(Everybody’s Doing It)
If you’re in some wretched, land-locked location, crying about missing the ocean, sign up for Twitter. Maybe that sounds kind of lame, but if my research is correct, 19 (19!) of the 2009 ASP Top 27 have Twitter accounts. Not to mention that the major mags, surf shops, and filmmakers are also on there, posting all kinds of stuff that, as a surfer, probably matters to you. Or it should.
Also, all of this contest streaming is pretty amazing.
I picked this up from Morning in The Moonlight and, I have to say, I agree with Willy’s assessment that it’s pretty “UH-mazing.” Definitely watch through the credits for Dane playing shark guitar…
A friend sent me this video, which I think is really interesting, and could, possibly, be a new thing- at least for those who have access to the expensive equipment involved. Mike Douglas and Cody Townsend, who are both professional free skiers, were always curious about whether it was possible to ski on waves, they say. After “years of dreaming” and much experimentation, they settled on alpine setups (crazy!) and gave it a shot in Hawaii. They had to be towed in, for fairly obvious reasons, but once they were in, they were independent. Their success is kind of amazing. Watch it and let me know what you think of this nutty hybrid.
Some of us like to just wing it, especially if we’re lucky enough to live near the beach. We just throw our boards in the car and hope for the best, looking for the thumbs up (or down) as we pass other boarded vehicles along the way. If we get to the beach and there aren’t any waves, we’ll try again tomorrow.
Most people these days, I think, prefer to check surf reports (either online or by good, old-fashioned tele) before journeying seaward.
I guess I fall in between those categories, at least with regards to surfing. With skiing, I optimistically gamble. As I sat at the kitchen table this morning, fully dressed in ski pants and a crazy-thick sweater, I listened to the chilling wind outside. I found myself deviating from my usual shot-in-the-dark strategy and wondering if you could, say, call up the local ski shop and get a real-time report of mountain conditions, as we do at the beach.
As it turns out, the snow equivalents of Magic Seaweed seem to be SkiReport.com and OnTheSnow.com. They have about the same information on both sites, but On The Snow has a more comprehensive weather report, wind included, which I like. If you don’t have a computer at your disposal, check with 411 because most resorts do have hotlines for the latest trail and lift info.
Okay, I know you probably knew this already and I apologize, but I can only hope that it helps some poor sap, like myself, who finds the unknown kind of romantic, and occasionally just wants to know what she’s getting herself into.
My mom called me before;
Our conversation went nothing like this:
“Hey Case”
“Hey Mom”
“I was thinking it might be nice if I bought you a ski helmet as part of your Christmas gift.”
“Oh… yeah… well… that might be nice, I guess, thanks.”
“Yeah, I mean, if that’s what you want, if you’d wear it.”
“Right, thanks, I’ll think about it and let you know.”
Instead, it went like this:
“[weird distracted silence] Oh hey, I was just calling you before as an excuse so I wouldn’t have to go into a store with your father.”
“So does that mean you’re busy?”
“No.”
…
“I’m going to buy you a ski helmet as yo- part of your Christmas present.”
“Uhh….”
“Don’t worry, I’m not going to just buy it; you can pick it out. But YOU ARE WEARING A HELMET TO SKI IN.”
“Look, I’m not completely opposed to the idea, but why do you have to say it like that, as if I have no say in the matter? I’m 24 years old, I mean, come on.”
“Well I do NOT want to get stuck with someone who-
(here, I began preparing to hang up the phone)
falls and hits her head and ends up STUPID.”
Click.
—
So, ski helmets. As I said, I’m not completely opposed to the idea of protecting my noggin while barreling down an icy mountain. I’m not. It’s just that… how am I supposed to wear a cool hat with a pom pom if I’m wearing a helmet?
My parents have been trying to get us to wear helmets since we were snowy, little whippersnappers… it has never stuck. We had really nice, if extremely fugly, helmets when we were maybe 6 or 8 years old. Never wore ’em. Then, in a blatantly desperate attempt at tomfoolery, Kel and Dave bought us hockey helmets, I kid you not, because they thought we might find them “cooler.” Never wore those either. As if it’s even a good idea to wear a hockey helmet while skiing. I’m pretty sure you lose some peripheral vision in those clunky things.
If I were to wear a helmet, it would probably be one like this.
Just kidding.
This one I actually do like. I kind of want it.
Alaias seem to be all over the place these days. Check out this article from today’s New York Times:
Ancient Surfboard Style Is Finding New Devotees by JAMIE BRISICK
Water, Water Everywhere And Not A Drop To Drink 