Life of Bot

It''s been snowing...

...and Asa Martinez has been my right hand man for getting some shots early in Tahoe. We've gotten about 7 feet of snow in the last week and Tahoe is starting to look real good. Asa called me up for some early shred and got me motivated to shoot. In fact, all I've been concerned with is shredding. I get up to the hill early and ride pow until it disappears, then come home and spend time with the fam. Asa's been real motivated to get shots, calling and keeping in touch daily. It's normal for me to come home from a day of riding, relax, eat some food, throw on some pj's and watch some snowboard movies. Asa does not allow me to do this. If I'm even showing a hint of "nah bro, I'm at home chilling, he will be like "ok, I'm coming over" and will not take his shoes off and stand there until I get up and go shoot with him. Young riders take note of this, it works, well...at least on me.
    I know the current economic climate is not great, especially for Snowboarding companies, but keep an out for this kid. Asa Martinez is as hard working as they come and he has a lot of talent.

(Asa getting busy on this blunt stall)

South Lake Tahoe Aerial

    (Heavenly with Lake Tahoe in the background)

    This photo was taken out the window of a Southwest Airplane heading to Los Angeles. I see this all the time and always appreciate it and wanted to share it with you. When I get on a plane, I always think about what I might see from a window seat from whatever travel destination I am heading to. In the case of flying to Los Angeles from Reno, you fly south, so therefore, if you should pass by the lake, you want to sit on the left side of the plane from the position you enter it, for that side will be facing west. Try it sometime.
    On a second note, this photograph was taken Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2008. As you can see, Tahoe is severly in need of snow. Heavenly is open, but it's just the small portion at the top. We all need to pray for snow!!!

"On My Own Two Feet" in their own two bindings

            (Check out the dope)

    While I was in Argentina this summer, I decided to bring my Prior split 165 in case we were to encounter any hiking missions. Always better to be prepared. For some reason, I decided to bring a new pair of bindings along with me to try out on the split. Well, the effects of that decision managed to make the first week of my trip uncomfortable, embarrassing, and humbled me back to beginner status. I'm no ripper, but, I can get down the frickin' mountain. I expressed my issue to our guide, Skylar Thorton, and he offered me a solution in letting me borrow his Spark R & D split-board bindings. The difference between the Spark R & D and normal bindings on a typical Viole setup is similar to going snowboarding one day with oversize boots and the next with boots that fit correctly. When your boots are too big, you tend expend more energy within your legs to counteract the amount of slack that you have in your boot. With boots that fit, the respond time is immediate and efficient.
    I came back and told my buddy Chris Edmands about my experience with these bindings and he told me he had been working together with Spark R & D on the "On My Own Two Feet" project. He then informed me that he had been sent a pair with the "On My Own Two Feet" logo engraved into the binding. Ryan Baca, lead singer/guitarist of Wake Up Lucid, designed the "On My Own Two Feet" Logo and is also a good friend of mine. Knowing how dope these bindings are, and appreciating the significance of Chris's contribution to the snowboard world, along with the sweet design, it was a no brainer to get a pair of these for my own.
    I'm heading to Mayrhofen, Austria Wednesday and I'm bringing my split with me. I'll let you know how it it handles the foreign powder.

Check out this video on how to make your own split-board