LAST PARK STANDING: Echo Mountain, CO
Echo Mountain Park, Colorado's brand new terrain park-only mountain, hosted their first annual Last Park Standing competition and party this past Saturday. The event celebrated a successful opening season and thanked industry friends and customers for bringing Echo to life this year.
ECHO MOUNTAIN, Colorado's newest ski resort, opened this season with a mission to cater exclusively to jibbers.
Driving toward Echo on the winding mountain road, it's easy to forget that you're 5 minutes off of the infamous I-70, where most resorts are set a stones throw from the congested highway. Echo, tucked high up on Squaw Pass, has a feeling of isolation that fosters a tight community of skiers and riders. They all lined up to compete in the day's comp.
The day kicked off with a completely packed amateur contest. Registration was first come, first serve, and by 8:00am there was a line pushing through the lodge (the mountain doesn't open till 10am). Fortunately the Echo staff handed out Powder and Snowboarder magazines to keep the anxious crowd occupied and plenty of swag for those didn't make registration.
"I flew from Salt Lake City yesterday and hitchhiked from Glenwood Springs to get up hear,” said Ian Spencer, a Utah snowboarder, while waiting in line to register. “Echo has such fun events and it's just a good vibe up here."
The amateur competition was a high energy two-hour jam session on six jib features, including the Smith Limo and Echo's signature feature Knuckles. The winners of each category won skis or a snowboard and a wild card invite to the pro comp.
Immediately after the morning competition awards, warm up for the pro comp began. The spectators and A.M. competitors kept busy spectating and participating in games ranging from a wet t-shirt contest to a bungee game, in which competitors were linked together with five-point harnesses and had to run full speed in opposite directions. Hilarity ensued.
The Smith limo was consistently destroyed by the pro ranks with spin on, spin off, presses, and switch up combos. The stand out of the day was probably Ian Cosco, who got tech on the top rails with 450 gap in to 270 off the flat down and buttery smooth 270 on pretzel out on the street bar.
As soon as the pro contest finished, the band began to break down, the tent village started to disappear and riders and friends piled into Echo's garage for free beers, courtesy of Tommy Knocker, Great Divide and Stella breweries, vodka samples courtesy of Vodka 14, and free BBQ fare.
RESULTS
Mens Ski
Ian Cosco
Best Girl
Darcie Cornelius
Best Trick
Austin Julikien