By Jessica Lyons
With six years of successful events behind it, RECESS Skate and Snow prepares to host it seventh annual wRECklESS Rail Jam on Saturday, Feb. 27 at Beech Mountain. It will draw snowboarders from all over the country, and riders of all skill levels are encouraged to come out and show their abilities alongside other competitive athletes.
Register for $15 between 9:30-11 a.m. for the event, which will take place from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday.
The rail jam will hold contests for beginner, intermediate and advanced level snowboarders. The first 100 people to register for the rail jam will receive a free T-shirt courtesy of the events sponsors.
wRECklESS
“The event is just good fun and it’s competitive to help the progression of snowboarding as a sport,” RECESS owner J.P. Pardy said. “Having a good event helps a lot, and the jam format means that all the riders will be doing their tricks at once.”
The jam style competition will allow riders to actively compete against each other and boast tricks that other riders are doing.
The event will start with the beginner class, composed of newer riders doing a few tricks on very small parts of the course, such as the down box. Winners of this class will be able to win prizes from sponsors such as new goggles and other gear.
Intermediate level riders benefit from higher-level prizes, like a Capita snowboard and other pieces of serious riding equipment. Riders in this class will use the whole course for tricks.
Advanced riders will go head to head with snowboarders who have traveled from all over the country to participate. In this expert class, a grand cash prize of $1,000 will go to the top rider, followed by $600 and $400 prizes for second and third places, respectively.
Riders who decide to take on the advanced level should be prepared to do multiple tricks and battle fierce competition.
All monetary prizes will be distributed in the form of a check.
“Judging is very difficult for this event. The judges usually boil it down to the top six riders, and then from there they start to tally tricks and skills to decide on the winner,” Pardy said.
The rail jam will bring three to four judges to declare a winner of the event. All of the judges are advanced snowboarders, and will be looking for the most skilled rider based on performance.
“Another thing that makes judging so hard is that everyone judging is interested in different styles of riding, but they know what to look for in a rider,” Pardy said.
The event will also be covered by other news sources such as Snowboarder Magazine, bringing national recognition to the event. Judges, participants and the annual crowd of spectators have a lot to look forward to at this year’s wRECklESS Rail Jam!
A $20 hike pass at Beech will grant you access to hike the hill to watch or participate in the event.
Preregistration starts Tuesday, Feb. 23 at RECESS, 1158 N.C. Highway 105 in Boone. Call the shop at 828-355-9013 for more information.
Photos from last year’s Rail Jam by Sarah Weiffenbach:
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