SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- SideStep, a leading travel search engine company, announced Brian Barth is resigning from his position as CEO. Russ Lemelin, former CFO of SideStep, will serve as interim CEO.

SideStep said Barth will remain actively involved in the company as a member of the board of directors.

"Creating a thriving business with a strong management team and supportive board is every entrepreneur's dream," said Barth, SideStep's founder. "SideStep continues to grow at a pace that we could never have predicted, and it's simply time to bring in a CEO who has experience running a public company."

SideStep has more than 3.5 million users each month. The site offers travel bargains from 30,000 rental car providers, 585 airlines and 60,000 hotels. The company has seen more than 100% year-over-year growth since its launch. SideStep said it expects to exceed $1 billion in gross bookings in 2005.

"SideStep sits in the catbird seat at the intersection of the two fastest growing online sectors: search and travel. We do travel search better than anyone, and there is every indication that the business -- and the space -- will continue to rapidly grow," said Jim Barnett, a SideStep board member.