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!

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!