Eco-Friendly skis and snowboards

(Guest Blog Post - Andrew Fosbrook)

We often don't think about it, but skiing and snowboarding as a whole can have an enormous impact on the environment. The next time you pack up your SUV, crank up the heat and turn on the hot tub at your condo, sit in a sprawling lodge alive with fluorescent light and watch an army of groomers siege the slopes at night, consider how your gear can fight back for the green team.The Ski Monster stocks several skis and snowboards that will put your mind at ease and let you enjoy the more natural aspect of the great outdoors, the way it was meant to be.

As I write this blog, Atomic Skis are already hard at work making eco-friendly skis and snowboards. It's refit its factory in Altenmarkt, Austria under the company's White Winters initiative. To reduce CO2 emissions from fuel oil, Atomic has begun using a wood chip heating system. The plant also recycles all water used in its production process and draws energy only from renewable sources. Other companies are beginning to search for ways to reduce their carbon footprint as well, but Atomic is one step ahead of the game. You can be too.

With the true white winter fast approaching, check out our catalog for the versatile Atomic Snoop, Smoke Ti, and Blackeye Ti skis from 2011 line-up. These skis can take you anywhere at your favorite resort and make you feel like Captain Planet at the same time. If you are too progressively minded for boundaries, try out this year's Atomic Access, and show the trees outside the ropes that you mean business too.

Snowboarders, don't feel left out. We know that you care too and want the best of what the green life has to offer. Ride Snowboards is the industry leader in eco-friendly snowboards. It has taken its environmentalism from the factory and put it right on top of their boards for all to see. While the traditional plastic top sheet on your board oozes with chemical factory waste, the new Ride Slackcountry's top sheet is made from pure, natural hemp. This heady board doesn't only replace plastic with a clean, waste-free material, the hemp actually makes for a better ride. The Hempbrain technology from Ride creates a lighter, but stronger top sheet giving you a smoother ride and snappier carve. 

Face it. Our sport exists in an outdoor world. Old Man Winter should be ageless, but the way we ski today is driving him to an early grave. If you don't go green this year, the white winter will be one year older when you do.