2011 Motown Throwdown Ski & Snowboard Jam

This past Saturday, Pathfinder and Redbull hosted the fifth annual Motown Throwdown rail jam for skiers and snowboarders. The jam is held each year at the south end of High Street. For those who are not familure with Morgantown, W.Va., High Street is the heart of downtown. So much of Morgantown’s beautiful culture, and night life lives on this urban melting pot.

The crew at Pathfinder brought out 40 of the top winter athletes from around this part of the country. Year after year, the riders put on a great show for the crowd but this year may have been the best contest yet. Maybe it was the fact that it was Halloween weekend, the first snow fall greeted everyone or maybe it was the fact that the WVU Mountaineers took a come-from-behind victory over Rutgers University just before the kick off of the finals. Whatever it was is unknown but the crowd was at an all time best this year.





I had the privilege to film the event again this year. I was creating some freelance film work for Red Bull and Oakley. My job was made easy with all of the stellar runs that were being thrown down this Halloween weekend. Although all of the athletes were technically amateurs, it was near impossible for the crowd to tell because everyone was pulling off jaw dropping runs for the $2,000 purse that was up for grabs.
The party didn’t stop with the rail jam, in fact things were just getting started at the commencement of the contest. Red Bull brought out some of their highly skilled hip-hop artists and DJ’s for this year’s event. They put on a crazy show atop the Red Bull Sound Stage. DJ Zimmie was one of the featured musicians, and from the time I stepped out of my truck to the time that I left, he was spinning and mixing some of the best tracks that I have ever had the privilege of hearing. Being and action sports athlete myself, I know the importance of having some proper music to get you in the right mind set, and DJ Zimmie had no problem delivering.

Events like the Motown Throwdown always make for a great time, and always draw an incredible crowd. It would be great to see more events like this in the Morgantown/Pittsburgh area. Action sports are alive and well in this region of the country, and more people need to produce events like this to showcase the talents of these athletes. For the past few years, a select group of athletes and promoters have discussed the possibility of having a BMX/Mountain Bike dirt jump contest on High Street. This event would bring much of the same vibe that the Motown Throwdown does only this would be held in the spring or fall. Who knows, maybe events like this will become more of the public norm within the next few years.