December 4, 2008 -From snow covered mountains to tropical beaches girls are ripping everywhere. Here are some links to what’s happening in the surf and snow…

Surfing: “Do women belong in the kitchen or the barrel?” Jessi Miley-Dyer writes in Surfline. It’s a question she asked herself on a recent girly girl surfari in Mirconesia. The Aussie ripper teams up with fierce friends Stephanie Gilmore, Karina Petroni, mom-to-be Chelsea Georges, Nicola Atherton and Leilana Gryde to explore the tropical paradise, get some sick shots and shoot down old-school cliches… (kind of an old link but have been meaning to post it for a while)

Skiing: The Women’s World Cup hits Lake Louise this weekend and defending World Cup champion Lindsey Vonn posted the fastest time in Wednesday’s first training run for the opening women’s downhill race of the season. The downhill races at Lake Louise are scheduled for Friday and Saturday and the season’s first World Cup super-giant slalom is set for Sunday. Last season, Vonn became the first American in 25 years to win the overall World Cup title and the first in more than a decade to win the downhill.

Filed under: Entertainment, Events, General, Ski, Surfing by jane
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December 1, 2008 - Woo Hoo! Over the course of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, traditionally the first long weekend of the ski season, a winter storm made its way across Colorado, leaving more than 48 inches of new snow at Loveland, 37 inches at Arapahoe Basin, and 31 inches at Copper Mountain.  Now that there’s a great base, Copper Women’s Wednesdays are a great way for you to improve your skiing or riding in a supportive female-only environment.  

The early storm stretched from Winter Park, which received more than 19 inches of powder, to Steamboat, which received 18 inches. The multi-day storm brought 16 inches of fresh snow to Aspen and 15 to Silverton. Eldora, Wolf Creek and Crested Butte all received 13 inches of powder and 12 inches fell at Telluride. At Snowmass the storm left more than half of a foot of new snow.

As snow continues to fall, more Colorado ski and snowboard resorts open and are able to offer more terrain. Echo Mountain hosted a pre-opening snowboard competition on Saturday that drew more than 100 competitors and spectators. Echo Mountain, Sunlight Mountain Resort and Monarch Mountain, with 12 inches of fresh snow, are scheduled to open on December 5th, and Howelsen Hill on December 6th. Powderhorn, with eight inches of new snow, is slated to open on December 11th, and both Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk are set to open on December 13th. SolVista Basin will plan to open on December 17th. Ski Cooper and Purgatory at Durango Mountain Resort, which received nearly nine inches from the storm, will welcome skiers and riders later in the month.

Introducing the Aspen/Snowmass Luggage Express - With many airlines now charging extra for bags, skiers and snowboarders traveling to Aspen/Snowmass can skip the hassle and cost of taking their bags to the airport. The resort has partnered with UPS to create Aspens Snowmass Luggage Express.

Ship ahead of time and your bags will be delivered right to your hotel. In addition to saving money and hassle, you’ll also appreciate the peace-of-mind that comes with knowing your gear is waiting for you when you arrive.

To find a women’s snowboard or ski program in your area visit our camp/clinic finder.
 

Filed under: Fun Stuff, General, Ski, Snowboard, Travel by jane
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December 1, 2008 - Looking for something to do this month? Snow is falling across North America, and slopes are opening from East to West so we found some wintery events that sound like fun (though sadly we won’t be attending any of them).

Down-Mountain and Cross-Country: 140 Years of Skiing in Maine Dec. 1 - Maine’s skiing history goes back farther than any other New England state and a digital slideshow produced by the Ski Museum of Maine backs up that claim. The show will be presented Monday, Dec. 1 at 7 p.m.

Celebrity Skifest Dec. 5 - 8: Deer Valley is kicking off the ski season with Celebrity Skifest . The invitational ski event pairs former Olympic ski legends with television and film celebrities for a weekend of skiing, live music and fundraising for the environmental group Waterkeeper Alliance, which supports and empowers member organizations to protect communities, ecosystems and water quality.

The DV Celebrity Skifest will include giant slalom races on the ski resort’s Birdseye run, and the public is invited to watch as some of the best-known legends of U.S. skiing compete in this year’s event, including Deer Valley’s own Ambassador of Skiing, three-time Olympian Heidi Voelker. Celebrities scheduled to attend include Larry David, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Matthew Modine, Scott Wolf, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Gloria Rueben, Ian Ziering,  Rob Morrow, Patrick Warburton, Neil Patrick Harris, Dylan Bruno, and Camyrn Manheim. The Skifest Race will be televised by CBS on Sunday, December 21st following NFL Football.

Free skiing at Hidden Valley Dec. 6-7: With 20 inches of snowfall so far this season and ideal snowmaking weather, Pennsylvania’s Hidden Valley ski and snowboard resort in the Laurel Highlands near Pittsburgh is open for skiing and riding with free lift tickets Dec. 6 - 7.  In addition to the free skiing, Wintersports U, the resort’s new snowsports school, will offer 90 minute group ski or snowboard lessons at no charge to guests age seven and older through December 19th.

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Filed under: Charity/Cause, Entertainment, General, Ski, Snowboard by maddy
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November 30, 2008 - Sarka Zahrobska tackled a windy course at the Aspen Winternational Sunday and put together two runs that earned her the first World Cup victory of her career.

With a combined time of 1:39.32, World champion Zahrobska beat a strong field including two of the most consistent skiers on the World Cup circuit. Austria’s Nicole Hosp, the 2007 overall World Cup winner, was second, 0.23 seconds off the pace, while Finn Tanja Poutiainen was third.

Lindsey Vonn, who was doubtful for competition this weekend because of a knee strain, was the top American. Vonn took fourth with a time of 1:40.73 in a solid followup to her slalom victory at Levi, Finland, earlier this month. Ninth after the first leg, Vonn handled the windy conditions better than most in the afternoon to shoot into fourth place.

Fellow American Julia Mancuso was disqualified after missing a gate near the end of the first run.

The wind, which caused a couple of course holds during the slalom, made for tricky conditions that no racer was able to avoid during the slalom. Gusting to 60 mph, the winds toppled a tower holding a finish-line banner, forcing about a 15-minute delay and creating havoc on the piste.

Zahrobska had three second-place finishes and two thirds in her 114 previous World Cup starts since 2002.

Following the race, Vonn remains the World Cup slalom leader and trails 31 points behind Finland’s Tanja Poutianen for first in the overall.

The women now head to Lake Louise, ALB, where they will kick off the first World Cup speed races of the season. Vonn has been on the podium in Lake Louise seven times in the last four seasons, four of which were wins in downhill.

Earlier in the weekend, nineteen year-old Tessa Worley of France overcame driving snow and poor visibility to win a giant slalom at the Aspen Winternational for her first World Cup victory.

Worley, whose previous best was fifth place, was followed by Tanja Poutiainen of Finland and Elisabeth Goergl of Austria.

Official Results  (more…)

Filed under: News Bytes, Ski by jane
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Who: Many of the top female skiers in the world including Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso.
What: Aspen Winternational 
Where: Aspen, Colo.
When: Thanksgiving weekend - Nov. 29 & 30, 2008.
Why: The only U.S. stop on the Women’s World Cup curcuit.

This weekend, the Rocky Mountains will welcome the Aspen Winternational, the annual U.S. swing for the women’s Audi FIS Alpine World Cup. On tap is a thrilling couple of days as the fastest women in the world will compete in the disciplines of Slalom and Giant Slalom on Aspen’s Strawpile racing slope.

Among the competitors are World Cup overall champion Lindsey Vonn, who was cleared  to compete after bruising her left knee in a training fall and Julia Mancuso, who is overcoming a setback in her training because of a back problem she developed over the summer.

Vonn enters Aspen as the most watched skier on the women’s World Cup. After a solid opening giant slalom in Austria, she went on to shock the ski racing world with her first slalom win on Nov. 15 in Levi, Finland. With the win, Vonn became the first American woman to win at four separate disciplines and sent a message to competitors that the downhill champion was ready to contend in slalom. Giant slalom is the only discipline remaining for Vonn to complete her collection.

Always a Colorado favorite, Mancuso rolls into Aspen on the heels of a season that took her to World Cup podiums in all but slalom. After skipping the first slalom in Levi in favor of extra training, Mancuso is poised to make a mark this weekend.

In the off-season, Mancuso climbed Kilimanjaro with British downhiller Chemmy Alcott to aid Right to Play, the international organization which uses sports to help children in the world’s poorest countries, covered the Beijing Olympics for NBC, surfed in Maui (where she lives during much of her off-time) and squeezed in some downhill training in New Zealand.

Vonn and Mancuso have been friendly rival since they were little girls so it will be interesting to watch these two tough competitors go at it this weekend.

Filed under: Ski by jane
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November 15, 2008 - Picking up right where she left off last season, Lindsey Vonn - the defending World Cup overall and downhill champion - won the season-opening slalom Saturday in Levi, Finland.

Vonn, 23, a speed specialist from Burnsville, Minn., is the most decorated female skier in United States history and the first American woman since 1983 to win the overall championship.

The decisive victory at the opening slalom of the 2009 Audi FIS World Cup season vaulted Vonn into the World Cup lead. On the U.S. Ski Team site, Vonn says:

“It’s just mind boggling to me that I’m wearing the red bib in slalom,” said Vonn. “This is such an incredible way to start the season, there’s no way I could have predicted my first win would be a slalom.”

Check out this fun interview to find out how Vonn keeps focused (Nintendo DS), what’s on her iPod (Jay-Z and Lil’ Wayne), and what’s the most unique prize she’s ever won (a cow).

Filed under: News Bytes, Ski by maddy
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October 23, 2008 - Iran’s women skiers will take part in the winter Olympic for the first time, the Mehr News Agency (MNA) reported.

Iranian women will participate in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. They took part in the ski on grass held in Tehran and Lebanon’s Asian junior championship both last year, snatching gold and silver medals, said the president of the Iranian Ski Federation.

Iran had two ski coaches after Iran’s revolution but 500 coaches work in the country at the present, Isa Saveh Shemshaki added.

It may be uphill for the skiers from Iran, who aren’t as well known as other international competitors.  But skiing is a popular sport in Iran and there are some great resorts near Tehran where skiers can train.

Situated in the Alborz mountain range near the peak of Damavand (a giant dormant volcano), the Dizin ski resort is Iran’s highest in altitude. Coming in at almost 14,000 feet Dizin is currently the largest ski resort in the Middle East. Shemshak is the host to the nation’s hardest and the steepest slopes

Until recently, ski slopes were segregated, with women skiing on one side and men the other.  It is still illegal for men and women to ride a lift together or share a gondola.  And of course women must remain covered which shouldn’t be much of a problem on the slopes. 

The announcement that women skiers will participate in the Olymics is good news and definitely a step in the right direction. Bring it on girls.

FYI: If you’re interested in learning more about how Muslim women are taking up sports, check out this paper on Islam and Women’s Sports.

The 2010 Olympic Winter Games will be staged in Vancouver and Whistler from February 12 to 28, 2010.

Filed under: Ski, Vancouver Winter Games 2010 by jane
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October 17, 2008 - The 32nd annual Colorado Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame Induction Gala takes place Oct. 18 in Denver.  In addition to honoring the 2008 class, the Hall of Fame will give an award for “Competitor of the Year” to recognize an athlete with Colorado ties who has distinguished him or herself in international competitive snow sports.

And the winner is…. Lindsey Kildow Vonn.  In 2008 Lindsey Vonn won the overall Alpine Skiing World Cup title to complete the first American sweep of the men’s and women’s overall titles in 25 years. She also won the US Alpine Championships Combined (downhill and slalom) title, marking her best ski season to date.

Colorado has a long history associated with skiing. Early pioneers who came looking for gold quickly learned that snowshoes were useless in the deep powdery snow of the high mountains. Skis provided a dependable way for the mail to get through when trains were stalled, when telegraph lines were down, and when drifts and avalanches prohibited travel on the primitive roads and trails.

The Colorado Ski & Snowboard Museum and Hall of Fame preserves and interprets the history of skiing and snowboarding; honors those individuals who have made significant contributions to the sport; and educates adults and children about Colorado’s rich skiing legacy.

Next time you’re in Vail - check it out!

Filed under: Ski by jane
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by Chantelle Heroux
October 1, 2008 - Sometimes you just have to trust yourself.

If I hadn’t, I would’ve missed out on one of my greatest experiences in New Zealand.

Going with what your heart says isn’t always easy. In fact, most of the time it’s illogical in every sense. But there is a saying that goes, “it’s better to regret something you’ve done, than regret something you didn’t do.” With that in mind, it’s easier to let loose and start an adventure - and that is exactly what I did.

First, I had to convince myself I made the right decision to rent a car that had over 200,000 kilometers on it and a funny rattle that you could hear over the ‘Hit’s of 1997′ mixtape included with the vehicle (I know what you’re thinking – 1997 - there were no hits in 1997.  Actually, there was a whole tape full of them - think Hanson!). 

Amazingly enough, I made it to where I needed to go. It only took an hour to find out the emergency brake was on (may or may not have contributed to the funny rattle), about seven hours to figure out how to drive on the opposite side of the road, and a couple of wombats’ lives (were they wombats?!). Needless to say, I made it. Gratefully.

Arriving at the bottom of an access road in the heart of New Zealand’s Southern Alps, it was recommended that all two wheel drive vehicles and camper-vans park and drivers-passengers hitchhike up the mountain. So that’s what I did. I was glad to get in a car with a group of friendly skiers. I buckled my seatbelt, only to have the driver look at me in shock and say “Umm, you won’t want your seatbelt on. If I say bail, you’ll want to bail!”

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Filed under: Ski, Travel by chantelle
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June 18, 2008 - In China, it seems anything is possible - even snowboarding in summer. Indoors. In the city. To prove it, Beijing introduced their newly constructed Burton sponsored indoor snowboard park to the public last Saturday.

The Qiaobo Ice and Snow World is about 40,000 square meters and can accommodate about 3000 people.  The Ski Dome is equipped with a Children’s Snow Paradise, Easy Ski Run and Advanced Ski Run to satisfy the different needs of  skiers. With the unveiling of the all-terrain snowpark, which boasts  a kicker line, wallride as well as rail and box combinations, more people may get into snowboarding since it gets hot as hell in the city and the humidity is unbearable. 

The project is yet another sign of the growing affluence of China’s rising middle and upper classes, who are discovering new ways of spending their income and leisure time. We may well see some of the top snowboarders in the world come from China soon. So girls, next time you head to Beijing - be sure to bring your board.

Filed under: Ski, Snowboard by jane
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