June 10, 2006

KOKANEE CRANKWORX UNLEASHES "CAPTURE™" PHOTOGRAPHER CHALLENGE

Deadline to win $2000 Kokanee Crankworx contract is June 22

WHISTLER, BC, June 9, 2006 – A Canada-wide search for Kokanee Crankworx's event photographer has been unleashed with "Capture" - the Kokanee Crankworx Photographer Challenge." Submissions are now being taken for the challenge and the winner will be awarded a $2,000 Kokanee Crankworx photography contract plus a week's stay at the new Adara Hotel, a designer boutique hotel, during the festival.

"Capture' is a great opportunity for photographers to land a major contract and grow their portfolio," says Kelly Clarke, events manager at the Whistler Arts Council. "We were asked by Kokanee Crankworx to partner on this event and took that opportunity to bring the artist's perspective to the festival and facilitate an opportunity for action sport photographers to showcase their work."

Interested photographers are asked to submit ten digital action, biking shots which will be judged on composition, technical skill and artistic merit. The photographer with the highest total score will be named Kokanee Crankworx's official event photographer and will be granted premier access to all affiliated events and parties. The top ten photographers in "Capture" will have their images shown on the outdoor screen throughout Kokanee Crankworx, giving them invaluable exposure to a core mountain bike audience including major bike media outlets as well as the general public and mainstream media. Only photographers living in Canada are eligible to compete in "Capture."

The deadline is Thursday June 22, 2006 and the submission guidelines and entry form can be found at www.whistlerartscouncil.com. Questions about the event can be directed to the Whistler Arts Council at 604-938-9221 or emailed to events@whistlerartscouncil.com.

The third annual Kokanee Crankworx Mountain Bike Festival is set to go off July 22 to 30 in Whistler, BC. Expanding to nine days of serious excitement both on and off the hill, the festival showcases Whistler as the ultimate biking playground by combining impressive stunt sessions and mind-blowing speed events with the world's best mountain bikers competing for cash and prizing totaling over $30,000. The event line-up, which takes place in Whistler Blackcomb's famed mountain bike park and throughout Whistler Village, also includes an outdoor expo, pro riding demonstrations, free music and entertainment.Kokanee Crankworx is presented by Events Whistler - a partnership of Tourism Whistler, Whistler Blackcomb and the Resort Municipality of Whistler. At centre stage of Kokanee Crankworx is the Whistler Mountain Bike Park. With over 200 km and 3,855 feet of lift-serviced gravity-fed, adrenaline-fueled descending trails, the Bike Park is the unequivocal leader of lift-accessed mountain bike parks in the world.

For more information about Kokanee Crankworx - Whistler's premier freeride mountain bike festival - please visit www.crankworx.com.

About Whistler

Whistler is a year-round adventure destination located 75 miles north of Vancouver, B.C., Canada, and site for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Consistently rated among the top ski resorts in the world, Whistler is a cosmopolitan and diverse community that welcomes travelers seeking recreation and natural beauty four seasons of the year. Whistler has the world's most diverse offering of mountain biking terrain, attracting all disciplines of mountain biking from cruising to cliffs. From 150 miles of singletrack trails and 200 km of lift-accessed downhill runs in the Whistler Mountain Bike Park, to trials parks and 20 miles of the paved Valley Trail system, there's something for every rider.

-30-Proud to be a venue for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games

 

 

MEDIA NOTES: Kokanee Crankworx Media Accreditation: Please check out www.crankworx.com for information on gaining accreditation for the event taking place July 22-30, 2006. The media application deadline is July 18, 2006.