Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Who would have thought ski and snowboard wax are a big threat to our environment and us? Tyler Braly from Hillbilly Wax-Works and Ethica Enviro-Wax probably know more than the average Joe Blow about the toxicity of the wax on the market right now.

Tyler explains, “every season, thousands upon thousands of kilograms of ski wax are applied to skis and snowboards.  Beeswax, pine tar, the natural materials once used to wax or seal skis have long since fallen by the wayside.  Nowadays, conventional ski wax is made from varying blends of low-grade paraffin and synthetic fluorine chemicals, and therein lurks the problem. Paraffin wax is a waste byproduct of large scale petroleum and petrochemical refinement.  The low-grade paraffin used by ski wax makers is junk material to Big Oil, the unwanted materials made incredibly cheap to purchase. As such, paraffin is non-renewable, unsustainable, and is a material directly related to the continued abuse and reliance upon fossil fuels.” Only that fact should rig a bell to the dumb and dumber of this world.

Just think about it for a sec; every time you melt wax, you release several hazardous chemicals that are classified as human carcinogens and every time you ride, the wax end up in nature.

We might not know all the effect wax has yet, but we know enough to start making conscious choices and trying not to use wax made with low-grade paraffin and synthetic fluorine chemicals. I say trying because all the wax on the market right now is basically made from those toxic material and it’ll take a while before regulations on those same materials be in place to protect us.

So my word on it is don’t wait until wax made from low-grade paraffin and synthetic fluorine chemicals are banned and start using environmentally friendly (and human friendly) wax buyng Hillbilly Wax-Works and Ethica Enviro-Wax, witch are now available in Mountain Equipment Co-op here in Canada, REI in the U.S, and a handful of other progressive and supportive retailers throughout the larger winter sports community. Please visit their website for a complete list of retailers: http://www.hillbillywaxworks.com/Ethica/Partners.cfm

For more information please read Tyler Bradley’s article “Toxins on the Slopes” at http://www.hilltrip.com/wax.html

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Published by hilltrip: 7:39 PM Updated On: 11/28/2006 at 7:46 PM

Sunday, November 19, 2006

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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Published by hilltrip: 7:16 AM Updated On: 11/19/2006 at 7:32 AM