Ski & Snowboard Expo 2009
Christina Johnson
With the expo season starting to wind down, I decided to attend the Ski and Snowboard Expo in Albany, NY on Saturday November 7 in order to get a feel for what was ahead for the year. I was pleasantly surprised by the wealth of information being handed out to spectators and how friendly resort representatives were.
Making my way through the New York side of the venue, it was very apparent that the resorts were working fairly hard on upgrades to things such as snow making, lodging, and retail space. Windham takes the forefront with the addition of the Big Air Bag, designed to allow skiers and riders to practice jumps in a controlled environment. For $10 a day in addition to the purchase of an adult lift ticket, anyone can enjoy the Big Air Bag from 10am - 9pm.
After leaving the New York and Massachusetts resorts behind, I checked out the shops that were being represented. Although their was only three shops to choose from, their were a lot of deals to be had. Prior to the expo, I had a chance to speak with Jaime Georgelos from Alpin Haus on the phone in regards to what to keep an eye on for the season.
Jaime is a firm believer that Burton is ideal for women snowboarders, due to their technological advances. When asked what boards best portrayed these advances, Jaime said that the Burton Feather and Feelgood led the way in women’s design. As far as what board best suits the variety of riders on the mountain, he felt as though the Feather was good for weekend riders and the Troop or Feelgood were best for the more advanced daily rider. I met up with Jaime at the expo and continued our conversation about what boards are top sellers, especially for them. So far this season, they are seeing a lot of Burton, Gnu, and Libtech.
After speaking with Jaime, I took the time to look through some other boots and boards to see what other shops had. The running theme I came across is that the shops that were there had a large selection of last years boots at great prices and a small selection this years boards at average prices.
The one shop that is always at the Albany, NY expo is Zumiez. Not a real shop to say the least, but I was actually impressed by their employees and what they had to offer. Their boards were pretty basic but their boot, binding, and outerwear selection was more well-rounded. The crew was super friendly.
After browsing my way through the gear, I ended my day making a trip through “Vermont Row” as the guys from Stowe called it. Vermonter’s are a bunch of really cool guys and good to talk to. The Bromley Mountain representative also clued me into why the mountain is nicknamed “Sun Mountain”. The best time of year to ride the mountain is December through January, when the mountain gets the most sun. Vermont mountains have some of the best deals going this season on the East Coast so make sure you keep an eye out.
From Albany, the resort representatives head to Boston for the last expo of the year. This is said to be the biggest expo in the United States. If your looking for a day trip, stop by the expo and tell everyone Shred Betties says hello. You never know who you might run into!
Posted by Christina Johnson on 11/13
