Time and time again, I am blown away by the giving and supportive people involved in the snowboard community. There is a unique kindred spirit and willingness to rally around fallen friends and those in need, who share the love of our sport and have faced challenges of injuries, illness or other adversities. In many cases, these friends and fellow riders come together at events create awareness and monetary support for the riders and their causes. In December, there were four such events right here in Breckenridge. Read on for a recaps, photos and video links. Photos for Franzen. Todd Franzen has been a huge part of snowboarding since the early 90's. First as a young pro rider, then making in the 411 videos and now as a true ambassador of snowboarding, he has been through it all. A little over a year ago, at the age of 33, Todd was diagnosed with stage IV Hodgkin's Lymphoma and met a whole new set of challenges. In support of Todd and his struggle, an art show was put together featuring original photography from Cole Barash, Aaron Dodds, Scott Sullivan and Vernon Deck with all proceeds going benefiting Todd and cancer research. The photos are incredible and the fact that they support such a great cause makes them even better. The show runs until February so head to Clint's Bakery and Coffee House to check it out! Frends Pool Tournament. Everyone involved in snowboarding and even some outside it were floored by the news of Kevin Pearce's devastating head injury last year. Since then 51,981 people have joined the Well Wishes for Kevin Pearce facebook page and countless more have been captivated and inspired by his continuing recovery. The Frends Crew got together during the Dew Tour and had a pool tournament with local pool sharks, enthusiasts and supporters in order to raise money for the Kevin Pearce Foundation. It was an amazing night. The winners even generously donated half their cash prize back to the KP Foundation. I AM SNOWBOARDING/JLA art show. Jeff Anderson was an amazing soul and snowboarder who touched the lives of everyone he came in contact with in his short 23 years. The I AM SNOWBOARDING art show is a traveling exhibit to honor his life and support the JLA Memorial Fund which has funded community projects like the Brothers skate park in Mammoth, CA. It is an wonderful event where photographers collaborate with artist to come up with creative and amazing original artwork. The art show made a stop in Breckenridge, CO on Dec. 16, 2010. It brought together lots of friends and really captured the spirit and connectivity of snowboarding, art and well, fun! Check out the video here. Mentoring through Fitness- second annual SOS benefit. Equipped Fitness and Crossfit of Breckenridge is the official workout facility for the Breck Freeride Team and Scott Ferguson keeps us all in shape with customized and challenging workouts year round. On Dec. 13th, the SOS kids came to Equipped Fitness to meet up with some of the Team including Keri Herman, Nate Kern, Ryan Thompson, Anna Segal, Seth Hill, Jake Black, Zack Black and myself. We talked about the sports we all love to do, the importance of fitness, setting goals and following your dreams. After a quick workout together, the kids were able pick out tons of prizes from all the gear we had donated through out the season including brand new boards, bindings, goggles, helmets, hats, shoes etc. It was a fun and rewarding event that will hopefully continue for years to come!
-Leslie Glenn