FUTURE SNOWBOARDING ARTICLE (August 2007)

Snowboarding Summer Camp - New Zealand Style
When did summer camp get so good? Seriously?

Bad Breath? Need a piece of gum? If you ever see this kid on the hill ask him because he got signed by none other than Bubblicious Bubblegum and always seems to have a pocketfull of the crap. Here’s Harry popping a FS 3 during sunset at Snowpark.

I remember summer camps as an awkward interaction of pre-teens and teenagers that included brown bag lunches, forced athletic activities, and tediously stupid art projects. Like hiking through the woods searching for pine cones to make a birdfeeder out of. After spending 2 weeks with All Star Adventures Elite Camps down in Wanaka, New Zealand, I look back and realize now that I got royally screwed in the summer camp arena.

Scot. Scot’s got some major talent when it comes to rails but he proves here that a FS 7 ain’t no thang either.

Like many North American shredders, I’ve put my time in up at Mt. Hood, and I was convinced that summer camp couldn’t get any better. That was until I skipped the slush fest at Hood this summer and saved up some serious coin for a flight across the Equator. There, in New Zealand, I arrived in the middle the Southern Hemisphere’s winter to steep mountains covered in fresh snow and a terrain park that rivals Mammoth and Breckenridge’s.

All Star Adventures... creating an opportunity for any riders who wish to skip the normal melting glacier routine and get some serious snow time in. All Star Adventures caters to all ages and abilities and has riders at every level, from beginners to competitive riders such as Val Reynolds, who made it all the way to the final round of Slopestyle during the Burton New Zealand Open which wrapped up just last week. (Competing in the Burton NZ Open is just another bonus the Camps offer.) All Star has brought on an unbeatable lineup of coaches. All Star coaches bring to the table an unprecedented amount of experience, responsibility and patience to work with all campers.

An All Star coach, demonstrates appropriate quarterpipe handplants

Jake works out the kinks on his frontside 5’s
Although the camps are separate in their own respects they’ve joined together in lodging and down time. The kids are staying in digs nicer than any camp your imagination could drum up. The four story mansion has a top of the line chromed out kitchen and even comes with two British Chefs who cook gourmet dinners. Ballin’. The groms are still stacked up in bunks and sharing bathrooms, but it’s by far more comfortable than a rickety wood cabin, or a handmade tarp tent for that matter. Adult campers get more private accommodations and at worst may have to share a room with twin beds. It’s nice, it’s comfortable, and its fun. Leisurely activities include Trampoline, Bungee Jumping, Ice Luge, and more. There is an entertainment center in the living room with plush couches and surround sound to watch movies on, not to mention wireless throughout the house. To top it all off, visitors to the mansion for meals and games of Scrabble this summer included pro’s like Leanne Pelosi, Peter Line, Jamie Anderson, Sketchy D, Hana Beaman, Josh Sherman, Jacqui Berg and Dustin Craven. Lucky little Bastards.

Meet Mini Shred. Real name: Taylor. At 11 years old Mini Shred was the youngest competitor in Burton NZ Open.

At 4′10 Mini was the shortest rider in the Burton NZ Open. At 4′10″ this method air is 4 times the height and 10 times the length of Mini Shred.

It really is all about the riding for both the camps though. Snowpark provides the ultimate training facility with a perfectly cut pipe and Breckenridge style wedge jumps and rails as well as a Progressive Park that offers mini wedges, some walls and some ride on rails for those working their way up the freestyle progression ladder. Every few days or so, especially depending on if the mountains got a good dump overnight, both Cardrona and Treblecone were the camps destination for some more freeriding focused days. Treblecone’s known for it’s steep in bound terrain while Cardrona is full of natural whoop-de-doos that make for a jib friendly day. Interested in a heli trip? New Zealand boasts some of the best Heli Boarding in the world right in Wanaka’s back door, and both camps offer opportunities to Heli. (That is weather depending and if your wallet can handle it.)

Lizzie Beerman was another ripper training down in New Zealand this summer. She had her 16th birthday down here and is looking forward to getting back to the States to get her drivers liscense. Although Lizzie rides out of the Stratton Mountain School with the well respected coach Mike Mallon, the Icarus crew adopted her for an afternoon of riding where she more than proved herself worthy to all the boys...

Lizzie’s also got quite the crail up her sleeve. (Gnu, DC)