The new freestyle season at Chill Factore is set to start off with a bang, with some of Europe’s top snowboarders lined up to visit Manchester’s indoor real snow centre in the coming weeks.
On Saturday 31st October, girls will have the chance to ride alongside some of Europe’s top female snowboarders, with the arrival of the Volcom Action Girls “Fridge Fandango”. Freestyle snowboarders attending the event will receive coaching from Cheryl Maas and other Volcom pro-riders – two of Europe’s best up-and-coming female snowboarders – Sarka Pancochova and Kari Opsal – on the slopes.
Considered by many as the most progressive female snowboarder in Europe, Dutch rider Cheryl Maas, 24, was voted best European freestyler by Method and MBM magazine for three consecutive years. Sponsored by Volcom, Cheryl has recently been joined on the team by Norwegian snowboarder Kari Opsal, 18, just back from injury, as well as Volcom’s latest signing, Czech snowboarder Sarka Pancochova.
Sarka, also 18, has already been hailed as the best overall female rider in the world by Snowboarder magazine in the US, and girls visiting Chill Factore for the “Fridge Fandango” will have the opportunity to meet her on her first tour with the Volcom girls’ team.
All three members of the Volcom team are looking forward to passing on some tips to the girls at Chill Factore. Cheryl Maas said: “I started snowboarding on the dry slopes and later at the indoor snow slopes in Holland. Whereas most people caught the snowboard bug in the beautiful and scenic Alps, for me the indoor slopes offered me everything I needed… a place to ride with my friends and spend night after night learning new tricks. It’s really exciting to visit Chill Factore and get the chance to ride with girls who are probably doing exactly what I was doing ten years ago.”
Throughout the evening half of the main slope will be dedicated to freestyle, with a “girls-only” session for the first hour. Prior to riding, there’ll be an opportunity for snowboarders to check out the new season’s Volcom snow collection from 5pm to 6pm, with some great discounts available in the Subvert store at Chill Factore. Riders can also pick up signed posters, goodies and Halloween drinks and snacks.
On the slope, there will be prizes for the top three most improved female snowboarders. Tickets cost just £35 for all girls and include coaching and four hours of slope time, from 7pm to 11pm.
The same week sees the UK premiere of the Homies 2 DVD at Chill Factor, with yet more opportunities for snowboarders to ride with top European athletes on Friday 6th November.
Leading French snowboarder Nico Droz will join the rest of the Advita team in visiting Chill Factore as part of the promotional tour for the DVD – which tells Nico’s story. The tour aims to showcase the talent of featured riders to local snowboarding communities, and give young snowboarders the chance to learn more about Nico’s journey to global success.
Ian Staton of Advita UK explained: “Homies tells the story of Nico Droz and his 15 years of riding all over the world, with an approach that allies style and fun. This year’s issue has an impressive cast and the concept of Homies is simple – to give the opportunity to younger riders to share Nico’s experience.
“Homies is a film made by riders for riders and the whole team hopes it will inspire regulars at Chill Factore to take their snowboarding to the next level. We chose Chill Factore as the venue for the UK premiere of the film due to the strength of the scene here – it’s a great facility and there should be some top riders emerging in the North West in the next few years.”
The evening will kick off at 5pm, with an opportunity to meet the Homies team in the Subvert store at Chill Factore, followed by demos from some of Europe’s top snowboarders from 6pm. Riders can then join Nico Droz and the team on the slopes for a four hour freestyle night, before the DVD premiere – the UK leg of a promotional tour that is visiting ten destinations across Europe – at 11pm. The ‘Monster Afterparty’ will continue until 2am in Chilli’s bar.
Stephen Evans, Chief Executive at Chill Factore, said: “These events are kicking off what looks set to be the best freestyle season yet at Chill Factore. Building the freestyle scene here is a big focus for us – and it’s great that some of Europe’s top snowboarders are helping us to do this.
“The success of the recent Airbag session shows how popular freestyle skiing and snowboarding is in the North West, and the buzz is growing. We have already established one of the most welcoming and lively freestyle nights in the country and are looking to introduce new features this season. In addition to the regular CORe freestyle nights, Salomon Grom Camps and Subvert Academy, we have plenty more events in the pipeline. Skiers and snowboarders can keep up to speed with the weekly park set up on our website, and watch this space for details of forthcoming events!”
Chill Factore is situated just off junction 10 of the M60, and has free parking.
For bookings and more information on Chill Factore, visit www.chillfactore.com
or call 0161 749 2222.
For more information on Volcom, visit www.volcomeurope.com.
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