Old man winter battled back and gave us some fresh powder on May 29th. Nick Poohachoff, Dylan James, and myself headed out to Blue Lakes, CA to get some of the last goods.
Two friends sit on top of a mountain
Life
27
Jan 11
Crack The Whip
I just got off a 7 day trip. I now have 4 days to finish the photos before I fly to Mammoth for another shoot. It’s time to Crack The Whip.
22
Nov 10
Powder Explorer: The Truck
Part two of the Powder Explorer rig is the truck. My few requirements were as follows. V8, 4×4, and 8ft Bed. The 8ft bed really narrowed down my searching. Originally I was hoping for a manual with a diesel tank but missed out on buying the only one I ever found. Just not a popular truck in my area. 
After a few wasted weekend looking at lower priced trucks I jumped into the $7,000 range and my mom found this beauty. 2002 Chevy 1500 with 116,000 miles.
29
Sep 10
I get hit in the head
This is how I met my roommate Kyle Ryan. I was shooting the Rome Pre Jib at Big Boulder and Kyle caught his edge on the wallride. Needless to say it was a quick meeting with no time to exchange names. Kyle is a great kid though + he taught me how to play blackjack.
* Watch my camera roll down the hill next to kyle.
16
Sep 10
Powder Explorer: The Sled
Over the summer I have been formulating a plan to go mobil and chase the powder. Along comes Pow Explorer (site) and boost my desire to do so even more. At the end of last winter I bought at 2004 Ski-Doo Summit 800cc 144 track from my buddy Kade. It is the first part of four that I need. Truck, Camper, and Trailer come next.
Aftermarket Handlebars
How fast do you want to go?
Hisssssss
27
Jul 10
Shreddy Times
Shreddy Times is a crew ran by Conor Toumarkine out of Lake Tahoe, CA. Conor is shooting some of Tahoe’s biggest up and coming riders and producing great web edits. This year I met up with Conor and his crew through Sam Hulbert for a backcountry session deep in the wilderness of Tahoe. Conor brought along Moss Hallady who landed this fine Back 10 Double Cork. Take a minute and check out the rest of the videos on his site www.shreddytimes.com
15
Jul 10
Winter in Summer: Big Boulder, PA
-Billy Keil AKA Bobby AKA Bobby Big Hands with a most proper backside tailslide
Every year I like to make it up to Big Boulder Ski Resort in Blakeslee Pennsylvania to shoot their park for the various magazine’s resort guide issues. Big Boulder is host to a park that has been in the Transworld Top 5 East Coast Park for the last 3+ years.
-Matt Bothfeld
Always down to get the best photography Big Boulder set me up with a closed park and access to it’s team of riders. It’s always a great time hanging out with some of my PA buddies and shooting photos. We has a session on their three jump line for most of the day before moving down to the plaza to shoot the rails. Dom Luza started off the rail riding with a quick switch backside boardslide on the DFD.
-Dom Luza switch backside boardslide
The day ended with a long session in the plaza on the down barrel rail. Trip Brown and Matt Roberge were there with video cameras so Bobby, Kyle, and Dom laid on the big business. After about 100 different tricks were done, everyone called it quits and headed into town for a bit of pizza before going our separate ways.
-Kyle Luza switch nosepress late at night
13
Jul 10
Winter in Summer: Stowe, VT Part 2
For the trip we were about to take on day 2, we sure did not wake up early enough. Mike, Justin and myself were late to bed seeing the night before was New Years and consequently we were late to rise. Once we did get ourselves up, it was for a quick breakfast before we piled into the jeep and hit the icy road. The destination of our drive I am still not allowed to speak of, but it is a local spot that has graced the cover of Easter Edge.
-Justin in the morning
We were hiking in from a new location that Pat said would shave about an hour off the hike and avoid the mean attack of a junkyard dog. The snow was about a foot deep and the hike was long but after two and half hours we arrived at the summit. I dug a quick pit to test the stability of the snow while Mike cut off some of the cornice and sent large amount of sluff down the slope. Last time I was here we had an avalanche so we played it on the safe side and avoided our original slope for one with a more mellow angle.
See you at the bottom
Pat went first, but we each took a ride down to the bottom. It was a steep and fun ride. Once at the bottom I set up my camera while the guys took a hike back to the top. This was Mikes first time riding deep powder and he did very well. Hooked on the pow, he hiked more then anyone and bagged a bunch of shots. Unfortunately our late morning was catching up to us as bad weather and the evening started approaching. We knew it was a long hike out so we ended the session early and started out. Arriving at the jeep in total darkness we each shared a beer and headed back to Pat’s house.
-Mikey B Natural Pow Rider
I had secured us passes to Stowe Mountain Resort and we spent the next two whole days riding on and off the resort on the Mount Mansfeild side. With lift access and fresh powder up to waist deep in some spots, these two days were probably the highlight of the trip. Pat’s guiding knowledge really shines at Stowe and he lead us to all the goods. Each line was untracked and he knew where all the cliffs, drops, gaps, and exits were.
-Mike Bennett in the Stowe Gondola
Eager to get some lines for myself and seeing I was at my favorite mountain on the east I road the whole first day without a camera. The second day we got to work and everyone snagged good photos on each run.
-Justin Mullen blast off a cliff in a cloud of powder
-Pat Walsh demonstrates how it’s done
-Justin leans back into a heel side
Justin, Mike, and myself were sad to leave but Mike had to get back to work and Justin and myself had to get ready for Tahoe. Stowe will always remain as one of my favorite mountain in the east coast. If you have the chance to go there you should take advantage of it. With early seasons that always have the pow its a great place to visit over that christmas break/new years break. A huge thanks to Pat. Without him this trip would not have been possible. Leave me a message if you would like to get Pat’s email for guiding trips with your own group.
L-R Pat Walsh, Justin Mullen, Mike Bennett
Don’t forget part one.
http://www.benbirk.com/blog/2010/07/09/winter-in-summer-stowe-vt/.
Justin recorded video and made an edit from the trip.
http://www.benbirk.com/blog/2010/01/05/stowe-vermont/
9
Jul 10
Winter in Summer: Stowe, VT
The following took place between December 30th, 2009 and January 3rd, 2010.
During the winter of 07/08 I lived in Stowe, VT and worked as Photo Editor at East Coast Snowboarding Magazine. My home mountain for that year was Stowe Mountain Resort and I fell in love with it’s woods and backcountry riding. Fast forward to the early winter of 2010 as Justin Mullen, Mike Bennett and myself are packed into Mike’s jeep on our way to Stowe.
Front & Back
By dusk we were deep into New York, heading north and took a quick moment to stop and stretch our legs. Once back on the road we continued north until we came to Crown Point, New York where the Lake Champlain Bridge used to stand. We were unaware that only days earlier the bridge had been demolished. This caused a two hour detour in our trip as we had to backtrack around the 110 mile long lake. Once on the other side it was a straight shot to my friend and our guide for the trip Pat Walsh’s house.
Lakeside view in NY
Creepy looking Mike with Cig
Lead by Pat Walsh a Stowe local who has been living in the town for 15 years. Day one started with a deep hike into the Notch of Stowe. Pat pointed out a steep section of the slope that would provide a good vantage point for some shots. Everyone took a slash in front of the camera and road down into the valley. Next up was a good sized cliff that required a dead eye aim to avoid all of the small trees in the landing. Both Justin and Mike landed tricks and avoided being impaled. We finished up the day with a fun and mellow ride down through the Notch to the Jeep.
Pat Walsh – Guide Man Extraordinaire
Mike Bennett slash in the Notch at Stowe.
Continued in Part 2.
http://www.benbirk.com/blog/2010/07/13/winter_stowe_part_2/