Thursday, September 28, 2006

Louie Vito on Spy

Spy is proud to announce Louie Vito as the newest member to one of most influential and respected professional snowboard teams in the game. At only 18, this Bellefontaine, Ohio native has already made an impact on the shred world, but don’t worry, he promises that this is just the beginning. A graduate of the infamous Stratton Mountain School in Vermont, Louie is a pipe slayer at heart, but his snowboard skills don’t end there. This month, Louie’s incredible wealth of talent and aggressive style earned him a 1st place finish at the Garnier Fructose Halfpipe Contest in Australia, beating two-time Olympic Medalist Danny Kass in the process. Louie was recently named to the US Pro team. He qualified first for the Superpipe finals at last year’s Winter X Ten but just missed the medals after a slight fall in his final run. He is hungry for redemption and can’t wait to drop in at Winter X Eleven!
Louie has progressed beyond his years not only in riding but also in stature. The industry and his friends can vouch that he is an easy going, funny and humble young man who has gained a ton of respect on and off the hill. His sensibility and focused mindset is illustrated in the recent purchase of a new home in Salt Lake City, Utah. His new home base offers streamlined travel options and the opportunity to ride that world famous Utah powder with Spy teammates MFM, Erik Christensen and Kurt Wastell. Can you think of a better place…?

Louie joins a world-class line up at Spy. The professional team roster reads like a who’s who of snowboarding. Along with MFM, DCP and Kurt Wastell, there is Todd Richards, Darrell Mathes, Erik Christensen and Priscilla Levac. Then, backing these riders up is our stellar development program with Justin Bennee, Stevie Bell, Nima Jalali and Freddie Sirvio. “I've known Louie since he was just a grom…well even more of a grom than he is now. Having such a strong pipe rider is a huge addition to our Spy team and we are eager to watch him progress even farther into all aspects of snowboarding.” - Chris Saydah, Spy snowboard segment manager.

Louis Vito is also supported by the following companies: O-Matic Snowboards, Volcom, Redbull, Boost Mobile, Kicker, Grenade, Vestal, Skullcandy, Utility Boardshop and Windells Snowboard Camp.