Lift ticket prices seem to be going up all over, but it is rare for a resort to send out an explanation of exactly why their prices are going up and to apologize for it. Timberline Lodge, in that radical, lawless, war zone known as Oregon, did that today.
Their liability insurance, which was difficult to even get, reportedly increased by more than two and a half times, and their deductible is 10 times higher than last year, therefore their ticket prices are going up:
Guests will see increases in peak time lift ticket pricing, tier 2 season pass pricing, and summer ski products. We want you to know: Timberline remains committed to delivering the best possible mountain experience. But without long-term solutions from the State Legislature, the impacts will be unavoidable; higher costs, reduced offerings, and diminished opportunities for recreation in Oregon. This threatens not only skiers and riders, but also rural communities, jobs, and families who depend on tourism.
For the entire letter (including some of the politics behind recreation in Oregon), please follow the jump.
Hey, when you have a shop full of snowboards in Mammoth Lakes, California and the ability to get those boards tuned anytime you want, maybe dusty crust is enough. Officially, Mammoth Mountain opens on November 14, 2025.
By this coming weekend, many rad parents around the board sports world will have dropped their kids off at college for the first time. As if any parents need another reason to cry, check out this heartfelt poetic clip from Jones Snowboards. It’s Jeremy and his daughter Mia on one last spring backcountry trip.
Fecesblaster? Poop is really funny, isn’t it? Poop. There we’re laughing again. Butthole, poop, poop. Their product on the one hand, defecation on the other. Product. Fart. Placement. Fart. Fart. Shart. Oh, few things in life are funnier than a thick, bearded man trying to complete his morning constitutional. Fart. Oh, we’re crying from laughing so hard. Bowel movement. Ha! Poop.
Former TransWorld Snowboarding Magazine editor and all-around creative force Andy Blumberg has always believed that the best way to create lifelong snowboarders is to let kids ride free. Now, as co-founder of That Snowboarding Blog, he is outlining his plans to take this program directly to the nation’s snowboard resorts. Here’s how he sees it:
Envision future winters where every kid aged 15 and under in the United States receives free lift tickets and season passes at any ski resort. This isn’t just a feel-good moment; it’s a strategic investment in the sport’s enduring, never-ending nature, a bet that a free experience today creates a paying customer for life. By removing the financial barrier, we integrate snowboarding into the very fabric of their lives.
Sounds great to us, but there is much more to this story. To read the rest, please click the link.
Former pro snowboarder Rahm Klampert ran afoul of the law recently according to the US Justice Department.
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that on July 31, 2025, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging two-time U.S. Open snowboarding champion Rahm Klampert, 45, of Hartford, Vermont, with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine, and fentanyl.
Working most recently as a personal trainer, Klampert was allegedly caught on June 20, 2025 with “approximately 1.1 kilograms of methamphetamine, 1.5 kilograms of cocaine, and 75 grams of fentanyl; 12 firearms including multiple suspected short-barreled shotguns, assault rifles, and handguns, three of which have been identified as stolen; a money-counter machine; and over $100,000 in U.S. currency. Multiple sources of information reported to law enforcement that Klampert was trafficking drugs in the Hartford area.”
Sounds like Rahm has a few hurdles to get over in the short term. He reportedly entered a plea of “not guilty” and is being represented by a public defender. Always loved Rahm’s smooth, strong halfpipe style and hope things get straightened out. If not, he’s up for a 10-year minimum sentence.
We don’t know the back story, but apparently USA Surfing bungled their first go-round with the US Olympic Committee during the Tokyo Olympics. Now they’d like to be reconsidering as the official governing body for surfing for the LA28 games.
According to a Laylan Connelly story in the Orange County Register they have some competition for the job. Seems the US Ski & Snowboard Association (which has no experience with surfing but much with the Oluympics) would also like a shot at owning surfing in the Olymipics . . . ah, because they’d like the money most likely.
While USSSA may have no experience with surfing, their CEO has (at least for a year). Many will remember Sophie Goldschmidt as the CEO of the World Surf League for a minute before Oprah Winfrey’s boy took over. She believes her ski and snowboard organization is the perfect group to shepherd surfing through the LA Games in 2028.
“We feel that surfers have not been supported, in the same way that we would propose to, in the past,” Goldschmidt said. “And now, we can provide them with more of that support and the structure, the leadership and the strong backing of a large and growing organization, which is in a very good place financially as well. . . . They need high-performance environments, clear pathways to the Olympics, and the ability to build their personal brands, she said. “That’s what we provide, and we know it works.”
Sure, there are dozens of reasons why all these options are terrible, but in the end shouldn’t surfing be run by surfers? Or, as some would argue is Olympic surfing even surfing? For all the details, click the link.
It was Pat “The Eye” Bridges who introduced the North American snowboard world to “The Dingo,” so no one could say it better. We’ll all miss you, Dingo.
Lift ticket prices seem to be going up all over, but it is rare for a resort to send out an explanation of exactly why their prices are going up and to apologize for it. Timberline Lodge, in that radical, lawless, war zone known as Oregon, did that today.
