The Burton/Armada Big Air Event, the third of four in the Packed, Stacked and Jacked series blew up as the riders took to the air on February 20th at Seven Springs! No one in the crowd of 200 + was disappointed as everyone enjoyed the sunshine, great tunes and extreme entertainment. D.J. Zimmie spun the tunes and Burton and Armada were on hand with demos, swag and grills. Scion Motors stopped by to meet the kids and they brought rider and local legend Matt Guess who entertained the kids and inspired an army of young snowboarders. Our own A.J. Lawson provided the never dull narrative.

The Amateur riders took to the air first and skier Jimmy Leslie demonstrated why he has dominated the season by absolutely STOMPING every run in an hour long session. His series included a superman front, cork 7, cork 9, rodeo 5 and double front. He won first place, took home a pair of Armada skis and cinched his overall series victory. Close behind Leslie was relative newcomer Carson Kerr who looked like a decorated veteran with his perfectly executed double front flip and superman front. Jimmy Hill put together a typically solid series of jumps showing off his trademark style with a smooth shifty 9. Thirteen year-old Logan Bingamon impressed the judges and the crowd with his ability cleanly landing 10's and 12's like it was his job and finishing 4th.

Competing for the Open Ski division, Justin Petricko wowed the crowed with a perfect misty 9 in his stunning victory over veteran Brandon Stark. Stark stomped a double cork 12 mute in practice but couldn't ride out in competition. He landed some clean cork 9 mutes finishing 2nd. Stark will compete in the Dumont Cup later in March, we're betting he's got the dubs on lock by then. Rumors about Patrick Shepherd's plans to try dubs swirled all week but never came true. Instead his huge cork 540 was enough to secure the 3rd place slot.

The snowboard division can best be summed up as unpredictable. Am Snowboard was dominated by youth. Fourteen year-old Henry Jackson came out of nowhere and threw a big back flip to win the Burton board, helmet and goggles followed by Derek Edwards and Tim Regrut. Jackson now leads the division by just ONE point followed by Chris Petricko. We're all on the edge of our seats.

Alex, Wild Card, Turnsheltz took to the air and threw a backside rodeo 540 to win the Open Snowboard division just a day after winning Best Trick in the ESL stop on the same course. Pulling up second was Cuttler Whitley with a backside rodeo 5 off the small side and local Nick Kiproff finished a solid third with a 720 off the small side. Division leader, Zack Yourd managed to rack up some points despite a back injury. This division is anyone's race with Yourd leading Whitley by just four points and Kiproff by 7.

On the ladies side of things, skier Elle Papas pulled off a super stylie truck driver to beat 14 year-old phenom Jackie Penticost. Snowboarder Shannon Branthoover finally made it to a home mountain event and ran away with it (again). We've missed you Shannon! Shannon was followed by Erin Storch and Willi's own Kim Natural.

The series wraps up on Friday, March 4th in the Goggle Bowl. We're expecting to be on pins and needles as only the am ski division is sewn up. Registration gets underway outside of Willi's at 4:30 and the action starts at 7:00. We're giving out Seven Springs Season's Passes to the winners of the am and open divisions along with other great prizes. We'll take some time after the event to run the numbers and will announce the overall winners of the Grand Prizes, $1000.00 and a session at Camp of Champions for both open divisions and and head-to-toe sponsorships for both of the am division point leaders. We'll also announce the winners of our u16 sponsorships, Atomic Skis and Flow Snowboards.

Winter Divas Spotlight: Pat and Libby

I've had the chance to get to know many of our Winter Divas this season. During our most recent Winter Diva Wednesday, I spent some extra time with long time friends Libby and Pat and I got to hear their stories, both skiing and otherwise.

You could call Libby “backyard” skier. As a teen, she borrowed her mother’s long wooden skis and bulky leather boots and skied in the yard (her mom got to ski at Seven Springs). She still has those skis, only now she uses them as decorations. She taught her kids to ski the same way in her backyard, but on the more technologically advanced red plastic toy skies. Libby didn’t just ski in the backyard, she also skied down her hilly Pittsburgh street as her husband shuttled her back to the top in his truck!

"Skiing has always been a big part of my life and it sure makes the winters fly by." said Pat. Pat’s first time on skis was at Seven Springs in December of 1955 when she went with Bell Telephone Company. At the time, Seven Springs had three rope tows and no snowmaking. Pat struggled with her rental equipment and left sore and bruised but she didn’t give up! The next time she tried it, she took a lesson. Good thing she stuck with it, she met her husband skiing!

Pat and her husband joined Der Sitzmark Ski Club in 1992 and that's where she met Libby. While most of its members do ski, Der Sitzmark has activities year round, from biking, horseback riding, white water rafting. They even had a segway trip last year. Pat says of the club, "It has changed through the years as far as people coming and going but the friendships I made during the years remain strong. My husband passed away in Jan 1994 and my friends at the ski club were a great support for me." She travels with the club, always going on at least one trip a year, many times two trips.

Pat and Libby are planning a trip to Tahoe later this season. Along with her equipment, Pat will be sure to have down and wool items. “I’ve found that there is nothing warmer than wool and down. My socks and bottom layer of underwear have to have wool in them. Mittens have to have down.” Libby's Motto: “Comfort is the key.” Her must-have accessories, a pretty cotton handkerchief for under her mask, hand warmers and the “softest-longest glove liners.”

Libby’s favorite place to ski: Where she’s skiing. That puts Seven Springs at the top of her list. She likes it because it is a close, family friendly, has great slopes, good grooming, beautiful scenery and short lift lines. Pat's a little more pragmatic “It depends on the conditions at the time. That determines if it was a good place to ski.” To her, a sunny day skiing with friends on well groomed slopes is “just about perfect.” Both ladies enjoy taking ski vacations and are heading to Tahoe at the end of the month.

Like all of us, skiing is a passion of Pat and Libby's. “It lifts my spirit, adds jazz to my life, it’s outdoor fun, it is the right prescription for a wintry day that rejuvenates and warms. It’s the closest sensation to flying and makes me happy to be alive...and because I can.” Says LIbby of why she skis. Why does Pat do it? “That depends on what day you ask me. If it’s sunny, conditions are good, I’m feeling good, it’s great to get a rhythm going flying down. It’s like dancing with the ‘Stars’. If it’s cold, windy, icy, I’m not sure why I do it, but for some reason I still do.”

Pat hasn't missed a Winter Diva Wednesday. She enjoys meeting new ski buddies at our Winter Divas Wednesdays. When I asked her what she likes about Winter Divas she said that she’s enjoyed all of the guests and that she feels that she’s learned something new each week. Libby likes being called a Diva because she was never a Prima Donna and now she gets to be one. She likes the smiles, hints, encouragement and enthusiasm of the group. She is grateful to Seven Springs for the hot chocolate and pastries that take the chill out of a winter day.

Join us for Winter Divas Wednesdays and get to know Pat, Libby and all of the other wonderful women of Winter Divas!

The Salomon/Forum Halfpipe Competition, the second event in our 4 event series, Packed, Stacked and Jacked blew up last month. A big crowd was on hand as we watched some of the best riders in the area throw down in the Seven Springs award winning 18 foot superpipe. Thanks to our sponsor vitaminwater and the cold temps, all of the athletes and spectators stayed hydrated with Stur D slushies. Former Heavenly High Roller team member, Rich Marlowe did double duty as head judge and M.C. He was joined by local legend John Stark, special guest judge (warm handed) Justin Petricko and the Cordaro Brothers, Keith and Craig.

Winners in the Open Division were skier and hometown favorite, Brandon Stark and Snowboarder Dan Grenditzki (former Lord of the Springs) who walked away with $300.00 each from The Jib Shop. Second place skier Justin Petricko now leads the pack for overall points in the Open Division followed by third place James Rullo, both fixtures on the local competition scene. Snowboarder Cutler Whitley took second place followed by Zack Yourd
riding for Rome.

Winners of the Amateur Division were skier Mike Rulli and snowboarder Chris Petricko. Petricko is currently trailing closely behind snowboard sensation, the lovely Ashley Vandermeer in overall points. The amateur ski division is being RULED by 'Lil Jimmy Leslie followed by Mike Rulli but I just got word that Mike's on I.R., probably for the rest of the season. For the ladies, Ride Snowboards East Grassroots Team member Ashley VanderMeer is running away with it! Ashley walked away with another snowboard...what does she do with all of them? She must have built a bookshelf by now! Ashley is repping hard for the girls by leading in overall points! Newcomer Jacqueline Pentecost came out of nowhere to win the skiing division and home a pair of my personal favorites, Salomon Mai Tai skis.

Follow along with all of the action on our Facebook page and don't miss the next event! The Armada/Burton Big Air promises to go down in the record books for local snowboarders if rumors I hear about a certain Nick Kiproff's bag of tricks are true! Ladies, make sure you come out and compete to keep Ashley's hopes of winning the head-to-toe sponsorship alive!

THE BEST JOB IN THE WORLD
My Holiday Reflection

Our popular Packed, Stacked and Jacked series got underway on December 18th at Seven Springs Mountain Resort when riders from around the region competed in amateur and open divisions at the Line/Ride Snowboards Rail Jam. Line sponsored skier Tyler Pence (pictured) and snowboarder Tristan Sadler each took the $300.00 prize for their divisions while amateur skier Jimmy Leslie and snowboard Chris Poe bagged hundreds of dollars in prizes. The series is sponsored by our online store, The Jib Shop but almost every major brand in skiing and snowboarding has a hand in this season's contest.

Last season, a total of 120 riders competed in the series. In an exciting ending, overall winner Justin Petricko turned down thousands of dollars worth of prizes and instead accepted a sponsorship by Atomic Skis, leaving the Grand Prize to second place finisher, James Rullo. Partly because of the number of sponsored athletes competing in this season's event, we've reworked it to include amateur and open divisions for both skiers and snowboarders and Grand Prizes for each division. Thanks to the generosity of vitaminwater and Camp of Champions, the Grand Prize for skiing AND snowboarding is $1,000 and a session at Camp of Champions.

This week, I've had some time to think about the series, the season and the company that I work for. This is my fourth year working for Willi's and I think I've been in the job long enough to get a gauge on the industry. I hear a good deal about "promoting the sport" in the ski and snowboard industry these days. It seems like everyone from event organizers to marketing directors to park designers is claiming that they're in this business to promote the sport. In my opinion, it takes a lot of work by a diverse group to really promote anything. As a retailer, we are in a unique position to advance the sports that our customers care about.

Willi's has been around since the 1970's, longer than most of today's "sport promoters" have been alive! Willi Klein is a veteran of ski racing and an influential instructor. In 2004, he was inducted into the Pennsylvania Skiing Hall of Fame. His son and the current owner of Willi's, Greg Klein, is a former downhill racer and coach. Greg's wife, Kjerstin, was on the forefront of snowboarding, racing boarder cross in the early days and working as an athletic trainer with the University of Colorado Ski Team. Every day, I work along side enthusiasts of all levels from PSIA instructors and high level freestlye athletes to retirees who have instilled a love of skiing and boarding in their children and grandchildren. We all share a passion for our hobby and a clear understanding of the culture of our sports. We are all dedicated to helping people enjoy snowsports at whatever level they want to.

Events like Packed, Stacked and Jacked are not easy or cheap to plan or implement. By sponsoring this event Willi's has, once again, proven it's commitment to snowsports by shining a spotlight on the freeride movement. I'm proud to be working for a company that puts its money where its mouth is and with companies who genuinely get it: Line Skis, Ride Snowboards, Salomon Skis, Forum Snowboards, Armada Skis, Burton Snowboards, Giro Helmets, Oakley, Full Tilt, DC, Marker, K2, Gnu, Libtech, Smith Optics, Atomic, Flow Snowboards, vitaminwater and Camp of Champions. Thanks to all of their commitment, support and dedication, I have the best job in the world.

Happy New Year!

Unraveling the Mystery of Tweens

The numbers are befuddling, we're not sure just how much of the economy is driven by tweens (kids ages 9-14). Experts estimate between 50 and 150 billion annually that's a big range. Part of the confusion is based on the fact that while this generation doesn't actually make the purchases, it has influence on buying of everything ranging from computers to food to family vacations There is, however, no confusion that this group of consumers packs a wallop when it comes to spending. Many experts speculate that, along with Generation Y, the Tweens (also known as Generation Z) will play a major role in the country's economic recovery.

Tapping into the tween market in sporting goods is a challenge. We need to find out what this important group of spenders like and give it to them. Even in our uncertain retail climate, this is one group who will keep buying simply because they will continue to outgrow their clothing and equipment. Let's get to know them a little better.

According to market experts, tweens love to hang out and they want an environment that is accepting of them and that affirms their lifestyle. Who can't remember that awkward feeling of being hesitant to enter into situations? It's important to reach out to these customers by making them feel welcome and interacting with them on their level. Like all of the customer demographics that I've researched, they value authenticity. They know a phony when they see one. It's important to support them and to win their loyalty. According to Marketresearch.com, products that respect the tween as a valuable consumer segment with its own identity, win brand loyalty. By sponsoring clubs and events that they are involved in, we hope to convey the message that we are genuinely interested in them as customers and that we value what they value.

Tweens are intensely interested in learning new skills and hobbies, and use them as a way to express themselves and form their own identities. We are in a position to help them by creating and supporting rider development programs. Our region is fortunate enough to have produced some world class athletes like Tom (Do we really need a last name?) Wallisch and Kristi Leskinen but also some lesser known athletes whose love of skiing and boarding have taken them around the world. Some have returned and want to help foster a love of their sport right here. This season, we're teaming up with Seven Springs to create a program where young riders can be coached in an informal environment by young professionals who have volunteered their time because they want to arm kids with the confidence to get into the park, a working knowledge of the park etiquette and sense of camaraderie with their peers that will create a lifelong love of snow sports. While this program is still in it's infancy, we're hoping to get it up and running by December and sponsor some events and competitions. I'd love to hear from you if any of your brands have already successful programs or if you would be willing to send some of your athletes our way for a day or two. I'm planning three informal product-toss style rail jams for this program and hoping for the ever popular ride with a pro type events as well, please send me your love!

According to a 2003 survey by Buzzback, LLC, a New York-based market research firm, younger tween boys were more likely to say brands used by famous people are cool. Seeing their favorite TV, music and athletic idols using a brand made 72 percent of tweens surveyed more likely to want to use it. As a mother to two sons, ages 15 and 13, I can attest to the power of role models. My home often smells like Axe. Axe, also known in my home as the official scent of middle school is promoted by none other than Ryan Scheckler (Pits to Chestie).

Celebrity endorsements are golden in the world of Tweens. Raising a family of skiers, I see it first hand. If local hero Tom Wallisch endorses a product, it's gonna wind up on my son's must-have list. It is my most sincere hope, both as mother and as event manager, that Tom's sponsors (Scott, Full tilt, Jibberish, etc...please, someone!) will send him here for a special event this season. I could score SERIOUS brownie points with my kids and their friends while at the same time hitting one out of the park professionally (get it? Nuttings/Pirates). You see, at Seven Springs, we have an unabashed love of all things Tom.

Before we had Tom, as a family, we were floundering. I ruefully recall the black and white pin stripped Burton Shaun White outerwear of four years ago. It was the only item on my son's Christmas list and hard to find (I didn't work at Willi's yet). I started in October and was very relieved to finally find it somewhere in Colorado in December. Should have been a red flag...on December 26th, we stepped out of the car into the ski resort parking lot with the rest of the Shaun White team. At least it looked like a team, what with all of the eleven year-old boys in matching pin stripped Shaun White outfits.

For many kids, traditional team sports mean a lot of coaching, rules, pressure, and competition. It's easy to see why some kids are attracted to the individuality and athletic self-expression that are the hallmarks of action sports. Once thought of as the bad boys of sports, action sport athletes are slowly emerging as an antidote to the over glorified, demigods of mainstream sport. Living in Pittsburgh, I've recently given a lot of thought to the causes of the bad behavior of athletes as the Big Ben scandal was overshadowed only temporarily by the Gulf Oil Spill. As is the way my mind works, one thought spilled into another and I started trying to recall scandals involving action sports athletes. Yes, there was that Scotty Lago thing but at least Lago managed to keep things out of the bathroom. Of course, kids are also attracted to extreme sports because they're cool. And who doesn't like being on the cutting edge? One thing that you can't do without in this business...the cool factor.

At Seven Springs, we're fortunate to have great USSA race and freestyle programs. The Western Pennsylvania Race Club (WPRC) has both a downhill and a freestyle arm. Willi's has been a staunch supporter of both programs, in fact both Klein kids participate in the race program. Both programs meet every weekend and train in racing, moguls and halfpipe. Coached mainly by parents, these programs give tweens the chance to bond with each other and their families. Local athletes have competed all over the nation in USSA sanctioned events. The WPRC hosts USSA events in both disciplines annually. Please let me know if you are interested in sponsoring any of their events and I will put you in touch with the powers that be.

In a nutshell, tweens are in a hurry to grow up, they want what’s cool and they want to fit in with their circle of friends. Wondering what this group will want next can keep retailers like us awake at night but what we do know for certain is that supporting their interests and associating our brands with their culture are good for business. Please get in touch with me if you are interested in this season's events and programs for tweens.

Let's Hear It For The Girls!

The ladies having a good time at 2008's Wine and Cheese Reception and Fashion Show

She who holds the purse strings holds the power. I know that's true in my house. I'm only in this business because I spent so much time shopping at Willi's that people just started assuming that I worked there. This season, we will offer sponsors endless opportunities to reach out to this powerful costumer base by sponsoring events/clinics/seminars that will broaden your visibility both on and off the slopes and develop a relationship with the ladies who hold the purse strings.

In planning events, we often overlook the importance of the moms and grandmas and market events directly to the kids and the dads. Yet, according to most surveys, women control between 80 and 85 percent of household spending and a full one third of all sports equipment purchases are made by women. There is no doubt about it, with total combined earnings totaling one trillion dollars and total annual spending topping two trillion, women present us with the biggest opportunity today. They influence 95% of household purchases, 92% of vacations and 80% of sporting goods and apparel purchases.

While nearly half of all first time snowboarders are women only 27 percent of the overall participants are female. "That’s a big drop-out rate,” Says Hillary Sherman, Resort Programs coordinator for Burton Snowboards. “We need to improve the experience for women.”Among her recommendations, create a comfortable learning environment, use friendly influencers (local retail shops) and form an emotional connection. Make their experience fun so they keep coming back.



This season, we're preparing to launch an event marketing campaign directed specifically at the female customers between the ages of 30 and 70. In conjunction with Seven Springs, we are creating a Ladies Club designed around what our research shows women are looking for:

• connections with the brands
• a holistic approach to marketing
• community and shared values
• brand experience
• insider information
• a process of discovering brands.
  

Building upon our success in producing top-notch two day ladies events, we are offering club members six to eight events ranging from special shopping events to opportunities to ride with celebrities, from apres ski parties to two-day clinics in women specific ski and snowboard instruction. This is an opportunity to connect your brand, authentically and interactively, with the ladies who are making the purchasing decisions. If you are interested in talking to and hearing from our female customers I hope that you'll consider sponsoring one of the events for this club.

For the past couple of years, in partnership with with Seven Springs, we've made a tremendous effort to bring the young ladies into the fold of the park and pipe scene. We were highly visible sponsors of the inaugural Kristi Leskinen Homecoming Invitational and we lent our knowledge and connection to the event by sponsoring the "Ski With A Pro" segment. By pairing professional skiers and snowboarders with the young participants, we hoped to encourage girls to try their hand at the male dominated world of freesking and snowboarding. This opportunity was offered free of charge to kids 12 and under and, in keeping with the spirit of inclusion, we asked that participants donate to the Women's Sports Foundation.

Inspired and encouraged by the determination of the girls who showed up and took part in the Oakley, Monster Energy Drink and Willi's sponsored KLHI Amateure Rail Jam, I spent a good deal of time talking to the girls. I asked them what we could do to get them more involved. It came as no surprise that they were reluctant to compete against some of their high level male counterparts. I began implementing a plan to answer their requests and, with the help of our sponsors, created a separate ladies division for last season's Packed Stacked and Jacked event. All of our sponsors stepped up to the plate with separate ladies prizes for first, second and third place. Thanks to Oakley (again) for awarding the girl with the highest ranking with a one-year optics sponsorship!

We've already established sponsorship for all of the 2011 PSJ series and I'm happy to say that, thanks to our generous sponsors, we'll be able to have a ladies division again. I'm hoping to ride the wave a little further this season and would love to work with some sponsors on a girls day in the park. While I haven't found a sponsor yet, I am certain that there are companies interested in getting involved.

As the summer wears on, I'll be blogging about more opportunities to get involved with the promotion of snowsports to the younger generations. We will be offering a kids club and are hoping to support a rider development program. I will do my best to ensure that the girls are supported by these programs as well. I'll let you all know when I post information on those groups.

Evolution: The Jibbers

Jibbers, Park Rats, Newschoolers, whatever you want to call them, these skiers and snowboarders are leveling the playing field between east coast and west coast. Their unmistakable style combined with the general atmosphere of the events that they participate in creates a buzz on the hill. Now spanning three generations, X, Y and Z these athletes command a big part of the in-store and online sales in our industry. They are tuned in and online and they have created a revolution - make that an evolution of snow sports. Anyone who has come out to a ski/board event geared toward this demographic knows that they are a target audience that we can't afford to pass up.

Generation X is the generation born after the baby boom ended, its members were born between 1961 and 1981, and people aged 29-49. Many of us have watched ski resorts go from throwing people out for building jumps to sinking millions of dollars into terrain parks with gigantic jumps. We invented snowboards, and one piece neon outerwear. Our children belong to Generations Y and Z.

Generation Y In the United States the actual "Echo Boom" was a thirteen year span between 1982 and 1995 (age 15-28) when for the first time since 1964, the number of live births reached over four million. Gen Yer's use instant methods of communications like texting and IM and they share information with the world using social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. This trend of communication is continuing into Generation Z.

Generation Z is one of the names used for the people born between the mid-1990’s and the late 2000’s (14 and younger). This is the "Net Generation". They are highly connected, many having had lifelong use of "pocket internet" through their mobile phone and media technologies such as the internet, mp3 players, laptop computers and cell phones.

These three generations are witness to the rise of action sports such as skateboarding, motocross extreme skiing and snowboarding. They are the target audience for action sport event marketing. Even the International Olympic Committee is taking notice by agreeing to consider including skier halfpipe in the 2014 games. It's no wonder, according to The Neilson Group, on the first night that Shaun White competed in the 2010 Olympics, 30.1 million people tuned in. This compared to 18.4 million who watched "American Idol". It was the first time any show has beaten "American Idol" since May 2004. This year, multiple live attendance and television ratings records were broken at Winter X Games 14. 84,100 people attended the four-day event and for the third straight year Winter X was ESPN's highest-rated and most viewed program with more than 43 million viewers, (more than the Olympics!). The Dew Tour also saw a spike in attendance with 33,000 fans the highest event attendance in the two-year history of the Winter Dew Tour.

As Gen Y and Zer's prepare to go off to colleges around the country, we hope that they take the jibshop with them. We hope to have developed a relationship with these athletes so that whether they go to school in Utah or Ohio they will be loyal to the shop that has brought great events to their mountain. Just as Facebook rumors can go viral overnight, we're betting that these kids can spread the word about their local shop around the country. Our Packed, Stacked and Jacked Facebook Fan Page is testament to the notion that we can reach a global audience simply by creating a captivating event and marketing it to our local skiers and riders via social networking websites. In addition to fans from just about every state in the USA, the page is being followed by fans from places like Djibouti, Norway and Austria. While these riders and skiers could never shop at Willi's, they can visit thejibshop.com from anywhere. We can use event marketing to spread our business globally.

The emergence of the terrain park has leveled the playing field between east and west and, while the earlier arrival of snow and the later departure out west still provides west coast athletes with more days to ride, the kids in the east often begin skiing in the parks at a much earlier age, giving them an upper hand to the kids out west who don't get bored with their mountains until they reach their teens. We are producing some big names right here in the mid-Atlantic. Athletes like Tom Wallisch, Kristi Leskinen and Louie Vito grew up shredding Seven Springs. They are the heroes of the action sports world.

Seven Springs Terrain Park Crew, lead by Joel Rerko, is receiving top honors by highly respected industry insiders. Last year the readers of Transworld Snowboarding voted them #1 halfpipe in the Eastern U.S. and #3 parks overall http://snowboarding.transworld.net/1000112908/featuresobf/transworlds-top-five-east-coast-parks-resorts-and-pipes/3/. This year, Seven Springs hosted the second annual Kristi Leskinen Homecoming and while the fans missed the boarders (Olympics), the skiers were competing for world ranking! Brands looking for parks to film promos in are starting to sit up and take notice of their talented builders too. Forum and Flow both spent several days in our park last season. The Forum trailer is up and has some great shots of our parks http://vimeo.com/12806934. By the way, that flaming telephone pole…Joel’s creation!

According to 2003 report from American Sports Data, Inc., action sports account for 1/3 of all sporting goods sold in the United States, more than 14 billion dollars. Event Marketing is a crucial way to reach potential customers in this demographic. While the Dew Tour and X Games cater to the highest levels of the sports, even the less able participants like compete in rail jams now and then. Several grass-roots competitions are cropping up around the country but breaking through to the upper levels of freestyle skiing and snowboarding is akin to being discovered by a Hollywood agent. There are talented kids playing around on every ski hill in the country and they just want a chance to win some great prizes and show off their skills. Last season, over 119 competitors came out and competed in Packed, Stacked and Jacked. Our inaugural season sparked world-wide interest because of its grass-roots vibe.

Sponsoring athletes is a great way to get recognized and you don't have to limit your sponsorship to high-level pros. Your brand's sponsorship helps you to plant the seed of brand recognition and loyalty in the minds of the next group of riders coming up. Studies have shown that positive feelings toward the brand are dependent on creating a link in memory between that brand and a positive stimulus. Our local scene is a microcosm of the larger national and international action sports scene. Just as X-Games viewers are influenced by the athletes that they see on television, local kids are looking to the group a little older and more experienced than they are and are trying to emulate them. When they see that your brand is supporting someone that they admire, it impresses upon them that you are supporting their sport.

Taking part in this evolution is not an option, it's a necessity for brands that want to continue to be relevant. We're excited to be involved with these talented skiers, riders and park designers and we hope that our involvement grows in the years to come. Seven Springs is working hard to provide parks that progress the new era of action sports and we are thrilled to partner with them. Since my position was created in 2008, we've been working hard create events that reach out the this powerful group of consumers and we're enjoying every minute of it! Come out and see what the buzz is all about.