Shaun White and Vail Resorts Announce Partnership

Vail Resorts announced that Shaun White will now be representing all six of Vail's world-class resorts. For years, Park City has dished out the dough to be named Shaun White's "home mountain" but now a new enterprise has swopped in and is footing the bill to retain the star.

Vail Resorts sent out an eager press release stating White will now call Northstar at Tahoe his "primary training resort" and he will also represent Vail's five other mountains. The ink on the new deal affirms White will design his own 22-foot superpipe at Northstar and every Epic Pass sale requires Vail Resorts to donate $5 to Shaun's charity of choice, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

We're all for the donation aspect of the deal- that's really cool... Just wondering how many of you will shred Northstar just because it's Shaun White's "home" turf?

As part of the launch of the new relationship, Vail Resorts will donate $5 for each Epic Season Pass sold to White's chosen charity, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. In addition, White will be designing a limited edition Epic Season Pass, which will be available to Epic Season Pass holders this fall through a Facebook promotion.

"Shaun White is the ultimate personification of the new energy and vibrancy we see across the mountain resort industry. Shaun's creativity and innovation has led the way for the self-expression we see in the halfpipes and terrain parks at all six of our resorts.

Shaun embodies the same leadership we aspire to at Vail Resorts, as we constantly look for ways to improve and re-invent the guest experience," said Rob Katz, chairman and chief executive officer of Vail Resorts.

"We are excited to partner with Shaun and are thrilled to start our collaboration with a promotion that allows us to celebrate his creativity and commitment to give back to those in need."

"This feels like a homecoming because I have spent so much time riding at most of Vail Resorts' mountains," said White. "With Northstar as my home mountain, I now have the ideal place to train and continue to grow as an athlete and I am looking forward to all the possibilities this partnership brings."

VAIL RESORTS & SHAUN WHITE

White has dominated the sport of snowboarding for the past decade. He won his first Olympic gold medal in the Halfpipe event at the 2006 Winter Games in Torino, Italy, with a record 46.8 points and then went on to win it again in the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver, improving his own record with 48.4 points in his final run. White is the first and only snowboarder to win four consecutive gold medals in the Winter X Games Halfpipe competition. Combining his success in skateboarding, White is the first athlete to compete and medal in two different sports in both the Summer and Winter X Games in 2003 and again in 2011. He also is the first and only athlete to win gold medals in both the Summer (2006 and 2008) and Winter Dew Cup events (2009). White was recently honored with the 2011 ESPY for "Male Action Sports Athlete" for the fourth consecutive year.

For more information, visit www.northstarattahoe.com/shaunwhite