~*...the rockies and the steamers...*~

imagine you were in a city of 40,000 people in the middle of the desert where the only way you could get around was by bicycle....how would you decorate your bike so that other people don't mistake your bike for theirs, and more importantly so that people can see you at night. take that feeling and radically express it, and then you'll only begin to start understanding what its like to be on the playa. - triggering the spirit of the burn in virgins



randnorm video

stevie bell and kareem el-rafi in forum's that! booya, takin over yet another sport.

riding wisdom from a snow addikt

to me, snowboarding is yoga at 50km/h. you are forced to tune into every part of your body, use muscles that you didn't even think existed, all to maintain balance at high speeds. it takes a heightened awareness to stay on your feet when your balance is constantly questioned. if you're not balanced, you eat it...hard!



snowboarding is awareness and balance, with a healty dash of fuck yeah! even though it may seem as if a snowboarder is going straight down the hill, we are always on one edge or the other. the only time we are balanced perfektly between the two edges is when we are transferring from one to the other. it reminded me that balance is not a permanent state of existence, but rather what happens when we are moving from one side to the other.

of course my vision of balance being a temporary state between two opposites is kinda shattered when it comes to contact juggling.


hi jessie q! hi dawn! you fukkin rawk!

czech out more of dawn's dynamic manipulation here. such a radiant and talented goddess she is...and she rides too *drool*



liam and i on thursday night at c.o.p.


toni, mikhail, and liam


i was fortunate enough to shred another rocky mountain resort yesterday, nakiska. like c.o.p., this resort did not exist before the 1988 olympic games. it was made specifically for the alpine events and is located only an hour away from calgary in the beautiful kananaskis country.



nakiska, snow close to home!




nakiska is part of the resorts of the canadian rockies. even though it is the smallest of all the rocky mountain resorts, nakiska has a vertical drop of 2,412ft (still 3 times more than blue mountain and 1000ft more than whitewater).



the sun was shining and i was stoked to ride my second rocky resort of the season.



i was rockin' it solo, again. it seems that finding friends to ride with has been a challenge for me this season. i've been out 16 times already, and not once have i gone up with friends. that's alright, it didn't take me long to find someone to ride with. i met a beautiful goddess named debbie on my first chair, and spent the rest of the day ripping it with her.



i cut out the vents on my helmet and pulled my dreadlocks through them. it made people wonder if it was really my hair or not. i was happy to have more space in my helmet with less dreads takin up space.

nakiska boasts that it is groomed to perfektion, and the mountain was pure corduroy goodness. olympic length runs combined with perfektly groomed conditions made for incredible speeds and uber confident turns. it was a groomers paradise.



you can pick up some nutz speed on the runs at nakiska, and holy shit the goddess i was riding with kept me on my toes. i often had to catch up to her, and i ride pretty fukkin hard. i love it when people shatter the norm. you wouldn't think that a woman with two daughters (18 and 14) would ski as fast and hard as she does, and riding her motorcycle is her passion. fuck yeah!





the view from the peak of nakiska is breathtaking. i can't say enough about the rockies, they are epic. they are ancient. they are wise. they are a feast for the eyes and soul...and they are fukkin huge!







i don't think i've ever gone faster on my snowboard than yesterday at nakiska. holy shit the speed rush was fukkin intense! the runs were just long enough to give your legs a burn, but not so long that you have to take a break halfway down. the groomed conditions eliminated surprises, so you could carve with confidence. it really was one of the best days of riding i have ever experienced. most definitely the fastest i've ever gone on a board.





having someone familiar with the mountain to ride with for the day was a blessing. even better that she could not only keep up with me, but pushed me to keep up with her. mature, conscious, and realized goddess embracing speed on the snow. perfekt! it was awesome meeting you debbie. i know our paths will cross again (hopefully sooner than later).



an hour later, i was back at home in calgary. i am so thankful that a world class resort, olympic worthy, is so close to home. next up, sunshine village. two rocky resorts down, four to go. booya!

the steamers, a group of calgarian burners, were having a party last night, and i was stoked to go. kristin had to babysit liam, so she wasn't able to join me. she was kind enough to lend me her el-wire wings, so she was there in spirit. the wings went over really well. i received so many compliments on them. thanks kristin! your presence was most definitely missed.



the party was held at the epcor center for performing arts with two rooms of bangin beats and a bar. after gettin lost (the ticket said sw when it really was se), i arrived to a packed venue. bangin breakz were rockin the first room, and bumpin' techno in the second.

but what made this party so fukkin awesome were the people. burners are the most fun people to party with. they are creative. they are passionate. and they are fukkin good lookin!







this party definitely had a different vibe than last week's party. more radical inclusion and less politrix. there were more people, better beats, and more art and creativity. hooray art installations!





my friend kane created a beautiful bird suspended from the ceiling. pulling gently on the rope dangling from it would cause the bird's wings to move. awesome work kane! p.s. glad you enjoyed those dj soo sets. you can download more dj soo sets here.



grover, a former calgary burner who now calls seattle home, actually flew up from the states just for this party! it was awesome to see you grover. now that's dedication! and he brought with him a blessed and radiant goddess named lolo. *daaam*





normurai, grover, and jaycloud


pure playa wear baby!


it was great seein you arlen! all the best in montreal.


as i took a pikcha of lisa and lolo, lisa made a comment about how the photo would end up on my blog...and she was right. it is here on my blog. it got me thinkin about what blogs are, and more importantly what my blog is. my blog is a record of my life and the fascinating people i come across. but perhaps not everyone is as comfortable with their lives and pikchaz being shared online without their permission. even though my comments and pikchaz are mostly of a positive nature, i rekognize that i do not ask everyone permission to post their pikcha in my personal blog. so i'm asking all of you reading this to please tell me if you'd like a pikcha of you that i have posted removed.

thanks lisa for bringing this to my attention. sometimes i don't think of these things. p.s. you looked fukkin hawt on saturday night!



lara and taco


what an incredible evening of celebration and dancing with the calgary burning man community. it was an excellent way to end off an awesome day shredding the slopes.

this town is a whole lot of alright. the people in this town are top drawer. it takes one to know one, and like attracts like.

love and blessings

~*...normaste...*~