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Telus Triple Challenge: Rail Jam

encomintor — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 23:58:00 GMT

Day 2 - the meat in the three day event schedule - is the bastard of the competition. The first day excitement is gone and the final night's Big Air hype has yet to come. The hangover hurts because you are not yet immune to pounding Coors Light all day. Your Electric shades were stolen from some underage chick in the bar last night. But at least the sun is gone - Telus, you lied to me, but we still had slush - and I had a VW key to show their tent in the village so they treated me with free Starbucks and massages of the feet. To top off the day and lead into Saturday the fine folks at SBC will be treating me to drinks all night at their Kaytoo Afterparty, they just don't know it yet.

Craig Gouweloos.

The Rail Jam wrapped to the beats of O-God and the filthy tongue of Jesse Fulton. Challenge two of three complete and victory two of a possible three for Jon Versteeg. Will he prove victorious in all three challenges this year? After a few hours of intense rail jamming qualifications the Open Women, Amateur Men, and Open Men were chiseled down to the top 10. Each had thirty minutes to do battle in the finals.

Mark Goodall.

Open Womens - The girls were ruling the long, slimy, green rails and Coors Light triple tall can jib. Jenna Blasman rode strong but couldn't sneak in top three, neither could Dani Brown although she was riding slippery and dressed all street. Apparently yesterdays slope winner, Diane Rudge, doesn't hit rails. Is that even an option these days in the Triple Challenge? Regardless no one killed it like the three girls below. Catrina Boyd rode best and took the win out of nowhere.

Catrina Boyd.

1) Catrina Boyd
2) Leanna King
3) Samm Denena

Women: Samm Denena, 3rd, Catrina Boyd, 1st, and Leanne King, 2nd.

Mens Am - First of all, if you can grow a beard I am not sure you should be competing against amateur kids. Anyway let's tick some highlights: Cole slide through the kink switch frontside, Ben Poechman put down some maneuvers, Josh Witt won the tallest tie-dye tee contest, and Mr. Wild Style, Travis Mooney, was a personal favorite going for huge spins over the can and not letting what looked like a busted shoulder slow him down for a second. But none were a match for Minishred, who took the win again.

1)     Taylor "Minishred" Watling
2)     Mike Rotsaert
3)     Cole Vibert

Amateur Men: Cole Vibert, 3rd, Taylor Watling, 1st, and Mike Rotsaert, 2nd.

Mens Open - With Minishred pumping up the crowd through a mouthful of metal, the Open Men took to the course for the big show. Brad Gauley took time out of his coaching schedule to whoop his riders in the jam in tribute to MJ (Jordan, not Jackson). CBGB was pressing through the kink like his board was cracked, Eric Brown did smooth front 5 can bonks and lots more, Brady Swartz was a champ, gypsy dread Mark Goodall has a serious case of the smoothies and should be checked for magnets under his bindings - cab 50 through the kink bs 3's out. At 15-yrs old Cole Cumming's once again put himself into the Open Division and blew minds - sending massive back lips and 270's over the kink. Once this kid invests in some landing gear look out. Move of the day - Jon Versteeg performed a back three handplant variation over the Coors Light tall can with impressive style. Various blunts, bagels, and switch board slides gave him his second win in as many days.

Jon Versteeg.

1)     Jon Versteeg
2)     Mark Goodall
3)     Eric Brown

Pro Men: Eric Brown, 3rd, Jon Versteeg, 1st and Mark Goodall, 2nd.

That's it for the rails and Day 2. Tomorrow is the Big Air finale extravaganza. There are some big names going for cash tomorrow. Jon Versteeg says ‘bring it.' I know Adam Chuntz looked game ready. He wasn't wearing his leather jacket that was stolen from his truck the night previous. Even Mike Osachuk is back in the east, threatening to repeat his podium performance from last year. Following the Big Air will be the legendary Coors Light After Party in the Grand Central Lodge where Fritz Helder and the Phantoms (and the T-Hill), will be performing a slightly toned down set from their regular show. See you there.

Eric Brown.

Brad Gauley was sending it with FS 270 to down rail, but didn't put it together.

Craig Gouweloos.

Don't forget yesterday's Telus Triple Challenge slopestyle coverage as well.

Winter X Games Europe: Results

encomintor — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:31:00 GMT

Turns out some Canadians made the trip to Tignes, France for the first ever European Winter X Games, and faired pretty well. Our best halfpipe Olympian, Mercedes Nicoll, just missed the podium in women's pipe, finishing 4th. Similarly, Spencer O'Brien came just as close in slopestyle, also finishing 4th. Our highest placing Olympic men's pipe rider, Justin Lamoureux, finished 14th in qualifiers, not making the finals. Hopefully he'll bounce back for next weekend's Burton US Open in Vermont. Mark McMorris, who did pretty well at the Oakley Arctic Challenge, didn't make finals in men's slopestyle, finishing 14th in qualifiers.

You can get all the Euro Winter X results at the ESPN site, including video (if you're in a place that will let you see it).

Photo: Dave Lehl/ESPN.com

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Video: Empire Backyard Party

encomintor — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:12:00 GMT

You probably saw our story, results and photos from last week's Empire Backyard Party. If you didn't feel that did the event justice, we've now got the video for you. Taking place in a real backyard (although, probably way cooler than yours), Eric Mercier and Ryan O'Dowd brought their skate contest concept to the snow. Yan Devo, Jeremy Cloutier, Frank April, Antonin Chamberland and more all threw down in the rider-friendly jam format. MAke sure you're there next year.

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Telus Triple Challenge: Slopestyle Results

MattCMgr — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 04:11:00 GMT

The Telus Triple Challenge at Blue Mountain is, like, totally a big deal. A big deal that will require me to ride slush, tip back Coors Lights, and watch great snowboarding for three days. I love my job.

At the crack of 11:30am this morning, I hopped into my trusty Volkswagen TDI to burn up to Blue Mountain. The Telus flyer promised spring conditions and sure enough the sun was blazing, requiring the use of my Electric Hoodlum sunglasses. I glanced in the rearview and Bam Margera starred back.

Driving alone up Airport Road can get real boring now that texting and driving is illegal. Good thing I had the newest issue of SBC to read on my lap. The Smiths provided the soundtrack as I looked up every few minutes to swerve around 10-ton trucks. By the time I hit Creemore the monotony of hills and farm fields became too much to handle. Reaching behind my drivers seat I grabbed a Coors Light, cold certified of course, and iced my aching shoulder.

Today (Thursday) was the first of the three challenges - Slopestyle: Open, Am, and Women. My arrival was timed perfectly to coincide with the finals in which the top 10 qualifiers from each of these divisions would be competing. On my way to the judges tower I high-fived Olympic halfpipe celebrity coach/MC for the weekend Jesse Fulton. Wasn't he banned from Blue Mountain Village for life? If not yet, surely he will be by Sunday morning. Joining Fulton on the mic was Harrison Gray and Miss Ironside, both on the DL. If the rumors of a television show called Wasaga Shore are true, then look for Cassandra "Hoodrich" Ironside to be the star. Looking good girl.

Women's winner, Diane Rudge, sending it.

Before throwing out high-fives to the judges I heard a loud noise from the woods, looking over just in time to see a hatless, hockey jersey wearing skier pile drive himself straight into a muddy berm. He was shook and possibly injured. Photographer to the stars, Richard Roth, seized the opportunity by taking a portrait of the muddy man and yelled out "Drink it off buddy!"

His reply..."That's the problem." Fact: anyone enjoying the mountain in a hockey jersey will be drunk before noon. This is going to be entertaining weekend.

Men's winner Jon Versteeg impresses the judges and sun-soaked onlookers alike.

Let's get to some riding. This year a central on-hill events site was built where all the events will take place. Rails at the bottom, big air jump in the middle, and another set of jumps/rails at the top. All three combined made up the slopestyle course. This provides prime viewing from the village and the Coors Light beer garden.

Open Women dropped first and they were going for it in the slushy conditions. Diane Rudge ended up having the run of the day and taking the slope title. Having some trouble with the landing was Jenna Blasman, but this girl has some serious style. She will be a threat over the next couple days. Also riding strong was Sam Denena who took third. Some girl threw a massive 720 but I turned away before getting a name because I thought she was going to land in the village.

Michael Rotsaert.

You would think there was cash on the line by the way the amateur men were ripping. Taylor "Minishred" Watling narrowly took out Travis Mooney for first place, riding well beyond his size. Not sure if Fulton's screaming helps or hurts Minishred's when he's riding. Travis has great hair and rides in denim with style. Third went to Michael Baker; the future of slopestyle is looking good.

Andrew Skelhorn.

The Men's Open field was stacked. Cole Cummings, at 15 years old, decided to enter the Open and had the talent to back his decision. He pleased the crowd with a massive double back, but the lacked the landing gear to him in the top 3. His name alone will ensure him future success. Jon Versteeg came all the way from BC to take 1^st place with a run that consisted of a cab 9, bs 9, switch bs 9, and a locked front board through the kinked rail. His run was bananas, but declined to comment when asked if Kevin Sansalone would be receiving 15% of his winnings. Zak Stone and Elliot Catton both rode solid, like professionally solid, following in 2^nd and 3^rd. The style on Stoner is effortless.

Zak Stone.

What's on tap for the next couple days? Friday is the Rail Jam followed at night by the SBC party at Kaytoo, where I assume there will not be an open bar but you can probably weasel a free magazine or just grab someone else's drink while they aren't looking.

Saturday is the Big Air Invitational where the best riders will be tossing big tricks for money. Saturday night is the Coors Light Cold Party in the Grand Central Lodge. It will be Cold Certified but will it be Party Certified? If you touch your t-shirt at midnight and it is soaked in beer, your night is officially Party Certified and you are "making party." You will sleep alone - possibly in a muddy ditch, but you will have made party like a champ. Fritz Helder and The Phantoms are the stars of the night. Look closely at the drummer Trash Helder and you will recognize him as ex-snowboarder Taylor Hill. T-Hill no longer snowboards now that he is a big rockstar because he is afraid he might fall and hurt his wrists. He is pretty much like James Hetfield from Metallica. Seriously though, Fritz is on Nelly Furtado's new label and they will be show stopping.

Should you come up to Blue Mountain tomorrow? With the Triple Challenge stacked with the first weekend of March Break and St. Patrick's Day - things are going to get crazy, like Myrtle Beach spring break crazy.

Brandon Morris.

This guy boosted a backside rodeo about five feet higher than anyone else off that jump.

Amateur Men: Travis Mooney, 2nd, Taylor Watling, 1st, and Michael Baker, 3rd.

Women: Jenna Blasman, 2nd, Diane Rudge, 1st, and Samm Denena 3rd.

Open Men: Elliot Catton, 3rd, Jon Versteeg, 1st, and Zak Stone, 2nd.

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You Look Good Mt Seymour: March 20th

MattCMgr — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 03:38:00 GMT

The next You Look Good tour stop is set for next weekend, on Saturday, March 20th, at Mt. Seymour in B.C.. There's another $5,000 in cash and $12,000 in prizes on the line, so it's in your best interests to get up there and compete. We'll see if the tour leaders from the eastern leg, Elliot Catton and Diane Rudge, make the trip out west to maintain their tour leads. We'll have photos and coverage from the day like always.

If cab 9's aren't your thing, there's still time to enter the Push.ca Slope-side Host Search for a chance to host our on-site video coverage. It's not all work, since you'll be rewarded with Bonfire outerwear and a Salomon snowboard, with a chance to win a Camp of Champions session. You can find out more and enter here.

Press Release:

Coors Light YOU LOOK GOOD Rider's Cup stops in BC
~ YLGRC10's third stop at Seymour on March 20, 2010 ~

Toronto, ON - The Coors Light YOU LOOK GOOD Rider's Cup (YLGRC10), Canada's premier slopestyle series, continues its series at Mt Seymour in under two weeks on Saturday March 20, 2010. At the forefront of the Canadian snowboard contest scene, YLGRC10 will be awarding another $5,000 in Cash and $12,000 in Prizing. With the first two stops, at Mont Tremblant and Louis, seeing sunny skies and great conditions, there are hopes the Seymour stop will follow in its foot steps.

Registration at Seymour will take place on Friday March 19^th ^th from 8 - 10am and Saturday March 20th^th from 7:30am - 10:30 am in the Whiskey Jack Room. Seymour will be offering discounted lift tickets to our registered athletes for both Friday and Saturday costing $25 each day for adults and $15 for those 15 and under. Online registration is also available at www.youlookgood.ca.

As the YLGRC10 series has just two stop left, the Coors Light Pro Category for both Men and Women could prove to be an exciting Overall Series win. Currently in the lead for the Coors Light Pro Men is Elliot Catton, of Barrie Ontario, who has 18,500 points and Andrew Skelhorn, of Innisfil Ontario, in the second spot with 13,500 points. For Coors Light PRO Women, Sam Denana currently sits second with 10,000 points and Diane Rudge is in the lead with 18,500 points. Word has it these ladies and gents are making the trip across Canada to maintain their positioning in order to win the 7 - Day Surf Safari provided by Atlantic Riders and additional 3 nights accommodations, a farewell dinner and Algarve boat trip in the Natural Park of Ria Formosa provided by Algarve Promotions Bureau and the Pedralva Village.

Push.ca will be awarding its next Push.ca Slope-side Host Search so get your video uploaded onto Push.ca to appear in Push.ca's live video coverage of the YLGRC as the slope-side host and win a Salomon Snowboard, Bonfire Jacket, and Camp of Champions Prize Pack. To enter to be the next Push.ca Slope-side Host at Mount Seymour visit www.push.ca.

YLGRC10 has four signature events across Canada awarding a total of $20,000 and $50,000 in prizing. YLGRC10 is Canada's only open event that welcomes and encourages snowboarders of all ages and talent levels. The YLGRC10 is nationally - recognized as a launching ground for Canadian snowboard talent, assisting in riders' progression from amateur to professional. After Seymour, YLGRC10 make the trip to Sunshine Banff for the finale on April 24, 2010.

The Coors Light YOU LOOK GOOD Rider's Cup 2010 Event Schedule
MONT TREMBLANT                        FEBRUARY 6, 2010
MT ST LOUIS                                     FEBRUARY 20, 2010
MT SEYMOUR                                    MARCH 20, 2010
SUNSHINE VILLAGE                        APRIL 24, 2010

For more info on scheduling please visit www.youlookgood.ca.

Ride Shakedown USA Starts Friday

MattCMgr — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 03:12:00 GMT

Tomorrow marks the first expansion of Canada's biggest contest, the Ride Shakedown, making it's first appearance south of the border. Summit at Snoqualmie is the location that will try and recreate the magic the Quebec brings to the party, hopefully with the same results. If you can't be there, you can watch online at Fuel.tv, or even get results direct to your iPhone. We'll also have coverage for you early next week, right here on Push.ca.

Get full event info here: http://snoqualmie.shakedown.ca/

Being an originally Canadian event, the rider invite list is stacked deep with Canadian talent:

Invited Riders:
E-man
Alex Cantin
Austen Sweeten
Austen Hironaka
Corey Noble
Dan Brisse
Darrell Mathes
Dustin Craven
Forest Bailey
Frank April
Ian Thorley
Ivan Marcinko
Jason Dubois
Jeremy Cloutier
Johnny Lazz
Jusso Lavisto
Lonnie Kauk
Lucas Magoon
Marc McMorris
Mark Sollars
Matt Belzile
Matts Kulesik
Nash Lejeunesse
Robbie Walker
Sam Hulbert
Scott See
Sebastien Toutant
Silas Stannard
Tyler Flanagan
Will Lavigne
Yale Cousineau

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Burton US Open: March 15th-21st

encomintor — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 18:46:00 GMT

The final stop of the Open Snowboarding Tour, the Burton US Open, gets underway next week at Stratton Mountain in Vermont. After what everyone saw at the Olympics, there's no doubt the same riders will be spinning and (double) flipping for a chance at redemption after having a few weeks to expand their bags of tricks. The entire men's Olympic podium is expected to compete, along with the two US podium spots for the ladies, so there will definitely be some Olympic hardware on the hill. I saw on Facebook that Jeff Batchelor intends to be there, as well as the video evidence of Justin Lamoureux claiming he might be able to unleash his double, which he meant to be in his Olympic run. Spencer O'Brien will be there to show the women how to rip a slopestyle course.

If you can't make a pilgrimage to what is annually one of the biggest events in snowboarding, there's a webcast of the finals, Friday March 19th (slopestyle) and Saturday March 20th (halfpipe), on GO211.com.

Press Release:

2010 Burton US Open Brings Olympic Snowboarders to Vermont
Shaun White, Peetu Piiroinen, Scotty Lago, Hannah Teter & Kelly Clark to Compete

Burlington, VT (March 8, 2010) The 28th annual US Open Snowboarding Championships will once again host thousands of fans and many of the world's top snowboarders for a weekend of slopestyle, rail jam and halfpipe competitions. Taking place at Stratton Mountain Resort from March 15-21, the Open is the firstUS event since the 2010 Olympics where snowboard medalists Shaun White, Peetu Piiroinen, Scotty Lago, Hannah Teter and Kelly Clark will compete.

In addition to all three men's 2010 Olympic halfpipe medalists, the US Open rider roster includes 2009 Burton Global Open Series (BGOS) Champion Chas Guldemond (USA), two-time Olympian and US Open podium threat Kazuhiro Kokubo (JPN), Luke Mitrani (USA), Mikkel Bang (NOR), current BGOS points leader Christian Haller (SUI) and Mason Aguirre (USA).

The entire women's US Olympic halfpipe team will compete at the US Open, including Hannah Teter, Kelly Clark, Gretchen Bleiler and Elena Hight. Jamie Anderson (USA), Ellery Hollingsworth (USA), Spencer O'Brien (CAN), Kjersti Oestgaard-Buaas (NOR), Jenny Jones (GBR), Lisa Wiik (NOR), Cheryl Maas (NED), Sarka Pancochova (CZE) and Sina Candrian (SUI) are also on board to compete.

This year's US Open kicks off with slopestyle finals on Friday afternoon, March 19 followed by the invitational ‘Black & Night Jam' on Friday evening. Rahzel and JS-1 will play a free concert at 9:00 pm right after the rail jam wraps up. The legendary US Open halfpipe finals take place on Saturday, March 20 with Shiny Toy Guns playing a free show directly after the awards ceremony. On Sunday, the Open's youngest riders take to the halfpipe for the Junior Jam, where girls and boys 13-years-old and under compete for a US Open title.

Over $500,000 in prizes will be given away at the US Open, including a new Volvo to the top male and female rider. As the final event in the fourth annual Burton Global Open Series, the US Open is the last chance for riders to make a play for the women's and men's 2010 Burton Global Open Series (BGOS) championship title, each worth $50,000. European riders Christian Haller (SUI) and Lisa Wiik (NOR) are currently in the lead for the BGOS titles. The US Open is also honored to be the event where the men's Swatch TTR World Tour Champion is crowned, with Peetu Piiroinen (FIN) clinching the title for the second straight year.

If you can't make it to Stratton, you can watch the US Open on ABC on March 27 at 5:00 pm EST and 3:00 pm PST. Also be sure to check out the US Open live on GO211.com.

Burton would like to thank GO211, Stratton Mountain Resort, Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour, Volvo, Amp Energy, Paul Mitchell, Nature Valley, Totino's, Kodak, Shiseido, SteelSeries and Corona for their support of the 2010 US Open. For more information on the US Open, head to www.opensnowboarding.com.

Oakley Arctic Challenge Videos

encomintor — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:52:00 GMT

You already know who won (Peetu Piiroinen, results here), but now you can see why he won. There's a wrap up of the whole Oakley Arctic Challenge, as well as a Peetu-specific video, talking about how he's already won the TTR Tour for a second time even before the final event of the tour. Don't miss Mikkel Bang's insane rodeo to face plant to recovery in the wrap-up video (starting around 2:11). That kid has become a beast.

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Peetu's TTR Win
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Brother's Factory Video

encomintor — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:40:00 GMT

Coors Light and Mont Saint-Sauveur held a video contest (St-Sauveur Video Challenge) last weekend where teams of two (filmer and rider) had two days to create a three minute video at Sauveur, edit, and submit it. The was a $5000 prize awarded for first (along with $3000 for second, $1000 for third) at the end of the three days, but there's still $1000 up for grabs for the Web Challenge: most views on YouTube wins. The team of Will Demers and Jeremy Cloutier, representing the Brother's Factory video crew, hit us up wanting to share their video. Who are we to say no? Besides, fat suits can make anything funny.

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To be fair, you can see all the entries here.

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TTR: History Video #2

encomintor — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:00:00 GMT

The TTR continues their history lesson with part two of their educational video series. Lots of past TTR winners get time in front of the camera, talking about how much the TTR means to snowboarding, along with extensive talk from Reto Lamm, TTR president, and Terje Haakonsen, the TTR founder. And in case you missed part one, you can see it here.

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Roxy Ride Day at Blue Mountain

encomintor — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:02:00 GMT

Roxy is coming to Ontario, and you can be a part of it. On Saturday, March 20th, Roxy will be hosting a Ride Day at Blue Mountain with team rider Robin Van Gyn and you're welcome to join. Only $40 to register (or $20 if you don't need a lift ticket), you'll get breakfast, lunch, a gift bag, a day on the hill with the Roxy crew, and a chance to win some cash in a best trick contest if you're feeling up to the challenge.

You can register online right now at: www.roxy.com/rideday.

Press Release:

ROXY RIDE DAY COMES TO ONTARIO MARCH 20th 2010
ROXY TEAM RIDER ROBIN VAN GYN TO VISIT BLUE MOUNTAIN

Roxy is excited to announce the addition of a Roxy Ride Day at Blue Mountain on March 20th, 2010. The Roxy Ride Day is chance for girls to spend a day on snow, learn tricks in a fun environment and meet new friends. Roxy team rider, Robin Van Gyn, will be on hand to hang out with participants, give away prizes and demo the latest snowboards from Roxy. Everyone will receive a gift bag full of prizes from Roxy and Clean Start just for showing up. The day will end with a fun Best Trick Jam with $250 cash up for grabs. Girls can pre-register online now at www.roxy.com/rideday. Registration includes breakfast, lunch and a gift bag!

Registration
$40 Registration includes lift ticket
$20 Registration does not include lift ticket

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Snowboard Realms, Season 3, Episode 19

encomintor — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:54:00 GMT

Even for professionals like TJ Schneider, sometimes you hit a bump in the road. In this episodes case, that bump is a rock that he runs into. It's not all powder days and perfect landings.

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Rome Team Update: New Video In The Works

encomintor — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:07:00 GMT

The Rome team has started work on their next team video, The Shred Remains. And where better to do that than in a snowy Japan. The team will be reporting on their progress, with video updates along the way, and hopefully we'll have all of them for you. Check below for their first report.

From The Rome Team:

The Shred Remains Update: Snow, Sake and Vampire Hours in Japan

The filming of "The Shred Remains" has officially kicked off. Although we've gotten a couple shots here and there in prior weeks, this was the first real trip to get the project underway. Eiki, Lazz, Will and Paxson along with filmer Leland McNamara, Team Director Ryan Runke, TWS and Method-Mag photographer Frode Sandabech and myself (John Cavan) jumped some flights from around the world for the mellow 26 jaunt to Sapporo, Japan. Yes the home of Sapporo and Asahi beer. Where we were greeted by Rome Japan distributors Akira and Shuichi along with Rome Japan riders Koni and Doo. A quick note on the guys from Rome Japan...they're all time. They had it so dialed. They helped us link up with Freerun Mag guys 2C and Max who helped us scout a ton of spots, and they where our translators for the trip, which was a huge help. A big thanks goes out to those guys, without all the help things wouldn't have gone as smoothly, that's for sure.

Traveling in Japan is interesting to say the least. It's pretty intense how many people there are everywhere you go, and your senses are constantly bombarded with new things. Smells, sounds and sights are all unfamiliar, traffic moves at an alarming rate, they drive on the opposite side of the road, and the steering wheel is on the right hand side so it gets a little complicated, unless you're a US driver with dyslexia, then you'd probably slay it. Throw in the language barrier and sometimes even the simplest of tasks becomes very difficult, like for instance......dealing with cops...not easy.

It's crazy how much filming has changed over the years. Everything we're looking at these days is huge, from rails to gaps. All the stuff we did on this trip was large and required a lot of work, add in the fact that there was a ridiculous amount of snow in the city, and as you can imagine we ended up doing a ton of shoveling. We were running a pretty hectic schedule over here shooting in the daylight then a quick dinner, and back out for vampire sessions. For the full look at our trip you'll have to wait for the movie, but here are a couple photos to give you a sneak peek. We're headed off to France with a new crew in the morning so stay tuned for more updates from the road.

The Shred Remains!

Cavan's top Ten list from our trip to Japan:

10. Listening to our photographer Frode sing Biggie "It was all a dream" over and over again

9. The amount of weird candy I watched Paxson consume on this trip

8. The conveyor belt sushi places we ate at

7. MossBurger - that hamburger joint is the shit!

6. Beer in vending machines - priceless

5. Random girls in our hotel saying our Team Director Ryan Runke looked like Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean

4. The crazy shit that goes through Eiki's mind at the top of a rail. I was shooting a fisheye angle and he was talking to me about the most random stuff up there.

3. The haircut Lazz got from Runke (aka Hawk-A-Mo)

2. Using the X-games athlete plea line to the cops, and having it work

1. Kicking the movie off with an epic trip

The Hawk-A-Mo.

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Oakley Arctic Challenge: Results

encomintor — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:58:00 GMT

The Oakley Arctic Challenge happened this past weekend in Oslo, Norway, in it's new slopestyle format. Coming off his silver medal performance in Vancouver, Peetu Piiroinen took the win, which also solidified his first place on the TTR tour, making it impossible for anyone to knock him down at the US Open. In all the Peetu noise, it was easy to miss that our lone Canadian competitor, Mark McMorris, landed himself in 5th, which is pretty impressive considering the company he was in. Check below for footage from Friday, and check back for more video as it comes out.

Results:

1	30	Peetu Piiroinen	FIN
2	22	Torstein Horgmo	NOR
3	23	Mikkel Bang	NOR
4	9	Seppe Smits	BEL
5	33	Mark McMorris	CAN
6	15	Sage Kotsenburg	USA
7	12	Roope Tonteri	FIN
8	8	Tore Holvik	NOR
9	14	Eric Willett	USA
10	7	Ville Uotila	FIN

Arctic Challenge Podium: Torstein Horgmo, 2nd, Peetu Piiroinen, 1st, and Mikkel Bang, 3rd.

Friday:
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Photos: Stubberud

Press Release:

WINNER OF THE OAKLEY ARCTIC CHALLENGE PEETU PIIROINEN SECURES SWATCH TTR WORLD CHAMPION TITLE

Oslo, Norway - March 7th 2010: One of the most impressive snowboard athletes in the world today, Peetu Piiroinen (FIN), reconfirmed his reputation with a first place finish at the coveted 6Star Oakley Arctic Challenge. The crowds at Tryvann Vinterpark in Oslo, Norway witnessed a piece of snowboarding history as 21-year old Peetu Piiroinen took first place in today's slopestyle competition, and with an additional 1000 TTR ranking points on his account, he took an unassailable lead in the TTR World Rankings. In two weeks time, he will be crowned Swatch TTR World Snowboard Champion at the final 6Star event of the Tour, the Burton US Open. The Arctic Challenge podium was rounded out by Norwegian favourites Torstein Horgmo in second place and Mikkel Bang in third.

Peetu Piiroinen Securing his Second TTR World Champion Title
The young Fin has earned himself $35 000 USD today with his Arctic Challenge win. This season, Piiroinen has shown his nerves of steel, consistent technique and a seemingly untiring ability to tackle the various formats on the Swatch TTR Tour by taking podium placements at every 6Star event on the Tour. He took 2^nd place at the 6Star Billabong Air & Style in Innsbruck, Austria, 3rd places at both the slopestyle and halfpipe at the 6Star O'Neill Evolution in Davos and victories in both formats at the 6Star Burton European Open in Laax, Switzerland. The deserving Piiroinen has shown his exceptional talent and caught the eye of the fans and media worldwide by successfully balancing his commitment on the TTR Tour even while excelling at events outside the Tour. He comments on his season; "It has been the best season ever. Silver medal at the Olympics and now the TTR title. I have got so many podium places and I have had no injuries, it could not have been better."

The exciting Arctic Challenge final saw Piiroinen stomp an incredibily clean last run that nudged Peetu into the top podium spot. His smooth run consisted of a switch cab 270 to fakie on the top rail, frontside 540 melon on the canon rail, backside 1080 late cork, backside rodeo 720 and a gigantic frontside crail on the hip. Piiroinen remains modest as always about his win, "I really didn't expect to win here at the Arctic Challenge, but I knew that I had a good chance to take the title here. It feels so good to take both. And it is the second title in a row. Now I can take it easy and maybe drink a beer."

The founder of the TTR tour and owner of the Oakley Arctic Challenge, Terje Haakonsen (NOR) praised Piiroinen's ability to ride all formats on the TTR Tour, "That is why he is a good snowboarder. He is not specialized, but can ride all of them, also when it comes to quarterpipe he can ride really big. He had a lot of second and third places but he is always the guy that can win. He is just a really solid and inventive rider."

Valuable TTR ranking points handed out at The Oakley Arctic Challenge
The race for the Top 5 spots in the Swatch TTR ranking is on fire with the final 6Star event, the Burton US Open, kicking off in just one week's time. Eric Willett (USA) moved into the TTR World No.5 spot with a 9^th place today and up and coming rookie Roope Tonteri (FIN) moved into TTR World No.7 with a 7^th place. Seppe Smits (NED) made the move into the TTR World Top 10 a fourth place finish, today. With two more 6Star results on the menu at the Burton US Open the Top 5 is a desired place as all riders want a piece of the Swatch TTR end of season prize purse of $200,000 USD, as well as guaranteed invites to next season's 6Star events.

Next Up on the Swatch TTR Tour
The Burton US Open is only one week away with action kicking off March 15^th, 2010 in Stratton, Vermont. You can watch it live and follow as the news unfolds on www.ttrworldtour.com. Don't miss the crowning of the 2009/2010 Swatch TTR World Snowboard Champion, Peetu Piiroinen, who will receive the TTR trophy and a check of $50 000 USD.

Swatch TTR World Ranking List as of 03.07.2010

Rank		Name	Sponsors	Nation	Res	Score
POS	Δ P
1	0	Piiroinen, Peetu	Burton, Nike 6.0, Battery, Anon	FIN	6/6 (8)	963.81
2	0	Podladtchikov, Iouri	Santa Cruz, Volcom, Red Bull, Spy	SUI	6/6 (6)	802.50
3	0	Braaten, Gjermund	Nike 6.0, Oakley, Swag	NOR	6/6 (13)	738.03
4	0	Grilc, Marko	Burton, Red Bull	SLO	6/6 (11)	731.43
5	+4	Willett, Eric	ONeill, O Matic, Smith, Vans, FLUX BINDINGS	USA	6/6 (10)	727.10
6	0	Malin, Markus	32 Snowboard Boots, Dragon, Pow Gloves	FIN	6/6 (7)	719.40
7	+4	Tonteri, Roope	Burton, Anon, Red, Etnies	FIN	6/6 (13)	706.64
8	-3	Korpi, Janne	Kissmark, ONeill, Smith, Level, Ogio, Vans	FIN	6/6 (9)	702.79
9	-2	Haller, Christian	Burton, Swatch, Anon, Arcus	SUI	6/6 (7)	696.08
10	+2	Smits, Seppe	Burton, Red Bull, Anon, Hotzone, Red, Gravis	BEL	6/6 (11)	689.26

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Last Week on Push.ca (10/03/01 - 10/03/05)

encomintor — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:21:00 GMT

Olympic (hockey) hangovers were abound last week as everyone tried out how exactly life worked before the games, but things got back on track in no time. Oakley had been keeping track of their athletes during the games with a video series, which we gave you the best-of. Stepchild unleashed their third online issue of Blunter, which was all about Joe Sexton. The Peach Hat video crew gave a little tease of their efforts so far this season, and it looks good. Absinthe wrapped up their Neverland making-of with episode nine of Flipside. And the TTR gave us a visual history of snowboarding, leading up to the creation of the TTR World Tour.

For columns, Pete completed his set of O'Brien sister interviews (they tend to happen in pairs), this time talking to the older O'Brien, Meghann. Mikey got a dose of team managing reality from Time Bomb Trading's Dave Birnie. And Spencer Francey struck white gold at Island Lake Lodge.

In the blogs, the Alterna Films crew celebrated the Olympic gold medal win in Turkey, while Spencer Francey took to the streets of Banff. Matt had some Olympic behind-the-scenes stories from Justin Lamoureux, and Shaun White's Rolling Stone cover, take two. Stuck on Rinse had footage from Top of the World's step-down contest. Nuulife Cinema shared Sean Genovese's and Trevor Schy's part from Sixes and Sevens. And Sayer tracked down Joe Sexton's brother who's currently dodging the Minnesota snowboard draft and playing in the NHL.

And in the polls, I'm sure you'll find a way to fill the Olympic void. Try snowboarding. That works for everything else.

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