Gilson Summer Snow Day Festival is Heading to Xfinity Live with Snow, Snowboarding, Music & Family Fun

Let the snow fly in South Philly! For the first time ever, Gilson Snow will bring their annual summer outdoor festival and rail jam to Philadelphia. Gilson Summer Snow Day will pop-up at Xfinity Live! on Saturday, July 16th with real snow, snowboarding competitions, ice carving, ski artist showcase, apres-ski lodge, live music, 50+ drink samples, games and the Knoebels Kids Zone with rock climbing, bounce house and more. The event starts at 1pm for VIP ticket holders and 2pm for general admission. A portion of proceeds from this unique event will help support two non-profits, Carve for Cancer and Share Winter Foundation. Gilson Snow celebrates 10 years in business by expanding this event to the Greater Philadelphia region. Tickets are on sale now at https://gilsonsnow.com/summer-snow-day-philly

"We're proud to be coming up on our 10 year anniversary of starting this company in Pennsylvania," said Gilson Snow CEO and Co-Founder Nicholas Gilson. "The Susquehanna River Valley has been an amazing place to live, work and grow our company. After meeting the folks at Xfinity Live! In South Philly, and seeing their amazing venue - we knew we had the perfect location for our first Summer Snow Day away from our facility."

Gilson Summer Snow Day began in 2017 at Gilson's headquarters located in New Berlin, Pennsylvania and was designed as a way of giving back to the local community. Over the years the event has grown to the point where Gilson is ready to expand their Summer Snow Day experience by hosting two events this year: The first Summer Snow Day of 2022 will be hosted at XFinity Live! located in the heart of South Philadelphia on Saturday, July 16th. The second will be hosted as the 6th annual original Gilson Summer Snow Day at their headquarters located in the Susquehanna River Valley on Saturday, August 13th.

Gilson had looked at a variety of locations to launch their first off-campus Summer Snow Day experience including Denver, Boston and Los Angeles, however, they ultimately decided to land at XFinity Live! in Philadelphia.

"We are excited to partner with Gilson to host Summer Snow Day," said Xfinity Live! Director of Operations Justin DeSalvo. "Xfinity Live! has hosted many events over the past ten years, but this is one of our most unique events to date. It will be awesome to bring this version of winter sports to the Stadium District."

For the first Gilson Summer Snow Day at Xfinity Live!, festival goers will find a full day of fun in the great outdoors, including the snowboard and ski artist showcase, snowboard and ski rail jam competition on real snow, après-ski Lodge in Victory Beer Hall, ice carving, Philly Time Machine/ DeLorean Time Machine Inspired by Back to the Future, live music from Matt Freedman and The Herd, multiple stages, DJ and rail jam watch party, drinking games, and other surprises. For the kids, this family-friendly event will include Koebels Kids Zone with rock climbing, bounce house and more.

There will be dozens of samples from featured brews included in the ticket. Featured Brews from the Susquehanna River Valley:
Rusty Rail Brewing Co.
Civil War Cider Co.
Jackass Brewing Company
Turkey Hill Brewing Co.
Covered Bridge Brewery
Three Beards Brewing Co.
Wellsboro House Brewing Company
Innerstoic Wine & Cider
New Trail Brewing

Other selections will include local and regional (and beyond) favorites like:
Yards Brewing Co.
Tröegs Independent Brewing
Funk Brewing Co.
Lancaster Brewing Co.
Barley Creek Brewing Company
Stateside Vodka
Victory Brewing
Golden Road Brewing
Kona Brewing Co.
Goose Island Beer Co.

Food and additional drinks will be available for purchase from Xfinity Live!

Tickets are $45 for General Admission, including GA access to the festival grounds, souvenir tasting glass, and free samples of the 50+ craft beers, wines, ciders and spirits. VIP tickets are $65 and include VIP early access, souvenir tasting glass, lanyard, souvenir Gilson 12oz. Cup, 20% off the Gilson Store, two full-size drink tickets, and free samples of the 50+ craft beers, wines, ciders and spirits. Ultra VIP tickets all perks of the VIP tickets, plus access to the Ultra VIP Only Access to the indoor mezzanine buffet and a four hour exclusive open bar.

The growth of this event would not be possible without the support of partners, including those who have been involved since the beginning including Knoebels Amusement Resort, Keystone Wood Products Association and the Susquehanna River Valley Visitors Bureau.

"The Susquehanna River Valley Visitors Bureau has been a partner with Gilson Summer Snow Day from its first event and is thrilled to be a partner for the Summer Snow Day in Philadelphia", said Andrew Miller, the bureau's Executive Director. "It is not lost on us that Gilson could have set up its headquarters anywhere in the United States - especially one that has more reliable snow in the winter! We celebrate that Gilson is not only proud to call the Susquehanna River Valley (SRV) home for its worldwide business, but is a tourism ambassador for us, promoting our destination and its amenities that make us a great place to live, work and visit. With the Philadelphia region being within our target market, it was a no-brainer to partner with Gilson to showcase the Susquehanna River Valley to Philadelphia residents who can have breakfast in Philly and begin exploring the SRV for lunch!"

Additional partners supporting Summer Snow Day include Big Snow American Dream, Jetty Life, Yards Brewing Company, Blenders Eyewear, Red Bull, Glade Optics, In-line Warehouse, Xevo Optics, Hardwoods Development Council, Unbeetible Burgers and Seven Mountains Media.

Gilson Summer Snow Day isn't just about having fun and providing snow in the middle of summer, it's also about shining awareness on the dire need to provide better access for all on the slopes this winter. Gilson has pledged to donate a percentage of sales from Gilson Summer Snow Day to the Share Winter Foundation. The Share Winter Foundation is a grantmaking organization working to improve the lives, health, and fitness of youth through winter sports.

"Share Winter is honored to be a part of Gilson's Summer Snow Day as we prepare to expand our reach in Pennsylvania in winter 2023," explains Share Winter CEO Constance Beverley. "Partnering up to create access and on-snow opportunities is a hallmark of Share Winter's work, and taking a moment mid-summer to share our love of winter in Philadelphia is a dream."

Gilson is also passionate about funding life-saving research which is why they have also pledged to donate a portion of event proceeds to Carve for Cancer which is a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to the mission of shredding blood cancers through events and fundraising initiatives.

"At Carve for Cancer we're 'shredding blood cancer' and Gilson has been a huge supporter since day one," says Carve for Cancer, Inc. CEO Josh Frank. "Our Winter Sports and Music Festival at Montage Mountain has become a staple in northeast Pennsylvania. Funds raised by our organization fund live-saving research and patient care through our Live Like Brent Foundation (named for our late founder, Brent. P. Evans). We're so grateful Gilson has continued their commitment to us and we can't wait for summer snow day at Xfinity!"

For more information about Gilson Summer Snow Day and where to purchase tickets go to www.gilsonsnow.com/summer.

ABOUT GILSON SNOW, INC.

Gilson Snow, Inc. is based in Winfield, PA (Snyder County, Jackson Township) and is a premium manufacturer of Skis and Snowboards. The company has a rapidly growing and avid following across the country and the brand is strongly associated with its Pennsylvania roots.

The organization was founded by Nicholas Gilson and Austin Royer in 2013 and has gone on to receive numerous awards and accolades. Gilson Snow made Wired's "Gear of the Year" list in 2015, and in 2016 the company was named one of Outside Magazine's favorite brands born in America. In 2017, Bloomberg Businessweek profiled the company, and in 2018, Nick earned the Small Business Administration's (SBA) "Entrepreneur of the Year" Award for Philadelphia and Eastern PA. The company was featured on NPR's How I Built This, and in 2020, the Gilson Fly powder model was named the #1 Powder Snowboard in the world by Jackson Hole's Mountain Weekly News.

The company has also earned the Innovative Product Development Award from the Governor's Office and the PA House of Representatives. Nick serves on the Governor's Workforce Development Board and the board of the Innovative Manufacturers Center.

The company has partnerships in place with the NHL, MLB, Hasbro (Transformers, Monopoly, G.I. Joe, My Little Pony), SLAYER, Pink Floyd and Less Than Jake, to name a few highlights.

ABOUT SHARE WINTER FOUNDATION

Share Winter Foundation ("Share Winter") is a grantmaking organization working to improve the lives, health, and fitness of youth through winter sports.

Share Winter works closely with carefully selected grantees to build efficient, effective, sustainable winter sports programs and pipelines to ongoing winter sports participation. Through our partnerships, we strive to make winter sports accessible to a broader, more diverse community, and share winter with 100,000 youth by 2028.

This year alone, Share Winter will fund over 45,000 youth in programs across the country, fueling the next generation of winter sports participants and enthusiasts. If you'd like to help us share winter, please consider donating today.

ABOUT CARVE FOR CANCER

Carve for Cancer Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to the mission of shredding blood cancers through events and fundraising initiatives. Carve was founded by east coast shredder and blood cancer warrior, Brent P. Evans. In 2010, Brent was diagnosed with stage IV non-hodgkin's lymphoma when he envisioned an epic snowboarding event to raise funds to shred cancer while being treated at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. By 2012, the first grassroots fundraiser was underway in the Pocono Mountains. Fast forward to 2016, Carve for Cancer Inc. is now a federally recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit and the organization's main event has become the Pocono's premier free-ride snowboard/ski festival. Each year the event brings thousands to the mountain to enjoy live music, art demos, intense competition, and a whole lot more. C4C is raising tens of thousands of dollars while spreading awareness and funding life-saving research!

Unfortunately in 2016, Brent's cancer came back, and he ultimately passed away due to complications with the disease in 2017. This is a brutal reminder about how important Carve for Cancer's mission really is! Today Brent's spirit lives on and our team is hard at work raising more money than ever.

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