The Adventure Guys - Archives for: March 2008, 12

The inside story on outside recreation

Wednesday, March 12th, 2008

Crystal Mountain's Blade Raid: Skiing 10-feet off the ground

Posted by Craig Hill @ 05:12:30 pm

On Friday and Saturday 40 parachute pilots from seven countries will fly down the Crystal Mountain at 60 mph in the Red Bull Blade Raid. This hybrid competition combines skiing and paragliding and, according to course designer Jon DeVore, “takes a ski race to places that is wouldn’t be able to go without a parachute.”

Fellow course designer Andy Farrington says “there should be some great wipeouts, though, if there wasn’t a little carnage it wouldn’t be entertaining.”

Qualifying is Friday at 9 a.m. and the finals start Saturday at 9 a.m.

Check out this video to get at idea, but take note that these competitors are not on skis and snowboards like they will be at Crystal.

Categories: Adventure Guys

Burton searching for snowboarding equal rights

Posted by Craig Hill @ 04:42:07 pm

The Associated Press just moved this story:

Video-camera-toting snowboarders pulled out all the stops to answer a $5,000 challenge from a company that encouraged them to break the rules at “elitist, fascist” ski resorts that don’t allow snowboarding.

The tongue-in-cheek contest sponsored by Burton Snowboards was described by company founder and snowboard pioneer Jake Burton as a last resort to get equal access for snowboarders.

The company has received about 30 videos brimming with Alpine antics that included sawing boards in half, hiking up slopes in the dark, switching from skis to snowboards midslope.

=> Read more!

Categories: Adventure Guys

The Adventure Guys

We admit it. We've got great jobs. How many people get told by their bosses to go out and play? We write about those experiences each Thursday in The News Tribune’s Adventure section. But there's always more to the story. Here, Craig Hill and Jeffrey P. Mayor will share the inside stories on their adventures - including their misadventures - plus post news and answer your questions.

CRAIG HILL

Craig Hill is The News Tribune’s injury-prone Adventure writer. After eight years covering college football and basketball, he started writing about adventure sports in 2004. He writes about everything from mountaineering and cycling to skiing and camping. You can reach him at craig.hill@thenewstribune.com

JEFFREY P. MAYOR

Jeffrey P. Mayor has been The News Tribune’s Adventure editor since 2003, and oversees our weekly Adventure section. His coverage focuses on fishing, hunting, Mount Rainier and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. You can reach him at jeff.mayor@thenewstribune.com