February 28th, 2010 by JT

If you’re from Colorado, or even perhaps not from Colorado, you might have heard of Venture Snowboards.   Venture is a local Colorado company who prides themselves on making incredibly great snowboards, striving for perfection and staying as green as possible.   If you’re like me, even in Colorado, it can be hard to find a shop locally that carries Venture Snowboards, and sometimes even online things got a bit crazy.

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February 20th, 2010 by JT

In the quest to find snowboard boots that fit us bigger guys, one cannot rule out Thirty Two (32).  Thirty Two makes the Lashed which is one of the best selling snowboard boots in the industry.  I must admit, this was my first time ever riding with a pair of 32 Lashed boots, and I was pleasantly surprised.

Thirty Two

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February 11th, 2010 by JT

After talking to a few friends today, I was curious how people would feel about a section on the site dedicated to various pieces of outerwear quality. We all have some piece of outerwear we love, and we know where it starts to take a dive, whether it’s in stitching, or just fading etc.  What I was thinking if having a section on the site, where we can compile some stats on how long pieces of outerwear from various companies tend to last with given riding styles..

Anywhoo just a thought… maybe more on this later..   have several reviews to work on for now.

February 7th, 2010 by JT

Spent time today making turns here at Angel Fire with some good friends. Conditions were pretty solid with snow falling during most of my runs. I was able to take out the Sound Basis shell jacket today so expect a review soon enough!

February 3rd, 2010 by JT

Rocker, Rocker, Rocker.. that’s a huge theme this year.   I’m seeing rocker boards from just about every snowboard company putting out products in 2011.  Never Summer has gone so far as to completely eliminate single camber board designs and implementing their Rocker & Camber tech through-out their new line.    Burton continues to offer both choices, as do many other companies.  Only time will really tell if straight camber is truly dead?  The outerwear line-up for next year is looking pretty solid.  686 has added some new additions to the Snaggletooth Line, as well as more sizes to the New Balance boot line-up coming out. Read the rest of this entry »

January 28th, 2010 by JT

Today I spent a good amount of time hanging at SIA, meeting up with people, and getting the skinny on what’s coming down the pipe for this fall.  I focused today on mainly the products that would apply to the blog itself.   I ended up stopping by Capita, Never Summer,  Flow, and more.   SIA is definitely an experience, especially if you’re not going as a buyer, but as a media, or exhibitor attendee.  Some vendors had “top secret” feels to their displays, not allowing anyone to take photos or even view any part of their collections etc, without “knowing someone” or of course having an appointment.  Interestingly enough, in this economy I would think you would want everyone to be checking out your collections and getting the hype and interest out for the buyers and customers a like.      I can honesty say after seeing what Flow, NeverSummer and Yes have in store for this fall, I’m super stoked on their products after today.   I snapped a few shots of the day below.. enjoy!

Flow has definitely brought on the color for it’s coming line.  The boards and bindings, as well as boots all include a nice splash of color.

Flow is brining the color!

Check out the Lago Quantum Model... Sick!

The NXT Series, including the 24 Real,and NXT SE series

I snapped a few shots of the new Never Summer Heritage, and Raptor boards both from the Carbonium Series.  You can see the new Carbonium top sheet that both boards incorporate this year.  The Raptor is the Titan replacement, and while I’m sad to see the Titan go.. I’m stoked to see the new Raptor.   I can’t wait to take that board out!

Pandora, Infinity, Heritage-Carbonium Series, and the Premier F1

Base of the SL, Raptor-Carbonium Series, and Base of the Evo

I am an avid fan of the Capita Black Death series, especially as a bigger guy who loves big mountain riding.  This year marks the 10 year anniversary of Capita, and their display definitely let you know they were still here, and not going anywhere!

Wall of Capita

Black Death Anniversary Series.. pretty sick!

More Capita Goodness.. awesome top sheets

There is so much more to take in at SIA that I really need to go back and get shots of.  I forgot my flash for my camera, so taking shots was hard in some areas as the lighting was horrible.   I’ll take the flash with me when I go tomorrow, and get better shots of gear.  I picked up catalogs today, so if you find you have any questions about the board widths etc, let me know and I’ll see what information I can get you.   This year is definitely looking like a fun year for snowboarding, and regardless of any attitude or cliques or what not, it’s really all about you the rider, and what you like this year.   There’s definitely a lot to choose from, and rocker boards are definitely the “in-thing” this year, along with a lot of blocked color-ways in outwear.   Also of note: If you saw the 686 New Balance collaboration from this season, 686 has two new NB 686 collab boots coming out, and finally they are in sizes bigger than just 11.   Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get shots of them, but I do believe a few shots are running around out on the web.

January 27th, 2010 by JT

I’m definitely stoked to be hitting up SIA tomorrow.  There are a lot of things on my list to accomplish, including getting the low down on all the new mid-wide/wide boards coming out, boots, bindings and outerwear.    I’ll be tweeting from the show via twitter when possible, and updating the blog as actively as I can.  I have a client on the good ol Iphone that will allow me to update you all almost real-time with photos .

Stay tuned, and again hit me up with comments or via email with anything you’re interested in coverage on!

January 24th, 2010 by JT

Continuing in my exploration for great boots for us bigger riders, I absolutely wanted to get my hands on a pair of the Salomon Dialogue boots in the wide width version.  I ended up catching them on sale in a not so popular color-way here locally, and picked them up.   Salomon is one of, if not the only snowboard boot makers who manufacturer wide width boots, or at least as far as I know.  If you know of any others, do let me know!

Salomon Dialogue Select Wide

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January 20th, 2010 by JT

So I finally got a glimpse of the some of the 2011 Never Summer boards coming our way, and I honestly have to say I’m stoked on the graphics direction of the boards.  The Titan is being replaced by a board called the Raptor… details are still a lil slim on that board, but from what I’ve heard, I can’t wait to get it on snow.  I’ll get as much information as possible at SIA on the Raptor.  The Heritage graphics are some of my favorite, and the  Evo and Revolver look amazing as well.  I really want to get in and up close on those two boards to look at the details of the topsheet graphics.   Alas, boards are not all graphics, and from what I understand there have been some changes to the boards in regards to a new lighter core, and more….   

Stay tuned for some pics.. you can also google or the 2011 NeverSummer models, and may find pics online.  I didn’t want to use others pics…

**update** The Titan is replaced by the Raptor, which is a new design, incorporating  a new air-core technology as well as carbonium top sheet.  In other words a mountain slayer!!  All the boards will incorporate R&C tech from here on out.  Pictured below is the Raptor… I’ll get better shots at the upcoming SIA show of all the boards!

January 17th, 2010 by JT

Snowboarding is something I love for numerous reasons, probably too many to list out here.   Unfortunately accidents can and do happen, even while taking precautions and wearing protective gear.   Kevin Pearce suffered some nasty head trauma during a pipe session a few weeks back .  For me snowboarding means many things, one of them being family, so when a rider suffers an injury, especially head trauma, my heart and prayers go out to them.  Recovery from traumatic injuries can take time, as any one who’s experienced one knows.  As riders we tend to rally around and support/defend our sport with a ferocity not seen in any other sport except perhaps surfing/skating.  This among many other things make me proud to ride a snowboard.  There is a page setup at facebook where you can show Kevin some support , while getting updates on his status.    It’s going to be a hard road, he’s taking to recovery, but he’s not alone.  He’s surrounded by his family, his friends, fellow riders, and fans world wide, all pulling for him.

For the people who don’t really understand snowboarding, perhaps this is the time for you to really look at this sport.  This is not just kids spinning in the air and making park laps.  This is friends, family, riders, and fans, who are progressing, and actively making something happen.  This is a chance for people to make something out of nothing, to create, to imagine, to connect, to support, and to love what we do!

Show your support, by grabbing the banner above and getting more information about Kevin over at Burton