These girls surf better than you

For the last four years, women’s surfing has been dominated by one character; Steph Gilmore. She hit the world tour in 2006 at the age of 18 and blew the socks off the surfing community. Steph was considered an anomaly, a freak of a talent. She now has the accolades to proove it, with four consecutive world titles under her belt at the age of 23.

Fast forward to mid way through the women’s tour in 2011 and Steph is a measly fourth with no competition wins in five events. You would assume the inevitable has happened and Gilmore has finally hit a blip in form, however this is not the case. She is being outperformed and outsurfed by the new power in women’s surfing; teenagers.

Here is evidence of that – the current standings on the world tour after five of seven events:

1st (by some way): Carissa Moore. Age:18
2nd: Sally Fitzgibbons. Age:19
3rd: Tyler Wright. Age:17 (just)

Of the seventeen girls on the elite tour nine are under the age of 21, and six of them are in the top ten. For most of them it’s their first or second year on tour. Gone are the days of turning off your live event webcast for the womens event, the renewed level of competition in this sport is making it just as exciting as the mens.

Another new power in surfing; Nike, have just released a free online full feature film called “Leave a Message”. Watch it and you’ll understand what we’re talking about…

Leave a Message Full Movie by Nike6.0 from FreestyleTV.NET on Vimeo.

Check out our:

Surf instructor courses in Morocco
Surf instructor courses in Australia

Fernie BC: A Mountain Biking Mecca

NONSTOP came to Fernie 10 years ago for it’s cult status as one of the best underground powder destinations in the world. If you’re serious about all mountain free-ride skiing or snowboarding, you will have heard the rumours about Fernie.

What we weren’t aware of a decade ago was the fruits of Fernie in the summer. All of us who work for NONSTOP are avid skiers and snowboarders, and didn’t expect to enjoy summertime in Fernie as much, if not more than the winter. The hiking, golf, white water rafting and most notably the mountain biking is out of this world.

The well known saying comes to mind; Come for the winter, stay for the summer.

This year Fernie Alpine Resort re-opens for Mountain biking and hiking on 25th June 2011.

When Fernie powder snow melts and the mountain becomes awash with wild grasses and flowers, people begin to explore the beautiful natural landscape of the 5 Bowls not on skis, but by Mountain Bikes, on foot and or from the Scenic Chairlift ride.

With 37 trails for Mountain Biking, the most in the Canadian Rockies, Fernie offers something for all riding abilities.

“The variety of trails offered for Mountain Bikers is un-matched in the Canadian Rockies and the hiking is out of the park…incredible”says Matt Mosteller, spokesman, Fernie Alpine Resort. “Whether you want heart pumping mountain bike ride on a gritty single-track trail, a simple 1km walk on a scenic path or just a peaceful ride on our chairlifts- it is all here for you to enjoy summer in the mountains!” adds Mosteller.

Fernie has stepped it up a gear for this summer season, with new mountain bike trail enhancements:

• NEW bridgework feature on Aggravated Assault
• Trail upgrades to TopGun
• New Advanced Level Women’s Bike Camp
• Upgrades to the Mountain Bike Skills Park
• New Scott Voltage FR 20’s mountain bikes for the Demo Fleet

Fernie is hosting some fantastic events this summer, from world tour mountain bike events to a famous annual music festival;

• Fernie Writers Conference July 17-24
• TransRockies Mountain Bike Race August 7-9
• Wapiti Music Festival August 19-21
• NOS Fernie Gravity BikeFest August 20-21

Want to be a part of it? You can stay in the heart of Fernie at the Red Tree Lodge and even come on our:

Mountain bike instructor courses in Fernie BC

Mountain bike courses in Fernie BC

Summer Activities in Fernie BC

Ski and snowboard instructor courses in Fernie BC

Easy Surf Trips -Surfing Lifestyle Magazine

Our friends at www.easysurftrips.com have just published their first edition of their magazine. It’s free, and a comprehensive read with loads of photos, surf art and varied articles on different surf destinations across the world.

… Read more

Action Sports Headcam footage

When the GoPro cameras hit the market a few years ago I personally was a little sceptical of their value – the product seemed overly bulky, not particularly compatible and completely oversold by all sorts of celebrities. I brushed it off as a fad, thinking the craze would die off pretty quickly…I was very wrong!

GoPros have reduced in size, increased in quality (there is now the Go Pro HERO HD) and they are compatible with loads of adventure sports – conveniently including surfing, skiing, snowboarding, mountain biking.

To stop this sounding like a GoPro sales pitch here are some videos.

There is something mesmerising about this shot, everything is perfect; wave size, wave shape, no crowds, surroundings. I’ve found myself going back to watch this clip every month or so…probably because I can’t just go and get barrelled in real life…believe me it’s harder than it looks.

Cy’s Sunrise Lefts from www.KORDUROY.tv on Vimeo.

Downhill mountain biking in BC. Fernie has very similar terrain to this.

GoPro HD HERO camera: Mountain Bike Clip from GoPro on Vimeo.

And finally our very own JF with the new GoPro we’ve recently bought for NONSTOP, ripping up currie bowl on a powder day.

If you now fancy putting yourself in their shoes, why not take a look at our:
Surf courses
Mountain Bike courses
Ski courses
Snowboard courses

New Summer Fernie Video

Tourism Fernie have just put together this video to show off the beauty of Fernie in the summer time.

It’s a great quality production and well worth a look. Also, keep your eye out for NONSTOP’s own Dave Richards and family hiking through the woods!

Check out NONSTOP’s courses and holidays based in Fernie: Ski courses – Snowboard courses – Mountain bike courses