Ski and Snowboard News, Deals, and Events

Organizers of the first Canadian Open Snowboarding Championships bumped the competition date for the inaugural event from early December to February. The event, which is run in conjunction with Burton Snowboards and Canada Olympic Park, is now scheduled for Feb. 2-8, 2009.

Event organizers jumped into the slot left open when Vail cancelled its Session. "It frees up a window in the calendar that we have looked at in the past as strategically beneficial to the event," said Liam Griffin, events director for Burton, in a news release.

The new date places the competition at COP in the week leading up to the FIS World Cup at Cypress Bowl in Vancouver, the site for several of the 2010 Olympic Games snowboarding events.

The Cypress pipe was modeled after the COP pipe, so placing the two events adjacent on the calendar lets riders competing in the Canadian Open Snowboarding Championships prep for the World Cup contest at Cypress. "This gives riders the option to hit two events in western Canada in a row," added Griffin.

The championship event is part of the six-country Burton Global Open Series. Riders tally up points during the series towards snowboarding's biggest dollar prize. The leading male and female each win $100,000.