Utah MTB

By Bill Messick

You don’t get to see photos of me skiing very often, in fact never! Last Friday Jason Leonard and I went for a 1/2 day at Sundance and Jason is a photographer and was able to get some photos of me so I thought I would post them and let you see me for a change. Jason is just learning to ski and you could say he is better with a camera right now than on the snow but he is learning fast.

Photos By Jason Leonard

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Margarine was originally manufactured to fatten turkeys. When it killed the turkeys, the people who had put all the money into the research wanted a payback so they put their heads together to figure out what to do with this product to get their money back. It was a white substance with no food appeal so they added the yellow coloring and sold it to people to use in place of butter. How do you like it? They have come out with some clever new flavorings..

DO YOU KNOW.. The difference between margarine and butter?

• Both have the same amount of calories.
• Butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams; compared to 5 grams for margarine.
• Eating butter increases the absorption of many other nutrients in other foods.
• Butter has many nutritional benefits where margarine has a few and only because they are added!
• Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavors of other foods.
• Butter has been around for centuries where margarine has been around for less than 100 years .

And now, for Margarine.

• Very High in Trans fatty acids.
• Eating margarine can increase heart disease in women by 53% over eating the same amount of butter, according to a recent Harvard Medical Study.
• Triples risk of coronary heart disease .
• Increases total cholesterol and LDL (this is the bad cholesterol) and lowers HDL cholesterol, (the good cholesterol)
• Increases the risk of cancers up to five times.
• Lowers quality of breast milk.
• Decreases immune response.
• Decreases insulin response.

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Posted By Bill Messick

Sharks are one of the most important top-predators in our oceans and there is still a lot we dont understand, or even know, about these fascinating animals. This short documentary shows one of the most mysterious phenomena in the animal world; amazing animals, showing a totally different behaviour than most people would expect.

By Bill Messick

For years there was this big red bra hanging in a lone tree on the lift to the top of Sundance, last year during a snow storm it blew away for good. Yea I did go looking for it with West but we never found it! Well this year there has been a lot of underwear growing in the trees like fruit but it seems to be getting picked. Today there was two pair of panties and a big white bra signed by someone?

Check out the photos and video for more on this strange thing.

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By Bill Messick

Wow what a day, after a long painful weekend watching the snow fall all around me I finally got out and played in it. Me and Jason Leonard took off up to Sundance for 3 hours of snow, sun and fun, I spent most of last week in Las Vegas where there was no snow to play in! So today was my first chance to get out and have a little fun. Jason is a pretty good sport even when I took him down a few pretty nasty blacks runs, he did very well on Bishops Bowel to the Pipeline.

Check out the video and photos for more on this day.

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By Bill Messick

Had some extra fun today, Jason Leonard and Tom both joined me at Sundance for a few hours of fun in the fresh snow. It had snowed all week and there was a good amount of fresh stuff to play in today. Jason had not skied in about 15 years and was in the beginner stage of learning so I did get his first run on video with all the fun crashes.

Check out the video and photos for more on this trip.

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By Bill Messick

Yesterday I lost my season pass while skiing at Sundance, so today I went up to get a new one and take a few runs from the top. Hilary was very good to me, Sundance loves me! She hooked me up with a free reprint and got me on my way very fast, try that one at Park City and see where you get! Sundance might be small but dynamite comes in small packages and that is just another reason why Sundance is the best place to ski in Utah.

There was a crowd of people on the mountain today, due to the first day of the Sundance Film Festival and this is a good time to see famous people on the mountain. The most important person I saw today was Hilary in the office, she was my superstar, big thanks goes out to her for the help! I jumped on a lift and worked my way to the top of the mountain to get in a few runs and work on some of the new skills I have been posting here under help.

I don’t just post random crap to take up space, I use the post space to work on new skills or to help me improve my skiing. There is a rhyme to my reason you see! The last few days I have been practicing what I learned from the Controlling Speed on Steep Terrain article written by Mike Doyle. Trying to change my habits when you are in the middle of a black diamond is not an easy thing to do. It did seem to help, I had been working on this all week now and I’m starting to get more control over my downhill fall now!

I will try to keep reposting stuff I find helpful to me and maybe you can get some help from it to!

Hit the Slopes with the HARD CORE!
By Alex Chemerov

Are crunches a good exercise for the core and how important is the core for skiing and snowboarding?

Before we discuss exercises for the core, we must first dive into what areas make up the “core.” Your core is not just made of up the “abs.” Your core runs from your neck down to your hips and/or from the hips up to the neck. It is also important to realize that your core is three dimensional. Meaning we have a front, back and two sides. Therefore, and effective core program should challenge all three dimensions.

In addition, your core is the center of the body. It attaches the upper body to the lower body and also the lower body to the upper body. This is vital since information during movement is traveling through the center of the body and is being sent to the extremities. A faulty core will limit how well someone can move, whether it is in the game of life or on the snowy slopes.

That being said, how does your core help you while you are on the slopes? You need core strength, core stabilization and core endurance to help you successfully manage the slope’s varied terrain and numerous conditions. If your core fails you on the slopes, you will not be able to create an effective carve, the bumps will throw you around like a rag doll and your buddies will be waiting for you at the bottom every time. You can never over-prepare your core or your body for the demands of skiing or riding.

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