Chatham Slope Refit

Chatham has just finished having their teaching slope re-laid with shiny new PermaSnow and now the matting to relay the main slope has arrived and work has already started.

Picture shows the main slope. The black area is the new underlay going down on top of the old padding, so the slope will be extra soft once it’s finished.

Both slopes are open as usual and work will be carried out in such a way that they will remain open, so Rookie Nights on Wednesday and Freestyle Nights on Thurdsday will continue.

The main slope should be completely finished by the end of August!

New Box At Chatham

Just finished work on our newest toy, a mellow rainbow box, that can be extended into a rollercoaster box.
We’ve been working on a load of smaller toys more suited to the less able riders, but still rad fun for the more advanced riders who want to get creative, and this is the first thing off the list of toys to build.

FBBB @ Braehead – Friday 22nd May

For Boarders By Boarders rolls into Glasgow next week for the first event of this year’s series. 

Friday May 22nd will see 2 riders pick up their tickets to October’s final at Milton Keynes, with freestyle coaching from Maverix plus the usual blend of music & live art to get things pumping like only FBBB can!

The park plan looks sick (click for full size) so if you can make it up there next Friday, it looks like it’ll be a night not worth missing!

Free Drinks @ Phat Rotations

If you’re heading to Bracknell on Saturday, make sure you print yourself out some vouchers for buy one get one half price on Budweiser. There are also some buy one get one free vouchers if you’re sticking to the soft stuff!

Phat Rotations Pre-Registration

Bracknell will be playing host to Phat Rotations this weekend with a £5 discount if you register in advance.

If you give the guys at Bracknell a call on 01344 789002 from tomorrow (12th May) you can get yourself on the slope for just £15. It’s well worth noting that Bracknells’s Perma Snow has been replaced lately and it’s a lot faster and much nicer to ride than the previous matting, so don’t let any bad experiences on the stuff put you off!

With 17 different toys out on the slope and prizes from a whole host of sponsors including our friends over at Never Summer, we’re looking forward to it!

SnowCorps Summer Media Challenge

With snowdomes, dryslopes, flights to the Southern Hemisphere, glaciers a hop across the channel away and street rails in every town, summer is no reason to put your kit away.

SnowCorps have launched the Summer Media Challenge to offer up a whole host of awards for the best photos/videos that the UK ski/snowboard community can put together over summer. We’re looking for teams of 5 to put together the best video and/or photos they can from June to September.

You can check out all the information for teams right here and once you’ve put a team together, drop us a line at snowcorps {at} gmail.com to register.

Hemel Hempstead’s New Snowdome!

“The best snow this side of the alps” it sounds a little bit cliché but could not be more true for Hemel Hempstead’s  new and  very anticipated snowdome. As a few of us had arrived for the special PR day we were greeted with free drinks and food just for us.  They had a fantastic bar  that was very homey with different areas for observing, resting, eating, an outside terrace to watch the slope. They even had computers where you could pick up your pre booked tickets helping save a lot of time. 

Before we tested out the slope and had some fun on the rails, the box and the kicker they had built, we had a little tour of the facility and talked to the staff about their future  freestyle plans. Even there beginner ski and snowboard equipment. were very new and fresh and looked very stable and good for learning. 

As we got onto the slope everyone was keen to show off the tricks and manoeuvres in there snowboarding arsenal. With an extremely good box and a set of rails made by Steve Terry, everybody was having a fantastic time in the new snowdome. Also the fact that you can see outside from the slope really helps you mind from being disorientated like in other snowdomes.

I never thought that the quality of the snow would really change freestyle that much but the amazing quality of snow they have really makes you feel like you’re shredding in the mountains, with perfect grip and texture that gives you that unbeatable carving feeling. And the most comforting thing was the fact the staff were really interested into getting into the freestyle side of skiing and snowboarding and really wanted to help it evolve in the UK.

Overall I would say that Hemel Hempstead’s  new snowdome will be an amazing success in the future and I cannot wait till it opens up its freestyle park to the public so I can get my shred on  in this awesomely constructed snowdome.

Keith McIntosh R.I.P.

McNab Snowsports coach Keith McIntosh, who was responsible for developing some of Britain’s brightest young talent, was tragically caught in an avalanche at the board test Kaunertal, Austria on the 5th May. 

Our thoughts are with his family and Sam Rogers has set up a page in memory of Keith if you would like to leave your own tribute.

April Tap ‘N’ Spin

Farmers Jam

One of the highlights of the UK calendar is undoubtedly Norwich’s annual Farmers Jam.

The dates are confirmed as 18-20th September and it’s bound to be an awesome weekend as usual!

We’ll be posting up more details as soon as we have them.

3rd Tap ‘N’ Spin, & Freestyle Competition, March 26th @ Chatham!

This coming Thursday sees the third monthly Tap ‘N’ Spin session at Chatham, we’ve planned a sick park that is suitable for all standards of riders.

Music provided as always by some of Kent’s top underground DJs from Tap ‘N’ Tin. UoK students are also putting on a small freestyle competition with spot prizes for best tricks and a rider judged element.

And this is all included in the usual Chatham Freestyle Nigh Price. And don’t forget we are still running our loyalty cards, and they are still valid on the Tap ‘N’ Spin sessions.

Phat Rotations

Put it in your diaries, Phat Rotations the competition formerly know as Jumps, Bumps and Two Smoking Turn Tables is all set for May 16th at Bracknell. The details are yet to be confirmed but they already have Mountain High, SS:20 and Never Summer on board to contribute prizes, sounds like it’s going to be epic!

FBBB 09

2009 series dates:

- Friday 22nd May – Braehead, Scotland
- Date TBC – Hemel Hempstead opening
- Saturday June 27th – Tamworth
- Sunday July 12th – Skaterham (skate jam in the church)
- Friday August 14th – Castleford, Leeds
- August date TBC – Park re-opening session at Snowworld – Landgraaf, Holland
- Saturday September 5th – Chill Factor, Manchester
- Saturday October 10th – Milton Keynes (Finals)

With Maverix Snowcamps on board to coach beginner freestylers and Humanbeatbox providing the entertainment in the bar, there’s no reason to not see you there and if you’re in the top 2 at one of the events you’ll get to ride at the MK finals for free.

Jib Vid Teams Announced

Photo: GMC Concepts and Events

Entries are closed and the the teams have been announced for the Oakley Jib Vid competition 2009. It’s all going off in Mayrhofen from 25th to 27th March where British filmer Tom Elliot will be teaming up with Joonas Mustanen and Niki Korpela to try and retain the most stoked film title for Team Onboard.

We Want You!

Snow Corps is about the UK snowboard scene by the UK snowboard scene and we need you to join the movement!