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Written by the CMS Crew
The CMS crew rocked NYC this past
weekend for the first ever Red Bull Snowscrapers competition in East
River Park. This Five Star TTR Event set against the backdrop of NYC’s
amazing skyline drew 16 of the top riders from around the world with
likes of Travis Rice, Torstein Horgmo and Terje Haakonsen. Up for grabs
was a $100,000 cash prize, the largest purse ever for a new event of
this size.
Photos: Jessica Basil
From the USASA PacSun booth we had front row seats in the thick of the
action. To our left was the sponsor village and the main stage, where
we watched Chuck D rock the stage with Anthrax, and to our right the
Oakley O-Lab and the infamous snowscraper, which towered 98 feet above
the venue. The Red Bull Yacht was moored in the river directly
alongside of the tower and had ring side seats for the main event.
From the top of tower looking East into Brooklyn you would see an
iconic view of the Williamsburg waterfront and the Domino Sugar
Factory. However, from the Brooklyn side the view was nothing short of
epic. Nothing like this has ever been done before and the stage was set
for history to be made.
Photos: Jessica Basil
The scene in NYC was blowing up and the athletes were pumped. The crowd
was amped to have snowboarders hanging out, and the party was in full
effect. Rock stars would have been jealous by the attention our riders
were getting. The PacSun Team (Tyler Anderson, Brett Esser, Trevor
Jacob and Derek Johnson) was mobbed 5 deep during the autograph
session. Even our own CMS Riders (Robby & Brendan Meehan, Mike
Palella Jr. and Jordan Saccoccie) soon found themselves beating back
the crowd as they grabbed for autographs, photos and swag.
Despite subzero temperatures and in front of 40,000+ screaming
spectators, the riders delivered a power house performance that had the
audience on edge and cheering for more. The 16 riders competed in an
open jam session for a chance to face off in an 8 man head-to-head
battle for the prize. In the end, local Jersey rider Shayne Pospisil
took first place and walked away with a cool 50 grand in prize money
and the title of being crowned the first ever Snowscrapers Champion.
1. Shanye Pospisil - USA
2. Torstein Horgmo - NOR
3. Scotty Lago - USA
4. Travis Rice - USA
5. Daniel Elk - NOR
6. Shaun White - USA
7. Bjorn Leines - USA
8. Terje Haakonsen
The best trick award went to Terje Haakonsen with his one-footed method air, what?! That’s right...it was sick!!
Photo: Jessica Basil
With a day to recover after the mayhem and party Thursday night,
Saturday brought blue skies and warm temperatures for the Future of
Snowboarding event between the USASA PacSun Team and the Red Bull Young
Guns. As soon as the gates opened the venue was swarmed, rivaling
Thursday in both the size and intensity of the crowd.
Once again the booth was a mob scene with the CMS crew working the
crowd, giving out swag and signing autographs. Our own Austin
Lamarouix, one of the youngest pro trampoliners in the world (and USASA
class leader), performed a sick trampoline show with his team the Sky
Riders in front of a capacity crowd. Adding to the mix was Spectrum
Music who was rocking the booth handing out music, vinyl, and stickers
to all of the kids.
However, the warm weather also meant rough conditions on the
Snowscraper. With the sun shining directly on the runway of the tower,
softened snow robbed the riders from the crucial speed needed in the
transition in order to make the jump. Riders moving too slow were
forced to slam on the brakes at the lip of the jump while others ended
up in the safety net. Ouch is an understatement.
From the start of the competition the USASA PacSun Team dominated the
event run after run. In the middle of the action NYC Mayor MIchael
Bloomburg came to the top of the tower just to pose with USASA PacSun
rider Tyler Anderson. USASA PacSun rider Trevor Jacob battled his way
to first and took home the $1000 cash prize.
Photo: Jason Toutolmin
Side by side our riders were going as big as the pros, and at the end
of the day 24 people in the world hit the Snowscraper and 4 of them
were USASA athletes. It was a good day for them and a new chapter in
the future of the organization. As more sponsors begin to take an
active role in our sport, working to create unique events of this
caliber, it’s worth acknowledging sponsors like PacSun that make it
possibly for us to grow.
As we packed up to head home we said our good byes to the USASA PacSun
Team, Jason and Stacie (you rule!), who were flying out first thing in
the morning to head back West. It was really great experience having
the team represent in the city and for the athletes to gain exposure.
We will definitely make this event again next year.
Check out Jason's gallery of photos from our trip on SmugMug!
See the view from the top of the Snowscrapers ramp in a 360 degree Virtual Tour. Click the thumbnail below...
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