Each Fall I try to stop by the Utah Winter Sports Park to hit the water ramps. The water ramps are designed for aerialist to train their huge spinney flippdi-doodle jumps over the summer. The ramps are made of a plastic hexagon shaped material that allows skis to slide down. There are 4 different jumps, all different sizes allowing for a variety of options. The pool has an aeration system at the bottom to displace the surface of the water for a softer landing.
For most skiers, the ramps are odd and very different than any jump we hit on snow…either man-made or natural. They take some time getting used too. For me it’s a fun time to slide down the hill…I mean ramp on skis and launch into a pool! However odd they may be, I think it is super fun and good for your jumping!
Sage, Seth, Dana, Tate MacDowell and Dynastar team manager John Minahan were all on hand to get into the action. If you ever have a chance you should try the ramps out!
The ramp set-up
Seth Morrison and John Minahan sizing up the jumps
Hitting the single jump
No, no, no…that’s all wrong
Getting out of the pool
One of the aerialist going big!
Taking in some of Fall…
Tahoe is one of my favorite places in the world…especially in the summer. There is so much to do here and the lifestyle is extremely laid back. I love living right by the big beautiful lake and I swim in it at least once a day.
I get so excited when Fall starts and Winter is around the corner…but a part of me is bummed the Tahoe summer has come to an end!
Going for my daily swim!
A calm Lake Tahoe…
Early morning water skiing.
The Lake from one of my favorite mountain bike rides.
Annika on top of Stanford Rock…another favorite ride.
My boy Chief enjoying The Lake as well.
Taking my Nephew Leif out for a spin. This little guy is a maniac and loves to pin the throttle!
Skiing Magazines 2008 South American Photo Challenge is held at Chile’s Ski Portillo. The event is an invite-only, five-day event to determine who can shoot the best photography in five categories: air, powder, big mountain line, ski culture, and creative angle. The photo/athlete teams were Grant Gunderson shooting Pep Fujas, Adam Clark shooting Erik Roner, Steve Lloyd shooting Jason West, Jordan Manley shooting Chad Sayers, and Gene Dwarkin shooting Josh Van Jura. The winning shots will be published in the February issue of Skiing magazine.
On our final evening in Portillo, each team put together their best shots for a slideshow presentation. This was an anticipated evening for all the competitors. We all wanted to know what the other teams had been up to the past 5 days…where have they been shooting, what type of shots have they been getting, and what was their overall vision.
The conditions started off very spring like and made ski photography very difficult. The last couple days of the event we received some wind and snow that created new opportunities for ski photos! Everyone worked super hard all week and put together amazing slideshows.
I am glad I don’t have to judge the best photos…it’s going to be really tough! Thanks to Skiing Magazine for a great experience…you can check out more at www.skinet.com
Check out Adam Clark and my slide show below….
One of the highlights of my trip was hanging out with Hermann Maier of the Austrian Ski Team. When the snow was good we caught him out with his team mates shedding powder in their tights and downhill skis! These guys are serious in their training schedules, so it was cool to see them out ripping around outside the course with enormous smiles on their faces!!!
