Snowboarding

Muscles Not Motors Gear Review - March 2010

I just got back from the Outdoor Retailer Trade Show in Salt Lake City, UT, where 40,000 or so outdoor industry types like me converged for a week-long gear summit. By the last day, I was dehydrated from drooling. Here are just three of the items that I found particularly tasty.

GSI OUTDOORS VORTEX HAND CRANKED BLENDER

vtsports.com Launches The Vermont Sports Gear Exchange

vtsports.com is launching a website for outdoor fitness and adventure enthusiasts to buy, sell, and trade new and gently used gear and equipment online. The company has set-up and is testing gear.vtsports.com as an auction site.

Muscles Not Motors Gear Review - November 2009

Whether you’re a snowboarder or snowshoer, mountain hiker or mountain biker, Nordic skier or Nordic walker, you need gear. Each month, I review, right here, three items that I personally feel are especially cool. Here are my picks for this month.

Swix 2 in 1 Split Mitt

FIRST WIND TURBINE AT A VERMONT SKI AREA UNDER CONSTRUCTION AT BOLTON VALLEY RESORT

(September 10, 2009) BOLTON VALLEY, VT.-- Bolton Valley Resort, a locally owned and operated family ski and snowboard area, has announced construction of a wind turbine that will be operational in late autumn. It is the first wind turbine to be constructed at a Vermont ski area.

Muscles Not Motors Gear Review

Whether you’re a snowboarder or snowshoer, mountain hiker or mountain biker, Nordic skier or Nordic walker, you need gear. Each month, I review, right here, three items that I personally feel are especially cool. Here are my picks for this month.

Ski Resort Roundup

Even though the majority of our nation’s citizens are feeling the financial pinch of escalating energy costs, which takes a major bite out of disposable income available for alpine skiing and riding, Vermont’s ski and snowboard resorts continue to invest in their facilities to remain competitive in a tight market. Here’s a look at the significant improvements for this season:

VERMONT’S SWEET SEASON

SYRUP, SPRING SKIING AND SEASON PASS SALE

Reader Athlete February 2010: Emmet Manning

Age: 49
Residence: Underhill
Family: Wife, Paige; sons, Conner and Ryan, 23, and Keegan, 19; daughters, Shay, 21, Britt, 15 and Fionn, 10
Occupation: Sales service manager for Burton North America
Primary sport: Snowboarding

The Search for Early Snow

A characteristic shared by most Nordic skiers is the anticipation of getting on snow. For dedicated competitors this becomes an obsession. Swimmers, runners, and tennis players can enjoy their sports year round, but Nordic skiers in this part of the country are typically limited to four or five months of reliable snow cover.

Muscles Not Motors October 2009 Gear Review

Whether you’re a snowboarder or snowshoer, mountain hiker or mountain biker, Nordic skier or Nordic walker, you need gear. Each month, I review, right here, three items that I personally feel are especially cool. Here are my picks for this month.

KELTY GUNNISON 2.1 TENT

Honing Your Heart Rate?

For years and years we’ve been testing people in our Human Performance lab at UVM for all kinds of studies ranging from fluid intake to heat tolerance. One thing that has always plagued me is the accuracy of the maximal heart rate numbers we get. For the most part we don’t really question the data as it’s all carefully collected and monitored.

Best Vermont Ski Area Deals

ASCUTNEY MOUNTAIN RESORT

Ascutney’s Two for Tuesdays program returns again this season. Show up with a friend and you both ride the lifts for $30 a piece on typically sedate Tuesdays. There’s a special deal just for telemarkers on Thursdays: a $29 ticket price. Friday afternoons lands Vermont and New Hampshire residents a $27 tariff and the same deal repeats on Sunday afternoons.

Retail Junkie Superstar: Rubbing Shoulders, Olympic Style

My Olympic fever has gone down, but I still have a touch of the commercial flu. After three weeks of being glued to the TV, I don’t think I’ll ever turn one of those blasted things on again, or at least not until baseball season starts.

Vermont’s Best Après-Ski Hangouts

Our steady supply of fresh powder and steadier supply of fresh microbrews means Vermont’s après-ski scene is now in full swing.

Governor Douglas Proclaims January as Learn a Snow Sport Month in Vermont

MONTPELIER, Vt. (Dec. 31, 2009) - For the first time, Governor Jim Douglas proclaimed January as Learn a Snow Sport Month, endorsing Vermont ski resorts as learning destinations for Vermonters and all winter visitors to the Green Mountain State.

Vermont Ski Resort News

From new chairlifts to wind turbines, from routine trail mowing to new cooperative ownership structures, Vermont ski areas have been busy these last few months preparing for the exciting winter sports season ahead. Here’s a look at what’s new for the 2009-2010 season.

ASCUTNEY MOUNTAIN RESORT

Lateral Ankle Sprain and Chronic Ankle Instability

The commonly occurring lateral ankle sprain, also called an inversion sprain, can be the precursor to painful and disabling chronic ankle instability. The ankle twist, rollover, or sprain may be the most overlooked athletic injury, and for that reason may also be amongst the worst. A common ankle sprain can lead to ankle instability, cartilage damage, arthritis, and a lifetime of ankle pain.

Reader Athletes: Sam Osborne

Age: 55
Residence: Burlington
Family: Wife, Eleanor; three sons, Erik, 20, Alex, 19, Ben, 16.
Occupation: Sales of Campaign Software
Primary Sports: Road Biking, Skiing, Snowboarding

VS: You attempted an alpine ski career in your younger days. What happened?

Floor Statement by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont to Congratulate Vermont Olympians

Congressional Record – Tuesday, March 2, 2010

The Life of an Alpine Skier Turned Snowboarding Tele Skier who Cross-Country Skis

My first time Alpine skiing was at Cannon Mountain in New Hampshire in 1983. I was ten years old and my family had just moved to Littleton, NH, from Portland, ME. My parents were nice enough to sign me up for the skiing program at my new school, which aside from providing me with a lift ticket and lunch, provided me with really lousy rental equipment.

Vermont Sports Magazine Offers Digital Subscriptions: 10% of subscription sales to support three Vermont non-profits

Vermont Sports Magazine and it’s online service www.vtsports.com, have recently launched a digital subscription service for it’s magazine readers interested in helping the magazine reduce its’ carbon footprint in Vermont and helping out some noteworthy non-profit organizations in the state.

Bolton Valley Resort Installs Wind Turbine

Bolton Valley, VT—Bolton Valley Resort, a locally owned and operated family ski and snowboard area, is constructing a wind turbine that will begin operating late October. It is the first wind turbine to be constructed at a Vermont ski area. The turbine will be located near the top of the resort’s Vista Quad lift in an existing clearing adjacent to the ski patrol hut.

SWEET STATEWIDE DEALS FOR SKIING AND RIDING IN VERMONT

Grab your gear and hug your helmet; the love affair has continued! With the last two years of snow-filled February memories, the honeymoon of a Vermont Valentine’s Day and President’s Week is packed with dozens of discounts to get skiers and riders on the snow affordably.

Cold Season Outdoor Gear

We’ve made the long trip around the sun once again. Before long, Old Man Winter will blanket Vermont in white, and many of us will be out there making the most of it on our skis, boards, snowshoes, bikes, and sleds. Ever year, we stumble on a few items that we feel could make your winter season even more enjoyable, and they are featured here. Have a great winter, and stay warm and dry!

The Winter Olymic Games - Greek or Roman?

I always look forward to, and enjoy, the Winter Olympics. This year was no exception. It was thrilling to watch so many of our sons and daughters of the Green and White Mountains perform and excel on the international stage. While enjoying all of this exciting competition, I was also struck more than ever by the death-defying risks that so many athletes are taking in the pursuit of Olympic gold.

Vermonters in the 2010 Winter Olympics

When the 21st Winter Olympics kicks off in Vancouver, British Columbia, on February 12, as many as eight Vermonters might be dashing from some sort of starting line, hoping to become immortalized in the pantheon of Olympic medalists.

Put Sports Injuries on Ice: Play it Safe and Glide through the Winter Season

ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill. - The tragic death of actress Natasha Richardson this past March put a spotlight on the potential risks inherent to skiing, as well as the deadly consequences that can result from head trauma. Richardson died two days after suffering an epidural hematoma and slipping into a coma.

2009 Winter Gear

After a cool summer and a relatively early first frost, we have to wonder what Old Man Winter will have in store for us this season. We remember drinking lemonade in our shorts while building a deck at our house in December 2001. We also remember the truly world-class powder skiing we enjoyed back in late October 2005.

Between a Rock and a Running Shoe

Sometimes I think I have a rock in my head. A fairly large one—granite perhaps, or maybe Gabbro—lodged in the part of my brain where reason is broadcast. My lovely fiancée disagrees, or pretends to disagree, but she’s a sweetheart, so she has yet to convince me otherwise.

18th Annual Holiday Gift Guide

We are pleased to present the Vermont Sports annual Holiday Gift Guide. The goods we recommend on these pages were reviewed by members of the VS editorial staff (Jules Older, Brian Mohr, and Kate Carter) and are their picks for most interesting, impressive, and thoughtful gifts for people who spend time in the outdoors.