Westbound Boarder

Today I learned that Charlie Sperr of legendary, “Charlie’s Mountain View” restaurant and bar in beautiful Government Camp Oregon passed away in his sleep over the weekend. I had the very good fortune of sitting down with Charlie for about an hour this spring and found him to be a really open, engaging and an interesting part of our mountain heritage.

Charlie first came up to the mountain when he was 10 years old and spent a lot of his time both fishing and skiing. During WWII, he spent 4 years, 11 months and 6 days (he made sure to point out) primarily in the South Pacific. When he told me of his time in the war he got that far away look in his eyes that I’ve seen before when the old vets are telling of their time fighting overseas. After WWII, he went to OSU and was later drafted to fight in the Korean War. He had just bought a house, had a baby and was sent to California to become a transportation officer. He wound up managing the mail which he didn’t like very much and signed up for Naval training instead. From there Charlie went into psychological warfare training at Georgetown University. In the summer of 1951 he was sent to Voice of America and was shipped out to Idaho. This proved to be the perfect location for Charlie as he skied every weekend and even taught some too. Up until recently, Charlie had been to Sun Valley every year for 58 years straight!

Charlie opened the Mountain View on June 19, 1977. After speaking with Charlie, I was amazed by his memory and retention of every little detail. He opened the Ratskeller in 1963 and had the Ratskeller West in Cannon Beach back in 1969. Additionally he had the Inn Between both at the beach and in Government Camp. Last but not least, Charlie had the Tyee Valley Saloon, the Thunderhead and snow removal for the town. Quite the entrepreneur to the say the least!

In 1983 Charlie invested roughly $100K to build the infrastructure required to provide cable television in Government Camp. Charlie Vision as it is affectionately known to the locals. When asked if it made any money, Charlie sort of leaned back in his chair, smiled and said,”no, not really”. One of the more interesting aspects of Charlie Vision is the live camera trained down upon the town. In the winter, few things are quite as pleasant as curling up next to the woodstove; listening to Charlie’s classical music and watching folks stroll around in the snow.

Stepping into the dimly lit bar is a little like stepping into the un-official museum of the mountain. There are so many memories in that place you can almost still hear the revelry even when the place is quiet. In addition to live music, great libations and dancing till the wee hours, Charlie’s has also hosted a few different ski clubs and associations. Every year, usually in November there is a “Pray for Snow” party the Schnee Vogeli Ski Club hosts. In February, the Skiyiente Ski Club throw s a King Winter party in which one lucky (or unlucky depending on who you talk to) individual is crowned King Winter for the year. All the prior King’s photos are placed up on the wall and its great fun to go back in time and see the entire former King’s! You might just see someone’s Dad or Grandfather up there!

So, there you have it. A little history lesson on one of Government Camp’s founding Fathers. If you’re ever in Guvvy as we locals call it, take some time and stop in to pay homage to the best bar in town!

R.I.P. Charlie - You will be missed!

I’ve lived in SoCal for two years of my life now, but if you count the 13 years I lived here growing up, that’s 15 years total.  15 winters.  Can you believe I had never been to Mammoth?  Well, a few weeks ago, I decided I was going to change that.

After a particularly long week at work in Seattle, Washington, I decided it was about time to finally head to Mammoth.  It was May, mind you, but reports of continuous fresh pow flooded my ears all spring.  Powder and sun in May?  Um, sold!  My flight home from Seattle landed at LAX around 5:30pm, so I headed home, threw some cloths into a bag, and by 7pm my friend Matty and I were cramped up in his tough (and slightly smelly) Toyota, gear, pillows and sleeping bags sprawled in the back, cruising up the 405 freeway toward Mammoth.

We arrived around midnight (we took an hour-long detour in search of food… we ended up at Panda Express; figures) and stayed in a quaint little pad that must have slept at least 14.  Yeah, the place was tight, but cozy.  We pretty much hit the sack immediately, in preparation for the long day that lay ahead.

Now, I was told that it was pretty cold at Mammoth, so as soon as our alarms went off next morning (ok, well, after hitting the snooze button a few times) I piled on the layers.  Two pairs of pants, three top layers, and two pairs of socks later, I was bundled and ready to hit the slopes… only to find that it was at least 50 degrees F but the time we got up to the hill.  Translation, I could have worn a bikini and made out just fine.

From the main town area, you can either take a tram from the bottom to the hill or drive up.  It’s maybe a 10-minute drive and parking kind of stinks, but if you’re willing to shell out 20 bucks you’re granted premium parking right in the lot (we don’t like exercise, so we opted for that route).  We picked up our tickets (beware - lift tickets will run you a whopping 87 bucks, but rumor has it prices will rise to 92 next year, making Mammoth one of the highest priced mountain resorts in the US) and were finally ready to face the hill and shred some ridiculous spring snow.  And the sun definitely wasn’t stopping the pow from being anything less than amazing.

One of the great things about Mammoth is that there really is something for everyone.  There’s more than 90 acres of free terrain that incorporates a nice mix of beginner and advanced slopes.  There are some fun tree runs, but plenty of bowls and open groomers as well.  We spent the morning shredding the terrain (I’m sure we didn’t even begin to graze the surface of all that was available to us) but the real fun began in the park.

With three pipes and seven parks, Mammoth is continually touted as having one of the best parks in the nation.  And I can definitely see why.  Their park area was pretty sick.  It had a nice mix of jumps and they were very well groomed, but also a good number of mid-sized jumps, just enough to challenge me without completely scaring me off.  There were a few 70 footers, too (and people were actually doing them )  This year toward the end of the season, Mammoth even brought in a landing pad where riders could try new tricks or perfect the old… you know, without dying and such.

My favorite thing about Mammoth, though, is the chill and laid-back vibe this hill resonates, especially in the less-crowded spring season.  Everyone spends their days chilling in the park or hanging on the benches outside with a drink in hand before they start round two.  Out of any resort I’ve been to, Mammoth is hands down the most fun, whether you’re riding or not.  And the nightlife ain’t too shabby, either.

Insider Tip: Given its close proximity to what is commonly referred to as the mecca of action sports (ahem, LA) there is always something going down at Mammoth.  Before you plan your trip out though, be sure to check the events calendar on the Mammoth website before solidifying your trip dates. The best weekends to go are the weekends when there’s something big going down - the Roxy Chicken Jam or the West Coast Invitational, for instance.  And there’s always a pro or two to be spotted - especially when you go during a big event weekend.  I saw US Olympic rider Greg Bretz and Tyler Flanagan in the park line several times, for instance, and I bumped into Elena Hight at lunch.

With more than 45 feet of snow falling throughout the 2009/10 season, Mammoth Mountain is currently slated to stay open through the Fourth of July weekend.  So if you’re still looking to satisfy your snowboard fix, you still have a whole month to make it up!

If I were to sum up Mammoth in three words or less, it might sound a little something like this - Great snow, killer parks, and awesome local vibe (Okay, so that may be a few words over three, but you get the idea…)  All in all, Mammoth is a mountain worth going for.

A couple weeks ago (March 25 - 28) top female snowboarders from around the world all came together for the sixth annual Roxy Chicken Jam at Mammoth Mountain, CA.  The Roxy Chicken Jam is one of the premiere industry events for females, and it plays a huge role in raising the profile for women in the snowboard industry.  And in case you missed the event live, no worries, because you can catch the recap on FUEL TV (schedule below).

The Roxy Chicken Jam women only snowboard contest gathers the world’s best pro riders to compete in both a slopestyle and superpipe competition at Mammoth Mountain. With more than 100 girls from around the world, Olympic gold medalist Kelly Clark, Rana Okada, Olympian Elena Hight, X Games gold medalist Jamie Anderson and Cheryl Mass all compete for a chance at $15,000.

“ROXY CHICKEN JAM 2010″ Air Dates:
Monday, 5/10/2010 8:00 PM ET / 5:00PM PT
Monday, 5/10/2010 11:00 PM ET /8:00PM PT
Wednesday, 5/12/2010 12:30 PM ET / 9:30 AM PT
Friday, 5/14/2010 12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
Saturday, 5/15/2010 3:00 PM ET / 12:00 PM PT
Sunday, 5/16/2010 11:30 AM ET / 8:30 AM PT
Monday, 5/17/2010 3:30 AM ET / 12:30 PM PT
Wednesday, 5/19/2010 6:30 PM ET / 3:30 PM PT
Saturday, 5/22/2010 12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
Sunday, 5/23/2010 9:00 AM ET / 6:00 AM PT
Tuesday, 5/25/2010 8:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM PT
Tuesday, 5/25/2010 11:00 PM ET / 8:00 PM PT
Friday, 5/28/2010 2:30 AM ET / 11:30 PM PT
Saturday, 5/29/2010 9:00 AM ET / 6:00 AM PT
Tuesday, 6/1/2010 3:00 PM ET / 12:00 PM PT
Wednesday, 6/2/2010 12:30 AM ET / 9:30 PM PT
Monday, 6/7/2010 3:30 AM ET / 12:30 AM PT
Tuesday, 6/8/2010 9:30 PM ET / 6:30 PM PT
Wednesday, 6/16/2010 6:30 PM ET / 3:30 PM PT
Monday, 6/28/2010 12:30 PM ET / 9:30 AM PT

After a somewhat extended winter season, with many mountains out west receiving several feet of fresh pow in the middle of April, spring riding conditions have finally snuck up on us.  Personally, spring is my favorite time to ride.  As people begin to trade their boots for booties, the resorts are much less crowded, the vibe is super fun and chill, and the weather is great!  But there is one thing to always remember while shedding your outer layers and heading up to the slopes on a 60 degree SoCal day - sunblock.

Now, I always like to add a personal touch to my stories here on Westbound Boarder, so in an attempt to pepper some personal experience into this post I decided to embark on a mission of great detail - to head to Mammoth Mountain on a sunny, 60-degree spring day… sans sunscreen.  It was purely research! (Ok, so I simply forgot… so what?)  Hence… the photo to your right.  That’s right, I got goggle burn.

Yes, I’m sure you have read it many times in magazines, books and blogs; while sun is great and goggle burn is sorta cool, it does, in fact, cause damage to your skin, and the rays dispersed on the slopes can be much worse because they are reflected off the snow, actually magnifying the damaging effect.  This is why it is vital to always wear sunblock when you ride, especially on sunny spring days.

Despite my advice above and thousands of reports proving that the sun’s effect on skin is, in fact, damaging, many of you will probably ignore my advice and attempt to attain the infamous goggle tan anyway.  After all, we all know only legit riders rock the goggle tan, right?  So if you really feel like you must sport the goggle tan, below are some do’s and don’ts for achieving the perfect goggle tan:

DO

• Wear at least some form of sun protection to protect from UV rays and skin damage. SPF 15 will do just fine. Even better if sunscreen is already infused in your daily moisturizer. I really like Aveno Positively Radiant daily moisturizer (but beware, it’s SPF 30 - aka, not great if you’re going for the dark, defined goggle tan, as this will slightly lengthen the time it takes to achieve goggle tan perfection).
• Sport your goggles while eating lunch, without your hat and helmet on. This will prevent strange shapes and strap lines from appearing on funky places on your face, ultimately creating a nice, clean, and smooth goggle tan.
• Wear goggles, not sungasses.  Goggle tan = cool; 80’s Sunglasses tan = WTHWYT (What the heck were you thinking?!)

DON’T

• Wear your goggles in a tanning bed. That’s pretty lame. Okay, no, it’s really lame. Tanning bed goggle tan = way not hardcore.
• Use sunless tanner to half-ass your goggle tan.  Not only is it not hardcore, its also kind of weird.  Fake face tan = NOT a real goggle tan!
• Take a photo and photoshop in a goggle tan.  If you’re going to go that route, you may as well photoshop in Shaun White, while you’re at it.  If people don’t believe you and Shaun are shred friends, they probably won’t believe your photoshopped goggle tan either.
• Use a magic marker to draw on a goggle tan.  Hate to break it to ya, but I think people will notice.  And stare.  And possibly laugh.  Hey, if you pass out and wake up the next morning with a magic marker goggle tan (can we call it a mmgt?) that’s a different story.  But a mmgt on purpose?  Leave it to the 3-year-olds.
• Take goggles from kids. That’s just wrong; bring your own damn goggles.

Are you kicking yourself in the bootie for not going up to the mountain enough this season?  No worries, there’s still time!  Mountains across America are extending their seasons thanks to late spring snow storms, and here in SoCal (don’t let the 70 degree days we’ve been having fool you) the resorts are still going strong.  Mountain High, for example, plans to stay open until May 2, making this their longest season in history, with a total of 186 days of riding.  The best part?  Starting Monday, lift tickets will be reduced to $35 for adults (regularly $55) and $25 for kids ages 7 - 12.

If you still plan to head up, though, I caution you to go early.  The spring sunshine definitely takes its toll on the hill, with small lakes starting to form in the lift lines by 11.  I’d recommend heading up bright and early (8ish - mountain opens at 8 on weekends and 9 on weekdays), hooking yourself up with a nice 4 hour lift pass, and getting the heck out by noon.  Next stop, an afternoon at the beach surfing, perhaps?

My favorite time of year has finally arrived…you know spring riding, corn snow and the 4th Annual Mt. Hood Meadows SnoKona. This is the event of the season and the event I have been waiting all year for.  Don’t believe me? Check out my recap from this event last spring. The Pond Skim is the absolute funniest, entertaining event; with great costumes, 100 shred heads skimming for their lives (and a free trip to Hawaii) across a 90 foot rigid pond, you are guaranteed a great time.

The deets: The 4th Annual Spring Splash Pond Skimming Competition will be here this Saturday, April 24th (or the 25th depending on Saturday’s weather!). This event is brought to you by Kona Brewing Co. and All About Hawaii Travel, which means, Hawaiian music, drinks, food and costumes

The Rules: All participants will receive one attempt to cross the 90 foot pond successfully, those who do so will advance to the ’skim-off,’ where if more than one contestant makes it to the other side during the ’skim-off’ the winner will be based upon the following: best skim style, best Hawaiian costume, best showmanship and best Best crowd reaction. First place is a trip for two to Hawaii. Second place winners will take home their very own Kona Prize Pack which includes two beach chairs, a skimboard, a backpack cooler, a Kona beach towel and a set of 12 Kona glasses. Third place will be treated to a $50 gift certificate from bamboo grove.

Haven’t convinced you yet? Well leave it to the grand prize. The top three skimmers, the best splash, best impression made by a women contestant, and best Hawaiian costume will walk home with a prize, one of which is a round trip vacation for two to Hawai’i!

Registration is $25 and includes your comp fee and a Sno-Kona towel, so hurry up as space is limited to 100 participants! I will be there, Kona brew in hand covering the event (not competing this year, wonder why? check out our event recap from last year!)  So let me know if you plan on attending the event by leaving a comment or shooting me an email, (westboundboarder@gmail.com) because we would love to see you there!

I’m always stoked to see women-only snowboard comps. which is why the Covergirl Snow Angels Invitational (as well as last weekend’s Roxy Chicken Jam) is hot on our radar.  This year’s event will once again be held at Snowmass this coming weekend, April 2 - 4, and it will feature some of the industry’s best talent.  Competing athletes include Olympic athletes Gretchen Bleiler, Kelly Clark, and Elena Hight, as well as Sarah Conrad, Ellery Hollingsworth, Mercedes Nicoll, Linn Haug, Maddy Schaffrick, Haruna Matsumoto, Soko Yamaoka, Sophie Rodriguez, Kelly Marren, Palmer Taylor, Paulina Ligocka and Ursina Holler.  The event will feature a Superpipe contest on Saturday, April 3 in Snowmass. In addition, there will be several lifestyle activities for the riders including a spa day, yoga classes and a girl’s night out on the town.  The girls will all vie for $20,000 in prize money at the superpipe competition in Snowmass on April 3.

This year’s event will feature several new twists on past year’s activities, including the Barbie Little Air (open to the public) where participants 13-years-old and younger will compete on a small jump at the base of Snowmass for prizes from Barbie (totally cute! I wish I could go watch!), an autograph session with the athletes at Spider Sabich below the Snowmass Superpipe, free snowboard demo from K2 Snowboard’s 2011 product and poolside après party at the Viceroy Resorts and Residences.

This event is awesome and so perfect for the female audience because it shows that its okay for women to be hardcore snowboarders while still embracing their inner feminine beauty, despite the fact that action sports is a male-dominated industry.  It’s also a neat way to integrate a non-endemic brand into the snowboard industry.  Kudos!

Catch the full event schedule below, and stay tuned for the highlights!

Thursday, April 1st
9 am - 4 pm: K2 Snowboard Demo - Snowmass Village Mall

Friday, April 2nd
9 am - 4 pm: K2 Snowboard Demo, Oakley and ContourHD demo - Snowmass Village Mall
10 am - 1 pm: Film, photo shoot & freeride day - Snowmass Superpipe
3 pm - 4 pm: Barbie Little Air - Snowmass Fanny Hill

Saturday, April 3rd
9 am - 4 pm: K2 Snowboard Demo, Oakley and ContourHD demo - Snowmass Village Mall
9:30 am - 2 pm: Free superpipe viewing access for foot-passengers - Burlingame lift
10 am: Superpipe practice - Snowmass Superpipe
11:30 am - 12:45 pm: Superpipe Jam Session Competition - Snowmass Superpipe
12 - 2 pm: Lunch specials - Spider Sabich Cabin
1 - 1:30pm: COVERGIRL Snow Angel athlete autograph session - Spider Sabich Cabin
4 - 6 pm: Poolside après party - Viceroy Pool

Sunday April 4th
9 am - 4 pm: Oakley and ContourHD demo - Snowmass Village Mall
10 am - 1 pm: Film, photo shoot & freeride - Snowmass Superpipe
9 pm - 12 am: COVERGIRL Snow Angel night out featuring Danger Kitty - Belly Up Aspen

Some Friday news tid bits for you today; enjoy!

Links to Surf

• Surf + Travel + Documentary + Timmy Curran = Awesome! Timmy Curran’s newest venture “The Union Express,” a documentary that follows him along the California coast as he checks out the major surf spots, is set to be released on iTunes April 14.  Check out the trailer over at HUCK; I’m buying this one for sure!
• Win a 14-Day Trip To Greece: Wait a minute… say what?  This just in - Contiki Vacations, Diane’s Beachwear and FOAM Magazine are offering a chance to win a fourteen-day trip to Greece. The vacation package includes visits to Athens, Mykonos, Santorini and Ios, and a shopping spree at Diane’s to find that perfect bikini for sunbathing and island-hopping in style.  Sweepstakes candidates can submit their entries here.  The contest runs through April 2010 and the winner will be announced on Foam’s website May 5, 2010. The winner will receive one Contiki Greek Island Hopping trip which includes hotel accommodations, meals, a dedicated crew to show the sights and a $200 gift certificate to Diane’s Beachwear.

News Bits

• Check out Spring-A-Ma-Jig at Mt. High this Saturday: Not only is it Louie Vite ride day at High, its also the first annual 9of three) Spring-A-Ma-Jig rail jam and pond skim! (Apparently Vito’s a guest judge for the bikini contest).  Deets over at Mt. High’s Web site.
• The Dew Tour selects Las Vegas to host the final stop of the 2010 season: Action sports… Vegas… Best of both worlds! (Where can I sign up?)  Last week, the Alliance of Action Sports announced that it selected las Vegas to host the Dew Tour Championships (the fifth and final stop of the Tour), as well as the final awards ceremony.  The tour will commence October 14 - 17, 2010 at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.  Tickets for the 2010 Dew Tour will be on sale soon and will be available via Ticketmaster.com and Ticketmaster box offices.  Visit allisports.com for more information.  Full tour schedule:
  • Skate Open, ISF Skateboarding World Championships: June 25-26 Boston, Mass. - TD Garden
  • Nike 6.0 BMX Open: July 23-24 Chicago, Ill. - Museum Campus
  • Wendy’s Invitational: Aug. 12-15 Portland, Ore. - Rose Quarter
  • Toyota Challenge: Sept. 16-19 Salt Lake City, Utah - EnergySolutions Arena
  • Dew Tour Championships: Oct. 14-17 Las Vegas, Nev. - Hard Rock Hotel & Casino

A local Mt. High rider recently sent me a video his friend created (featuring all local talent) and I loved it so much I thought I’d post and share with you all!  Very creative and different, and the featured talent is out of this world.  Enjoy!

ANTEBELLUM from Lennon Films on Vimeo.

Saturday was supposed to be the “Active Sponsor Me” competition at Mt. High, and I figured, “Hey, I haven’t done a comp. in a while, this one’s laid back and fun; why the hell not?”  So I arrive to the mountain and ask where I can find the registration table, only to find… the competition was moved?!  To Sunday?  A few days prior.  Seriously, who just moves a competition right before its about to happen (and not bother to change any of the posters - wait, correction, apparently the “Web site was updated.”)  I was a little irritated, especially since I now had to pay full price for a ticket on an 85 degree day (think: snow = lake by 11am).

So I was waiting in line for a ticket and this lady comes up to me holding a stack of tickets and says, “Hey, I see you’re waiting in line for a ticket.  Do you want a free one?”  Say what?  Thinking this was some sort of trick to get me in trouble by the snowboard mafia, I proceeded to grill her on the origin of these so-called “free” tickets.  “I got them for free when I put my kids in ski school, so I don’t have any use for them since I’m not skiing.”  Hm, likely response.  That is what the snowboard mafia would want you to think, now isn’t it?  But wait a minute, a long line in front of me, and a free ticket behind me…  hm, I’ll take my chances!  I’ll just have to whip out my judo kick for when the snowboard mafia jumps out from behind the trees and takes me down to snowboard jail.  Take that snowboard mafia!  (And just in case you were wondering, the ticket actually worked fine.  No hoax!  And I even made a new snowboard bud; nothing like bonding over a couple free tickets, right?)

So we all know how they saying goes… but on Saturday Karma totally worked in my favor for once!

And the second moral to my tale is that, although I did not get to watch the “Sponsor Me” comp. (boo hoo), Mt. High put together a dandy little video for everyone else like me out there.  SoCal has some awesome local talent, so catch it here!

« Older Entries