by The Editors on July 29, 2013
The Snow Industries of America just released their 2013 Participant Study and as you might have guessed the numbers were down for pretty much everyone but those free heelers. Yeah, we see that bump in “freeski” but come on, that’s just skiing. We all know that.
Ultimately, overall snow sports participation was down 3% to 19.3M participants across all disciplines; alpine ski had a 19% drop in participation but still brought the most to the mountain with 8.2M, followed by snowboard with 7.4M, freeski with 5.4M, snowshoe with 4M, cross country with 3.3 million and telemark with 2.8M participants.
For the official release from the SIA follow the jump.
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by The Editors on July 22, 2013
Burton Snowboards has announced that they will be opening not one, but two company stores in Northern California’s Bay Area but they didn’t mention anything about wearing “flowers in their hair.” They’re taking over the space that formerly housed SFO Snowboard on Haight St. and moving in right down the street from the Nixon store in Berkeley.
“With Tahoe just a few hours away, there are thousands of people around San Francisco who are into winter sports, but only a handful of local snowboard shops to choose from,” says Jake Burton, Founder & CEO of Burton Snowboards. “We ship a lot of product to the Bay Area through Burton.com, so to us, that means snowboarders out there are looking for gear. By opening two stores in San Francisco, we can better service local riders by offering them industry-leading product and the customer experience Burton is known for, right in their own backyard.”
As independent retailers fade, expect the company stores to pick up the slack. For the official word from Burton and SFO’s Kent Uyehara, follow the jump.
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by The Editors on July 17, 2013
Seems there is always someone who believes that what the world really needs right now is an action sports theme park. This time around it’s Josh Kearney, a 34-year-old Australian. According to a story on Vegas Inc,. Kearney wants to create a park “right off the Las Vegas strip” that will features motocross, wakeboarding, surfing, and snowboarding.
“Vegas Extreme will stand as a new model for amusement parks around the world,” Kearney said. “Its focus is on an exploding generation of sporting events and recreation that push the boundaries of human movement.” . . .The amusement park would include a white sand beach for sunbathing and cabanas fashioned out of repurposed shipping containers. A 7-acre lake would offer jet skiing, whitewater rafting and wakeboarding. A cable system would allow up to 10 riders to zip around the lake at once. . . During winter, the lake could be drained and filled with snow. The resulting “ski bowl” could be used for snowboarding.
So what’s left before this year’s version of the Gotcha Glacier or New Jersey’s Xanadu becomes a reality? Well, $50 million for one, and then Kearney will also need a piece of property to build it on. In other words, this isn’t even a project yet. But we wish Kearney the best anyway. Would be cool if one of these finally got built somewhere in North America.
[Link: Vegas Inc.]
by The Editors on July 8, 2013
The life of a celebrity is tough. The only goal: staying famous. So, if you’re famous for doing things in the wintertime (like, say, Shaun White for instance) your big job during the summer is making sure people remember who you are. What better way than heading out to the Montauk Yacht Club for a little dancing, making out, and random ass slapping, according to the New York Daily News.
“Shaun was with this girl and they were making out like crazy,” an eyewitness tells Confidenti@l. “‘At one point he got on top of her and he was touching her butt. . . Our spy then says White strolled up to the bar and eyed a different girl, who was wearing a short, white lace dress. . . “When she passed in front of him he slapped her behind,” says our spy. “She turned around and kissed him while the first girl — who was right next to him — looked on. It was hilarious,” says our insider.
And that, kids, is how you keep a high profile even during the summer.
[Link: NY Daily News]
by The Editors on July 8, 2013
We all know how important it is to know the world standing of all the pro snow shreds. And now, Yobeat.com (with some inspiration from NPR no less) has made it easy to see where they are so we can all better know where we stand. On second thought, we’re not even on the chart. But maybe you are. Check it and see.
[Link: Yobeat]
by The Editors on June 28, 2013
Despite what you may have heard there are still kids going to snowboard summer camp at Mt. Hood this year. Here’s the latest video news from Windell’s. Looks good, doesn’t it. Click the link if you think you want to go.
by The Editors on June 27, 2013
Half of Southern California snowboarding is now up for sale as the owners of Bear Mountain and Snow Summit have put the resorts up for sale according to a post in the OC Weekly.
The San Bernardino Sun, citing county tax records, reports Snow Summit was assessed to be worth $6.14 million in 2012, up from $5.93 million in 2010. Summit bought Bear Mountain for $200,000 in 2003 and that resort was valued at $5.7 million in 2012, according to the Sun.
We’re guessing with the way the world is heating up you could probably get both mountains for less that $7 million. And from the photo above it appears they’re doing their SoCal sexy marketing best to get these resorts moving. Anyone in?
[Link: OC Weekly]
by The Editors on June 26, 2013
Shaun White’s metaphorical rock star status continues on its literal path this summer as he and his band Bad Things hit the road on tour beginning July 11, 2013, according to a story on Yahoo Music.
“Caught Inside” is the band’s debut track, carried by beachy strums and a strong indie-rock flow. Its title originates from a surfing term to describe the bruising effects of paddling out and becoming dangerously stuck between the shore and where waves break.
To listen to the band’s, not-so-bad song Caught Inside, follow the jump. Oh, and Shaun plays guitar.
[Link: Yahoo Music]
by The Editors on June 21, 2013
It’s always good to see good people getting good coverage for doing good things. And when it comes to an industry that seems to enjoy bathing in energy drink money it’s always good to see Austin Smith and Bryan Fox preaching the Drink Water message.
Here is a bit from their recent Outside Online story:
The for-profit venture sells t-shirts, sweatshirts, reusable water bottles and a few other accessories. Ten percent of sales go to Water.org, an organization that develops clean water access and sanitation solutions in the developing world. (It was co-founded in 2009 by actor Matt Damon and engineer and entrepreneur Gary White.) . . . Drink Water isn’t putting a big dent in the global water crisis—last year it sent Water.org around $12,000 through sales and fundraising efforts—but it is setting a healthy example for kids. “We’re not the health cops, but I like the idea that people take the brand and use it as a way to think about what they’re consuming. If you want to keep doing active shit, you have to have a functional body,” says Fox.
We appreciate Drink Water because it makes kids think and hopefully it will help make at least a few athletes who take energy money think again.
[Link: Outside Online]
by The Editors on June 20, 2013
If you’ve ever thought of donating to help the work of the Stoked organization with under-served youth, this month is the time to do it. The George C. Fund will match anything you give (up to $15,000) between now and June 30, 2013. So it’s like giving doubles.
There hasn’t been a better time to join us. Become a STOKED Igniter and help #closethegap. . . With your support, our youth are empowered with the STOKED community, values and skills to achieve the success of their dreams. Through action sports culture, our youth can jump the gap.
For more details click here for Stoked or follow the jump. [click to continue…]
