VertFest 2008

Hello VertiCultural Brothers and Sisters:

I hope you all had as much fun at VertFest as we did. All of us here at Outdoor Research, racers and organizers alike, are very proud to be a part of this great local event. As I mentioned at the awards ceremony, we had two goals for VertFest:

* Put smiles on the faces of participants
* Make a financial contribution to Friends of NWAC

Check and check.

Now that we have completed both events, we will begin working on VertFest 2009 in earnest. Many people have come to us with great ideas for future VertFests and we'll consider them all. During the summer we'll decide which can be acted upon for 09, so if you have ideas for VertFest, please post them here or shoot me an email at kaj@outdoorresearch.com.
We'll keep you updated here as we make headway.

A few VertFest 2008 housekeeping items:

* A pair of sunglasses were found on the course. If you can describe them to me in an email (kaj@outdoorresearch.com) you'll get them back

* Photos from VertFest Alpental will be up on the VertFest website by Wed, April 2

* Results are up on the Athlete's Lounge site now

* We will be reviewing results of both VertFest races and posting the VertFest 2008 Series winners. This will be decided by combining times for both races - fasted times win. OR will supply a prize for the winners in each category. Stay tuned - our crack (but small) staff is on it!

I also want to, once again, call out a BIG thank you to:

Martin Volken of Pro Guiding Service
Ben Haskell of Pro Guiding Service
Erica Engle of Pro Guiding Service
Guy Lawrence of The Summit at Snoqualmie
Abby Vanlandingham of The Summit
Lock Miller of Marmot Mountain Works
Sam Killgore of Outdoor Research
Jeff Greenwell of Outdoor Research
Keith Karlick of Outdoor Research
Todd Walton of Outdoor Research
Tiana Enger of Crystal Mountain

These people, and others, worked tirelessly to make the VertFest series a success.

And I must also thank the sponsors of VertFest again:

Gore-Tex/Windstopper
Off Piste Magazine
Garmont
MSR
Black Diamond/Diamir
Backcountry Magazine
Pro Guiding Service
Marmot Mountain Works
Lazy Boy Beer
Alpental
Crystal Mountain

Each of these organizations contributed much needed cash and prizes.

We'll keep you up to speed on VertFest 2009. In the mean time, enjoy this extended winter.

Most sincerely,

Kaj Bune and the Outdoor Research crew

Hey Monika:

Thanks for taking me up on the request for ideas.

The volunteers got a lift ticket for the day, a voucher for another day, and each get a killer deal on whatever OR gear they want. I think they even got a T-shirt. I'll put this on our list for next year and we'll see if we can sweeten the deal yet further. The volunteers are another one of those critical roles in this thing.

A mic and sound system is a MUST. We had one for Crystal, but ended up without one for Alpental (although it was planned). My voice was trashed by the end of the awards ceremony and you all still couldn't hear me. Next year...

Keep the ideas coming!

Kaj

Unofficial Combined Series Winners (VertFest Crystal and VertFest Alpental):


Bib #   Name           From              Category          Combined Time

132     Seth Davis Seattle, WA    Race            03:44:50.3


12      Ben Neilson Renton, WA    Open        02:33:31.1



67      David Burke Seattle, WA     Tele 1 Lap         03:25:16.1


00                                            Team Rally                   0


00                                            Splitboard                    0



*Team Rally and Splitboard Catagories both had no common participants.

Way to go Ben!

It sounds like you should be setting the up tracks until next seasons results.

Naw, Seth's the real man! I humbly bow to his awesomeness!

Hi VertFesters!

Here at OR, we are wrapping up all the loose ends and bringing VertFest 2008 to a close... however, we certainly can not do that without posting the official "VertFest 2008 Overall Winners". Plinko, thanks for doing my dirty work for me; here is the list of AMAZING athletes who are setting the bar for next year:

Race Category:
Men's Fastest Overall: Seth Davis with a total time of 3:44:49!!!
Women's Fastest Overall: Monika Johnson with a total time of 4:28:20!!!

Open Category:
Men's Fastest Overall: Ben Neilson with a total time of 2:33:31!!!
There were no women who competed in both open events. ( that will change for next year right?)

Tele Category:
Men's Fastest Overall: David Burke with a total time of 3:25:16!!
Again, there were no women who competed in both events.

All I can say is Good God you guys, my legs hurt just thinking about it!!!

While we only gave overall rankings to those who competed in the same category in both VertFest Crystal and VertFest Alpental events, we still want to thank the many, many people who still attended and raced like mad men/women in both events! After running registration for the last three events, I already recognize your names!

Congratulations to you Overall winners... you'll be hearing from us soon concerning your prizes!! And congratulations to all of you! You are all proof that the backcountry ski community is by far the coolest group of people around, and why I love my job so much!

Thanks fo much for coming, and trust me, you'll be hearing from me and Kaj very soon!

Cheers!
Sam ( the quiet one without a microphone!!)