Luca Pandolfi Doubles Down On The Aiguille Du Midi

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Aiguille du Midi: Frendo Spur  – 3800 m; 800 m 50°; North; TD+; 5.4/ E4

Jones rider Luca Pandolfi is finishing off his winter in epic fashion.

The Chamonix shredder has been ticking off heavy mental lines like they were laps in the terrain park. Last week of May he laid tracks on two of the most classic lines in the Cham valley – the Mallory route and the Frendo spur on the North Face of the Aiguille du Midi.
 
Keep reading for a tease of his trip reports from the Aiguille then jump to Luca’s blog for the whole story – www.lucapandolfi.com
 
“Riding the Frendo Spur has been a dream of mine for quite some time. This year, two parties have already skied it  but only the second party found good conditions. Some people aim to be the first to ride a line, whilst personally, my aim is to ride a line in good conditions where I can have fun and make dynamic turns…this requires a lot of patience  and waiting. Finally we got what we were looking for,  perfect conditions for freeriding the Frendo Spur! It does not happen very often.” – Luca Pandolfi

Warm-up turns above a 600 meter cliff  dropping into the Frendo.
Could you make those turns knowing you were above this cliff? 
Shredding the magical Frendo spine line.
Another view of the spine section of the Frendo line.
The Frendo line required five raps.
Aiguille du Midi: Mallory route – 3800 m; 800 m 50°- 55°; North; TD+; 5.4/ E4
 
“Spring has still not yet arrived here in the Alps, it just keeps dumping. I have never seen the mountains plastered with so much snow and it has been a while since we have had any sun in Chamonix except for few rare windows.
Last Sunday the forecast looked like it was going to give some compassion to the snow junkie community, so I headed to the Aiguille du Midi station . We rode the Mallory in rare amazing snow conditions. The clouds were moving fast, so we rode fast…no time to take any pictures.” – Luca Pandolfi
 
 Read all about Luca’s adventures at www.lucapandolfi.com

 

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Snowboarding Changed His Life: The Ryan Hudson Story

Posted on June 3, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

A victim of severe poverty since birth, Ryan Hudson grew up living in and out of homeless shelters. At age 14, Ryan was introduced to snowboarding through Outdoor Outreach, a non-profit organization dedicated to using outdoor activities to empower at risk youth. When Ryan stepped on a snowboard his life took a 180. Now competing as a semi-pro athlete, Ryan’s story shares just how transformational the outdoors can be. Jones Snowboards is proud to have Ryan ripping our boards. Check out the video above to hear Ryan’s story and look out for more from this extraordinary shred ambassador soon.

Video produced by The North Face, Camp 4 Collective and Snowbird Mountain Resort.

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Tamok Spring Preview With Miikka Hast

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Alaska ain’t the only place to be in April. Jones team rider Miikka Hast has posted up for the spring in Tamok, Norway. Here’s his first dispatch from this off-the-radar freeride mecca in Northern Norway:

I came to the Tamok Valley ten days ago to spend the rest of the season here filming, riding, camping and exploring new terrain. The area got hit by a big storm cycle so we have been waiting for the weather to clear up. Snow seems to be pretty stable and the coverage is the best I have ever seen here! We have had to settle for tree riding so far but the alpine terrain is looking good when the high pressure rolls in. High hopes for a long and good spring time! – Miikka Hast

Settle for the trees? Looks pretty buttery…Photo By Aadne Olsrud.

Blower pow in April! No surprise in Tamok. Latitude of Tamok – 63.39°N. Latitude of Anchorage, Alaska – 61°13′N. Photo by Teemu Lahtinen.

You gotta earn every line in Tamok. Photo by Teemu Lahtinen.

Photo By Teemu Lahtinen.

Just getting up to speed….stoked for more to come from Miikka as the clouds clear and his crew gets into the alpine! Photo By Aadne Olsrud.

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Shredding Praxmarerkarspitze With Mitch And Bibi

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Jones team riders Mitch Toelderer and Bibi Tolederer-Pekarek teamed up with fellow Austria ripper Max Zipser for an epic splitboard trip deep into the Austrian Alps:

Praxmarerkarspitze is a remote peak in the Karwendel Range of Austria. I have been looking at it for years and have always wanted to climb up and ride it. In all the years of looking at Praxmarerkarspitze, I have never seen a track so I wondered if anyone has ever rode it before? At the end of February the conditions were looking good so Max Zipser, Bibi Tölderer-Pekarek and I gave it a go. Watch and enjoy this self-made video on the mission to see how it went down.

– Mitch Toelderer

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2013 FWT World Champion Ralph Backstrom

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Raise a toast to Ralph Backstrom! 2013 Freeride World Tour Champion!

No one deserved it more as Backstrom crushed lines when it counted and he trained harder than anyone to make this dream come true.

“Very few people in the world ride big mountain lines the way Ralph does,” said Jeremy Jones. “It’s no surprise he took the Freeride World Tour crown this year. It’s an epic accomplishment and we can’t wait to celebrate back home with him.”

Teton Gravity Research caught up with Backstrom for an interview after the win. Here’s what he had to say about his line choice at Verbier:

TGR: You dropped first and wound up staying on top.  Tell me about your line choice. Also tell us how nerve-wracking  it was to be in the hot seat for the entire competition.

RB: I knew I was going to be dropping first 2-3 days before the comp; just had a really strong feeling.  The only thing was that I thought the skiers were going to be going first.  When we heard that the snowboarders were going to go first, I knew I still had the 1st bib.  It can be a bit nerve wracking going first, but most riders in AK prefer to go first, right?  I had been in Verbier for 5 days or so before the comp and had picked a line out.  After 2 bad line choices/falls in the prior comps, I picked the first line that spoke to me when I saw the face.  Then, the night before the comp, I kept having these micro dreams/thoughts that parts of my line were too tight for the amount of slough that would be moving, and kept having trouble visualizing individual turns.  So I woke up super tired, and the fog didn’t help me feel any more awake.  I definitely wasn’t in a state to ride a technical line.  I changed my line minutes before I left the judges tent to start hiking to something less technical and less exposed.  It wasn’t until I saw my score that I knew how good my run was.  I had flown passed some features I’d planned to hit, so thought I’d be easy to beat.  I definitely dodged some bullets sitting there at the bottom watching the others come down!

TGR: What was going through your head when you dropped into the Bec?

RB: I was so rushed before we dropped I didn’t have time to think at all.  A couple riders and myself were talking to Nicolas Hale-Woods on speaker phone about contingency plans if the fog didn’t clear.  It cleared right then, and he said, “forerunner in 2 minutes!”  After he dropped, the starter said, “Ralph Backstrom 2 minutes!  No, 1 minute!”  I even forgot to put on my backpack up there.

Check out TetonGravity.com for the full interview with Backstrom.

Here’s Backstrom’s winning run down the Bec des Rosses:

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Ryland Bell Winning Run At FWT Kirkwood 2013

Posted on February 28, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Freeride World Tour wildcard entry Ryland Bell stomped past the tour veterans to take the crown at Kirkwood. Three stomped 360s and solid shredding in between tricks delivered him the win.

Congrats Ryland!

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Jones Crew Shreds The Lizumer Hutte

Posted on February 26, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

After three weeks of back to back tradeshows, Jeremy Jones and the Jones Snowboards crew were starting to get a little twitchy. It was time to find pow…now!

Racing out of the ISPO tradeshow in Munich, Jeremy and a posse of Jones team riders, distributors and dealers headed into the Austrian backcountry outside of Innsbruck for a pow surf session at the Lizumer Hutte. The Lizumer Hutte is located in the Wattental Valley on a military installation at 2,109 m. Surrounded by stunning peaks, the Hutte made the perfect setting for shredding, socializing and learning more about the limitless potential of splitboarding.

Not a tradeshow booth in sight out here. “Juxtaposed from the chaos of the tradeshows, getting into the mountains and totally disconnecting is the perfect example of why we are in this industry,” said Jeremy about the mission. Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

“It was a really fun event with low expectations that yielded way better results than anticipated,” said Jeremy. “Location was great, snow was great, but the crew was what made the journey all-time.” Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

German Jones Rep Morritz Grotepass got a sweet taste of what Jones Snowboards is all about barrelling into this bowl of powdered sugar. Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

Jones Snowboards Brand Director Chad Perrin was fired up to earn and burn some turns in the Alps.  Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

There was no time to waste. Blower pow awaited! Bryce Kloster from Karakoram clicks together his shred stick with a quickness. Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

Bibi Pekarek-Toelderer lays into the fluffy stuff only a couple hours from home. Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

Mitch Toelderer blasts an ollie into the untouched. Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

Epic terrain above the Lizumer Hutte.

“One of my goals in starting Jones Snowboards was to inspire people to get into the mountains. This was my first opportunity to share that with some of the folks I work closely with. It was an incredible experience for all,” said Jeremy. Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

Toeside bliss for Chad Perrin. “The echoes of hoots and hollers reverberated through the trees every run,” said Perrin. “No doubt all the military guys stationed in the area could here us loud and clear!” Photo – Hansi Heckmair.

Good times deserve good schnapps! Anton Nigg, the Hutte Boss of Lizumer, made sure the Alpine Tequila was flowing steady.

Big thanks to Klaus Zwirner, Anton Nigg, Mitch Toelderer and all the extended Jones family for helping make the trip possible!

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Spine Searching in Turnagain Pass Alaska

Posted on February 19, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Norwegian Jones rider Lars Andreas Nilssen and his skier partners Nikolai Schirmer and Joel Chute spent three months exploring the Alaskan backcountry last winter. The crew scored big on the adventure and rode killer spine lines via foot-power which is not an easy task in AK. Check out their first edit from the mission.
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Kashmir Pow Shots With Neil McNab

Posted on February 14, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Chamonix splitboard guide Neil McNab just got back from a shred trip to Gulmarg, India. Snow conditions in the Himalaya were all-time for McNab and the crew. Check out the endless faceshots in his POV edit from the trip.

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2013 Avalaunch Ambassador of the Year: Jeremy Jones

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Seth Lightcap

Jeremy Jones Voted 2013 Avalaunch Winter Market “Ambassador of the Year”

Jones Snowboards is proud to announce that Founder, Jeremy Jones, is the recipient of the 2013 Avalaunch Winter Market “Ambassador of the Year” Award. The Avalaunch awards took place during Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 2013 in Salt Lake City. This marks the second year in a row the famed big-mountain rider and environmentalist has taken home the honor. Adding to the stoke, Jones’ environmental foundation, Protect Our Winters (POW), was voted 2013 Avalaunch Winter Market “Company of the Year.”

“It’s an honor to be named an ambassador alongside such an amazing group of athletes,” says Jones Snowboard founder, Jeremy Jones. “What Avalaunch is doing to promote snow safety and environmental responsibility to retailers and consumers is awesome. I’m super excited and humbled to win this award.”

Highly regarded as one of the most influential big mountain snowboarders of all time, Jeremy Jones is driven to emphasize that being fully educated, combined with good decision making, is vital to snow safety while traveling in the backcountry. In 2007, Jones founded Protect Our Winters (POW) to engage and mobilize the winter sports community to lead the fight against climate change. In line with his environmental beliefs, Jones has continually designed a snowboard product line at Jones Snowboards that strives to use sustainable products and manufacturing practices where possible.

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