Westbound Boarder

The long drive to Mt. Hood and a large, warm cup of coffee go hand and hand… With the winter freeze going on right now I can’t help but drink a lot more of this warm stuff than usual. So naturally, it doesn’t surprise me when I hear another pro clams P-Town as their home. We have pro rippers like Darrell Mathes, Danny Kass, and Austin Smith reppin’ our lovely state of OREGON. And now, Mack Dawg’s rider Willie Yli-Luoma, known for his CREATIVE progression in snowboarding (360 board spin anyone?), opened up a coffee shop here in Portland.

Located just off Burnside (2211 E. Burnside), it’s called Heart Coffee Roasting and it just opened in October, 2009. They offer an assortment of Guatemalan brews – A frothy winter brew in time for Christmas. And the best part – they are even having a beer tasting next week! Complete with a bike race (because beer and biking also go hand-inhand… obvi). That’s Portland’s style for ya, the style that I love so much. I’m going to go check it out this weekend, and I invite all my Westbound Boarder readers to come along, too!

It’s here! And the action starts today. PDX WAKE JAM 2009 is bringin you live music, beer, sunshine and oh yeah, wakeboarding! It all starts with the live music, and swag and then onto the wakeboarding qualifiers for Friday. It really heats up on Saturday form 11am-11pm when the wakeboard comp really begins. It commences with 20 riders who get two double ups each, onto the semi finals where the top ten riders get three double ups each and then saving the best five for last, who get four double ups each. An FYI for those of you who are not familiar, a double up is when the boat driver makes a circular pattern and cuts back over their own wake, creating a wake two-three times normal, giving the rider opportunity for HUGE air. Think of this as a big air contest vs. a slopestyle comp. To say the least – It’s going to be siiick. To sum up the festivities Saturday night, WAKE JAM is bringin you a FMX motocross exhibition (featuring Justin Homan)!

But that is not all. The wakboard pros are competing for $10K and all the pride on the river. So come and see pro wakeboarder, Danny Harf and motocross superstar Justin Homan break wake and moto records this weekend July 31st and Aug. 1st. And I almost forgot! It’s all happening Downtown Portland, OR at Tom McCall’s Waterfront Park and since this is in my back yard, I will definitely be seeing you there.

If there is one thing you are sure to find at my new favorite board shop in Portland, it is selection! Signal Sports -for Women is a Ski and Snowboard shop founded almost 4 years ago by Sig and Al, husband and wife. This pair founded Signal on the premise that women need a board shop that they can feel comfortable in. As Sig puts it, “all too often women are cast aside or not taken seriously in this industry.” Well that unfortunate notion stops at Signal!

This shop really invites and encourages all women, of all levels and ages to, “either join in the sport, or to get back into the sport that they lost touch with over the years!” However you have found your way to the sport, Signal should be the first stop for all female ski and snowboard enthusiasts. With the area’s largest selection of women’s hardware and software goods and an extremely knowledgeable staff, you are bound to find all you need at Signal.

On top of the great variety of gear, Signal carries a plethora of items for women. With a great selection of sunglasses, handbags, bathing suits and accessories, there really is something for every girl in this shop. You can feel good about shopping at Signal too, as their prices are extremely competitive and they carry everything from the familiar top brands, to awesome local brands (Such as Holden, Melika & Bonfire) – that you won’t find anywhere else but here.

There is no better time than now to stop on by and check out Signal Sports; their hardware is 40% off and all of their winter gear is 50% off. If you just want to browse for the latest quality gear – or you simply have a question about what board will be best for you – Signal Sports encourages all women to come on in and get their questions answered by their all female staff (other than co-owner / operator Al ). Open every day (except for Tuesdays), you have no reason not to go!

With every massive sporting-goods chain, there is a great local shop hiding from the public eye, and Westbound Boarder’s got the 411.  In our quest to come up with relevant content that you all will want to read, we decided to launch a “Saturday Shop Reviews” series where we’ll go to and preview a different local shop in SoCal or Portland each Saturday in March.

We’ve already received several great reader recommendations, and we can’t wait to get started.  First up, this Saturday Danielle’s reviewing Exit Real World, thanks to recommendations by, not one, but two people!  Check back tomorrow to read her awesome post, where Danielle will tour the store and talk about some of highlights… and tell us why it’s a great shop for the ladies.

On that note, if you guys have a favorite shop that you want to see in here, let us know!  Send us an e-mail and tell us what makes your shop great, and if we like it, we’ll feature it!

Planning to drink tomorrow evening?  Why not do it for a good cause?  Tomorrow night, the Oregon Surfrider Foundation is hosting Pints Against Plastic, an event to raise money for their Ban the Bag campaign.  Pints Against Plastic will take place at the Backspace – 115 NW 5th Ave, Portland – from 6 to 10pm and will feature $3 pints from Kona Brewing.

Supporters of Ban the Bag propose a 20 cent fee for single use plastic bags within the city of Portland. Although these environmental destroyers may be convenient, plastic bags take centuries to break down, and it’s just as easy to use reusable bags. (Trader Joe’s bags are both environmentally-friendly and trendy!)

So, if you want to support this cause (while slightly intoxicated) head on over to Backspace tomorrow night.  Hey, you get to keep the pint glass.

Hey westbound boarders;

A quick note to our readers – As promised, Danielle and I created an events calendar highlighting various boardsports competitions and events around the west coast.  While the calendar is still in its infancy (we plan to spend the next few days updating) it is now live here (or click on our events tab to access).  Our goal in creating this calendar is to provide information about cool events from all over in one central, easy-to-find location.  We hope you find it useful!

If you’ve heard of any events that aren’t already highlighted in the calendar, feel free to shoot us an e-mail and we’ll add.  Hopefully you have the chance to make it to at least one of these events this year!

-The girls of Westbound Boarder

For those of you who have not heard, the USSA Revolution Tour is coming to Mt. Hood Meadows this February 20-22! With events in Slopestyle, Superpipe and Snowboard Cross, the tour is open to all riders over age 13 (must be 15 for the SBX events).

If you are looking to take your snowboarding skills to the next level you should really consider pushing yourself to compete in this event. All you need is a National USSA membership and an FIS license to compete. Don’t worry, these credentials are easier than you may think to obtain. All you have to do is follow the USSA and FIS links from above, fill out the forms and send them some cash. Be sure to act quickly, as the competition is right around the corner – and registration is required.

Got cold feet? Don’t let your nerves get you down. Competing in snowboarding is a great way to push your skills to the next level. Although the park, rails and pipe may be intimidating at times, don’t let that scare you. Everyone has to start somewhere, so take the Revolution Tour as a chance to motivate you all the way through the park. Believe me, you will be so glad that you did.

Still nervous? Stay tuned for our upcoming blog post which will include lots of tips on how to begin your tricks in the park; you will be shredding big time in no time. Until then, check out our friend Dan’s blog Boards and Decks; he has some great tips on how to master those rails!

So get those forms filled out, and let us know what you decided to compete in by emailing us at www.westboundboarder@gmail.com. If you still don’t want to compete, no problem – just be sure to make your way up to the mountain so you can see it all go down and give your fellow Portland riders your support. See you at the Revolution Tour!

For the past few weeks, I had been counting down the hours until Christmas, not because I got to see my lovely family who I hadn’t seen in five months, but so I could make a much-anticipated trip to Mt. Hood for some serious shredding! (Just kidding mom and dad, of course I was excited to see you too! )  Reports of massive amounts of snow in both Portland and on the slopes excited me even more.  Unfortunately, to my dismay, the fluffy powder snow turned to rain on Saturday and Sunday, ruining our plans for a fun-filled weekend on the slopes.  Bummer!  Despite not being able to go to the mountain over the weekend though, my brother and I were able to catch a few minutes on our boards Christmas day with the nearly 1.5 feet of snow Portland saw that week. (Pictures below!)

I don’t carry all bad news, though.  According to Drew Jackson from the Travel Oregon blog, one to two feet of powder is expected to hit Mt. Hood tomorrow. (Two days too late for me! But snow, nonetheless.)   

In SoCal mountain news, looks like another sunny week at both Mt. High and Big Bear mountains.  And today, Bear Mountain officially opened the first pipe in SoCal!  And what a better week to check it out than this?  Good news is you definitely won’t see rain this week, but will the fresh snow melt away?  Hopefully not!  I’ll have my fingers crossed for a good few days over the New Years holiday here in Southern California.  

Wow! As if we didn’t have enough snow yesterday, we got more overnight!  More photos below; check them out! (Note: Click on a thumbnail to see a larger image displayed on Flickr).  Yes; a UPS truck actually got stuck outside of Andrea’s house for nearly half an hour.  Good to know, though, that despite the rain, hail, and snow, your Christmas presents WILL arrive on time (I hope??)

Do you have pictures to share?  Send them to westboundboarder@gmail.com and we’ll post them to the site!

Update: Here are a few more photos Wend Magazine sent over to us; looks like West Linn isn’t the only Portland town with heaps of snow.

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