So besides snowboarding and food, I’m also thoroughly in love with fashion and shopping (what girl isn’t right?). Being from Vancouver and being of the female variety means that I tend to do a lot of my shopping at Van city staple Aritzia. The Vancouver based company began in 1984 as a singular boutique but has since evolved into a large chain (12 stores in Vancouver alone, 46 across North America) that carries a multitude of fantastic brands as well as 5 inhouse brands. Wilfred being the most expensive of their inhouse brands is naturally my favorite and on more occasions than I care to disclose I look down and realize that my entire outfit is made up of not only just Aritzia clothes, but Wilfred clothes.  Basically what I’m getting at is that I’m an addict and probably could have bought a new car if I didn’t shop there so much. I don’t know what is so elusive and intoxicating about spending money on things I’ll hardly ever wear because I spend 80% of my time in long johns (yes I am wearing them as I type this), but I just can’t seem to help myself. I love to browse and try things on that I can’t afford, I dream about owning a pair of Louboutins, that classic Chanel purse and a McQueen gown for some red carpet event I will NEVER attend. Clothing is intoxicating to me and even with all the guilt that comes a long with it, I think that, for the most part, the fabric we put on our bodies is a good investment.

So all justifications aside, Wilfred’s F/W 10 collection has just become available and I’m now really excited to get home, reunite with my partner in crime and get down to business. I included some photos of my favorite pieces below and you can view the entire collection here. As I was browsing around, foaming at the mouth and trying to find the collection online I stumbled across a fashion blog called ‘Sea of Shoes’. I’m not going to lie, after only 24 hours of following her blog, I love to hate this girl. First of all I’m pretty sure she gets free clothes…yes I’m aware that I get free snowboards, but I could quite possibly sell my soul for just a fraction of this young ladies wardrobe. Secondly she has all the shoes I’ve longed to even try on and lastly she possesses the amazing ability to not only shop vintage and thrift stores, but mix and match with new pieces to create one effortlessly chic outfit. I still don’t know the full story on this Jane character, but I like her and am jealous of her friends who I hope get the honor of raiding her closet. If you’re into fashion, check it out and maybe put a towel on your keyboard because drooling may ensue.

Talk soon,

S.

The first blog I ever followed was my boy Anthony’s. For over two years he blogged through his company Joystick’s website, but when he sold the company last winter the updates ended. I must say my internet surfing got a lot less interesting when he stopped, but I’m happy to announce that he’s back in business and blogging frequently through his personal site.

If you’re looking for something with more substance and less bullshit then you should check it out. It’s basically the opposite of this one…interesting and intelligent. Uhh yeah. www.anthonyboronowski.com

Talk soon,

S.

Sometimes, I really fucking miss my friends. You might have no clue who you are or what you want when you’re seventeen, but I think the people you’re closet with growing up do. They’re the ones who’ll be there no matter who you end up being or what you end up doing. A lot of people come and go but for whatever reason I can’t seem to shake these ones. No matter how far I travel, how many months I’m gone, no matter who I meet or what I do, I know I can call and they will be there and vice versa. As difficult as it must be to my friend, they’ve made do and I’m really thankful for that. Sorry, I know I’m the weakest leg of the tripod. I will try harder.

Remember to be grateful for your friends, the good ones are hard to come by.

Talk soon,

S.

The Burton New Zealand Open has come to a close. That’s two checks off of my list of things to do while on this trip, only one more and then it’s mellow shred time. The Burton NZ crew has started a bit of an Open kickoff tradition with Monday Funday. It was a really similar schedule as last year. We showed up at 7:15 am for breakfast at Joe’s Garage in Queenstown, well at least I did, the rest of the Burton crew didn’t arrive until 8:00, but at least Joe’s makes decent coffee.

After breakfast we took jet boats up the river to the Kawarau Bridge Bungy, which is actually the very first bungy site in all of NZ. Almost everyone in our crew jumped, except for Gabe who was being a major pussy. Shelly and I chose to go tandem which made the jump a bit less scary. I thought I was alright until we got strapped in and started to walk out on the ledge. It’s the craziest feeling when everything in your body is yelling NO at you and you can overcome that and still jump. The guys working were amazing though, kicking my heels to make me get out far enough on the ledge and then making sure we were distracted until we jumped. We almost didn’t have time to back out they were so on it. The second I jumped I was so stoked! It’s a really cool feeling and an insane adrenaline rush. I wanted to do it again after and I had a huge smile on my face for the rest of the day. It was super fun to go with a friend and see their reaction so up close.

After everyone got a chance to jump we took the jetboats to Jack’s Point golf course were we were treated to a lovely lunch and some golfing. Susie, Possum, Melissa and I chose to just chill and drink coffee and tea rather than sucking at golf. It was nice to unwind a bit after the rush of jumping off a bridge. Once everyone had finished their rounds of golf we got back in the jet boats and returned to town. Once again the NZ Burton crew outdid themselves and treated us to an amazing and super fun day. Such a great way to start off a contest week.

The contest itself wasn’t so great, bad weather stuck around the entire week, everything from ice to wind to fog to rain and of course all of those things came together for finals day. It’s bad enough when we get stuck with bad conditions but it’s really unfortunate when an event chooses to not listen to the athletes. It happens, but it’s a shame when we can’t do what we do best because of conditions and the organizers failing to realize how dangerous it can be for people to ride under those circumstances. Everyone survived though and hopefully if mother nature decides to grace us with her presence next year the organizers will choose to actually use a weather day when they have it scheduled. Congrats to Jamie Anderson on her NZ Open hat trick, to NZ local Shelly for taking second and to Kjersti for taking third. Nice riding ladies! I ended up 5th place, definitely wasn’t what I was looking for, but stoked I came out of it in one piece.

This week we’re shooting the 2012 Burton catalogue up at Snow Park and Cardrona. Don’t expect an update, this shit is top secret fools!

Talk soon,

S.

On the 1st of August I had to leave wonderful, sunny Vancouver for cold, wintery New Zealand. It’s always a bittersweet departure for me because I love the sun, but I’m always excited to come here and shred. This year I was sent down by RedBull to be apart of some mysterious ‘camp’. My TM didn’t give me much info other than when I was leaving, but I figured if it was RedBull it was going to be awesome and it was.

We spent the entire week hitting a private airbag with matching step up all so we could learn new tricks and push our riding. They provided us with food, lodging, transport, tickets as well as world class coaches, trainers, photographers and filmers. Basically RedBull rules and I think it’s safe to say that everyone had a really amazing time shredding and getting to know each other better. I had never met many of the guys and even though I was the only girl for the week they were really great and made me feel like part of the crew. It was super cool to get to watch them progress and I came out of the week pretty inspired. So many doubles being thrown left, right and center.

A huge thanks to RedBull for always going above and beyond for their athletes, to Rasi the Bag Jump owner and operator and to all the guys for making my week so much fun. Also thanks to Rick, Marco and Matt for helping me get a new trick! Stoked.

This week it’s the Burton NZ Open, the weather hasn’t been the best and the course is a bit iffy but I’m doing my best to make due. Summer contests are always a bit weird, but hopefully the weather is alright for tomorrow and I can conquer the monstrous last jump. We’ll see what happens…

Check out the videos and photos from the camp below.

Talk soon,

S.