Stand-up paddling (SUP) hit Lake Tahoe en force this summer.

It was impossible to go anywhere on the Lake, Donner Lake, or even surrounding streams without seeing the water farmers out there, paddling away like some early morning crazy hoeing his crops.

I’d seen them before down in San Clemente, had heard the buzz, the bonuses, the complaints, etc. It wasn’t until a trip back East, on a small Cape Cod surf day, that I thought these things might have potential here.

All said, in the ocean, in good surf, I am not yet a huge fan of the stand-up board. I like to ride short boards and fun boards and sometimes longboards. The main benefit of a stand-up board is that you can catch the tiniest ankle-slappers way out beyond the lineup, before they even break.

This wave-catching ability pisses a lot of people off, and in many places, like San Clemente, the stand-up people stay in their dedicated spot, the surfers in theirs. But on Lake Tahoe and on Cape Cod - where the surf did actually break, but is generally small - I had the realization that the stand-up board might be the perfect board for actually surfing Tahoe.

There are a two primary types of stand-up paddling on Lake Tahoe: surfing and point-to-point. A surf SUP board simply uses an extra large longboard, like the boards used for regular surfing, just thicker and wider, with a very flat rocker. The point-to-point board is sleek, designed for speed and distance, has more nose rocker, is generally narrower, and has a much more tapered tail. Something like fat pow boards vs. downhill boards. There is a variation in between, one that melds both designs and allows for surfing when the wave is gentler, more like an open swell than a beach break.

Currently, on Tahoe, most people are using the boards for traveling along the coasts, doing 8-, 10-, 12-mile tours, checking things out. The perspective is amazing, right on top of the the water and flowing like a kayak, but well up above the turquoise surface to provide a beautiful view of the rocks and sand below. SUP also works your body - arms, lats, shoulders, back, quads, knees - an incredible workout that’s awesome for cross-training. And if you get into racing, it’s an aerobic-fest like no other.

I am more interested in surfing these boards on the Lake, trying to satisfy my need for waves and flow after living at Ocean Beach in San Francisco for many years. Surf and swell on Tahoe, like the ocean, is all about wind and fetch. We do get small waves and rollers on Lake Tahoe, which are possible to ride, if you plan accordingly and are heading downwind. It’s possible to get behind a small roller, something like a boat wake that just keeps moving, and get a slide with the wind at your back. When our storms come out of the Southwest, which they usually do, we have about 20 miles or so of open water and fetch. Waves will break in King’s Beach and other spots on the lake. People actually get out there in frigid winter conditions and catch short rides on normal surfboards; I think the SUP board will be a better option for surfing here and cannot wait to give it a go this season.

This winter, the hard part will be trying to trade surf for powder, because generally when it’s blowing, the snow is coming. … Ideally, we’ll get in a surf before the storm hits, then ski knee-deep the next few days. If you’re interested in renting some equipment or trying it out, check out Tahoe Paddle & Oar. Or, if you’re already convinced that the sport kicks ass, enter The First Annual Tahoe Paddleboard Fall Classic scheduled for Sept. 28 (this Sunday!).

Mountain Culture contributor Chris Crossen is an artist based in Truckee, CA. He also publishes RealDeepSnow.com

Join the crowds at Teton Gravity Research’s annual party/premiere/party at either 5:30 or 8:30 p.m. Saturday in Teton Village’s Walk Festival Hall.

Drink beer, get shwag thrown at you, watch the world premiere of TGR’s 13th masterpiece: a 16mm and HD ski flick (parts shot with a Red camera!) starring Sage Cattabriga-Alosa, Dylan Hood, Seth Morrison, Ian McIntosh, Sammy Carlson, Jeremy Jones and many more.

All proceeds benefit the Avalanche Center Support Organization and a Jackson Hole Area High School Scholarship.

Get Down at the Mangy Moose After Party featuring PANTyRAID and guest Random Rab. Live digital art by Andrew Jones.

Price: $13 Movie Ticket & $25 After Party Ticket

BUY TICKETS HERE. Or head down to Tobacco Row (307.733.4385), Mountunes (307.733.4514) or the Mangy Moose Cellar (307.734.0070).

This is the first show in a tour that will visit over 100 venues across THE WORLD! It’s gonna be siiiiiicccck!

After Labor Day, Jackson folks start counting the days until winter. And while you wouldn’t know it from the sunshine outside, winter is almost here. Kind of. To get you psyched for the powdery goodness, we’ve put together a mini vid of Cloudveil athletes ripping in Jackson Hole’s backcountry.

Cloudveil’s, from Carbondale, Colorado rode with Lance Armstrong, had personal bests and generally kicked ass in the 12 Hours of Snowmass this past weekend. The seven-mile course features over 1,500 feet of climbing and technical singletrack.

Here are some dispatches from the crew:

Len Zanni - who works for Big Agnes and Honey Stinger, represented by Backbone Media who also does PR for Cloudveil - rode on a team with Lance Armstrong. Zanni, Armstrong and Max Taam of Team Aspen pulled of a huge victory at the 12 Hours of Snowmass. At the last minute, Len was forced to ride the race’s final anchor lap and he successfully held off a strong late stage push from world champion Mike Kloser of Team Beaver Creak. Len got a standing ovation when he showed up at the office Monday morning.

Velo News has a great recap of the race, in which Len, “categorized himself as a B-level pro with a couple of kids” (we know better) and Lance brags about eating Honey Stinger.

Ian and Sari Anderson did the race together, racing at their own paces and switching off laps (and babysitting duty). They teamed up with buddy Rob Russell and entered the Co-Ed Trio category.

Ian also had an awesome conversation with Lance. His report:

Lance: Rider Up!

Ian: (gasp) How’s it going? (gasp)

Lance: Passing on your RIGHT!

Ian: (gasp) So, I hear you’re training for the Tour de France again? Don’t you think races like this are more fun? Hey, my wife is an adventure racer, and she’s sponsored by Nike too! You guys should totally do an adventure race together.

Lance: (now 50 yards in front of Ian) grunt.

Ian: Go get em Lance, you da’ man!

Ian reports that Sari, a pro adventure racer on Team Nike, lived up to their lived up to their team name “Chicked” (a term guys use when they’re getting beat by a girl). Sari clocked the both the fastest lap on the team at 47 minutes, as well as the fastest overall female lap for the day, netting her a nice cash prize and a sweet tent from Ground.

The team placed first in the Co-ed Trio Division, finishing a total of 14 laps (5 for Ian and Rob, 4 for Sari).

“Just for fun, we all raced on our singlespeeds,” Ian said. “My favorite part of the day was when Sari showed up at the race after letting Juniper sleep in, and almost killed Lance. Sari was in a hurry, head down, pushing Juniper up the hill in the Chariot. Lance was doing some warm up in the grass and very nearly collided with Sari, Juniper and the Chariot. In a move that was eerily reminiscent of Stage 9 of the 2003 Tour de France, Lance narrowly avoided Sari, et. al.”

This is from Storm Show Studio’s Darrell Miller.

It’s not always the ultimate ski-dream in Alaska, there’s a lot of downtime waiting for the perfect conditions. We found this out during our 2008 spring pilgrimage to Valdez, on assignment from Cloudveil to shoot their gear and athletes in some of the burliest terrain in the world. To keep our sanity in waiting for the skies to clear, we kept ourselves busy with other endeavors: Slackline, snowshoeing, snowmachine-assisted ¼ pipe jibbing, and a little rest & relaxation. Don’t just read about it, check out the video clip to see the shenanigans for yourselves. With a solid group of friends, there’s always fun to be had in Alaska!

-Darrell Miller, cinematographer

The Jackson Ski Cabin is as much a part of our local ski history as Briggs skiing the Grand, the early pioneers of skiers on Teton Pass, and the first ski jumping and racing competitions on what would later become Snow King. Read More »

Click here for the teaser.

What: A High Def Snowboard Film from locals Travis Rice and Curt Morgan
When: 6:30 and 8:30 Saturday Sept. 13
Where: Center for the Arts in Jackson
Bonus: Benefits JH Ski & Snowboard Club
Tickets: On Sale Now online at the Center for the Arts or by phone at 307.733.4900
Double Bonus: After Party at 43 North. Tickets at Front Street Productions

This HD epic, two years in the making, follows Rice’s last vid: the popular Community Project.

Snowboarder Mag hails That’s It That’s All as best skiing/boarding film to date: “This production is so ballin’ that it has heli follow cams of heli’s follow camming, and it has a lot of them … it appears as though Travis will be much more the focus of the film than in the latter offering, and that is a good thing. Travis’s double corking madness needs to be seen to be believed. Director Kurt Morgan has captured the gnarliness of Rice and has come as close to bringing as much to the shooting from behind the lens as Rice does in front. I’m sure these teasers will be in heavy circulation on the web in no time.”

DO NOT MISS THIS JACKSON HOLE PREMIERE!

One more mini teaser of the movie of which one snowboarder asked: Is this a National Geographic movie or snowboarding?