A concert festival set up at the Winter X Games venue at Buttermilk Mountain is "expected to draw more people to the event this year," according to Jacob Hatty of the ASPEN DAILY NEWS. An ESPN spokesperson said that the concert stage "can hold" as many as 6,000 spectators. This weekend marks the "14th consecutive Winter X Games to be hosted" in Aspen, but is the "first attempt at a ticketed concert at Buttermilk." The event "typically attracts more than 100,000 people to the venue over the course of four days, with attendance peaking on Saturday with above 40,000 spectators." Pitkin County (Colo.) Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Alex Burchetta "has no doubt that there will be a spike in attendance this year." Burchetta said that the X Games is a "tobacco, alcohol and marijuana free zone except within certain areas of the concert venue where drinks may be purchased." ESPN officials "declined to offer attendance estimates for this year" (ASPEN DAILY NEWS, 1/21). In Aspen, Rick Carroll noted officials are "expecting big crowds for the three concerts," which include Snoop Dogg on Friday night, Saturday shows by Chromeo and Skrillex, and a Sunday-afternoon performance by Wiz Khalifa. The general public is "prohibited from consuming booze at the athletic events, but it will be sold at the concerts." Competition starts at 11:00am CT today (ASPEN TIMES, 1/21).
COVERING ALL ANGLES: The AP's Eddie Pells noted ESPN is "adding camera-carrying drones" to its coverage of Winter X, using the "cutting-edge technology to cover snowboardcross and snowmobiling events." ESPN "worked for approval with several entities," including the FAA, which "approved the use of drones for commercial use last year." One rule the network "has to follow is to keep the drones inside a 'closed-set environment' -- in other words, not over spectators, or anywhere near where they could interfere with incoming flights to the Aspen airport" (AP, 1/20).
