go back to Szine Newsletter IndexThe Snowboard Szine
Vol. 1, Issue 9
3/31/04
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In This Issue
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1. Snowboard Diary from Lauren - Spring Wrap-up, Bad Snowboard Joke
2. Lauren’s Report from The U.S. Open of Snowboarding
2a. Don’t Make these Mistakes when you go to the US Open!
3. Snowboard Gear on Sale
4. Lauren on Bloomberg News and E!
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1. Snowboard Diary from Lauren - Spring Wrap-up, Bad Snowboard Joke
Sorry I haven’t written in a while. And this is a LONG Szine to catch up.
I am devoting myself to riding as much as possible ‘til the end of this
snowboard season. Went to the US Open last week and had a blast. Read my
article below (See #2a. below) if you don’t want to make the first timer
mistakes I did when you go next year!
Spring riding is so great. Yesterday I rode Windham Mountain (NY) in the
Catskill Mountains with my friends Tracey Romano who is a snowboard
instructor there and Artie, a skier. We had the hill to ourselves. NO one
was there. The snow was soft and forgiving - but lumpy mashed po's. The air
temp was in the 50’s, not a cloud in the blue sky. And this time of year the
days are long so that you can drive back home while it’s still light, and
watch the sunset. Face it, snowboarding is more enjoyable when you don’t
have to worry about frostbite as we did most of this winter.
My winter gloves made my hands sweaty yesterday, so I bought myself some
Seirus glove liners that can be worn alone or under gloves for extra warmth
when it’s cold. They are water repellent, and when I took them off to rest
on the sun deck for a bit, they dried out in a flash. AND they were on sale.
This is the time of year to pick up equipment and accessories on sale so
you’ll be ready to go next season. By the way Gear Direct, one of the
largest, most knowledgeable and best priced online dealers of sporting goods
is having an end of the season sale. And if you click here -http://www.geardirect.com/store.cfm.cfm?store_id=2&dpid=102
to get to their site, they send me a little $omething
for the referral. Thanks!
More details on Gear Direct below. (See #3 below.)
Anyway at Windham, that bumpy slushy snow gives your thigh muscles a
workout fer sure. We rode all day, and were beat by the end. We did a couple
of runs with Gordon Cook who is an instructor at Windham, an “older” (than
me!) guy who has been riding for 9 years and whose daughter Anne Cook David
was a pro snowboard racer. He is an enthusiastic teacher and gave us some
great exercises to practice on the hill - to help me get to that elusive
“dynamic carve” that looks so beautiful and effortless when it is done well.
One exercise we did was riding with knees bent as low as possible, waaay
down, not bringing my body up tall at the turns. With the front hand
pointing down to the snow over the nose of the board and back hand over the
tail up high. My friend said I looked good doing this. Maybe next season
I’ll finally get that beautiful carve nailed down. Ralph Assion, Assistant
Director of the Snowsports School at Windham is glad to see that
snowboarding now comprises 30% of all lessons at Windham. And they have gone
from 0 snowboard instructors 10 years ago, to 75 qualified instructors there
now.
Our snowboard buddy Gordon at Windham told us this joke.
Q. “What do snowboarders use for birth control?”...
A. ...“Their personalities.” ...chuckle.
Apparently it’s been around a long time, but was new to me.
I rode the pipe at Windham, which looks like it hasn’t had any grooming
attention in a while. But it was soft and fun, and I got right up near the
top of the wall. WooHoo! I don’t do any tricks in the pipe, just riding it
clean without falling is enough for me now. I’m still looking to get that
little bit of air at the top which will make that turn so much easier. I
will need to spend a good long session or 2 in the pipe to get that. Maybe
I’m a wuss because that air is taking me so long to get. But hey, don’t
forget, I’m way over 30 and I don’t want to hurt myself riding! It’s so darn
inconvenient to be injured!
Last month I had a great day at Ski Sundown in CT. What a pleasant little
mountain, with nice people and a pretty renovated lodge. My friend Jean
Sapula is an instructor there and so we had a nice pack to ride with. I rode
a little rail there. I was successful when I focused my attention and vision
like a laser beam on the far end of the rail for my 50-50. As soon as your
concentration starts to go, forget it, it’s all over. Stop your rail
session. You’ll fall off. Of course it’s important to know how to abort the
rail riding mission successfully when you’re halfway down it and not aimed
down the middle anymore. Yes, falling or jumping off well is an important
skill for jibbing, and I’m gaining that skill too.
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2. Report from The U.S. Open (of Snowboarding) in Vermont
US Open results are posted here -
http://www.snowboardsecrets.com/Articles/usopen.htm
Watch the US Open on tv April 11 at 1:30 EST on NBC!
I attended my first (certainly not my last!) US Open (Snowboarding)
Competition last week. I can hardly describe how exciting it was to be
there! I’m not even much of a sports fan, but I love to watch good
snowboarding, and there was plenty of that!
On Saturday found a great spot to watch the halfpipe practice and
competition, and I stood there in one spot spellbound for over 4 hours. I
had no concept of time or cold temperature, and I think I had a smile on my
face for most of that time! During the events, the action is non-stop, with
railriders launching about every 15 seconds. Perfect for people with MTV
attention spans. The pipe riders also come down one after another, sometimes
dropping before the last rider has finished. I don’t know if this is good
contest etiquette, but I know it’s what happens in real life at the local
halfpipe.
Some things that surprised me about the Open are that the contestants
have to hike back up after riding the rails, and even after riding the 300
ft long pipe. In a jam format as they had at the Open, the more rides down a
contestant makes, the more it can help his/her total score. That means a lot
of hiking! And when the pipe is a Superpipe - well, it looks exhausting!
During the finals, the riders are driven back up on snowmobiles.
While the riders are hiking up the pipe they are so close you can almost
have private face time with them. They are walking within a few feet of the
onlooking crowd that lines the pipe. They seem to appreciate the energy of a
cheer and shout out of their name while hiking back up. Japanese rider Junko
Asazuma and I rode the lift up together during her practice session, and I
soon saw her become a crowd favorite as she soared high and graceful in the
pipe in practice and competition. You feel a part of this event because the
riders are all around you.
“Poaching runs” in the pipe during the Finals is a time-honored and
surprising tradition. Riders who have competed in the semi-finals but not
made it to the finals often just jump in and take a fun run down the pipe
during the middle of the contest. The Teters seem to be famous for this, and
Terje, Heikki, and DCP did it this year too. There’s also some bib number
swapping going on. The announcers try to keep track of who is riding, but at
times it’s impossible. “Pipe Maintenance” is scheduled between events. I
figured some Zamboni-like piece of equipment would appear, but no.
Maintenance is done by having riders slide down the pipe on their back
edges, just like you did in your first snowboard lesson. The poaching,
swapping, and low-key maintenance all contribute to the grassroots
anti-establishment feel of the Event.
I’ve written a more complete article about the Open and posted it here
http://www.snowboardsecrets.com/Articles/report.htm
if you “gotta have more!”
If you want to read the technical detes of the competitions at the Open,
TW Snowboarding has some excellent stories listed on this page, for now;
http://www.transworldsnowboarding.com/snow/
There is complete coverage of the Open there in three entertaining
stories by Jennifer Sherowski. She even took the pictures that are with the
articles. And the little detail that no one mentioned is that Jennifer also
competed in the Women’s Halfpipe Semi-Finals that she was covering. This is
one awesomely busy and productive all around snowboard professional! Props
to you, Jennifer!
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2a. Don’t Make these Mistakes when you go to the US Open!
First Time Mistakes at the US Open
This was my first time. It will be easier the next time I go. There’s
just stuff you have to learn as you go along, that makes the experience more
enjoyable. I wish I had a guide or something to read before I went. I made
some mistakes. Like carrying all my gear from the parking lot, onto and off
the truck parking lot shuttle, through Stratton’s village to the ticket
office, and then finding out I was in completely the wrong place.
Anyway, YOU don’t have to make the same mistakes I did when you go to the
Open. I will be writing a handy practical guide to save you the trouble. I
will be selling it as an E-Report from my site, for instant download, once I
figure out how. It will be packed with info like best place to watch the
events, what to wear when, how to find the parties, where to stay cheap, how
to avoid the monster traffic jam after the Open...useful stuff like that. It
will sell for $9.
If you want to be notified when my report becomes available, send me an
email Just press "reply", or mail to
Lauren@SnowboardSecrets.com
and put “US OPEN” in the subject line. Send your phone number, in case
you've changed email addresses by then. I’ll let you know when I finish it
this summer or fall and you can decide if you want to buy it at that time.
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3. Snowboard Gear on Sale - Burton’s Select Few Online Retailers
Want to buy your new snowboard (and other sports!) gear easily online at
the right price?
Right now Colorado Snowboards, powered by GearDirect has some great
closeout prices on boards, board bags, boots, bindings, jackets, and gogs.
http://www.geardirect.com/store.cfm.cfm?store_id=2&dpid=102
They are one of the very few retailers that are allowed to sell Burton
products new online.
There’s also a great selection now of hydration packs from Camelbak, Kelty and MountainSmith. Keep the fluids flowing and do not bonk. Check out
these hot deals sure to keep you cool and refreshed.
If you bike or golf, ColoradoSnowboards/GearDirect also has a huge
selection of equipment for you at great prices.
http://www.geardirect.com/store.cfm.cfm?store_id=2&dpid=102
Money Magazine awarded ColoradoSnowboards/GearDirect its designation for
Best Buys for Ski and Snowboard gear in September’s issue.
ColoradoSnowboards/GearDirect is one of the original online sporting goods
stores and is famous for its Nation's Lowest Price Guarantee. If you find a
lower price on any item they carry in same size, color, model, and year they
will beat that price.
ColoradoSnowboards/GearDirects staff are passionate outdoor enthusiasts
who use the gear they sell. They live to play outdoors They are committed to
providing you with the widest selection of name brand gear, clothing and
accessories at the nation’s lowest prices guaranteed, combined with world
class customer service whether it’s for snowboarding, cycling, golf,
camping, or hiking. Visit at
http://www.geardirect.com/store.cfm.cfm?store_id=2&dpid=102
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4. Lauren on Bloomberg News and E!
Bloomberg News TV wanted to hear from people whose summer plans might
change due to the weakness of the dollar. I responded saying that if the
dollar gets too low, I may change my plans to go to snowboard camp in
Europe. Anyway, they seemed to like that response, and a news team drove up
to film me on my snowboard at my local hill. The piece is supposed to air on
Bloomberg News TV and simultaneously on E! some morning soon. If I get
enough of a heads-up, I’ll drop you a line so you can see me make a fool of
myself in front of millions worldwide!
By the way, at the Open, I met Sylvia Mittermuller, who was invited to
compete from Germany. She spends her summer at Gap Camp in Germany, and says
it’s great. So I’m thinking of trying it out. Write me if you know anyone
that’s been to Gap Camp. Thanks!
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“I just wouldn’t ride without my AZZPADZ”
Lauren Teton
Gear up for protection next season! Buy your Azzpadz here and now!
FREE BOARDREST to the NEXT 10 PEOPLE who ORDER AZZPADZ and mention that
they heard about them at SnowboardSecrets.com
AZZPADZ hard plastic tailbone and butt protector
http://www.azzpadz.com/ Call toll free -866
299 -7239 -if you want to order.
(They're in Ontario, Canada, on Eastern Standard Time.)
The owners Neil and Jason are friendly snowboarder guys who want to make
sure you order the right size.
Tell them you heard about AZZPADZ here from Lauren at
SnowboardSecrets.com. Thanks!
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Thanks for reading The Snowboard Szine!
Lauren
Editor