New Event: Showdown Throwdown
New Event: Showdown Throwdown
Unpack Your Snowboard Gear; Freestyle Event Coming to Ellicottville
Remaining snow from ski season will be transported from HoliMont to the event site, and a number of unique features are being custom-built for the course.
Have you put away your snow gear yet? I have. I dread the boot bag clean-out every single year, but my dad (in true dad fashion) will not let me live in peace until everything is sorted. I wash those crusty face masks, throw out all of the candy wrapper carcasses stuffed into my coat pockets, snip the sculpture of lift tickets I have created from my snow pants zipper, and of course, put my boards to bed for the summer.
All that being said, I have an important announcement for the snowboarders of Western New York: refrain from cleanup! You have one more opportunity to shred!
Presented by Loud Performance, Loud Underground, and Daily City Train, the first annual Showdown Throwdown snowboard event is set for Saturday, April 27th. Using the last few mounds of snow from HoliMont, the Loud Underground/DCT parking lot at 2 Bristol Lane (next to Tim & Bonnie’s Pizza) will be completely transformed for this jam-format snowboarding event! The $35 registration fee will give you the chance to show off your skills and vie for some really cool prizes, including a new snowboard, skateboard, and cold hard cash! Tons of other prize packs will be awarded in a number of categories.
Registration will open the morning of the Throwdown from 10:00am-noon, with the event kicking off promptly at noon. Chris Perks, owner of Daily City Train is excited about the upcoming jam and how it’ll hopefully amalgamate the winter season into a summer of skateboarding. “We’re trying to create a scene here in Ellicottville, something that’s been missing in this resort town for many years,” he said.
An Ellicottville native and lifelong snowboarder and skater, Chris is deeply passionate about the freestyle scene and understands it on multiple fronts, as he heads up HoliMont’s Parks department and recently designed and opened his own indoor skatepark, Daily City Train. “I love giving back in that aspect; freestyle terrain built by someone who uses it,” commented Chris.
Chris, along with the event’s co-host, owner of Loud Performance/Loud Underground, Dee Dippel, have been friends since the installation of HoliMont’s Bike Park, which Chris and his Parks team have a strong hand in. Dee, being heavily involved in Ellicottville’s local bike rental scene, was often around when Chris would work his magic on the bike trails. Following many conversations, the two decided to go in on some space together; two businesses that complement each other, housed under one roof. “We decided to split on the building here, and now we’re hosting this sick rail jam together,” said Chris.
Sick indeed, and Dee over at Loud Performance is just as excited about what the Showdown Throwdown will bring to the community. “I’ve always been a two-wheel person,” said Dee, an avid mountain biker. He says Loud Underground’s later addition of snowboards to their inventory supports a year-round season. “Our whole team here not only mountain bikes, but we’re big into snowboarding as well, so it made sense to offer snowboards alongside fat bikes in the winter.”
Getting a parking lot rail jam together at the end of April is certainly no easy feat, especially after the winter we had. All hands are on deck here, with HoliMont donating a feature along with real snow! “HoliMont actually saved us a little bit of snow, and we couldn’t have done it without them,” added Dee.
The folks over at DCT and Loud are certainly working hard to change up everything you think you know about Ellicottville, by blending the winter seamlessly into our summer with this one-of-a-kind event. You can check out more information by searching the event page, Showdown Throwdown, on Facebook. There, you’ll also find ways to shop and check out both shops.