Montreal, QC –  An accomplished artist, a skater, and national snowboard champion. These are all virtues on Thomas Wolf’s resume. As an artist, his mediums are photography, acrylics, abstract prints and 3D renderings. He competes in Superpipe, Slopestyle and Boardercross. Amazing indeed.  But what is even more amazing about Thomas Wolf is that he does all this despite being legally blind.

He was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa when he was 10, by age 25 he was deemed legally blind because of his narrow visual field and nightblindness. 

Wolf credits his wife Kimberly Nga, for inspiring him to reclaim his snowboarding habit in recent years. He says, “When Kimberly and I first met, she really wanted to try riding. We went boarding a couple of times, and she was hooked. Because this was a sport that we both loved and I had previously lost, she really encouraged me to push myself. I rode and practiced switch and using what vision I had more efficiently as she learned the basics. It was meant to be, so much so, that we spent our honeymoon at Whistler/Blackcomb for opening weekend.” Wolf has not only reclaimed his passion for the sport, but has found Liquid Boardwear, Dragon Alliance, and Never Summer to sponsor him.  

Last year at the USASA Nationals, Thomas dominated coming 1^st in the Freestyle Men’s Adaptive Division. This included a gold in Boardercross, silver in slopestyle, and bronze in super pipe. He is focused to repeat his success. This season should be one helluva ride. 

Liquid Boardwear is super excited to have Thomas join the team. His positivity and creativity is truly inspiring. Words can not explain how amped we are to be supporting Thomas and his endeavors. He rocks.

For more information regarding Thomas Wolf, check out his website at http://home.comcast.net/~thomaswolf1070/index.html or check these links: http://www.foundationfightingblindness.org/coping/story.asp?id=60

http://www.ampedriders.org/index.htm

http://www.adaptiveactionsports.org/

It’s pretty safe to say that the most anticipated event this weekend in Breckenridge was the Paul Mitchell Progression Session quarterpipe “exhibition”. I put that word in quotes because although it was labeled an exhibition, there were cash prizes involved, therefore connoting competition, but whatever. Several reasons such anticipation might have been involved: the allure of standing in a parking lot and watching professional snowboarders get towed by snowmobiles into a massive quarterpipe-shaped pile of dirty snow, the possibility of someone beating Luke Mitrani’s 33-foot-air of last year’s spectacle, an Australian semi-celebrity a.k.a. The Dingo yelling on the PA system, and a stage complete with flashy colored lights and DJ’s. So regardless of the frigid air that should have forced everyone home to huddle under piles of blankets, there was a fairly large turnout.

Despite icy conditions and a sketchy, asphalt-covered-by-a-thin-layer-of-snow run-in, the riders didn’t fail to disappoint. Mason Aguirre went huge as per usual, Scotty Lago and Danny Davis both pulled off solid 1080’s, and Kevin Pearce did a couple of giant ally-oop backside rodeo 540’s. But it was Steve Fisher who walked away with the $5,000 first prize, with Davis coming in second, and Pearce third. Not surprisingly, Scotty Lago was awarded with Best Trick. And for the ladies, both Elena Hight and Breck local Tori Koski stood out with solid airs and amplitude, earning them second and third place. Meg Pugh made up for a disappointing day in the halfpipe by throwing down higher airs than the rest of the women and taking first place.

Overall, the background music was decent, the riding was good, and the notoriously comedic Todd Richards even made a guest appearance at the announcer’s stand. Perhaps hair-care giants should sponsor more events. Shampoo anyone?

Paul Mitchell Progression Session, Dec. 16, 2006: Final Results

Men:
1. Steve Fisher, Head
2. Kenin Pearce, Burton
3. Danny Davis, Burton

Women:
1. Meg Pugh, Trilogy Arts
2. Elena Hight, Burton
3. Tori Koski

Highlights from the Second Annual Rails to Riches will air on NBC January 21 from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. EST as part of the Jeep World of Adventure Sports program. In addition, footage will also be broadcast on NBC February 18 from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. EST as part of the Union Square Street Sessions. Highlights will also be included on Fuse TV from January 1 through February 8 promoting the Union Square Street Sessions.

Rails to Riches
Dec. 16, 2006
Snowboard Division
Men
1. Lucas Magoon, Rutland, Vt., $4,000
2. Niko Cioffi, Rutland, Vt. $1,000
3. Kade Madsen, Sparta, NJ, $500
Women
1. Cassandra Herbes, Sparta, NJ, $1,000
2. Celia Johnson, Laconia, NH, $750
3. Monique Hyman, Stratton, Vt., $250

Skiing Division
Men
1. John Strenio, Burlington, Vt., $4,000
2. Ahmet Dadali, Canandaigua, NY, $1,000
3. Patrick Goodnough, Breckenridge, Colorado, $500
Women
1. Kim Lamarre, Lac-Beauport, Quebec, $1,000
2. Elizabeth Maney, Hartland, Vt., $750
3. Jillian Atwood, West Dover, Vt., $250

Killington Resort and Pico Mountain are American Skiing Company Resorts. Headquartered in Park City, Utah, American Skiing Company is one of the largest operators of ski, snowboard and golf resorts in the country. Other resorts include: Mount Snow in Vermont; Attitash in New Hampshire; Sunday River and Sugarloaf/USA in Maine; Steamboat in Colorado; and The Canyons in Utah. For more information, visit www.killington.com.