Wednesday, March 19, 2008

What a weekend!

48 Straight delivers the goods once again


By JON DUVAL
Express Staff Writer


Peter Olenick, from Aspen, Colo., throws a 1080, or three-revolution trick, down his second trip in the halfpipe during Sunday’s Skier Halfpipe event, part of the weekend-long 48 Straight extravaganza. Olenick finished fourth in the competition and then turned around and won the “Monster Hit” one-trick affair that immediately followed.
Express photos by Willy Cook

After six days of events, it seems as if 48 Straight might be a bit of a misnomer, but a grammatical error wasn't going to keep masses of spectators and athletes from descending upon the Wood River Valley in search of world-class entertainment and competitions.

"I'd say we have a whole town that's pretty tired today," said Ketchum Mayor Randy Hall on Monday, not long after the large concert tent had disappeared from East Avenue and the top skiers and snowboarders had departed with $15,000 checks.

For the second year in a row, 48 Straight, formerly known as the Honda Ski Tour, succeeded in delivering vitality and excitement, something for which city officials, business leaders and residents have been clamoring.

The event kicked off on Tuesday with the first of three "Green Your Scene" environmental symposiums, featuring speakers that included former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, actress Mariel Hemingway and musician Michael Franti.

As opposed to the tour's inaugural year, when Ketchum and Sun Valley were the opening venue, co-founders and Ketchum residents Kipp Nelson and Steve Brown put their hometown at the end of the schedule, in part to avoid the below-freezing temperatures that engulfed crowds last year.


Pat Holland of Tahoe City, Calif., and Nick Baumgartner of Iron River, Mich., roll down Dollar Mountain on Friday in the men’s finals of the Jeep King of the Mountain snowboard-cross competition. Holland made the podium in third place and early leader Baumgartner was fourth in an event won by Pat’s older brother, Nate Holland.
Express photos by Willy Cook

However, Thursday saw snow clouds move in during the ski cross qualifiers, but that did little to dampen the excitement heading into a Friday that included snowboard cross finals, a Company of Fools production of "Danny and the Deep Blue Sea," an art gallery walk and headlining musicians Slightly Stoopid and Mickey Avalon.

By the time midnight rolled around, a closed-down Main Street was filled with revelers watching fire jugglers while flowing in and out of the bars.

The sun struggled to break through again on Saturday as over a thousand spectators hiked up Dollar Mountain, lining the ski cross course to cheer on some of the sport's biggest names competing in the Jeep King of the Mountain Series.

"There were a few glitches the first couple days and the weather wasn't perfect, but it went off really well," said Ketchum resident and 48 Straight representative Zach Crist, who competed in last year's ski cross event. "It was pretty much all that we hoped for, especially as this was a transition year with the merger with Jeep."

On Saturday night, the Basecamp Music Pavilion tent was packed to hear headliner Michael Franti and Spearhead's unique blend of hip-hop, reggae and funk. With everyone from high school students to their parents dancing throughout the set that lasted more than two hours, it was clear that no demographic was excluded from the fun.

By Sunday, the blue skies and warm weather were back in full force, as were the best U.S. halfpipe skiers, hurtling well above the walls of the pipe to give the crowd, spread all the way to the slopes above, perfect views of the adrenaline-inducing tricks.

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"The crowds were great all weekend and the on-mountain events should look good on TV," said Jack Sibbach, marketing director for Sun Valley Co. "This is really a great shot in the arm for the community."

Sibbach said the resort had participants and sponsors staying at its hotel, and the company's restaurants were busy throughout the weekend.


Colby West got well above the edge of Sun Valley’s halfpipe on his way to winning both Sunday’s Paul Mitchell Ski Halfpipe Competition and the overall 48 Straight season ski halfpipe championship.
Express photos by Willy Cook

"It was a wonderful event and we'd love to have the finals here every year," Sibbach said. "It brought a lot of press into town, which should, in turn, bring more people here."

Sun Valley-Ketchum Chamber & Visitors Bureau Marketing Director Carrie Westergard said that heading into the weekend, hotel occupancy in Ketchum and Sun Valley was at 83 percent, up from 69 percent at the same time last year. In Hailey, the difference was even greater, with hotel occupancy increasing from 32 percent to 68 percent.

After an initial survey from the weekend, Westergard said the results from retail shops and restaurants was mixed, with 54 percent responding that business was the same or had increased from the previous year.

"48 Straight did an incredible job of portraying the mountain lifestyle," Westergard said. "Even if business didn't increase, most still had positive things to say about the event as a whole."

Like Sibbach and Westergard, Ketchum officials also had positive reactions to this second installment of 48 Straight.

"All in all, this city continues to love these kinds of events and will look to be a venue for them in the future," said Mayor Hall.

As well, city officials made a point to thank the police and fire departments for their hard work during the course of the weekend.

"The emergency services did all the heavy lifting while we were having a good time," Ketchum Councilman Ron Parsons said.

However, as with last year's event, not all were completely satisfied, as The Courtyard business owners once again expressed their concerns to the Ketchum council about the negative impact the location of the music pavilion had on business.

"I had a wonderful time at the concerts and on the slopes," said Vint Hughes, co-owner of Hughes Jewel Gallery in The Courtyard, which is located on East Avenue between Sun Valley Road and Fourth Street. "But the tent wiped out 10 days of business."

Councilman Curtis Kemp said the city needs to work on the amount of time required for noticing such an event to neighbors that could be impacted.

Mayor Hall said city officials will meet to discuss ways to improve the event next year.

"By supporting this event, it's as if the city is in the entertainment business," Hall said. "And we need to continue to get better at this."

Watch it on TV

Coverage of the 48 Straight weekend in Sun Valley will be broadcast on CBS at 11:30 a.m. (MDT) Saturday, March 29, and 11 a.m. (MDT) Sunday, March 30.




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