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Vail last weekend was fun, as usual, though there was nowhere near as much snow on the mountain as there currently is in Mammoth.  So I was a little bit disappointed traveling through some near-bare spots on the hill - yes there was actually brown patches.  Still, there was decent coverage, and Vail Resort does a great job of grooming runs, so it was nice and smooth in most spots.  No tree runs for me this time, I was too afraid of getting caught up on hidden “snow snakes” due to the low snow levels.

Saturday morning dawned cloudy and lightly snowing with the sun peeking through at times.  We had a great plan that day to head up the hill and BBQ on the communal grills at Belle’s Camp at the top of Blue Sky Basin.

We woke up early after a mellow dinner at Bully Ranch and headed to the City Market to pick up our essential shopping list for our BBQ:  beer, brats, and buns!  (Insider tip: City Market staff are much friendlier than the Safeway folks - check them out!)

We bought tasty whole wheat buns, and some “Beddar with Cheddar” cheese-stuffed bratwursts.  Do not miss these delicious dogs!  City Market also had a really cool liquor store attendant and we picked up some local brews from Oskar Blues (Dales Pale Ale and Mama’s Little Yellow Pils.)

We packed everything into James’ lightweight backpack and started off on our trek from Lionshead to Blue Sky Basin.  Note that if you are making this trip, especially on a weekend, give yourself an hour!  We waited in some pretty nasty lift lines at Mid-Vail.  We finally arrived at the BBQ spot around noon.

The BBQs were already full of fun loving grillin’ peeps - we met this group of skiers who have been friends for decades who come up to the BBQs every Saturday!  They had an amazing array of food and offered us to come by and graze… smoked salmon, sushi, hot wings, red wine, smoked sausage, oatmeal cookies… they were really prepared!

If you make it up here on a Saturday, look for these guys and say Hi.  You will recognize Pat in the white, orange, and black ski jacket (he’s here at the right with Lauren and Leah):

You don’t need to bring charcoal, gas, fluid, or anything, Belles Camp has grills ready to go. You just need to bring what you plan on eating. And be ready to jockey for position on the grills (but friendly of course) as everyone comes up laden with meats and other grilling goodies and they want to cook and EAT after that long trek to Blue Sky!

Don’t forget your utensils -this guy was eating a giant steak with his bare hands.  How very Coloradan!

I highly recommend the BBQ experience at Belle’s Camp in Vail - it’s a must-do for any visit to Vail. Stick your beers in the snow to keep ‘em cold, mingle with your fellow riders and skiers in the crisp air, and mack down on a delicious grilled meal (sharing or trading if you can) at 11,000 feet!

To get to Belle’s Camp, make your way over from the front side of Vail Mountain over to Skyline Express - Chair 37. Belle’s is at the top of Chair 37. (Ask your friendly lifties how to get there, because I can’t remember…)

When it comes to dressing for snowboarding, it’s all about the layers. If you don’t wear enough layers, you’ll be too cold. If you wear no layers, and just a bunch of bulky clothes, you’ll be too hot because you won’t have anything to take off. So here’s some basic advice on what to wear & how to dress in layers on the mountain.

1. First, you need a base layer to provide the initial layer of insulation and to wick sweat away from your body while you ride. The base layer is usually snug-fitting (not super tight) thermal pants or tops made of a polyester blend, or a layer of silk long underwear.

Recommended base layer items:

• Shirt: Under Armour Base 1.0 Long Underwear Crew
• Pants: Hot Chillys MTF3000 AM Baselayer Long Underwear Pant

2. On top of your base layer, comes your insulating layer. This is a thicker layer which plays the biggest role in keeping you warm. This layer is typically fleece or wool for warmth. I typically go with a fleece zip-up vest over the base layer, or if it’s really cold, a long-sleeve fleece. Then, fleece pants, or another pair of thermal pants on top of some silks.

Recommended insulating layer items:

• Vest: Women’s Furnace Vest
• Long Sleeve: Columbia Colter Bay Fleece Hoodie
  
• Pants: Under Armour All Season Gear Fleece Pant

3. Next, on top of the insulating layer, is the protective layer. This layer is your outer layer - pants and jacket, usually made of a waterproof and windproof material. I won’t list recommendations because your choice of jacket & pant is highly personal, but look for both a jacket and pants with a lot of pockets, gaiters in the waist and the ankle to keep out snow, and a hot color combo that you won’t get sick of after 1 season.

• Shop for a jacket and pants in the Women’s Snowboard & Gear shop at The-House.com.
  

4. Capping off your day on the mountain should be these other items, for warmth (and in some cases, additional safety)…

• Beanie or Helmet (your choice of color & style. just make sure to buy ASTM rated F2040 helmets)
• Face Mask w/ Neck Warmer: I recommend & wear the Seirus Neofleece Combo Scarf
• A nice warm pair of mittens
• Goggles (again, a personal preference so no reco’s here)
• Snowboarding socks - I wear Wigwam Wigwam wool-blend socks
• Hand and foot warmers to stash inside your mittens or boots - they last for hours!

Some other advice:

• Do not wear jeans on the hill. They just get soggy.
• Same goes for cotton socks. Wool blend are better.
• If it’s really cold you might be tempted to wear a scarf. Not a good idea… you could get it caught on the chairlift when you get off, I’ve seen it happen! Use a close fitting Seirus face mask/neck warmer combo or just a fuzzy neck gaiter instead.
• It’s better to be too warm than too cold… you can always take layers off at the lodge and put them in a locker. But if you forget items at the condo and you’re too cold on the hill? Well, either stay cold or buy more stuff in the lodge (ugh, that’s how you end up with 5 face masks!)

For a handy, more comprehensive list of what to pack, you can also check out our downloadable PDF of a snowboard trip packing list for women.

Did you know the base elevation of Mammoth Mountain is around 8000 feet, and the summit is just over 11,000 feet? To those of us who don’t live in the mountains, particularly us Southern California folks, the summit is over 2 miles above sea level!

The altitude results in much “thinner” air - that is, it feels like it has a much lower oxygen percentage than the sea-level air we’re used to breathing, because of the reduced air pressure at altitude.

This means that the human body “feels like” higher volumes of air must be consumed to get the same amount of oxygen that the body needs.

The effects of altitude on the body can be felt immediately when you finally arrive at your condo - go ahead, run up that flight of stairs! See how fast you start breathing? And your heart, the way it races a mile a minute?

I definitely notice the effects of altitude on my body immediately upon finally emerging from our car trips to Mammoth. I have a racing heart, I breathe much shallower, and I have virtually no stamina.

While not much can be done to prevent the effects of high altitudes on snowboarding trips, there are a couple of things you can do to reduce some of the symptoms. Here are just a few ideas that should be helpful in your coping with altitude on your snowboarding trips.

1. Drink lots of water. I always knew it was really easy to get dehydrated up on the hill. But I always thought it was because I didn’t take enough water breaks during riding (damn lift lines at bottom are too long!) But apparently the body doesn’t conserve water as much at higher altitudes due to a decrease in the hormone that regulates the body’s water retention. So what does this mean? Drink up! Drink as much as you can stand… when you get to your condo start pounding the agua! And try to drink at least two+ bottles over the course of your day on the hill. Stay hydrated!
2. Don’t exert yourself unnecessarily. As with the stair-climbing example above, the result of the higher altitude and “thinner” air makes you breathe much harder and your heart beat much faster. So take it easy… no running up the stairs or working out or rough sex. (If you can help it.) Especially that first night - relax and let your body slowly start acclimatizing.
3. Be wary of drinking alcohol! I don’t know why, and am too lazy to look it up right now, but basically, for me and my friends, one drink on the mountain equals the effects of roughly THREE drinks at sea level - probably something to do with the way the body processes things differently at lower air pressure! Keep this in mind when you hit the bars! You will get wasted if you’re not careful.
4. Optional: bring sleeping pills or anti-anxiety meds. You know what? I really do believe in “Better Living Through Chemistry” when appropriate. I don’t take many prescription drugs, but when I need to, like if my heart is racing 120+ beats per minute due to working harder at altitude, I’ve found that Xanax is one of those magic mama’s little helpers that makes it possible to sleep. The altitude causes the heart to pump really really fast, because of the “thinness” and “oxygen-less” feeling air. So a nice sleeping pill or muscle relaxant or a Xanax finally allows me to relax a little. (NOTE: I am obviously not a medical doctor and do not know the ramifications of taking these drugs in altitude but I know they help me sleep so take it for what it’s worth. Please consult your own doctor for their advice here!)

By the end of the 2nd day you should start to feel slightly better - less racing heart, more regular breathing. But by then it’s almost time to go home… and be ready for the next trip where you’ll start all over again. Be prepared for the altitude, it’s nothing to mess with!

Note: some people are affected by serious altitude sickness symptoms even at 8000 feet or less. Read more about altitude sickness at Wikipedia.

In honor of last week’s National Ski Area Safety Awareness Week, might be a good time to highlight a rad ladies snowboarding helmet we saw at the Mountain Riders snowboard shop in Whistler.

Here is Jessie modeling the Bern Baker Snowboard Helmet w/ Red Plaid Liner. We thought this helmet was so cute - both functional (um, protecting our brains!) as well as practical - it came with a very cute removable plaid liner with fleece on the inside. The fleece helps to wick sweat away when you’re riding, and I’m sure it’s also very warm on those cold cold days! And we liked the low profile, close-to-the-head plastic protective outer shell.

I’m a big advocate of wearing a helmet in general, not because I ride crazy and do the superpipe or jumps and stuff, but more because you just never know when some dumbass is going to run into you and who knows what will happen.

Want more safety tips about snowboarding?

• Remember the Skiers/Snowboarders Awareness Code - respect your fellow riders and skiers first and foremost!
• If you ride trees, keep these Tree Well Safety Tips in mind from Shayboarder
• Check out this recent article in The Coloradoan for more good tips and some stats about injuries from skiing/boarding

My personal guiding principles for riding: just te safe out there - wear protective gear, always ride within your abilities and above all, please don’t be a dumbass.

Feeling the need for your own helmet? Get your shop on… check out all the snowboard helmets available at Snowshack.com

Hot tubbing has to commence after a day of being on the hill. Ok sure sure its fun to be out of your gear and in your bikini, drinking a beer, and socializing with some cuties. Ladies honestly! If you are going to ride more than one day you have to hot tub it. I hot tub usually every time after I ride, no matter how bad I want to take a disco nap I force myself. You will not be sore the next day! Soak yourself in that human stew and work out the kinks. I rode in Whistler 4 days in a row, in  pow, my friends were dropping like flies due to soredom, why was I able to continue riding? Because I hot tubbed it! I am sooo sore right now. We went to Baldy on Saturday and I don’t have a hot tub in my ghetto apartment wah! 

Hot tub it sexies!

Skating is a crucial skill for snowboarding. I have always felt week in this area, eventhough I have been riding for 8 seasons. I would still have that occasional fall getting off the lift or totally spazzz out on the lift line almost knocking everyone down like dominos. This summer I invested in a skateboard. A beautiful bamboo Arbor bug. I skated around most of the summer and felt my control increasing! I associated every move like being on a snowboard. Yeah, I suffered some scrapes and bruising, but now that I’m on my snowboard I am totally rocking out skating around! Getting off the lifts this past weekend at Blady was a major @#$%! Erica fell everytime on the steep slope, but I just rode it out! (Sorry E! love ya!) Here’s some tips for skating around with one leg confined and all twisted up.

*Keep your body centered

*Place your weight on your front foot

*Push off using your free foot (back foot) keeping it within your stance

*Make small controlled push-offs until you gather some speed

*Put your foot on your stomp pad and ride it out!

*Press gently on your edge if you need to stop, always staying in control!

Be fierce out there ladies!

OH ICE! I don’t know about you but when I see a sheet of ice I panic! I am originally from New York and have had the pleasure of riding on ice. And does it suck ever! No matter what, I always ride on my edge and the board slips out from under me and before you know it WHAM! I actually had to walk with a cane after an ice slam. I stumbled around Manhattan for a month and even got asked if I was trying to be hip hop! haha! So if you like your bones intact follow these simple steps to staying in one piece.

• Sharpen your edges!
• Go slowly!

Ok, I got hurt 2 weeks ago in Mammoth off of Stump alley. To get to chair 3 after stump we had a sheet of ice seperating us from the trail, so I decide to bomb it as fast as I could. WAWA….WRONG! My edge slipped out from under me and I fell on my knee and shoulder. I’m really lucky I didn’t break my wrist! GO SLOW!

• Look ahead and be ready for when you hit snow again.
• Avoid abrupt moves, like cranking hard on your edge!
• Center your weight.
• Use your lower body to move, keep your upper body stable and upright!

LADIES if you can avoid ice do it! I always try to ride on the side of the runs, you can usually always find some snow there! Represent out there and always stay in control!

Ahhh… as snowboarders, we hate those traverses (aka catwalks or cat-tracks.) I’ll say that the concept of them is great - they allow you to get across the mountain and to another set of runs without riding all the way down and taking another chairlift or series of chairlifts to get around the hill. But they were originally made for skiers, who find it easy to make their way across on these flat pathways by using their poles to push themselves along.

(Eileen coming out of a catwalk at Vail)

We snowboarders have to build up a lot of momentum from a previous downhill slope and hope like hell we make it through the flats with enough speed so that we don’t have to unstrap and do the one-foot shuffle (or unstrap our snowboard entirely and walk!) But you shouldn’t have to rely on hope and momentum alone… although that helps a lot. Here are some tips you could try to make your life on those lengthy traverses easier…

• Keep your board tuned up and waxed. I couldn’t believe how much I was sticking on a few traverses my first day on Whistler. Well, I had neglected to wax my board prior to this trip, and it made all the difference! A fresh wax and edge-sharpening should help you slide across even the flats just a little easier.
• When you know there is a traverse coming up, build your speed. Just gun it and go for it. You’ll need the speed on the flat.
• When you’re in the traverse, point your board straight ahead and stay on one edge. If you carve even a little bit, you’ll create friction and slow your speed down shifting from edge to edge. Unless you have plenty of speed, keep the switching from heel to toe side, to a minimum.
• When choosing which side to lock into, I personally prefer heel-side. It’s a little easier on the legs than toe-side, which for me usually creates intense burning in my calves. The bigger quad and glute muscles are better equipped than your little ol’ calves at holding static for long periods. If you can, go for heel side.
• Try to keep your weight on your front foot. Tuck your front shoulder forward slightly and picture hanging your front hand towards your front foot. This will help you subconsciously lean your weight forwards. If you lean too much on the back foot, that acts as a brake and will drag your speed down.

But, even trying all this, stalls on the flats happen to the best of us… So hurry up and unstrap, get over to the side and out of the way, and get yourself to the next downhill pronto!

Or just grab some snowshoes… heh…

Back when I first started snowboarding, I used to wear what I thought were pretty warm gloves. Having grown up on the East Coast though, I know that mittens are by far much warmer than gloves (because your fingers are all mooshed together and they keep warmer that way.) And after days of freezing fingers, I wanted something much warmer on the hill!

So yeah, I saw the light and began wearing mittens. But sometimes mittens are just so cumbersome! Sometimes you want the dexterity of having separate fingers, but the warmth of mittens.

Well I have the solution for you! These Women’s Toaster Softy Mitts
are perfect - I first discovered them in Vail 3 years ago.

I picked up a pair myself in Whistler last week to replace my old ones. Here’s how they work:

You slip your fingers into the glove inner-liner…

that goes inside the outer waterproof mitten part…

Which you can then unzip on the side…

and access your four separate fingers when you need them to restrap your bindings, open your backpack, take a picture, unscrew your flask, etc.

These snowboarding gloves are the best! They keep you warm, AND give you the option to have more dexterity for detailed tasks without taking off your gloves. Plus, you can use the zipper to slip Hand Warmers right in next to your fingers - to keep even warmer!

Want to keep your hands warm while snowboarding? Go and get a pair of these; you won’t be sorry (and you won’t be cold!) Women’s Toaster Softy Mitts

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!

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!