Blog Archive
Select a Month
Blog Categories
Select a Category
Drop In For Emily Recap
The Drop In For Emily was Saturday at The Compound in New Hampshire. Although there were snow showers in the forecast, they definitely weren’t enough to bank on. Thankfully we had a good 4 dump truck loads of snow for the setup and the sun ended up coming out to make it a perfect day for a rail jam. About $1,000 was raised for the Emily Madden Memorial Fund, and everyone who came to ride or watch had a great time. The setup consisted of a downrail, double PVC rail, a corrugated tube and multiple handrails and a butter box. We slayed it all day with the help of some BL’s and cheap hot dogs and hamburgers. It was great to see the whole crew out there having a good time. Check the photos below for a little bit of the story. (Yeah, I was being lazy and sat in the same spot for an hour). Enjoy anyways. Remember the Jason Melanson Memorial Fundraiser is on April 21st.
Moxie Metal Mayhem 3 at The Bush
Straight from the event page – The original Hessian Rail Session! Come celebrate all that is metal with your Sugarbush Parks Crew! Registration is in the Valleyhouse Lodge at the base of Spring Fling, Lincoln Peak @ 10:00 am. Costs just $10, FREE if you are in Costume. Mosh pit opens at NOON! $1000.00 and a ton of cool shit!
Benji Farrow US Open Recap
The past years have never been great for me at the Open. Words like ” rain” “ice” “wind” “disappointment” and “pressure” have all played a part in my not so favorable finishes. I say this because after this year all those past bad memories have been replaced.
This years USO was sunny and soft pretty much the whole week! That and I was riding well enough to score my first major podium finish. I went into finals hoping that if I rode my best I might be able to finish in the top 5, I guess you could say I exceeded my expectations. Here’s how it all went down.
I woke up Saturday morning. Having not gotton that much sleep the night before, I was a little tiered but the excitement and the amazing weather soon had me ready to ride. The girls went first and set the tone for an amazing day! I was so stoked for my friend and condo mate Arielle Gold, who at only 15 years old rode incredibly well and grabbed 4th place as well as the Rookie of the Year award! The top three spots went to my US Snowboarding Teamates Elena, Kelly and Ellery so that was super cool too.
After the girls were finished we started our practice session. The flat bottom of the pipe was quite soft but otherwise the pipe was on point. Practice didn’t go all that well for me, I was struggling with my second hit and it was throwing off the rest of my run. First run came around and I was feeling a little unprepared because of my falls in practice. But I was able to put that all behind me and drop in with confidence, I went Front 10 Tail, Cab 10 switch Stale, Front 12 Tail, Back 9 Mute. I came around a little late on the Back 9 and clipped the deck, sliding down the wall on my butt. It turned out to be a throwaway run but it boosted my confidence for sure! My second run didn’t go as well either. I dropped in for the same run but went big and popped a little to much on the Cab 10 and landed low. I was unable to handle the compression and skidded out. By the time my third run came around I was pretty anxious to land a run. One of my coaches Spencer Tamblyn suggested that I might dial the amplitude back and just try to nail my run. I decided though that since it was the US Open I was just gonna go all out! I dropped in for my final run and went pretty big with a Front 10 – Cab 10 – Front 12 – Back 9 and rode out of the pipe very happy! I didn’t know what kinda scores I would get but I was just excited to have set my run down the way I wanted! My scores came in big and put me right behind Shaun in second place! I now had to play the waiting game and hope the remaining nine riders didn’t bump me off the podium. Hitsch (Christian Haller) put down a solid run but it only got him to third place. I was still sitting in second place with three riders left to drop, Louie put down his final run and moved into second bumping me down to third. Taku Hiraoka was the only rider left who could change up the podium, he went down on a frontside double 10 attempt and then I knew I had third place! The next two hours were filled with award presentations, interviews and pictures. I was so stoked to have landed on the podium at the US Open in my home state in with my family and friends present.
I celebrated later that night with some of my best friends and went to a super sick concert featuring MeathodMan and RedMan from Wu-Tang clan! I got about two hours of marginal sleep, packed up my stuff and drove down to Boston early the next morning for my flight to France and European X Games.
Winter X Games France Recap
The European Winter X Games was held in Tignes, France this year for the third year running. Located about an hour from Bourg Saint- Maurice, this vast area of terrain defiantly serves up what the Alps are all about. Out here they speak French, but there is a universal language that everyone speaks: Ride hard, Drink hard, Party hard. Having the Winter X Games thrown into the mix, was the gasoline on the fire in Tignes from March 14-16th.
The riding was nothing less than what you’d catch back in Aspen at the US stop of Winter X, and the Americans came hard from start to finish, proving that home field advantage had very little to do with talent. Right out of the gate, Kelly Clark put down an amazing run taking home some Gold to add to her impressive Gold win at Aspen this year. Elena Hight taking home the silver and Kaitlyn Farrington taking home bronze for Women’s Superpipe. For the Men’s Superpipe, once again, the top stop taken home by Shaun White with Louie Vito taking home silver in a close second and taking home bronze to Switzerland Christian Haller. By far the biggest upset of the 3 day event, was Shaun White going 2 for 2 by taking home Gold in Men’s Slopestyle. With a lot of pressure on him to step up to the bar that some of the younger riders are putting down. With an impressive first run putting down a 95 point score, he showed the other competitors that his Superpipe win wasn’t going to be enough to leave France with. With no score in the first round touching his first place run, in his second run, he one-up’d himself by putting down a 97 point run, reassuring the win. Mark McMorris took Silver with a 90 point run, and Eric Willet taking home the bronze with a 88 point run. Even in the Women’s slopestyle Miss Jamie Anderson took the Gold home representing America and bringing home some more Gold. Needless to say, the US came out this year and put on an amazing show on a foreign battlefield and set the bar for next year.
The nightlife in Tignes is something to be commented on as well. THEY GO HARD. Nightclubs don’t close down until 5a.m so grab a Redbull and vodka and hold on tight because you’re in for a ride. From Club Melting in the town square to Blue Girl just a few meters down the street, the town lights up at night and goes until the sun comes up. The Winter X Games brought in a great influx of young people ready to party, but head to Tignes on any given weekend and the parties last just as long and the drinks flow just as well. The streets were alive everynight; flooded with people of every age group partying like there was no tommorow. Even to my surprise, almost every bartender, bouncer, and waiter or waitress spoke some english so don’t think the language barrier gets in the way, just grab a brew or drink and walk out and join the fun.
Article and photos by: Kyle Corrigan
Smokin – The Gathering at Jay Peak
The Second Annual Smokin Gathering at Jay Peak is Set to go off in two weeks at Jay Peak and Grampa Grunts in Montgomery, VT on March 27th and 28th. Last years event was great with folks from Eastern Canada and all over the Eastern Seaboard came out to shred and party with the Smokin Snowboards crew and had a blast at Grampa Grunts Lodge. This years event is set to be even better with more and more folks signing on everyday for the fun and festivities. Come on out and ride next years gear and meet the people that make Smokin happen. With giveaways, parties, and a killer price for a two day vacation, you wont want to miss this! There are only 30 Spots left at $150 per person which includes 2 days lift tickets at Jay Peak, 2 nights Lodging and party’n at Grampa Grunts, and breakfast and dinner for two days. This years event is brought to you by Jay Peak, AirBlaster, OneBallJay, Skull Candy, Grampa Grunts, The North Face, and Smokin Snowboards. Email info@smokinsnowboards.com for more information and to reserve your spot today!
Back To The Boneyard 4
It’s back and arguably one of the most chill events on the East. Pat Moore always does it right and this throwback to the Boneyard days is an absolute classic. Get to Waterville on Tuesday foo.
