Podcasts

The idea of indoor skiing in New Jersey has been alive since 2004 when ground broke on what was then called Xanadu and has finally manifested into what is now American Dream. More specifically Big Snow, the first indoor ski resort in North America is no longer a dream, as of December 5, 2019, it is open for business. We were fortunate enough to be there for opening day with our friend (and original podcast member) Steve, to tell you all about it.

Skiing and snowboarding are awesome. Traveling to go ski and snowboard is awesome. Planning travel sucks. How do you get there, where should you stay, is there a good shop to demo skis and boards? It's enough to make one not want to travel at all (well, almost). Wouldn't it be great if there was a company that set up turn-key trips to amazing ski/snowboard destinations? We chat w/ Mike from First Chair Travel Co. who does exactly that. They even have a sweet trip to Banff, Alberta planned for March 7-14th 2020 that you can still jump on.

It's always a big event when the Ski and Snowboard Expo rolls into Boston. This was our second year attending and it did not disappoint. We got to meet up with some of our old friends, but also made some new friends. This week we recap our trip, which has become our new favorite way to kickoff the ski and snowboard season.

You may think you have a cool job, but is one of your job requirements to make sure you ski at all the resorts in your state? If not, you might want to update your resume. This week, we interviewed Anelise Bergin, Director of Communications at Ski Utah. We had a great conversation, but she had trouble picking a favorite place to ski in Utah. With all that great snow and terrain, it truly is Snowphie's Choice.

We've all had that dream. You know, the one where you actually play the hero in the movie that is your life and make that bold choice to leave your job and your commute and move to the mountains. While most of us just wake up and plug back into the Matrix, some people actually follow their dream. On this week's podcast we talk to one of those people, our new friend, Hunter Roberts who's packing up his family, leaving Brooklyn and moving out to Squaw Valley.

Doing this podcast has allowed us to meet some very cool people in the ski and snowboard industry. Recently, Brian met Ryan from Till I Die and now we have another awesome person to add to that list. He was so cool, he even took the time to join us for an interview. If you want to hear a tale of ups, downs and backflips then you'll enjoy our chat with Ryan.

"A family that skis together, stays together." That's the motto of our guests these weeks, our friends Ray, Alicia, Sandro and Nevada from Alba Adventures. They ski all winter, travel all summer and document their adventures for all of us to enjoy. It's the family you wish you were part of when you were growing up. They've been traveling the film festival circuit, but found some time to chat with us. We think you'll enjoy it.

Resorts have started to open out west, snow has started falling here in the east and everyone is getting excited for ski season. This year, we partnered with our friends, Rich from All About Aprés and Jill from Jill Beth Travel, to get some friends together and throw a party to kick off the season.

Last time we checked, no one has control over the weather. As snowsports enthusiasts, we would certainly drop the temperatures and crank up the precipitation so that we could ski and snowboard our favorite mountains all year long. The next best thing we have is man-made, snow-making technology. It's something that's easy to take for granted, but a lot of time and energy goes into getting that extra slippery white goodness that we need. We look at some of the constraints and capabilities that go into making sure we can maximize the number of turns we make, all winter.

Panic is starting to set in as Boston sports teams are stuck in a historic championship drought of almost 8 months. The good news is, we finally get to catch up with our pal Matt Pepin, Sports Editor of the Boston Globe. He is also the curator of the It's All Downhill" newsletter that you should subscribe to more ski news, information and stories, every week during the ski season.

Rumor has it, Oktoberfest was started 186 years ago by King Ludwig as a celebration of the end of summer and a welcoming of the beginning of ski season. As excited as Mad King Ludwig, it pales in comparison to Mario's excitement this year. Not only does he have some epic ski trips already planned, he's about to head out to Germany and attend the final weekend of Oktoberfest! It's not his first time, so he's got some tips and advice for those looking to celebrate.

The snow continues to fall all around the Northern Hemisphere and everyone is itching to get their boots on and get on the mountain. Patience, our friends, there's still a little time before we all go wooshing down the mountain. There is planning, conversations and schmoozing to be completed. We talk about the ski.com event last week in NYC and the other events we have coming up in the weeks.

It's our first podcast after the big Labor Day weekend! If you followed us on Instagram, you would've seen that Brian was busy building a dope ass Adirondack chair made out of skis (as well as a shot ski). What you may not have known, was that Brian also went on a 3-day cleanse after the Labor Day weekend because of all the margaritas, pizza and ice cream pizza (yes, it's a thing) that he ate. Want to know more? Listen to this week's epsiode, which is all about Brian!

Summer is wrapping up and we chat about what's ahead for us this ski season as Mario hunkers down for hurricane. The Farmer's Almanac is calling for a "Polar Coaster" winter and our beloved Zermatt goes on the Ikon Pass. Take a listen and celebrate the end of summer with your pals!

If you enjoyed our last episode, you'll love this one. It's part 2 of our chat with Rich from AllAboutApres.com. This episode is the Main Topic, which was chatting with Rich and Under The Ropes. We get philosophical about skiing, apres ski and tomahawk steaks.

It's been a long hot summer and often we spend time, by ourselves pondering life, the previous ski season and the upcoming ski season. As much fun as it is to ponder by oneself, sometimes, it's even more fun to have a conversation with a buddy. This week, that's exactly what we do, as we sat down with our pal Rich from All About Apres. We talk about why we do what we do and where we all want to go.

Sure it's the middle of August and we're all trying to keep from melting, but did you know the next solstice is the winter solstice? Believe the hype, it is true. While most people are shopping for pencils and Trapper Keepers for back to school, you should be thinking about you're kids and when are you going to get them skiing or snowboarding! Don't worry, we've got some articles and thoughts to help you get ready!

Haven't we all dreamed of owning our ski resort? We certainly have and now, low-and-behold, Soldier Mountain in beautiful Fairfield, ID, is on the market. Did you know that Bruce Willis was once the owner? Yipee-ka-yeh-mothafucka. Does it get sweet dumps, yes, then why are the current owners selling? Could be gambling debts, could be they'd rather just move Arizona and phone it in...who knows? We're going to discuss what it would take to actually buy these glorious beast and what it would take to turn her into a winner.

Part 2 of our conversation with our pal, Frank. We discuss the most recent acquisition by Vail Resorts, purchasing Peak Resorts. We discuss the pros and cons and how it will affect skiers and snowboarders.

It's the end of July. As skiers and snowboarders, we're all starting to get a little sick of this hot and humid weather. What are skiers and boarders to do in such times? We talk or our buddy Frank about skiing and whatever other madness manifests when we get together.

It's almost ski season, so what are two ski bums to do? Travel, of course. Even though there is no snow, we both went to countries that are well known skiing and snowboarding hotbeds, Italy and Norway. Now we are back home to discuss.

Freedom, fireworks, independence, bbqs...these are all things people think about when they think of the 4th of July. While all those things are wonderful, your pals are also thinking about skiing. We take a look at where you can still ski or snowboard this 4th of July weekend.

Ahhhhhhh, AlmostSkiSeason, time to kick back and unwind. Our opinions of summer have changed over time, from dread, to embracing what is possible and how to better prepare for ski season. We thought we were going to have nothign to talk about, but this ended up turning into an epic think tank podcast episode. So much so, we had to break it into two part. Here's the first part, we hope you enjoy it!

Ahhhhhhh, AlmostSkiSeason, time to kick back and unwind. Our opinions of summer have changed over time, from dread, to embracing what is possible and how to better prepare for ski season. We thought we were going to have nothing to talk about, but this ended up turning into an epic think tank podcast episode. So much so, we had to break it into two part. Here's the first part, we hope you enjoy it!

It's been over a year since Mario and Brian were together in the same room recording a podcast together. It was no simple feat. Mario had to overcome weather delays, airport drama and a slow train that had police activity due to a drug overdose. None of that could stop him and we were able to hang out and record a podcast before Mario started his NYC mini-vacation.

Some people are born wealthy, some people are born connected and some people are born both. Most of us need to grind our way to the top. Good thing there's services like Kickstarter to help folks with great ideas raise money and connect to new customers. We take a look at some of the cool ski-related (and other) projects that are going on right now.

If you listened to the last two episodes of the podcast, you may be convinced that both Brian and Mario suffer from some sort of brain damage. We cannot completly disagree with your assessment. CTE was big on a lot of radars after a great movie with Will Smith, but the issue doesn't go away after the box office sales go away. Every sport all the time, it's still an issue. We share some information we've found to help you avoid damaging your beautiful brains.

If you missed part 1, you'll want to check out episode 162. You listened and you're still back for more? God bless ya, you're one of us! I'm not sure if I'd say this episode is 'art' in the purest sense of the word, but there is something beautiful about it. In the same way two vintage Ferraris crashed into each other is also beautiful. Take a listen and you'll see what we mean.

As the season winds down we chat with one of the OG pioneers of the podcast. You know him (and love him) from the bean of he week, our pal, Frank.

Every great farmers knows that a bountiful harvest begins with careful preparation. The most critical step in that preparation is planting of seeds. We are metaphorical farmers planning for the methaphorical planting of our ski seeds. Join us on our journey.

As the ski and snowboard season winds down, many of us are starting to battle with seasonal depression. Yes, the plebs say you get that in the winter, but we're different. After seeing all our precious, glorious snow melt away we need to find a way to go on and make it to next season. We're here to help, but first jump in your bathtub and pop a Skialis!

As we start looking at the ski season wrap up, it becomes necessary to start taking a look at what was great, not so great, and what is still on that bucket list. Join us for a stroll through our season and thoughts for making next season that much better.

We talk a lot about cannabis on the show (I mean, we have a whole Gonjola section, every week). It's almost April 20th, pretty much Christmas for cannabis enthusiasts, but do you know why 420 has become synonymous with cannabis? How about why cannabis is illegal in the first place? Why does a skiing podcast care so much? All these questions and more will be answered when you check out this week's episode.

We don't want to say it, but we're all aware that the end of the ski and snowboard season is approaching. The bums aren't ready to hang their skis up yet, so last weekend we went up to Killington to check out the Bear Mountain Mogul Challenge. Part serious amateur mogul competition, part serious party atmosphere. We had a great time and want to tell you all about it.