Saturday, January 28, 2012

1440 Triple Cork 2012 Winter X Games

Ok, I don't know about you but this pretty much takes snowboarding to another level....2012 Winter X Games winning run:1440 Triple Cork. Nicely done.

Thank goodness for slow-mo. Enjoy.

YouTube

Friday, January 27, 2012

Bend your ankles, bend your knees...

If your like many of the riders I encounter out on the trails then this is excellent #411.

When asked or approached for snowboarding advice I'm very open to give it.  Alot of times my advice may not necessarily have anything to do with the rider at first but their equipment...

Stance is key in terms of the "where you are" on the board. Meaning are you.... "centered" (in the middle), or are your bindings too far towards the tail of the board?  Not sure then keep reading. These days pretty much every production snowboard is a "twin tip". Twin tip boards hands down are the most user friendly design out there. User friend to a certain extent...... expect when not properly set up. Set up with every new board you buy and even the board your riding is key..

OK... so what is my point you ask, well where I'm going with this is that if your stance is not wide enough then your range of motion will suffer. Please do not mistake what I'm saying here...to those with the ridiculous wide "Trucker Stances" as I call them I'm sorry to offend you. Ideally what your looking for is a stance that in terms of width should be wider than your shoulders. Meaning that if your standing in your binding on your board it doesn't look like your standing tall. To figure what your ideal stance should be take the stance you have and measure from center to center on each base plate. (this is your stance width). I suggest using tape or a grease pencil to mark where your existing stance. After marking your stance here's where you can begin to play with your width. A generally good rule of thumb is to slowly widen your stance try to take at least three or so runs (this give your body time to get used to it). If your not regularly experimenting with your stance then shame on you. For example, it was a season and a half to recently dial in the current set up I have. (Also bear in mind we really even touched on angles etc.)

 More often that not ...riders get into this lazy mode of turning (minimal bending of their ankles and knees). Yes you can ride a board this way...is it the most efficient...NOPE. Riding with your ankles and knees bent allows for a lower center of gravity, which means better board control. The bindings are connected to your feet for a reason...your feet are what steer and control the snowboard. Why not make your life easier right?

Try focusing on staying low as you can while warming up on your favorite green or blue run. At first it might not make any sense, but once you begin to realize how much more stable you are it ill become second nature. Considering any park or air time then bending your ankles and knees is your Alli.

In conclusion if your one of the many intermediate riders stuck in a rut of staleness the give the above listed info a try.

Any questions or comments please send me an e-mail: dipasquale.jonah@gmail.com

Happy Trails !!

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Product Review: 2012 Turbine Boardwear

Very psyched to get on the mtn and try out these new threads from the folks at Turbine Boardwear 

After thrash testing the TB products, I'm 100% sold !!! Turbine puts alot of thought in to style and value!!

I have to say that since the Bristol Mountain Freestyle team has switched...we've been getting a ton of positive feedback !!

The Lexington jacket (insulated) offers up more pockets. If your like me and have tons of "widgets" to carry..it's perfect. Plenty of storage space, and a nice handy fold down "pass pocket". In case of a POw-Pow assault there's even a nicely stashed zip out "powder skirt". Hope to get to use this feature more that's for sure!!! ;)

As a coach there's often quite a bit of stand aound time...the Lexingtons insulation if perfect. Excellent warm...plus well placed (easy to operate with gloves) pit zip vents were an added plus on those sunny day half pipe hike sessions.

Removeable (helmet friendly) hood...the weather on the east coast can be so variable, this feature is HUGE. Another nice added touch is the wrist glove sinches. Allows you to rock your glove steezy or practical.

In the pant department we chose the Greenwich. Now this style deff bucks tradition with a fresh looking "jean pant" design. For the team we really felt this was a big deal. Everyone is rocking the plain black pant look. The Greenwich pant offers, front and back zip pockets, velcro front zipper snap. Shredded pant legs are a thing of the past with a nicely tailored rear cuff to avoid "edge shred" I also really like the adjustable inner leg gator, made putting pant on and offer effort free. Warmth is excellent, did'nt really have to bust out any major base layer even on a few of the negative east coast snow seshs. Water repellence...with in reason these pants held up the the dredded east coast "snain" really well. Would I say wear these in a down pour...umm probably not.

If your looking for gear that looks fresh and techy, but will not break the bank...Turbine Board wear is your choice !! Thank you again to the folks at Turbine for all their support of the 2012 Bristol Snowboard Freestyle Team.

Enjoy the snow, hope to see you out on the snow!!!

Like what you've read ? Please let me know!!

Jonah D.

Twitter: TheHoggle






Killington 012 Dew Tour Highlights

Incase you missed it here's some of the Killington 2012 Dew Tour stop....YouTube #stoked

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Balance Bikes...yes they work !!!

When it came to learning how to ride a bike back in the day for myself....I learned the hard way.

Can not count how many times I flipped the bars or wadded myself up. While working as an account manager with Cannondale Bicycle Corp. a few years back I first ran into FirstBIKE.

Really dig thier down to earth focus...plain simple products that deliver. If your a cycling parent or even simply want to get your child riding safely choose FirstBIKE. The other great thing I wanted to point out...there's such a demand for this product it's almost impossible to find them used. A family buys one moves it up through the ranks...them "passes the savings along". Either way please check em' out really cool folks just dialed in the new Facebook page. I encourage you to take sometime an learn more about the benefits of choosing a FirstBIKE product. Well worth your invesment, time , and satisfaction.

Thanks for stopping by to check my blog, be well !!

FirstBIKE USA Launches US Distribution of a Premium Toddler Balance Bike

Jonah D.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Fresh perspective on #shred

I'm a huge fan of blog reviews. Always nice not only to read "real person" product insights. You get the good, bad , and sometimes even ugly. Which brings me to the Geeks of Shred!. (Not ugly by any means #awakwardmoment)...LOL, Pretty solid crew for sure, pinged them on twitter and was super impressed on their engagment factor. Deff. Worth a follow for you #tweeps out there. Please check out their blog , oh and I even found em on FB as well.

Enjoy the Shred...please feel free to let me know what you think.
Geeks of Shred! | everything snowboarding!

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Scott Delforte Jam 2011


SDJ012 it's Getting Closer...are you ready?? Please check out my cameo @ 2:30min !!! #electricpickle #frozenpantyhose

Bristol Mtn remix pix

Some of the sights from the mtn...this past weekend.

It has been a tough winter on the east coast, all things aside my local mountain has been in decent shape. Here's a few pix I took to share....Hope to see you out on there, I also coach the snowboard freestlye team on the weekends. 
www.bristolmountain.com








Thursday, January 5, 2012

Getting the "Mojo"

After I hit the forty-somethings keeping up a regular fitness routine fell way off the back. Let's face life happens plain and simple. The bike ride that you could not live with out goes away. Running even if it's a brisk trot seems worthless. I don't know about you but...if I'm not spendign time working on staying in shape I feel like crap.

Had an excellent phone call with a good friend of mine...I was blown away to find out the we were both in the same boat. Always trying to find time to get a work out in but no time to do it. As I look back on 2011...surrounding my self with the most optimal friends was a feeble effort on my part.

This year I'm going to make my goal to surround myself with those that are like minded. Motivated, disciplined, supportive, determined, passionate...reliable. It's not easy find these folks quite honestly...but if you work hard enough you'll find them. Bottom line get these folks on some kind of call, txt, or e-mail list and go nuts.

Hey, I'm not sayin ditch your old buddies or friends, I'm saying think more wisely about the company you choose to surround yourself daily. Have an excellent day!!


Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Shaun Palmer Documentary | Snowboarder Magazine

I'm so psyched for this flix...can not wait !!!

Not sure if you've had a chance to follow this "extreme sport" rock star but well worth a watch when this comes out. While annoucning at the 2011 UCI World Cup / Windham, NY. this past summer I witnessed Aaron Gwin capture the first US DH win in a decade. Last person to claim that title was Palmer !!! So insane !!!

Shaun Palmer Documentary Snowboarder Magazine

Enjoy !!!

Jonah D.
Follow me on twitter!!! TheHoggle

Bristol Mountain Freestyle Team 2012

Now this is what it's all about...

Monday, January 2, 2012

Red Hot 2012 !!!

Happy New Year everyone...looks like we've made it out of what seemed like a never ending 2011! I'm very excited about the potential 2012 is going to bring for us all.
Let's make it an "Epic" season for sure. Hoping the cold winter and snow is hittin up your back yards as well. See you on the trails...