Burton Snowboards announced that due to ongoing uncertainties around COVID-19, the company has made the difficult decision to cancel the 2021 Burton U.S. Open Snowboarding Championships which was slated to take place March 1-6, 2021 at Vail Mountain Resort in Vail, CO.
“This was a difficult call to make since we’re so many months away from the next Burton U.S. Open, and we’re not sure what will be happening with the pandemic nine months from now,” said Burton CEO John Lacy. “After playing out multiple options for the 2021 event, we realized there is too much at stake due to the potential public health risk and the financial risk for Burton to invest millions in an event that could end up being canceled.”
The Burton U.S. Open Snowboarding Championships is the world’s longest-running snowboard event, and Burton has owned and run the event since 1983.
“This is disappointing for everyone. The riders, crowds, brand partners, and crews who work the event are all that has made the Open the favorite event of the snowboarding community for 38+ years,” said Lacy. “It’s more like a snowboarding family reunion than anything else, and the impact of this decision is widespread throughout the snowboard community. But as disappointing as it is, protecting the long-term health of this community is what’s most important. If we need to miss a year of the Open to help slow the spread of COVID-19, we’ll get through it.”
Photo courtesy Burton
