Some news from Nikita on a trip to Iceland for some lucky ladies - read and be very jealous....

Back in June, Nikita Snowboard Clip Contest winner Kasia Kwiecien from Poland and Zumiez sales supremos (US) won a trip of a lifetime, courtesy of Nikita.  They spent a few days exploring the Icelandic way with the ruggedly refined Ásgeir Höskuldsson, AKA Geiri, International Marketing Manager at Nikita Clothing and General Manager / Moral supporter, Runar Omarsson.  They were soon aware of the vastly contrasting terrain and experiences Iceland had to offer. 

Their journey began when they arrived at Keflavik Airport, about a 40 minute journey from Reykjavik town centre and Nikita HQ.  They were escorted to the geothermal seawater of the Blue Lagoon for some relaxation, taken on a caving and snorkelling trip by Arctic Adventures in Þingvellir (a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site), had a blast at snowboarding on the glacier and even donned some serious wetsuits to hit the Icelandic surf.   The girls also met with founder and head design Heida Birgisdottir and her design team at the Nikita HQ.  Here’s what they had to say about their trip;

Kasia Kwiecien – Nikita Snowboard Clip Contest winner, 2008

I won the Nikita snowboard clip contest so I got the chance of going to ICELAND!!  On the June 16, in the early morning I went to Warsaw’s airport.  I got my flight to Reykjavik through Helsinki.  I was tired but I got some extra power when I saw the crew and video camera on my arrival. 

Then we went to the Blue Lagoon in this big sport-utility vehicle (it’s amazing that most people in Iceland have them!!).  We were chilling and got some beauty masks.  Then I left my stuff in the hotel and went to the Nikita House.  We ate there, drank menthol vodka and hit nails into the big log of wood.  Then we explored the beauty of Reykjavik through the night.  It was light all the time!!! 

In the morning (everybody was sleepy) and we went to a cave where Geiri showed us real nature.  After that we ate dinner ‘with’ the Prime Minister (the national park they were in is also home to the summer residence of the Prime Minister of Iceland) and got into these crazy suits. We went snorkeling into this cold water (it was 2° Celsius), jumping from the cliff there.  We looked really weird but that was funny. 

After that we spent a few hours in the car which smelled fishy (everybody except me and Shannon ate dry fishes with butter bleeeee), went to an outdoor swimming pool, ate dinner in a great fishy bar near the ocean and finally got to our hotel.  We then went to a party, which took place at the nearest campsite.  We met many funny people there.

Next day everybody was super tired!!!  We got into our snowboarding clothes and went to glacier!!!  That road was really crazy dangerous and the surrounding view was similar to that on the moon. We got to the top by snowmobile and had to use all of our abilities to get down. Later on we ate bad hamburgers, went for a walk (Runar saved us from some crazy birds) and got to the shore.  We dressed up in winter water suits (so we looked really sexy hehe), got boards and hit some waves!!!!  I coughed my first, and almost sank!!! 

We took some pics and came back to the Nikita house. There we ate probably the best pizza in Reykjavik and I got the chance of choosing some Nikita clothes (Yeah!!!! Thanks a lot!!!).  After that I got my stuff and had to head home.

I am sure it was the best trip of my life!!!  I’d like to thank all the Nikita Crew, people who voted for me and my friend Aram who was patient while recording me;)  ISLAND BEST Í HEIMI !

Shannon Johnson – Winner for her super sales at Zumiez

The Iceland trip was amazing.  I honestly want to go back and share my experience with my friends and family.  It is soooo gorgeous there!  Everything we did was so so much fun but if I have to choose what my favorite thing was, it was snorkeling.  The water may have been beyond freezing but it was amazingly beautiful.  It’s crazy how clear the water is.  Not in a million years would I have thought I would be in Iceland snorkeling in water that is like 5 degrees! 

I also loved snowboarding.  I didn’t ride for too long but the top of the glacier was so rad!  It wasn’t too clear up there and Geiri described it best by saying it’s like you’re in a ping pong ball.  Haha he is totally right!  You could only see like 20 feet in front of you.  It was pretty intense.  When it cleared up about halfway down it was really cool to see the ocean and the beach.  Everyone we met was awesome. 

Everyone was beyond nice to us.  I have never felt so welcome half a world away.  One super funny thing was when we were caving and Torfi (spelling?) described the end of the cave as kind of like you’re being birthed because you come out of this tiny hole in the earth.  So Geiri is the last one out of the cave and being the crazy guy he takes off his clothes and emerges from the hole with this fake cry.  Haha it was sooo funny.  He is quite the character. 

Jenn Huynh - Winner for her super sales at Zumiez

I thought Iceland was pretty much amazing.  I didn't expect the actual countryside to be so desolate and beautiful.  Everyone at Nikita was so nice and welcoming. 

Initially, I thought the language barrier would be an issue but I was totally wrong. Geri and Bjorn taught us some Icelandic phrases, helped us get acquainted with the Icelandic culture and cuisine and took us on some crazy adventures.  Snorkeling, caving and surfing in Iceland was certainly unexpected. 

The boys showed us a good time and I just want to thank everyone at Nikita, especially Runar and Geiri for being so awesoooome!

You can watch a video of the trip at http://www.youtube.com/nikitaclothing and http://www.vimeo.com/1322040 - Just click on the Nikita Iceland Roadtrip 2008

A bundle of great images are also available from throughout the trip, check them out here - http://bjornrosdahl.net/

So you’re going on holiday with your insanely tall boyfriend and don’t want him to grumble, or want to be able to stretch out your achy legs after a week of powder hiking – would be good to find out where the best seats on your plane are wouldn’t it?

Seatguru.com is a service from Tripadvisor which shows the seat layouts of planes used by the world’s major airlines and highlights seats you might want to try and bag – and those you want to steer clear of if possible.

Thankfully it doesn’t point out the blatantly obvious – that the seats in business class are always going to be more comfy than anything at the back….

The Animal Snow Camp crew just dropped us a line to say that places at this season's camp are filling up place so if you want to go along then it'd be a good idea to book up pronto!

There are five one-week camps starting on February 16, based in the BoardnLodge chalet in Argentiere, Chamonix. Each camps offers the chance to ride with Animal British pro riders.

Full details at www.animalsnowcamp.com

Due to early season snow storms and a base of almost a metre of snow, Whistler opened five days early on the 17th of November. Your reporter had commitments on the 17th but was able to travel up from Vancouver in the pouring rain that evening, ready for the first lift on Sunday morning.

Despite getting to the lift well before it opened, we were at the end of a long line of keen skiers and snowboarders. I have never before seen so many people clutching shiny brand new snowboards and wearing unscuffed new boots. The mood was distinctly stoked. There were only two gondolas and three chairs open (Whistler Village and Creekside gondolas, and Emerald, Franz's and Big Red chairs) but there was more than enough snow to go round.

It had snowed overnight so there was powder on and off the pistes. Shallow powder, but powder nonetheless. Ski patrol had erected ski boundary markers to prevent you from accidentally finding yourself in terrain that wasn't served by an open chair, and there were warning signs everywhere that early season conditions meant unmarked rocks and other obstacles were hiding under the tempting snow. It didn't stop lots of people (including us) from taking advantage of the easy off-piste between the runs, especially the low-consequence grassy slopes with little twiggy bushes to swerve around.

Several locals hiked the face below the Peak chair. Despite feelings of insane jealousy when we saw the pristine fresh tracks, we were way too lazy to hike ourselves. We were having too much fun finding our snowboarding legs after the summer, trying out our new gear, and exploring runs we'd never bothered to ride before. We even went and found the kids' tree fort, which made me wish I was five years old again.

The sun came out, and conditions remained astonishingly good all day, especially considering it was November and the accessible terrain was limited and being well used. The easy powder got tracked out well before lunchtime but you could still get some nice turns in some patches. Near the bottom of Big Red chair the runs were a little icy but only by West Coast standards.

There was a terrain park featuring one kicker and several picnic tables, boxes and rails. It was very popular and way too busy and intimidating for me, so I just watched from the Emerald Chair.

The only downside I have to report is that the mountain restaurants are no longer serving chilli bread bowls. I shall be writing to the management.

Whistler is due to open fully on Thursday. It's currently raining and cold in Vancouver so it should be snowing some more on the mountain. It's looking very promising for another great season.

Olly from Mountain Mavericks in Morzine dropped us a line this morning to let us know he was just getting ready to head up the mountain this morning. Lifts in the region have opened early (just at the weekends) and he was headed for Les Gets, with Les Crosets and Chatel open for riding too.

The lifts in Avoriaz open on November 24 but the Mountain Mavericks crew couldn’t wait that long so they hiked up there yesterday and rode fresh tracks all the way down to Prodain. Pictures from yesterday are below. Lucky devils…

There are still places at the Just4Girls camp being held by Mountain Mavericks in Morzine from December 16 to 23 if you want to take advantage of the early snow (and quiet lift queues). You can also enter the draw to win a pair of places at the camp for you and a friend by visiting www.just4girlssnowboarding.com

Sunshine opened today with  8 out of 12 lifts running and 55 out of 107 runs open.

You can check out their webcam to see what we're all missing sitting at home behind our computers!

http://www.skibanff.com/conditions/webcams.php

RCR(Resorts of the Canadian Rockies) announced yesterday that there will be no man made jumps built in any of their terrain parks this year.  This includes Fernie, Nakiska and......Lake Louise! 

According to the RCR press release, 

"RCR cares deeply about the well-being of all of its guests and takes responsibility for their care very seriously. “We are undertaking an industry-leading initiative,” says Matt Mosteller, Senior Director of Business Development for Resorts of the Canadian Rockies. “All man-made snow jumps will be eliminated from RCR terrain parks this season.”

“We have found that one of the main issues that increase the likelihood of serious injury on our mountains is big air,” says Mosteller. “When we are making decisions about safety at our resorts, the big jumps in the terrain parks always come into the equation. We decided to make a change.”

RCR plans to invest in "new, state-of-the-art rail features that will cater to a wide variety of ages and abilities"

To read the release check out http://www.skircr.com/mediaCentre/pr_detail.asp?id=479

On the MGT web page this morning an update states that this decision to eliminate the jumps will affect the MGT camp and alternate arrangements are being made for the Lake Louise Camp!  Stay tuned. 

Shortly after British Airways announced they would no longer carry surfboards, Virgin Atlantic announced that travellers can take one piece of sporting equipment free in addition to their checked baggage allowance.

As long as the equipment complies with size and weight allowances, Virgin Atlantic travellers can check in to the hold of the aircraft their diving equipment, golf equipment, fishing equipment, hang gliders, snow skis, surfboards, windsurfing boards, booms and sails, bicycles, paragliders, canoes and kayaks – all free of charge. Sporting wheelchairs are also considered sports equipment.

Paul Dickinson, Sales and Marketing Director, Virgin Atlantic, said:

“Virgin Atlantic continues to be the airline for sports enthusiasts unlike others who are doing everything they can to prevent the gold medallists of the future transporting their equipment. Our new sports equipment policy enables all sports travellers, whether Olympic teams or not, to enjoy their journey throughout.”

The sporting equipment can weigh no more than 32kg, unless with prior consent, and must not exceed overall dimensions of 62” (width + height + length). If the sports equipment weighs more than 32kg, the item will be treated as two pieces of checked baggage, excess baggage charges will then apply. Sporting equipment weighing more than 45kg will need to be transported as cargo and cannot be accepted as checked baggage.

British Airways are no longer allowing you to carry surfboards as part of their sporting equipment allowances. They suggest you send your surfboards by cargo! We suggest you fly with another airline instead...

http://www.britishairways.com/travel/bagsport/public/en_gb

Globespan has launched its first dedicated ski website. You can book flights, packages and accommodation on the new site. Globespan flies from the UK to several winter holiday locations including Vancouver, Geneva, Grenoble and Barcelona.

Visit the site at www.flyglobespan.com/ski/

Today at Sunshine the webcam scenes look very wintery.

Check it out. Winter is truely around the corner.

http://www.skibanff.com/conditions/webcams.php

If you're planning on a season somewhere or even spending 10+ days on the snow at certain resorts, season passes can be a great way to save money. If you buy early enough there can be even more savings.

Sunshine is offering season pass rates of $729 until September 30 then rates go up to $859. At a day ticket price of $73.96 this year, only 10 days on the snow and you can break even!

Fernie has season passes until October 13 for $899. Day tickets will be $72 this year.

Lake Louise also has discounted rates until October 13 - $829 for a seasons pass and $72 for a day ticket.

Whistler is offering season passes for $1399 until October 8. After that prices rise to $1739. Day tickets range in price depending on the date but if you purchase them online three days ahead you can save 20% of the price.

Season pass holders often get discounts on things such as food, accomodations, rentals, lessons and perks such as early morning riding before the general public is allowed on the hill.

Everywhere else in the world people may not have noticed but the hot topic of discussion here in Canada the last few weeks has been money.  The Canadian dollar is at a 30 year high right now.  Today the Canadian dollar was on par with the
US dollar.  Forcasters here in Canada are even predicting that the Canadian dollar could be worth $1.05 USD by Christmas.  So what does that mean for snowboarders?

  Your money might not go as far as it did a few years ago.  It might be worth checking your budget if you are coming on vacation or for a season.  For Canadian riders it means that cheaper gear in the US becomes even more affordable.

You can also use currency converting sites like www.xe.com to help you out.