ESPN has announced its lineup for the 2017 X Games Aspen event, and while the press release seemed more focused on the musical artists than the competitions, there was big news for people interested in winter motorized recreation.
Specifically, there will be four snowmobiling events at X Games this winter plus, new for 2017, racing on snow bikes.
The snowmobiling events include the return of what X Games operatives spell as SnoCross and Adaptive SnoCross, plus Freestyle and Best Trick competitions. Rumors always float every off-season about whether or not the ESPN team is dedicated to snowmobiling events — especially after Tucker Hibbert dominates the snocross racing year-after-year (he’s easily won 9 finals in a row now, making the event rather anticlimactic), so it’s good to see the event actually step up its snowmobiling lineup by bringing back the Best Trick competition.
The new Snow Bike Racing competition should be particularly interesting in its first year. Who will enter? What will the track look like? What machines will be allowed? Their are many questions to be answered, but the including snow bikes definitely reflects the recreation’s growing popularity, particularly in the mountain west.
Here’s the press release from the X Games.
X Games Aspen 2017 Announces Sport Disciplines and Music Lineup
Women’s Ski and Snowboard Big Air, Snow Bike Added; Music and Hospitality Options on Sale Now
The world’s premier action sports competition returns to Aspen Snowmass January 26 – 29, inviting the top Ski, Snowboard and Snowmobile athletes to compete in 18 different disciplines over four days of sports, music and festival offerings. X Games Aspen will also feature musical performances – in chronological order – by Bassnectar, Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals, The Chainsmokers and G-Eazy.
While admission to the action sports competitions and festival village are free to the public, X Games musical performances will require purchase of a ticket. Music fans can purchase an All-Music pass for $125, which will include general admission to all four performances. A limited number of preferred All-Music passes are available for $175, which include preferred viewing, a private entrance to the concert venue, dedicated preferred restrooms and cash bar.
Also available to action sports and music fans are the four-day platinum passes, which allow access to the exclusive Platinum Tower at the base of the SuperPipe. The Platinum Tower offers guests gourmet food, beer and wine and the best views of the competitions at X Games Aspen. Platinum Tower pass-holders also receive preferred access to all musical performances, athlete meet and greets and a private tour of the SuperPipe. Fans can purchase tickets and platinum passes now at XGames.com/tickets.
After successful competitions at X Games Oslo 2016, X Games will host Women’s Ski and Snowboard Big Air finals for the first time in Aspen. This marks the first time Women’s Ski Big Air will be held at a domestic X Games event. Women’s Snowboard Big Air was held from 1997 – 2001. X Games Aspen 2017 will also feature the debut of Snow Bike racing – a competition of modified dirt bikes which replaces the front wheel with a front ski and snowmobile track in place of the rear wheel. Snowmobile Best Trick will also return to the lineup for the first time since 2013.
All medalists from X Games Aspen 2016 who have sport disciplines returning in 2016 received an early invite to compete at X Games Aspen 2017 today. The first full round of invited athletes will be announced November 16. Please visit www.xgames.com for the most updated athlete list.
In addition to being the world’s premiere action sports competition, X Games Aspen will showcase an expanded world-class lineup of music artists and performances and an enhanced festival village at Buttermilk Mountain, offering spectators a unique and wide-ranging interactive experience to complement the X Games sports.
X Games Aspen 2017 will feature performances by:
Friday, January 27
- Bassnectar: One of the longest-standing and most-respected artists in American electronic dance music, Bassnectar is the brainchild of San Francisco-based DJ, producer and artist Lorin Ashton. Coming from a background in death metal and the early underground rave scene, Bassnectar released his first album in 2001 as an open-sourced musical experiment exploring the interplay between music and community. He went on to found independent music label Amorphous Music, which he has utilized as a launching pad for a series of groundbreaking releases. Bassnectar has collaborated with a myriad of artists from Metallica to Diplo to Ellie Goulding to Dead Prez, topped the Electronic charts (three successive number one albums on Billboard), headlined festivals around the world and sold out extensive North American tours. He is managed by ROAR, Beverly Hills-based artist and brand management company. He is also represented by Madison House Presents, public relations firm Biz3 and strategic digital marketing agency Reach Collective. For more information please visit www.bassnectar.net.
Saturday, January 28
- Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals: An American singer-songwriter, rapper, producer and drummer, Brandon Paak Anderson is better known by his stage name Anderson .Paak. Getting his start as a drummer at his family’s church, .Paak founded the imprint OBE (Outer Body Experience) and released his first LP, Venice, in 2014. His musical range is a unique blend of R&B, ‘70s Soul, Hip Hop, EDM, Funk and Rock n’ Roll. In January 2016, .Paak released his latest solo album, MALIBU. For more information please visit www.andersonpaak.com.
- The Chainsmokers: Comprised of Alex Pall and Drew Taggart, The Chainsmokers’ signature sound deftly reaches across indie, progressive and pop realms. Their original tracks and remixes have topped the charts throughout the world, such as the double-platinum “Roses” featuring Rozes, which Stereogum hailed as one of the “10 best songs of the year” and reached the Top 5 on the iTunes Top Songs chart. This success was followed by “Don’t Let Me Down” featuring Daya, marking their third number one on Billboard‘s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart. The double-platinum track ruled the airwaves, hitting number one at Pop Radio for three straight weeks and Top 5 on the iTunes Top Songs chart. The Chainsmokers recently released their current single “Closer” featuring vocals from rising star Halsey and the duo’s own Drew Taggart. The track marks their first number one on the Billboard Hot 100. This year, The Chainsmokers have been nominated for two Billboard Music Awards, two Teen Choice Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards. They have performed all over the world to sold-out crowds at their own headline shows and major festivals including SXSW, Ultra and Coachella. For more info please visit www.thechainsmokers.com.
Sunday, January 29
- G-Eazy: Bay Area rapper G-Eazy is 2016’s biggest breakout hip hop artist. His sophomore album, When It’s Dark Out (RVG/BPG/RCA Records), debuted at number one on Billboard‘s R&B/Hip-Hop Chart and Top Rap Albums Chart and number five on Billboard‘s Top 200 Albums Chart and now is RIAA certified platinum selling over 1 million copies in the U.S. The album features his smash single “Me, Myself, and I” with Bebe Rexha, which is certified three times platinum and has sold over 5 million copies worldwide. G-Eazy recently completed arguably one of the biggest tours of the summer, The Endless Summer Tour, where he headlined amphitheaters and arenas across the country. This year alone he has played over 150 shows and performed on The Today Show, The Late Show Starring Jimmy Fallon twice, the iHeartRadio Music Awards, Coachella, and most recently Lollapalooza. G-Eazy is currently featured on Britney’s Spears’ “Make Me…” and performed with her at MTV’s Video Music Awards this past August. For more info please visit http://www.g-eazy.com/.
ESPN and ABC will televise a combined 16 hours of live X Games Aspen 2017 competition. Forthcoming details on the X Games athletes, competition schedule, music and more will be available on www.xgames.com for fans or on www.espnmediazone.com for members of the media.