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My Blog: Powderking, One great week...
By: Shredneck_89

I'd like to start off by saying, Will Smith is the shi*t! I Am Legend kicked total ass! The mutants, the way he lived..... Wait, I watched that the weekend after the trip. Ok, I got up at 7:00 on the 27th of December. I was up and dressed and running out the door with enough gear for the five day adventure I was about to go on. O yes, Powderking, Western Canada's best place to get that feeling of peaceful mellow shred and a friendly wave from everyone you meet. ( A great f*cking mountain! May it never close!) Not to mention crazy snowfall all season long! ( Thus the name Powderking. Duh! 61 feet last year, what more evidence does anyone need?) So we leave the yard by 8:00, our little convoy, made up of an F-150, a Mini-van, and an Envoy are off on the 5 hour trek to P.K. As we pass Baytree a town not on any maps except the U.F.A Cardlock location map.... Weird.... As we get passed the little town we hit smoke, lots of smoke, smoke so thick that we're stuck at a 50 km/h crawl for 20 mins. I really wanted to get to P.K. for a half-day of shred, and by 1:00 we are there and it is snowing big flakes. So I get my lift ticket, and up the triple-chair I go. On my way down I run into a group of skiers and snowboarders building a jump on the side of the run. I say hi, we talk about the snow, gear, and the condition of the jump, and before you know it we're shreddin' together and jumpin' off trees into 4-5 feet of powder. (Fastplants and front flips for everyone!) A fine half-day. So we drive to Mackenzie, we check in at The Willingston Lake Lodge. We unpack and unwind with a few beers, some pizza, and Guitar Hero till about 11:00, than lights out.

The next day I go straight for the top, up the T and hikin' towards the bowl. As I get to the boundaries I can't find no trail, broken up into the bowl to speak of. So I start breakin' trail in balls deep powder, ( Its one of the toughest parts of snowboarding, having to hike for some shred but it the end its always worth it.) I get half way up the bowl when I look over to the left and I see two guys with snowshoes a little lower down heading up an already broke trail, I broke trail for nothing! So I start leftward and I meet up with the two guys, we start chatting about the conditions, and I find out there name are Matt and J (Jason) from Wembley and Grande Praire . "Dope, I'm from around a place called Falher." "Frenchtown!" they both say laughing, obviously they've been there before. So we get to the top and sit down for a break, than we strap in. Its still snowing as we head down, the first 20 feet is hard-packed than... BANG! We cut into 3 feet of untouched powder! Straight Champagain! We're cuttin' it hard and every hell slash is a wave of powder to choke on. Beautiful, just beautiful. So we ride on down into the trees, and sweet jesus. Slash and burn, kill and turn, we throw it off anything and everything. A total powder play dream! I'm so stoked on the snow I smile all the way down to the parking lot. Matt and J are staying at the hill in campers in the parking lot with a third member of there group, Dano. We get there and they invite me over for a brew. How can I say no? ( And every run ends that way for the rest of the trip. Those guys we're totally wicked!) So us 4 ride the far left trees up by the 84's and the two creek valley for the rest of the day. The day ends, I tell the guys I'll meet up with them the next day.

Day 3 rools in, and I meet them at there Campers and we head up the mountain. Its snowing, again. We reach the top, and I set up my camera, I want to get and Artsy, Sceneic shot, success. Another piece for EtchaSketch. (Our shred video coming out the summer of 08') Thats all I film that day. Than I pack back up and this time the spot we drop in on is a steep slope with snow sculpted behind and between small trees by the wind, thus making steps that are flat out to about 6 feet and drop down to about 10-12 feet. So we head down popin' off one step, and gaping to the next. One of the funnest abd best rushes of the trip. We keep the fun-fest up until we hit the tree-line. Than it was Heaven, just like the days before. I just ride the pow, never giving a second thought of getting any shots for the rest of the day.

The final shred day, day 4. It comes in with sun-light and blue skies. The first of the trip. (We got 8 inches of fresh while we were there.) So this day I ride with my goggle-cam on to catch any wicked shred that goes down. So we ride out into the backcountry and run into a man in his 50's at least, with a Prior split board and the dopest gear I had ever scene. We talked to the guy about the part of the backcountry we were in, and about his gear. He turns out to be the coolest guy I've ever met, truly a snowboarder, a man pure in the sport, he was what snowboarding truly should be. There for the ride and nothing elsa, no sponsors, no attitudes, just the need to shred and have fun. We say our good-byes and good-shreds as we rip down the slope, we never did get his name.... I want to be just like him if I reach 50. On our second last run we come upon an abandoned road on the side of the mountain, it goes through an open spot and is cut slightly into the slope to give the high side a cliff look. Perfect! We all get the idea, road-gap. So we build the jump in the line we want to hit it on. Matt and J hike up to hit it. Its a 30 feet from lip to landing. Matt drops in, lands square on the landing and rides away. We all cheer and the session starts right up. J's up, than Dano, than Matt again, than I hit it with my goggle-cam, as I air over, I hit the landing and get bucked forward onto my face. I get up, not hurting one bit. (Except for my pride.) I hike up again, this time I do a frontside fakie with a Stalefish in the mix, by the the time I stop tumbling, I'm looking up-hill at my feet. Damn, not getting it but still having fun. (The only person to stick the damn thing was Matt, lucky prick!) So we ride down to the highway and start walking back to P.K. I wave to every vehicle, and got nothing but funny looks, I didn't care, it was one of the best riding days of my life! We're half way back when the owner of P.K. stops with his truck and trailer half loaded with garbage. "Wanna lift? Jump in the trailer!" We all jump in laughing, we keep on laughing all the way to the parking lot. (Thanks for the lift! It smelt bad, but damn did it save my legs.) What a wicked 3 and a half days of riding, awesome snow, awesome crew. I can't wait till I go back.

I'm forever hooked on the P.K. white!!

P.S. On the way back we stopped at the A&W in Chetwyne. They have the hottest group of ladies working at a fast-food joint I have ever seen. Go Chetwyne!!!!!

Published On: 1/15/2008

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Snowboard.com News: Photographer Interview with Gonzalo Tudela
By: snowboard.com

Self Portrait - Grouse Mountain

Full name:
Gonzalo Tudela (AKA Gonzo)

Equipment:
Canon 1D Mark II N
Canon 1VHS
EF 15mm F2.8 Fisheye
EF 17-40mm F4L
EF 50mm F1.8
EF 70-200mm F2.8L
3x Vivitar 285HV
2003 Skidoo Summit 800

For the kids at home, what do they need to know if they want to become a professional photographer?
Never give up. This industry is really tough, brutal sometimes, and people will toss you around like yesterday’s garbage. If you’re not a strong person who will stick to their guns (especially about payment) it’s not the industry for you. More and more companies are getting free shots out there from the “kid who just bought a digital SLR”, and it’s ruining the industry.
Think of it this way. You’ve invested x amount of money in camera gear, x amount of time refining your style, x amount of time getting and editing photos, why shouldn’t you be paid fairly for it? Do they get a paycheck? Do they pay for a dentist? They’re doing work just like you are. You need to stick to your guns about being paid. Don’t be the person who degrades the photo industry by giving away photos for free, if not, you’ll be stuck starving on the side of the street while some company has a slick new looking website.

Paul Welters - Mount Washington

What are some career high lights for you?
Every time I get out into the backcountry a feeling of Euphoria overcomes me. The hour or so it usually takes to get to the alpine with the constant “braaaaaaaap” from a sled is actually quite calming. I rather throw in ear plugs than headphones.

Who do you enjoy working most with?
I think I enjoy shooting the most with one of my best friends Aaron Shapiro. He reminds me of a Tom Penny for snowboarding. Basically, whenever I’m out shooting with him, he’s just riding, and you can see it on his face. Whether he’s in front of a camera on a bluebird day or in front of me doing pow slashes in fog, he’s not out to prove anything, he’s out to have fun. If you watch his style, you’ll see what I’m talking about. It’s like he uses the mountain as a skate park, and just destroys it every time. 9 times out of 10, I’ll be ripping around with him and he’ll do something that’ll blow my mind and I’ll say “Give me an hour to go home and get my camera gear so we can shoot that”.

Eman Anderson - Vancouver, BC

What are some the challenges you find working with snowboarding instead of a studio?
My fingers get really cold, and I mean really cold. That and changing angles is usually a lot tougher than people imagine. Sometimes you have scale the side of a mountain that could take over an hour just to get a certain viewpoint. Half a dozen times it doesn’t work out. One thing I’ve learned is that you want to shoot your wide angle shots 2nd, and your telephotos first. That way, there are no foot prints around the jumps from you walking around trying to find the right spot.

What are your favourite magazines?
Magazine’s are really a funny thing with me. I have a subscription to snowboarder, I buy every issue of SBC off the shelves (from a local snowboard shop to support them), and I usually buy some issues of Future, Transworld, and Snowboard Mag when I’m shopping for groceries. Truth be told, I never really read any of them. I’m really weird that way, I have over 300 magazines, some dating back to the 90’s, but I’ve maybe read like 10% of them? I usually use them for the eye candy. I flip through them a few times and pick out the photos I like. Remember them, and file the magazines away for a rainy day.
Images speak louder than words in my head, and technique plays a huge part in my mind. 9 times out of 10 when I see a photo I like, whether it’s technically sound or creatively genius, I go straight to the photographer credits to see who it is. It’s kind of funny; most snowboarders can pick out a rider from their sponsors and their style. I can pick out some photographers based on their lighting and composition. There are the seasoned vets who absolutely kill it with every photo like “Yup, that’s a Zapalac photo”.

Myrosha Daley - Hemlock Valley Resort

Who do you think are the best photographers from last year?
There are so many that have, and will always stick out in my mind, whether or not they shoot snowboarding is another thing. Here they are in no particular order:
Ian Ruther, Tim Zimmerman, Jordan Manley, Crispin Canon, Jon Scarth, Danny Zapalac, Andy Wright, Jeff Curtes, Kevin Zacher, Dorothea Lange, Cole Barash, Colin Adair, Blotto, Jess Mooney, Oli Gagnon, Jordana Meilleur, Russel Brown, Dano Pendygrasse, Dice K Maru, Scott Serfas, Ansel Adams, David Lachapelle, Annie Lebovitz, Charles Garcia, Owen, Jimmy Greeley, Jon Kirby. There are some not mentioned, but that’s because I can’t brain fart them all out at once.

What started you in photography?
My friend Mike from elementary school bought a Yashica FM SLR and I was fascinated by the split focus screen. It just boggled my mind on how the damn thing worked. So, after playing with focus for a solid 4 hours (with no film in there) I forgot about cameras for a good 2 years. Then one summer I made friends with this crazy Mexican who was in town with his family for a month. Their parents bought a new camera, and gave me their old one. (a nice wall mart special point and shoot). I began shooting wall mart film on this point and shoot of me and my friends skating. That phased out after I ran out of money. I mean, for a 10 year old kid, $10 a roll with processing wasn’t really worth 24 photos.
So high school came along, and I made friends with a guy named Eric, and one day he showed me his Grandpa’s old camera. And that’s what did it. After I picked up that Minolta X-GM with a split focus screen, all I wanted to do was take pictures with it. So, after a $200 shutter repair to the camera, I borrowed it for about 2 years and made every mistake you could possibly make with an SLR. I then went back to my friend Mike to get some help and learned a few things, and borrowed his flash for a solid 6 years. I finally gave the camera back to Eric and went out to buy my very first digital SLR, a Canon 20D.

What was the moment that made you decide that you wanted to take photos of snowboarders as a career choice?
The very first time I sent a photo to Colin Adair. He was the nicest dude I had ever dealt with, and after I sent him a preview jpg, he asked for the RAW right away. I sent it to him and kept pressing the refresh button for like 30 minutes until I heard back from him. I got word they were going to run the shot in the upcoming issue. But 2 weeks later, I got an email saying it wasn’t going to run, but that he wanted to see more in the future. It didn’t matter to me that they weren’t going to run it, the only thing that mattered was that someone actually kind of liked a photo of mine. It became my mission to impress this dude who worked at SBC.
Later on that year I get an invite email to the 24/36, and decided to do it. When I picked up the roll of film and stuck it in my camera I had decided that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I have an extreme obsession over snowboarding and love for photography that this just seemed to be the right thing to do.

What's a perfect working day for you?
Having a Leica rangefinder with 3 rolls of TMAX 3200 in my pocket shredding pow with some close friends. But I have to go buy a Leica first…

What is a favourite photo of yours that has not been published? What's the story behind it?
The shot of Myrosha Daley I have here on Mount Seymour. I just like how everything is in the red/orange hue and you can see the oil tankers in the Burrard Inlet. It’s one of those things that everything was going wrong that day, and my flash kept mis-firing. I crossed my fingers and told Myrosha to drop in.

Myrosha Daley - Mount Seymour

What is one of your favourite photos in general? What's the story behind it?
Probably my favorite photo of all time is a photo done by Dorothea Lange called “White Angel Bread Line”. It’s a photo taken in 1932 during the depression era near her studio in San Francisco. There was a wealthy woman known as “White Angel” who set up a breadline to help cope with the 14 million unemployed in the country. The photo is very simple, yet extremely powerful and has always stuck out in my mind that there are people less fortunate out there, and that I have to live my life to the fullest and be thankful for everything I have and work for. Here’s a link for the photo: http://www.gtphoto.ca/whiteangel.jpg

Your name is not too common, do you find you get a lot of different reactions from people?
Oh ya. Tons of people never believe me when I say “Hey, I’m Gonzo”. They think I’m making up some nick name or trying to avoid telling them my real name. Sometimes, when I’m really lucky, chicks dig the name. They think it’s cool and hot, two things I definitely lack. There is a disadvantage though. Everyone remembers your name, and it’s hard to remember all the Jons and Nicks out there. Usually I remember someone by their face, and not their name.

Shout outs?
I hate shout outs.

Aaron Shapiro - Grouse Mountain

Published On: 1/4/2008

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My Journal: another web thing By: dspphoto
So I finally finished my website. Well I guess all good websites are works in progress, so let's just say at least I'm finally online. Check it out at danopendygrasse.com and leave me a message here if you like it. If you don't like it then I recommend smashing your computer into a thousand pieces. D. Published On: 11/29/2007 Add/View Comments (0)

The Wildcats Blog: Avalanche
By: TheWildcats

This picture was taken on top of S chute near the blowhole.

The day started really good for Benji, Dano, Fred and Jf. They already had a jump under their belts and They were looking at a step down jump. Benji wanted to check the snow so he fired up his sled and went up the steep hill while JF was waiting at the bottom with his sled not running and facing uphill. When Benji came down something weird happen, all the snow around his sled started to crumble. JF didn't think any of it until he saw the extend of the fracture and the wall of snow coming down towards him; That's when I fired up my sled and punch it but my sled was digging in the snow and not moving said JF, after a few second the sled started to move and I was traveling alongside the avalanche while this was happening I look to my side and saw Fred, Dano and Benji all racing towards a safe spot. When the Avi stop we all look at each others and couldn't believe what just happen, we were all stunned and knew that it could of been really bad. The boyzzzzzzz are sitting on 15 foot of debris, safe and sound. They will live to drink another beer, Avalanche are very unpredictable so travel with care and be extra cautious.

Published On: 5/2/2007

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The Wildcats Blog: New Wildcats rider to the team
By: TheWildcats

Wildcats as just sign 24 years old Dickie Pricklestein to its pro team. This native BC rider from Chilliwack is no pussy, Deep down Dickie's a hippie... but I'm not some tree huggin' faggit. Sure I like to get high and listen to the Dead... but I'll get pissed up and smash shi*t up with the best of 'em. Dickie likes riding and sn+ring powder, Dickie likes acid, Dickie does babes, Dickie downs drinks, Dickie will eat your lunch, and when it comes to the dishes Dickie don't do dat! The future looks promising for Dickie, He as been invited for this weekend Wildcats trip to Big White for the filming of “still Bastards” the movie and also to do a special appearance in the motion picture movie called “Shred”. We will be seeing lots more of Dickie so stay connected and check for an update on the Big White trip.

Dickie will join the likes of Devun Walsh, Kale Stephens, Dionne Delesalle, Mikey Rencz, Eero Neimela, Jf Pelchat, Reno Belisle, Tadashi Fuse, Gaetan Chanut, Paavo Tikkanen, Benji Ritchie, Chris Brown, Chris Dufficy, Iikka Backstrom, Matt Dano

Published On: 3/6/2007

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Gonzo Photo: 02/287/067
By: gtphoto

Ingmar Brink

I don't really care if it's been way too long since my last blog. shi*t happens and sometimes I just don't have the time.
Life in Victoria is picking up. Assignments are being handed out like water - 8 glasses a day. I'm really enjoying this running around but holding this up while shooting everyweekend in Vancouver is starting to give me gray hairs. Seriously, I shaved my head because I didn't want to have gray hair at the age of 20. Ok, maybe I don't have gray hairs, but it sure as hell feels like I do. I wasn't lieing about the shaving my head part though.
I took this last weekend off to mellow out from the weekend before. I had a pretty sweet gig shooting for Nike 6.0 with Dano Pendygrasse and Trevor Graves but on the catboarding day I took a gnarly spill and ended up in the hostipal from a concussion. It's going to take a lot more than a good spill to keep me down. I was up the next day at 7am to go shoot.
So back to my "do nothing" weekend. I left my house in Vic once to buy some camera piece thingy that cost me $50 and then never left my house again. I cooked some shi*t every now and then, but for the most part, I laid in bed wallowing in my own exhaustion.
I'm back to Van this weekend for Round 20 or something. I've lost track but I'm sure I can find all those ferry receipts and tell you exactly how many times I've been back to Vancouver to shoot photos. So here it goes, Round 20 or something.

...gtphoto

Published On: 2/27/2007

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The Wildcats Blog: Matt Dano’s Big B-Day
By: TheWildcats

On February 24th 2007 the Wildcats gather to celebrate Matt Dano 19th birthday, we were all summon to the Paris residence for cocktails and some fun before going to the bar. The Paris residence is well known for hosting really good after hour and this was no exceptions. JF and Iika were duck tape together at the leg at the bar which give the bouncers a hard time throwing jf out, After some apologies and bribes JF was allowed back in. Their primary reason for throwing JF out is that: his drinking oven mitt was not in compliance with the drinking laws of the establishment. After the bar shut down the crew moved back to Paris for some late night cock fight, the upstairs turn into an arena and the kitchen became the center stage for an ultimate fight between Reno the “Beast” Belisle and jf the “lumberjack” Pelchat. The night as been documented on film and will be feature in “Still Bastards” the movie, you can also check the photo gallery of the wildcats for a full review.

Published On: 2/27/2007

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Events/News - Whistler Blackcomb: JANUARY STORM SEASON INSPIRES NEW WHISTLER PHOTO CONTEST
By: whistlerblackcomb

ARC’TERYX and Whistler Blackcomb will present the inaugural Deep Winter Photo Challenge January 3 through 6, 2007. The contest celebrates the typical January weather systems that pelt the majestic Coast Mountain Range with storms, leaving behind epic powder days and deep tree skiing throughout the winter months.

Deep Winter has invited five photographers to team up with athletes of their choosing, and spend three days inbounds on Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains. Their goal is to capture the essence of the legendary winter storms and bring that to life in a slideshow presentation. The photographers will present their work in front of judges and the public on Saturday, January 6 in Whistler.

Deep Winter will showcase some of the who’s who among Whistler’s ski and snowboard photographers. Contest participants include: Whistler ski photography legend Paul Morrison; Future Snowboarding Magazine photo editor and long-time Whistler snowboard photographer Dano Pendygrasse; Snowboarder Magazine’s senior photographer Oli Gagnon; contributing photographer to Transworld Snowboarding and Snowboard Canada Dice-K Maru; and 2005’s Powder Magazine ‘photo of the year’ winner Bryn Hughes. The five will compete for $3,250 in prize money and the right to boast the title ‘king of storms’. This contest will be a deeply inspiring event for every winter storm lover, as each photographer will no doubt deliver a compelling journey through Whistler’s deep winter.

“This contest was born out of the fact that many ski or snowboard photos depict blue sky days and don’t often pay tribute to the awesome winter weather that can roll through the mountains,” says Mike Douglas, professional skier, long time Whistler local, and the inspiration behind the contest. “The really stormy days here in Whistler make for some epic days on the mountains. This contest is all about celebrating and embracing that weather, and sharing those moments with others who are as passionate about winter storms!”

The slide show, taking place at Millennium Place on Saturday January 6, will be followed by a party at the newly renovated Glacier Shop, located right across the pedestrian stroll. Millennium Place doors open at 7pm with the slide show beginning at 8pm. Tickets for the slide show and after-party are $9.99 and can be purchased at Millennium Place, Ticketmaster or online at Ticketmaster.ca.

“What a great way to celebrate the drama of the coastal storm season,” says John Irvine, Sports Marketing Director at ARC’TERYX. “At ARC’TERYX we are inspired by the majesty of the mountain environment, and each storm provides a fresh and dynamic canvas for these artists/photographers, and the athletes they will work with. To assemble Whistlers’ best photographers to capture this as a subject will be a unique and amazing spectacle.”

“We are very excited to bring these five amazing local photographers together under one roof to see what they create after three days on the mountains,” says Whistler Blackcomb’s public relations & communications manager Christina Moore. “This contest really speaks to our roots as a resort. Whistler has built its reputation in part on our stormy weather, as this is what delivers such incredible ski conditions throughout the winter. We’re thrilled to be celebrating this along with these renowned photographers. It’s going to be a great event.”

The three judges for the event include well-known professional Whistler snowsports photographer Eric Berger, Snowboard Canada’s photo editor and snowboard photographer Colin Adair, and ARC’TERYX’s Creative Director Tom Duguid. Deep Winter is presented in partnership by ARC’TERYX and Whistler Blackcomb, along with media partners Snowboard Canada and Skier Magazines.

Event information, current snow conditions and accommodation deals for the January 6^th weekend are all available at whistlerblackcomb.com/deepwinter.

Published On: 12/27/2006

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WOBlog: Legends of Shredding!
By: whiteoutfilms

I mentioned a quick bit about it a couple days ago, but here is the actual scientific evidence of the legends of shredding on Blackcomb's opening day. The only guys missing would be Johnson, Kearns, and Kevin Young. If you don't know what I am talking about, you really need to watch some old snowboard videos, and you are an idiot. The first shot is Marc Morrisett, Wes Makepeace, Dano Pendygrasse, myself, Alex Warburton, Devun and JF. I pretty much just snuck into the shot to show I am down with these guys. The picture was taken by fellow legend and Whiteout Filmer Anthony Vitale. Quick Fact- Wes launched huge road gaps with no shirts on (Whisky 2), and Marc and KY have the best shred-style... ever. The second photo is Shin Campos, Browner, Brad Makepeace, Chris Dufficy, Roth, Colin Adair, Dano, Kale and Warburton. We all had a sweet-ass time up there, and it is always fun to meet up with these guys. What you should do now is try and find some of the amazing movies these dudes were in, including the Whisky videos, Child Games, Sexual Chocolate, A Young, Brown Walsh, and see how good all these guys are. "History,my friends, is just as important as Science!!" Marty.

Published On: 11/28/2006

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Gonzo Photo: 11/07/06
By: gtphoto

Rider: Aaron Shapiro

With all the things going on right now, I find myself really missing Vancouver. There's just one core element and culture missing in this city that I can't live with - snowboarding. Sure there are a couple "snowboarders" here but it's just not the same. The "snowboarders" here are on the mountain maybe 15 days a season max and their "passion" lies therein.
But as I lement on the first year I broke 100 days at Grouse, I also remember the years I couldn't make it up more than 15 times (mainly just the 1st year). So, I feel sorry for these people.
They do have the same "passion" as I do for snowboarding, but the other element is missing. The culture and lifestyle that comes with it just isn't here. It's like they snowboard, but their not snowboarders.
Well, I'm not going to leave on a sad note,; I'm actually going to leave on a stoked note. If you happen to be browsing through some of the recent magazines, check out the new issue (issue 3) of Future Snowboarding and find my first double page spread. Yup, I'm f*cking stoked. Dano's wicked and I love life.

...gtphoto

Published On: 11/7/2006

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Daily Barns: You can't have armageddon without a "dd"
By: jr_barns

Hey kids! I know some of you have been wondering where old uncle Junior has been off to. I've been a bit indisposed since I started a new job in mid June, coupled with the fact that I fought with influenza for about two weeks (this was my own version of fight club). That period wasn't totally devoid of excitement however, there was an SB.com EC meet in there (during my battle with the flu) which was nearly epic. July is looking to be exciting too; it begins with a downward spiral of debauchery known as Canada day.

The plan for this Canada day was as follows: barbeque at my digs for friends and family, copious amounts of beer and shots, bicycle bladders full of gin and tonic, backpacks full of tall boys and Mongoose topped off with a bus trip downtown in the evening to partake in the festivities. This is really when armageddon started. Fortunately, as the title states, you can't have armageddon without a "dd", I would personally like to thank OC Transpo for providing it.

The bus ride downtown was exciting in itself. My friends and I quickly became the most popular people on the bus when they discovered that we had backpacks full of booze. So between sips of gin and tonic from the bladder, and raucus renditions of "Oh Canada" (which my brother and I sang in french...the way it was written), we made several friends on the fateful 45 minute ride (and unfortunately a few enemies). Our favourite friend was easly Busty McBigboobs because she was really friendly in addition to her more tangible qualities. This would not be our last encounter with Busty and her acolytes.

We got downtown just in time for the fireworks. Afterward, we fought our way through the crowd to make our way to the Brig on York street; Busty and company in tow. Fortunately for us, the Brig is our second home so the bouncer let us in without much delay (thanks Dano!). Unfortunately Busty and co. got discouraged by the crowd and decided to move on to the next bar. Once inside, we said quick hellos to the staff and proceeded to drink more. This is when the evening gets hazy. I remember frollicking in a fountain with dish soap. Bartering four tall boys of Moosehead for a stack of Beavertails and only vaguely arriving home to the mess from the day's party. Somehow we ended up with a firehose. I'm not entirely sure how but when asked "why do you have a firehose?", the standard response was "why don't YOU have a firehose?". All in all, no one died so a good time was had by all. That was the 1st day of July. July 2nd was mostly spent cleaning up the previous day's mess. If the quality of a party can be measured by how long it takes to clean up the mess afterward, then this was a fantastic party.

<grr, there's supposed to be artwork here but the upload is broken...it will come later>

The next big event for me so far this month came on the 5th, my birthday. I officially entered my third decade on this planet. It's not that big of a deal to me, but everyone else seems to think so. I just have one hope, that THE 30's are not a road map to mine (great depressions, Nazis, rise to war). Only time will tell. Daily Barns will keep the interested parties updated. Until next time...

Keep shreddin' the GNAR!
J.

Published On: 7/6/2006

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My Blog: fastest way out of huge debts By: dano1111
well, im asking you this.... Published On: 2/25/2006 Add/View Comments (0)

My News: "La Niña" amenaza a la agricultura, pero garantiza buena pesca
By: gustavoagurto

Martes 14 de febrero de 2006 Fenómeno en formación: "La Niña" amenaza a la agricultura, pero garantiza buena pesca Rodrigo Cárdenas D. El enfriamiento de las aguas del Pacífico provocaría escasez de lluvias en 2006. A mediados de año se espera que lleguen a Chile los efectos del fenómeno de "La Niña", provocando una escasez de lluvias que amenazaría a la industria agrícola y a la generación hidroeléctrica. El fenómeno fue anunciado oficialmente el 2 de febrero pasado por la Administración Nacional Oceánica y Atmosférica de Estados Unidos (NOAA), luego de observar durante varias semanas su formación en el Pacífico ecuatorial, donde se mantiene hasta ahora. "La Niña" está asociada a un enfriamiento de las aguas que provoca en Chile una escasez de lluvias, al contrario del fenómeno de "El Niño", que está asociado a períodos lluviosos por un calentamiento de las aguas frías del Pacífico Sur. "La Niña" ya ha impactado al agro de varios países sudamericanos: la región amazónica de Brasil recibió 50% menos de las precipitaciones normales durante los últimos meses. El resto de ese país y Uruguay tuvieron un déficit de entre 25 y 50%. Además, hay sequía en el sur de Bolivia, Paraguay y el noroeste argentino. En esas regiones, la agricultura se ha visto afectada porque depende en buena medida de las lluvias estivales. Algo que no ocurre en Chile, donde las lluvias son invernales. En 2003, en el último episodio de "La Niña", las lluvias disminuyeron cerca de 30%. Sin embargo, en 1998 -el año más intenso del fenómeno-, la disminución alcanzó el 70%. En esa oportunidad, los daños se concentraron especialmente en zonas de secano en el centro-sur del país, donde las pérdidas fueron millonarias. Además, el país se vio enfrentado a un racionamiento eléctrico por la falta de agua en los embalses que abastecen a las centrales hidroeléctricas. Los cultivos más afectados en 1998 -con casi un 30% de las hectáreas perdidas- fueron el trigo, legumbres y forraje. En tanto, en el sector pesquero ven con buenos ojos la llegada de este fenómeno. A juicio de Mauricio Braun, analista del Instituto de Fomento Pesquero (IFOP), "La Niña" provoca que el "plancton" se instale en aguas superficiales, lo que garantiza una buena producción de jurel y anchoveta. EL MÁS SECO En 1998, "La Niña" causó en Santiago 72% de déficit de lluvias y racionamiento eléctrico.

Published On: 2/17/2006

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My Journal: 26/1/2003
By: pear

Raining to the top of whistler and its 14 degrees in Vancouver. What is going on?

Dano says I dont update my journal often enough...so I will try to stay on top of it. Unfortunately I will be away till Thursday so no updates till then. Sorry Dano.

I will be having dinner with the Vivid Video girls Tuesday night...hopefully get some pics for yall. Sucks, I have to got to the shittiest city in the world to do it. Peace.

Published On: 1/26/2003

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My Journal: 2/2/2003 By: pear
K snowboarded like an ass today. Was fun though. Gonna hook up and ride with Runner Rob tomorrow. Andrew, Dano and TJ have been Super cool letting me stay at their place...thanks yos. Will let you know how the days events go. Peace. Published On: 2/2/2003 Add/View Comments (0)

My Journal: 6/2/2003
By: TJS

im not sure why but my journal entry from yesterday didnt go in , so ill do a little re cap , we rode this face that was pretty fun , i didnt really do any gnar stuff but it was fun for sure , you can see a picture of the face on danos little site thing i think its dspphoto you can just click it off my friends list , yeah so that was pretty fun , but the combo of sledding up teh worst road and hitting a big jump the day before , and jumping down these lines and getting tossed off my sled , made my knee pretty sore again , so i'm off to see teh doc again , the shit is a bit swollen and just feels weird . so yeah , and ahhh now i just found out that im going to some contest in japan , thats cool , japan is pretty fun , too bad i dont really like their food, oh well. got to ride with jp solberg yesterday , that was cool he got the best style , anyways im off to see about me knee , oh and ive been getting a lot of blank im's so if you have any questions and shit like that just leave a comment that way ill prob get it
peas and carrots
tj

well let me just add this , i just go tback from the doc , and she told me pretty much what i thought she would say . see a few weeks ago i twisted my left knee pretty good, it was at a jib contest in vail , and i knew i was hurt but i was liek hmm well i know im hurt but i should really try and win some money so i kept snow shreddin, so i took a week and a half off, my first day back was a few days ago and i hit a big jump and it felt pretty good until i landed in one of my holes and twisted it a bit , and now its weird, so anyways , she said taht my kneeis loose she put her hand right under my knee cap and pressed down , and was like see how far that goes down , i was like oh yeah, and she said that it is swollen , blah blah blah , so what i need to do is ice to get that to go a way and then do some low impact stuff ie the bike , squats , wall sits , swimming , ball stuff and my friend Jeff says:
glucosamine sulphate
that will help my knees , so kids take it from me , if you get hurt take the time to get it back in shape so you dont have this happen. hurt, ride 2 days and then get hurt agian , because a week off now so that you can ride the rest of the season is better than a week off after everyday that you ride
hope to see you all shreddin soon
tj

Published On: 2/6/2003

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My Journal: 11/2/2003
By: Meggs

i wanna know something.....i wanna know why all small towns in the middle of nowhere have an over abundance of antique stores??? i mean one is fine maybe we'll let two slide but 5 or 6??? what's the need when you only have 200 people in the town anyway? i noticed this strange yet intriguing phenomenon recently...i mean wouldn't it be beneficial to have more oh i dunno gas stations or markets?..."Honey i am going down to the antique shop on maple street to get some 18th century vases...i'll be back in a bit!" who the hell needs that shit up in the sticks anyway? i do realize that they try to get the mountain traffic to stop in... but don't you think that if they were looking for antiques they would do so at a point where they are not half asleep from the days festivities? well i do know that all the NYers in their annoying lexus SUV's and Hummers prob stop in b/c half of them don't even ski anyway...they just come up to look cool and complain. so i guess i just answered my own question for the most part...they are there for the NYers. well then that proves this argument moot (thanx dano i suck at spelling and i am too lazy to look it up).

Published On: 2/11/2003

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My Journal: 20/4/2003
By: Meggs

ABOUT 20 NEW PIS ADDED...AND TWO VIDEOS______shaht and sweet....

THANK YOU NOTE

rosy and i are tired...we have been on sh*tty planes trains (and wait not trains) and automobiles....we almost missed our flight due to our own stupidity and rosy's bowels but all is good sorta....we are now going back into town like two absolute idiots to see the postal service. ya we are stupid. but red bull can cure that eh? i feel like i have a layer of plane goo all over my face and my pits are ripe. i will give the whole run down either tomorrow or tuesday consdering i am most likely going to be sleeping for the next 3 days...ya right i wish too bad i have to work tomorrow. well i must say it was all worth the time and travel...thank you to all who made my week killer. you know who you are. special thanx to addy rock for his unending hospitality...and drunken antics in girls boot cut jeans...i have pictures and no adam you will not delete them b/c i will kill you... going to whistler was like going home being that drunk dirt bike jumping is what we do here. best day of the whole trip fo show. anyhoo to everyone else, you all were everything and more than i expected. ok so this is turning into a thank you note...and the journal entry that i am supposed to be writing tomorrow. so i will save you all and stop myself...stay tuned. ps thanx dano that meant a lot to me. sorry you had to get dressed and stop your program download....wait no i am not. but it was rad that you came.

Published On: 4/20/2003

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My Journal: 21/5/2003
By: Meggs

"Liviya Thoreson and Her Inner Child"
(ALIAS ALPENMUFFIN)

M- Hey hot stuff, ya wanna cyber?
L- No way cyber-dude.

M- Well I just thought b/c of your screen name and all miss muffin…
L- You people need to stop calling me 'muffin', 'muff', 'muffy'. I'm talking about a nearly famous breakfast muffin from Alpental's cafe.... plus it's not like my name is hotsexymuffy69 or something

M- So when did you decide to start growing bunny ears?
L- One day I was talking to Dano who mentioned there was a bunny in his yard. For some reason I mentioned that at times I'd rather be living life as a bunny. That's kinda what spurred it I guess...

M- What is your take on the male bunny species at the moment?
L- They're all a bunch of playas

M- You say that you are the queen of everything and nothing at all...do tell.
L- It's one of the most powerful roles you can have as a queen. One moment you're ruling the world and then suddenly if you just aren't feeling it any more you can just rely on the latter part of the title: nothing at all...that way you can still be queen, but you don't have to do anything you don't feel like doing because you're the queen of nothing and everything at the same time.... it's rather complicated actually

M- Do you rock the palace disco style when no one is looking?
L- Well the palace landlords (you've met them....) are kinda uptight folk and don't allow too much disco in the place.... but we've been known to throw some ragers from time to time

M- Do you believe in sasquatch?
L- No. They did film “Harry and the Hendersons” down the road from my house though... and my friend's dad swears he saw one in Alaska on 2 different occasions- he also swears he has left his body before too....

M- How many fingers am I holding up?
L- Um... I can't really tell- I think my SPY-cam must be broken or something

M- Do you or did you ever find Prince sexy?
L- Na, he's not really my type, but I did/do like some of his songs- like "Raspberry Baret"

M- I know you have a deep desire to get with Michael Bolton
L- I think you need to re-evaluate your psychic skills... unless we're talking about a different Michael Bolton. The only Michael Boltons I can think of are the blonde-mullet crappy singer and the computer nerd guy from "Office Space"...I sure hope that's not my secret deep-down desire, if it is- get me help

M- Please state for the record you allergies so that we may fell bad for you and send you tissues
L- I think my only known allergy is pollen stuff.
And guys

M- Who is the coolest person in the world?
(eh em eh EH EM)
L- I'd have to go with my mom….. I mean, YOU of course! Hey that gun you're holding at my back kinda hurts (heh heh- just kidding)

M- Do any of these questions make sense you think?
L- They all made sense.... are they supposed to correlate to some bigger grander scheme that I'm not getting? I'm really out of it....
M- Nope not really

M- Any final thoughts AKA “Jerry Springers”?
L- What are “Jerry Springers”?
M- Oh ya you grew up w/o TV. Well I will tell you b/c now I feel bad for you. At the end of every show Jerry has his "Final Thoughts.” So my take on it is a “Jerry Springer”, ya dig?
L- I don't think I have any Jerry Springers”, but maybe an “Oprah Winfrey” analysis of my life right now, I need to stop stressing!!!

she has taken the liberty of spanking my ass for an interview so please visit her profile for some sh*ts and giggles.

Published On: 5/21/2003

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My Journal: 28/2/2005 By: dspphoto
Please don't panic... Dano has left Whistler! ...and moved into a little house 40 steps from the beach in La Jolla California. Published On: 2/28/2005 Add/View Comments (0)

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