The Session At Vail Cancelled
ADMIN
- November 04 2008
- 2,003 views
- 22 comments
VAIL, Colorado—Following a six-year run as one of the top snowboard competitions in the world, the Vail Valley Foundation along with their partner Vail Resorts, announced today that they will bid farewell to the Session pro snowboard competition, contested in Vail since 2003.
“The Foundation and Vail Resorts had agreed that 2009 would be the last year for the event,” explained Ceil Folz, president of the Vail Valley Foundation. “As we looked at our slate of athletic events for 2009 and beyond, and in discussion with Vail Resorts over the past two years, it became increasingly clear that while the Session has been a great event for the sport of snowboarding and a welcome addition to the Vail Valley winter, it was time for both the Foundation and Vail Resorts to look to the future for new events and programs that will target an ever changing marketplace. We both agreed that it was best for everyone involved to pull the plug now.”
During its six-years, the Session featured numerous highlights, including the early domination by Olympic gold medalist Shaun White and historic performances and incredible aerial feats. The 2007 Session showcased the first 1260’s ever landed in a Slopestyle competition, courtesy of David Benedek and Chas Guldemond, while the 2008 event featured the first 1440 landed in competition by Guldemond.
In addition to White, Benedek and Guldemond, the Session alumni roster also included Andreas Wiig, Travis Rice, Kevin Pearce, Molly Aguirre, Silvia Mittermueller and Marie-France Roy.
“We are proud to have created this event for the sport of snowboarding and are committed to creating the next level of cutting edge event for our valley,” added Folz. “We continue to have an exciting group of activities and events planned for 2009, including the American Ski Classic, the Birds of Prey World Cup, Bud Light Street Beat, the Vilar Performing Arts Center, the Vail International Dance Festival, Bud Light Hot Summer Nights, and American National Bank ShowDown Town, as well as a brand new endeavor, which we will be able to announce in the coming weeks.”
“Six years ago, we worked in partnership with the Foundation to create a pro snowboarding event that would help position Vail in the snowboarding world,” offered Chris Jarnot, chief operating officer for Vail Mountain. “The Session has done a great job of this and we are proud to have been the host mountain for what is considered one of the best snowboard events in the world.”
While the Vail Valley Foundation is on the verge of announcing a new initiative, the Foundation and Vail Resorts will continue to investigate additional event opportunities, both winter and summer that ensure that the two organizations continue to bring world class events to the Vail Valley for both residents and guests.
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November 4th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
is it cancelled for this year or no? says cancelled but then says 2009 is last year…
November 4th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
yea same question, is it going on this year for the last time or no?
November 4th, 2008 at 8:12 pm
yea well vail also cancelled their team this year, (james mccotter and i being apart of the team for almost 4 years now) so basically theyre claming the “economical struggle” is keeping vail from having a team which i say is bullshit considering vail is a multi-billion dollar corporation. i guess a couple thousand dollars to a couple of bum ass riders is too much…thanks vail….siiiick! lets go shred anyways..word!!!
November 4th, 2008 at 11:39 pm
it looks like there will the Session this winter, but then that’s it. could it be that Vail is looking to host another big name event that has been around for a while?….Xciting
November 5th, 2008 at 8:31 am
no session is kinda a bummer… always a great showcase here in the rockies. damn the man droid, don’t let em get you down!
November 5th, 2008 at 9:07 am
the session is over. its not going to happen this year.
November 5th, 2008 at 11:54 am
Hey everyone - saw these comments and wanted to take a moment to clarify. Yes, it is true. The 2009 Session is canceled and will not take place. We are sorry that it was not 100% clear in our press release. For questions, please go to our website at http://www.sessionvail.com where you can contact us directly.
Also note that we are still dedicated to the sport of snowboarding and hope to do more events in the future. Thanks for the memories, the Session was a ton of fun for everyone involved for the past 6 years.
- Vail Valley Foundation
November 5th, 2008 at 11:56 am
vail is shit, read the bottom of the article, they dont care about the snowboarding or snowboarders, they just wanted more money; now that they accomplished their goal as being recognized they’re getting rid of what got them there.
“Six years ago, we worked in partnership with the Foundation to create a pro snowboarding event that would help position Vail in the snowboarding world,” offered Chris Jarnot, chief operating officer for Vail Mountain. “The Session has done a great job of this and we are proud to have been the host mountain for what is considered one of the best snowboard events in the world.”
November 5th, 2008 at 3:49 pm
spend your money at keystone or winter park instead
November 5th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
Geez people, it’s clear that it’s not happening this year - this year meaning 2009, since that’s when it would’ve taken place - and I know that it’s the Vail Valley Foundation that put it on, and I’m betting they couldn’t afford it anymore. So quit whining. And no, I have no affiliation with them, I only went to it once and it was a great time.
November 6th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Typical “corpo” bullsh!t. They buy their way in and then kick you to the curb after everything is up and running. There are plenty of “Real” resorts that understand the value of our life style and the positive economic impact that we have. It is a partnership in which both entities benefit from each other. Keep it simple and keep it real!
November 6th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
The fact of the matter is Ceil wasted a crap ton of money in south africa trying to get the bid for the world cup (even though it was a lost cause)and now the foundation is in a financial crisis. Not to mention Vail had a couple big sponsors pull out of the honda session. It is sad to see the contest go. The fact is,,,the session didnt make that much money. and we all know it comes down to money. After all Vail Resorts is a public company. As for Vail dropping their team,,,,one word,,,,,WEAK!!! According to some executives “We are not trying to appeal to the summit county rif raf.” So sad. Maybe this way of thinking is why Vail doesn’t put out decent parks. Oh well.. Like Droid said,,,lets go ride.
November 6th, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Bottom line Vail is doing everything it can to remove the soul from the town. They think they have their market dialed but the reality is that people come to these mountain towns for the mountain of course, but also the mountain vibe. Locals are being pushed down valley and the affordable rentals are being used up by the construction companies to build bigger hotels. Once they’ve gotten rid of everyone who chose to move here they will see that the guest experience suffers. People who don’t live here but love to ride/ ski will pick up on this and go somewhere where soul still matters. Vail will have their Gaper heaven.
November 6th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
Vail is retarted. This is hands down one of the best contests ever. It was the only reason why I made a trip to Vail. Vail is going down hill and fast. This was the last good thing. Vail better get their S#!t together and put on a big air contest or another slopestyle contest.
November 6th, 2008 at 8:10 pm
Three words….. Mandatory Pay Parking. First you gouge the general public with $80+ lift tickets, then force them to pay $20 to park, and now you’ve gone and fired Steven Laterra who was the only good thing you had going for you, and now you’re dropping your team and the Session.
You’re the most greedy ski area in Colorado.
I hope it all bites you in the ass.
November 6th, 2008 at 8:13 pm
Eff that, go to Echo where you don’t have to pay to park, a lap through the park only takes about 12 minutes, the staff actually gives a shit, and it only costs $149 to shred every single day and night of the season.
However, I definitely agree that Winter Park or Copper is a better alternative. Keystone is owned by Vail, which means your money is still going into the same shitty, greedy pockets.
November 7th, 2008 at 8:57 am
I wouldn’t ride vail if you paid me. Loveland, Copper, WP/MJ son.
November 7th, 2008 at 11:57 am
Don’t worry - Seven Springs is gonna host the sesh. SSS, yo! Sessions at Seven Springs is gonna be dope! Get yo popcorn ready!
November 7th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
Damn where will I be able to see the first 1620° of snowboard history…hahaha this press release is such a joke.
Spin to win, spin spin spin little monkey…
November 8th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
I think that once shit hits the fan for Vail Resorts it will be too late. I just hope I’m there to see it happen. I think the NOFX song - Dinosaurs will die - say’s it best. “I’m gonna make a joke when it falls apart, gonna raise my glass above my heart, then someone shouts - that’s what they get!”
November 10th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
word but I’m there for Malay day….gotta pay respects to Josh
March 30th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
TYPICAL HATER is clearly the same person who wrote under the name Vail Valley Foundation… notice the correct grammar and the “-”
Hahahahah “i have no affiliation with them…” yeah right.