Hardest Working Team at Cardrona

I realize the sunrise coverage might be getting old so I will spare you all the photos and details of today's banger. It seems the best sunrises do not translate into the best weather on the hill. Any complaints would be criminal though, this camp is amazing and the kids make the most of any weather. Today was a great example. We expected the park to open for slope practice but no such luck. We got a good look at the park though and were able to plan lines and practice the desired rail tricks on similar featrues in the park that was open. These kids have great style on rail/box features which is something we don't give them enough credit for. Its not all just jumps in slopestyle. The style and technicality that James, Hunter, Tierney, Hudson, Randall, Spencer and Tikos brought to the rail line made me proud today. Speaking of style, check this Japan air from Randall Stacy!

Over at the pipe dull light and solid conditions made for tough training, but Mallon tells me the kids worked hard and made some progress regardless. Shelby is linking her 5s, Joe almost stomped a cab 10, Mike Perle is landing 9s, Liz is mixing up her grabs on front 5s and I saw Serena Shaw execute a nice front 7. Chip Linton (who was the jumper in yesterday's bungee photo) is improving in the pipe, especially his frontside airs.
TIkos brought his camera up and worked his magic with the flat light. Check this shot of Joe Mensch. TTK has the eye, I love this photo!

NZ Open begins tomorrow with registration and slope practice. The crew has done all it can to be ready, which makes for a good night sleep for all. While the resort is crowded with pros and teams, there is no doubt in my mind that our crew are working and shredding the hardest. Were I a grommet at Cardrona I would go home and beg to be sent to SMS. Wish us luck in the following days.

From dropping in to dropping Off

Let me tell you the SMS snowboard coaches have it pretty good down here in sheep-land New Zealand. Sweet cribs, great riding conditions and features, and fun, hardworking athletes ready to shred. To put the icing on the cake, they even have one of their own athletes doing writing the blog for them! My name is Thomas Tikos-Kadji, I am an alumini of SMS and I was given the chance to tell you about today and even share some photos I took. So check this out, just because we can't drop into the pipe, or jump off a 50 foot kicker, doesn't mean we can't drop off a bridge!! Today the SMS crew took the day off and went bungy jumping off a bridge 30 meters below water so cold, it made skinny dipping in Alaska seem warm. Loading the cars at 9AM we headed over; Randall stacy, Joe mench, Hunter Wood, Chris Tierney, Scotty Johnson, and other riders strapped up, tied up, held their breath and watched as each one screamed like little girls as they plummeted 30 meters down.

After everyone's adrenaline rush's came to a rest, hunger kicked in. Scrambling back in the cars, we headed to Queenstown where we chowed down on sushi, burgers, and other delicious foods. With our bellies full, a bunch of the guys and girls craved more action, and decided to head up the gondola and race the luge track. There were winners, losers, and even some battle wounds from Joe Mench and Randall Stacy; good times all around though. Those who didn't go luge racing roamed around town, enjoying the warm sun, the sound of the waves, oh and the shoe stores; With new boots, lizzy walked the walk and shelby talked the talk with her new hat.

After a long day of jumping bridges, shopping, and eating, the sun began to set and we made our way back to the crib. All and all, a day off with the SMS snowboard crew is a day off like no other. Tomorrow its back to slaying the snow and getting ready for the NZ Open. I'll be shooting photos of the team tomorrow so be sure to check us out tomorrow. PEACE Internet!

Vertigo

Sunrises like these can send you to work at any job with a smile and positive attitude! Unfortunately this was the best part of today weather-wise. We got a jump on the day and arrived earlier than normal only to be greeted by dull, cloudy, grey skies. Snow conditions were choppy and visibility was low. The first run through the pipe was dicey and vertigo was the word of the day. We kept at it until noon even with steadily increasing winds. Gotta know when to call it and call it we did. Back to town for a hilarious skate session with James, Randall, Tierney, Hunter and Hudson. There was a great vibe at the skatepark. The locals were cool and there was a sound system and some funny dogs running around. Then we rolled across the street for smoothies and headed back home for dryland. Tomorrow is our day off and we have some good activities planned. All for now!

Big Jump Opens

Another clear scenic morning quickly turned a bit sour for myself and those unfortunate enough to be in my van. Halfway to the hill I realized I was running on empty and had to turn around and go back to town to fuel up. By the time I got back to the resort there was a long slow line of traffic crawling up the 30-plus switchbacks. As bad as I make this sound we still made it up by 9:45. I made an effort to control my funk which paid off big time. The pipe was perfect once again, but the buzz on the hill was regarding the opening of the large kicker (which had been closed the days prior to Eric's dismay). It had been a few months since any of us had hit a jump of this size, but it looked well built with a long landing. Eric and I slid over to the drop zone and watched a few riders blast into space with butterflys in our stomachs. As I was upset with myself for my lapse in the morning I decided I should guinea-pig it for the team. Once it had been cleared the session was on. In two laps Eric was landing 5s and 7s and by days end he stomped the monster back rodeo you see above. Before too long, Tikos, Randall and Spencer were also enjoying the feeling of dropping out of the sky.
Meanwhile at the pipe Liz was linking front 7s to cab 5s, Joe was landing 9s and attempting 10s, Hudson got 7s back and was gunning for 9s, Mike Perle stomped 9s and James was mixing up combos (nice run on sentence huh?).
After lunch cloud cover rolled in over the resort so we took some mini park laps. Phoebe was itching to try another backflip so she did so. While she sat down again its clear she likes the trick and will have it soon (see photo).

We prepared to split around 2, but Liz had her eye on the big jump and talked me into going back over. I had already cooled down and forgot the speed, causing me to overshoot a bit and turn a mellow 3 into a sketchy 5. This did not dissuade Ms Beerman from ending her afternoon with a large, shifted, controlled floater. She will certainly have some more business with the jump tomorrow.
The weekend crowds should be hell tomorrow. An early departure would be smart, better go check the gas gauge!

Sunny down unda/KMS arrives

As you can see from this photo of Shelby, the day started cold, clear and with an amazing sunrise. The morning lead into a clear sunny day and we arrived early to a fresh-cut pipe. The next 3 hours were a blur of pipe runs from 14 riders. Lots of getting readjusted to pipe riding for some and linking tricks for others. Shelby jumped right back into it with style and confidence. James was chomping at the bit and by noon was landing 8ft back 5s, and back to back 7s. Hunter Wood also boosted back 5s and took some hard slams like the solid young man he is, laughing them off. Spencer Shaw continues to impress me, today's highlights being front 10s in pipe and a monster backflip 180 at day's end. Speaking of backflips, on our last run I had about 13 of the kids and we enjoyed a mandatory backflip session on a small step up jump. Everyone attempted a flip, some more successful than others. Shelby and Lizzy got about halfway and folded, but their fitness behooved them. Phoebe got the biggest cheer with a full flip that she didn't seem to expect, she landed on her butt like she was sitting in a chair.
The park is shaping up, tomorrow should be epic. There are plenty of features to work with, including the hip that you see Connor Hudson blasting below.


No sooner did we get back than I heard from Tikos who was waiting at the airport with Randall (redundant, I know). Good thing he facebooked me because I thought he was coming in the next day. I ripped over to the airport with Lizzy and we scooped them up. They are tired from days of travel, but excited to shred tomorrow.

"Best Camp Intro Ever"

After a much needed night sleep in our first-class condos I awoke to pouring rain at 6am. Departure was put on hold for a moment, but only a moment. By 8am the skys cleared and we hit the road. The mountains are COVERED in snow and the scenery is amazing, even for NZ. We figured out the tire chain situation and ripped up to resort.
The mission for day one was to get to know the resort and get a feel for riding again. The first lift ride was a bit overwhelming, so much terrain to choose from, all of it covered in fresh pow. As I stood in awe and confusion at the top of the lift I was almost knocked over with a bear hug from behind. It was my good VT hommie Danger Dave who had been out for 3 weeks already and was more than down to show us around. For the next two hours we ripped pow and dropped rocks. It was the perfect way to start, no one even tried to get to the park.



Pheobe, Makayla and Serena are a badass crew of girls, so fun to ride with. Much of this style of riding was new to Phoebe, yet she did not hesitate to drop the rocks with us (and she loved it). Mike and I just looked at each other and laughed. We both had the same thing on our mind but he said it first, "Today is the best start of a camp I can remember". Scotty agrees, and what a great intro to NZ for him! Liz is killing it as guest coach and I loved seeing her stress-free, slashing pow and dropping rocks. Its great to have grads stay involved and I know we are going to see some shredding from her in the next few weeks.
After lunch we headed to the park/pipe. At this point the wind picked up and things got a bit gnarly. We were still able to check things out. James and Spencer were on point, like they had been riding daily up to today. Spencer nailed a backflip off a rock, a front 3 off another, and 4-5 nollie fronts. James is always willing to check the jumps for the crew, and he did so today, even in the wind. Hunter got the shot of the day (up top) blasting a method off a rock into powder.
At the day's end all were safe, sunburned and stoked. We are ready to start pipe and park riding tomorrow, but for one of the first times I can tell that it might be hard to keep the kids in the park all day!

Safe Arrival Down Under

I write this entry in front of the fireplace at our condo in Wanaka. Our travels went quite smooth considering the size of the group and our various points of departure. It was great to see the entire crew when I arrived at our LAX gate at 9:30. Everyone is happy and excited. New members Chip Linton and the Shaws were quick to assimilate and seem like great new additions. The flight to NZ was smooth and made pleasant by the polite stewards, good food and a deep movie selection.
We arrived with our tans in shorts and flip-flops to find full-blown winter. Cold temps, snow and rain greeted us at the airport. The mountains flanking our drive to Wanaka were covered in more snow than I have seen in the past 5 years and this impression was reconfirmed by locals who claim great conditions.
Upon arrival we unpacked, grabbed some food and had our first team meeting of the 09-10 season. While it seems like a short time since summer break started, it is great to see the kids again. The concept of James, Shelb and Eric as seniors really blows my mind! The team was attentive and polite at the meeting, true pros to this game. Scotty J seems impressed with NZ without coming off as a tourist, again a true pro on the road.
We head up to Cadrona tomorrow to purchase our passes, get acquainted with the resort, and get our legs back under us. Not much more to say today, but lots more coming in the next two weeks. We are all so fortunate to be where we, enjoying what we love with close friends. Thanks for all the support from parents, family, and SMS staff for making trips like this possible.