Annie Fast

The simplicity of bouldering is almost defined by what you don’t need—no ropes, no knot tying skills, no climbing hardware, and no harness. You don’t even really need a partner. It can just be you, the few simple pieces of gear and the rock. This simplicity is what originally drew world-renowned climber Lonnie Kauk to bouldering.

The history of Oregon skateboarding goes deep. Some would say that it started 30 years ago under the Burnside Bridge with a crew of DIY Portland skateboarders. It was on Halloween night of 1990, when a tight-knit group of friends, seeking a sheltered spot to skate, started unloading bags of concrete and building transitions to skate on the bridge columns. In the process, these skaters spawned a skatepark building boom that continues to this day. The timing was fortuitous as one of the biggest...

Few could have predicted that skateboarding would one day go mainstream. The sport of outsiders, the kids out back in the high school parking lot, the ones who didn’t fit the mold, the Skate and Destroy crowd: their day is here with the impending debut in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, marking skateboarding’s official rise beyond the fringe of traditional sports. This summer, the best skateboarders in the world will don Nike team uniforms, willingly submit to random drug testing, and follow the rul...

Thor Drake, owner of See See Motorcycles, is a unifier in the disparate world of Northwest motorcycling. Through the last decade he has managed to corral legions of riders together under a common roof ...

A Mother's Day blog for Rad Power Bikes, profiling pro snowboarder Kimmy Fasani and her insights in to the big, bike-friendly world out there just waiting for families to discover.

Early morning sunrays lit up the sheer 40-degree slope as the first competitor dropped into the 2,200-vertical-foot-long Alaskan face. Ahead of this final day of snowboarding competition at the third and final stop of the Natural Selection Tour, there was one question on everyone’s mind: What type of rider would excel in such a demanding venue? The slope ahead required a mastery of route-finding, an understanding of variable snow conditions and the air awareness (and confidence) to boost off ...

Historically, Big Sky has been known for not being known—that is, it’s remained (mostly) undiscovered. The mountain resort community (population 3,098) is located in southwest Montana, just off a winding two-lane canyon road between West Yellowstone (the northwest entrance to Yellowstone National Park) and bustling Bozeman. The pandemic-related fallout of 2020 definitely changed the landscape, as the previously slow-growing fun hamlet experienced a huge boom. A host of resort developments has...

Spring skiing is such a different experience than deep winter skiing that it honestly should be thought of as a second season. While the winter months are characterized by intense storm cycles, freezing temperatures, and mercifully limited daylight—granted the payoff is incredible powder days—spring is all about long sunny days, groomed runs and parks, and slushy afternoon slopes—and maybe a few fresh powder days, because…spring.
The contrast between a week spent at a ski area during the Dece...

Spring skiing is such a different experience than deep winter skiing that it honestly should be thought of as a second season. While the winter months are characterized by intense storm cycles, freezing temperatures, and mercifully limited daylight—granted the payoff is incredible powder days—spring is all about long sunny days, groomed runs and parks, and slushy afternoon slopes—and maybe a few fresh powder days, because…spring.
The contrast between a week spent at a ski area during the Dece...

See the incredible strides made by athletes with disabilities, and help tackle the remaining barriers. Ravi Drugan expertly carves at high speeds down the steep summit of Mt. Bachelor.

What if you could visually experience a steep, backcountry freestyle run from an elite snowboarder’s perspective?

The first stop of the Natural Selection Tour at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort introduced viewers and the competing riders to a new, hybrid freestyle-freeriding event. This event was the brainchild of Travis Rice, one of the most influential snowboarders in the world. The course required riders to navigate down a steep face, through deep snow, while also executing freestyle tricks off massive jumps and natural features.

The Natural Selection Tour is an event that professional snowboarder Travis Rice has been manifesting (his words) since the first iteration of the big-mountain freestyle event in 2008 at his home resort of Jackson Hole. Over the last decade-plus, Rice has continued to evolve the contest format, reimagining it in 2012 and 2013 at a backcountry cat-skiing destination deep in the backcountry of British Columbia.
Rice saw these past contests as “beta events” which led to a realization of his ulti...

It’s the stuff of dreams: sixteen acres of untracked inbounds terrain at Wyoming’s Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, flocked in feet of sparking fresh powder, untouched save for the towering transitions and takeoffs scattered across the slope.

This is the setting for the opening stop of the Natural Selection Tour, an invitation-only freeride snowboard contest set to kick off this week at professional snowboarder Travis Rice’s home resort.

Oregon is firmly established as a skiers and snowboarders paradise, with 13 ski areas across the state and the frosty peaks of the Cascade Range always within view. It should come as no surprise that Oregon is also home to a number of ski and snowboard companies. The offerings range from skis and snowboards to outerwear and accessories. These brands make products that are inspired by and built to excel in the uniquely Northwest snow and weather conditions brought by the Cascades.