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Winner
Of "Ride With Damian" Announced
Edited by Robyn Hakes
(6-8-98)
(Press Release, June 8)— Avalanche
Snowboards recently announced the winners of its "Ride with Damian"
drawing. The season-long promotion offered each person who purchased the
Damian Sanders Ice Rocket pro model, as well as each person who sold one,
the chance to spend an all-expenses-paid weekend riding at Whistler/Blackcomb,
B.C., Canada with Damian. The Lifetime Warranty card that accompanies each
Avalanche snowboard served as an entry form for the contest. The card had
to be filled out by both the purchaser and the salesperson. Each Ice Rocket
warranty card received was set aside for the May 1 drawing.
The golden ticket belonged to Byron
Woods of Spokane, Washington who purchased his Ice Rocket from Chris Perry,
owner of Spokane Bike and Snowboard. Woods, Perry, and two guests, Woods'
brother Josh and Spokane Bike and Snowboard's Chris Caro, were set up with
a Memorial Day Weekend stay at the Blackcomb Aspen Suites, plane tickets,
shuttle, lift tickets, and a fistful of spending cash.
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Damian Sanders with winner Byron
Woods
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The weekend was a monster success,
with only one minor moment of drama (everyone forgot their birth certificates
and had to wait for parents/ girlfriends to scramble to the airport). To
the surprise of Sanders, Woods and Perry had recruited a small entourage,
but the more proved to be merrier. The crew hooked up with Avalanche team
rider and Blackcomb local Cam Weishaar for a weekend of couloir bombing,
pipe riding, skating, drinking, and dancing. When asked how the weekend
went, everyone kept using the same word: "Fun!"
"Damian showed up in his pimped-out clothes, with all his gear, looking like a rock star," Perry recounts.
"His personality was so different than his appearance. He's totally
down to earth, so cool. He hung out with the group all weekend. He made
us feel comfortable and we partied!"
The promotion, which was the first
of its kind for Avalanche, encouraged both retailers and consumers to choose
Avalanche by being offered a chance to win. The retailer/consumer combination
promotion proved to be more successful than previous retailer-specific
and consumer-specific driven promotions. This was also the first time Avalanche
included a team rider as part of the prize and it proved to be the key
to success.
"The retailers and consumers
so rarely connect with pro riders; we thought it was important and time
for us to build that connection, and we've got team riders who love to
participate," explains Vice President of Marketing Bev Sanders. "The
outcome of the trip was everything we could've hoped for: everyone had
a great time."
Avalanche expects to offer a similar
promotion for the 1998/99 season and will include more in-store point-of-purchase
material relating to all promotions as well as Web site advertisements
and continued team participation.
For more details about the trip
to Blackcomb and a peek into Damian's personal journal where he colorfully
illustrates how good the sushi was, how hot the chicks were, etc., check
the Avalanche Web site: www.avalancheusa.com.
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