BSA Snowboarding

Scotty Arnold would rather see a big 540 into pow: BSA Rider Interview

2012-02-01T18:32:00.000-08:00

Scotty Arnold knows snowboarding

Scotty Arnold has been in the game for quite a while. His experience helps provide a good insight into his views on the past, present & future of snowboarding. Scotty puts strong emphasis on style. We think it's a good thing.

"If you are the sickest rider in the world and can do triple corks to nosepress through a kink but a cocky hater I have no interest in you."

Hometown?

I currently live in Park City, Utah but grew up snowboarding on the east coast in Holderness, Nh.

Use 3 words to describe your relationship to snowboarding.

It's my life

Where will you be riding mostly this winter & what are your plans in the next few years?

I will be riding at Park City Mountain Resort and also travelling to different resorts all over the U.S. Europe and Japan for the Salomon Team Vacation tour (coming to a resort near you).

What's are the most important things you've learnt about the 'snowboard industry' over years?

I've learnt that although it's friends working together, at the end of the day it's still a business and all about the all mighty dollar.

Which rider do you rate most highly & why?

I would have to say Bode Merrill is my highest rated rider right now. I base that opinion on attitude and skill level. If you are the sickest rider in the world and can do triple corks to nosepress through a kink but a cocky hater I have no interest in you. Bode is the all around best snowboarder. Only a couple people can compare to him in the jumping field and those people won't hit a street rail. Bode is sick on jumps rails and is better than a lot of dudes with one foot strapped in ha. But most importantly he is a good dude with a good head on his shoulders. I also have a lot of respect for Marc Frank Montoya on and off the board.

Who's the hottest female rider, in your opinion?

Hmmmmm

Can you do a double-cork & what are your thoughts on progression within snowboarding these last few years?

I've tried one into an airbag hahah. I think these days the progression is pretty obvious. Last year was double corks this year is triple corks next year quad corks?!?!?! My opinion is that's cool and all but I have always been into peoples style and would rather see a big 540 or 720 into some pow where you can actually see the style the dude has. As far as rails go, its cool to see people getting more progressive with spots. It use to be down rail, kink rail, down rail, but now people are getting more creative with the spots and it is helping jibbing stay fresh.

What words of advice do you have for aspiring kids wishing to become a 'professional snowboarder'?

Learn quad corks hahaha Just kidding. I would say if you love snowboarding enough and are obsessed with it, it will happen naturally. Go for your dreams, don't give up, and above all make sure you are having a great time. Also be yourself, there are too many clones out there we need more individuals.

What did you have for dinner?

I had a salad, an English muffin and a jack and lemonade ha

Is Jeremiah Weed for snowboarders?

2012-01-17T18:51:00.000-08:00

We got a cheeky surprise at BSA headquarters. A note & a suspicious looking package.

I dubiously tore the wrapping paper to reveal a wooden box emblazoned with the 'Jeremiah Weed' logo & a BSA label beneath.

What's this then? I slid open the plywood to reveal two bottles of Brew; Sour mash & root, glass jar drinking vessel, t shirt, canvas satchel, packet of beef jerky & a harmonica.

Box of stuff

Ok, so why BSA? A note inside the box said Jeremiah Weed Brews liked our snowboarding Blog. Sweet!

Talking of sweet... Both brews were really sweet & easy to drink. Especially the root brew. They could be a refreshing drink after a fun day of spring-time snowboarding. Be warned because if you try to ride after sinking a few of these it could end in tears. The energy from the sweetness & the delayed reactions from the 4% alcohol might cause you some shred trouble.

Tim's pissed again...

Don't drink & ride. It's just not worth it. Trust me. I've learned the hard way. (clue: fractured fibula)

So, yes. Jeremiah Weed could be for thirsty snowboarders with a sweet tooth.

PS. More people should play the harmonica.

PPS. Beef jerky is an awesome high protein snack that could help rebuild your tired snowboarding legs

"Sweet brew bro"

Want to know more? facebook.com/jeremiahweeduk

By Adam Bowcutt

7 ways to deal with not snowboarding

2012-01-04T18:54:00.000-08:00

Howto deal with not snowboarding

Injuries suck

Something has happened. For some reason you aren’t riding right now and you may not be riding for sometime. Somewhere in your mind there are plans to go somewhere but you don’t know how to make it happen. Cold sweats, nausea and loss of sense of humor follow. Its a pretty hateful state of being. Those of you smugly sitting out in the mountains reading this are welcome to jog on and go enjoy it. There are lots of reasons why we might be here: injury, illness, money, career, visas, responsibilities... For the last four winters I’ve done seasons out in the US and now due to events beyond my control I am at home in windy, rainy England, sucking a lemon. This being the “Holiday Season” has made not snowboarding very difficult. As well as missing the snow and the mountains I’m missing my winter family, PBR (substitute Mützig) and crab and fondue for Christmas.

Sohere I have compiled some hopefully helpful advice to those of youwho may be in a similar situation. Feel free to take or leave any ofit:

1. Don’t watch the videos

Withevery other ripper (and punter) having a Go Pro there are an almostendless supply of short edits out there. Don’t watch them! Its soeasy to get yourself worked up into a seething heap of jealous angstby seeing some crew tearing up the park/pow at your favoritemountain. What you don’t know won’t hurt you. You’ll get ampedonly to look out the window and realize you won’t be able tochannel that energy into having fun on your snowboard. Thoughts ofwhere that pent up energy and frustration might go while watchingsaid videos lead me down a disturbing path. Snow porn isn’t actualporn!

Ifyou must watch videos watch the superpros in highly polished videos.Or the X games. They’re doing things which are insane in amazinglocations but you won’t feel the need to emulate as much aswatching someone do a super fun park run.

2. Don’t check the snow report

Youneed to get into the habit of not caring if it snows or not whereyour friends are. Its great for them but it will drive you up thewall. If it dumps six feet (two meters) then you will feel just asbad as if you were there but had to work in a room with one tinywindow and could only listen to the yelps of joy floating in fromoutside. If there is no snow then you will become a smug dick whileyou lie through grinning teeth, handing out your false sympathy. Youare far better off checking something that could make a difference toyour life. The lottery numbers for example.

3.You cannot avoid Facebook

Wellyou can, but what I mean is that if you use it then you will beforced to see what a great time everyone else is having. There is nosimple way around this one although I’m sure someone will tell methat I can change my settings and put the blinkers on. The only wayto deal with it is to push through with jaw firmly locked into agrimace and *bleep* over the bits you don’t want to see.

4.Do the family thing

Itsnot often that you’re at home for the holidays so enjoy doing allthose trad things you’d forgotten about. See your relatives atChristmas. Eat brussle sprouts and Christmas pud. Enjoy the drunkuncle and talk to your grandparents. Go to the pub with your matesfrom school who aren’t normally around and drink Yorkshire Tea.

5.Go to a dome

Thisone is harder if you are injured but otherwise it is well worth it.You don’t even have to go on a freestyle night. An hour on arecreational day when you haven’t ridden for six months feelsAMAZING! If you don’t have any money then see if you can convincesomeone who calls it ‘boarding’ to take you, perhaps in exchangefor a lesson? It just gives you the chance to feel the board underyour feet, butter about a bit and feel the wind in your face. Likemethadone (apparently).

Afterthe dome you will almost certainly let your half formed mushy plansto get somewhere at some point in the winter form into a shiny, snowcovered glitter ball of wondrousness. At this point I would stressthat I do not recommend getting into debt to finance your trip. Ifyou have rainy day money then this is your rainy day.

6. Don’t Get Hurt!

Youhave booked your trip! Whether its a weekend in Andorra or bummingthe rest of the season do not get overexcited and do yourself damage!I am a clumsy fool and sprained ankles seem to pop up fromeverywhere. Wrap yourself in cotton wool, lock up your skateboard,don’t punch any bouncers. Try to limit your movements to betweenyour bed and your exercise bike (well, you need to stay in shaperight?)

7. Watch the Videos

You’regoing Snowboarding! Get amped! Take point 1. and flip-reverse it!Watch all the videos you have stockpiled in your bookmarks! Re-watchthem paying special attention to how you can do that trick better andhow you are going to spray all those people with snow and destroy themountain!

Get back in the game...

By Kenji Lim

Austen Sweetin BSA Interview: 'Just Be You'

2011-12-19T03:21:00.001-08:00

"It's hard to pick just one, it's a tie between switch back lip's, front 3's, or back 180 methods"(Austen Sweetin)

Austin Sweetin is probably the most stoked young rider you'll meet. His energetic enthusiasm shines through in his riding. He has this natural ability to stomp everything with style, and at the same time, always with a huge beaming smile.

This is a rider to watch out for.

BSA has a quick Q & A session with Austin Sweetin. Here are his answers:

Hometown?

Seattle, WA

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you.

I love snowboarding!

What's it like riding & filming for Forum?

It's a dream come true, I always looked up to forum and the people riding for them growing up and now being apart of it is awesome. It's rad being able to spend the winter traveling and filming with a good group of friends instead of standing around at contests all winter.

Which riders do you respect most & why?

Austin Hironaka, because I grew up riding with him my whole life and it's awesome to see him out there hustlin all for the pure love of snowboarding. Peter Line because he has done so much for snowboarding in both the progression of it and business side of it by starting the brand I ride for now.

Who's the hottest female rider in your honest opinion?

That Ellery Hollingsworth shawty is pretty bangin

What are your plans this winter?

Travel with the forum homies and try to film another part, I'm gonna try to divide my time equally into streets, pow, and park to try and have a well rounded part.

What did you eat for lunch ?

Egg scramble with potatoes and sausage in it, along with a few cups of coffee, I ate my breaky at lunch today.

Trick you want to get dialed this year?

Cab 3's on natty backcountry hits along with big park jumps

Your best feeling trick, one you'd choose to do everyday if it had to be just one?

It's hard to pick just one, it's a tie between switch back lip's, front 3's, or back 180 methods

Slopestyle in the Olympics... What are your thoughts?

I think it's cool the Olympics are starting to support snowboarding in other aspects besides half pipe, but I also think its whack that the FIS is running that shit and making all the riders switch up there winters by not making TTR events eligible for qualification.

Any random words of Austen Sweetin wisdom?

Just be you

Interview by Adam Bowcutt

Shaun White, What are you thinking?

2011-12-07T13:20:00.001-08:00

Source: fastcompany.com Photo: Martin Schoeller

Shaun White, What Are You Thinking?

I suppose the only place to really start on this is a little bit of Shaun White background. I’m sure you all know about it so I’ll leave the facts short and get onto the wild speculation as fast as I can. Shaun White can claim to be the greatest competition snowboarder of the modern age. Anyone who disagrees with this is wrong. His record speaks for itself and I don’t need to go into it. He is also the most marketable and commercially successful snowboarder/skateboarder/action sports athlete in the world. Yes he is. The proof? Forbes estimates that in 2008 he earned $9 million, almost all of it in endorsements. None of his competitors earned over $1 million. Since then he has won another Olympic gold medal and his commercial value continues to rise.

As a Snowboard Instructor in the US I’ve talked to plenty of kids about snowboarding. Often the conversation goes like this:

“So who is your favorite snowboarder?”
“Shaun White.”
“Cool. Why do you like him”
“I don’t know. Because he’s the best?”
“Sweet. Did you see him in the X Games?”
“No”
“Did you see him in the Olympics?”
“No”
“Have you ever seen him snowboard?”
“Only on my X Box.”

No Joke. This is what we mean when we say that an athlete has transcended their sport. People need have never even seen the sport but still know who the star is. Shaun White is on that level. That is why he makes me despair. The exposure that he brings is great for snowboarding but that interest does not extend further than brand White.

He thinks differently from other pros. Of course he isn’t going to share his private half pipe. He doesn’t want the competition to learn his new trick. He is pushing himself in splendid isolation, not the sport as a whole. I think that was pretty evident when he failed to qualify for the slopestyle final at the last X Games, he’d taken his eye off the competition. His is a focused and individualistic approach to what many see as a communal activity. From the articles I’ve read he appears to be a nice guy. He just has very different priorities from the majority of snowboard pros. He is a lone guy leading from the front, and I’m not going to hate on him for that.

Source: Transworld Business Target Advert

Which makes the TTR Beijing Air and Style a bit confusing and annoying. Here he is “presenting” an event for a tour which he does not even seem to support. He only seemed to be there to pose for photos with various suited guys. He is a bigger name than any of the sponsors, any of the other athletes and even snowboarding itself. His name attached to the event gets people around the world, who may know very little about snowboarding, to watch it. The fact that while this is going on his silence is undermining TTR’s position on Olympic qualifying, and therefore the importance of the tour itself. That annoys me.

He hasn’t said anything about the IOC telling TTR to sling their hook at all. When I can find a quote from Sebastien Toutant but not from Shaun White, Double Olympic Gold medal winner, something is wrong. Has nobody asked him? Surely someone has asked the face of action sports what he thinks about the whole dirty, stinking mess? There hasn’t been anything posted on the News section of his official website since July shaunwhite.com I read lots of articles about this subject too, even The Economist has written about it. They all come out in favor of TTR. Nobody (except the IOC) think that FIS should be running the qualification process, not even at least one of their own. So why so quiet? Well I actually don’t think that it has anything to do with sponsors or big business telling him to keep his mouth shut. I think that if he cared he would speak up. My conclusion is that he doesn’t care. As one of the few guys who do both halfpipe and slopestyle he has been through the whole process before and has toed the line. Why should it be any different this time? He changed his schedule to fit in with the Olympic qualifying season and so it would be pretty hypocritical of him to object to the whole process now.

He is not the snowboarder’s snowboarder. He is the kid’s snowboarder, the granny’s snowboarder, the CEO’s snowboarder and the marketing manager’s snowboarder. He gives the world everything they want in an athlete in a neat little package. He doesn’t care who runs the competition, just that he wins it.

Written by Kenji Lim
(Guest blogger)

Source: wired.com

More mainstream press articles on Shaun White: fastcompany.com

More on Olympic Snowboarding Slopestyle:
Whitelines
bnqt.com
http://whitelines.mpora
snowboardermag.com
onboard.mpora.com
&
transworld.net
snowboardersunite.com

Does snowboarding make you happy? The Zen snowboarder

2011-11-08T23:09:00.000-08:00

Does snowboarding make you happy? The Zen snowboarder

The answer appears obvious. However, let's go deeper. I'll use a theme of Zen snowboarding to do this. Ok, before you think here we go, just another hippy shredder getting all spiritual. Let's just open our minds, and think objectively for a moment.

You are a snowboarder That's why you're here. Right? When you strap on your snowboard and just ride, it's fun. No doubt about it. Now add the idea of Zen to the mix and what's created is an awareness of snowboarding.

Zen is about being in the moment. The word literally translates to 'meditation'. So what's meditation got to do with snowboarding? Well, an example is this.

You're about to drop-in to a jump. It's bigger than you're comfortable with. Your heart races, as does your mind. What if you don't hit it with enough speed and bounce off the knuckle? What if you hit it with too much speed, over-shoot and explode on impact. Just thinking of the 'what ifs' and the consequences affects you.

Intentionally or not It's precisely at this moment that you become a Zen snowboarder. There is no past or future, you are in the moment. You're meditating because you are purely focused on perfectly conquering that jump.

You're in the air. Boom! How did that happen. Bliss! You've landed. Now, you are euphoric. You've internalized all these feelings in that one beautiful moment. This is snowboarding at its best. Only now you're ready to share your happiness with your shred friends. High-fives and smiles. You're part of a community of snowboarders collectively spreading the joy. Yessss!

Let's explore an alternative situation. You are sat at your desk within a four-walled office. You're trying to hide the fact you're chatting away on Facebook to numb this monotonous existence. All you can think about is snowboarding. It hurts. You're in pain and unhappy. It's as if you're trapped with no means of escape. Mr 9 to 5 firmly has you in his claws. Nooooo!!!

Just an idea. Perhaps become zen and escape, although metaphorically, just for a moment. In other words it's focused shred-dreaming. You're free, but just for that moment. Enjoy it before your boss catches you!

Or, you can go snowboarding and do it literally, for real. The choice is yours.

So there you have it. Snowboarding does, albeit with a Zen spin, make you happy. It's your choice how you make that moment happen.

Written by Adam Bowcutt

Do you ride regular or goofy? Origin of goofy footed

2011-10-29T20:46:00.000-07:00

Where did the term goofy come from?
orward before the 1950′s"

This is a clip from Hawaiian Holiday by Disney circa 1937

Check out 43 seconds in...
...Goofy riding, well.. Goofy footed.

Maybe this shreds some light on the origin of goofy footed. Perhaps more riders rode regular-footed (natural) and the remaining right-foot forward surfers were nicknamed goofy. This term progressed to skateboarding, then snowboarding.

Thank you Goofy, You're a good character!

PS. Eero Ettala rides goofy and he can tweak a pretty mean method.

/// We are addicted

BSA selected as one of world's best snowboarding websites

2011-10-28T02:29:00.000-07:00

Relentless Energy Drink pick the 8 best snowboarding blogs and websites in the world...

Article HERE:

This slick portal was started by a passionate snowboarder and instructor, Adam Bowcutt, when he picked up an injury while snowboarding. All he could think and dream about was snowboarding, so instead of wallowing in his situation, he channelled his frustration and passion into something more constructive. The idea was for a ‘rehab clinic’ for addicted snowboarders like Adam.

What makes you stand out from other snowboard blogs?

Our blog stands out because it's pure snowboarding from the heart and soul of this passionate lifestyle and action sport. We’re not affiliated with any large corporation. We keep the true spirit of snowboarding alive.

Where is your favourite place to snowboard?

My favourite place to shred is The Remarkables, Queenstown, New Zealand. You can go for fun park laps on your own. After the first fun lap you'll always find a friend to ride with. Smiles and progression happens here daily. Love it.

Why should we come to you?

You should come to us because we are addicted. You'll find random shred-related media shared socially.

Which snowboarders should we look out for?

The rider you should look out for is Keegan Valaika. He's already 'making it' in snowboarding. However, there's more to come from this freestyler.

Article Link HERE:

BSA welcomes James Burgie to the team

2011-09-17T19:48:00.000-07:00

James Burgie joins fellow rider & Ontario local Adam Carmichael to the BSA family. Watch out! random carnage coming soon...

Peace,

/// We are addicted.

Time of the Triple?

2011-08-24T07:25:00.000-07:00

It was preying on my mind. I’m sure it was preying on your mind too. Ever since the clip released in July 2010 of Torstein Horgmo’s “Triple Cork”, I was thinking: Is this going to blow the doors off again? Is flip-to-win the new spin-to-win? Has it been pushed too far? I’ll confess, (sorry Torstein) I thought it was pretty ugly. Very clean but a bit wrong. I’m not going to go into the semantics of what a corked spin is yet but it looked very flippy to me. But he had his feet above his head three times before he landed and rode away, and apparently this had never been done before, so massive props to Torstein.

The footage screamed out across webland and sent reverb throughout the snowboard world. Competitive Snowboarders are a .... well... competitive bunch of guys and you do not want to be left playing on the old pitch when someone has picked up the goalposts and moved to another part of the park (just ask Chas Guldemond). The Race was on for all the other big air contenders to get after the triple too. The timing of the Torstein Triple release was interesting. Traditionally (and you guys can correct me if I’m wrong) these monster tricks get laid down in the spring because thats when resorts and sponsors can put down sufficient resources to build the massive jumps required for riders to practice and nail them for their video parts. In the winter months the comp schedule means there isn’t very much time to push these kind of tricks out of the ideas box and into the toolbox. Seeing this footage in July meant that nobody was going to have time to practice it before the X-Games...

Ahhhh the X-Games. It was made for this type of thing. A massive TV audience witnessing something that had never been done before. It was amazing to watch. Torstein knew that the only way he was going to win the big air was to land his Trip Cork. Seb Toots had his doubles on Lockdown. Stylee and scarily consistent. Torstein kept missing his triple. Why? The jump was really too small to be doing it on. At 75’ its not the kind of monster booter that riders are normally able to land this kind of crazyness on. The most interesting thing for me was seeing how he kept changing the rotations each attempt to try and get that third flip in. In the end, seeing him land it (hand down man down?) was amazing. I jumped off the couch. There was no way he couldn’t win with that. The ‘never seen in competition before’ goes a long way. Generally it takes another ‘never seen in competition before’ trick to beat it. And for the reasons above, that wasn’t going to happen. So he didn’t land it cleanly, and it wasn’t really a cork, it was a flip... I didn’t care. Did I? ....This is where I need to point out that a ‘cork’ is a ‘corked spin’ its not a flip. All it requires to be a cork is for you to be spinning and for your spin to be off axis, like when a spinning top starts to loop in big circles as its about to come down. Torstein wasn’t really spinning, he was flipping. Those last two flips had no other rotation... Coming back to the real world, no I didn’t care. The triple had entered competition and one thing was clear: If you were the only one to land it you were going to win. Over the course of the rest of the 2010/2011 season, several other videos came out with the young guns landing their triples. This includes (but not limited to) Sebastein Toutant and Mark Mc Morris. Other guys have landed them too and I read in one magazine how many riders now have them. I don’t remember either the magazine or how many other riders. But it was significant. The doors had indeed been blown off.

Onto my second question: Is flip-to-win the new spin-to-win? It pretty much already was. I alluded to it earlier about Chas Guldemond. He flat out said he wasn’t able to go upside down twice and although still competing he was having real trouble retaining his place at the top of the comp tree. He went away, worked hard and got his doubles. Late on at the end of the season he won an amazing and much deserved Gold at X Games Europe Slopestyle with the highest score ever posted in X Games Europe. Props. Essentially the Triple is the new Double. Soon you won’t be able to win unless you do one. But one thing may stand in the way of this: the course design.

Image copyright of WillBremridge | www.willbphoto.com

Torstein had a mighty struggle getting upside down three times on the X Games kicker. That was on real snow, at night (fast snow). Lots of the Big Air comps around the world are in city centers on scaffold jumps and I’d be very surprised if it were possible to get the air time on those. So competitions will have to build bigger jumps if they want to see triples go down at their event. Will they? Can they? Aren’t they building the biggest they can right now? I don’t know, I’m not an insider in this world but I’ve asked a man who is. He asked to remain anonymous but when asked if jumps would be changed to accommodate triples he said: “Yeah, steeper, poppier takeoffs. Maybe at first just the third jump in a triple line, but it's gonna happen. More than likely this season. (Its) just a matter of time. Guarantees McMorris, Toots and Torstein will throw it it a line if the jump is right. And considering they can ask for changes to the jumps, it'll happen.” There you have it. It doesn’t even sound that hard does it? And it opens up the slopestyle contests too. Maybe I’ve had it all wrong... but if anything it will reinforce the primacy of those able to nail the triples even more.

In the end, the question of whether we see competition jumps changing is one of economics. Will it make you more money if people land triples in your competitions? I’m going out on a limb here. If the comp isn’t on TV then there is no chance they’ll build jumps big enough to do triples. Because (and I do realize I’m generalizing) its the TV audience and not snowboarders who are driving this. Sure riders want to progress and we want to see the best guys in the world killing it but its those outside the bubble who want to be awed by the spectacle. They want to see things which have never been done because its a definitive measure of quality when they have no other way to measure quality. That’s why everyone knows who Shaun White is. He wins things: He MUST be the best. The Flip side of the comp circuit is for events which are about the riders. They are focused on having fun and being inventive. Recently I was really stoked on footage from the Dew Hut Jam on Mt Buller, Australia. Aussie riders getting rad, being inventive and killing it. Still progression but it just looked fun. The Burton Stash Gathering is also almost universally loved. These are lower profile events where entrants and core riders get really excited. Its because we can see the complexities of the tricks in more subtle tones than “a triple is better than a double.” You see really sick stuff going on and riders feel that they can throw down more risky tricks (especially on rails) because it will get some serious recognition from the crowd, fellow riders and the judges.

There is room for all. There has to be. One end of the scale needs the other. The rider’s comps need the TV comps to keep money flowing into snowboarding (all those gapers on the hill pay to keep your park open) and the TV comps need the rider’s comps to keep pulling through new talent and keep core riders involved.
So the final part of my initial musings: Has the triple cork pushed things too far? It’ll never be too far. You will never stop progression (it was stupidly suggested by Christine Brennan after Kevin Pearce’s terrible injury) and until the jumps get so big that the pros won’t hit them we will keep adding more and more rotations and corks/flips to the trick lists. Plenty of comps on the circuit will never build kickers big enough to throw down triples on. Some of these will be big flashy events and many will be rider led progression sessions aimed at the core. I have no doubt that big comps, on TV, will build kickers big enough to safely land real triples. Whether it happens this season or not, we shall find out soon enough.

Peace

Kenji

New Zealand fun shred /// We are addicted

2011-08-06T15:38:00.000-07:00

We're in New Zealand at the moment. It's good. Really good.

Thanks for all you riders that support BSA Snowboarding. We love you!

Keep up the fun shred.

Peace,

The BSA crew.

PS. 2012 collection BSA beanies coming soon...

Lauren Staveley Update

2011-03-12T19:12:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys,

I have been home now for a few months doing a lot of school work. But I am heading back over to Colorado in a week, then to Italy for Junior Worlds, then back to Colorado for the American Nationals! Though it will be a very tight trip as I'm only going for 3 week I am super excited, I have never been to Italy to snowboard before so I'm super pumped to get there.

Here is an edit of my time in Colorado over December and January

Untitled from lauren staveley on Vimeo.

Peace Lauren Staveley

Patrick Davis-Meehan progression: Switch backside double cork! (yet to land, but close)

2011-03-05T17:41:00.000-08:00

BSA rider Patrick Davis-Meehan has been enjoying the fun shred and pushing his progression. Check out this lil' edit of Pat's first attempts at a switch backside double cork. He'll stomp it soon for sure!

"After going for a 900 and over spinning to a 1080 Nick and Shaun talked me into going for a double cork 1080. Here is the video of my first ever two attempts, I got close to landing, next time I've got it for sure".

Check out Pat's website HERE

Lauren Staveley

2010-12-21T18:55:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone,

I have been in CO for about 2 weeks now, so far I have Competed in two Rev Tour events, Placing 16th in Pipe and 7th in slope. My slope result was able to qualify me for Jnr World Cup next year :). I have also been riding heaps of POW.

Check my new edit at www.laurenstaveley.blogspot.com

Peace

Micheala David-Meehan rider update

2010-12-06T06:24:00.000-08:00

Guns N' Roses

Then today off on the plane for the best plane trip ever!!! Managed to get a complimentary upgrade to business class from Sydney to LA with movies, 3 course meals and fully lay down seats!!!! After all that it didn't even bother me that I had a 6 hour stop over in LA and another 2 hour flight to Denver, a 3 hour wait at the airport and finally a 2 hour drive to Breck.

Got all my stuff unpacked and ready to ride tomorrow!!! :)

On Saturday at Homebush in Sydney was the V8 races, me jumping off a scissor lift onto the massive airbag that was used at Thredbo this year, Tony Hawk skating the vert ramp, and seeing Spiderbait and Guns N' Roses live (they were awesome!!).....was a great way to spend my last day in Aus!

Then today off on the plane for the best plane trip ever!!! Managed to get a complimentary upgrade to business class from Sydney to LA with movies, 3 course meals and fully lay down seats!!!! After all that it didn't even bother me that I had a 6 hour stop over in LA and another 2 hour flight to Denver, a 3 hour wait at the airport and finally a 2 hour drive to Breck.

Got all my stuff unpacked and ready to ride tomorrow!!! :)

Check out MDM's blog HERE

Crew updates

2010-11-30T02:43:00.000-08:00

This coming northern hemi winter. Check back for BSA crew updates

BSA Snowboarding / We are addicted. Click on the snowflake to go to the rehab clinic

2009-08-31T19:31:00.000-07:00

Jamie Anderson & Sebastien Toutant win NZ Open slopestyle 2009

2009-08-14T11:55:00.000-07:00

LAKE WANAKA, New Zealand (August 14, 2009) – Another day of bluebird skies graced Cardrona Alpine Resort, which remained impervious to the clouds, sitting above the inversion layer once again for men’s and women’s slopestyle semifinal and final competitions today. Part of the Burton Global Open Series and the Swatch Ticket To Ride World Snowboard Tour, the seventh annual New Zealand Open showcased some of the world’s best riders as they took to Cardrona’s 800m long slopestyle course, which featured up and downrails, boxes, three kickers and a unique upstair feature to quarterpipe.

A field of 42 men and 16 women were battling it out for a piece of the $24,000 slopestyle prize purse and the top spots worth $6,000 each. An international field of riders from nine countries included New Zealand’s own Shelly Gotlieb, James Hamilton, Stef Zeestraten, in addition to BGOS Champions Chas Guldemond and Jamie Anderson, Olympians Danny Kass and Mason Aguirre, and many more.

The women were first to drop and competition was stiff through semifinals, but it was Kiwi Shelly Gotlieb that came out on top, killing it on the course with a run that featured style and variety on the rails, a Cab 5 indy, a backflip and a backside 360 tailgrab. Gotlieb continued to ride strong through the finals, taking third, being outdone by Janna Weatherby (USA) in second and 2008 NZO slopestyle champion Jamie Anderson (USA) in first. Anderson impressed the judges with a run that started with a street style tailslide, 5-0 to fakie on the box into a switch backside 360 on the first kicker, followed by a Cab 540 melon into a front 360 melon, followed by a 5-0 on the uprail, to a tail stall on the quarterpipe, finishing with a 50/50 frontside boardslide on the kinked rail. “I had a blast,” said Anderson of her win. “It was a beautiful day, we lucked out with the weather, and I was happy with my riding, I had so much fun today.”

French Canadians Sebastien Toutant and Charles Reid clinched the top two spots in men’s semifinals, Toutant taking the top spot by wowing the judges with his signature “Toutsie Roll,” a backside doublecork 1080 melon. Reid couldn’t stick his run in the finals, dropping him to the back of the pack, but Torstein Horgmo (NOR) threw down in his third and final run with back to back 1080s, giving him an edge and finishing second. Eric Willet (USA) stuck back-to-back 900s and had smooth style on the rails, giving him an edge and riding away with third. But in the end, Sebastien recreated his winning run from semis by starting off with a backside 270 on the first rail to 50/50 backside 360 on the second rail, into a backside rodeo 540 indy, into a Cab 900 stalefish, followed by a backside 1080 double cork melon, followed by a noseslide on the uprail to alleyoop backside 50/50 on the quarter, finishing with a frontside boardslide on the kinked rail. “I’m so stoked to win my first contest of the year,” said Toutant. “It was a great course, very different. I had fun trying new things and am so happy to do well.”

With 850 TTR ranking points, both winners of today’s slopestyle finals took over the world number one spots on the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour. The Burton New Zealand Open is a perfect opportunity for riders to get a jumpstart heading into the Northern Hemisphere winter.

Tomorrow the New Zealand Open will come to a close with halfpipe semifinals and finals, don’t miss your chance to see Olympic Gold Medalists Kelly Clark and Shaun White, in addition to two-time Olympic medalist Danny Kass, past Olympians Mason Aguirre (USA), Cheryl Maas (NED), Antti Autti (FIN) and Olympic hopefuls like Jiayu Liu (CHN), Peetu Piiroinen (FIN), Jamie Anderson (USA), Justin Lamoureux (CAN), Lisa Wiik (NOR), Danny Davis (USA) and Sina Candrian (SUI).

Burton would like to thank Cardrona Alpine Resort, Go211.com, Speight’s Summit Golden Lager, Juice TV, The Edge FM, Anon Optics, High Cascade Snowboard Camp, Nature Valley, goodbars.co.nz, Joe’s Garage, SolRX, McKenna, Smirnoff Ice Double Black and Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour for their support of the New Zealand Open.

Results
Slopestyle Final Women
1 Jamie Anderson USA Billabong
2 Janna Weatherby USA Volcom
3 Shelly Gotlieb NZL Burton
4 Joanna Dzierzawski USA 686
5 Silvia Mittermueller GER Oakley
6 Hana Beaman USA Vans

Slopestyle Final Men
1 Sebastien Toutant CAN O’Neill
2 Torstein Horgmo NOR DC
3 Eric Willett USA OMatic
4 Tore Holvik NOR Sweet
5 Seppe Smits BEL Burton

6 Stef Zeestraten NZL Oakley

Winter X Games Europe for March 2010

2009-07-21T18:11:00.000-07:00

First Winter X Games Outside the United States; Tignes to Host.

ESPN, CANAL + Events and Tignes Ski & Snowboard Resort will launch the first Winter X Games Europe March 10-12, 2010. The event will be the first Winter X Games held outside the United States. The event will bring together ESPN’s world class X Games franchise with France’s leading pay TV broadcaster and the local expertise of Tignes. A definitive list of the world’s top winter action sports athletes will be invited to France to compete for medals and prize money. There will be eight different competitions over three days, including Ski and Snowboard SuperPipe and Slopestyle for men and women as well as a Snowmobile demonstration.

CANAL + Events CEO, Jean Louis Dutaret said, “We are delighted to work with ESPN and the X Games team to bring the Winter X Games to Europe. CANAL + Events and the ESPN events team will draw on all their experience to ensure this is the biggest and best winter sports event in Europe in 2010. As for soccer, rugby and many sports, CANAL + Group will consider X Games as a global project, including TV, Internet and mobile. In a Winter Olympic year, and only a few weeks after athletes have competed in Vancouver, fans in Europe will again be able to watch the top names in the world compete head to head.”

”Nothing could be more justified than Tignes as the host resort of the first Winter X Games Europe. Tignes, the sportiest European ski resort, is always at the forefront of action and freestyle winter sports,” said Tignes Ski & Snowboard Resort Manager, Sebastien Merignargues.

Rick Alessandri, ESPN Senior Vice President and Managing Director, X Games Franchise said, “Working with CANAL + and Tignes, and drawing on more than 10 years experience of running the Winter X Games in the United States, we are excited to bring winter action sports fans in Europe the best action sports event they will see in 2010. This first event outside the U.S. reflects the continued global growth of the X Games franchise as well as the progression of action sports in Europe.”

CANAL + Networks (CANAL +, CANAL + SPORT, Sport +) will show the Winter X Games in France and French-speaking territories (Caribbean, French speaking Africa) live (or on-delay) so that those unable to come to Tignes will be able to see the event. ESPN will be responsible for all distribution outside of France.

ABOUT ESPN’s X GAMES FRANCHISE
ESPN first developed its X Games franchise in 1995. The X Games, Winter X Games and All Access are just some of the original action sports programming currently shown on ESPN and ESPN2. In addition to the two U.S.-based events, ESPN has held X Games competitions and demonstration events around the world, including Dubai, Thailand, Brazil, Mexico, Korea, Malaysia, China and Spain. The global franchise has also expanded its reach to both XGames.com and ESPN.com/action, the definitive sites for action sports fans, and to consumer products such as X Games bikes, protective gear, skateboards and DVDs.

CANAL + Events
CANAL + Events is a CANAL + Group subsidiary in charge of events producing and TV rights dealing. CANAL + Group is the first French Media Group with more than four billion turnover. High quality content that can be aired on TV, Internet and Mobile and then sold on DVD is the key word for CANAL + Group. CANAL + Events mission is to create or to co-produce content that can serve that strategy.

TIGNES
Located in the Northern French Alps, in Savoie, from 1,550 to 3,500 meters high, Tignes is linked to Val d’Isère and is a part of the espace killy, one of the biggest ski areas in the world. With athletic and young clients of whom 54% are foreigners, Tignes is known as the most cosmopolitan and sportiest resort in Europe. Always at the forefront of alternative and action sports and on the look out for new freestyle trends, the resort has a wide experience in event organization. Tignes is a big, white playground where riders enjoy expressing themselves.

Details and a list of scheduled athletes for ESPN Winter X Games Europe will be
forthcoming on www.canal-plus.fr for the public.

MFM & Friends working hard to earn...

2009-07-18T09:53:00.000-07:00

Words by MFM... YOOOoooooooo!!! So here it is, our very own MFM & Friends movie! Our style, our terms, whatever we want, hope you like it!! This is our crew and these are the things we do! Enjoy!!- MFM, professional snowboarder.

Thats right, MFM Inc. and F.O.D.T . have joined forces to collab on this years highly anticipated movie, Hard To Earn. The title says it all, feel the emotions of passion,dedication and the pain our riders went through this season to make it happen and to keep the dream alive. Experience a new level of professional cinematography mixed with the skills and style of such riders as MFM, Lucas Magoon, Travis Kennedy, Dylan Thompson, Derek Dennison, Chris Bradshaw, Johnny Paxson, Jake Devine, Jeremy Worm Grendahl, Jonah Owen, Cory Cronk and many Friends.- Cole Taylor, F.O.D.T. Producer/Filmer.

YAN DOFIN INTERVIEW

NZ rider Charlotte Trundle gains new outerwear sponsor: Betty Rides

2009-07-12T00:25:00.000-07:00

BSA Snowboarding NZ shred Charlotte Trundle is happy to now be associated with girl focused outerwear company Betty Rides. The fresh gear will surely help Char to stay warm at the hill while enjoying some FUN riding at her local New Zealand mountains of Snowpark, Cardrona, Remarkables

bettyrides.com

they only make womans outerwear they make a huge range of stuff all the pants come in different fits like skinny fit (holden style) mid fit and baggy so its dope. Lots of bright unique stuff... (Charlotte Trundle)

Freeze Tv video

Watch out for Charlotte this season in NZ. She's keeping busy filming, shooting with pro photog Pablo Azocar, and competing. She is confirmed for the 5 Star TTR Burton Global Open Series event NZ open 11th August Cardrona. www.opensnowboarding.com

Check out some previous Comp Results:

American season 09

1^st place echo mountain traffic jam

2^nd place Cricket Campus rail jam Boulder

3^rd Volcom peanut butter rail jam Mammoth

Runner up Nikita video comp out of 80 girls “stylish riding through the park”

Competition results: 08 NZ season:

3^rd Electric quarter pipe jam

3^rd Mountain dew stair set comp series Snowpark nz

2^nd Stair set comp series Snowpark nz

3^rd Stair set comp series Snowpark nz

2^nd overall points stair set comp Snowpark

1^st woman’s Dunedin rail comp and 3^rd in men’s division

3^rd Remarkables slopestyle

British publication Document Snowboard Magazine Vacancy

2009-07-10T22:37:00.000-07:00

Document Snowboard is looking for a salesman. Or woman.

We've just taken on a couple of new people to expand our sales operation and now need to ramp up Document's team. Working with editor James Bryant you'll be a key member of the team taking Document's take on snowboarding to the world.

With a relaunched mag and new website to sell in, it's going to be busy so

we need someone with proven sales skills and burning with passion for snowboarding.

Wannabe writers, those who need their hand holding and someone looking for a part time job need not apply; this is full time and we want you to be in the thick of the scene within days of starting.

Please send CVs with a covering letter explaining why you'd be so good at this job to richard@fall-line.co.uk
www.documentsnowboard.co.uk

Nike rider Trevor Jacob: It's not work it's fun to me, pure fun.

2009-07-09T09:54:00.001-07:00

Trevor Jacob is an emerging rider from the States. He is one of the new school. With solid backing from Nike and Forum this snowboarder has the potential for a great career & fun times in the future.

Where are you from? and where have you historically done most of your snowboarding ?

I'm from Malibu, CA. I grew there and my family and I would drive up to Mammoth every weekend until I was 8 or 9. My dad wanted to build a home up there for us to have for vacation. He was planning on moving up to build that. I told him I wanted to move with him so I could snowboard more. My mom and brother stayed in Malibu because my brother didn't want to move. I lived in Mammoth for a year before my whole family decided to move to Mammoth.

What part of snowboarding gives you the most enjoyment?

Riding powder, hitting what I want to hit in my own way, going big off natural jumps, and finding the most creative line.

What comps, if any, are will you be hitting up this year?

I'm doing the Grand Prix, the Dew Tours, the US Open, The WCI which is the west coast invitational in Mammoth, and a couple more here and there.

What filming projects have you been involved with, or are going to be part of?

I have been making a video with me and my friends called GKC I'm not really sure when it will be done but it's getting there! And also the Mammoth video that will be getting sent out in next seasons Snowboarder Magazine as a free video.

Which riders are pushing progression in snowboarding at the moment and why?

Luke Mitrani, and Travis Rice are for sure pushing it right now.

Where would you like to see yourself in 5 years from now?

Snowboarding, snowmobiling, BMXing. basejumping, skateboarding and doing all the other things I love.

What advice would you give to groms wanting to make snowboarding a 'job'?

Do what you love. It's about who's having the most fun. Meet new people, and travel as much as you can. It's not work it's fun to me, pure fun.

BSA Snowboarding Kiwi shred Christy Prior is killing it...

2009-07-07T15:46:00.000-07:00

BSA Rider UPDATE:BSA Snowboarding Kiwi shred Christy Prior wins American Express NZ Winterfest Rail Jam 2009 Images coming soon... Well done Christy!

CLICK here: Christy Prior interview

CLICK here Christy Prior BSA Snowboarding NZ

Transform gloves. It's a London thing...

2009-07-04T23:33:00.000-07:00

Transform Gloves was started in the summer of 2007 during a rainy day in London..

Year one has just been completed for the 2008/09 season.

The original idea of Transform Gloves came about because we were tired of seeing a huge influx of American influences in snowboarding. Transform Gloves goal was to create a brand that was not only European but drew on the sights, colours and culture that Europe has to offer.

Transform Gloves has a selection of some of Europe’s most technical riders. There are a total of three UK riders on the team. Tyler Chorlton is on the international team and John Feesh Weatherly and Laura Berry are holding up the rookies.

Tyler had amazing part in the Pirates movie last season, which included a now infamous triple front flip. He has been traveling around the word filming for his part in the upcoming movie. Feesh has been laying down the most technical rail tricks in Mayrhofen for his part in the new whitespace release. This movie will turn heads. Laura has been shooting in Avoriaz and winning everything she enters. Most recently the Vans dawn of the shred competition at the Milton Keynes Xscape.

Currently Transform is available in a select few stores in The Netherlands, Austria, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Next year’s range will spread further across Europe and will be available on a couple of online stores.

It is important at Transform Gloves that the correct, rider owned and independent stores carry our products.

For more information on Transform gloves, go to www.transformgloves.com

Snowboard Poland ?

2009-06-28T22:16:00.000-07:00

Snowboard Poland ?

Snowboarding in Poland has started moving on in recent times. No longer are wooden skis the norm, snowboarding is becoming more and more popular. Not only does Poland offer superb value for money, but good snow and fun places to ride.

These are not the views of someone simply trying to sell holidays but those of seasoned snowboard instructor, Gareth Nicholls. Gareth was born in the UK and has worked all over the world, including resorts in Europe, Canada and New Zealand. Three years ago he took the chance to work in Zakopane, Poland’s winter sports capital. During his time in Zakopane, Gareth and his Polish girlfriend and fellow snowboarder Monika Struczowska realised the true potential of what can be offered to snowboarders in Poland. This potential is now being realised. With the help of London based business man Harj Murria, White Side Holidays Ltd are now bringing Poland to you through fun, professionally-organised holidays.

Offering all-inclusive skiing and snowboarding holidays to Zakopane, Poland, White Side Holidays take care of everything from airport transfers to accommodation, lift passes to ski and snowboard lessons and even nights out. All of this and more from as little as £389 a week! Zakopane is a lively town with lots going on through the winter. The fact that Poland has not yet joined the Euro currency also means you can eat, drink and party all night for half the price you will find in most resorts worldwide.

If you would like more information about skiing and snowboarding in Poland then feel free to check us out at Whiteside Holidays

FBBB's Mikee says: Nothing lasts forever so embrace, appreciate & love it

2009-06-23T15:02:00.001-07:00

For Boarders By Boarders FBBB are doing great things for grass roots snowboarding in the UK. Mikee is one of the passionate snowboarders behind FBBB. He gets it done...

Hometown?

The ‘big smoke’ known as London town baby! ;)

What is FBBB, who is involved & how did it all start?

FBBB is a travelling community event formed from a collective of board riders, artists, park shapers, designers and musicians. Representing a group of people who are all enthused and inspired by riding.

The concept is to provide and encourage progression by delivering innovative parks catered to riders for all levels with the emphasis on simply having fun. (Which is what its all about at the end of the day!) The ideology is to attract an audience to inspire and grow the sport by welcoming new comers. At the same time providing a platform for the up & coming sub cultures to express themselves.

Originally started by myself, Thom Boddington, Katie Craggs and our head of music DJ - ch!co but as we’ve evolved and grown, more friends (Sarah, Aly, Ben, Neil & Dan) have jumped onboard to help make FBBB what it is now.

New website coming soon btw! :)

Use 3 words to describe your relationship with snowboarding

I love it! or ‘Best thing ever’

Where do you foresee FBBB in the future, say in 5 years from now?

I forsee FBBB playing a major part in the future of grass roots riding, providing & encouraging progression (with the emphasis on just havin fun) for all kids and new comers. Becoming an established event & brand. Not just in the UK but worldwide. Possibly providing a scheme/academy and having a team or riders.

A base in the UK and a base in the Alps - So summer events all over the world during the summer and events on the mountains in the winter.

We’ve just teamed up with ‘Snow-camp’, - a youth charity providing disadvantaged young people from London with the chance to experience mountain sports. So there are short & long term plans for this as well which I feel will keep us busy.

We have a great team of people all pushing towards making this happen. As they say, its just a matter of when not how...;)

Which snowboarders do you respect and why?

Damn.....so many but lets narrow it down to 5 then. (In no particular order)

Travis Rice – Purely for the fact I believe he is pushing the boundaries the hardest and just a really sick snowboarder. Arguably the best in the world at the moment. Certainly when it comes to hitting big booters anyway.

Nicholas Muller – Just cuz I like the way he rides and how humble he is. Plus he’s very eco friendly which is important of course. And of course his brand ARCUS have given us prizes for the past 2 years so we gota love that!

Wolle Nvelt – Just love how fluid his riding is and how consistently good his parts are year after year. Same as the other 2 I mentioned above really. And of course he’s part of the infamous Asthetiker crew whom we have huge respect for.

Jed Anderson – Just love watchin him kill it on rails. Never fails to impress...

Terje Haakonson – I had to mention Terje because of the impact he’s had on snowboarding and the amount of people he’s inspired in a positive way. Plus the fact he’s 1 of the pioneers of freestyle snowboarding. You have to respect that.

I feel bad for all the other amazin riders I didn’t mention but oh well....

You work hard to push the UK shred scene. What key events are coming up and why should snowboarders go?

Thanks man. All the FBBB events are key! I would say that though hey ;)
No but seriously, I feel all the events are important and its good to see more events happening because as a rider you can always learn something when you ride and if you seriously want to progress then ride as much as possible. If anything I feel there aren’t enough events being organized!

The FBBB event at Snowworld in Landgraaf, Holland will be super special as its our 1st event in a dome outside of the UK. A fun packed two day event! Stay tuned via the website for more up to date info...

Describe your ideal day...

Waking up to a bluebird day (its been snowin hard all night!) after a good nights sleep in a chalet with all your favourite people, having breakfast together (filled with loads of banter – Standard!), catching 1st lift & rippin thru some freshies, takin in the scenery & vibe that the mountains offer, followed by lunch with the crew & maybe a quick power nap in the sun, then a good few laps in the park, jacuzzi, massage, dinner with the crew and maybe a quick jive to some good beats & nice ladies in a club – going to bed with a big smile.... ;)

FBBB is involved with art and music in addition to snowboarding. Tell us about this collaboration?

Well snowboarding isn’t just a sport when you love it like we do so its very much a lifestyle & culture. In that sense music & art comes hand in hand with it and we wanted to offer entertainment to those (mums, dads, general public etc) that aren’t there just to ride. Also the progression doesn’t just lie within the riding but also within music & art. We provide a platform for up & coming brands, artists, musicians, filmers etc to be involved, to express themselves and be part of the community & network.

What effect do you think the newly built Hemel indoor snowcentre London has had on UK snowboarding?

Oh it can only be a good thing. I reckon its had a positive effect & will continue to do so. The more facilities the merrier surely! As snowboarding becomes more accessible to more people. Its all about spreading the love no? I’d like to think more people will be encouraged into trying it out & getting into it which can only be a good thing cuz we all know how much fun it is!

Any Mikee C (FBBB) worldly words of wisdom to share?

Nothing lasts forever so embrace, appreciate & love it as much as you can and do it as much as you can. Just keep on keeping on man!

Thanks bro! Its been fun.
click to visit FBBB website

Keegan Valaika is a rare talent with insane style

2009-06-19T23:30:00.000-07:00

Keegan Valaika is a rare talent with insane style. Insanely good style. Snowboarding is often seen as a sport or even a chosen lifestyle. However, it is only when riders like Keegan emerge that allows it to be observed as an art form.

Hometown?

Laguna Beach, CA

How was your recent northern hemi winter & what did you get up to ?

It was good before and after I got hurt. I tore my MCL and was out for 3 months so that was a bummer. But as soon as I got back on the snow I was able to get a trip to Minnesota and a trip to Alaska in filming for the Burton movie. Early season I was able to film a couple things with videograss as well so I should have some stuff in their video also.

What plans are there for a trip to the southern hemi. if any ?

Budgets are tight these days so I haven't heard of any southern hemi trips this summer. Seems like the companies are trying to save all the money they can, which means no more summer trips for me. As much as I like going down to NZ for summer, I can't say I'm bummed at all to take some time off and just hang out in Laguna.

Your riding style has been described as being like pro skater Tom Penny. What are your thoughts on this?

That's cool. I think everyone's style is somewhat influenced by the people they looked up to as kids. For me those were mostly skateboarders, and Penny was definitely one of them. I used to watch his part in the ES video Menikmati every day.

What is it like representing a huge company such as Burton snowboards ? What are the benefits and drawbacks, if any?

Benefits are things like, never having to stress on whether or not your check will show up every month, overnight shipping, things that you would expect from a well established company. The drawbacks are generally just the hate. People love to hate on Burton. So since I ride for them I tend to catch a lot of that hate. The thing I don't understand is how some of these kids talking shit on Burton are the same kids riding snowboards made by rollerblade companies. It's one thing to hate on them for being big and corporate, but at least they don't make rollerblades.

What snowboarding trick gives you the most pleasure?

Backside lipslides. best feeling ever. or Just hauling ass through a steep deep pow run making huge turns.

Which snowboarders do you respect and why?

The one's who aren't dicks. haha. Basically, as long as they're nice to me when I meet them, I got mad respect. I respect Nate Bozung and Matty Ryan more than anyone though because if it weren't for them I would probably still be doing contests. They gave me a chance to film a part when no one else would. BozWreck for life.

Where is your favourite spot to shred?

for street stuff Rail Gardens for sure. For just plain cruising through nature it's Alaska hands down.

What did you have for dinner?

chicken, kombucha, pita bread, and some berries.

Pre -opening shred at 'JP Mountain lab' The Remarkables NZ

2009-06-15T13:02:00.001-07:00

The JP Mountain Lab At The Remarkables | Transworld Snowboarding

courtesy of NZsnowboard.TV check it out

For more video footage from NZsnowboard.com click NZsnowboard.TV

Local shreds Nick Hyne, Jeremy Thorns, Jordan Rehrer, Mark Anderson, Heath Patterson & friends check out the upper terrain park before opening 20th June 2009

Forget summer - Swatch TTR heading down under

2009-06-07T01:33:00.000-07:00

08/09 Chas Guldemond at Stylewars

08/09 Charles Reid at Stylewars

08/09 Mikkel Bang at NZ Open

Date: 3.06.2009

Updated: 4.06.2009 10:07

By: TTR Press Office

The 08/09 season of the Swatch TTR Tour will go down in history as the most progressive, thrill inducing snowboard championship yet. In what was a fiercely fought showdown, Peetu Piiroinen (FIN) climbed up to overtake the No.1 World Ranking from Chas Guldemond (USA) and Kelly Clark (USA) who reached the top at the last 6Star event of the Tour. Both raised the crown in the end, but it was not without a series of challenges from the likes of Kevin Pearce (USA), Shaun White (USA), Kjersti Oestgaard-Buaas (NOR) and Jamie Anderson (USA).

Prior to the later months of the season, riders were competing in the “Southern Hemisphere” leg of the Tour. The events which transpired Downunder were to shape the rest of the season and it is only a matter of months before it all kicks off again. With 2009/2010 being the Olympic year, the Southern Hemisphere events will be more important than ever as riders scramble get some practice in while earning crucial points before the busy competition times in February.

Also in 08/09, the Southern Hemisphere events played a pivotal role as it gave numerous riders the chance to gain a solid grounding of ranking points to dominate throughout the season. Both Chas Guldemond (USA) and Jamie Anderson (USA) held onto the World No.1 rankings for 22 and 41 weeks respectively.

The new season will be kicked off by the Thedbo Freeride Series, a series of amateur events starting in June and going into August. New for the 09/10 season, Burton has decided to combine to the Burton Australian and NZ Open events into one premier “Southern Hemisphere” spectacular. The Burton New Zealand Open from 11th – 15th August 2009 will offer two chances to gain 5Star ranking points and surely attract many international riders to go head to head with the trans Tasman rivals.

Again on the Swatch TTR Tour Calendar from 24th – 28th August 2009 is one of Downunder’s most spectacular event, the 4Star Stylewars presented by Oakley, in Falls Creek/ Australia. Stylewars has since its inauguration been a mix of spectacular snowboard action and lifestyle with live concerts, film premieres and a rail session and is always attracting some of the biggest riders on the TTR Tour such as Chas Guldemond (USA), Torstein Horgmo (NOR) or Charles Reid (CAN).

One of the last events of the SH winter will be the Boost Mobile Sno Sho, an innovative tournament with two parts. Starting off with the crowd favourite, ‘longest rail’ slide and progressing to the Swatch TTR part of the event, the Big Air and Jam Rail competition.

Apart from the above mentioned, the TTR still awaits the confirmation of more events in the Southern Hemisphere. But on thing is for sure - more than ever, the Southern Hemisphere winter will play a defining role in the 2009/2010 Swatch TTR World Tour Season. Progression will be pushed and riders will be out looking to grab early season points to bolster their Title hopes. Tune into to www.ttrworldtour.com in July and August for the 2009/2010 kick off.

Top 10 rankings as of June 1st, 2009 based on the season-end bonus point system:

MEN

1    Piiroinen, Peetu    FIN
2    Guldemond, Chas    USA
3    Autti, Antti    FIN
4    Pearce, Kevin    USA
5    Mattila, Risto    FIN
6    Reid, Charles     CAN
7    White, Shaun    USA
8    Malin, Markus    FIN
9    Toutant, Sebastien    CAN
10    Aguirre, Mason    USA

WOMEN

1    Clark, Kelly    USA
2    Wiik, Lisa    NOR
3    Anderson, Jamie    USA
4    Maas, Cheryl    NED
5    Oestgaard Buaas, Kjersti     NOR
6    Mittermueller, Silvia     GER
7    Candrian, Sina    SUI
8    Pancochova, Sarka     CZE
9    Sladics, Chanelle    USA
10    Hollingsworth, Ellery    USA

TTR website

Kiwi shred talent Christy Prior joins BSA Snow Development Team NZ

2009-05-29T02:35:00.000-07:00

Christy Prior is welcomed by current BSA Snow Development Team riders (NZ) Adam 'Midgey' Shaw, Guy McCully, Charlotte Trundle, Jay Walsh & Maia Stier

BSA Development Team (NZ) Rider Interview: Christy Prior

Hometown?

Auckland, New Zealand

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to y

Progression, lifestyle and ridiculous amounts of FUN!!

Where is your favourite place to ride and why?

Back home for the NZ season Wanaka/Queenstown. The ampmosphere and all the people you know and love to ride with come back for another kick arse season again and again and again!!

What trick gives you the most pleasure?

switch lip 270 out... only when it doesn't deal to you rail to face .

What are your future goals within snowboarding?

I wanna hit up the mammoth PBRJ world finals in Mammoth,CA next year again this time aiming for podium finish...finger crossed!! also venture out into slopestyle events not just rail jams...jumps here i come!!

What, in your opinion, would make the snowboarding world better?

cheaper accom,food and flights!!

Today Christy Prior is feeling..... fantastic!!

Do you have any random words of wisdom?

Rail v's Face hurts and... land on your feet!! i assure you, you'll always come out better off.

Click Below for BSA Snow Website:

BSA Snow Rehab Clinic

Watch out for Christy this coming southern hemi season...

The Future of British Snowboarding? 15 year old Jamie Nicholls...

2009-05-14T02:24:00.000-07:00

Jamie Nicholls is a developing UK shred talent. He is quickly gaining much deserved recognition, not only in England but, around the globe. At 15 Jamie's snowboarding skills are obvious and his scope for future progression appear to be limitless. In the near future watch out for good things to come from this young gun...

Hometown?

Bradford, England.

What is your age and when did you first strap on a snowboard?

I am 15 and i started when i was 7.

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you

Amazing, Fun and adventurous

What is it like being a British Snowboarder? What are the benefits and drawbacks ?

I think its the same for everyone, the only difference is that we don't have mountains.

What snowboarding tricks are you playing with at the moment?

I want to try the Switch Backside 9. Hopefully next season. I just got the Switch cab 1080s

Where would you like to see yourself in 5 years time?

In big movie productions and winning big contests.

Who are your sponsors and why are they good?

Quiksilver,Red Bull, Salomon, Nike 6.0, Sno!Zone, TSA, Red Protection.

What words of advice could you give to aspiring young British snowboarders waning to make snowboarding a career?

Try really hard and it will pay of in the end. Also go to comps, that helped me.

Where is your favourite place to shred?

At the moment it is Laax, but Breckenridge was really fun.

Which Pro Snowboarders do you respect?

Travis Rice and David Benedek.

BSA Development Team Rider (UK) Emily Park announced Norquay winner for MGT Academy

2009-05-07T15:38:00.000-07:00

After shredding hard at the Norquay MGT camp in Banff Canada in April 2009. Emily Park impressed the Pros enough to be selected for the elite MGT Academy. The top international riders included living legend of female shred Tara Dakides and the firmly established pro Leanne Pelosi.

BSA Development Team Rider (UK) Emily Park was chosen from 47 female riders. Kallie Murray was the second rider also picked for the academy.

Not only is Emily Park a talented and stylish snowboarder, she also has some journalistic flair. For an article eloquently written by Emily describing her experiences at the Norquay camp click here for the SnowboardMagazine.Org link

All in session for the MGT Academy! Calculate the square root of a cab 540 or dial the molecular formula of 2 parts dedication and 2 parts raw talent. Say ‘yes’ if you’re present! The MGT Academy is a fast(er) track to a snowboard career. The program is designed to select one promising MGT camper and place them under the tutorial wing of the MGT pro coaches to give a head start on pursuing a snowboard career in 2010.

The MGT Academy Graduate will receive fresh gear, access to some inaccessible contests and photo shoots…. tools needed to help you gain the experience and meet the people than can set your course for shredology.

It’s public school fool! Anyone can enroll in the MGT Academy and have their shot. All you need to do is register for an MGT Snowboard Camp this winter and be placed under the watchful eye of our MGT faculty members (err…coaches). 2 campers will be chosen from each winter camp to make the honor roll and be eligible to win the top prize. Towards the end of the winter semester, our honorary snow scholars will make a final presentation as to why they should graduate with top honors from the MGT Academy. The top graduate will then be chosen and presented with fresh gear, a travel budget and access to many snow experiences for 2010. (Source www.mgtsnowboardcamp.com/)

Check out MGTsnowboardcamp.com for more details

Here at BSA we wish Emily every success for her snowboarding future as we know she has the talent and dedication to go far

BSA Development Team Rider (NZ) Interview: Adam Shaw

2009-05-02T07:07:00.000-07:00

BSA Development Team (NZ) Rider Interview : Adam Shaw

Hometown?

Mt maunganui , nz

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you

Fun, progression and good times

Where is your favourite place to ride and why?

Remarkables New Zealand because it has a sick park and good free riding, and all my friends are always shredding there

What trick gives you the most pleasure?

Switch bs 5

What are your future goals within snowboarding?

Personal progression, and would love to make some money out of it one day

What, in your opinion, would make the snowboarding world better ?

More and more snow. if there was more money in the New Zealand snow industry, and probably if eveything wasn't so corporate

Today Adam Shaw is feeling... a little hung over

Do you have any random words of wisdom?

Have fun ,fuck all the bull shit in life., just go shred. There's nothing better

Watch out for more news on Adam this coming season in New Zealand...

NEWS UPDATE: ADAM SHAW has joined the Bataleon Snowboards NZ team. Congratulations to Adam!

Kiwi Bataleon rider Adam Shaw from Cleay Perham on Vimeo.

Watch out for Adam in NZ this coming season...

More Good Times you say….hell yeah!

2009-04-23T13:09:00.000-07:00

MGT Camp, Norquay 2009!

More Good Times you say….hell yeah!

Words by Emily Park

I’d been pretty much crossing off the days on the calender and counting down to April 4th all season. Using it as excuse not to go big I’m ashamed to admit…but I wanted to be fighting fit ready to ride with MFR, Raewyn Reid, Leanne Pelosi, Robin Van gyn and Tara Dakides! What a line up! MGT was coming to Mt Norquay, Banff, AB. I couldn’t pass up the chance to ride with some of the worlds top female pros and take some box tricks to the rails! These were the girls who were gonna give me the push I needed.

Heading up the camp was “fellow Brit” Leanne Pelosi (born in Wales then moved to Canada when she was 2). Outnumbered by the 50 Canadians it was like my first day of school all over again. It was a beautiful bluebird day and the first real scorching spring day of the season. I was really pleased to be in Leanne’s group and after a couple fun buttery tripod and nose block warm up runs we hiked a box till lunch. We got all jumpy in the afternoon and Leanne’s tip to pop later off the tail cleaned up my back 3s a treat!

I was gutted Norquay park didn’t feature a down rail so as it turned out the scariest part of the weekend was sitting on the knuckle of the XL jump and having Tara, Leanne, Robin and Bev jump over our heads!! It was brilliant to see the pros throw down and see Tara bust out her signature backflip!

We got to see Robyn’s bum with a back board to moonie! Ha ha ha! …and athough I didn’t get to see Raewyn grease it up on the boxes or MFR in ‘RL’, Bev Vuilleumier definitely had more than enough steeze to make up for it! She went on one of the MGT camps before becoming pro, proof that it can be done!

Overall I guess what made it for me was to see 50+ girls hanging out in the park, all having ‘more good times’, giving their best, smiling and slamming. The line ups were long but the vibes were great and the music was cranking…mostly cheesy 80’s pop! Props to Katiie Fagan who was getting everyone amped! That girl rocks!!

Thanks to Leanne and Joanna Majcherkiewicz for bringing MGT to the Bow Valley, hooking everyone up with some great stash and kicking off spring with a spark! I made some new friends and have a new hunger to try new stuff and eat lots of steeze burgers! See you next year…that’s if u don’t bring the camp to UK snowdomes before then!…I’ll be looking for more good times this summer for sure!

My friend Sam took the photos. Not bad for someone in a neck brace on codeine!…(back on the board soon girl x).

www.mgtsnowboardcamp.com

If Desiree Melancon was President she would make everything illegal legal

2009-04-19T06:39:00.000-07:00

Desiree Melancon is part of the new breed of talented female snowboarders to hit the limelight. She rides rails with style & finesse. BSA asked Desiree some questions on a hangover day...

Hometown? riverside, California

Use 3 words to describe your last shred trip: icy, beer, chubby

If you had a superpower what would it be? to fly.

What's your most accomplished snowboarding trick you like to throw down? carving

What word do you say most often? "fuckkkkkkkkk"

Your favourite music to listen to whilst riding? the Beatles

If you were president, what would you try to change in the world? i would make everything illegal legal.

Which snowboarder do you find attractive both for their riding skills & good looks? hahaha jesus i am not answering this.

You're supported by Holden Outerwear (Mikey Leblanc's company) What do you like about Mikey and his company & which item of Holden outerwear is your favourite? Mikey is amazing to me. he's a friend. He took me under Holden's wing when i was coming up and it was the best thing ever. i owe Mikey tons. then Holden is just the sweetest company ever. so i back it super hard. my items of favorite are the pants. and the shirt and hoodie designs. i like simple drawings.

Today Desiree Melancon is feeling...? hungover but excited.

BSA would like to thanks Desiree for answering these questions. PS. We think one of Desiree's accomplished tricks is a solid & stylish frontboard. However, we are pretty sure her carving is top notch too

Passion, Courage & Moments describe Priscilla Levac's relationship with snowboarding

2009-04-11T16:16:00.000-07:00

photo: Crispin Cannon Photo: Crispin Cannon

Hometown? WHISTLER. BC

Describe your relationship with snowboarding using just 3 words PASSION-COURAGE-MOMENTS

What initial steps did you take to make snowboarding your career? I RODE EVERY SINGLE DAY. I WAS GOOD AT DREAMING ABOUT EVERYTHING I WANTED TO HAPPEN, AND I STARTED ENTERING LOCAL CONTESTS, I EVENTUALLY WON A BUNCH..

You founded Cilla female base layer company. Can you explain the ethos behind the products? I WAS TIRED OF THE BORING FIRST LAYERS OUT THERE SO THREE YEARS AGO (WHEN I BROKE MY LEG) I DECIDED TO MAKE ANOTHER ONE OF MY DREAMS COME TRUE. CILLA IS A FASHIONABLE AND FUNCTIONAL FIRST LAYER COMPANY FOR GIRLS. IT OFFERS A VARIETY OF TOPS AND BOTTOMS TO KEEP US WARM AND LOOKING GREAT ON THE HILL. SOME OF THE TOPS ALSO HAS A WATER REPELLENT BAND AT THE BOTTOM WHICH STICKS OUT OF OUR JACKET AND LOOKS FUN WITHOUT HAVING TO DEAL WITH WET AND FROZEN BUMS. NOW CILLA TURNED OUT TO BE MORE THAN FIRST LAYERS, SOME WEAR IT TO YOGA, AT THE GYM, AS STREET WEAR, AND EVEN TO THE BAR! I LITERALLY LIVE IN THEM MYSELF! IT IS SO COMFORTABLE THAT TO ME WEARING JEANS IS A TORTURE NOW! Check out http://www.cilla.ca/ for more details

What are you favourite riding tracks to listen to? I LISTEN TO "DEER TICK" ALLLLL THE TIME RIGHT NOW.

You have been riding for a while now. What progression in female snowboarding have you experienced up to the present day? THERE'S A LOT MORE STYLE AND CONTROL, I GET REALLY IMPRESSED BY THE GIRLS NOW.

What's the best advice someone has ever given to you? NEVER RESIST WHAT IS, TO POINT MY BOAT DOWNSTREAM IN ANY GIVEN SITUATION AND GO WITH THE FLOW.

Today Priscilla Levac is feeling...? TRULY HAPPY.

Bonus BSA question: Where would you like to see yourself 10 years from now? LIVING IN THE PRESENT MOMENT, BE BALANCED, AND TRULY HAPPY. I ALSO WANT TO TEACH 'RAW FOOD', I BELIEVE RAW FOOD CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

Does Hampus Mosesson choose sex over snowboarding?

2009-04-04T00:44:00.000-07:00

Hampus Mosesson
Occupation: PRO SNOWBOARDER
Known to go big and push limits in the backcountry or at a competition, this Swedish rider refuses to 'huck and spin' his tricks to win a contest. 'I try to make it not look like a videogame.'

Hometown? Frösön, Sweden

Use 3 words to describe your current relationship with snowboarding.
Fun, Work, Stressful

If you could be invisible for one day, what would you do? Get a starmap in Hollywood and see my favourite famous girls get dressed or whatever their doing by the time i get there..

What could the snowboarding world do without? Lots of shit, jocks, 4 jumps in a row, judges, well in one short word contests.

If you could slap anybody in the world really hard in the face, with no consequences, who would it be and why? This guy that made this one girl feel really bad, u wouldn't know him so ill pick a snowboarder instead. Mitch Reed.

Which female snowboarder do you find particularly attractive (for her snowboarding as well as looks) ? Fuck me.. I guess my younger love, Victoria Jealouse

Today, Hampus Mosesson is feeling...? Lost and confused. Big time.

Who are your sponsors and what's good about them?

Omatic-Just because its a sick family company, Quiksilver-They give me a big paycheck every month and have sick clothes, Monster-They make me wanna drink their drinks with alcohol, Union-Best binders out there, Neff-Word, Grenade-They make bombs.

Can you give BSA some random words of your wisdom for the day? Think through everything u do before u do it and don't look back after its done. I think i messed up on that one a couple of days ago...

Bonus question: Do you think snowboarding is more fun than sex? If i could only snowboard myself without filming or anything i would for sure pick snowboarding. Sex gets old. But as for now... Yeah, sex..

BSA Snow thanks Hampus for taking the time to answer these questions

Michaela Davis Meehan Rider Interview BSA Development Team (Australia)

2009-04-02T18:49:00.001-07:00

Image by TimLloydphoto.com

Michaela Davis Meehan
Michaela is a crazy girl with crazy abilities so expect to see big things from her on the Swatch TTR World Tour.
Age: 17

Michaela unfortunately had to pull out of the recent 6star TTR Roxy Chicken Jam held at Mammoth California as she bruised her heel after knuckling one of the jumps in practice. We wish Michaela a speedy recovery back to full fitness.

Michaela Davis Meehan

Hometown Newcastle

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you fun, good times

Where is your favourite place to ride and why? perisher because all my mates are there and i know my way around..most of the time..it might not have the best snow all the time but its my home mountain n i love it.

What trick gives you the most pleasure? back 3 tail

What are your future goals within snowboarding? just have a good time and hopefully have no injuries

What, in your opinion, would make the snowboarding world better ? its pretty good the way it is now

Today Micheala Davis Meehan is feeling..... relaxed

Do you have any random words of wisdom? go with the flow

Micheala's TTR Rider Profile

PS. Michaela is the sister of BSA Dev. Team (Australia) Patrick Davis - Meehan, it was Michaela that suggested her brother as a suitable candidate. Check out Patrick's BSA interview here

BSA Snow Development Team (UK) finalised

2009-03-31T15:21:00.000-07:00

This carefully selected development team is tasked with helping to develop BSA globally within their specified region.

These snowboarders are dedicated international snow addicts. They are all keen on FUN and have specialist talents.

BSA Development Team (United Kingdom)

(left to right on image) Martin Robertson (Newtonmore) Emily Park (Trowbridge) Nathan Onions (Braknell) Samantha Rogers (Braknell) Dean Horsfield (Accrington)

Keep checking the site for updates on all these talented British snowboarders BSA Snow has also completed BSA Development Teams for Australia, Canada & New Zealand.

Recent BSA Global Snow News articles include Pro rider interviews with Mikey Leblanc (USA), Raewyn Reid (Canada), Erin Comstock (USA), Hampus Moseson (Sweden)

Check out http://www.britishsnowaddictions.com/ for details

"BSA Snow is keeping the true spirit of snowboarding alive" (Eddie Spearing) British Snowboard Association Founder 1988 — 2004

BSA aims to relieve symptoms of snow addiction by providing the rehab guest (BSA friend) with Global Snow News, Images, Video footage and FUN

BSA (UK) Development Team Rider Martin Robertson Big Bear California Park laps video footage: http://vimeo.com/3683281

Snowboarding means Freedom, Creativity & Aggression to Mikey Leblanc

2009-03-31T11:51:00.000-07:00

Mikey LeBlance has been featured on over 10 major magazine covers, Ranked #1 in media exposure for the year of 2002 by TransWorld Surf Business & featured in Amped 2 video game. Mikey is an artist, actor, writer, poet, athlete, scholar and entrepreneur

Hometown?

Topsham, Maine, USA now living in Portland, OR, USA

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you.

Freedom Creativity Aggression

You've been snowboarding for quite a few years now, what have you seen change within the industry that has been good and bad?

To me “the industry” means the business. I think right now its corporate as hell which means someone is attempting to control something or make it plan able. Snowboarding at its roots is not a plan able thing, its a way to be free and react creatively, so the corporate thing can never capture that. The big companies are doing their best to make it HUGE, and that’s fine. But we need small ones to reflect what the heart of its about too.

It was all heart in the late 80’s and early 90’s, tons of small brands and a tone of energy. The last 4 years or so have been kinda wack to me. Still fun at its roots, but I am talking business wise. From the companies that dominate to how they run their pro teams and treat their riders like shit. And also video and magazines are to blame, on mass they have failed in representing the kids perspective and the energy and feeling they have for life and snowboarding, BUT there are some that are good. And there IS a new crop of pros and ams coming up that will be calling bullshit on this and not taking the attempted control of what they love so well. And of course the kids as well that are not pro and ams as well... So things will be changing back to something more “core” for lack of a better word I think.And the good and bad part, I am not sure about good and bad, its just about balance.

What is your opinion on the snowboarding & the Olympics?

I think its cool. I cant wait to watch the half pipe.

What words of wisdom do you have for aspiring snowboarders wanting to carve a career out of snowboarding?

Snowboard a lot, work HARD in the summer so you can move somewhere and ride all winter. Be driven to get better and ride hard. Also be realistic and honest with yourself. Don’t let people tell you what you are or if you can “make it”, look and tell yourself if you have it. If you think you do, ride more and meet people. Show them and don’t tell them how good you are. Show them by riding amazing film some nice stuff, shoot some nice pictures... Also align yourself with people with similar goals, that push you. Like riders that will wake up at 5am to go get first tracks, and filmers and photogs that’s are good and motivated.

Who are your sponsors and why are they good?

RIDE- because they let me do what I do

DVS- they back me 100%, and I get say in what they do in snow too

MATIX- they are 100% real people

HOLDEN- I own this company

CELTEK- Eric and BJ Lienes own this and they are a great company with the realest intentions for business and snowboarding

COAL- Because they are hands off and make awesome hats

We think you have a great attitude towards the snowboarding world. Who do you think has a great attitude?

Devun Walsh, MFM, NICO DROZ, Gigi, Nicolas Mueller, Jeremy Jones (extreme), Travis Rice, Scotty Wittlake, Keagan Valika, Cale Zima, LNP, Darrel Mathes, Desiree Melancon, Matty Ryan, Airblaster dudes, Celtek clan, Ashbury dudes, Pat Bridges, Jake Blauvelt, Terje, Ingemar, the list goes on,

If you had to take one thing to a desert island that you had to spend the rest of your life on. What would it be?

No regrets for what I left behind.

What trick whilst snowboarding give you the most pleasure?

BS 180

Bonus BSA question: What are your thoughts on England?

Its a place I need to see much more of.

BSA Snow thanks Mikey for taking the time answer these questions.

Roxy Queen of Shred Erin Comstock says Backside 180's are amazing

2009-03-30T03:36:00.000-07:00

The 2006/2007 season was one of Erin’s most successful. She was filmed for two snowboarding flicks: Runway Film’s “La La Land” and Roxy’s first-ever all-women’s ski and snowboard team film “Labor of Love.” Erin has also been featured in the Vans movie, “A Lucid Dream,” the Park City movie “City. Park City,” and Misschief Films “Ro Sham Bo.”

Hometown? Salt Lake City, Utah

Use 3 carefully selected words to describe what snowboarding means to you. Free, aggressive, Mental

What, in your opinion, would make snowboarding better ? I think snowboarding could be made better if people could appreciate other peoples way of expressing themselves. I feel like to many people talk shit on other people. Thats just life though..

Where do you see snowboarding, particularly female snowboarding, in say 10 years time? Hahaha well look back 10 years and a girls video part now could totally be a legit video part in Mack Dawg 10years ago. So I guess I will put it out there and say the same for the female riders in 10 years

Who is your favourite rider and why? Difficult question. I really appreciate all my friends and their riding. But Heikki Sorsa is probably my favorite rider to watch. He is soooo talented. Burton obviously cant see that!!!

Describe THE perfect day... It can either be powder or Park I dont care, But an amazing days with all of my friends! I love riding with all my friends!

What trick when snowboarding gives you the most pleasure? I love a clean frontside 540, oh Backside 180's are amazing. Gosh I guess just landing a clean run no matter what the tricks but that gives me the most satisfaction!

Today Erin Comstock is feeling...? Today I am really excited! I have some good friends coming to Mammoth to shred with me this weekend and I am already here with my good friends! Life is good!

What advice do you have for young enthusiastic female snowboarders wanting to make a career out of snowboarding? Be smart about your career. Dont make it your life. Because there is more to life than snowboarding! And if something happens to where you cant ride you should be prepared for that. But embrace it as well. Snowboarding will give you so much in life! you get to travel and meet so many people! Also keep yourself healthy!

Who are your sponsors? ROXY, ROCKSTAR, VANS, PARK CITY MTN, ACTIVE

Bonus BSA question: What's the first random word that comes into your head right now? WOW

BSA thanks Erin for taking the time to answer the questions in this interview. PS. We agree that backside 180's are amazing!

Charlotte Trundle BSA Snow Team (NZ) Boulder Rail Jam update

2009-03-28T17:34:00.000-07:00

Cricket Campus Rail Jam 2009 @ Boulder

Charlotte's words:

After driving two hours in my roommates Subaru WRX sti racing are other friends car I was happy to have made it to Boulder in one piece..Thank god I don’t know how fast miles an hour are..

I was slightly nervous after not riding for 3 weeks after an unfortunate glass to foot incident (costing $4000 American, in which I was sober) and the fact I had just removed my own stitches.

As we arrived in Boulder to go check out the set-up, this old man came up to me asking if I wanted to trade my dragon sunnies for rocks… I thought he is trying to trade me crack!! And started wondering in all my snowboard gear did I look like a crack-head??..

Later on I find out hippies try to trade gems and precious stones for things they want.
The set up was a street style down bar with creeper rail on either side, a street style down flat down and a ledge box, also with creepers with a 5 foot drop off it and off the side of the side rails they had air bags which hardly worked just incase you came off the rail early onto the concrete SKETCHY!!!

I am in the second heat, which was girls, and skiers the crowd watching is the biggest I have ever seen at a rail comp. My one problem with scaffolding even though I have done quite a few comps with it is I am so scared of heights, especially when the thing I am walking on it shaking and creaking.

My first hit was a disaster after not riding for three weeks I don’t pop enough onto the down bar enough and taco myself (great for the confidence and it hurt so much) but after that I start to get in a flow and land 50/50 front one off the down bar, 50/50 board slide on the down flat down and 50/50 front one and back one of the ledge (which is so sticky).

The girls where throwing down front side swivels on the down bar, front boards and stomping their stuff.

I waited anxiously for my name to be called for the finals as the competition was stiff at this point I was thinking about going for a beer as I was battered and bruised after all the slams and didn’t think I was going to make finals.

They call me name out and I make my way back up the scaffolding. In the finals I nearly landed a back 3 off the ledge I kept landing on my feet but sitting down, as it was such a big drop to an inch of snow on concrete. I landed 50/50 front board on the down flat down and a nose press back one on the ledge and a couple of other tricks I landed in qualifying. The other girls where killing it again so I had no idea what the judging was going to be like.

At prize giving I find out I came 2nd and I won an o-matic snowboard and a place to the finals, I was so stoked after riding for weeks.

I love to hate comps sometimes they go your way and sometimes they don’t but as long as you love snowboarding and riding with your friends that’s all that matters.

BSA Development Team (New Zealand) Rider Charlotte Trundle Interview:

Hometown

wanaka has been my home town for 5 years

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you
fun, friends, adrenaline

Where is your favourite place to ride and why?

snowpark nz because of the relaxed atmosphere, progressive creative features and all my friends ride there.

What trick gives you the most pleasure?

every trick i land which is new

What are your future goals within snowboarding?

try to stay injury free and get a video part in a snowboard movie

What, in your opinion, would make the snowboarding world better ?

no gapers, no spring break haha

Today Charlotte Trundle is feeling..... stoked because its snowing a lot and i am going to have an amazing powder day tomorrow

Do you have any random words of wisdom?

snowboard because you love it

BSA Rider update: Charlotte Trundle new sponsor: Charlotte signs with Betty Rides outerwear

Snowboarding means Fun, Powder & Travel to BSA Development Team Rider (Australia) Patrick Davis-Meehan

2009-03-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

BSA Development Team Rider Interview: Patrick Davis-Meehan

Hometown - Newcastle, Australia

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you - Fun, Powder, Travel

Where is your favourite place to ride and why? - Summit County Colorado, lots of friends here and great mountains.

What trick gives you the most pleasure? - Anything really smooth that i stomp, love backside spins.

What are your future goals within snowboarding? - Make Olympics for Halfpipe and shred for as long as possible.

What, in your opinion, would make the snowboarding world better ? - More parks like Whistler's Black park, where you need a pass to get in, so you don't get family's and punters riding through and standing on the knuckle etc.

Today Patrick Davis-Meehan is feeling.....? - So stoked! Went Cat skiing for the first time today at Tucker Mountain, it was amazing, i still have a high from it 5 hours later.

Do you have any random words of wisdom? - Be nice

BSA wishes Patrick every success for his snowboarding future. He has a great attitude to compliment his skills

Check out Patricks website here

Red Bull Skyscrapers winner Shayne Popisil says Snowboarding is always fun

2009-03-23T09:43:00.000-07:00

Like most talented shredders from New Jersey, Shayne Pospisil relocated to Mammoth, CA and promptly took over the park.

Hometown?

Manasquan, New Jersey

You recently won the New York Red Bull Skyscrapers TTR event recently. Describe what the event was like and how you felt winning it.

The contest was pretty awesome being in Manhattan, NYC and right near home. I live an hour away so I had a ton of friends and all my family come up to watch so winning it was perfect. All in all Red bull did a great job with the event and setting all the athletes up with a sick hotel and accomodations and putting 50 grand up for first wasn't bad either. But it was one of the best contests i've ever been to and the crowd was awesome and besides the run in to the jump not being high enough it was a great contest.

Use 3 words to describe what snowboarding means to you?

Always fun times

You are from the States. What are the benefits and drawbacks (if any) being an American snowboarder?

We don't have to many drawbacks considering we have some of the best parks and all type of riding terrain in the world. But really i can't think of any drawbacks we americans have rite now. But how the world looks at Americans right now after Bush was president and the economy being so bad really doesn't make our reputation look that great so that would definitely be are drawback.

What are your future goals for your snowboarding career?

My goals are to keep riding hard and hopefully competing and winning contests for the next few years. I'd also like to film a solid video part one of these years and maybe get back into halfpipe and try to make a run at that...maybe not olympics but just get all my tricks back. But I definitely want to be in the top 10 in the world and just be super comfortable with my snowboarding.

In your opinion, what would make snowboarding (lifestyle, industry, sport) better?

Snowboarding could be better I guess if we had a bigger fan base and more people new about it like golf or basketball. Were athletes putting are body on the line every day and risking it all just to put on a good show and have fun and were getting paid nothing compared to golfers. So we definitely don't get enough recognition for what we do so hopefully people will start to realize how crazy snowboarding is and come check it out.

Who do you think will win the TTR World snowboard tour 2009 ?

Probably Shaun. I'd like to see Chaz take it but shaun's just too good. (NB: Peetu won)

What trick gives you the best feeling when you do it?

Lately it's been a switch backside five nose grab. That trip always gets me corked and upside down and feels really good.

Who are your sponsors?

HEAD snowboards, Billabong, Smith, Dakine, Valsurf, Mt. Opts, TedShreds

Today, Shayne Pospisil is feeling....?

rejuvenated

BSA Development Team riders Charlotte Trundle (NZ) & Owen Newman (Australia) qualify for Volcom PBRJ 2009 Invite only Finals Mammoth

2009-03-22T09:41:00.000-07:00

Owen & Charlotte earn a much deserved spot at the Volcom Peanut Butter & rail jam chamionships final (Invite Only) to be held at Mammoth mountain in California 25th April 2009. Click here for more: PBRJ info

Watch out for these talented riders. BSA wishes them the best of luck at the finals and hopes they throw down and have fun!

For more images and information on BSA Development Team riders check out BSA snow & BSA images

Transworld Snowboarding Rookie of the Year 2009 Raewyn Reid on FUN

2009-03-19T11:39:00.000-07:00

Name: Raewyn Reid

Birth date: January 12th, 1989

Following in the footsteps of Calgary native Leanne Pelosi, and under her care, Raewyn is the next to make a name for her self. True to form, she's a city rail specialist who's adept in the park, taken to filming, and grateful to be along for the ride

1. Hometown?

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

2. You recently won Transworld snowboarding Women's Rookie of the year 2009. How did you feel when you won & what do you think gave you the edge in winning that award in comparison to other Rookies?

I was really stoked for sure. I have a lot of respect for Transworld and I was so excited to even have been nominated, to win was just a plus plus really. Bev is so sick and one of my best friends, and Ellery kills it so hard in pipe so I think it must have been pretty close for sure. I guess my video part might have been the deciding factor but I think it was really anyones game.

3. What are you future goals within your blossoming snowboarding career?

I really just want to keep getting better, to me progression is the most important thing. I want to be really sick at rails, jumps, backcountry, park, everything. It would even be cool to be able to put down a decent halfpipe run one of these days. I have a lot of respect for well rounded riders and I think its so sick to be pushing snowboarding for snowboarding, not just snowboarding for rails or whatever you feel the most comfortable doing.

4. Women's riding has seen some huge progression over the last few years. What do you think has contributed to this?

I think it's just a drive to be better. It is still a pretty young sport in comparison to the mens side, and it is more competitive now than it has ever been. I also think that women's specific film projects like Misschief and Runway have played a huge role in this because before it was always women's video parts in mens movies, as opposed to putting out a sick all girls film. I think that the last four years have really put women's snowboarding into a league of its own.

5. Describe your last snowboarding session using just 3 words.

FUN, Powdery, awesome.

6. Who are your regular shred buddies & why do you like to ride with them ?

Leanne Pelosi, One life crew, all the Calgary kids. They are all super creative and fun to hang out with whether you are snowboarding or just cruising. Good people and lots of laughs, why not?

7. You are from Canada. What does it mean to be a Canadian snowboarder ?

I am very proud to be Canadian and I feel as though I am in good company. It means that you have to work hard and party harder!!

8. What friendly words of advice can you give to aspiring young female riders wishing to be successful at snowboarding?

Love what your doing and have fun, the rest should fall into place if it's meant to be. And take most things with a grain of salt because that's the best way to stay out of the bull shit, and that's the stuff will make you old and jaded.

9. Who are your sponsors?

DC, Monster, Dragon, Pom Pom Wax, The Source

10. Today Raewyn Reid is feeling....?

Stoked! Just got back from a super fun Powder trip, slept in late, and had breakfast waiting for me when I woke up.

BSA thanks Raewyn for taking the time to do this interview. We wish her the very best in her blossoming snowboarding career.

BSA (BritishSnowAddictions.com) has finalised a New Zealand Development Team.

2009-03-17T16:22:00.000-07:00

This carefully selected development team is tasked with helping to develop BSA globally within their specified region.These snowboarders are dedicated international snow addicts.

They are all keen on FUN and have specialist talents.

BSA Development Team (New Zealand)

Adam Shaw

Maia Stier

Jay Walsh

Charlotte Trundle

Guy McCully

Christy Prior

Keep checking the site for updates on all these talented Kiwi shredders.

BSA is also in the process of completing a BSA Development Team for Australia, Canada & of course the United Kingdom.

BritishSnowAddictions.com aims to relieve symptoms of snow addiction by providing the rehab guest (BSA friend) with Global Snow News, Images, Video footage and F.U.N.

Recent BSA Global Snow News articles include Pro rider interviews with Andrew Hardingham (Canada), Raewyn Reid (Canada), Stef Zeestraten (NZ) & Shayne Popisil (USA)

BSA = FUN

Adam Bowcutt

PR Director @ BSA

http://www.britishsnowaddictions.com/

BSA = Online Rehab Clinic

NZsnowboard.com BSA article

Passion inspires happiness says Kiwi Pro Rider Stef Zeestratten

2009-03-16T18:48:00.000-07:00

Photo: Lee Ponzio

Photo: Courtesy of stefzeestratten.com
Photo: Courtesy of stefzeestratten.com

Stef 'Dutchy' Zeestratten is a stylish and talented rider from New Zealand. He is very passionate about snowboarding and will go far. Stef is one of the laid back and friendly NZ shredders who are currently at the forefront of Kiwi snowboarding.

1.Hometown?

Wanaka (winter nz) Kaikoura (surfing between seasons) and no fixed address for the rest of the year!

2. We hear you're a sick 'Kiwi' shredder. What does it mean to bepart of the NZ snowboarding scene?

Ha thanks!! Its a privilage in New Zealand as we have a really laid back scene, that is just focused on one thing and that’s getting everyone out there having a good time!!!

3. Use 3 words to describe why you love snowboarding...

Freedome, Adrenalin , Friends

4. What are your future snowboarding career goals?

Keep discovering New things within the sport and the lifestyle that comes with it and shred as long and hard as i can!!!!

5. Who are your shred buddies? and why do you like riding with them?

My shred buddies Range from my daily Kiwi Crew of peeps like Robett H,Nick H and B, Mich B and Will J, Shelly G to the lost friends that I keep running into around the world! Like today I had a sick day getting creative with the one and only Tyler Chorlton. These Peeps along with many more are always happy, fun to ride with,creative and make for an interesting and usually unpredictable day!!!

6. What would make snowboarding, in general, better?

If all these wonderful people that make snowboarding possible,(resorts, media, shops and snowboarders........) would work together more to make this sport available to more people as an alternative to soccer and rugby!

7. Today Stef Zeestraten is feeling...?

Like I'm in a great Food coma reflecting on another epic days shredding!

8. What tricks are you playing with (or trying to perfect) at the moment?

Well this Season Ive only been shredding Pow so switch pow lines have been keeping me busy, until today where i had one of a few days in the park so far this season and everything from methods airs to switch shifty 900s were keeping me entertained!

9. What are your thoughts on the ever increasing number of comps worldwide? Is this a good thing or not?

Well I've always loved Comps traveling to them and riding with friends that happen to be pushing and inspiring you to go bigger and do better, but this season i have taken a 6 month break to go back to why i started. The simplicity of pow riding and the carefree but unpredictable season i have had reminds me that there should be a good balance if your on the competition circuit chasing that money!!

10 Who are your sponsors?

Oakley, K2, Pow Gloves

BSA Bonus questions: Will you share some of your wise words of wisdom...

Passion Inspires Happiness

BSA thanks Stef for taking the time to answer the questions in this interview

ANDREW HARDINGHAM: Fk the Olympics, Fk Visa & McDonalds & f**k the F.I.S.

2009-03-13T17:34:00.001-07:00

Andrew is a super talented individual. It may not be actual talent, it may just be the lack of fear to try anything. The end result is that Andrew delivers, it may be pooh in a box or a 100ft rock ride or a narrow Avalanche escape. With Andrew anything is possible. (source: ridesnowboards.com)

Hometown?

My home town is Banff Alberta Canada. A beautiful little spot filled with snow angels and gingerbread men. Right in the heart of the Canadian rocky mountains. I like the Canadian Rockies more than the USA’s Rockies because our Rockies look way bigger. Our valleys are much lower altitude so the mountains look much more bad ass. If you’ve ever been to Colorado you'll know that they are more about bragging about the altitude of their towns rather than the vertical of their mountains. i like my mountains to have vertical. It’s better for riding and just makes the mountains look rad! However they probably have more red blood cells than me which makes them stronger humans. That’s cool too i guess.

What does being Canadian mean to you?

Well I love where i live in the world. BC and the western stretch of Alberta is great. There is so much to do here because of the mountains, plus the continental divide (Atlantic-pacific) is only 5 kms from my house which is the BC-Alberta boarder so i can fish for BC salmon without driving too far. Love the fly fishing! But as far as being a Canadian I’m on the fence. It’s a great country to belong too when you take away the dick sucking we do to the Americans. It seems like all of our large business does whatever the big spender asks of us. Take the oil sands in northern Alberta. Worst thing in the world for the environment. polluting our water and land at a catastrophic rate, creating something future generation can't even use and will have to work to clean up for decades if not centuries... why? Because the Americans want our oil. Fucking pisses me off. I guess it’s just beautiful capitali$m in motion though. What can I say? I am a man with different ideas about what’s important I guess. Plus i have always said that it wasn't my country that made me the man i am today, it’s the region i live in. "The Rockies and interior BC mountains”. It is here i learned to be the man I am today. Appreciating the land and all it has to offer. it’s what made me realize that life is more important than money and i would rather be poor as shit and living the life of a retired man while I’m young (it’s what I do now) than working my youth away so that i can have a sweet leather couch i never get to sit in and an awesome boat that chicks dig only they don't dig wrinkly old retired balls so what’s the point. I’ll probably have to work till I’m 90 but who cares right? There are so many different kinds of Canadians. I'm not a nationalistic person and I love so many other countries and people so I'm kinda like “what evs”.

Have you ever been to the UK?

I’ve never been there but I’m itching to go one day. I keep looking for a good reason or rich woman who will use my body in exchange for a two way ticket but I haven’t found it or her yet. But believe it or not I absolutely love the English chicks. Something super sweet about their style.

4. You were injured pretty badly recently. Describe what happened.

A) I smashed my pelvis like a glass bottle dropped on concrete. They cut me wide open and went in elbow deep. I think they dropped a pair of scissors and sowed me up because it still hurts. But the doctor says that's normal.It was a huge jump that no one wanted to hit so Dustin Craven and I stepped up to bat and we both got sent into space off this thing, Seriously huge. Like 50 feet high and 100 feet long.We shaved the kick down and the next day. A few peeps strait aired it and then I opened it up with a back 540 and stomped the shit out of her. So I was all stoked. Then on the second hit I tried a front 720 under flip but didn’t flip enough and whammy! It was broken pelvis time. Oopsthe ski patrol sexually assaulted me because I think they touched my bum then when I got to the hospital there was like 10 female nurses and doctors and they striped me nude and were all moaning and growing and looking at my special place. Then one of them got some balls and grabbed my cock and shoved a catheter in my pee hole. She didn’t warn me or anything but I wasn’t mad because I was way too turned on. Sexy shit I tells ya. Later that week after surgery they wanted to take it out and I wouldn’t let them because I had grown quite fond of peeing into a bag and never having to go to the toilet. Eventually I took it out myself. Gross feeling but again it was kinda sexy.

5. TYP (Throw Your Panties) is an insane film. What was its purpose? If any.

A) well, the story goes as such…."Throw your Panties" (TYP) is a big time movie i made in hopes of helping my father (whom owns a toilet paper factory) make enough money to buy a whole turkey at Christmas time. the goal of the film is to create a film so insane it will turn people’s brains into shit and i think that will be good business for my dad... he's had rough times ever since the green movement and everyone started washing their ass in the sink to save on TP. he almost blew his brains out when that bitch Cheryl crow told the world to only use only 1-2 squares per wipe..... But things are on the up-and-up since the release of the film. Toilet paper stock is at an all time high and my dad just dropped in on a Christmas paper role that features Santa Claws and Mrs. Claws on every square. It turns your ass green and red but you feel like Picasso every pull. i think that if the movie keeps selling the way it is and people keep eating junk food the way they do, we shouldn’t be hungry at Christmas. Throw your Panties will turn your brains to shit…. Guaranteed.I also was getting sick of the repetitive way snowboard films were made. The never changing porno films. Personally, I was craving more personality and substance and finally after bitching about it there was only one thing left to do and that was make my own film and do it my way. I love fucking around and fucking with other people. My buddy Joey and I edited TYP so no one knew what it was going to turn out like. Often the riders would drop by my place for a look. I'd show them a few sections but never anything put together. I wanted the world to see that it doesn’t have to be snowboard porno all the time and that we can embrace a different style of shred flick. It’s OK to have the old school style film out there just not 30 of them with no sign of anything else. Anyway, everyone loved it except for a few assholes and soccer moms that gave it to their kids at Christmas as stocking stuffers. We marketed them as “a great stocking stuffer for kids”, Oops!

6. We hear you will be producing a new film 'Thunder Mouth'. What do you have in store for the viewer this time?

A) All I can say about thunder mouth is get ready to have your brains turned to shit… wait that’s last year’s marketing campaign. This year we want to make thunder mouth so good that it will force the action movie world to change their ways. With thunder mouth I want to push the joke to a new level. It should offend some people. That’s how you know you’re doing a good job. See people who make everyone happy are just plain lame. That or they are only doing it to pay rent. Because realistically if you’re out there making everyone happy than they’ll only ever be marginally happy or marginally satisfied with the product. I feel that the fans of the films should be really fucken happy and love the shit out of it. Or ells hate the shit out of it. That means your sticking to your guns as a producer/director. Principles are important and compromise is something corporations do to sell more things at walmart. This is also a big part of the reason I pay for most of the film myself. The sponsors that do support us do a great job; they all help out more than they need too. The nice thing about the sponsors of this film is they all know I'm going to do it my way and none of them have any problems with that. They just give me what I need and say “can’t wait to see the finished product”. For me a good sponsor is one that if you happen to get crazy drunk in front of and pull your dick out and piss all over the table. They won’t boot you off the team. They’ll just laughs and tell the story the next day. They might even encourage your behaviour. That’s what my sponsors are like. Some of my sponsors might even be the ones pissing on the table before me… we get along good and they trust me so it’s a good relationship. That’s how it should be and ill always take less money to have the financial supporters believe in my film. What more can a director ask for, really? I never got sponsored because I might be a marketable name like Shawn white. Pepsi will never hire me. And I will never have a clothing line in Target. I don’t care if you give me a million bucks. I’d rather be fucking poor than lose my peers respect.

7. Use 3 words to describe yourself:

A) Relaxed, political, independent
I think the first two are an oxymoron but I like morons and oxen so I'm cool with it.

8. Describe your relationship with snow and snowboarding

A) it’s an interesting one I think because I started when the sport was still young. The cool thing about that is snowboarding in Canada started right here in Banff and Calgary. The first snowboarders in Canada were from Calgary and the first hill to let them ride was Sunshine Village 15 minutes from Banff. It’s where I do a good part of my filming and shooting these days. I love it there. Another interesting thing is my father worked at sunshine as the outdoor manager wile snowboarding was just getting started in the early 80’s. He always told me stories about how snowboarders would come and ask if they could ride the hill. Apparently he was one of the first people to let them ride the lifts. At first they weren’t allowed but because they were so keen my pops told me he would let them hike. He thought they were goof balls and didn’t see the sport as something that would go anywhere but he did admire their persistence so he told them to stay out of people’s way and they could shred the hill.As the sport grew up it got so much more resistance from dumb shit ski racers and ski associations that thought it was impure. They ignorantly thought snowboarders were bad news that were always drunk and scraped the snow off the mountains. I started riding in 1992 so I still got some of that attitude. It actually made the sport way cooler because we had to stick together and rise above the ignorance. Until around 1996-7 there were still two sides. You were ether a skier or a snowboarder and there was no in between. We would have skier vs. boarder fights in school and shit. It was rad! We hated jocks for the longest time but now it seems like half the snowboard populous are jocks. Whatever though, the sport changed and I watched it change and it’s really interesting to witness. I'm just glad I got to see a few different sides of the sport I love. Now days most of the new freestyle kids don’t know shit about how original the sport once was. They only know the world of soccer moms and Olympic tryouts as if that competition actually matters. The Olympics don’t mean shit for snowboarding. It only means WAY more money for corporate fools that want to exploit the sport. Sure it’s great that my parents see snowboarding as a real sport but I’d rather they think its crap and go back to the day when only people who loved riding did it. I’ll always accept this sport the way it is. Just don’t expect me to support things like the Olympics. Fuck the Olympics. Fuck Visa and McDonalds and fuck the F.I.S. and Olympic committee.

9. What would make snowboarding (the industry, lifestyle and sport) better, in your opinion?

A) Taking it away from the Olympics, Strait up. It’s insane that the biggest money making event in the world won’t pay their athletes a dime. Every single Olympic comity member makes mad loot. All the secretary’s that type memos make a salary. All the couches make money, even the food runners and bars in town during the show make money, but the only people you can’t replace are made to feel guilty to even ask for financial help. Then the countries are criticized for not supporting the athletes. Why the hell should a country pay that cost when the Olympics should be paying the stars of the show? Every single athlete whether they win or lose are out there working hard as hell. I know of athletes that had to do bottle drives to afford their plane tickets to the Olympics. They wanted to go as independent athletes so they didn’t have to do the corporate dic suck dance and wear all the gear and logos most athletes are forced to do and wear. I think it’s insane that a scenario like this can even exist. Take this for example. Danny Cass is sponsored by Libtech and Grenade clothing and gloves for the entire 4 years it takes him to train and get to the level it takes to qualify and compete at an Olympic level. When he finally gets to go he has to change all the sizes of the logos on his gear so that there virtually impossible to see on camera. Yet while he does his run a VISA logo is placed in the bottom right corner of the screen and some other financial institute or crap fast food company in the left. Two companies that had no part in him getting there or supporting him in any way yet they somehow have a right to advertise during Danny’s run. Of course everyone in the world is programmed to reply to my theory with this “but the Olympics bring people and countries together. Isn’t that more important?” this is what the Olympic comity has in-doctored into the worlds heads so that they can continue having $60,000 dollar lunches, selling the world’s best athletes images, persona's and talents for millions of dollars and keep running the largest profiting event on earth without losing a dime of money on talent. Congratulations world because we’ve created an unstoppable monster.

10. Who are your sponsors?
A) Ride snowboards & bindings, WESC clothing, Drop gloves, Vonzipper, Bruxe bags, Eesa firstlayer, Rudeboys shop, and etnies/32.
Bonus question: Any famous last words of wisdom?
You bet I do! If snowboarding truly is your passion than keep it real and never let your values be compromised. I started entirely on my own when it was still referred to as a “soon to die fad”. Now i want to maintain my own direction. Snowboarding is more than just a sport. It’s a creative outlet to explore and then contribute back into. Anyone out there can help mould it into what they want it to be. It can be so much more than just sliding down a hill on plastic. Try to be creative with it by looking at it differently than the minions/masses and I’m sure you’ll find something more than just and activity. I did and now it’s a huge part of many areas of my life. I make films about it, take photos of it, write stories inspired by it and it keeps me busy on a cold Friday afternoon. It also still scares the shit out of me and challenges me every time I strap on. So it’s not as simple a sport as so many out there. It also is one of the only sports in the world where you can exist without competing, truly unique.

BSA would like to thank Andrew for taking the time to answer these questions. We also wish him a speedy recovery to full health after his recent hip fracture injury.

BSA Development Team Rider (NZ) Adam Shaw says 'Snowboarding is always fun'

2009-03-11T19:30:00.000-07:00

Adam Shaw is a relaxed & friendly Kiwi snowboarder with a sleek shred style. He is based in Queenstown NZ for the southern hemisphere winter & is currently jibbing up a storm in the popular European resort of Mayrhofen, Austria.

Adam recently sent us an update on what he's been up to:

Adam Shaw: 'what up'

"On the past Saturday the 7th of March 2009 Me and my
friend Addi from Iceland travelled a short distance from Mayrhofen to a resort
called Solden., where we me up with Addi's friends that run the park
there.

That night we went out for a few good Austrian beers and a bit of
Jagermeister and had a look at the Solden night life. First we went to an apres
ski bar and had a couple but then we couldn't take the shocking music any more
so we went to a club called Party House, it was insane. There were little kids
running around, drunk as they were passing out all over the place, some of them
looked like they were 12. Some funny stuff was going on. I've never seen kids so
young in a bar, but you only have to be 15 to drink in Austria. But was a fun
night.

Went back to the shapers flat and crashed out on the rock hard floor.
Best sleep ever. Yeah!!!
First thing the next morning we got ready and
cruised up the mountain and did a massive run down to the park to hit up the
Rail Jam that was going on. It was a mellow fun session .

They where giving out a little cash for each good trick, but still some
cool things got thrown down. T he first session was on the down flat down box. I
earned my self a little bit buy doing a 5050 to MJ on the down. Always a fun
trick to do. Then I did a cab 180 on to backside 180 switch
5050.

We cruised around for a little hitting up the whole park. Then they had
another little session on one of the small kikers. Everybody was throwing fun
tricks, crazy tweaks ,back flips and a whole lot more.

I wanted a bit more cash so Igot Addi to stand in the middle of the
jump holding his board upside down and I tail bonked it. I got some cash for it
too. Addi also earned him self a bit of cash by throwing a sick backside rodeo 7
on the kicker and some cool combos on the kink box.

All in all it was a sick day. Snowboarding is always
fun. B.S.A represent. Yeah!!!

Cheers. Adam Shaw "

More BSA Development Team updates & Images soon...

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Charlotte Trundle BSA Snow Team (NZ) Boulder Rail Jam update

Snowboarding means Fun, Powder & Travel to BSA Development Team Rider (Australia) Patrick Davis-Meehan

Red Bull Skyscrapers winner Shayne Popisil says Snowboarding is always fun

BSA Development Team riders Charlotte Trundle (NZ) & Owen Newman (Australia) qualify for Volcom PBRJ 2009 Invite only Finals Mammoth

Transworld Snowboarding Rookie of the Year 2009 Raewyn Reid on FUN

BSA (BritishSnowAddictions.com) has finalised a New Zealand Development Team.

Passion inspires happiness says Kiwi Pro Rider Stef Zeestratten

ANDREW HARDINGHAM: F**k the Olympics, F**k Visa & McDonalds & f**k the F.I.S.

BSA Development Team Rider (NZ) Adam Shaw says 'Snowboarding is always fun'

ANDREW HARDINGHAM: Fk the Olympics, Fk Visa & McDonalds & f**k the F.I.S.