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The chosen ones

Ripzone Invitational, World Skiing Invitational, Saab Salomon Crossmax release invite lists Last week the organizers of the Ripzone Invitational, World Skiing Invitational and Saab Salomon Crossmax Series released their invite lists for the eighth an

Ripzone Invitational, World Skiing Invitational, Saab Salomon Crossmax release invite lists

Last week the organizers of the Ripzone Invitational, World Skiing Invitational and Saab Salomon Crossmax Series released their invite lists for the eighth annual Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival.

It’s an all-star list, featuring some of the best skiers and snowboarders from around the world, and around town – many of the athletes who were invited happen to live right here in Whistler, and not because the event organizers wanted to save on postage.

Ripzone Snowboard Invitational – April 11 to 13

The Ripzone Snowboard Invitational had big shoes to fill last year as a replacement for the dearly departed World Snowboard Championships, which moved to a new home in Vail, Colorado. Most of the top athletes associated with the contest came anyway, and locals stepped up to fill the open spots.

This year’s Ripzone Events offer $65,000 in cash and prizes, spread out over three events: the Big Air, the Superpipe/Superhit jam contest, and a newly created Jibzone competition.

Big Air – Saturday, April 12

This year the Big Air contest will take place at the base of Whistler Mountain from 4 to 6 p.m. Expect crowds of over 10,000 spectators to be on hand to watch snowboarders twist and flip as they air out over an eight-foot high ramp and practically land in Mountain Square.

The atmosphere will be provided by the Hip Hop DJs Aceyalone, Abstract Rude (of Tribe Unique) and Tajai (of Souls of Mischief), as well as the crowd itself – the louder you cheer, the bigger the athletes will go. The $19,000 in cash prizes should also give them a boost.

The invitation list was based on results this season, last year’s Ripzone contests, or their reputation in the sport.

The list of Big Air invitations includes:

Alex Auchu, Whistler; David Carrier-Porcheron, Chicoutimi, Quebec; Dionne Delesalle, Vancouver; Guy Deschenes, Pemberton; Josh Feliciano, Tahoe City, California; Jesse Fox, Whistler; Andrew Hardingham, Banff; Roger Hjelmstadstuen, Norway; Jordan Mendenhall, Salt Lake City, Utah; Daniel Migneault, Whistler; Marc Frank Montoya, Salt Lake City, Utah; Guillaume Morisset, Whistler; Henki Oedegaard, Norway; Mike Page, Whistler; Kevin Sansalone, Whistler; Eero Niemela, Finland; Marc-Andre Tartre, Whistler; Paavo Tikkanen, Finland; Travis Williams, Vancouver; and the winner of the Canadian Air and Style contest in Calgary this weekend.

Stand in riders include Preston Strout, Jon Cartwright, JF Fortin, Kraig Kinsman, Mikey Rencz, Jon Roth, Mikee HK, and Ryan Lougee.

Jibzone – Sunday, April 13

This event is a rail and obstacle contest, to be held at the base of Whistler Mountain between 4 and 5 p.m. Riders will be competing for cash and prizes.

The list of men includes Simon Chamberlain, Josh Feliciano, Jesse Fox, Max Henault, Jeff Keetley, Ryan Lougee, Jordan Mendenhall, Daniel Migneault, Marc Frank Montoya, Eero Niemela, Mike Page, TJ Schneider, Matt Vyner and Travil Williams. Stand-by riders include Nic Cheveldave, Gerard Sangston, Graydon Kavanagh, Alex Auchu, Jeff Keenan, Scott Shaw, Aaron Shaprio, Mikee HK, Dennis Bannock and JF Fortin.

The women’s invite list included Hanna Beaman, Annie Boulanger, Susi Davis, Ming Kao, Leanne Pelosi and Roberta Rodger. Stand-by’s include Marni Yamada, Megan Pischke, and Caroline Ehrenstrasser.

Superpipe/Superhit – April 11 to 13

The Superpipe will feature 30 men and 20 women in a one-hour jam session with a prize purse of $30,000. Some of the top names in the sport will be competing, including World Cup stars, pro riders, and past champions like Keir Dillon.

The list of invited men includes Whistler’s David Aubry; Dylan Butt, New Zealand; David Carrier-Porcheron, Chicoutimi, Quebec; Ron Chiodi, Stratton, Vermont; Guy Deschenes, Whistler; Keir Dillon, Shawnee, Pennsylvania; Andrew Hardingham, Banff; Justin Lamoureux, Whistler; Crispin Lipscomb, Whistler; David Melancon, Whistler; Guillaume Morisset, Whistler; Dan Raymond, Whistler; Kelly Schovanek, Canmore; Scott Shaw, Calgary; Abe Teter, South Lake Tahoe; Etienne Tremblay, Whistler; Ben Wainwright, Whistler; Luke Wynen, Mammoth, California; the Canadian Air and Style Winner, and the top qualifiers from Saturday.

Alternates include Gabe Authier, Jonas Guinn, Josh Duncan, Jesse Kumlea and Dave Short.

In the women’s Superpipe, the list includes Gretchen Bleiler, Aspen, Colorado; Tricia Byrnes, Stratton, Vermont; Olympic champion Kelly Clark, Mount Snow, Vermont; Lori Glazier, Whistler; Sarah Kopinya, Whistler; Maelle Ricker, Vancouver; Kim Stacey, Stratton, Vermont; Hannah Teter, Belmont, Vermont; Dominique Vallee, Whistler; Doriane Vidal, France; Natasza Zurek, Vancouver; the Canadian Air and Style Winner, and the top qualifiers from Saturday.

Alternates include Mercedes Nicoll, Whistler; Megan Pischke, Vail, Colorado; Caroline Ehrenstrasser, Austria; and Amy Johnson, Rochester, New York.

World Skiing Invitational – April 18 to 19

Although it’s only a few years old, the progression of the new school freeskiing movement has been incredible. The tricks are slick, the air is huge, and the public is sitting up and taking notice, as evidenced by more than 12,000 fans at last year’s Garnier Fructis World Skiing Invitational Big Air contest.

There is over $50,000 in cash and prizes up for grabs this year in the Salomon Superpipe and Salomon Big Air.

Salomon Big Air – Saturday, April 19

The Salomon Big Air event takes place under the lights at the base of Whistler-Blackcomb, before a crowd of 15,000, with live entertainment on the mainstage.

The invitation list includes Mark Abma, Whistler; Iannick B., St-Georges-de-Champlain, Quebec; Phil Belanger, Lac Beauport, Quebec; David Crichton, Manotick, Ontario; Mickael Deschaenaux, Switzerland; Vinnie Dorion, St. Jerome, Quebec; Simon Dumont, Bethel, Maine; Boyd Easley, Flint, Michigan; Braden ‘Pep’ Fujas, Mammoth, California; Tanner Hall, Kalispell, Montana; CR Johnson, Truckee, California; Nick Mercon, Breckenridge, Colorado; Shoya Okazaki, Japan; Steel Spence, Snowmass, Colorado; John Symms, Sun Valley, Idaho; Rex Thomas, Whistler; Candide Thovex, La Clusaz, France; Chris Turpin, Whistler; and Andrew Woods, Sugarbush, Vermont.

The stand-by list includes Matthew Sterbenz, Peter Olenick, Charles Gagnier, Mike Wilson, Josh Bibby, Rory Silva, Anthony Boronowski, and Mike Schimke.

Salomon Superpipe — Saturday, April 19

The qualifier for the Salomon Superpipe takes place in the morning, and the main event in the afternoon, featuring 30 men and 10 women in a non-stop jam format.

The athletes will be competing for more than $25,000 in cash, plus $5,000 in an athlete-judged Superhit contest for the best hit of the day.

The men’s invite list includes Mark Abma, Whistler; Phil Belanger, Lac Beauport, Quebec; David Crichton, Manotick, Ontario; Braden ‘Pep’ Fujas, Mammoth, California; Scott Hibbert, Whistler; CR Johnson, Truckee, California; Phil Larose, Lac-Beauport, Quebec; Nick Mercon, Breckenridge, Colorado; Jordan Monk, Winnipeg; Shoya Okazaki, Japan; Jon Olsson, Sweden; Phil Poirier, Tremblant, Quebec; Jon Reedy, Mammoth, California; John Symms, Sun Valley, Idaho; Candide Thovex, La Clusaz, France; Greg Tuffelmire, Summit County, Colorado; Chris Turpin, Whistler; and Andrew Woods, Sugarbush, Vermont.

Saab Salomon Crossmax Series, April 16 to 17

The Whistler event in the North American final for the Saab Crossmax Series, an international skiercross series that attracts new school skiers, current and former World Cup racers, and some of the fastest, most aggressive athletes on the planet.

There will be both pro and amateur race categories, and the list of athletes includes Sweden’s Lars Lewen, the reigning champion of the X-Games and U.S. Open, and defending champion Aleisha Cline, a Whistler Freeride Team member, X-Games gold medallist, and defending Crossmax champion. The Whistler contingent will also include Davey Barr, who won the Extreme Sports Skiercross Series in Banff last weekend, Ashleigh McIvor, who was fifth in the X-Games, second U.S. Freeskiing Open, and fourth in the Extreme Sports Skiercross, and Candice Drouin, who was third in the Extreme Sports Skiercross.

International athletes to watch for include European stars Enak Gavaggio, Xavier Kuhn, Isidore Gruner and Karin Huttary, and Kono Iromi and Shoya Okazaki of Japan.

The total cash and prize purse is more than $30,000, with $15,000 in prize money for the pros and another $15,000 in Salomon prizes for the amateurs in 18 and over, 14 to 17, and 13 and under men’s and women’s age categories.