Sep 21, 2008

That's It, That's all World Premiere

That�s It That�s All World Premiere
By: George Crosland

Director, Co-Producer, Cinematographer, Editor � Curt Morgan
Co-Producer, Professional Snowboarder � Travis Rice

Starring: Travis Rice, Nicolas Muller, Terje Hakonsen, Jeremy Jones, John Jackson, Mark Landvik, Pat Moore, Scotty Lago, Bryan Iguchi, Jake Blauvelt, Danny Kass, Kyle Clancy, Mama Rice and more

Locations: New Zealand, Valdez, Munich, Tokyo, Jackson�and more�all filmed in Hi Def, 35 mm, super 16

Around 6 seasons ago a young man, known at the time by few people Bryan Iguchi being one, went to the Superpark and finagled his way in somehow (with the help of Danny Kass maybe?). At that point in time no one had any idea what was about to be released upon the snowboarding world. That young man was Travis Rice and since then he has come to be one of the most influential riders of our time. Only history will tell, but he could become the most influential of all time, or most certainly a 10 year period in the history of snowboarding. A bold statement, yes but few who know would argue the above statements.

Travis has been working on the film That�s It, That�s All for 2 seasons. No expenses were spared and this was supposed to be the snowboard movie to top all snowboard movies that have come before it. That is a lot to live up to and of course this movie could not have been made without all the snowboard movies that have come along but understand, this is a bad ass movie. On Saturday September 6th the movie was un-veiled to the public. Well, not really the public but those those were lucky enough to get a ticket to the party at the swanky bar in downtown San Diego. This was a pretty well and poorly organized event. Only a few tickets were printed but then somehow there was a list so a ticket meant nothing and many very influential people were denied entry, which was the poor part of it. If you were on the list, you were set. Being sponsored by Red Bull and Quiksilver, no expense was spared. There were no riots, no huge lines, possibly the general public did not even try. Inside, it was a whose who of snowboarding, Travis, Danny Kass, Bob McKnight and on and on and on. They had a killer screen set up for VIP�s, free Red Bull and Vodka for all, small screens everywhere and I heard a Zimmerman photo gallery that was sick. Every one was feeling good or seemed like they were in a good mood to see the show.

So was the movie all it was hyped up to be, was it worth the millions it took to make, and was it worth the two years it made to make? In a word, yes. The opening montage alone was insane with no snowboarding even. Scenes of avalanches, mountain goats and scenery that would make National Geographic jealous, the cinematography was amazing. It goes to a scene with Travis, Mark Landvik and John Jackson riding Zealand, just having a blast and it goes on from there. Hearing the likes of Bryan Iguchi, Travis�s mom and other well respected people talk about Travis was very cool. The movie is all action but also part documentary. Not like documentary like your teachers make you watch but you do get a good glimpse into what helped Travis become Travis. One of the sickest things in the movies was Travis and crew �playing� in Jackson Hole, jibbing a 40 ft tall tree- amazing. Another favorite scene was Travis riding with Nicolas Muller and the Viking in BC. Of course Alaska with the king of Alaska Jeremy Jones was sick. Jeremy goes over the falls so to speak and talks about going to Alaska for the first time with $1200 and a 100 Cliff Bars. $1100 of his money went to heli time. There were scenes from the Tokyo snowdome that you would see on Fuel�s Daily Update but it gives you good glimpses in his life. Overall it lived up to the hype. I do not recall being blown away by any one part like say Johan in TB 5 but then again I was watching on one of the crappy little TV�s. It possibly seemed long with the focus being one thing which is different than your traditional movie with many various parts. Also it is possible that so much came so fast that it was hard to hard for my small brain to comprehend. Would like to watch it at home and get back to you. The music was kind of techno hardcore, not my kind of music but it matched the dramatic ness of the movie. For sure it was amazing, for sure it will be a new benchmark and for sure you should get it. Any rider should have it on heavy rotation; hell any film student should have it rotation for that matter - That�s It, That�s All

Director, Co-Producer, Cinematographer, Editor � Curt Morgan
Co-Producer, Professional Snowboarder � Travis Rice

Starring: Travis Rice, Nicolas Muller, Terje Hakonsen, Jeremy Jones, John Jackson, Mark Landvik, Pat Moore, Scotty Lago, Bryan Iguchi, Jake Blauvelt, Danny Kass, Kyle Clancy, Mama Rice and more

Locations: New Zealand, Valdez, Munich, Tokyo, Jackson�and more�all filmed in Hi Def, 35 mm, super 16

Around 6 seasons ago a young man, known at the time by few people Bryan Iguchi being one, went to the Superpark and finagled his way in somehow (with the help of Danny Kass maybe?). At that point in time no one had any idea what was about to be released upon the snowboarding world. That young man was Travis Rice and since then he has come to be one of the most influential riders of our time. Only history will tell, but he could become the most influential of all time, or most certainly a 10 year period in the history of snowboarding. A bold statement, yes but few who know would argue the above statements.

Travis has been working on the film That�s It, That�s All for 2 seasons. No expenses were spared and this was supposed to be the snowboard movie to top all snowboard movies that have come before it. That is a lot to live up to and of course this movie could not have been made without all the snowboard movies that have come along but understand, this is a bad ass movie. On Saturday September 6th the movie was un-veiled to the public. Well, not really the public but those those were lucky enough to get a ticket to the party at the swanky bar in downtown San Diego. This was a pretty well and poorly organized event. Only a few tickets were printed but then somehow there was a list so a ticket meant nothing and many very influential people were denied entry, which was the poor part of it. If you were on the list, you were set. Being sponsored by Red Bull and Quiksilver, no expense was spared. There were no riots, no huge lines, possibly the general public did not even try. Inside, it was a whose who of snowboarding, Travis, Danny Kass, Bob McKnight and on and on and on. They had a killer screen set up for VIP�s, free Red Bull and Vodka for all, small screens everywhere and I heard a Zimmerman photo gallery that was sick. Every one was feeling good or seemed like they were in a good mood to see the show.

So was the movie all it was hyped up to be, was it worth the millions it took to make, and was it worth the two years it made to make? In a word, yes. The opening montage alone was insane with no snowboarding even. Scenes of avalanches, mountain goats and scenery that would make National Geographic jealous, the cinematography was amazing. It goes to a scene with Travis, Mark Landvik and John Jackson riding Zealand, just having a blast and it goes on from there. Hearing the likes of Bryan Iguchi, Travis�s mom and other well respected people talk about Travis was very cool. The movie is all action but also part documentary. Not like documentary like your teachers make you watch but you do get a good glimpse into what helped Travis become Travis. One of the sickest things in the movies was Travis and crew �playing� in Jackson Hole, jibbing a 40 ft tall tree- amazing. Another favorite scene was Travis riding with Nicolas Muller and the Viking in BC. Of course Alaska with the king of Alaska Jeremy Jones was sick. Jeremy goes over the falls so to speak and talks about going to Alaska for the first time with $1200 and a 100 Cliff Bars. $1100 of his money went to heli time. There were scenes from the Tokyo snowdome that you would see on Fuel�s Daily Update but it gives you good glimpses in his life. Overall it lived up to the hype. I do not recall being blown away by any one part like say Johan in TB 5 but then again I was watching on one of the crappy little TV�s. It possibly seemed long with the focus being one thing which is different than your traditional movie with many various parts. Also it is possible that so much came so fast that it was hard to hard for my small brain to comprehend. Would like to watch it at home and get back to you. The music was kind of techno hardcore, not my kind of music but it matched the dramatic ness of the movie. For sure it was amazing, for sure it will be a new benchmark and for sure you should get it. Any rider should have it on heavy rotation; hell any film student should have it rotation for that matter - That�s It, That�s All

Sep 20, 2008

Powder Landings (continued)

Here’s a few helpful steps incorporated with pro quotes:

1) Ride powder as much as possible so you know the feeling of how it rides. ”You’ve just gotta ride powder heaps, and a lot of switch.” Nick Brown, Burton pro rider.
2) You’ve definitely got to have your trick on lock in the park before you take it to a powder booter.” Anthony Leffelaar, Sapient pro rider.
3) “You have to be thinking of how you want to land throughout the whole spin.” Nick Hyne, Ride pro rider.
4) Throughout the trick your weight and body position should be exactly the same as if you were in the park. As your approaching the landing you weight should be evenly spread over both feet then:
5) “Just before you land, push the board forward under you so that all your weight is over the back foot.” Travis Rice.
6) Keep your body upright with the weight over the back foot until you’re riding away casually in the pow.

Your board and where you’re standing on it plays a big part. A bigger or wider board helps for sure. The more surface area in front of your front foot, the easier it is, and likewise a small tail will sink easier. Some people prefer a board with a softer nose to pull up. But before you set your bindings way back or buy a super directional board, what about landing tricks switch? Some tricks are much tougher to land in powder than others, switch landings being harder, and landing where the last 180 is blind, super difficult. That’s why you see a ton of Cab 5’s and frontside 5’s. Backside 5’s are pretty mellow in the park, but real tech once you’re in the deep stuff.
It’s not uncommon for a backcountry kicker session to end with no tricks ridden out, even for the “big dogs.” Landings also don’t last very long, depending on the type of jump, and number of crew hitting it – you may only get a handful of hits before you’re dropping into a spa pool like crater. There’s also the often sketchy run in and shovel-built kicker transition to deal with too, however landing into freshies is about the best feeling you can get snowboarding so just tighten your goggle strap and go for it!

Sep 19, 2008

Powder Landings

Have you ever wondered why magazines and videos use mainly backcountry shots over park ones? It’s because jumping into powder is a whole different ball game, it’s what the big boys do!

The impact of landing in powder pushes your board under the soft snow, slowing it down, while your body’s momentum continues to travel forward, sending your weight over the nose. If you let the nose go under, then you’ve just ruined the landing, and 15 minute hikes in waist deep sow are pretty draining. If you don’t stop your spins and stomp straight, your board will turn sideways and catch. Even a subtle weight shift or turn of the head after touchdown can send you into a hyper extending tomahawk down the landing.
The difficulty of landing and riding out in powder is something a lot of us don’t understand, because not too many of us get a chance to ride powder, let alone build jumps into it. The skill is honed and perfected over years of powder freeriding and backcountry jumping. It’s the difference between the freshest kid off the plane from Finland, and the riders like Travis Rice and Devon Walsh. It separates the good riders from the best.

Sep 18, 2008

Stage three: Snowboard Addiction

Addiction is the most hard core stage of snowboarding, when the user experiences an utter sense of desperation to continue shredding, despite repeated attempts to cut back.

At this stage:

- Snowboarding is the most important thing in the person's life; other things that were once important, like school family, other sports and interests become less important.

- The Snowboarder often has been "cut off" by important people in his or her life.

- The Snowboarder surrouds him or herself with other Snowboarders that replace non-Snowboarding family and friends.


Snowboarding is an awesome addiction, feed it!

Learn to Snowboarding with the best at www.SnowbaordAddiction.com

Sep 17, 2008

Stage two: Regular Use

Regular use is when Snowboarding starts to show up more and more often: when you notice that you’re thinking about snowboarding and talking about shredding or shrelping alot, and when you realize that most of your friends are snowboarders, it’s fair to say that use has become regular.

Other Qualities about regular use include:
- Snowboarding automatically, without thinking about it
- Starting to find it difficult to enjoy social situations without Snowboarding
- Some areas of life are becoming affected (i.e. school, family, money)

Snowboarding is good, feed you Addiction!

Learn how to snowboard with www.SnowboardAddiction.com

Sep 16, 2008

Stage one: Experimental Shredding

Experimental use is the stage when someone is trying snowboarding for the first time. It could be on a holiday or with a friend. It is almost always with other people. The “experimnetal stage” is very brief and is charactierzed by:

- Curiosity about Snowboarding

- A belief that Snowboarding won’t lead to any harm

- A socail atmosphere

After experimenting with Snowboarding, a person makes a decision about whether or not to do it again. If the decision is not to, the person will go back to non-use. If the decision is to do it again, the person moves on to……Stage two: Regular Shredding

Check back tomorrow for: Stage two.

In the mean time, remember to feed your Addiction!

www.SnowboardAddiction.com

Sep 15, 2008

...but I won't get addicted!

Nobody wakes up one day and discovers they are addicted to Snowboarding. Snowboarding becomes a part of our lives through a slow proces. Each time you move from one stage of Snowboarding to the next, you are doing so for one and only one reason: because you choose to do it. Not because school is a drag, your friends made you do it, or your parents are making life difficult. Over the next several days I will describe in detail all of the different stages of Snowboarding. As you will see, Snowboarding can become out of control so gradually that we don’t even know it is happening.

Snowboarding is rad. Feed your Addiction!

www.SnowboardAddiction.com