BBC Winter Sports Journalist, Anna Thompson highlights the amazing slopestyle athletes the UK currently have, including Jenny Jones and Jamie Nicholls and Ed Leigh thinks the inclusion of both the ski and snowboard slopestyle in the 2014 Winter Olympics is not just a pipe dream!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/annathompson/2010/02/slopestyle_to_make_debut_in_so.html

Check out the BRITS 2010 feature from the Mirror.co.uk, its never to chilly for an alpine gathering: http://bit.ly/9gip3v

The London Freeze held at Battersea Power Station in London has probably been my most anticipated event off the year, watching all the international guys on the city big airs for the last years has definitely inspired me to think that’s something that I want to do. This year I was given the chance to compete in the Battle of Britain on the Friday, against 15 top UK riders.
The jump looked really fun, but it was definitely the most scared I have been standing up there, looking down on the in run, waiting to drop in for my first run. Once I had got a few jumps done, the nerves had eased off a little, and I felt a little more comfortable on the jump. The competition format was head-to-head, so I did cork 7 mutes’ both runs, up against Andy who knocked me out with a sick misty 7 high nose grab. The rest of the competition was really fun; it was cool to see Paddy doing his double cork 10 in preparation for Sunday’s competition.

Later that evening, it was the style mix competition, with only two British competitors in – Woodsy and Paddy in. It was a really fun competition to watch, Paddy did really well in it with his double cork 1080. It was definitely great to watch Phil Casabon with his perfect 900 nose to tail on the jump, and then Bobby Brown with his double cork poked 1080 mutes, which actually won the competition.

On the Saturday, it was the Snowboard FIS competition in the day and then the skier’s rail jam later in that evening. I drove in with Woodsy on Saturday, as he and a few others had slept at mine the previous night. For most of Saturday, it was pretty chilled out, hanging out with each other before the rail jam later in the evening. Once the snowboard competition had finished, they started to prepare the rail jam, making the landing the in-run to the rail now.

I ended up being the ‘guinea pig’ for the rail, which I wasn’t too fussed about. I had a really fun time sessioning the rail, as did many others, apart from when I fell off the side off it. Although I didn’t make the rail jam final, which I didn’t expect as I was up against the worlds best rail skiers, I had such a sick time playing around learning new tricks on the rail. On Saturday evening, I ended up going back to mine and having a fairly chilled out evening, as I was very tired to say the least.

On the Sunday, I drove in again for the Freeski Big Air competition. The weather didn’t look too good, it had been raining all night, and the jump didn’t appear to be in a good condition. The competition didn’t event look like it was going to go ahead, but by 3 o’clock, to my amazement, the shapers had done a brilliant job and got the kicker in a working condition. Due to an avalanche of snow down the in-run, it meant that they had to use snowflex as part of the in-run, more to the UK rider’s advantage.

The international riders, were spectacle about this to say the least, but at the riders meeting, with a lot of chanting and cheering “Woodsy, Woodsy, Woodsy” they persuaded Woodsy to go up there and test the jump. Woodsy got up to the top of the in-run, and there was a little bit of a delay, which added to the tense moment. When Woodsy dropped in, everyone held their breath for a minute, not that we needed to as he went off the jump doing a 360 truck going all the way down to the bottom of the landing.

The riders seemed a little more stoked now, having seen that the snowflex was working as an in-run and they all began to get warmed up. In the qualifications there was all sorts been thrown down, from the likes of kangoroos, double cork 10’s and 12’s and then rodeo 9’s, from the likes of Andreas, TJ, Bobby and Russ.

I thought the qualifications were awesome, but after seeing the finals I soon changed my mind. The finals of the competition were one of the craziest I have ever witnessed. Bobby was the second last rider to drop in, and stomped his double cork 12 poked mute, scoring 98. With Russ up there being the last rider, everyone thought there was no way he could be beaten, but he dropped in, and stomped a double cork 12 guitar grab and scoring 99. The crowd were so stoked, as were we all, it was such a good event. No one would have thought early in the morning, that it would turn out to be an event like this. To top of the evening I got to Chase and Status live too.

The Metro Ski Shows in Olympia, alway’s seem to be very hectic, there’s some that don’t seem too into the idea, but I look forward to that week, where i get the chance to catch up with everyone in the ski scene, have fun with my friends and most of all hit the kicker in London.
On the Wednesday, I took a short visit to the ski show, as i had to be back at mine later in the day because Tommo was staying with me. I relearnt the train route, caught up with some friends there and checked out this years jump. I only stayed there for a few hours before shooting back to meet Tommo.

On the Thursday, me and Tommo both went up to the ski shows with our skis, so we had a little less luggage to bring on the Friday when we were due to compete. On the Thursday, we were up there for the whole day, watching the ski demos, catching up with people in the industry from the likes of the guys from Ski Bartlett, to Warren’s academy and to the Soul Sport guys. It was a fun day, and the highlight definitely has to be getting all of next years ski movies to watch. Again, we had to leave a little early in the evening, as this time Fawcett was coming down for the weekend. I picked Fawcett up from the station later that evening, and we enjoyed watching the ski movies for the evening.
Friday was competition day, the Best of Brits run by the British Snow Tour. We were up super early as my Mum was giving us a lift into London on her way to work. In the morning, we got a little bit of practise in on the jump. It was good to have a little ride on the jump whilst no-one was there, so we could get the feel off it.
For the rest of the day, it was sort of chilled out, doing the same old, catching up with everyone and getting ready for the competition later in the evening. The competition was really fun, I laid down runs that i was happy with but i couldn’t quite hack the transition of the landing which was a shame. But the likes of Woodsy, Webbo and Tommo were killing it and took well deserved podium spots from the competition.

There was a sad incident in the competition, in that Fawcett ending up hurting himself pretty bad. The competitors that didn’t make the final, that included me and Fawcett, were set to do a grand finale at the end as a little crowd pleaser. Me and Mikey dropped in first doing big backflips, followed by Fawcett doing a front flip. Sadly, Fawcett over-rotated his front flip, like I did last year, but took it really badly in the arms, and ended up breaking both wrists and an elbow. It makes me wonder how many brain cells I killed when I did it last year. But anyway, major props to the way Fawcett took it, and hope his recovery process goes well.

The rest of the weekend was a bit mental from then on, we had the London Ride on the Saturday which was another great competition, with Murray coming out on top this time. I always enjoy the London Ride, it’s such a fun competition and a great atmosphere. My runs included cork 7’s, but I failed to qualify for the final, but nevertheless, it was a really fun competition.

The ski shows, were good fun this year, having the time to see everyone is always nice, and then a little bit of skiing in the midst of that top’s it all off. Thats it for now…

Soulsports have secured the roles of Slope Preperation, Slope Management and Contest Management at this year’s event in Battersea, London which will host several competitions including the FIS World Snowboard Cup and the International Freeze Ski event.

Below is the official Press Release:

FSO4 FREEZE SNOWSPORTS AND MUSIC FESTIVAL RETURNS TO BATTERSEA
• Battersea Power Station hosts festival from 30th October – 1st November
• 32m snow jump with 17m drop to be re-created using 500 tonnes of real snow
• Orbital and Friendly Fires to headline
• Over 200 world class competitors from across the globe expected to attend
• FIS sanctioned World Cup snowboard event returns to London
• International Freeskie Event
• Battle of Britain Ski and Snowboard events
• Freeze Grind Rail comps and USA vs Europe competitions added to event line-up
• Tickets now on sale

The UK’s biggest ever winter sports and music festival, Freesports on 4 FREEZE sponsored by LG, is returning to London following the phenomenal success of last year’s event.
Once again, Battersea Power Station will be transformed into an international competition standard snowboarding and freeski venue to host world class skiers and snowboarders from around the world.
The inaugural event in 2008 drew huge crowds to the South London site and the event sold out all 10,000 tickets on the Saturday for the World Cup event.

The 32m high ski-jump will accompany the iconic towers of Battersea Power Station on the London skyline once again with 500 tonnes of real snow being produced and packed onto the slope to transform the site into a winter sports village. The big air jump will form the central hub of the competition and will return as the biggest ever created in the UK. The overall length from the top of the jump to the landing strip will be 110m, with a 17m table top drop from which competitors from around the globe will be showcasing their talents.

The festival will kick off on the Friday with a Battle of Britain ski and snowboard contest with the best of British talent battling it out for the title of top dog in the UK. Brit Olympic snowboard hopefuls Ben Kilner and Dom Harrington will be jostling for the top spot, before focusing on the World Cup event later in the weekend.

The LG London Big Air event, part of the FIS LG Snowboard World Cup, will take place on the Saturday, forming the main competition for snowboarders. All riders taking part can score crucial ratings points in their quest to become World Champions, whilst also improving their chances to qualify for the Vancouver Winter Olympics in 2010. Last year’s winner Peetu Piiroinen (FIN) will be returning to defend his title, along with Scotty Lago (US) who hopes to retain his Best Trick trophy.
The International Freestyle Ski event over Saturday and Sunday will feature some of the world’s most accomplished skiers, with multiple Winter X Games Gold Medal winner Tanner Hall (US) returning for a second year, along with Simon Dumont (US) and UK hopeful Paddy Graham, all of whom will be competing for the £10,000 prize fund.

This year’s festival will also see a brand new addition to its sporting line up, with the Freeze Grind competition giving the ski and snowboard competitors a chance to display their skills on rails at the base of the slope.

Finally, the festival will close with a battle of the continents, with USA taking on Europe in a snowboard contest on Sunday which is guaranteed to get the audience’s pulses racing.
Along with a stellar line-up of winter sports action, there will be music acts taking to the stage across the weekend to entertain the après-ski revelers after the on-piste action comes to a close. Electronic outfit Orbital have been confirmed for Friday and Friendly Fires will headline Sunday’s music line-up. Other acts confirmed include Pendulum DJ set and Chase and Status Further acts will be confirmed nearer the time. The main music tent has been extended from last year to hold a massive 15,000 capacity crowd.

Andrew Topham, Events Director at Big Freeze Limited, the event producers commented: “We are delighted to be returning to Battersea Power Station in 2009. 2008 was a special event for us and you can expect ’09 to eclipse that! The LG World Cup is a very important International Series and we are thrilled for London to be a part of that once more. Big Freeze will be working very closely with its partners to create the ultimate inner city snow and music festival.”

Marcel Looze, Snowboard Race Director at the sport’s official global body FIS commented: “Research showed that enjoyment of the LG Snowboard FIS World Cup Big Air was high with most wanting to come back or recommend a friend. The very special location at Battersea, the enthusiastic crowd and great performance of the riders made the first LG Snowboard FIS World Cup Big Air in London a success. FIS is proud to have London in the Calendar 2009/2010 again and give the audience another opportunity to watch World Class athletes without having to travel thousands of miles. We trust Sports Vision supported by the British Ski and Snowboard Association are able to create a great show again.”

Ben Kilner, UK Olympic hopeful said: “I’m really excited to be sponsored by LG, their involvement in the FIS Snowboarding World Cup has really helped to grow the sport & FSO4 FREEZE sponsored by LG is looking like it¹ll be a great event again this year. I¹m looking forward to taking on the World¹s best snowboarders, which will be great preparation for me in the lead up to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, especially in front of a home crowd!”

Paul Meadows, head of brand marketing at LG Electronics UK & Ireland comments: “Freesports on 4 Freeze and the Big Air established themselves as iconic events last year and LG is delighted to be sponsoring both events for the second year running. Bringing freesports, music and the latest mobile technology such as social networking handsets together at the iconic Battersea power station, this year¹s event promises to be bigger and even more spectacular. We’re sure that everyone who attends will have a truly memorable time, taking in the buzz and excitement of live action and music together with their friends and family.”

Fans wishing to attend the event are advised to visit www.londonfreeze.com for further ticket information.

Tickets are priced at £35 for a day pass, £85 for a season pass (3 days), with a child’s day ticket at £15 and a child’s season ticket at £35.
www.londonfreeze.com

In each of the four disciplines Sunday, glowing audiences bore witness to the making of the
following «freestyle.champ» title holders: snowboarder Eero Ettala (FIN), freeskier Sammy
Carlson (USA), FMX pilot Dany Torres (ESP) and skateboarder Jean-Paul Ronchetti (GBR). A
grand total of 47,000 visitors, 3 straight days of awesome weather, kickin’ live concerts and
rousing freestyle action transformed Zurich’s Landiwiese this weekend into an unrivaled
freestyle arena.

It would be hard to top the incredible contest action, top athletes, excellent sounds of rapper Stress,
Phenomden and The Vibes as well as the great atmosphere and perfect weather soaked up by visitors
over the past three days at Zurich’s Landiwiese. Visitors kicked back and became one with Label
World’s mellow scene as they joined in the fun prize games and activities offered at exhibitor stands.
«The success of the event confirms the strength of our concept», remarked the contented OC President
Erwin Flury. «Visitors are really drawn to the great mix of freestyle action, world-class athletes, powerful
live concerts and top trends at Label World.»

YouTube round up of the best action

«freestyle.champ»
It was first-things-first as the finalists in snowboarding, freeskiing, FMX biking and skateboarding got
things going in Sunday’s finals. Everyone showed up with an impressive bag of tricks and an incredible
appetite for landing a spot at the top as they took each other on. Then things got down to the wire as the
four best athletes in each category fought for the 2009 «freestyle.champ» title in the Superfinal. All of
the Superfinals in each of the four disciplines were over within an hour’s time, delivering a powerful
finish to an unbeatable weekend - aired live on SF zwei to boot!

Just 16 and already a win at the Vert Ramp
Sandro Dias was the favorite heading into Sunday’s skateboarding contests. No wonder: the guy left
audiences speechless with his soaring jumps at the Vert ramp. But he couldn’t quite manage to keep up
his peak performance in the Superfinal, falling when he attempted a 900. Paul-Luc Ronchetti, the 16
year old Brit, seized the opportunity, sending himself straight to the top by landing the title with his 720
and soaring 540 Varial. Both Jürgen Horrwath from Berlin and Sandro Dias were forced to take
backseat at 3rd and 4th. «I’m really proud of myself for managing to beat my childhood idol, Sandro
Dias!», beamed the winner Ronchetti. Daniel Mayer from the USA took 2nd place.

Close contest in freeskiing
The freeskiing champ was decided in a breathtaking show. It was only by one point that Sammy Carlson
beat Swiss kid Elias Ambühl to score 1st. Although both managed to thrill audiences with extremely
difficult jumps, the judges were forced to choose between the two. They took Carlson’s Double Cork
1080 over Ambühl’s Switch Double Cork 1080. It was ultimately this American freeskier’s style that won
judges over and landed him the «freestyle.champ» title. «Winning was a real confidence booster. Look
out X-Games, here I come!», said Carlson. Andreas Hatveit from Norway took 3rd while the Swede
glamour boy, Jon Olsson came in 4th.

FMX Dirt Jump in Spanish hands
In Sunday’s finals were Daisuke Suzuki (JPN), Charles Pagès (FRA), Dany Torres from Spain and Mat
Rebeaud from the French part of Switzerland. Rebeaud was the audience’s favorite heading into the
contest. He gave a consistent performance all weekend long while Pagès got increasingly better,
managing to eventually even pull off a Double Seatback Back Flip. However, topping both of these guys
was Dany Torres, who maintained a peak performance throughout, ever ready with a new variation. It
was his repertoire of back flip combos like the Lazyboy and Cliffhanger that won him the
«freestyle.champ» title. «It was cool to beat out Pagès and win today,» exclaimed the Spaniard. «I’m
definitely getting back to Zurich!»

A Finnish guy wins the snowboard contest
The Swiss had a strong chance for a win as Christian Haller and Iouri Podladtchikov headed into
Sunday’s Snowboarder Superfinal. Failed landings decided otherwise, however, knocking these two
athletes down to 3rd and 4th. A well-deserved victory went to the experienced rider from Helsinki and
2006 champ, Eero Ettala. He earned his «freestyle.champ» title with a Backside 1080 Mute as well as a
Switch Double Cork 1080, which he landed for the first time ever, putting his opponent, 17 year old
talent Sebastien Toutant in 2nd. No one managed to throw tricks as high and as wide as this Finnish
guy. «It’s incredible that I managed to land this trick. This will definitely not be the last time,» raved a
very happy Ettala.

Switzerland’s Podladtchikov crowned «crossover.champ»
The lit-up Landiwiese was basking in an incredible freestyle spirit Saturday night. Everything and
everyone was in place and awaiting the gladiators to make their entrance into the freestyle arena. And
these guys entered on fire, burning down the house as fans cheered them on to soaring heights in the
«Crossover Session». The crowds even enjoyed the one-time chance to play judge in the freestyle
arena. As in the previous year, during the show contests, all four disciplines were represented in the
Superfinal: Iouri Podladtchikov for snowboarding, 17 year old Swiss Elias Ambühl for freeskiing, new
proud father Dany Torres from Spain for FMXing and long-time audience favorite, Sandro Dias for
skateboarding. Although the Brazilian scored the «crossover.champ» title in 2006 and 2008, the
audience went with Podladtchikov this time around – they just couldn’t get over his perfect landing of the
Double Backside Rodeo.

Those who missed Europe’s largest freestyle sports event or those looking to experience freestyle.ch
Zurich 2009 once again, should turn on the TV Sunday, October 4, to SF zwei for all the highlights from
freestyle.ch Zurich 2009.

There’s more action coming up as the freestyle train takes off for Berlin. freestyle.berlin will premiere
from October 9 – 11 at Berlin Tempelhof Airport. More info available at: http://berlin.freestyle.ch.
More press photos and additional information available at: www.freestyle.ch.

• Battersea Power Station hosts festival from 30th October – 1st November
• 32m snow jump with 17m drop to be re-created using 500 tonnes of real snow
• Orbital and Friendly Fires to headline
• Over 200 world class competitors from across the globe expected to attend
• FIS sanctioned World Cup snowboard event returns to London
• International Freeskie Event
• Battle of Britain Ski and Snowboard events
• Freeze Grind Rail comps and USA vs Europe competitions added to event line-up
• Tickets now on sale

The UK’s biggest ever winter sports and music festival, Freesports on 4 FREEZE sponsored by LG, is returning to London following the phenomenal success of last year’s event.
Once again, Battersea Power Station will be transformed into an international competition standard snowboarding and freeski venue to host world class skiers and snowboarders from around the world.
The inaugural event in 2008 drew huge crowds to the South London site and the event sold out all 10,000 tickets on the Saturday for the World Cup event.

The 32m high ski-jump will accompany the iconic towers of Battersea Power Station on the London skyline once again with 500 tonnes of real snow being produced and packed onto the slope to transform the site into a winter sports village. The big air jump will form the central hub of the competition and will return as the biggest ever created in the UK. The overall length from the top of the jump to the landing strip will be 110m, with a 17m table top drop from which competitors from around the globe will be showcasing their talents.
The festival will kick off on the Friday with a Battle of Britain ski and snowboard contest with the best of British talent battling it out for the title of top dog in the UK. Brit Olympic snowboard hopefuls Ben Kilner and Dom Harrington will be jostling for the top spot, before focusing on the World Cup event later in the weekend.
The LG London Big Air event, part of the FIS LG Snowboard World Cup, will take place on the Saturday, forming the main competition for snowboarders. All riders taking part can score crucial ratings points in their quest to become World Champions, whilst also improving their chances to qualify for the Vancouver Winter Olympics in 2010. Last year’s winner Peetu Piiroinen (FIN) will be returning to defend his title, along with Scotty Lago (US) who hopes to retain his Best Trick trophy.
The International Freestyle Ski event over Saturday and Sunday will feature some of the world’s most accomplished skiers, with multiple Winter X Games Gold Medal winner Tanner Hall (US) returning for a second year, along with Simon Dumont (US) and UK hopeful Paddy Graham, all of whom will be competing for the £10,000 prize fund.
This year’s festival will also see a brand new addition to its sporting line up, with the Freeze Grind competition giving the ski and snowboard competitors a chance to display their skills on rails at the base of the slope.
Finally, the festival will close with a battle of the continents, with USA taking on Europe in a snowboard contest on Sunday which is guaranteed to get the audience’s pulses racing.

Along with a stellar line-up of winter sports action, there will be music acts taking to the stage across the weekend to entertain the après-ski revelers after the on-piste action comes to a close. Electronic outfit Orbital have been confirmed for Friday and Friendly Fires will headline Sunday’s music line-up. Other acts confirmed include Pendulum DJ set and Chase and Status Further acts will be confirmed nearer the time. The main music tent has been extended from last year to hold a massive 15,000 capacity crowd.
Andrew Topham, Events Director at Big Freeze Limited, the event producers commented: “We are delighted to be returning to Battersea Power Station in 2009. 2008 was a special event for us and you can expect ’09 to eclipse that! The LG World Cup is a very important International Series and we are thrilled for London to be a part of that once more. Big Freeze will be working very closely with its partners to create the ultimate inner city snow and music festival.”
Marcel Looze, Snowboard Race Director at the sport’s official global body FIS commented: “Research showed that enjoyment of the LG Snowboard FIS World Cup Big Air was high with most wanting to come back or recommend a friend. The very special location at Battersea, the enthusiastic crowd and great performance of the riders made the first LG Snowboard FIS World Cup Big Air in London a success. FIS is proud to have London in the Calendar 2009/2010 again and give the audience another opportunity to watch World Class athletes without having to travel thousands of miles. We trust Sports Vision supported by the British Ski and Snowboard Association are able to create a great show again.”

Ben Kilner, UK Olympic hopeful said: “I’m really excited to be sponsored by LG, their involvement in the FIS Snowboarding World Cup has really helped to grow the sport & FSO4 FREEZE sponsored by LG is looking like it¹ll be a great event again this year. I¹m looking forward to taking on the World¹s best snowboarders, which will be great preparation for me in the lead up to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, especially in front of a home crowd!”

Paul Meadows, head of brand marketing at LG Electronics UK & Ireland comments: “Freesports on 4 Freeze and the Big Air established themselves as iconic events last year and LG is delighted to be sponsoring both events for the second year running. Bringing freesports, music and the latest mobile technology such as social networking handsets together at the iconic Battersea power station, this year¹s event promises to be bigger and even more spectacular. We’re sure that everyone who attends will have a truly memorable time, taking in the buzz and excitement of live action and music together with their friends and family.”
Fans wishing to attend the event are advised to visit www.londonfreeze.com for further ticket information.
Tickets are priced at £35 for a day pass, £85 for a season pass (3 days), with a child’s day ticket at £15 and a child’s season ticket at £35.

Norfolk 12th & 13th September 2009

It was a glorious start to the 2009 British Snow Tour at the weekend as blue skies welcomed over 100 of the UK’s best Freeskiers from across the land to Norfolk for the ‘Mini BRITS’ weekender. The BBQ, MC and music got rocking as riders hit the slope and showcased their big bag of tricks in the British Big Air, Trespass Skiercross and Animal Slopestyle Championships!

Animal Freeski Slopestyle Championships
The Animal Slopestyle Championships kicked off the freeski action on Saturday afternoon and it soon became apparent that the summer training camps had achieved their goal as the standard of skiing was immense with some technical rail tricks being displayed. In the men’s final a special shout out and thwack of respect from the judges and competitors alike went to 11-year-old Glaswegian Cal Sandieson who showed no fear and skilfully attacked the Animal Slopestyle course all day.

Josh Birch who had been skiing well all day won the Men’s Animal Slopestyle Championships, and walked away with a smile on his face and his first ever overall British Championship Title. Josh’s run included a 270 on 450 out on the top rail, followed by a switch 270 on 270 out and a blind switch up on the intimidating shark fin rail. Second place went to 2008 Champ, James Woods who did a 270 on 270 out on the street rail, a switch 270 in 270 out on the box and a 270 out on the bottom shark fin rail. 12-year-old Tyler Jay-Harding continued to pave the way for the younger freeskiers and finished in third place with a consistent and faultless run.

In the women’s final it was defending Slopestyle Champ, Katie Summerhayes who impressed the most and added the 2009 Animal British Slopestyle Championship title to here already impressive collection. The only skier to land a 450 out on the first rail, which none of the boys had even attempted, Katie proved herself to be world class and a worthy Champion. Second place went to Kelly O’Donnell who also stepped it up and opted for the bigger rail line whilst third place went to Rowen Cheshire who had a clean run with a 270 on the middle box.

Animal Freeski Slopestyle Championship Results:
Men
1st – Josh Birch - London
2nd – James Woods - Sheffield
3rd - Tyler Jay-Harding - Halifax

Women
1st – Katie Summerhayes - Sheffield
2nd – Kelly O’Donnell – Stoke-on-Trent
3rd - Rowen Cheshire – Stoke-on-Trent

Trespass Skiercross Championships
The Trespass Skiercross Championships kicked off Sunday’s freeski action and competition was fierce, with over 60 skiers going through the start gates and on into the head to head heats with some spectacular wipe-outs along the way. In the men’s final only the fastest skiers remained and Stuart Riches made the most of an early lead out of the start gates to lead the pack over the finish line. Byron Haywood-Alexander and Michael Molloy collided on the first turn leaving Alex Abbott to take second place. After getting to their feet and with only one ski a piece, Michael and Byron continued down the course to take third and fourth respectively.

During the women’s final it was Danielle Freeze who finished in first place, after taking over Joanne Llewellyn and Kelly O’Donnell right at the final turn. Kelly finished in second with Joanne and Ashlea Martin finishing in third and fourth.

Trespass Skiercross Championship Results
Men
1st – Stuart Riches - Suffolk
2nd – Alex Abbott - Norwich
3rd – Michael Molloy - Norwich
4th – Byron Haywood-Alexander - Sheffield

Women
1st – Danielle Freeze - Kent
2nd – Kelly O’Donnell – Stoke-on-Trent
3rd – Joanna Llewellyn - Kent
4th – Ashlea Martin - Norfolk

British Big Air Championships
Sunday afternoon saw the Freeski Big Hitters take to the slope for the highly anticipated and final competition of the day, The British Big Air Championships. The top eight men and four women from the qualification round made it through to the finals with skies going that big they were almost clearing the landing!

In the men’s final Joe Hides just missed out on a podium spot but deserved a special shout out after throwing down massive rodeo Japans. First place and the 2009 British Big Air title went to James Woods with a huge switch rodeo 720 Japan. Second place went to Stoke-on-Trent local Josh Fawcett with a big switch 720 nose mute whilst third place with a perfectly landed switch misty 720 went to Charlie Richards.

In the women’s final Katie Summerhayes who had been on fire all day, continued to step it up in the Big Air and landed a huge switch 720 to take her second gold and overall British Championship Title of the weekend. Second place with a 720 went to Rowan Cheshire, who had also landed an impressive corked 720 during the qualifications. Molly Summerhayes finished in third place with a big and textbook 540.

British Big Air Championship Results:
Men
1st – James Woods – Sheffield
2nd – Josh Fawcett – Stoke-on-Trent
3rd – Charlie Richards – Sheffield

Women
1st – Katie Summerhayes – Sheffield
2nd – Rowan Cheshire – Stoke-on-Trent
3rd – Molly Summerhayes - Sheffield

Over 200 local youngsters that the Schools Tour Team had visited came along to the event to take part in the FREE lessons, watch the UK’s best in action and cheer on local freeskier Tom Coe, who had proved to be a big hit at the schools. Let’s hope we see some of them continue to learn how to shred and hopefully competing next year.

The next event on the British Snow Tour calendar is the British Big Air Championships in Milton Keynes on Saturday 19th September. To check out the images and video footage from the event and pre register for the Big Air next week go to: www.britishsnowtour.com

The British Snow Tour and Schools Tour programme would not be possible without its highly supportive sponsors:Animal, Trespass, SNO!zone, Cushe, Snow+Rock Demo partners: DC, Ride, K2, Line, and Volkl skis. Media partners Whitelines,Dark Summer, Spiked, Extreme Sports Channel, Metrosnow.co.uk,Snowboardclub.co.uk, Skiclub.co.uk,and Natives.co.uk

Teams wanted for the UK’s first ever skiing and snowboarding 3-day fundraising road trip! Youth charity Snow-Camp today launched a brand new fundraising event to support its work with inner-city young people. Snow-Camp hopes that The Snowball Rally will capture the imagination of skiers and snowboarders across the country to enter teams and compete against each other to win masses of snowsports prizes and the Snowball Rally Cup!

The Rally challenges teams to plan their route around as many of the countries 43 dry and artificial slopes over a 3-day period between 19th and 21st November 2009. Setting off from the Milton Keynes SNO!zone, teams collect points for every slope they ride, with the points available increasing for slopes further from the starting point. At the finish on the 21st November, the team with the most points wins! Snow-Camp Director Dan Charlish said, ‘It’s like a cross between the Cannonball Run and the Gumball Rally only with skiing and snowboarding thrown in! Nobody has ever skied or boarded every slope in the country before…it’s going to be a fantastic challenge, great fun and accessible to anyone with a vehicle, some skis and a sense of adventure!’

The idea for the Snowball Rally was dreamt up by two Snow-Camp volunteers, Rich Brown and Steve Marsh, who worked as volunteers on Snow-Camp’s programmes in the French Alps this winter. After their experience in the Alps they wanted to launch a competitive event that would bring together teams of snowsports enthusiasts to raise funds for Snow-Camp’s ongoing work, and have a great time in the process! Rich Brown said, ‘After seeing first hand the positive effect Snow-Camp had on all the young people involved, I wanted to help raise money so more and more young people can benefit from this unique charity. I hope that through the Snowball Rally this will be achieved while simultaneously providing a fun and challenging experience. I’ll be doing my best to do all 43 slopes!’ The charity hopes up to 20 teams will enter this first Snowball Rally, with all the information required to register and plan your route on the web pages www.snow-camp.co.uk/snowballrally. Team members pledge to raise a minimum of £250 for Snow-Camp’s work by participating, with Just Giving sites set up to support each team’s sponsorship efforts.

Snow-Camp are seeking corporate sponsorship from companies who would like to be involved with the event from the outset. Dominic de Terville, Snow-Camp’s Chairman and Head of Sponsorship, said, ‘We are hoping to attract companies who share Snow-Camp’s ethos and are keen to both reach and reach out to young people. Sponsorship of the Snowball Rally offers the benefit of being associated with an innovative and original event alongside great visibility through publicity - with the added bonus of knowing all sponsorship funds support Snow-Camp’s future work’. Interested companies can download the sponsorship pack from the Snow-Camp website.

The Snowball Rally will conclude with a huge party held at the Milton Keynes SNO!zone, where the slope will be open late just for Snowball Rally competitors to complete the final slope of their challenge. The Avalanche Suite will then host the after party where everyone can share their road trip stories over a well earned drink!

To enter your team, discuss sponsorship, find out more about the event or arrange an interview with Snow-Camp staff please check out the Snow-Camp website www.snow-camp.co.uk, contact Dan or Rich at snowballrally@snowcamp.co.uk or call 07930 695384.

Check out the Snow-Camp Movie of the 2009 trips – watch online at http://www.snow-camp.co.uk/video.php?view=2009

Quotes from Snowball Rally 2009 sponsors:

Base Camp have followed and supported Snow-Camp since its conception in 2003. We share the values of Snow- Camp and are proud support what is a wonderful charity.

Snowsport england, A great opportunity for those who wouldn’t otherwise be able to enjoy mountain sports. We are pleased to be working in partnership with Snow-Camp.

SNO!zone are delighted to help give more young people in the UK the chance to get involved in snowsports at home and abroad.

We are passionate about snowboarding at SnowboardClub.co.uk, and love the opportunity which Snow-Camp provides to inner city young people, enabling them to share the sport we love.

Snow-Camp are bringing the fun and inspirationof snow-sports to those that really need it. FBBB are behind Snow-Camp all the way!

Quotes from young people who attended Snow-Camp:

‘The main thing I’ve learnt through attending Snow-Camp is that you can accomplish anything if you put your mind towards it.’ (Nathan, 15, Ladbroke Grove)
‘Learning to ski taught me perseverance and gave me a huge amount of confidence. I really do believe in myself now and I never give up.’ (Shakira, 16, Brixton)
‘My best achievement was going down the massive mountains with speed, control and stability. And through the life-skills sessions I learnt how to control my anger in positive ways.’ (Tony, 17, Westminster)

This is for all you action sports enthusiasts that are  interested in what British snowboarders do abroad when it’s summer over in England.    I am here in New Zealand at the moment enjoying the fun southern hemisphere shred.

I recently participated in the annual Parklife Invitational Queenstown NZ. The venue was outside in Earnslaw park right next to the Lake Wakitipu. It was an amazing event with over 4ooo spectators watching the jibbers throw down.

The setup was epic! It was so fun. The Remarkables park crew did an excellent job setting the rails up and shaping the in run to the features.

All in all a great night.  The funky music supplied by the talented Kiwi group Sunshine Sound System complimented the tricks the riders were stomping.  In effect providing a cool soundtrack for the snowboarders to ride to.

The male winner was local NZ rider Adam ‘Midgey’ Shaw with his smooth and technical moves including a last minute cab one 50-50 back 3 out. So good & progressive. The female winner was Auckland rider Christy Prior with some solid riding.

As an English rider, it was an honour to be a part of such a big event within the NZ snowboarding event calender.  i’ll definitely be back! Until next year… Peace, Adam Bowcutt

image: Joss Thompson Photography