The Bay Sixty-6 Skatepark is known as one of the best in London, England. This park is inexpensive to use, located close to the tube and has numerous skating features to experiment on. BMXers, inline skaters and skateboarders are all welcomed at this park, however, bikers are restricted to the street course during most of the week. If you live in London or are planning a visit and you are looking for a great skatepark to try out this weekend then dress in your favorite skater shorts and try out Bay Sixty-6 Skatepark.

Getting to Bay Sixty-6 Skatepark

You can find Bay Sixty-6 Skatepark at Bay 65-66, Acklam Road in London, England W10 5YU. It is located close to the Ladbroke Grove Tube stop so it is easy to get to. If you plan on taking the bus, then you can take buses numbered 7, 23 or 52 to Ladbroke Grove, and then walk the rest of the way to the skatepark. At the park you will find a street course, a vert, medi ramps and a variety of quarter and half pipes.

Rules for Bay Sixty-6 Skatepark

There are only a few rules for using the Bay Sixty-6 Skatepark. Rule number one is that you will need to wear a helmet at all times if you are a biker or an inline skater. Skateboarders, on the other hand, will only be required to wear a helmet when they ride the vert. Another rule is that you have to sign up for a free park membership.

Price and Sessions

There are two skating sessions during the week and three skating sessions on the weekends. On Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays you can skate from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. or from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays you can skate from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. or from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m. On the weekends the morning session is scheduled from 10 a.m. until 12 p.m, the afternoon session is scheduled from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. and the evening session is scheduled from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. The price for skating here is six pounds for a four or five hour session and three pounds for the morning sessions on the weekends.

Talk about a youth movement in women’s surfing! How about the Honda U.S. Open champion who will turn 15 in August? She’s surfer Malia Manuel of Wailua, Kauai, who defeated another Hawaiian, Coco Ho, who is all of 17. The teen revolution took place July 26 at Huntington Beach, south of Los Angeles, known to the world as Surf City USA.

Malia was a wild card because she had not entered enough events to be seeded, and she modestly said she was fortunate to catch a few good waves on a slow overall day. The surf averaged only 2 to 3 feet.

What will she do with the $4,500 prize?

“I think I’m going to buy some tires and rims for my Honda Civic, so when I’m 16, I can drive it.” A youth movement indeed. She also said she felt “stoked.”

She added, “I was just happy to be here. To get to surf against some of my heroes and to be in the final with my friend Coco is just something I would have never dreamed of.”

Coco also has a wavy future and said she felt “over the moon” just to make the finals. She’s the daughter of the legendary Michael Ho and the niece of former world champ Derek Ho. She took in $2,300 as women’s runner up and copped another $3,000 earlier in the day as the women’s junior winner. These days in surfing, it’s tough to tell the women from the girls.

The full, somewhat bulky competition title is “GO211 LIVE featuring the Women’s Honda U.S. Open of Surfing presented by O’Neill.” Whew! That’s a wave in itself, but sponsorship is a needed avenue to take the sport to a higher level.

Sources:
www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-surfing27-2008jul27,0,1283027/la-sp-su7.story
www.surfline.com/surfnews/surfwire/cfm?id=13420
www.freesurfmagazine.com/Volume-5-Number-3/Garden-Isle-Girl-Malia-Manuel...

To ride a snowboard is to embark on one of the most physically demanding sports on the planet. You need a lot of energy. Where do you get energy? From carbs. What kind of food has a lot of carbs? Pasta. So ciao, baby, you should be on your way to Italy!

No, not Rome or Venice. (You could make a stopover, of course.) You have to head for the mountains.

Our planet’s best, the Alps, are in Switzerland, but northern Italy has its share of killer slopes. There is world-famous Torino, for example. Was it just two years ago they had the Olympics? Seems like longer. Regardless, the best Italian snowboarding getaway possibly might instead focus on cozy little towns without a bunch of pretentious ritz and glitz. You could find a place like this by skiing the web. (Can’t we ski the web, or even snowboard the web?) One example is Prato Nevoso, which is advertised as having “plenty of trails, a superpipe, a world-class terrain park, a friendly local vibe and excellent Italian coffee.” And nary a Starbucks.

Italian resorts, in general, tend to be cheaper and less crowded than their European counterparts. Does this mean worse? Well, several snowboarding mags say Italy is becoming more popular. Freestyle facilities still have some catching up to do, but freeriding is up to par with neighbors to the north. Lift systems are extensive, but at some sites they have not been upgraded in a while. This does not mean that you would fall, only that they have not been upgraded in a while. But bottom line, “cheaper and less crowded” are valid selling points. So is a fantastic dinner of pasta primavera, with anchovy of course.

When you are on the road, keep in mind that Italians indeed are the planet’s fastest drivers. After all, this is the home of the Ferrari.

Montana is not the first place you think of when you think of skateboarding vacation destinations, however, Missoula, Montana is quickly developing into a great skater community. This city is the home of the University of Montana, two skateparks, numerous skateboarding events and countless opportunities to skate in the great outdoors. If you are looking for a hidden jewel of a skateboarder vacation destination, come to the Garden City.

Missoula Skateboarding Parks

There are currently two skateboarding parks in Missoula, Montana. The first is the YMCA Skatepark of Missoula. It can be found at 3000 Russell St., which is in the southeastern corner of the city. The YMCA Skatepark of Missoula is the city’s oldest park. The second, and best park in Missoula, is the Mobash Skatepark, located on the corner of Orange Street and Glens Lane, which is just across the Orange Street Bridge on the west side of the street. This is a large outdoor concrete park with about 15,000 square feet of skating terrain, two bowl features and a street course. This park is the home to numerous skateboarding events each year.

Missoula Skating Events

Missoula is a community that enjoys outdoor fun, and since the opening of the Mobash Skatepark, the city has continuously added new skateboarding events each year. Free skateboarding and extreme sport demonstrations are common events that you can sit in on. Other events include the Go Skateboarding Day! and Skate Jam. Check out the Independent or the Missoulian for the latest event dates and venues.

Buying Boards in the Garden City

While in Missoula don’t forget to do a little shopping. Whether you are looking for a light jacket to skate in or custom boards, you find what you are looking for along the Higgins boardwalk in downtown Missoula or in one of the many shopping districts in the city. Some of the places you can buy boards and gear include:

▪ Edge of the World, 618 S. Higgins
▪ Bob Ward and Sons, 3015 Paxson St.
▪ Gart Sports, 2640 N. Reserve St.
▪ Play It Again Sports, 2230 N. Reserve St.

There are very definite perks to surfing Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii. Famous for some of the best surfing in the world, Waikiki Beach is an ideal place for beginning surfers, as well as the experienced surfer. Beginning surfers will find the waves are gentle and ideal for someone who has not yet built confidence in the sport. On the other hand, surfers will have the challenge of sharing the waves with many surfers that inundate the beaches of Waikiki daily.

There are several places to surf along the coastline of Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii; however, some of the more popular places include Canoes and Queens. Though there are other more challenging places to surf in Honolulu, Hawaii besides Waikiki Beach, expect to see decked out locals in board shorts , as well as experienced and pro surfers in the latest gear, with tricked out boards, preparing to take on the waves at Waikiki Beach.

Many people come to Honolulu, Hawaii with visions of movies and undertake the challenge of taking surfing lessons. Waikiki, Beach is definitely one of the best places to take surf lessons as they are readily offered to beginners and surfers of all levels, and the waves are perfect for beginning surfers. Surf lessons generally cost approximately $35 per hour, with board rental starting at about $10 per hour.

To surf Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, fly from a major airport into Honolulu, Hawaii. There are many large oceanfront properties where surfers can select hotel accommodations and have easy access to the beach. Most hotel properties have information on surfing lessons, board rental, surf camps and other surf-related activities. Expect prices to be high in Honolulu for hotels. Other less costly options are offered particularly for surfers willing to share condominium space and rental of cottages, which is an ideal choice for a group trip.

If you are going to visit Waikiki Beach to surf, visit the Surf Museum, which has the history of the sport of surfing and the evolution of surf boards from redwood to current day foam and fiberglass boards.

What can be said about the Mobash Skatepark in Missoula, Montana? It is in the heart of a recreational wonderland, close to a river, close to hiking trails, close to the University of Montana and close to the Downtown shopping district. Whether you are visiting Missoula, or you live here, this is a skatepark you won’t want to miss.

Mobash Skatepark – Missoula, Montana

The Mobash Skatepark is a 15,000 square feet and found near a recreational development just across the Orange Street Bridge in Missoula, Montana. You can find this skatepark on the corner of Orange Street and Gregs Lane. This is a concrete skatepark with a great selection of bowl and street course features. You will be required to wear a helmet, but pads are optional. However, if you value your knees and skin, wear appropriate padding.

The highlight of this park is its bowl features. Here you will find one large bowl that has depths that vary from about six feet to about eight feet and a kidney bowl. Inside the main bowl formation, you will find a cradle, bank walls and pool coping. The kidney bowl also offers coping and easy in and out banking. If you are a street course aficionado, you will love the one at the Mobash Skatepark. This course offers a granite surface, terraced inclines, rails, ledges and a long back wall.

Boarding and Skating at the Mobash

This park was designed specifically for skaters and skateboarders. Bikes aren’t allowed in this park, which makes things safer for all involved. This park is a great place to host a birthday party or just hang out with your friends. The community loves this park, and it is the site of many thrilling free skating and boarding demonstrations. You will even occasionally see extreme sports stars make guest appearances at these events.

So, while you are taking a break from hiking, rafting or visiting the University of Montana, pull on a pair of board shorts and stop by to dive into a bowl or practice riding rails at the Mobash. It’s not a bad way to spend an afternoon.

Sexy Charlotte Dutton of London, with bleach-blonde bangs to her eyebrows and maximum red lipstick , has never been a big winner in pro snowboarding. She knows that her main meal tickets will be something else: modeling and fashion design.

How can primping and riding be connected? We shall let Charlotte explain: “Modeling and snowboarding did conflict at times because I’d come back from skiing with tan lines, or sometimes even a broken arm, and the agency would have to wait until I got rid of my goggle marks or out of the cast.”

The young lady nicknamed “Sugar Charlie” (mmmm!) still enters a few half-pipe competitions. She also makes some snowboard cash as a coach, both with celebrities and with the common clay.

On the fashion front, she has designed snowboarding gear for Topshop, “Moto SNO by Charlotte Dutton.” Once she was asked why such a high-street name as Topshop would be interested in mere snowboarders, rather than the real fashionable people. Sort of like, “Take that, all of you raggedy-butt snowboarders.” She now is preparing designs for her new venture, Misticom. She aims to accommodate her two lifestyles, such as designing a jacket “that looks casual enough for the gym but also nice enough to wear to a casting,” such as when she must speedily traverse “from a snowboarding competition in Austria to a casting in Paris.” Ah, yes, a dilemma to which all the ladies can relate.

Sugar Charlie has competed a few times in Europe, but mostly in the United States and Canada. She says she has found her second home at Whistler Blackcomb, British Columbia, a popular spot for youth camps. “It’s great for kids whose parents are going away somewhere and don’t want to take their kids,” she says. Seriously.

Charlotte also explains, in a politically correct manner, why she has extra affection for summer snowboarders: “I like it when it’s hot and sunny. Don’t get me wrong, I love skiing in powder, but the people who go in summer are those who are really into snowboarding, as the rest of the world seems to head off on summer holidays to relax on beaches rather than get the adrenaline pumping up a mountain.”

Wait. Sugar Charlie isn’t finished. Back to the modeling mode: “And, it’s hot so you get the best tan, which is great for me who is really pale.” You go, girl!

SOURCES

charlottedutton.com
coolermag.com/blogs/charlotte_dutton/
femalefirst.co.uk//travel/Professional+snowboarder+gives+her+top+tips+for+summer+snow-668.html

Don’t you think it’s only fair that Valdez, Alaska should be known for something other than the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill? Well, how about some fantastic snowboarding ?

Valdez hosts the King of the Hill Snowboard Championship, along with the World Extreme Skiing Competition. In the 1995 movie “ Endless Winter ,” audiences were thrilled to see a quartet of snowboarders descending the slopes of Valdez. In the 1997 Teton Gravity Research film called “Harvest,” Valdez again was the primary location. So it seems that if you liked or flat out loved either or both of those flicks, you might want to head up toward Prince William Sound and see for yourself.

Promoters of Valdez Heli-Camps proclaim that they are “the logical choice for your next snowboarding vacation,” featuring the steep lines and dry powder of the Chugach Mountains. The lodge is right in the center of the village, which means you can feast on a home-cooked meal before walking out to enjoy the nearby nightlife.

Valdez has five glaciers. Can you beat that? The mountains get 600 to 900 inches of snow each season. And you can get there by highway, air or cruise ship.

The folks in Valdez are big on history, with several museums to visit. Settled in the late 19th century, it was rooted in fur trading, salmon canning, and gold and copper mining. They didn’t quite yet have snowboarding back then, but you get the picture.

Then, of course, came the lower portion of the 800-mile Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline during the early 1970s, and we know what happened in ’89. The Valdez Chamber of Commerce advertises that “seawaters abound with sea otters, Dall porpoise, harbor seals, Stellar sea lions, & Humpback and Orca whales.” The folks of Valdez deserve a break, and so do you. You can e-mail info@valdezhelicamps.com or call (907) 783-3243 to learn more about Valdez Heli-Camps.

Sources:
www.evostc.state.ak.us/History/index.cfm
www.valdezalaska.org
www.valdezhelicamps.com/heli-snowboarding.html