Anglican Priest, the Rev. Neil Elliot, from Trail, British Columbia, has reportedly just completed his thesis for a PhD in Snowboarding (or as he calls it “soulriding”) from Kingston University in London England, according to a story on The Spec.
“It’s the first PhD in snowboarding at all, so it’s pretty unique,” said Elliot. “It gave me an excuse to get out and participate in a sport I love and it provided me with a framework to examine human spirituality.” . . . An ordained priest with a master’s degree in theology and Islamic studies, Elliot decided to undertake his doctorate in the sociology of religion at the secular Kingston University in London, England. . . He wanted to get away from theology and look “at what’s happening on the ground and the kind of stuff you can actually measure.”
We’ve heard of some pretty big stretches before, but this may be the most evolved excuse to go snowboarding we’ve ever heard. We’ve read the story twice and still have no idea what Rev. Elliot is talking about.
Bert Lamar was one of the first pro skateboarders to successfully cross over to snowboarding. First with Look Snowboards and then by launching his own company Lamar Snowboards (and later Elevation Snowboards). Though the brand (which he no longer owns) still takes up a big chunk of booth space at the SIA Show in Denver, Bert left snowboarding for golf years ago.
After a winter of “technical issues” the 686 website is back up to full “on” status with their new 2011 Spring Collection. Here’s what they have to say about it:
We do apologize greatly for our internet absence the last few weeks. If we told you what happened, you wouldn’t believe us, so we’re just going to keep it quiet and tell you that the offending parties responsible for the collapse of the 686.com empire have been dealt with appropriately. We made them take a few runs nude during the last big storm and now all is right in the world.
Having experienced similar issues (June 2010) we feel for them and are glad the’re back.
This is for everyone around the world who believes it silly that snowboarders live in Southern California. Mt. Baldy (where all Todd Richard’s power footage was shot) is 45 miles from downtown LA. Go ahead and weep. It’s okay.
Laguna Beach, Calfironia’s 210 AR4T Space is hosting an artist reception for their show Futureland on Saturday night, March 5, 2011.
The show features a collection of posters from the future by some of action sports’ finest working graphic designers.
Their art works for FUTURELAND are provocative, witty, sarcastic, and just plain fun to look at. They’ll get your brain moving in new directions. Which, when we look at it in focus, is what makes them so perfectly suited for their day time talent – keeping the world awake.
Featured designers include Michael Jager, Sherwin Yumul, Greg Stenson, Jay Floyd, Blake Gantz, Thomas Bradley, Ryan Davis,Brian Nally, Shoam Thomas, Jeff Bartel, Peter Stow, Carl E. Smith, Patrick Carrie, John Antoski, and Corey Smith.
The DC Mountain Lab in Glenwild, Utah’s The Ranches at The Preserve is up for sale, according to a story in the Park Record. It seems Ken Block is ready to move on and is only asking $6.9 million for the historic shred palace.
The DC Mountain Lab has been the cause of some arguments over the years, so to make peace Block agreed to remove man-made obstacles such as jumps and rails. . . Realtor Paul Benson is courting buyers with the remaining rope tow serving 10 runs. There is also a four-bedroom, 3,800-square-foot guest house and a building pad for a larger home.
That means all the rails, jumps, and features are gone, but still a private resort on 22 acres just a short 15 minute drive from Park City? Sounds like something Shaun White should look into. . . but he shouldn’t expect the homeowners association to welcome him.
. . . ski patrollers and officials with the Northstar Fire Department were alerted of an unconscious snowboarder at 10:38 a.m. Sunday; they found the man lying by a cluster of trees near the Challenger ski trail on the backside of the resort. . . The man was later pronounced dead after being transported via CareFlight to Tahoe Forest Hospital. His name is being withheld by the Placer County Sheriff’s Office until next-of-kin is notified.
The man was reportedly not wearing a helmet. This is the 16th snowboard death in North America since December 20, 2010. Our thoughts are with the man’s family and friends.
[Update March 1, 2011: the San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that the snowboarder was Jeffrey Halperin, 30, of San Francisco. “According to Paul Schmidt, chief deputy coroner for Nevada County, preliminary indications are that the death resulted either from the impact of hitting a tree or suffocation from landing head-first in the snow bank. Halperin was not wearing a helmet.” Halperin was reportedly a “statistical programmer for a media research firm.
It was only on January 1, 2011 that Chris and GenevieveGunnarson purchased the snow sculpting company they founded from Booth Creek, but now that they have there are some promotions to announce at Snow Park Technologies.
Chris Gunnarson now serves as owner and president. . . Genevieve Gunnarson, owner and vice president is now responsible for finance, human resources, marketing and strategic planning. . . Sarah Castaneda has been promoted to general manager. . .Michael Bettera has been promoted to director of operations, SPT Parks . . . Chris Castaneda has been promoted to director of operations . . Frank Wells has been promoted to senior project manger.
Congratulations to the entire SPT team. We’re hoping you all got raises as well. . . For more details follow the jump.
