The auction will conclude next Friday, March 12, at 12:00 midnight Eastern Standard Time.

How do I bid? Click on the “Bid Now” button on the link above. You will be asked to set up a user name and password. Once you do this, it will work much like ebay. IMPORTANT for international bidders: the username and password form is in USA address format. To overcome this, simply place “NH” in the State field and leave the rest blank. This will allow you to register. If you have any problems registering, please reply to this email and I will help.

Can I see the guitar before the auction? If you live in Northern California, yes. The guitar will be displayed at Granite Chief ski shop starting later this week. It will also be only display the last night of the auction at Plaza Bar/Bar One in Squaw Valley.

What if I don’t play guitar? Doesn’t matter. It’s a collector’s piece. You can always donate it to a third party (like a music charity).

The final donation will be made through http://shanemcconkey.org

The Freeride World Tour tried for the second year in a row to hold the third stop of the tour on the Tram Face in Squaw Valley, California. It almost happened, but a small pocket of snow was triggered by someone from the media and the competition was immediately cancelled. The competition was moved from the Tram Face to Silverado. Silverado is an in-bounds venue. It is not what I would consider a FWT worthy venue, but it was the best venue for the competition due to the circumstances.

Silverado - Compeition Venue for the Nissan Tram Face Freeride World Tour

There are multiple reasons why Silverado is not worthy of being a Freeride World Tour venue. The two main reasons are that Silverado is too short and it does not have enough features to demonstrate creativity or variety in the lines competitors choose to ski. Essentially Silverado is a big air competition. Who ever can land the biggest air of the day, wins the competition.

Jaclyn Paaso definitely won the big air competition for the women. She most likely won for the men as well. She took the largest air of the day for all of the competitors. It was impressive.

Henrick Windstedt had the biggest and cleanest air for the men.

Awards Ceremony

I hucked myself into fifth place women. I skied really well putting together a line that included three airs: a 20ft, 30ft, and 15ft. It is not often that a line with three large airs would be a fifth place finish. The women skied exceptionally well. All of the women chose lines with huge airs and almost every single female stomped her line. It was a good day for women skiing.

The third stop really shook things up in the rankings for the overall of the Freeride World Tour. Jaclyn Paaso is now leading the tour followed by Ane Endrud and myself. The last stop of the tour will be held in Verbier on the notorious Bec de Rosses.

Armed with posters and horns, the Ellis family was in the parking lot ready to support me like it was the Super Bowl. I can only imagine how it would have felt to ski down the Tram Face and see the Ellis gang at the finish line.

Thanks! You Guys Are Awesome!

I intended to wear my Jeff Ellis shirt today and ski for the friend I lost, but instead I shared a wonderful morning with his family. It is always hard to see Jeff’s family, but it is something I would never opt out of. They are wonderful people and help me remember that every day I have is special and it is important to take advantage of it and do what I love. That’s what Jeff did!

There was a lot of discussion on Saturday night at the Freeride World Tour Athlete Meeting. A decision was made not ski the Tram Face for the competition due to hazardous conditions. The riders were very disappointed with the decision and were not happy about the alternative venues; Silverado and Granite Chief. Jeremy Jones spoke for the riders and encouraged the organizers to reconsider the decision. After much discussion, the decision was made to re-evaluate the Tram face at 6:00 the following morning.

All of the riders met at the judges station at 6:00 this morning to watch the head of security and ski patrol ski the Tram Face. The snow at the top of venue looked good, but the bed surface left from the previous slides was still very firm. The Pro Freeriders Board met and decided it was go. The Tram Face would be the venue and there would be a competition today.

I was so excited. I have been waiting two years to ski the sacred Tram Face and today was finally my chance. I was concerned with the conditions. I chose a line that was straight forward and intended to flash it. I headed down to the parking lot to watch the first male skiers compete.

The parking lot was packed with people. The Tram Face is one of the best spectating venues I have ever seen. There were at least a thousand people tail gating in the parking lot, ready to watch the show.

Some People Even Slept In The Parking Lot For Prime Viewing. Good Morning Jim Jack!

Jerome, the head of security for the Freeride World Tour, wanted to check the Tram Face one more time before the competition started. As Jerome was skiing down the left side of the venue, a large avalanche triggered at the top right side of the Tram Face (not an area were the competitors were planning on skiing). It was a big one.

No one was injured or close to the avalanche. For the crowd in the parking lot, it was a big show. The head of ski patrol immediately called the competition off. The competition has been rescheduled for monday on Silverado.

Tram Face - Thursday, February 25th, 2010

It is almost official that the Tram Face Competition will be re-scheduled for Sunday. There is a 5% chance that we will compete tomorrow. Due to the monsoon that has just hit Truckee, I am placing my money on Sunday. The competition was post-poned from friday due to safety and weather. It was clear this morning in Squaw Valley until 10:00 a.m. It may have been possible to get through all of the riders before the rain started to fall. The only problem was that there were multiple natural slides on the Tram Face and huge piles of debre. The snow on the top 1/3 of the face was good, but turned to crust the rest of the way down. Please keep your fingers crossed that soon this storm will cool off and the Tram face will be blessed with a couple of feet of the light fluffy stuff, powder!

Bib draw will be held tonight at 4:30 in Squaw Valley Event Village. There will be a live band and other festivities. If you are in the Tahoe area swing by.

The Crested Butte extremes was the second competition I ever competed in. I finished fourth and swore I would never come back. It wasn’t that I was upset about how I finished, it was that in all honesty I didn’t understand Crested Butte. After this weekend, I get it. Crested Butte is a very unique mountain. It is riddle with rocks, steep chutes, and tight trees. It is one of the most challenging venues I have ever skied.

The first day of the Extremes was held on Staircase, home of the infamous Slot Rocks. I had a hard time finding a line, but stayed true my skiing style and chose a line that was wide open for Crested Butte standards and hit four decent size airs. I was so excited after the first day. I was in third and only a few points out of the top spot.

That night huge flakes fell from the sky and blessed Crested Butte with over two feet of snow. The venue looked completely different. The winning line for women has historically been the “Jen Aston double in Body Bag.” I really wanted to win and was psyched to give Jen’s line a try. Unfortunately, the men skied first and I was not the only one who had an eye on the Jen’s line. Many of the men skied her line and I decide at the last minute to change up my line. I dropped into the hand rail and off a ten footer skiing over to another nice drop. From their I battled my way through the tight trees and into Body Bag. I had scouted a nice 8 tiered pillow line on the left side of body bag. I was worried that someone else might ski it, but to my surprise it was untouched. It was really difficult to get to the top of the pillow line. The trees were tighter than my skis and riddled with rocks. On my last hop turn, I had to grab a tree for control. This is a standard Crested Butte move, but not a popular move with the judges. Once at the top of my pillow line, I pointed it and enjoyed the fresh snow on top of each pillow. It was a blast and I came flying out of body bag with a smile on my face. I skied into third place and am now leading the Freeskiing World Tour by 50 points.

Crested Butte was a blast! I finally understand why skiers love it. It is not about flying down the hill and hitting big airs. It is about controlling your heart beat and making calculated moves in steep, tight, rocky conditions. It is completely different from anything I know and an intense rush!

The Line!

I was really excited to ski my chosen line. I hit my top air with no worries, but as I started ripping powder turns down to my mandatory air, the snow started ripping as well. I could feel the sluff piling up around my hips and had to pull over to let the sluff pass by me. This is not exactly what you want to do in a competition run. The idea is to be as fast and as fluid as possible, but a it’s not worth getting taken out above a lot of exposure. I didn’t think the snow would sluff as hard as it did because the slope looked benching. I thought the sluff would be slow and I would easily be able to out run it. Not true. The sluff was incredibly fast and for my safety I had to let it go by me.

After the sluff passed me, I skied right to my mandatory air and was sick about it when I arrived. The sluff that I had cut at the top of the line took out all of the snow above my take off. I had not really planned on this and was essentially cliffed out. I had to make way down all of the rocks to get to my take off and out of the line. It took three must make hop turns to get to the take off. Once I made it to my take off, I was stoked. I was home free. I pointed 15 feet above my take off so I would have enough speed to clear the cliff and popped. Everything went well until the last second when my right ski caught a rock and sent me spinning through the air. I landed on my side as opposed to my feet. Luckily, the snow was really soft and I popped up, skied to my last 15ft air and through the finish.

Mandatory Air with Snow

I had a ton of adrenaline pumping through my body at the finish. I was super stoked that I had challenged myself and made it through my line even though it had not gone as planned.

As I said, hind sight is always 20/20. At awards I felt the disappointment of defeat. The winning line was much more conservative. I didn’t need to chose such a challenging line to do well in the competition. I just couldn’t help myself. If the snow had been stable, the line would’ve been sick!

Competition Venue with Snow

I am so excited to be in Austria. It is a wonderful country. And Fieberbrunn is an awesome resort. The second stop of the women’s Freeride World Tour is set to go on Saturday. The venue is beautiful. It is approx. 600-700 meters long. The organizers of the competition have been great. They are extremely organized and inviting. It has been a pleasure to be here so far.

At first glance the competition face seems to be blanketed with tons of snow. All the competitors were able to traverse underneath the venue today and realized there are many rocks hiding right beneath the surface. Austria is known to get 7-8 meters of snow a year, but this year has been a little thin. Fieberbrun received 30 cm’s of snow a couple of days ago, but did not have much snow before hand. There is no base support the new snow. Up close the venue showed to be very rocky.

What out for the sharks!

Despite all of the rocks, the snow is very good. The girls will be riding first! Yahoo! I think many of the lines have only enough snow for a few riders. I drew bib 5 which is also good. There will only be four riders on the face before me and there should be plenty of snow in my line.

I have been going back and fourth on where to ski tomorrow: where is the best snow, what line will score the best, etc. In the end I have decided to choose a line based on the goals I set for myself this season. It is my goal to challenge myself and scare myself just a little at every competition. I have found two lines that will do just that. Now it is a matter of how I am feeling when I wake up in the morning.

Bye Bye Chamonix!

It was tough to leave Chamonix. It is a truly magical place. I had an amazing time, but it was time to check out a few other zones in the Alps. I joined Crystal Wright and Angel Percival in search of blue skies, soft fluffy snow, and the perfect picture. The first stop Verbier.

Welcome to Verbier

Verbier is one of the best free riding zones in the Alps. There is an extensive lift system and more terrain than a skier can cover in a week. It is also the home of the Verbier X-treme. It is almost the complete opposite of Chamonix. The streets of Chamonix are filled with mountaineers and climbers. The skiers of Verbier are wearing small backcountry packs and fat skis. It was the perfect place for the girls team to start shooting photos.

The Zone

The day was blue bird, but it had been a week since the last storm. It took a little work to find the perfect snow with the perfect light, but in the end we persevered and got the shot.

Wiggling my way through a crack to get to a beautiful spine.

Next stop, La Grave. La Grave, Coombs country, has been on my list for many years. It is one of the special places in world that I have heard about and have always been nervous to go. I have been told that it is nearly impossible to roll into La Grave and figure it out. Many friends have warned me that a guide is mandatory for the first day. It is not a place to explore on your own, you want to know where going. On a limited budget, I never thought I would be able to afford a guide in La Grave and therefore have never made it there. Some how my stars aligned and I found myself in La Grave with a guide thanks to many emails and friends.

Le Meije and the cutest little gondolas I have ever seen.

I don’t know if words can truly capture the feeling of La Grave. La Grave is a true freeriding zone. There is no piste skiing. There are no patrol man. The mountains is only controled/secured by the guides who ski it every day. You will not hear bombs in the morning, only the sounds of the locals planning their first run of the morning in lift line. The mayor of La Grave makes the final decision whether or not to open the top of the mountain based on what some of the tops guides say about the stability of the snow pack.

Angela Percival Wondering What She Has gotton Herself Into.

“We you arrive at La Grave - La Meije, you’re in no ordinary ski resort. You’re in an unsecured site in the high mountains, where the weather conditions can change rapidly and you’re in charge of your our safety. A cable car takes you up to altitude of 3200 meters in about 30 minutes, in a unique setting surrounded by vast glaciers and steep couloirs where you can carve turns according to your inspiration and level, far from any groomed trails or lift pylons. The requires a certain technical level, but above all a good dose of humility and responsibility when faced with the natural elements. Before setting out you need to take a certain number of precautions for your own peace of mind and safety, as well as that of others. These tips will help you avoid minor and even major problems and enjoy unforgettable moments in a legendary place.” Front of the trail map for La Grave-Le Meije.

7000 ft Couloirs!

The brochure forgets to mention that with a little knowledge and some rope work skiers can rip down 7000 foot couloirs. Keith Garvey, www.allmountainadventures, and Joe Vallone have been guiding in La Grave for last 8 years and shared their knowledge with us.

caption id=”attachment_1210″ align=”aligncenter” width=”360″ caption=”Keith Garvey and Joe Vallone - Bad Ass Mountain Guides!”][/caption]

Each Couloir required some rope work at some point, but it was well worth it!

Crystal Wright Setting up the Belay Station

And I have to admit that sometimes the rope work was as much fun as the skiing.

Dropping IN!

Crystal Wright Repelling Switch. This was my favorite Repel of the Day. I came down giggling! So much fun!

La Grave is true adventure skiing. It is mind blowing. I can’t wait to come back!