Flow Snowboarding will continue its role this year as the title sponsor of the 10-day long snowboarding festival Flow Tailgate Alaska.  The festival is heading into its sixth year and will take place March 29- April 7. Flow Snowboarding will also be sponsoring Flow World Freeriding Championships, and the Flow World Freeride Festival in Valdez set to take place during the festival.

Dale Rehberg from Flow Snowboarding describes the distinctiveness of the festival, “Flow Tailgate Alaska is a special event that brings together the spirit of what snowboarding is. The people and the environment around the event is what snowboarding is all about and the location is somewhere everyone should aspire to ride at least once in their life.”

Read on for more on the event from Flow Snowboarding:

Flow Snowboarding will return as the title sponsor for the 10-day long festival of Flow’s Tailgate Alaska, the Flow World Freeriding Championships, and the Flow World Freeride Festival in Valdez, Alaska commencing March 29-April 7, 2013. Going into its sixth year, this event has become one of the most popular and respected experiences among the snowboard community.

Come March, Thompson Pass will be taken over by snowboarding’s most elite riders, its dedicated backcountry enthusiasts, and a good size portion of the shred industry as they congregate in the middle of the renowned Chugach range. Participants are able to access the mountains via helicopter, snowmobile and hiking in the terrain immediately surrounding the base-camp facility. When not taking deep turns in untouched powder, riders and skiers have the opportunity to partake in daily snow-science classes, roam around nightly beer gardens, along with other group activities provided by the organizers.

The number of tickets available to the public has been limited to 150 attendees. Event founder Mark Sullivan explains, “Our goal is to ensure deep, untracked powder for every participant. Limiting tickets will allow for fantastic snow conditions for everyone who makes it.”

Amidst the excitement of Flow Tailgate Alaska 2013 will be the Flow World Freeriding Championships that is a contest focused on big mountain riding in the marvelous peaks of the area. The Flow World Freeriding Championships are set to take place April 1-2, 2013.

Flow rider Mike Basich shares his enthusiasm towards the continued sponsorship of the event, “You’re never going to feel 100% ready for Alaska. Just go! Flow and the Tailgate crew will be there to welcome you for 2013!”

Tickets are on sale now. For more information check out www.tailgatealaska.com . Get yourself signed up and ready to ride some of the most amazing mountains in the World!

The World Freeride Festival & Flow Tailgate Alaska is pleased to announce a new partnership with ISPO MUNICH to create a Freeride exposition at the 2013 ISPO MUNICH trade show 3-6 February 2013 — titled: Tailgate ISPO ¬— World Freeride Expo. Tailgate ISPO – World Freeride Expo is all about the freeride spirit that has shaped snowboarding since day one: getting out to slash powder. It takes successful educational elements from Flow Tailgate Alaska, adds new freeride innovations, and will be a rallying point at the ISPO MUNICH trade show for freeride snowboarding enthusiasts. “We are excited to bring some of the energy of Alaska to the world’s most exciting sporting goods trade show for the next 3 years.” says Tailgate ISPO — World Freeride Expo partner Rasmus Ostergaard. With freeride riding as diverse as ever, Tailgate ISPO — World Freeride Expo unites all different aspects of this snowboarding and lifestyle theme: equipment and unique board designs, safety aspects, travel operators, publications or events all dedicated to push the level further. Tailgate ISPO – World Freeride Expo is a platform for those companies and individuals that breathe the Freeride life: brands with their latest products riding and safety, organizers, travel companies, riders and publishers all unite to present their developments and stories. Daily activities include educational clinics, presentations, legends’ stories and more — all organized around a central campfire that links the presented brands and projects together in the A1 Hall (THE most important place to be at ISPO MUNICH). The World Freeride Festival & Tailgate Alaska also plays host to the world-renowned Flow Tailgate Alaska and the Flow World Freeride Championship — held each spring on Thompson Pass, in Valdez, Alaska. See www.tailgatealaska.com for more information.

To take part as an exhibitor, let us know as soon as possible, as space is limited and the deadline is the 30th of November. Check out www.tailgatealaska.com or contact mark@tailgatealaska.com or rasmus.ostergaard@mac.com to learn more.

Rome SDS today announced their killer Ticket To Alaska comp, offering you up the chance to win the trip of a lifetime to snowboarding’s ultimate venue: the Chugach Mountains in Alaska.

If you have ever watched an Absinthe or Standard movie, you have seen it: big, above-treeline ramps with sheets of snow racing down the mountain next to miniscule riders. While this is one thing that sets Valdez apart from its peers—the natural terrain—it is the windlips, halfpipes, ramps, and cornices everywhere that make it the best place on the planet to ride. Cover everything with 700” of snow each season and you have something that almost defies description.

Tailgate Alaska The World Freeride Festival (March 25 – April 10, 2011) gathers riders in the heart of it all, on Valdez’s legendary and historic Thompson Pass, to celebrate the best powder any of us have ridden. Through Rome’s Ticket To Alaska contest, four lucky riders will win expense-paid trips to the Tailgate Alaska to shred the world’s best terrain and hang with the best riders in the world.

If you work at a Rome dealer, there are three ways to win:

• Be the Number One Rome salesman out of the participating Rome dealers. If you think you have real, big-time game, then riding AK is where you need to go.
• Be the one lucky winner from the “top salespeople drawing”. We will collect all the names of the top Rome salespeople from the participating shops (one from each shop), and then we’ll randomly pick a winner from those names.
• Sell the “Golden Ticket” board. The “Golden Ticket” board is one that Rome will select out of the boards shipped to participating retailers between 8/1/2010 and 1/30/2010. Whoever sells this board goes to Alaska.

If you don’t work at a Rome dealer, there is one way to win: buy “The Golden Ticket”.

Let’s say that you would love a free trip to Alaska to go riding with the likes of Lukas Debari, but you don’t work at a Rome snowboard shop. No problem. Rome has picked one board—it was or will be shipped to a snowboard shop (near you)—and the person who buys that Rome board will be going to AK with the guy who sold it to him (see above). Cute, huh?

If all of this seems confusing, it’s not. If AK is the pinnacle, then we are going. And if we are going, we want to take you with us. As one of four winners of Ticket To Alaska, you will be treated to airfare, a week’s worth of food, lodging, a new 164 Notch Swallowtail for pow shredding, a Blitz backpack and snowmobile access powder riding in the Chugach.

Ticket To Alaska is your opportunity for the trip of a lifetime.

So if you want a chance to shred Alaska with Rome, the first step is to make sure your local Rome dealer is participating. Any questions on how your Rome shop can participate, contact your local Rome rep or Rome directly at anna@romesnowboards.com and check out www.tailgatealaska.com to see what is in store.

Must be 18 or over to participate.

There was so much awesome on the internets this week we shat a house. It’s a peculiar phrase, we know, but one that we’ve adopted ’cause our young intern used it and we’re scared of being melted down to make glue if we’re not down with the yoof. Init, blud. Getme. LOL.

SATURDAY

Windells Camp is over. Here’s the superpost with all clips. But is Folgefonna even better? Find out here! What? You don’t have a belt sponsor? Kazu does… The Mustachio goes Indoor and films some of laid-back jibbing. Finally someone tells us the truth about powder skis.

SUNDAY

Eiki Helgason and Nicki Weiss shred Northstar. The Random Bastards release their solid teaser. Mystery District’s TheREEL offers 11 minutes of Idaho shredding.

Urine therapy: Group session

MONDAY

We post the Happy Thoughts full movie and the WhatCoast Treats teaser. Keegan Valaika eats snow in this clip. The Billabong Bro Down is coming up. Fredi Kalbermatten is a gnarly dude. And bank robbers wear Volcom.

TUESDAY

Nike 6.0 puts out another banger vid, this time it’s all about an igloo. A lot of people bailed hard at the Tailgate Alaska. The Norwegian government give the World Snowboard Championships the green light. Johnny Paxsons tells the internet how to do backflips. Whitelines post another good indoor slope edit, and show some UK shreds take over Amsterdam. The Helgasons do in t-shirts now (mildly nsfw). Travis Rice is cooking up a follow up to the modern classic That’s It That’s All.  The O’Neill Team jibs the Camp of Champions. The Swiss ...is fun teaser …is fun. Oh, and Brandon Hammid parties like an animal…

At the Sony media trip the giant fly swat demonstration became the focus of attention.

WEDNESDAY

Here’s a sick Hobo Shredwear edit. & Co. in another Mt. Hood edit. Brain Farm really know how to use them cameras. Will Lavigne really knows them frontside spins. We post the Relentless documentary Follow Me Down (starring Jeremy Jones and Xavier De Le Rue), and the Absinthe Flipside Episode 1. The Angry Snowboarder posts the German S-Cut trailer. And then there’s the NuuLife Superpark bonus edit.

THURSDAY

The Flow team movie Witness the Sickness is out. Devun Walsh runs you through his latest TWS cover. Yobeat sells out but has also advice on how to score a sponsor and a nice summer ender edit, and this one, too. Get ready for the World Snowboarding Day 2010. Joe Sexton talks shop. There’s yet another good Camp of Champions edit.

An awkward moment later he was able to tick 'ice swimming' off his list.

FRIDAY

Our legendary “The Knowledge” feature returns to the interweb, this time starring Danny Larsen and Stian Solberg. Jeremy Jones rides gnarl in Utah. Chazou is an awesome French rider. Afterbang tells us how many snowboards we really need.

That’s all for the moment. Now we’ll dive head first into the many premiere parties of the coming days. This short clip from a New Zealand cruise ship is strangely reminiscent of our feelings at the end of a good party.

The world of snowboarding is a confusing one.

Once again we were actually working an entire morning to compile another installment of This Week in Snowboarding. Not surprisingly, we found some interesting stuff that is also great to kill some time. Here are the highlights from this week’s snowboarding, drawn from our own site and other places that are actually good.

SATURDAY

The Videograss crew does Sweden. Someone invented a dearly-needed heated toilet seat. Johan Gaume, Olivier Gittler and Arthur Longo shred Les2Alpes. A lot of kids bail at Windells. And I suppose the world was waiting for a documentary on Grilo‘s life.

SUNDAY

If welding gets you excited you should check out the Skullcandy Rail Battle Reminder over at theMustachio.com. The Angry Snowboarder brings you the full DC Mountain Lab.

Even while water sliding he knew how to handle a laser gun.

MONDAY

We kicked off our Onboard Pirates Week. We posted the first snowboard session edit from Windells. The remarkable Diaries Down Under visit The Remarkables. Scotland got its summer shred dialled. Mt. Hood’s Charlie passed away. No snowboarding, but still worth a mention: First ever (sligthly dodgy) kickflip in surfing.

TUESDAY

the anticipation of the Billabong Ante Up event begins (and it includes a video). The new Bluebird movie looks sick. Chinese snowboarding looks good, too. Shaun McKay doesn’t land this trick. Who? Him. Yobeat posts a nice Snowbird season ender.

Nick Visconti has his snowboarding on log.

WEDNESDAY

ESPN has a very moving video of Kevin Pearce’s homecoming. And a list of cool snowboard dads. We have the excellent Respect Your Elders teaser and the Lost Bear Edit. We have to add a link to this video, as it is from a crew called “Garbage Gang“, and it includes some porn. The Euro X Games dates get announced. Someone invents a gas-powered snowboard. And the Helgasons know how to make good use of kickers, jibs, and diarrhea.

THURSDAY

Riding sleds is gnar. Thomas Feurstein loves pole jams. Canadians are good riders, as documented in the “Share the Wealth” teaser. So are the Brits, as shown in the Standing Sideways highlights. The Lazy Boy’z (note the grocers’ apostrophe) release a teaser. And even in Sweden, summertime is ON.

FRIDAY

Our website finally posts the interesting Tailgate Alaska teaser. The Smith agents spend a team week full of shred in Val Senales. YES get the EuroSIMA breakthrough brand award. We will get to see some industry party shots every Friday. And Comune release their groundbreaking teaser number 4.

Don’t forget to follow all the action of the Billabong Ante Up this Saturday!

Enough said, now back to the world cup. Somehow it all sounds familiar: The French surrendered early, the USA arrive last minute and the English are left to fight the Germans… Happy weekend everyone!

Here’s the Tailgate Alaska teaser, featuring Travis Rice, Scotty Lago, Mark Landvik and a ton of other world-class riders. I know, I know, this is kind of last week’s news. But listen, we figured you will enjoy the teaser nonetheless.

Shaun Farmer.

Bluebird Skies, Pillows of Powder and Massive Airs Over Natural Obstacles Mark this Historic Day in Snowboarding.

Tailgate Alaska officials announced that Travis Rice and Vera Janssen are the winners of the Recco King of the Hill competition, held for the first time since 1999 outside Valdez, Alaska. The competition, staged in the legendary Chugach range, enjoyed bluebird skies and pristine pow in the Bro Bowl at Thompson Pass. Hundreds of spectators cheered each rider as they dropped from the top of the mountain into a field of soft, untracked snow and launched impossible airs over treacherous exposure.

Rice was ecstatic after being announced the winner. He earned the King of the Hill Sword, heli time from local operators including Alaska Backcountry Adventures, Alaska Rendezvous Guides, Valdez Heli Ski Camps and Valdez Heli Guides, as well as the unqualified respect of his peers. Travis donated a portion of his proceeds to the community in the ballistic afterparty held Sunday night at Valdez’s Land Shark bar.

”Conditions were all time and the venue was spot on for a long overdue AK shred contest,” said Rice. “Everyone there threw down – it was a great day for snowboarding.” Epic it was. The one-day event not only enjoyed perfect weather and snow, but also participation by some of the world’s most renowned freeriders – past and present.

Mike Basich.

“This event brought together riders from many generations, from legends like Farmer and Basich, to top pros like Rice and Landvik to next generation riders like Scotty Lago and Aaron Robinson,” said Mark Sullivan, event organizer.

“It has been snowboarding legend Nick Perata’s goal to bring back the legendary King of the Hill competition,” added Sullivan.  “It was incrediblly rewarding to help him bring the event to fruition.”

The Recco King of the Hill was held over a seven-day “holding period” to ensure optimal conditions, although the competition was held on the first day on the event schedule. Riders faced off on the legendary Bro Bowl hill for a 3 run battle challenging a riders strength, technical line ability and freestyle skills.

The Recco King of the Hill is made possible by a network of partners: Recco, Valdez Alaska, GoPro, The North Face, Ski Doo, Alaskan Brewing, Flow Snowboards, and many contributions from the local Alaskan community.

For more info, visit tailgatealaska.com and click on the King of the Hill button.