"Do you think this stuff is good?  It’s supposed to be good for you…"  

I remember it clearly.  John and I were at the grocery store and walking through the health food section last fall.  He had picked up a carton of Vita Coco and was examining the package.  "I bet it’s delicious."  Into the basket it went and by the time we were halfway back to the office, love had blossomed.

Fast forward to today.  We are all hooked.  You will find more Vita Coco containers in our recycling bin than anything else.  After her daily trip to the post office, Adrienne mentioned that there was a big heavy box in her car from Vita Coco.  John had gone so far as to contact the company, talk with them, and get them on board as a sponsor for 2010.  We love you John.

So without further adieu, I would like to formally announce Vita Coco as a sponsor of SASS and SGT for 2010!  We are stoked to have them on board!  Check out www.VitaCoco.com and swing by your local grocery store to pick some up ASAP!  Thanks to John for being such a great model, and letting Travis pour some Vita Coco on him.

Travis giving John a helping hand.

Stay Hydrated!

 -Jack

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G-Funk!  Whenever Garrett calls, there’s a slight flurry of excitement around the office.  As lame as that sounds, it’s just because we never really know exactly what crazy things are going on in Garrett’s life.  He has been running around with the Traveling Circus crew all winter, and they just dropped the 6th and final episode for the season by getting the whole crew together for a trip out to California.  Check it out here.  You are guaranteed to enjoy it!

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SASS was out in full force last night for the NY Snowboard Group’s end of year bash.  We made the trek to Sweet and Vicious in Soho, NYC and ordered up a few drinks to get the night rolling.  The vibe was awesome as it stopped raining just as the event got underway.  

Group members gathered in the garden behind the bar for the awards ceremony.  NYSG organizers stepped up big and went with vintage trophies for all the winners.  

With categories like "Best Kit", "Most Effective Drunk Snowboarder" you can imagine how lively the group is.  Chris Moril was loving life when he accepted his award for Last to Bed, First to Rise.

We were there as well to hook up some lucky members with fresh prizes for all who entered the raffle.  Once again, the stoke level was super high.  Dunfee wore his voice out within the first few seconds of calling names.  

But the evening didn’t stop there.  SASS clients Erin Dichiera and Alexandra Vaughn took us to their favorite late night karaoke spot, Sing Sing, where Travis brought down the house with Dead or Alive, Dunfee gave the most energetic rendition of Werewolves of London ever, and Erin…Erin did much better at Nothin but A G Thang than I could ever do.

All in all, it was another awesome session in the city and we are super excited to be working with the New York Snowboard Group!  If you havent checked them out yet, and you live in the city, than you need to get on it.  Check it out here.

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When the SASS crew comes to Colorado, it’s guaranteed to be a good time. After a weeklong adventure at USASA Nationals in Copper, the SASS tour headed to the Unveristy of Colorado in Boulder to set up shop and hang out on campus.

The Univeristy of Colorado in Boulder is not only a beautiful place but also the alma mater of many SASS alums.

CU- Boulder is filled with students who love to shred, so SASS set up a tent to let everyone know about the awesome adventures Sierra Nevada College and SASS offer in Bariloche, Argentina.

Luke Shelly, Jack Pollner, and Lucas Moore manned the tent and signed shredders up for SASS and courses with SNC. 

The tent was filled with SASS specific Dakine accessories, SASS tee shirts,  Good Wood NYC jewelry, and tons of stickers. The party kicked off as tunes bumped on the IKick from Kicker Audio .

A huge crowd came through and stopped by the tent. Everyone was excited to sign up for SASS and to enter the raffle to win free stuff. 

Students were ultra stoked that SASS was on campus and some even hung out at the tent all day.

Once classes were out, it was time for the SASS raffle. Dakine backpacks, gloves, waxing kits, tuning kits and tees were handed out to lucky winners. Good Wood necklaces were also raffled, and everyone who signed up was entered to win the "SASS of Trip of a Lifetime" and became eligible for a free camp session this summer.

Everyone walked away a winner taking home something special from SASS.

The tent day in Boulder marked the end of the Colorado tour, but it’s only the begining of fun that awaits this summer in Argentina.

Thanks to our sponsors for making this stop of the SASS tour a great one!

Dakine

Kicker Audio

Good Wood NYC

Oakley

Billabong

Big news about SASS and Billabong are in the works so check back for all nitty gritty details soon.

There’s still time to sign up for your adventure of a lifetime in Argentina, so check out the packages and promotions going on at SASNOW.COM!!

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 Well, sort of.  SASS founder John Sang Wilbur got tapped to provide some insight into how the recent credit crisis has affected his position as an entrepreneur to secure lending.  John got two whole paragraphs in an article that mostly talks about JP Morgan but we get the one client mention… Bluechip baby!  We’re going to the New York Times and asking for three!  The idea of Wilbur as a respected small-business owner is novel to us here in the SASS office, as John probably owns more matching sweat suits than he does ties, but we like the idea.  Someone must not have been paying attention at the conference sign-up…

From the WSJ article, which can be found in its full length here:

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Shoe boxes.  I have a few of them.  It seems that they are one of those things you can’t get rid of.  I am constantly faced with the decision of whether or not to trash the box my new kicks just came in.  And I don’t even consider myself a sneaker head.  I know of friends who have 50-60 pairs of shoes in their closets, all neatly arranged in boxes according to style, color, purpose…all sorts of crazy reasonings.  

Me?  I usually end up throwing the box away.  Shoeboxes aren’t terribly resilient, making them useless for shipping.  And, shoes were made for walking, not storing in a box and keeping pristine.  So the box becomes trash, usually recycled, but not always.

What if the box never existed?  What if the shoes could be delivered to the store, tried on by me, and then taken home without the cardboard?  Enter Puma and The Fuse Project.  In todays world where there is so much excess, and so little to spend on that excess, Puma went to far as to re-evaluate the time established method of packaging shoes and introduced the "Clever Little Bag" (What I am calling the "CLB").  What started as a small idea to reduce waste quickly turned into an entire 21 month project to create the most cost effective and lowest impact shoe box ever seen.  Voila, the CLB.

Ditching the standard base and top construction, Puma instead crafted a recycled cardboard structure that fits inside a non-woven bag.  The small amount of cardboard provides enough support to stack the CLB like normal shoe boxes and can be tagged with the style, size, color, and any other markings to identify the shoe.  When the shoes are purchased, the cardboard can be left in for those who wish to keep the shoes in their original packaging, or it can be recycled and the CLB can be used as a small tote.  Either to keep the shoes in or to carry items.  Should the consumer not require the bag, it too is recyclable.

Check out a video of the CLB on PSFK.com and then go check it out at your local shoe store.

Keep it green!

-Jack

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 Longtime SASS client Jack Kyle has had an awesome season, picking up wins all across the Gatorade Free Flow series this winter.  The Freeport, Mainiac kills it with a unique and got tapped for a video profile with Allisports.   As we say in SASS-speak, Kyle is crushing it!

View on Vimeo.

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USASA Nationals is a special time of year when eager shredders from every corner of the US hit the slopes of Copper, Colorado to compete in ski and snowboard events. This year SASS was on site with Sierra Nevada College (SNC) representing and pumping everyone up about the upcoming SASS season. Jeff Corrado from SNC was also among the SASS affiliates in Copper to help discuss the great college credit opportunities SASS and SNC are offering this season.

SASS and Sierra Nevada College getting busy at their tent in the Village at Copper.

The SASS crew was also supporting SASS athletes as they battled their way to the top in Nationals. SASS wishes to congratulate two former campers and team members for their amazing podium finishes.

Chris Tierny claiming his win at Copper Photo: Jack Pollner

Chris Tierny took first place in his division for throwing it down on the challenging slopestyle course. Tierney wowed the judges with his impressive style and amplitude on the jumps and rails. SASS is excited to welcome Tierney back this summer for another session in Argentina.

Randall Stacy representing SASS and crushing it on the podium.  Photo: Tommy Tikos

SASS would also like to congratulate Randall Stacy for securing second place in his slopestyle event. His run of front 5, cab 5 and back 5 was stylish enough to land him on the podium, despite almost being dq’d after throwing one of the biggest backflips Copper has ever seen in his 2nd run. This summer marks Stacy’s third trip to Argentina where he will be interning with SASS by aiding the guides in the backcountry and helping with snow safety education.

Each day at Nationals, SASS shared the stoke by having afternoon raffles at the booth where they gave away awesome prizes such as SASS/Dakine backpacks, Herd Headwear, Dakine gloves, SASS stickers and other awesome items. The turnout was great each day crowds surrounded the booth with tons of shredders excited about SASS.

Randall Stacy stood on the SASS table and was in charge of handing out the goods. Photo: Tommy Tikos

SASS also threw an "Taste of Argentina" Mixer in their ski-in chalet in Copper. Check back for all of the amazing photos of this event soon!

Nationals was a great event and SASS glad to be apart of it.

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 Jeremy Landy is probably one of the coolest people you will ever meet.  And while that sounds super cliche to say, he’s also one of the most laid back shredders you will ever meet.  He came down to SASS for the past few years and was one of the most stoked kids around.  While he is sitting out this summer due to recent shoulder surgery, he has been filling in the hours writing for his new site StrapdUp.com.  Jeremy’s aim is to put his finger directly on the pulse of the daily riding lifestyle.  We all see the pro lifestyle, endless hours on jets, partying in VIP clubs with pros galore.  Jeremy wants to expose the day to day of your average snowboarder.  He did a sweet write up of his experiences at SASS that you can check out by going here.

Check out the site and shoot him a message letting him know you dig the site!

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