So this occurred quite a few months ago, six an one half to be exact, but never the less it was (what I feel like) my crowning achievement. I was invited to ride Copper Mtn. on December 11, 2008 with Jake Burton (none other). To put it lightly I was F-ing stoked! And I know that this story is "old" now, but I needed to put in print and actually read it to make sure that I didn't just make it up!
So I invite my homie Mil and our other roommate Drew. We saddle up in Mil's FJ Cruiser and hit the road! We arrive in Denver the evening before and shack up with LB.
She's our gracious host, who not only puts us up for the night but also was our liaison on the hill to meet Jake! (if you ever read this LB, thank you again!!!!) Once arriving, we are quick to get to bed, to be sure to get a jump on the morning and get out of town with haste! Sure enough the morning comes far too early and we are getting ready to ride for the day but first we must meet up with the group and head to the hill!
After we head out of Denver, it's only a short ride to Copper Mtn, about an hour if you lucky! But upon arrival see over a foot of ultra fresh fluff that fell the night before, and become even more stoked that not only were we getting super fresh in Copper, but doing do with Jake Burton! It was the raddest feeling.... and everything seemed to fit. Boots... tied... check, pants... just bellow the ass.. check, gloves... both... check! I was quick to jump off the bus, eager to meet Jake and the rest of the Global Team that was there (I had actually already met Jussi at this point).
LB hooked it up with a board and Binding combo that was stolen from a top secret space agency, next level shit that was cushy and soft and lovable! I threw it down with passion, knowing it would become my hover craft from Back To The Future II for the day. I instantly saw him.... strangely wearing the same color as me... combo wise.. all to similar... weird, and I'm a nerd. I shouted, "Jake, wanna grab first lift?!" and he accepted the offer! We were on the lift!
Fresh snow, Jake Burton, Mil and Drew too, sunshine, new gear..... was this heaven.... a dream perhaps... I mean I have had them before. No, it was really happening, and to make it better, a local homie had given me a M & M chocolate chip cookie with green butter!!!! As we talked with Jake, I just soaked it all in... making sure to get a pic... for the kids ha ha ha! UNREAL!!! Once we got to the top we did a sweet run through the trees, ducking ropes the whole way down! I made sure to ollie and tap everything that Jake did. We rode for the rest of the day with Jake and various members of the global team (Danny Davis, Shawn White, Luke Mitrani, Keegan Valaika, Jussi Oksanen). They even bought us dinner and beer afterwards.... Drew got a tee shirt... cool.
On the way back to Denver I just kept reliving the moment, over and over again! UNREAL!!! We arrived in Denver and jumped right back into the whip (FJ) to come back to Burque. The long haul, it was a little rough, we knew we wouldn't get back till close to 2 AM but it was worth it!!!
We were taking turns driving, on my watch it was a gnarly freak blizzard south of Colorado Springs, and snow was sticking to the road like a gecko to a commercial series! It was sticking... everywhere..... sketch! Then Drewsive took over, ha ha, he mentioned how stoked he was that he had a free trip to meet Jake Burton and ride with him. No sooner had Drew said that, when a cop lit him up and pulled him over! He failed at communicating effectively, and the cop gave him a $240 + ticket for how fast he was going, given the conditions! I mention this last part of the story, not because this is relevant to the earlier excitement mention on our trip, but because it's just flat out hilarious! Ha ha, that's hilarious! Sorry dog!
If you don't believe me, hopefully these pics will show the truth. Greatest day ever! That's why it's the greatest story ever told!
you're very welcome manbox. glad to have you up for such an event.
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