Rider Profile: Biba Turnbull

Stratton Mt School has a long, rich history of working with international athletes. Continuing in this tradition we find Biba Turnbull enjoying her junior year at SMS.
Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Biba brings a heavy surf influence with her. As a big Shayne Pospisil fan, I'm a sucker for that surf style as are most judges and camera lenses! Her passion is slopestyle, but she can be found getting down on natural mountain features as well (a good habit for aspiring slope champs to get into).



It was difficult for me to see Biba's first year at SMS marred by a broken collarbone midway through the season. She stuck it out at the academy, almost re- breaking the bone in a spring soccer game. My pity soon turned to envy when I heard how she made up for her lost season. Biba returned down under for the Australian winter and had a near perfect season. Working with an excellent Australian coach,Peter Long, Biba regained her confidence and edge. She learned new tricks, amassed photos and footage, and won almost every contest she entered. Her grand finale was a rebreaking of the same collarbone in August but, it seems to me, its impact was reduced and overshadowed by the successes of the winter.
We just returned from a dryland surf trip to Rye Beach NH, where Biba finally got to show her classmates what she is all about. Tenacious and stylish are words that pop to mind when seeing her surf. It was her first East Coast surf experience and she enjoyed it heaps.




Biba's upcoming season will begin early November with a training camp to Austria. A young globe trotter indeed!

"Biba has a really nice touch on the ball and has a great sense of the game." - SMS Soccer Coach Jessie Mallis

'Showing the maturity and confidence of a healthy seasoned athlete, not one fresh off a double collar break this past northern winter, Biba dominated the podiums (and websites) down under setting the standard in Junior Snowboarding winning 8 out of the 9 events she entered. As always, it's been an absolute pleasure to shred with her each and every day, it truly is about the perfect balance of both fun and creativity for Biba, and progression soon follows. Its this, combined with her great work ethic that will for sure see her kick every goal she sets in snowboarding.' -Snowboard Coach Pete Long



"Meeting Biba Turnbull only a few times over the last year, and then seeing here back healthy this year was an amazing experience. I had the pleasure of shredding waves with this Aussie, watch out, she is a ripper! From the moment she arrived at Jenness Beach with the SMS crew she knew one thing and one thing only, she was going to surf her brains out! and she did. It was very difficult to get her out of the water. She did cutback's and floaters for three sessions a day. Thanks for the good time's Biba, keep that positive vibe and stoke, have a great season!"
Travis Moore SGT (Sass Global Travel)

Cheers Biba! Here's to a great 2012.

Rider Profile: Chip Linton

Back from the beach and already putting in work, SMS junior Chip Linton is this year's first Blog Profile.
As SMS coaches, we expect our riders to enjoy thier summers, yet stay in shape. Chip idealized that request by lifeguarding and surfing in Nantucket this summer. He returned to campus with sun-bleached hair, high fitness, and the foucus and responsiblity that true lifeguards should possess.
Dave Redden has designed a demanding new fall workout for the team. Chip has quickly mastered the routines and his example aids both team and coaches. The Russian Kettlebell is an integral dryland tool this year, and Chip's technique is something to see.

Entering his third year on the storied SMS Skateboard Team, Chip was pleasantly surprised to be elected Team Capitan. In his time on the team his skating has improved by leaps and bounds, quite literally. His ollie heights are unchallenged on the team. Yesterday a massive funbox ollie (see photo) earned him a victory in the Tuesday Frends Headphones Challenge.




Some words from the SMS world:


"Chip's deterination and drive are astounding to me." - Scott Johnston

“Chip doesn’t give himself enough credit. He is an awesome guy who has worked hard in his own simple way to come as far as he has. Whether it be skating, where he has the highest ollies in the rec, or on the hill where he silently slays his landings, he is always killing it with the best attitude.”

-Phoebe Novello

"Ever since I've met him, he has been trying hard." JP McArdle

"Chip saw the most improvement in his Functional Movement Screen over the past year." - Dave Redden