Since 1995. #1 in Snow
Tom Pelley secured his second win at the Burton Cattleman's Rail Jam last night on the imposing Cattleman's staircase at Mt Buller. 15 pro snowboarders 'rode the rails' of the two-tiered 45 degree angled stair set under lights at Mt Buller for the coveted Cattleman's title.
The 7th year of the iconic Burton Cattleman's Rail Jam competition took place in the Square in the heart of Mt Buller's alpine Village last night as snow fell steadily blanketing the venue and creating a fantastic atmosphere for the riders and crowd.
Pelley seized the podium and the $4000 first prize nudging out second place getter Jye Kearney and closely followed by Buller local Chris DeCampo in a clinical display of style and technicality on the rails.
"I'm super stoked to be back on the podium - tonight's going to be massive!' Tom said holding aloft his giant cheque for the crowd.
Judges had a difficult time choosing the winner from the strong line up who all demonstrated an impressive array of tricks and moves making it tough to choose between the talent on show.
The Best Trick was awarded to Nick Harvey who stomped a gap to boardslide through the kink on the infamous outside double-kink rail, a super challenging move never seen before at Cattleman's. He took home an iPad from anon and a Contour camera for his efforts.
The 7th Annual Cattleman's Rail Jam showcased a new event format this year with only previous winners scoring a direct entry into the night time final. The day's qualifying events were held on the Burton Cattleman's Replica Stair Set in the Frank Skyline Park with just the top 13 riders qualifying to go into the final.
"This year's format was a great way to encourage up and coming talent" said Paul Colby, Burton Snowboards Brand Manager. "It really gave in-form riders, who otherwise wouldn't be able to compete, a chance to prove themselves".
Local young gun Cameron Staveley was the highest qualifying junior rider in the daytime event and took out $500 in prize money and a Contour camera for his performance on the replica stair set in challenging conditions.
Mt Buller is home the Annual Burton Cattleman's Rail Jam and is Australia's premier alpine resort just 3 hours from Melbourne. Snowy conditions have delivered 8cms of fresh cover across the resort in the past 24 hours and there are great conditions for skiers and boarders today with 14 lifts in operation.
