Crashed ice
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Crashed Ice is a winter extreme sporting event, featuring head-to-head, urban, downhill speed ice hockey skating. Crashed Ice was created and is produced by Red Bull Energy Drink.
Competitors, having advanced from one of the tryouts in the prior months, race in heats of four skaters, with the top two advancing from each heat. Racers, typically hockey players, outfitted as such, speed down the course’s turns, berms, and jumps in a sport that fans describe as a mix among hockey, downhill skating and boardercross.
Prize money is split among the top four finishers (the last heat), with Québec 2007’s total purse being $10,000, and the winner taking home $5,000.
Kevin Olson of Lethbridge, Alberta won both of the 2007 events, reaching a top speed of 60 km/h in Quebec and 70 km/h in Helsinki. The crowd estimate for the Quebec race was upwards of 75,000 people, and 10,000 in Helsinki.
Arttu Pihlainen won the January, 2008 event in Quebec City. In March of 2008 the race will return to Helsinki, Finland.
| Date | Location | Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Stockholm, Sweden | Jasper Felder, Sweden |
| 2001 | Klagenfurt, Austria | Jasper Felder, Sweden |
| 2003 | Duluth, Minnesota, USA | Jasper Felder, Sweden |
| Feb. 20-21, 2004 | Duluth, MN, USA | Jasper Felder, Sweden |
| 2004 | Moscow, Russia | Jasper Felder, Sweden |
| Jan. 15, 2005 | Prague, Czech Republic | Jasper Felder, Sweden |
| March 3–4, 2006 | Québec City, Quebec, Canada | Gabriel Andre, Canada |
| Nov. 11, 2006 | Boston, MA (Canceled) | N/A |
| March 2–3, 2007 | Québec City, QC, Canada | Kevin Olson, Canada |
| March 17, 2007 | Helsinki, Finland | Kevin Olson, Canada |
| January 26, 2008 | Québec City, QC, Canada | Arttu Pihlainen, Finland |
[edit] References
- Red Bull’s Headlong Frozen Dash Is a Crash Course in Marketing, By Matt Higgins, New York Times, March 3, 2007
- Red Bull Crashed Ice returns to Quebec City, by Melissa Halarides, The Concordian, March 7, 2007
- A Downhill Ice Course, Full Hockey Gear and the Need for Speed, Market Wire, August 2006
- Crashed Ice: Le parcours de l'an dernier gonflé aux stéroïdes, by Ian Bussières, Le Soleil, January 25th 2008, P. 8 & 9
