If you're not in Argentina with South America Snow Sessions right now, you're simply blowing it. Session 1 from the sickest summer shred camp just wrapped in Bariloche, Argentina and everything about it was epic.


The views are simply amazing in Bariloche, Argentina. Photo: SASS/ Jack Pollner

SASS's home mountain Cerro Catedral has been receiving record snow fall creating perfect conditions and endless pow. The crew at SASS is crushing it daily and sent us this taste of everything we've been missing. Pro shred Chris Coulter checks in and talks about the steep and deep and how everyone's getting action in the southern hemi.



SASS's Sarah Laird is getting down and dirty at SASS and sent us this recap from session 1. Photogs Thomas Tikos-Kadji, Ben Girardi and Maxwell Santeusanio have been busy getting the shot and have artfully captured everything from Session 1. Here's the first look from summer 2010 at SASS.

Words: Sarah Laird

Everyone's heard the cliché phrase "time flies when you're having fun," but it's hard to believe that session one down here in Bariloche, Argentina with SASS has already come and gone. Between the days of ridiculous powder consistently dumping on our home mountain Cerro Catedral, and the delicious medialunas made fresh every morning it seems as if two weeks went by in the blink of an eye.


Can it get any better? Photo: Tommy Tikos-Kadji

We started with avalanche training beginning in the classroom, followed by intensive hands-on training on the hill. With all the fresh snow, SASS wanted to ensure that every camper knew how to use their equipment properly. Each worked individually with a guide searching for a buried backpack using their beacon and probes to find it. Once the guides felt confident in their ability to deal with the most common avalanche rescue situations on the hill, it was time to shred.


Shredder Jake LaRue killing it in the trees. Photo: Thomas Tikos-Kadji

Day after day skiers and riders would stumble into the hotel compound exhausted from another long day on the mountain. After a little rest and some homemade empanadas everyone was revived with huge smiles on their face and the stories would begin to circulate. At dinner each table boasted about the face shots in La Laguna or the new backcountry jump built above Nubes, or the epic tomahawk off that so and so took off a cliff into a sea of powder. Each day brought a new story of an awesome new adventure.


Blue crushing it. Photo: Maxwell Santeusanio

Session One was marked by the best snow conditions in years, and to finish it off SASS threw down on an Asado, the traditional Argentine barbeque. With Travis Moore, one of the owners, acting as the asador grilling everything from chorizo, morcillas, asado de tira, and vacio - we were all in for a treat. Around nine-thirty everyone sat down to our last family dinner and enjoyed the slide show put together by our camp photographers. They captured everything from big air in the park to face dives in powder fields to campers stuffing their face full of chocolate from Mamushka, the local-favorite candy shop. And then sadly enough it was over and we were forced to put everyone on a plane back home to the States with promises to see them next summer during the next July powder storm.


Sending it. Photo: SASS



The image is in the eye of the beholder. Photo SASS

It's hard to imagine missing an adventure such as this, but you don't have to. Sessions 3 and 4 are going to be mega amazing as the Roxy team, Burton team, Dakine team and others are all scheduled to come to SASS.

There's still time to be apart of the awesomeness during session 3 and 4 so head over to SAsnow.com to register for the experience of the lifetime.

Do it. Your life will change.