Blogs Results

Prospect Snowboards isn't in every snowboarder's daily vocabulary and we don't have a problem with that. Being a non-corporate anti establishment board company, I guess you can say our marketing isn't awesome. Well... our commitment to making amazing snowboards is awesome. While we aren't interested in corporate subculture that comes with being a mainstream snowboard manufacturer it doesn't mean the industry isn't recognizing what makes Prospect rad.

 Add/View Comments (0)

For video of the Romain Interview, visit http://SlytechProtection.com/blog Romain de Marchi says: Stop letting the economic crisis paralyze you; don’t listen to the talking heads on TV news; don’t slow down. Your life and the lives of those around you depend on your passion and stoke. YOU’VE NEVER HEARD ROMAIN DE MARCHI SAY ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE MAUI, HAWAII – For a moment there I thought I was pondering the intricacies of the Universe, God, and life with Deepak Chopra – the esoteric Indian doctor, author, philosopher – not Romain de Marchi – ball-to-the-walls, huck-myself-down-any-freakin’-thing – snowboard legend. Prejudiced with images of his suicidal rippings in epic Absinthe films, tabloid sensationalism knocking him as a party freak, and his tattoo covered body, I went into this, our first longer meeting, thinking it would turn out to be another “shoot the shi*t interview” with another fortunate, yet undeserving rider. I got adjusted, hard. Romain on Travelling RDM: When I travel I like discovering different philosophies and new cultures. I try to learn more and more the world. TV I don’t think is a good example to learn the world. To me it’s better to be on the terrain and figure out by yourself. That’s what I’m looking for when I go travel: meet new cultures and new people basically. SWB: How does riding factor into your travels? Can you describe that stoke that you feel? RDM: Well, I always… when I’m travelling, it’s not really the places you go to, but the experience you share with people. I like the fact that when I go to different resorts, I meet different people and they give me their stoke-ness of wanting to share with me their culture, their mountain and their way of seeing their mountain. That’s what I appreciate a lot when I get to see different places. So, that’s what really stokes me out. Romain on Fatherhood SWB: I saw your daughter Annella there. Tell me about her! RDM: Well, she’s almost 2 years old and she’s growing up by the minute. She’s a fan of Dora as you can see on the T-Shirt and she loves her mama a lot. No, it’s fascinating, I mean, it’s ahhhh, it makes you more mature, makes you go forward in life, to be able to see your kids, the way they interpret life, to see their innocence and their soul. I think it gives you a lot of inspiration! They really inspire me. SWB: so how did you start to feel in riding after you became a parent? Were there differences in your behavior after you became a parent? RDM: Yeah, a lot of people said: now that you have a kid your ride should be different, you should be more cautious. Actually for me it went the other way around. I’m more crazy now than before. It really pushed me to go out there and do what I love. Now more than ever, I do it for more and more reason. First it was just for me when I was younger, but now it’s also for my daughter and my kids because I want them to feel my passion and translate that to them, so now I go out there and try to get as stoked as I can, so when I get home they can see how happy I am to do what I love to do and they can feel that. So for me it went the other way around. SWB: interesting! So she made you live life even more to its fullest? RDM: Even more. Romain on the World Economic Recession RDM: I’m not gonna say it doesn’t affect me. It affects everybody, but, I think that many people live in fear and they’re like “ohhh no, I can’t do this, I can’t do that.” People have been brainwashed with that and they’ve stopped living. I bet if each individual in the world like they did before the crisis, everything would be good, because money would still be spent, people would still be happy and do happy things and the world would still go around. Now everybody is watching TV saying “ohhh no, I can’t do this, because the TV said it’s fear, it’s economic, and it’s the world war, the terrorism and what not…” I think that’s pretty sad that people have been brainwashed like that and have stopped living just because some dude said it on TV. Of course, the economy isn’t as good now, but I think we are as much responsible for it as the people who are leading our country. I think we should keep living and everything is going to be fine. SWB: ohh man, that’s a great insight. People paralyze themselves by listening to these so-called experts on TV and… RDM: yeah, it’s been like that for centuries, you know like, create fear so that we can control people. I try to have my own opinion. I know times are hard, but it’s hard for everybody, but you keep living and if you can’t pay the mortgage one day and what not, then well, sell the house and do something else. The world is not going to end just like that. We have many options in life, so it’s not worth worrying about a mortgage or things like that. Romain on Back Protection and Why Everyone Should Wear One RDM: For sure it gives you extra confidence. If I hit a rock at least I have the Slytech 2nd Skin to protect my spine. But I also try not to rely on it too much, because then you forget how your muscles work in your body; they are the first armor, right? The Slytech 2nd Skin is more prevention. It’s not because I have a back protector that I’m going to launch a bigger thing. Whether I ride the resort or I jump, I always wear it in case something happens. It’s a precaution. It’s not like, “ohhh yeah, I’m just going riding the resorts, so I’m not going to put it on.” No, I put it on anyway. Whether big jump or not, you know, now that I’m getting older, I got a family, so I kinda need to have that extra protection for me. But I’m not forgetting as well that my body is my first armor. For my state of mind it’s more uhhh… like in a car, you can have one airbag or you can have 5 airbags. Same thing with second skin: I’d rather have more airbags than just 1. SWB: There are all kind of back protectors out there. What was it about Slytech 2nd Skin to make you choose to use it? RDM: It’s easy to put on. It’s really comfortable to wear it. The good thing is, the foam they use, it’s really molding your back, so you really don’t feel it. I’ve tried other ones and they’re really uncomfortable. They’ve been using that for dirt biking at first. I feel pretty confident: dirt bikers get more beat up than snowboarders. When they fall, they hit the hard ground! Snow is soft. It makes you feel even better that it’s tested by dirt bike people. SWB: How were you introduced to the Slytech people? RDM: What went down is… basically, I got hooked up with Shred and they said, “hey, you want to try the Slytech 2ndSkin?” and I’m like “YEAH SURE!” They sent me some and I went riding and I didn’t feel it. I went riding all day and I didn’t feel it at all, “OK, wow! This is a freakin great product!” You have it on and it’s extra precaution for you and it doesn’t even bother you; it doesn’t even make you uncomfortable when you ride so I was like “yeah right on! This is a great product, so let’s do something with it!” SWB: Would you recommend a back protector for non-professional athletes? RDM: Yeah, I would recommend all the protection they can get. Most of the time, beginners just sit on a hump on the slope and if a skier or snowboarder just comes up from behind and BOOM, it could paralyze them. But if you have a back protector, it might save you from that. Helmet, back protectors are key. As I left that interview, I never thought that I – as a philosophy guy living in Hawaii with all the inspiration I need around me – would have walked away with so much newfound inspiration to go for whatever I could possibly conceive of. I want to publicly thank Romain de Marchi for sharing the inspiring stoke he collects through his experiences as a shredder, a father, a world traveler and as a free spirit (the snowboarding world’s own mini Deepak). Thanks also for believing in and endorsing the Slytech Back Protector. It took many years to develop and test, and now that it’s available to the general public we hope it will be as universally loved. About Slytech Protection The team and riders at Slytech Protection feel that life is best lived with maximum passion, confidence, comfort and protection (comfortable protection). We’re based around a rider's love for shredding and being free, to keep pushing the limits and to give yourself the chance to get up and ride again. Being sidelined with a bad spinal injury is the last thing we want, and so comfortable back protection is the first thing we grab. Go to http://slytechprotection.com and signup for more inspiring rider tales from Romain and the rest of the shredders.   Slytech Protection distributors at www.slytechproteciton.com/contacts Headquarters: CERSAL srl Viale Ancona, 26 30172 Venezia Mestre Tel.+390412517211 Fax +390412517200 www.slytechprotection.com ###

 Add/View Comments (0)

Day 1
I was pretty nervous when I left home and took a flight to Vancouver BC. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to snowboard as good as the others, but when I went, you're organized into groups depending on your level. It was silly of me to worry, but when i did go, the campers were pretty chill so it didn't even matter anyways. Well anyways, when I landed in Vancouver, I met so many people at the airport going to Whistler Summer Snowboard Camp. When we all boarded the camp bus/shuttle I met even MORE people. During the evening, we were to meet at the mountain room (a huge room with a big screen tv). There we were introduced to all the coaches and info about the camp, like camp rules, schedual, and activites. When i got to my room, there I met my 2 roomates! They were the same level as me at snowboarding and same age too! They were also in my group which was cool. I made friends really quick.

Day 2-6

The park is siiiiiiiick. They have their own terrain on Blackcomb Mountain, with jumps, rails, boxes, and a tent that you can just chill at if you're tired or hungry. The weather felt like it was 20 degrees, it was so hot! I think that's really cool, the weather being really warm and being able to snowboard. I know what you're thinking, but no! The snow isn't all slush! There's plenty of snow and the groomers of their camp groom it everyday so it's all good. I got a pretty sick goggle tan.

Activites

Out of all the activites, I've got to say that bungee jumping was my favourite! You're there with all your friends going bungee jumping! There's other activities like wakeboarding, paintball, mountain biking, driving range/miniputt, skateboarding, indoor rockclimbing, games room/movie lounge, pool/hot tub at the hotel, tennis/volleyball/dodgeball, or just chilling at Whistler Village!

 Add/View Comments (0)

Whistler Blackcomb's annual Showcase Showdown went off last Saturday as onlookers crowded into Skiers' Plaza and onto patios to watch the action at the base of Whistler Mountain. After a hard fought battle, Caley Vanular claimed first place in the women's category. Second place went to Molly Milligan and third went to Janelle Prtichard. Meanwhile, Andrew Burns took first in the men's category, while Rusty Ockeneden claimed second place and Mike Osachuk took third.

The six riders, who won a total of $5,000 cash and prizes from event sponsors, including Nixon headphones and Sandbox helmets, will also be featured in Sandbox's next snowboard film "Shine On."

In its twelfth year, the Showcase Showdown has enjoyed another successful transformation and has proven once again why Whistler Blackcomb's Nintendo Terrain Parks are ranked No. 1 in North America.

This year's course was inspired by the mini-parks in locals' backyards all over Whistler. The slopestyle course design, which included rails and industrial-style jib features with happy faces, was a collaboration of Showcase Team Manager Brad Broughton; Kevin Sansalone of Sandbox Films; Steve Petrie master park-builder and designer and builder of the 2010 Olympic Halfpipe; and Whistler Blackcomb's Park Rangers.

For a complete results list visit www.showcaseshowdown.ca. Showcase Snowboards is celebrating its 20th Anniversary. For all the latest gear and apparel, shop online at www.showcasesnowboards.com.













MORE PHOTOS

 Add/View Comments (1)

What a week! It all started Monday morning... I opened my eyes to see something that caught me off guard; fluffy snow covering the trees outside my window! Snowphone Steve assured me there was at least 25cms of pow in the alpine, so after a flurry of phone calls to friends, I headed up the hill.

Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE powder days, but it's always such a scramble! We had a tough time sticking together in a group of 5 with 3 snowboarders and 2 skiers. We all met up doing a couple of Jersey Cream laps, getting fresh lines and face shots on Cougar Milk. Pretty much all of the alpine was still closed for Avi-control, so we chose to line up at Crystal Chair. We waited and waited... Some trouble maker in the line started throwing snowballs and that was it, a full on snowball war ensued! Our group decided to bail and go riding and it opened after we left! ALWAYS stick with the lift line you choose, that was my lesson of the day.

Over the next couple days the skies opened up and puked a whopping 84cms! My next day to ride was Thursday, so I headed up for a cruise and I couldn't believe it, blue bird! New snow & sunny skies = perfection. The week isn’t even over yet, the Showcase Showdown returns on Saturday (tomorrow) with a different style; the Backyard Slopestyle. Inspired by the mini-parks in locals' backyards all over Whistler, the Showdown will blow the scene up with a snowboard slopestyle at the base of Whistler Mountain. I cannot wait to check it out! Get more info at showcaseshowdown.ca

Keep on shredding!

-Alex



 Add/View Comments (0)

Whistler Blackcomb’s Showcase Showdown is back Saturday, February 28 with a new format; the Backyard Slopestyle. Inspired by the mini-parks in locals’ backyards all over Whistler, the Showdown will blow the scene up with a snowboard slopestyle at the base of Whistler Mountain. Despite the larger venue and cash prizes on the line, the chill vibe of the backyard throwdown will remain.


The top three men and women will feature in Sandbox’s next snowboard film “Shine On,” and $5000 cash and prizes from event sponsors including Nixon headphones are up for grabs.


The Women’s competition will take place from 9am to 11am. The Men’s competition will start at 11am with Finals starting around 4pm.


Athlete Registration Information

Athletes can register in person at any Whistler Blackcomb Guest Relations desk. Registration is $50+GST per rider and is open to 60 men and 20 women. Competitor’s check in will take place on Friday, February 27 at the Village Showcase Snowboards from 5-7pm.

******Helmets and bibs are mandatory for all runs including practice.


For registration and more event information call 1-800-766-0449 or visit www.showcaseshowdown.ca


 Add/View Comments (1)

After an hectic pre season I was ready and excited to leave to Austria with my friend Vanessa Andrieux. We go there every year to find good snow condition, I was all packed, board and bags in my trunk and as i was driving back from Barcelona it started dumping everywhere, and by the time i was in Switzerland my home mountains were covered by a good 60cm of fresh snow ! This is when we both decided to join the Demonium base camp in les diablerets (definitely the best place to stay, hang, mini shred and skate up there) and shoot a couple things home before heading to the austrian mountains. We waisted the first day looking for features to shoot along the road and at 12pm, after 3 hours driving around for nothing, we decided to go up on the mountain and shred. luckily the place wasn’t totally tracked yet, I found a couple good friends at the first chair lift, they took me to the good spot and I got chest deep for my first run of the winter !! I can’t remember a better start of the season ever ! sik ! The next day we built a kicker with Eman, Damien, Nico and Tonton not too far from the road in a safe area as avalanche danger was quite high at that time. It was fun to be shaping a kicker already. The snow was deep in the landing, the sun was shining we had a good thermos with hot tea and good meet, cheese, bread and chocolate. Family style ! After that we joined Nicolas Droz in Chatel to get a couple shots, each day we were pushing the austrian destination a bit later and we finally never made it there. That’s when my friend Annie Boulanger called, there was no snow in whistler and she jumped in the plane to come shred with me.. I was so stoked to have her here because I m always the one going to canada or US and for once I got to show my place to a good friend ! as soon as she got off the plane we called Jonas Emery who could eventually give us heads up on the conditions where he was staying.. and we ended up staying at his place for a good 4 days.. We got sik tree runs in still really good snow on our first day and it dumped overnight !! We went to Verbier the next day, same thing, good tree pow runs under the cabin, and the great thing is that no one was on the slopes before christmas ! We joined Emilien Badoux the next day for the same luck with sunshine this time! After that we headed to my home resort with my both of my parents my cousin, my boyfriend and 2 other good friends with whom we shredded all weekend.. It really felt like christmas ! This last couple of weeks were such a blast, I got to practice some Quebecquien expressions, I got to shred for the fun of it which happens very rarely, i got to stay at my grand parents cabin and the conditions were fantastic ! That was definitely my best christmas present this year.. and i wish you just as much fun and good shred !  

 Add/View Comments (0)

 Add/View Comments (0)

Duff's Bday Party at the Molson Brewery! Rep of the Month.

Duff celebrated his 19th Birthday at the Molson brewery this weekend. Here's some of the action I captured in between the many free pints of frosty cold Coors Light.



What a great time. Free beer, pizza and front row seats to the Duff and friends flex off. Martins called it about 20 minutes before it happened.



Even Tom Lee from POP printing made an appearance. Above he closely inspects the print quality of Duff's head.

Rep of the Month: Rep of the month for October goes to Benny Couves for his feat of extreme office boydom with a pickled ollie at the Tofino park.



Yeah Couves! You win the left over Coors Light from our Monster Sale located in the mini fridge at Trustus.

 Add/View Comments (2)

This Week on Shred Betties

Mini Shred: 9 Year Old Taelor Mattingly
http://www.shredbetties.com/riders/story/mini_shred_taelor_mattingly/



Project Runway x Beanie Thursday
http://www.shredbetties.com/oa/entry/project_runway_x_beanie_thursday/



WTF - Helmets to Hunt in?
http://www.shredbetties.com/oa/entry/wtf_dorky_helmets/



Canada Here I come
http://www.shredbetties.com/articles/story/canada_here_i_come/




Colorado Ski Areas Open
http://www.shredbetties.com/articles/story/loveland_and_a_basin_open/



Video: Early Season Snow at Heavenly
http://www.shredbetties.com/articles/story/heavenly_early_season_snow/



Rome Speaks Out Against Big Name Athletics Brands
http://www.shredbetties.com/articles/story/romes_libertine_drunk/



Grand Opening of New All-Girls Store in Tahoe:
http://www.shredbetties.com/articles/story/miss_boarder_grand_opening/

 Add/View Comments (0)

At 12.00am Oct 1st 2008 StepChild Snowboards will launch 'Downloaded' live on our integrated media site. Downloaded is our video offering for 2008, a follow on from last years Child Support DVD which is still available from your local retailers while stocks last. Downloaded runs a little longer than 20 minutes and is a mini movie showing what the StepChild team does between filming and travelling. With footage from Japan, Bear Mtn, Whistler and Europe, be sure to check out the Media Page at www.stepchildsnowboards.com 12am PST to view 'Downloaded' in HD.

Downloaded can also be Downloaded - Imagine that! As well as embedded on your own site or forwarded to friends, all within our media player, care of our chums at mobilerider.

 Add/View Comments (0)

dude, it’s been a rockstar few weeks in minnesnowta. the state fair just rolled through, the republicans had their little convention, and rage against the machine played. yeah, rage against the machine.

i usually tell people that minneapolis and saint paul are like big cities nobody has moved into, yet. they look like big cities, but traffic isn’t that bad (i’m looking at you, bay bridge), and it’s mostly just half-rich white kids getting bored and causing trouble. that safe feeling fully eroded after seeing what the police had done to our cities.

credit (required): http://flickr.com/photos/trevino/

since last saturday, 422 people have been arrested in association with the RNC, with like 280 of them happening on monday. some of those rowdy rousers were the anarchist type, and you know how dumb breeds dumb. a mini riot broke out on monday, and that set the tone for the rest of the week.

the rage concert was ok. i wish i could say it was great, but the acoustics sucked. not their fault, but at $72 a ticket, i want my f*cking acoustics. rage played a lot from the first album, a few less from evil empire, and even less from battle of la. i was ok with that. single encore, then a plea from the band to “leave peacefully, but not passively.” zach encouraged everyone to show discipline, to show the police that we can get down in peace while still saying “f*ck you, i won’t do whatchu tell me.” yeah, it’s ironic, but get over it. it’s still possible.

the papers said we were greeted outside the concert by about 50 riot police. unless they meant “per sidewalk,” that number was a bit low. whatever. point is, unless you’re insanely drunk (i wasn’t), there’s no way you can walk past that many armed and armored police and feel like sneezing won’t get you your sheat beat down.

it took about a half hour before any half-assed protest broke out. the loudest kids didn’t like being told they couldn’t sit in the middle of the street (me: let evolution do its thing). the rest of us just didn’t like the idea of being told you can’t stand on this sidewalk by police in riot gear (and now gas masks). the police stopped us about half way down the block.

credit: http://flickr.com/photos/diversey/

after some fat guy yelling through a loudspeaker about as clear as they do at the airport, the police blockade broke down. someone in the group said “walk that way” and everyone did. and we kept walking, probably about a few blocks, in the road, mostly because it was cleared. as soon as the block wasn’t cleared of traffic, these retired american gladiator cops on schwinns started riding people down, shoving them to the sidewalk, and almost getting a couple of the crowd to push back on them. dude, i know there are good cops, but some of the cops out that night had that look like “say what again mother f*cker.”

somewhere between the schwinns and the cops on super horses, 3 little piggies came riding up on one of those atv golf carts (didn’t see any segways) with that short stubby looking thing that usually shoots tear gas. after we heard the pop pop, we looked for the area with the least amount of cops, ran, and gtfo. police said it wasn’t tear gas, but, they were the ones wearing the gas masks.

hey man, there’s usually not shi*t to talk about in minnesota.

read more about the rage show post-party or the fun around the

##

matt albiniak is a sellout that traded days in tahoe for doing interwebs stuff for a route 29, a small candy company in minneapolis, mn. (http://www.route29.com)

www.porterstahoe.com

 Add/View Comments (0)

This Collection marks the first standard line of apparel and accessories that will be offered throughout the year, regardless of season. New pieces will replace sold out pieces and updated collections will debut every three months.

The Rampage Series is a collaboration between Endeavor Snowboards and Ransom Holding Co., a Canadian street wear label focused on quality garments with an urban flavour. Over the past three seasons, Ransom has gained  recognition, being sold in street wear's elite accounts Union, HUF SF, Kicks HI, and their own stores Ransom and Goodfoot. The crew over at Ransom are avid snowboarders and friends of Endeavor, so what better company to collaborate with than them! For more information on Ransom, look online at www.ransomholdingco.com.

The graphic of the Rampage Series pays homage to the boards we learned how to snowboard on. This particular one was inspired by the Kemper Rampage, which had paint splatters all over the topsheet. The base is sublimated to get poppy colours and a rich black. The topsheet is very simple, inspired by prototype boards Endeavor makes for R&D. The minimalist style with a textured tone on tone graphic is consistent with both brands images.

 Add/View Comments (0)

 Add/View Comments (0)

 Add/View Comments (0)

Con las últimas nevazones, algunos esperan poder adelantar la temporada.
La falta de lluvia tendrá con el alma en un hilo al Ministerio de Energía. También a los representantes del agro. Sin embargo, los empresarios del esquí están tranquilos. Lejos de preocuparse por un año seco, aseguran que las nevazones de esta semana vaticinan un buen futuro.

"Estamos trabajando para abrir el 31 de mayo. Si es que cae nieve en estos días, perfectamente podríamos lograrlo", señala Rodrigo Vega, director de marketing de El Colorado.

Ya en la parte alta alcanzaron los 25 centímetros de nieve, y más que comenzar a hacer nieve, esperarán a que "caiga una buena capa" los próximos días. "De aquí hasta el viernes deberían caer alrededor de 40 centímetros. Podríamos comenzar a hacer nieve y tendríamos una buena base para abrir", cuenta Vega.

Para este año, el centro invernal espera recibir 175 mil visitantes, 25 mil más que el año anterior. Otro de los que crecerán será La Parva. El centro espera 8 mil nuevos clientes este año. "La fecha inicial de apertura era para el 13 de junio. Eso no quita que si tenemos condiciones favorables podríamos abrir el 30 de mayo, incluso", señala Thomas Grob, gerente general de La Parva.

Portillo también ha evaluado adelantar la temporada. "Hay una posibilidad, pero va a depender de lo que dejen los frentes. El lunes viene otro", señala Constanza Moya, directora de marketing de Portillo. En todo caso, hoy ya están con un metro en la base, pero no tienen mayor apuro. El 21 de junio es la apertura oficial y ya tienen un 100% de ocupación tomada. El año pasado alcanzaron a los 15 mil clientes, y en 2008 pretenden alcanzar un crecimiento de 10%.

Valle Nevado, por su parte, inaugurará la temporada invernal el 13 de junio próximo, día en que comenzarán a recibir las más de 140 mil personas que esperan para esta temporada.

Fuente: ElMercurio.com


 Add/View Comments (5)

 

From 6^th to 13^th of April 2008 Kühtai hosted the BAGJUMP SpringBreak08 Snowboard&Freeski Camp. The Film&Foto Award presented by TVB-Kühtai was an additional feature to the Camp where filmer and photographers had the chance to get the best shots from the whole resort and be rewarded with 2000Euro prize-money. Good riders had the chance to get some international coverage and present their skills. This event was a unique experience for snowboarder, freeskier, filmer- and photographer!

A perfect shaped park, the BAGJUMP MegaBag for training and 4 IOU-Special obstacles prepared for shootings throughout the backcountry. The Völkl Pro Team was here to coach and film for the Völkl-Movie the whole week and many other international Pros to get some last shots from the 2007/08 Season with over 40 international photographers and filmers around. Some lucky campers got a Völkl Sponsorship because of their amazing riding skills. The weather was like it is in April: unpredictable! As we had Snowstorms and waist deep powder for the first 3 days and fine spring slush with mostly blue sky for the rest of the SpringBreak08. Camp-Hotel Marlstein was located close by and the food was excellent with breakfast buffets in the morning and 4 course dinners in the evenings.

Campers and daily visitors had the chance to win Zimtstern, Völkl, Gravis and X-Double prizes in the everyday mini-competitions like Poker-Tournaments, Best Trick-MegaBag, Night-Sessions on the special spots and the XBOX360 Guitar Hero Madness. Due to the bad weather Saturdays SpringOFF Slopestyle Contest took place on the rails whit over 60 motivated riders giving their best to win money and prizes.

Everyone could get 2009 Boards and Skis at the Völkl Test in the chill area and test their new Board or Ski of Choice. Listening to fine tunes coming from the RedBull Event Car mixed by Dj Seren and eating at the BAGJUMP BBQ/Grill was a good chance to regain energy for riding. While watching international Pros practicing contest winning tricks into the MegaBag not only media but also the crowd and people passing by took out the camera to capture the action.

Read a more details from BAGJUMP SpringBreak08 in Playboard, Pleasure, Onboard, Methodmag and Shralp.com!

 

Results BAGJUMP SpringBreak08 Film&Foto Award presented by TVB-Kühtai:

2000.- Euro prizemoney!

 

Springbreak08 Video-Award:

Judging by: Helge Zirkl (Playboard Magazine), Mee-z (www.shralp.com), Richard Prendergast (Method.tv) and viewing-points on blip.tv.

 

1^st Place with 95 points: Niki Kranebitter AUT (To watch this clip: Aufmschlauch@SpringBreak08: http://blip.tv/file/834426/)

 

2^nd Place with 94 points: Chris Garside NZL (To watch this clip: Völkl-Team@SpringBreak08: http://blip.tv/file/843655/)

 

2^nd Place with 94 points: James Vooght NL (To watch this clip: Flash Horton&Niki Korpela@SpringBreak08: http://blip.tv/file/834929)

 

The winner clip will be shown on www.shralp.com, www.method.tv, www.playboard.de and www.BAGJUMP.com.

 

 

SpringBreak08 Foto-Award:

Judging by: Markus Fischer (Pleasure Magazine), Sami Touriniemi (Onboard Magazine) and Richard Walch (Pro-Photographer).

3 categories: Best Single Picture Snowboard or Ski, Best Sequence Snowboard, Best Ski Picture.

 

Best Single Shot Springbreak 08:

 

1^st Place with 122 points: Thomas Holleis AUT (Rider: Daniel Mösl, Trick: OneFoot)

The winner picture will be published in Pleasure Magazine this Fall! The rider on the picture wins a subscription to Pleasure Magazine for one Year!

 

Best Sequence SpringBreak08:

 

1^st Place with 75 points: Jason Horton ENG (Rider: Niki Korpela, Trick: Fs360drop)

The winning sequence will be published in Onboard Magazine! The rider on the sequence wins a subscription to Onboard Magazine for one Year!

 

Best Ski Picture SpringBreak08:

 

1^st Place with 111 points: Michael Obex AUT (Rider: Niko Rauch, Trick: WallrideSlide)

 

The winner will be published in Skiing Magazine! The rider on the picture wins a subscription to Skiing Magazine for one Year!

 

Congratulations to all winners!

Last but not least we would like to thank all participants, Sponsors, Media for making this event such a huge success.

Sponsors: TVB-Kühtai, Bergbahnen Kühtai, Völkl, RedBull, Zimtstern, Gravis, X-Double, Tobis Travel Solutions, Himaya.

Media Partners: Playboard Magazine, Pleasure Magazine, Onboard Magazine, Methodmag, shralp.com.

 

Watch out for the BAGJUMP SpringBreak09 with even more features than this year!

 

For more BAGJUMP action visit us at the Camp of Champions COC in Whistler B.C. Canada from June 21 to July 19 2008.

 Add/View Comments (0)

 Add/View Comments (1)

The other day as I was minding my own business I got a curious invitation. A colleague asked me if I'd be interested in joining his group for dinner at the Rideau Club that night. So I brushed the hair away from my eyes and gave my beard a scratch (I haven't had a haircut in 2008 or shaved since I was in Whistler) before I said "will they even let me in the door?" It took a while to be convinced, but in the end I decided to accept the invitation. After all it seemed like a reasonable reason to skip yoga class.

The Rideau Club pre-dates canadian confederation and was established twenty-two months before Ottawa was chosen as the seat of government. The clubs first president was Sir John A. Macdonald who, two years later, became Canada's first prime minister. Those are some pretty lofty credentials for a club so when I was asked, first of all, if I owned a jacket and tie (apparently they won't let you in the door without them) and if I'd be interested in going, I was naturally a bit skeptical that I would even gain entry. Besides, the last time I went to one of these formal parties, I wound up across the desk of the Director of CSIS in Windsor two days later (being interviewed for a job oddly). "This could be interesting" I thought and accepted. It seemed like an opportunity that doesn't present itself too often, and besides I like to slum it every once in a while.

The Rideau Club is obviously quite old. The building where it's located, however, is not. The original building burned down in 1979 so they made a replica of its interior on the top floor of the Sun Life building in downtown Ottawa. In order to get to the club, there's an elevator which services it exclusively (how very elitist). As I got in the elevator, I found it odd that there were only two buttons: one for the lobby and one for the fifteenth floor. Secretly I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't a retinal scan machine or some such thing. Nontheless, it was a neat feeling to be in a private elevator to an exclusive club which boasts heads of state as members. I felt like I was going to a Stone Cutters meeting. Maybe I'd get to participate in decisions on world policy, affect the course of human history, and witness historical keggers, beer blasts, beer bashes and steinhoists, followed by the regimented AA meetings. This evening was certainly looking up.

Once I arrived I was disappointed to discover that no one referred to themselves as numbers that were sequentially assigned in the order in which they joined. Once again the Simpsons had let me down. The coat room, however, did not. That thing was the size of my living room and dining room combined plus within it was the men's room which was equipped with shoe polishers and other gizmos that were cool and useless.

The view from the various windows in the club was quite spectacular. It was a great vantage point to see Parliament Hill, the Ottawa River, random high-rise living rooms (it gave me a bit of a voyeuristic feeling) and off in the distance, the Gatineau hills where my home resort, Mont Cascades, can be found (oh I miss the winter already). In spite of the majestic view, however, there seemed to be something missing. I realised what it was when reached into my breast pocket to adjust my hanky which I made out of a Spanky's Whistler trail map. It was the mountains that were missing. Having just been in British Columbia not two weeks before, I had grown accustomed to seeing large mountainous objects in the horizon; clearly these are missing in Ontario. In the time I spent in B.C. and Alberta, I had stopped noticing the giant masses of rock, earth and snow all around me. I was de-sensitized to their majesty and this thought disappointed me. It made me realise two things:

1. Never take what you have for granted. You'll miss it when its gone. This seems to be something that I have to be reminded of every once in a while and I'm now reminding all of you.
2. You can take the snowboarder off the mountain, but you can't take the mountain out of the snowboarder. I thought using a trail map as a hanky was a nice touch. None of my companions seemed at all surprised when they realised what I had done. A dirtbag in fancy clothes is still a dirtbag.

So if you ever get a chance to go to the Rideau Club, I highly recommend it. It's steeped in history and is a good place to take stock of who you are and what you have. Speaking of what you have, all you dwellers of the mountains out there, raise your glasses to them, they are precious indeed.

Keep Shreddin' the GNAR!

 Add/View Comments (1)

Hiked about 2/3 up Mt. Royal today.  Spirit energy was off the hook.  Not positive energy.  Many spirits are trapped on that mountain and don't seem to know where or who they are or were.  The past hundred and fifty years, several people have been on this particular mountain, the north point of the Tenmile Range.  Mining activity has left scars and open pits and abundant toxins over the terrain here.  Many days I've spent on Royal, the terrain is amazing and considering the proximity to Frisco and ease of access (quite an easy hike to the top), this area is virtually untapped.  Powder lines throughout the season, now spring conditions and wet snow provide some awesome descents.  With an epic snowpack this winter I was able to put down turns through an area that usually holds snow only during the coldest months mid-season.  After today I think I don't want to be on that mountain alone again.  I miss the sage fields and mesas of Northern New Mexico.  For now though, knowing I'm going to be in Summit County for only a couple months, shredding the Tenmile and Mosquito Ranges is priority not to be taken for granted.  I love this place, and pray that Tumquasheh stays with me every step I take.  Feelin Grateful to be alive and here to see the snowpack melt this spring. 

 Add/View Comments (0)