SIA10 was a mixed bag. Some of it went well, other parts were plain awful. But more on that later, I’ll do a full critique of the show when I’ve had time to digest it.

More than anything else I’m just tired, a sentiment I heard often at the on-snow demo days. Four days at the tradeshow, followed by two days of cramming in every board you can, flat wears you out.

I’m really looking forward to a couple of slow days back in Steamboat. Maybe make a few mellow park laps, ride a bit if it snows, but mostly sleep and write up all the stuff we’re behind on.

DENVER, CO (January 31, 2010) – SIA’s inaugural Snow Show in Denver brought together plenty of A-list media, athletes, personalities and politicians to the halls of the Colorado Convention Center. Finding their way around a new city and convention hall took a little practice for longtime Show attendees, but it was hard to resist the friendly city that holds the number spot for urban snow sports purchases. People on the street, elevators and at bars were asking– “Are you with the Snow Show?” And, the industry took notice.

“There’s more community here. We’re all into the same thing. It’s more laid back. You don’t have the Vegas attitude and the bar scene is easy to get into,” commented Alex Albers from Line when asked about coming to Denver for the first time.
“I’m looking forward to the On-Snow Demo where people can actually get on our boards. Plus, it’s just more professional — people are here to look at the boards instead of just party,” Alex Masterson and Liezyl Ribeiro Bitch Boards

New product buzz on the Show floor included cutting edge products heading to the Olympics and the continuing story of rocker or reverse camber technology for both skis and snowboards. Outerwear fashion could hardly be pinned down at the Show – with as many styles and color schemes to match the diverse personalities that love snow sports. There was plenty of bright (even neon) colors, plaids, geometric shapes and creative prints bringing alive outerwear and apparel collections.

OLYMPIC TECHNOLOGY
Many companies were gearing up for the upcoming 2010 Olympic Games, less than two weeks away. In fact, some were heading up to Vancouver right after the Snow Show. Official team suppliers include Spyder’s Slippery Race Suit, Burton’s official US Snowboard Team Uniforms and Under Armour’s uniforms for the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team and base layers for the U.S. Ski Team. But there were plenty of Olympic stories throughout the Show.

U.S. Olympic ski racer Julia Mancuso will be wearing the POC Skull Comp 2.0 Julia Signature helmet during the 2010 Olympics –the ultimate ski race helmet. The POC Skull Comp 2.0 was developed with an EPP (multi-impact liner) that is able to endure multiple, repetitive impacts.

The weight of Rossignol’s X-ium Skate package (including ski, boot, and binding) has decreased by 230 grams for athletes. Olympic Nordic Athletes on the X-ium Package include Torin Koos and Elizabeth Stephen and Biathlon Athletes on X-ium include Lowell Bailey, Tim Burke, Jay Hakkinen, Haley Johnson.

SmartWool is a sponsor of the U.S. & Canadian Ski Teams and athletes will be using SmartWool’s highest level of performance socks – PhD with 4 Degree Fit, WOW Technology™.

Members of the U.S. Aerials ski team will be wearing Full Tilt boots in Vancouver, B.C. Full Tilt created an American flag graphic for them that resembles the boot Bill Johnson won gold in 20 years ago.

FASHION
For snowboard, there were a lot of statement-making prints and motorcycle, gangster or Hollywood-inspired bling, but function was winning out as a determining design factor this season.

“We are seeing a demand from the progressive riders for longer jackets to keep them covered while they are riding in the park, but still with the same flattering silhouettes,” says Katie Bedwell, senior product manager for Burton women’s outerwear.

Cappel upgraded their insulation by using PrimaLoft Sport and Infinity in the high-end pieces. And Ride featured a new printed application look that appears transparent though it’s printed on the backside of the fabric.

Backcountry’s little sister, the relatively new lift-served sidecountry category, demands highly technical—yet stylish—outerwear that accommodates all of their technological needs.”In the past decade, we have seen snow sports gear become more and more ‘featured out,’” says Tara Latham, Arc’teryx product designer.

Marmot showcases a collection built specifically for sidecountry users called the Coombs collection after legendary big-mountain skier Doug Coombs with Intelligent Shock Absorption. Salomon introduces the S-Line, a 3:1 jacket which combines mobility and waterproofness. And Mountain Hardwear introduces portable power jackets enabled by Ardica Technologies that can generate nearly 9 hours of heat.

ROCKER/REVERSE CAMBER
‘Rocker’ or ‘reverse camber’ technology has electrified the ski and snowboard markets and continued with the trend at the 2010 SIA Snow Show. By working with varying degrees of ‘early rise’ in the tips and tails of skis and snowboards – picture the rise in the bow of a ship – manufacturers can create better float in powder, easier turn initiation in any condition, and more fun for everyone on the slopes.

In snowboards, Burton’s Custom Flying V for dudes and Lip Stick for ladies maintain the “pop” of traditional camber but also integrate the more laid-back ride of rocker. Lib-Tech’s banana technology is a big splash for the T. Rice pro model splitboard called the “Voila.” Ride’s OMG features new proprietary “ProRize” shapes with a long flat zone for landing stability and pop. And Palmer’s FLF(Feels Like Flying) Rocker design is featured in the redesigned Burn, Pulse, and Halo.

In skis, K2 unveiled BASELINE Technology, with six different camber tech stories from the groomed to the backcountry to the halfpipe. Völkl’s Extended Low Profile (ELP) debuted for big mountains and freestyle, Salomon got stiffer on all-mountain in the Sentinel and Enduro, as did Nordica’s Fire Arrow, Rossignol’s Avenger espouses all-mountain ease, and HEAD’s Carlos, Elan’s Olympus and Atomic’s Atlas tune rocker to a backcountry beat.

ACCESSORIES
In a tough economy the snow sports industry can count on accessories to carry them through – a pair of new goggles, sunglasses or hat can make anyone feel like they’ve updated their look for the season. Helmet and goggle technology is always improving in safety and many were also integrating freestyle style and performance.

“Accessories have been strong. That pretty much sums it up. With the recession people want to re-accessorize rather than buy a whole new outfit,” Alex Beane and Michael Matthewsfrom The Backpacker in Los Angeles.

Next, the industry will head up to the mountains for the first international On-Snow Demo/Free Ride Fest (February 1-2) at Winter Park Resort and Devil’s Thumb Ranch, where the industry will get together to demo the gear they’ve just seen at the Show and to ski, ride and slide together. Over 150 brands will be involved in this industry only, two-day event filled with demos, races parties and catching up with industry friends. The industry will meet next year in Denver for the 2011 SIA Snow Show, January 27-30, 2011 and for the On-Snow Demo/Free Ride Fest, January 31-February 1. Contact Anovia Daniels, ADaniels@snowsports.org with questions.

– SIA –
SnowSports Industries America (SIA) is the national not-for-profit, North American member-owned, trade association representing the snow sports industry. Established in 1954, SIA annually produces the SIA Snow Show, the largest snow sports industry trade show, on-snow demo and networking environment globally, while delivering invaluable data/research reports including the Snow Sports Market Intelligence Report, the SIA Retail Audit and Executive Market Summary. SIA also develops marketing products, programs and services such as logistics and Government affairs that help our Members operate more efficiently and increase participation in snow sports. For more information, check out snowsports.org. SnowSports Industries America, 8377-B Greensboro Drive, McLean, VA 22102-3587. Phone: 703.556.9020, Fax: 703.821.8276, Email: SIAmail@snowsports.org.

Highlights from SIA 2010 Snow Show

Snow Fashion Show
The music was loud, the lights were bright and the snow sports fashions were anything but demure with bright colors, prints and lots of style at SIA’s Snow Fashion Show. The fashion event was the official kick-off for the very first SIA Snow Show in Denver’s Colorado Convention Center. The Snow Fashion Show was held at the Wells Fargo Theatre, where over 1,000 Show attendees and a select group of consumers previewed the hottest on/off the slope fashions for Winter 2010.11.

Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Local officials including Colorado Governor Bill Ritter and Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper performed an official Ribbon Cutting Ceremony welcoming the snow sports industry to Denver. The Ribbon Cutting crew also included officials from VISIT DENVER, The Convention & Visitors Bureau and Colorado Ski Country USA and SIA chairman of the board Mike Carey.

National Youth Summit
Hundreds of Denver students, who participate in winter sports programs, gathered to listen to leaders from SIA and the National Ski Areas Association, who presented efforts by the snow sports industry to get kids involved in winter sports. The Recreation Outdoor Initiative (ROI) group hopes to get one million youth involved in winter sports by 2020. At the Summit, SOS Outreach (a member of ROI) recognized Mike Carey (SIA Chair) with the humanitarian award and K2 Sports with the corporate social responsibility award.

ShmoozaPalooza Job Fair
The first job fair and networking event created specifically for the snow sports industry. SIA member companies used the event to scout for new talent and “shmooze” with job candidates for present and future needs. Ranging from eager entry-level job hunters to seasoned executives, ShmoozaPalooza provided a casual environment for company reps to meet candidates with relevant experience in design, development, marketing, sales and administration.

2010 Retailer of the Year
A list of twenty-six U.S. and Canadian SnowSports Retailers and Reps were acknowledged for their consistent efforts at making an impact in the snow sports industry at the Retailer and Rep of the Year Award ceremony.

Doc Des Roches Award
U.S. Ski Team supplier Under Armour was the recipient of the seventh Doc Des Roches Award — the recognition is made annually by SIA and the U.S. Ski Team to recognize a SIA member and Team supplier for its promotion of the Team’s brand and athletes.

After meeting with the hundred or so companies we normally see at SIA, not to mention the after parties, we’re usually pretty wasted. But SIA.10 took it to a whole new level with two days of on-snow demos immediately following the tradeshow.

Over the next few weeks we’ll be rolling out previews from each company we met with, including photos, and mentions of any products that really caught our attention, as well as on-snow previews for select boards, boots, and bindings. For now you can check out this gallery of images, an overview of the entire trip.

What a night it was for John and the entire Forum crew – congrats, man!

We’ll be on-site for the entirety of the show, with full coverage, including 2011 product previews, interviews, event coverage, and giveaways. Immediately after the show we’ll be headed up to Winter Park for the on-snow portion.

You can follow our adventures in Denver by checking out posts tagged SIA10 or follow us on Facebook or Twitter. You can also check Product Toss for giveaways.

Out front Volcom had a hat making booth set up, and visitors could get a free hat, pressed with their choice of Volcom labels on them. Inside there was pizza, an array of free posters and a couple of Volcom pros hanging out. Twitter user jjwingate won a free snowboard for finding Gigi Ruf and tweeting a photo to @volcom.

The store had a pretty good-sized crowd gathered at the back to rock out with Kandi Coded and ASG. There were probably 50 people that stayed the whole time, but quite a few more milled in-and-out.

Thanks for a fun night Volcom!

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For more coverage of the SIA Snowsports Tradeshow in Denver, check out posts tagged SIA10 or follow us on Facebook or Twitter