On the road with Kaya: Montreal to Mammoth

Whatup everybody!

Can't believe it's already that time of the year again... it's starting to snow and we are SHREDDING! Wooo!! So I just took the roadtrip of my life! I wanted my car over on the west coast, so me and Maude Raymond decided to drive from Montreal to Mammoth Lakes, Californiaaa! 4,625 km through Ontario, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada then Cali baby!

Day 1, point A: St-Laurent Street, Montreal

So we started driving, and about 4 hours in we got stuck in deadlock traffic. Turns out there was actually a truck that had been blown up (we saw it after, it was full of big black holes - crazy!) so we waited there for 3 hours. We sat there charging our stuff, watching a movie when suddenly I realize the battery is dead!! Great way to start out 50 hour roadtrip. Haha! So we got boosted right on time and went on our way.

Gotta get my stretch on since we're driving so much!

The first day was a breeze, we drove and drove and drove, taking turns to sleep (which was really hard in the car). The second night was when it  got a little rough. We pulled over on the highway for 30 minutes twice because we were both too tired to drive, but other than that we just cruised along.

Went out in the desert to soak up some sun

Getting into Utah, I got stopped because my tints were too dark. I mean really? Turns out they were fine and we kept on truckin, but common, don't you have better things to do!? Basically to keep ourselves busy we blasted a lot of lil wayne, jay-z, bob marley, zion i, moby.. (the list goes on) and I also whipped out some mags and books and started reading to Maude. Hey, 53 hours on the road and you need to find some time consuming things to do right!

Cute balloons, I know : )

We finally got there on Wednesday evening (we left on Monday afternoon) to Chris Benchetler's place, where we are staying. What a good feeling!!!

Stoked on the Cali sun!

We've been skiing the past few days here and it's been awesome. So nice to be in the Cali sunshine, all day every day!

Will keep you all posted, wait for our edits coming soon!!

Max Hill's Virgin Cover Shot!

It only happens once in the life of every pro skier; so if you see Max Hill this winter give him a high five and then get him to autograph your copy of the Fall 2009 SBC Skier, which boasts his first ever (of many) appearance on the cover of a major ski publication. Congrats!

Check out the full story behind the photo in photographer Dan Carr's blog.

SBC Skier Fall 2009 / Dan Carr Photo

Casabon in 2nd at the Glacier 3000 Invitational

On Friday Phil Casabon took second place at the Glacier 3000 invitational, one of the first (the first?) on snow slopestyle competitions this winter. Matt Margetts landed just shy of the podium with a fourth place finish. Congrats to them both!

Next stop: Winter Dew Tour, Breckenridge Colorado.  

Results:
1) Elvis Harsheim (Nor)
2) Phil Casabon (Can)
3) Kim Boberg (Swe)
4) Matt Margetts
5) Charles Gagnier (Can)

Riding News 2.4 - Glacier 3000 Invitational on Zapiks

Phil Casabon Interview / Edit

It's not every day that we get to have our pro athletes walking through the halls of our office in Quebec. So when Phil Casabon came in last week to check out the latest specs on the upcoming 2010 B-Dog pro model, we took the opportunity to sit down with him and get a little refresher on his past season, shooting with Level 1, and his debut appearance in Winter X slopestyle.

Big thanks to the whole crew at Level 1 Productions for hooking us up with some bonus footage of Phil for the edit.  This is only a small taste of what's in the movie so if you like what you see be sure to help support Level 1's legal efforts and check out the entirety of Refresh!

 Charles Spina Photo

Stay tuned for more as we hit the road with Phil and the rest of the Orage team for an early season photoshoot in late November and then travel on to the first stop of the Winter Dew Tour December 18th in Breckenridge, Colorado.

Jess Cumming and Kaya Turski Join the Orage Team

Orage is proud to announce a freshly revised and refocused team. A collective of diverse, accomplished and influential athletes that represent Orage’s continued focus on defining the current state of the sport. Blending new faces with Orage’s most established veterans, the Orage team boasts the best of the new generation and now one of skiing’s most elite female freeski teams.


Phil Casabon, JP Auclair, and Michelle Parker in Retallack, BC

Simply stated, Orage has a diverse team. “At any given moment there's a hundred different athletes doing a thousand different things promoting our sport in a million different ways. The formula that applied to a team 10 years ago no longer exists. Skiing is as diverse as its athletes choose to make it and Orage is a diverse brand living to evolve. You have to continue to change if you're going to stay relevant and our new team of riders will help us stay relevant in ways we never have before” comments Felix Rioux, recently appointed Orage Team Manager.

With the recent addition of Xavier Bertoni, French gold medalist (X Games 13 Superpipe) Orage hinted at signs of team expansion, but that was just the tip of the iceberg.

Orage is also proud to welcome Jess Cumming and Kaya Turski to the pro team. Jess is one of skiing's most decorated and recognized female pipe skiers and Kaya, a Quebec local is single handedly changing the face of female park skiing. Joining veteran athlete Michelle Parker, Orage’s expanded female team will spearhead an upcoming campaign focused specifically on women to further support the brand’s direction as one that sees the need and value of putting women in the driver’s seat.


Kaya Turski


Kaya training in New Zealand

“Orage has always supported and pushed the women’s movement in skiing. From product that fits, feels and performs unlike any other, to our mandate that each team competing in the Orage Masters include at least one female competitor on the roster. Orage will now back and support the women’s market with one of skiing’s most decorated and diverse teams. Michelle, Jess and Kaya are three of skiing’s most influential athletes and now the three will work in direct contact with our product team to continue Orage’s evolution of women’s product” says Mike Nick, Orage Marketing Director. “The idea is simple; it’s our goal to offer the best product for women, developed by the best equipped women in the sport.”


Jess Cumming


Jess at WSI


Orage also has a strong belief in its development program, case in point; Taylor Seaton who has gone from local Colorado rider to Dew Tour standout will now lead the charge alongside Bertoni as Orage’s Superpipe duo.


Taylor Seaton in Whistler earlier this year


With the North American winter on the horizon, Taylor has already taken two podium spots within the past ten days at the NZ Open and the NZ Winter Games where this past weekend both Taylor and Xavier shared podium spots taking first and third place respectively.


Winter NZ Games Halfpipe Highlights


Adding to the team’s core made up of JP Auclair, Phil Casabon, Xavier Bertoni, Taylor Seaton, Michelle Parker, Jess Cumming and Kaya Turski, Orage is stoked to represent some of the most unique and talented personalities in skiing. With athletes like Will Wesson and Andy Parry, best known for their Traveling Circus webisodes, Max Hill who fits the Orage mold by refusing to fit into a mold, Banks Gilberti and Matt Margetts and a host of supporting talent across North America and Europe, the Orage team is diverse, talented and ready to make a major impact on both the Orage brand and the sport for years to come.

X Games 13 Gold Medalist, Xavier Bertoni Signs with Orage

Hot off the press with wet ink still on the paper, Orage is proud to announce French superpipe phenom, and Winter X Gold Medalist, Xavier Bertoni as the newest member of the Orage pro team.



Hailing from La Clusaz, France, Xavier joins fellow X Games 13 Slopestyle Gold Medalist and veteran Orage athlete TJ Schiller, along with Phil Casabon, JP Auclair and Michelle Parker to round out what is now one of skiing’s most diverse international teams.  Xavier is no stranger to Orage and the brands presence throughout the global freeski scene.  “We’ve had our eyes on Xavier for a few years now stretching back to ‘07 – ‘08 when Xavier took home the silver medal at the Orage European Freeski Open in Laax, Switzerland,” comments Mike Nick, Orage Marketing Director. 

2007 European Open in Laax, Switzerland

Xavier’s been on the scene for a few years now but officially launched himself into the big leagues last season at the Winter X Superpipe event where he put pressure on, and ultimately introduced some of skiing’s biggest names to podium spots they were not at all accustomed to.  In a showdown of epic proportions Xavier threw down three flawless runs to outdo the likes of Simon Dumont and Tanner Hall taking home his (Bertoni’s) first X Games Gold.


Xavier Bertoni's gold medal superpipe run at Winter X 13

There’s a new breed of pipe skiers on the scene and Xavier’s one of the best.  With a huge bag of tricks and the rocket boosters to match, Bertoni will spend his summer in New Zealand training for a jam packed comp season to come.  Included in the deal, Orage and Bertoni have begun working on Xavier’s first signature model outfit slated to hit stores in 2010.


Left to right: Tanner Hall, Xavier, Simon Dumont

Stay tuned to orage.com this winter and follow him along the 2009 – 2010 competition circuit with stops at the Orage European Freeski Open, Winter X 14, Winter Dew Tour, the European X-Games, the Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival and many more.

AI Parties in Colorado This Weekend!

On Monday JP Auclair will be heading back to Africa to complete a two year effort with Alpine Initiatives setting up a self sustainable orphanage in Kenya. If you happen to be in Colorado this weekend show your support for a great cause and get your groove on with JP and the AI crew at an 80's dance party in Vail followed up with another party fundraiser in Boulder...

Friday June 26th, 9:00pm in the downstairs Bar at Vendettas; Bridgestreet, Vail, CO;

80's Dance Party/Fundraiser with JP Auclair, Mikey Hovey and AI crew.

Raffle at 11:00pm

Saturday June 27th, 9:00pm in The lounge at Georga's; 14th Street, Boulder, CO, 303.786.7030;

Party/Fundraiser with JP Auclair, Mikey Hovey and AI crew.

Raffle at 11:00pm

Raffle gifts include:

Free day of heli-skiing with Alaska Heliskiing, Haines, AK

Armada Skis (Vail only)

Oakley Goggles

Orage Outerwear

And More...