Steve Prokopiw

@ charliechocolate- I'm not sure we're allowed to post retail links here,but there are even cheaper deals on them around the web.

I had great fit and performance from a pair of Technica Pheonix Air 90 boots last season and look forward to this coming season in them.They have two pump-up air bladders in each boot that are not part of the liner.The midfoot bladder can make the width go from 102mm down to 98mm and the achiles bladder is very effective and comfortable as well.If I search out another pair I'll probably go for the 100 flex,though I have been pretty satisfied with the 90 flex.I used them in Sidewinders and Snopros.

I've learned the lesson of why not to put weight or lean on the hand inside a turn(heel or toe) more than a few times,and,I am more cautious than ever.I have however ,worked progressively back to a very low amount of space between my hand and the snow when conditions and terrain permit a calculated risk.The racing oriented style of a more upright torso and low inside hip and is where I stayed for some time after hurting my shoulder several seasons ago. I guess my point is that there was no magic getting back to laying out in a turn other than doing it in small,progressive and achievable steps toward a lower and more laid out position. On the other hand,I've never aspired to duplicate the style of some of the more 'extreme' carvers like Joerg or the Velvet Pro guys,who literally rub their armpits in the snow.I love to watch them do it,but it's just not my thing.

Ok,the guilt for supporting the evil empire was overcome by the fact that we get access to so many of our old stomping grounds.So we got Epic Local passes for the whole family with The Canyons as our home resort.Come on snow!

Our boys haven't used the Roces boots but we did do season rentals for a couple of seasons like Ernie suggested.The rental boots were one or two buckle pieces of doodoo however(as long as we're talking kids stuff ;-) our boys surprised us by advancing rapidly and I had them in Rossignol Comp J's for last season.There are better boots for more money but I have found these to be great bang for the buck considering that they are responsive and flexible enough to enhance rather than detract from skill building.One pair I found o ebay for 45.00 shipped in excellent condition and the other in like new condition at a local Goodwill for...wait for it... 7.00! We took great care of the boots and it will be no problem to sell them for more than 7.00 :-) There is a video on our youtube channel that shows my youngest at six having no problem hanging with the group on crappy rentals-you should see now in the Rossi's :-) p.s. Dalbello makes great kids' boots too. I've seen them new and used for great deals.

Beautiful!

I'm starting to feel a little guilty for being all excited to get an Epic pass. Vail went public when I was working there and the atmosphere changed both in the town and at the resort pretty quickly.It went from being a ski town to a company town.It's a pretty cut throat biz when done their way.By buying the pass,my justification is that I'd rather play there than work there. I've discovered that with several resorts over the years.

My boys and I are each getting the Epic Pass,since Vail now owns the Canyons.$ 529 for the Canyons and being about 6 hours from Vail/BC (and the many great friends we still have there) is too good to 'pass' up!

It's on the fridge calendar.You'll have at least one rider coming all the way from Utah, haha.

Sorry to read this,but you gave him a great life and he obviously enriched yours. I've always thoughts great pets like Summit should get a New Orleans style procession to celebrate their lives when they pass :-)

I only knew Doug from the times I went to Bachelor,but he was always great to me and had incredibly interesting things to say.He made this niche of ours look cool and helped to advance the cause.Rest in peace,Doug.

@Kelly,I was looking on mapquest and it looks like the best bang for our driving buck might be Snowbird-about 50 minutes.Sundance is about 35 minutes,but it's tiny.Park City is about 1hr15 min drive too.I'm going to look at instructing somewhere so that will help decide our home resort too. @Excelsior- The mine is named the Dragon Mine and 'halloysite' clay is the primary material being mined there.I believe there is use for it in nanotech.The company Maureen works for is Applied Minerals which is decended (after several company breakups) from the old Atlas mining ops up here in the Silver Valley. @boardguru-Cool,I knew there were more places to lookup!

Thanks utahcarver.Where I currently live the joke has also been to turn watches back 30 years after crossing 4th of July Pass coming fromCoeur d'Alene into the Silver Valley.But here,the ski resorts are also that far back in time-good and bad-Sunday's are good. Ironically,my born again hippie parents moved us from San Diego to St Anthony, Idaho in 1973.We lived there for seven years and I left thinking, I'd never do that to my kids...yet, here I am doing it to them ;-) We're not religious however,(not atheists either) and take a 'mind our business' approach to other's religions.Yes,hopefully times have indeed changed. See ya on the slopes!

Well,we just signed a lease on a house in Spanish Fork.My wife has a real job in the mining industry and we are transferring there so she can be closer to the operation in Eureka.The boys and I will spend most of the summer up here in Idaho to ease the transition away from the only life and friends they have known.We aren't selling our place up here in Idaho just yet,as we are hedging our bets in case we want or need to come back. We're a dyed in the wool ski/board/bike/outdoor family and are looking forward to all that the Salt Lake area has to offer.I can't wait to rip some superlight pow and sweet cord with some Utah riders next season!

That was GREAT!!!

Wow! Thanks Dan;those are some of the coolest hardbooting shots I've seen of myself! Oh,and the other photos are great too ;-) BTW,I just put the boys to bed about an hour ago so I haven't checked out video yet,but will asap.

Good call.It sucked today,but it was good to hang out with Dan and Octavio and Ben over a beer and a few runs ridden by brail :-) BTW,I thought I had replied to your fb message last night but saw today that it never got sent.Internet has been intermittent here.

We had a mild but interesting and fun first day at Timberline.The lodge is really cool and historically significant.That and the great weekday deal on the awesome lunch buffet in the Cascade Dining room made an otherwise mediocre riding day much better. Conditions were variable.It was cool just to be carving, but visibilty was very flat with only short spots of sun;more than we had hoped for during last night's steady rain.The top even got a little dusting last night.Today actually saw several squalls that each resulted in a good dusting.Palmer was socked in and windy so we stayed on Magic mile mostly.I'm hoping for better visibilty tomorrow.Actually had four carvers in one place a few times today :-) Bryan,we're entrenched in Rhodadendron-there's actually a great hot tub and suana at this little cabin we're in!

Well,we're committed;we're here!Staying right next to the incredibly loud highway in Rhododendron.We've had our 5 hours of intermittent snoozing and we're ready to sail the seas of slush.We'll let you all know how it went.Right now there is increasing blue in the sky, so hopefully that bodes well for conditions...

Fun to watch and really well shot! Was this shot with a helmet cam or a pole cam,or...?

Also not quite in the lift line;my best friend who is visiting here for the first time in the 9 years we have lived here is talking to his uncle, who lives in Colorado about his day that included the nickel tour of Silver from my two boys.-"Uncle Robert,the runs at Silver Mountain are different;there aren't any greens,and the blues are like your blacks".My buddy is exaggerating a little, but,this has been a point of pride for those of us raising our kids at Silver ;-)

Turner seems like a lot of bang for the buck when it comes to a mountain rental.For a big group Mission Ridge in Wenatchee, Washington has a high speed quad and would rent and staff the entire resort for $10,000. 100x100=10,000 ;-)Lookout Pass has a price of $4000 fully staffed/groomed which also seems like good bang for the buck since they do a lot of great grooming.

This is a a cool presentation of your season end party;but here in North Idaho we have 6 weeks left(the last 3 will be 1 day open per week at Silver).If it were to look like that at any point in a season there would be a spike in local suicides hehe ;-)

Thanks Bordy and Dave for serving the hardbooting community with great service over the last few years.

We're planning to come for Friday and Saturday,maybe Thursday.(Note;the 'mildly' excited tone,wouldn't want to jinx it :-)