So while we're out here in Denver putting in work, Josh is hard at work laying it down in Morgantown. New footy from Josh bringing the trials and tribulations of an Olympic hopeful home to the Morgantown Crew. Looks sick Josh!

Josh Zerkel C-Footy 09-10 from Josh Zerkel on Vimeo.

So apparently Todd has a new show coming out on mtv...Check it out


Enjoy!

   This last weekend marked the final Grand Prix to determine who was going to the Olympics for men's and women's Half Pipe. The battles were fierce but in the end it played out much the same was it has throughout the Grand Prix series. Shaun White stomped unstoppable runs, Scotty Lago boosted huge methods and landed clean runs to finish in the second spot, and the duels of Luke Mitrani, JJ Thomas, and Gregory Bretz heated up for the third spot. In the end the three men's spots were already secured to Shaun White, Scotty Lago, and Louie Vito going into the final day Saturday night, and the battle for the fourth and final spot was where the action really was. That announcement should come later on today since Luke Mitrani, JJ Thomas, and Gregory Bretz are all locked in a three way tie, and the Olympic coaches need to select the best option.

   On the women's side the team will look as it has with returning 2002 Gold Medalist Kelly Clark capturing the top spot, returning 2006 Silver Medalist Gretchen Bleile, and 2006 Gold Medalist Hannah Teter securing the third spot. The women's fourth spot should also be determined later today along with the men.



Final Sprint U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix Standings
Average of best two results (ties broken)
Men
1. Shaun White, Carlsbad, CA, 1000
2. Scotty Lago, Seabrook, NH, 800
3. Louie Vito, Sandy, UT, 800
4. Danny Davis, Detroit, MI, 645
5. Greg Bretz, Mammoth Lakes, CA, 550
6. JJ Thomas, Golden, CO, 550
7. Luke Mitrani, Mammoth Lakes, CA, 550
8. Zack Black, Breckenridge, CO, 525
9. Elijah Teter, South Lake Tahoe, CA, 475
10. Steve Fisher, Breckenridge, CO, 400
Women
1. Kelly Clark, Mt. Snow, VT, 1000
2. Gretchen Bleiler, Aspen, CO, 900
3. Hannah Teter, Belmont, VT, 800
4. Elena Hight, South Lake Tahoe, CA, 650
5. Ellery Hollingsworth, Stratton, VT, 600
6. Kaitlyn Farrington, Sun Valley, ID, 500
7. Maddy Schaffrick, Steamboat Springs, CO, 500
8. Clair Bidez, Minturn, CO, 425
9. Kelly Marren, Hillsborough, CA, 320

New edit from Josh and the guys over at the West Virginia University Snowboard Team for Rome's Imma Betta Jibba Contest.   
   

Imma Betta Jibba: WVU Entry from Josh Zerkel on Vimeo.

Riders: AJ Lawson, Josh Zerkel, Ben Stout, Patrick Mitchell, and Colin O'neill

With the X-Games and Olympics right around the corner, Shaun White put a little video together to show off his "newest" trick. He has been consistently pulling off the Double Cork 10, and the Cab Double Cork 10 making 2 out of the 4 Hammers in the pipe. The two tricks that have been alluding him have been the final two; the Double Cork McTwist 12, and the Double Cork Rodeo. Up until a month ago nobody was able to pull off more than two in a competition, but when Danny Davis threw down both of those plus the Double Cork Rodeo at the Grand Prix in Mammoth, it looked like someone was going to give Shaun a run for his money. Then two weeks ago we all started receiving phone calls and texts from our friends at Park City, saying that Shaun had just landed the Double Cork McTwist 12. Soon there after Danny Davis had his unfortunate accident on an atv in Utah, breaking his back and needing surgery, and thus ending his season early. Now, going into the last Grand Prix this weekend, Shaun has decided to put out this video to up the ante a little bit. This guy is so amazingly dialed in it is going to be really hard to beat him anywhere. Dew Tour, X-Games, Grand Prix, or Olympics. And these are the tricks that he is showing us...I mean he's probably got something else even more ridiculous up his sleeve that he learned on his private practice pipe. I'm not usually the one to hype up Shaun White, but here's the video and you can be the judge on how amazingly ridiculous this guy is. The undisputed fact is that this guy is soooooo dialed in its almost video game easy...



Also here is a listing posted on Transworld Snowboarding of the final qualifiers for this weekends Grand Prix contests. Notice the last name on the list? It surprised me too, and even though he has been out due to an injured foot and ankle the last half of a year, he did win the US Open last year...Good luck Danbo and I hope that you got some gnarly tricks up your sleeves!

Men:
Shaun White
Louie Vito
Scotty Lago
Greg Bretz
Zack Black
JJ Thomas
Elijah Teter
Steve Fisher
Jack Mitrani
Andy Finch
Matt Ladley
Brennen Swanson
Broc Waring
Dylan Bidez
Luke Mitrani
Danny Kass

It’s Sunday again and here is a new Sunday In The Park featuring Zak Hale, Dave Downing Alex Andrews and more. Only here on TWsnow.com!

Seven Springs has risen to the top of the East Coast Pipe scene with this amazing beauty. After winning the 2010 East Coast Pipe Award the Seven Springs Super Pipe is back in business again this year. So sharpen up those edges, and get your forward lean on...

So, as promised Josh hooked it up with an edit from their trip out to Park City, Utah. I must say these guys are doing stuff that amazes me every edit. Everything looks super clean, and Corey and Josh are killing it. I want to also point out that our newest addition to the Pathfinder Team, Zach Curtis, apparently has a reason for those huge pants of his. Look for his ridiculously huge cab 180 onto a box that would make Chuck Norris straight scared.

Pathfinder Salt Lake Trip from Josh Zerkel on Vimeo.

Good job to all you guys, and its good to see that Zach Lancaster is keeping himself busy out there in Utah. Keep up the great work!

    When the news broke on December 31st that Kevin Pearce had been knocked unconscious and was being life flighted out of the pipe at Park City, Utah, the snowboard world took a collective moment of silence. After working on his X-Games and probably Olympic pipe run he took a hard landing while attempting a double cork. Kevin hit his head off of the frozen pipe wall and was instantly knocked unconscious. He was then rushed to the hospital at the University of Utah where he was listed as in critical condition until last this week. It was and still is unclear as to how Kevin will recover from his accident, but as he regains consciousness his doctors have been very hopeful that he will be able to recover. Kevin's family has started a facebook page to keep everyone updated on his condition and to give encouragement and prays from Kevin. As of right now the word is that his breathing tube has been taken out, and he has been slowly regaining consciousness and responding to some commands. His status has also been moved down from critical condition to serious condition. We wish Kevin a quick and full recovery!
By every measure, Kevin Pearce is a contest kid. As we push toward the Olympics in Vancouver, Pearce stands squarely atop the list of American medal hopefuls for halfpipe. But as snowboarders, we should ask ourselves why the best competitive riders in the sport are still coldly referred to as “contest” guys? Are they and the contests they do part of some less-cool substrata of shredding? Hell, no. Since the earliest days, competitions have fueled technical progression and built up the framework of what we’ve come to know as “pro snowboarding.” To be at the top competitively right now is a serious affair. It takes discipline, physical stamina, and mental fortitude, to say nothing of the freakin’ tricks. And all these things take a hell of a lot more work than our collective “ride pow with my bros” ideal. Fact is, the contest haters are riders who wouldn’t make it through the first round of qualifiers. So, as we head into the Olympic Games, let’s show some solidarity as shredders and give these “contest guys” their due. Pearce is killing it right now, and someday, when he walks away from the contest circuit for powder pursuits, he’ll be your favorite backcountry dude, so you might as well start backing him now.

Do you have any pre-contest rituals or superstitions?
I’m not really superstitious or anything, but I do like to get onto a regimented schedule before a contest. Like, do the same thing every day—going up to the hill at the same time; if I have a set plan and stick to it for a few days, I feel like it gets me in the zone. And when I do that, I compete a lot better. Making sure I get up early, get to practice on time—they never give us enough practice—and get a good warm-up is important. There’s so much waiting around at contests these days, like the X Games and Dew Tours. Unfortunately, I haven’t really found a great way to deal with all that waiting around yet …

That waiting must mess with you.
Yeah, especially after practice, you get in this rhythm of taking all these runs and you’re all stoked and you got your energy flowing, and then they’re like, “Okay, sit around for a half hour.” I’m like, “What am I supposed to do now?” Sure, I can stand around with my buddies and rap out with them, but we want to go and ride—and do this. It’s tough when you’re in it, then you gotta wait around—try to warm yourself back up … it kinda sucks.

Have you gotten the visit for Olympic drug testing yet?
We’ve been on that program—USADA [United States Anti-Doping Agency]—for about a year, but I haven’t gotten drug tested yet. They haven’t come to my house yet, knock on wood …

Why knock on wood?
Well, just ’cause it’s such a hassle. You have to give them a time—an hour every day when you will be at your house, and they can just show up whenever they want. I have seven to eight in the morning, so I know there’s a good chance I’ll be at home sleeping. But basically, they can come into your house and pretty much take over—totally exploit your space. I think I must be kind off the radar though, maybe because I’ve never been to the Olympics and never did too well in the Grand Prix.

How do you feel about your chances of making the Olympic team?
It’s going to be tough, but I’ve definitely been trying to put the work in. No matter how you look at it, the U.S. is stacked and everybody knows that, but I feel like I’ve been focused on pipe for the last eight months or so. And it’s tough to focus so much on that because I love to ride everything. But I feel like it’s worth it to buckle down and take the time now and give it my all. I feel like after last season, I put myself in a good position to make it happen, which feels good, because last time around I wasn’t ready.
And you’ve got some new tricks going into the season.
Well, yeah, you saw the New Zealand Open, everyone knows about the doubles. That’s what’s happening. And we had that pipe in Mammoth, so I got to learn a couple there. For me, it’s just getting my head around those tricks, getting the rotation down—it’s just fully committing to those new tricks. And it’s so scary, just because I haven’t really done these before—just the fact of doing two flips, it’s pretty hectic … I feel like when doing a double on a jump it’s a lot easier to save yourself, but in a pipe, there’s such a small zone to land it right. You’ve gotta really dial that shit in. Mine aren’t a hundred-percent dialed in yet, but …

Make sure to check out the rest of the article at Transworld Snowboarding

Get well soon Kevin!

Cam Pierce wins against Alex Andrews, Ted Borland, Derek Dennison, & Brandon Hammid.
varietyinyourlife.com

Corey Snyder, Josh Zerkel, and Zach Curtis headed over to Park City, Utah to get some shots and enjoy the snow. Look for a video coming soon...



Good Style...

One of the most dramatic halfpipe contests unraveled at the base of Mammoth’s Super Duper Halfpipe today. Danny Davis and Kelly Clark each threw down insane runs to land on top of the podium and solidify paths towards the Olympics. Davis, a Michigan native and Truckee, California transplant led the competition a soaring combo–frontside double cork cab ten, frontside nine, crail backside air, double cork frontside ten, switch double backside rodeo. And Kelly Clark won her second Grand Prix event this season to secure a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.
Shaun White, Scotty Lago and Louie Vito trailed behind by a few points with equally challenging runs while yesterday’s second place qualifier and Mammoth local Greg Bretz couldn’t quite break into the top three. Elijah Teter surprised the crowd and himself with a highly technical run that finished with a mystery front flip-esque trick, jokingly deemed the “Teter-totter.” While the rest of the pack continued to lay down stellar runs, they were no match for the explosive runs from Lago, Vito, White and Davis.




“That was the best halfpipe run I have ever done,” said Davis after he put down a landmark run that included three double corks–a personal and contest first. And it was clearly devoted to good friend Kevin Pearce who is recovering from a serious snowboard injury. Davis said he was connected with Kevin on a spiritual level and it gave him confidence and good vibes on the hill today. The win meant many things to him, but overall he was “just stoked to make everyone smile.”
Shaun White gave Danny a run for his money by attempting to land three doubles as well, but ended up scrubbing the landing on a double McTwist attempt. Now it’s just fuel for the fire as riders prepare for the third qualifying event this Saturday.
In the ladies field, Kelly Clark remained untouchable with her second run serving as a victory lap. This second run composed of a frontside air, backside five, frontside nine, backside air, frontside seven and cab seven even surpassed her first run score. When congratulated on securing a spot on the women’s Olympic team she said, “I couldn’t be happier with my result today and it’s a privilege to be going to my third Olympic Games.” Hannah Teter snagged the second spot by linking up fives and sevens, barely ousting the high flying Holly Crawford.
The Grand Prix continues this week with slopestyle and the third halfpipe qualifiers. Stayed tuned to twsnow.com and twitter.com/twsnow for more updates or catch up on all the Olympic Grand Prix Action here. For a detailed breakdown of the top three runs scope the diagrams below. Or follow the event on NBC - 1/10/10 - 1:30pm est and Versus - 1/17/10 - 4pm est.

Bengal, Transworld Snowboarding

Transworld Snowboarding's Saturday In The Park

Todd follows Travis Rice to Paris for the big Tony Hawk Quiksilver 40th Anniversary show.

Was just up at Seven Springs this last weekend for New Years, and the snow has been amazing! They have had at least 3' of new snow in the last 3-4 days, and it keeps on coming. The Alley is open and has around 25 features, and if your just looking to hit some amazing trails head over the the North Face and ride the newer high speed detachable Gunnar lift. Also, look for The Spot to be open soon and snowmaking for the 2009 Transworld #1 East Coast Pipe has begun! See you all soon!
Keep Riding!

"Tracking Eero" Terje & Jake BC Action Webisode from OAKLEY on Vimeo.