The End. This time I Promise

Soooo I have finally got around to getting samsmoothy.com online which means this end of this wordpress account. So to check out whats been going on with me head over to to my official new site, which will be updated regularly from hence forth with rants, rages, videos and photos from around the globe as well as a nifty wee widget thatl show you where I am located, which currently is the raging inferno of Perth, Western Australia. Got to work some time, though I’ve dodged the reality check of real world work quite well this year I think. So samsmoothy.com CHARRRRGGGGGEEEEE!!!!!!

I love playing SNAPPPPPP!!!!

So you really gotta laugh. I have not held back with how I have felt with this season that did not want to play

ball. A season that felt like one of those circuit bike rides that is uphill all the way yet you end up in the same place you started.

A season filled with some pretty large wrecks; three separate large landings on large rock type rocks and what was possibly my largest cliff ever an one of my biggest impacts into a late season snow pack. But the coup de grace came on a beautiful spring day, ski guiding this lovely english families children through the tiny slush jumps at Grand Montets. Landing a little short due to the slowing inrun saw me not quite square on my rotation. An edge caught put me on a slow awkward rotating fall to the couch yet again, first clutching at my knee then at my ankle when the boot was removed. Xray analyst doctor tall, dark and good looking had my boss making eyes an me making plans when after false hope as he pointed at an old break he then showed me the fat as fracture right through the largest part of my ankle, the talar dome.

So now to Sallanches Hospital for a scan to see if the recommended surgery is the best option. Good thing its lovely an sunny out hej….

peace.

My Last Ditch Verbier Qualifying Effort.

Enjoy I know I did.

Arrivals and Departures. The Recap.

So its unseasonably the time of year when the pin gets pulled on a very early spring and the mind vaults to plans for the off season as well as reviewing the reel from this rollercoaster season. As some may have noticed I was more than a little disappointed with how I ranked at the end of the Freeride World Tour, 14th for those with memories like mine.

The two lanes out of Russia. One for Ruskies the other for...'diplomats??'

So lets recap a little leaving Mother Russia I travelled to Fieberbrunn, Austria where things went better. Skiing in flat light I had a fun, fluid line with some ok snow but made a mistake upon landing, but was happy to wrap things up on the tour with my best result to date, somehow sure I would not be competing in Verbier.

The amazing prizegiving area at Fieberbrunn

 

SIgning autographs for the surprisingly large amount of fans, young an old.

One of the stranger things Ive seen on the road

On returning to Verbier as usual there was the usual partying with the usual suspects. But also some skiing with some rarely spotted, in these parts anyway, and moustachioed kiwis in the form of the infamous FlashModern boys, Mark Von Roy and Scotty Staples. Our head guide beanie boobs took us on a great day of jaunting around Verbier in the hectare sized storm that followed us around all day, good times were had due to the accompanying and also rarely spotted fresh snow.

 

Jane Goodall (beanie) leading the gorillas outa the mist

good ol on mountain apres ski panaches

 

After all those fun an games it was time to finally watch the Verbier Xtreme, the greatest freeride face and competition in the world. If ya havent won here you havent really won anything! A great day in the sun, tinged with a little frustration of course at not being up there throwing down with the boys. Massive respect to all those. And massive thanks to the guy who took the horror show fall an lived.

The deadly Bec de Rosses

 

After the ensuing party for the winners I ended up being lucky enough to get a day out with Tero Repo. But landing on a rock and destroying my beloved Volkl Shiros. But somehow we apparently still got some good shots, his word is always good enough for me!

Tero Repo. would you trust this man?

Getting another call to shoot later in the week, this time by the equally amazing Yves Garneau gave me a shot at redemption, spelt BIG. Headin to the same zone that I had tried with Tero, this time I hiked higher. Much higher. After Yves checked the landing an set up the shot Terrified Me skied two quick, sluffy turns before sending possibly the biggest air Ive purposefully stepped to. Impacting heavily and riding out with a first in the air torn by my yell was one of the best moments in this exceptionally tough season.

So its back to planning the next adventures and hanging out with the crew here before it all finishes up. For now.

Sprung

Hello all spring has sprung, the sun is shining the boys are having sex with the birds and the season is, like some of the younger boys, prematurely finishing up. Things have simply not wanted to go my way this season but Im fighting it out right til that fat ladys song blasts my eardrums to shreds.

Im now back in Verbier indulging in some fun and games, the p0ur another one and howl at the moon type of release needed after spending the last month constantly hopping around the globe competing on the Freeride World Tour. I will get a few photos and put together a little something more soon but in the mean time heres a couple of videos from my brief time riding with the worlds best.

 

The Build Up.

Soo after a short but stressful then enjoyable stopover in NZ to sort my russian visa I have arrived in the land of milk

and honey, more commonly know as the Republic of California. A glorious place where it just snowed 4 feet in 2 days to really get the motivation locomotion at full steam. Add in my last month of chalet girl antics, please read me being a chalet girl with the cooking and cleaning, no you gutter minded filth mongers providing the chalet girls themselves with the much needed exercise they need. Gotta avoid that first season 5. You know what I mean.

So we have a wonderful house of freeriders from all over the globe, making the simplest of conversations oft more interesting than they deserve.

one of the infamous homeless characters in Wellington

An appropriate welcome to america I thought.

Team NZ being strange as ever. Sam Lee and Zak Hogg

Marjas birthday cake ala Janina

Basti having a nap in his cave

the great california gold errrr powder rushThe epic cirque face at Kirkwood.

 

Freeride de Chamonix Self Edit

Heres a little edit I made of my 1st FWT stop. Enjoy with a cold glass of milk an cookies.