Mission to Slovakia for Jasna adrenalin FWQ3* 2011

                        

Despite the icy conditions we had been warned about before leaving switzerland, the powder gods had "genourously" given us 5cm of snow during the two downdays after arrival. On day 3 when the cloud finally broke, the organisers decided to let us ski the face to get an idea of the snow conditions. Luckily for me because the line I had picked from checking the face turned out to be sheet ice from top to bottem! And in fact was exactly where Granbom ended up being rescued from after losing his edge on the ice. So being 6th to last rider to drop of the day, almost all the 80 competitiors had already skied the face twice before my compition line. With a small amount of 'dust on crust', this once again made for tricky conditions on a snow board.

1500km and four countrys later we were greeted with even worst conditions than in the apls! At least the beers cheap...

Jasna downday

My line was consevative after already seeing snowboarders rescued from sheet ice, trying to stay clean and 'fluid' as sluffed out snow turn to ice-berg. But to keep things interesting I through in a small 12ft drop into the final couloir, from which the speed and hard snow I landed on meant I needed a big straightline to the bottem of the course. The speed, snow/ice and riding a 'park' board as a last minute replacement for my recently broken one seemed all the excuse I needed to send myself head over tits several times over as I mach'd it out of the couloir. I ate it hard. Regaining my feet, I crossed the finish line to cheers from the remaining 4 (out of 5) from team verbier (who weren't in hospital). I had completed a clean sweep of crashes from the verbier crowd. Not ideal.

Scoping lines

Competition Morning

Verbier meets Vienna - Austria

Hotel to lift - 5 seconds

So apart from... our 30 hour round trip to ski on ice,  Granbom's mid competition crampon and ice axe rescue by mountain guides from the top of a suicide cliff, Mickels heli ride with a dislocated shoulder, Tinos lost ski, Mihns crash, trips to the hospital to pick up Mikel, my tomahawk (big crash!) on the home straight, losing head cam, broken mobile phone, getting pulled over by police for... speeding, lack of slovak highway tax, and even apparently having a stolen car (maximum one of these was true), losing licences, and general Team Verbier mission failure, our trip to Slovakia for the Jasna Adrenalin FWQ 3* freeride competition had all the ingredients of an epic road trip! Two cars, a team of 6 from 4 different countries, covering 3000km over 4 different countries, near lethal amount fastfood/refreshment stops, parties and cheap booze!

My temporary Slovakian drivers licence, which the Slovak authorities kindly gave me in exchange for my New Zealand drivers licence, along with the quickest ever speeding fine! I had only been behind the wheel for 30 seconds...

An injured swede, a chaming gay german and a fat chinese - Roadtrip!

Convoy

Ended up 17th. Mabey it will be 3rd time lucky... Off to Engadinsnow St-Moritz!

Back to the 80's

 

La Clusaz Radikal FWQ 4*

Essential Road Trip supply stop outside Chamonix - officially slowest fast food in the world

Challenging conditions for snowboarding and finishing 16th was not the result I was hoping for. Both me and Chris had picked what we thought was the easiest line on the face to find, or as Chris put it 'freeriding for dummies'. Both of us got lost. The course was super convex at the top so you couldn't really see what was coming up, and the past weeks warm conditions and rain had made the face bulletproof ice. Was not ideal conditions on a snowboard but you have to take what you get in competitions I guess. It was nice to spend a couple of days in France and catch up with my ex-flatmates from lausanne Camille and Margaux, and of course the bunch from the competition. The party back in Verbier on return was excessive as usual. Hoping for some more user friendly conditions in Slovakia next week.

Check the artical: http://www.freerideworldtour.com/news-detail/items/la-clusaz-radikal-mountain-results.html

Riders Meeting in La Cluzas

Hike to comp face

Start line

The comp qualification face, got well lost in the top rockband which screwd my line...

Riders at La Clusaz

Me and Chris's romantic digs - the Kitchen floor

sweet church

Watching finals with Chris, and Camille and her mates from Lausanne

Full steam ahead back to verbier - Mont Blanc in the distance

Dinner at Chris's house - carrots, rosé and naked men cards for desert by the looks of things

Barmans view of the shot bar in the Pub Mont-Fort

Cross-dress tuesday in the pub

It's competition time again...

Slightly less partying and a lot more snowboarding recently has left me as ripe and ready as ever to start the European freeride competition season! First up is a FWQ 4 star qualifier at La Clusaz in France this weekend.

Being a 4* comp, as well as being a just week before the first Freeride World Tour competition up the road in Chamonix, the standard of riders in this comp looks to be super high. With them only taking the top ranked riders on the FWQ rankings, and with hundreds of people on the waiting list, including me at the first release of the riders list, I needed a bit of luck, as well as some kiwi ingenuity to get my name on the start list. And so stoaked to be there! With only 20 other male snowboarders I'm looking forward to competing against some good mates and some of the top riders in the world, with 3 or 4 of them competing on the world tour (top 10 in the world). Can't wait! check the teaser...

 

Still praying to the powder gods for some favorable conditions and nice snow, but with warm temps forecast across europe this week and La Clusaz being at a relatively low altitude I think I will just have to keep praying for that one. Hoping for the best but whatever goes down this weekend its guaranteed to be an amaizing experience, fun roadtrip, and a great party with friends from all over!

Here's some snaps from todays session...

Ian half-buried heavy-hands lightfoot.

Vince Ray Style

Chris Southwell

Point and shoot couloir - Me

Same couloir exit - mach 3

Ahhhh ouiiiii!

Tweek!

This rock 1 - Vinny 0. Time to go to the pub.

Pizza and powder. Well that was the plan.

Italy Part 1: Feb 7, 2011

Early morning missions

Thank to a f***n foehn wind (pronounced fern) blowing in, Verbier has had warm and sunny conditions for the past few days, not ideal for a powder addiction. But a good shout put out in the pub by one of the local boys in the know, was to head over the border throught the Grand St-Berdnard Tunnel to Italy. Next morning after an early start and a 40 minuite drive from Verbier we had crossed the border, and leaving the tunnel we were greeted by a white winter wonderland. When the warmer weather systems blow in from the south, all the snow is dumped in italy, and leaves Verbier, less than 20km away with warm spring-like conditions.

Creveacol - Italy

This was my first time skiing in Italy and I was blown away. A small station called Saint Rhemy-Creveacol. Serious 80's skiwear and no one daring to skiing off the trail. In fact in Italy if you are seen skiing off-piste without a beep, probe and shovel you will be fined €70, which I think should be the same everywhere. We spent the morning skiing and riding 40cm of fresh under the lifts and through the trees. Amaizing and unexpected! Konsta got us a couple of snaps when the sun came out about mid-day but soon after the snow turned mega heavy, and after fatigue from a night at the pub we decided to call it day.

Skier: Francois Nicod. Photo: Konsta Valkonen

Nice but heavy - Me

Heavy Pow. Skier: Thibault. Photo: KV

Konsta the Monster

Returning home, and exiting the tunnel on the Swiss side it was sunny and the dash board read 14 degrees! Had a couple of T-shirt beers on the terrace at the Pub Mont-fort then crashed.

Italian pow with the boys followed by t-shirt beers at the pub. The good life!

Italy Part 2: Jan 8, 2011

Woke up early again yesterday and with a similar but different crew, we infultrated further behind the Italian border to a 'Freeride Paridise' called Gressoney. Apperently the freeride mecca of Italy, this time it was a good 3 hour drive from Verbier before we were on a lift.

Had never heard of it before, but with good snow this place might live up to it name. Looks epic!

no smoking in the bubble please!

Konsta, Vinny and Ian amongst some very Itaian looking skiers at in a town of which I have no idea the name at the bottem of one of the longest piste runs of my life.

 Again amaizing to see completely different scenery; towns, mountains, language and people but unfortunatly this place had missed the recent snowfalls. A huge resort, clearly with amaizing freeriding potential on a good snowday, but it wasnt so we spent the day blasting to the other side of the resort on some of the longest, smoothest, and emptiest pistes I have even riden! Another fun day cruising and exploring, and happy to have convinced the lovely ladys behind the counter (who had no idea) to give us free day passes by showing our verbier season pass.

Adventure

January 4 just another day in Verbier

Verbier 2011

Happy New Year Boys and Girls!

Festivities certainly came and went, well still continue but on a more managable scale. Finally after several days got some decent time on the hill yesterday, even after going since christmas without snow we found some nice stashes of good snow with some small hikes and ridge traverses.

Paul traversing in over some fun looking exposure

Looking over the lac and Attelas

Nice Shot. Clair the kiwi shredder...

Proof.

Loverbier

But in Verbier a great day on the hill isn't a Great day if you don't follow this by donning shirts, one peices, sledges and enough booze to survive the bus ride then the 45 minuite hike up to the Marmot. This being is a fondu resturant halfway up the hill and has been on my list of things to do for many a year.

Sledges - tick. Me an Vinny.

Booze - tick

With a bunch of Sweeds, Fins, English, French, a token kiwi, wine, cheese, sledges and one peices, anything is possible... Jeiga fondu anyone?

After an amaizing night with a 'special' group of people we return to town with stlye, speed, little very little control, minus only one sledge, and obviously full of cheese and a number of shots of jeiga and abricotines... all in pitch darkness.

How much fondu can you do? hmmm... if someones on hand to provide a heimlich maneuver just in case, a lot more than this apparently!

Grönvalls - Ritards

Who needs a skidoo when you've got a pink bum-board...

without the camera flash it wasn't quite so easy to see

Kristina having dropped the stairs - elegance

What a day! Just another one.

Time to hit the pub?