Snowboarding Receives a Jolting Revival on a One-of-a-Kind Course Designed by Masterminds Ben Ferguson and Mark McMorris
MAMMOTH LAKES, CA – (May 16, 2019) – The world’s best snowboarders united this week for Red Bull Recharged, a team-based content battle during May 14-17 at Mammoth Mountain. Like anything that evolves, stagnancy stalls progression. There is a constant need for change, be it in our culture or ideology, in order to progress and move forward. As it relates to modern day snowboarding, some would say that exists in the form of standardized contests that don’t give riders a voice.
Enter Red Bull Recharged, a gathering that’s set to spark change to the status quo. From Olympians and co-conceptors Ben Ferguson and Mark McMorris, Red Bull Recharged emphasizes board control while empowering snowboarders to have a say in what and how they ride.
“The whole idea around the course build is that it won’t be for just slopestyle riders or halfpipe riders. It’s going to take away the whole label and separation. Red Bull Recharged is for snowboarders by snowboarders,” says Ferguson.
“We want to bring snowboarding back to the core of being a good overall rider. We’re excited to encourage this through a park build that’s built off transition and slope variations that focuses on controlling speed through features,” added McMorris.
The three-team format, where content is king, will allow riders to draw from their influences, plug into style and bring creativity to the forefront. Led by captains Ben Ferguson, Mark McMorris and Brock Crouch, each team will be tasked with capturing ten highlight worthy clips on a course that is as massive as it is fluid. Following the session, the winning team will be determined by none other than snowboard legend, Travis Rice. One of the world’s most renowned park builders, Frank Wells, has been tapped to push up the Red Bull Recharged course with the help of the Unbound Terrain Park team and revolutionary grooming machine, PistenBully. With over two years of planning, Wells, Ferguson and McMorris have orchestrated an 18-day build on the legendary terrain found on the backside of Mammoth Mountain’s Chair 14. “Given Mammoth’s commitment to snowboarding through the Unbound Program, it was a natural fit to bring this project here. The exciting part is to have Ben, Mark and their friends come in, ride it and then make changes based on their
“To push competitive snowboarding in a more positive direction, let’s bring the level of rotations down by creating a course that’s harder to ride and more skatepark influenced. Working with Mark and Frank, that’s what Red Bull Recharged build is all about.” – Ben Ferguson feedback.
This is as rider driven of an event that I’ve ever done,” says Wells. Be sure to keep up with the action at @redbullsnow, @snowboardermag and @mammothmountain as the heaviest names in snowboarding redefine the laws of physics at #RedBullRecharged. Additional information can be found at redbull.com/recharged2019.
COMPETING TEAMS: Captain: Ben Ferguson Filmer: Tyler Orton – Ryo Aizawa – Zak Hale – Scott Blum – Gabe Ferguson – Sage Kotsenburg – Torgeir Bergrem Captain: Mark McMorris Filmer: Russell Chai – Mikey Ciccarelli – Jake Canter – Sebbe De Buck – Scotty James – Craig McMorris – Toby Miller Captain: Brock Crouch Filmer: Malachi Gerard – Red Gerard – Maddie Mastro – Yuki Kadono – Judd Henkes – Luke Winklemann – Nik Baden Referee: Hailey Langland Judge: Travis Rice
