Natural Selection Tour Builds Community, Adds Value With Launch of Custom NFT Marketplace

    CHICAGO, IL, January 20, 2022 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Natural Selection Tour, where top snowboarders from around the world compete in dynamic natural(ly) enhanced venues for the title of best all-around snowboarder, has teamed up with Mint Werx and Vivid Labs to bring to life an immersive community and cutting-edge NFT platform. This effort will build deeper connections and deliver unique experiences for fans of the Tour. The NFT drop will go live 8 a.m. MST Jan. 25 on NaturalSelectionTour.com, which is the planned first day of the competition, subject to Mother Nature. Viewers worldwide will be tuning in for free to the competition and evening events live streamed from Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

"NFTs are another level of adding value and accessibility for people to interact with the Tour," said Travis Rice, pro snowboarder and co-founder of the Natural Selection Tour. "The core reason we have decided to build a NFT roadmap for the Natural Selection Tour is to build community. By pioneering this model and building out this concept, the Natural Selection Tour will again be evolving the competition space through innovation and technology while also being mindful of energy consumption with the Tour's continued mission to be carbon negative. This is why we have forged a relationship with Mint Werx and Vivid Labs."

A manifestation of snowboarders' wildest dreams, the Tour's innovative format reveals riders' full creative expression and requires a deep knowledge of all-mountain conditions to reign supreme. Tour stops run within seven-day weather windows to ensure that the snow is in peak season conditions. There will be 16 men and eight women dropping into the dynamic and complex venue.

Mint Werx, a premium NFT creative and production studio (a Fusion92 brand), and Vivid Labs, a next-generation NFT publishing platform, are combining their expertise and technology to help Natural Selection build this platform. The Natural Selection Tour will launch custom NFTs that each feature unique utility moving forward. From membership-style tokens to in-depth venue tokens to limited-edition commemorative artwork for each stop of the Tour, these NFTs will have different levels of rarity and ongoing perks. Holders of these NFTs will not only own a piece of digital art rooted in deep connection with the Tour inspired by Mother Nature, but they will also have access to exclusive content, merchandise, in-person events, commemorative moments from riders and more.

Buying the initial NST Foundation Token for $15 opens up priority for future drops, exclusive insights and content, while holding the token. In the first year, the platform will work using dollars on a wallet built into NaturalSelectionTour.com instead of connecting to a crypto account. In late 2022, a secondary marketplace will launch to complement the ongoing roadmap and provide further value for NFT owners and opportunities for new community members.

These multimedia NFTs will be updatable and permissioned digital assets — unlocking opportunities for authentic and immersive experiences for the Natural Selection community and adding a new dimension to the already incredible adventure of the Tour. The roadmap opens opportunities for future NFT drops, print versions of NFTs and community tokens granting exclusive rights. This vision builds an intersection between virtual experiences and real-life events, creating real-world utility for the community and NFT holders.

"We are absolutely thrilled to partner with Natural Selection and build a groundbreaking platform to deepen the community experience for these world-class events," said Ryan Sands, SVP of Mint Werx. "We're like-minded with Natural Selection and believe in their work to inspire audiences and forge deeper connections with nature and the integration of culture, education and environmental sustainability. We look forward to supporting the Tour's growth through the execution of a marketplace and activation of next-generation NFTs. Through this platform, fans can play a part in the experience from wherever they tune-in."

The Vivid Labs publishing platform represents the evolution of NFTs into complete media experiences through digital assets that are updatable, transforming simple NFTs into rich, programmable multimedia assets. The solution empowers new ways for creators to deliver content and brand engagement through expansive NFTs on a blockchain-enabled, decentralized media processing infrastructure. Vivid Labs' eco-friendly proof-of-stake platform is efficiently built to minimize the environmental impact, as well as optimized to reduce costs and resources associated with encoding, distribution and storage.

"The partnership between Vivid Labs, Mint Werx and the Natural Selection Tour is groundbreaking in the sports and entertainment industry, leveling up the NFT experience for fans by offering dynamic multimedia NFTs that are both permissioned and updatable," said Halsey Minor, CEO of Vivid Labs corporate parent Live Planet. "Beyond helping to bring next-generation NFTs to the snowboarding world, Vivid Labs is excited to align our energy efficient practices and eco-friendly values with Natural Selection's sustainability mission."

About Mint Werx
Mint Werx is a premium NFT creative and production studio developing strategies and turnkey solutions for brands and creators. Harnessing the power of sustainable blockchain technologies, Mint Werx delivers cutting-edge, scalable and one-of-a-kind dynamic NFTs and platforms, producing, minting and activating authentic digital expressions that last a lifetime. Through these solutions, Mint Werx simplifies and brings together a complex array of technologies to empower ownership and build prosperous connections between collectors, consumers, communities and culture. Mint Werx is a division of Fusion92 (Fusion92.com), a leading Chicago-based independent marketing innovation company founded in 1999. Learn more at MintWerx.com.

About Vivid Labs
Vivid Labs is a full-service NFT technology and strategy provider operated by a world-class team of blockchain and media experts, including digital media pioneer and renowned technology entrepreneur Halsey Minor. Vivid Labs believes in the power of NFTs to inspire transformative media experiences, create significant new value from digital assets, catalyze novel engagement between creators and fans and establish channels for persistent communication between brands and customers. For more information, visit VividLabs.com.

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