utahcarver

Congratulations PSR! You've put in your time over the years online, too. October of last year made 40 years (off and on) for me. Boardguru is one of my mentors here. Again, happy anniversary! Mark Winterstick or Die!

The Ridge at Beaver Mountain. Mark

The vids don't showcase an American return to carving. I think it's Korean riders who are amping their soft boot skills. I wonder if this "return to the turn" is as widespread as is being represented. If it is, I would hope for a return to better (read: stiffer) soft equipment and boards. Hasn't Sean Martin over at Donek been making softboot boards to do this? Have a good winter everyone! Mark

I will be riding with a bone spur. Can't get it worked on until May '18 anyway to due scheduling of work and school. So, the chief goals will be to stay injury-free, riding more pow, and lay it over on hero days. I also want to try riding without bindings on my friend Jeremy's Powsurf boards. Got some secret stashes hidden around town for late night powsurf assault sessions. In my youth, I rode with just straps so I hope the learning curve is still in my favor. Mark

What up D? Nice to hear your "voice" again. I hope you are well and hale. Long time missing. Good to hear that you might be back on snow this season. As much as we all like to "push the snow around, " we are all at the the end of the day seekers. Welcome back for whatever time you're here. We are all too old to rally around the past, except for the good times, eh? Mark

Seeing Jean Nerva and Peter Bauer on film riding hard boots and plates is the prime reason I came to "alpine" riding. Sad to hear this news. Mark

His trips to Iran and Russia fueled me for many years. He got to ride as a "pro" while he was approaching demi-god status. The Joe Satriani guitar riffs of that era still resonate with me. I'm a full on Winterstick rider from the odd school who knows talent when I see it. CK was was above his years and approach. Kudos to Tom and Jake for realizing such a great power and talent. Outside of marketing, CK is still the standard by which most pros should be gauged. C'mon. He (seemingly) got to live the dream we all seek. I often think of his wife and daughter was an aging grandfather who has three grand-children who are going to ride, surf, skate, snow, sand, and foil. Thank you, CK, for a lifetime of memories and hopes. And style. RIP.

I am so late to this conversation but, can I add that what I have been watching in the videos is not so much rider input but, snowboard rigidity? Both torsional and longitudinal rigidity in the boards seem so apparent to me. Add to this, are the soft binders and boots more supportive? And the video where the board is oscillating during the carve and the riders ankles are just asking to be broken, am I the only one who sees this? I sound like a wet blanket but, I too would love to carve better in softies. I just don't see it happening without better equipment (i.e., bindings, boots, and boards). The human body can adapt to make it appear effortless but, the real asset is equipment which supports the linkage to the human. I have long argued to my snowboard buds that most snowboard manufacturers are not much different than skateboard builders: press it, sell it, bust it, press it, sell it, bust it, press it , sell it, bust it......there are exceptions. And we here on BOL know who most of them are. Mark

Not Heard In The Liftline: At a recent presentation on Wintersticking In Utah, at a university campus here in Utah, a student showed a clip of doctorfilm.ru's Russian extreme carving afterwards. One of the professors, a snowboarder herself, watched in awe as riders not only went around gates but underneath a ribbon, too. She pointed at the screen and said, "How can I do that?". I pointed her to BOL and told her to get her credit card ready. Heard In The LIftline: "Is that board fast?", said the liftie. "It's no faster than any other board. It does not break the rules of physics. In fact, it obeys the rules of physics. It draws a perfect line in the snow because I make it turn perfectly", I responded. "Is that board fast?", said another liftie. "C-YA!", said me.

PowMow just added two lifts and 1,000 new skiable acres. There will also be Winterstick demos there this winter if you are interested in riding a swallowtail in powder. And it snowed yesterday in northern Utah. Mark

Thanks for all the great input. Most of the advice given is right down the line with what the PT docs are saying. Heal, heal, heal. Otherwise, another tear means surgery and a nylon mesh patch over the shoulder to just get it back to zero. This would represent possibly a 20 percent loss in strength and range of motion. So, it's easy slow movements after 6 weeks and a slow building of strength in the repaired areas. When I had shoulder repair back in 2005, I noted a change in my riding stance for my upper body. I began keeping my elbows inward toward my hips. When I did let them fly, it was within a limited range which never went below my thighs or my chest. I think it was a 'self-preservation' mode that my body naturally took to. Have a great season everyone! Mark

For anyone who grew up skateboarding in the mid - 70's and reading Skateboarder Magazine, this will jog your memory a bit. Here's the trailer but, the film is on the Red Bull Channel as of today. Includes one of our own Mr. Henry Hester. Mark

Back in the summer of 2005 I had surgery on my left shoulder for rotator cuff/labrum repair. Tomorrow I will have a similar surgery plus a repair to the bicep tendon on the right shoulder. I tore it at work picking up a heavy box. I'm expecting much the same experience this time and I'm not too worried about it. What I'd like to know is if anyone is using a brace or a support for their shoulder repairs? MotoSport.com has a Shock Doctor 824 for a single shoulder which would be fine since the left shoulder is the only issue at this point. Anyone had experience with this brace or others? Mark (Could one of the moderators move this for me? Sorry, folks, I wasn't paying attention to the forum heading. Thanks)

Many, many years ago when I first moved to Utah to learn how to ski, one of the first things I overheard in conversation was that the worst fall was a slow, twisting fall. To be sure, I've seen countless examples of this type of fall and I can attest that the statement is true. The meaning of 'the worst' is based upon the idea that it takes a long time to heal. Last week, at my local ski area, there was an accident in which an 18 year-old skier died in a collision with a tree. I don't know the details (nor care to) but, I think the times they are a changing again. Slamming into bark is a hazard of our sport on certain days. To echo the points above I can only add to them by saying, keep riding, keep your head up and your eyes are your most important weapon and guard. Save the sunglasses for the sun deck Goggles are for wind and chaff of all kinds in the on-coming airstream. Second, are your ears. Turn the tunes down and be aware of the sounds coming off of your board/skis. It doesn't take a scientist to know it's icy or time to go full throttle on certain snow conditions. Sorry, the grand-pa in me comes out when I read this kind of stuff. Good job, Corey. Mark

When I look at the parking lot where I work, I'm impressed by this number. Mark

Slopestar: good on you. Enjoy your time with your pups. Magical and memorial. My first grand-daughter is almost 3 and can push a skateboard by herself. She rides bowls with her dad holding her on the board. I hope that she adapts to snow and bindings as she ages. I'd sure like to ride with her as she matures and is influenced by her father and carving. That would make 3 generations of carving for our family. Mark

Thanks Bryan! That's a great idea. I've got a local friend who makes binding-less boards for adults and kids. If I don't have an extra skate deck laying around the garage I'll hook up with my friend Jeremy. powsurf.com Mark

My grand-daughter is almost 3 and can skateboard (flat) with her dad's help. A Chopper 90 is still big for her. Thinking about a DIY build for her. Yeah, yeah, I know she's not even three but, she's got more energy than 3 grown adults after a Starbucks binge. Any recommendations? Mark Warning: Thread hijack!

About the time that Rossignol decided to pull out of alpine board-making is when I went to the dark side. It seems that I remember that there was a preference for PureCarve Mavericks, Joey Cabell models, and Rossignol WCR 184 (or 183's) for these Aspen riders. And if memory serves me, it was Wagner Custom that made the boards for PureCarve. The sidecut was 11.2cm if I recall correctly (again). My Maverick has it's ABS top-sheet delaminating from the tip area. It reveals a fibreglass cover for the v-lam core. One of the most important things I first noticed about the Maverick was it's torsional stiffness when compared to freestyle boards I had be trying to hardboot on (think 1998). After that, I referred to any board that couldn't hold an edge with hard-boots as a 'noodle board'. To this day, the Maverick is a magical ride because of the combination of sidecut, length, width, and stable flex pattern. I can't say that it would work in the east but, in western conditions it rocks. It would be cool to know the history of the PureCarve lineup one day. Mark

Hi Henry! Welcome to BOL. I hope you have fun getting to know the crowd here. Mark

Thanks for being good-natured about my response, SD. I'm biased towards the WS and have been for many years. I loved learning how to ride pow on WS products, and to hardboot on a Rossignol Levitation 172. That board was magical at times. Next up is a Tanker 200. A longboard that is a very stable platform to surf on. This background is leading up to my nomination for best name for a Bomber snowboard. Got it. Paipo. The Paipo is the elemental surfing vehicle. It doesn't clutter the experience with skateboarding influences. It's neutral to the input. Pure. Surfing. Applied to the skiing aspect. I'm, like you, excited to hear other responses. Mark

I am very impressed. What a quiver! Have you ridden each one? I have one Tanker 200 (white topsheet/flames on bottom) and I love love it. Mark

Winterstick.

At the very least, this looks like a fabulous way to break or damage a board, or break a lower leg assembly. I'm glad the rider pulled the flip. With softies, there would be more give and go to the lower leg. With 'hards', I wonder what would have happened to the fibula and tibia above the cuff of the boot? OTOH, it's smooth and painless to this rider. Sick stuff, that. Makes me smile, too. Mark

Jones says the word carving. All the interviewer hears is, "...Blah, blah, blah, BLAH, blah, BlAh, and BlAH!". "Thanks for joining us, Jeremy!" End of interview. Says it all. Mark