Competition Includes Halfpipe, Snowboardcross and Parallel Giant Slalom
LAKE PLACID, N.Y., March 1 /PRNewswire/ -- State Farm Insurance, U.S.
Snowboarding and the New York Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA)
will host the 2005 State Farm U.S. Snowboard Cup March 3-6 at Whiteface.
More than 250 athletes from 26 nations are set to compete in parallel
giant slalom, halfpipe and snowboardcross during the four-day event, basically
a mini Olympics with all three 2006 snowboard disciplines. The State Farm
U.S. Snowboard Cup is the lone stop on American soil for the FIS Snowboard
World Cup tour -- and is the first of its kind for a domestic World Cup.
The U.S. lineup:
A sampling of the American line-up includes: Lindsey Jacobellis (HP & SBX;
Stratton Mountain, VT), Tricia Byrnes (HP; Stratton Mountain, VT) and Lisa
Kosglow (PGS; Boulder, CO), who will stake out home turf for U.S. women at
Whiteface. Men's riders to watch for are World champ Seth Wescott, (SBX;
Farmington, ME), World Cup winner Steve Fisher (HP; St. Louis Park, MN), Shaun
White (HP; San Diego, CA), Ben Jacobellis (SBX; Bondville, VT), Mountain Creek
Grand Prix winner Elijah Teter (HP; Belmont, VT) and brother Abe Teter (HP;
Lake Tahoe, CA).
What's on tap for competition:
The PGS competition is set for Thursday on Draper's Drop with
qualifications at 9 a.m. and finals at 1 p.m. The Swiss dominate the PGS,
with men and women sitting 1-2 in the World Cup rankings. Catch a glimpse of
these World Cup leaders Philipp Schoch, Urs Eiselin, Daniela Meuli and Ursula
Bruhin tear Draper's Drop apart. American Michelle Gorgone (Sudbury, MA) is
currently eighth in World Cup standings and has five top-5 finishes this
season including a second at the recent PGS in Sapporo, Japan.
Halfpipe qualifications, to be held on the Bear Trail, are slated for
Friday with women in the morning starting at 8:45 a.m. and men in the
afternoon at 12:15 p.m. Men's and women's halfpipe finals are Saturday at
1 p.m. on the Bear Trail.
The women's SBX qualifications are Saturday at 9:30 a.m. on the Boreen
trail. Men's SBX qualifications are Sunday at 9:30 a.m. The men's and
women's SBX finals are set for later that day beginning at 1 p.m.
Off-Hill Event Activities:
Competitors switch gears Saturday night for a quarterpipe and rail jam
under the lights in the field of the Olympic Speed Skating Oval. Riders will
be towed in by snowmobile for the quarterpipe. The top five will each walk
away $1,000 richer. Spectators are invited to bring their own skates for a
free session on the Oval or in the hockey box. Rentals will be available
on-site for a nominal fee. The Josh Cramoy Band will perform, and fans can
enjoy free hot chocolate.
All of the State Farm U.S. Snowboard Cup events are free. Spectators can
access the viewing areas on foot or purchase a lift ticket and take a few
turns in between. Sunday, March 6 is Super Sunday, presented by Bud Light,
with discounted lift tickets of $25 for adults and $15 for juniors and
seniors. No advance purchase necessary.
For more information on ORDA venues and events, and for Web cams from five
locations, please log on to http://www.orda.org. For complete coverage, visit
http://www.ussnowboarding.org.
SOURCE U.S. Snowboarding
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Related links:
http://www.ussnowboarding.org
CONTACT:
Sandy Caligiore, Stephanie Ryan, Amanda
Birchenough, all of Lake Placid, +1-518-523-1655; or Juliann
Fritz of USSA, jfritz@ussa.org
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