Slopestyle Overcomes the Elements on Day Two

Atsushi Ishikawa

Press Release: Slopestyle Overcomes the Elements on Day Two of the Burton New Zealand Open Snowboarding Championships

LAKE WANAKA, New Zealand (August 12, 2009) – Heavy snowfall and limited visibility delayed the start of the second day of the seventh annual Burton New Zealand Open, but the riders and course crew overcame the challenging conditions with a full day of competition. It was no small task as over 70 men and 35 women from 16 countries were slated to take to Cardrona Alpine Resort’s newly sculpted slopestyle course, each vying for a highly coveted spot in Friday’s semifinal competition.

The men were first to drop into the 800m-long course featuring up and downrails, boxes, three kickers and a unique upstair feature to quarterpipe. Top scoring qualifier, Atsushi Ishikawa (JPN) kicked off his first place finishing run with a frontside boardslide sameways 270 out on the downrail, followed by a 50/50 180 out on the box, busting a big Cab 720 indy off the first kicker, followed by a switch backside 900 mute, into a backside 720 melon, followed by a 50/50 on the uprail, finishing with a backside 50/50 on the quarter pipe coping, to a 50/50 on the flatdown.

Following the men’s competition, a thick fog rolled in making things more difficult for the women as they were lined up and ready to go for their turn in the course. 35 women were to take two runs through the course, the best score counting, however Mother Nature had other plans and the women were only able to take their first run. Friday morning will see the continuation of today’s women’s slopestyle qualifications, followed by men’s and women’s semifinal and final competitions.

Those men and women advancing on to semifinals and finals will compete against riders like Torstein Horgmo (NOR), Chas Guldemond (USA), Antti Autti (FIN), Takaharu Nakai (JPN), Mitchell Brown (NZL), Danny Davis (USA), Peetu Piiroinen (FIN), Tim Humphreys (USA) and Sebastien Toutant (CAN), Chanelle Sladics (USA), Cheryl Maas (NED), Jamie Anderson (USA), Lisa Wiik (NOR), Sarka Pancochova (CZE), Shelly Gotlieb (NZL), Silvia Mittermuller (GER), Sina Candrian (SUI) and Spencer O’Brien (CAN).

The NZ Open action continues tomorrow with men’s and women’s halfpipe qualifications. Cardrona Alpine Resort is the home to the only 22’ halfpipe in New Zealand, which is the same size pipe that will be featured at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Burton would like to thank Cardrona Alpine Resort, Go211.com, Speight’s Summit Golden Lager, Juice TV, The Edge FM, Anon Optics, High Cascade Snowboard Camp, Nature Valley, goodbars.co.nz, Joe’s Garage, SolRX, McKenna, Smirnoff Ice Double Black and Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour for their support of the New Zealand Open.

If you can’t make it to New Zealand, watch the semi-finals and finals live on Go211.com, where webcasts and highlights of the competitions will also be available for on-demand viewing once the event is over.

Result
Slopestyle Qualifications Men
1 Atsushi Ishikawa JPN
2 Sergey Tarasov RUS
3 Christian Haller SUI
4 Tore Holvik NOR
5 Arthur Longo FRA
6 Sage Kotsenburg USA
7 Eric Beauchemin USA
8 Gjermund Braaten NOR
9 Johann Baisamy FRA
10 Jye Kearney AUS

ENDS

About the Burton Global Open Series
The Burton Global Open Series events are the pinnacle snowboarding events of the season. Founded by Jake Burton, the Opens have grown from grassroots events to global spectacles attracting tens of thousands of spectators and riders from around the world. Since the beginning, the Opens have been driven by riders, for riders evolving with snowboarding and riders’ needs over the years. With events held in New Zealand, Europe, Canada, Japan and the United States, the Opens set the standard for snowboarding events around the globe. For more information, visit www.opensnowboarding.com.

About the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour
Founded by Terje Haakonsen and industry innovators in 2002, the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour is a non-profit, rider-driven organization with the mission to create the highest quality competitive snowboard environment in the world, using authenticity, accessibility and innovation as guiding principles Since its foundation, the Swatch TTR Tour has been developing into the most respected snowboard tour worldwide featuring global grass root and key independent freestyle snowboarding events over a ten-month period from Southern to Northern Hemisphere locations. Events are rated via a 1-through-6Star system, with points allocated accordingly, a 6Star event holds the highest (1000 Swatch TTR points). Any rider participating in these events, from up-and-coming to professional talent, earns ranking points and a position on the Swatch TTR World Ranking List. The top male and female rider at the end of the season are crowned Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour Champion.

About GO211.com
GO211.com is the leading community and video site for action sports created for and by athletes and enthusiasts. It’s the place to go for behind-the-scenes videos, blogs, and photos from pro athletes and featured contributors along with other action sports fans. GO211.com is proud to offer a broad range of exclusive content submitted directly from the athletes and is proud to host interactive live webcasts of the top events in surf, skate, snow and BMX. The current GO211 Pro Team roster includes: Hannah Teter, Nate Yeomans, Torah Bright, Mikes Losness, Kelly Clark, Jack Mitrani, Andy Finch, Donny Robinson, Christian Hosoi, and Holly Beck, among others.

About Cardrona Alpine Resort
CARDRONA is located in the Crown Range between Queenstown (57kms/60mins) and Wanaka (34kms/35mins) in the South Island of New Zealand. With consistently good weather and reliable snow conditions Cardrona offers superb terrain suited to all ability levels. Cardrona is renowned for its wide open, undulating terrain that is perfect for beginners and intermediates, whilst the Arcadia and Tulips chutes offer extra challenge for more advanced riders. Cardrona is home to New Zealand’s premier terrain parks, with up to four halfpipes, a gravity cross and a range of beginner freestyle features. For more information, visit www.cardrona.com

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