Westbound Boarder

My Open Letter to Burton:

While embarking on my journey to Vail and Breckenrigde, I stopped by the local Burton store to check out the goods. I picked up a copy of the latest film, “The B“. The cover indicates that it is a movie of epic proportions, and after spending the 30 dollars on the purple retro style VHS tape box, I returned home to watch it. However, after watching it I have decided that this a movie of epic disappointments. The filming style and the footage of riders and their parts was exceptional, yes, although it was what I consider, extremely short.

The film did not come without its perks, however. Jeremy Jones laid down the best part of his Career, and the outro of the team ripping all of the Giant B that was configured into a park was impressive as well. Well filmed, with great angles and tricks, just short. Plain ol’ short.

I’m not narrow minded. I have spent my fair share of money on videos, I own most of Mack dawgs films, the people movies, Absinthe’s handy work, the list goes on. All of these films have a lower price tag and more raw footage. With all of the money and resources the Burton family harbors I expect a movie of supposedly “epic proportions” should be longer than a half hour (32 min.). Not to mention the largest team hands down, with absurd amounts of talent - Jeremy, Nico Muller, Jussi, Kevin Pearce, Tadashi Fuse, to name a few - the movie should have been 50 minutes at a minimum. They are the corporation of The Industry and the fact that the end result is the over priced, over packaged (green mtn project..Eh?) under-lengthy production is just disappointing. I still love their products, I still ride a Burton Troop with Escapde bindings, I just expected a longer more team oriented movie. Also, with all of the phenomenal female ripper talent they have, there isn’t a single part for one of their many girl riders.

I think I saw a couple of the ladies do a trick a piece in the outro. Just that alone could have added more bang for my buck. I just think that the biggest and richest company could provide me with more than a dollar a minute for their 30 dollar commercial, I mean film. Maybe next year Brad Cramer will school the production and make a worthy flick. Or they B family should just spend less dough on catalogs and more on their should be, could be Banger.

Sincerely,
Disappointed Burton Consumer, Supporter & Indulger

If you look back through snowboard history, females have come a long way from where they were even ten years ago to where they are today, constantly pushing the envelope and upping the caliber of competition.  Recently, Stan Evans (Producer) and Jeremy Miller (Director/Editor) released a snowboard film featuring an all girl cast.  The film highlights the progression of female riding, taking the talents of several different women and combining them into a series of segments to create a powerful story; a story they call “Stance.”

Though I downloaded and wrote about the film a few weeks ago, I finally got around to watching Stance in it’s entirety this past weekend.  With an all-star cast that includes the likes of Gretchen Bleiler, Jamie Anderson and Torah Bright, I knew the film would be good, but I was even surprised at how good some of the riding was.

The film opens with Gretchen recanting her tragic experience at the X-games a few years ago, where one minor fall cost her the title but how she learned that snowboarding is more about “being in the moment” than about winning.  Throughout the rest of Stance, the film makers portray just that - a group of pro riders “being in the moment” and living their dreams.

The film is a really nice mix of backcountry riding and jumps and pipe.  Obviously I was impressed by the usual pros who continue to claim title after title, but my favorite sequence was the second with Kimmy Fasani - her smooth style riding really stood out and she did a phenomenal job filming the part.

Aside from the riding presented in the film, I also really enjoyed the cinematography and editing of the film.  The makers did a really nice job keeping the film fun but also serious and motivational.  The music was great, and the technique was truly amazing.

The film’s full cast included Gretchen Bleiler, Hana Beaman, Jamie Anderson, Kimmy Fasani, Lisa Filzmoser, Jenny Jones, Torah Bright, Raewyn Reid, Molly Aguirre, Gabi Viteri and other riders, and more info. can be found at Stance’s Web site.  Props to all involved, and I hope there are more all female films to come!

It’s 2009, and if you head to a locals beach where the surf has hit it’s prime, you can look around and see quite the mix of people - young, old, men, and also women.  But it wasn’t always that way.  Women have come a long way since surfing first became widespread.  Women have always been in the picture, but only recently have they transformed their image from the “bikini babes” in the background to true, featured “surfer chicks.”

This summer, Villa Villa Cola Productions and Roxy debuted Dear and Yonder, which hit a selection of art houses nationwide during its launch tour.  Created by Tiffany Campbell and Andria Lessler, Dear and Yonder features some of the most progressive riding to date.  Dear and Yonder follows top professionals including Roxy team riders Sally Fitzgibbons, Sofia Mulanovich and Kassia Meador, as they surf their home breaks (Dear) and travel the world (Yonder).  In addition to chronicling today’s surfers, Dear and Yonder spreads its roots deeper and cultivates a sense of place and knowledge of history, reaching back in time to unearth footage of iconic surfers such as Linda Benson, Rell Sunn and Lisa Andersen.

I got a chance to preview the film this past week, and it was so cool and inspiring to watch a hyped film featuring primarily all female surfers.  The film takes viewers through how surfing got started, featuring top female progressives in the sport and also their struggle to take it to the next level. It opens with a history lesson on how surfing got started and how women first got involved.  It also portrays some of the hardships women had to endure to get to where they are today.  While men were fending off masses of eager sponsors, women struggled to find sponsors to help cover entry fees for an increasing number of competitions, and most only offered little more than men’s cloths and wetsuits.

Fast forward to the present day, where seeing a group of female surfers in the water is ordinary as can be.  I liked Dear and Yonder because it featured present day females, not only surfing as a sport, but surfing as an entire lifestyle, incorporating their own, unique attitude into the sport.  For example, one scene in the film features “Captain Liz Clark,” a surfer who has been sailing around the world for the past three years, living off the earth’s natural resources and experimenting new and interesting cultures along the way.  Another scene features Ashley Lloyd, a women who spends her days shaping surf boards made from sustainable materials.  Another scene features Judith Sheridan, an awesome body surfer (seriously, pro surfers move out of the way for this woman) who recently was diagnosed with MS.  Her disease didn’t stop her though; in fact, it only gave her more of a reason to embrace her life and talent that she was handed.

Aside from surfing, a secondary underlying theme throughout the film was sustainability.  Alongside surfing also comes the importance of being one with the earth and living off its natural resources.  The women featured in Dear and Yonder do their part in giving back, from Amy Clark who uses solar energy and wind power to propel her throughout her worldwide exploration, to Belinda Baggs who sews her own board shorts on her off days from the waves.

All in all, great movie; two thumbs up from us!  It comes out on DVD next month, so if you get a chance the laid-back tracks combined with the strong message, beautiful scenery, and of course, awesome surfing makes for a nice change from the typical surfing film.