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Snowing in Chatel

Snowing again atm in Chatel. It's been foggy for the last few days with low cloud and no wind to drive it away. Once you get up above the clouds, it's freezing cold, a sign of the weather to come over the next week.

Snow Snow

Snow is really falling and my next 2 weeks are so busy as it that time of the year for a road trip with photographer Ross Woodhall. I am so excited and cant wait to see what we can shoot. With so much snow across the alps is going to be a really fun shoot. After that I am off to Austria for a press trip then back to Verbier to do a shoot for Canon. Looks like its going to be a very productive time and I cant wait. Also doing shoot on Wednesday in Verbier but i dont want to say 2 much about it till it happens as if it works, it will look amazing and is very different. So check back for results soon.......

Snowing again in Chatel

It's starting to dump down (again) in Chatel. I was up in the Pre la Joux area this morning and there was at least 15cm of fresh snow fallen just this morning. Loads of snow predicted overnight so it's fat skis for the rest of the weekend.

Verbier

What a start to the season. I remember when I was in Mexico at the start of December and looking at the web cam going, oh dear, not another dry winter then on the 15th of December the heavens opened and it snowed pretty much non stop for 3 weeks. Verbier was covered as so was most of Europe but as with all good things, the wind came and with winds up to 100 mph it blew all the snow of the mountains and it to the village. Saying that over the past week I have never done so much hitching and found some amazing things to ride. This includes 3 1st descents for me on line I have always wanted to do. At the start of the season I did a little road trip around local resorts close to Verbier. It was a great trip and we got some great shots and it really highlighted the fact that winter was here. Christmas was spent in Klosters with Mum and that was so nice. Home cooked food, Christmas tree and great to catch up with old friends. Even had the chance to ride with Mother and she was skiing very well. After Xmas it was time for New Year. With a few surprise people I had the best new years ever in the Farinet Hotel. As the 1st was looking like it would be sunny I hit the sack early and had a great day riding on the 1st with the hill pretty much to myself. Then the snow came again and I had the misfortune to get buried in a small slide. It was not nice and as it happened in the trees I was very surprised but at the end of the slide after being caught under neither the snow the whole way down the face I surfaced with my head above the snow. It was a scary moment but I was quickly dug out and then called it a day. I am heading of to the stated in March for a weeks filming with Bayer and then in February I am off on a road trip around small resorts in Switzerland with my brother and photographer Ross Woodhall. This will be a great trip and we have some ideas to make it a bit different. Watch this space. So far we have had some good filming days but waiting for more snow to come which it looks like it will on Friday. As me and Nick are wearing next years Dare 2b kit we are getting the most amazing response. The kit is flawless and the colour design is bright and bold and perfect for us. The fit is also amazing and the jackets and trousers are littered with technical features. Check out the photos to see what I am talking about. Next update will be after the snow storm this week so check back later to see what me and Nick got up to in the fresh snow coming. Verbier is also home to the Verbier Ride this weekend so if you have the chance come on over and watch this huge international free ski slope style event. Then on the 17th of March Verbier will once again be hosting the 2nd edition of the Park 9. Have a great week.

Sun Returns to The Three Valleys

Back to typical January conditions with high pressure taking control, cold nights and wall to wall sunshine with cloudless blue skies all day. Exceptional piste conditions with huge amounts of snow cover and just about all lifts & runs open. The Praz gondola remains off due to technical problems - probably caused by the New Year Storm. Off piste is extremely variable, with crusty, wind blown and hard pack in exposed places, some transformed snow in the sun and then bucketfuls of powder in sheltered spots. Avalanche Risk is down to 2 or 3 out of 5 now depending on altitude and aspect.

Training with TeamGB

I have just moved from Vail, to Breckenridge to stay and train with the Team GB athletes. The weather the last week has been a little windy, but this week is forecast bluebird skies so its time to get some good training done finally. Brecks pipe this year is the longest ever made at 602ft, and you can easily get a good 7 hits if you take it up the wall. Its a pretty cool feeling dropping in and skiing through transition, it feels like you have a force behind you pushing you up the wall, which is quite scary, but feels amazing. The shape is one of the best I have ever skied. So far, Ive been hiking all day as the lift ques are quite busy with Christmas and New Year, but it is more productive to hike and focus on developing a trick, and also great for fitness. Ive been working on increasing the amplitude in the lower half of my Halfpipe run, which is progressing nicely. I have been trying to push myself and go as big as I feel comfortable with. I have progressed my rotation on my left 9 and working on landing switch from high unnatural spins and boosting flairs. I am flying back to England on the 16th January for my University exams, which I am going to have to also work hard towards over the next few weeks. Although there is alot to look forward to, and Im coming back to America in February to compete in the Aspen Open and a FIS World Cup in Mammoth, California, which i am really looking forward too. As Im not competing as much as last year, Im focusing on my training for next winter 2012, so Im hoping to put together a video of a few tricks, so hoping to get some videoing done tomorrow. Stay tuned :)

Loads of Snow in The Three Valleys

By New Year's Eve the resorts of the Three Valleys were struggling to cope with the amount of snow - some access roads were even closed due to avalanche risk. After a very slow start in that first week of December with practically no natural snow cover we now have the best beginning of January snow since 1956 or 1999 depending on the arguments of accumulated snow, height, quality etc etc .... More snow due in the first week of January although the sun is back between weather fronts for some fantastic skiing and riding!

Winter Dew Tour, Breckenridge

Yesterday I competed in the Winter Dew Tour, one of the most prestigious freeski competitions of the year. The day started at 5:45am waking up in the dark with a big breakfast, and then a cold 45min drive from Vail over to Breckenridge. The pipe was the longest ever made 602ft to the bottom and I planned a 7hit run, so the distance travelling down the pipe is just below 100ft per jump! I warmed up with a few training runs, which felt pretty good, but a few more runs in and I was in some pain from bruising my toes the day before. I dont usually have a bad training session, but when I do I stop and take a break, so I went to the lodge and listened to some music to get back in the zone, and then went back to the top for the start of the competition. I wasnt worried about using all the training time because and Ive had a lot of competition experience last year and I ski better in competition, so I was feeling confident. I landed my second run solid and qualified 12th in my heat, and was pretty pleased as people told me my run was really sick. My run was a left9, right9, cork5, right7, switch left 7, flair, 900. I was also really happy for my friend Peter Speight, who landed a really smooth run in his first year competing on Dew tour circuit, (picture above, Pete on left, me on right). I didnt manage to qualify for the next round as my amplitude on the bottom half of my run wasnt enough, but I havent skied Halfpipe since the British Championships last March, so I cant expect big things just yet. I am the fittest I have been all year, thanks to TASS strength & conditioning and I looking forward to getting to work in the pipe now and polishing my tricks for the next competition in January. I will have to hope for a wildcard for the 2nd stop of the Winter Dew Tour, in Vermont in January :). I will post the video of my run soon.

War and Piste Tour Dates

The War & Piste's Alpine Road Trip kicks off. Here's the upcoming schedule of stops: December 9-11 2011: War & Piste's Alpine Road Trip kicks off at the Rond Point in Meribel December 12 2011: Road Trip hits Morzine for coffee at Dotty's! December 12 2011: Road Trip in Chamonix - Wings Night at MBC followed by party at La Terrasse December 13-17 2011: Road Trip lands in Verbier - Seasonaire Opening Party and the Dirtbag Sale at Pub Mont Fort December 17 2011: War & Piste at Pocket's Birthday Bash, the Bubble, Zermatt December 18-22 2011: Road Trip closing party, St. Anton am Arlberg April 2-6 2012: The War & Piste crew dance like loons at Basscamp festival, Morzine April 9-14 2012: Snowbombing time in Mayrhofen!

First few days in Colorado!

Last week I flew to Colorado for the start of the 2011 Winter Season. When I arrived in Vail, it was -40 degrees! It was the coldest Ive been in a while ha, even just walking outside makes your hair freeze and I had to keep going into shops to stay warm. There is only a dusting of snow in Vail village, but the snow conditions are surprisingly good for December. I am training out here with GB Freeskiing, the new official British team. Now Halfpipe and Slopestyle are Olympic Sports, it will be a really exciting winter, and we have some big competitions planned, although we cant start to qualify for until July 2012, so this year will be a good training year. Since I got here it has been nonstop skiing! Day1, acclimatize getting used to the altitude at 10,000ft! It is hard to breathe at this altitude, let alone ski ha. I also made sure my equipment was set up and made some adjustments to my Dalbello boots had my Volkl skis race tuned. I spent a couple of days on Ski Club Vails Halfpipe Airbag (picture above), getting back into the feeling of being in the air as I havent been in a Halfpipe since March, but I got back into it fairly quickly. The training facilities at Ski Club Vail are some of the best in the World, Lindsey Vonn trains here which says it all. I have trained here for the last 2 years and the airbag is the best thing for training new tricks without the risk of injury. I fired off a few double flips to get them out the way, but Im going to be working on them a lot this year, which will be scary, but fun ha. The Winter Dew tour is in a few days, so Im now off to registration in Breckenridge. Training starts tomorrow, and it is looking like the Breckenridge Halfpipe is one of the longest ever made so It should be good!

Last few days in Sweden

Well it’s my last few days in Sweden and what a few weeks it has been. I have been to a number of ski film premiers and seen some great international and Swedish films. The films have really got me going for the winter and I can’t wait for the snow to start falling. With my 1st trip planned for the 11th of December the season is starting as soon as I get to Verbier. I have ordered all my new kit, sorted out my place of residences for the winter and got my lift pass. All I need is snow and then its game on. My girlfriend has also become very good behind the camera lens so I will be working with her a lot this winter so keep an eye out for some stunning shots. Well I also had a big problem the other day with my car breaking down, the new part getting lost and with a high chance that I might not make my flight. But as fate would have it, while the delivery company could not locate my part, the garage did and while the delivery company where searching the world for it, I was very happily told it was on my car. One stress out the way but with the Iron man only 12 days away my nerves are holding on but only just. I am having problems with my shoulder and its not holding so well when I am swimming. So I have been in the gym a lot trying to work on it but it does not seem to be working so well. Time will tell and I will make it across the finish line… I am loving the biking and well, the running is just running but I just wish I could swim like a fish. I have a great new tri-suit; they are interesting it must be said but I like it and it’s a nice close fit, a bit close in some areas but you have to get the ladies excited. So all I can really think about is mexico. I land on Sunday evening then its straight to the hotel for a long sleep on Sunday and I hope waking up to a lovely beach, nice cool winds and perfect training conditions for me to wrap up my training. When I am there I will try and do a blog every day so that you can see what I am up to and also how I am preparing for it. I have worked out my race food, my race pace and well all I have to do is to work out how to pee when riding. This is a small idea of the times I want to do, not going to break any records but if it gets me over the line then I will be the happiest alive and for everyone else, you will get a good laugh as a little surprise awaits… So my times: Swim: 100m – 3m 10 seconds = 2h00m20seconds Transition: 7m 30 seconds Bike: 25 km/h = 7h 12m00s Transition: 7m 30 seconds Run: 1km – 9m15seconds = 6h30m21s Total time: 15h 57 min 41 s.... Anyway, time to sleep as got to pack, train, sort out my last minute details then drive though Denmark (only a 9 hour drive) to the ferry. Back home for 1 day then Mexico.. Going to be a very exciting journey and one I hope that is success full. Well look back next Monday for a report on my 1st day in Mexico. Have a great week all.

London Freeze

The London Freeze 2011 was one of the best events of the year! The crowds were massive, and the conditions of the snow in London this year were the best they have ever been. The last few weeks I have been really busy training for this event in Austria, so I couldn't wait to get up there. I competed in the Battle of Britain ski competition and came 3rd, which is my first time on the podium at London Freeze. So the Top3 Brits qualified for the International big air, I had no expectations, but I decided I was skiing well so I went all out. My jump was a switch misty 900 and I came 18th Place, top Brit and 2points of the finals, couldn't be happier. I'll be back next year with hopefully a double to make the finals. I'm back at Leeds Met University this week and getting back in the gym before I fly out to America next month. This is the video of my jump in the International competition http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAXwL6u273I (Photo credit - Zach Flynn)

The Ski+Snowboard Show

Hi & Welcome to my new blog! ..I'm really excited to announce I'm skiing for Dare2B clothing! This week I'm in London for the Metro Ski show in Earls Court! All the brands in the Snowsports industry are here and it is a great week with fashion shows, music and ski demonstrations. This year I am doing skiing 5 shows a day to the London crowds of around 40,000 people, showing what Freestyle skiing is all about. I have got the London Ride international Big Air competition tomorrow, followed by the London Freeze next weeked which is the best weekend of the year! I'll keep you updated with any exciting news. The picture above is me in skiing in the exhibition, if your around London this weekend come and watch the skiers and snowboarders on the Dare2B Hip Jump! Check out my twitter for competition updates @james_machon

update

Hi, Please click on the link for my updated blog.. The winter is not far away and I cant wait for the snow. Bring on Verbier... http://www.whatsyourlifelike.com/index.php/bloggers/profile/chris-southwell

Latest from Chris Southwell's Blog

Full text from Chris Southwells Blog: well, its been a few weeks since my last update so i though it was high time to update everyone on what has been going on. 1st of all my 1st season for the Tudor arms football club is over. It was a really mixture of highs and lows and like always, towards the end of the season I found my football feet and started to love the game again. Its fair to say we ended up 3rd from the bottom but we did not go down so happy days. We live to fight another day, or season. Its a great team and I cant wait for next seasonâ€¦ Check out this high octane action shot of me in actionâ€¦ I have also been exploring the forests of Sweden mushroom picking. I must say i never found my mushroom eyes but Annas Mum and sister did not have a problem and I reckon i picked up about 5 or even 6, but they did taste ever so goodâ€¦. At dinners parties I always seem to be the butt of all jokes in Sweden. If i don't get lost in the translation then I just pick the short strawâ€¦ looked what happened to me here.. Back to the serious stuff. A few weeks ago I headed of with the Dare 2b team to shoot all 2012/2013 kit. What a week we had. Saas Fee was looking great and we where so lucky in staying in the amazing Hotel Ferien Art. Mine and Anna's room was as big as most apartments and with the hotel also having a pool, gym and spa it was perfect for my Iron Man training. With lots of early morning to get up to the glacier to fit in the days shooting was hard work as the days where very full on. This was Anna's 1st ever photo shoot and she was very excited. I must say she did a great job and loved it which was great to see and this season she will be behind the camera as well in front on various press trips we are planningâ€¦. The new kit is looking amazing and me and Nick cant wait to get the samples. Check out the http://www.dare2b.com to have a look at all the new kit for this winter as they have some great kit at amazing prices. We also did some filming for the new Dare 2b team video. I had to film my interview in Saas Fee and it took us a while to find a nice quite place but as with everything in the mountains, there is always something making a noise. If it was not the lift or a river, low flying planes liked to join in the funâ€¦. But we finally got the shots so happy daysâ€¦ Apart from the photo shoot there was also the very important golf match between the Southwell brothers and the photography crew. It was a close match and a fun match but with a few of us being a bit rusty it was interesting. As you can see from the photo the greens where interesting but still playable just. The fun thing about the course was that we borrowed the golf balls and if we lost one it was a 2chf cost. So with the 1st hole over water 3 balls where lost. This was worrying but as the course went on we seem to find a lot of balls so in the end we where up but like all things, we never got more money for the extra balls. Here is a nice shot of Ross after his ball leapted off his tee and flew a few yards into a bunkerâ€¦ Our last night at the hotel we where greeted with a great surprise. The best table to draw the Effile tower won a bottle of champagne. To be fair, i have never been an artsit but i though my effort was quite good. The winner was announced at the 7am the following but we had to leave at 6 to head back to Sweden so i never found out if i won but i think its fair to say that i did winâ€¦. Well on to my Iron Man. All is going well. Its been hard with 6 weeks to go i am very nervous. Its a huge undertaking and I just hope i can pull though and do it. The hardest part for me is the swimming. I dont really like swimming so getting myself to the pool each day is hard work but onces i am in its all go go goâ€¦.. Biking and running is going well and flying though but i just have to work on the swimming. My diabetes is undercontrol, I have had no issues with sugars, just that i get a bit tired at the end of each day but thats all really. So Meixco in 6 weeks then the seasonâ€¦.. I must say that if i am to do this again i would never train on my own, thats the hardest part of all and the one thing i dont like doing. But i hope i can do it and thank you every one for all your support. If you would like to donate to my charity, JDRF then please follow this

War and Piste Book Launch

Last week saw the book launch for "War and Piste" an Alpine novel from Alex Thomas at the Megaro hotel. The evening was a great success with a large attendance at the trendy London hotel. Whilst one was unable to resist the lure of the gluhwein and the alpine canapés the reason for the evening was the highly anticipated launch of "War and Piste" a fantastic new book about the diary of a seasonaire. After drinks and speeches from the publishers and author herself the crowd were then treated to a prize draw in which book partners Dare 2b supplied some of their finest winter kit for prizes. A great evening and If the synopsis below isn't enough to get you excited, the feedback to the book has been exceptional and a must add to any christmas stocking! The book is also about to go on a tour throughout the alps so keep checking back to www.warandpiste.com for the all the latest. "As of forty-three minutes ago, I am a seasonaire, whatever that means." When Poppy swaps a life of suits and cappuccinos for a job as a ski rep, she soon finds that resort life on the side of an Austrian Alp is more than she bargained for. Adapting to her new diet of Jägermeister, adrenaline and europop, Poppy throws herself into this strange new world - a world in which 200 foot cliffs, midnight shootings and the intrigues of the megalomaniac resort manager soon start to feel normal. When a growing love for backcountry adventures and the irresistible prospect of an illicit affair start to pull her in different directions, Poppy begins to wonder just how she will ever return to the life she left behind… Wickedly funny and utterly authentic, this is a novel for anyone with an intense love for melted cheese, neat spirits and deep snow – ideally all served together. This is the diary of a season."

Here comes the Winter!!!

Whilst you have all been sunning yourself down south, North of the boarder we never really had the "Indian Summer" that seemed to happen to every other part of the UK. Instead we stayed in normal summer mode (where we go straight from Spring to Autumn) and have already had several good dusting's of snow on the hills! With that in mind we have been getting a bit snow crazy in the office and have started making plans for trips up north when it gets a little bit colder... and it really only needs to be a little bit colder! With that in mind we are taking The Dare2b AirBag to Manchester's Chill Factor-e on Friday the 14th of October. We start at 6:30pm and run until 11pm so we hope to see some of you there! Booking can be done online at http://www.chillfactore.com/ski-board/freestyle-academy/core-airbag-session or by calling 0161 749 2222.

Freshers Fairs!

Just a wee video done by the Strathclyde University Film Society from our freshers fair at Strathclyde University in aid of raising awareness of there Mountain Bike club... It was a bit windy but at least it didnt rain! Thanks to all the guys and girls from the club for a top day!

Joe Barnes-End of Season

After arriving back from my big euro trip this summer the good times haven't stopped. The drive back from Norway was made slightly easier by getting the Amsterdam ferry to Newcastle. Persuaded by the cabaret act that didn't disappoint. We rocked up to Fort William with a van that was beyond stinking, loaded up with every item of clothing wet and fusty and some worse for wear bikes. The luxury of a house was novel enough to keep me stoked for a while, swaggering about soaking in the real estate and the comfort of my couch. It wasn't long before Myself and my Dad trucked down to Innerleithen for the SDA race. It was great to race in Scotland again and I was having great fun on the course. A classic Innerleithen style track with a pedally top half followed by some steep loose corners down the bottom. I came down in the first timed run to take the win and the fastest time of the day as well. I was really happy with this, to come back from a summer away and stamp a bit of authority on the Scottish scene. Leaving the race we swung by Airdrie to pick up my new van. It is a beauty of a transit van, same wheelbase but a good bit of overhang out the back. Work has already started to turn it into the Landship2 and be a luxury palace for next summer. A couple of weeks at home was great after this. Time to get a bit of work in to restock the monies and to ride the trails around the Fort that had been missed over the summer. A great bonfire at Jamesy boy Shirleys' house topped it off nicely. James pump track has had its final coat of bitumin and with a big fire in the middle of each loop some great night pumping took place before the marsh mallows came out. My final race this year was the SDA final at Glencoe. A pretty steep gnarly trail in places and nowhere to ease up over the condensed 2+minutes trail. I was keeping it pretty pinned in practice and felt fast and within myself all weekend. A rainy day of practice was followed by a great day for Sundays race. Conditions were perfect with watery fast rolling mud and clear conditions overhead. I had a clean first run for a time of 2.21 to take the win and fastest time. A new course record from my previous best from over 3 years ago. It couldn't have been a better finish to the year taking my second consecutive win and on such a fun track.

Saas Fee

Saas Fee in the summertime or more Autumn time really didn’t disappoint. I have just got back from a catalogue shoot with Dare 2b on the glacier in Saas Fee. As a resort to ski off season there really cant be many better and whilst England has been blessed with a seemingly October heat wave we had very much the same as throughout the week there I dont think i even saw a cloud. The catalogue shoot itself was a lot of fun, I got a very nice surprise when on arriving i found out that the photographer for the week was a certain Mr Woodhall, a fantastic character and one of the UK’s finest winter sport photographers and someone who took one of the first ever pictures I had published of me in a ski magazine, he was too ensure that throughout the week whether on the mountain, golf course or during dinner there was never a dull moment. The photo shoot involved doing a mixture of things representing different areas of the clothing ranges, this varied from action shots in the park, to lifestyle shots (here my blue steel really came into its own) to some off piste bits that we could find. The clothing we were being photographed in, was the range for 2012/13 and we also had there a lot of the gear for this coming winter to do some video reviews and I have to say both this years clothing and next years is brilliant and without doubt some of the best winter gear I have ever worn. You can check it out at, www.dare2b.com. All in all, it was a great week in a stunning resort with a really good crowd and was super nice being back on the snow and now cant wait for the winter!

Saas Fee

Saas Fee in the summertime or more Autumn time really didn’t disappoint. I have just got back from a catalogue shoot with Dare 2b on the glacier in Saas Fee. As a resort to ski off season there really cant be many better and whilst England has been blessed with a seemingly October heat wave we had very much the same as throughout the week there I dont think i even saw a cloud. The catalogue shoot itself was a lot of fun, I got a very nice surprise when on arriving i found out that the photographer for the week was a certain Mr Woodhall, a fantastic character and one of the UK’s finest winter sport photographers and someone who took one of the first ever pictures I had published of me in a ski magazine, he was too ensure that throughout the week whether on the mountain, golf course or during dinner there was never a dull moment. The photo shoot involved doing a mixture of things representing different areas of the clothing ranges, this varied from action shots in the park, to lifestyle shots (here my blue steel really came into its own) to some off piste bits that we could find. The clothing we were being photographed in, was the range for 2012/13 and we also had there a lot of the gear for this coming winter to do some video reviews and I have to say both this years clothing and next years is brilliant and without doubt the best winter gear I have ever worn. You can check it out at, www.dare2b.com. All in all, it was a great week in a stunning resort with a really good crowd and was super nice being back on the snow and now cant wait for the winter!

MTBcut win at Tour de Ben Nevis

Tour de Ben Nevis 2011 Last Saturday it was the 2nd year running of the Tour de Ben Nevis, another epic race run by No Fuss Events. The event is a 72km circumnavigation of Ben Nevis, with 5 timed 'special stages' making up a points system to decide the overall winner. The day before I was feeling pretty ropey so I loaded up on Lemsips max and moped about whilst Joe did the pro tune on my Orange 5. Jesus (Peter Scullion), Roger and Ricky all from Edinburgh, arrived in time for a massive pasta turbo load and then some of Rogers home made brownies. The boys race preparation consisted of sitting in their pyjamas and sipping red wine (not Jesus, he's well pro). There was big debate in our house as to which bike would be the weapon of choice. Joe reckoned a light and racey hardtail, but I decided to stick with my 5 for some comfort, and speedy fun descents. I wasn't feeling too hot in the morning so I had a lemsip with my porridge and energy juice. The start of the race was great! All 330 riders got piped down Fort William high street before being led off by the trials bike. It was quite an impressive scene! The first road climb was pretty long and torturous, especially with not much of a warm up. I felt pretty ill and slow on the ride out to Kinlochleven and had a couple of small but unpleaseant power spews. The timed second timed stage was a sweet gnarly descent, with loose corners and big drainage ditches. I tried a dodgy overtaking manoeuvre and washed out, smashing my arm and hip. The riders were still quite condensed at this point so it was hard to get a clear run. The ride to the bothy and river crossing was sweet as there was a strong tail wind. I got some banter with Fos (founder of Off Beat Bikes), and downhill racer Ali Parkin. I gradually got into a good rhythm and felt fine after the initial wobbly stage. It stayed nice and dry all day, and the sun even came out at times. The river was nice and low despite the high rain fall, unlike last years bike carry above head mission! The timed hill push up from the river was well worth it for the sweet ride down the other side. It was flat out fun singletrack, heather, rocks and mud! The fire road descent into Leanachan forest was really fast and fun, the corners were so fast it was scary! The fith and final stage started on local classic, 'the blue crane', then joined onto another amazing xc trail which cut through the trees. From here it was a short and fast ride to the finish. It was cool how the race started and ended in the town square, it was a really great atmosphere. I crossed the line 2nd female, however I finished 1st based on the points gained in the timed 'special stages'. Ruari Watt (also on an Orange five) won the men's race. Orange Mountain Bikes sponsored the event again, so we each won a frame! The day finished with pumptrack action and a big bonfire at Jamesey boy's, with lots of pizza, toasted marshmallows and beer. Another memorable weekend of great racing, friends and good times!

Iron Man Just Giving Info

CHRIS SOUTHWELL IS UNDERTAKING AN EXTREME ENDURANCE CHALLENGE TO RAISE FUNDS FOR JUVENILE DIABETES RESEARCH FOUNDATION (JDRF) THE CHALLENGE - IRON MAN COZUMEL, MEXICO, NOVEMBER 27th 2011 Chris Southwell will be taking on his most demanding challenge to date when he attempts to become an Iron Man. His journey started some months ago with a demanding training schedule of biking, running and swimming, 6 days a week, covering over 240 kilometers to build up the fitness levels required to achieve his goal of becoming an Iron Man. The famous Iron Man multi-sport event will take place in November in Mexico, Cozumel and competitors must complete a 3.86-kilometer swim, cycle 180.2 kilo¬meters, and run a full marathon distance of 42.2 kilometers in the allocated time of 17 hours! Only a handful of people with diabetes have ever successfully taken part in this grueling com¬petition, which pushes all contestants to their mental as well as physical limit and even beyond. ABOUT CHRIS SOUTHWELL Chris is 29 years old and a professional extreme snowboarder. He is currently ranked 33rd in the world and over the years has competed on the World Freeride Qualifying tour gaining a number of top 5 results thus making him one of Britain’s leading and most recognized professional freeride snowboarders . In August 2004 Chris was working in France when he was taken ill and diagnosed as diabetic (Type 1). It was a difficult and life changing time, but with first class NHS support he has managed and learnt over the years to balance a very hectic and demanding snowboard career with his diabetes. LIVING WITH DIABETES Chris wants to help educate young people who have been diagnosed with diabetes: To suddenly become diabetic aged 22, and have to learn how to inject four times a day, was a daunting and scary experience. With diabetes becoming more and more common in young people, Chris will use his Iron Man challenge to inspire others to show what you can achieve despite being diabetic - it will be a tough journey but hopefully the end result will be worth it! Life is about challenges and this will be his biggest one yet. He hopes that his experiences will motivate and encourage other diabetics, and particularly young people which is why he is an ambassador for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), and he strongly supports its important work to find the cure for type 1diabetes and its complications. Chris believes, despite being type 1 diabetic, that if you have the right control, determination, positive outlook and attitude you can achieve even your wildest of dreams … he is living his! Chris has been nominated, in respect of his work helping others with diabetes, to carry the Olympic flame for the London Olympics 2012 and please follow this link for more details: http://www.lloydstsblondon2012.co.uk/en/carrytheflame/Nomination/?nid=f1fbd650-de8f-42a7-9b6c-7178017a0fae HOW YOU CAN HELP Please sponsor Chris and help Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation by clicking on his Just Giving Site http://www.justgiving.com/Chris-Southwell. Thank you and your support is greatly appreciated. THE CHARITY - (www.jdrf.org.uk) Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) exists to find the cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications, and is the world's leading charitable funder of type 1 diabetes research. It was founded by a small group of parents of children with type 1 diabetes who recognized that insulin injections are not the cure for this life threatening and lifelong condition. Diabetes is an increasingly high-profile issue that indiscriminately touches the lives of many people in the UK, but is often overlooked. In the UK more than two million people have been diagnosed with diabetes, and a million more have the condition but don't know it yet. Diabetes can develop at any age and those with friends or relatives with diabetes will understand how difficult it can be to learn to live with the condition. Contrary to popular opinion, diabetes is both progressive and life threatening with potentially devastating consequences for health. People with diabetes have to think constantly about their food intake, physical activity, blood sugar and insulin levels. This is hard enough for adults, let alone the increasing numbers of children who develop diabetes. For further information on Chris’s Iron Man Challenge and his progress go to: http://www.breatheunitynetwork.com/athletes/chris-southwell http://www.whatsyourlifelike.com/index.php/bloggers/profile/chris-southwell http://twitter.com/#!/SouthwellChris http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chris-Southwell-attempting-his-1st-ever-Iron-Man-in-Mexico-on-27112011/134448803297561

Getting Fresh....

Hi all, We have been getting out and about with The Dare2b AirBag this week including a trip to Sno!Zone Scotland at Braehead, Glasgow. The we went to Strathclyde University for their mountain bike clubs Freshers fair. Its always great to do an event like this in a built up environment as folk walking by cant quite believe their eyes! Photos are up now at www.facebook.com/theairbag

Riverside Extreme with Danny MacAskill

The Dare2b Airbag will be out in force this weekend for a brand new bike event happening in Scotland. Riverside Extreme is to be held at the brand new transport museum on the banks of the Clyde. TheAirBag will be out from 11am with some of the exhibited riders coming to give some tips on how to go big on your bike. There will also be a Q&A session with Mr MacAskill himself as well as a pump track and lots of other bike related activities. Then on Sunday we are off to Ravenscraig Park in Kirkcaldy for another big show with The Clan Stunt Team. The show kicks off at 11am again, so get yourself involved with The Dare2B AirBag this weekend!

MTBcut SDA Innerleithen

I had only done one SDA this year so it was nice to get back to them at the end of the season and see everyone that I haven't seen since the start of the season! The track was really fun with the top section being fast with a few jumps then the bottom section being steep and technical. I decided to try out clips just to get some practice in early before the winter starts, was really good to have a couple sets of Five Ten Minnaar clip shoes seeing as the weather was really wet! The track was really good fun starting off super wet then slowly drying out which made it really sticky, so I wanted it to stay wet because I was loving it. Practice went by really fast, but I was really enjoying being back on the downhill bike after a bit of time off. Race day, one of the wheels fell of the uplift bus so I only managed to get one practice run in which was a bit annoying as I usually get two in but all was good. Had some food before my race run, sold some parts from last year and made a bit of money! Went up for my first race run, the track had dried up a bit so it was running a bit slower at the top which made it really physical. My run wasn't that great, just not letting the brakes off enough and having no flow. So I was quite a bit behind the pace, I knew with a good run I could be right on the pace. Second race run started off with a massive sprint down the first straight and got majorly wild because I was pedalling that hard! There was a really tight rooty switchback and unfortunately I didn't make the corner and came to a stop off track, so after that I gave it my all and it was an awesome run after that, riding like how I should be! I managed to take 5 seconds off my first run even with that mistake so I was annoyed but still pretty stoked at the same time. Next race is at Glencoe SDA so hopefully the weathers not too brutal so it can go ahead because it's an awesome track! Thanks for reading! Fraser McGlone

What does the weather man know?

Hi All! the Dare2B Airbag was in demand this weekend as we took off down to Sno!Zone Milton Keynes for a fantastic session with a big 2m booter that had been fantastically shaped. A great session with a lot of regulars as well as some folk hitting kickers for their first time. However we left Milton Keynes with a sense of trepidation - the weather man (or it may have been a weather lady!) had told us that we were to expect torrential rain, thunder and lightening as well as very strong winds. We set up at 9 in pleasant sunshine thinking we may have dodged the bullet but at 11 when we were due to start, the heavens opened. We put on our Dare2b waterproofs only for the rain to stop as soon as it started and never bothered us again all day. Even the winds weren't as strong as they had predicted! All in all a good weekend was had and if you would like to see the photos please head over to www.facebook.com/theairbag! Take care, TheAirBag.net Team

Back with a boot!

This weekend the Dare2b AirBag will be at Sno!Zone Scotland (Braehead in Glasgow). For a wee while we have been having to use pre-made kickers in side some of the indoor slope's due to some snow problems but now big snow kickers are back. From 7 we will be there ready to catch you safely as you fly off a big real snow kicker! We are looking forward to seeing some of you mountain lounge readers down there!

MTBcut win at the Big Ben Nevis Triathlon

Big Ben Nevis Triathlon 2011 The Dare2b Big Ben Nevis Triathlon, run by No Fuss Events, is classed as Britians toughest off road Triathlon. The event consists of a 1900m sea loch swim, a 90km mountain bike, and a 21km run to the summit of Ben Nevis and back. Pete Scullian arrived from Edinburgh on friday evening just in time for the race briefing. Pete was doing the half distance triathlon, I was doing the full distance event. I last did this race in 2009, and still have the record by 51 minutes, it was great to do such a cool event again but I put the pressure on myself to pull one out the bag. On Friday night my brother Joe tuned up my bike and Pete did some last minute tuning on his bike too. It was a 5.45am start, as the swim started at 7am. Pete and I forced down some oats and banana and some energy drink then headed to the swim start. There was no wind which was great, and the swim went well. Well, I though it was until I saw the dude swimming beside me had chosen back stroke as his stroke of choice. I did the 1.9km swim in a bow wave making 42 minutes. The ride set off along the tarmac and soon went straight up a steep road which was a wake up for the legs! We then turned onto a track and up a long continuous loose climb up and around Cow Hill. The descent into Glen Nevis was a really fast and fun with good jumps and flat loose corners. I gradually passed people and by the top of the Glen I was top ten and now first woman. The short descent at the top of Glen Nevis was great fun, really muddy and rooty and a good place to make up time as most people walked down. At the bottom my Mum was parked in my van with a selection of goods. I found it much easier to eat going down the road than getting food at transition then straight up the hill of doom. I had a quick stop and gulp of tea and pasta at the van each lap, but sometimes would just have a quick bottle swap and grap a gel and carbohydrate bar. Joe rode alongside me down the road which was great, chatting and keeping the pace up. He said 'to finish first, first you must finish'. Wise words! I felt pretty strong on the bike for all four laps, and they seemed to go past smoothly and quickly. Joe said 'all you have to do now is walk up the Ben, you'll easily manage that'. I was 8th overall after the bike section which was good, but was a bit concerned I'd totally die on Ben Nevis as I hadn't done much running at all. I had a nice quick transition and headed off on the run. My Dad and Fergy-baby went up Ben Nevis with me, which was great having the moral support. I was stumbling up on hands and knees for most of it, feeling totally delirious and suffering with a really sore lower back. I couldn't believe I wasn't being passed. It was so great seeing all the happy marshals getting closer through the rain and mist, cheering me on. Towards the summit it was wild, really windy and heavily raining. It was great getting to the top, then turning round and enjoying the run down. We kept a good steady pace, and I felt good and relaxed coming down. I gulped down the water from the streams so as not to cramp on the road. Coming into the finish it was great having everyone to meet me for the final stretch, then Chloe from No Fuss was at the finish to spray me with Champagne coming over the line! I finished 1st woman and 5th overall, with a time of 8 hrs 25 mins. I was really happy to place up there with the top guys. It was a great race, with the really fun and relaxed atmosphere that is No Fuss events.

Blog updates

Hi, Please check out these sites which are also following me on my Iron Man challenges as well as though out the winter. I am also off on to shoot the new Dare 2b winter brochure in Saas Fee in a weeks. I am so excited about checking out all the new kit and getting back on to the snow. I will keep you all updated on how it goes. The weather has turned in Sweden. Started to rain quite a bit but still nice and warm so just get a bit wetter when I am training. Got to head off for a run but please check out the following links, there are also some great shots of me in my Dare 2b kit. http://www.snowboardingholidays.net/blog/ http://outdooradventureguide.co.uk/2011/09/iron-man-challenge-september-2011/ http://www.whatsyourlifelike.com/index.php/bloggers/profile/chris-southwell http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2011/08/26/pro-snowboarder-to-take-on-ironman-mexico/ and if you want to follow me on twitter please do:http://twitter.com/#!/SouthwellChris Have a great week, Chris

Blog updates

Getting geared up for Winter!

The Dare2b Airbag is ready for a big weekend! On Saturday we are back at SNO!ZONE MILTON KEYNES from 7pm and, for the first time in a long time, we will have a full snow kicker! In some ways its a shame we are gearing up for winter when I barely feel like we have had a summer however we still have plenty of bike events coming up before all our roads shut down with an inch of snow. One such event is on Sunday when we head to FJMTB near Stockport for the FARMER JOHNS RACE WEEKEND 201 We are on from 11am so get down early to take advantage of our all day passes! We hope to see you all soon and a big thanks to Dare 2b for their support! Laters Alligators

Pictures and Videos

Hi Guys We have posted some media from the Chillfactore Session and Nass Festival! Hope you like them www.theairbag.net

Summer in Sweden

Hi, check out the link for a small update on what I have been doing and also where my Dare 2b kit has been taking me... http://www.whatsyourlifelike.com/index.php/bloggers/profile/chris-southwell

BoleFest!

BoleFest is kicking off this weekend just outside of Chester, England! If you are wanting to try some crazy stunts on your Mountain Bike, Mountain Board or BMX, TheAirBag is going to be there on Sunday so try and get down if you are around the area!!

Mountain Training

I have just had a great week in the Swiss mountains do some hiking and training for my Iron Man. It also gave me a great chance to test out some of my Dare 2b walking kit. I was using the Buckeroo Convertible Short and even when it rained they dried so quickly and made a huge difference during my hiking and running on the mountains. I was also using the Struckout Jacket. It was warm, light weight and perfect for the mountains. Check out my photo to see me wearing my new kit. Winter is getting closer and closer. I am so excited and cant wait to get out to the snow. I am heading back to Verbier again and fingers crossed for a better winter than last year. All the training for my iron man is going well. I am loving my new Giant bike and and Dare 2b biking kit is keeping me warm on the colder biking nights here in Sweden and also padding my bum from the long riders I am doing. Have a great week and I will send another update soon....

Burton Open

It's been a jam packed week of steeze at Cardrona with all the top pro snowboarders from all over the world coming to our little resort in New Zealand to complete in Halfpipe and Slopestyle championships presented by "Mini". The storm due to hit on the weekend held off all week, giving us 5 straight days of bluebird skies and 100% visibility. 42 men and 16 women compete for $6,000 first prize in the slopestyle, all ranging across 9 countries. Anderson's winning run included such tricks as switch backside 360, cab 540 melon and 50/50 backside boardslide on the final rail. The French Canadian Toutant wowed the judges with his signature "Toutsie Roll" (backside doublecork 1080 melon). Aono Sealed the deal in the halfpipe with a run that included a frontside 1080, backside 900 and cab 1080, also back to back corks in his final run. While Clark pulled frontside 720, cab 720 and backside 540 out of her bag of tricks! Both picked up $7,500 for their win and 850 swatch TTR world event points. Bring on the Winter Games! Until next time x

A Very Busy Few Weeks!

It's been a bit of a mad month or so at Cardrona. We were trained for our jobs (driving up in the vans up the mountain the “muddy hill” didn’t fill us with confidence) but it became swiftly apparent that our estimated opening day, 24th June, was ambitious to say the least. Two weeks passed and STILL not snow, but we were certainly not going hungry. Cardrona provided its entire staff with lunch every day, and not just ol' slop, the chefs were cooking up a storm in the mobile cooking unit they had set up outside the community centre in Wanaka. Many people donated money for our food bank, as well as other vital accessories (Yes, we need toilet paper!) and we were lucky enough to have pity taken on us by our landlord and given a month’s free rent! Two weeks of going to the super market, then coffee, then the super market again and finally the snow came. And boy did it come! Cardrona managed to make enough manmade snow to open on 8th July and the day after our fist big storm came and it dumped for about a week. One day 47 cars went off the road into ditches, fortunately no one was hurt but it just gives you a sense of how fast the snow came! Since the holidays have been over it's been much more chilled but this week the Burton Open started this week and there's endless pros coming in and out of our little cafe! Bring on the rest of the season and the ride breaks! Take care northern and southern hemisphere dwellers xx

Giant Bike Sponsorship

I have just got sponsored by Giant Bikes for my Iron Man event. Check out the video in the link to see my new bike getting fitted. So along with my Dare 2b bike suit, I am now ready to take on the best. http://www.whatsyourlifelike.com/index.php/bloggers/profile/chris-southwell I am also in the Swiss alps at the minute so check back in a few days to see what I have been up to. I have also been testing some of the jackets walking and I have some great photos of that too. Have a great week and catch up in a few days...

TheAirBag.net at Chill Facotr-e on Friday.....

TheAirBag.net goes skis and boards on Friday despite the summer season! Friday sees us return to Chill Factor-e Manchester. We will be out from 6:30 pm until 11:00pm. A 10% is up for grabs if your session is booked in advance at http://www.chillfactore.com/ski-board/freestyle-academy/core-airbag-session or 0161 749 2222. Hope to see you all there!

MTBcut at Crankworx Enduro

Kokanee Crankworx Canadian Enduro 2011 Last weekend we loaded up the wee wagon and headed up from North Vancouver to Whistler for Crankworx. It was awesome to be in Whistler, which i'd heard so much about, as the place to be for mountain biking! We rode all day every day, interspersed with smoothie stops and cruising about Whistler village enjoying the chilled fun atmosphere of Crankworx. It was cool watching all the events throughout the week. The pumptrack race was cool, and even more cool that there was a bear cutting about at the side! As I was racing the enduro on the weekend I spent some time during the week getting to know the 5 timed stages we'd be racing. I rode my Orange 5 all week which was the perfect all round bike to hit the boom gnarly rocky rooty bike park trails and also the fast xc trails at lost lake. On Saturday I seeded 4th pro for Sunday's race. It was amazing to race alongside the likes of Anne-Caroline Chausonne. I was the only British rider in my category, Whistler local pinners and Anne-Caro made up the rest. The race consisted of 5 timed stages with riders set off at 30 second intervals, and a cut off time to get to each stage, making up the format of enduro racing. The first stage was in Whistler bike park which was fast, loose and dusty. The next two stages were at Lost Lake, which were longer xc style sections which were lung bursting and hot! The fourth section was on Blackcomb mountain which had a brutal steep loose fire road climb to the start. This section was probably my favourite, it was really natural with a variety of steep loose rocks and roots, some short tough climbs, and fast flat loose corners to finish. Danny was great team support, being on hand for xc/dh helmet swaps and giving me food and juice. It was nice and sociable riding between each section, getting to know the other riders. The final stage was on Whistler bike park. Getting to the start we went zooming past a bear right beside the track eating grass. This final section was live on freecaster which was cool. I loved the track, it was such a fun mix of tight rooty sections and fast power down peddaly sections. I finished 5th pro female. I was really happy with the race, it went smoothly and my bike was perfect for the job. Anne-Caroline Chaussone and Brian Lopes took the win. Now it's back to Vancouver for the next wee while to session the trails on the North Shore! Huge thanks to all of team MTBcut's amazing sponsors... Orange mountain bikes, Dare2b, Hope technology, Nukeproof, Maxxis, Straitline, IXS, Shimano and Mojo Suspension. Thanks for all your support!

Joe Barnes Roadtrip Part 2

The last couple of weeks have been a mixture of good and bad with some racing, hot lines, comedy euros and breakdowns. After the Vaujany enduro we drove round the hill in the landship to the Mega. The race tracks were slightly different to last year and always have pretty slack taping so some good practice was needed. We practiced the top of the mega a couple of times as this is where the deciding part of the race takes place. It was pretty gnarly this year combining snow, ice and scree. I had managed to fit my 5ive and Patriot into the van and went with the theory that if I got a good start I would be better on a bigger bike on the rough top section with a clear run in front of me to get a good lead. First off was the qualifier and on a equally fun trail, this time mostly bermy and loose. I got a pretty good start and after the first minute got into 1st in my heat. Winning this and also getting the 2nd fastest time of the day, this put me in a prime position for the Mega. What is the deal with the early start at there races? We got up at 5 staggered onto the lift and got ready for the big run. I managed to drink some tropical juice, a caffeine drink and a GO gel. I was pretty wired for the race but then exploded the sugary goodness all over the snow. I felt much better afer a good chunder. You learn something every time and this time was to not over do the sugar at 6am. Lining up on the start beside Absalon and Wildhaber with an empty belly and a lovely taste in my mouth wasn’t good. The tape went up and the carnage prevailed. A chief beside me took a tumble on the snow taking me out and several others and once I got going could only watch the leaders pulling a lead as I was stuck behind folk. I waited patiently and got past a few with an entertaining cross scree dash to Alex Stocks amusement who was following. With a few more overtakes I equalled last years effort of 10th. I was pretty pleased and have gained some good experience for next year. Team spirits were pretty high with Liam in 41st and James 47th and a little celebratory mini golf session took place. Ruari’s disastrous non seeded quali ment he raced a later final but put in a good time for a overall position. After dropping Ruari off for a flight home we went for a cruise about Grenoble with the hope of finding a scooter to relieve the feet from all the walking about. We soon got Raging of the city and left for Les2alps with no scooter (we now have a pedal and pop on route to morzine with friends from the more scooter rich Douchland). Les Deux Alpes is a funny place full of kids with massive t-shirts and tight jeans. There is skiing all year so it was pretty mobbed with ski chiefs cruising about on micro scooters. The Mountain of Hell was our second big mass start race of the trip and the trails were flipping sweet to ride. The quali was loose scree leading to tight wooded turns and finishing in loose berms. Myself and Liam were not seeded so started back row in our heat. We got on the power on the start straight and I went into 4th and Liam just a bit back. There was a cool fly off to big scree run out and I sent it off the fly off and swapped about into 1st in my heat. The final was really windy so the start was taken down to a lower level missing the snow. The frenchies were less bothered about this than me and went for it on the gusty start straight putting me back in the field. I rode a lot of the race with Mark Beaumont, that was fun, but snook past down the bottom to finish 6th. Liam put in a stormer to finish 10th, horsing down in a horsey manner. We are in Chamonix now with a van with no water pump pulley. Its stranded in a lovely carpark outside town unable to move. The lack of riding bikes has gotten slightly annoying but the part is on order and we should be on the road on Monday. We have resorted to filming random “dudes” action, buying bangers and xc rides to the garage and back. Hopefully in next blog we will be in Morzine and trucking after hitching a lift to the Maxi in Cervinia this weekend. cheery bye bye Joe

Treble cone latest

So its kiwi half term and it hasnt snowed since the area open last week...............doesnt take a genius to work out what state the snow is in! Nah, its not that bad, just pretty tracked out now and getting a bit bare, but its supposed to snow tonight apparantly, fingers crossed. The saddle basin at TC is amazing, its just a series of mini colouirs and you pretty much go where ever you want, it will be epic when it dumps. To the left of the char lift is an out of bounds part called the Chutes......definatley got my eye on those, they look rediculous. TC have got it sorted with the ride up the mountain situation. I thought it would cost a fotune driving up to the resort, but its so easy to hitch a lift up the mountain road....makes life much easier, and cheaper. Still no luck on finding work, getting annoying now. just got to keep on looking. Theres so many people looking that as soon as a job come up it gets applied to be about 40 people. oh well, im sure something will come up soon, ive got my eye on a new board that i NEED to pay for!

Dare 2B - XC National Championships 2011 – Aske, Richmond

Dare 2B - XC National Championships 2011 – Aske, Richmond. Words and Pictures Joolze Dymond. It truly was a championship weekend on epic proportions, with hundreds of riders converging on the Aske Estate in Yorkshire all with the same aim, to go home with a coveted National jersey. The weather was to play a major part, with the wind and the rain combining, changing the face of the course more than once during the day. A new course, carefully crafted by the hardworking Bikelicker Events crew lay in wait, taking in 6.5km of Yorkshire's finest. From the start the riders were spat out through a gate to start a long, energy-sapping climb before heading off to the first of the many technical sections. The omens weren't good; on the Saturday the heavens truly opened, torrential rain greeting riders as they arrived from all corners of the UK. Forthe plucky riders in the fun race it was a very wet experience while the Open race riders conditions improved as they slid, slipped and for some tumbled, as the rain eased and the blue skies outweighed the rain-laden clouds. With racing over for the day it was time for national contenders to hit the course for practise, learning lines and discovering a 101 ways to descend a steep slippery fern lined bank, one of the many delights that lay in wait around the testing course. As race day dawn, the rain and wind were back with a vengeance ready to test the future of our sport, with the Youth and Juvenile riders first off at virtually the crack of dawn. Taking the weather into account the commissaries took the decision to shorten the course for the younger riders, taking out the first technical descent and following climb. This meant for the winning youth riders a blast of just under 40 mins settled their race with Stuart Wilcox taking a comfortable win a good 26secs ahead of silver medallist Iain Paton. Scotland scored another gold in the juvenile race where Calum Magowan brought home the jersey ahead of Arthur Green. Alice Barnes dominated her youth race. Within minutes of the race starting, she led from the front opening up a gap on the first climb. Two laps later and the National title was her's, while Ffion James continued family winning ways by taking the juvenile title. Alice Barnes – Youth Ladies National Champion I enjoyed that, I was a bit unsure how I would fare in the singletrack as I knew it would change from practise last night, but it seemed to have got better and there were more lines so I didn't have too many incidents! I had one on my second lap on the corner going up the second climb, which was a bit embarrassing. The race itself got a bit tricky on my first lap as I was catching the back markers of the youth and juveniles and they didn't want to let me pass, so I had to needle my way through. The muddy chute was interesting, in practise I'd spotted a new line, so I tried it and it was pretty fast, but by time the race had got underway lots of others had done it too so I just went straight down and hoped for the best and luckily it was fine! I'd ridden the Nutcracker event here a couple of weeks ago to get a taste for the terrain and I thought then the course was not going to be great for a National, but the Nutcracker guys, went out and found a whole load of more singletrack and technical sections and the course I think now is pretty good for a National. I'm pleased to have retained my jersey again but only have a few more races to wear it, the Euro Champs and the last BMBS of the season as next year I go up to juniors, I can’t wait!” Next up were the women, with master, vet junior and grand vet titles to be decided. Keenest competition was expected from the juniors where Beth Crumpton, eager to get her hands on a National jersey and Katy Winton, defending champion have been locked in constant turmoil at every meeting. Add to the mix Hannah Ferguson, Hollie Bettles to name a few and you knew this was going to be a tough one to decide. Crumpton took the decision to ride her own race from the front, opening a gap between her and Winton and the rest on the opening climb, her only company briefly came in the form of vet rider Isla Rowntree, who caught the junior rider just before the end of the first lap. A bit more training a few more gears for Rowntree saw her better prepared than her previous year where she took her first vet title and it showed as she successfully defended her title by over 13 minutes. Isla Rowntree – Vets Lady National Champion Gears and a proper bike this year helped! I have to admit I was a lot fitter coming into this than last year, I've been doing a bit more riding, I haven’t been racing but I've been riding more regularly and a bit harder so I was definitely up for it this year, whereas last year it was a bit of a surprise win! I was definitely the joker in the pack last year! The race itself today, well I was quite surprised to find myself out in front with the juniors, then I just did my own thing and let it take care of itself. The course I think is quite an old fashioned traditional course, which really suits me, it's tricky in the woods, there are some tricky descents, it's muddy, its not hardcore surface it's proper deep loamy mud and luckily I go well on that sort of thing! Once I was in the front, I guessed if I could do my thing in the woods and just hang on, on the climbs then I knew I had a good chance. I caught Beth Crumpton just on that long climb coming back to the arena and rode with her until the first descent where I seemed to roll away and got a gap. I’m riding a 29er and I really think those big wheels just roll that much faster and I think that was all it was that gave me the advantage. I'm so pleased I had the gears this year too, there's no way I would have got round that on a singlespeed!! So yeah a good day! It’s always great to win the jersey but to win the overall race as well, I wasn’t expecting that and that was a bonus! Meanwhile Crumpton riding smoothly to minimise any possible mechanicals held onto her lead crossing the line in tears delighted that at last everything had gone to plan and the Junior title was hers! Bethany Crumpton – Junior Lady National Champion I'm over the moon, I finished the race in tears, tears of joy, it just means so much to me to finally get my hands on a National jersey. I've been trying since 2008 and now finally it's my year! I’ve had a good year, mixed with a few mishaps along the way so it's great to actually get a race where everything falls into place and I finish it with no incidents and in one piece. I got away on the first climb and got a gap and knew I could just capitalise on that and kept pushing on and riding away. Isla Rowntree caught me up coming to the end of the first lap and it was great to ride on her wheel trough the trees, but she is so technically amazing I just couldn’t keep up with her through the singletrack! Now I've got this jersey, I want be stopping here, I'll be aiming even higher now! The race itself was so muddy and was getting really cloggy on the last lap, so you had to be really careful with gear changes, so I didn't rip my rear mech off, I tried to ride smoothly as I've had so many mechanicals this year, I just wanted this one to be perfect and it was, on the day that really mattered it all went to plan. Perfect! Another rider who had patiently plugged away for 8 long years finally realised her dream as she took the Masters title was Caroline Goward: “It’s taken me 8 years to finally get my hands on this jersey, I’m so delighted!! I knew it was going to be a tough day, the weather didn’t help but I also knew the climbs were going to be hard work, they are my weakest link really, but I knew I could gain time on the singletrack and it worked perfectly for me. I had a few comedy moments but I knew they were going to happen, that muddy descent through the ferns was tricky and I just entertained the crowds every time, they seemed to be delighted with my comedy dismounts! I have to say despite the grim weather the course raced a lot better than it did in practice yesterday. The course was excellent, I loved it, it was my kind of course. The first half was very climby, that was 10 – 15 mins of the race but then you could just relax and enjoy the singletrack, which is what I love. That last climb back is a toughie, that headwind was unreal! Just leading the race makes you find that extra bit, though I had a gap I just couldn’t relax at any moment I’d have lost it on the last lap if I’d done that! So yeah very pleased, especially as this is my first year with the Scott Contessa team! Her strong and determined ride showed she was a worthy winner, though special mention has to be made of Emma Birtles, who came running into view on her second lap carrying her bike. A crash early in the lap caused a puncture and caused Emma to lose her gas canister. With outside assistance not allowed, she had two choices. End her race or carry on for one more lap carrying her bike, a true competitor she carried on to be rewarded by a bronze medal. Grand Vet Fiona Paton taking the last title rounded off race two. As the day unfolded the weather was blowing hot and cold, and despite the inclement conditions the enthusiasm and atmosphere of both spectators and competitors were not dampened. As race 3 beckoned discussions were heated as to which way the masters race would fall. This was one of the most wide open of races with at least 6 competitors in the frame. But this is mountain biking and anything can and usually does happen! Juniors were sent off first, followed by masters, vets; grand vets then finally super vets. In the junior race Matt Sumpton took early control with archrivals Alex Baker and Ben Sumner in hot pursuit. Sumpton was on fire as he scorched around the muddy course. Baker and Sumner could only catch glimpses of him in the distance as he stretched his lead to finally take the win with a 4 minute cushion ahead of Baker. Meanwhile in the masters Ed Mosley had taken off like a scalded cat, opening up a commanding lead early on, leaving Matt Dennis, Luke Smith, & Geoff Beetham in his wake. Undeterred Dennis dug deeper and chipped away at the tiring Moseley, finally getting back to him on lap 3. Working together then held their lead then Dennis attacked on the last lap, going on to take the win, leaving Mosley to pick up well-earned silver. Matt Dennis – Masters Men National Champion “That was really really hard slog out there today, Ed Mosley went off like a rocket and I couldn’t keep up with him on the descents and the singletrack. But I think he tried himself out a bit being out on his own for those first few laps, it was so windy out there. I managed to get back to him on the 3rd lap and we worked together to stay ahead of the rest of the field. Then on the first climb of the last lap I put a dig in and managed to hold it for the rest of the lap, but yeah that was a really hard race, coupled with the worse start ever! With Ed out in front I was just thinking to myself, ‘push harder!' But to be honest if Ed had stayed away and won I would have been delighted for him, he’s a really nice guy and in fact I felt a bit guilty going past him, he put up a good fight. The course was fun, it would have been so much different in the dry, but in the wet it was really, really techy in the singletrack stuff. The big climbs were hard and the descents were awesome! Now I’m gonna wear the jersey for as long as I can, well, I might take it off when it starts smelling!!!!” Paul Hopkins made short work of his vets race rounding off an impressive season successfully defending his title despite being hard pushed by Simon Willats and Lewis King. He’ll probably turn up at his impending wedding wearing said national jersey! While in the Grand vets 'cross rider Steve Davies relished the muddy conditions taking an early lead which he held to the end to take the title. Victor Barnett was back to his winning ways, to add yet another jersey to his burgeoning collection, in the super vets, finding the cool conditions much more suited to his liking than the heat and oppressive conditions of the last BMBS round in Margam. Finally it was just the senior and under 23 titles left to decide. Rumours that Annie Last would get a sound battle in the senior race from top World Marathon contender Sally Bigham came to nothing as Bigham DNS'd due to mechanical problems. This left Last with just Nikki Harris capable of upsetting the apple cart. Despite the muddy conditions suiting the ‘cross rider, Last had the edge in the technical sections and went on to successfully defend her senior title Annie Last – Senior Women’s National Champion I had a really good race and was delighted to retain the jersey for another year. I was pleased to see Nikki (Harris) racing. On the first climb, the field were lined out behind me and by the second descent I'd managed to shake most of the riders off my wheel and got a gap and I just kept pushing on. It was great having the uder23 guys set off before me as it gave me targets to chase down, otherwise it can get a bit lonely out there on your own. It’s quite hard to race when there aren’t that many people around you. Nikki had a good go, she’s doing great as she’s not really concentrating on mountain biking but it’s good she’s here and having a good race. I didn’t know what to expect, I’ve not ridden here before, but when we got on the course yesterday in practice I really liked it and today it was a bit drier and raced really well. The sections in the wood were still slippery and you had to work through those carefully so you had no slip ups. I was hoping that although I was catching quite a few of the backmarkers they wouldn’t hold me up in the singletrack, but there were loads of passing places, which worked well, so overall I thought the course was interesting and hard and thoroughly enjoyable. I always enjoy technical courses and today was challenging and you had to watch your lines not to make silly mistakes. Celebrations are probably on hold until I manage to catch up on my sleep, I’ve only just got back from America and am suffering a bit from jetlag, so early to bed to night for me! In the under23 women's race the stage was wide open, and stepping into the limelight to take centre stage were WXC World Racing riders Jessie Roberts and Carla Haines. Despite being teammates, there was just one jersey to win and Roberts threw down the gauntlet opening up a gap on the climbs. Haines kept cool, knowing she could claw back any gaps on the technical descents. Her calm tactical approach paid dividends as she took the race with Roberts picking up silver. Carla Haines – U23 Women’s National Champion It was a toughie! I knew that Jessie (Roberts) would be strong on the climbs, but I've been working hard on my climbing, so I'm happy with how it went. Jessie actually managed to get a bit of a gap on the climbs on the first lap, but I got back to her on the descents, I could ride everything, while she got off and ran, that's where I gained my advantage. On the second lap I thought I need to be first going into the singletrack, so made a dig and got the gap and led from there and kept on going. I was pretty focused on getting the jersey. I'd ridden the course in practice yesterday but thought it would probably be wet, so first thing this morning I went out again to see how it rode in the rain, it had completely changed how it rode, so when my race came around and it rained I knew what to expect. Now I'm over the moon that it worked out and I got the win! At the start of my season, my form wasn’t great but I was still top 15, now with a season of racing and a few World Cups under my belt everything has fallen into place. Can’t wait to get back out to the World Cups now for more experience and the chance to wear the jersey! In the men's under 23, Kenta Gallagher showed how much he has matured over the last season, taking a calm approach to his race, despite an early mechanical he rode using his head, thinking through his moves, until he eased himself into the lead, taking a well earned win from Billy Joe Whenman. Kenta Gallagher – U23 National Men's Champion Feels pretty good to get the win, you can't complain when you win a stripy jumper, so yeah pretty pleased. I didn’t have the best of starts, going up the first climb I snapped the stop on my rear mech, so every time I tried to use an easy gear the chain kept jumping, I thought then it's gonna be a long day out! So I let Billy (Whenman) lead the first lap out and watch what he was doing. I knew if I got into the singletrack first, I'd get too excited and probably blow out and fall off so I rode using my head. On the second lap I just kinda dug in on a few climbs to see if Billy was still with me and then through the woods I got a gap, so I knew If I pressed on I could keep that. It's a course that suits me; I like technical power courses so this was right up my street. People keep telling me it's old school, but I'm too young to know what old school is, but if they tell me its old school, well hell yeah I like old school then! It was hard, proper hard, nit super steep climbs like at World Cups and your not racing the same type of rider, but it was hard and that head wind, I nearly shot myself a few times riding that climb into that wicked headwind, but I just had to get it done, after all it's my job isn't?! Yesterday in practise I enjoyed it, today I enjoyed it, I crossed the line first so of course I really enjoyed it! To be honest I wish it had rained a bit harder in my race, I prefer it when it's really slippery, but hey I still won! I still hasn't really sunk in though, I'll not really believe it until they give me that stripy jumper then I'll start celebrating! Liam Killeen fresh from his disappointment from Windham WC knew he had a potentially hard race ahead in the senior race with Oli Beckingsale and Lee Williams keen to swipe the jersey from his grasp. Killeen and Beckingsale let Williams lead out the race for the first lap. By lap two and it was Killeen and Beckingsale, with Williams charging behind keen not to lose to much contact, whilst Paul Oldham had 3rd place in his sights and Dave Collins and evergreen Nick Craig spent the race fighting for 5th. Lap 3 and Killeen had launched himself into the front opening up a gap and pushing constantly on the gas, battling both competitors as well as weather, he came home in torrential rain his title secured for one more year. Beckingsale rode a strong race but admitted to a gracious defeat as he took silver with Lee Williams picking up a well-deserved bronze. Liam Killeen – Senior Men's National Champion I was a little bit nervous coming into the race today as I'm a little bit tried from the travel back from the States. I had a good race over there at Windham, but a puncture mid race, so I lost a bit of time there, so was keen to put that form into action here. Racing is now moving more towards the shorter races, so if you have any mishaps, you can more or less rule yourself out. Losing time with a mechanical is pretty much nigh on impossible to get back into the race again you lose so much time. I always feel a bit of pressure at the Nationals, especially as defending champion, I know a few of the guys are pretty motivated. But I had a smooth race. Oli (Beckingsale) had a good opening first lap and I was impressed with how Lee (Williams) rode today, he's had some ups and downs this season, so good to see him on the podium again, so yeah I'm really pleased that I had a smooth, no mishap race. The course was good; we were lucky with the rain. I rode it yesterday and it would have been a real slog if it had continued to rain. We did get a bit of rain towards the end, which made it greasy, and the wind was a big factor, it just made it harder, if you let of the gas you nearly came to a standstill! If you'd had a wheel to sit on it would have been a big help but I'd thought I needed to ride my own race, get out in front and suck the wind, knowing that the guy behind you is having to take the brunt of the wind as well. It was a good hard race. It did have the feel of an old school course, quite technical in places at race pace, a bit of a longer lap than usual but a truly challenging course, short hard climbs and a good day retaining the jersey. It's always a bonus knowing you haven't got to change your kit! Congratulations to everyone who competed and took on all that Yorkshire could throw at you and well done to everyone who went home newly crowned Champions. Many thanks to the hardworking Bikelicker crew who spent many long hours creating a venue truly suitable for a championship, it certainly paid off and produced a memorable event and a whole raft of worthy champions!

Scandinavian Photo Challenge

Are Bike Festival - Scandinavian Photo Challenge Last weekend I arrived in Are, Sweden for their anual bike festival. I was there as part of one of the five teams invited to take part in the Scandinavian Photo Challenge. Five of the world's best mountain bike photographers from around the world were invited to take part in the competition, each selecting four riders to be in their team. The photographers were Grant Robinson from the UK (whose team I was on), Mattias Fredrikson (winner of deep summer photo challenge 2009) from Sweden, Kristoffer Kippernes from Norway, Camilla Stoddart from New Zealand, and Marcus Gerber from Germany. I had never done anything Iike this before so it was really exciting. I arrived a day before the rest of the team, so I drank lots of tea, ate local fika (cake) and caught up with head judge Seb Kemp. We did the Pilgrimsloppet race on Sunday, an XC race for the festival. It had lots of fast fun singletrack, and went through a field of scary cows galloping about, and through farms and people's gardens with ladies topless sunbathing who were cheering and waving! I was on my Orange 5, so I was really happy with 2nd female. Then there was a kids race doing a lap of the church, the race organiser and commentator is the local vicar and a total dude and rad biker! The rest of our team arrived and it was great to meet everyone. The other riders were Helen Wainright, Mike Smith, and Richard Cunyngham. The organisers got all the teams a sweet apartment to stay in, with a drying room and sauna, which was amazing for after the long days of riding. We had three days to shoot a variety of riding and lifestyle shots, and two days to edit a 5 minute slideshow with music. We made a rough plan of what theme we wanted to have, but each day had no real structure and our team seemed pretty laid back in comparison to the others. Each day of shooting was long and full on, especially as the sun never set so each day ended when we all had jelly arms and were delirious and starving! We had every type of weather, from scorching hot to torrential rain, thunder and lightening. The riding in Are is amazing, there are about 5 lifts in the bike park with so many great trails down and around the mountain, between 15-40 minutes long. We saw lots of lemmings and some caribou, which we tried in a delicious stew with mash. On Friday night the slideshows were shown in front of 700 spectators at the award show. Camilla Stoddart got top honours, with our team second, and Mattias Fredrikson third. It was a fantastic week and Are is definately a place to keep coming back to! The slideshows will be online soon, one slideshow will be released each week starting with last place. Look out for them at www.arebikefestival.com

Wanaka Life

The first few weeks in wanaka

training

Last week was a good weeks training. My shoulder is a little sore so swimming is hard but put the hours on the bike in and yes, my bum is sore (would be so much worse with out my Dare 2b biking shorts) but its great to see my body adapting to the work I am putting in and everything is coming that bit easier. Running is nice too, I have always hated running but when you know you have to do it and you have the motivation its amazing in even how much I can enjoy it. This week is the start of my new program. My biking, running and swimming has all got more intense so times will be harder but I hope also more rewarding. So far my sugar levels have been good. This is down to a careful control and also a good diet which is easy to do in Sweden as every one is so health. I also get some great support from every one around me so that helps my mind set too. So this week I am off biking for over 6 hours, running for 3, and swimming for 2. It does not sound a lot but trust me, its hard work. Soon i am also getting my new Giant bike so I cant wait for that. This weekend was nice and chilled. Sat on the rocks on Saturday swimming and chilling then yesterday I played golf for the 1st time in ages. It was a fun 9 hole course, Par 35. My 1st hole was a horrible bogie which followed with a double bogie and then another 2 bogies but after that on the back to back par 5 I reached the greens in 2 but only got 2 birds with the last holes I really found my game and finished 3 over. So all around happy days speacil as I had never used the clubs before. So time for my 1st bike ride of the week, its a nice day for biking, not too hot and a nice wind. Have a good week. Share this article:

Latest from Rebecca Romero

Have you ever experienced that feeling in sport where you're stuck in a rut and not making any improvements? That despite your best efforts and best intentions you're still not making any headway? Well last winter that's exactly what I was encountering. After all other Olympic pathways were cut from me, the time came to throw everything into track training again with all emphasis being to make the Team Pursuit team for London 2012. Being Olympic Champion in the Individual Pursuit the expectation was that I would breeze in and be one of the strongest, if not the strongest rider. Nothing could have been further from the truth. Let me explain why... The main reason was that after a significant period of time away from the bike after the Olympics, after multiple disruptions and changes to my Olympic targets and pathways, environmental changes, lifestyle struggles and multiple psychological battles to overcome each issue, I was not in the shape I needed to be. There's no room for a wild fluctuation of form in this elite professional world of sport; there will be others right there in the background waiting to take your seat. If you're even a fraction off fighting form you'll be scuppered by somebody else who's right on it. And that's exactly what happened to me. It has become even more critical now that the new event of the Team Pursuit has opened it up to be not just two or three girls on the squad, but a large group of ten riders battling it out for just three places. The good news is that six months on from last winter and twelve months out from the Games I'm an improved athlete. I'm even a better athlete than I was this time prior to the last Olympics! However, the challenge to adapt myself for a different event still remains. Although both raced over 3km (12 laps of the track) as fast as you can, the Individual and Team Pursuits are very different events both physically and technically. The Individual Pursuit is my ideal event. It requires power, strength, endurance and an ability to hold a very high power close to my max power for the 12 laps. The fastest and most efficient way to ride the event is to get out of the start gate fast and up to speed within the first two laps then to hold that speed with good consistency and good even pacing. You must have great pain tolerance to be able to ride in the red and fight the fade. The Team Pursuit on the other hand requires greater max power and greater max speed capabilities. The event is essentially a series of sprints with emphasis being placed on the muscular capability to deal with changes in power production. The opening lap requires more sprint speed to get up to a higher starting pace, and then the turns on the front require a high peak of max power to deliver faster turns followed by a short period of reduced power whilst in the following wheels. To top it off, all this max power and short high speed efforts need to be delivered at a much higher cadence than the Individual Pursuit. This is because we ride a fixed gear on the track, and because we travel at higher speeds in the Team Pursuit this means we have to turn a higher cadence. We could put a bigger gear on in order to reduce the cadence, but then a bigger gear is too hard to get going off the start and we'd never get it up to the required speed. So it's a trade off - higher race cadence. The only problem here is the difficulty for less sprint orientated riders like myself to be able to produce the power on such a high cadence. All of this is best described as a powerhouse diesel engine best operating at low revs or a sprinty petrol engine best operating at high revs. I'm definitely a diesel engine - fortunate for Individual Pursuiting, not so fortunate for Team Pursuiting. So just when I thought I had accomplished one of the biggest challenges I'd ever encountered (winning Olympic medals in two different sports) and things couldn't possibly get any harder – it did! It may be my third Olympic Games and third Olympic medal I'm aiming for, but no Olympiad and no Olympic preparation goes the same way. Each time it's different and throws up a bigger, harder mountain to climb. In the aftermath of disappointment, dissolution and failure over the last few years, I'm still determined to improve myself as an athlete and push my capabilities as an athlete. The next few months are going to be critical for making it happen, but I will climb that mountain and I will Dare 2b.

Joe Barnes Roadtrip Part 1

The start of the roadtrip has begun. After a frantic last minute pack I swung the van round to Liams house and then on to Ruari's house and got it fully loaded. It is probably the fullest it has been with enough pants to last 10 weeks and a few bikes to ride aswell. Descending down Ruari's drive and the van sounded a bit flailey so I pulled over for a closer inspection and the fan belt had shredded its self. We had only made it 10 miles before the first disaster. Luckily one of the useless bits of shite from the van happened to be a fan belt so we wipped the new one on and continued on trucking. With no time to loose we rolled straight onto the ferry and straight into france. The drive was fairly brutal as per usual, crossing the tedious French flatlands. When the mountains finally arrived and a few bagguettes and ice creams had been eaten we were fully stoked to get on the bikes. The Vaujany Avalanche Enduro was our first race and after meeting up with friends Jamesy Boy and Emma we got on the lift and went for a practice lap. I had raced it the year before and remembered the course pretty well and how good some of the sections were. That evening the first van film night in a while was a great one, and after a few chuckles and a load of pasta we went to bead happy. Race day next and with a 3rd place seeding meant I was 3rd off for each stage. I was giving it some on the stages and caught the guy in front on all the long stages so was fairly confident I was on the pace. Jamesy Boy Shirley was also pretty pinned but a mysterious unexplainable time penalty for Ruari and a crash from Liam set them back. After a long day on the bike I took the win and James second, Emma also won the girls so not a bad start for team Scotland. Just a chilled day practising the Mega today and the same tomorrow. Its great to get the trip off to a good start and now time to focus on the mega and try to smash it there as well.

Picture of Dare2b Rider Nick Southwell wins the Samsung Shadows Photography competition

Last Winter after a small snow fall, myself, my brother Chris and photographer Adam Johnston went on a bit of a scout. We had been regularly frustrated with a lack of snow fall throughout the winter so when the opportunities arose we were always determined to take them as best as possible! Having found some cliff drops in the morning, we started looking for some more abstract snaps and whilst scoping this area of pillows, i was immediately drawn to this one in the middle which just had the sun light touching it. Adam quickly agreed and set up, he instructed me to go of and stay compact in the air. I did a little safety grab and after landing Adam skied down and started saying, i think we may have something there! Huge thanks to Adam for taking the snap and what a job he did! For me this is probably my favorite shot ive ever had taken of me!

www.whatsyourlifelike.com

FILM IDEA TURNS INTO BIGGER THINGS FOR TWO BRITISH FREESKIERS. Warren Smith and Nick Southwell are best known for their freeskiing and film making. During the production of their movie last year, What's Your Life Like, the guys took the idea of the film, an insight into their lives as freeskiers, a bit further and decided to create their own platform to allow interesting people with interesting lives to show what they get up to. They've been working on the site over the past winter season and after several months of hard slog finally got a first edition of the site up and running this week. www.whatsyourlifelike.com is set out to be a small scale blogging website that showcases a varied selection of people with interesting lives and aims to home in on video blogging to get a better insight. You can see all sorts of different professions being showcased. Alongside Warren, you will also see Skiers and boarders on the site including dare2b athletes Nick and Chris Southwell. You'll also see a tv presenter, racing car driver, a professional cricketer, a musician and many other people with interesting professions. All of the bloggers news and updates works directly with Facebook and Twitter so it easy for them all to stay in touch. The guys at What's Your Life Like would love to get feedback from you. Check it out and email any comments over to info@whatsyourlifelike.com.

Joe Barnes mid season review

The season has come to what feels like a half way point but for myself it's about to get interesting. The first half of my year has been plagued with injury from doing ridiculous things, along with some great moments whilst racing and riding at the same time. I have had to make the concious decision to tone down mid week capers and stick to riding my bike. A ski crash- ribs on stump was the first desaster, a month after and I competed in the strathpuffer 24hour xc race on my singlespeed. Aside from nearly having a mental breakdown at 4 in the morning, I was so tyred after that when tidying the van the next day i lent over to pick up a crisp packet and heard the ribs crack again. Another month on and I thought I would risk a bit of skiing and spotted a transfer from the top of a wall down onto a snow covered hydro electric pipe. I climbed up the wall and hucked off- knee to join in pipe. I struggled on for the first few nationals hurting and then was feeling good for the SDA at Ae forrest, Back wheel steering my way down to 2nd and got some good confidence from this. The next weekend and it was enduro time. Macavalanche in Glencoe. Mass start with over 100 people at the top chancing it down the snow, rocks and bog. After a good start I managed to ride away with it to win by over a minute. It was a great weekend and good to get my first win of the year. Then disaster struck again. After a trail ride at Laggon we decided to stop talking about this big river jump and man up and huck it. Ferg sent the 80ft first no problem and Danny Mac with a bit of splits action on entry. Then my knee wasnt locked off enough and went back and sideways. I just opened my eyes in the water and floated up thinking what an idiot, something needs to change. Floating in a murky dark river with a sore knee was the limit. I have stayed clean for over a month now and not hucked off anything not the bike or used the saying "ah fuck it" once. Since then I have built up some good fitness again, and a good qualify of 54th in Austria was pinned untill a crash in the final. I feel I have the speed and now the fitness. Next week I am loading up the van and trucking out to the mega avalanche with some friends. This will be the start of a roadtrip to beat all roadtrips. 10 weeks, 9 races, plenty of morzine and the production of "The Dudes of Hazzard" "The Movie". I cant wait, hucking stuff is fun but racing is where its at and a summer of racing is going to be gid. bye Joe

TheAirBag.net outings this wekend....

TheAirBag.net goes skis and boards on Friday and then Bikes on Saturday! Friday sees us return to Chill Factor-e Manchester. We will be out from 6:30 pm until 11:00pm. A 10% is up for grabs if your session is booked in advance at http://www.chillfactore.com/ski-board/freestyle-academy/core-airbag-session or 0161 749 2222. We then move onto Livingston on Saturday morning for an all day FREE Mountain Bike and BMX event... Hopefully see some of you there!

MTBcut Fort William and Leogang World Cups

I was super excited going into the Fort William world cup because it's my local track and it was my first time racing there in a world cup so I couldn't wait to get riding! First day of practice went really well, nice and dry for a change! Was having fun on the track and had the luxury of having top 80 practice and it was nice to have that extra bit of time for practice. Went home for some dinner and a good nights sleep ready for qualifying day! Woke up nice and early to get some practice in before qualifying started, practice went good had two solid runs which set me up good for my run. Qualifying didn't go to plan for me, had a crash in the woods which caught me off guard because it wasn't a place where I had any issues in practice so I ran to get my bike and carry on but by that time my chances of qualifying were gone. I was totally gutted because I knew if I had a good run I could of made it in, but that's racing for you! I stayed to watch the finals and it was an awesome experience and it was super cool to see Danny and Brook on the podium! Went home to get ready for a day of packing ready for the next round in Leogang. My dad drove me out to Leogang which was cool because it was his first world cup experience away from Britain, and our first experience of being on a German auto ban, pretty scary when you have to overtake something and two seconds later there's a big Merc right behind you flashing it's lights! We got to the venue in the dark so didn't know what kind of place it was, when we woke up I was really surprised about how nice a place it was. Awesome mountain views and cool chalets half way up huge mountains. Walked the track and it wasn't what I was expecting, there was a lot more bike park in it than I thought which was a bit of a shame because the bits in between were awesome. The top had a few soft extremely slippy when wet berms which looked really good, the middle woods looked fast with a couple of tricky sections and the bottom woods looked amazing with loads of roots and sweet corners! Couldn't wait to see how it would ride. Practice went well and was feeling good on the course, it rode faster than expected which made the flatter parts good fun. There was two sections that I stopped to watch for a while to see what were the fastest lines, so once I was happy on the lines that was me settled for line choice and took it from there! I finished practice then went to walk the course while the top 80 were doing their practice just to see the fast guys riding, I met my coach Chris Ball near the top of the track so I walked the track with him which was cool to spend a bit of time with him. Qualifying day, there had been a lot of rain during the night so I done three practice runs just to see how the track was going to change and where the holes were going to come out and mainly because I was loving it! Had some tuna pasta after practice which filled me up nicely ready for qualifying. The track was drying up all the time but I decided to stick with spike tires on and went up for my run nice and chilled out. Got to the top and the gondola hall was full of people on turbo trainers! All you could hear was the buzzing sound of turbo trainers, I warmed up then headed to the start hut. The top half of my run didn't go well at all, stalled in a few corners and lost loads momentum but I kept going and had a good bottom section but it wasn't enough. I missed out by 1.5 seconds which was pretty disappointing, but the times were really tight so if I had a good top half I would of made it in which was good news to know that I'm on pace and just need to work on banging out fast runs! So I'm really looking forward to the next two rounds in Mont Sainte Anne and Windham, can't wait to get racing again. Fraser McGlone

Update

After being in the UK for my Lucys wedding to Robbie, which I must say was a lovely wedding and great to see it all the family it was time to hit the training hard yesterday. As i had only done a short 6 km run in the UK i started the week with a 12km run then a big swim in the lake here in Stockholm. To say the lake was cold is an understatement. It was freezing but still nice to be in the water. So after swiming a fair old way I called it time and headed back home. Today was biking and having not done a long ride for a while i went for it. 3 and half hours later i made it home. Saying that riding in sweden is lovely, keep on finding new routes and new challenges to keep me motivated. I also did a small photo shoot the other day in all my Dare 2b training kit, and got some good and funny photos but its great to get a good mix of shots to use. I must say the kit is being amazing and even after 4 hours on the saddle i can still feel my bum. So if your a keen biker, you must buy the Dare 2b range as it rocks.. I am finding that my diabetes is behaving its self and I am not having any major problems. this is down to eating well and checking myself as much as possible when running and biking. The only challenging part is swimming but so far I have not had any problems. I just think its good to carry on checking myself later on into the night so that I dont go low when I have finished. So far so good so lets hope it carrys on this way. Later on this week I have my 1st ever Swedish mid summer and I am also joining a football club and have my 1st training session tomorrow. Lets hope I have not lost my old touch. Let you all know how mid summer goes and have a great week. Chris

A strange week in France competing in a game show!

Last week was probably about as strange as they come. At the beginning of May i saw a random advert on the net asking for British competitors to compete in the “Biggest Game Show in the World, a Total Wipeout style show taking part in France. Always one for enjoying random experiences I replied to the ad and to my shock horror the next day i was accepted. I quickly roped in a couple of friends, fellow blogger and all round general nutter Emily Bell, and British skier Julian Ball. Further chat’s with the organizers enabled us to find out that apparently the show gets 138 million viewers in China and is also shown in numerous other countries which was quite a terrifying prospect. The three of us were part of team GB, and were there to be filmed in 4 shows as we pitted our wits against China, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Armenia, France and Czech Republic. Most of the time when you watch these sorts of game shows i find you basically sit there going, thats easy, i could have done better, what a muppet, etc etc and you also think that people competing in these shows are pretty normal day to day people often lacking basic skill and ability. So i got a bit of shock when i found out that the other teams were basically full of Olympics, and also had full back up medical teams, physio’s and coaches. Sadly cant claim the British team to have been that organized and it was showing as already 6 shows in the Brits were sat at the bottom of the rankings. Well could i make a difference and inspire a surge up the leaderboard? Upon learning that we were meant to do, 2 of our 5 events a day in a bull ring with live bulls, i quickly deterred that the week in France was to be much more Dunkirk than DDay, and an eventual retreat back to our shores vaguely in one piece licking my wounds as opposed to storming the competion was much more realistic. Typically the first event i did was a bull event, this may seem wet, but i actually felt sick with nerves, the bulls were bred for the show and were angry. In this event there were 3 of us on our team and one by one we had to run into the bull ring, tap our foot on a pad in the middle, get to the far end, get a token and then run back into the middle, jump onto a platform and then hoist ourselves up onto a surfboard remain there for 3 seconds before jumping down and getting out of the ring so you could tag the person in. All this time there is a great big angry bull after you. After a few near misses and a new found speed in my sprint i got up onto the surf board untouched. After the 3 second countdown my team mates started shouting at me to hurry up and get down. My loud reply across the bull ring and tv camera’s was im not f*cking moving whilst that bull is circling inwait below me. Nothing in skiing or anything has actually come close to the fear I felt whilst in that ring. All the events through out were crazy and some of these included riding across a rickety bridge on a bmx as a duck, taking part in an endurance race which involved taking on a double turntable and travelator dressed as a snail with my knees tied together. Hmmmm indeed. Emily and Julian were brilliant taking on ridiculous challenges throughout and the rest of team GB contained some great and unforgettable characters as well. Basically it was a week I shall never forget for all the right reasons, but I was definitely relieved to be back in one piece. Will post some videos when i get them.

MTBcut Fortwilliam and Austria Review

The world cup is in full swing now and Team MTBcut is getting involved. The big race of the year at Fort William was an important one for the team being the local round. The Orange mountain bikes wagon rolled up and gave the team some pro pits as a base and allowed us to get involved with the fans. It was a hell of a race and brought mixed fortunes for the team. Young Fraser McGlone started off the year on a high in South Africa pulling an awesome 64th place. Unfortunately things didn’t go his way at Fort William. Fraser was feeling really good in practice and was looking forward to getting a good result at his local race but a root grabbed his wheel in a technical section and before he knew it he was on his head… game over. Joe Barnes was another to suffer some seriously bad luck. A spring in Joe’s rear mech failed causing it to loose tension and fail. Unable to pedal Joe let off the brakes and tried to smash the course to pieces to make it through qualification. He came into a crucial corner before a flat section and tried to hit it full speed to carry speed but his front wheel washed out and he hit the deck. I was sporting the number 42 at the weekend and I was looking to bring that down into the top 20. After a solid run I came down into 3rd eventually finishing up in 19th. I was annoyed that I didn’t get the top 10 I was looking for but in hindsight it was a solid result. The following weekend was the 3rd round of the World Cup in Leogang so we packed up the wagon and started the 30 hour drive to Austria. Many bad jokes, some awful smells and lots of sugar later and we rolled into Leogang. We were greeted by an angry Austrian campsite owner and a lot of moisture but things got better. The sun came out at times and the track was amazing. Qualifying was a bit of a disaster for myself. I had a rather painful crash just before my run. I smashed some painkillers and decided to take it easy and do a smooth run. Turned out that smooth equalled slow and I missed Qualifying. Words cannot describe how gutted I was. Fraser had a solid run but just missed qualifying but 1.5 seconds. A bit more experience of these bigger tracks and he’ll get the pace figured out and start posting some amazing results. Joe was team rider number one at the weekend. He qualified solidly and was on an amazing run in his final but he got caught out by the increasingly wild track and hit the deck. 70th position on the day. Not the most successful race for the team but we’ve all learned some lessons in these hard times and we’re looking forward to the next races. Myself and Fraser will be smashing the world cups out in America and Joe is heading to Europe in the landship for some enduro action. See you then.

Iron Man

It was raining in Stockholm today so hit the pool, did a good 40 lengths then my arms died on me. Pasta salad for lunch then going to put the Dare 2b running kit to full use this afternoon in the rain. Lets hope for good weather tomorrow so that when i go on my big bike ride i dont get too wet...... Hope your all having a good week and as soon as I see the sun again you will get some photos of my training...

Fort Wiliam World Cup 2011

Today is the first day of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Fort William, this will be the tenth year the world cup has been coiming to Fort William and every year it's massive! So this year will be even bigger! So get yourself there to watch the MTBcut team in action. Saturday is qualifying and Sunday 5th is race day, see you there!

Iron Man

Please follow all my iron man training on these sites. I will of course be doing updates here as am wearing the latest Dare 2b biking and running gear which is really helping me push the limits.... http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chris-Southwell-Iron-Man/134448803297561 http://twitter.com/#!/SouthwellChris http://whats.zealclients.co.uk/index.php/bloggers/profile/chris-southwell

Riksgransen, The last few days

Riksgransen Our last few days the journey down. After my last blog report we though we would leave the last 2 days the trip down to one last blog. My last blog said that we had the Big Mountain Championships meal to go too which we did and I must say it was so much fun. Laid out in the breakfast room was an amazing table lay out and one of the biggest buffets I have ever seen. Seeing so many Scandinavians queue up I could see there Viking back rounds taking over as there plates where spilling over with food. We joined a table with a few friends and a group of Danish girls who talked about there amazing season in Japan and how much snow they had.... Its fair to say we where all so so so jealous so changed the subject as quickly as possible. After supper it was time for the party but as we had a full day planned on the hill we where all the boring ones and headed off to bed. With the alarms set for an early wake up call we woke not to find the blue skies where hoping for but instead, like the others days it was dark and stormy with a hint of rain. Not to be put off we still headed out but like the day before, the light was no good for anything and some rain in the night and made the snow so so wet that is was hard to do anything. Saying all of this we still had night riding to do and this must be one of the only resorts where you can ride from 10.00pm to 12.30am with out the aid of floodlights. After a chilled evening and a few movies we started to get ready and it was a strange feeling. With it light outside and walking up to the lift at 10.00pm it felt like it should have been 10.00am. The odd blue patch was poking though the cloud as the weather had not really cleared up which did create some interesting light. We decided to play around and see what we could session. We found an interesting drop; it was small, only about 7 meters but the lay out of it made it fun. After a few hits on that we had a few shoots and Anna was happy so we headed carried on our search to find what else the mountain had to offer for us. After nearly giving up and getting quite tired Anna spotted this fun wind lip, which shot you up against the mountain in the background. The landing was interesting to say the least as it was a bit up hill, a bit flat and had a few rocks on it but seeing as our trip was nearly over Vinny and me though it would be a fun way to end the day. After a good session for about 45min we where knackered. I don’t think I have ever ridden so late in the night with out floodlights and with big smiles on our faces and a few shots under our belt we headed to bed happy with the days work. Our last day was not what we where hoping for. We had scouted a nice 60 foot cliff to session with a perfect landing and also had a built a kicker over some trees to play around with. Drawing back the curtains and seeing it poor down with rain I was not happy. Seeing as this was our last day and we all really wanted to ride we headed out. 1st stop was the cliff. As it was pouring with rain I said I would walk over and check it out. After what seemed a long long long walk I got to the spot only to see a slide had taken away the landing and we where left with boulders and puddles. So off it was to the tree jump. As Vinny had tested it 1st the other day it was my turn to go 1st. Coming down the run in all I could think about was “is the kicker going to hold” and I must say it sort of did but my tap on the tree was a bit harder than I wanted and sent me off in a spin towards some more trees. With the others laughing so hard I sent Vinny up. I must say I was quite annoyed when he got it spot on but a little wobble on his landing also sent him cart wheeling so it was smiles all around. We only hit it another 2 or 3 times each as the rain was really coming down and after the night session we where all tired. Back in our rooms we started to pack and reflect on the week. Riksgransen is an amazing place to ride. It’s so different to anywhere else in the world and we all loved our week up there. Even though we where quite unlucky with the weather I would love to go back next year and explore different places up there. If you have a skidoo the places you can go are endless. The people Riksgransen are also so friendly and speak better English than I do. Also with the 24-hour sunlight and endless views and different things to hit you want to make sure you bring your camera with you. So please, if you ever get the chance go to Riksgransen. It’s also a great journey up there. We took the train and if you book in advance you can go from Stockholm to Riksgransen for about £75 return. Saying that it is an 18-hour trip so make sure you booking the sleeping carriages. This way you get to see the whole of Sweden and arrive ready to ride. I would like to thank Anna for taking such amazing photos (we will be working with her a lot next winter so look out for her), Dare 2b for looking after me and giving me such amazing kit to ride in and finally Riksgransen for being such great hosts. Have a great summer every one, my next challenge is in Mexico on November the 27th where I will be doing an Iron Man.....

MTBcut win at 10 Under the Ben

On Saturday it was 10 Under the Ben, an iconic event run by No Fuss. Individuals or teams of 2, 3 or 4 complete as many laps of a 10 mile course as they can in 10 hours. I raced in the Solo category. The forecast was terrible and I wasn't really looking forward to being on my bike for over 10 hours in the mud and rain! Although once the start gun went I was in the zone and just focused on the race. It was a le mens start of about 100m to the bike racks, then a short 1st lap. It was nice and dry on the first few laps, then the heavy rain started and the course got really muddy with rivers flowing down some sections. I felt good and my first few lap times were fast, my brother Joe was telling me to take it easy in case I blew up. I had a 25 min lead on 2nd place after just 3 laps so it was great not having to stress about holding my position. My mum was great race support once again, and had everything I might need to hand so that each lap I could have a speedy food stop. I ate peanut butter sandwiches, rice pudding, tinned peaches, and tea. It was really wet and I got quite cold in my wet gear. Each lap I changed gloves and quickly ate whilst Joe washed my gears. It was really good banter on the course with the other riders and the marshals were really cheery and shouting encouragement which was awesome. On my 8th lap my break pads were down to the metal so it was pretty dodgy getting down some of the descents, I ended up not making a few corners and going straight over the top of a few berms and into the bushes. Lap 9 I used Joes Orange Five, then for my final lap my own bike had been tuned with new break pads by Joe for a quick last lap. Throughout the race I felt good and consistant, keeping a good focus on the race and not letting up. I finished 1st female with 10 laps in 10 hours 49 mins, 2 laps ahead of 2nd place. I was really happy to finish 10th overall out of 119 solos.

Riksgransen Day 4 and 5

Riksgransen Day 4 and 5 For the past 2 days we have not been blessed with weather. Its been quite cloudy, over cast and not great for photos or filming so its fair to say we have been chilling for a few days waiting for it all to clear. We found a fun tree to jib over so we built a kicker and now we are also waiting for the weather to clear but we have 2 more days up here to shoot so fingers crossed for some more fun action shots. Tonight we have a big dinner with all the riders from the Scandinavian Big Mountain Championships, which is always great fun. They know how to party up here so it should be an interesting night. Well as well as building to took a little walk into Norway today. It is fair to say not a lot was going on over there either so the rest of the afternoon was spent playing around on some fun cliffs and natural hits. The riding area up here is amazing and even when we cant shoot we are always finding new things to play around on. Riksgransen is a resort that every one should visit at least once in their life. It’s like no other place that I have even been too and I love it up here. I am still getting use to the 24 hour sun light and with a clear sky forecast for tomorrow we are hoping for a fun night shoot and fingers crossed for 2 days of blue skies so that can session all the things we have scouted. Check back tomorrow for a more detailed update and as you can see by the photo, the light is really not on our side…..

Nutcracker Round 2 Report

The Nutcracker XC Series returned to the plush Aske Estate, home to Lord Zetland – the Earl of Ronaldshay, for round 2 on the 15th May. The event doubled as the North of England XC Championship and with the medals at stake, competition was fierce! Early birds were greeted by a pleasant morning upon arrival, with broken cloud and sunshine and little wind. This was soon to change, with intermittent showers and a strong northwesterly wind rearing their ugly heads by mid morning. Race 1 kicked off with a strong field in all 3 categories; Juvenile, Youth and Fun. Competition amongst the Youth and Juvenile categories was at its highest level yet in any of the Nutcracker events, with riders also appearing from Scotland to recce the venue ahead of the forthcoming British National XC Championship in July. One of these was Calum Magowan of the Peebles CC who took the Juvenile race win ahead of Seacroft's Chris Barnes. With Magowan being Scotland based and uneligible for the Championship title, Barnes took the gold medal for the North of England Juvenile XC Championship, ahead of Matthew Worton and Thomas Mein. Good to see some new faces in the youth field, providing Richardson’s rider and Nutcracker regular Mike Thompson with some much needed competition. Ben Miller took the race win ahead of Thompson, but again due to Miller's Scottish residency the gold medal on the day fell to a very deserving Mike Thompson. Nick Corlett of the Manx squad and local lad James Edmond of the Ferryhill Wheelers took the silver and bronze medals respectively in the North of England Championship. A bigger than usual fun squad included Hope Technology boss Ian Weatherall, whose son William incidentally finished 10th in the Juvenile category. The fun category was won by gravity chaser Dave Nicholson of the Hamsterley Trailblazers, who swapped his downhill roots for an into-the-wind uphill battle! James Carlton and Kam Nicholson followed closely behind. A strong Dirtwheels Cycles presence in the ladies Fun race saw Ruth Midgley take the win ahead of Louise Burnett and Laura Rhodes. Meanwhile, Amira Mellor took the race win and North of England Championship title in the Juvenile category, ahead of Stirling's Erika Allen and Peebles’ Eve Hanlon Cole. Motorpoint's Alice Barnes took the on-the-day Youth win ahead of Libby Greatorex, with Greatorex going home with the Championship title. 11.30 saw the start of race 2: Elite, Expert, Junior and Sport. Again – with the strongest ever Elite field, racing was tough and it took its toll on an unwell Paul Oldham of Hope Factory Racing, who sadly had to retire after just 1 lap due to illness. Get well soon Paul - only a few days left until the Irish Tour! Team mate Dave Collins ploughed on to victory ahead of Tom Bell, who, due to Dave being Leicester based, was crowned Senior North of England XC Champion. With a similarly sized field in the Expert category, competition was stiff and Tom Stewart of event sponsors BBM Bikes took the race win ahead of Douglas Shearer and Hamish Fletcher Cooney. Event sponsors were also participating in the Sport category and Matt Brown of Team Inov8 ironically rode home to finish 2nd and win an Inov8 race pack, just behind Tom Albutt. Local boy Darren Binks of Northallerton-based Hambleton Road Club finished in 3rd. At the younger end of the scale, local lads Joe Home and Jack Humphreys had some tough competition with additional riders turning up from other regions to compete. Hugo Robinson of XRT Elmy Cycles took the race win ahead of Fietson Tempo's Joe Home. An appearance from Torq’s Lee Craigie saw her take the race win in the Elite female category, whilst Jacqui Fletcher of the Manx squad took the victory in the Experts. A huge field in race 3 at 2pm took the total number of riders on the day to just over 200 and a last minute entry from the condemned man, Alan Nixon of Blackhawk Bikes paid off as he walked away as the Masters North of England XC Champion at the end of the day! Alan is scheduled to be married tomorrow and we wish him and his partner all the best for their special day and hope that he'll be able to remove the shackles in 4 weeks to return for Nutcracker 3! Back on to the subject in hand, Noel Clough steamed home to take the North of England title in the Veteran category whilst Bruce Rollinson put in another storming performance to take the Grand Veteran title. A late decision by the organisers to include a separate Super Veteran category saw Rollinson's JD Cycles team mate Reg Haigh take the Championship title in this category. Excellent also to see bigger fields in the ladies’ categories with some good 1-1 racing and competition. Although taking the on the day win in the Vets category with a superb performance, VC Lincoln's Helen Macgregor was uneligible for the Championship title and a well deserving Ruth Thompson of Richardson's Cycles took home the Gold Medal and Championship title, closely followed by Dirtwheels' Nicky Hartle. Following a forced retirement at Round 1 due to injury, a determined Karen Payton of Cyclesport Pendle took the silverware and Championship title in the Grand Veteran category. It proved to be a good day all round for the Dirtwheels Cycles girls, with Jane Chadwick romping home to a gold medal and Championship title in the Masters category. Well done to all. The Nutcracker XC Series returns for round 3 on Sunday 19 June at Camp Hill, near Bedale in North Yorkshire. Entries are already open, so if you haven't already done so be sure to get your entries in now! The British National XC Championship, brought to you by Dare2B follows on the 16/17 July at Aske on a slightly revised course and featuring a couple of little 'surprises' for all those thinking that it was too easy! Entries are also open for this event, which features non-championship races for those not wishing to compete in the championship itself. There's also a party on the Saturday evening with a fully licensed bar and entertainment! Not one to be missed...

Riksgransen - Day 2

RIKSGRANSEN DAY 2 Last night was a sad night for most Swedes in Riksgransen last night as they saw their ice hockey team lose 6-1 to Finland in the World Cup Finals. This put a bit of a damper on the night’s entertainment as every one was in bed by 11. This is not normal a problem but with it never getting dark sleeping can be a problem. But a few beers and the odd glass of wine soon a put an end to that problem and pretty soon we where all tucked up and looking forward to the following days riding. When we awoke it was bright sunshine, but during breakfast we heard rumours of a storm coming over so we ate quickly and headed up the hill. With the Big mountain championships happening on Tuesday, Anna, our photographer was keen to check out the face as this was to be her 1st ever competition. After a quick look at the face we found a few lines and soon started the 20 min hike up to the top. Anna was getting so excited about the event but also a little nervous. Your 1st ever free ride competition is life changing. Its not like a normal day freeriding as you not only riding against the rest of the field but you are also out to impress the judges and you can never be too sure what they are looking for. The good thing about the qualifying face is that it is not too steep and it’s very hard to get lost on. It’s made up of a few small drops and not a lot else so trying to find something original was proving to be hard. But after riding down the face we where all quite happy with the lines we had chosen and Anna even had time to practice the big drop in her run which she stomped. After hiking up the face a few times the clouds came in and the weather turned again. This time it real turned and with the light really flat we called it a day. On the run down we scouted a few sights to hit after the competition but once we where down we where all focused on the event ahead. With our riders meeting at 8pm and the weather forecast for rain tomorrow we are not sure what going to happen tomorrow but fingers crossed for a sunny day so that all 3 of us can kill it in the Big Mountain Championships and get though to the finals on Wednesday. I think tonight will consist of a nice quite supper and a glass of wine to relax while studying photos of the face then a nice sleep so we are already for tomorrow. Check back then to see how we all got on and wish us all luck…. Lets do the UK proud over here on Sweden’s doorstep.

Sweden - Riksgransen Day 1

Riksgransen After a bad snow season in the Alps this winter I was determined to find some fresh snow before the start of the summer. A few years ago at the end of the season I headed up to Riksgransen, 200 km into the Arctic Circle and at the very northern tip of Sweden. As I am moving to Sweden this summer I thought it would be a great time to head up there again. After a chat with a few people in Verbier I pretty soon had a solid team to join me. Anna Duner was to be our photographer and local Verbier ripper and Rip Curl rider Vincent Rayner was to be the other rider. As Anna was already in Stockholm, Vinny and I started our journey in England. We left on a Sunday and as it was Vinnys birthday so we had a few celebratory drinks on the boat as it was a long 18 hour ferry ride. Bright eyed and bushy tailed we arrived in Denmark and started our long trip up to Stockholm. 10 hours later we arrived in Stockholm and headed off to find Anna. With the team together it was time for us to start our long 19 train ride up to Riksgransen. Its fair to say that I made a bit of a mistake in booking the tickets. Instead of traveling up in style in the sleeping carriages I had booked seats. So with 19 hours of sitting down in seats ahead of us we did what any normal team would do, opened the 3 litre cube of wine and got stuck in. Its amazing how quick the journey past. Arriving in Riksgransen we were greeted with sunshine and with the lifts still open for another few hours we headed straight up. The snow was very much in full springtime conditions, which made finding nice powder lines quite a challenge. Not to be put off we did some good scouting and found some areas to hit the following day. As well as shooting and filming we were also all up here to compete in the Scandinavian Big Mountain Championships (www.bigmountain.se). The Big Mountain Championships is a 3* event on the Freeride World Qualifying tour and is the 1st event to count towards next years ranking so we are looking to get a good result to end the season on a high and also to start next season with a good ranking. Last time I was up here I came 3rd so I am really wanting to improve on this result. After a good night sleep we were pumped for our 1st full day on the hill. The weather on the other hand was not on our side and it was very overcast and flat light. So we put the cameras away in the morning and did some warm up lines for the comp. With the snow slightly slushy we found some fun drops and lines to shred. After a nice pack lunch we headed across to the railway bridge. This was something I saw last time I was here and it involves a 5metre drop off a railway bridge to a rather flat landing but if we got it right it would make a great shot. The only other problem is that you have to take off standing still and ollie out about 1.5 meters to clear the bridge. In total Vinny and I hit it about 6 times each and we both got a number of good shots in the bag so we decided to call it a day. Walking back from the bridge we also came across a great tree jib to hit another day and also a half eaten reindeer which was a bit off putting. With it staying light pretty much 24/7 we are looking forward to a great week up here in Riksgransen. We will keep you posted each day with events from the day and also photos from our trip. We also noticed a few other pros up here and it was fun having breakfast with Nickolas Muller this morning. I would also like to thank Riksgransen for looking after us while we are up here and check back tomorrow for further updates on our trip. I am also wearing the new 2011/2012 Dare 2b winter range and loving it. The jackets are some of the best I have ever ridden in and I love the new colours. All the Swedes are also raving about them. Keep posted over the next week of more shots of me in the new kit...... Going to be an epic trip and once again, thank you Dare 2b for sorting me out with the best kit.

Riksgransen - Day 1

Just a cool photo of 1 of my new outfits.......

Riksgransen - Day 1

Jumping of the train bridge......

La Tania Season Review

End of season and The Season Review 2010/2011 of La Tania.

2010/11 What Happened

What Happened 2010/2011: ski show mess early early snow first racks and first skins and snow shoes up the mountain seasonal staff stranded in snow at gatwick then geneva airport closes la tania building work not finished but new beginners magic carpets sara’s first day second run broken shoulder val thorens beautiful opening day the ski lodge opening sam small gets first pint the feeling hotel gig in 1850 latania.co.uk locals pics night world cup back in courchevel christmas new year natives party russian christmas monday club australia day bish hen do twall birthday la tania gondola break down comedy night la tania 20th birthday party celebrations (100,000 euros for canapes, champagne, a band, some posters and fireworks???) 6 nations rugby england win ireland celebrate stevie’s bys branded fork tree skis mardi gras the 1650 hotel golf apartments fire la boulotte closes return of dr bruce pyjama chavs pirates cops n robbers mexican cowboys n indians parties squeeze the feeling and the little world festival st patricks night dicks battle of the bands geordie robs annual fall bring your sisters meet peter andre car crash off the edge mont vallon avalanche hot weather no krab for monday club 40% discount on lift passes early closing charity ball the oscars la tania charity day snow melts closing parties “what are you doing in the summer” the building work starts again.... Toffa – latania.co.uk

Fort William MTB World Cup

Fort William Latest Update Two of the major new features for this year's downhill course are big. Very big. Thousands of tons of earth and rock are being moved and trees being cleared to create a gap jump over a forest road into a 45 Degree section with new berms and an improved spectator area. complete with a burger van for the World Cup weekend. At the puggy line a tunnel has been installed to allow continuous crossing by pedestrians and recreational cyclists while racing is happening. This means a big step-down and the chance for riders to shake hands with spectators in passing gondolas. In order to attend the World Cup on Saturday and Sunday you will need to have a valid ticket. To purchase yours, visit the following URL: http://fortwilliamworldcup.co.uk

End of season/Sweden/Iron Man

Well the season has ended in Verbier and i am now back in the UK for a week. My next adventure takes me to Sweden where I am heading up to Riksgränsen. Here i am competing in the Scandivian Big Mountain Championships as well as doing a article for Fall Line. I will also be showing off all of Dare 2 b 2011-2012 gear so look out for photos as I will be doing a daily blog. I am also moving to Sweden as I am training to do the famous Iron Man multi-sport event which will take place in Mexico, Cozumel later this year and involves swimming, biking, and running. Competitors must complete a 3.86 kilometer swim, cycle 180.2 kilometers, and run a full marathon distance of 42.2 kilometers. Only a handful of people with diabetes have successfully taken part in this grueling competition before, which pushes all contestants to their mental as well as physical limit and even beyond. Check out the photo to see what Dare 2b sent me to help me for my training. I am also in the middle of launching a new blog so watch this space for the link to the blog. I hope you all had a great bank holiday and check out for my daily blog when i am in Sweden starting on the 13th of May...... Any advice for the Iron man then please email me though my blog when it is launched. Thanks again Dare 2b for all your support.

No Fuss IXS Macavalanche

Yesterday it was the IXS Macavalanche at Glencoe mountain resort, run by No Fuss Events. It was a really fun and unique event, with a helicopter being used to drop the riders at the top of the mountain! It was a mass start race from the top of the mountain to the bottom, with a le mens start. The race started on snow which made for exciting riding/sliding/running to get to the dirt. It was good tight racing down the mountain, with dare2b riders myself and my brother Joe winning the men's and women's race. It was an awesome day, sunny, and great racing with a really good crowd of people.

Scotland

Skiing, snowboarding and sledging are officially over. No more of that please. Cairngorm, Glenshee and Nevis Range are all open for walking and other Summer activities, Glencoe keeps the chairlift moving for all the mountain bikers who like a little uplift. Photo credit: Glenshee webcam

2010/11 Season

The snow arrived a month earlier than usual in 2010 but also has dissappeared a month earlier as a result. The season was better than expected, there were some great days with good conditions overhead. The last significant fall of snow to speak of was on the 10th March this year when conditions were still worth the trip but after that the snow started to deteriorate quickly. There were no further falls and it became warm-ish. Photo credit: Mickey Yule

Scoop gets his Dare 2b jacket signed

Skier & Snowboarder magazine publisher and editor Frank 'Scoop' Baldwin has found another use for his Dare 2b jacket. During his travels he has been using it as an 'autograph book' and has already collected an impressive list of Winter Olympic gold medal winners. First to sign his jacket was Austrian ski racing legend Franz Klammer is his home ski resort of Bad Kleinkirchheim where they have named the downhill run after him. Franz will always be best remembered for the barn storming run that won him gold at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, but he also dominated the skiing World Cup between 1975 and 1978 when he won 25 World Cup downhills. Next to put his mark on Frank's Dare2b jacket was Jean-Luc Brassard the French-Canadian freestyle skier, who won the gold at the 1994 Winter Olympics when freestyle skiing made its debut as a medal event. Frank arm wrestled with Jean-Luc in Le Massif near Quebec and lost. Another name to be added this season was that of Nancy Greene, another ski racing legend. She is Canada's most successful ski racer ever and has also been voted as Canada's Female Athlete of the 20th Century. Nancy first made a name for herself in 1967 when she won the inaugural World Cup after triumphing in seven of 16 events, taking the over all title with four giant slalom victories plus two in slalom and one in downhill. In 1968 she won the World Cup title again and followed this by winning the gold medal in the giant slalom, by one of the largest margins in Olympic history, and a silver medal in the slalom at the Winter Games in Grenoble, France. Nancy has since become a senator but still loves to ski in Sun Peaks where she now lives. She is pictured signing Frank's jacket at the Nancy Green Cahilty Lodge in the resort. Frank now has a new Dare2b jacket for next season and said: 'I want to keep collecting the autographs of these great skiing stars but it looks like I am going to have to start a new book'.

Hannah Barnes dominates... again.

Last Saturday saw Hannah Barnes fly the MTBcut colours in style at the No Fuss events Duathlon at Nevis Range. She looked the part in her new race jersey and gained some style points on her awesome Orange Elite hardtail in team edition pink. Looking the part is one thing but luckily Hannah has the skills and endurance to back it up. Hannah made a strong start in the first run of the race, pulling a healthy 1 minute gap on nearest competitor Louise Crilly. As they mounted the bikes for the second part of the race Hannah really put the hurt on the competitors and increased the gap to 5 minutes. After the final run of the race Hannah cruised across the line 8 minutes clear of the nearest female competitor and also finished 8th overall. Hannah was pleased with her result and when asked how it went "Well good" was her reply. The rest of the team were at the other end of the country in Moelfre, Wales for the 2nd round of the BDS series. It was a glorious weekend with much sunburn, ice cream and fun times. The track was a super fast, dusty affair with little room for error. All the top pro's turned out for the event so the racing was going to be tight and fast paced. Junior points leader Fraser McGlone headed into the race looking for a repeat of his win at the first round. Feeling confident after his 3rd in seeding he launched into his run looking to make up the time he knew he could. The run was going well until a mistimed gear change caused his gears to skip which in turn blew his feet of the pedals at the face of a large jump. The crash that ensued was brutal but Fraser got back on the bike and made it to the finish battered and bruised. 38th for Fraser. Joe Barnes being a small technical track wizard struggled to hold momentum on the flat rough track and suffered due to the incredibly tight times. He found himself in 31st but we all know when it gets steep and tech he'll be back up there. The big man Ben Cathro had a good weekend. He was aiming for his first podium of the year but a costly mistake just before the flat traverse saw valuable seconds slip away. A blistering bottom split allowed him to claw back some time and ended up in a respectable 9th. "The competition was super tight at this race and I knew I had to have a perfect run. Sadly that didn't go to plan but at least I know I'm on pace". Joe now prepares for the first Scottish race in Dumfries while Ben and Fraser pack up and head to the first World Cup of the year in South Africa.

Cairngorm

The temperature is -1C at the top today, after a warm weekend - the skies are clear with some cloud around the peaks, there was a light dusting of snow last night on the upper runs. Coire Cas and the Ptarmigan are still running, the funicular is making stops at the middle station, 105 and the gun barrel are open for skiing. There is low cloud forecast for tomorrow and gale force winds over the hills, temperatures are rising and rain will fall, freezing temperatures will remain at the summits.

Flaine snow report

Flaine is officially the last resort open in the Grand Massif area. Temperatures here are reaching 20c during the day and you can walk around at night in just a t-shirt. When driving the car I feel like I'm on the way to the beach not a ski resort. Temperatures are due to drop a little come Tuesday with some sources stating that there may be snow on the higher slopes. We'll all believe it when we see it!

Heatwave

It’s a scorching 24 degrees here in Chatel today and you can almost see the snow melting off the pistes. The snow is not freezing overnight so it’s more or less un-skiable by about 11am in the morning. Unbelievably, there are still tourists arriving, although when they get here and are seeing bikers and people riding mountain bikes through town, they probably wish they’d spent their money going to the beach for Easter. End of season means end of season parties and a few of us spent a very enjoyable afternoon yesterday getting sunburnt and drinking on a friends balcony, high up in the valley overlooking Chatel. It looks like summer here now and we’re starting to see and smell Chatel’s farming community starting work for the summer. Summer inevitably means finding an answer to that eternal seasonaires question, ‘what do you do in the summer’ and it looks like a few more people are staying this summer, with many of the guys finding work building stuff. The missus has found a summer job in a local restaurant and I’m working on something in Switzerland that if it comes off will make me very happy indeed. I’ve got a training course next week which will see me ticking off another module on my way to BASI level 3 ISIA, I just home the mountain doesn’t close before then because if this weather carries on, there will be nothing to ski.

FBBB Diary From the Big Snow Festival

FBBB teamed up with 'Dare 2 b' for 'The Big Snow' festival 2011 in Arinsol, Andorra – (Their second year running). None of us had ever been to Andorra before so when we were presented with the opportunity to go, we simply couldn't refuse! Our objective was to work closely with the Vallnord snowpark team (who go by the name of 'ASP') to help build a park and ride in a demo as well as provide some freestyle coaching for all the 'Big Snow' clientele. Team FBBB: Thom, Mikee, Aly and resident artist Mister Batlow - We packed our board bags & suitcases and off we went…. It was to be an early morning start on Sunday the 13th of March, where we all met up at Hemel Hempstead coach station to start the first leg of our journey. Super stoked to be on our way to Gatwick airport, from there we boarded a 1 and a half hour flight to Toulouse (was nice & warm!) and from there, a 4 hour coach transfer to Arinsal. A 4 hour transfer via coach is never pleasant but you just know it's going to be worth it whatever the weather. As soon as we stepped on the coach we could tell it was going to be a good week, everyone was buzzing and the staff where really friendly & helpful. A quick mid-way toilet stop and the driest cheese baguette we've ever eaten and we finally arrived in Arinsal. It was a bit of a grueling coach journey but well worth it. Something magical about driving to the mountains and seeing the snowy peaks from afar and as you get closer, you see the snow all around you, its just an amazing feeling which only all passionate snow lovers can relate to. We checked into our accommodation for the week - Hotel Sant Andreau, a warm & welcoming greeting by the staff, which is always nice. We immediately dumped our bags and headed straight into town for our quick briefing and in search of some well-needed food! The 'Black bull' being the bar & restaurant of choice, where super tasty spicy chicken wings and a few cold beers went down a treat! Damn those chicken wings were good! We also had a couple of Mojito's seen as they had it on tap! After that we popped into the 'Surf' club to check out Mr. Tim Westwood dropping beats, causing a bit of a melee on the dance floor and a couple more - well deserved beers. The next day (Monday) we were up bright & early, eager to check out the mountain, the freestyle park and of course get a few runs in! Our hotel was situated bang in the middle of the main Gondola as well as a 6-man chairlift. The Gondola was approximately a 6 min walk down the hill and the chairlift, although being a tiny bit closer was up the hill so it seemed like a better option to walk down! The snow was absolutely bullet proof in the first few hours, not the greatest for shredding the park so we just scoped it all out and decided what features we were going to ride for the demo, which was scheduled for Wednesday. The snow soon softened up and it turned out to be a fun day exploring the mountain and meeting some of the locals whom of which are all super friendly! Tuesday - We met up with the Vallnord park manager Oriol and some of the other 'ASP snowpark' team to discuss what we wanted to do for the demo and helped shape the park for the demo. Have to say, the park team where absolutely awesome and they seemed stoked and quite surprised that 4 English guys could actually shape the park. They certainly made us feel very welcome and showed a lot of appreciation, which is always nice. They thought it was pretty cool but amusing at the same time that we all shape parks in snow domes back in England. It took us a good half an hour or so to explain that to them due to our terrible efforts at speaking Catalan but its amazing what sign language and pictures in the snow can do get your message across LOL… Wednesday morning – As soon as we looked out of our living room window we just knew that the scheduled demo was going to be and had to be postponed. The weather was pretty damn awful to say the least. When in the mountains the last thing you want to see is rain! Rain is not good for snow! We quickly scoffed down our staple breakfast diet of a boiled egg (or two for Mark!) with soldiers, croissant, cuppa tea, orange juice and cereal. Then made our way up to the mountain on the gondola. It was snowing up the mountain but felt more like 'slush puppy' type rain and super windy as well! Doesn't take a rocket scientist to tell you that no one is going to sit around and watch a demo in cold, rainy, whiteout conditions! You literally couldn't see anything and our backsides were soaked from the 1st chairlift up to the top of the park! Not a good start! It was official, the demo called off - It was never going to happen! Would've been pointless, we all felt a bit gutted but this is how it goes in the mountains. We didn't let things dampen our moods and we just carried on with the shaping from the day before and set up all the 'Dare 2 b' branding. Despite the weather, our artist 'Mister Batlow' decided that he could paint through rain, sleet, snow and wind! What a trooper! Some may call it insanity but we call it dedication. He even built himself an igloo to paint a surfboard up there! With all the shaping done and a few good runs through the park under our belt we left the mountain feeling pretty good about the demo which was rescheduled for the next day. The weather forecast kept chopping & changing all week. Some reports saying it was going to snow till Thursday and some saying Thursday would be nice. Truth is we can never be too sure what its going to be like! We were informed not to miss the biggest party of the week, which was at the Panoramix terrace at the top of the Gondola. The lifts open back up at 6pm to take everyone back up the mountain. We were kicking back and taking things pretty easy back at our hotel after such a long and exhausting day on the mountain that we couldn't find much energy or motivation to do much. Only to get a call saying: “Hurry up and get your arses down to the lift before it shuts! You don't want to miss this! So 'PING' we all jumped up and legged it down to the gondola and JUST made it! We were literally the last 4 people to get on! Its funny how things work out. As soon as we got up there we where pretty glad we rushed to make it, Goldie was playing and smashing up the D&B. It was snowing, the sounds were pumping and echoing around the mountain, the atmosphere was electric and everyone was raving & having a good time. As the night went on, 'Devlin' and 'DJ Fresh' took over from where Goldie left of, dropping D&B bangers and the heavens just opened up and it dumped down with snow! It was pretty amazing watching the snow come down like that with all the crazy lights. Raving in a snow blizzard is a pretty sweet experience and highly recommended! We were absolutely freezing as none of us thought it was going to snow and especially not the way it did! Hence why none of us were dressed for the occasion, jumping around like kids high on sweets, trying desperately hard to stay warm. As the DJ set wound down, there was a fire display by the mountain staff, skiing down in a form of a big snake, holding onto fire lamps. Thursday - We woke up expecting it to be demo day so off we went all dressed in our 'Dare 2 b' outfits but once we reached the bottom of the first chair lift we just knew the demo was to be postponed again. It was still snowing and had been all night by the looks of things and visibility was poor. Anyway, we'd be lying if we said we were disappointed because we all had massive smiles on our faces. POW day! It clearly dumped all through the night up in the mountain. There was fresh POW everywhere! Yes, everywhere! So much in fact the top section of the mountain had to be closed due to high risk of avalanche. It was a shame as we could only imagine how insane the snow would've been from the very top! Anyhow, the closure didn't have any negative effect on our day, as there was more than enough fresh stuff for everyone to enjoy! Some places on the pistes were knee deep and boy did we lap it up! Any snowboarder or skier will tell you that when days like that come, it's all out! In some cases friendships even go out of the window and its everyman for himself. That's how good it is when it's like that! Friday – Woke up to the most amazing bluebird day! Not a cloud in the sky! About bloody time we thought. Better late than never as they say! It was The Big Snow 'ski away day'. A day where everyone had the option to take a coach or ski/board over to one of the other nearby resorts about 40 minutes down the road. Due to the adverse weather conditions that hampered our scheduled demo, we were invited by Iain (the resort manager) to put on a riding demo along with some freestyle coaching for the festival attendees. Of course, we jumped at the opportunity to do so! The Sun was shining and we where picked up by taxi in the morning as we had to make a stop at an art shop for 'Mister Batlow' to stock up on more spray paints for the day. We arrived at our destination 'Hotel Peretol', home to 'Sunset Park'. We actually drove past this amazing place on our way to Arinsal on Sunday night and were instantly drawn to the action under the floodlights. We all wished that we could stop to have a shred! Little did we know that we'd be back there doing a demo and riding the park. We absolutely loved this place! Sunset Park instantly reminded us of our domes back home, except its outdoors on real snow with two poma lifts and two slopes - One was full of rails and boxes, another with two big kickers and a hip feature. This was easily the best park we'd seen in Andorra and the best park shred of the week! Can't really find the words to express how impressed we were and how much of a fun day we had… Mister Batlow set up a board and promptly started painting away and as soon as he finished that piece, he was asked to paint the side of the park teams hut with a picture of the Hotel Peretol owners dog 'Buster' who is a bit of a local legend. We totally thought so too! Whilst Mister B was painting, myself Aly and Mikee provided everyone (enjoying the yummy BBQ) with a riding demo on the rails and kickers until a good few decided to join us for a few freestyle tips. That night we got back to Arinsol pretty late and feeling super tired from our fantastic day out. Mister Batlow had been painting all day but still managed to negotiate a few free drinks and dinner for all of us in exchange for painting the bar man in our hotels car. Result! Although the buffet ribs we had were severely overdosed with BBQ sauce and had us all in stitches, laughing at each other's smeared faces. Saturday – Woke up to another beautiful bluebird day (this is what life's all about!) and we casually got ready, had breakfast and prepared ourselves for the reschedule demo which was supposed to take place on Wednesday. Once we arrived up to the Vallnord Park, we got a few warm up runs under our belts and unpacked the 'Dare 2 b' flags again and branded up the park for the second demo of the week. This time we were joined by some of the local riders and park shapers and finally the pro line was re-shaped and open. The big jumps had been closed the whole time due to the heavy snowfall prior to when we arrived but unfortunately, only the skiers could get the necessary speed to hit them. So the local skiers joined in on the demo, displaying some amazing tricks on the big jumps, while we rode all the other features in the park. We also provided some coaching to those that wanted to pick up some freestyle tips. Sunday - Home time L Our flight was at 5pm but our coach was picking us up at 10am! Gutted doesn't come close to summing up how we felt but all good things come to an end. We couldn't have imagined such diverse weather for the entire week we were there, getting pretty much four seasons. All in all The Big Snow Festival was a really good week; Arinsol is definitely suited to any level of boarder or skier. The Arinsol ski area isn't very big but for those that seek a wider variation of terrain, have the option of the 'ski away day' where you get to check out the 'Grand Valira' area, which is approximately 90% of the Pyrenees. All the good bars, restaurants and friendly atmosphere make Andorra a very special place; and with all the good line-ups playing and activities going on throughout the week, there is always something happening to keep everyone happy. Our final words on the Big Snow festival is that its a daaaaaaamn good week and impossible to get bored! All boxes well and truly ticked! Looking forward to next year already!!! FBBB

2011 season kicks off: BDS Round 1, Nant Gwrtheyrn.

In a small unit in Peebles, 3 guys sit in awe staring at some refined pieces of engineering that have just delivered on a 24 hour overnight courier from Orange bikes. These fine pieces of engineering in question were team MTBcut's prototype 322 race frames and the 3 people were team riders Ben Cathro, Fraser McGlone and all round sticker making hero Dave Mackison from Apex Graphics. The first BDS race of the year is in 5 days and we had a crazy week ahead of us. After spending the next few days of gathering our new Dare2b team clothing, building the new Orange 322 Prototype bikes and traveling South, myself, Fraser and our fellow team MTBcut shredder Joe Barnes met up in the slightly surreal venue of Nant Gwrtheyrn in Wales. Our tidy looking race machines. In an unexpected bonus Big Dave from Orange decided to rock up with the Orange van and race pit set up so we had the full pro look for the first race of the year. We all headed up the track on Saturday morning for our first runs on the new bikes and things were pretty interesting. First of all the track was gnarly tech on the top and a real challenge to negotiate. Second of all the new Orange bikes felt mint and we were all fully buzzing as we became accustomed to our new steeds! When it came to race day Fraser was the first to head up for his seeding run and kick off 2011 for the MTBcut team. Unfortunately a rider before him destroyed himself and had to be stretchered off the hill, causing a long delay. With light restrictions looming the event organisers decided to scrap seeding runs and go straight into race runs. After sitting at the top of the track in miserable conditions and struggling to keep warm, Fraser finally got to show the crowd what he was made of and comfortably took the junior win. Thoroughly deserved and definitely a sign of things to come. Things didn't go well in the rest of the camp. I had a horror of a run and trickled across the line in a disappointing 12th position. Nothing that 2 weeks of hard training a riding in Spain won't cure. It was a miracle Joe was riding at the weekend after walking away from a severe skiing crash a week previously so his 19th position was very respectable. On the whole, great weekend. It's now time for cleaning and packing as myself and Fraser jet off for some hard testing on the new bike in Spain. After that we’ve got a week of shooting with Stu and Mono for some new MTBcut vids and then we all head off to South Africa…. Plenty of radness on the way!!........ Thanks to everyone at Orange Bikes, Dare2b, IXS Protection, Hope, Shimano, Maxxis, Straitline, Nukeproof and THE who got us all our great kit in time for the season........ Hopefully see you all on the hill soon!! The MTBcut guys didn’t go to shoot the event this weekend, we've got some cool stuff lined up in the next few weeks though. I did manage to hijack the video by Wideopenmag.co.uk though so check it out..... Also got a few pics courtesy of Keith Valentine at Phunkt Photography. Thanks guys!

Into the final month...

La Tania - 1 Month left In to the final month of the season now with some tired faces in resort and the usual What are you doing in the SummerÂ conversations being heard. We hear some workers are being let freeÂ early due to poor end of season bookings with the late Easter and the reporting of the snow conditions. Hopefully they can stay on and enjoy the end of season parties, BBQs and of course the La Tania Charity Day on Wednesday 13th April 2011. The Skiing & Boarding Low down the resort does appear gloomy with the rain and lack of fresh snow (although the run down to resort level is still open and perfectly groomed every night) but on sunny days sitting on the terrace of the Ski Lodge getting fried in the sun everything seems just fine. There has been some fresh snow high up and there is still some excellent piste skiing available Ã¢â‚¬â€œ well worth the effort of getting up for first lift rather than moping around the resort moaning about the lack of fresh snow, which seems to be the case for a lot of new workers this season (you should have been around in 89/90 when there was no snow!). Its still up there if you want it badly enough! Unfortunately the Ride The Rock Freeride Event schedule for 2/3 April has had to be cancelled. This was a Freeride World Tour Qualifier event and due to be held on Rocher de la Loze above La Tania - pisteurs and the security people for the event decided that the snow cover was unsafe and too unstable. Probably a sensible decision after the fatal Mont Vallon (off piste) avalanche a couple of weeks ago. The 3 Vallees Enduro will go ahead on 10th April across the Three Valleys with all sorts of skiing and boarding events open to all. The Apres Most survived St Patrick's Night with a double helping of Bring Your Sisters at Apres and Late on in La Tania. This being possible due to the huge fire in the Hotel Golf apartments in 1650 which has caused La Boulotte to be closed where they usually play on a Thursday. BYS are officially celebrities now after appearing in New Magazine thanks to them meeting Peter Andre up in 1850 at one of their gigs - came across as a sound bloke actually! Also in BYS related news is Stevie, pictured with his custom Fork Tree skis, has got engaged to fellow Saisonnaire veteran Della - congratulations from all in La Tania. Little World Festival over in Meribel saw poor weather for the outdoor gigs despite blinding sun and blue skies for the whole week before. Some great performances in the auditorium from The Feeling, Squeeze and Fiction Plane (led by Sting's son who didn't liked being asked about Police Records apparently), with excellent sound quality in this small, intimate venue. There was also Mardi Gras, The annual Mexican Night with Tache competition, the Pyjama Party and massive sessions watching the 6 Nations Rugby. La Tania Charity Day Wednesday 13th April 2011. Our end of season Charity Day gets bigger every year - this is the 10th one and over â‚¬150,000 has been raised for cancer charities over the years. It was originally started by a Saisonnaire who lost his Mother to cancer and has gone from strength to strength, please support us if you can. Thanks to Natives for their help and support on the 2011 Charity Day T-Shirt only 15 Euros and 100% will go to charity. On the day: 11am decorate the area 1pm BBQ - â‚¬10 per person 2pm-5pm - Live music outside the Tourist Office on a professional stage Outside Bars with profits to Charity Raffle and Auction Cake making competition Harley Davidson rides throughout the day World Egg eating Championship 5pm Downhill Float parade drawing massive crowds who watch the descent and subsequent chaos! Live music during the evening at the Ski Lodge and Chrome bar Curries and Tartiflette The biggest fancy dress party in the Alps! So still something to look forward to (and there's always some decent snow fall in April - just wait until someone fits their summer tyres....) Toffa.

La Tania Charity Day Info

La Tania Charity Day Wednesday 13th April 2011 - The History The La Tania Charity Day started in the year 2002 after a seasonnaire, Dan Provost lost his mother, Pat, to cancer. He decided with the backing of the Community to set up a fitting day to remember his mother and raise money for cancer. A committee was set up and voted that the money raised should go to the French Charity, Ligue National Contre le Cancer and an English Charity, Sebastianâ€™s Action Trust. Since that day, La Tania, as a community, has raised 150,000 Euros for charity. The Sebastian's Action Trust was set up after The Gates family lost their 11-year-old son to cancer. They have since raised 1,000,000 Euros with Charity Dances, walks, meals and the generosity of the public. The money raised is to go towards homes for children that are seriously ill with cancer, where they can spend quality time with their family. The Gates family are always represented on the Day bringing balloons, banners and posters. This year we welcome Jane Gates, Sebastians mum and Tescos woman of the year, Rebecca Gates, Sebastian's sister, and Sebastian's Action Trust Charity worker, Danielle. *Who takes part? * The day is a result of a massive effort from everyone in La Tania. Although the initial efforts stemmed from the English speaking community, it is now enjoying generous contributions and effort put in by French businesses. We enjoy the support of the local businesses, the Tourist Office, residents and also the ski companies and accommodation providers that operate in the resort. But more can be done to promote the Charity events and gain even greater support from the locals. The Charity day is about fighting Cancer and supporting those suffering from it, regardless of nationality. To date la Tania has raised 150,000 Euros (55,000 of which has gone to building the Sebastian's Action Trust house which will be finished this year). La Tania will be invited to the opening and an inscribed glass brick has been placed in the building thanking La Tania for its contribution. *Charity Day / Week * The fund raising now actually takes place over the whole week. On Monday 11th April the Hotel Montana is to hold their 4th Charity Dinner and Dance. Its a great chance to dress up as there will be a theme to the evening. The tickets get sold out straight away and any locals re should reserve as soon as they come out on sale. Profits from the night go to the total that is divided between the chosen Charities. There will also be a Charity BBQ at Lodge du Village over in Meribel Vilage and a fund rasing night at Dicks T-Bar in Meribel. The day itself is based around The Pub Le Ski Lodge who contribute all their profits from the day to the Charity Week total. Companies sponsoring the event will have their banners displayed around the event area outside the Tourist Office and Ski Lodge. It is a Carnival atmosphere with everyone making a massive effort to have the best Fancy Dress. *Events * 11am decorate the area 1pm BBQ 10 Euros per person Outside Bars with profits to Charity 2pm-5pm Live music outside the Tourist Office on a professional stage Raffle and Auction Cake making competition Harley Davidson rides throughout the day World Egg eating Championship 5pm Downhill Float parade drawing massive crowds who watch the descent and subsequent chaos! Live music during the evening at the Ski Lodge and Chrome bar Curries and Tartiflette The biggest fancy dress party in the Alps! *How your business can help? * There are several ways in which you can donate or support the event. Businesses are asked to either sponsor the official Charity Day T-shirt or provide banners to be displayed on the day (50-200 Euros depending on size) and donate prizes to be raffled or auctioned off. Donations can also be made directly the organisers by contacting Sandy Jardine (details below) *Press Coverage * As the event has got larger so we are attracting more and more press coverage and we are hoping for an attendance 1500 people this year. The event is covered by: The local press Le Dauphin Lib, 3V Info News, La Tania websites www.latania.co.uk www.latania.com La Tania Charity Day Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/charityday Twitter @La_Tania A roll of honour of all the sponsors is published on www.latania.co.uk and the event is advertised on Radio Meribel and Radio Courchevel. We hope we can count on you to help and embrace the resorts efforts in raising money for these worthy causes. Many thanks for your continuing support, Sandy Jardine keironjardine@hotmail.com Mobile: 06 80 68 62 54 http://www.sebastiansactiontrust.com/ http://www.facebook.com/charityday http://www.ligue-cancer.net/index.php http://www.latania.co.uk/photos/CharityDayIndex.htm

Flaine Snow Report

It's been snowing up top today, raining at the bottom. The top slopes are still in good condition, the bottom ones are just slush by mid-morning. Brown patches are beginning to show through on the lower pistes. Some snow's forecast for Tuesday afternoon until Wednesday afternoon, let's hope it comes

That end of season feeling...

The snow is melting fast in the Portes du Soleil and unless you are looking in the right direction, you might be forgiven for thinking that we are in the middle of summer. A strange winter season keeps getting stranger, with yet another couple of weeks of remorseless sun and blue skies. The locals have taken to hiking up to local spots to get their fix of powder but unfortunately for them, there are only so many good spots and almost everything including all the difficult lines are now all skied out. Personally, I can sort of understand hiking for 45 minutes to find some fresh to ski for 2 minutes, but not when it’s 10 degrees and slushy, it’s too much like hard work. With the complete absence of any new snow for weeks, the pisteurs are doing all they can to keep the various ski areas in decent nick but we now have ice in the mornings for a couple of hours and then slush, locally known as ‘soupe’ from about 11.30 onwards. Slush is fine if you know how to ride it but it’s getting so heavy at the end of the day, it’s almost impossible to use. Teaching work at the ski school has dropped off a cliff with the last week or so. Pas de neige means pas de touristes. I’m planning to check the records of how much work there was this time last year because if this is normal for this time of year then next year I’m going to book a trip to Canada or the US to get some proper deep snow skiing done. There is a real start of summer feeling in Chatel at the moment with ‘liquidation’ sales going on in all the ski shops (still not making them anywhere near cheap enough to consider buying anything) and people leaving for home early. All of the seasonaires starting to think about summer and whether they are going on staying, much depending on what work they can find. It seems sexist to stay but the way it seems to work is that all the girls go to work as waitresses and all the boys go and build stuff. We’re all still praying for the usual expected but unexpected April dumps of snow but for now it feels like the winter is almost over and that’s very sad.

Olympic build up heats up

Rebecca Romero's Blog 21.03.2011 There's a feel of things hotting up here in the Olympic Cycling camp as several marker points in the build up to the Olympics next summer have passed in quick succession over the last few weeks. The first took place at the end of February when there was the official opening of the Olympic Velodrome. I haven't yet had the opportunity to visit the site, and I was away with the endurance girls squad on training camp when it officially opened the other week, but everybody says that London is the best Velodrome venue in the world. It could be thought that every cycling track is the same, that it's just a wooden surface that goes round in a circle. But there's definitely a good venue and a bad venue. The design of the track shape, the wood used, the spectator seating, the lighting, the airflow in track centre, the equipment storage, every last detail even down to the location of the toilets and changing rooms all play a part. No rider, whilst in the precious last moments of preparation for an Olympic final, wants to have to take a twenty minute detour to find a toilet. In Beijing before my Olympic final I had to change into my skin tight race suit in a toilet cubicle because there were no decent changing rooms. I had to perform a balancing act (one which could have won me a medal in the Gymnastics I'm sure!) around a hole in the ground toilet - one of only four in the building, and which had seen a lot of pre-race nerve action going on and had never even contained toilet paper or soap for hand washing!! So toilets and changing rooms were something they definitely overlooked in Beijing and made for a very grim experience and a de-focusing from our racing 'in-the-zone' moments. With all the expertise, planning and design that's been invested into the London facility, and with Sir Chris Hoy personally making sure that the toilet facilities have been taken care of, I'm pretty sure it will be the best Velodrome in the world! We're planning on having some training time there in the summer so I'll be looking forward to checking it out then. So with the Olympic Velodrome all tied up, the next event was the announcement of the Olympic Road Race and Time Trial routes. Back in Dec 2009 when the two events I raced in Beijing (the Individual Pursuit and the Points race) were removed from the Olympic programme, I decided I wanted to explore my ability in the Road Time Trial event. It held the added excitement of being held in the streets of West London and Surrey where I grew up and where I started my athletic career! Once again though, and only a year before the Olympic qualification season, the International Cycling Federation changed things and altered the qualification system for the road events. The Time Trial had been a discipline in its own right, but now the rules state that the Time Trial rider must come from the Road Race team. I'm never going to be a road race rider so I had to knock the option of the Time Trial on the head and head back to the track to try out for the Team Pursuit team. It was still great to see the routes unveiled and to know that the Olympic Cycling courses will pass through my home town areas of Richmond, Twickenham and Kingston, on roads that I know like the back of my hand and over bridges crossing the stretch of river I rowed on to become World Champion and Olympic Silver medallist in rowing. The third and fourth events happened in quick succession with the Omega '500 days to go' countdown clock being unveiled on March 14th and on the following day, March 15th, the highly demanded Olympic spectator tickets going on sale. What a powerful reminder of how quickly time has been ticking by and little time there is left! Now that metaphorical ticking clock exists for real and Olympic and sporting enthusiasts are scrabbling for a golden opportunity ticket to witness the greatest sporting show on earth, right here in our own backyard. I often say from an athlete's point of view, that when it comes to a major competition like the Olympic Games, the bubble of focus, preparation and protection that we're put into means it doesn't matter where you are. You could be on the moon, it wouldn't matter, because the process of doing the job is the same. But I've experienced racing world cups and world championships on home soil in both rowing and cycling. And believe me, the will to win on your home ground and the power of a home crowd behind you is the most incredible inspiration and source of strength that you can have. So the public should know they have a part to play in medals being won too! After I won my rowing silver medal in Athens, I got tickets to watch the track cycling. I didn't know much about it but was sat high up at the top of the bankings and got to see lots of racing including the Madison race with Bradley Wiggins and Rob Hayles crashing all over the place. I thought it was crazy, dangerous, couldn't believe how fast they were and couldn't understand how they stuck to the track. I vowed that one day I had to have a go at it! As far as spectator events go you can't beat the athletics stadium and the track cycling, but I would say that any and every event that a sports fan can get to will be an amazing experience. Getting up close to the action, learning about a new sport and being part of the world's best athletes delivering a lifetime's work and striving to fulfil their dreams is fantastic. And just like me as I sat watching the track cycling in Athens and got sparked by the buzz of a sport, so too will thousands of other London spectators!

quick update

Snow is good in Verbier at the min. Had a good few days on the mountain and a big filming day tomorrow... looks like i might be riding in sweden in May for 10 days so watch this space... I have also entered into a iron man in mexico in November so I guess this summer is all about getting ready. Enjoy the last 5 weeks of the season, looks like my season is still a long way from over... Happy Days

Flaine Snow Report

Flaine currently has typical spring snow conditions. The pistes early on in the week were in great condition after the rain that was forecast last week fell as wet snow and surprise snow arrived on Saturday. If you stay on the upper runs and use the chair lifts to get back up the mountain good conditions can still be found.

Glenshee

There has been a healthy snowfall over the last week which has been great for conditions, although temperatures are becoming milder this week. The entire 3 valley-system is well-covered, the lift systems stretches over a vast area. There is plenty of groomed snow covering the pistes, which are mostly accessible by drag lifts. These are favoured since high winds sweep over the mountains, that said the weather has been lovely and sunny over the last few days. Glas Maol, which is the longest run on the mountain is in excellent condition. Photo credit: theteuchterboys

Cape Town winter training trip

I have just got back to Fort William after an amazing 3 weeks in Cape Town. It was great having some winter sun and hammering our Orange 5's around new trails every day! We met so many cool people who showed us their local trails, which were about a foot deep in dust! There is a massive road riding scene around Cape Town too so I found myself riding about 2 hours a day on beautiful roads around the cape, dodging baboons! The South African photographer Gary Perkin hooked me up with a last minute entry to the Cape Argus, a 110km road race, and the largest timed race in the world. There were 35,000 competitors so it was pretty full on. I did a time of 3h 20mins, and came about 3,000th! It's great to be back home having got some sunny winter miles in, ready for the race season kicking off this weekend. I've really excited to be getting involved with Dare2b, and I'll keep you updated on my racing and travels.... Bye for now:)

MTBcut DH team frames are here!

Fraser got a new t-shirt and the new frames got some sweet decals

Glencoe

It has been quite stormy and a lot of fresh snow has fallen with large levels of drifting snow. Runs like the Wall, High Road and Bunny all have excellent cover, as does the Main Basin. Significant snowfall is forecast on Saturday while drier spells and sunshine are expected early next week. It's still looking good up there, but pick your day – it is Scotland after all, that part hasn't changed. It's usually the wind and/or rain that gets offensive but there doesn't seem to be much of that around .. seems to have calmed after the last few days of extremely fierce winds. www.skamps.org.uk

2011 here we go

The season is about to start!

Update form Lawrence Buchweiser

First year FIS really is not a year for spectacular results. 15 years old I have to compete against grown men. This time is more about putting maximum focus on training & developing yourself. Not only with the ski. You also need to learn to start again from the very back. Not so easy, when you are used to winning a lot of competitions in the years before, like I have done. This is the time, when you really find out, if you ultimately love your sport or not. I do! I am very happy to benefit from the work with one of the best coaches around - Roman Kneisl of Austria. He used to work with the Austrian World Cup and Europa Cup teams before. He very much helped me to improve my fine technical skills and I now have to build more physical strength to convert that technic into much faster times in my races! The initial part of my first FIS season was very hard for me with start numbers at the very end of the field and the therefore bumpiest tracks one can imagine! At least in the children's level the young ones have been allowed to go first - not in FIS! Still, when I look at my FIS points status I am quiet proud. In Super G and Super Combined I am currently ranked 1st of all male British competitors in my year and in Giant Slalom 3rd. But I want to do better and also start to win competitions again against these guys, that are so much older than me and defend my place in the British Junior Alpine Ski Team! Sadly I can not improve on this anymore this season, as in a recent race I have part ruptured my ACL and collateral ligament and also suffered a quiet extreme bone bruise - all in my left knee. This ski season is definitely finished for me now, but I am now strongly focusing on therapy & training to get back on snow asap.

Flaine snow report

It's a beautiful blue bird day in Flaine. Conditions on the mountain are beginning to deteriorate a little but it's definitely much better than early February. Daytime temperatures are around 10c at the moment dipping to well below freezing overnight. It's supposed to get down to -19c on Tuesday night. No snow's due for the next week.

Bormio ski tests

A dusting of new snow is expected tonight when temperatures will fall below freezing. We have been lucky so far with new snow falling at the beginning of the week, the sun has also been shining every day so far. All the ski manufacturers are here with their latest offerings to hopefully tempt the retailers. Snow showers are forecast over the next couple of days with some clouds tomorrow. Everyone attending has been testing skis like there’s no tomorrow, working to tight deadlines. I like Rossignol skis the best so far and feel sure their recreational range will sell extremely well, their World Cup ski is already popular with instructors all over Europe.

Crans-Montana

Snow has been falling again in Crans and the temperatures are to stay low. Temps will duck down below freezing over the next couple of days. The slopes are still busy, like last week, with much of the usual school holiday activity, lots of kids skiing with ski schools and adults relaxing on holiday. Snow showers are set to continue throughout the week interspersed with sunshine.

The Half-term is over blog

So the madness of half term has passed and we now only have another week of snow-blading French school holidays to endure before the season rolls on into March and we can get back to having the mountains more or less to ourselves. (seriously though, I saw snow-bladers with matching jackets today - WTF?) Half-term week was mental and it was the first time so far this season that I’ve actually looked forward to a day off from ski teaching and skiing in general. I’ve had a great set of clients this week, mainly because I avoided the cours collectifs and managed to get on the private lessons for the week. This meant that I spent a great week teaching a couple of groups of English kids to ski and got to spend a very enjoyable morning skiing freshies with a husband who turned up instead of his wife on a powder day. It’s finally snowed in Chatel and judging from some of the places I was skiing today, there has been at least half a metre fallen in the last week or so. Slopes that were green are white again and it’s great to see snow hanging in the trees once more. Everyone in the village is a lot happier and a lot of the tension in the air caused by the lack of snow has now gone. I am becoming very adaptable in my work out here, doing other jobs when I’m not ski teaching, things as diverse as airport transfer driving, handyman stuff and even being a bouncer on the door of The Avalanche Pub. The latter job of course, being the reason I am glad that everyone is a little less tense.. With the bulk of the season out of the way, we’re looking forward to a few good weeks of school groups coming up to Morgins for March and then a short burst of Easter school holidays in early airport. For now though, when this week is over and the French go home, maybe, just maybe, we can get some late dumps of snow and then it’s all ours to go play with.

Flaine even more snow report

It's snowing again in Flaine! 30cm due in the next 24 hours then a 15cm top up on Tuesday night. It's amazing, the place actually looks like a ski resort again. The best news is that the 'Les Cascades' blue run, the longest in Europe at 14km, opened yesterday. I can't wait to ski it for the first time on Monday.

Flaine lots of snow report

It's snowing!!!! We've had 8 cm in resort today and a lot more the further up the mountain. It's due to stop tomorrow with snow showers starting up again on Wednesday night. Temperatures in resort today were 0c dropping to -5c tonight. Can't wait to get skiing on the powder tomorrow!

Crans-Montana

It was 3C skiing this afternoon –the day started out brightly with a lot of hot sunshine then the visibility went flat in the afternoon, perhaps signifying a change in the weather. Most of the pistes are well-covered, the pisteurs have been working hard at moving snow, there are patches of ice around. Badly needed snow is forecast to arrive tonight, the heaviest snow is expected to fall on tomorrow (Sunday). Temperatures are to fall to -17 tomorrow night.. hopefully this will not prevent snow from falling.. Photo: Cabane de Violette Credit: Web-cam

La Tania Half Term Report

A lot of comment on the weather and snow this year in the Alps. After a good start and decent early snow falls (and despite a gondola breakdown) we enjoyed some great fresh powder tracks before we entered in to an endless sunshine and blue skies pattern from 10 January finally breaking up this week with a little new snow. Weather patterns have changed though and things remaining unsettled, the latest forecast is for snow at the beginning of next week after another couple of days sunshine. Surely a decent dump of snow is not that far away. That said the pisteurs especially in the Courchevel Valley have done a remarkable job in keeping the pistes in decent shape, yes there's some icy spots and it may not be as enjoyable hammering the hard pistes on a snowboard as on skis - bit there's good snow out there is you look. In Courchevel every green and blue run has received priority treatment and is groomed every night, they then select the key main runs and rotate others as necessary from historical data and ski patrol information. Two shifts from 5pm to midnight and midnight to 7am run through the night in their fleet of piste bashers (there are over 80 grooming machines in The Three Valleys with the top end ones cost over €200,000 each). The list of perfectly groomed runs in the Courchevel Valley is available from the main lift stations every day - there is an advantage to being in one of the richest ski areas in the world.

La Tania - The Apres Report

We particularly enjoyed this quote from The Sunday Times a couple of weeks ago around their article on season workers looking after the well heeled clients of Courchevel. "It's 2am in a bar in La Tania, a village far below Courchevel where the girls and boys who serve the super-rich come to let off steam. Bring Your Sisters, a renowned band on the local circuit, are thrashing away at their guitars while an enthusiastic young man threads his way through the mosh pit, administering shots of toffee vodka direct from the bottle. A significant part of the crowd will have to be awake in five hours to conjure cooked breakfasts for their clients, but that doesn't concern them right now". Back in December sandwiched between opening parties, we saw ex-La Tania resident band and Natives Party Band The Feeling playing a one-off gig at The Hotel St Louis in Courchevel 1850. They used current resident band Bring your Sisters PA who also gig there, maybe there's bigger things ahead for them too? The Feeling are back again in March for The Little World Festival (13-18 March), along with Squeeze, Sophie Ellis-Bextor and others. The big free gig on the piste in Meribel is on the opening Sunday this year, the 13 March. With Apres sessions in 1850, La Boulotte in 1650, Jacks and The Ronnie in Meribel and Lodge du Village in Meribel Village a regular thing, there's also lots going on in La Tania too with Apres and Late Night Music most nights at The Ski Lodge, La Taiga, Chrome Bar, Hotel Montana and occasionally at Le Telemark too. Along with regulars Bring Your Sisters and Four Play, the Trois Tetes have returned and BYS mates The Langers are here for the season. The Loud Hailers and Juke Box Mamas have impressed and the mighty Live Wire have rocked La Tania every other week this season at The Ski Lodge. There's also instructors Sam & Pat, Kiwi Greg and the Cheerleaders too!

Glemm.Bang Boarding and Freeski Contest 2011

Glemm.Bang 2011 Saalbach-Hinterglemm saw return of the Glemm.bang contest sponsored by Monster energy on 11th and 12th February. Two days crammed with park action from boarders and freestyle skiers. With great conditions, fantastic weather and crazy pro and rookie boarders and skiers, we were set for a crazy contest. The contest bought competitors from across the globe. Taking the crown on the Friday for the rookies was local Austrian Eric Schwabl for freestyle skiing and Simon Reitsamer for snowboarding. For the women, another Austrian took the crown, Christine Scumovski snowboarding and Silvia Bertagna for freeski. On Saturday we saw the slopestyle competition with Maria Teifel boarding and Lisa Carpenter skiing taking first place for the womens heat and Angelo Gastl boarding and Tom Ritsch skiing taking the lead in the mens heat. There was no better way to end the comepetition than with a wicked after party, based on a â€œsuperheroâ€ theme with Tomy Schwabl winning the best outfit with his "Superman, Hulk and Joker" combo! Bring on Glemm.Bang 2012!

Winter season

Well, we are still waiting for the snow in Verbier and I hope it will come soon. We have some great projects lined up including some big cliffs and some fun urban projects so when it snows, watch this space. We had a fun competition this weekend, due to the lack of snow they changed the format of it. It was 1 freeride run and 1 freestyle run. My freestyle run did not got to plan due to the ice and bumpy landing and I fell twice which was so annoying as in the freeride run I got the highest score. I took a nice fun fast line with a big cliff in the middle to what turned out to be a really nice landing. Next up me and Nick have the Park 9, a fun new event concept that is taking place on the 5th of March. Check out the Dare 2B facebook page for more info. So lets all do the snow dance and pray it comes soon. Remember if you are in Verbier come and find me and Nick, we will be the riders ripping it up on the slopes in the latest Dare 2B clothing. More updates coming soon.......

British Telemark Team update

Flaine - it's snowing at last!!!!

It's snowing in Flaine at last! It's extremely light in resort but proper snow's falling further up the mountain. Daytime temperatures are going to hover just below freezing until Friday when it'll drop to 13c. Light snow or snow showers are forecast for the rest of the week. Yay!

Cairngorm

Clear skies today, fresh snow fell last night – the top to middle section runs are still in great condition with thin patches on lower slopes. The machines are working to maintain snow cover and allow snowports to continue on lower runs. Sunny spells will continue through the week, with varying wind speeds, there will be some further snow showers over higher ground. The snowpack remains stable but the freezing level has lowered to 200metres. Heavy drifting snow means avalanches are likely on Westerly and Notherly aspects above 700metres.

GBR bring Home Junior World Champs Gold!!!

Having had to go home for a week or so to see my ill Dad meant dropping out of the World Cup 6 which was held in Winterberg Germany. I was then faced with the difficult decision of whether to go to UTAH, USA to compete in the World Junior Champs. I decided that i had to go SO myself, Rebekah Wilson and Kelly Denyer stepped onto a plane with our sights set on bringing a medal home. Jet lag hung around like a bad smell for a week. Training was going ok coming consistantly top 3. It turned mighty cold in Park City lows of -27 which i can tell you was not pleseant!! Race day came quickly and thankfully warmed up a little, which was nice seems as we only wear a lycra suit! We was the first sled off as we were ranked the highest. After the first run we were 0.28sec ahead of the home nation and bronze medalist Elana Meyers. All i had to do was have another run like the first. Rebekah pushed another great time which enabled us to win GOLD and up our lead to 0.60 sec!! Dare2b now officially sponsor Junior World Champions!!!! THANKYOU!

Flaine - still no snow report

No snow report again! It's been 15c in resort the last few days. The snow's holding up very well considering it hasn't snowed for 3 weeks now. Temperatures are due to drop tomorrow with daytime temperatures below freezing later in the week. A dusting of fresh snow's due on Saturday night and into Sunday.

Glenshee

An overcast day with fog over the hills, the gales of the week-end have subsided to 10mph. Most runs are complete; amazing the snow didn’t blow away really. Soft sugary snow covers a hard packed base, exposing ice in places. There will be warmer temperatures, this week with low level rain clouds, although there will be some freezing over higher ground.

Flaine snow report - 2 Feb, 2011

Still no snow to report I'm afraid! I did a snow dance on Sunday night and it hasn't worked it's magic like last time. Conditions on the mountain aren't great, today's the first day I haven't wanted to ski right up until last lifts. No snow is predicted to fall until this day next week at the earliest. This weather makes writing snow reports very difficult!

tele-tastic

I always seem to go out in Chatel on the wrong night. In the Avalanche Bar, Tuesday night is always a pretty big night with various themes. Last week it was neon, this week I've been gearing up for moustache night but given that I had a rare free day to myself today, I got smashed up last night and now I'm going to miss yet another Tuesday night. I know I'll get a load of hassle for this but I'm working tomorrow and ski teaching with a hangover just isn't fun. After the chaos of the hot weather week last week, things are back to normal here now with cold temperatures meaning that the snow cannons are in action. Because of the limited snow that seems to be a problem with the whole of the alps, the afternoons aren't great with most of the top snow scraped off leaving sheet ice to play on. This might account for the massive amount of injuries and constant ambulances and helicopters flying about. The other night there were apparently 10-people in the pub with arms in slings and various other ailments. If this continues on it's going to be chaos in February when all the half termers arrive. I taught myself to telemark the other day and I'm hooked. It's actually not as difficult as I thought it would be and it took me a few hours to work it all out. It's an addictive feeling and quite a difficult one to describe but it does feel so much more natural than regular skiing. There is a certain something about the turn shapes and rhythm of it that really appeals to me, so much so that I'm going for it again on Thursday. Of course it will eventually mean a whole load of shiny new equipment and a new pair of skis so I think I'll be hitting the end of season sales hard.

Glenshee

There have been snow showers over the week-end and freezing temperatures have allowed snow making. The skiing or snowboarding is good on new snow over a hard base. The terrain park is located at Butchart’s, some larger rails including the baw breaker have been added to the site. Photo: Cairnwell

POW in Saalbach-Hinterglemm!

Saalbach-Hinterglemm have had a fantastic dumping of snow over the past four days, which has meant some POW POW POW days for boarders. Having just learnt to board this season, I had my first experience of off piste powder yesterday – Was amazing!! Boarder are having so much fun, and now the piste is flatter, it’s just as good for skiers. We are now lucky to have sunshine days ahead of use to enjoy all the powder and lots of hours on sunlight. Temperatures are expected to be between -1 and -10. I’ll aim to get some photo, video footage up in the next week. This week the British police returned for their annual ski – snowboarding championship event, causing an exciting and competitive atmosphere across the resort. The events will finish on the 29th Jan.

Flaine no snow report - 26 Jan

No snow to report! No proper snow for nearly 2 weeks now. No snow due for another week. Conditions on the mountain are ok though, the pisties are working very hard.

Back to normal

Chatel is now fully immersed in the January ‘hole’ as it’s known here, with limited tourism going on and all the locals taking a breather before half term kicks in and it goes February crazy. Something interesting did happen in Chatel last week when a helicopter crashed just outside the village. No-one died but there were some people that got fairly seriously injured but for a town with just 1200 people, this was big news. There’s been limited snow in the Portes du Soleil and a hot wind that blew through the valley last week bringing weather warm enough to wear shorts in. This played havoc with the snow. I was skiing with a group of kids from an international school that were up from Vevey and the heavy slush conditions on top of sheet ice made the teaching session more one of getting everyone down without injury rather than any meaningful ski teaching. The January Hole applies to ski teaching also and this combined with the crap snow means that there have been a few bored ski instructors in Morgins lately. My personal January was perked up by the arrival of a week of private work with a delightful girl called Celia who was on her GAP year and in town to ski for the week. She didn’t want to ski with her medical student mates who were mostly hungover for the week, so we skied about and generally had a good time skiing slush and ice. I got new ski boots the other day from the Vertical Horizons ski shop in Chatel. They are Head Vectors which conveniently come in red and white Arsenal colours. I’ve gone down a half size to 28.5 and although this might sound dull and techy, the improved fit of the boot has taken my skiing to another level. If anyone has old boots and wants to improve I can recommend new boots as a quick fix to better control. I’m teaching some Russians this week who are delightful and not at all living up to the stereotype of Russians on holiday (except for the expensive gear and impossibly glamorous girlfriend). I figure that we’ve got another week or so until February madness starts and then it’s take a deep breath time for 4 weeks of more chaos.

Cairngorm

Snow fell last night and in addition machines were on to produce more new snow on a hard base. It was cold, temperatures stayed below zero all day. The upper slopes have excellent cover while the lower slopes are icy and patchy. Freezing levels at 700m from tomorrow with clear skies. Avalanche risk is moderate since the snowpack is well bonded and stable. Photo: Lurcher's Credit: Jonathan Jordan

Flaine snow report - 14 Jan, 2011

We had heavy snow fall on Monday and a little bit of snow on Tuesday. Conditions on the mountain on Wednesday were the best they've been this season. Blue bird skies today - daytime temperatures between +4 and -5 c. No snow forecast for the next week, lets hope they're wrong.

Some top events for January at Saalbach-Hinterglemm

So with Christmas out the way in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, some may have been lucky enough to see the ‘Hoff’, yes, David Hasselhoff, Bonnie Tyler and Kim Wilde to name a few, lit up Hinterglemm with their 80’s classic. Januray looks set to bring many more surprise and fun filled family events to Saalbach Hinterglemm. The freestyle Show Night Turmwiese kicked off on the 6th and will be happening every two weeks. Crowds can enjoy a breathtaking and action loaded show with freestyle pros & fire dancer, including professional freeskier and snowboarders show their ingenious tricks on mega kicker. This is a must see for all those that love snow park action. An event to watch out for this month is the British police ski championships. They return to Saalbach Hinterglemm for some competitive ski and snowboard competitions.

1st Comp of the season

Just to say that I have my 1st comp of the season this weekend. Its a 4* World Tour Q event and as its 4* there are lots of points up for grabs. I have been riding hard and we have fresh snow so I hope it all goes to plan. I will let you know how it goes after the weekend.... PS... Its snowing in Verbier....

Christmas madness over

The madness that is Christmas and New Year has gone and all that remains are some tired seasonaires, aching livers and a nasty cold that all of the locals seem to have caught, including yours truly. Christmas and New Year here in Chatel was off the scale in terms of how busy everything got. A town that has 1200 people in the off-season suddenly swelled to over 20,000. To compound not being able to get a seat in my favourite bars, 3 of my mates turned up from around the world, intent on turning their ski break into a stag do. We drank a lot and in a way, I’m glad they are gone as I don’t think I could have done much more. The highlight for them was me naked and throwing up off the balcony of our apartment just an hour after New Year struck. Last week saw me teaching my first cours collectif group with 6 kids of various ages and nationalities for the week. It was fun and by the end of the week, my group consisted of 5 Dutch kids and one French one. The French I am fine with but by the end of the week, I think the skiing of the Dutch kids had improved beyond my ability to speak Dutch which goes to show that kids learn a lot more by seeing and doing than by techie explanations. A surprising development today in Chatel in that it has started to rain, destroying what remaining snow there was in the village. We could really do with a couple of days of snow to refresh the slopes around the Portes du Soleil that are patchy and icy. A full complement of seasonaires in the village means that the various local nights in the bars of Chatel are going off in spectacular style. On Tuesday I was at the School Disco night in The Avalanche Bar which went off with plenty of cheesy music to keep us entertained. There were plenty of grown up schoolgirls in attendance whilst all I could find was my original school scarf which I proudly wore all night. When school kicked out, we continued onto Sloopy’s Disco under the Super Chatel telecabin until about 4.30am when it was time to stagger home. I have a souvenir from Sloopy’s of a panama hat which I have no idea how I got but clearly was wearing all night as it is covered in beer and Jager. January is supposed to be a quiet month but there are a few things going on like the Grand Odyssey de Savoie which is a Husky race but I think we are all looking forward to it getting back to normal before the February half-term madness.

Happy New Year

Happy new year everyone. Well it's nearly time to get back to it and travel to Igls, Austria. It's been really nice being back at home, although we nearly didn't get here..... We were due to fly out from Montreal, Canada on the 19th Dec when our flight was cancelled due to snow! The next available flight was the 28th Dec... Thankfully we found some new flights and took a detour to Cleveland, Orlando and then Manchester! 4th Jan was a squad meeting in bath university were we had to do some timed pushes. My season on ice has being going great and pushing the track record in Bath made me feel like 2011 is going to be brilliant! We have an uber long journey on Sunday and will be competing on the world cup Friday 14th Jan....tune in and support

New Year New Start

2011 In Austria with Dare2B

Flaine snow report

It hasn't snowed here for a nearly a week now. We could really do with some snow, piste conditions are not ideal. It was -1 in resort today but felt much warmer in the sun. It's next due to snow on Wednesday, 5th Jan. Happy 2011 everyone!

Flaine snow report

Boxing Day Powder

Well, just back from an epic day on the hill and have burned off all that turkey today. Had powder face shoots all day and it was -25 but my Dare 2b kit keep me nice and warm and ripping all day. If you are lucky enough to be out in the alps or coming out then enjoy as i am already excited about tomorrow..... What a Christmas....

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone. We have a lot of snow in Verbier and its still coming down and its ment to clear tomorrow so what a day I have lying ahead.. I hope every one is having fun and enjoying Christmas. I will let you know how my day of powder goes.... MERRY CHRISTMAS

It's Christmas

And like turning on a light switch, all of a sudden there is a million people in Chatel, all clogging up the highstreet, parking everywhere and walking down the middle of the road. The shutters on hibernating chalets are being thrown open and there are finally people walking around the streets with skis on shoulders. Christmas has arrived. The Chatel locals are lamenting the loss of the free vend pool table in the Avalanche Bar, which has now been replaced by seasonaires and the occasional tourist. The tourists tend to go to the other bars in town and it’s always interesting to see the looks that the tourists give to the locals as they high five everyone that they know in the bar (which is invariably most of those with seats at the bar and their own glass appearing to drink for free). You can see the tourists thinking ‘Who is that guy? How does he know everyone? Must live here – sooo lucky..’ The party nights have started at the L’Avalanche Bar and L’Escalier and Tuesdays through to Thursdays and on weekends, you can take you pick of live DJ’s Muff and Jason Shutt as well as resident local bands. The missus doesn’t start work in L’Escalier normally until about 5.30pm which means that by the time these nights start at about 10pm, I am completely wasted and have to go home. This isn’t a bad thing though considering I have to get up and go rid the world of bad skiing the following day. Last week I was teaching a group of Kenyan students from Nairobi from an international school who were over learning how to ski. Considering some of them had never seen snow before and the lowest temperature that they have there is apparently 25 degrees, the -10 at the top of Morgins was something of a culture shock. The weather here was really cold all last week, the lowest I saw was -14 going over the Pas de Morgins one morning but it’s warmed up considerably and snow is expected on or about Christmas day. Of course, for many of the seasonaires, Christmas day is a work day and I know that my missus will be working flat out from now until early January. The most that we will manage is a romantic cheap champagne Christmas breakfast of some sort before we both go off to work… Merry Christmas all. http://daveburrowswrites.blogspot.com/

Christmas celebrations!

Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Austria is definitely starting to get into the Christmas spirit! With skiers arriving by the bus load, things are starting to get busy around here. They couldn’t have arrived at a better time, with lots of Christmas celebrations to look forward to over the next week. A local village band will be performing some traditional Christmas songs in an evening concert on the 23rd. We’ll be expecting some great Apres Ski parties will be in full swing over the busy Christmas week. To bring in the New Year, the ski instructors will take part in a torch run including some impressive fireworks. Other news, the new Unterschwarzach cable car is open until 9:30 offering some fantastic night skiing on the flood lit run – With a brand new Apres Ski bar waiting for you at the bottom of the slope!

Mid point in our season

Well we have reached the half way point in our season already ! Over the past few days are GBR 1 womens world cup team have endured the travel chaos that has gripped the whole of Europe and North America. They finally arrived home in Manchester from Montreal via Orlando Florida ! I am just pleased they are back home for Christmas and a few days off. Upon reflection the first half of our season has been good, we started the year ranked 15th in the world rankings and currently sit in 8th place. Our performance target was 2 top 10 finishes in World Cup races and we have achieved 4 so I have to be satisfied with that. But it’s a long term process, work in progress as they say towards our overall objective of a gold medal in the Winter Olympics in 2014. Enough of the statistical data…..the Dare2B clothing has kept us warm and dry in very testing conditions ! Whilst in Calgary we had -19c with a huge windchill but we remained “toasty” as the athletes put it ! The base layers are very popular and functional and have stood the test of extreme conditions. We are back training in the UK now and head out for the World Cup in Austria and Switzerland in January then the big ones …World Junior Championships in USA and World Seniors in Germany Anyway, we would like to wish everyone in the mountain lounge a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and if you heading for the slopes enjoy ! GA Performance Director. GBR Bobsleigh

British Army Snowboarding

Stubai Glacier is once again proving its worth as the venue for this years British Army Snowboarding Competition, which has been generously supported by Dare 2 B. With the Parallel Giant Slalom completed, we now turn our attention to 'The Behemoth' Using the Boardercross course built specifically for the British Army, we intend to run a 128 man Boardercross knock out event. We cant think of a time when this has ever been done before, but we have got a good feeling that the event will run with only minor snags. Watch out for pictures of what promises to be an amazing event. Once that is complete we are thrown, still licking our wounds from the boardercross racing, into the Slope Style competition, which will be judged by UK Pro-Rider Ben Kinnear.

Flaine Snow Report

Just off the mountain, it's beginning to snow again. It's -11c in resort and due to snow for the next couple of days. We had a great dump yesterday but that meant white-out conditions on the slopes. Can't wait for more of the runs to open at the weekend, I'll have photos to post then!

Freeride Film Festival

Having just returned from a great weekend at the Freeride Film Festival in St Lary it is fair to say that I had an amazing weekend. Not only did I get to see some of the best ski and snowboard films ever released but it was also a great chance to meet some really snowboarding legends. My journey started early on Thursday morning and after a night of heavy snowfall I had to brave the snowy roads at 6 in the morning… After a long drive I made it to Geneva airport only to find my flight delayed by 4 hours. Not the best start to the festival but soon I was on my way to St Lary after being picked up by Cendrine Santamaria. We made good time and I arrived just in time for the 1st film. That night we where to see 6 films and I must say, I have never been so motivated to go riding the following day. But as the mountain was closed on the Friday myself and the other members of the jury all headed off on a little road trip to Spain to have lunch. I have never seen so much food put in front on me but in true British style and a glass of wine I happily finished all that was put in front of me. The journey back was interesting as we got stopped by armed police looking for terrorist using the mountain pass but we where soon on our way to the festival. Friday was the big night as I was so excited about watching Deeper. I must say I was not disappointed. After the disappointment of not being able to ride on Friday I was so excited to explore the mountains on the Saturday and I amazed at the terrain. With a slight lack of snow I could not explore it all but I was soon ripping around the area having a great time. After lunch I did a photo shoot for the festival as well as some filming and it was great to be showing of my new Dare 2b outfit. That evening was the final of showing of the last 3 films and after a day of riding I was ready. After the films came the hard part as it took us (the jury) a good few hours to work out which film won what but in the end we had made our chose and every one seemed very happy with the results. Lead by his dedicated President, Regis Emery, the Jury of the Festival has unanimously decided the winners of this 6th edition. Jeremy Jones’ Deeper has totally seduced the Jury, winning the Best Film and Best Freeride Spirit awards by showing how freeriding’s limits can be pushed through passion and dedication. The film produced by TGR, featuring Jeremy Jones, Xavier De Le Rue, gives a close look to different risks the riders face while exploring new boundaries –such as the Antarctica- in an environmental friendly way: hiking instead of by helicopter.   The Public’s Special Price has been awarded to the single Pyrenean film in the contest: Asylum 108, a very innovative and artistic film, directed by Thierry Saint Paul and produced by a collective of local riders.  • Best Film: Deeper • Best Freeride Spirit: Deeper • Best Rider: Sage Cattabriga-Alosa • Best Photography: Nomads • Best Rookie Film: Invincibles • Public’s Special Award: Asylum 108 It was such an exciting event to be involved in and it was great to see Dare 2b having such a strong presence in the resort. I spent some time visiting the shops which was selling Dare 2b and Cendrine Santamaria has done such a good giving Dare 2b such good exposure in the Pyrenees. It was great to see the brand so well support by the public and it was a real honor representing Dare 2b at the film festival as once again it shows they are leading the market in supporting world class events. Next stop for me in the world Freeride Q tour in January so now I will be spending a lot of time filming and training and building on what has been a great start to the season. I wish you all a very happy Christmas and New Year and if you are ever in Verbier please look up me and Nick, we will be easy to spot as we will be wearing the latest Dare 2b outfits.

Start of season report from Hinterglemm-Saalbach, Austria...

Having now been here a week, it has been snowing none stop which is great news! The snow will continue through to Wednesday 15th. Thursday we are expecting some nice sunshine to enjoy the fresh powder. With the local ‘rave on the snow’ dance winter festival finishing yesterday, we’ll expect to see more holiday makers arrive by the bus load over the next few weeks – which they’ll have some great skiing conditions to welcome them to the resort. Most of the lifts are in operation, with the new new Unterschwarzach cable car (instead of Unterschwarzach t-bar lift) opening on the weekend Dec. 17th to 19th. If the great skiing conditions weren’t enough then check out the planned events over the next few weeks, the likes of David Hasselhoff, Kim Wilde, Bonnie Tyler and DJ Ötzi will be taking to the stage in ‘Stars Unlimited’. I’ve taking to the slopes everyday this week in the attempt to learn how to snowboard, 100 fall and bruises later I think things are starting to click and I’m enjoying every minute – good job the Dare2b jacket is keeping me warm and dry as I’m sitting on the slopes with the frustration that I keep catching an edge  I’ll keep you updated on my progress… More news, weather, events and my snowboarding adventures on there way very soon…

World cup bobsleigh race CANCELLED

Today our world cup race 3 in park city, Utah was cancelled due to wind and snow! We managed to get 1 run in but the clocks failed to work therefore no one else went down. On to the next track we go (lake placid, new york) for a double race. Cheers for the support x

Flaine Snow Report

Lifts opened in Flaine today. Snow at the bottom of the resort is not ideal but the man in charge of the lifts said that there's 6m of snow at the top, the best he's seen in 20 years!

Great Britain womens bobsleigh update

We have less than 2 weeks until we return home to British soil or snow as it may be. So far it has been a great season. 2x podium finishes on Americas Cup and 2x 9th on world cup. We are now preparing for the race in Park City, UTAH home of the 2002 Olympic games. The track is in great condition and there should be some fast times from all the nations. We are hoping to again get a top 10 in this race. We will be competing on this track again early in 2011 for the Junior World Championships were hopefully with some hard work we will bring home a medal. The dare2b team kit is doing great and I can honestly say I have not been cold yet, but by the looks of the weather in the uk I best bring it home for Christmas! Will post new pics very soon.

VERBIER

VERBIER UPDATE Just though I would give you all an update from Verbier. I have been here a week now and it has not stopped snowing. Lost the count of the powder days and its been a great start to the season. As well all the powder days, I have been testing all my new Dare 2b ski clothes and they just get better each year. Look out for our jacket reviews coming soon online. I am so excited about this week as I am heading off to the Festival International du Film de Freeride de Saint Lary Soulan. I am part if the jury and it’s a great event to be involved in. Check back next week for a full report. Well let the snow continues to fall and I am looking forward to a weekend of judging the best ski and snowboard movies out this year.

Getting busier

When I arrived in Chatel, the village was fairly quiet, with only the local (mainly English) barflies hanging out at the Avalanche Bar waiting for the season to start. Over the weekend though, there was a noticeable influx of cars with British number plates and new and different people. I guess I am one of them but because I was here two weeks ago, I am counting myself as a local. I was having a beer the other night with my new best friend ‘Pi** Head Paul’ and although we are delighted that the punters are coming, it means that we don’t have the bar to ourselves anymore, at least not until May. It’s snowed again and is apparently going to for the rest of the week. Speaking to my Ski School director Earnst earlier on today, it looks like the Morgins lifts might be open for some skiing this weekend. I’ve spent most of the last week helping varnish the wood for the new deck at the Morgins Ski and Snowboard School. A new bar and terrace is going into their new building and we’ve still got a lot to do to finish everything off before the season starts. My wife arrived in Chatel on Saturday after working her notice period at her job in the UK and is just looking to finalise some work out here for the winter. Perhaps we will be able to take some of the stress out of job searching by doing some skiing at the weekend.

EUROPA CUP Round 1 - IGLS, AUSTRIA

Well the Europa Cup season has got underway. Our youth teams are setting the standard as they start on their journey for Winter Youth Olympic Games qualification. Our new drivers Gillian Cooke and Fiona Harrison start their driving careers and we have a new squad of brakewomen all determined to show they have the potential to make it to the highest level. I will post race reports after this weekend. GA

GBR Bobsleigh @ Americas Cup - 2 podium finishes in 2 days.

GBR 1 Women now move onto Whistler for the first round of the World Cup after taking silver and bronze in the first two Americas Cup Races of 2010/2011 season. The mens crews now head back to Europe for the first round of the Europa Cup in IGLS Austria. Also in action there will be our Winter Youth Olympic Games Squads who are to start their qualification process. GA

Latest from Nick Southwell

Summer has been really good. But now all i can think about is the winter and some powder skiing. I had a great taster for the winter with 5 days in Saas Fee with the Dare2b crew on the catalogue shoot which was loads of fun and i was super impressed by the gear Dare 2b are bringing out and I can wait to be donning it on the slopes. I have been this summer and Autumn working on productions. I recently showcased "Whats Your Life Like" at a cinema in Leciester to great acclaim. The 15 minute film is a pilot preview to a project we a producing this winter about life in the mountains as a professional winter sports athlete. Check it out in the mountain lounge video section. I am also really happy to have had a section in the recent Ellis-Bigham film "Britain's Got Skiers," Once again you can see my part in the video section. Also in the video section you can see the first of a series of tips we will be producing. The first one is how to find and jump of a cliff. This winter will be a mad one and I cant wait to get back to Verbier. There will be lots of competitions on the world freeride tour and a constant flow of productions coming through the mountain lounge so keep checking back. Happy skiing everyone.

FIRST RACE COMPLETED !

Great day for British Bobsleigh on the Americas Cup. Women 1. NED 1 Kamphuis & Vis 2. GBR 1 Walker & Wilson 3. USA 1 Pac & Azevedo – (Pac was 3rd at the games and Azevedo was 5th. 4. USA 2 Meyers 5. USA 3 Greubel Paula and Rebekah were 3rd after heat 1 and then moved up to 2nd overall after heat 2. Men 1. MON 2. RUS 3. SUI 4. GBR 1 – Jackson & McLaughlin 12 GBR 2 – Deen & Sharman 17 GBR 3 – Golder & Cooper Once again the Brits came from behind as Jackson was 5th after heat 1 and then moved up to 4th overall after heat 2. Both Golder and Deen’s driving improved for the race and both had quite clean runs. Gary Anderson Performance Director, Quote "these results give us confidence going forward. The athletes have had to approach the sport differently with the changes the performance team have made we want to create a "team winning mentality" and results like this will help build that". Walker quote "I am pleased with my run as this is the track where the world junior championship will be and I am targeted for that one by our performance staff" Peter Gunn (coach) quote "this was a very strong field for the Americas Cup and a great start for GBR" Jackson Quote " I am pleased with my race I know that with the right support structure I can be in with a shout for a podium place"

The season starts now !

GREAT BRITAIN SEASON GETS UNDERWAY - Thursday 11th November.......... Americas Cup - Race 1 - Park City USA GBR 1 Women - Paula Walker/Rebekha Wilson (Kelly Thomas reserve) GBR 1 Men - John Jackson/Chris Wooley GBR Men - Lamin Deen GBR Men - Will Golder plus athletes to be selected from Martin Cooper, Richard Sharman, Keith McLaughlin http://www.fibt.com/index.php?id=88&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=1736&tx_ttnews[backPid]=2&cHash=ff6f5be2ca9d9e16692191197e1e377c Races commence 10.00 am USA time (-7hrs UK) so 17.00 UK time races commence....... The results for the AC can be found on this website Race 1 tomorrow http://olyparks.com/uop/competition_results.asp

Fall-line Gear Guide 2010/11

The Fall-Line Skiing and Snowboarding Gear Guide 2010/11 has landed, and Dare2b has been a huge hit. We were delighted to be featured in 5 out of 5 categories for the Outerwear section. Check out the gear that made the cut and why: Unisex Upload Pro Club and Club Pant II. These in the Seasonaire category, the most diverse, adaptable and tough kit out there. This type of kit needs to handle a wide range of conditions. The high tech levels are well received and both lines have the most features listed of all the products shown. Men's Pitchpole Jacket and Tail Shaft Pants are in the Hike + Ride category. The warmth of the lining, the vast amount of features and the detailing of the jacket to match the pants are mentioned. This category shows expensive, high-tech kit for breathing on the way up and protection when you're at altitude. Comfort with a pack and hiking is important, so stretch fabrics are good here. Men's Knee Drop Jacket is in the Ã¢Freestyle category. The most fashion-led category, advances in technology means much of the fabric is as capable as the rest, but price point isn't too painful. Insulated jackets stay warm when you're waiting for your run. Men's Pipedown Jacket and Scissor Hops pants are in the Professional category, this is for the unspecialised snow lover. The gear is needed to keep you dry and, warm and not looking like a newbie. Cost and tech are good enough to keep the snow out and the aim is on high breathability. The pants are noted to be a more comfortable fit. In the Value section is the Women's Airborn Magic Jacket for it's good value for the amount of technology it features.

WInter is Nearly Here

After a fun summer, which included a nice surfing trip to Bali, winter is just around the corner and I cant wait to get out to Verbier at the end of November. 3 weeks ago we had the photo shoot for Dare 2B winter 2011/2012 range, which was great fun. We spent a week in Saas Fee and I must admit, we where so lucky with the weather. It was great seeing all the new kit and I was so impressed with it. Watch out for some of the new jackets, as I can’t wait to be wearing them. With a lot of hard work we had a wrap and the last evening was spent dancing away in Pop Corn bar. Look out for the catalog when it comes out next year as I am sure you will be as stocked as me on the new kit. I am in the middle of planning my winter and already its looking like it will be my busiest yet. Again I will be competing on the Freeride World Tour Qualifying Tour, which will take me all over Europe, and I hope to improve on my ranking of 22nd from last season. The first event is in January so as soon as I get to Verbier its straight back into training and finding my riding legs as quick as possible. As well as competing I am also working on a filming project with my brother called “Whats your life like”. The concept of the movie/documentary is to get inside the life of several freeride athletes and see what really goes on in the process of trying to sustain a professional career in freeskiing. The high’s of riding, travelling. The lows of injury. Many factors come into play. The film will also be taking a look of the flipside at people who would love to change their 9 to 5 day job for a job in the mountains. Some people get seriously tempted to the point of life change. Please click on the links to have a look at the preview of the show, which will be released autumn 2011 on Sky Sports. www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnT0ry7HpSE part 1 www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IQ0e4YvfQQ&feature=related part 2 Another filming project I am working on is for my board sponsor Allian, this will be my second international video part and I can’t wait to start working on the project. I have also been signed by Breathe Unity. At Breathe Unity Athlete Management we manage and work with athletes in the sport industry at all levels and all stages of their sport careers. Our athletes become part of our team and, being experts in their chosen sport combined with our market experience, we create a perfect partnership of pure talent and true industry understanding. Check out my profile page on there web site: www.breatheunity.com/profile/chris-southwell In December I have also been invited to be a judge at the International Free Ride Film Festival in Saint-Lary-Soulan which Dare 2 B is also sponsoring. The film festival show cases some of the worlds best ski and snowboard films and it’s a great honor to be invited to be a guest. www.festival-freeride.com. I will keep you updated with all my progress though out the season with monthly reports and lets hope the snow keeps on falling.

WInter is Nearly Here

Week 1 - job done

GBR 1 have completed the first week of their pre-season preparation in Lake Placid, unseasonably warm temperature saw training plans having to be rescheduled but coach Peter Gunn is happy with the first week. Peter said "the objectives of the first week was to get back on the ice and get the feel for things, the girls all did very well and we are well on track". GBR 1 now head to Park City to meet up with three mens crews for a couple of weeks training before opening their season in the Americas Cup races. Meanwhile in Europe the two womens europa cup crews are putting in place their final preparations before departing to Igls for the start of training. Alongside them will be the Winter Youth Olympic Games Squad who have their final training session at the University of Bath this weekend. we will keep you all updated. regards GA

Pre Season Jitters

"Well, I better start somewhere" a man much more wise then me once said. So here goes! I'm Gav and this season I'm going to be the resort reporter for Dare2Be in Val Thorens. I'll be updating this blog as much as possible with all the weather info, resort events and general stories of the week. This all came about last year in Les Arcs on New Years eve when a quite pretty seasonare put the idea in my head. And on the very long cold walk back I began to wonder was it worth saving and spending eleven hours travelling to get out to the snow for a week when I could just as simply live there... Everything came right in June on a hot sticky day in London at the natives job fare where I landed no less then seven job offers and repeat interviews. Job in the bag, resort chosen, getting my start date last week coupled with handing work my notice and new board arriving in the post had me all excited. Seeing this photo of Val T at dawn this morning after a fresh dump of some of the first powder and the snow machines doing what they do best just put me in a great mood and left me all set for the freeze festival at the weekend.

Even the Swiss get excited about new snow

I'm blogging this winter for Dare2b. I'm living in Chatel (actually moving there next week) and working as an instructor in Morgins, just over the border in Switzerland. Last week, my new boss Rolf from The Morgins Ski and Snowboard School rang me to check my date of birth for some paperwork that he was doing. The conversation turned to general stuff and how he was coping with all of the preparations for the upcoming winter season (I'm heading out there quite early in about 2 weeks time so I am hoping that he'll need a load of ski tech work doing or some such). He mentioned that the first snow of winter had arrived in Morgins and that everything had turned white. At this point I said to Rolf, 'but hang on Rolf, you're Swiss, are you telling me that you get excited about the snow coming?' (Rolf is a greying father of two who has the look of a man who has seen it all) 'Yes' he said, 'I love it when it snows' and even though he's probably seen more snow than you can shake a stick at, the enthusiasm in his voice and the obvious big grin that I could hear down the phone line made me genuinely excited about the prospect of the coming season. I can't wait.

GBR 1 leave for the USA

The Britannia Rescue British Bobsleigh team GBR 1 Women have left the UK to commence their world cup season in North America. A training Camp at Lake Placid for a week is followed by preseason races at Park City USA. The World Cup series starts on the 2010 Olympic Games track in Whistler 22nd -28th November. The women's team will be joined by three mens crews in Park City for the Americas Cup race series. The Europa Cup teams get underway in Igls Austria between the 15th and 21st November. We will keep the lounge updated on results and pictures of the team throughout the season. GA Performance Director

Freeze festival giveaway!

We have 5 free tickets to giveaway for the fantastic Freeze Festival in London. http://www.thefreezefestival.com. All you have to do is answer the following question: What country is the resort Val d'Isere in? Go to http://bit.ly/9CvVc7 to enter. The competition closes on Monday 25th October 2010. Good luck!!

GBR Bobsleigh in our new kit !

Britannia Rescue British Bobsleigh Team model their new Dare2b kit at our recent press day. A huge thank you for all your support GA

Win a ski jacket!

Hey guys, don't forget to enter our competition to WIN a ski jacket. All you need to do is provide some feedback on our new website. Click below to enter. http://bit.ly/bNBMBQ Good luck.

Our winter range has arrived!

Welcome to the launch of our new snow wear collection for autumn/winter. On our mountain everybody is welcomeÃ¢â‚¬Â¦ skiers, boarders, experts and beginners. With that in mind we have created a range with something everybody will fancy. With prices starting from as little as Ã‚Â£60, best get clicking. This season sees the welcome introduction of our Ared V02 20,000 fabric with full stretch. Ensuring that you have full freedom of movement on the slopes and are fully protected from the elements. To coincide with the new range we've revamped our website making it easier to find what you are looking for and I'm sure you'll agree the new design is much easier on the eye!

GBR Bobsleigh

Within 1 month the GBR bobsleigh team will start their season with crews competing in the World Cup in North America and Europa Cup in Europe. First up for GBR 1 womens crew is an americas cup race in Park City USA. This is a vital season for Great Britain as it is the start of the new Olympic cycle with the 2014 games being held in Sochi Russia. We are delighted that Dare2b are our official clothing supplier for this season - the excellent range is perfect for our athletes. We hope to keep you all up to date with our race results and some pictures and videos for you to enjoy. Also keep an eye out for us on Eurosport TV who should be covering all the leading world cup races. Our next big date is October 13th where we will be having a media day and unveiling the fantastic Dare2b GBR bobsleigh kit ! I look forward to blogging again soon with our performance updates and i will introduce you to our crews. yours in sport Gary Anderson Performance Director

some of our squad

recent training in Sigulda Latvia

Team work with Dare2b

Great Britain Bobsleigh are proud to be associated with Dare2b in our quest for World Cup success in 2010/2011.

V Festival

Softshell Jacket

GBR Bobsleigh Selection

This weekend at Bath University saw the Final non ice GBR Bobsleigh Selections. Selection involves a Bobsleigh Push, 3 x 30m sprints, 3 x 60m Sprints and 3 x standing Long Jumps. Around 30 people turned up and this number had to be whittled down to just 16. The push which is the most relevent test we can do in the UK saw myself being crowned the fastest. The next day which involved all the sprints I produced 2 PB's. I have offically been selected to go to the on ice selection which will be held in Latvia on Fri 20th Sept, were it will be decided who is to be in my team to compete as GB1 on the World Cup. More to follow in a few days....Thanks to Dare2b for their continual support over the past few years.

Nutcracker 4 - Fremington Edge, Swaledale, Yorkshire Dales National Park: Race Director's Perspective!

Round 4 took us to the heart of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and to the home of one of the best and most technical descents in the North of England. Saturday was course set-up day. So, we decided to head out on the bikes for the morning. A full team headed off into Swaledale and Arkengarthdale, including the legend that is Andy Pegg - still going strong we might add! A 2 hour ride saw us traverse Carver Hill, drop down into Langthwaite and back up Fell End onto Fremington Edge. Then the fun began... The infamous Fremington Edge track descent! Wow! The evening was spent fretting about the weather - Fremington Edge is a lonely place to be on a cold, bleak day... Thankfully, when the curtains were opened at 6am on Sunday morning, the sun was shining. The course was a mixture of grassy ascents, open rocky moorland tracks, steep technical singletrack descents and narrow sheep trods. I'll be honest... I had my reservations about the course... Even after the first race. There hasn't been a cross country MTB course like it in the country for over 10 years! Racing commenced at 11.30am, with Oldham storming away from the line. Hamish Batchelor took second Elite with another stonking ride. In the expert category, Douglas Shearer took the win, from Colombia Bike Food's Jason Richardson and Wheelbase's Joe Richards. Once again, by far and away the biggest field was the 2pm race, consisting of Masters, Veterans and Grand Veterans. Bruce Rollinson once again took the Grand Veteran win, from the legend that is Andy Pegg, who was closely followed by Duncan Stuart. In the veteran category, Noel Clough of Fietsen Tempo took the win from Andrew Hull and Dominic Booth, whilst in the masters, following some technical problems with Stuart Wearmouth's bike, Alan Nixon took the win from Stef Macina and Keith Murray. Thanks to the series sponsors Dare 2B, who continue to kit out our marshals and provide some of the prizes on the day. So - will we be back to Fremington next year? DEFINITELY! See you in Bedale! Marc

Dare 2b try Bouldering!

The Dare 2b office take a trip to Manchester's Rock Over Climbing for a bit of bouldering and twister on the mountain! The day proved to be a hit with the team because the majority have now become life members. Even though we were all feeling it for a few days afterwards, everybody had a great time and would recommend trying it out!

Bike Radar Live 2010 - Brands Hatch Kent

10/07/10 - This weekend dare2b attended the Bike Radar Live 2010 event at Brands hatch. Literally Thousands Of mountain, dirt bike, and BMX riders turned out to the event that went down a storm. Dare 2 were sposoring the airbag "Big Air" event over the course of the weekend, along with the fantastic M.A.D team, both of which saw some amazing stunts. The weather couldn't have been better, with sunshine and blistering heat from start to finish. There were some brilliant displays of skill and speed, both on and off the track, and a chance for some amatures to have a go at some mind blowing stunts on the airbag. View some pictures of this event by clicking below, click here for images...

Nutcracker Round 3

On June 13th the third round of the Nutcracker took place. As official clothing sponsors, here's what the Dare 2b team had to say about it. The course around the Dalby Forest turned out to be another great day of racing. With a pre-entry list of 200, it was inevitable that the third round in the nutcracker MTC XC Series, sponsored by Dare 2b,would prove to be a good test. It was a warm and wet Sunday however with the help of the waterproof jackets provided by Dare 2b the marshals and event staff stayed dry and comfortable all day. My job is to be everywhere on the course taking photographs and ensuring all is well. I usually have to ride like a maniac to stay ahead of the riders in order to get the best shots. It’s my first time wearing the Dare 2b riding gear and with such a tough job I demand a lot from my kit, and I have been really impressed. The shorts are excellent and are as comfy on the bike as off! In fact my wife has asked me to buy a few more pairs so she can wash the pair that I seem to live in. The cycling jersey did a perfect job at wicking the sweat away and the pockets are just the right size, ideal for stuffing a little too much chocolate in. At this rate I won’t to the ideal racing weight! My other favorite item was the windproof jacket, weighing under 200g meaning that I could stow it away easily, was amazing, light and whilst not waterproof, held off enough water. The jacket then dried so quick that it was never an issue! All in all an impressive performance from all the racers as well as the 3 products that cost less than a certain 'premium' jersey I have in my possession.

PARIDAM BABY

hi thanks to the help of dare to be (abi and neil) 11 guys are cycling across 3 coutrys for cancer reaserch uk. paris to amasterdam in 5 days 390 miles

PARIDAM BABY

ok, so far we've covered 178 miles over two days, Paris was insane, we picked up some guy from the middle of the road after we saw him (and his scooter) get smashed by some hit and run mo fo. Zero sleep in paris, kio lost part of his bike on the plane and couldn't ride to the hostel, we left him to get a taxi (mistake)... and he had to walk it, arrived at 5am. European towns are gorgeous but no one seems to exist in northern France. In Tournai now, everyone is good, bikes all seem to be working, gaz lost his helmet and had to buy a second hand one from some belgian yard sale for one euro. Tournai seems a really nice place, just waiting for food now, spotted a gorgeous barmaid in a cocktail bar up the road so going to investigate after refuelling. Great so far more to come, pictures will follow return to the motherland. Big love from the Paridam 11.

The Winter Sessions 2009-2010

The Winter sessions were a series of 40 music and club events, spanning from December to April in the 3 Valleys There were over 20,000 attendees aged between 18-35 yrs old, gathering together to party ! Dare 2b was the official clothing sponsor – and we were also involved in vodcasts and the twitter campaign To view the photos, click here

Nutcracker Round 2

We all awoke early Sunday morning to a blazing sun and cloudless blue sky. Saturday had been hot on the hill as we set everthing up but Sunday was proving to be a great deal hotter already. At 8am on the dot, registration opened and a steady stream of competitors arrived, collected numbers and timing chips before riding... out on a lap of the course. 10am saw the Youth and Fun category riders line up and with a blast of the siren they were off. With 2 laps to nail down, the riders went off like rockets heading into the sun for the first steady climb. In the Youths race, Jack Humphreys was setting the time to beat but Mike Thompson wasn't far off the pace. In the Fun cat, Edd Banks was pushing hard and opened a lead on the two main climbs. Both held on to clinch victory. Sarah Rose showed the rest of the Fun cat riders that this is not just a sport for men and put in a great time of just over an hour for her 2 laps finishing just ahead of Sonja Harper. Zoe Armstrong and Becky Preece fought it out for the top female position in the Youth race, with Zoe taking the lead and holding on for the win. Next up was the Elites, Experts, Juniors and Sport riders. Paul Oldham had returned to the Nutcracker to nab another victory and showed again the kind of form that is proving tough to beat. In the Expert race things were a little closer. Michael Coward and Niall Frost were neck and neck for most of the race, eventually Michael managed to break away grabbing the win. The Sport cat had a decent field and saw a great mix of riders. The heat was beginning to show its effects by now and a few necks were getting very red, not to mention a few faces as riders battled up the hills and down through the singletrack. Nick Butcher, Nathan Wilson, John Hopkinson and Simon Choppin were all challenging for a top 3 position. with only 60 seconds separating all 4 riders, it took the race right up to the last lap before Nick sealed the top podium position with Nathan taking second and John securing third. Racing for the tape in the female class of the Sport category was Rosie Law versus Catherine Williamson. Whilst Rosie put in a cracking race, Catherine proved to be a stronger rider and claimed the top spot and finished 17th overall. The last race of the day again had by far the biggest entry. Masters, Vets and Grand Vets took to the start line, gridded up and waited for the siren. Masters went first and launched out of the start field into the now growing headwind and relentless sunshine. Again, a 4 way battle opened on the first few laps but the rest of the field was not far behind. Stuart Wearmouth, Alan Nixon, David Howard and Keith Murray were pushing things but Stefan Macina and Neil Harrison were keeping the leaders in view. 5 laps in the baking sun punished everybody out their but Stuart showed that he had enough in his legs to edge over the line first. Alan was second and David third. The female Masters were a touch under represented with only Helen MacGregor taking to the line. Helen put in a strong performance crossing the line in 33rd place. The Vets race was as quick but the top 3 seemed to be settled from the off. Dan Cook was setting the pace with a consistent lap and managed to open a considerable lead on Stewart Coates. Ruth Thompson, Karen Payton and Katey McEndoo fought for the top placed female in the Vets category. After a hard 3 laps, Ruth finnished in the top spot. This remained right up until the end. Dan Cook was the winner, Stewart Coates second with Jonathan Watson coming in third. The Grand Vets race was a little closer but Bruce Rollinson managed to keep his number firmly in the lead. Duncan Stewart and Chris Oldham were chasing down second and third place with Ian Robson keeping them firmly in his sights. As the last race of the day battled through the Krypton Factor assault course and the picturesque bluebell wood, Bruce nailed the victory with Duncan and Chris taking second and third respectively. With over 200 entrants the Nutcracker is gaining a reputation as a vibrant and challenging race series and is proving to be the fastest growing series on the British Cycling race calendar. Round 3 sees the action take place ont the World Cup course at Dalby Forest. This is the first national event to take place on this very special course since the world cup. Calling all under 12 mountain bike cross country racers!! Working in partnership with Dare2b and the go-ride team from British Cycling, we have created a mountain bike skills development club to nurture our stars of tomorrow. The Sweat Monsters academy is free and open to any child under the age of 12. Each event will have a custom cross country course exclusively for the Sweat Monsters, and although there is not a series award, spot prizes will be given out on the day. This academy is all about developing our up and coming racers and costs nothing (simply turn up on the day and register). Each member will get a club t-shirt from the academy sponsor, Dare2b. The action takes place on a specially created short course featuring a number of obstacles to cross (such as tree roots and log hops) and starts at about 10:15. Each event features either a couple of races for each monster of a mix of skills traing followed by a timed race. Parents are urged to ensure that they provide a safe helmet for any participating children. All participants must be able to ride a bike without stabilizers.

Dare 2b on the podium at the Etape Caledonia 2010.

The Etape Caledonia is Britain's only closed road cycle challenge, with 81 miles of mountain roads, some up to 350 meters above sea level ! Nearly 4,000 competitors took to the sun bathed lochs and mountains of Highland Perthshire, in what was the best event to date, to... raise money for the charity "Macmillan Cancer Support". Dare 2b sponsored the British ski team who took part in this event providing them with their team clothing, and we are please to say that their Performance exceeded expectation with a podium for David Ryding, who took 2nd place, and top results and personal bests from all of the team. 1st place will be in our sights for next years event!

The Big Snow Festival, Andorra, 14th-21st March

March was a busy month for Dare 2b, as we were official clothing sponsors of both The Big Snow Festival in Andorra and The Altitude Festival, Meribel, France.

The event was a music and snow festival based... on the mountain, in Arinsal, Andorra. The festival was a week long and featured some of the world’s best DJs and live acts…such as, Calvin Harris (DJ set), Judge Jules, Eddie Halliwell and Pendulum (DJ set).

As well as the music, there was plenty of other things happening to keep us amused, with Dare 2b’s Freestyle demos taking place on the afternoon of 18th March, where our sponsored rider Nick Southwell along with other pros demonstrated their skills up at the Arinsal Board Park.

All the Thomas cook team were kitted out in our clothing for the week so Dare 2b could be seen all-over the mountain.

The Altitude Festival, Meribel, France, 20th-26th March

Hot on the heels of The Big Snow Festival, Dare 2b went straight to Meribel France, to spread the good word of Dare 2b at The Altitude festival, again as official clothing partners. For those who don't know, Altitude is a comedy festival on the Mountain in its 3rd y...ear. We sponsored the event last year and had such a good time we went back again for 2010. Now last year was great fun but as the event got one year older, the line ups got better, with comedians such as Al Murray “The Pub Landlord” were joined by Rufus Hound and Marcus Brigstocke all making an appearance. Dare 2b sponsored "Jack's bar" again based in the centre of Meribel, and we made sure our presence was felt as we also put banners in the auditorium where all the shows took place. All the comedians were given Dare 2b Goody bags, which included a Jacket, a Softshell and T-shirts, and all were gratefully received with many of the comedians wearing Dare 2b around the event

Dare 2b's Southwell Brothers - Slope update

With late snow falling in the alps after a few lovely sunny weeks me and Nick had a busy few weeks ahead of us. Our 1st stop was the 1st date for the tour next year in Leninzehind, Switzerland. This was Nicks first event of the season and my 1st after injury. We arrived a day early only to find the comp had been pushed back due to snow so we spent the days filming and getting ready for the day ahead. We woke up the following morning to see half a foot of fresh powder and clear blue skies. We headed up to get a look at the face and it all looked very different from the photos. We both found good lines and got our selves focused on our lines. Nick was 1st up. He rode a great aggressive line, taking a few big cliffs and riding a very clear line. He was up against a very strong field but should be very pleased with his 12th place. Next I was up and with the powder snow turning to ice I took a face steep line with a double stagger in the middle. I rode the line clean apart from dragging a hand on the drop which the judges noticed but I finished in 5th place. A good result seeing as I was not 100% fit.

Next up was the Dare 2B photo shoot with Yves Garneau. Again luck was on our side and the day before it had dumped it. We awoke to find it cloudy but Yves was playing weather man and said it would clear, he could not of been more right. At 10.30 the sun came though it was by far the day of the season. We both got some great shots including Nick pulling a massive 360 over a big cliff. I am sure Dare 2 B will be releasing the shots soon so keep an eye out for them.

I hope to be heli skiing on Saturday then we are into our last week of filming. It has been a great season and a full report will be out when we get home....

Enjoy the last of the snow.

Nutcracker Series Sponsored by Dare 2b...Race Meet 1

4th April was the date that the Nutcracker MTB X-Country Series official got underway for 2010 at Camphill. Dare 2b are proud sponsors of the series which will take place at various locations across the north of England this summer.

130 people pre-entered into the inaugural round of the new and long-awaited Nutcracker Northern XC MTB Series, with a further 60 entries on the day, bringing the total number of entries to just shy of 200. Not bad for event 1!

Riders began turning up at 0730 keen to sign-on and test ride the 4.5 miles course, designed specifically by Technical Director Adey Dent. Racing began at 10.00am with the Senior Novice, Youth and Juvenile category. Only a handful of competitors chose to race in the novice category, which would complete 2 laps of the course over the duration of around 1hr 15mins. Youths would also complete 2 laps and Juveniles and ladies 1 lap. The Novice category was won by Richmond Cycling Clubâ€™s Matthew Wilkinson. â€œWhat a fantastic race! Itâ€™s my first ever attempt at competitive cycling and I was dubious as to whether Iâ€™d be any good. I just chose my gear and settled into a nice cadence. Conditions were tough â€“ but they couldâ€™ve been worse and to be honest, I was expecting worse. I was a bit demoralised when I was passed by a young whippet who looked like he was about 12 years old, but felt better afterwards when I was told that he currently stood within the top 5 ranked Youth riders in the country! Iâ€™ll definitely be back for Nutcracker 2 at Aske â€“ canâ€™t wait!â€ commented Wilkinson following his first ever race and victory.

Rumour had it beforehand that National Cyclocross Champion Paul Oldham fancied a ride â€“ and it turned out to be true! Both Paul Oldham and Dave Collins of Hope Factory Racing were on the start line for race 2 at 1130. As the siren sounded the start of the Experts and Elites categories, they both pulled away from the rest of the field almost from the line. By mid-race and about lap 3 (after 13 miles) they had managed to build a gap of almost 10 minutes on their nearest competitors and that was after stopping nearly every lap to wash the mud from their bikes in a small lake adjacent to the course! After lap 4, Collins was dropped by Oldham, presumably having spent longer washing his bike in the lake, and Paul put the hammer down to pull away by several minutes by the finish. Final result in the Elite category: Paul Oldham, from Dave Collins, both of Hope Factory Racing, followed shortly after by Nic Smith. 1st Elite lady home was Kate Potter with no such luck for local Northallerton-based Jessie Roberts following her recent streak of victories in the University championships and other events. Expert category was won by Niall Frost from James Williams in 2nd place and Tom Bell in 3rd.

By far and away the biggest turnout was for race 3, with over 120 riders jostling for position on the start line. Due to the difficult course conditions, British Cycling commissaire Pete Sutton made the call to reduce the race distance for some of the categories, in light of the longer than anticipated lap times that had been recorded by the experts and elites earlier in the day. Categories on the start line at 1400 were Juniors, Senior Sport, Masters, Veterans and Grand Veterans. A good race was had by all, despite the less than desirable course conditions. Junior and Master men completed 4 laps, whilst everybody else completed 3.

Entry is now open for Nutcracker 2 at Aske and organizers are promising less mud and more hills. Enter on line now via the www.nutcrackermtb.co.uk/

Dare 2b Summer has arrived!!!

This time of the year evokes mixed feelings for Dare 2b, as it means that the snow is on its last legs and our skis or boards become redundant for another season. But, every cloud has a silver lining as they say'¦our silver lining is the upcoming summer season, which looks like it will be our biggest yet!

As you will see by our recently redesigned site our brand new summer range has arrived and is now available. Dare 2b summer offers you clothing that can be used for a number of sports or activities making them multifunctional and in turn great value for money.

The range consists of technical waterproof jackets, wind shells, and high performance, fast wicking t-shirts, all of which are ideal for mountain biking, running, climbing, trail walking amongst other activities.

Having a laugh at Altitude

Hot on the heels of The Big Snow Festival, Dare 2b went straight to Meribel France, to spread the good word of Dare 2b at The Altitude festival, again as official clothing partners.

For those who don't know, Altitude is a comedy festival on the Mountain in its 3rd year. We sponsored the event last year and had sucha good time we went back again for 2010.

Now last year was great fun but as the event got one year older, the line ups got better, comedians such as Al Murray 'œThe Pub Landlord' were joined by Rufus Hound and Marcus Brigstocke, (dont worry they left their 'œArgumental' heads in the UK and got on with each over for the week).

Dare 2b sponsored "Jack's bar" again based in the centre of Meribel, and we made sure our presence was felt (see pic for proof). :-)

Nutcracker Northern XC MTB Series Sponsored by Dare 2b

Dare 2b is proud to announce sponsorship of the long awaited Nutcracker MTB Series.

The 6 race series kicks off on Easter Sunday at Camp Hill (just outside Bedale in North Yorkshire) on a brand new course designed and built by the Nutcracker team.

For more information on how to sign up to the courses visit: http://www.nutcrackermtb.co.uk/series.html

Team Update - Nick Southwell

So far its been a great season. I have been based in Verbier for the seventh season in a row and it just never gets boring here as always constantly discovering new freeride areas and features. We have also got a really good crew here again this winter, which includes Brit's - Andy Bennett, Bungle, Dave Young and my brother Chris, and also Swedish snowboarder Peter Strom.

The snow at the start of the season and through January wasn't great, but we had just enough small snowfalls to go start jumping some cliffs and to find some powder. I spent most of January trying to get as much filming done for a new show I have been developing called Mountain Lives, which will be shown, on Sky after the winter and I have also been releasing short segments on the Internet. The show focuses in on the lives of professional winter sports athletes showing not only the action footage but also the work that goes in behind the scenes to create this.
br> At the beginning of February I was meant to be joining my brother in competing on the World Qualifying tour but instead got asked by Warren Smith to join him in Japan and simply couldn't say no to that so I headed out there for 10 days which was awesome. The snow wasn't always perfect but when it was, wow it was good!

Chris Southwell - Ouch

After the poor start to the season we where blessed with snow in January. But as luck would have it the weather was never really on our side. So we took a different path and did some night shots. One of these was a wall ride half way up the mountain. It was a challenge but we got the shots.

January was also training time for me as I have the World Freeride tour Qualifiers coming up. Nick was also very excited about his trip to Japan. He was going to be in Japan for 10 days filming and skiing with the Warren Smith Ski Academy. Even if Nick does like the food in Japan very much he had a great time and check out his video blogs here: http://www.warrensmith-skiacademy.com/japan-blog/ .

On his return Nick also collected 3 new cameras so we know have a huge selection of cameras'¦..

For me, Feb was not so fun. With 3 comps back to back I first headed to Flaine. As I was already in the finals I had the chance of a good result here. The face was nice, Very steep at the top and had a good selection of cliffs and lines. I chose a good line, steep entrance and then leveled out into a double stager. But just as I was about to drop the fog dropped on me. I missed my opening line because of it and ended up doing a 40 foot drop to flat. I some how stayed on my feet but my line was ruined. I managed to come in 7th but I was disappointed not to have made the podium. Right after the comp I got in my car and started the drive to St Mortiz. It was a 7-hour drive and after competiting that day is was the last thing I wanted to do. I got there at 1 in the morning and had to be up at 6.30 for breakfast as the comp started at 9. Again my chose of line was a bad one and I had a little fall over rocks. I think this was due to be so tired and picking a bad line'¦.. It had not been a good couple of days.

The following weekend I headed to Austria for a huge 3* invite only freeride comp. The face was steep, littered with rocks and was scary. We had 2 helicopters just filming the event and was riding towards the end of the pack. I was ready for this comp but as luck would have it half way down my line the snow had gone, it had been taken away by another ride. I went it for it anyway which was not a good idea. Woke up at the bottom of the face after falling 200 meters over rocks and then I was buried by my sluff. The next thing I remember is dangling underneath a helicopter and being taken to hospital. I was lucky with my injuries as I only had a small operation on my right knee, left elbow and my right shoulder was dislocated.

I am on the mend and I am making my come back on the 14th of March in another freeride in Verbier. This is the last stop on the tour this year so a good result will put me inside the top 10 on the new world qualifying ranking list so fingers crossed. After that me and Nick are heading to The Big Snow Festival. Nick will be doing a freestyle demo and as I cant just jump I have been trusted to do the Mcing. So if any of you make it over come and say hello and lets go for a ride'¦. Just remember I am fragile. For more video content of us click on these links. I will update you all after the comp before we hit the festival. Right off to physio to mend that shoulder for next week'¦.

East Midlands International CiCLE Classic

Britain's hardest road race; becomes '˜TEN' times harder!!

This years edition of the East Midlands International CiCLE Classic is set to be the hardest ever with an addition to the route of another ten kilometres; including a second ascent of the Cold Overtonberg ; and at least ten foreign teams to challenge Britain's best road racing competitors on Sunday 25th April.

Whilst the additional ten kilometres have been added basically for logistical reasons it is expected that the consequence will be that the further climb of Cold Overtonberg will provide an added opportunity for breakaways coming as it does shortly in advance of the first passage of the feared '˜Somerberg' sector.

'œOver the past five years the CiCLE Classic has built its reputation as THE race to win, and in 2010 as once again Britain's only single day international road race, we have even more to prove by being bigger and better, and showing that it is not just Britain's best road race, but also Britain's biggest international race on that day,' said Race Director Colin Clews.

The potential reward to the winner will also be greater once again this year with the roll-over of the Â£300 Maestro UK sponsored '˜ bonus' prize for the first rider to win the event in the '˜grand manner'; or in other words; alone. Whilst in 2008 Keiren Power and then Ian Wilkinson in 2009 rode to their wins by outsprinting another rider, had '˜Wilko' won alone without any other rider having entered the finishing straight by the time he crossed the line, he would have received another Â£300 to his Â£1800 first prize. Because he failed to do so, in 2010 a bonus prize of Â£600 is now on offer to any rider winning the CiCLE Classic alone.

The village of Owston will again feature as the '˜heart' of the race and the attractions for the many who congregate there to see the seven passages of the race are likely to be greater than ever this year. And, with the Discover Rutland CiCLE Tour taking place the day before with over 600 participants this year, all looks set for a great weekend of cycling action throughout the Rutland and East Leicestershire area.

An Itlaian Fair will accompany the start of the race in Oakham's High Street, and for the second year the finish of the race in Melton's main street will coincide with the St Georges Day parades to be held involving local scout and other youth groups.

Once again the race receives main sponsorship from the East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and MARS UK under the Dolmio brand name, but additional sponsorship is provided this year from Dare2b extreme clothing who will be providing clothing for the officials working on the race. 'œWith the extreme nature of the CiCLE Classic in British road racing, our partnership with Dare 2b is a perfect match which we look forward to developing further at both the CiCLE Classic and its sister promotion, the Rutland International CiCLE Classic '˜Cross where Dare 2b products were first used to such good effect in January of this year.' As in previous years the '˜Most Agressive Rider '˜Award is sponsored by the Melton Building Society, and Rouleur magazine sponsors the four main '˜special' sectors on the course.

Day 5-Dare2b-On The Mountain

Today we went to see the 4-man Bobsleigh team compete, thousands scurried in the rain to watch the hyped up event take place! GB was in a promising position when the first round ended, coming in 11th place but sadly ended up in 21st place. Due to weather conditions many of the teams bobsleighs overturned during the race, thankfully no one was hurt. The crowd kept on cheering keeping their spirits high. Later in the afternoon we ran into Alain Baxter who was proudly sporting a Dare2b outfit and enjoying the Olympic atmosphere!

DAY 4 - Dare2B On The Mountain

It was a proud day in Whistler for the Canadians as the figure skater Joannie Rochette was awarded bronze just a few days after her mother passed away, no Canadian had won a medal in figure skating since 1988 in Calgary. The Canadians also beat the US in the woman's hockey 2-0 which was a very important win as it was on home turf. The atmosphere of amongst the fans that crowded on the streets to watch the medal ceremony was electric, a proud moment for all Canadians. Vancouver has been topped in the list of 'œ10 most lively cities in the World' making the Olympic Winter Games one of the biggest tourist attractions of our time.

DAY 2-Dare2b on the Mountain

Whistler finally saw some real snow today but unfortunately it didn't last long. The final two runs of the women's bobsleigh were well into their second round. Minichiello and Cooke in their third round sadly took a turn for the worst and crashed. Thankfully they were both ok but decided not to record a time or do the forth run as Cooke was slightly injured. GB 2 came in 11th place'¦well done Paula Walker and Kelly Thomas! Canada 1 did a very strong run and stayed in first place, followed by Canada 2 and USA. We look forward to the men's bobsleigh see if the brits can get in the top ten! After being asked many times if we were part of the GB team thanks to our matching jackets, we blushed and said No, we spotted the Canadians first women to win an Olympic gold medal at home in the snowboard cross, Maelle Ricker after snapping a few shots of her she was called away for an interview. Another eventful day in Whistler followed by a live show after the medal ceremony by Jet!

3 Peaks Kitted on Kilimanjaro!

The 3 Peaks 3 Weeks Challenge 2010 is underway! Many thanks to Dare2Be for the awesome kit they have given the team. WIth all the warm clothes the 11 women have managed to make it to the summit of both Mount Kenya and Mount Meru. They are now halfway up Kilimanjaro and aiming to summit in 3 nights!!! Follow the team with LIVE updates at: http://3peaks3weeks.wordpress.com Hear more about the challenge and how to get involved: www.3peaks3weeks.org

Race preview link from British Cycling Websit

http://new.britishcycling.org.uk/sport/article/cyx20100111--Rutland-County-Int-CiCLE-Classic-'Cross-0

Rutland County International CiCLE Classic â€˜Cross

On Sunday 17th January top class cycle racing return to Britain's smallest county of Rutland when the second edition of the Rutland County International CiCLE Classic '˜Cross races take place at the beautiful waterside venue at Whitwell Leisure Park, and with mud and snow this year bound to have a bearing on the outcome, Dare2b will be there in the '˜thick of it'.

The event which forms the sixth and final round of the British Cycling National Trophy cyclo-cross series of the 2009/2010 winter season, is seen as the little '˜sister' of the East Midlands International CiCLE Classic which is held in April each year between Oakham and Melton Mowbray, with the two events combining to provide a unique mix of '˜quirkiness' and continental atmosphere to the otherwise traditional British Cyclo-cross and road racing scenes. In just five years the East Midlands Development Agency and other major partners such as MARS (UK) have built the International CiCLE Classic into Britain's biggest and most spectacular cycle road race, in addition to its status as Britain's only single day international race, and working alongside the Discover Rutland Tourism group of the County Council there are plans to establish the CiCLE Classic '˜Cross at a similar level.

'œCyclo-cross is a tremendous spectator sport, providing quick-fire cross country action by the competitors over a short two to three kilometre course' said Race Director Colin Clews. 'œ In Belgium it is the major winter sport and is regularly held in front of crowds of 20,000 to 30,000 people. Whilst its popularity in Britain is currently far less, our aim is to stage racing in the Belgian style and present the races at the high level of professionalism that has become a trademark of the CiCLE Classic in order to show what the sport is really about . We are absolutely delighted that Dare2b have agreed to be the official clothing supplier to our promotions in 2010, and the extreme nature of our events blends well with the core market for the brands products.'

The exciting course devised for the CiCLE '˜Cross involves a mixed terrain of tarmac, grassland, rough tracks which include a set of steps especially built at the Whitwell venue for the first event just over 12 months ago; a set of hurdles, and the stunning ride along the foreshore of Rutland Water providing a stunning and unique environment for the race to take place. The course also features a mini '˜washboard' section which will be familiar to the several Belgian competitors; full details of whom will be released shortly; who are expected to give the best British riders stiff competition on home '˜soil'.

The event is sponsored by Rutland County Council and is supported by the East Midlands Development Agency, MARS (UK) under their '˜Dolmio' brand; Dare2b clothing; Tim Norton Motor Services, in addition to Anglian Water and Abacus Equipment Hire.

Rutland Water Cycling whose main centre is located close to the start and finish lines of the races also provide support for the event and the Rutland Schools race which is being staged by Rutland County Council personnel at the same venue but over a shortened and simplified course on the day prior (Saturday 16th January) to the Elite International races.

Entry for spectators to the venue is FREE. Will we see you there?

For further information: Main CiCLE '˜Classic '˜Cross Colin Clews tel; 01572 787726 mob:07979 856262 www.cicleclassic.co.uk

Good Start to the Winter Season

Nick and myself arrived in Verbier at the start of December to a Â½ covered snowie mountain but that quickly changed. By mid December we where having our 1st powder days and even if you could not 100% trust the snow level you could still have a lot of fun. Pretty soon after that I had to head over to Les Deux Alpes for a few days to give a lecture on life in the mountains. I love Les Deux Alpes and they still had their summer park up. As I tend to spend all my time in the powder it was a great change and managed to get my park legs back with some nice 720 over the big kicker. Back in Verbier it was not looking so great, for some reason it decided to rain and all the fresh powder was either rained upon or blown of the faces in the wind. It seemed the winter was over before it started but then the snow gods took pity on us and it dumped, I mean it dumped. For us this was the perfect excuse to go and find our cliff legs. With the light still flat it was not worth taking our film crew up so nick and me spent a good few days launching our selves of some good 30-40 foot cliffs in quite flat light. It was all fun till I got a bit excited and over shot a landing missing the fresh powder. On the plus side the following day we where driving over to Klosters to see our Mum for Christmas so my body was able to recover'¦'¦ When we got back to Verbier on the 26th it was a different town, there where so many, and I mean so many people in the village it was silly. This was proven when on quite a cloudy day we wanted to see if we could get any shots we where greeted at 8.30 by an hour long lift queue'¦'¦ Not what we where after and by the time we got up the light had left us and the snow started to come in. Verbier seemed to be bursting at the seams but this did not dampen our sprites. With New Years Eve fast approaching we knew it was going to be a great night. We where not wrong, from our view in the Farinet Hotel we looked down on over 12,000 people partying so hard and it's a sight you never forget. With people leaving after the festive season the sun has been out for the past few days and we have has some great filming sessions in the powder. Watch this space, as our next blog will have some great action footage. Here is a little fact for you; James Blunt has a Dare 2B jacket'¦ Happy New Year from the Southwell Brothers.

3 Peaks 3 Weeks - Africa

On 9th January, a group of women from across the globe will set out to climb 3 of Africa's highest mountains in 3 Weeks to raise awareness and money for the key issues facing Africa today: Environment, Education and Health. Dare 2B have sponsored the team with superb gear to keep them warm while summiting Mt.Kenya, Mt.Meru and Mt.Kilimanjaro. Find out more at www.3peaks3weeks.org

Is it a bird...is it a plane...erm neither, its a Dare 2b paraglider!

PARAGLIDING

par·a·glid·ing

noun

Definition: Sport of gliding with parachute: a sport in which somebody jumps from an aircraft or a high place wearing a rectangular parachute that allows control of direction in the descent to the ground.

Now…that might not be a sport that appeals to all, especially those who have a slight fear of height, however, for most of you mountain lovers, it would definitely be an experience!

Attached are pictures of the Dare 2b sponsored paragliders currently in action near Geneva. An all year round mountain sport, whether the sun is shining or the snow is falling, these paragliders will bring you down to the ground in spectacular style! There are 3 of them currently taking to the skies, so keep your eye out if you’re around Geneva!

Official Altitude 2009 Pictures

We have now received all the official photo's of the Altitude Festival 2009 taken by Greg Funnel. Above is Omid Djalili on stage with the Dare 2b banner in the background!

There are more photo's which can be viewed on our Facebook page so why not log in and join at the following link below

Link to Dare 2b Facebook Page

Highlander loves Dare 2b

Last month, Dare 2b sponsored the "Highlander Mountain Marathon" and we thought it was a great chance to test our clothing in really extreme conditions...

So we sent a couple of jackets and some tights to Fiona from the Highlander PR team, who was competing in the event to put the gear through their paces.

As expected the clothing came out on top, taking all the Scottish weather coudl through at them. To read Fiona's blog please click here.

Alain Baxter swaps his skis for a saddle

Following his retirement from professional skiing Alain Baxter (Sponsored by Dare 2b - See Picture off Alain and the gang in our gear) has decided to focus is attention on Cycling.

Last weekend, Alain was up in native Scotland taking part in an 81 mile Etape Caledonia cycle race which is one of the Biggest races in the British cycling calendar.

Unfortunately, the event was sabotaged when thousand of carpet tacks were scattered across parts of the road causing caos amonst riders. Alain was in the leading pack so was one of the first to be effected by the tacks.

Thankfully, Alain and his friends were not injured. Watch this space for future updates of Alain's cycling adventure.

ALTITUDE FESTIVAL 2009

This year the Altitude Festival 2009 based in Meribel, was in its 2nd official year and promised to be bigger and better than the year before. Although Dare 2b wasn’t there in 2008, I can confirm that it certainly lived up to our expectations this year! Pulling in big names like Omid Djalili, Ardal O’Hanlon, KT Tunstall and Brandon Block it certainly had the line up to deliver.

Altitude Festival is the brainchild of comedian Marcus Brigstocke (currently presenting ‘I've Never Seen Star’), and Richard Lett, owner of Jack’s Bar and Evolution restaurant in Meribel. Along with the 2 other directors of the festival Andrew Maxwell (renowned comedian and winner of C4’s ‘King Of Comedy’) and Christian Lyons (Marketing Director) there ambition is through comedy, music and random entertainers, to grow a diverse festival like the Edinburgh Fringe but with skiing and snowboarding thrown into the mix…perfect!

We stumbled across the Altitude Festival on the web and the varied entertainment and light hearted appeal made it a perfect festival for Dare 2b to get involved in. Soon before you know it we were official clothing partners of the festival and I was designing banners and posters to be displayed in Jack’s Bar…or should I say Dare 2b Jack’s Bar!

The festival ran between March 28th and April 3rd. I arrived on the Thursday 26th to help set up, but to be honest, everything was done. Dare 2b banners were up; give-away tees were all laid out and Dare 2b goody bags were ready and waiting to be handed to all the acts. Jack’s Bar, which held the late night gigs, was fully decked out with Dare 2b banners and posters. With its central location and a steaming hot outdoor pool just in front of the bar you couldn’t miss us! All bar staff and event coordinators had there Dare 2b uniforms and looking mighty fine! The first night I arrived we had a pre-festival warm up and drink with local bar owners, hotel owners, staff…oh yes, and a 6ft yeti and a panda!

As the festival kicked off on the Saturday, I got some well-earned skiing in on the Friday, test roading the new AW09 Dare 2b range. I should have felt guilty knowing my colleagues were sat in the office, but telling myself I was ‘researching’ there wasn’t any guilt, not even a pang.

Saturday the festival kicked off and although this would be the only night I’d see (back to the office on Monday for me I’m afraid), the line up was amazing. The main auditorium in the centre of Meribel played host to the main acts, which amongst others included Lady Carol, an Irish Comedian and songstress who did her rendition of Radiohead’s Creep with a Ukulele?? Marcus Brigstocke who compared the event (his impression of Donald Duck beat boxing was pretty good!) and Omid Djalili…the Iranian/English comedian who has his own show on BBC 1! All brilliant in their unique way but Omid Djalili definitely was the highlight for me.

After this there was a late night gig at the Dare 2b Jack’s bar, where the humour got a little bit more down and dirty and the heckling and roasting got a little loader! Andrew Maxwell was the compare here and was in his element…especially ripping it out of an audience member who thought he was a comedian and referred to himself as ‘The White Giant’…probably the only funny thing he said all night!

I was gutted to leave especially knowing that KT Tunstall (who rumour has it wasn’t seen without her Dare 2b jacket throughout the event…everyone loves a freebie!) was due to play on the Tuesday to a full crowd at the ice rink and the Dub Pistols the day after, but my job here was done. For anyone who went out there please let us know what you thought? Hopefully we’ll be back next year and I will certainly try to ‘extend’ my stay (purely for work reason of course)?

SHOULD DARE 2B GO BACK IN 2010 – PLEASE LET US KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS IF YOU WERE THERE?

My 2nd attempt at joining the team

alas it was a resounding no!

My 2nd attempt at joining the team

alas it was a resounding no!

My 2nd attempt at joining the team

alas it was a resounding no!

My 2nd attempt at joining the team

alas it was a resounding no!

dare2b-Scott-Lactat MTB-team

Some of the riders of our dare2b-Scott-Lactat MTB-team headed out to Kitzsteinhorn-glacier during the weekend and took some pics.
Cycling in the snow....will it catch it on.

Highlander Mountain Marathon Event

It is unlikely that the organisers of The Highlander Mountain Marathon had a personal relationship with the God of Fickle Scottish Weather.

It is also improbable that they were able to orchestrate several magnificent displays of Highland wildlife during the weekend of April 18 and 19.

So it is only fair to suggest that luck had a huge part to play in a weekend of cracking sunshine and the sightings of a herd of magnificent red deer, a bird of prey and a rainbow-coloured array of wild flowers.

But aside from these natural wonders, participants of the 2009 Highlander, newly sponsored by Dare 2b, were left in no doubt that only meticulous planning, careful strategising and lots of hard work could have created such an immensely rewarding event.

Now in its third year, The Highlander, has become renowned for its arduous challenges, testing navigation, ever-changing weather and true wilderness settings.

It is also famed – and consequently much-loved – for the ceilidh dance that uniquely takes place at the overnight camp spot and the all-inclusive and welcoming atmosphere.

And the 2009 event did not disappoint. This time set in spectacular Glen Strathfarrar, a remote and mountainous area to the west of the Highlands capital of Inverness, The Highlander offered some 170 participants a truly wild experience.

Indeed, thanks to the generosity of several estate owners, including the Culligran and Braulen, it was the first time that such an event has been held in on this wilderness plateau.

With dozens of checkpoints to navigate to and many, many miles of rugged, unforgiving and untrodden terrain to cover, the two-day event proved a test of physical endurance and mental dexterity.

Split into five classes – from the toughest “A” to the less-challenging “D” and including a “Score” class – competitors ranged from the ultra-fit and experienced to have-a-go adventurers and first-time mountain marathoners.

As with all mountain marathon events, every pair was also required to carry enough food, drink, camping equipment and emergency supplies for a roughing-it weekend in the Scottish outback.

Perhaps the most awesome performance in this year’s Highlander was from the winning team, Gary Tompsett (of Details Events) and Gavin Miles, who crossed the finish line in the “A” class some 36 minutes ahead of the next pair. The total wining time was 9.23.58

In the “B” class the difference between the first placed pair, Iain Walker and Tim Allen and the second pair Neil Speight and Ewan Gillespie was just two minutes.

The runners-up could, however, take some consolation knowing they were the winning vets team and that they also ran the quickest time on the second day of all class competitors.

Being part of the “C” class myself I kept a quiet but curious eye on the results table throughout the event. Competing with my husband Vik Adam in our first ever mountain marathon we knew that coming last could be a strong possibility.

As it turned out we managed a respectable 12th overall and 5th in the Mixed Pairs category. At the top of our class, however, were the supremely speedy Rennie brothers, Jamie and David, both from Leicester.

Their overall time of 9.11.38 was an impressive three and a half hours ahead of Vik and I!

Their progress up the Highlander rankings table has been marked, from 11th in 2007, to sixth last year, to their first place this year.

According to Jamie the key to their success was “fantastic weather and a very runnable course”.

He says: “This is the first time we have nailed every checkpoint on the first attempt and that was because of great visibility.

“My brother and I are also quite fit at the moment, having done a few long distance events recently, so we were able to push ourselves to keep gong at a good pace for the whole two days.

“I thought that a lot of the route was pretty runnable and especially the downhill sections.

“We are totally delighted to have won the top spot this year.”

For the “D” class participants a shorter course proved to be arguably the most enjoyable. As winner Ian Pledger (who was paired with friend Donald Brown) put it: “With such fantastic scenery and amazing weather we were out to enjoy ourselves.

“Really, it wouldn’t have mattered were we came in the rankings but to come first was the icing on the cake.”

Prizes for the event were donated by mountainwear clothing brand Dare 2b and Scotland-based outdoor clothing specialists Craigdon Mountain Sports.

But then again, every entrant should surely have been patting themselves on the back after taking part in this event.

As I now know, The Highlander certainly lives up to its reputation of being one of the most satisfyingly challenging, rough and tough, but ultimately fun events on the UK adventure events calendar.

Why not give it a try yourself next year? To find out more see www.highlandermountainmarathon.org.uk

Steve's 43 Miles

one of the group took a picture of this sign whilst riding on sunday...who said that the english language is dying?!

Steve: "43 miles and all I had to show for it was a little computer saying 43 miles...I felt great before, during and after, but that could be down to my new Bianchi bike, my new Dare 2b cycle gear, or the fact ive been training for 3 months... saddle ready?? .. i was born saddle ready...I've spent alot of money making my hobby as lightweight and as strong as possible...then i get on the bike and its all for nothing...ill be shaving my legs next..."

Dare 2b on the Beeb

Last night Dare 2b unexpectedly made an appearance, on prime time tele (see picture)...on the great British institution that is BBC1 no less...and the best part about it is we didnt have to pay a penny for our 15 minutes of fame.

The scene in "All the Small Things", the new North West based drama, was filmed at Manchester's indoor ski slope, The Chill Factore and featured the rubbers tubes that are sponsored by none other than Dare 2b - Free publicity...that's a brucie bonus!!

Dare 2b and the MAD team put on a show

On Easter Saturday, we organised an event at Manchester's Chill Factore, with the "Dare 2b Sponsored" MAD Team. The team is Britain's premier Mountain Bike Display team and they make a living out of jumping on, across and off things including their brand new Land Rover Defender. The team wow the crowd with amazing tricks and stunts whilst looking great in Dare 2b’s new Summer clothing. See the picture above of L-R Mike Singleton, Patrick Donovan and Ian Drummond.

London Freeze

With over 21,000 people through the door, it is safe to say that the newcomer on the UK snow festival scene was a winner! The backdrop of Battersea Power Station definitely added to this event and pictures of the snowboarders doing their tricks against the 4 great chimneys looked incredible (our banners didn’t look half bad either!) All the staff were kitted out and looked great in Dare 2b jackets, hoods and tee’s and considering how bloody cold it was, the staff seemed more than happy with the gear! With a beer in the hand and a few foot shuffles to bands like The Enemy, we soon forgot our troubles and had an amazing night. Unfortunately, even the cold British weather wasn’t enough to make the snow last until Sunday but it didn’t damper the mood. With lessons learnt, London Freeze is sure to come back bigger and better next year with brand new bands, features and tournaments…and I’m sure we’ll be there again to share its success.

Ski Show

I'm off down to the Ski Show tomorrow and looking forward to it. The guys down in London already say it’s heaving and we're are shifting shed loads of gear, which is exactly what we want to hear. Organising the show hasn't been without its problems, our new mannequins didn't arrive so we've improvised by using our old ones but sticking animal masks on them! Not sure it makes any sense but will attract attention that's for sure. Looking forward to tackling the Ice Wall again this year plus sampling my favourite Indian in Hammersmith too!

Dare 2b Office Mania!

Things are always busy here but everything just seems to be getting way out of hand! There's so much coming for us, the ski Show, Freesports on 4, the new website and the new catalogue! To make us feel like its all been worthwhile do me a favour and take some time to check out all the details on the news spot. Ta!

Mountain Bike World Cup

It's been bit manic here over the last few weeks as we clinched the deal to sponsor the Mountain Bike World Cup in Schladming. It feels a bit odd seeing the logo on the event's website next to corporate giants Nokia and 3. I suppose it signals that Dare 2b has arrived on a global scale.

We're really excited about it here and a couple of jammy gets are able to get out to the event.

It's pretty late in the day to sort out all the gumph we need to supply so everyone's been on overdrive. There's been T-Shirts to design, adverts to produce, animated videos and all the branding around the event. A pretty heavy workload for our little shoulders to bear.

We definitely recommend you take a gander at the event. You can follow it live here

and check out the event website here

Is that a blue tit perched on that rock dear…?

When climbing it’s always good to look up and know there is a few cracks and bumps to help you progress further up the rock face. However if the ‘Stone Nudes’ are around you’re more likely to get slapped back down to earth quicker than you can admire the view if you try and grab hold of their cracks and bumps!

A craze that is apparently sweeping across America is naked rock climbing. No clothes, no shoes and no equipment…. just using what Mother Nature gave us to get up that rock, be it fingers, toes…or in this case a nipple!

The ‘Stone Nudes’ is the brainchild of California-based photographer and rock climber Dean Fidelman, whose turned his pictures into a 2009 calendar The abandonment of all equipment and clothes is said to be the ‘true essence of the climbing spirit’

Dean said

‘This kind of climbing is the sport at it purest, and is intended to inspire and celebrate the human form.’

Basically, if you ask me it’s the ultimate adrenalin nudist and the opportunity for the rest of us to have a good perv, but hey…what’s wrong with mixing two great hobbies at once!

Apparently it’s a craze due to hit Britain soon…but with our weather, I don’t think it’ll be taking too many Dare2b customers away from us anytime shortly.

Product Launch Austria 2008

We've just got back from the SS09 product launch, which this season was held out in Austria. The launch basically consists of all our sales guys from all over Europe viewing the range for the first time and learning about the big stories for the summer. As expected everyone loved the range and the brochure.

After a 'tiring' day, we all head to the bar for much needed drinks and food and some more drinks.

This year was particularly good as we had a day off to do some biking in the alps which was awesome. However, it wasn't without its drama. Before we even left the car park one of our German friends decided it would be a good idea to do a wheelie in the car park and went over the handle bars and landed on his chin, ouch!

After lunch an ambulance was called to pick up our Dutch sales guy, Marc after he took flight off his bike and ended up gashing his leg wide open. But the good news is that they all lived to tell the tale and they have some pretty terrific biking scars which round here are like badges of honour!

The sort of people I work with

What are they like??

I think we've found a little insight into the workings of Dare2b. By looking at a few of the absence requests given over the last year, it makes you wonder about some people.

We've got the few old faithfuls; 'full blown body virus' and the more worrying 'swollen appendage'.

However 'Locked in porch' and 'forgot to come to work'and most intriguingly, 'Quincy' are some of the more enlightening reasons.

So, next time your boss asks why you weren't at work just reply 'Quincy' and wander off.

Dare 2b SS09

We're getting really excited about the Dare 2b Spring/Summer 2009 range that we're currently working on (Yes, we really do work that far into the future- I feel like Marty McFly) . We're getting the new samples in and the gear's looking great.

The only problem is that we've got to wait till next March to get it in stores.

We've also got the shots back from our photoshoot and although it's all top secret, they're looking shit-hot. I'm just gutted I couldn't get out to Cape Town.

Happy Snapping at the Dare2b Photoshoot

Feeling like quite the jetsetter after my trip to South Africa for the photoshoot.

The shoot took 3 days and luckily involved no serious injuries. You'll understand what I mean when you see the shots.

With a top secret concept and the help of of some stunt guys who could all be legally insane, it all came together.

You will have to watch this space for our new shots because we don't want anyone to get their grubby mits on them quite yet.

After the shoot there was a little time to chillax and for some reason I decided it was a good idea to get into a cage with a Cheetah, who was apparently grumpy because the lady cheetah he fancied only liked him as a friend! Good to know romance is alive and well in the animal kingdom

Val Doonican mk II

Getting ready for the weekend here in the palatial Dare2b towers. We've already got the new boy in some hideous get up.

After Radford came in with a particularly garish shirt on yesterday, we decided to have a 'wear the most horrible thing in your wardrobe' day. Everyone bought into the idea yesterday but with selective memory on overtime, only Radford bit the bullet.

Take a look at this awful effort below. The embarrassing thing is, it's actually better than anything else he's been wearing this week.

Some people just shouldn't be allowed out in daylight hours.

Newbie Done Good!

Hey folks, it’s been a while since I last wrote a blog for you guys to digest! This work thing actually takes up more time than I first thought (see earlier blogs). As he mentioned in some of his blogs Johnboy’s back is unfortunately aging quicker than he is so he has been off for a while, but no fear, “super newbie” is here!!! Well to some degree, at first I thought I would be up sh*t creek without a paddle but I with the support from the other guys in the office and the Johnboy 24hr help line on speed-dial all was rosy. The Dare2B store in Manchester’s Chill Factore will be having their sparkling new POS signage on time for the new season, the gear for next year’s brochure was sent to the photo shoot on time and perhaps most importantly everybody in the office still got their hourly brews on time. Johnboy came back midway through last week with the office just about in one piece, the workload was great for my learning curve but man was I glad to see him back again!

As if I didn’t have enough on my plate I also managed to pass my driving theory test, 50 out of 50, booya!!

Until next time, ciao!

We've Done It

We set off from the Bulgarian coast and head for Istanbul knowing this is the last leg of the journey, after over 2,000 miles we were literally on the road to Istanbul! We knew getting past the Turkish border was going to be interesting bearing in mind the Turk's love of paperwork and Betty wasn't exactly in great condition.

We cautiously approached the first checkpoint as the customs officers came out of the building looking in disbelief at the taxi. After being ordered to get out of the taxi and a few tense moments of the border police circulating we realised that they were more interested in posing for photos at the wheel wearing Dave's sunglasses!! We thought we'd made it through but it took another hour to proceed through two more checkpoints after buying additional insurance and visas but we'd made it!!

We weaved out way through the Turkish countryside and arrived in the bright lights of Istanbul and parked up near the famous blue mosque. Through the Salzburg snow, getting jump started in Germany and the nightmare of Romania we've finally done it and reached Istanbul! We had a beer in the hostel and stared at eachother in disbelief at the journey we've had. Thank you for all your support and now it's time to try and beat the meter reading...

Mileage: 2,667
Meter Cost: £5,334

Day 10

We continue to change drivers and each get a bit of sleep, we haven't seen any cars or lorries on our journey and we start to wonder how many British cars have made this journey and we assume we are certainly the first to do it in a London cab with the bonnet held down by gaffer tape!!

We finally find a petrol station to fill up but there are groups of stray dogs following the taxi, we wonder if we'll ever get out of this country and pray that we don't break down. Luckily we reach motorway and the roads improve, we navigate through Bucharest centre at around 6 in the morning and finally reach the Bulgarian border at half ten in the morning having set off from Budapest 24 hrs earlier!!

The border is much less busy and we have no trouble getting in - unbelievable considering Betty is now held together by string and gaffer tape! We will upload photos as soon as we get back home so be sure to check back and see for yourself!!

We drive down the Bulgarian coast (realising on the way that nodding your head means no and shaking it means yes!!) and reach Burgas in the afternoon. What a drive! Tanya who works at the hostel gets us some soup and omelette to eat and listens to how we set off from Hungary 30 hours ago and didn't stop in Romania! The worst part of the journey is over and it's next stop Istanbul!!

Mileage: 2,416
Meter Cost: £4,842

Day 8

Woke up to a parking ticket on the taxi, although only a 10 pound fine. We went for a bit of breakfast before coming back to the hostel to meet Andrew who owned the hostel. We had a chat with him for some Budapest newspaper articles and he kindly said that he would also do an article for the backpackers magazine in Budapest. We also took some photos outside our hostel (Domino Hostel) which we'll put online when we get the laptop up and running again!

We then took a stroll around Budapest and took in the market, the thermal baths, which we enjoyed in our Dare2b capri shorts! We strolled over the bridge and took in the parliament buildings and had some goulash for dinner. As we enjoyed a pint of "Bit Burger" in the 'For Sale' pub we overheard a familiar accent and realised that 8 guys and girls from Crosby had walked in - we got chatting and found out they had read about our trip in the Liverpool Echo! Thanks to Tom, Bernadette, Jeremy and the rest of the gang for a great night out - we'll add the photos when we get back home so keep checking back.

Day 9

The most intense day of the rally so far. We wake up early to find the post office to pay our parking fine (and almost get stuck in a steep underground car park in the process) then hit the road to get out of Hungary and into Romania.

We knew it would be a long slog getting from Budapest to Bucharest but nothing could prepare us for what turned out to be a 30 hour marathon drive after some hairy moments in Romania. We approached the border and the fun and games started - after getting through passport control we had to buy a permit to drive on the roads and we soon realised that the taxi was attracting a lot more attention than we hoped as a group of gypsies stop us and demand money as we're paying for our permit. The Romanian Police seemed to turn a blind eye as we slammed the doors and hit the gas all looking a bit scared to say the least.

As we ventured further into Romania we realised the truly attrocious road conditions that people had warned us about. We were in a desolate area with only wooden shacks and horse and carts for company - if we were to break down here there would be serious trouble and we had given up on the Sat Nav and so were navigating from the road signs. It didn't take long for us to decide that we should drive into the night taking it in turns to drive Betty out of Romania for our own safety and pray that we didn't experience any difficulties.

However, as Paul was driving along one of the awful roads, a huge pothole made the bonnet pop up in front of the windscreen so we couldn't see a thing!! Paul thought quickly and stuck his head out of the window before guiding Betty onto the hard shoulder (which is also used for overtaking in Romania). This happened 3 times before we eventually had to tie it down with some gaffer tape, string from our Dare2b hoodies and some tow rope!! The nightmare of Romania continued as we drove up steep mountains into the night with the road conditions deteriorating we realised this journey would take some time and we were running out of Diesel.

Day 7

Set off early and out of Salzburg, following the road past Vienna to Budapest. The laptop was playing up, so we only had sat-nav to the Austrian border. We drove out of the snow after about 50km which made the going much easier. Dave managed to misplace his mobile phone somewhere in the hostel, which was only realised as we approached the Hungarian border. To top the day off we were pulled over by the Austrian police as we were missing a motorway permit for that section of Austria, and were promptly fined 120 euros.

We soldiered on through the Hungarian border (buying a permit on the way!) getting increasingly funny looks. We crossed the Danube and drove along side it for a while before hitting the lights of Budapest.

As we drove over the main bridge over the river we were impressed by the vibrancy and architecture of the city. Using the good old paper map, we found our way via a scenic route to the hostel and checked in for the night. We popped out to get some Florints and some food before hitting the hay.

Mileage 1527
Meter cost £3,054

Day 6

Still lots of snow about in the morning as we head into Salzburg centre for a bit of culture, we were unprepared for the snow and felt compelled to buy the stupidest hats on offer. We went up to the fortress, and looked around the squares and churches. We decided to immortalise the day with a 'historic' looking photo which involved us dressing up as Austrian gents and generals...photos to follow!

Had a spot of Wiener Schnitzel for dinner, and then handed out some leaflets and talked to the people in the hostel bar and common room.

Day 5

Spent most of today on the road trying to get to Salzburg, unfortunately the Sat Nav CD is stuck in Pilky's laptop and so we once again have to rely on paper maps to navigate our way. It soon becomes apparent that the weather is not going to be kind to us as we drive through a terrible snow storm in Germany which almost stops us in our tracks.

We stopped off at a Service Station along the way for a rest and the biggest sandwiches in the world but we forgot to switch Betty's lights off and Pilky was too preoccupied making a snowman on the bonnet to notice. We turn the key over and the battery is flat!!

Luckily a kind German guy jump starts us and we're on our way. On the way to Salzburg we pass the thousand mile mark and enter snow 4 inches deep, after snow ball fighting and a night out in Salzburg centre we hit the sack.

Mileage 1,067
Meter Cost £2,134

To Donate

Please visit... http://www.justgiving.com/oneballrally

Day 4

Off to Frankfurt today - bad start though as the Sat Nav still refuses to load the European maps. We decide to head out of Brussels (courtesy of some 'creative' driving by Dave) and stop to get it sorted out.

We stop in Hooegarden near the brewery and have a swap over driving - we manage to get the Sat Nav working and Ad takes over to drive into Germany.

We are greeted by a snow storm and truly atrocious driving conditions, we also find out that Salzburg (next stop after Frankfurt) is one of Austria's ski resorts and is in ski season. A quick check reveals that our wardrobe consists of t-shirts and a few pairs of jeans!

We arrive in Frankfurt and head straight to the bar. We spot a guitar and a pair of bongos hanging on the wall - after a few massive bottles of Becks we launch into a rendition of Wonderwall and then some Pilky freestyling.

Can't upload any photos at the moment but there wil be more to follow. Off to Salzburg tomorrow - could be interesting.

Mileage 816
Meter Cost £1,632

Day 3

Woke up this morning to find a blizzard outside, we weren't sure if the ferry crossing will be cancelled but we drove to Dover anyway in true one ball rally style. Found a pub in Dover to watch Man Utd thrash Liverpool - Dave and Ashton nearly fell out.

Got to the ferry port with a few minutes to spare and loaded Betty on after some tight manouvering. We got on just in time to get a comfy seat and watch the start of the Arsenal game in what we thought was the ideal location until we were thrown out by security as it turned out to be a childs play room - we wondered why we were getting funny looks from concerned parents!

Docked into France only to be greeted by 3 inches of snow but we weren't too worried as we had our trusty sat nav - or so we thought. It turned out that Pilkys laptop was on low battery after playing Champ Man on the ferry. With 2 minutes to go until the European maps were downloaded onto the sat nav, the laptop decided to call it a day and switch off so we had to get to Brussels old school with our paper map.

Mileage - 497
Meter cost - £ 994

Day 2

Today we spent a bit of time in London. We headed down to White Hart Lane (Tottenham's ground) with our buckets to offer Big D posters and peanuts in return for a donation. However, our grasp of "The Knowledge" failed us and by the time we had figured out directions and got there - everyone had gone!

Determined to raise a bit of cash (and lighten the load of the taxi) we headed into the hostel bar only to find disinterested Americans who seemed more bothered about bitching about how much carbon emissions we'd be emitting on our way. Anyway, we managed to get a few quid from some Europeans and headed into Leicester Square for a night out.

After the night out we got the dodgiest taxi in the world and decided to jump out at what we thought was the tube station near our hostel only to find out we had another mile to walk in the freezing cold. It's off to Dover tomorrow for the ferry to Dunkirk, load the sat nav European maps on and cruise through France to Brussels.

Day 1

Yesterday saw the official launch of The One Ball Rally in a blaze of press and TV coverage!

We were lucky enough to have been given a send off by Big D babe Malene who brought Ormskirk to a standstill. Granda TV covered the event in their evening bulletin and thanks to everyone who turned up and donated - we raised over £230!

After saying our goodbyes we hit the road and headed to Clatterbridge Oncology hospital (where Dave got his Cancer treatment) to have a brew and a chat with the nurses, then it was on to London Town, with a couple of stops for a kick-about on the way. As soon as we checked into our hostel (thanks to Hostelworld!) Dave went live on air in a Radio City telephone interview, unfortunately he hadn't charged his battery and the interview ended abruptly after 2 minutes! After finally locating his charger, the interview continued.

We then had a bit of time to sample the bar downstairs, and beating the Yanks at a couple of games of table foosball, before hitting the sack.

We will be uploading photos and videos along the way, so keep checking back for more news.

Miles covered: 258

Meter cost: £516

Like John Wayne with a bout of piles

My sporting ambitions have temporarily bitten the dust after I’ve put the old back out of joint. I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced it but when it goes, every sneeze is a stab of agony and every trip to the loo becomes like a expedition to the top of Everest.

And to add to it all, I’ve been getting some very funny looks as I walk round the office like John Wayne with a bout of piles!!

Map My Run

Here at Dare2b we have stumbled across a pretty useful website www.mapmyrun.com

Instead of stomping the streets, hills or mountains with no idea just how far the hell you are going, map your route on the site and it tottles up the distance for you!

Be warned though, several members of the team are looking slightly sheepish at the true distance of their routes...truth is, it looks more like a walk in the park!

Number Jonny 5- We are live

You may have noticed something folks. The new Dare2b site is online. It's different and it's a whole lotta fun.

It's taken a plenty of work from all the team. If you think writing blogs and creating little Simpsons character is easy... well, I suppose it could be worse.

So take a look around, if you think it's looking a little empty round here, do something about it. Get out on the hill and shoot yourself doing what you do best (or even funnier, worst).

Suffering from “e” aches and real-life pains!

I am sat at my desk at the start of my 3rd week quite sore and as stiff as a Dodo! This stiffness is mainly due to the demon game, that is Mario Olympics on the Wii, the pain can be attributed to a nasty fall whilst ice skating. Gareth Gates may be a tad disappointed at be voted off dancing on ice, but I can assure him that had he been anything like me he wouldn’t have even passed the audition stage, so you’ve done well G-G-Gazzer!! The worse of it all was the fact that I wasn’t even trying to show off or anything like that, I was slowly gliding whilst talking to my brother and all of a sudden BAM!!!! toe picked a divot and rather than just sliding onto the ice on my front I managed to do a “frog-style” splash landing which hurt immensely. But to the soundtrack of my family laughing, I got up quickly and sat down for a few minutes winded, and with a sore front.

The Mario Olympics on the Wii is an amazingly fun game but beware it has hidden consequences that don’t hit till the morning after, the self-named “Wii aches”! Somehow the game uses muscles you never thought you had, but hey its great fun!

Cape Town- Here we come

It's a tough job but someone's got to do it. The plans have been drawn up for the next Dare2b photoshoot and unfortunately, I've been selected as the poor soul who's got to go to Cape Town and oversee the thing.

'Why Cape Town' I hear you ask. Why not... It's got seasonal sunshine a massive amount of great locations to go biking, canyoneering, running and just getting up to mischief on the mountain.

Keep an eye on this blog to see how the events develop.

Sports Relief Super Cycle

On Thursday 13th March TV presenter Adrian Chiles and Ex-footballer and current TV pundit Alan Shearer are set to push their pain threshold to its limits as they attempt cycle 335 miles in just 2 days, that’s some “eyeballs out” cycling! It is all in aid of Sports Relief which is a great cause so if you’ve got a few spare pennies lying about why not support the event in the best way possible, by making a donation, big or small (every pound’s a prisoner, as Johnboy likes to remind me). For more information then visit http://www.sportrelief.com/supercycle/

Get the drinks in!

The Dare2b marketing department is troubled. After the charity raffle draw this morning we've raked in 6 bottles of wine, a bottle of JD, 2 bottles of Gin, Rum, 3 bottles of Scotch, Champagne and 2 boxes of chocolates (If only Mothers day were this weekend, presents would be sorted).

The question is, which bottle to open first??

Earthquake

Today, as the country got over the shock and excitement of experiencing its biggest earthquake in 25 years last night, the blokes in the dare2b office had to endure the obvious jokes from our female colleagues; “that’s the first time the earth has moved for me in bed”, “my knees were trembling like never before” the usual dross demeaning the form of the male race, if we’re that bad then find something else to nag!

The timing of the earthquake couldn’t have been worse as the house next door was being renovated, scaffolding, the lot! Therefore when the earthquake hit, our house woke up thinking the house was collapsing beside us!! But like good neighbours, after a few minutes passed, rather than investigating what happened, we went back to bed!

Burning thighs and sore buttocks

There are sounds of groans around the Dare 2b office this morning as we all went out on a day out gear testing yesterday. It was brass monkeys freezing as we rowed around Lake Windermere Viking stylee racing each other. The padding on the seats was less than required and my buttocks feel like they've been flogged...