Thrills and spills galore at Snowboard Jamboree!
The organizing committee of Snowboard Jamboree presented by Mazda in collaboration with Videotron Mobile can say “Mission accomplished” after a thoroughly successful event that ran from January 16 to 19.
With no one quite sure what to expect from Mother Nature, the weather turned out to be good over the long weekend, much to the delight of the crowds gathered to cheer on the athletes at the FIS/WST 5-Star Big Air World Cups at Îlot Fleurie in downtown Québec City and the Halfpipe and Slopestyle World Cups at Stoneham Mountain Resort. The last stop before the 2014 Winter Olympic Games even saw local rider Maxence Parrot win the Slopestyle event to book his place in Sochi!
Mens Podium Stoneham
Renaud Philippe
Record crowds
“We’re delighted at the crowds we saw at the three World Cups. I’d say the event definitely attracted record numbers,” said Chantal Lachance, vice-president of Gestev, the event management company in charge of putting on Snowboard Jamboree. “The weather was on our side, and both Québec City and Stoneham saw huge turnouts—it’s great to see!” On Friday, crowds gathered around the Big Air event to watch 12 athletes compete in the Big Air World Cup grand final presented by Videotron Mobile. Quebec’s top athletes did not end up with gold, but settled for top 5 finishes, with Antoine Truchon taking silver and Maxence Parrot finishing 4th. Parrot had the crowds on their feet again on Sunday afternoon at the Slopestyle World Cup final presented by S3, this time with a 1st place finish. “My run was perfect, I love riding when there’s a lot of snow. I can be in my zone and nothing makes me happier,” he commented. “Now I can concentrate 100% on the X-Games and then Sochi.” Canadians Brad Martin and Alexandra Duckworth didn’t go home with medals from the Halfpipe World Cup presented by Mazda, but did book a ticket to Sochi by qualifying for the semis.
For riders of all stripes!
As well as the World Cups, each year the organizing committee also plays an active role in bringing through the next generation of athletes, with amateur comps, open and private Slopestyle and Halfpipe sessions, and activities that let people give snowboarding a try themselves. Mountain in the City gave young people a taste of the thrills to be had courtesy of Chocolate Milk in collaboration with Burton Snowboard, and in all close to 700 youngsters tried the sport in downtown Québec City and on the mountain—more record numbers for the event.
Not forgetting this winter’s BIGGEST party!
Snowboarding was front and centre all weekend long, but the official event party presented by Tremblay Beer also had tongues wagging as more than 2,000 snowboard and punk rock fans headed to ExpoCité on Saturday night. The main event was punk rock group Millencolin, which wowed partygoers with its greatest hits. Pulley, Strike Anywhere, Still Insane, and DJ Adam Doubleyou also got in on the act for a night to remember. And the Stairsmasters MOVIE version saw Quebec’s Frank Bourgeois scoop the $10,000 grand prize for a second year.