THE 2019 BURTON US OPEN RETURN TO VAIL FEB 25 – MARCH 2
Innsbruck (February 1, 2019) —Burton Snowboards announces the return of the 37th annual U·S·OPEN Snowboarding Championships to Vail Mountain February 25 through March 2, 2019. This is the premier event of the competitive snowboarding season featuring the world’s most progressive riders competing at the top of their game for a chance at the $373,000 prize purse and to become part of history at the legendary Burton U·S·OPEN.
As part of the world’s greatest snowboard event, the Burton U·S·OPEN features the Burton Concert Series, including four nights of FREE musical performances by breakout artists and DJs. Past acts have include headliners such as Lizzo, Macklemore, DRAM, Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley and Griz. The five-day event is also a hub for fun FREE events, demos, and activities for the entire family, including the addition of a new Banked Slalom race open to the public February 28th through March 2nd.
As the longest-running event in competitive snowboarding, the legendary Burton U·S·OPEN offers the world’s top riders the chance to take home a major title, with spectators invited to take in all the excitement. Expect plenty of snowboarding action throughout all five days of competition kicking off on Tuesday, February 26th with the celebrated Burton U·S·OPEN Junior Jam. This halfpipe competition features a field of the top groms ages 14 and under battling it out in the 22-foot superpipe. These young riders will be competing for a piece of the $2,000 prize purse and the opportunity to compete alongside the pros in Thursday’s halfpipe semi-finals. See the future of the sport either in person at Vail or via the live Burton U·S·OPEN webcast.
The pro competition gets underway on Wednesday, February 27th with the best of the best competing in the slopestyle semi-finals, followed by halfpipe semi-finals on Thursday. These men and women will be competing for a chance at the main event and the equally divided $343,000 prize purse. As the most-anticipated event of the competitive snowboarding season, riders are ready to put down their most progressive runs. Last year, Chloe Kim (USA) successfully defended her halfpipe title for the third year in a row following her huge win at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. On the men’s side, 2018 Olympic Halfpipe Silver Medalist Ayumu Hirano (JPN) won his first U·S·OPEN title with a run that had the crowd roaring, including a frontside double cork 1440 Indy into a switch frontside double cork 1080 Indy.
In slopestyle, Mark McMorris (CAN) came back from a life-threatening injury to dominate men’s slopestyle and reclaim his title with a run that featured a frontside triple cork 1440 mute into a backside triple cork 1440 Indy on the massive lower jumps. In women’s slopestyle, Jamie Anderson (USA) earned her seventh Burton U·S·OPEN title since earning her first in 2007.
This year’s increased prize purse will allow competitors even more opportunities at prize money with the addition of $30,000 to be awarded in three new categories, including Clif Bar Best Line Contest, Burton Bonus Hit Award and the Toyota Rookie of the Year.
Two thousand nineteen marks the seventh year in a row that the Burton U·S·OPEN will be held at Vail Mountain where fans and families are invited to get in on all of the action both on-hill and within the Town of Vail. As part of the free on snow activities, Burton will have all of the newest winter 2020 equipment available to try out, including snowboards and the revolutionary Step On® line. Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet Burton team riders at scheduled events in the Burton Sponsor Village at Golden Peak, which includes the chance to participate in group rides with Burton athletes.
Also, new this year is the opportunity for attendees to become competitors in a fun Banked Slalom race open to participants of all abilities Thursday through Saturday from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm and 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm. In addition to being able to compare your times to that of the pros, the top finisher in both men’s and women’s category will receive a prize on the Solaris concert stage. All participants in the demo and the Banked Slalom race will also receive a token redeemable for select prizes in the Burton Sponsor Village.
As part of this family-friendly event, kids ages 3-6 years will have the opportunity to session the kids Learn to Ride Riglet Park, plus try out free Burton demo equipment and snowboard learning experience. The Free Riglet Park will be located next to the Golden Peak Children’s Snow School building, where parents can register for the free kids lesson sessions. The excitement of the Burton U·S·OPEN continues in the Town of Vail with the live Burton Concert Series with musical acts set to perform on the Solaris outdoor concert stage, at the Shakedown Sessions presented by Jack Daniels and at the Dobson Ice arena (full entertainment announcement coming soon!). Attendees can also join in the fun at participating bars and restaurants throughout Vail Village including The Fitz, Pazzo’s Pizza, and Garfinkel’s offering daily Après All Day food and drinks specials, live broadcasts of the slopestyle and halfpipe events, plus giveaways and contests. Additional activities include product sampling, demos and giveaways in the sponsor village at Golden Peak; exclusive U·S·OPEN gear at the Burton Pop Up Shop at the base of the slopestyle course, in the Burton stores at Vail Village and Lionshead and at Burton.com; plus the annual Chill fundraiser, the Dobson closing party and much more! Be sure to download the Burton U·S·OPEN app for all information around the 2019 Burton U·S·OPEN, including the competition, event and programming schedule, rider bios, results and more. The app is available now through Google Play and the App Store. Also follow #BurtonUSOpen and catch all five days of competition including the Junior Jam, halfpipe and slopestyle semi-finals and finals airing live and on demand on BurtonUSOpen.com, with complete halfpipe and slopestyle finals coverage also on Red Bull TV, available at redbull.tv or as a free downloadable app. The finals competitions will also be broadcast nationally on FS2—check your local listings for Friday and Saturday airtimes. Plus find local coverage in Colorado on TV8.
2019 Burton U·S·OPEN Competition Schedule: Tuesday, February 26h: Halfpipe Junior Jam Wednesday, February 27th: Men’s and Women’s Slopestyle Semi-Finals Thursday, February 28th: Men’s and Women’s Halfpipe Semi-Finals Friday, March 1st: Men’s and Women’s Slopestyle Finals Saturday, March 2nd: Men’s and Women’s Halfpipe Finals
