Hailing from Vermont, 20 year old Jake Blauvelt has made a name for himself with his smooth riding style. Whether he’s shredding in the backcountry, park or pipe, Jake puts it down with super clean style. In addition to his footage in THAT, Jake has earned a cover on

Ride Snowboards today fortified its international pro snowboard team with the likes of Jake Blauvelt, one of the world’s most recognized backcountry slayers. The initial contract extends three years and includes a board design collaboration heading into the 2011 season.

“Jake is unbelievably creative and smooth riding on any backcountry terrain,” said Scott Mavis, Global Vice President of Marketing for Ride. “He makes it look effortless. His style and personality are a

The Olympic snowboarding hopeful Kevin Pearce was in critical condition Thursday after sustaining a head injury during training in the halfpipe in Park City, Utah.

Pearce hit his head against the edge of the halfpipe and was knocked unconscious. He was flown to the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City, where doctors planned external ventricular drainage to relieve fluid buildup in the brain, according to Pearce’s mother, Pia.

Pearce, a 22-year-old from Norwich, Vt., was among many of the world’s top halfpipe riders in Park City preparing to compete next week in a competition at Mammoth Mountain, Calif., an event that will serve as part of the Olympic trials.

Pearce, a favorite to make the United States Olympic team, is the rare rider who has beaten the 2006 Olympic gold medalist Shaun White in head-to-head competitions the past couple of years.

Mike Jankowski, the Olympic halfpipe coach for the United States, said that Pearce was injured while trying a double cork, a supremely difficult trick — essentially a twisting double back flip — that most of the top men are trying to add to their repertory this season.

“He did it a little too hard, put a little too much oomph into it, and over-rotated on his second flip,” Jankowski said.

He said that Pearce seemed to strike the edge of the pipe just above his eye. He said that the preliminary diagnosis was for a “significant concussion.” A team trainer and medical director were with Pearce at the hospital.

(via: new york times)

The rumors are true. As winter has arrived, so has Norwegian phenom Andreas Wiig to Forum’s pro team. Joining Peter Line, Eddie Wall, Pat Moore, Jake Welch, Stevie Bell, John Jackson, Nic Sauve and Daniel Ek, Andreas is set to give it 110% this season. Whether riding the park, at a slopestyle event or filming in the backcountry, Wiig continually pushes his limits.

“It’s an honor to be part of such a talented and progressive team, a team that is setting the standard in snowboarding today,” says Wiig. “I already know most of the guys on the team and I’m looking forward to riding with them. It’s going to be good times.”

“There is no better fit for Forum than Andreas. Forum is a cutting-edge freestyle brand and that is exactly who Andreas is, always taking it to a new level,” states Director of Team Marketing, Bryan Knox. “We are all extremely happy to be working with a rider of this caliber.”

Thinking back to when his snowboarding career began and how he got to where he is today, Andreas is looking forward to focusing more on filming and shooting photos. Although he’ll continue to participate in select contests globally, the emphasis of Wiig’s upcoming season seems to be reconnecting with his roots.  For more information visit forum at www.uk.forumsnowboards.com.

Usually it’s the snow companies who are trying to break into the skate/streetwear scene. So it’s nice when a predominantly skate company like KR3W, branch out into snow. Even better is when they do it right. Which by the looks of this promo vid the company just released, they are. Jon Kooley, Jordan Mendenhall, Nima Jalali, Will Tuddenham, Jake Olson-Elm, Nick Dirks, and Jed Anderson make up the new snow team for KR3W, and