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The Step it Up series brought to Whistler a new bread of event bringing guest speakers into a bar environment to educate the young hip and cool crowd of Whistler about different themes relating to the protection of our environment including the wellness of our own body, mind and spirit.

Like it’s previous events, Hilltrip’s goal with the Step it Up series was to fight global warming. With an event every month from November 2006 to April 2007, the series included six different educational sessions about sustainability with a global warming twist. Through the whole series, Hilltrip was able to raise $550 to benefit the Snowrider Project of Surfrider Vancouver and a lot of people learned about ways to become a better steward of the environment and themselves.

Starting with a Sustainable Mountains Session in November , Step it Up no1 sent a strong message to the snow sport industry by having Jonaven Moore, a renown professional snowboarder, do a presentation on global warming and how negative PR is affecting our understanding of the issue, well timed after Tyler Bradley, the environmental chemist behind the creation of the first environmentally friendly ski wax in the world; Hillbilly Wax-Works & Ethica Enviro-Wax who had a satirical look at the state of the snow sport industry itself.

Step it Up no2 being close to Christmas, Hilltrip thought educating people about how making informed choices during the holiday season would help them reduce their environmental footprint and be good for their own body environment and organized a Sustainable Food Session. The session covered the concepts of SLOW food with Diana Rochon, RAW food with Sarinda Hoilett, SUPER food with Randall Carpenter and there was a slide show to give ideas to people on how they can green their holidays.
If you are interested you learn about how you can GREEN Christmas Holiday click here >>

For the third Step it Up, we decided to do something a bit different than the usual sustainable environment type event by having an Awakening Session and introduce a spiritual approach to sustainability. We believe awareness and consciousness can play a big role in improving someone’s life and the world. For the occasion, we had Kelly Oswald of The Oracle, Tina James of World Yoga Within and Robbie Dagg & Friends with OM MANI PADME HUM.

The fourth session was done in conjunction with Surfrider Vancouver. The theme was Sustainable Watershed and Pina Belperio of Whistler Water Watch and June Van Der Star of Surfrider did great presentations followed by a Sea to Summit, a video where snowboarders, skateboarder, and surfers are talking about the entire hydrological cycle and how it relates to their day to day life. Following the session, we had the Enviro-Mental Showdown Party following the qualifier of the Showcase Showdown, an annual snowboard competition.

The fifth one was a Sustainable Energy Session and we had Sarah Valentine giving a few tips on how we can reduce our energy consumption easily and than Hilltrip went all out and presented 15 documentaries about energy and climate change over 2 days as part of the Sierra Club Energy Film Festival.
You can read more about the Energy Film Festive by clicking here >>

As a way to end the series, Hilltrip teamed up with a bunch of local artists to present an Expression Session on Earth Day, April 22nd, and the last day of the World Ski and Snowboard Festival (WSSF) this year. Kostaman & The Vibrations opened at 7pm with a few reggae songs, Angie Nolan and MollyFi followed with poems and spoken words, Daniel Poisson, Chris Dyer, Olivier Roy, Jon Parris and Stan Matwychcuk had art pieces on display, Chili Thom & Feet Banks came to show their short film “High in the Mountain”, Animal Nation did a few raps, and Rainbo performed a hula hoops go-go set to the sound of DJ Parris. During the evening we also had the OxyMoron Martini, a heathy martini containin FrequenSea.

This last Step it Up event was also the launch of Green.Colonies.com in Whistler! It is also during that event that the winner for the Surf trip, the Option Snowboard, the SPY goggle and the O’Neill goodies were draw. There was so much going on, it was a great way to close the festival and the series in beauty.

Thanks to Whistler Brewing Company, Clif Bar, O’Neill, Deep Snow and Surf Experience, Option Snowboards and Spy for sponsoring the Step it Up series, Maxx Fish Bar & Lounge for letting us host the series, Surfrider Vancouver for setting an information table at each event, the speakers and artists for their performances and inspiration as well as all the people that have helped make this series of event happen…Nadia Cote, Marie-Lou, Giselle, Haley, Elexa, Sarah, Andrew, Adrian and all of those who came.

For more information on Hilltrip, visit www.hilltrip.com

Check out my gallery to see pictures from each Step it Up event!


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Building on the momentum of Step it Up series, Hilltrip is happy to invite the community to come to the sixth and final Step it Up event at MAXX FISH, nicely coordinated to happen on Earth Day. Celebrated every April 22, Earth Day is the largest, most celebrated environmental event worldwide. First launched as an environmental awareness event in the United States in 1970, Earth Day is celebrated as the birth of the environmental movement and is the only event celebrated simultaneously around the globe by people of all backgrounds, faiths and nationalities.

For Step it Up no6, Hilltrip is presenting an Expression Session including Kostaman & The Vibrations opening at 7pm sharp, followed by a slate of local artists including Angie Nolan with poems, MollyFi with spoken words, Daniel Poisson and Chris Dyer with visual art, Chili Thom & Feet Banks with “High in the Mountain”, Animal Nation with a few raps, John Parris with a few mixes and more.

At 10pm, the winners for the Earth Raffle will be draw. Everybody attending the Expression Session will have a chance to enter the raffle to win one of the grand prizes by writing their name at the back of a Step it Up flyer and dropping it off at the Surfrider table during the session. All the ballots collected trough the whole series will be included in the raffle, so people who entered at previous Step it Up sessions will have their chances to win. Prizes include a 3-day Surf Experience Expedition sponsored by Deep Snow & Surf Experience, an Option snowboard, a pair of SPY goggle, O’Neill goodies among other.

After 10pm, Rainbo and Lexi Moon will perform hula hoops go-go dances to the sound of DJ Jamie Vale.

Also on the sensory extravaganza menu is Martinis at Midnight offering the ‘Oxymoron’ martini, a martini with a healthy twist containing FrequenSea, a unique ‘Superfood’ discovery containing all of Mother Nature’s essential nutrients. This martini has so much good stuff in it that it will relieve all the guilt of consuming alcohol.

“There are so many good messages from artistic expressions; and art is also a powerful catalyst for change. This event is going to be Hilltrip’s 3rd Earth Day event in Whistler and I hope to inspire people to be part of the solutions and care for our planet thought different art forms” says Marie Fortin, event organizer. “April 22 is the last day of the TWSSF, so this last Step it Up event will be like a cleansing evening for the body and the soul and a great way to close the festival and the series in beauty.”

Admission is only $10 and includes a free Cool Tag from Clif Bar and a beer from Whistler Brewing Company. A Cool Tag™ is a renewable wind energy credit that will keep an estimated 300 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) — the main contributor to global warming — out of the air. That’s roughly the same as neutralizing the global warming emissions generated from traveling 300 miles (more than 480 kms) in the average car.

As with every Step it Up event, proceed will support the Snowrider Project, a campaign of the Surfrider Foundation, which aims to bring greater understanding of the hydrological cycle and foster a sense of stewardship towards alpine and valley watersheds. One major initiative for Snowrider is organizing local mountain clean-ups in spring after the snow melts to pick up garbage haphazardly littered during the season by skiers and boarders.

Thanks to Clif Bar, Whistler Brewing Company, O’Neill, Option Snowboards, Spy. Deep Snow & Surf Experience and Maxx Fish for their support on the Step it Up series.

For more info visit www.hilltrip.com




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Hilltrip present
Step it Up no1
Friday, November 24th, 2006 @ MAXX FISH
7PM - Free Mountain Environment Sustainability Session
9PM – Fundraising Party with DJ Mr Fister

Hilltrip presents Step it Up no1, a FREE Mountain Environment Sustainability Session with Jonaven Moore, Professional Snowboarder, and Tyler Bradley, Owner of Hillbilly Wax-Works & Ethica Enviro-Wax, as guest speakers Friday, November 24th at MAXX FISH in Whistler. The session starts at 7PM and will be followed by a fundraising party with DJ Mr Fister.

Proceeds from the party will support the Snowrider Project, a campaign of the Surfrider Foundation, which aims to bring greater understanding of the hydrological cycle and foster a sense of stewardship towards alpine and valley watersheds.

On-site, representatives from Surfrider Vancouver will be available to provide information about the Snowrider Project and to recruit members. Moreover, people will have the opportunity to neutralize global warming emissions by buying wind power credit in the form of Cool Tags from CLIF BAR.

Show up at 7PM to get a chance to win one of the following prizes to be drawn on Earth Day:
•    A 3 days surf trip from Deep Snow & Surf Experience
•    A snowboard from Option Snowboards
•    A pair of Goggle from Spy
•    Goodies from O’Neill
•    And more…


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This is an older blog I had on MySpace but decided I needed to put on here too...part of a long needed updating process


This past Saturday the Snowriders took a day trip with 3 school vans and 24 members to A-Basin...this one of the most entertaining and chaotic days of my life to date. Here is a re-cap...Hope you guys enjoy this as much as I did.

6:30am - Meet members with vans at Westfall parking lot and load up gear

7am - Head out without Wang (Brandon) and one very hung over member

- Brandon G. proceeds to drive like a maniac and nearly kill himself and 12 members - we later find out he's totaled 9 cars (don't ask how he ended up driving)

- All vans narrowly miss random hay bales in middle of the highway...good times

Consumed: 1/2 Liter Svedka Vodka 1 gallon OJ

9:30am - Arrive at A-Basin - Unload members and gear head out

AMAZING first run despite 40mph winds at top

12am - Tyler and Dave start up game of 'Speed Quarters' in the bar with randoms

1pm - Top of mountain closed down due to poor visibility (and maybe 40mph winds). Lift lines hit 45 minute wait...

1:30pm - Trevor, Meg, Adam2, Joel, myself and Dave decide to take a van (and two of the responsible drivers) 7 miles down the road to Keystone

Consumed: Other 1/2 Liter Vodka (flask in hand we head to the gondola)

2 Hours and 1 AMAZING drunken run later (and after running into Courtney Germain), we head back to A-Basin

3:50pm (and 20 minutes after we had told the members to meet us) - Get back to A-Basin, load up vans and head out

- Not without a stop to the liquor store to pick up: another liter of vodka, a bottle of rum and a 12-pack

Here's where the fun really begins:

- Of course it starts to snow and the wonderful CSU rear wheel drive vans start sliding...the drunken guys decide to get out and help push

- Trevor tackles Tyler and tries to throw him over the guard rail

- Tyler get left behind while smoking and has to chase the van in the snow and ice...

- Joel gets pissed off while pushing the vans since cars are trying to pass us in the break down lane and honking...decides to kick a silver BMW in the door and tells the driver "Get back in your f*ing BMW and go spend some more money!"

- Joel opens door of moving car into Tyler...Trevor jumps out and tackles him again

- Meanwhile...drunken annoying member gains nick name of Rum Runner (here on referred to as RR) for the bottle of rum/gallon of OJ he is consuming by himself - Pissing off everyone in the van

- Trevor drunkenly tries to tell Megan how to drive.  Megan gets pissed off and tell Trevor (and RR) to shut up

- We FINALLY get the van moving after fish-tailing all over the place and having to push the van every 5 feet...and it takes us 2-3 hours to hit the Eisenhower Tunnel (should be a half hour - tops)

- RR gets pissed off because I won't let him piss in a bottle. Conversation:

RR: I'm gonna pee in this bottle.

Me: No f*ing way! You're waiting till we get to the gas station like everyone else.

RR: Rugby team is way cooler than Snowriders.

Me: Why? Because they let you piss in beer bottles?!

Time Unknown - Gas Station Stop

- RR tries to purchase two 40's, which we quickly put a stop too (the dumb ass had already had a bottle of rum to himself) - Another comparison of how much better Rugby team is than Snowriders - Meanwhile....Tyler dumps out the rest of RR's booze and replaces it with just OJ - He never knows the difference

- Trevor steals 2 hot dogs, eats one and a half and throws the other at a van while we're pulling out of the parking lot

Back on the Road: Time Unknown

- Trevor, Tyler and annoying/wasted RR PTFO (Tyler in my lap)

- Trevor wakes up: "Hey, we should stop and buy donuts." - One member happens to have purchased donuts at the gas station and gives Trevor half of one.

- Trevor PTFO's

- Trevor wakes up 10 minutes later: "Dude, someone just fed me a f*ing donut."

- Trevor PTFO's

FINALLY We Hit Denver and I-25:

 - Dumb Ass (aka RR) wakes up from drunken stupor. Conversation:

RR: Where are we? What happened today?

Adam2: Seriously, dude?

RR: No really. Why did we leave Ft. Collins?

Adam2: Dude, we went to A-Basin and went snowboarding.

RR: Oh yeaH! I kinda remember now...

The retard FORGOT WE WENT SNOWBOARDING!

- A bunch of us are talking about Megan's b-day party that night. Conversation:

RR: What day is it? Thursday? I can totally go to the party as long as I'm in class by 2 tomorrow.

Me: Nope. Sorry. The party is cancelled.

RR: Aw. Too bad *passes out - thank god* (one of the most annoying drunks I've met in my ENTIRE life)

Apparently he also forgot what day it was...I wonder if he tried to go to class today....

9pm - Back in Ft. Collins

- Unload vans, people, booze, etc.

- Attempt to wake up Tyler (hitting his face, shaking limbs, screaming his name) - Finally after 5 full minutes he comes to and stumbles out of the van into a bush

- Tyler tries to kick Gregg - Gregg grabs his leg - Tyler falls onto sidewalk HARD

- Tyler poors can of Pringles over his face while still lying on pavement

- RR pukes in bush in front of dorm

- RR straps board onto his back pack so it's sticking out the sides and attempts to ride his bike down the sidewalk...takes out the mirrors of about 5 cars....falls down...(hereby banished from ALL Snowriders trips and events that involve possible consumption of alcohol)

- The hords disperse and vans (reeking of booze) are returned. Go CSU

- I realize I can't find my keys...eventually make it home to get spare set, shower, head out to Meg's keg party...needless to say neither Trevor or Tyler made it

Once again...most amazing Snowriders day trip ever. I love you guys

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