www.snowboard-women.com

So once again, it has begun. The emails flying back and forth about snowboard gear sales, that snowballs into everyone discussing their latest googles (gotta admit, Jessie’s new ones are rad) and snowboards. Usually someone brings up the idea of a quick trip to the local mountain to do a little warm up skiing. I’m always cc’d on these emails. My friends are pretty polite.

This year there was a twist - Erica decided to launch this blog and I found myself writing a column under the name Lodge Potato. And I found myself in the middle of the snowboarding season planning process. Little did I know how much fun that would be. Let’s just leave it as Sunday Funday is aptly named and here is our recipe the only acceptable beverage for snowboard trip planning on Sunday Fundays - Bloody Mary’s. Fine, it’s not even my recipe, but I don’t think Tyler Florence would mind if I shared it with you….

6 limes, juiced
1 tablespoon celery seeds
3 tablespoons grated fresh or prepared horseradish
2 quarts tomato juice, chilled
2 tablespoons hot sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups pepper vodka, chilled in the freezer
Celery stalk, for serving
Cucumber spears, for serving
Handful fresh cilantro, for garnish

Combine the lime juice, celery seed, and horseradish in a pitcher. Muddle the mixture with the end of a wooden spoon to blend and break up the celery seeds. Pour in the tomato juice, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce; season with salt and pepper. Stir everything together to combine.
Divide the vodka among 6 tall, chilled glasses filled with ice. Fill the glasses with the bloody mary mix, stick in the celery and cucumber and garnish with the cilantro. Give the bloody mary a good stir and serve.

Drink up and enjoy the planning process. It is going to be a great season. Oh and have a recipe of your own? Add them below in the comments. And we will be checking out Snow Summit this Saturday!

I’m in San Diego this weekend and it is like 75 degrees today, not kidding. It’s gorgeous out, which makes it hard to think about snowboarding, snow, and cold weather nipping at my face! So I came up 5 things to do to get in a snowboarding mindset, when the weather outside is less than frightful…

• Go beanie-shopping at your local snow sports store. Get yourself a new beanie for the season! It’s a perfect time, with holiday sales going strong. You won’t feel guilty buying just one little thing for yourself right about now.
• Take your board in for a hot-wax or full tune-up. Did you put your board aside after your final trip last season? Chances are it’s a little dinged from all your runs. Bring it in for some TLC (and you can check out the cuties working at the board shop while you’re at it.
• Make sure your car, racks, and chains are ready. Are you like me and have to pack chains each time you head to the mountains? Each season, you should always make sure they’re not worn or frayed and if so, replace them. And maybe give yourself a refresher on how to put ‘em on. How about your racks? Do they have rust? May be a good time to replace them. Or maybe they just need an adjustment/tightening so you don’t lose your board at 70mph on the 395. And your car… is it ready for the winter? Before any long drive, check all your fluids, especially oil and coolant/antifreeze.
• Watch some snowboarding videos. This is a no brainer. You don’t even have to buy a DVD. Just head over to YouTube! You’ll find yourself jonesing for the mountain in no time (and not to mention, getting sucked in for hours watching the thousands of videos available there.)
• Check your calendar and plan where to go each long weekend! Do you have your snowboarding trips planned yet? Well, i’s time to hop on it! Rooms/condos for the long weekends usually sell out way in advance at the ski resort towns around the country, so get those reservations now! I recommend VRBO.com to search for vacation rentals in any ski town you can imagine.

So even on a summer-like day in sunny SoCal, you can get yourself psyched up for snow and fun. Happy holidays!

You knew you were going to be ditched. You just knew it.

You’re sitting in a crowded car, heading up the mountain when it slowly dawns on you. Despite all reassurances to the contrary, the minute your car reaches the ski lodge, you, my non-snowboarding friend, are going to be ditched.

And ditched hard.

And who are you? You? You are the lone friend of the group who doesn’t snowboard. Admit it, you may not even ski. So why are you here? Why did you suffer through end of week traffic, in an overcrowded car, holding someone else’s boots on your lap for six hours? Because your best friends are hitting the slopes and they talked you into coming with them.

So now what? You get to the condo, everyone unpacks and heads out to the slopes leaving you behind with vague promises of “when we get back, we are going to rage!” Hmm, rage. You’ll show them rage.

You, my friend, you are me. And I am…. the Lodge Potato.

I am the Lodge Potato. I am your sister, your brother, your boyfriend, your girlfriend, your best friend. I am the one who will be filling you in on all the cool things to eat, drink and do in various resort towns while your friends are out slipping and sliding down the hill in all their bundled up glory. In a tribute to my friends, my first post will probably be along the lines of “drinks and snacks you should have ready for your cold and hungry friends” because, let’s face it, every great snowboarding trip includes a little debauchery.

Have tips for me? Send them my way! I have all day long to check things out while my friends are suffering frostbitten fingers and wind burned cheeks. See ya soon!

Man… I was born & raised on the east coast among snow and ice but I don’t feel all that confident driving in it since I’ve been living in Southern California for so long. Are you in the same boat as far as your winter driving skills are concerned?
This morning at the gym (getting ready for the seaon, ya know?), I saw a segment on the Today Show about the Bridgestone “Winterdrive” Winter Driving School in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Here’s a class that may be helpful for us snow betty’s that are snow-challenged!

They offer a range of classes, from a half-day of basic winter driving safety fundamentals for $245, all the way through to a high-intensity 2-day course for $2250 where you learn all the advanced tricks for winter driving as used by world-class rally drivers. (In that class, you’ll even learn “the ‘Scandinavian Flick’ as well as other rally-based cornering, acceleration, and braking techniques.” Wow! Sounds intense!)

On the show, they put a reporter behind the wheel to actually take the class in Colorado and practice his skills on the ice- and snow-covered track that Bridgestone maintains for lessons. Some of the tips from the segment included these that are most definitely applicable not just to driving, but to snowboarding as well:

1. Anticipate turns and stops. In the snow or ice, it’s slick, so a car needs about 4-10x the normal stopping distance as on a dry road. So proceed with the car in control, and always leave plenty of room for cars in front of, and around you, when possible. No rapid movements, which can lead to loss of control.
   • The same goes for snowboarding. Of course when you snowboard, you WANT to be going fast on the slick snow surface. But you can still ride safely, and anticipate your turns and braking in advance, so you don’t crash into other snowboarders. To that end, you should also be anticipating what other riders and skiers around you are doing… not everybody is as conscientious as us
2. Don’t oversteer. This tip, related to the above, referred to the tendency we have to assume that our cars will behave the same as they do on dry roads. Approach turns slowly and don’t whip the wheel around. Oversteering is likely to send the car into a skid, to which we usually overcorrect (spin the wheel in the other direction of the original turn) and make the car fishtail wildly.
   • In snowboarding, the tendency to overcorrect when turning due to an oversteer is oftentimes what causes us to catch an edge and crash. Take your turns gracefully - don’t jerk your hands or arms around to try to overcompensate for a badly-executed turn. This unbalanced, somewhat out-of-control upper body weight may cause an oversteer and you’ll find yourself flopping around trying to rebalance… you’ll likely end up on your face in the snow.
3. Look where you WANT to go. In the car, try to focus on picking the path where you want it to go. Instinctually, your hands will turn the steering wheel to keep it on that path. Do not look at obstacles, because then you’ll find yourself subconsciously steering into them.
   • This one really hit home for me. It’s so true for snowboarding, and for almost any sport that I do! You always pick the line where you WANT to go. One time I was mountain biking on a skinny pathway; I looked over and saw a huge cactus plant. As I rode past it, I kept looking at it, thinking “Man, it would suck to run into that!” Next thing I knew I was off the path and literally IN the cactus. That ride did not end well. Anyways, about snowboarding, yes - look down the mountain, assess the obstacles (trees, jumps, other riders) in your way, and figure out where you want to steer thru to get around. Pick your line. Keep the obstacles in your peripheral vision, but don’t look directly at them. It’s amazing how your subconscious keeps you on the path towards where you are looking!

Keeping these tips in mind may help you drive better on those foreign-feeling icy roads… and may also help improve your riding!

Now this article made me crack up!

“Although it has the image of being a young, trendy sport, an increasing number of snowboarders hitting the slopes are pushing 30 or older, according to the Canadian Ski Council…. Now 35% of Canadian snowboarders are between the ages of 24 and 64. The number of older snowboarders has steadily increased over the last few years.”

I’ve definitely noticed this on the mountains myself! Sure, there is still a great number of teenagers on the hill, but I think I’ve noticed a shift in the mountain “demographics.” I do see and talk to a fair number of both male and female snowboarders that seem to be 30+.

Well, maybe they’re just weatherbeaten and haven’t aged well. Who am I to judge

Nonetheless, I’ll be watching out for this trend further, as I go riding this season. Should be interesting!

Need to get some days on the hill but you don’t want to make the drive to Mammoth? Want to stay kinda local but you’re bummed by the crowds during weekend days on Snow Summit and Big Bear?

You have an alternative! Have you considered weekend night boarding at Snow Summit?

Snow Summit offers night sessions which (if I remember correctly) start at 3pm and go till 9pm, priced at $40. (Half-night I think starts at 6pm and is $30). I did this a few times last season and was pleasantly surprised!

When I went, it had been nice and cold for the entire week, so the mountain had made tons of snow. The runs are not crowded due to the crowds having been boarding all day long. Only a few die-hards were out there from the day session! The added cold of it being night-time also keeps crowds away.

The mountain keeps just a few of their runs open (including a terrain park), but they’re well-lit, and due to the lack of crowds, you won’t find yourself waiting in line at the chair. You will find yourself able to pack in quite a few practice runs before you head up to the Sierras or elsewhere. And, being just a 2-hour drive from LA is a big bonus. You can drive up midafternoon on a Saturday, ride for a few hours, then head home!

Tip-off: our local mountains had over a foot of snow in this past weekend’s storm, so this might be a great time to go and check the night sessions out! I will personally likely be headed up there next weekend (12/22) to get my “mountain legs” before the big Whistler trip at New Years. (p.s. also be sure to fill out the C.O.R.E. form (PDF here) at Snow Summit for a special $10-off one-time offer on your ticket.)

The holidays are here and it’s time to go shopping for the snowboarders in your life! Here are my recommendations for some gifts sure to make them happier on the hill. I think for more pricey, and arguably more “personal” things like jackets, pants, and helmet, it’s better for the snowboarder to pick those out themselves. Otherwise, you can help them to accessorize during and after riding, while keeping warm and looking good, with the items below.

The good news is, you don’t even have to leave your chair for the hell of the mall - just click on the link and it’ll take you right to the specific snowboarding product page on Amazon. I’ll even break down the prices, in case you’re feeling a little Scroogey.

Stocking Stuffers - Inexpensive/under $20

• Knee pads - these are key for protection for any beginner. I even still wear them for those hard falls!
• Burt’s Bees Hand Repair Kit - in the cold mountain air, our hands get really dry and chapped! She can use this repair kit to refresh & moisturize rough hands.
• Nixon Acrylic Beanie - great for apres-ski. Can just stuff it in a jacket and throw it on after a session on the mountain. Very cute from Nixon.
• SmartWool Snowboarding Socks - I have a pair or two of SmartWool socks myself. A good value, and warm.
• Wrist Protectors - very important for helping prevent wrist injuries.

Snowboarding Stuff for $20-$50

• Box of Hot Hands Handwarmers or Toastie Toes Foot Warmers - essential for keeping warm on the hill! Each box contains 40 pairs.
• Velvet Flurry goggles - these are adorable, in a tortoise shell pattern, but also offer key features for anti-fogging and improved vision.
• Volcom Knit Beanie w/ Visor - this beanie is cute, in the visor style with thick knitted yarn.
• Leather Thinsulate-Lined Gloves - she will need gloves for when she goes out on the town later that night! These will keep her warm with thinsulate lining.
• Multicolor Striped Wool Scarf - in keeping with the “keep warm at night” theme, check out this cute striped scarf - super long for great wrap-ability and a unique striped color pattern.
• Columbia Fleece Vest - Perfect for layering. And you can’t go wrong with Columbia outdoor products!

Splurges on Snowboard Gear - $50 and up

• DaKine Snowboard Mittens w/ Removable Liner & room for handwarmers - these are looking pretty sweet. Favorite feature: you can insert a handwarmer right into the mitten, so key!
• Wheeled Snowboard Travel Bag - the wheels are great for getting through the airport smoothly, and this bag features over 7000 cubic inches of storage space. Perfect for fitting in all the snowboard gear she needs.
• Grandoe “Knockout” Snowboard Mittens - I liked that these look like boxing gloves, cute! Available in white, pink, or black.
• Garmin eTrex Personal GPS - now this is cool for the backcountry boarder in your life - she’ll never get lost. Also fun for tracking trips to the mountains and to see where you went snowboarding through the day.

Still stumped? How about these other ideas:

• Buy a gift certificate for snowboarding lessons
• Buy a gift card for a new snowboarding outfit she can choose herself
• Provide inspiration with any of these Snowboarding videos

Now, go! There’s only 14 shopping days till Christmas! (and only 9 left to order from Amazon!)

Good quality snowboarding gear is essential on the mountain for keeping you warm, safe, and riding your best. From head to toe, these are things you should keep in mind as you outfit yourself for a day on the mountain.

• Goggles. Of utmost importance is a good pair of snowboarding goggles. The best ones help to improve your vision on the snow by reducing glare from reflected sun, or by making it easier to judge bumps/dips in the snow as you ride along. Not to mention, they prevent the chilly wind from chapping your delicate eyeballs! I kid. Seriously though, I’d recommend a pair that has multiple colored lenses that you can switch out dependent on the sun and snow conditions. Rose snowboard goggle lenses are best for bright sunny days, amber lenses are good for cloud cover, and clear lenses are good if it is downright gloomy or if you go night snowboarding. I personally have one of each pair because it’s kind of what I’ve collected over the years. And your goggles must be fog-free - it sucks when you’re up there getting all a-fogged. Carry a fog cloth with you. One more thing… you could also consider polarized lenses in your snowboard goggles to really improve your vision on the mountain. (Note: Sunglasses for snowboarding are OK, but don’t cut the wind very well, and I would not recommend them.)
• Helmet. People hate wearing them because, yes, they do look dorky, but it comes down to the age-old “well, would you rather look like a dork, or be able to count to 10 when you wake up in the morning?” Helmets are necessary for protection… not so much for yourself if you’re not running around jumping off tabletops and half-pipes, but for those other idiots (yes, I said it) who are out of control on the mountain. You never know when you’re sitting down taking a rest at the side of a run, and some asshole runs you over. I’ve seen it happen… anyways… When buying a helmet, get the salesperson to advise you on the fit. It should be snug but not insanely tight like a motorcycle helmet. You may also consider getting one with vents, if you think you’ll get too hot. Sometimes you can buy one with the ability to remove the insulation so you can wear a beanie under the protective shell. In addition, some helmets also have special slots for putting your iPod headphones in.
• Gloves or mittens. Your ten little fingers will get mighty cold up there if you have poor quality protection! Invest in a good pair of gloves or mittens to keep warm. I prefer mittens because they keep your fingers warmer, but some people like the dexterity of having gloves on. Either way, get ones that are lightweight with a well-insulating material like Thinsulate, yet very warm, and have a waterproof exterior such as Gore-tex. My favorites are the gloves-inside-mittens that I bought in Vail… these keep your fingers in individual fleece “casings” inside a double-insulated waterproof mitten which zips and unzips when you need to use your fingers (e.g. when strapping in, taking a picture, answering your cell phone, etc.)
• Snowboarding Jacket. Now, girls, we all like to look good on the mountain, but the looking good has to be paired with functionality. (put your rule about stiletto heels on hold for a moment here.) Luckily, most jackets nowadays are super-stylish, but have the key functions that we need, such as warmth, waterproofing, and lots of pockets. Based on your own individual tolerance for cold, as well as weather conditions where you most often ride, you’ll have to decide for yourself just how warm of a jacket to buy. You may just want a shell with only light insulation. Or you may want to get a fully-lined, highly insulated jacket with a hood and a removable additional liner. There are tons of options, but the core functions are what I mentioned above (warm, waterproof, pockets.) Up to you on the hood - I don’t like them because they restrict my peripheral vision too much. In addition, you’ll want one with a gaitor that snaps around your hips to keep snow from plowing up your back and down your pants when you fall.
• Snowboard pants.The core features in your jacket are also considerations for your pants. Waterproofing is the key here. They should also have a snug gaitor which tucks over the outside of your boots to keep snow and wetness out. Many pants nowadays are sold with padding on the knees and butt built-in. If you’re a beginner snowboarder, this protective layer could prove helpful.
• Boots. The best boots are warm, fit well, and have many options for customizing the tightness. Good boots will usually have an inner liner that is able to be separately tightened from the external waterproof part. You’ll want to ensure that you are able to tighten the boots to your desired level, so that your heel doesn’t rise too far off the floor of the boot when you rock onto your toes - this is no good, and will result in a feeling of lost control when you’re making turns on the mountain. Again, get a good salesperson to advise you on the fit.
• Fleece and/or long underwear. These items are really more of a personal preference… some people find fleece to be too warm, and some people find “long johns” or silk underwear too cold. The key is to find pieces that are streamlined enough so that they still fit well under your outer layers. Wear multiple layers so you can remove pieces if you get too warm. Remember, it’s always better to be too warm than too cold - you can always take clothes off & stash them in your locker, but it’s not too easy to run all the way back to your condo for more clothes!
• Socks. I hate when my feet get cold, don’t you? Tingling toes is not a good feeling! For this reason, get nice warm socks of wool and/or thinsulate that are specifically made for snowboarding - these will have extra padding in the pressure points inside your boot, like at the top of your foot and the back of your heel. However, socks, regardless of their high-tech-insulation, don’t always keep your toesies 100% warm when you’re at 10,000 feet and it’s 20 degrees out. Therefore, I ALWAYS recommend putting in some of those toe-warmers before you head out… they work like a charm!

Now get out there and ride safe and warm!

I just learned thanks to Jessie about the new chairlift for Chair 9! For those unfamiliar with this lift, it is (was) the old two-seater chair that was at the far-left side of the trail map (I guess this is the east side of the mountain.) It provides access to a bunch of great trails that are fairly untouched by most riders and skiers, such as Gold Hill, Solitude, and some others including a bunch of stuff kinda behind where the chair drops you off.

These are such great runs! The thing is, it used to be such a pain in the ass to wait for that chair, and it took FOREVER to climb the mountain in that rickety old two-seater. Well good news! Over the summer of ‘07, the Mammoth team built a new 6-seater express lift they’ve called Cloud 9 Express, and it opens this season!

The new lift will carry 6 snowboarders or skiers at a time, in half the time of the old two-seater. Thank god, too, because that lift was always so tortorous! Plus, the new lifts are heavier than the old ones and so they won’t get blown around in the weather so much. That will be way less scary!

Read all about the new Mammoth Mountain lift upgrade for Chair 9, at the official Mammoth Mountain web site.

Thanks to Jessie for tipping me off on this… I shoulda known though, since it is raining in LA and that usually means snow, snow, and more snow in our favorite snowboarding resort, Mammoth.

Here’s the snow report from the official Mammoth Mountain web site’s snow report:

morning conditions
New Snow: 1-2 feet
Storm Totals: 12-24 inches so far
Depth: 12-20 inches
Surface Conditions: Fresh Powder,Obstacles Exist,Packed Powder
Weather

Conditions: snow
Morning temp: 21.1°
Daytime temps: mid 20’s
Wind: gusty

If you are headed up there this weekend, you are so lucky!