When organizers from Red Bull and Copper Mountain first sat down to plan the 6th Annual Red Bull Slopesoakers—a one-of-a-kind pond skim that incorporates jumps and rails, among other whacky features—only one thing was certain: they wanted to do something really different this time around. Their plan of attack? Let University of Colorado (CU) engineering students design the course. Something different, indeed.
This so-crazy-it-might-just-work attitude wound up playing in organizers’ favor, 100-percent. They started by getting in touch with CU’s engineering department and notifying students of the opportunity. Understandably, a ton of Buffs were interested in the idea of designing a ski event for Red Bull, and the submissions flowed in like crazy.
The following months saw organizers sifting through and narrowing down entries—ultimately leading them to a winning course created by four ambitious students: Cameron Meyer, Drew Dahm, Grant Kamin and Joe Maguire. From the team’s very first sketch to the final submission that was presented to event organizers at the Attic Bar and Bistro and Boulder, these young engineers put in a ton of hard work and couldn’t have been more thankful to come out on top.
“The course we’re looking at is what we’ve decided on after many, many revisions,” said Kamin as he looked out upon the big event on Saturday. “It’s really cool to see that our ideas have become a reality and that we were able to make this possible.”
It was one thing for these guys to win the contest and earn bragging rights among their fellow students. Seeing it in person was a whole ‘nother experience they could barely comprehend.
“We love skiing, and we’re stoked to actually build something for this sport,” said Maguire. “Not to mention, we got to work with the same team that builds out Red Bull’s other events, like Rampage and Crashed Ice, and that’s just so cool.”
The course—comprised of several ponds, jumps, rails and a circus-style swing—proved to satisfy competitors’ high expectations. The 6th Annual Red Bull Slopesoakers went incredibly well thanks to organizers’ willingness to try something new, and these crafty Buffs’ hard work. As for next year, who knows what will happen; whether CU students will get another shot at the design stage is up in the air, just like the madman in the video below, who heroically threw a superman frontflip over the entire venue.
Photos from Red Bull Slopesoakers 2017
All photos by Daniel Milchev/Red Bull Content Pool
