Riders Chosen for X Games Aspen 2014 Real Snow Video Competition

December 10, 2013

Videos to Premiere on XGames.com on January 7

X Games Aspen 2014 has chosen the eight snowboarders who will compete in ESPN’s video-only competition, Real Snow, which premieres never-before-seen video parts January 7 on XGames.com. Each Real Series athlete chosen to participate will be given the opportunity to team with an editor to partner on the production of the video and present their vision in their own unique style.

Each Real Snow video part will be judged by a committee of well-respected action sports industry icons and professionals. All individual videos and gold medal announcements will be included during the X Games Aspen 2014 telecast. A first place prize of $50,000 will be awarded to the winner, as well as gold, silver and bronze medals for the top 3 finishers. Fans will also have a chance to view and vote on their favorite video in a tournament-style bracket on XGames.com with the fan favorite winning $10,000.

The eight athletes invited to compete:

Dan Brisse (Richmond, Minn.) – Two-time Real Snow gold medalist (2011, 2012)
Louis-Felix Paradis (Quebec City, Quebec, Canada) – X Games Aspen 2013 Real Snow gold medalist
Bode Merrill (Park City, Utah) – X Games Aspen 2013 Real Snow bronze medalist
Frank April (Riviere-du-Loup, Quebec, Canada) – Real Snow 2013 Fan Favorite
Eiki Helgason (Akureyri, Iceland) – Real Snow debut, recently featured in TransWorld Snowboarding’s film Nation
Dylan Thompson (Hood River, Oreg.) – Real Snow debut, X Games Aspen 2013 Snowboard Street bronze
Forest Bailey (Jamaica, Vt.) – Real Snow debut, X Games Aspen 2012 Snowboard Street gold medalist
Jaeger Bailey (Chewelah, Wash.) – Real Snow debut, X Games Aspen 2013 Snowboard Street 4^th place

Click Photo to view gallery. Rider: Dan Brisse / Photo: Andy Wright

The Real Series began in 2010 with the debut of Real Street at X Games Los Angeles. Based on the success of this series, Real Snow was added to the X Games Aspen lineup in 2011 as a way to bring urban snowboarding to X Games. The Real Series has also included competitions in Real Surf, Real Women, Real Ski Backcountry and Real Snow Backcountry.

Information on Real Snow can be found on www.xgames.com and on www.espneventmedia.com for media only.

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Contact: Grace Coryell, ESPN Communications, 310-642-1519, grace.s.coryell@espn.com