JP Auclair, All I Can

With the clouds coming into the french Alps again I took the opportunity to catch up on some videos I haven't seen before and some old classics. Now being a Snowboarder I love to see board vids as I can try and understand what they are doing and how to replicate something similar. But I love watching ski videos as well, this week I thought id have a look at the 2011 ski film ALL I CAN, and it was well worth it with some amazing segments that boggles belief at the size and quality tricks.

One such segment was the JP Auclair street segment. Through a love of snow I have seen quite a few ski and snowboard videos but this section is one of my favorites of all time. The skill of riding that fast, that close and that smooth over so many features is something that made me sit back and watch over and over again. For me one of the sickest street sections I have ever seen.

The rest of the film is fantastic with another favorite section being when about 12 riders all drop in off the same ridge, with some fantastic close riding, drops over other riders and some awesome powder lines. Absolutely brilliant and well worth the money of buying the video as the entertainment is one that can be revisited time and time again.

Tignes, France

So the lovely resort that I live in is Tignes, this year working in one of the best bars in the village, with the last 4 weeks being some of the busiest times we will see. With a mixture of English students, French, Danish, Swedish and the British Army out for 2 weeks it has been a busy but brilliant time.

The Alps are having an amazing season already with so much snow, one thing I love about Tignes is so much off piste is within easy access and you can get fresh tracks for a lot of the time. Although some spots from last year are a bit more wind blown as when the snow has come, it has been ridiculously winding as well, leaving bare patches.

The next few days are expected to be blue skies and fairly warm, this gives me the opportunity to have a play in the park and hit every jib on and off the piste.

On some down days to let my body catch up I took a few photos of the resort and surrounding mountains. Tignes is one of my favorite places to ride, hope you enjoy the pictures.

Sarah Burke!!

By now I am sure everyone has heard about the tragic death of 4 Winter X Games Gold Medalist in Freestyle amongst other accolades such as pulling the first woman to pull a 1080 in competition.

A clear true sports woman who was pushing the sport further and further, a great loss to the sport and I am sure will be sadly missed.

I just wanted to write a quick post showing my support for the friends and family at this trying time, but the knowledge that the has been a role model for so many young women must make everyone very proud.

Burton Hate 152

A few days a go I decided to walk into one of my favorite shops in Tignes, Black Cats. I had the full intention of only buying a hat to satisfy my desire to buy lots of new things, as it turns out I did not manage to purchase a new hat, but instead a new snowboard.

The snowboard that I ended walking away with is for the park, it has rails designed to be catch free on boxes and rails that may need grinding through out the season. They are slightly rounded off and and the edge it self is at a slightly different angle than normal boards, this allows it to be that little bit easier and safer on the grids.

It also has a full rocker profile which I love for trying butters and playing on and off the slope, with this super easy and sloppy feel it has a good amount of pop making it great for hitting the park and lips lying around the piste.  I am sadly no expert in the pulling tricks stakes, but have found in the week that I have been riding the Burton Hate 152 that my progression has jumped forward again, especially with my spinning and buttering on the piste. I haven't taken it through its paces in the park and maybe I never will be able to full fill its true potential but for what I have seen so far this board is great fun, super flexy and sloppy on the edges, throw in some rocker and the Hate 152 is one of the most fun boards I have had the pleasure to ride.

Getting a crew of riders.

This year I am doing another winter season in France, the summer was uneventful with little prospects of a grown up job of sorts. I decided to take this as an omen that I should not ever chase an office job but spend my life in the mountains. It has proved a great choice as I knew it would.

I have been lucky enough to meet some great riders with a super chilled atmosphere. This year I am riding constantly with about 8 others each with their own style and skill set, for me this is what doing a season is about, meeting great people and learning from them. My riding this year has already progressed, I am becoming more confident with my skills to go bigger with more style than before, this is only down to the Crew that I ride with.

By riding with a diverse Crew you can take a snippet of each persons style of riding and try and make it your own whilst learning more tricks than before, but its not all about learning from others, while riding with so many people it is always great to share a bit of experience with others and help them to progress with the same love of the sport that I and my Crew have. This year we have also been super lucky with the snow, as you may know the snow conditions last year throughout Europe were slightly lacking, this year we have had some of the biggest dumps for the past 15 years, this has meant fresh lines for days, new drops to hit and some of the biggest smiles I have seen. This year has already surpassed last year for riding and fun alike and I can only think that this can continue for years to come. As I have said, this is all down to the people that I am fortunate enough to ride with, my CREW!!!