See portions of articles from today's New York Times. Wow, a sport that actually "gets it" in terms of Marketing. Will out sport EVER get it, and how can we e.g. the USATF make it happen?
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"For a Spicy Snowboard Event, Add Chili Peppers"
PARK CITY, Utah, Dec. 22 -- Snowboarding event organizers know a thing or two about generating hype and pulling in record-breaking crowds. And that is what they did at the United States Snowboarding Grand Prix this weekend.
It is not science and has little to do with luck. Get Olympic-caliber athletes and a world-famous rock band, sit back and watch the crowds flood through the gates. Make it a party and try not to let the athletes forget that this is one of the sport's premier competitions.
The marquee event, the halfpipe competition, was held on a snowy Friday night at Park City Mountain Resort, wedged between the parallel giant slalom competition on Thursday and today's Big Air and Style Jib Jam Exhibition. Neither crowd compared with Friday night's happy crush.
Shortly before 6 p.m. Friday, more than 10,000 people -- a record for a snowboarding event outside the Olympics -- funneled into the resort's parking lot to hear the Red Hot Chili Peppers. During their sold-out 60-minute set, the lead singer, Anthony Kiedis, fought off the effects of high altitude, did his trademark spins on stage and kept the crowd entertained, warm and moving as temperatures plummeted and snow fell.
Dressed as Santa Claus, the Chili Peppers bassist Michael Balzary, who is known as Flea and is also a snowboarder, treated the crowd to a solo bass treatment of a traditional Christmas song infused with his own lyrics: ''Chestnuts burning on your open toes / We'll find it hard to sleep tonight.''
The concert was recorded by NBC and shown the next night before ''Saturday Night Live.''
''It was the perfect atmosphere of concert and competition, and it turned into a celebration,'' Michelle Palmer, a resort spokeswoman, said. ''It's really the spectators that keep these sports alive. The event created a vibe that shows snowboarding and snow sports is more than competition. It's a lifestyle. It was a party.''