Drift HD from The Life Unbound on Vimeo. Summer has been good and hot here in Utah. The biking has been dusty and loose but fun non the less. With dreams of winter around the corner, I put together a lil' edit of some shots from last year and some biking. Is it snowing yet......?
Hey there! Just checking in from beautiful Vancouver, BC! Here I've been enjoying a little sun and staying active in preparation for the glacier season to begin shortly up in Whistler, where I'll be coaching up at the Camp of Champions! Super stoked to get skiing again, as it's all I've been thinking about since the season came to a close a few weeks ago, although it feels like it's been ages. As much fun as it is to enjoy other sports, wear shorts, and Instagram pictures of sunsets, I for one would much rather be making turns on snow.
We've made it official: we're coming back to Camp of Champions for another year of shredding the glacier for 4FRNT Team Week 2012! We'll be there for Session B, which is July 1 - 8. As always we're bringing the best crew around to coach, shred and generally live life with all of the campers.
This past winter we signed up with SIA to become Utah's hub for their ski and snowboard gear recycling program. What that entailed was setting up a shipping container to collect skis, snowboards, bindings, boots, poles and helmets from local shops and resorts. When a person was done with their gear, they could turn them in at the shops, and the shops would bring them to us.
Parker White took home top prize at the 2nd Annual Twisted Sisters at Kirkwood Mountain Resort on Sunday, beating out a stacked field of competitors from all over the USA.
We are looking for a couple of interns to help out over the summer. If you are a student, will be in or near Salt Lake for the summer, and want to get your foot in the door of the ski industry, check these out. We have positions available for a Marketing Intern and a Skier Services Intern (click on the links for the full descriptions, and application proceedures).
After a low snowfall year all around the West, mother nature flicked the "On" switch just in time for Twisted Sisters tomorrow. The contest has been moved to the Lower Cirque, which has at least 24" of fresh, untracked snow on it from this storm. And it's still snowing!
A few weeks a go we took a trip up to the Sorcerer Lodge out of Golden, BC. The trip was unreal, it was my first time skiing pillows-and I got my ass kicked, but man was it fun. This is the final episode of the season for me, hopefully next year wont bring the worst season in 40 years like this one did. pz Weston
The 2012 Twisted Sisters Competition is only three days away! Pre-registration is open, and the spots are filling up fast. We have moved the venue from the shadows of the Sisters into the lower Cirque (the same venue as the North Face Masters), which will give us the variety of terrain we need to make this the most progressive comp yet.
Spring came a bit early this year... my home mountain, le Massif du sud, closed on march 27th, when it normally close in may, Some local comps have been cancelled and some park shoots too. But we still manage to film a bit of urban and to ride the mountains that were still open. We even did two small park edits filmed and edited by ESK, you can check that out: In stoneham : https://vimeo.com/39493724 and in Mont-Sainte-Anne : https://vimeo.com/38994047
This week our good friend Randolph Green passed away after a battle with cancer. In keeping with Randolph's spirit of laughing through the pain, and never taking life too seriously, we are having a get together in his honor this Sunday from 5-8pm at Squatters in Salt Lake City. We'll be providing the food, the bar will be open, and we're going to laugh the tears away with stories and photos of one of the best people we've ever known.
Randolph Green, our good friend, and 4FRNT Sales Manager, passed away this morning after a long battle with cancer.
David Wise heads to Euro X this week to try and extend his three-contest winning streak. Wise signed a three year deal with 4FRNT Skis just two weeks before X Games in Aspen, where he wasted no time in claiming his first victory in a major contest.
Finally got to go skiing, 7 months after surgery. So I made an edit about it. http://vimeo.com/37841712
No secret the winter in Utah has sucked pretty hard. From the low snow conditions to the appalling avy conditions its been tough to get any work done. But with a little bit of travel, a lot of hard work and some luck we managed to find some fun snow. We traveled up to Oregon, then back to Utah and finished up the episode with a Park City Powder Cats excursion. Check it out and let me know what you guys think! -Weston
Colorado I left Quebec for Colorado january 4th and it?s already time to come back. I had really good times here, but I think it?s time for me to left. I never tought I would say that, but I miss the east coast. I miss my girlfriend, our dog, the whole east coast vibe I guess? There is a lot of comps coming out there, I only hope I can do my best out there, no badluck, just a good competition season. Here?s a little edit I made filmed by our friend Nic Bertrand : http://vimeo.com/37212238
Here's my first edit of the season after recovering from my knee surgery. http://vimeo.com/36219125 Stay tune, more coming out soon! Carl
Wow what a Month? At the Beginning of the month the whole Canadian team headed to whistler for a training camp before the back to back competitions of Dew Tour and X Games. Conveniently the North Face Open changed venues to Whistler, which would take place while we were there. So bonus why not a little more practice at competing. In whistler we had a sweet air bag set up. A huge quarter pipe into a bag at the bottom of Blackcomb Park.
Here is a "tech talk" on how to mount ANY 4FRNT ski with telemark binding.
What you see above you is the HOJI, an all new ski for 2012/13. As the name suggests, this is the latest in the line of skis designed by the evil genius of Eric Hjorleifson. The HOJI is basically the culmination of what Eric has learned about ski building through the EHP and the Renegade. The HOJI uses the same Reflect Technology as the Renegade, meaning the rocker radius matches the side-cut radius, but it comes in at 112mm underfoot, making this ski lighter and more versatile in variable conditions. With Eric's focus in recent years on doing more touring, and more long approaches, having a lighter, skinnier Renegade became almost a necessity. It is also a very friendly resort ski. The Reflect Technology, and the 30m turn radius make the HOJI quick and nimble, while still providing the same stable launch pad of the Renegade. Here is what Eric has to say about it: ?Based off of the performance qualities developed, tested and proven by the Renegade, the HOJI incorporates Reflect Tech, matching the rocker profile with the sidecut radius. This gives the HOJI an unparalleled powder carving sensation that I have yet to experience on any other ski (except for the Renegade of course). With a 112 mm waist it is designed to also be a versatile ski in firmer snow conditions for ski touring. I am extremely excited about the HOJI and I will have them on my feet for a good portion of the season.? Here is a short edit we made last June about the HOJI prototyping process, back when it was still under it's working name, the Hoj.
Last year on May 1st I unfortunately ended my season with a torn ACL and meniscus. It?s something I never expected to happen. It was probably a combination of not listening to my body, skiing too much and not resting enough. After I got injured, at first I was misdiagnosed; the doctor told me that my MCL was torn at the first degree and I would be back on my skis after six weeks. I looked forward to working and riding at Camp of champions. When Camp of champions started, I still wasn?t in good shape and I decided to go see a specialist. After spending 15 minutes with Whistler?s knee-expert Dr. McConkey, my surgery was set for July 25th.After my surgery, I waited two weeks and then started going to the physiotherapist twice a week. From there it was a question of time - doing as much rehab as possible, trying to control inflammation (definitely use a Aircast Cryo / cuff) and trying to keep myself sane! I think it took ten weeks to make my knee fully flexible again. After getting back my full range of motion, my goal was to stabilize my knee and to start building all the muscle lost.It has been six months since surgery and now I am back on my skis. I try to listen to my body more and I use my BREG knee brace every time I go on the mountain. It feels good to be riding again. The reason I am sharing my story is to pass on what I?ve learned over the past few months. You can save yourself injury by listening to your body, resting properly as well as exercising. Also, if you?re hurt - seeing the right specialist can save you a lot of time and get you on the fast track to recovery. Stay tuned for a park edit coming out soon ! Carl Fortin
