A couple words on Patagonia

            I recently returned from a Global Sales Meeting at the headquarters of Patagonia in Ventura California.  Not to shoot smoke up your ass and talk about what an amazing company it is and how much better it is than the majority of other companies, but it truly is.  The talk is the walk.  I found it absolutely incredible that they, in collaboration with Yulex (quite possibly one of the better companies, look them up http://www.yulex.com/about/), developed a wetsuit that is  60 percent plant based, keeps you warmer then neoprene and dries faster.  Yeah... it's real!  They are hoping to develop the product to where it is 100% plant based.  Not only that, but they are only going to hold onto the proprietary formula rights for 1year, at which point they will give that technology to the world, competitors included.  To me, this shows true leadership with the intention to affect the world positively, not strictly for their own financial gain.  So, how come other companies can't do that?  Or don't do that?  Could it be because Patagonia is still owned privately?  Uh... DUH.  Yvon has no one to answer to and no one to tell him that it's a bad idea for the business.  The thing is... He knows that!  But he also knows this product is better for the environment and for the people of this world who inhabit it.  I guess I just have to say that it's relieving to know that some decisions in this world on a larger scale aren't based on greed alone.

         I spoke to the man in charge for a bit at this meeting during one of the breakouts.  I caught him on the way downstairs and said, hey Yvon I'm Pep, a new addition to your ambassador program, not really thinking he'd know who I was, but sure enough, he says, oh yeah you had some good things to say.  After about 10 minutes of friendly talk about this and that I realized I was probably taking some of his valuable time so I made that remark.  He just said oh no I don't really have much going on, so we continued to talk fishing and Patagonia's new food initiative.  A half hour later a Rep from Jackson came up to Yvon with a Tenkara Fly Fishing enthusiast who was interested in the difference between the Tenkara Flies and traditional flies, so Yvon politely explained and then proceeded to take out a box of said flies from his pocket from his personal stash I presume and opened the box to show.  He gave us a lesson and then just told the guy to take them and have his local fly shop duplicate them.  That's when I realized why Yvon has done so well.  He's not afraid to give and share his knowledge to the world without expecting anything in return.  He may be extremely wealthy but I know he tied the flies himself, so the gesture had nothing to do with money.  He knew by giving those flies, he had given a gift that could potentially give the guy the same amount of happiness that they had brought him.  I guess it goes without saying that I admire the man and hope he continues to do great things in this world!

   

Night Pow Shred!

Have you ever skied powder in the night?  Deep powder?  It's an experience unlike any other and I'm not sure why.  Maybe it's because we were 3 or 4 Kirin's deep?  Maybe it's because the frosty night air sucks the moisture out of the snow?  Maybe it's because the white room turns into a black and white room?  And maybe it's because it's a rarity?  Regardless it's a blast and if you haven't done it, watch this and put it on your bucket list!

Hokkaido Night Remix from NIMBUS INDEPENDENT on Vimeo.

PFRADIO SHOW 3 - Mental Preparation

This is a show where I talk to Julian Carr and Jen Hudak about mental preparedness.  The actual show starts around 18 minutes in, so use the scroll tab to get to the beginning unless you'd like to listen to 18 minutes of tunes.  Enjoy!


Video streaming by Ustream

Last Years' Fun!

This is my 2010 season! Enjoy:-)

En Route Approach

This is NIMBUS hear us roar!

PFRADIO SHOW 2

So at about 3pm today I realized I had committed to doing a Radio Show on Inspiredmedia.tv. I panicked there for a second because I thought I had another week.  Oops.  Then I thought, well, if I don't say anything will anyone tune in?  I ended up sucking it up and going through with it and despite the over usage of the word ummm and you know, I think it went really well.  I chatted with Nimbus superstar Chris Benchetler who was so kind as to take the time away from having a beer and waxing his skis to chat with me about Skiing, Health, Japan and Ski Graphics.  Thank again Chris!

CRJ Memorial Ride

If I'm going to go up and shred on one leg then you should come show your support for our fallen brother.  But if you can't blow off work then come by The Canyon Inn and have a beer with all of us!  Here is the info:


Join us to celebrate the life of CR Johnson at Alta, this Thursday, Feb. 24th. CR passed away a year to this day and instead of playing into the sorrow of a loss brother and insane human, we're going skiing to laugh, smile and share some stories. 

In CR's lifetime, he inspired all of us in some way. Any skier today has been exposed to CR's legacy and this is why upon commencement of our day of shred, we will run a segment montage of CR's film career dating back to the VHS player to the Bigger Picture flicks to his finals run at the Redbull Line catcher in Vars, France where he hit podium a month before he passed away. Put work aside and find us for some laps and laughs.

THANK YOU

Below is our latest creation here at Nimbus Independent.  It is a Thank You to everyone who has supported our vision and includes some highlights from years past.  This one is for you!



Thank You from NIMBUS INDEPENDENT on Vimeo.

My Alta

This season has been amazing!  Wait...It's only December.  That means 4 more months of snow and that is being on the conservative side considering how much snow has fallen thus far.  At this rate Mammoth Mountain will be open year round (They received 8ft. in the past week alone!).  Anyway, here is a video from a half day at Alta when the snow began to fly, shot on my GoProHD.  You couldn't wipe the grin off my face with hydrochloric acid...

Plan B

Today is the Day that we at Nimbus launch the last En Route Episode from the 2009/10 season.  Come join the fun as we snowmobile the pacific northwest volcano's, surf the Oregon coast, shred Timberline, and discover 9 nights.  Follow this link for 20 minutes of enjoyment; Plan B

Chris Edits, We Watch, We Give Standing Ovation!

Chris Benchetler is quite possibly my favorite backcountry ski trick monger to watch.  He goes big, he lays it down and he does it all with such nice smooth clean style.  I believe last year was one of his best all around  years and he has the footage to prove it!  Behold, Chris Benchetler's season...


Chris Benchetler Self Edit from NIMBUS INDEPENDENT on Vimeo.

Pre Kaua'i

 I'm sitting on the couch at my buddy Chris's house going through photo after photo after photo from a recent trip I took to Kaua'i with aforementioned buddy when it suddenly struck me that I have hard drives full of photos from trips dating back to 2001.  I take lots of photos everywhere I go and the only thing that happens to them is...well...absolutely nothing.  The most attention they get is after importation when I simply catalog them.  They then proceed to sit neglected and unappreciated, and more often then not they won't even get the common courtesy of a proper title.  I mean really, the whole process of giving a title, post processing, resizing and then uploading the images is a daunting and time consuming task.  To top it off they will only go onto a blog where they will only be seen by a handful of people at best and perused through like the free box in your local hippie town (mine is Ashland, OR).  If you are reading this (Thank you MOM), then know that in the future, I will make sure to post all my favorite photos and maybe some I don't even like to present the story of my life.  This is my life and here is my Free Box of photos for you to peruse. 

On the way to Kaua'i we stayed at Chris' uncle Glenns' place in Oxnard.  This photo was taken from the front of his house and  is quite possibly the coolest garage door painting I've ever seen.

 

 

 

 

 

This is Jetty Sushi.  A visit must be paid if you find yourself in Oxnard.  That's Aiko, she's a sweetheart and makes some incredible sushi.  The dynamite lobster and salmon skin handrolls were my favorite.

Seaweed never tasted so good!

No caption necessary.

I can't post any more sushi pics, it's making me waaaay too hungry!

Digesting with a walk past the harbor and to check the surf.

That looks very peaceful and full of adventure.  Anyone want to take me sailing?

The surf wasn't so good up in Oxnard but sushi for dinner rounded out the day nicely.  Yeah, we hit Jetty surf twice in one day and I could probably even eat there for breakfast if they were open.  The next morning we went down to Zuma beach in the quite beach community of Malibu where Chris and I proceeded to get pounded into the sand trying to build up strength and guts for winter swell season in Kaua'i.  We drove south to Laguna Niguel to stay with Chris' grandpa and fam but first stopping at Salt Creek for a sesh where our buddy Brett Guerin from CTI met up with us.  The waves were good, plentiful and not too many people. Great food.  Sleep.  Met up with David Levin and went stunt flying while Chris met up with Eric Pollard and Brett for a morning surf mission.

We did loops, rolls, wing stall to downward spirals and some others I can't remember.  It was amazing and come to find out I was the first person Dave took up who wasn't an instructor and I'm still alive to tell the tale.  Good work Dave!

Random fella.  Nice BS Slasher!

Yeah, all those dudes are definitely going to drop in on this guy who caught the nice set wave.  Gotta love Cali!

Chris here getting his whitewater slash on!

And another BS slash by Chris.  If you wanted to know... the horizon is crooked, not the camera!

I think Eric really thought he was going to get barreled 

Oops.

Can you guess which guy is from Oregon?

Brett here showing us how to Pig Dog properly!

And Chris giving us a model hair flick

Chris

The Pilot

Random guy getting TOSSED!

Eric

Our Brunch spread!

Palochenta aka. Hungarian Crepes!

Those are as good as they get!

Yep, it was finger lickin' good Kimmy!

This is our wonderful host Grandpa Benchetler!  Thanks to all the Benchetler family for your hospitality and warmth!

And that was all just before we boarded our flight to Kaua'i.  Kaua'i photos coming soon... 

1st Gainer Ever

Yes that's right.  After 20 odd years of hucking myself off of obstacles, predominately  on snow, I have never done a gainer into water.  I'm not sure what the mental block was but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.  I'd stand up there and visualize the whole thing and then I would say... it's not worth it or something like that.  Thanks to non-rideable surf and Chris's story of attempting(I say attempted because he didn't quite make it) a gainer off of the cliff you are about to see, I decided I would do it if Chris did it again.  I figured after his first failed attempt he would say he wasn't interested.  I was wrong.  Here's what happens...



Tropical Gainer-ade... from NIMBUS INDEPENDENT on Vimeo.

The Empire Continued

Yes Ladies and Gentleman this is yet another MTB Edit I put together.  It was just too much fun not to share.   I'm not sure what happened to the quality but it's not great.  I'll try to upload a better version tomorrow.


MTB EMPIRE CONTINUED from Pep Fujas on Vimeo.

The Empire Trail, Pt. 1

This is the Empire Trail in Utah.  It's good.  Enjoy!


MTB EMPIRE - Computer from Pep Fujas on Vimeo.
MTB EMPIRE - Computer from Pep Fujas on Vimeo.

I like to ride my bicycle...

You may need to turn up the volume during the intermission!


A Ride Down The Crest Trail from Pep Fujas on Vimeo.
A Ride Down The Crest Trail from Pep Fujas on Vimeo.

Nimbus... It's the choice of a new Generation... Party ON!

For all of you who are thinking of selling out... WATCH THIS!

nimbus world from NIMBUS INDEPENDENT on Vimeo.

Fall Colors

Layer Cake

The Mountains were blessed with snow.

You should witness the beauty of Nature.

NIMBUS NOMADS

En Route Departure

Nimbus is back and kicking! Today is the day our first of three webisodes is online and ready for your viewing pleasure. It's a full length HD ski movie that takes you on a journey from Mammoth, Ca to Mount Bianco, Italy. I'm personally guaranteeing you will enjoy it and it's only $5 bucks. Don't think, just buy it. What else are you going to spend your hard earned $5 bucks on? 2 or 3 cheap beers? a couple candy bars? a couple happy meals? Stave off your cravings of gluttony and follow this link to some good clean fun... www.nimbusstore.mobilerider.com/store/index.php.

Here's a short of the episode: