Westbound Boarder

2010 has come and (almost) gone (Happy New Year’s Eve!) and looking back on the ups and downs, there is one Shredolution that Danielle and I set out to accomplish last year and far surpassed – visit at least 2 new snowboard resorts in 2010.  In 2010 alone, we visited more than 25 resorts between the two of us, so we sat down to rank our favorites.  It was a rather difficult thing to do, considering we liked each and every resort for very different reasons, but after debating for a few hours, we finally narrowed down our favorites in order of ranking.  Our list is below!

1. Vail: The best thing about Vail is that it literally has everything. How is that possible? This resort is MASSIVE (well over 5,000 ski-able acres!!!). They have a great ski/snowboard school, tons of groomers, over 30 lifts granting access to bowls, chutes, back-country, tree runs and more. They even have multiple terrain parks for each and every skill level with almost too many features to hit. It is all of this versatility that makes Vail our number one resort to visit, as there is something for everyone!  Insider Tip: One thing is also for sure, if you can handle the double blacks, head directly back to Blue Sky Basin. Be sure to give yourself time to get back there as it is quite the treck, but is is soooooo worth it. (Learn More)
2. Mammoth: It is big, versatile and has something for everyone. (Learn more)
3. Heavenly: If your idea of a fun day riding is shredding groomers until you can’t shred no more or hanging at the local dive bar after a long day of riding, then Heavenly is most certainly not the resort for you.  If you have always longed for Vegas to build a mountain-themed casino, on the other hand, then Heavenly may be just your style.  Heavenly is a super fun resort, but only if you take the time to travel off the beaten path.  While the groomers and parks are nothing to brag about, Heavenly has some of the best tree runs around; a perfect place to ride if you love shredding neverending pow and exploring interesting places.  But let’s not forget the nightlife – unlike most mountain resorts, Heavenly is one of the few that sits right on a landmine of Vegas-style Casinos.  It’s the perfect resort to take a trip to if not everyone in your group has their sights set on riding.
4. Cerro Cathedral: After a long, snowy winter riding, what more could you ask for?  More snowboarding, of course!  Cerro Cathedral, located in Bariloche, Argentina, is the place to go if you want to experience both killer riding and the fun, local Argentinian culture.  Their backcountry terrain is unreal, and there is so much to explore beyond groomed runs.  And the best part?  Their season runs during our summer, so you can literally snowboard all year round if you are so inclined.
5. Breckenridge: If there’s one word we could pick to describe Breckenridge, it would be, well, awesome?  Breck has some of the best terrain parks, and even some great terrain (if you can manage to move yourself outside their parks).  One of the coolest things about Breck, though, is that everyone on the “who’s who of snowboarding” list rides here, has ridden here, or plans to ride here later this season.  You can literally sit at the top of the park for hours and just watch people ride through – it seems as if everyone who rides at Breck is pro! (Or maybe just everyone who is pro rides at Breck?)  Combined with a laid-back atmosphere, high profile events and fun nightlife, Breck offers the complete package. (Learn more)
6. Snowbird: A Steep, deep, powder hounds heaven. Snowbird is not a place for the beginner, as there is not really any easy way down the hill. My favorite part of this resort? They don’t waste away Utah’s, ‘best snow on earth,’ with the dreaded groomers. Snowbird has everlasting powder and a one-of-a-kind tunnel that takes you through the mountain on a conveyor belt to the backside of the mountain, a must see when you visit Snowbird. Insider Tip: the Snowbird Tram increases the price of your lift ticket, but does not give you access to additional terrain (assuming the other lifts taking you to the top are open). Not too exciting so save your extra cash and just buy the day pass sans Tram access.
7. Alyeska: Located in Alaska only 30 minutes from Anchorage, this resort is mellow, full of light fluffy powder and has literally the hands down best view from the top of a resort. A real package deal, and with lift tickets only running $60 bucks, it is budget friendly, too.
8. Mt. High: It may be small, and the snow may slightly resemble a small, flowing creek anytime past noon, but this resort’s got character.  Located only 45 minutes to an hour outside of LA, Mt. High is LA’s hidden gem.  It’s often overshadowed by Big Bear, but IMHO, this resort knocks Bear out of the park – it’s closer, it’s mostly straight highway driving (unlike the windy road to Bear that can take 2 hours or more to get down), and its terrain parks are just as good, if not better.  And the best part?  If you so desire, you could ride hard in the morning and still be on the beaches by 1.  Now that’s the life! (Learn more)
9. Timberline: Located at our home base Mt. Hood, Timberline will always hold a special place in our hearts. Compared to it’s direct competitor, Mt. Hood meadows, Timberline boasts INCREDIBLE terrain parks, virtually no lift lines and it is open all year (yes, even all summer). A must visit on your trip to Hood, especially on the weekends when Mt. Hood Meadows has the long lift line fever.
10. Solitude: This is one of the most underrated resorts we have been too. As Utah is packed full of top rated resorts (over 11 within an hour of the SLC airport), Solitude does not have the street cred. it deserves. With versatile terrain including tree runs, amazing steeps, powder stashes and natural cliff drops, Solitude really has something for all riders (yes, they even have the groomers). On top of the excellent terrain, Solitude has a laid back vibe and nearly no lift lines.

For more “Best of 2010″ posts, check out The Top 10 Easy Tricks to Learn Before 2010 Ends and Top 10 Safety Tips to Remember.

Today was the last day of the first Winter Dew Tour stop here in Breckenridge, Colorado, and with nearly 2 feet of fresh pow blanketing the slopes, it was a nice way to end the four-day-long tour.  Norway’s Torstein Horgmo took first on the men’s side with a score of 96.50.  His winning run included a frontside noseblunt slide to fakie, a switch frontside double cork 10 and a switch backside 9.

Taking first place in the women’s heat and defending her Dew Tour Championship title was Tahoe’s own Jamie Anderson.  This was her fifth first place Dew Tour finish, which she snabbed with a score of 93.00 and a run that included a back 180, switch back 180, fifty-fifty, back 3 and a corked front 3.

The full snowboard slopestyle results are below.  Overall, it’s been a great four days, but man am I ready to shred the slopes!  So tomorrow, it’s Keystone for me!

Women’s Slopestyle Final Results

Also, this just in – video highlights from yesterday’s halfpipe event below!

I’m out here in Breckenridge, Colorado again for the third day of the first Winter Dew Tour Stop, the Nike 6.0 Open.  With prelim rounds behind us, today riders prepped for the men’s and women’s ski and snowboard halfpipe finals.  Unlike yesterday’s sunshine, though, today’s weather blanketed the pipe with snow, which threw competitors for a loop and slowed them down considerably.

Louie Vito ended up winning the men’s pipe finals with a score of 90.25, and considering the second place male, Matt Ladley, finished with a 75, I’d say Louie stomped it.  His winning set included a front double ten, cab double ten and a crippler (no double corks, Louie?)  You can tell just by looking at the scores that the conditions threw several riders off.  Olympic bronze medalist Scotty Lago, for example, finished with a best score of only 14.

On the women’s side, Spain’s Queralt Castellet took first place, with Elena Hight following right behind.  I’m surprised Kelly Clark, who took sixth in the finals, didn’t end up finishing with a higher score, especially since she took first in the prelims, followed by Elena Hight.

Despite the heavy snow that slowed down the pipe, today’s event was a success, and riders continued to push the boundaries with stylish tricks and good momentum.

Check out the full halfpipe finals results below, and tune in tomorrow for slopestyle.

Women’s Superpipe Final Results

Men’s Superpipe Final Results

Men’s Ski Superpipe Final Results

*Results courtesy of Alli

I’m out here in Breckenridge helping out with the first winter Dew Tour stop of the season – its been one heck of a tour so far!  More than 380 riders from 18 different countries are competing in this year’s tour, including Kelly Clark, Elena Hight, JJ Thomas, Scotty Lago, Sage Kostenburg, Mason Aguirre, Jamie Anderson, Chanelle Sladics, and Louie Vito.  This year, the tour opted to follow the new industry standard and debut a 22 foot halfpipe instead of the 18 foot pipe it has used in the past, so we should see some pretty sick tricks over the next couple of days.

Today, Kevin Pearce made a quick appearance in the village (apparently it is one of his first public appearances since his big injury), and he should be all set for an interview with Fuel TV tomorrow afternoon.

Yesterday and today, the tour held qualifying rounds, and the men’s superpipe finals are on deck for tomorrow.  Keep checking back for the latest updates!

To give you a little sneak peak of the slopestyle course, check out the video from Alli below.

The snow is falling and the lifts are calling our names. With opening weekends all around the West, I wanted to give a few shout-outs. We have got Timberline who closed for the summer early September and opened for Winter early Oct. No contest, Mt. Hood wins. We have Mammoth, Snowbird, Brighton and Breckenridge all opening THIS week and Heavenly & Squaw Valley shortly behind opening next week. No matter how you swing it, we have got most resorts opening within the next week…Hello snowboard season!

Breckenridge

Mammoth

Today, Alli announced that Nike 6.0 just signed on as the title sponsor of the Winter Dew Tour season-opener in Breckenridge, Colorado.  In previous years, Nike 6.0 was an associate sponsor.

“Entering its third season, the Winter Dew Tour has established itself as a strong platform for growing winter action sports at all levels,” said Chris Prybylo, General Manager of the Winter Dew Tour. “Having an esteemed brand like Nike 6.0 extend their relationship with us to event title sponsor demonstrates the strength of the property and their brand’s shared commitment to this industry.”   Breckenridge is the first of three stops in the Winter Dew Tour’s line up this year.  Dates and times of stops are as follows:

• Nike 6.0 Open, Dec. 16-19, Breckenridge Ski Resort – Breckenridge, Colo.
• Winter Dew Tour Killington, Jan. 20-23, Killington Resort – Killington, Vt.
• Toyota Championships, Feb. 10-13, Snowbasin Resort – Ogden, Utah

Also interesting, The Dew Tour is following suit of the Olympics and many other major competitions by increasing the size of their halfpipe from 18 feet to 22.  Though it may be hotly debated, history shows that 22 foot pipes are, in fact, safer than their 18 foot cousins because there is more wall to give when riders fall.  But they also allow for more amplitude, so not only do tricks look cooler, but riders actually have time to throw down what they want while still having time to come to a perfect landing, especially as more technical tricks are becoming the industry norm.

This winter’s competitive circuit should be a good one, and I don’t know about you, but I’m stoked!

During my many years of shredding, I have followed countless traditions here on Mt. Hood, and even made up my own along the way … Silent Rock, Shell gas station stop in Sandy, Mtn Moka, and Harley (more to come on these at a later date!) are a few of my personal faves. So during my visit to Breckenridge, I learned about a valuable tradition with a beaded necklace (mardi-gras style) I aquired locally. Here’s how it goes: Throwing beads into trees from the chair lift, or other offerings like your bra, underware, googles, or whatever you choose, is a form of making a sacrifice to the “snow gods” for good luck, for additional snow fall for the winter and the set up for a stellar spring. An appropriate gesture of “giving back to the community” for some extra powder, in my opinion. Lose some to win some… SNOW is well worth it in my opinion!

It is some of these fun small details that make the entire culture and lifestyle of snowboarding unique. It also adds never-ending drive to explore the mountains and resorts of the world, fueling the fire of my passion for the sport.

Not too many people can say they snowboard for a living, but for Chanelle Sladics, a SoCal native, board sports are her life.  In her words – “Snowboarding is just … so fun.”  And with a first place finish in the Aspen Open, third place finishes in the US Open and Mount Snow Winter Dew Tour, and a 2007 X Games Bronze Medal in slopestyle behind her, Chanelle is living the dream.

Chanelle grew up as an aspiring surfer in Newport Beach, California.  She loved hitting the tube, but never had anyone to ride with so she never really got into it.  She started skating on a regular basis in place of surfing and ended up getting sponsored by a local skate shop, after which she began competing.  However, skating never really “clicked” for her, so she stopped competing, and that was that.  But she always had a connection to the mountains.  She grew up traveling frequently – her parents took her somewhere nearly every weekend, whether it be to the mountains, the water, or somewhere else – so she developed an itch for traveling and adventure at an early age.

When she was in fourth grade, Chanelle suffered a terrible injury that gave her a new perspective on sports, and life.  While playing soccer, she fell and broke her arm, a break so bad she nearly had to have her arm amputated.  She knew she had a long recovery ahead of her.  After the break, it took her nearly two years to regain mobility and feeling in her arm.  She came back and “sucked at everything,” in her opinion, so she decided to start over and take up snowboarding.

At first, she had no idea what she was doing on a snowboard.  She didn’t even know how to carve, but she would charge the jumps anyway and kill it.  By her third lesson, she was sponsored by her local snowboard shop (the same shop that sponsored her for skating).  She became a member of USASA and won the Jr. New Zealand snowboard comp, both which helped land her a spot in the X Games her senior year of high school.

Snowboarding was Chanelle’s passion, a passion she pursued on the weekends, while still attending school full time.  “I was the beach girl [who] thought she would never be a pro snowboarder,” she said.  She went on to college and moved into the dorms, and became a cast member on a new MTV show called “3 Way Threat,” which profiles the lives of athletes who excel in either snow, surf or skate (or all 3) and also features Shaun White, Todd Richards, Hannah Teter, and MFM.  After placing 12th in the X Games, though, Chanelle began to think, “what would happen if I really tried snowboarding, full time?”  She talked to her parents, who offered Chanelle a compromise.  They said they would give her one year to make it as a pro, during which they would offer their full support 100 percent, but after that she would be required to go back to college, snowboarding once again only as a weekend hobby.  Chanelle said it was the best way to really jump-start her career on the slopes.  Looking back, she feels it was one of her best decisions, because it allowed her the opportunity to truly focus on achieving her dream of becoming a pro snowboarder.  And, well, we all know what happened next.

Since then, Chanelle has dominated the pro snowboarding circuit, winning competitions and starring in a number of film roles, one of her most recent being Oakley’s “Uniquely,” a 35-minute travel inspired women’s action sports film.  On her job (if you could ever, possibly call snowboarding a “job”), Chanelle says, “It is just a dream that I get to travel the world and have amazing sponsors.  The older I get the more I realize what a blessing it is.”  And of the industry, she expresses sheer gratitude – “It is amazing that action sports is getting this sort of respect, and to be part of that growth is even more amazing.”

Aside from being one of the best pro riders our generation has ever seen and a “triple threat” in snow, surf and skate, Chanelle is a super humble, down-to-earth human being who lives life one step at a time.  She spends her summers living in San Diego, where she has a huge garden and grows her own food, and her winters in Breckenridge, Colorado.  “To be so close to all the resorts is pretty rad,” she says of Breck.  But she definitely doesn’t restrict herself to these two, physical locations.  In fact, she spent this past summer getting her skydiving license in Hawaii, then went on to co-produce a yoga DVD, traveled to Costa Rica for a wedding, snowboarded in Canada, New Zealand and Australia, and finished with racecar driving school in Florida.  Her idea of a perfect day on the hill would involve heading up with a group of her best friends, riding powder all morning then hitting the park in the afternoon, with good music and high fives all around, then carving laps until sunset.  It would begin with a “kick ass” organic, vegetarian breakfast, and end with a long yoga sesh.  Her perfect day would also involve learning something new, as she feels it is important to always learn from your obstacles and grow as a human being.

Where will life take Chanelle next?  Well, she doesn’t exactly know at the moment.  She loves to compete, but she also loves to film, and she doesn’t like defining her life by just one thing.  One thing she does know, though, is that there is a lot more traveling in her foreseeable future.  “I have a massive itch to see the world,” she says.  She has already been all over – China, Japan, Bosnia, Fiji, France – and she loves going to third world countries.  So where will Chanelle go next?  That’s another story to be told.

Last week, Danielle, Rochelle and I all took an epic trip to Vail, our second annual snowboard trip to Colorado.  But this year, instead of spending the entire time riding Vail, we decided to try something new and shred at several different resorts.  Enter, Breckenridge.

Ever since last year’s Winter Dew Tour, I’ve been dying to ride at Breckenridge, CO.  Several of the biggest names in snowboarding call Breck their part-time home – Shaun White, Chanelle Sladics, JJ Thomas and Bobby Brown, just to name a few.  And the park and super pipe consistently top Transworld’s best list.  The combination of the high elevation, expansive free terrain and variety of terrain parks makes Breckenridge a top-notch resort in my book.  Oh, and parking was free for parties over four the day we went – love that they promote carpooling! (Normally, it’s $5 weekdays and $10 weekends, which is still pretty inexpensive in comparison to Vail).

This would be the medium park

When we arrived to Breckenridge, we thought we might as well start out the day right with a run through the park.  Looking at the trail map, we noticed there were three different types of parks – small, medium, and large.  We decided to settle for the in between and hit the medium park (also because it was the most convenient from where we started out, Peak 7).  Well, apparently the folks at Breckenridge do not quite go by the standard definition of “medium” we had envisioned … Compared to what we’re used to riding at Hood and High/Bear, this “medium” park was HUGE!  After staring awe struck for a moment at the top, glancing down at the tables below, we decided to bypass the park (this time around) and sit on the side, watching some of the local riders pass through.  Well, nearly thirty minutes later, our jaws were open just as wide as they were when we first sat down.  We had never seen so many amazing free skiiers and snowboarders all in the same place!  We sat and watched 720 after 720 whiz by, and then quickly came to the conclusion that everyone who rides at Breck is pro … or all pros ride at Breck.  Either way, it was really cool just watching all the talent built up at the mountain throughout the day.

Come on dude, really?!

After watching the pros in the park, we rode through the pipe for a while (not the smoothest pipe I’ve ever  been in, but I definitely blame it on the conditions – it hadn’t snowed in days – and not the resort itself).  The 18 foot walls were super fun, and the pipe was nicely cut.  One of the things I really liked about Breck was their “progressive” park system.  Their parks are set up in steps, or difficulty levels, so riders can start from the small parks when they’re first learning to jump and work their way up.  There are three small terrain parks and one small pipe, one medium park, and one large park and super pipe.  So riders who start  riding at Breck can go through the park system and take it up a step when they’re ready.  And since I am a person who grew up learning to ride a baby park, then immediately transitioning to a large, comp-style park, I can definitely appreciate this style of “at-your-own-pace” learning.  Also, Breckenridge has a really neat Web site called Breck 1080, where you can actually preview the features, meet the team riders, and watch videos before you head up to the slopes.  But park riding definitely isn’t all there is to Breck, unlike some jib-heavy resorts.  There’s tons of free terrain to ride as well, and several bowls and fun tree runs, really making Breckenridge a well-rounded resort.

Lunch!

Now, Breckenridge boasts a lift with the highest elevation in North America.  It’s called the Imperial Express Super Chair (at the top of Peak Eight) and it sits at a record elevation of 12,840 feet.  To put that in perspective, the highest point reached by a chair lift at Mt. Hood Meadows is 7,300 feet, and the top of Palmer at Timberline, one of the few resorts open for skiing year-round, is 8550 feet.  That’s kind of a big difference.  Even though the dismal Colorado snowfall (or lack thereof) during our stay made for some pretty icy runs near the peak, we finally decided that we couldn’t not take at least one run down.  So after lunch, we headed up the 6 Chair to make it over to Imperial before it closed for the day.  We had to rush because the lift stops operating at 3:15.  We made it over to Imperial by 3:02, but of course with our luck the lift had just closed at 3pm, early due to conditions.  Bummer.  But then again, we now have an excuse to go back to Breck next year!  Insider Tip: If you get a chance to make it to Breckenridge, especially on a powder day, I’d recommend starting out your day on the Imperial Lift before the bowls get chopped out.  And before the lift closes.

After our journey to find the top (which we didn’t) we made our way over to Peaks 9 and 10, the final side of the hill we had yet to experience.  And we finally found the small terrain parks!  The small parks were a lot of fun to ride.  We particularly liked Eldorado, because the jumps had a lot of pop and a nice, solid landing.  The perfect way to end our day.

The lifts at Breckenridge are open 8:30am to 4:30pm, with the gondola operating 8am to 5pm, but one of the cool things about Breck is that if you think that 8 hours on the hill isn’t enough (???) then you can head straight to Keystone, which is one of the only resorts in the area open for night skiing (your ticket is good for both resorts).

Overall, I really enjoyed riding at Breck, and I think it is one of my favorite places I’ve ridden at so far due to the vast versatility of park and free-ski options.  I was really surprised at how big Breckenridge is.  Though it’s only half the size of Vail, it really didn’t seem like it, and we definitely didn’t cover as much ground as we would have liked to in just one day.  We had also heard that Breck was a lot less steep than Vail (our skiier friend, Kevin, said Breck isn’t his favorite for this reason), which is true to some extent, but there are definitely a fair share of steep runs as well, especially if you hit the back bowls above peaks 8 and 7.  Personally, I’m not a huge fan of super steep runs because I like straight-lining it the whole way down, so I thought Breck was perfect, especially since there wasn’t much powder or fresh snow when we rode.  Insider Tip: If you head out to the Vail area during icy conditions and are able to add some flexibility to your resort riding plan, I’d recommend riding Breck over Vail or any of the other resorts, namely because there are more options to ride less iced-out runs than the other nearby resorts.

Also, if you can swing it, I’d recommend staying in Breck for a night or two, at the very least.  Unfortunately, we didn’t get the opportunity this year, as we had prior arrangements in Eagle-Vail, but the town of Breckenridge is so adorable, I wish we could have stayed and checked out the nightlife!  Unlike Vail, which is a bit more family-oriented, IMHO, Breck tends to attract a younger crowd, likely due to its stellar reputation within the snowboard community and younger audiences.

Perfect blue bird day!

Now, I had always thought that Breckenridge (or any Colorado resort, for that matter) was purely a winter resort with not much to do in the summer other than dream of the first snowfall of the following year.  However, in talking with a few Breckenridge locals, I learned that this is not the case.  Not at all.  Breckenridge boasts more than 100 miles of bike trails (yes, I say “more than” because they stopped counting after they reached 100), the Peak 8 Fun Park, which features everything from Alpine slides to Colorado’s largest human maze.  Also, we hear the vibe is a lot more chill and laid-back in the summer, so this might be a good option for a relaxing, laid-back summer vaca.  Like the saying goes, “Perfect Mountain, Perfect Mountain Town.”  I’ll add “year round” to that one.

After an amazing six days in Vail, CO (hence the six days sans blog updates), we’re finally back home   We were able to squeeze in four days of riding, though, and tried two brand new resorts – Beaver Creek and Breckenridge.  Stay tuned over the next couple of weeks, because we can’t wait to share all!

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