The Aspen Skiing Co. "hasn't reached an agreement yet to keep the Winter X Games at Buttermilk beyond this winter," but company Senior VP/Mountain Division David Perry said that "there is good reason to believe a deal will be in place by spring," according to Scott Condon of the ASPEN TIMES. Perry said, "We're in close dialogue with ESPN and we're comfortable in our discussions with them." Aspen will host its 11th X Games Jan. 26-29. A two-year extension for the event "expires after the next games," but Perry said that that "doesn't mean that Aspen's at risk of losing them." ESPN is "focusing on finding the right fit for additional summer and winter X Games overseas." Condon notes while other resorts "would like to steal the games from Buttermilk, there is no indication that ESPN wants to move them." Perry said that a decision on the extension "isn't likely until the games take place in January, at the earliest, and the deal might not be inked until spring since ESPN is focused on finding additional international sites" (ASPEN TIMES, 10/20).
