U.S. Freeskiing Open moving to Copper Mountain in 2007

U.S. Freeskiing Open moving to Copper Mountain in 2007{mosimage}The Jeep U.S. Freeskiing Open is moving to Colorado’s Copper Mountain Resort for its 10th anniversary stop in January, event officials announced Wednesday.

The 2007 event is scheduled for Jan. 17-21 and will bring together more than 300 of freeskiing’s top stars and rising stars to compete in superpipe, slopestyle and big-air events.

“Copper is thrilled to host the U.S. Freeskiing Open,” Copper Mountain General Manager Gary Rodgers said. “Spectators will be able to watch the Main Vein Superpipe and night big-air competitions directly from the resort’s base area with all the convenience it offers.”

Event organizers also announced plans to involve the sport’s top athletes in the course design process, including the slopestyle course in Catalyst Terrain Park.

“We’re going to set a new standard for freeskiing events and will consult the athletes on every feature we build and every aspect of the course,” Rodgers said.

The U.S. Freeskiing Open is the longest-running freeskiing event in the world, and many of the sport’s current stars have participated in the event, including Tanner Hall, J.P. Auclair, T.J. Schiller and Nick Mercon. Next year’s event will feature a prize purse of $60,000.

Athletes can register for the event online at usfreeskiingopen.com beginning Dec. 5 at 5 p.m. MST. Hundreds of available spots for the men’s slopestyle and halfpipe events filled in less than 20 minutes last year.