High Cascade Snowboard Camp registration is up and running and ready for you to sign up! Everyone has heard the age-old saying “The early bird gets the worm”. Sign up for camp before January 1st, 2013 and your worm can be $100 off of your session, or a HCSC byProducts package that includes the famed HCSC/Burton Shred Scout Pack, a HCSC Sweatshirt, a HCSC/Coal Team Beanie, Airblaster Sunglasses, $10 SHRD Bucks and a package of Videograss throwbacks (Retrospect, Shoot the Moon, and Trick Tips).

And to put the icing on your worm cake, we are going to be giving away a free snowboard and HCSC sweatshirt every week between November 19th and January 1st  to one random lucky winner drawn from everyone who has registered for any summer 2013 session. Click here to sign up, and maybe you’ll walk away with more brand new free stuff than you know what to do with.

Well folks…we can honestly say that this was THE BEST summer to date here at High Cascade Snowboard Camp. It’s not a hard task to accomplish when the every single staff member and camper puts all of their energy to create something amazing. This summer it wasn’t hard to realize that the people walking around camp weren’t just attending and working at camp, these people are truly what makes camp….camp.

This summer was action packed! We saw new faces, signature sessioners, events, contest and so much more. We were able to host the first “Merrill Mini Pipe Invitational.” This was one of the most fun, progressive and exciting contest to watch…EVER.

Ben Bilocq boosting at the Merrill Mini Pipe Invitational photo: Owen Ringwall

Don’t forget about the first annual “Rat Race,” presented by Austin Smith and Bryan Fox. This contest tested the legitimate snowboarding skills of each and every snowboarders that participated. At the end of the day, riders put aside embarrassing runs and got together as friends to celebrate an amazing day of snowboarding and most importantly camaraderie.

Being at camp is a great place to be if you love being surrounded by smiles. A slogan of camp should essentially be “the land of never ending smiles.” Campers could not be any happier to be in a place where everyone is here for the exact same reason. They come to be themselves and enjoy our state of the art facilities. They have all the resources to stay constantly active and most campers do. Camp is one of those places where everyone seems to get along as well. Campers flock in individually from all over the country and sometimes world, and make life lasting friends immediately.

Camp has incredible people supporting us! It means the world to us that we have such prominent and caring companies helping make camp possible. Campers come to camp and get to experience new technologies from board, binding and boot companies, they get to drink all the gatorade in the world, get insane amounts of product in our famous give away and so much more!

Campers won boards, but got gatorade poured all over them as a price! photo: Owen Ringwall

Aside from all of those other AMAZING things at camp, let’s not lose sight of what makes High Cascade Snowboard Camp a “snowboard camp.” After a short less than ten minute drive up to Mt. Hood, campers take the lift up to our exclusive park open only to staff and campers. Campers get to ride the best features and terrain in the realm of summer snowboarding. The High Cascade diggers work hard to prepare features so they are in prime condition to learn tricks and have fun all day until the park closes. Our park comprises of an array of different rails ranging from basic down rails to signature Loon wall ride features and even Forums “streets” feature. Our park makes learning tricks very easy with the energy in the park and the help of our couching staff.

Head Coach Dave Reynolds showing why he coaches so well. Photo Greg Furey

We hope you will enjoy some pictures from this session’s all girl activities!  First up, are the pictures from the Gnu “Let’s Make Magic” activity.  The egg drop never ceases to entertain and amaze everyone!

Group shot before the drop

Drop from the top

The victorious threesome

And now, for some pictures from the Airblaster arts and crafts activity…Airshade bedazzling!  What a good way to spend a sunny summer afternoon!

Shades and gems

Wild style

Shorts and shades

It’s been a great summer of activities!  Thanks to all of the sponsors that created and supported the activities!

The girls got so extreme this session!  Everyone had a blast at the all girl activities!  On day 3, we experienced one of the most progressive and fun gatherings at the foam pit:

Everyone learned how to throw front and back flips

Getting "flip certified", to be able to learn flips on the Bag Jump on hill

Launching a front flip off the mini tramp

Then, later in the session, all girls’ skate went down.  All girls’ skate has always been a favorite activity for the girl campers and staff!  Everyone learned some new tricks.  And more importantly, the girls that had never skated before can now go home with some basic maneuvers.  Maneuvers that will allow them to continue to skate and get better!

Ramp pumping party

Getting ready for kick turns and drop ins

Dropping in like a boss

Yesterday, it was a double whammy of two of the most heavy hitting activities at camp.  As if snowboarding above the clouds all day wasn’t enough!  In the afternoon, the girls relaxed with the Roxy arts and crafts activity…”Tees and Tepees”!  They all created some very amazing desktop tepees.  And everyone got a Roxy tee shirt for participating.

The group. Getting artsy.

We walked deep into the woods for this group photo.

After “Tees and Tepees”, the girls refueled with some awesome pizza from the kitchen.  Then, they all participated in the Gnu “Let’s Make Magic” activity!  If you haven’t been following the blog…well, you’ve been missing out.  It’s alright though, because you will be filled in.  The Gnu activity is an egg drop!  Each team of three has to build something in which to keep their egg safe.  Safe enough to be dropped from each level of Boardwalk!  The teams that survived all three levels had to battle for the Gnu B Nice snowboard, by doing an egg toss.  We finally narrowed down a winner.  It was Sloane!  A huge shout out to Olivia too!

The teams before the drop.

Stoked on the Gnu B Nice.

Welp, here we are in session 4.  The Gnu “Let’s Make Magic”, aka the egg drop was awesome.  As usual.  The girl campers never cease to amaze Gnu Girls Terri and Sandra!  The girls all created such elaborate contraptions, if you will.  Contraptions that kept many an egg safe as they were dropped from the sky.  Check out the pictures:

Oops

Hard at Work

Gnu Group Photos

The Winning Team

History was made yesterday here at High Cascade Snowboard Camp after the Rat Race went down.  The guys from We Drink Water came up with the concept for this death defying race through berms, rollers and jumps to determine who the fastest racer was, AND it was for a good cause.  Drink water is a movement that was started by Professional Snowboarders Austin Smith and Bryan Fox and since it’s implementation this movement has really started moving.  Visit www.wedrinkwater.com to learn more about this group.

Showing up early to the course Austin Smith and Bryan Fox were running around putting the final touches on things.

At ten in the morning in the High Cascade Lap park, snowboarders of all ranks flocked to the starting tent to get their first runs and look at the course.  Prestigious snowboarders such as Temple Cummins, Chad Otterstrom, Pat Moore, Andrew Hardingham, Bobby Meeks and many others showed up to be part of this literal rat race to the finish.

Finally, after the riders got a few sketchy runs through the course it was time to get the event underway.  Adam Kisiel got everyone together to explain the rules and listed off the first couple riders.  First on the list was Soloman Snowboards team manager and overall awesome dude Java Fernandez.  As Java made his way to the starting gate, the gathering crowd started the classic chant to get the day started. “JAVA JAVA JAVA…”  The confirmation was given from the finish line and Java was given the green light.  As he started his run the participants of the contest went insane.

Even though Java’s run didn’t go exactly how he wanted, when he got up from his semi concussion the crowd cheered louder than any other part of the day. All fun with friends at the Rat Race.

After Java set the standard for the day with his first run, the contest was underway and looking to be one for the books right out of the gate. Here’s a look at the upper portion of the course. Pretty crazy right?

Take a look at a bunch of photo’s taken throughout the day!

Preston got a little sick before the contest

Andrew Aldridge winding up Photo: Owen Ringwall

Uncle Russ taking that smooth turn Photo: Owen Ringwall

Pat Moore’s first downhill race ever

Clocking people’s times

Volcom Rider Ruki taking a turn Photo: Greg Furey

Jake Kuzyk racing like a boss Photo: Greg Furey

After the race ended and people returned to Government camp, the masses of people flocked to Clear Lake for an insane BBQ and awards. Austin’s parents may have made the best burgers I have ever had in my entire life. Other honorable mentions were the corn and watermelon. Everything was insane, thank you Mr. and Mrs. Smith. At the end of the day it was Curtis Ciszek taking first, Jake Price in second, and Blake Paul in third. A few other people got awards created by Austin and Bryan.

The Rat Race was a huge success. This event was put on by We Drink Water, Dakine, Nike, Nitro, Arnette, Timberline, Smith Optics, High Cascade and Poler Stuff. Keep your eyes open for this contest next year and in the future because it’s one your not going to want to miss.

Yup.  The Gnu “let’s make magic” activity is an egg drop!  Like last session, this session’s girls are proving to be one smart group of campers.  The girls are grouped into teams of three and are given these items: 2 ballons, 5 marshmallows, construction paper, string, tape, and 5 straws.  They then create some of the coolest contraptions we’ve ever seen, to protect one magical egg.

Campers hard at work while Sandra photo bombs with the B-Nice

Then, very nervously, the egg-contraptions are dropped off the Boardwalk balconies.  The first drop, off the second story, broke a couple eggs.  The second drop, off the third story, broke a few more.  Then only one egg survived the long drop from the fourth story!

Would your egg survive?

The winning team was so excited that their egg did not break!  But, how to decide who gets the Gnu B-Nice snowboard?  Like we always do in the snowboard world…ro sham bo!

Winning!

Nestled along the outskirts of the trampoline zone, next to the massive Oregon trees sits HCSC’s newest addition, compliments of Roxy.  We now have a tepee, much like the tepees designed and used by the Plains Indians.  Tepee stands for “dwelling place” and is a simple home defined by nature and dictated by the elements.

A functional and cozy place to hang out

This session, the girls got to experience first hand how to build a tepee.  They all designed and assembled their very own desktop tepee.  Roxy really outdid themselves, because this was the best arts and crafts activity ever to occur at camp!  Every girl approached their tepee design in a very different way, and all worked so hard that they almost missed dinner.

Designing the dwellings

The girls embraced their tepees as an artistic statement of form and function.  And while tepees are at home in nature, the tepees created during the Roxy activity will be at home on a desktop or dresser.

Tepee village

To go along with the tepees, every participant got a Roxy T Shirt.

Tees and Tepees

The energy from session 2 was amazing. The campers and staff succeeded in having an awesome time here at High Cascade Snowboard Camp this week. We snowboarded, skateboarded, extreme walked, showed off talents and so much more in such a short amount of time, but it was totally worth it. Check out a few photo’s that camp photographer Greg Furey shot throughout the week!

Luke Mitrani front inverting for the campers P- GFurey

Ian Hart tail pressing for the camera P-Gfurey

Tim Eddy going upside down P-Gfurey

Richie Conklin...style points P-Gfurey

Blaze and his champion campers P-MikeRave

The giveaway went DOWN P-MikeRave

Could you catch a marshmallow from 3 stories?..She did P-MikeRave

Session 2 was amazing. Check back for more pictures and video from further sessions!