The voting is officially closed! Below are the last round of winners - chosen from among those that submitted their photos and videos by the final January 31 deadline (each submission is open for voting for 14 days).

During the past week, the traffic to the contest site was the highest it's ever been, even though the submission period ended on December 31. The site received thousands of votes to choose the best photos and videos, as well as many comments. This week's winning photos are some of the best we've seen in the contest. There are only a few more days before the voting ends and the jury announces the Grand Prize winners. Stay tuned!
 

WINNING PHOTOS

Writer, climber and guide Majka Burhardt has a penchant for combining adventure climbing and travel to exotic destinations. She does this with a heart-felt emphasis on gaining an greater understanding of the places she visits and the people inhabiting them.

The window to submit photos and videos closed at midnight on December 31, 2009. We were receiving new entries right up until the last minute. The final tally for the contest: 1154 photos and 80 videos. They are all in the running for the grand prize, as decided by the Jury. They are going to have their work cut out for them - there are so many great submissions! The last round of public voting is open until January 14. Below are the winners of the Week 9 round.

by Beth Rodden

Happy New Year everyone! I hope that everyone had a wonderful time climbing, spending time with family, or doing nothing at all.

We're two weeks away from the conclusion of the TIKKA² contest and we're continuing to receive more great entries. Over 1000 photos have already been posted! Additionally, we've been getting submissions from all over the world and it's been interesting to see the different interpretations of the Power of Light theme. Now that the long winter nights are fully upon us, it's time to surprise us with your video and photo creations.

Attention: the contest ends December 31, 2009 at 11:59pm!
 

by Beth Rodden

Hello everyone! Sorry if this blog is somewhat short, I am still typing one handed, which makes for slow typing and not very much patience on my part.

Below are the videos and photos that got the highest scores in last week's contest round. Each of winning participants will receive a TIKKA PLUS² headlamp. We're receiving more and more photo submissions and more and more people are voting. The final vote is going to be tight! We're starting to get more videos as well - a total of five were submitted over a single weekend alone and we are proud to announce five winning videos this week.

We just learned yesterday that Guy Lacelle was killed in an avalanche during the Bozeman Ice Festival.  This tragic news strikes at the heart of the Petzl family, adding to a overwhelmingly sad 2009. Guy has long been a close friend to all of us at Petzl, both in North America and Europe.

The TIKKA² contest has been up and running for more than a month now. We've received many great submissions and not all the great ones won the weekly popular online vote.

We wanted to share with you a selection of photos and vildeos that we really enjoyed...entries that stood out, surprised us or made us laugh. Just like the weekly winners of the popuar vote, the submissions below are eligible to win the final grand prizes as decided by the Jury.