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Skiing News - April 2008
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Tuesday, 29 April 2008PORTLAND, OR - With Mt. Hood still buried under more than 16 feet of snow, one local non-profit organization is already gearing up for an even bigger season next year. For the past eight years, SOS Outreach, an organization that builds character and self-esteem in at-risk and underprivileged youth through snowsports, has been quietly establishing itself in Oregon. This winter, nearly 100 young Or egonians participated in SOS snowboarding programs on Mt. Hood and in Central Oregon. SOS aims to double that number in the coming years through organic growth and an ever-increasing number of strategic partnerships.
The organization’s core offering is a five-day ‘Learn to Ride’ program, which provides professional ski or snowboard instruction, lift tickets, and all necessary clothing and gear. ‘Learn to Ride’ students also complete a curriculum that focuses on five core values of courage, discipline, integrity, wisdom, and compassion. The combined experience is designed to promote self-esteem, strengthen social competencies, and instill solid personal values - both on the hill and in everyday life. Successful ‘Learn to Ride’ graduates have the opportunity to continue with SOS Outreach for an additional four years through a ‘University’ program, which features a continuing curriculum and incorporates community service, mentoring, and life skills workshops.
The SOS mission is made possible through strategic partnerships with local mountain resorts and youth agencies. This season, Mt. Hood Skibowl joined Mt. Hood Meadows and Timberline as the third resort on Mt. Hood to donate lift tickets, equipment rentals, and snowboard instruction to SOS students from the Portland area. Students and counselors from Portland YouthBuilders, Mt. Scott Learning Centers, Reynolds Learning Academy, and Janus Youth Programs, all metro-area alternative schools and youth agencies, participated in SOS programs this year. For many of these students, this is the first time they have had the opportunity to visit Mt. Hood and try a snowsport, and the experience can be truly life-changing.
Megan Barrett, a teacher at Mt. Scott Learning Centers, speaks to the positive impact she has observed during the school’s three-year partnership with SOS Outreach. “SOS encourages my students to support one another, and also teaches them self-reliance and discipline. It's incredible to watch students go from worry and doubt to happiness and pride when they make it down the hill for the first time without falling. At the end of five days, there is a bond between the kids and their teachers that lasts far beyond the mountain. Through SOS, for the first time in their lives, many of these kids are experiencing the pride and confidence that comes from personal success. Through SOS, these kids learn that they are the type of people who are capable of anything.”
As a seven-year veteran with SOS in Oregon, National Program Coordinator Malee Lucas has seen firsthand the power of the program. “The mountains are place of sanctuary from the challenges of daily life, and SOS offers a safe and supportive environment that makes a powerful difference in the lives of at-risk youth - one day of snowboarding at a time,” Lucas says.
As Lucas and a small team of dedicated volunteers and ‘Learn to Ride’ graduates look forward to next season, they list several priorities that will help fuel the program’s growth in Oregon, including:
- giving back to the community through SOS-sponsored service project on Mt. Hood this summer;
- increasing community outreach to build awareness and expand the local volunteer base;
- fostering additional in-kind and financial support by pursuing new strategic partnerships;
- increasing enrollment in the SOS ‘University’ program;
- expanding the ‘Learn to Ride’ program to additional Oregon resorts; and
- maintaining positive, ongoing relationships with local resorts and youth agencies.
SOS Outreach is a non-profit organization that builds character and self-esteem in at-risk and underprivileged youth through snowsports. Headquartered in Colorado’s Vail Valley, SOS Outreach offers multi-day snowboarding and skiing programs at 30 resorts in eight states. More than 2,500 kids participated in SOS programs during winter 2007-2008 - the organization’s 14th year.
The 2007-2008 ski season marked the organization’s eighth year in Oregon. This winter, nearly 100 young Oregonians participated in SOS Outreach ‘Learn To Ride’ and ‘University’ snowboarding programs on Mt. Hood - at Mt. Hood Meadows, Mt. Hood Skibowl, and Timberline resorts - and in Central Oregon - at Hoodoo Mountain Resort and Willamette Pass.
For more information about SOS Outreach and its range of programs, visit www.sosoutreach.org.
Monday, 28 April 2008Orinda, CA - Whistler Blackcomb, B.C. has been named North America's favorite ski resort by visitors of OnTheSnow.com, the oldest and most visited snow sports portal.
The website, which attracts a Nielsen-audited 1.2 million unique monthly visitors during the winter, gave its visitors the opportunity to write reviews of all resorts in North America. Visitors then ranked them in five categories: Overall Favorite, Best Nightlife, Most Family-friendly, Best Downhill Terrain, and Best Terrain Park. More than 7,500 reviews were submitted from September 2007 until April 2008. Whistler-Blackcomb received perfect scores in the overall favorite and downhill terrain categories and was near perfect for its nightlife. The ratings were based on readers' average rankings, number of reviews, and specific comments made in OnTheSnow.com over the winter season.
"User generated content is one of the most powerful and effective ways web visitors have to communicate with each other," said Mountain News Corp. President and Publisher Rob Brown, whose company publishes OnTheSnow.com. "Skiers and snowboarders are relying on the word of their peers when they make resort choices. We believe the importance of reader advisories will continue to grow each year and these annual awards provide a peek into their thinking."
Snowmass, Colo. was named North America's most family-friendly resort and Angel Fire, N.M. won for having the best terrain park. Squaw Valley USA, Calif. was named favorite overall on a regional level for the Far West, along with Schweitzer, Idaho for the Pacific Northwest; Snowmass, Colo. for the Rockies, Ski Brule, Mich. for the Midwest, Sunday River, Maine for the Northeast, and Wintergreen, Va. for the Mid Atlantic.
North American Ski Resort Winners:
North America's Favorite Resort: Whistler-Blackcomb, B.C.
North America's Best Downhill Terrain: Whistler-Blackcomb, B.C.
North America's Best Nightlife: Whistler-Blackcomb, B.C.
North America's Most Family-friendly: Snowmass, CO
North America's Best Terrain Park: Angel Fire, NM
Regional Ski Resort Winners:
Pacific Northwest:
Favorite: Schweitzer, Idaho
Nightlife: Schweitzer, Idaho
Family: 49 Degrees North, Wash.
Downhill Terrain: Mt. Baker, Wash.
Terrain Park: Mt. Bachelor, Ore.
Far West:
Favorite: Squaw Valley., Calif.
Nightlife: Mammoth Mt., Calif.
Family: Snow Valley, Calif.
Downhill Terrain: Kirkwood, Calif.
Terrain Park: Bear Mt., Calif.
Rocky Mountains:
Favorite: Snowmass, Colo.
Nightlife: Deer Valley, Utah
Family: Grand Targhee, Wyo.
Downhill Terrain: Jackson Hole, Wyo.
Terrain Park: Telluride, Colo.
Midwest:
Favorite: Ski Brule, Mich.
Nightlife: Shanty Creek, Mich.
Family: Chestnut, Ill.
Downhill Terrain: Shanty Creek, Mich.
Terrain Park: Perfect North Slopes, Ind.
Northeast:
Favorite: Sunday River, Maine
Nightlife: Whiteface, N.Y.
Family: Smugglers' Notch, Vt.
Downhill Terrain: Gore Mt., N.Y.
Terrain Park: Loon Mt., N.H.
Mid-Atlantic/Southeast:
Favorite: Wintergreen, Va.
Nightlife: Wisp, Md.
Family: Bryce Mt., N.C.
Downhill Terrain: Blue Knob, Pa.
Terrain Park: Hidden Valley, Pa.
OnTheSnow.com is the web's most visited snow report website with a Nielsen-audited 1.2 million monthly unique visitors. OnTheSnow offers the ski report, resort reviews, web cams, and skiing deals for virtually every ski resort in the world. There are 13 International Editions of OnTheSnow in seven languages. (PR.COM)
Source:
www.onthesnow.com
Thursday, 24 April 2008The first Raft and Ski Weekend will be held on May 3 and 4 at Sugarloaf. Northern Outdoors and Sugarloaf teamed up for this event.
Both came up with an idea to blend these two activities in order to gather both winter and summer enthusiasts. With discounted rates, Northern Outdoors is offering whitewater rafting combined with a day of skiing at Sugarloaf.
May 3 will be the official start of the 2008 whitewater rafting season and May 4 will be the final day of the skiing season.
For more details on this news, please visit morningsentinel.mainetoday.com.
Tuesday, 22 April 2008The Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club is currently seeking the approval of the US Forest Service on the 65-meter Nordic ski jump at the base of the Tiehack, according to a report in the Aspen Daily News.
According to Winter Sports Administrator for the Aspen-Sopris District Jim Stark, the Forest Service intends to expand the current environmental assessment of other improvements on the said ski area to address the ski club’s request.
The ski club’s members are currently using a 25-meter jump at the base of Tiehack on Eagle Hill in order to train for Nordic ski jumping.
For more details on this news, please visit www.aspendailynews.com.
Monday, 21 April 2008With Nintendo’s latest video program, people will be ski jumping, snowboarding, and even tightrope walking under their own roofs.
Wii Fit is Nintendo's newest product that promises to keep users at home. It is an extension of the Wii Sport, which was first released in 2005 that allowed users to "play" simulated Nintendo sports while watching a computer-generated character of themsel ves competing. Wii Fit, by contrast, uses a wireless motion-sensitive "balance board" that measures the Body Mass Index and center of gravity. It includes 40 exercises or balance games such as ski jump and tightrope walk, yoga poses, muscle workouts, and aerobic exercises including boxing. The on-screen instructor ensures that the user is performing the exercise correctly.
Shannon Ferney from the University of Queensland's School of Human Movement explains that people of the present generation are technologically savvy. She says people nowadays like doing stuff in front of computers since this is what they have grown up with.
Wii Fit costs $149.95. In Japan, Nintendo has already sold nearly two million copies and plans to release it in Europe this week, in Australia on May 8, and in the US on May 19.
For more details on this news, please visit www.theage.com.au.
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