Liberty Underground

Liberty Skis recognizes all the best parts of skiing, from deep days and first tracks to just cruising with friends and hanging out in the parking lot afterwards. To celebrate that we’re proud to announce a new series of events called Liberty Underground. How does it work? Follow Liberty via the Demo Tour and Facebook. Liberty Underground Events will be announced a week or so in advance and will be kept totally informal.

Liberty Underground #1 will take place Noon, Friday January 6^th at Bridger Bowl Montana. Look for the Liberty Van in the Parking Lot. We’ll meet up grab some turns, get some video of shredding the best Bridger has to offer. We’ll have some informal contests for chances at winning prizes from Hestra, Poc, Kicker Audio, Trew, Discrete Headwear, and Clif Bar. Sound good? See you there.

Keep tabs for the next event, which will take place Friday January 20^th at Eldora Mountain in Colorado. 

Come Party!

Demo Tour Whirlwind Results in Snow

Better Words Don't Exist.

I'd like to think that the over 2,000 miles I logged in 5 days have something to do with Winter deciding to show up to the party. The whirling forces spreading off the van's perpetually moving wheels must have created enough of a tumult to dissipate the high-pressure system hovering above the Rockies like an the alien ships from the movie Independence Day. I'm pretty sure meteorologists will tell us otherwise.

Chaos on the Road

 The route up to Mt. Bachelor from Liberty World HQ was mostly a smooth one. I saw some serious carnage, drove a van filled with skis through the middle of Utah's desert, and spent some time sleeping in a truck stop. Between the Kicker sound system and sneaking into my supply of Clif Bars I managed to drive through the night and into Oregon. The snow was better than the locals said it was (They're spoiled in the North West) and then got set up for a demo in the middle of the one shady patch at Mt. Bachelor under a cloudless sky. Oh well.

Mt. Bachelor is a pretty place.

 Then it was off to 49 Degrees North and Schweitzer for some Demoing and riding with the Ski Patrol. It was pretty amazing teaching a bunch of Patrolers that they could ski the same terrain on wider skis with less effort after getting them to change their technique.

Just Dumping!

Finally I made it home to Missoula for Christmas. The best part? Over 10 inches and an empty parking lot. After some serious time spent riding express chairs and paying for parking it's good to remember why showing up to the "local" hill can be so good. Video up soon!

Looking forward to more deep days!

Enjoy the winter and Happy Holidays.

-G

Butte to Bend. N-Dub Here We Go!

Crested Butte. The grinch rode down this on a sled to deliver gifts to the Whos.

Crested Butte was a RIOT. Between the National Brotherhood of Skiers, a river of Coors, and some fantastic sunshine I barley made it out alive. There are few authentic mountain towns these days, and Crested Butte is one of them for sure. The people are friendly, the hill is steep, and everyone rips.

Is that a Ski-bow?

I may have witnessed one of the first ever Ski-Bows as a free-heeler was inspired by Denver Bronco's QB Tim Tebow. I'm not a football fan but I thought this was hilarious. Two points for the tele crowd. I also got to hang out with the locals on my day off. Crested Butte knows how to spend a sunny Sunday on the deck for sure.

Nothing beats a Bloody.

In other news we got our gear in from Discrete! You've never looked so good keeping your ears warm.

Soo many Colors! First person to guess mine in the comments wins a Hat.

 Getting ready for the tour has been an adventure on it's own right. Between packing up, saying good byes to everyone here in Avon, and sampling strange Chinese beverages things can get a little different. We don't only just play Foosball.

Jake's Game Face.

Now the sneak peak of next year's gear...

As you can see next years graphics rock

We've been getting ready to unveil all of next years products at the trade shows. Here's your first peek at next years skis. The graphics are better than ever, and they ski well too!

 
Lastly the Van is finally stickered up and ready to hit the road. I'll be at Mt.Bachelor Saturday, 49 Degrees North on Sunday, and Schweitzer on Tuesday. What's up Northwest!

Now With Video!

We're taking it to the next level here on the demo tour by once again incorporating video! Look for weekly videos from here on out featuring you! That's right, I don't need this to be a one man show, and now is your chance to show off how much fun you're having with Liberty.

Hestra. Pure happy for your hands.

 I also made a trip to Hestra to pick up some of our giveaways. If you haven't put your hands in a pair of Hestra gloves before, you'll have a chance at the demos, and even a chance to win a pair.

POC! You want this on your head. Trust me.

Our goodies from POC showed up this week as well. What does that mean? Follow the Blog, and Twitter feed for chances to win it. I'll be handing out a pair of goggles this week at Crested Butte. Speaking of Crested Butte, join me at Butte 66 tomorrow, Friday Dec. 9th from 3 to 6 for a chance at a free pair of Double Helix's. That's right FREE DOUBLE HELIX's. Be there.

We're soo Money. Found at a bar in Winter Park.

Denver Doldrums

Never thought I'd see snow in Tijuana, I mean Denver.

 At Liberty, we do things a bit differently. For starters the company was founded after the owners won 50k in Vegas. Instead of spending the money on booze, fast cars, or a fancy cheese fountain, they started a company dedicated to making freeride skis that rip.

This mentality brings me to Denver this morning. See, a couple of weeks ago I was driving over Vail Pass late at night in the middle of a full-blown white out. To keep motivated I blasted our Kicker sound system at 11 so that my eyes rattled with the rhythm and I maintained a constant sense of hyper vigilance. All was going well until the descent into Vail. While passing a semi, our beloved Demo Van suddenly turned off. I was forced to perform radical maneuvers in order to safely guide my wounded steed to the side of the road. It turns out our sound system is so powerful; it drains the battery even when the van is idling. I presented three solutions to solve the problem:

1.     Drive faster during white out conditions.

2.     Turn the music down while driving slowly.

3.     Spend money so that I can drive safely and still do damage to my eardrums.

Solution one puts me at risk and wouldn’t make OSHA happy. Number two would be a disservice not only to Kicker, but also the various Hip Hop and Speed Metal artists that we all love. So in true Liberty fashion we’re doing things the right way and upgrading the van’s electronics. After this a Red Bull vehicle will only top the van, but we won’t give you cavities.

Liberty Demo: Coming in video to a screen near you!

In other news we got our new gear in from GoPro! Look forward to videos of Liberty Demo Lifestyle, skiing action, and most importantly you. That’s right, you. At every stop staring in Crested Butte (Dec 9,10) we’ll be letting you show off how much fun your having on Liberty Skis. Want to be an internet celebrity? Come ride with me.

Lastly I’ll be at Winter Park Colorado tomorrow doing a demo. We had to cancel the ski giveaway with Coors, but if you come complain to me about it, I’ll give you a prize. Really. See you on the slopes!

G

Demo Down Days

The snow doesn't always fall on a Tour Manager

Besides the rock star lifestyle of unwashed clothes, ski wax shavings, and the never ending search for new and creative ways to serve up peanut butter lathered meals, being a demo manager has its downsides. Actually it doesn't. Between frequent ski days, setting up a demo tour that largely consists of my favorite mountains (and yours too), and dealing with some of the coolest companies in the industry, I get to do fun side projects like driving through snowstorms and delivering skis to our friends at Powder Addiction. They run a cat skiing operation near Winter Park, and a few handshakes later I'll be doing some cat skiing this winter.

Van Vision

While I'm not driving around delivering happiness, I'm wrangling up more sponsors to the demo roster. Welcome aboard POC and Hestra! My hands, head, and eyes can't be any happier.  

Then there's the skiing...

My job is to ski a lot too. Liberty World Headquarters is only a quick bus ride away from Beaver Creek. So I'm going to get some turns in this weekend before seeing everybody at Winter Park this weekend where we'll be having another happy hour with Coors, and giving away another pair of skis. See you then!

--Gavin

Copper, Coors, and Carves

Free Stuff! Coors and Liberty hooking it up!

The first stop of the demo tour went off without a hitch this past weekend as the van and I parked ourselves right in the middle of Copper's Burning Stones Plaza. Between the high-energy base area Muzak, fresh snow, free donuts, and constant stream of smiles all day long we couldn't have had a better time.

The best part may have came on Saturday night when Coors put on a happy hour and gave away a pair of Double Helixes. At first I couldn't believe how many people stuck around from the demo just to have a shot at a free pair of skis, but then I thought about how many people loved them throughout the day even though November snow is anything but deep.

He's not blurry. He's quivering with excitement!

I have to give credit to the winner though, his strategy of buying me drinks moments before the raffle seemed to have some sort of karmic effect. He was so happy he wanted to buy me more drinks, and I had to assure him that there was no direct correlation between buying me booze and winning skis.


For another shot at winning Liberty Skis with Coors, be sure to join me at Winter Park Dec 3rd for their demo day and Coors Happy Hour afterward.

Copper Bound!

Liberty X-Factor Jay wraps up ski prep at Liberty World HQ

It's the eve of the Second Annual LBRT 2 RIDE Demo Tour, and we're happy to say that this weekend at Copper is going to be a big one. The van is almost packed, skis are scraped, and we've got a few more surprises in store for those of you joining us!

For starters our first contest begins tomorrow for a pair of Kicker headphones or ear buds. Just remember to play your favorite riding music for me to get a chance to win. We're keeping things lively throughout the day, thanks to Copper's own Sugar Lips Mini Doughnuts, who will be providing snacks to keep skiers fed, and me at a steady weekend-long sugar rush. To top off the fun, on Saturday, Coors will be hosting happy hour at Endo's Adrenaline Cafe where they'll be giving away a pair of our award-winning Double Helix!

What better way to start off the tour season than hooking you all up with some free stuff and some great turns aboard Liberty Skis! If you can't make Copper, look forward to the following stops with more to come!

Dec. 3rd: Winter Park, Colorado
Dec. 9th, 10th: Crested Butte, Colorado
Dec 17th: Mt. Bachelor, Oregon
Dec 18th: 49 Degrees North, Washington
Dec 21st: Schweitzer, Idaho

The Van is filling up!

Stay tuned for more dates and join Liberty, Kicker, GoPro, Clif Bar, Discrete, POC, Hestra and others as we travel the country spreading the good word of Liberty Skis!

First Stop Copper!

The first stop of the LBRT TO RIDE Demo Tour is this weekend at Copper Mountain for the Colorado Demo Days!

Things are in full swing here at Liberty World Headquarters as we bolt together the final parts of the tour. Products and swag are arriving daily. That means our first contest, brought to you by Kicker Audio! How does it work? Show up to the demo. Ride some Liberty Skis. When you're done, share your best song to ski to with me! You'll have a shot at some Kicker Audio Awesome, and the more I like the winning song, the better the prize.

Kicker is hooking it up!

It gets better yet. We've teamed up with Coors to throw a happy hour at Endo's where Coors will be giving away a pair of the award winning Double Helix. Stay tuned for more details, and possibly more prizes.

Nothing is better than a good hot-boxing. Thanks Chris and Ski Club Vail!

We've spent hours tuning our fleet to perfection, going so far as to enlist the help of World Cup Tuner Chris Taylor, ensuring every turn with Liberty is a good one. Can't wait to see you all Saturday morning.

--Gavin

LBRT TO RIDE DEMO TOUR LAUNCHING SOON!

Early Winter action at A-Basin

Winter’s first flakes are falling, and here at Liberty Skis we’re wrapping up the final touches on our second annual LBRT TO RIDE Demo Tour. This year, our infamous tour van is running a winter-long marathon serving up Liberty’s bamboo goodness at stops in Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Wyoming, California, Canada and more.

Expect contests, give a ways, after parties, and fun on skis all winter long. We’ll also throw a few special underground events that will only be advertised through our social media outlets.  We invite you to follow along as our Tour Manager, and voice from the road, Gavin, broadcasts his adventures and exploits across North America. He’ll be spreading Liberty’s good word at a mountain near you for your skiing and viewing pleasure.

We’re announcing stops in the next few days, so make sure to subscribe to our Blog, Twitter, and Facebook, for tour info and adventure updates straight from the man in the van.

Stay Tuned!

Snow on the van! The demo tour is coming... Stay tuned for dates!

Liberty kills it in awards, yet again!

--
Jake Ender, Graphics/Multimedia
651.325.8365
Liberty Skis
281 Metcalf Rd # 208, Avon, CO
970.949.0847

SPRING BACK TO VAIL

Spring to the left, Spring to the right, Spring to the front, Spring to the back...crisscross!  Cha Cha over to the Liberty Van at the Vista Bahn Base Saturday and Sunday April 16-17 for the last demo banger of the season.  I am personally pulling out every trick in the book for this one.  Prizes, Grilling, Music, Food, Twitter Contests...oh yes.  Let me hear you clap your hands!  Did I mention cheese?  

Train w/ Saint Motel Presented by Bud Light Saturday, April 16, 2011Ford Park Venue: 6pm Music: 6:30pm http://www.trainline.com/us/home
The Greyboy Allstars w/ Jonny Mogambo Band Sunday, April 17, 2011 Vail Village/Checkpoint Charlie Venue: 4pm Music: 5pm http://www.greyboyallstars.com/

Demo Tour Finale~ BRECK DEMO!

This time of year is special.  The sun is high in the sky.  And the smell of spring, grilling, sunscreen, and love is in the air.  

Tomorrow we will be in Breckenridge at Chair 5 Peak 8 base for the day demoing the Liberty line up consisting of a mixture of different skis.  Park setups, All mountain, Tele you name it, we probably have it up our sleeve! 

Come out tomorrow to check some Liberty Skis and enjoy another Thursday installment of 5 til 5:

Chair 5 Open Until 5, every Thursday starting April 7

It's Spring Fever at Breckenridge. Time for hot laps in the park, chicks in bikinis, live concerts and warm sunny days. To celebrate the season, Breck has announced "5 til 5" park happy hours every Thursday in April starting on the 7th. Chair 5 will be open until 5 PM giving everyone an extra hour to shred. Breck will also provide free food, swag giveaways, rail jams and on-snow DJs each "5 til 5" happy hour.

Breck 5 Til 5 Video Contest - Freeskier from Breckenridge Ski Resort on Vimeo.

Powder Dreams

Check out the luck we had for our last day of the Powder Magazine test.  Needless to say, the weather cooperated.  And we got to ski with local legend Benny Wilson who LOVED the all new 182 Double Helix~

Powder Week Pt. 3 from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

FREESKIER Magazine Test Highlights

FUN FACT:  Magazine Tests are FUN!

You name it.  

Any ski print media that you pick up this fall has tested Liberty Skis these last few Months.  And while each test is conducted uniquely in correlation to the target reader of a given magazine, they have amounted to the highlights of the DEMO(test) Tour season.    

In ruff order of operations it went like this:

POWDER Magazine's "Powder week" @JacksonHole, FREESKIER's #Freeskierfest @AspenMountain and @Breckparks, Backcountry & Tele Magazines' test @PowderMountain, to Ski/Skiing Magazines' test @AspenHighlands.  

WOW~ That consisted of pow skiing, amazing times with the FREESKIER family, the best days of my life, park tunes, shop time, Wasatch Power days, Alta, Aspen Extremeness, and a whole lot of driving.  

Enjoy some Highlights of the FREESKIER Allmountain/Powder/Big Mountain/& Park Tests/Fests (that's short for festivals because that's actually what it's like) Wow that is a lot of contractions~ Enjoy

Videos produced and edited by Henrik Lampert of Freeskier Magazine~

Shot on Location at Aspen Mountain, and Breckenridge
Thanks to Matt Harvey and the rest of the Freeskier Crew~

Springing Forward~Freeskier Park Test

As abundant amounts of snow and sun ring in the spring season.  I am happy to say that I have been skiing more and spending less time at the computer.  So apologies for not having posted something for a while and hope you've been on the same program.  

Luckily the hard working staff at Freeskier are well skilled and resourced.  Shay comes through with a great album from day 1 of the park test on the slopes of Breckenridge, Colorado.  Stay connected for more updates!...For reel!

~CLICK THIS IMAGE~

Catching Up~POWDER Week PT. 2

Enjoy the skiing perspective of our own yet crazy Mike Corrigan and some Jackson Hole living.  Stay tuned for a Powdery Part 3 and more adventures of the Tour as editing madness continues~

POWDER Week PT. 2 from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

Catching Up & Catching this!

With "Ten thousand seeds in the bucket"  Last week was a good breather spent catching up on things back in Steamboat.  There was bike riding, pow skiing, and...snow biking (video coming).  For now I'm in Liberty HQ and just finished preparing skis for the Outside/Backcountry Mag. test at Powder Mountain, UT...conveniently this is the forecast for the week:

...WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM MDT MONDAY
THROUGH TUESDAY AFTERNOON...

AFFECTED AREA: THE MOUNTAINS OF NORTHERN UTAH...INCLUDING THE WASATCH AND 
WESTERN UINTA MOUNTAIN RANGES...AND THE MOUNTAIN VALLEYS OF NORTHERN UTAH.  
MOUNTAINS ACCUMULATIONS OF 12 TO 18 INCHES WITH LOCAL AMOUNTS BETWEEN 20 AND 30 INCHES 

:)

~~~~~

Powder Week~Jackson Hole PT. 1

Here we are.  In one of the most magical places in the history of alpine skiing.  At one of the most prestigious magazine tests.  With some of the greatest people in the small little industry that we sometimes take all to seriously.  Liberty Skis, Jackson Hole, Powder Week, Us.  "There's no you and no me it's just US,"~Brother Ali

Powder Week-PT 1 from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

IMG00340-20110228-2241.jpg

We have arrived! The Powder Magazine ski test is upon us!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~
Jeffery Paul Price
North American Tour Manager
Liberty Skis
281 Metcalf Road - #281
Avon, CO 81620
Cell: 616-218-2934
office: 866-SKI-LIBERTY
www.libertyskis.com
www.libertydemo.blogspot.com

California Love

Here is a little taste of a day in the life of an industry demo.  Enjoy a laugh at the up and coming LBRT2RIDE tv star, Tim Hoover.

California! from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

North West Confessed

I went skiing at Crystal Mountain today with everyone that was available from Evo Gear. I drove from BC to Seattle yesterday. I went skiing on Whistler/Blackomb Wednesday with some VIPs. I slept in the van at an RV park in Sqaumish, BC Tuesday night. Tuesday day I woke up somewhere in Oregon and drove to Portland for Coffee then drove to Seattle to meet some Evo Gear peeps and ate an awesome burrito then drove to Squamish, BC. Monday I flew from Grand Rapids, MI to Chicago, then to Denver, then to Reno, and then drove to somewhere in Oregon. Last week flew from Reno to Michigan to be with my dying Grandmother.  Tomorrow I am waxing skis and driving towards Jackson Hole, WY.  Next week I am doing the Powder Mag. ski test.  Right now I want you to watch this and have a laugh.   More to come~

Bad Words from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

New Edit!

The powers that be wanted something short and sweet.  Here are some highlights from Beaver Creek and a shout out to good friend Chris Frangees who had a game changing day on my 182 Double Helix.  Also Picture in Picture of driving up Ogden Canyon in route to Snowbasin and a photo mission with Noah Wetzel of Lightpole Clothing. (Website dropping in 4 days....for real)!  

Enjoy~ 

60 Seconds to Liberty from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

West Side Reflection

It has only been one month since Steamboat's famous Champagne powder was billowing like smoke around me.  I saved my free ticket for the day after a successful demo and was able to capture some of the many snowy moments that occur in this magical place.  

A lot has happened since then.  Lots to catch up on as I sit in Mammoth, CA with no snow and balmy temps.  A few days to regroup, re-edit, and revisit some highlights of the LBRT to Ride Tour before heading north~  

Steamboat! from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

Manifest Destiny West

The LBRT to Ride Tour is heading west to hit Cali, Oregon, Washington and beyond! More to come on that after I drive from Steamboat to the Liberty HQ in Avon to Salt Lake City to Reno by 3:30pm tomorrow.  

For now one piece of very exciting news is that I finally nabbed Final Cut and have the tools thanks to a friend and GoPro to catch up on all this footage from the past six weeks!

Here some of what went down in the Wasatch round.


Utah! from LBRT2RIDE tv on Vimeo.

HELD HOSTAGE!

Crested Butte was VERY snowy.  It snowed ALL day and we skied POW.  They tried to hold us hostage but I escaped.   The morning after the demo and storm that caked the Dr. Suss looking town with over a foot it hit 15 below zero and my theory is that the fuel I got in Leadville from the Conoco was bad.   The diesel was gelled up and put a hold on plans for a big day of getting jobs done and maybe skiing before heading to Telluride.  

So I did everything I could to warm Squall-e up.  Propane heater, jumper cables, sun, waiting, waiting, logging footage while waiting, trying to start him, adding 911 frozen diesel...additive, waiting, and finally it was alive!  I escaped and made the drive to Telluride alone but the Butte claimed my co-pilot for this leg.

You'll now find him at Peak Sports happy to be swallowed by CB.  

So, I arrived in Telluride receiving nothing but good vibes from the local dwellers as I posted flyers around town advertising this stop of the LBRT to Ride Tour.  

The demo today went great, as always. Except for all the people who for whatever reason, (BC missions, work, ect...) could not partake in the one day I planned to spend here.  And it seemed like every other passer-by asked the same question, "Will you be here tomorrow?"  If I had a dollar for every time I heard that....  

The people of Telluride made it clear that I was not getting out easy.  Maybe not at all.  And so, here I am.  Giving what the people what they demanded and hopefully leaving the San Juans alive with all my skis.  

South West Colorado Sweep

Time flies when you're having fun!  It's already the end of January and the we are lined up to hit Crested Butte, Telluride, and Snowmass before the SIA Trade show.  Check out whats coming up next and stay tuned for West Coast dates including Mammoth, Squaw, Mt. Hood and beyond through Washington!