The Freeride Mountain Bike World Tour hosts 33 events around the planet this year. Today it was announced Vail, Colo., and the GoPro Mountain Games is now on the tour route.
With a $10,000 prize purse, the June 7th event will attract pro riders to a freeride course near Vail.
The Mountain Games is a venue for amateur athletes as well as pros. But like the Bouldering World Cup event and the Slackline World Championships (both also to be held at the Games), the Freeride Tour offers the potential to attract more professionals.
They will compete for the large prize purse as well as points to be accumulated for the Freeride Tour series.
Mike Imhof of the Vail Valley Foundation (which organizes the Games) said the Freeride World Tour signifies a “progressive, international series [coming] to the Games.”
He notes the competition is open to professionals and amateur riders alike and that “amateur riders [now have] a chance to compete against the best” in the sport.
Qualifying rounds for slopestyle begin on Friday, June 7, at noon at Golden Peak east of Vail Village. The finals go off at 6p.m. that same day.
—Follow our full coverage of the 2013 GoPro Games via the ‘Live at the Games’ channel, presented by Gerber . See you in Vail!