Due to the high cost of half pipe upkeep Whistler Blackcomb decided to close their halfpipe on Sunday, April 21, 2013. But that hasn’t gone over well with the shred crowd. Canadian national snowboard team member Katie Tsuyki even started a petition, according to a post on Pique News.
For Tsuyuki, now is the worst time of year to close the pipe. “It’s a big feature and it’s intimidating for some people to ride when it’s cold and icy, and I know people wait for spring for it to soften up and you have a bit of leeway before they ride that feature. It’s a great opportunity for the public, not just athletes, to get out and enjoy it,” said Tsuyuki, adding that a lot of riders also get distracted by powder and big mountain riding during the winter months, and wait for spring to ride the park and pipe.
The mountain reportedly says they’ll keep the halfpipe open if Snowboard Canada or others “provided some funding.” Otherwise, guess everyone will just have to head to Mammoth, huh?
An avalanche near Vail, Colorado claimed the life of one snowboarder on Thursday, April 18, 2013, according to a story on The Denver Channel. The slide happened after the friends had been “taking turns” riding Avalanche Bowl all day on Thursday.
Deputies say it appears the avalanche was triggered by two snowboarders who were dropped off at the top of the bowl by the third person on a snowmobile. . . One snowboarder escaped the avalanche, but the other was trapped. The friends found the trapped snowboarder using avalanche beacons but were unable to revive the person.
The Eagle County Sheriff’s office also thought it was important to mention that the snowboarders were under the includes of “Dead-Head OG” at the time of the avalanche. Our thoughts are with the snowboarders family and friends.
The latest work of shred artists Ben Allen, Will Barras, Pete Fowler, French, Michael C. Hsiung, Tim Karpinski, Phil Morgan, Schoph, Corey Smith and Owen Tozer will be featured at the 71a Gallery in London’s Shoreditch in a show titled, Looking Sideways London April 26-28, 2013.
“I wasn’t gonna show in the UK for a couple of years”, says Schoph. “But the opportunity to exhibit at a show where all the artists still shred, surf or skate makes sense. The line up is brilliant as well, with such a diverse range of styles. They’re all great artists with their individual deal going off. Standard”.
Watch as time runs out and we decide to stitch together a new idea for top honors designer Kelly Knaggs for her runway debut, then give it to Manu Dominguez and Pat Garvin to shred and prove we didn’t just use safety pins and double sided tape. Sew, what are you waiting for?
Former shred photographer Thomas Stöeckli a.k.a. “Creager” talks photography, snowboarding photography, and where his photography is going now that he’s not shooting the shred any longer with The Morning News co-founder Roscrans Baldwin.
I had a very good decade of capturing some of the world’s best riders and chasing the snow around the globe. It offered me so much, snowboarding in general, I still cannot believe where it brought me to today. It is still my favorite thing to do in my spare time. But snowboard photography is only a little piece of the whole cake. I was always hungry for more. Plus, I could not imagine myself being a 40-year-old dude traveling all year with 16-year-olds.
Yes, that is a problem. For the rest of Stöeckli’s interview click the link.
Far From Home is the story of Brolin Mawejje. Born in Uganda, Mawejje moved to America in 2004. Now, “nearly a decade later, he finds himself in Salt Lake City, Utah; studying towards a doctorate in Neuro-Oncology at Westminster College and training to represent Uganda in the 2018 Winter Olympics as a snowboarder.”
Ken Block drives through some Russian snow in a mass tangle of GoPro cameras. He also blasts out a skier on his way down the mountain. Would have been more fun to see Block out on the Russian dash-cam highways of death, truthfully.
Fans of snowboarding, graphic design, Field Notes, and great story telling in general should not miss and evening with Aaron Draplin as he tells Tall Tales From A Large Man at the LA Mart in Los Angeles, California on Thursday, April 11, 2013.
Using scientific proof and state-of-the-art multimedia techniques, Aaron James Draplin of the Draplin Design Co. delivers a sucker punch of a talk that aims to provide bonafide proof of work, the highs and lows of a ferociously independent existence and a couple of tall tales from his so-called career in the cutthroat world of contemporary graphic design. Just a regular American guy with a trajectory a little dirtier than yours, his talk is open to all incomers brave enough to show up. If you are a youngster, you may find yourself inspired to attack your design future in a different way. If you are established, you may just leave feeling grateful you don’t have anything to do with him. Hard to say. All Los Angeles champion citizens are invited to attend. Be there!
If you’re into action sports and like beer then Saint Archer Brewing Co. has just the brew for you. A idea launched by Josh Landan, Mikey Taylor, and Paul Rodriquez, Saint Archer will be available wherever Stone Brewing beer is sold beginning April 15, 2013.
In addition to Taylor and Prod, the brand lists a who’s who of action icons including snowboarder Todd Richards, surfers Taylor Knox, Dusty Payne, Josh Kerr, Laura Enever, Chase Wilson, Dane Zuan, shaper Chris Christenson, skateboarders Sean Malto, Bryan Herman, Chris Miller, Omar Salazar, Bryan “Slash” Hansen, Shane O’Neill, filmmaker Derek Dunfee, photographer Atiba Jefferson, and outdoorsman Jeff Johnson.
With that stacked a promotional arsenal, we’re guessing the word will get out pretty fast. Here’s what Archer says the brand is all about:
Saint Archer Brewing Company was founded on a unique strain of creative talent: World-class brewers. Artists and musicians. Surfers, skateboarders, and snowboarders… All coming together with passion and commitment to express our collective true love –– handcrafted beer. Saint Archer’s been a long time in the tank and we hope you taste our appreciation and gratitude in every sip.
Due to the high cost of half pipe upkeep Whistler Blackcomb decided to close their halfpipe on Sunday, April 21, 2013. But that hasn’t gone over well with the shred crowd. Canadian national snowboard team member Katie Tsuyki even started a petition, according to a post on Pique News.
