The North Face

Jan 07 | Featured Philanthropy :: Protect Our Winters

By The North Face

Protect Our Winters was founded in 2007 by pro snowboarder Jeremy Jones to address the gap between the effects that climate change was already having in our mountains and the action being taken by the snow sports community to fight it. Winter sports is a $66 billion industry that supports over 211,000 jobs in our local mountain communities - so to us, climate change is serious business. Without a stable climate, our industry, our jobs, the economies of mountain communities everywhere and the valued lifestyle of winter will be gone.

As we start a new year, it's our goal to continue our work teaching high school students about the effects of climate change, how important it is for them to appreciate and protect the outdoors and to become the next generation of environmental leaders. In our community, professional athletes are the greatest influencers, and to have athletes such as Sage Cattabriga-Alosa, Ingrid Backstrom and Nick Martini meet and talk to students about climate change and the environment is once of the most powerful ways to inspire them to really get involved. Our young students are the ones who are going to find themselves directly feeling the effects of climate change, so it's our responsibility to provide them with the tools to get involved now.

To learn more about The North Face partnership with Protect Our Winters check out: http://protectourwinters.org/programs

To learn more about how The North Face is helping inspire the next generation of outdoor enthusiasts visit www.TheNorthFace.com/getoutdoors.

               Kit DesLauriers shares her stories of witnessing climate change first hand at a Bay Area elementary school.

               

                Nick Martini talks with a Denver Highschool student about starting an environmental club at his school.

                Sage Cattabrigga-Alosa pumps up the crowd in Salt Lake City

Jan 27 | PRO SNOWSPORT ATHLETES VISIT SCHOOLS TO DISCUSS EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE

By The North Face

Nick Martini

Winter is finally kicking into gear but the effects of a shortened season have already taken a toll on snow-based economies across the country. The widespread lack of snow wreaked havoc on mountain town businesses and ski resorts that generate an estimated 50 percent of annual revenue during the Christmas, New Year’s and MLK holidays.

This week,  while Aspen hosts Winter X Games 16, Olympic and X Game medalists are speaking out on climate change and sharing their unique perspective on the economic, social and intangible values of winter with students at Colorado high schools as part of nonprofit Protect Our Winters’ Hot Planet/Cool Athletes program, in partnership with The North Face.

Hot Planet/Cool Athletes is a partnership between Protect Our Winters (POW), the environmental center point of the winter sports community, and Alliance for Climate Education (ACE), the national leader in high school climate education.  The program pairs famous pro snow sport athletes with ACE educators to deliver an award-winning multimedia assembly on climate science and real-world solutions. The assembly features athlete’s personal stories about climate change, specific local consequences related to lower snow levels and inspires students to take action against climate change.

Hot Planet/Cool Athletes is part of a host of special events happening in Colorado’s Roaring Fork Valley high schools leading up to Winter X 16 in Aspen. During the four-days, Hot Planet/Cool Athletes is slated to reach 1600+ students. 

To help students create meaningful actions after each assembly, Bob Marley’s 1Love.org and POW will be providing starter grants to the Aspen-area students who submit results-based, sustainability ideas to POW.  Together, they’ll be awarding $250 per school to individuals and/or groups of students who submit their best ideas to POW by March 1st, 2012.

 “Part of POW’s mission is to make sure that the next generation is better equipped to address climate change. As athletes, we now have a relevant platform to reach young students and create a movement of passionate youth leaders,” said Jeremy Jones, POW’s Founder and professional snowboarder.

Since its launch last year at Winter X Games 15, Hot Planet/Cool Athletes assemblies have reached 10,000+ students at high schools in Colorado, Utah, California, Vermont, Massachusetts and Nevada.  With help from influential snow sport athletes, 

and partners such as The North Face, Clif Bard, Backcountry Magazine, The Quiksilver Foundation and 1Love.org, the assemblies have inspired students to lead environmental action teams that implement impactful climate-related projects in their schools and communities.

 

Dec 13 | 2011 TNF Athlete Summit, Sayulita Mexico

By Cedar Wright

The North Face's Global Athlete Team is one of the most unique and cutting edge Professional Athlete Teams in the world, with some of the best climbers, skiers, and ultra-runners in the universe all working together. The team spans the globe representing Europe, Asia, South America, and us here in North America.

The North Face supports a classic cast of characters in their dreams to push and live within the sport. Each year TNF hosts an "Athlete Summit," which is essentially a team meeting, that brings all of these talented global athletes to one place, to talk about expeditions, product, and most importantly to bond as a team. I have attended all of the Athlete Summits since their inception eight years ago, and have become good friends with skiers and runners who I would never have otherwise met.

This year the Summit was in Sayulita Mexico, a beautiful little surf town near Puerto Vallarta. Call it a work meeting or a paid vacation... I can say that at times like the Summit I feel very fortunate to have climbed for The North Face for the last eight years. Sometimes I have to pinch myself and ask, "is this really my job?" 

It feels more like a family then a team really! On our third day, in Mexico with all our meetings done, we had an activity day, and I opted to go snorkeling instead of surfing, which turned out to be a great decision, as our crew of runners, skiers, and climbers saw Dolphins, Whales, and a host of beautiful sea birds. It was one of those magical playful moments when you really appreciate and feel a part of the natural world. Inspired by Sage Cattabriga Alosa one of TNF's top skiers who had showed me his workflow for shooting and editing short films on his IPhone, I was psyched to give it a whirl, so here it is a short film about our adventure, shot, edited and uploaded, using only my iphone! Technology has come a long way!!!

 

Sep 16 | Tom Wallisch, Mike Riddle, Nick Martini & Kaitlyn Farrington join The North Face

By The North Face

 

 
 

Tom Wallisch grew up in Pittsburg, PA, about as far away as you can get from the mountain resort scene. Tom was introduced to skiing on family trips to the local hill and quickly became obsessed, skiing every hour of the day on the weekends. After graduating from high school, Tom headed west to Salt Lake City to attend the University of Utah and take his skiing to the next level. In just a few short years, Tom reinvented what it meant to slide rails on skis and quickly became the “it” kid of slopestyle skiing. 2009 was a breakout year for Tom, with a slew of major first place podium appearances and finishing as the number one ranked slopestyle skier in the world. In 2010, Tom won gold in the slopestyle at the European X Games and grabbed first place at the Snowbasin stop of the Dew Tour. Tom is currently filming with Level 1 Productions, Field Productions and the 4bi9 crew while traveling the world for photo shoots and competitions. “I would have never thought it was possible for a kid from Pittsburgh to make it in the ski industry, but it is. So everyone out there with a dream, stay true to it and follow it wherever it leads you! Good things will come.”

  

Known throughout the industry as an athlete who sets the standard for style, Mike Riddle's trademark is his ability to make the most difficult maneuvers look easy. Originally from Alberta, CA, Mike has been a member of the Canadian Halfpipe Ski Team for the past seven years and now calls Whistler home. Talented yet modest, Mike’s hard work and dedication to progression have begun to pay off during the past few years with impressive results including first place at the 2009 Breckenridge stop of the Dew Tour, fourth place at the 2010 European X Games and fifth place overall in the 2010 AFP World Rankings. Though he is best known for his skills in the Superpipe, Mike is solid all-around rider that is starting to turn heads on the slopestyle course as well. When he’s not competing, Mike is busy filming with Level 1 Productions, dialing in new tricks and coaching the next generation of rippers.

 

 

 

  

Originally from Winchester, MA, Nick Martini began skiing at Cannon Mountain, NH. Though he grew up racing, once he was exposed to freestyle, he hung up the race skis and headed to the park. His passion for skiing brought him to Colorado where he attends school in Boulder in the fall and skis all winter. At just 20 years old, Nick has proven himself as a heavy hitter in the world of freestyle skiing, placing sixth in the Dew Tour Slopestyle at Mt Snow, fifth in the Dew Tour Rail Jam in Portland, and tenth overall for the Dew Tour in 2009. He also received the 2009 Alpha Dawg Award as one of the top Dew Tour athletes age 18 or younger. When he’s not competing, Nick is busy filming with Poor Boyz Productions and running his own movie company, Stept Productions, with his brother Alex. “When I was given the opportunity to work with The North Face I couldn’t have been more excited. The fact that The North Face is dedicating so much to this side of the sport is great.”

 

 

Kaitlyn Farrington grew up on a ranch in Bellevue, ID learning to ride at Baldy Mountain and traveling to ASA contests, her parents selling some of their livestock to fund her early snowboard trips. Originally a skier, the first time Kaitlyn went snowboarding, she struggled with catching her edges and everyone laughed at her from the chairlift. Since then she’s been quietly honing her skills, and well, she’s the one laughing now. Kaitlyn had a stellar 2010 season in the pipe, taking home gold at the European Winter X Games, securing the overall Dew Cup halfpipe title, taking second at the U.S. Burton Open and graduating from the rookie to pro U.S. Snowboarding Team. With a solid bag of tricks including Cab and frontside 900s, McTwists, and switch and backside spins, Kaitlyn has quickly established herself as one of the world’s top female halfpipe competitors. Kaitlyn spends her summers training in New Zealand and has her sights firmly set on X Game gold in Aspen.

 

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