The SnowBomb Sick & Twisted series is in full swing, with its showcase Big Air Festival slated for Saturday at Alpine Meadows.Its gonna be exciting. Kids are gonna be flying, said Chris Bouman, SnowBombs general manager.More specifically, Bouman expects somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 to 60 skiers and snowboarders of all ages pulling their biggest and cleanest tricks over a 60-foot step-down table at the base of Alpines terrain park. Its not often you get to see such a focused event with kids catching air all day, Bouman said. Its great for spectators.Its also free to spectators, while entrants will by vying for a slew of sponsor prizes, including the $3,000 cash purse awarded in the Open Class. Theyll also be competing for respect and exposure, Bouman said, as the event provides an opportunity to be discovered by some the many sponsors on hand.And, like all events in SnowBombs Sick & Twisted series, the level of competition is sure to be lofty.If a competitor wins our events, they can win on the national level, Bouman said, adding that Tahoe-area pros such as Sean Field, Michelle Parker, Nate Holland and others have all made appearances in past events. The competition is so strong here in Tahoe. The kids just rip.Now in its sixth year, the Sick & Twisted series has expanded in relation to the ever-growing field of talent in the Lake Tahoe region. For the 2006-07 season, SnowBomb which has added Toyota as one of its major sponsors will boast 12 events. Last year there were only seven. The events range from Saturdays Big Air contest to halfpipe, slopestyle, jibs and a skier-boarder X competition.And with almost double the number of sponsors from a year ago, the contest series has more potential than ever, said Justin Broglio, sales and marketing manager for SnowBomb.It enables us to expand the series and provide more prizes, Broglio said of the added sponsors, which set up tents and hand out prizes during the day. They become more like shows than contests. Its a big production.The series also has branched into territory beyond Tahoe, as a rail jam is scheduled for Jan. 28 at Sierra Summit resort in the Central Sierra (between Yosemite and Kings Canyon national parks). Mt. Rose will be the site of a Slopestyle contest on Feb 3 and a skier-boarder X on March 10, and Kirkwood will host a halfpipe contest on Feb. 24.None of the other 11 events will be a larger production than Saturdays Big Air Festival, however, which is the Sick & Twisted series marquee event.Youll leave happy and excited for the next one, Bouman said.