Bretton Woods, NH (Saturday, May 1, 2004) - World Cup giant slalom champion Bode Miller (Franconia, NH), shaking off the loss of his golf clubs, led the way on a sun-splashed Saturday to help raise funds at the first Bodefest Ski and Golf Challenge at Bretton Woods Resort, which will benefit the local adaptive sports program.

"This was fun," Miller, director of skiing at Bretton Woods, said at the end of the day. The two-day program began Friday night with a sneak preview of "The Art of Bode," a 50-minute version of a feature-length documentary on Miller. Saturday, the program featured four-person teams competing in two runs of a gentle giant slalom at Bretton Woods Mountain Resort and nine holes of golf at the Mount Washington Hotel course. Among the participants: Miller's parents and U.S. Disabled Ski Team mono-skier Chris Devlin-Young (Campton, NH), who won gold medals in GS and slalom at the 2004 World Championships.

"This is the first time I've ever played golf," said his mother, Jo Miller, a wide-smiling member of the East Valley Ladies foursome. "Well, I took lessons when I was about 10 years old in Washington, but this was the first time I've played. It was such a beautiful day and really a lot of fun. I think everyone had a good time."

Miller said he lost his golf clubs while flying home earlier in the week and "I played terribly...but it was okay. I was trying to find the right clubs. I've got to get a new set of clubs."

The charity tournament opened the resort's golf course at the foot of the Presidential Range for the season. Bretton Woods also is marking the first time the resort has stayed open into May; the 75-degree weather reduced the snowpack considerably but officials said they would stay open as long as possible.

Participants, who received a complimentary T-shirt, included adults and children, including many BW Racing Team members who took part only in the GS runs. Prizes included Rossignol Bode1 skis, Swix poles, Cleveland golf clubs, a Spyder jacket and assorted other gifts. He also posed for photos and autographed all sorts of paraphernalia.

"We wanted to raise some money, but we wanted to start low-key and we had a lot of locals, which was nice," said Miller, who won six events - four giant slaloms and two combined calculations - last winter en route to becoming the first U.S. men's World Cup champion since Phil Mahre in 1983. "We'll get a little bigger next year but we didn't want to be too big at the start. When we opened it up, though, all the spots filled quickly, so people want to participate, which is good."