As snowboarders from around the globe arrive on Friday April 11
to prepare for the Ripzone Snowboard Invitational, Olympic hockey
players will be heading up to Whistler Mountain for a hockey play-off
on a specially constructed ice rink. Throughout the first weekend
of the Festival, the Village will be pumping with tunes from the
Mainstage for the DKNY//JEANS LIVE Outdoor Concert Series - over
30 bands in 10 days. And the Village will be crawling with activities
in the Adventure Village zone, the Kidzone, and the RBC Olympic
FanFair. Then there's the aprés and night-time entertainment
including the Kokanee Freeride - non stop party action all weekend.

Here's an outline of major events taking place in the Village
for the first weekend:

RBC Rink launch (April 11): Launching the mountain-top
RBC Rink will be a special Olympic demonstration by players from
Canada's National Women's Hockey Team - including Cassie Campbell,
Danielle Goyette and Correne Bredin - along with other Canadian
Olympic athletes. Students from Whistler's Myrtle Philips Elementary
School will have the opportunity of a lifetime to skate with these
Olympians. Two classes from the school will be chosen (through a
colouring contest) to take part in the RBC Rink kick off event.
Starting at 12.30pm on April 11 at the RBC Rink at the peak of Whistler
Mountain, the winning classes will compete with the Olympians in
a skills competition. Throughout the Festival, the RBC Rink will
be open to the public and free skate rental will be available, depending
on size availability. Various Olympic sport demonstrations, other
hockey activities and special events will be held throughout the
10 days, weather dependent.

FREE concert series launch (April 11): For Friday afternoon
3-6pm, get ready for a phenomenal line-up of musicians for the DKNY//JEANS
LIVE Outdoor Concert Series. Kicking off 10 days of free concerts
will be award-winning quartet I Mother Earth who will be playing
tunes from the band's just-released CD The Quicksilver Meat Dream.
Playing the same day is Whistler favourites WDC (Whole Damn County),
and Kazzer, a 25-year-old rhyme-master with a debut album on Epic
called Go For Broke. All up, there are over 30 bands throughout
the DKNY//JEANS LIVE Outdoor Concert Series including Sunday night's
JUNO award winners Swollen Members, Sweatshop Union, Kazzer, Treble
Charger, Amon Tobin, The Salads, Not By Choice and Mat The Alien.
Check the website www.livelarge.ca,
Festival schedule board and program guide for the full concert series
schedule.

Ripzone Snowboard Invitational (April 12-13): Saturday,
April 12 marks the kick off of two phenomenal days of snowboarding
for the Ripzone Snowboard Invitational (April 12-13). Over the two
days of competitions, $65,000 in cash & prizes will be awarded to
the riders who throw down the best runs & the biggest tricks. Featuring
SUPERPIPE, BIG AIR & JIBZONE, this will be an unforgettable weekend
of revolutionary competitions and epic parties. All Ripzone events
are free for spectators.

Many of the world's biggest names in snowboarding will be showing
up for this year's Ripzone Snowboard Invitational. Making
the list of this year's Invitational are Keir Dillon, Natasza Zurek,
Mike Page (last year1s Big Air winner), DCP (David Carrier Porcheron),
Dionne Delesalle, Marc Frank Montoya, and Olympian and last year's
women1s Superpipe winner Doriane Vidal.

Superpipe Qualifier (April 12) - Spots still available:
The Qualifier provides an awesome opportunity for up & coming riders
to break into the industry and compete against snowboarding's finest.
Open to the first 60 men and 30 women to enter. The top 10 scoring
men and top 8 scoring women in the Superpipe Qualifier will advance
to the Superpipe Finals and have a chance to compete for the big
money. Applicants will be placed in the Qualifier on a first come,
first serve basis. To enter, visit the Athlete Centre (in the Media
and Accreditation Centre), Delta Whistler Resort (follow the signs),
before 12pm Friday April 11 or call 604-938-6232 to register by
phone. Qualifier entry fee is $60 (plus tax) and includes your competition
fees, an event gift and lunch on the Superpipe Qualifier day. Discounted
lift tickets will be available from the Athlete Centre at registration.

Big Air (April 12): 20 of snowboarding's Big Air elite
have been invited to compete in the Big Air event, set at the base
of Whistler Mountain. Fused with multiple DJs and emcees, the Big
Air brings intensified action making it one of the Festival's biggest
attractions. The DJ line-up for the Big Air is the "A Team" - Aceyalone,
Abstract Rude (Tribe Unique) and Tajai (Souls of Mischief) - all
inspiring DJs with their own unique take on the hip hop sound.

Superpipe Finals (April 13): Held on Blackcomb's infamous
Superpipe, 20 of the world's best men and 12 of the world's best
women are in Whistler to compete in the Superpipe Finals on Sunday,
April 13. The free flowing jam style contest is always a favourite
of the riders and the crowds.

SuperHit (April 13) Immediately following the Superpipe
Finals will be the rider-judged SuperHit contest where riders give
it all up for the SuperHit title and a Skidoo snowmobile.

Ripzone Jibzone (April 13): For the Ripzone Jibzone, 15
men and 6 women are invited to compete in a one-hour jib session
in front of the aprés crowds at the base of Whistler Mountain
on the afternoon of Sunday, April 13. As a new event for the Invitational,
the Jibzone is set to add a new funky feel to the Village as snowboarders
scrape it up on the rails to the sounds of DJ Dragon.

Super Demo Days (April 12-13, 18-20): Check out the 2004
snowsports gear from over 30 major industry suppliers - all the
latest skis, snowboards, bindings and eye wear at the Festival's
Super Demo Days. And it1s all free. The Super Demo Days will be
located on Blackcomb Mountain outside Rendezvous during the first
weekend of the Festival (April 12-13, 9am-2pm) and on Whistler Mountain
outside the Roundhouse Lodge during the second weekend (April 18-20,
9am-2pm).

Words & Stories, Mountain Tales from Whistler (April 12):
Whistler stories have always been bigger than life and have underscored
the edgy and sometimes difficult relationship between the people
of the Valley and the harshly beautiful environment in which they
chose to settle. From pioneer Myrtle Philip to the hard-charging
mountain lifestyle of Whistler's counter-culture heroes in the 1960's
and '70's, to the modern day characters and heroes - Whistler has
always been home to a youthful tribe of mountain-lovers. Come and
join 5 award-winning writers - Michel Beaudry, Susan Reifer, Peter
Oliver, GD Maxwell and Leslie Anthony - for a celebratory evening
of Whistler-storytelling. All proceeds from the show will be donated
to the Whistler Library. Words & Stories will be held at Millennium
Place, April 12, starting 8pm. Tickets $5 at MY Place, or Ticketmaster.

Whistler Village: As the TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival
keeps growing, so do the Village based events in Whistler Village,
creating more fun for the whole family. Whether it's checking out
mountain bike demos and trying out rock climbing at Adventure Village,
meeting Olympians at the RBC Olympic FanFair, playing hard in the
Kidzone, or chilling out in the Nintendo zone - there's something
for everyone during the Festival this year.

For all information on the Festival and full schedules, visit
the Festival's official website www.livelarge.ca
The 8th TELUS World Ski & Snowboard Festival is a 10-day high-energy
event fusing sports, music and action, April 11-20. Festival highlights
include: Ripzone Snowboard Invitational; free DKNY//JEANS LIVE Outdoor
Concert Series; Garnier Fructis World Skiing Invitational featuring
Salomon Big Air and Superpipe; Pro Photographer Search and Showdown,
presented by Sony; Panasonic Filmmaker Showdown; Exposure Seminar
Series, RBC Olympic FanFair and RBC Rink on the Mountain; Super
Demo Days; Kranked 5; Sawtooth Adrenaline Film Festival, Biglines.com
Snow Film Fiesta;
Whistler DogFest; Saab Salomon Crossmax Series; and the Kokanee
Freeride.