Allee

I'm stoked to hear that not only are you guys a great bunch of people, but also a bunch of pisshead tequila drinkers as well. I'm gonna have to make it to some of those camps next season... Vlad, shame about the Swede, but some people just canna handle their mezcal. She should try some of the stuff my boss bought me back from Mexico - now that's kosher tequila, and it kicks like a mule ... And yes - I definitely save the T for afters - I can't board when I'm sober. Although maybe I should give it a try - my heelsides might improve!

Sorry, I have the screws at home and I forgot to put them back in. Drop me an email with your address and I'l send them on when I get back - at least you'll have the proper bits then! Cheers, Allison.

Whited out at Lake Louise on the weekend coming over from the back to the front, there's a blue run which heads down and then hairpins around to the front. I couldn't see five feet in front of me, but I made a heelside turn where I thought the hairpin was, and must have missed it by about ten feet! I carved backwards off the edge of the trail and went straight down on my head (helmet) from about a foot high (I suppose). After I blinked a few times and sat up I still had to make it to where my friends were at the bottom of the run. Funny thing was, even though the whiteout had cleared enough to see, every time I pointed the board downhill I ended up traversing sideways and landing in a heap. Apparently concussion does that for you...

Hey Neil I'm taking a set of Burton Carriers off my board this week, and I'll be passing thru LAX on my way back to New Zealand next Thursday. I'll give them to you if there's some way of leaving them there, or meeting up with you. Drop me an email at rugbyfan@shaw.ca if you're interested.

Mine wasn't really a crash, but probably the scariest moment of my life. At Turoa, a renowned ice bomb in the middle of New Zealand's North Island, late season, and it's started to white out at the top of the hill. I came down on the trail, but ran off the edge of it somewhere, fell, and started to slide. When it's whited out you have no idea of which way is up, and the snow under me was just solid ice. I'm on my back, I can't dig the board into the ice to stop, I have no idea where I am, and no clue as to how far I'm gonna go or what's at the bottom. I don't know how far I slid, but I finally managed to dig an edge in and slow down. In fact, I don't even remember how I got back to the base, I was so shook up ... And one afternoon at Kicking Horse, I was following the cat track down when I swerved around a fallen skier, copped my edge, and tumbled off into the powder on the side. Problem was, the powder was mega feet deep, and I couldn't get out! I finally had to stop thrashing around and just wait to be rescued, as by this time I'd sunk up to my armpits. Do people ever disappear, never to be seen again???

It seems from reading the threads that quite a number of us manage to do damage to ourselves on a regular basis. It's kind of nice to know that I'm not the only one who falls off! My roommate's son came off a rail in the park on the weekend and knocked out his four front teeth. Which kind of got me to thinking about the injuries that we suffer in the name of sport ... So what's your best (worst) (most embarrassing) (stupidest) crash story?

There's a heap of Oxygen hard boots on Ebay at the moment. I don't know what they're like, they look OK, and you might be able to score a pair for a decent price. If you go to raceboarders.com and click on the Ebay link you should see them.

My other half was always going to learn to ski but just never got around to it, so I threw him into ski school at Big White when I went boarding at Xmas. On the third day he was with Level 4 and running gates on the Nastar course. On his 7th day last weekend I bombed down my favourite blue cruiser at Sunshine on my Hot Blast and he PASSES me. I'm not going to teach him to snowboard because that's really gonna make me look bad. Although it is nice that after 7 days, I can go pretty much anywhere on the hill and he just runs along with me. And he doens't like bumps, so we stick to groomers all day ... bugger:)

LOOK at them groomers. Wanna go there.

that's what riding bumps on a speed stick does for you. Rattles your brain cells and makes you sing bad Springsteen songs (although I do like Frankie Goes to Hollywood's version). Speaking off that, I highsided off the Blast on the weekend and gave myself concussion - but the bindings still didn't let go!!! (hee hee ...)

All the hills will be shut, with the exception of Lake Louise (May 9th) and Sunshine (May 16th). I had an awesome day at Sunshine the weekend before close last year ... maybe you'll get lucky - a foot of snow in May is not uncommon!

How soon are you heading over? I'll be out of town from the 18th to the end of the month, but if you wanted another girl to ride with, give you the inside goss on the ski areas, or maybe split a private lesson with, then drop me a reply, I'd love to help out.

Hey Verity Trevor was out of town the weekend I was at Kicking Horse, and I haven't amanged to catch up with any of the other guys, but you might have some more luck. Hopefully we get some more snow before you get here. It's been a pretty lean Feb ... "Hey there Allee, just to let you know we don't have any carving instructors at the moment at norquay, but it is an awesome place to learn and get fast! There are a couple guys who work through unlimited snowboard shop, pete jensen and mark tanguay who are awesome at teaching people how to carve hard and fast, just give the shop a ring and leave a message for them. As well if you go out to Kicking Horse, get in touch with a guy named Trevor at the Snowboard School, he is incredible and really knows his stuff (he's an exquebec-er)" Unlimited Ski and Ride is in Banff. Hope this helps! :)

The plastic screw things has gone, we'll see if they work better this weekend. Thanks guys!! ;)

Mike, I would love to know what your other half thinks of her Coiler, as that's the one that I would be looking at if I spend up for a new board. Prior are out at Sunshine this weekend, I'm hoping to take a WCR and the 159 4 x 4 they have on demo out for a spin. I should be able to faceplant nicely off those...

Agreed that the guy is tripping. A new custom spec Coiler is only worth $500's, I think? But it's still pretty gnarly looking. I'm a girl, that's all I worry about...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3663322875&category=36297 Somebody must want this, it looks beautiful.

I bought a new (secondhand) board that came with a set of Burton bindings - I think they're Carriers? the ones with the pop up and slide adjustments on them. I did my first day on the hill last weekend with it, and while I like the board, the bindings are the pits. I have them adjusted up so tight I have to sit down and crank with all my weight to get them to lock on, and as soon as I come off at speed (which I do a lot) the front binding just spits the boot out. It's a really disconcerting feeling, it feels as if the board has broken, and then the board flops around all over the hill. I'm not that worried about the board, but I am about my knees ... When I adjust the bindings they feel like they click into place all right, and I can't move them by pushing them with my fingers. There's a wee bit of play in the front slider, but it's only millimetres, not enough to cause the boot to let go, I would have thought. The boots are Raichles, 223's. I have some old Oxygens on my other board (Hot Blast). I've come off that board a hell of a lot harder and I've never had the bindings let go on me ... Any ideas? Do I have them done up too tight, perhaps? I'd really like to use them, but at this rate, they might be headed for the recycle bin. Cheers, Allee.

The trail map for KHMR has two blacks/double blacks for every blue and green, and some of the blues wil spank you pretty hard as well. And when they say black, they mean it. Steep AND bumpy. I had fun on the greens off Catamount, just practicing technique and hanging out. Attempted a couple of blues and crashed a dozen times as well - another day at the hill ... Hopefully you make it up once more before the end of the season, let me know and I'll try to hook up. ;)

Hey Neil I looked for you on the weekend, but with the Sat crowds I'd have been lucky to find anybody! Sunday was much better, I can only imagine you had a heap of fun Thu/Fri. I saw some carving boards there yesterday - a new looking, shortish blue Prior 4 x 4, what looked like a Prior WCR with the Whistler topsheet, and another board I couldn't see too well from the lift. Anyone you met?

Was in Big White over Xmas when the crowds were diabolical and the weather about the same. I liked the groomers off Ridge Rocket, and there was some fun to be had off Powder Chair as well (or maybe I just liked it because there were no crowds there). Gem was shut the entire time but apparently when that's in good shape it's awesome. There's a green run called Ser'wa (can't remember what chair it's off) but if the field is empty and you want a brilliant rollercoaster ride, surf on down that at speed - that's big fun.

Hi Neil I'm supposed to be taking the other half to Fernie this weekend, but if the icepack there doesn't get any better then we'll be heading to KHMR instead. I'll make a decision later in the week. I'll keep an eye out for you. If you see somebody falling off an white Hot Blast or a Rossi A159 with really naff graphics, that'll be me.

Hi Patrice Drop me a line at rugbyfan@shaw.ca with some pics if you have them. I'm in Calgary, Canada, so if you could get an estimate of how much it would cost to ship that would be great. Thanks!

Hi there! O want to try and get hold of Pete or Mark this week. Is Unlimited, Unlimited Ski and Ride in Banff? And who should I say sent me (sorry, but I don't know your name ...) Drop me a line at rugbyfan@shaw.ca if you want. Thanks! :) :) :)

I think what I need is a long hot shower. Spent the day at Nakiska, sucked in the new boots, crashed spectacularly under the chairlift and now I hurt all over. High point of the day - my toeside carve rocks. My heelside is UGGGLEE. Bring on next weekend! :)