iRide
Zaskoda’s Snowboarding Journal

Today was our last day in Steamboat. Actually, we were supposed to leave yesterday. We took a few more runs down the mountain and spent a little time playing in the terrain park. Now we’re packing it up and trying to get out before it gets dark and the roads ice over. I’m watching Velzy pull the stuff out of the freezer now - coffee, Belvedere vodka, etc. I’m gonna miss this place. I hope the ride home is safe. We might stay the night in Denver - see if there’s a new years fireworks show or something. Have a happy new years.

We really dig the Sobe terrain park here… It’s easy to get a view across the park from the top and there’s a variety of stuff to play on. The best part is the lift dedicated to taking you up to the top of the park (or pipe).

Today Velzy and I also found a smaller park with the tiniest little rail I’ve ever seen… thing was no more than 2 feet long. It also had a nifty mini-pipe that we both tried out. I think the walls were somewhere in the range of 4 or 5 feet tall. It was just enough to get a feel for going up the walls and turning around.

Anyway, here’s a quick video showing a pan of the Sobe park:

Today is the day after Christmas, known by some as boxing day. Why is that important? Well, actually, it’s not important at all - but the attached photo shows some boxing day riders in their boxers (posing with Velzy).

Today also happens to be our third day of boarding in Steamboat. We haven’t seen any new snow fall since the first day here, but there’s still lots of fresh powder to be found. We worked our way to the back of the mountain this morning - just to check it out. We found big open areas with tons of powder left untouched. We ended up spending the entire day. Keep in mind, riding good powder like this is new for both Velzy and I. The soft falls really builds our confidence; but swimming out of the powder after you fall can really wear you out!

Steamboat is a great mountain. The only complaint we’ve had so far is some funky signs. They seem kinda poorly placed at times - or missing altogether. It’s really a minor complaint - who wants to spend all day reading signs anyway?

What better way to celebrate Christmas than snowboarding in epic powder with your best friend! Steamboat Springs has catered to our every dream about sweet, sweet powder! The rumors are true! It’s almost fun to fall in the fluffy, champagne powder! Getting out of the deep stuff is quite exhausting though! I need to research techniques for getting out of 3′ of powder! I fell in twice, and it wore my happy a$$ out trying to get out!

Time to open presents! (aka time to hit the slopes!!) Here is our Christmas breakfast picture for your enjoyment! Pura Vida baby!

Champagne kisses!!!~Velzy

Today was our first day on the slopes here in Steamboat, and today was also the best powder conditions I have ever experienced! (Velzy says, “me toooo!”)… We’re really enjoying the mountain. Gondolas rock! The people here have been really nice and it’s not too crowded right now at all. Most of the day was near whiteout conditions. At the end of the day, the storm started to break and the view was epic.

The best part of the day, hands down, was this “champagne powder” that people are always bragging about. The snow was so dry and fluffy that you couldn’t pack it into a snowball (lucky for Velzy). Falling down was like landing in pillows… most of the time. There were a few small patches of hard packed snow and ice - but they were few and far between. Simply wonderful.

We just woke up and Velzy shouts, “it’s snowing!” I feel wonderfully rested after about 15 hours of sleep. The only problem is that the slopes open in 30 minutes and we still haven’t eaten any breakfast. And here I am, wasting time on the Internet. It’s ok, really, she’s cooking! =D

It could very possibly be a good day.