Extreme carving stuff

[Dave]

Istvàn makes it a habit to turn around freestylers and show them some good carves!

He was talking about publicity, now my question is, are there any ideas about publicity-stuff?

I know there a some stickers (thanks Patrice ), but are there other things like patches?


Dave

[raphael]

I won't answer because i don't know.

But i think this kind of publicity on the slope is needed.

All the hardbooters that i met thought they where dinosaurs practicing a disapearing discipline, all that because they didn't think of searching the internet for others. Just tell them carvers are online, new gear is available every year, and the technique is evoluting, and you'll make them very happy.

[frunobulax]

Yesyesyesyes!!

Revolution starts here! It's all about PR...

John et al. - The New Testament
Martin Luther - 95 Theses
Isaac Newton - principia mathematica
Karl Marx - Das Kapital
Miles Davis - A Bitches Brew
J&P feat. us - https://www.extremecarving.com
.......

[István]

Frunobulax,

Very good and valid point!

As for the stickers, where did you get those, guys. I've seen them in Zinal on the cars and I wished if I had one....

Kindest,

István

ps.: Just one addition to the revolution: I tried many times, but never succeeded in turning a freestyler into a carver, not even in cases where the freestyler was closer to being a carver than to a freestyler, meaning never been off-piste or in half-pipe or in funparks. U C, fashion rulez....

[Dave]

I tried many times, but never succeeded in turning a freestyler into a carver

You can always show a "softy" [man or women on softboots] what we hardguys can do, but we must NEVER force someone!!! LOST EFFORT
If they wouldn't listen, that there choice!

I tell you one thing: there are lots of men and women out there who are good riders, but they stand on soft!
Tell them they there technique will much improve on hardboots!
I could convince my brother AND my 50-year old dad, so there is still hope to convert people to the church of J&P (and Nils)

And if there are more hardbooters, maby the price will decrease what will be a good thing for us !!!

So spead the word: lets carve and have fun (and go to extremecarving.com )

Dave

[Silber]

Well, how can u convert them if they can't even rent hardboots to try a board? I brought a friend of mine to Zinal with his softboard. He wanted to try and he had the money to buy a swoard, and everything else, but there were no boots available in the whole town (not even to buy - I searched well to find anything to replace my broken Burtons) and that was the resort home to the extremecarving reunion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

IT IS ABSOLUTELY R-I-D-I-C-U-L-O-U-S.

Find me a solution and then talk to me about hardboards revolution...

Augh

[Dave]

That's a problem, I agree!!!

Dave

[István]

Francesco,

You are ABSOLUTELY right! That's a big issue. I remember that 9 years ago when I started snowboarding I could rent relatively good alpine boards and boots for relatively low price in Austria. Now that is all gone! Leave alone renting, even buying is impossible in most of the shops at ski resorts.

So what do we expect if this product cannot be bought in local shops, cannot be rented at resorts, and cannot be seen on TV??

Let's face it, we'll stay a small group of enthusiastic people. Frankly, I don't mind it.

Kindest,

Istvan

[gobutchul]

Yeah, I have the same experience regarding the total absence of any alpine gear to rent or buy in french ski resort shops: I didn't mind it too until my last trip (3 weeks ago), when my old but trusted burton alp asym started delaminating...

To avoid ruining it completely, i get back to a (still older ) PJ, but didn't like it: it was not sharp enough (my fault, i did not sharpen it before going) and too wide (contrary to many guys here, I believe I prefer a 20 cm wide, I have small feet and find angles around 60 quite comfy ).

So I did what I used to do years ago: go to rent some snowboards, try different models and buy what I like...and then thnings go pear shaped: no shop had nothing remotely like a modern alpine, some even telling me "alpine is dead", "with modern technology, you can do the same with a freeride board, who need too stiff board and hardboots?" (yeah, right... ), "go back to your cave you neanderthal" (no this one I make up myself )...

I try many shops in "les 3 vallees", in courchevel and la tania...and the only shop that tried to be helpfull was owned by english peoples...The boss was into boardercross and they had a couple of boardercross f2 (whose egdes were rusted, nobody had rented it since the beginning of the season!)...

It was a little bit too wide and too soft for me, so I did not take it and finish the week on my (partially) delaminated alp, which managed to stay in one piece

Well, at least they tried and had something a little bit different to propose, but the fact is that they were the only one, so goodbye for my old technique (rent to test, buy if you like), now I have to buy blindly (and this is not easy because my last experience is with asym burton boards, i have no mark for judging modern alpine on look and data sheets )....So for now, ebay is my friend...

So although this is not a problem when your old gear is functional, when you want to buy new stuff you suffer, testing has become a nightmare (I have to convince my ski-friends to go to zinal or les 2 alpes (in october ), so that I can test a swoard and mybe other modern boards, not easy because I am the only snowboarder in the group!

And shame on the French, France was one the the center of alpine snowboarding when I started, softboots was rare on the slopes and not so easy to find in shops... and now it seems they are the most non-alpine country in europe, in switzerland I saw more alpine boards earlier in the season, and all alipne gear on ebay seems to come from germany and austria...

But, besides this tendency to blindly follow sport fashions, I like france a lot, hey, I am almost french, I am french speaking belgian (so please excuse my english mistakes ) and most of the time I go in the french alps for ski hollidays....

I also think situation may improve a little bit in the future, I saw more alpine riders on the slopes than last year, and once there is enough potential customers, shops will get alpine gear again and say "well, if you want to go fast and carve deep you really need this supa-stiff ultra race board with e-track titanium" without any shame whatsoever

Regards,

Greg.

[raphael]

Let's face it, we'll stay a small group of enthusiastic people. Frankly, I don't mind it.

Face it, when your shoes will be broken, you'll mind again.

[Jakob]

The thing I came across is that now everybody who wants to try or learn snowboarding starts on soft gear. Everything is taught on soft gear. In Slovenia (don't know how is it elsewhere) even lessons for instructors are taught and require soft gear. And I suppose it is indeed more comfy and easier to learn on soft gear. You know, to learn how slide, to turn the board without falling every 1,5m. But unfortunately very few progress later on on hard stuff, remaining on soft gear. Why? Also because it's more comfortable and because they live in belief that with stiffer soft equipment or BX equipment you can do everything as with an alpine board. I've been told that a noumerous, countless times actually, and I'm still not able to convince some people that for piste riding, groomed hard slopes there is nothing that comes close to alpine gear.

I tell them go ride soft gear in powder or snow park, sliding on groomed piste only makes moguls.

Bye,

Jakob

[Dave]

And I suppose it is indeed more comfy and easier to learn on soft gear

I disagree, I learned snowboarding on hardboots (on my one).
The reason why I still stand on hardboots is because the response is MUCH better! (and other reasons of corse )
So if one want to begin with snowboarding, it should be on hardboots to learn the correct movements of turns!

If you ask someone "Why snowboarding?"
They give you this: it's cool and the boots are much more comfortable then hard skiboots!
I can tell you, 50% of these guys don't have any idea how to turn, they just move there shoulders a bit and that's all!

Today I had an idea, why don't patrice and jacque make connections for a "EC"-jacket?
A few ideas for the jacket:
1. well connecting with the upper body
2. good materials
3. nice colour
4. a logo

any other ideas?

It would be a great view next meeting if 150 people or more came down in the same colours

dave

[fluke]

Also because it's more comfortable and because they live in belief that with stiffer soft equipment or BX equipment you can do everything as with an alpine board.

And it's true: Nowadays you can do everything as with an alpine board--almost, that is. Edge control may be better with hardboots, but: On my local hill there's a snowboard instructor giving carving lessons to a small group about every weekend I'm there. Instructor rides a softboot setup, and he for sure rips. I'd be happy if I were able to ride my alpine setup the way he rides his freeride board. No EC style though but with more grace and style than most hardbooters I spot on the hill. Can you say Soulcarving?

So to do some public relations for EC you'd have to be a freakin' awesome good rider. Imagine someone with a signal red jacket reading "Extreme Carving Squad" in bold letters on the back--only to proof himself a moderate carver. How embarrassing would that be?

fluke

[Dave]

So to do some public relations for EC you'd have to be a freakin' awesome good rider. Imagine someone with a signal red jacket reading "Extreme Carving Squad" in bold letters on the back--only to proof himself a moderate carver. How embarrassing would that be?

It was just a thought to improve the group feeling along carvers
Perhaps a system with stars on the shoulder like in the army according to your level of riding

dave

[Rob Stevens]

Your "uniform" could be your worn-through gloves, jacket and pants.
Around here, nobodys clothes have holes in them like they used to when alpine actually had a toehold in the market.
My wife just bought a suit from Orage (a Canadian company) that is made of mostly Cordura. I'm jealous of it as my clothes are looking pretty worn after only 20 days in soft gear with only 6 or so laid turns a day.
next time I'll stay on topic.
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