Not quite the "white ribbon of death" at A-Basin or Loveland, but still an honorable feat in early October.

The race to be the first North American Ski Resort to open up her trails and chairlifts for the season always gets a lot of attention this time of year, especially in Colorado. For the past, oh... half a century (give or take) it has been one of only two High-Alpine Colorado Resorts to earn the prestigious "First to Open" honor each season.

This year it was Loveland Ski Area on Wednesday, Oct. 7th. (See the story here)

Naturally the world assumed (well, those of us who care about this kind of thing) that Arapahoe Basin would earn the title of "Second North American Resort to Open" when they opened two days later on Friday, October 9th.

I mean, its a sure-fire bet. It's been One and Two for either Loveland or A-Basin for the past 40 some years when it comes to opening early.

But a small, unassuming resort had different plans for this season. And no one saw it coming.

Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort opened their lifts to the public just hours after Loveland's opening last Wednesday.

Seriously? Las Vegas and snow in October?

Beating out resorts in the Rocky Mountains???

The high desert mountain resort located just miles out of sunny Las Vegas really shook things up by throwing themselves into the race to open first in North America by breaking the four decade tradition.

And honestly, kudo's to the little resort for their hustle. Everyone likes an underdog story.

And of course, its a bonus for anyone living close enough and willing to make the drive. Historically riding and skiing as early October is a privilege only the spoiled Coloradans get to brag about. The Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort will be open every weekend during the pre-season until the regular season starts and they open daily. Discounted tickets are available. Check out their website here for more details.

The unanticipated opening of, quite frankly, the last ski resort in the nation I would have pegged to open early, is just one of a series of unusual events that lends itself to the industries rumors of either an "El Nino" year (the fabled "big snow" year that is said to happen every three to eight years and is generated from a certain world weather pattern) or, possibly, another effect of global warming.

Coinciding with the early opening of the Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort was the Burton B Movie Tour stop in sin city just days before the resort opened. Check out the gallery from the premier with photos of Terje, Mikkel, Keegan, Jeremy Jones and more of the Burton team here or by clicking on one of the thumbnails below.

And for even more stimuli, check out the GrindTV.com video from the second stop of the Burton tour in Irvine, CA here.

Breckenridge Fall 2009 (P) Brian Henry

Yesterday, October 7th 2009, Loveland Ski Resort took the coveted honor of being the first North American Resort to crank up it's chairlifts for the 2009/2010 winter ski and snowboard season.

For years the race to be the first to open has been held between the two Colorado resorts Loveland and Arapahoe Basin. The resorts neighbor each other and both sit at high altitudes on the Rocky Mountain Continental Divide. Last year the mountains tied for opening day on October 15th. This year, the October 7th opening is the earliest opening for either mountain in over 40 years.

Makes me wonder if those rumors of another El Nino winter are starting to prove themselves true.


A Basin plans to follow suit and open up her trails to the public this Friday, October 9th.


Breckenridge is quietly waiting her turn to open for the 2009/2010 season. Brian Henry Photo

They might make cute dancing partners...Terje and Louie teaming up for a photo

First, I apologize for the delay of this blog post about the LA Burton premiere but hey, I had to go to the Irvine premiere too…and then it was Saturday….then Sunday came along and I had to watch football…then Monday is just lame so I couldn’t write it then. So Happy Tuesday! Here’s the rundown of “The B” LA Burton Premiere at the Burton Flagship store on Melrose Avenue.

This store knows how to throw a party. Burton always goes big with their events so Thursday night (October 1) they set up a gigantic projection screen on the rooftop of the store with the Hollywood Hills as the backdrop. There was the autograph signing session in their board hall as well as a couple open bars set up for all to enjoy. The party was packed with people and that store is pretty damn huge so when it actually feels crowded you know it was a good turnout. I think the free Pink's hot dogs and popcorn maybe had something to do with that. The autograph table had seats saved for Terje Haakonsen, Jeremy Jones, Jussi Oksanen, Kevin Pearce, Mikkel Bang, Hannah Teter, Ellery Hollingsworth, and Jack Mitrani but there were tons of other riders that showed up to give their support. (I saw most of them at the after party...c’mon, priorities.)

The premiere was a success. The video was awesome – I was pleasantly surprised at what they put out this year. “The B” had so much talent to work with and the result was impressive. It showcased tons of variety and mind blowing riding. I think deep down, some people tend to criticize the big guys (ahem…Burton in particular) and hope they fail at certain things and “The B” did the exact opposite. Throwing in the only footage of Shaun White killing his own private half pipe was pretty much ridiculous (in a good way) and then Keegan Valaika in the back country? Bonkers. Maybe what was even more nuts was the actual feature they made that was shaped as the "B" with pretty much the entire team hitting something on it at the same time. Way to go, guys.

Last, I’ll summarize the after party. Everyone rushed over to The Spanish Kitchen to hopefully get let in before the mass crowds started lining up. Of course, we get there and we’re asked to wait outside in line but with a little persuasion…and maybe some sneakiness, we got inside to enjoy another open bar and delicious free food. Louie Vito was even on the dance floor busting a move…wait, maybe that wasn’t him. Anyway, it was a good time with good vibes and good people.

Thanks Burton for yet, another awesome time.

Warren Miller Entertainment

Warren Miller Entertainment has filed a lawsuit against Level 1 Productions for trademark infringement as a result of Warren Miller's participation in Level 1's new ski movie, Refresh.

Last week, Warren Miller Entertainment (which is a separate entity from Warren Miller himself, and his foundation "The Warren Miller Freedom Foundation") filed a lawsuit against Level 1 Productions for trademark infringement as a result of Warren Miller's participation in Level 1's new ski movie, "Refresh".

Warren Miller, who is no longer affiliated with Warren Miller Entertainment, willingly provided commentary in Level 1 Productions' 10th film, Refresh, which has been receiving rave reviews.



Level 1 Productions is a small ski film company based in Denver, Colorado that is owned and operated by Josh Berman, who makes newschool ski movies.


Pro skier Tom Wallisch with Level 1 Productions' Josh Berman

Shortly after the filing of the lawsuit, Warren Miller Entertainment also entered a plea for a Temporary Restraining Order that would prevent last week's premiere of Refresh in Boulder, Colorado, which was denied by Judge Marcia Krieger, at which point the premiere took place in front of a capacity crowd at the Bluebird Theatre.

Following the filing of the lawsuit and the denial of the Temporary Restraining Order, both Level 1 and Warren Miller Entertainment released statements concerning the lawsuit, and earlier this week, Warren Miller himself entered the lawsuit as a potential third party intervenor. His Opposition is forcefully challenging Warren Miller Entertainment's trademark allegations, and alleging that WME should have approached him, not Level 1, over this dispute as opposed to suing Level 1.


Warren Miller

Although Warren Miller Entertainment lost the initial motion for an interim injunction (mainly due to the very short notice and duration of its filing), they are still pushing for a preliminary injunction against Level 1 for between now and the trial, which is scheduled to take place on October 22nd.

For more information and details on the ongoing lawsuit, go to Newschoolers.com.

Well, well, well….look at what the ladies put together this year. Today, October 1st, the all chick snowboard film, "Stance", was released. And by released, I mean, FREE DOWNLOAD! For you! It's for a limited time only so click here to get yours. Jeremy Miller and Stan Evans were the minds behind this and ultimately wanted to “create the most innovative female snowboarding film to date...start a large initiative to push snowboarding’s creative and cinematic boundaries” (www.stancemovie.com).

Let me first start by just listing off the amazing talent in this video: Gretchen Bleiler, Kimmy Fasani, Raewyn Reid, Hana Beaman, Molly Aguirre, Laura Hadar, Jamie Anderson, Gabi Viteri, Lisa Filzmoser, Erin Comstock, Jenny Jones, and Torah Bright.

With all these babes teamed up with their best footage, you’re not going to be disappointed. There are epic shots of not only their riding but of the scenery and locations that they traveled to. I also was super hyped to see some of the girls out of their comfort zones. (For instance, getting out of that half pipe and switching it up with some powder and natural jibs.)

It opens up with Gretchen’s part and well; if her aim was to show her ability to ride backcountry…good job Gretch, mission accomplished. I’m sure there is more where that came from. Raewyn Reid. Um, seriously? That girl shreds like her life depends on it and her part proves it, she hits everything. All these ladies showed up with their game faces on and were obviously stoked which in turn, got me stoked. Also appreciated the couple random shots of these girls with their huge lifted trucks; don’t think they are trying to make up for anything.

Long story short: Love the music, the balls out riding, the creativity, the cast, the bails, and the variety. That’s my stance…what’s yours?

This past Thursday night in the beach town of Encinitas, CA, Todd Richards introduced the world premier showing of the documentary that tells the story of "a kid growing up on the East coast who was a complete and total nerd who actually made something of himself despite everyone saying that he couldn't."

The movie is "Me, Myself and I", and it tells Todd's inspiring life story, from his first introduction to the barely known sport of snowboarding to his domination of the Winter X Games, to where he now- a family man, industry leader and owner of O'Matic snowboards.

Josh Landan is the award winning director of "Me, Myself and I - The Todd Richards Story". He has directed such films as "Against the Grain- The Tara Dakides Story" and "Flow- The True Story of a Surfing Revolution".

Josh is no stranger to what it takes to chronicle the life of a legend in a full length feature film, and he didn't hold back exposing the trials and tribulations that took place behind the scenes of Todd's high profile career. The documentary touches on sensitive subjects like Todd getting teased incessantly as a pre-teen and even the passing of his father right at the pinnacle of Todd's career. As Todd puts it "It has a lot less to do about snowboarding and it's a lot more of a coming-of-age-thing."

While at times the movie tugs at heartstrings, it also portrays many inspirational and heartwarming messages, like how important it is to follow your dreams and always have fun. Pro rider Luke Mitrani sums it up, "I hope every kid sees that. Especially every kid on [those websites] who just hate on every video. It's like 'It's just snowboarding. We're having a good time.'"

Check out the reaction video of the industry after the sneak peak world premier showing at La Paloma theatre in Encinitas and look for the release of "Me, Myself and I- The Todd Richards Story" in October, 2009.

Ouch. Scotty's slam at the Burton New Zealand Open... dramatized.

Oh good ole snowboard video premieres. Finally, there’s one up in Los Angeles instead of Orange County, my laziness conflicts with any drive south of Long Beach or north of Sunset Boulevard. The fact that most of the snowboard companies based in Cali are down in Irvine or San Diego doesn’t help my case. Well, and the fact that no one wants to come to Los Angeles. Just kidding...kind of.

Thanks to the amazing Burton Flagship store on Melrose Avenue, us lazy Los Angeles residents have an awesome Burton movie premiere to attend. This Thursday, October 1st, Burton’s new film, “The B” will be showing on the roof of this fabulous establishment equipped with free food and beverages (speaking from past experience, there will be lots and lots of booze). Also in store for the night, the Burton snowboard team will be lurking around including the likes of Terje Haakonsen, Jeremy Jones, Hannah Teter, Nicolas Muller and many more. Plus, they will be ready and equipped to autograph whatever you see fit.

The actual video is for sale now so you don't have to wait for the premiere to check it out and judge for yourself but I'm pretty sure the premiere will be much more awesome than watching it solo on your couch. Personally, I haven't seen it yet (too busy doing much more important things...hah...right) but I have seen however many different versions of the trailer they made and that in itself got me amped/impatient for it's release. (For those in the dark, there is a Backwards Teaser, Beautiful Teaser, Banger Teaser, Basic Teaser, Bail Teaser, and Butchered Teaser.)

So, if you are in the greater LA area, be sure to get to the Burton Store for the premiere from 6-10pm.

Live Music by Really Addictive Sound.

8175 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA

Oh yeah…space is limited so they ask that you RSVP at RSVP@burton.com.

For more info you can call the store at 323-370-1777

See you there; I’ll be the one in the front row with a huge grin on my face and possibly a couple drinks in hand.

This little gem of a tweet came from none other than the infamous Peter Line himself. If you are part of the twitterverse and you aren't following "Peetard" yet, then it is highly recommended. He is full of good ones like this:

I named my kidneys, my left ones named Robert and my right, John F. And they're both shot."

To follow Peter Line on Twitter click here.

To check out Peter's athlete profile and become a fan, click here.

Also, Mr. Line has himself a fancy blog that's chalk full of questionable drawings, pictures, blogs and poems. Take a leap into the "beautiful and sexy world of Peter Line" at www.peetard.com, and don't say we never did anything nice for ya'.

The first dance.

It's official. The results are in after last nights Dancing With the Stars premier and snowboarding's own Louie Vito is a hit in the mainstream, and he's earned himself a few extra nicknames along the way.


Show me those jazz fingers!

After Louie and his partner Chelsie Hightower danced for the first time last night, Tom Bergeron, the host on the show, called Vito "Louie Frodo". This came just after Bruno Toniolli referred to him as "A Dancing Hobbit".

We've been referring to Louie around the office as "Tiny Dancer" all week, but now we have to give those fruity judges on DWTS some cred for that creativity.

Although he's sure to never live those nicknames down, Vito has undeniably won over the hearts of America.

The San Diego Examiner says "Louie Vito is adorable." and goes on to say he "has a certain whimsical charm."

TV Guide's Joyce Eng gushes, "I love Louie! He is absolutely adorable..."

And Extra TV writes "[Vito's] smile might be stronger than his dance moves."


How could you not love that toothy grin?

At the end of the night after two dances (a Foxtrot and a Salsa relay dance) Louie and his partner were scored fourth overall by the judges, but its up to how America voted to determine who stays and who goes. Wednesday night is a double elimination night.

We're rooting for you Louie. Keep it up and just because that one judge Len said you should cut your hair we don't think you should.

To watch the full episode of the premier and see Louie's moves click HERE


Tiny Dancers

Louie Vito dances foxtrot and salsa.