AST Dew Tour Partners with MTV2

“Action Sports: The Freestyle Life” on MTV2 Will Take a Behind-the-Scenes Look at AST Dew Tour

NEW YORK - June 18, 2007 - The AST Dew Tour, the world’s premier season-long action sports tour, MTV2 and Mountain Dew today announced they are partnering for a new action sports special, “Action Sports: The Freestyle Life,” about the Dew Tour which will air on MTV2. This is the second consecutive year that they have partnered for this cross-network project. This season the AST Dew Tour and MTV2 have expanded their partnership, broadcasting over two hours of AST Dew Tour coverage on MTV2 from various tour stops.

“Action Sports: The Freestyle Life” will give viewers a 360-degree perspective of the AST Dew Tour, including the lifestyle and behind-the-scenes action of the more than 150 professional athletes who compete on the Tour in skateboarding (park and vert), BMX (park, vert, and dirt) and freestyle motocross. It will air two 30-minute programs, which will air on July 14 and October 2, and 60 short-form programs airing from July 7 to October 14. In addition, the two shows will be re-aired on MTV and ten times on MTV2.

“We couldn’t be happier with this partnership,” said Wade Martin, president and general manager of the AST Dew Tour. “This provides the AST Dew Tour with a unique programming extension, promotion to a very targeted demographic, and association with a terrific brand in MTV2.”

“Partnering for the AST Dew Tour for ‘Action Sports: The Freestyle Life’ is a perfect match for our audience with MTV2’s potent mix of music and lifestyle programming,” stated Tim Rosta, senior vice president, Integrated Marketing, MTV. “We are thrilled to take our viewers behind the scenes of the AST Dew Tour utilizing a unique approach through a variety of short form programs and half-hour specials.” 

“The popularity of the AST Dew Tour continues to grow and ‘Action Sports: The Freestyle Life’ will generate even more excitement,” said Ralph Santana, vice president of sports, media and interactive marketing, Mountain Dew. “Through ‘Action Sports: The Freestyle Life,’ fans will gain exclusive access to behind-the-scenes footage of their favorite athletes preparing for competition.” 

Entering its third year, the AST Dew Tour is the most watched and attended action sports property in the world. Attendance for the 2006 AST Dew Tour totaled nearly 250,000 and an average of 38 million viewers tuned in via NBC and USA in the Tour’s first two years. The top athletes in the world will take part in this year’s Tour, all competing for the highly-coveted Dew Cup which will be awarded in Orlando at season’s end to champions in each of the six disciplines. The 2006 Dew Cup winners include Nate Adams (Freestyle Motocross), Jamie Bestwick (BMX Vert), Anthony Napolitan (BMX Dirt), Daniel Dhers (BMX Park), Bucky Lasek (Skateboard Vert) and Ryan Sheckler (Skateboard Park).