think there are at least two guys I need to buy a drink tonight: Behounek and Charlie in particular."

Ranigler, who won Wednesday's parallel giant slalom, needed to win Thursday to be safe for the title and it helped when France's Karine Ruby, who was second in the standings coming in, was taken out in the first round by Swiss rider Melina Meisser.

"When I recognized that Ruby dropped out I wanted to make it another win," said Ranigler. "I didn't put too much pressure on myself today but all was completely off me in the quarter finals and I could take it relaxed, although I was so tired from yesterday. During the runs I even made myself aware that I won the globe. Normally it causes problems automatically when you're not focused on your racing but it was just something different today. I'm so happy."

Maria Kirchgasser-Pichle from Austria was second and Italian Margherita Parini beat Meisser for third.

American Rosey Fletcher (Girdwood, AK), who finished sixth, wound up taking third in the parallel standings.

The World Cup Finals continue Friday with the halfpipe contest. Competing for the U.S. will be Ricky Bower (Park City, UT), Erik Leines (Sandy, UT), Michele Taggart (Salem, OR), JJ Thomas (Golden, CO) and Luke Wynen (Reading, PA).

FIS Snowboard World Cup Finals
Ruka, Finland
March 15, 2001
Parallel Slalom

MEN
1. Alexander Maier, Austria
2. Charlie Cosnier, France
3. Harald Walder, Austria
4. Richard Richardsson, Sweden
5. Felix Stadler, Austria
6. Andreas Prommegger, Austria
7. Stefan Kaltschuetz, Austria
8. Mathias Behounek, Germany
9. Werner Ebenbauer, Austria
10. Nicolas Huet, France
11. Dejan Kosir, Slovenia
12. Alexander Koller, Austria
13. Guillaume Nantermod, Switzerland
14. Anton Pogue, Hood River, Ore.
15. Gerhard Unterkofler, Austria
16. Mark Fawcett, Canada
--
Did Not Qualify for Finals
26. Jeff Greenwood, Hartford, Conn.
31. Eric Warren, Bennington, Vermont
DNF Chris Klug, Aspen, Colo.
DNF Tyler Jewell, Sudbury, Mass.

WOMEN
1. Carmen Ranigler, Italy
2. Maria Kirchgasser-Pichle, Austria
3. Margherita Parini, Italy
4. Milena Meisser, Switzerland
5. Dagmar Mair Unter der Eggen, Italy
6. Rosey Fletcher, Girdwood, Alaska
7. Heidi Renoth, Germany
8. Katja Reinauer, Germany
9. Karine Ruby, France
10. Sara Fischer, Sweden
11. Aasa Windahl, Sweden
12. Julie Pomagalski, France
13. Lidia Trettel, Italy
14. Nina Schlegel, Austria
15. Anna Kaltiainen, Finland
16. Marjorie Rey, France
--
Did Not Qualify for Finals
22. Lisa Kosglow, Boise, Idaho
23. Stacia Hookom, Edwards, Colo.
32. Sondra Van Ert, Ketchum, Idaho
DNF Lynn Ott, Bend, Ore.

PICABO STREET WINS CHEVY TRUCK SUPER SERIES DOWNHILL

Snowbasin, UT (Mar. 15, 2001) - Continuing a string of solid performances, Picabo Street (Park City, UT) won a Chevy Truck Super Series Finals downhill by over a half-second among a world-class field Thursday at Snowbasin.

Outdoor Life Network will broadcast coverage of the Snowbasin Super Series Finals March 22 at 9 p.m. EST.

The first of two downhills on the Wildflower course, which will be the site of the 2002 Olympic speed events for the women, was originally scheduled for Friday. Organizers moved the race up a day as the forecast was calling for snow Friday. Prior to Thursday's start, a training session was run, a makeup from Wednesday’s session that was postponed due to high winds.

Street picked up the win with a time of 1:41.57 over world downhill champion Michaela Dorfmeister of Austria, who finished in 1:42.08. Hilde Gerg of Germany was third with a time of 1:42.21.

"I feel good," said Street, the '98 Olympic super G gold medalist. "What I'm looking for is the feeling on my skis. That's all I've been working on all year and that's all I keep working on. What it's starting to do now is make me move fast."

Despite winning the race by .51 over Dorfmeister, Street remained skeptical of her time after crossing the finish line from the fifth start spot.

"We'll see what happens," said Street. "You know, I didn't have a fall this run and I felt myself slow down in a couple of spots, so my time isn't hard to beat. We'll see how it stands up."

Looking at her Nor Am results this season, it was a pretty good bet that the time would stand as the fastest. Street swept four Nor Am speed races at Whistler, British Columbia earlier this month, including a super G win by over a second and a half. Prior to Whistler, she had won a pair of NorAm downhills and another super G.

It has been a promising comeback season for Street as she sat out the previous two years rehabbing post-Olympic leg injuries.

"Just to be skiing well on this hill and not having troubles, it brings me a lot of confidence," said Street. "The feeling I have on the snow and on the run is good enough to bring me into next year with confidence."

The U.S. Ski Team had two other athletes finish in the top-10 with Kirsten Clark (Raymond, ME) in eighth and Jonna Mendes (Heavenly, CA) in tenth. Both Megan Gerety (Anchorage, AK) and Caroline Lalive (Steamboat Springs, CO) crashed in the morning's training run and did not start the race.

"It's a great hill," said Clark, who won a World Cup downhill in Switzerland at the end of February. "I mean, there's a lot of different things in there. Coming out of the start, you have that sidehill traverse, then some technical turns after the jump (Shooting Star) and then some high-speed turns in the middle section. There's always something coming at you, you never have time to really back off at all."

“It’s a nice course,” said Gerg. “It looks much easier than it is.”

Many among the superstar field came to Utah directly from World Cup Finals in Are, Sweden. France's Regine Cavagnoud finished fourth after clinching the super G title in Are and collecting the gold medal in super G at World Championships in St. Anton, Austria. Italian Isolde Kostner, who finished 28th Thursday, claimed the World Cup downhill title in Are.

Canadian Anna Prchal, who has already claimed the overall Super Series title (and $10,000) after collecting four podiums last week at Snowbird, Utah, did not start the race Thursday. She finished 50th in the training run.

The Chevy Truck Super Series is the top domestic development race series in the U.S., so young skiers will be mixed with the World Cup troupe. After Snowbasin, the racing action shifts north to Chevy Truck U.S. Alpine Championships, starting March 23 at Big Mountain, Mont.

CHEVY TRUCK SUPER SERIES FINALS
Snowbasin, Utah
March 15, 2001
Women’s Downhill

1. Picabo Street, Park City, Utah, 1:41.57
2. Michaela Dorfmeister, Austria, 1:42.08
3. Hilde Gerg, Germany, 1:42.21
4. Regine Cavagnoud, France, 1:42.50
5. Melanie Turgeon, Canada, 1:42.81
6. Carole Montillet, France, 1:42.94
7. Merete Fjeldavlie, Norway, 1:43.28
8. Kirsten Clark, Raymond, Maine, 1:43.44
9. Renate Goetschl, Austria, 1:43.45
10. Jonna Mendes, Heavenly, Calif., 1:43.50

HUET, RANIGLER WIN PARALLEL GIANT SLALOM

Ruka, Finland (Mar. 14, 2001) - France’s Nicolas Huet and Italy’s Carmen Ranigler took the victories in the parallel giant slalom at the FIS Snowboard World Cup Finals Wednesday in Finland.

It was the final PGS race of the World Cup season and it seemed to last forever in Ruka, north of Helsinski and just below the Arctic Circle. Snowfall Tuesday night forced a delay for the start of the PGS so crews could remove snow from the course. Light snow fell throughout the contest and several holds were necessary to get riders back up to the start.

It was a huge win for Huet, who qualified first, as he took out Swede Richard Richardsson in the finals. He beat him clean in the first run and Richardsson crashed in the second. Mathieu Bozzetto, Huet’s teammate, beat Canadian Jasey Jay Anderson for third.

“I felt very good today,” said Huet. “The snow was great and this is the kind of slope I like. On this kind of slope, I can really pull it together – I don’t like the flat ones and we had some of those this season but I was happy with my riding on this hill all day long.”

With one parallel event left in the season (Thursday’s parallel slalom), the race is tight for the men’s title. Bozzetto leads the parallel standings with 6,740 points. Huet, after picking up 1,000 for his win Wednesday, is just behind with 6,490 points. Richardsson could also take the title Thursday with a win as he has 6,010 points.

It was Huet’s second win of the season as he also won in Ischgl, Austria back in December. Bozzetto has three wins this year, all in parallel slalom events.

Two U.S. riders advanced to the finals Wednesday. Chris Klug (Aspen, CO) qualified sixth but finished 11th as he was ousted by Swede Daniel Biveson in the first round. U.S. Snowboard Team racer Jeff Greenwood (Hartford, CT) was 15th. He was also knocked out in the opening round by Bozzetto.

Italy’s Ranigler took her third parallel win of the season by beating Finn Anna Kaltiainen in the finals. Ranigler was 16th after qualifications, but turned it on in the head-to-head races and defeated France’s Karine Ruby and Italian Margherita Parini. Austrian Manuela Riegler took third over teammate Maria Kirchgasser-Pichle.

“I didn’t expect this at all since I have been so tired over the last couple of days,” said Ranigler. “But I managed to win the first runs in the finals against two strong riders. After that, I made some mistakes so it wasn’t easy, but I also had a little luck today, which didn’t happen for me much this season.”

The women’s race for the parallel crown is also tight with three riders still in the hunt. Ranigler took the lead with 7,850 points, just ahead of France’s Karine Ruby with 7,680. American Rosey Fletcher (Girdwood, AK) follows with 7,140 points.

All three riders enter Thursday’s parallel slalom with three season wins under their belts. Fletcher may hold the edge as she has won three parallel slaloms this year. Ruby has won a pair of PSLs, while Ranigler has been victorious in one.

Fletcher crashed after qualifying for the finals, but still managed to finish as the top U.S. rider in tenth. Two other Americans made the finals Wednesday. Lynn Ott (Bend, OR) was 11th and Sondra Van Ert (Ketchum, ID) was 12th.

Along with halfpipe, parallel giant slalom is the second snowboard discipline that will be contested at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games on the slopes of Park City Mountain Resort.

Following Thursday’s PSL, the World Cup Finals continue Friday with halfpipe and conclude Saturday with snowboardcross.

FIS SNOWBOARD WORLD CUP
Ruka, Finland
March 14, 2001
Parallel Giant Slalom

MEN
1. Nicolas Huet, France
2. Richard Richardsson, Sweden
3. Mathieu Bozzetto, France
4. Jasey Jay Anderson, Canada
5. Dieter Krassnig, Austria
6. Alexander Maier, Austria
7. Stephen Copp, Sweden
8. Daniel Biveson, Sweden
9. Walter Feichter, Italy
10. Dejan Kosir, Slovenia
11. Chris Klug, Aspen, Colo.
12. Stephan Kaltschuetz, Austria
13. Markus Ebner, Germany
14. Klaus Sammer, Austria
15. Jeff Greenwood, Hartford, Conn.
16. Joni Vastamaki, Finland
--
Did Not Qualify for Finals
43. Anton Pogue, Hood River, Ore.
46. Eric Warren, Bennington, Vermont
63. Tyler Jewell, Sudbury, Mass.

WOMEN
1. Carmen Ranigler, Italy
2. Anna Kaltiainen, Finland
3. Manuela Riegler, Austria
4. Maria Kirchgasser-Pichle, Austria
5. Aasa Windahl, Sweden
6. Isabel Zedlacher, Austria
7. Nina Schlegel, Austria
8. Margherita Parini, Italy
9. Karine Ruby, France
10. Rosey Fletcher, Girdwood, Alaska
11. Lynn Ott, Bend, Ore.
12. Sondra Van Ert, Ketchum, Idaho
13. Doris Guenther, Austria
14. Katja Reinauer, Germany
15. Dagmar Mair Unter der Eggen, Italy
16. Birgit Herbert, Austria
--
Did Not Qualify for Finals
22. Lisa Kosglow, Boise, Idaho
29. Stacia Hookom, Edwards, Colo.

KNIGHT WINS NOR AM GS IN QUEBEC

Stoneham (QC), Canada (Mar. 13, 2001) - Chip Knight (New Canaan, CT) laid down a sizzling second run Tuesday that powered him to victory by more than a second in an Ingle Nor Am giant slalom at Stoneham Ski Area.

With temperatures around 30 and snow falling, Knight had a second-run time of 57.16 to give him a total time of 1:56.05. Jean-Phillippe Roy of Canada, just .02 behind Knight in the first run, was second in 1:57.16 with Tom Rothrock (Cashmere, WA) third in 1:57.46.

INGLE NOR AM
Stoneham, QUE - March 13
Men's Giant Slalom

1. Chip Knight, New Canaan, Conn., 1:56.05
2. Jean-Phillippe Roy, Canada, 1:57.16
3. Tom Rothrock, Cashmere, Wash., 1:57.46
4. Casey Puckett, Aspen, Colo., 1:57.51
5. Thomas Grandi, Canada, 1:57.70

CRANMORE MOUNTAIN TEAM DEFEATS AUSTRIANS AT THE HANNES SCHNEIDER MEISTER CUP RACE

North Conway, NH (Mar. 13, 2001) - The camaraderie between North Conway, NH, and St. Anton, Austria, turned to rivalry over the weekend when the Cranmore 1 Team recaptured first place beating the Ski Club-Arlberg, by just .15 second. This is only the second time in five years of racing that Cranmore' s elite team has been able to beat the Austrians. In a hotly contested second run, Cranmore's David Clancy, Andrew Dickinson, Jeff Millet, Andrew Mahoney and Stefan Karnopp raced to victory. Ski Club-Arlberg came in second, followed by Affinity-Gunstock, one of two teams participating from the Gunstock Ski Area. The RSN #1 was fourth, and Team Canada, fifth.

Racers ranged in ages 8 - 87, including a team from the famed 10th Mountain Division. The fastest male of the day was Matt Found from the Affinity-Gunstock Team and the fastest female was Jessica Dolan from the Cranmore 2 Team.

Nordic Sprint Race: The excitement of the weekend started Friday night with the first-ever Nordic Sprint Race. Racing on a .5 km figure-eight course at the base of Cranmore, nine 3-person teams and one 4-person team were cheered on by spectators as the snow fell on the enthusiastic crowd. Taking first place was the team of David Freedman, 42, Albany, NH; Brendon Sullivan, 37, N. Conway, NH; and Tom Dyenforth, 17, Chocorua, NH. Second place went to the team of Eli Walker, 31, Jackson, NH; Amy Kuzma, 24, Glen, NH; and Nate Harvey, 24, Glen, NH. Racing to third place was the team of Howie Wemyss, 50, Gorham, NH; Whitley Frost, 33, Jackson, NH; and Scott Emory, 27, Andover, ME.

The event wrapped up with an evening awards banquet and auction at the North Conway Grand Hotel. "The whole weekend was great fun," commented Glenn Parkinson, President of the New England Ski Museum. "We received so many positive comments throughout the weekend. This was the best event to date."

The Hannes Schneider Meister Cup Race is a two-day on-snow event, which celebrates the past and present of alpine skiing and snowsports. A native of St. Anton, Austria, Hannes Schneider brought his Arlberg instruction technique to North Conway, New Hampshire, in 1939. His influence went on to impact the sport worldwide.

JUNIOR OLYMPIANS DISPLAY LARGE TALENT

Sunday River, ME (Mar. 12, 2001) - Young alpine skiers, ages 13-14, got a smart dose of Olympic-style racing when the Chevy Truck Junior Olympic series made its stop at the Sunday River Ski Resort in Maine, March 8-11. In fact, 165 of the youngsters — who for competition purposes are categorized as Junior 3s by the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association — split into male and female classes for heated giant slalom, slalom and Super G competitions.

Competitive sparks were fanned into flames from the contest’s very start when the women took to the Super G course. On day one, Megan Papineau of Keene, N.Y., turned in a timed run of 1:10.62 to beat out Anna Furney of Bristol, Vt., with a 1:10.90. Kara Crow of Stowe, Vt., took the bronze medal with a 1:11.10.

The men were led the next day by Joey Swensson of Niantic, Conn., posting a gold-medal run of 1:08.26, followed by Andrew Weibrecht of Lake Placid, N.Y., with 1:09.02 for silver and Todd Thibodeau of Freedom, N.H., with 1:09.91 for bronze.

"You could call the courses difficult because we were dealing with a lot of fresh snow," said Jordan Ginsberg, events and competition manager for the mountain. "We started out with beautiful sunshine on the first day and then it started getting cold and windy."

In fact, "wicked windy" was how the competitors described day three, but the conditions were mastered by Gabrielle Govan of Katonah, N.Y., who combined two giant slalom runs for a time of 2:29.65 and the gold medal in that discipline. Chelsea Marshall of Pittsfield, Vt., took the silver with a 2:29.69, while Carling Delaney of North Conway, N.H., finished third with a 2:30.38.

Andrew Weibrecht outdid his second in Super G to win the giant slalom men’s division with a time of 2:21.23. He was followed by Colin Devore of New Castle, N.H., with a 2:24.83, and Jared Hourihan of Falmouth, Maine, with a 2:24.90.

The final day put women’s and men’s slalom in the spotlight with Chelsea Marshall timing two runs at 1:33:95 to make her second appearance on the podium, this time on the top step. For her talents, she was also awarded the overall women’s gold medal. Kara Crow also showed up again on the podium with a time of 1:34:41 for a slalom silver medal, while Natasha Woodworth of Ipswich, Mass., made her first showing with a 1:34.86 for bronze. In overall results, Crow finished with a silver behind Marshall, while opening day’s gold medallist Megan Papineau pulled up the rear with a bronze.

Todd Thibodeau won the men’s division and his second medal for the competition with a time of 1:33:55. He was followed by Colin Devore, also taking his second medal with a 1:33.81, and Bubba MacMahon of Lyndeborough, N.H., with a 1:33.93. In overall standings, Thibodeau and Devore fell to second and third, respectively, behind Andrew Weibrecht.

Results

SUPER G WOMEN
1. Megan Papineau, Keene, N.Y., 1:10.62
2. Anna Furney, Bristol, Vt., 1:10.90
3. Kara Crow, Stowe, Vt., 1:11.10

SUPER G MEN
1. Joey Swensson, Niantic, Conn., 1:08.26
2. Andrew Weibrecht, Lake Placid, N.Y. 1:09.02
3. Todd Thibodeau, Freedom, N.H., 1:09.91

GIANT SLALOM WOMEN
1. Gabrielle Govan, Katonah, N.Y., 2:29.65
2. Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, Vt., 2:29.69
3. Carling Delaney, North Conway, N.H., 2:30.38

GIANT SLALOM MEN
1. Andrew Weibrecht, Lake Placid, N.Y., 2:21.23
2. Colin Devore, New Castle, N.H., 2:24.83
3. Jared Hourihan, Falmouth, Maine, 2:24.90

SLALOM WOMEN
1. Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, Vt., 1:33.95
2. Kara Crow, Stowe, Vt., 1:34.41
3. Natasha Woodworth, Ipswich, Mass., 1:34.86

SLALOM MEN
1. Todd Thibodeau, Freedom, N.H., 1:33.55
2. Colin Devore, New Castle, N.H., 1:33.81
3. Bubba MacMahon, Lyndeborough, N.H., 1:33.93

OVERALL WOMEN
1. Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, Vt.
2. Kara Crow, Stowe, Vt.
3. Megan Papineau, Keene, N.Y.

OVERALL MEN
1. Andrew Weibrecht, Lake Placid, N.Y.
2. Todd Thibodeau, Freedom, N.H.
3. Colin Devore, New Castle, N.H.

PRCHAL GETS 4th SUPER SERIES PODIUM

Snowbird, UT (Mar. 11, 2001) - Canadian Anna Prchal wrapped up a four-podium week by winning a Chevy Truck Super Series slalom at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort Sunday.

In the final technical race of the women’s Super Series season, Prchal won with a two-run time of 1:30.38 on the Primrose Path course. Lauren Ross (Stowe, VT), who won Saturday’s first slalom, was second in 1:30.49 and Canadian Genevieve Simard took third in 1:30.67.

It took Prchal four races to climb atop the highest podium spot, but she certainly knew where the podium was located. She was second in giant slalom races Thursday and Friday at Snowbird and third in Saturday’s slalom. Not only did she collect a total of $4,000 ($1,500 for Sunday’s win) this week, she also picked up enough points to take the lead in the overall Super Series standings.

Prchal arrived at Snowbird in third place on the points list, but took the lead from U.S. Ski Team racer Sarah Schleper (Vail, CO) with Friday’s second place finish. The overall series winner will take home $10,000.

Ross skied two consecutive solid races. Saturday’s victory carried over into Sunday as she posted the top time in her first run, a 42.71, which was .64 faster than her nearest competitor - Prchal. Ross let up a bit in her second run and was sixth fastest, bumping her into second place.

Canadian Britt Janyk, who won both of the giant slaloms at Snowbird, finished sixth and had the fastest second run time of 46.59. She failed to finish her first run Saturday.

Also finishing in the top-10 for the U.S. was Jessica Kelley (Starksboro, VT) in fourth, Jamie Kingsbury (Waitsfield, VT) in seventh and Courtney Calise (Littleton, NH) in ninth.

The Chevy Truck Super Series season wraps up for the women March 16-18 at Snowbasin, Utah. Two downhills and a super G will be run on Wildflower, the 2002 women’s Olympic course. A top-notch World Cup level field is expected for the event.

CHEVY TRUCK SUPER SERIES
Snowbird, Utah
March 11, 2001
Women’s Slalom

1. Anna Prchal, Canada, 1:30.38
2. Lauren Ross, Stowe, Vermont, 1:30.49
3. Genevieve Simard, Canada, 1:30.67
4. Jessica Kelley, Starksboro, Vermont, 1:31.88
5. Sara-Maude Boucher, Canada, 1:32.15
6. Britt Janyk, Canada, 1:32.99
7. Jamie Kingsbury, Waitsfield, Vermont, 1:33.23
8. Julie Langevin, Canada, 1:34.46
9. Courtney Calise, Littleton, NH, 1:35.68
10. Kelly Vanderbeek, Canada, 1:35.71

NEW HIGH-SPEED LIFT FOR BRODIE, IF SEASON PASS GOAL MET

New Ashford, MA (Mar. 11, 2001) - Brian H. Fairbank, President and CEO of Brodie Mountain and Jiminy Peak, has announced that if three thousand 2001/2002 Brodie Mountain season passes are sold by May 31, 2001, he will purchase and install a new high-speed chairlift at Brodie Mountain.

The "Brodie Mountain High Speed Challenge," as Fairbank is referring to his statement, is the first time that a ski area operator has committed to a specific capital improvement based on the number of season passes sold in a given period of time. Fairbank commented:

"We installed the first high-speed lift in the region at Jiminy Peak this past season, and now we would like to bring Brodie to the same level. It is all in our guests' hands now - if we can sell 3,000 Brodie Mountain season passes by the end of May, we are committed to installing a high-speed lift this summer."

Skiers and snowboarders may purchase their 2001/2002 Brodie Mountain Season Pass after March 1, 2001 for only $249. The 2001/2002 Brodie Mountain season pass is valid at both Jiminy Peak and Brodie Mountain from March 1st to the end of this season. This pass is valid for both day and night skiing and snowboarding.

And, next winter, the Brodie Mountain season pass is valid at Jiminy Peak anytime Brodie is not operating, so that passholders may take advantage of the longeer ski and snowboard season.

To purchase a Brodie Mountain Season pass, guests are asked to call 413.443.4752 or stop by Brodie Mountain before May 31, 2001.

U.S. ALPINE CHAMPIONSHIPS BEGIN IN TWO WEEKS

Whitefish, MT (Mar. 11, 2001) - With more than 7 million gallons of man made snow blown onto the Ursa Major Downhill Course on Big Mountain, race organizers are confident that the Championships will happen as planned, despite temperatures that hit over 50 degrees this past week.

"We have full confidence that the races will happen essentially as planned," said Paul Mahre, Chief of Race for the Championships and head coach for Big Mountain race team. "We have over 8 feet of snow in some parts of the course and a consistent 2 feet of snow on average throughout the whole course."

"There are definitely rumors going around that the races could be moved or cancelled," said Becky Lomax, co-chair of the organizing committee and Big Mountain's events manager. "Cancel is not a word in our vocabulary."

Over 5 miles of fencing will begin to go up on Monday and crews are already piecing the fencing together and blowing up safety air bags. Event crews are also making platforms for the ESPN TV cameras and will begin to haul the platforms up the mountain on Sunday and Monday.

Due to snow depths on the lower mountain, race organizers today decided to move the Slalom race and "Return of the Champions" races originally scheduled for the Chair 2 area. The Slalom races will now be held higher on the mountain on the Larch/Corkscrew ski runs that are part of the downhill course. Toni Matt ski run is also an alternate site. The "Return of Champions" races will now be held on Chipmunk ski run that leads to the Outpost Lodge at the bottom of Chair 6, the free Village Lift.

"We have lots of options," continued Mahre. "We did decide to move two races higher on the mountain where the snow is deeper. If needed, we can bump start times to earlier in the day when the snow is firmer, and there's always the good old shovel to get more snow onto the needed areas of the course."

Big Mountain's Events department is now hiring shovel crews and is already moving snow from the treed areas along the side of the course into the run. Race organizers also have over 5000 feet of water hose in place for snow making on the race course for the third time this year. If temperatures cooperate, more snow will be made.

Event organizers will begin to make volunteer assignments next week and there is still time to sign up. Interested volunteers are asked to fill out the volunteer form at www.skiwhitefish.com/nationals or call Big Mountain's Guest Service and Information Center at (406) 862-2900.

DAWSON, HARDAWAY WIN MOGULS

Himos, Finland (Mar. 11, 2001) - Toby Dawson (Vail, CO) picked up his first World Cup moguls win Sunday, taking a tiebreaker from World Cup champion Mikko Ronkainen of Finland in what may be the tightest contest in history - the top three skiers within .02 - while Hannah Hardaway (Moultonborough, NH) captured her second moguls event on the final day of the schedule.

"I went into the comp just looking for a good run, as usual," said Dawson. However, he drew inspiration from Alexei Grichin of Belarus, who qualified 10th for the aerials competition Saturday at World Cup Finals but won.

"If he started 10th and won..."

"I said, 'Well, if he started 10th and won it, I guess I better win, too," he said. "Starting 10th, I had nine more skiers to wait for, and judges usually like to save something [points] for later skiers and it's difficult to move to the front from the back...Actually, I feel comfortable attacking from the back like that. In my two podiums, I've come from the back of the pack."

Dawson and Ronkainen deadlocked at 26.92 points but Dawson, who led three U.S. skiers into the top 10, got the win on a tiebreaker formula. Pierre-Alexandre Rousseau of Canada was third (26.90).

Among other Americans, Ryan Riley was seventh (25.65) with Jeremy Bloom (Loveland, CO) 10th. Travis Ramos (South Lake Tahoe, CA) was 11th and Evan Dybvig (Tunbridge, VT) 12th.

"You had to go fast and go big," Hardaway said. "It's a tiny course and kinda flat, the is weren't too big, but Shannon [Bahrke, Tahoe City, CA] went down and Liz [McIntyre, moguls coach] radioed back, 'You've gotta go fast, go fast and go big' and I tried to.

Hardaway: So-so airs, killer turns

"I didn't think my airs were that good," she said, "but everyone said, 'Oh, your turns were so-o-o good' so..." Hardaway edged Japan's Aiko Uemura by .2 on the turns to clinch the win by a tenth of a point in a contest where the skiers had only one run.

Hardaway, who also won the Gateway Freestyle Challenge on the 2002 Olympic run at Deer Valley Resort, won with 25.54 points. The victory boosted her into third place in the final moguls standings.

Uemura, second for the season behind Kari Traa of Norway, had 25.44 with Jennifer Heil of Canada in third place (25.33). Shannon Bahrke (Tahoe City, CA) finished 10th with Laurel Shanley (Olympic Valley, CA) 13th.

The Ski Team arrived at midweek and trained Thursday, Friday and Saturday but Hardaway took off Saturday to rest a weary back, which she thinks she injured in a contest in Japan last month. She didn't ski much in a recent training camp on the Olympic course at Deer Valley but she plans to put on a show Friday and Sunday during the bumps events at the Chevy Truck U.S. Freestyle Championships at Waterville Valley, N.H., not far from her home.

"Everyone's pretty tired at this point, but nationals will be fun. I've probably competed in 20 events at Waterville. It'll be kinda cool to get back there."

"The ultimate pressure..."

She was "kinda bummed" about missing second place in the points - four points back of Uemura - but quickly noted, "My knees are feeling great and it's been a really good year. I'm psyched...and I know what I have to work on this summer, so..."

Dawson said the one-run, no-qualification round format "is like the ultimate pressure. You have one run, just do it. But it's the best in the world here, and you want to perform, so you better be on 'em...and this was a small mountain - not exactly the most difficult on the World Cup, but a good site for Finals."

His inaugural victory doesn't create any more pressure to ski well at the U.S. championships, he said. "It's been a good season and I'm happy. Nationals will b god, but I'm just thinking about going surfing."

The Chevy Truck U.S. Freestyle Championships open Friday at Waterville Valley, N.H., and continue through St. Patrick's Day Weekend.

FREESTYLE WORLD CUP
World Cup Finals
Himos, FIN - March 11
Moguls

1. Toby Dawson, Vail, Colo., 26.92 points (Won tiebreaker)
2. Mikko Ronkainen, Finland, 26.92
3. Pierre-Alexandre Rousseau, Canada, 26.90
4. Richard Gay, France, 26.63
5. Stephane Rochon, Canada, 26.35
-
7. Ryan Riley, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 25.65
10. Jeremy Bloom, Loveland, Colo., 25.02
11. Travis Ramos, South Lake Tahoe, Calif., 24.85
12. Evan Dybvig, Tunbridge, Vt., 14.49

World Cup Standings - Final (7 events)

1. Ronkainen, 460 points
2. Janne Lahtela, Finland, 448
3. Rousseau, 440
4. Gay, 404
5. Riley, 392
7. Dybvig, 372
8. Dawson, 336
9. Ramos, 324
19. Jonny Moseley, Tiburon, Calif., 168
22. Chris Hernandez, South Lake Tahoe, Calif., 156
27. Travis Cabral, South Lake Tahoe, Calif., 112
33. Garth Hager, Bothell, Wash., 76
37. Alex Wilson, Buffalo, N.Y., 56
39. Caleb Martin, Telluride, Colo., 44
43. Luke Westerlund, Breckenridge, Colo., 24
47. Tim Warner, Waterford, Mich., 16

Women

1. Hannah Hardaway, Moultonborough, N.H., 25.54
2. Aiko Uemura, Japan, 25.44
3. Jennifer Heil, Canada, 25.33
4. Minna Karhu, Finland, 25.16
5. Kari Traa, Norway, 25.12
-
10. Shannon Bahrke, Tahoe City, Calif., 24.10
13. Laurel Shanley, Olympic Valley, Calif., 22.66

World Cup Standings - Final (7 events)

1. Traa, 484
2. Uemura, 444
3. Hardaway, 440
4. Heil, 428
5. Karhu, 408
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9. Bahrke 356
13. Ann Battelle, 244
14. Jillian Vogtli, Ellicotville, N.Y., 236
15. Donna Weinbrecht, Killington, Vt., 232
28. Emiko Torito, Denver, 92
32. Lindley Hord, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 28
34. Shelly Robertson, Reno, Nev., 20

RACE UPHILL AT SQUAW VALLEY USA

Squaw Valley, CA (Mar. 11, 2001)

This race is Squaw Valley's original uphill race, offering participants the opportunity to use any non-motorized gear to ascend the mountain. Popular choices in previous races have included snowshoes, cross-country equipment, hiking boots and tennis shoes. The race begins near the bottom terminal of Squaw Valley's KT-22 chairlift and climbs 2,000 vertical feet and approximately 3.2 miles up the Mountain Run to High Camp.

This annual event is a memorial race in honor of Billy Dutton, a long time friend of the North Lake Tahoe community and former employee of Squaw Valley Ski Corp. All proceeds benefit local Junior Olympic Nordic Race Scholarship programs.

Registration takes place at 7am in Squaw Valley's Olympic House and the race begins at 8am. The entry fee is $15 and includes a t-shirt and goodie bag. Prizes will be awarded in several categories. For more information about the Billy Dutton Uphill please contact 583-5170 or visit www.squaw.com.

KOSTELIC CAPTURES WOMEN'S OVERALL TITLE, RAICH WINS MEN'S SLALOM

Are, Sweden (Mar. 11, 2001) - Croatian super-teen Janica Kostelic, who has been skiing on little more than one knee and who faces surgery this week, helped bring down the curtain on the Cafe de Colombia World Cup season Sunday, capturing the women's overall title when defending champion Renate Goetschl fell on the first run of the last giant slalom.

Sonja Nef of Switzerland, who won the GS title at the World Championships a month earlier in St. Anton, Austria, won the final women's GS by nearly two seconds. Earlier in the sunny day, Benni Raich of Austria edged teammate Mario Matt to win the last men's slalom of the season; at Worlds, Matt - who hails from the St. Anton region - took SL gold with Raich collecting the silver medal.

Goetschl, who fell Thursday in downhill - her best event and where she could have closed the points gap on Kostelic, fell again in GS. She would have had to finish second and have Kostelic - who was 21st - finish out of the top 15 to repeat as champion; at World Cup Finals, points are given only to the top 15 finishers. Kostelic, who tore four ligaments in her right knee in December 1999 but was back without a glitch this season, faces additional surgery this week to repair meniscus damage.

Nef led the first run and went on to win with a time of 2:34.58 with Swedes filling the last two places on the podium. Anja Paerson, the world slalom champion - and a distant runnerup to Nef in the GS standings, was second (2:36.29) and Ylva Nowen finished third, another hundredth of a second back. Sarah Schleper (Vail, CO) finished 16th, just missing points, in 2:38.50.

"You can't be thinking about just putting in a finish in the last race - I don't know what Sarah was thinking, but she didn't seem to want to go fast in the first run and was too far away from top-15 to make up the difference," said Head Coach Marjan Cenigoj. "She had the eighth-fastest second run, but it wasn't enough. There are only 25 girls at most and you need to go for it as much as possible in that last race to help you make progress."

Cernigoj was headed to the final races of the Chevy Truck Super Series, two downhill and a super G March 16-18 on the2002 Olympic course at Utah's Snowbasin Ski Area. The field is expected to be World Cup-class with the top women - who lost a chance to test the hill last season because of poor snow conditions - looking to get a chance to race on the Olympic run. "Everyone wants to see and ski it, and get some kind of a feel for Snowbasin," he said.

In the men's last slalom, Raich won in 1:47.99 a took the men's SL title when teammate Heinz Schilchegger was ninth. Matt was second in 1:48.18 and third place went to Frenchman Sebastien Amiez (1:48.31). Erik Schlopy (Park City, UT) fell near the midpoint of the course.

"Erik fell and that's slalom. A lot of people fall or go out," Head Coach Bill Egan said. "It's a shame after [Saturday's second in GS behind Hermann Maier]...but that's slalom. {Saturday] was dynamite and this was a quiet end."

CAFE de COLOMBIA WORLD CUP
World Cup Finals
Are, SWE - March 11
Women's GS

1. Sonja Nef, Switzerland, 2:34.58
2. Anja Paerson, Sweden, 2:36.29
3. Ylva Nowen, Sweden, 2:36.30
4. Allison Forsyth, Canada, 2:36.50
5. Maria Jose Rienda Contreras, Spain, 2:36.55
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16. Sarah Schleper, Vail, Colo., 2:38.50

Cafe de Colombia World Cup
Women's Overall - Final

1. Janica Kostelic, Croatia - 1,256 points
2. Renate Goetschl, Austria - 1,189
3. Regine Cavagnoud, France - 1,105
4. Nef - 1,060
5. Michaela Dorfmeister,923
-
17. Kristina Koznick, Burnsville, Minn., 371
23. Schleper, 316
26. Caroline Lalive, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 309
30. Kirsten Clark, Raymond, Maine, 285
33. Megan Gerety, Anchorage, Alaska, 271
37. Jonna Mendes, Heavenly, Calif., 190
67. Alison Powers, Winter Park, Colo., 61
68. Picabo Street, Park City, Utah, 59
113. Julia Mancuso, Tahoe City, Calif., 9

Women's GS - Final

1. Nef, 676
2. Paerson, 408
3. Dorfmeister, 341
4. Corinne Rey-Bellet, Switzerland, 265
5. Martina Ertl, Germany, 260
-
18.Schleper, 106
26. Koznick, 71
49. Lalive, 8
53. Clark, 5

Men's Slalom

1. Benni Raich, Austria, 1:47.99
2. Mario Matt, Austria, 1:48.18
3. Sebastien Amiez, France, 1:48.31
4. Alain Baxter, Great Britain, 1:48.51
5. Ole Kristian Furuseth, Norway, 1:48.71
-
DNF-1: Erik Schlopy, Park City, Utah

Cafe de Colombia World Cup
Men's Overall - Final

1. Hermann Maier, Austria - 1,618 points
2. Stephan Ebrharter, Austria, 875
3. Lasse Kjus, Norway, 866
4. Raich, Austria, 865
5. Michael Von Gruenigen, Switzerland, 743
-
15. Schlopy, 434
29. Daron Rahlves, Sugar Bowl, Calif., 255
42. Bode Miller, Franconia, N.H., 185
49. Chad Fleischer, Vail, Colo., 145
65. Casey Puckett, Aspen, Colo., 85
119. Chris Puckett, Boulder, Colo., 14
125. Thomas Vonn, Newburgh, N.Y., 12
127. (tie) Dane Spencer, Boise, Idaho, and Sacha Gros, Vail, Colo., 11 each
134. Jake Fiala, Frisco, Colo., 5
139. Brett Fischer, Winter Park, Colo., 2

Men's Slalom - Final

1. Raich, 545
2. Heinz Schilchegger, Austria, 414
3. Matt, 406
4. Patrick Bourgeat, France, 368
5. Hans-Petter Buraas, Norway, 340
-
22. Schlopy, 84
51. Gros, 11

ROSS WINS CHEVY TRUCK SUPER SERIES SLALOM

Snowbird, UT (Mar. 10, 2001) - Lauren Ross (Stowe, VT) claimed the win in a Chevy Truck Super Series slalom race Saturday at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort.

Snow began falling Friday and continued basically all day Saturday. The start was delayed just 30 minutes and the course held up pretty well, but got some good ruts cut into it later on.

Ross won with a time of 1:36.84 and was followed by a pair of Canadians - Genevieve Simard in second (1:37.51) and Anna Prchal in third (1:37.60).

It was the first victory for a U.S. skier at the Snowbird Super Series. Canadian Britt Janyk won the opening giant slalom Thursday and repeated in a second slalom Friday.

Ross led both runs of the race as she posted a 48.48 in the first run. She was also the top junior to finish the race.

The 28 points for third place helped Prchal widen her lead in the overall Super Series standings. She finished second in both Thurday's and Friday's giant slaloms and took the lead from Sarah Schleper (Vail, CO). The overall winner earns $10,000 at the end of the season.

The Snowbird Super Series concludes Sunday with a second slalom scheduled for a 9:00 a.m. start. The tour then moves on to Snowbasin, Utah for the women's finals. Two downhills (the first for the women) and a super G will be run on Wildflower, the 2002 Olympic course, March 16-18.

ALPINE SUPER SERIES
Snowbird, Utah
March 10, 2001
Women's Slalom

1. Lauren Ross, Stowe, Vermont, 1:36.84
2. Genevieve Simard, Canada, 1:37.51
3. Anna Prchal, Canada, 1:37.60
4. Sara-Maude Boucher, Canada, 1:38.03
5. Tatum Skoglund, Bellevue, Wash., 1:38.30
6. Megan Hughes, Killington, Vermont, 1:38.47
7. Jessica Kelley, Starksboro, Vermont, 1:38.64
8. Hilary McCloy, Waitsfield, Vermont, 1:38.99
9. Resi Stiegler, Park City, Utah, 1:39.19
10. Elizabeth Richardson, Canada, 1:39.70

GRICHIN, XU WIN AERIALS FINALS

Himos, Finland (Mar. 10, 2001) - The FIS Freestyle World Cup Finals got underway Saturday as Alexi Grichin from Belarus and Nannan Xu from China took wins in the aerials competition.

Grichin won it with a score of 249.74 over Canadian Steve Omischl (243.43) and Austrian Christian Rijavec (229.52).

Four American men competed with Ryan St. Onge (Winter Park, CO) leading the squad in fifth. The Park City, Utah team of Joe Pack and Brian Currutt placed eighth and ninth, respectively, and ’98 Olympic gold medalist Eric Bergoust (Missoula, MT) took tenth.

Despite not finishing on the podium Saturday, the U.S. skiers ended the season at the top of the World Cup points list. Bergoust was first with 456 points and Pack was just behind with 452. Dmitri Dashinski rounded out the top three with 444 points.

Bergoust started out the season strong, winning a pair of contests in Australia back in August. He topped his own world record for the third time, posting a score of 260.98. He followed that up with a second (behind Pack) at Blackcomb, British Columbia and was third at Sunday River, Maine. The ’99 world champion has 12 career World Cup wins.

Pack keeps moving up in the standings each year. Last season, he finished a career-best third in the aerials standings, a three-spot improvement over his ‘98-99 finish. This season, Pack recorded three podiums – the win at Blackcomb, a second at Sunday River and a third at Deer Valley, Utah.

Xu picked up the victory with a score of 191.73. Australian standout Jacqui Cooper was second (185.08) and Alla Tsuper of Belarus took third (171.92).

The lone American competing was Emily Cook (Belmont, MA). She jumped to a score of 140.14, good for eighth place. She posted her first career podium finish with a third at Deer Valley.

Cooper, with three wins, two seconds and a third, won the aerials title with 492 points. Tsuper was second with 469 and Xu finished third with 444 points. Cook was the top American woman in sixth.

Jerry Grossi (Park City, UT) qualified to compete at the Finals, but has been out of action since Feb. 4 when he crashed his dirtbike and suffered a butterfly fracture to his right femur. He is expected to be back in June for water ramp training in Park City.

The same disappointing end to the year also held true for Brenda Petzold (Andover, MA). She qualified for Finals as well, but was not on the plane to Finland after fracturing her right clavicle in a training accident at Lake Placid, New York on Feb. 27. She is expected to be back in action this spring.

The World Cup Finals conclude Sunday with men’s and women’s moguls.

FREESTYLE WORLD CUP FINALS
Himos, Finland
March 10, 2001
Aerials

MEN

1. Alexi Grichin, Belarus, 249.74
2. Steve Omischl, Canada, 243.43
3. Christian Rijavec, Austria, 229.52
4. Andy Capicik, Canada, 224.36
5. Ryan St. Onge, Winter Park, Colo., 222.88
6. Dmitri Dashinski, Belarus, 219.41
7. Nicolas Fontaine, Canada, 214.31
8. Joe Pack, Park City, Utah, 211.36
9. Brian Currutt, Park City, Utah, 207.14
10. Eric Bergoust, Missoula, Mont., 200.02
11. Juha-Matti Koponen, Finland, 70.87
DNS Jerry Grossi, Park City, Utah

WOMEN

1. Nannan Xu, China, 191.73
2. Jacqui Cooper, Australia, 185.08
3. Alla Tsuper, Belarus, 171.92
4. Alisa Camplin, Australia, 168.24
5. Veronika Bauer, Canada, 160.44
6. Deidre Dionne, Canada, 153.03
7. Pascale Gadbois, Canada, 148.52
8. Emily Cook, Belmont, Mass., 140.14
9. Evelyne Leu, Switzerland, 137.65
DNS Brenda Petzold, Andover, Mass.

SCHLOPY 2nd BEHIND MAIER IN WORLD CUP GS, NEF WINS WOMEN'S SL

Are, Sweden (Mar. 10, 2001) - Austrian great Hermann Maier hung up some more big numbers Saturday at World Cup Finals, winning the final giant slalom of the season with Erik Schlopy (Park City, UT) on his tail, finishing second for the second podium of Schlopy's career.

Switzerland's Sonja Nef won the women's slalom with Kristina Koznick (Burnsville, MN) the only American to finish as she came in 12th. Croatian Janica Kostelic - who had been unbeaten after eight slaloms this season but faces knee surgery next week - was 11th and leads defending overall champion Renate Goetschl of Austria by 67 points going into the final race of the season Sunday, the GS.

Maier, who led the first run by .27 over GS world champion Michael Von Gruenigen of Switzerland, won the 41st race of his career and his record-tying 13th of the season (to equal Ingemar Stenmark's performance during the 1979 season). That also enabled Maier, who doesn't ski slalom except in combined events, to successfully defend the fourth of his four World Cup titles from last season as he pulled past Von Gruenigen in the final standings by 10 points.

The winning time was 2:31.23 with Schlopy - starting fourth and finishing third in the first run - runnerup in 2:32.37. Benni Raich of Austria was third in 2:32.51. Von Gruenigen went down a half-dozen gates from the finish of his second run but got up and scrambled over the finish and still finished fourth (2:32.83).

Second 2nd for Schlopy

"It's great," said U.S. Head Coach Bill Egan. "He had a good first run and even though he didn't ski the top extremely well on his second run, he still had a good one. We're really excited for him."

Schlopy is 15th for the season and his podium, which followed his second-place result behind Christoph Gruber of Austria in the Bormio GS before Christmas, boosted him past the elite 400-point level for the season. He stands third - behind Maier andVon Gruenigen - in GS, 20th in slalom. It's the first time a U.S. skier has been top-3 in GS since 1983 when Phil Mahre edged Stenmark for both the World Cup overall and GS titles (and points were given to just the top 15 skiers).

"This is great. My goal had been for the season had been to be top 15 and now, to be second behind Hermann Maier and to be third overall [in GS] is very special," Schlopy said. "When I have one of these special days, my body knows it and I can go fast, I can be on the podium...

"I still have some technique to work on, but I keep progressing, keep making improvements," he said.

Capaul: "We missed a chance..."

In the women's race, Nef took the first-run lead and went on to win in 1:50.38 with Germany's Martina Ertl second, .4 back. Kostelic - who came back from knee surgery in December 1999 and is battling gamely on a knee with torn meniscus that faces surgery in a few days - was 11th; she leads defending overall champion Renate Goetschl of Austria, who was a DNF in the first run, by 67 points before Sunday's GS, which ends of the World Cup season.

Koznick was 12th in 1:51.91 while Sarah Schleper (Vail, CO) and Caroline Lalive (Steamboat Springs, CO) fell in the midsection of the course.

"We missed a chance for some good points," said U.S. Coach George Capaul. "Only 17 girls made it through the first run and points only go for top-15 finishes at Finals...but Sarah, who had been training so fast and is confident and happy, leaned-in and fell, and 'Liner' hasn't really been skiing much slalom - because of the torque - since hurting her [left] knee [in GS training at Worlds], and she went down midway, too. We were going for the podium, not just top-15, and Sarah's going to be after it [Sunday in GS], too."

CAFE de COLOMBIA WORLD CUP
World Cup Finals
Are, SWE - March 10

1. Hermann Maier, Austria, 2:31.33
2. Erik Schlopy, Park City, Utah 2:32.37
3. Benni Raich, Austria, 2:32.51
4. Michael Von Gruenigen, Switzerland, 2:32.83
5. Lasse Kjus, Norway, 2:33.10

Cafe de Colombia World Cup
Men's Overall (1 race left)

1. Maier - 1,618 points
2. Stephan Eberharter, Austria, 875
3. Kjus, 848
4. Raich, 765
5. Von Gruenigen, 743
-
15. Schlopy, 434
28. Daron Rahlves, Sugar Bowl, Calif., 255
40. Bode Miller, Franconia,N.H., 185
46. Chad Fleischer, Vail, Colo., 145
63. Casey Puckett, Aspen, Colo., 85
119. Chris Puckett, Boulder, Colo., 14
125. Thomas Vonn. Newburgh, N.Y., 12
127. Dane Spencer, Boise, Idaho, and Sacha Gros, Vail, Colo., 11 each
134. Jake Fiala, Frisco, Colo., 5
139. Brett Fischer, Winter Park, Colo., 2

Giant Slalom - Final

1. Maier, 622
2. Von Gruenigen, 612
3. Schlopy, 350
15. Miller, 158
38. Rahlves, 36
44. Casey Puckett, 18

Women's Slalom

1. Sonja Nef, Switzerland, 1:50.38
2. Martina Ertl, Germany, 1:50.78
3. Anja Paerson, Sweden, 1:50.79
4. Laura Pequegnot, France, 1:50.84
5. Hedda Berntsen, Norway, 1:50.94
-
12. Kristina Koznick, Burnsville, Minn., 1:51.91
-
DNF: Sarah Schleper, Vail, Colo., and Caroline Lalive, Steamboat Springs, Colo.

Cafe de Colombia World Cup
Women's Overall (1 race left)

1. Janica Kostelic, Croatia 1,256 points
2. Renate Goetschl, Austria - 1,189
3. Regine Cavagnoud, France - 1,087
4. Nef, 960
5. Michaela Dorfmeister, Austria, 923
-
16. Koznick, 371
22. Sarah Schleper, 316
24. Lalive, 309
28. Kirsten Clark, Raymond, Maine, 285
31. Megan Gerety, Anchorage, Alaska, 271
37. Jonna Mendes, Heavenly, Calif., 190
67. Alison Powers, Winter Park, Colo., 61
68. Picabo Street, Park City, Utah, 59
113. Julia Mancuso, Tahoe City, Calif., 9

Women's Slalom - Final

1. Kostelic, 824 points
2. Nef, 384
3. Ertl, 346
4. Karin Koellerer, Austria, 340
5. Pequegnot, 317
-
7. Koznick, 300
11. Schleper, 210
22. Lalive, 70

Copyright © 2001 First Tracks!! Online Ski Magazine