San Diego, CA  -  In a frenzy of flying sand, hundreds of consumers kicked off the U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition by scouring Imperial Beach (Calif.) in search of buried treasure during the “Jeep® Come and Dig It” event. After sifting through the sand, finding nothing but summer accessories and beach gear, one lucky “gold digger,” Chris Robinson, 26, of San Diego,  found the ultimate treasure, the key to an all-new 2007 Jeep Compass.

“I loved going to the beach when I was growing up and have never had so much fun playing in the sand,” said Robinson. “I was in complete shock when I found the winning key! All I could think was, ‘I’ve got a new Jeep Compass!’”

Robinson was chosen at random to compete in the “Jeep Come and Dig It” event from more than 3,000 entries received from around the country. Of those, 200 adventurous consumers were invited to Imperial Beach to participate in the modern day treasure hunt.

Jeep is the title sponsor of this year’s U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition. With more than 300,000 spectators annually, the three-day event includes amateur and professional sandcastle building competitions, fireworks displays, a parade and the “Jeep Come and Dig It” kick-off event, which is new this year.

“As the sponsor of the sandcastle competition, Jeep wanted to bring an extra level of fun, freedom and adventure to Imperial Beach,” said John Plecha, Director – Jeep Marketing & Global Communications. “As anticipation builds for Sunday’s big event, we wanted to give consumers an opportunity to ‘dig in’ to the excitement and kick off the weekend with a one-of-a-kind treasure hunt for an all-new Jeep Compass.”

The weekend of events continues on Saturday, July 22, with the Sandcastle Parade, Kids-N-Castles Competition and fireworks display, and culminates on Sunday, July 23, with the Masters and Amateurs Sandcastle Competition and Award Ceremony.