A Different Kind of "Shred"

So other than my LOVE for snowboarding, I've decided it's time to pick up something I've ALWAYS wanted to learn.....the GUITAR !!! So I went and got myself a nice little beginner Fender Squier Strat Limited Edition Silverburst and I absolutely LOVE it!!! I remember back in high school, a group of my friends all wanted to learn the guitar, bass, drums and we even had the intention of starting our band (like many teenage rockers), but unfortunately, we graduated high school, grew up and never looked back. But you know what? I'm going to live my dream, not starting a rock band of course (hee hee), but I'm going to learn this damn instrument!

xoxo

gr

HOT AS F*%&!

One of the cons about being an  avid snowboarder living in Southern California is that the weather is never kind to us! Let's take for instance the weather we've been having here in SoCal. As beautiful as it can be right at the beginning of the Fall season, I cannot express my disappointment that my boarding season could come later than usual. How could the 97 degree weather we've been having here make me feel warm and fuzzy? It's more like bitter and distaste! One thing for sure, I'm most certainly looking forward to the winter season more and more each day. I love SoCal, it's my home, we have the most sought after weather in the U.S., and I do appreciate it.  But after all, I am a snowboarder.

xoxo

gr

Weekly Shredology

This week's Shredology word is:


Switch - Any trick where the take off or landing is backwards

Jacobellis on Top

Lindsey Jacobellis was on top....down south, South America, that is. In the first World Cup event  in Argentina, Jacobellis faced obstacles and jumps but dominated to come out on top over 30 women competitors to win her 15th World Cup title! Good job, Lindsey!!!
xoxo

gr

(courtesy of Oliver Kraus/FIS)

It's a Cat Fight!

OK, not really a cat fight, but it's an all girls battle at Nikita Battle of the Babes held on October 11, 2008. Pro snowboarder Vera Janssen teamed up with Nikita to organize this open air  snowboard jam outside the Jever Indoor Ski-Hall in Neuss (yes, that would be Germany). Lucky to those of you who can attend, and too bad for the rest of us. This is a free event where the girls will be duking it out in a skateboard-format jam session, much like the game of "HORSE" in basketball. The ladies will do a trick and the one following will have to duplicate it, so basically avoid completing the word SKATE and the last girl standing wins! So ladies, if you're in the local area take advantage and go out there and show them who the real snowboarder babe is!

xoxo

gr

Did ya know

27.2% of snowboarders were women in 2006

women comprised 31% of total athletes in the Winter X 11 games

oldest female athlete registered in the Winter Olympics was at age 52

Tunes from California

Hollywood California, the entertainment capital of the world, has no shortage of bands looking for that "big break", the path to stardom. Some people take years and years, some take a short period of time, some just never make it at all. Luckily, for these 6 gentlemen of this uniquely (ya right!) named group, Hollywood Undead, their path to stardom came just three years after two its members posted their songs on the popular social network, Myspace.com.

I discovered this group on imeem.com, where I like to find new music to add to my shredding playlists. Their mix of rock, hip hop and grunge music was very unique and really caught my attention. The other being that the majority of their songs have references to L.A. or California. Naturally, being from Southern California, I always like to support the local bands (ie Offspring, Linkin Park, No Doubt).

Everyone likes to be different...to stand out just a little more than others. And this group is no different. Every member of this group sports a mask (ie Jabbawockees), so no one knows what these dudes look like. Nice little touch for a bit of mystery but definitely a potential annoyance  I only have one of their songs on my imeem playlist but go and check out their website and listen to their album. It's seriously super dope!

xoxo
gr

No Boys Allowed!

I love that more and more snowboarding camps and programs are available for girls only. A lot of girls are intimidated by this sport because it's pretty much been dominated by guys. But with the rise of pro women snowboarders, girls  from all over the world who look up to these riders are being influenced to ride more. Going out on the mountains on your own for the first time is probably no the smartest idea, and looking like a total rookie in front of your friends isn't too appealing either. So many organizations are now designating programs targeting girls who want to learn to ride either for the first time or simply to get better. 


Up in Canada, where the climate is a snowboarder's dream, the Women In Snowboarding program organized by the Canada Snowboard Federation, wants more girls to participate in this sport by promoting all aspects of this snowboarding. From competing as a rider to becoming a judge or official in a competition, CSF wants to prove that snowboarding, like many sports, isn't just for boys. So go out there and check out some of the programs near you and sign up! Who knows, you may just be competing with Kelly Clark or Jamie Anderson at the next competition. We can all dream, right? =)


xoxo
gr

Roxy Girls Photo Shoot in Istanbul

Check out part 1 of 3 videos of the Roxy girls photo shoot in Istanbul Turkey. What a beautiful place, but those street vendors are a little aggressive if you ask me!

xoxo

gr

Transworld Snowboarding 2009 Good Wood Boards

Transworld Snowboarding does this awesome, most comprehensive snowboard test each year and picks out the best ones to receive the TWS Good Wood award. Divided in five categories, both men and women have their pick of over $400 Good Wood boards or under $400 boards as well as Men's top pipe boards. Rest assure, these tests are conducted by extreme riders from all across the country so their reviews are worth considering.


Being a girl rider, naturally I'm only going to list the Women's boards =)


Top Ten Women's Boards under $400

1. Technie Women's Jib
2. Forum Spinster Snowboard
3. Capita Saturnia Snowboard
4. Roxy Women's Team Ollie Pop Snowboard
5. Gnu B Nice MTX Snowboard
6. K2 Vavavoom Snowboard
7. Atomic Fallen Angel
8. Burton Blender Snowboard
9. Salomon Lily Snowboard Panda
10. Rome Detail Snowboard

Top Ten Women's Boards over $400

1. GNU B Pro MTX Snowboard
2. Rossignol Diva MAG Snowboard 152
3. Rome Lo-Fi
4. Roxy Women's Eminence MTX Snowboard
5. K2 Fling Snowboard
6. Forum Craft Snowboard
7. Lib Tech TRS BTX
8. Burton Stria Channel Snowboard
   
9. Ride Canvas Snowboard
10. Flow Myriad

xoxo

gr

Girls Girls Girls - Repping Mt high in California

This is one of my favorite videos from last season. These girls ROCK!!!






xoxo
gr

Go ahead and say - BITCHBoards

Burton, Ride, K2, Stepchild, Flow, Capita, they all started their board line NOT with the female rider in mind. How many of those have just an all girl's team? I mean, ONLY a girl's team, not both guys and girls. Ya, exactly. With the exception of Roxy, God knows we love them, there aren't any board manufacturers made strictly for the female rider.....until (bleep)Boards came along! 


It' OK, go ahead and say it....yes, that's BitchBoards! A company founded by snowboarder, Alex Masterson, who was disappointed in the quality of women's boards available out there. So she decided to do something about it and came up with this bitchin' company. I have not ridden one yet so I can't review the boards, I'm just glad that someone took the initiative to do something with this market, small for now but about to blow up. With totally radical graphics and awesome specs, it makes us proud to show some of our bitchiness! They even have tips on getting started on the slopes and that's one of their missions is to get more girls to ride and not be intimidated by the slopes, the boards, or the dudes!


I'm excited to see who they will be sponsoring and representing BitchBoards!


xoxo
gr

RosaSnow - Riding and shopping are a girl's best friend

Women snowboarders may not dominate the pages of board shop websites or featured in snowboarding magazines as much as the dudes, but rest assure there are plenty of female riders preparing for an explosion of women specific merchandise ready to be marketed. Along with women-only clothing line, snowboarding gear, web articles, information bloggers (including your very own, Gurl Ryder) =), here comes an online retailer stocking snow gear targeting women snowboarders. 


RosaSnow, carries all your favorite brands including Nikita, Betty Rides, 686 (one of my faves!), Sessions, and others. This Minneapolis-based store wants women riders to "shop online, more time to ride!".  What I really like about this new online shop is that the owner, Missy Killian, also promotes eco-friendliness by selling products that are earth friendly. As a fellow girl rider and tree-hugger, I say two thumbs up for RosaSnow!


xoxo
gr

GR's Deal Alert!

Another great sale happening online, this time its Moosejaw! It's their "Best Sale Ever"! So go check it out and see if you can find just what you're looking for this season.


xoxo
gr

Pre-Season Sale Events

Everyone wants to get in on the action, get their gear ready for the new season. And there are vendors out there willing to get the newest gears out there and also slash prices to those winter sport enthusiasts.  Here's a list of some of those pre-season events you should check out!

California
Ski Dazzle
Outdoor Adventure & Winter Sport Expo
Snow Jam
Bay Area Ski & Snowboard Expo


Colorado
Colorado Ski & Snowboard Sale


Massachusetts
Boston Globe Ski & Snowboard Expo


Minnesota
Minnesota Ski & Snowboard Expo


Nevada
Snow Jam


New York
Albany Ski & Snowboard Expo

Illinois
Ski Dazzle


Oregon
Portland Ski & Snowboard Show


Pennsylvania
National Ski & Snowboard Expo


Washington
Seattle SkiFever & Snowboard Show


Washington DC
National ski & Snowboard Expo


Happy Shopping!


xoxo
gr

Gretchen promotes her new GB Collection

Gretchen Bleiler was at the Oakley store in Irvine, CA on Saturday, September 13, 2008 promoting her new GB collection including apparel, accessories and her new snow goggles. She even raffled off one of her signature snowboards. 

Check out her collection here at Oakley.


xoxo
gr

Weekly Shredology

This week's Shredology word is:


French Fry - Someone who really sucks at snowboarding 

Season's First Roxy Podcast

Here it is.....Roxy's first podcast for the season. I absolutely love watching their podcasts throughout the season because they don't just put together one of the best female snowboarder videos, but they make it a lot of fun to watch some of the girls just acting goofy and having lots of fun. And this podcast proves just that. Enjoy the show and look for many more podcasts to come!

Did Ya Know...

Winter season in New Zealand is June, July & Aug

During the winter, you can surf and snowboard on the same day in Hawaii (the Big Island)

Snow is not just white, its also pink!

A Sweet Buy

One of the great things about being a well-known professional athlete is the ability to influence the people who look up to them. And Hannah Teter is using her opportunity it by  joining forces with Green Mountain Sugar House and World Vision in raising money to help the poor in Kirindon, Kenya. Through Green Mountain Sugar House, producers of great tasting maple syrup from the maple trees of Vermont, Hannah has a bottle of these sweet pancake-waffle toppings namely 'Hannah's Gold Maple Syrup", being sold at $15.00 per bottle. All the profits from these sales will help feed the hungry in Africa. Can we say "SWEEET!"


Green Mountain Sugar House


You can also give monetary donations through her project site at World Vision.


xoxo
gr

Share your Shred with Nikita

Nikita Clothing, one of the leading women's street wear for action sports, is having a contest and one lucky lady will win a complete Nikita outfit of your choice! All you have to do is post a blog on their blog site with your best shred story and include some photos if you can. Get all your friends to go to the site and vote for your story and the top three will be entered into the finals where the winner will be chosen by Nikita. What a great way to start the riding season with a brand new outfit! Deadline is November 15th, 2008.


Nikita Clothing


xoxo
gr

GR's Deal Alert!

Summer is over but doesn't the mean the sun doesn't come out anymore. If you're in the market for some cool shades, SPY Optics has some cool deals on their small fit Vega sunglasses for $11.95, they normally go for $99.95!
xoxo
gr

First Time - Part 1

Everyone's doing it, it's cool, looks fun and you get to meet tons of cute guys so naturally you want to join in on the fun.....but something is holding you back. Maybe you don't feel athletic enough? You're too scare to fall and get injured? Well, first of all don't jump into something new just because everyone is doing it. My motto has always been always try something ONCE in your lifetime and if you don't like it, move on to something else. But at least you can say you've tried it because you only live once. Snowboarding isn't for everyone. But if you're one of the lucky ones who has the patience to learn and develop the skills to welcome snowboarding into your life, then great! Just don't be disappointed at your first try and give up.


If it's your first time riding, here are some basic tips on what to wear, especially for you ladies:


1.  Wear snowboard pants & jacket (at least water proof outerwear)- this is a must because you will be falling and sitting on snow a lot.


2.  Rent or borrow  your gear - rentals are usually pretty cheap (I've seen as low as $15 for board, bindings and boots), don't buy until you know this is something you will enjoy and do more later.


3.  Wear layers - I know this sounds obvious but my first time, I honestly didn't know what to wear underneath my jacket. If it's a cold day, you want to wear long sleeve shirt and either a thin sweater over it or thermals underneath the shirt. Trust me,  jackets alone will not keep you warm. If it's a warmer day, you can get away with just the long sleeve shirt under the jacket. 


4.  Gloves, beanies, goggles - don't think you're not going to need them! Beanies are probably more optional.


5.  Protective gears!!! Wrist guards and knee pads I believe are a MUST. When people fall, they tend to fall first on their knees (falling forward), their butts (falling backward) and use their hands to stop their fall. It's inevitable, so wearing these protective gears will help prevent serious injuries. You don't need anything fancy or expensive, the ones they sell for riding skateboards and bicycles will do just fine.


6. Wear sunscreen and chapstick - trust me, the sun is no joke up in the mountains. Especially when its reflecting off the beaming white snow! 


7.  Hair and makeup - I like to keep makeup to a minimal if any at all. Some of you girls refuse to be seen without makeup, which is all well and good, but just remember this IS a sport. So expect to be sweat a little and be roughed up a bit. And yes, I know nice, long, free-flowing hair is sexy and attractive but it won't hurt to pull your hair back into a ponytail so that when you do pick up speed, you don't have hair flying in your face. 


8.  Socks - if you don't have those long, thick winter socks, you can always double up with regular socks. Be prepare to get your feet wet a little because the snow always finds a way to seep through the boots and you end up with wet toes. Those long soccer socks works well too!


These are just some simple tips and suggestions to help you prepare for your day of riding. In Part 2, I will go over what you should expect once you've got your gear and ready to ride.


xoxo
gr

GR's Deal Alert!

If you're looking for some DC shoes, both women's and men's shoes along with other apparels are on sale right now at 6pm.com! Most of them are $19.95 + shipping and maybe tax (depending on your state).


xoxo
gr

Just Around the Block

So you've heard of Big Bear right? The mountains of San Bernardino, CA about a good 2 hour drive from Los Angeles. Many snowboarders take the drive up the winding roads of the mountain to ride at Bear Mountain, one of the nicest park resorts in Southern California. When you have to drive that far for a day of shredding, you probably have no desire to drive another 2 hours or so back down the mountain. There are many cabins you can rent, motels and inns to check out. So why not check into The Block Hotel, a snowboard-themed boutique hotel just a short drive to the resorts.



(courtesy of The Block Hotel Big Bear)


With themed-decor rooms, common areas, and the freebies including video games in the room, WIFI, DVD rentals, and of course hanging out with fellow riders staying at the hotel with food and drinks. Common areas include BBQ deck with fire pit,  fitness room, poker room, board waxing room, lounge and pool and spa. Rates are start at $79/night and up. They have a second location in Tahoe as well.


xoxo
gr

Remembering 9/11

Even though I wasn't in New York during 9/11, I still remember that day. I had just walked into my office, started to get situated when suddenly I heard on the radio about the attack. Luckily, the company I was with at the time had a TV in the conference room so we were able to tune in to see what happened. And then we saw the second attack.....


I was fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to visit New York last summer. Below are just some pictures of the World Trade Center site. It was a very touching moment being there, and as a fellow American, this tragedy really affects all of us. 


We will always remember 9/11.



xoxo
gr

Fakie? Goofy? Frontside? Backside? Betty???

Like many sports, there is a special language that the participants speak and snowboarding is one of them. Each week, I will post a lingo or term used by riders. There are so many, it's really a foreign language! Luckily, some of these terms were adopted from skateboarders and surfers and other sports similar to this. Every season I find new terms and lingos that I've never heard of before, but it sure is fun to use them.

I'm going to start my first lingo with this one, created by Roberta Stjernholm who won the 2008 Ski/Snowboard Lingo Contest earlier this year.

Snowriding (verb) New winter recreation industry term describing the act of either snowboarding or skiing down a slope.

Never Say Never

Think snowboarding is too hard to learn? Snowboarding is for guys and tomboys? Tell that to Gretchen Blieler, Silver Medalist at the 2006 Winter Olympics and most recently voted 2008 Best Action Female Athlete at the ESPY awards. Or ask any of the other female snowboarders who enjoy the sport as much as the pros do. Take a look at MTV's reality show "Made" which showcases all the "wannabes" from being transformed into a prom queen to being an athlete of a specific sport. Watch Tara, a total girly girl who is a sport-illiterate. For someone who lives in Colorado and has the beautiful rockies easily accessible to her at anytime, I envy her! Watch as she trains and dedicates herself in a 6 weeks time to compete in a snowboarding event. It took me 3 years to get to the level she achieved! But I also didn't have a MTV-hired snowboarding instructor either.



MTV Made: I wanna be a Snowboarder

Never give up and keep trying!

xoxo
gr

Gear Up

The new riding season is coming up so most of us are getting our gear out, waxing the boards and washing the threads. It would be a total bummer not to go through all your boarding gear first prior to your first day of riding. Suddenly, you realize those pants just dont fit anymore (maybe you gorged on summer BBQ and gained a little weight), or your find a crack on your board (EEEK!), or maybe you've grown vertically  and your board is just too short for you.So when it's time to look for new gear, don't dwell on the huge expense of replacing them. There are many ways to get gear cheap, or at least not at retail. Unless you're totally materialistic and won't accept anything less than brand new or maybe you're just lucky enough not to have to worry about money, then read on for some of my frugal shopping tips! Especially for first time riders, it's my personal opinion that you should NEVER buy your set-up (board, binding, boots) brand new. Jacket, pants and any other accessories is up to you and your bank account. One of my favorite places to look for discount gear is Craigslist. Yes, that means buying used gear (gulp!). Don't fret, I've found many great deals on CL and have been totally satisfied with my purchases (and sales). I've also found great deals on eBay but my biggest issue is sometimes having to pay ridiculously high shipping fees. Nonetheless, you can still find yourself paying less than retail if you're aggresively patient.

If you're lucky enough to live in an area where there are big sales events such as Ski Dazzle, then by all means GO! Ski Dazzle is held twice at the beginning of every winter season, usually the first week of November in Chicago and the first week of December in Los Angeles. Its a big event where vendors and riders come together showing the season's new gear and a way for the vendors to get rid of old inventory and for the consumer to find good deals.  There is a fee for admission, but it usually comes with a free lift ticket pass to one of their local resorts (Bear Mtn for Los Angeles and Shanty Creek Resort in Chicago). The good thing about events like this is that if you have any questions, there are always very knowledgable  staff there to help you find the gear that suits you best because sometimes even with an abundance of internet information, you still may end up buying the wrong size board for your riding style.  Happy shopping!

xoxo

gr

Boo! No Snow!

Don't believe the hype? Well guess what? It's not just hype, it's real. Global warming is no joke and each year, the earth's temperature rises because our dear earthlings just don't care that our planet is deteriorating. I care about the earth, I believe in doing my part the best I can to preserve what we've enjoyed living here and hope that many generations after me will be able to as well.

I came across this organization while searching for ways to add to my activism and the front page photo scared the crap out of me!

(courtesy of Protect Our Winters)

If this is what our local resorts will look during the winters, then what are we all waiting for? Even if you're not a winter sport enthusiast, I'm sure you still care about our planet and existence. You don't have to completely change your lifestyle,  even a little bit of change helps. I know we've all heard it before, it's like a broken record but yes, carpooling, turning off lights when not in use, recycle, be more active outdoors, all of these things adds up. You think one penny doesn't mean anything? Think if everyone on this planet gives one penny, how much do you think that will total?

Have you seen the Disney movie, "Wall-E"? If not, then you should. It should give you a real perspective to what the future holds if we don't do anything.

xoxo

gr

Tune In To This

When I started snowboarding, the last thing on my mind was how to be "entertained" while going down the slopes without tumbling down and creating a massive snowball. But once I got the hang of staying off my booty through the runs, I wanted to be cool like everyone else and sport a cool Skull Candy headphones while listening jammin' tunes. OK, so I haven't actually gotten the Skull Candys yet but I will soon! Not just cause everyone and their mamas got them, but they're actually pretty cool!

So my first playlist consisted of mostly R&B tunes from Justin Timberlake, Ciara, Ashanti to a nice oldie but goodie, "Send me an Angel" by Scorpions (thanks to fellow friend and rider). But after awhile, I realized that the music I was listening to made me want to dance rather than jam down the mountain. If you're a shredder, you know listening to R&B just won't cut it. You gotta have head crankin', drum beatin', vocal screamin' tunes by Offspring or Good Charlotte or Nirvana and the likes. So naturally my playlists started to evolve.

Each season I like to search for fast beat, punky, rock music to add to my shredding jams list. And this season, I've discovered what is still descently new to the U.S. but fairly old-news to the European countries known as Tokio Hotel.

This group of four young rockers are awesome! Check out their tunes on my IMEEM player and you'll see why you should add some of their songs into your playlist while you're hitting jibs or just cruisin'.

xoxo
gr

Okiedokie with Tokidoki

Matching is for newbies? Who cares if you have this set from Ride! If I had the money, I would most certainly grab the entire set of Ride's Tokidoki collection. I ride a Ride, so I'm already an advocate of their products. The board, Canvas is in the Mobility collection, which means they're perfect for park riding (just my style!). Ride's got a new feature called "Pop Stix" on some of their park style boards which is suppose to relieve stiffness of the board and adds more pop for fun and easy maneuver freestyling. I'm so jealous! I got my Ride Fever towards the end of last season, so getting a new board is probably out of the question......UNLESS.......something horrible happens to it....eeeek!

The matching binding, Zeta MVMNT, also in the Mobility collection looks nice and sleek including all the great features like their other women's mobility bindings. I can attest to the light and durability of their women's bindings, I heart my Sigma MVMNT bindings!

Boots are Sash Boa coiler in the ATV collection. I've had the good old fashion lace boots, the Burton speed lace boots and the BOA coiler boots. The BOA's are definitely hella easy to use but do understand that if the cable happens to snap while you're riding, you better have an extra set with you to replace them right away if you plan on riding the rest of the day.


The pants and jacket are SUPER cute, but ya I do agree this WOULD be going a bit overboard. But nevertheless, an awesome complete package!






















 

Here's the MSRP for this set-up...

Ride Canvas $499.99
Ride Zeta MVMNT $249.99
Ride Sash BOA Coiler $199.99
Ride Tokidoki jacket $299.99
Ride Tokidoki pants $229.99

Ride Snowboards

Of course as with all new season gear, you're going to pay retail price but if you have patience and wait a bit, you'll find it at a lower price. And you better believe, even though I'm not officially in the market for them (yet), I will still do some "window shopping"

xoxo
gr

Season Pass

I got my season pass today!!! Can't wait to use it! Yay! Get them early! They're $299 at my local mountain, Mt. High, until October 31st or when they're all sold out!


If you're a serious Ryder and you're out in the mountains at least twice a week , then I recommend you get a season pass. Last year I opted not to get one because of the horrible and short winter season the year prior, and just my luck last season was one of the best and longest one in Southern California in a long time. So I can honestly say I probably....no wait...I did end up spending a lot more by buying daily lift tickets and point passes. After reading the article about the Farmer's Almanac prediction for winter 2008-2009....I'm crossing my fingers for another great season!

I've compiled a list of just some of the popular resorts across the U.S. with pre-season pass specials, I apologize if your local resort isn't listed:


Mt. Bachelor , Bend, OR - Adult $799, Young Adult (19-23) $349, Teen (13-18) $249 until Sept 30th
Jackson Hole, Jackson Hole, WY - Adult $1970, Junior $1185 until Nov 28th
Park City Mtn, Park City, UT - Adult $1250, Teen (13-17) $750, Youth (7-12) $350 until Sept 30th
Nor'easter Pass (Unlimited use at Mount Snow in VT, Attitash and Crotched Mountain in NH and Jack Frost/Big Boulder in PA) - Adult $949, Young Adult (13-18) $849, Junior (6-12) $649 until Oct 13th 
Epic Season Pass (Unlimited and unrestricted pass at Colorado resorts - Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Northern California resorts - Keystone and Heavenly) - Adult $579, Child (5-12) $279
Bear Mtn and Snow Summit, Big Bear Lake, CA - Adult $299, Young Adult (13-21) $ 249 until Dec 7th
Tamarack Resort, Tamarack, ID - Adult $449, Youth (12-17) $249 until Dec 12th
Indianhead Mtn, Wakefield, MI - Adult $405, Junior $345, Child $273 until Sept 15th



Oh, I apologize for the mess on this blog....I feel like I'm learning MySpace or Facebook all over again. Geez, I can't believe how creative and techno savvy people are now. Anyway, must rest for another Monday blues. =(

xoxo
gr

My First Post

Here goes......my first post...or blog....or...whatever you wanna call it. I'm starting this for a few reasons. 1) I stress alot and my doctor advises me to write in a journal on a daily basis and rather than writing on paper and killing trees, I decided to blog 2) I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE snowboarding so as the new riding season nears, I want to write down my all the good, the bad, and the ugly of it all and 3) there just aren't enough information out there for women riders so I want to be able to share as much information as well as receive from other riders.

So there! My reasoning for this madness!

So just a brief intro about myself...I'm in my very very very early 30's.... =) and I started snowboarding about 3 years ago. Ya, I know...a late bloomer. But hey, better late than never! Don't get me wrong, I've wanted to try it for many years but just never had the opportunity to do so. So now, 3 years later and many, many, many...........................MANY trips to my local mountains....I LIVE for snowboarding. The past couple of years I've gone on week long vacations during the summer time and this year I actually planned my vacation so that it's during the winter time.....for a week long of snowboarding! heee heee

OK! Enough of this snooozzzze! On to better things.....I'm a HUGE bargain hunter. I hate to pay full price for anything so with that said......I am going to jot down the places where I will find all my gear (if I need to replace or buy new) at the lowest price I can find. Hopefully this will help some of the other riders (women specifically) find their gear.

I'm going to end this now with a few of my favorite photos from last riding season ('07-'08), which btw was an amazing season!

xoxo
gr



Beautiful day at Mt High
















My first injury from jibbing! Ouch! Nice lil hole in the leg =(



















Officially retired my trusty 5150 and moved up to a big league "ride"....(no pun intended) hee hee















Mammoth Mtn....my second home =)