Jeep King of the Mountain Series Announces Schedule for 2004-2005 Skiing and Snowboarding World Championships

Now in its 12th year as professional snow racings most prestigious event, the Jeep King of the Mountain Series has formally announced the schedule for the 2004-2005 Skiing and Snowboarding World Championships.

Vail, CO November 22, 2004 -- Now in its 12th year as professional snow racings most prestigious event, the Jeep King of the Mountain Series has formally announced the schedule for the 2004-2005 Skiing and Snowboarding World Championships.

The Jeep King of the Mountain Series, which offers the richest purse in snow racing, will feature the worlds top skiers and snowboarders competing head-to-head to capture the King of the Mountain title for their country, a share of over $450,000 (U.S.) in prize money, $20,000 (U.S.) in bonuses from Paul Mitchell and the keys to a new Jeep Liberty. A national audience will be able to view the King of the Mountain Series on CBS Sports and through nationally syndicated television for a total of six hours of coverage between December 2004 and March 2005.

The 2004-2005 Jeep King of the Mountain Series will feature stops at some of the most spectacular resorts in the world, each providing for a unique and majestic backdrop, world-class recreational facilities and a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts. This years events include:

November 27-28, 2004 Telluride Ski Resort Colorado
December 18-19, 2004 Snowbird Utah
January 22-23, 2005 Mount Snow Resort Vermont
February 5-6, 2005 Heavenly Lake Tahoe California

Formerly a pure downhill series, the Jeep King of the Mountain Series has established a reputation for drawing the most elite skiers and snowboarders of the sport, and carries with it a rich history of past Olympic champions, such as Jean-Luc Cretier ('98 Nagano), Tommy Moe ('94 Lillehammer), Josef Polig (92 Albertville), Pirmin Zurbriggen ('88 Calgary), Bill Johnson ('84 Sarajevo), Leonard Stock (80 Lake Placid), and Franz Klammer ('76 Innsbruck).

The 2004-2005 Series will maintain that legacy, with a line-up that has produced Olympic medals, world championship titles, national titles and numerous world cup victories between them. Among the favorites include 2002 Olympic Snowboard Bronze Medalist Chris Klug of the United States and Olympic Gold and Silver Medalist Karine Ruby of France.

Altogether, sixteen teams of two (one male and one female) will compete in the ski, snowboard, and combined competitions. Twelve teams (six ski teams and six snowboard teams) are invited from around the world, representing the United States, Austria, Canada, France, Germany and Switzerland. The remaining teams will be determined by a National Open Qualifier for top-notch amateur and professional racers that will be held on each event weekend.

Six races will be held over the four different event weekends between November 2004 and February 2005, with each event featuring individual and team competitions. The Series consists of two pure ski events, two pure snowboard events, and two unique events that combine both skiing and snowboarding, making the Jeep King of the Mountain Series the first integrated racing program in North America.

For its 12th anniversary season, the Jeep King of the Mountain Series will again use its innovative racecourse known as The Y. The unique course design delivers high-speed excitement in a format that combines the technical skill of Parallel Giant Slalom with the cutting edge drama of skiercross and boardercross. The Y has proved ideal for skiers and snowboarders alike, and the Jeep King of the Mountain Series is the only series to combine the racing elements of these two sports into one event. Racers begin on separate courses and must maneuver Parallel Giant Slalom turns. Midway through the course, racers meet at the Y, the point where the two parallel courses merge into one. There, skiers and snowboarders must race side-by-side on a single course while negotiating banked turns and single and double rollers leading to an exciting finish.

The Jeep King of the Mountain was established in 1993. Jeep is the title sponsor for the Jeep King of the Mountain Series. Other marketing partners for this season include: Atomic, Columbia Sportswear Company, Edge Advanced shave gel, John Paul Mitchell Systems, Mopar, Sirius Satellite Radio and Ski Magazine.


2004-2005 Jeep King of the Mountain Roster

Team USA Skiing -
Casey Puckett, Heidi Volker

Team USA Snowboarding -
Chris Klug, Rosey Fletcher

Team Austria Skiing -
Markus Wittner, Karin Huttery       

Team Austria Snowboarding -
Deiter Krassnig, Doresa Krings

Team Canada Skiing    -           
Davey Barr, Anik Demers           

Team Canada Snowboarding -
Jasey Jay Anderson, Christelle Doyon

Team France Skiing                   
Enak Gavaggio, Kristina Duvillard                   

Team France Snowboarding -
Nicolas Huet, Julie Pomagalski

Team Germany Skiing    -               
Martin Fiala, Katharina Gutensohn                   

Team Germany Snowboarding -
Markus Ebner, Ena Himmler

Team Switzerland Skiing    -               
Steve Locher, Franziska Steffen                   

Team Switzerland Snowboarding -
Gilles Jaquet, Daniela Meuli

Calling all ski and snowboard racers! - Jeep announces open qualifiers!

The Jeep King of the Mountain Series has introduced a newly formatted all-comers open qualifier allowing local ski and snowboard racers the opportunity to compete head-to-head with the worlds finest professionals for a share of professional snow sports richest prize purse.

The open qualifier format will be introduced at the Jeep King off the Mountain Series first race at the Telluride Ski Resort on November 27-28, 2004, and will also be offered at the remaining races at Snowbird Resort, Utah in December 2004; Mount Snow Resort, Vermont in January 2005; and Heavenly Lake Tahoe, California in February 2005.

Unlike past years, where qualifiers were required to register as a team, this years format will change to allow participants to register and race individually in the open qualifier. The top qualifying skiers and snowboarders will then be paired to take part in the Championships against the worlds finest professional racers.

In addition to moving the open qualifier to an exclusively individual format, the prize money structure has changed dramatically to reward the individual versus the team as in past years. The racers will be competing for a $150,000 prize purse at each site, with $75,000 for skiers and $75,000 for snowboarders.

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