On the morning of December 31, 2024, a solo splitboarder in the Silverfork Canyon area of the Salt Lake mountains triggered an avalanche on north-facing terrain below Davenport Hill at nearly 9,800 feet. The avalanche caught, carried, and fully buried him under approximately 20 feet of snow. A separate party in Little Cottonwood Canyon noticed the debris and alerted Alta Central. Search and rescue teams quickly responded, locating the individual using an avalanche transceiver. Despite their efforts, the individual tragically did not survive the accident.
Damn, it seems like only yesterday that Jason Brown was showing me the hand-inked logo for his new snowboard brand. . . but Blue, Gumby, Johan, and the C3 crew really have done an amazing job not only surviving in the snowboard business, but by the looks of their “30,000 boards in the warehouse” flex. . . thriving. Congrats.
Last week, three-time world and four-time world cup halfpipe champion (and singingheiress impregnator) Scotty James released a book with Penguin Australia titled Mooki vs The Big Scary. Here’s how they pitch it:
Adventure has a new name, and it is MOOKi! MOOKi vs The Big Scary combines thrilling adventure with valuable life lessons, all wrapped in the imaginative world of Scotty James. . . MOOKi embodies the spirit of dreaming big and overcoming hurdles, inspired by Scotty’s own life. . . You will laugh out loud at the results of MOOKi’s bravado. . . This book is a page-turner for young readers, each page filled with excitement. . . Vivid and eye-catching illustrations bring MOOKi’s world to life from beginning to end.
Do we believe this? Not really. But if you’d like to check Mooki out yerself click the link.
PS: Yes, a great way to get over writer’s block is to hire another writer to write your books for you. Genius.
After graduating from Dartmouth (with an engineering degree) in 1985, Bob Mighell decided that snowboards needed to step up to at least ski level production values. So, he and his roommate launched Edge Snowboards. Here’s a little bit of that back story that many have not heard before.
It’s hard to keep up with the houses Shaun White is buying, but the one’s he’s selling are a little easier to track. This one, described as a “mid-century modern. . . stunner” in Los Angeles’ Outpost Estates neighborhood just sold for $3.9 million, according to a story on Realtor.com. This is down considerably from his April asking price of $5 million. What’s a million among friends. . .
…the light-filled home is lined with glass—from floor to ceiling, from walls to doors. . . The living and dining spaces are open to the kitchen, which features an L-shaped counter, wooden cabinets, and stainless-steel appliances. . . Outside, there’s an inviting pool, a fire pit, and seating areas. But it’s the views of the city that truly take the cake.
Click the link for the photos. Someone, obviously got a pretty good deal and it makes us wonder. . . why does Shaun need the money? Is it that coming halfpipe league property? Or is he just having a little fun moving his money around. We ask the questions, but do we care? That is the biggest question of all.
Jim Jannard, the action sporting genius entrepreneur behind Oakley BMX/motorcycle grips, glasses, and, more recently, Red Digital Cinema has reportedly sold his Malibu, California beach home for $210 million according to a story in the New York Post. This apparently breaks the record for most expensive home sale in California state history: a record formerly held by the Jay-Z/Beyoncé Corporation at $200 million.
This 15,000-square-foot stunner sprawls across 9.5 acres of prime clifftop land, boasting a private 300-foot stretch of ocean near El Pescador State Beach. . . The palatial pad includes eight bedrooms, a staggering 14 bathrooms, a massive courtyard, a gym and two guesthouses. . . Interiors designed by Michael S. Smith — the same guy who revamped the Oval Office at the White House — feature ornate columns, beamed ceilings, and floor-to-ceiling steel and glass windows. . . The backyard includes a lush lawn and a pool with ocean views.
On Tuesday May 14, 2024 Burton Snowboard’s CEO John Lacy reportedly sent an email to the employed faithful explaining that because of the “current challenging market,” and some “strong competition,” and “climate change,” oh, and finally “flat participation in snowboarding,” that some heads were going to roll, according to a story on Burlington, Vermont’s NBC 5’s website.
But it’s only a “small percentage” of current employees. So whatever. Hard business, hard choices. For not one additional detail, please click the link below.
Roscoe Shorey, 42, a snowboard mountaineer who had summited Mount St. Helens 27 times, died on his 28th attempt after a cornice he was standing on gave way while he was creating social media on March 29, 2024, according to a story in The Chronicle.
But the 42-year-old Washougal man, known to friends and family as Rocky, was alone. He was wearing only snowboard boots, synthetic pants and a lightweight long-sleeve shirt. His jacket, cellphone, SOS satellite device and backpack were at the top of the crater where, minutes earlier, he was documenting his summit of the mountain. . . Shorey pulled himself out of the snow and looked up to the top of the crater. He started to climb up the icy, snow-packed, near-vertical interior wall toward the rim. . . He didn’t make it.
After surviving the avalanche, Shorey apparently died while trying to climb back out of the crater. So many lessons to be learned here.
George Carpenter, son of Burton Snowboards founders Jake and Donna Carpenter has shared his spine surgery story publically for the first time on Instagram. Here’s what he said:
On July 27th, 2023, I underwent an emergency surgery to remove a benign tumor that was within my spinal cord at the T-4 level. Until a week before this surgery, I had been unaware to the presence of the tumor. And we’ll never know why or how it got there. If I had left the tumor alone, I would have been paralyzed in a matter of months. . . Post-surgery, I was left with incomplete paralysis, with very little sensation and no movement below my nipples. Since then, I have regained some function and sensation. I’m living in Denver with my girlfriend Jamie and doing intensive rehab at Craig hospital, one of the best spinal cord injury facilities in the world. . . While I tend to deal with hardships privately, at this point it feels good to share. Much love!
For the rest of the story and continuing updates please check George’s posts on Caring Bridge.
Last week, three-time world and four-time world cup halfpipe champion (and 
On Tuesday May 14, 2024 Burton Snowboard’s CEO John Lacy reportedly sent an email to the employed faithful explaining that because of the “current challenging market,” and some “strong competition,” and “climate change,” oh, and finally “flat participation in snowboarding,” that some heads were going to roll, according to a story on Burlington, 
