WhiteWorld

The resort of Alta, Utah annonced its final snow figures for 2007/08, and came in with a whopping 18 metres over the season! More than enough to keep them going thoug the summer if they wanted, with most resorts still riding high on a base over 3 metres.

“We’ve seen over 20 inches of new snow in the first two days of May,” said Snowbird Marketing Director Dave Fields. “These weekly storm cycles that started in December continue to deliver phenomenal skiing and riding.”

Many resorts are looking at staying open to the middle of May with possible weekend openings right into June.  Is it just my imagination, or are the seasons really getting longer? So the only real dilemma is what you go and ride, the blue stuff or the white stuff?

Comments(0)

Halifax Locals Take Big Air Titles
2008 British Snow Tour Championships and Schools Programme

Monday 7th July – It was a rainy start to the opening event of the 2008 British Snow Tour in Halifax over the weekend, but spirits weren’t dampened as over 70 of the UK’s top snowboarders and freeskiers, charged the kickers and threw down technical rail tricks during the Quiksilver Big Air Championships and Rail Jam. The Schools Tour Team also proved to be a big hit in Halifax with over 200 enthusiastic kids taking part in the FREE beginner lessons, courtesy of the Quiksilver lesson academies.

Quiksilver Snowboard Big Air Championships
The Quiksilver Rail Jam kicked off Saturdays competition with the local snowboarding contingency AKA, the “AKA crew” out in force and setting the standards. Local’s Matt Macwhirter and Jamie Nicholls bagged the top spots during the men’s rail jam, spinning 450’s onto the box. In the women’s rail jam Lynsey Ashdown cleaned the kink rail with a stylish boardslide to fakie to take the women’s title, whilst a special shout out goes to the younger riders including Will Smith and Tom Hunt for some creative Jackson’s and frontflips onto the box.

In the afternoon’s Quiksilver Big Air Championships the top eight men and four women went through to the head to head two run finals. Andy Nudds was riding super strong all day and threw down a massive frontside 900, which was easily the biggest trick of the day. Nudds crashed out on a huge 720 during the semi finals, leaving Danny McCormick’s stylish backside 900 to take him through to the final round. Jamie Nicholls stomped a textbook 900 and cab underflip 720 to knock Ben Knox out of the semi finals, making it a McCormick and Nicholls final. McCormick dropped in first and over rotated on a 900, scuffing the landing, leaving local ripper Jamie Nicholls to clean up and take the Quiksilver Big Air title with a 900 and perfectly landed backside 720.  In the women’s final youngster Katie Ormerod firmly secured her spot as the ‘one to watch’ taking the women’s 2008 Quiksilver Big Air Championship title after she nailed a smooth 540, whilst Liz Osborn and Lynsey Ashdown finished in second and third respectively.

Quiksilver Rail Jam Results
Men’s over 16’s                 Men’s under 16’s
1st – Matt MacWhirter – Halifax            1st – Jamie Nicholls – Bradford
2nd – Andy Nudds – Halifax            2nd – Lannig Canu – Barnet
3rd – Wayne Taylor – Halifax            3rd – Will Smith – Bradford
Women
1st - Lynsey Ashdown - Manchester
2nd – Rhianna Nuttall - Rossendale
3rd – Katie Ormerod - Bradford
Quiksilver Big Air Results
Men                         Women
1st – Jamie Nicholls – Bradford            1st – Katie Ormerod – Bradford
2nd – Danny McCormick – Glasgow        2nd – Liz Osborne – Cambridge
3rd – Ben Knox – Crouch End            3rd – Lynsey Ashdown – Manchester

Quiksilver Freeski Big Air Championships
Day two of the Quiksilver Big Air Championships made way for the UK’s finest freeskiers, with the Rail Jam kick starting the day’s competition. In the men’s final it was Andy Bennett’s Switch 450 on the box that secured him the gold in the men’s over 16’s age category, whilst local ripper Tyler Harding cleaned up in the under 16’s age category with a sweet 450 on, 270 off on the box.

In the afternoons Quiksilver Big Air Championships it was all about style, amplitude and clean landings as the top eight men and four women went head to head through the eliminating rounds. In the men’s final Andrew Longley was victorious and landed a technical D-spin 720 to take the 2008 Quiksilver Big Air Tile. Switch 720’s where the trick of choice for the Machon brothers, Robert and James who finished in second and third respectively after an amazing day of skiing. In the women’s competition Kelly O’Donnell finished in third place with a 540, whilst Becky Hammond and Rowan Cheshire, newcomer to the tour battled it out during the final round for first place. Becky pulled out a stylish 540 and managed to ski away with one ski taking second, whilst Rowan stomped a clean 540 to take the women’s title, not bad for her first appearance on the tour hey!
Rail Jam Results
Men’s over 16’s                 Men’s under 16’s
1st – Andy Bennett – Sheffield             1st - Tyler Harding – Halifax
2nd – Joe Tomlinson – Rossendale         2nd - Harry Hancock – Stoke-on-Trent
3rd – Jack Nicholson – N/A            3rd – Joe Hides –Sheffield
Women
1st – Kelly O’Donnell – Stoke-on-Trent
2nd – Molly Summerhayes – Sheffield
3rd – Becky Hammond – Sheffield
Quiksilver Freeski Big Air Results
Men                         Women
1st – Andrew Longley – Sheffield            1st – Rowan Cheshire – Stoke-on-Trent
2nd – Robert Machon – Sheffield            2nd – Becky Hammond – Sheffield
3rd – James Machon – Sheffield            3rd – Kelly O’Donnell -  Stoke-on-Trent

To check out the pictures and video footage from the Quiksilver Big Air Championships, where you’ll also be able to get timings for the next event on the British Snow Tour calendar, the Animal British Slopestyle Championships, 12th & 13th July in Chatham Kent go to:  www.britishsnowtour.com

The British Snow Tour and Schools Tour programme would not be possible without its highly supportive sponsors: Animal, Quiksilver, Trespass, SNO!zone, Cushe, SUSO, TSA and Ellis Brigham. Demo partners: DC, Ride, K2, Line and Clifbar. Media partners: Whitelines, Skiclub.co.uk, Metrosnow.co.uk, Extreme.com and Snowboardclub.co.uk.

Comments(0)

This coming July 19th will see the 6th edition of the Saas-Fee Ride. The competition will be held in the stunning glacial terrain park of the Swiss resort. The Saas-Fee Ride 08 will showcase a perfectly built Big Air kicker for riders to session and attract athletes from all over Europe to throw it down and express their interpretation of modern day skiing.The event has a great ambience with the relaxed feeling of summer skiing, DJ’s on the mountain and a BBQ at the bottom of the Snowpark.  The standard of riding is not compromised because of this, just check out the results of the Saas-Fee Ride 07 by clicking on the Orange bar above this text and see the level speak for its self.

A 24 minute programme of the event will be filmed and broadcast later in the summer with YOZ on Eurosport. The programme will be distributed internationally by Quattro Media and achieve several hundred hours of TV time.  This year there will also be a Web TV movie (click on the image to the left to see the 2007 event), a Podcast and a 3GP mobile phone compression of the 24 minute edit to maximise the athlete’s exposure across the globe.

www.saasfeeride.com

Comments(0)

Natives.co.uk, in conjunction with Ticket to Ride Worldwide Surfing Adventures, is proud to launch Season2Season - the very best action-packed and fun-filled way to spend your gap year.

Season2Season is for anyone torn between spending their gap year either doing a ski season or learning to surf. Fret no more as, thanks to Natives.co.uk and Ticket to Ride, you can now do both, easily and without breaking the bank.

The concept is simple. Join Natives on one of its chalet cookery courses, pass it and you’re guaranteed a job working the winter in a ski and snowboard resort in the Alps. After completing the cookery course, go to South Africa and take part in the Ticket to Ride 10 week Instructor Course*, learning to surf with its highly qualified coaching team in some of the best surf spots in the world. Then return to Europe to take up your position working in the stunning Alps for five months. And to continue living the dream, if you passed your instructor/lifeguard award, find work as a surf instructor through Ticket to Ride recruitment on your return. Hey presto, you’ve had the gap year of your dreams.

Added benefits include the option of doing some charity work during your time in South Africa, getting work as a surf instructor on your return to the UK (providing you successfully pass the instructor course), building a strong CV with the skills you gain working in resort and of course, the chance to have the time of your life and make lifelong friends. And all this is possible for from as little as £3200.

Ticket to Ride co-founder, Linley Lewis says: “This is your opportunity to learn to cook, learn to surf, get involved in charity work, travel to South Africa, and get qualified as a surf coach and a surf lifesaver. Then, after all that, do a full ski or snowboard season using your cooking qualifications, before returning to the UK to potentially work as a surf instructor. What better answer could you give to the question: ‘What did you do on your gap year?’”

Natives.co.uk is the leading snowsports website in the UK for season jobs and snowsports events, and Ticket to Ride is the original surfing gap and career break organisation.

School’s out for good, exams are over and the long and winding path of life beckons – but how do you see the wood for the trees when there’s such an overwhelming choice of routes to take? Pay a visit to Natives.co.uk, the season workers’ website, and it all becomes clear.

Comments(0)

It’s all about the steeze next weekend 12th & 13th July when the 2008 British Snow Tour heads ‘Eastside’… to Chatham, for the Animal Slopestyle Championships and Big Air Jam. The schools tour will also continue its quest to educate the kids in the ways of the UK shredder by visiting two Chatham schools on 10th & 11th July and giving away 200 FREE beginner lessons.

Over 100 of the UK’s top freestylers including local ripper Cody Heirons will be destroying the slopestyle course over the weekend which will be made up of: a 42ft long, 5ft high rollercoaster rail, a massive flat down kink rail shipped in from a US snowpark, a brand new C box, a variety of kickers and a huge 60ft battleship box. A relaxed big air jam kick starts each day’s competition whilst new sponsor SUSO’s FREE juice samples, Tony B’s tunes and James Thorne’s heckling on the mic will be sure to keep everyone entertained!

Demo sponsors, K2, Ride, DC Snowboards and LINE and K2 ski’s will be laying on their full range of hardware kit to test drive on Saturday evening and for anyone wanting to make a night, weekend, summer holiday of it, Chatham Ski & Snowboard Centre are offering competitors and spectators the chance to pitch up and camp onsite for only £5 per night.

Animal Slopestyle Championship Schedule:
Saturday 12th July, Chatham Ski & Snowboard Centre
• 9am – 6pm: Animal Slopestyle Championships and Big Air Jam (snowboard)
• 12noon – 4pm: FREE Snowboard lessons with the Animal Snowboard Academy
• 5pm – 8pm: FREE demo testing, courtesy of K2, Ride, DC Snowboards and LINE and K2 Ski’s
Sunday 13th July, Chatham Ski & Snowboard Centre
• 9am – 6pm: Animal Slopestyle Championships and Big Air Jam (freeski)
• 12noon – 4pm: FREE Ski lessons with the Animal Ski Academy

The competition is based on open entry for all abilities and offers competitors the chance to gain prestigious TTR World ranking points. To book your spot to compete or to take part in one of the FREE beginner lessons up for grabs go to: :www.britishsnowtour.com

As part of a nationwide tour taking in Halifax, Kent, Norfolk, Leeds, Milton Keynes and last but not least…. Glasgow, the British Snow Tour looks forward to discovering fresh talent, crowning new British Champions and inspiring future ones throughout the Championship events and Schools Tour Programme.

The British Snow Tour and Schools Tour programme would not be possible without its highly supportive sponsors: Animal, Quiksilver, Trespass, SNO!zone, Cushe, SUSO, TSA and Ellis Brigham. Demo partners: DC, Ride, K2, Line and Clifbar. Media partners: Whitelines, Skiclub.co.uk, Metrosnow.co.uk, Extreme.com and Snowboardclub.co.uk.

Comments(0)