BURLINGTON, VT (February 6, 2008) – Hear ye, hear ye! The US Open Snowboarding Championships, the world’s most prestigious snowboarding contest, will take place at Stratton Mountain Resort, Vermont from March 17-23, 2008. Shaun White, Jamie Anderson, Kevin Pearce, Torah Bright, Scotty Lago, Gretchen Bleiler, Jussi Oksanen, Danny Kass, Hannah Teter, Torstein Horgmo and Kelly Clark are just a few of the top riders who plan to attend the event, which features big air, halfpipe, slopestyle and junior jam competitions.

The 2008 US Open halfpipe, slopestyle and big air action can be seen on NBC, Sunday, March 23 from 1:30-3:00 p.m. EST. If you can’t make it to Stratton, watch the semi-finals and finals live on Go211.com, where webcasts and highlights of the competitions will also be available for on-demand viewing once the event is over.

The Open, which draws over 40,000 fans, big name sponsors and international media, is free of charge to spectators. This year’s medieval theme promises to be most righteous; serfs, maidens, knights, wizards and dragons are all encouraged to attend and dress theme appropriate.

One of the first snowboarding events in the world to offer male and female competitors equal winnings, the US Open’s prize purse includes over $200,000 in cash and prizes in addition to two new Volvo C30 R-Designs, awarded to the male and female Most Valuable Riders. Also, as part of the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour, the USO will play host to the presentation of the Men’s Swatch TTR World Tour Champion award. This prestigious honor and $50,000 cash will be awarded to the top male leading the 07/08 TTR ranking list.

Last year’s BGOS female winner and reigning TTR World Tour Champion, Torah Bright, had this to say, “It was an honor to win the first BGOS championship because I have always looked at the US Open as the most prestigious event in snowboarding.”

Burton would like to thank Stratton Mountain Resort, Volvo, SoBe, Go211.com, Paul Mitchell, Virgin America, GORE-TEX®, Corona, Emergen-C, Shiseido, R.E.D., ANON, Analog and Gravis for their support of the US Open. For more information on the US Open, head to www.opensnowboarding.com

About the Burton Global Open Series
The Burton Global Open Series events are the pinnacle snowboarding events of the season. Founded by Jake Burton, the Opens have grown from grassroots events to global spectacles attracting tens of thousands of spectators and riders from around the world. Since the beginning, the Opens have been driven by riders, for riders evolving with snowboarding and riders’ needs over the years. With events held in Canada, Europe, Japan, the United States, New Zealand and Australia, the Opens set the standard for snowboarding events around the globe.

About the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour
The Burton Global Open Series is part of the Swatch Ticket To Ride (TTR) World Snowboard Tour, the largest group of independent freestyle snowboard events in the world. TTR ranks riders based on their results at participating competitions and crowns a Swatch TTR World Champion at the US Open. The US Open is a SIX(6)STAR TTR Event, therefore ranked at the highest possible STAR level. For more information, visit www.ttrworldtour.com

About Go211.com
Go211.com is the leading community and video site for lifestyle sports created by and for action sports athletes and enthusiasts. It’s the place to hang with the pros and friends to get behind-the-scenes video, blogs, photos, webcasts and podcasts from featured contributors along with other action sports fans. Go211.com offers a broad range of exclusive content submitted directly from the athletes. The current Go211 Pro Team roster includes Keir Dillon, Keegan Valaika, Danny Kass, Hannah Teter, Kevin Pearce, Kelly Clark, Jack Mitrani, Ben Watts, Donny Robinson, CJ Hobgood, Christian Hosoi, Holly Beck, Sarah Burke and Mike Losness, among others.