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Well, maybe not dumping, but a good motivator to get your gear out and start planning the season… It is snowing hard now, however, it will be 60 degrees again by the end of the week.  None-the-less it is time to start thinking about the season and get on backcountry.com to get your gear set up for the season.  Click through on the backcountry.com link above and start thinking about the winter season. 

Backcountry.com’s “Pray For Snow” party was nothing short of amazing.  Last weekend in Salt Lake City, the company party went off with everyone dressed for color of the snow gods.  A group of the athletes were invited to take part in the festivities and it was well worth the journey.  Prizes for the employees were being given away right and left while the drinks and music flowed in harmonious fashion.  In an almost imperialistic manner and with incredible organization the Backcountry staff with the most logged athletic adventures throughout the year were recognized for their efforts.  Those who had ridden the most miles, ran the furthest, or spent the most nights in a tent throughout the season were gifted anything from ski trip vacations, to shopping sprees. 

While the athletes were not a part of the pool for crazy prizes, we made up for the lack of anticipation during the ceremony by punishing our livers.  I could have not asked for better company, as everyone seemed to have a great time and were all honored to be invited to such a unique event.

Thank you Backcountry.com for an incredible evening.  I am sure the word of Backcounrty.com will slowly spread, and I hope you tell all your friends, but being apart of the company is an honor and it is fun to see it grow.  

Tramdock.com goes One Deal at a TimeRetail site serves up high-end ski gear at less than half the price

PARK CITY, Utah (Sept. 2, 2008) – Pig to bacon, rain to snow, Clark Kent to Superman – there’s no question that some transformations make this world a better place, period. Like Tramdock.com to Tramdock.com. Today, fresh out of the phone booth, Tramdock became the numero uno one-deal-at-a-time ski gear site on the planet.

Tramdock.com sells the same high-end skis and ski gear it always sold, but now it’s just one item at a time, at ridiculously marked-down prices (50-80% below retail). Every night at midnight (MST) the Tramdock crew drops one new, insanely discounted ski deal on the site. As soon as that deal sells out, a new item lists and goes until it’s gone.

The new Tramdock is the skier’s version of Backcountry.com’s three successful one-deal-at-a-time (ODAT) sites: SteepandCheap.com, WhiskeyMilitia.com and Chainlove.com. Like the rest of the fam, Tramdock highlights the sale item with a large product photo, detailed specs and the slashed price. Since each deal is only featured until it sells out, you can track the remaining availability and the sell-through rate in real time – so you always know how fast you need to act before the deal is done.

Vendors appreciate the ODAT model because the one-deal-at-a-time set-up moves their quality products without harming brand equity. The limited-time availability forces people to act, so the gear sells lightening fast. This keeps the product pipes clear and reduces retail backup and overstock.

“Ski gear’s always been a major draw on Steep and Cheap. How could we not pay attention to the high demand and fast sell-outs? We took a hint from our customers and vendors and overhauled the existing Tramdock retail site into ODAT.” said Andreas Fulks, Tramdock.com’s head buyer.  “So while Steep and Cheap will hone in even more on the hardcore trail runner, climber, alpinist, and backpacker, Tramdock is now the go-to site for the sickest deals on ski gear.”

To make sure you don’t miss anything and to get an instant ping every time another Tramdock steal is posted, you can sign up for a bevy of alerts – desktop, browser, IM bots and RSS. Plus, daily emails keep you tuned to what’s going down on the site.

Tramdock is not for beaters. Tramdock is for hard-core, 365-days-a-year ski addicts who know what they want, can recognize a screamin’ deal, and can grab it before it’s gone. With brands like 4frnt, Rossignol, Dynastar, Scott, Smith, Salomon, and Dakine in the lineup, you’re sure to score what you crave.

About Backcountry.com

Backcountry.com is an online retailer of performance outdoor adventure gear and apparel. The e-commerce site carries more than 400 brands in various categories, including biking, backpacking, camping, hiking, climbing, trail running, paddling, skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing and adventure travel. Backcountry.com also operates SteepandCheap.com, Dogfunk.com, WhiskeyMilitia.com and Chainlove.com. 

A compilation from the good guys with Topptur Films.  After our ten days in Norway, with snow that was less then stellar, we all look back on the skiing not being great, but we were able to ski in areas that no one ever had before because the bad snow was ironically very stable.  Sometimes there are great things that come from marginal situations, this one was epic. 

There are many endeavors that we participate in solely based on the challenge, but when I agreed to take part in a Stand-up Paddle Board crossing of lake Tahoe I think I must have been coming off some experience that made me feel “tough.”  I thought to myself, “Paddle boarding eh!,,, Can’t be that hard.  I have seen guys like Dave Kalama and Laird Hamilton do it in 20ft waves, so I should be able to cross a lake….” 

When I arrived here two days ago and tried Paddle Boarding for the first time and came to the conclusion that there are two different kinds of people.  Water people, and those who grew up in the central mountains of Colorado….  In all honesty it’s not that hard once you find the balance point, and actually it was really fun gliding across water only a few inches above on an oversized surfboard.  However, I cowered at the thought of my undeveloped technique and atrophied muscle groups as I had no recollection of distances on water, I thought about how long it takes to ride a bike 22 miles, and then I was a little intimidated. 

However, what I thought would be a simple event featuring a group of athletes racing across a lake to raise money for some foundation turned out to be nothing short of prestigious. The organization, media, and support crews were all spectacular, but most of all the roster of athletes involved was the veritable “who’s who’s” in snow and water sports.  Headed up by professional paddlers and big wave surfers like Dave Kalama and Chuck Patterson, but supported by snow athletes like Daron Rahlves; the Winn-ingest US skier in history; big mountain rider and snowboard pioneer Jeremy Jones; world record holding skier Julian Carr; the first paraplegic to climb El Capitan and Half Dome, Mark Wellman; as well as other world class athletes from sports of all kinds.  Many of use were just honored just to be apart of the event and have our names on the roster, but furthermore the event had a deeper meaning then crossing a lake.

The incredible talent pool had been brought together to raise support and awareness for the Bob Woodruff Foundation, which is an organization making waves in the field of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Post-Traumatic Stress.  After ABC reporter Bob Woodruff suffered a severe head injury from a roadside bomb while reporting over seas, this organization was started to offer support to vets and their families from the Iraq and Afghanistan whom are suffering from these conditions.

This experience was an honor not only to be supporting an incredible organization, but also to be standing on a paddleboard among a dozen of my life-long idols.  Furthermore, the distance was daunting and the task itself was nothing short of intimidating given my ten minutes of experience on a board prior to the events start at 6:00am.  The next morning when we arrived on the south shore, after boating across the glassy lake in the dark, the air was dense and cold.  Raccoons were scurrying to their homes as we unloaded gear on the docks and prepared to embark.  The water was smooth and tranquil as we left the beach, but as the sun rose and illuminated the north shore, 22 miles away, my confidence was a little rattled as we could see the curve of the earth over the water.  However, as we got-our-stroke-on and fell into a rhythm the miles clicked off.  The morning was perfect as we were the only people on the water, which, made it easier to paddle without waves, but also offered the perfect setting to remember those who we were helping in the process.  At the same time it was a opportune time to reminisce about experiences with friends who had suffered from brain injuries as well.  In the sport of skiing alone there has been miraculous recoveries from people like Charlie Gaylord, CR Johnson, and others all of whom suffered from TBI in the last few years.  With support from organizations like The Bob Woodruff Family Foundation, people like Charlie and CR have been able to make solid recoveries, but there are those in the world that have been less fortunate and have not received the care and support needed to over come such tragedies.  

Tragic stories keep rolling I from the Middle East, but there are few organizations like the BWFF that are making and effort to help these forgotten heroes.  Crossing lake Tahoe was only the start in a long line of support necessary to make such organizations a success.  Sore, but proud we all walked away honored to take part in the event, but as we prepare for another season and wait for the snow to fall it is important to be aware of the greater story unfolding around us and that there is a greater cause for all of our actions.   For more information please visit The Bob Woodruff Family Fund at www.bobwoodrufffamilyfund.org.  To learn more about the Tahoe Stand-Up Paddle Board Crossing 2008 and how you or your firm can support for this worthy cause, please contact Dr. Robb Gaffney, 530-412-1325, robbgaffney@hotmail.com, or Rob Howard, 510-773-4701, rhoward@bikeskills.com.  

Summer is off to a great start.  The weather has become hot and the valleys are green, but thoughts of winter are far from fleeting.  It’s hard to reminisce about the experiences from this surreal season of incredible precipitation and not break a smile.  Fueled by a yearning lustfulness for endless powder, skiers in the US logged more days this year then in many years passed.  Copious amounts of snow blanketed our landscape and by May had transformed usually tricky terrain into rolling plumes of fluff.  From the middle of November to the end of May the snow was more then sustainable, and at times implausible or phantasmal if you were where lucky enough to catch Mother Natures symbiotic bath at the right time.  

(Photo: Max Mancini) 

As the summer roles on and the Colorado mountains are still blanketed in sheets of snow, it is hard to imagine it’ll be snowing again in around 80 days (give or take).  I understand how this realization may scare a few of you, either from the thought of cold weather or the unfortunate chaos that will inevitably strike when fall punctually arrives yet again.  For now however it is hard no to bask in the brilliance of summer.  With the mountains glimmering above and the bath waters of nature rushing through the valleys summer brings not only a time for ski boot bruised feet to heal in sandals, but a chance to interact with far less clothing.  Just kidding, but none-the-less there is a certain vibe in the summer that allows us to live just a little more freely.  

At the same time, I would like to take this time to praise those of you who have yet to give in to the rigors of summer and still have the memories of skiing ripe on your plate.  For many the memory of skiing deep powder snow is what gets us through the summer, despite the countless other activities that summer brings.  However, if you’re the kind of person who stands in the garage in the middle of July looking at some skis dreaming of your next symbiotic dance with nature then you are a skier at heart.  There is an innate understanding among skiers and snowboarders alike that only those who have experienced a season like this past year can understand or relate to.  You know you have experienced the ultimate when you ride as many days as you possibly can and even some that you shouldn’t have; yet un-provokingly yearn for another turn despite your bodies crying for a day off.  It’s not a passion of desire it’s a passion of opportunistic ambition.  Lets just hope the skies open and grace us with another season of epic proportions so that can experience natures greatness once more and share it with the poor bastards who missed it this year.

For those who make the sport of skiing what it is today and for those who follow the snow like Joseph Smith followed adjunct delusions, lets all hope for another great season.  Without your support we would not be sitting here in July still thinking about the past winter.  It takes a community to create the winter sports industry, but it only takes one winter for forget every thing else.  

All the best and enjoy the summer.,

~T

After the resorts close most people stop skiing.  However this year the conditions are rather unique in Colorado.  For instance, today we hiked to the top of a ridge and I took my probe out.  Lets just say it is 260cm long, which is around eight feet and I could not hit the bottom.  We should be skiing for a while if the mother of nature allows us.  Here are a few pictures of lines and antics from the last few days.   

I think I’m moving in. 

Just your average ski lines for May.

The drop in, see the group 2000ft below..?

Ruby Chute. Its a lot longer then it looks…

Who’s next?

Max Mancini and his dislocated shoulder. Bad times!

Colin, Seaton, Yo, y Thatcher

Seaton and Thatcher testing their luck on wave runners apparently. 

The Crew making a plan.

 Spotting out lines on Daisy Pass

Two story cabin…

 Full size home totally buried.  

Phil tried to do some logging with the sled.

Colin “Dave” Mac.

Corey Tibljas with “Two Plank Productions”

Same cabin the next day…

Endless lines.  If you can see it, you can ski it.

This Spyder was walking around on the snow at around 11,500 feet. Spyder, yes that’s how we spell it… 

Not a bad view.  This pine cone blew from about three miles away, because there are no trees above me at this point.

Yield to a lot of snow…

Claudia B. next to a huge avalanche debris pile from a thirty foot cornice.

Playing with nature… We opted not to ski in this area.

Our little friend Foxy watching us hit a huge backcountry hit. 

Brave little guy.