New Shred Stick: It's A Lib Tech!

I bought my new board this weekend. It's pretty sick; I like it a lot.

You might have my previous post which listed the 8 boards I was considering. From that collection, I'd made a short-list in my head: the DH, the Skate Banana and the DC MLF - and maybe the T1, but it's hard to find.

Well the board I bought isn't from the short-list; it's not even from the long-list. So how come I ended up buying it?

Because I wanted to!

Each year my local snowboard shop has a slightly different line. Some board manufacturers are present each season, but some come and go. You can always find a Burton for example, and they like Nitro a lot; a couple of years ago there were quite a few Rome options, now there are none.

When I made my first visit about a month ago, I was hoping that there would be some boards from my-list - given the option I'd prefer to buy here and support my local shop, they're worth it. Well they had the skate banana, the DH, and even the pro-model version of the T1 - but none of them in sizes that I wanted.

I couldn't help but notice they had a wide selection of lib tech boards: the skate banana, the Jamie Lynn, the trs and the t.rice. And they all looked so good; just oozing quality. Plus it was the first time I'd seen the magne-traction edge-design in the flesh; and a rocker design also for that matter. I was drawn in.

I waited for a few weeks as there was a chance they'd be getting the 152 skate banana in, and that's the one I wanted. But after going back a couple of times I found myself considering both the Jamie Lynn (154) and the Travis Rice (153).

It was the third visit, this weekend, when I had the cash in my pocket, that I decided I want it. I bought the Lib Tech Travis Rice, 153.

It's probably a little stiffer than I was after and it's not a true twin (it's a directional twin) - which is something I normally insist on. Plus, there's usually something that holds me back from getting a pro-model; like, it's designed for the pro, rather than the general rider... But that all went out the window. I just wanted to buy it.

153 is a perfect length. It's got magne-traction and a rocker-base, both things I'm keen to try (although I accept I might not like them). I really like the blunt nose, it's got great stance options and it feels like it's got lots of pop. It feels like a good board. The 20% off that was on offer this weekend didn't hurt either!

I can't wait to shred on it. In the meantime, I'll just prop it up against the wall and look at it...

New Dakine Luggage: Split Convertible & Tour Bag Review

For a while now I've been intending to move away from having an all-inclusive, wheeled boardbag (e.g. Burton Wheelie Locker), to using two pieces of luggage: a regular case plus a smaller board bag.

I've now completed the transition, pairing a Dakine Tour Bag with a Dakine Split Convertible. Despite having more first hand experience with Burton luggage products, and being impressed, I opted for Dakine for 3 reasons: 1. price, 2. availability/choice and 3. confidence in their products.

The Tour Bag is considerably smaller than the Wheelie Locker, but as you can see, it still holds a lot of stuff. In the picture above I've got my board and bindings, my boots, my lid, snowboard pants and jacket, some impact shorts, a change of street clothes and a few other smaller things like socks. This is going to let me keep bulkier items out of the case as well as distributing the weight - think airport weight limits and their cost structure for extra bags.

The Tour Bag is well padded so your board is going to be safe. Plus there are separate compartments for boots and bindings - though you can use them for whatever you want. These separate pockets have waterproof lining, so they're good for anything that's wet and needs packing.

The smaller size (and cost) means no wheels - but I reckon these are designed to be used in addition to another case (most likely wheeled), so the shoulder strap fits well - wheeling two items can be tricky. It's going to be in the region of 10 - 15kg, so carrying over the shoulder shouldn't be a problem.

The Split Convertible is one of the larger cases available at 120L. I'd have been just as happy with the more common Split Roller, but I was able to pick mine up in a sale, which made the change worth while.

As it happens though, the convertible design is actually quite handy. Both sections can be used separately, so you can down-size to a smaller setup; although I'd say it's more practical to use the bottom one, as it has the wheels and the handle. If you're using the bag in it's completeness, I'd say it's unlikely that you'd ever want to split it up at the airport so that you can check in two separate bags, as per the Dakine blurb. However, you might find splitting it up handy for squeezing into a restricted space, like a small car for example...

The bottom part of the bag is a single, large compartment. The top bag, as shown above is split into three main compartments, plus the two sticking up on the top; all good for organising your gear.

My one question is the coupling of the two separate bags; they are joined with 4 large clips/straps. Although I haven't used the case in earnest yet, say, taking it through an airport, it does feel sturdy and durable. I don't anticipate any problems and I'll report on this after the first proper use.

Price: 2 bags vs. 1
Personally I much prefer the flexibility of a case and board bag vs. one large wheeled board bag - but does it cost more? I've only owned one of the large do-it-all board bags, the Burton Wheelie Locker, so I'll compare the price of two separate bags against that. The Wheelie Locker retails at around £170. The Tour Bag sells at £40 and the Split Roller 120L at £100 - making the pair £140. If you want the Split Convertible specifically, it's another £30, I think, which is quite a bit more: I'd recommend sticking with the roller as I'm not sure the convertible design is worth it.

Those are full prices though. One of the great things about getting a Dakine bag is that there are plenty of them around. Do a quick search on google and you're almost certain to find one in the sale. I got my Tour Bag for £28 and the Split Convertible for £80 - so a pretty good deal!

Castleford Shred

We headed to Cas' last night for an indoor freestyle fix. It's been a long time since I was there last, and I haven't ridden since I was last at the Chill FactorE, when I slammed pretty hard on my back. Probably a little rusty, and out of shape... I gotta do something about that.

The drive down there was a bit of a set back; we got stuck in traffic and ended up being over an hour late - leaving us just under 3 hours to ride. Not good when you have to pay for either 2 hours or 4 hours on a freestyle night...

Or not! We were hit with a pleasant suprise when we arrived - you can now opt for a 3 hour ticket at £30 (2 hours @ £25 and 4 hours @ £35). Bonus! It's probably been like that for ages, but hey, when was the last time I was there? Things were starting to look up.

And the set up - it was pretty fresh. OK, so the kickers were rubbish, but a good indoor kicker seems to be the exception rather than the norm, and I've known that for a while. They had the long flat (10m?) rail out, which is always good. Plus the long box and a short down rail. Both the flat rail and the box are ride on (if you want to), but the down rail was raised so you need to ollie on - the proper way.

There was also a rather nice spine/jib setup, with a huge, fat pipe serving as the coping - for want of a better description. A picture here would have been cool, but I didn't take any cameras - shame.

Despite being a while since I've snowboarded, I did try a few things that turned out quite nice. A half cab to 50-50 on the long rail; I made my first attempt at that and then all the ones after didn't measure up. A tight little frontside 3 mute; small, but I liked it 'cos I've never grabbed mute on a front 3 before.

Mart and I put the spine-jib to good use. I don't really know how to describe it, but my best effort was a frontside rotation to press/boardslide along the pipe and a 270 off, landing on the other side of the spine. That jib was real fun all night long.

I'd been hoping that the small amount of time I've been trying to do frontside boardslides on my skateboard was going to help me out with getting something frontside on a rail/box. My inability to do front-boards is in my opinion (and probably most others), a major failing. I feel like until I get this down, I suck on rails. So I want to sort it out.

I had marginal success on the box, but nothing worth writing about (ha!). I really do need to file my edges down, mind. Even if it's just to stop me thinking about it - 'cos I caught quite a few heel edges while sliding backwards, not good. Luckily I wasn't going fast enough for it to be a problem. It wasn't until I unpacked my bag when I got home that I found the file that had eluded me earlier on when getting all my gear ready. Bummer.

I'd spent a bit of time on the side-kicker-rail, which is the first of it's kind that I've tried (I think). Just a 50-50 was daunting at first. I tried some board slides, getting some contact before dropping off again. I decided that I wasn't committing enough, so towards the end of the session I went for a full on, rail-dead-central-between-bindings, boardslide. I caught an edge and went head first to the landing, fast. My left shoulder took all of the impact, and I was immediately aware that it was a nasty slam.

Memories of James' broken collarbone came flooding back. Luckily for me though, it only felt like I'd broke something, as far as I can tell everything is still intact (whimp!). Boy did it hurt though. It's pretty damn sore today, stiff, and I've got a lot of restriceted movement - although I did manage to drive the car, moving up the gears is ok, but changing down is hard.

Still, at least I committed to the rail :)

Century Optics .3x Ultra Fisheye Adapter

As per the previous post: I want one!

...I've had a quick search on the web and the prices seem to vary quite a bit - maybe there are some subtle differences between similar models? Anyhow, here's a clip showing one of the Century Optics fisheyes being applied:

Skating, Homemade Handles, And Wide Angle Lenses

I went for a skate yesterday morning with a couple of friends; it was a good session and I've been reminded of it all day today. I'm obviously out of shape, not good.

The skating was though. Unlike usual, I was skating some street. I'll just clear something up in case anyone was wondering: I kinda feel weird differentiating between street and ramps/bowls, because (a) I'm a novice, so any notion of specialisation seems wrong, and (b) I don't skate nearly enough - so it's just "skating" to me.

Anyhow, we were skating street, and I spent a good while trying boardslides and frontside boardslides on this sweet little rail. It was pretty motivating 'cos I suck at any frontside rail action on a snowboard; maybe I'll learn something here? I don't wanna big this up mind, I'm talking about a 12" high, flat rail, and me sliding about 18" and dropping off switch. Still, it felt good, and the regular board slides were longer :)

The skate park, known to locals as "5 bridges", or just "bridges", is also the location of the new mini-ramp being built that I mentioned briefly. It's local - around a mile from my house - and under a bridge, so it's always dry. Unfortunately it turns out that it sucks. I think they got some building company to make it rather than someone who knows how to build a ramp. We tried skating it and the transition was horrible. Never mind - the bowl at Silksworth isn't that far away.

While we were there I spotted this kid with a clever little handle for his video camera. I asked him about it and he told me it put it together using two l-shaped brackets and a rubber handle; it looked similar to this, or this. Man, I can't believe I haven't made something similar before now...

...I'm wondering if I could make something with shock absorption built in?

As I took a quick look around the web to investigate camera handles (hence the above two links) - I noticed that a lense on one of the featured cameras peaked some interest from other readers. It peaked mine too. A Century Optics .3x 37mm. Here's an example on youtube.

I think it looks impressive - although it's not like I know too much about this stuff. After all, I've been interested in a wider-angled lense for a while now and never found one. Obviously looking in the wrong places...

iPhone Blogger (again)

Here's a little context regarding the previous post. My current phone contract is coming to an end and I'm planning to hook up an iPhone. My desire has been doubled due to Ciara's recent acquisition of the 8GB version; watching her use it makes my phone look so primitive and un-cool. I want one.

The chalet we're staying in this season, in Morzine, is missing an Internet connection, also primitive. So, I was wondering if it would be practical/easy to update my blog using an iPhone. Hence the quick test.

I'm obviously not up-to-date because there are apparently a few blogger apps available for the phone and I haven't even seen them. There are ftp programs too - although I don't know how flexible the process of getting some photos taken with the phone onto this website will be? I pretty much always downsize photos, or edit them in some way...

There's also the question of network coverage - will 3G be available out there?

Still, it's a possibility, and it might turn out to be really handy. I'll just have to wait and see...

iPhone Blogger

I want one! This is just a quick trial run - posting from Ciara's iPhone... A bit clumsy to begin with but I'm sure it could work well enough while you're out and about. Sick

Which Snowboard?

I've started to look around at the various snowboards on offer this year; my criteria being freestyle/jib. As I started to make a list I thought I'd check out the boards I was considering a couple of years ago (has it been that long?) when I bought the T2. At the time, my shortlist looked like this:

• Nitro T2
• Rome Artifact
• Rome Agent
• Ride Kink
• Sapient Evolution

I'd also been considering: Nitro T1, Bataleon Evil Twin, Jeenyus Eddie Wall and the Capita Travis Parker Texas... but at the time, these boards were dropped from the shortlist.

Well, from the boards above (both lists), I am now considering: Rome Agent, Rome Artifact, Ride Kink, Sapient Evolution and the Nitro T1. But there are some problems... first off, I don't like the graphics on a couple of those boards - the Artifact and the Kink. I'm not sure that's a good enough reason to not buy a board, but for me, it's a big factor. I don't want crap graphics. Second, it's hard to source the Nitro and the Sapient from the UK...

Then there are boards that I wasn't considering last time. I'm currently in America with work - so on the way out here I put the flight time to good use, pouring over the new WhiteLines Buyer's Guide.

Although a little hesitant, I'm interested in the Lib Tech Skate Banana. There's also the DC MLF; both of these boards are new to me. Add in the Ride DH, which I've breifly ridden in the past and liked, plus it continues to be reviewed highly. And finally two Forum boards: the Youngblood and the Eddie Wall.

Taking out those with bad graphics, that makes the following list:

• Rome Agent
• Sapient Evolution
• Nitro T1
• Lib Tech Skate Banana
• DC MLF
• Ride DH
• Forum Youngblood
• Forum Eddie Wall

Cat Skiing / Boarding In Fernie: Review

Towards the end of last season I mentioned that I'd bumped into (well, exchanged emails) Tom Gordon-Walker from NonStop Snowboard during my visit to Fernie. Speaking to him over the summer, he asked if I'd like to post a review about Cat Boarding in Fernie.

Naturally there's a mention of NonStop, but, for anyone who's thinking about trying catboarding/skiing, but isn't quite sure what's involved, this is a great run down of what's involved - so read on...

Fernie is one of the most special and fantastic resorts in North America, the secret is definitely out on how great it is, but if you rush you can still experience it in relative solitude. The main reason it is so great is the snow, specifically how much snow it gets. In two consecutive weeks this winter Fernie received 170 cm and 140 cm, that is pretty amazing! Riding the resort here it is pretty easy to see why so many people flock to Fernie and keep coming back, the terrain is steep, deep, tree filled and has tons of hidden little gullies to play in. However, even on the best days the resort will become tracked out and that is the time to turn to the cats!

Cat boarding is a lower cost version of heliskiing, loads of fun but not quite so hard on the pocket! The cats give you access to terrain well outside the resort that is always untracked and uncrowded, pretty much the ideal scenario. In Fernie there are several operators, Island Lake and Fernie Wilderness Adventures either of them are excellent to use and will be able to find you that untracked powder we so crave.

A typical day starts early, say 7.30am, when you meet at the cat base for a safety briefing, and kit supply if you need it. Then it is onto the cats for the first climb, you will usually get between 7 - 9 runs in a day (each taking 20 mins or so, so save your energy). Once you get out the cat you will see what Fernie powder is really about, there is tons of the stuff and it is all for you and your group. It is well worth adjusting your kit before you set off (moving the bindings back) as the snow is so deep that it can feel really hard work with your usual stance. Then its up to you to let rip, the guides will give you a good idea of where to go but there is a good degree of freedom on each run. I can say I have never seen powder like it and hope you get to ride the same. After 7 or so runs you will be feeling pretty tired, the really deep snow conditions do take there toll. The runs are full of trees and you will be loving the riding in these conditions and you will be leaving the day totally stoked but knackered.

A day as amazing as this is included on all NONSTOP Snowboard 11 week courses. For those of you that don't know NONSTOP run snowboard instructor courses in Canada at Fernie, Banff, Red Mountain and Whistler. Their courses train you up to Canadian Level 2 allowing you to instruct pretty much anywhere in the world. For more information check out www.nonstopsnowboard.com.

Tom.

I've got to agree with that - a day riding backcountry with a cat as transport can be an awesome experience. We went catboarding when we in Fernie; you can read me review of the day here, there are some extra photos (including barrel roll action) here, and here's the video we made of the day (it's also in that first link):

Dakine Split Convertible

I've decided to get the Dakine Split Convertible. I guess I'll find out soon enough if I like the convertible design - but I've been impressed with all the other DaKine products I've owned so I'm expecting to like this one too.

I ended up getting the bag from Two Seasons, along with some new pipe gloves - as my old ones are wrecked from using them on snowflex (yep, I do fall enough to wear my gloves out). They're starting to get new gear in for this season and there are still plenty of bargains from last year (I got the DaKine luggage in the sale) - so it's worth checking out!

All I need now is a new snowboard...

Snowmotions Getting Set In Lenzerheide

Back in 2007 I had an excellent trip to Laax/Flims, and stayed with a company called Snowmotions. During the course of that season I became friends with Snowmotions' head guy - Jason Savidge - so I'm kept up to date with what's going on out there (the downside being that I find myself on the receiving end of an email depicting some incredible powder day).

New for this season, Snowmotions now has a lodge/chalet situated in Lenzerheide. Before visiting Laax, I hadn't heard much about Lenzerheide, but we spent a day there doing a back-country tour, and it was awesome. There is access to some amazing terrain.

I'd love to get out there this season; with holidays and cash being limited after Morzine, I'm just gonna have to wait and see... It's definitely worth checking out their site, especially if you're into freeriding.

Here are some shots from Snowmotions in Lenzerheide last season. Tempted?

Is That A Gorilla?

I was just cruising YouTube looking for some shred in Avoriaz and I found this. So good...

Dakine Travel Bags

I'm looking at getting one of the many Dakine travel bags. Originally I was thinking either the Split Roller 90 or the Split Roller 120; the 120L option seems kinda big - but you never know, that extra space can come in handy...

Dakine also do some convertible designs, which you can convert into two seperate bags, and therefore check them in seperately. To be honest I've never been attracted to this option - thinking it unneccessary. But, I've seen one in the sale which naturally makes it appealing :)

So are they any different to the regular split rollers? Do the two seperate bits join together well? Anyone got one?

Morzine

It looks like the destination for 2009 is going to be Morzine; things are moving along quite nicely.

There are one or two things that I'd like to buy this season: most importantly, a new snowboard. My Nitro T2 has taken a bit of a beating riding the snowflex at Halifax - plus I'm ready for a change. I'm thinking of returning to something a little shorter and softer, like the Kink, but again I think I'll try something new there.

I'd also like to get a new travel bag - something like the Dakine Split Roller. It's not absolutely essential (neither is the board), but I am without a bag so I guess I need something.

On the flip side, I've got one or two things I'd like to sell: a BCA Tacker DTS (avalanche transceiver) and an accompanying probe. I've used mine quite a bit, well practiced with it, and I rate it highly. I bought 4 last season for our group but ended up only needing 3, so there's a brand new one left over. At some point I'm gonna put it on eBay, but if you're interested, drop me an email. I'll probably post about it again before it goes to the auction...

The Usual Suspects?

Well we've started to look into organising something for next season - with France being the destination. Here are the places that we're looking at:

• Morzine/Avoriaz
• Chamonix
• Les Arcs
• Serre Chevalier

Personally, I hope we end up in either Chamonix or Avoriaz - although I'm interested by Les Arcs. Chamonix and Avoriaz are both really easy to get to and they have good accommodation options for larger groups.

I've heard a few things about the park in Chamonix and I'd like to try it out; plus the rest of the mountain(s) is awesome. After visiting Avoriaz once with poor snow conditions - I'm still eager to go back again with hopefully more of the fresh stuff. Plus it's got good parks.

We're coming into this pretty late on so a lot of places have been snapped up. Gotta move quick now...

The Season's Coming And I'm Not Ready!

It feels strange admitting that, but it's true. Normally, each year when the shops start to get their new gear in and the first WhiteLines Friday Fix makes its way to my inbox - I'm counting the days until my first snow.

But not this year. That's mostly due to the fact that I've got nothing planned yet, nothing to look forward to. I'm fairly confident that I'll be shredding some real snow this coming season, but I don't know when or where. Nothing's planned.

The summer (if you can call it that) seems to have passed in a flash. I've been spending time dealing with things at work and home. A lot of boring stuff that you don't want to do: diy, re-mortgaging, cars. Pap.

I'm still thinking about the 'summer' sessions that I'd like to get in at Cas and the 'fax; maybe learn a trick or two before my next holiday. My back still hurts from those slams I took. My most local skate park looks like it's being extended; I think there's going to be a mini-ramp. I've only just gotten around to looking at the footage from Fernie, and burning it onto DVDs for Simon. Where did the summer go?

I did get around to writing a review for the World Snowboard Guide: the Chill FactorE indoor slope. There's also a few sessions from earlier on that were good, both skating and snowboarding, and a little footage that's worth a peak.

But it's coming and that's that. I need to snowboard again. I need a new snowboard. I need to think about the possibility of an early season camp. I need to work out what I can afford for next season. I need to get my act together and get ready!

3rd Session - Real Snow, The WSG And Pain!

My third session of the summer was on real snow. Five of us headed to the chill factor[e] in Manchester last Saturday; it's the first time that I've been.

Real snow made a nice change from snowflex. The setup was good - especially the kicker. Much impressed. I'm not going to say to much about the slope and the facilities though because I'm putting all of that in a review for the wsg, which you should check out, if you haven't already. More on that later - when I've finished writing the review.

I should mention that I'm pretty pleased to be putting some reviews together for a guide that I've used since I first got into snowboarding - even if they're only uk slopes and not fully fledged resorts. Sick! Hopefully I'll do some more this summer.

So what about the shredding? Well, as I mentioned they had a pretty sweet kicker, nicely shaped and solid. I spent the majority of time spinning backside: 1s and 3s. They're far from being on lockdown, but the backside 3 is definitely getting more comfortable. I stomped at least two during the session, fairly smooth too.

We took a decent amount of video - for the time we had available anyway - and some photos of the slope too. I'm gonna sort that stuff out after I've finished the review...

And finally onto the pain. I mentioned before that I took a pretty hard slam last time I was at Halifax. Well, I (stupidly) managed to catch two heel edges on Saturday night sending me straight onto my back. How I managed that I don't know, but it happened. By time I got home the bottom of my back had the strangest swelling, not good!

The bruising is out now and centred around the spine, and seems as though the pain isn't going away, I headed to a sports injury clinic today. It's 35 notes for an half hour session, but it's worth it. The physio was painful, and the guy reckons I should have it x-rayed just to be on the safe side; I'll probably head back at the end of the week or the beginning of next for a second session.

It's annoying. I hope it gets sorted soon as there are plenty of things on that trick list that I wanna cross off...

2nd Session - It Rained

Ever so slightly bigger crew last weekend: Ciara, Simon and I drove down to Halifax. I hadn't checked the forecast or anything like that, so I was all prepared with a handful of buckets and plenty of cheap washing up liquid...

I didn't need any of it. It rained. And what a difference that makes. I've ridden the snowflex once in the past whilst it was raining, but it was also really windy that day, so this was kind of like a first.

Such a good session. Ciara is starting to get the hang of hitting kickers - albeit the small one - and I was working on some backside 3s and the shifty-shifty. With the slope being wet everything was much smoother; it was easy to get air.

This time around we did take some video. I'm quite happy with the backside 3s I was spinning, the technique is coming together I think; there's a decent one on camera but it wasn't from the proper kicker so it doesn't count. In fact, I didn't get 'round to spinning at all off the big kicker - it was just straight stuff.

I was going fairly big though - bigger than I've been in the past for sure. I was even speed checking 'cos the slope was so fast! Anyhow, the only thing of note trick-wise was a handful of double shifties. It was the first time I'd tried one and to be honest they're not that hard. I'd say they're easier than boning and stalling a regular shifty (depending on the size of the air).

I got an ok shot on film, but it's quite far away. I'm probably going to look for something better before I cross it off the list. They felt good though.

I finished off the session with a pretty big slam: kinda big off the kicker and landed pretty much on my back. Ouch! That's on film too, but again I'm kinda small in the shot so it's a little hard to see what's going on...

I'll collect the video sometime in the future.

As a closing thought: I think I need to invest some time learning to ride on the 'flex. I'm getting caught out when I mess up the weight I'm putting on my edges, and sometimes the mistakes are a little painful :)

1st Session - Hot And Dry

Ciara and I drove down to Halifax last Saturday to shred the 'flex. It was hot, dry, and generally a bit poo.

Being there in the middle of the day when the sun is fully out is simply too much for the aged sprinkler system. They had some wax out, and I had my usual supply of washing up liquid, but neither availed. Dropping in from the ramp was fast enough, but by the time you hit the kicker it's simply too slow. Pretty much unusable.

The best I managed was a sketchy backside 3. No photos, no videos, nothing to cross off the list.

The lift stopped also, which seems to be a common occurrence. It doesn't bother me that much, but Ciara hates using the secondary lift!

So why then, am I looking forwards to going back? When it comes to a good Saturday afternoon session, am I being stupidly optimistic or are there other ways to unlock the potential of the slope?

I was talking to the guy who runs the place (I think); apparently the slope is totally different on evenings after the sun has gone down. I can believe that. The problem is that the opening times make it too costly for me to travel there, only to ride when the sun has gone in.

So I asked him about dousing the kicker with water. Apparently a solution of water and washing up liquid is best, which is what some of the regulars use. So next time I'm there, I'm gonna take a few buckets, plently of washing up liquid, and periodically lube the kicker.

I'm sure many people consider this to be a lot of effort. Especially considering that Cas' is marginally closer and doesn't suffer from a dry-slope... They may well be right - but I just really enjoy riding there. I like the kicker - when it's running smoothe it can be awesome. So for now, I'm placing my faith in the 'fax (and a handful of buckets).

Damage Report

Wow, there's been a whole load of inactivity around here...

In part this has been due to my laptop breaking. Between myself and Ciara, we managed to drop it; now it's dead. I really need to claim on my house insurance to get some money for it, but first I'm going to get the data off. That's what I've been saying for over a month now.

As well as the obvious obstacle of not having a computer, I've also been really busy at both work and home. Work has been work, but at home I've got a good amount of d.i.y renovation style things to be getting on with. It's time sapping.

And finally there's been a rather strange close of the season for me. Normally I ride sometime early in the season, perhaps January say, and then again later on, perhaps March-time. This year my riding was all done by the beginning of February. It was strange. With friends enjoying real snow holidays during March and April, it just didn't seem time to start thinking about my own summer riding...

The net effect has been that I've been quite removed from snowboarding over the last 6 weeks or so - hence the quietness around here. It's worth pointing out that Mal's comment on my previous post about Call of Duty is way off the mark; honestly, I've hardly played the game! :)

What's more, over the summer I plan to blog a little less frequently. For sure I've got a stack of work to do on the house, but I think what I enjoy most about blogging is writing and posting things that I've actually done with snowboarding. So I'll be looking to document my summer snowboarding trips to Castleford and Halifax (and perhaps other places too).

With that in mind, I have a first draft of a trick list I'd like to tick things off from this summer. I don't know how it's going to pan out, but here it is:

• any switch backside rotation, even a one, and the small kicker is allowed
• cab 3 or better and the small kicker is allowed
• nose grab and the small kicker is allowed
• barrel roll clean and the small kicker is allowed
• Shifty, shifty
• backside 180 melon or stale, stomped
• frontside 3, stomped
• frontside 3 melon, stomped
• backside 3, stomped
• backside 3, with any grab, stomped
• any five, no grab needed

To tick a trick off the list it needs to be on film. "Stopmed" is clearly a subjective phrase - it's more there for motivation than anything else - but I won't be classing anything sketchy as a make :) Also, unless stated, the trick has to be done on a reasonably sized kicker; at Halifax for example, that's the main kicker.

I have a few things I'd like to do on a skateboard also, but I'll leave that for another time. It's enough to say for the moment that I've skated 8 times already this year, which is more than double of the entire last year put together. That's cool.

One more thing before I sign off. I've sold my Burton Wheelie Locker after much internal debate, and have opted for the case + boardbag approach. I've already hooked up a boardbag (in the sale, nice one) and I'm looking around for a case to go along with it. I'll post some pics when I've got the new bags sorted.

Here's hoping to getting back on my board asap...