SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Ladies Avalanche Night, which took place on December 12 at PT Revolution, had an unexpectedly large turnout, drawing in more than 70 women in the South Lake Tahoe community, and among the many who attended, their reasons for showing up may have varied, but they left with one thing in common, more support from their fellow women.
Ladies Avalanche Night had over 70 attendees Provided/Shelby Lowman
Dani Rudinsky, creator of Ladies Avalanche Night, said the event raised over $1700, and gave over $3500 worth of raffle prizes.
Colleen Bye, one of the raffle prize winners, heard about the event through PT Revolution’s newsletter. Bye has been a Tahoe local for 32 years.
“I’m very interested in seeing more women get involved. I’ve been backcountry skiing for over thirty years and it was really great to see so many folks show up and be excited to tour.”
Bye went backcountry skiing a few years after her first attempt at resort skiing and fell in love with it, particularly touring in the Sierras. Her interest in attending the event was to lend her own hand in building the community.
Bye’s highlights of the night were meeting people, exchanging numbers, listening to the information provided by Rudinsky, “I think she really provided some great information,” and of course, Bye’s raffle prize – a consultation with a trainer for mountain athletes.
“It was so perfect for me,” Bye said, “the reason why it was so relevant was because I have this big event coming up this summer where I hope to ride the Orogenesis trails,” one of the largest bike trails stretching from Canada to Cabo. “Being able to have an hour conversation with somebody that has been trained in exercise physiology and helping me set up a schedule, it was just so serendipitous.”
Colleen Bye posing with her new raffle prizeProvided/Shelby Lowman
Anisa Kastle, a relatively new backcountry skier, saw a post on PT Revolution’s Instagram about Ladies Avalanche Night, and decided to attend the event with a group of her girl friends. “It was an absolute yes,” said Kastle. “We were planning it for weeks in advance.”
She participated in the event with hopes of finding more female friends to recreate with. “The whole night felt very aligned. It was exactly where I wanted to be. I’m trying to expand my circle and focus my energy on female friendships, and so it was the perfect community event to get together, share something that we all love and are passionate about, and potentially link up and get some ladies touring together.”
Kastle left Ladies Avalanche Night with four new contacts, and said she really enjoyed the speed dating style activity Rudinsky created, which aimed to help skiers align with new partners based on things like common ski objectives, risk tolerance, and abilities.
“I’ve recreated a lot with men, and it was so nice, and a little bit eye-opening to see how many women wanted to go camp and ski, and how many women were just out there having the same shared interest,” Kastle said.
In the midst of helping host Ladies Avalanche Night, Janet Kowalchick was also attracted to the concept behind it.
Kowalchick, who works at PT Revolution, moved to Tahoe in September. Like Kastle, she is a fairly new backcountry skier. “When I heard about [the event], I was totally stoked,” said Kowalchick, who notes that oftentimes, many women won’t go backcountry skiing at all if their male partners aren’t available because they don’t know other women who backcountry ski.
Rudinsky blew Kowalchick away. “I just thought she did the best job presenting. First she showed this film that was very inspirational for women in the ski industry, and then she did a great job telling her story of what it was like to, kind of, branch out as a female and not be under the wing of a partner, boyfriend, or a male figure, to really prove herself in the backcountry.”
Kowalchick left feeling empowered and took home more knowledge when it comes to touring safely. “It’s intimidating when you’re trying to find a backcountry partner,” added Kowalchick. “You’re always thinking ‘oh they’re such a better skier, or they want to do terrain that I’m not comfortable with’ and the way she approached it and talked about it, made it easy for someone who is newer in backcountry skiing to approach someone.”
As far as the turnout goes, Rudinsky was immensely pleased. “It was so gratifying watching people win gear they really needed, meet new friends, and get inspired by the ripping female athletes in the “Advice for Girls” movie,” Rudinsky said.
“After pouring countless hours into every element of this event, I couldn’t be prouder of how it turned out and I’m so grateful to those who partnered with me to make it all possible, most notably, PT Revolution, Alpenglow Expeditions, and Tasha Thomas with the Sierra Avalanche Center.”
Bye, Kastle, and Kowalchick all agreed on one thing, they will absolutely go again next year.
“We needed something like this in South Lake. We need opportunities like these, as women, to connect with each other, and we need more honest conversations about the importance of backcountry partners you respect and trust. I truly feel privileged to play a part in bringing those things to our community,” said Rudinsky.
STATELINE, Nev. – Tahoe Snowmobiles is calling all Tahoe locals to their first-ever snow-clad Local Community Day event on Sunday, January 11 from 10 a.m., to 4 p.m., offering free tubing, and snowmobiling along with chances to win giveaway prizes.
Tahoe Snowmobiles, a locally owned and operated business in South Lake Tahoe, is aiming to give back to the community, and bring people together to indulge in the true nature of the Lake Tahoe winter season, and what better way to do that than to spend time in the snow?
“The idea behind Local’s Day,” said Taylor Shearer, head of marketing and corporate events at Tahoe Snowmobiles and Tubing, “was to bring the community together to give local families and kids, especially those who may not otherwise have the opportunity, the chance to experience snowmobiling and tubing. We want to make winter activities on Lake Tahoe accessible and inclusive for everyone.”
Tahoe local families and folks of all ages get to enjoy a fun day in the snow for Local Community DayProvided/Tahoe Snowmobiles and Tubing
Locals who are looking for a joyous day off work, a day spent enjoying time with their families or even a way to relieve some stress, Local Community Day is the place to do it.
When asked what Tahoe Snowmobiles is anticipating most about hosting the event on Sunday, Shearer said, “We’re most looking forward to introducing the local community to what we offer, sharing a fun and memorable winter experience together, and hopefully making Locals Day an annual tradition.”
Additionally, a DJ will bring some upbeat ambience to the event and starting at 11 a.m., there will be giveaway prizes every hour until 3 p.m.
“Through our family of local businesses and our nonprofit, Marine Research & Education, we’re continually working to expand access to outdoor experiences and give back in meaningful ways. We’re excited to continue growing these efforts in the years ahead,” added Shearer.
Get your hardshell jackets and snow boots ready, and come to Local Community Day, located at 75 US-50 in Stateline, Nev., next to the Tahoe Blue Events Center.
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – On January 10, Bally’s Lake Tahoe is hosting the 24th annual Tahoe Adventure Film Festival (TAFF), showcasing some of the best adventure and action films of the year while celebrating the Lake Tahoe community.
Creator Todd Offenbacher, an adventurous outdoorsman known for his skiing, snowboarding, climbing and guiding, became injured in the early 2000’s. While he was laid up and stir crazy, he came up with the idea for the film festival.
“I went to a whole bunch of different film festivals and saw how they did it, and a lot of them were very serious and judging the films, critiquing the films and that sort of thing. I thought, ‘Well, I don’t want to do that. I just want to celebrate, bring the community together, celebrate how these sports connect us in such a unique way,” said Offenbacher.
Fast forward 24 years, and the event has become a community jewel.
“The festival started with pushing the limits of sports and taking high risk, and to be able to see what people wanted and what seemed to resonate, I let the audience and the years of doing it morph it into this.”
With ever-expanding social media platforms and short-form content, methods of capturing people’s attention are also evolving.
“The contents really changed over the years of how filmmakers want to share information. Now, they want to just get as many eyeballs on [their film] as possible.”
With submissions coming in from all over the world, films are specially selected to cater to the spirited and energetic atmosphere of the event. Some are about pushing the limits of a sport, others are a testament to the human spirit. This year, Offenbacher says there will be a little bit of everything, from skiing in the mountains to adaptive athletes breaking barriers.
Films aren’t the only form of entertainment at TAFF, and to further captivate the audience, guests will enjoy go-go dancers, music and comedic commentary, as well as their highly-anticipated Golden Camelot Award, an accolade given every year.
“When it started out, it was more for athletes doing amazing things in their sport, pushing the limits, that sort of thing, and now it’s tied in with people who are also big contributors to the community,” Offenbacher said.
From rock climber Alex Honnold, Tahoe local John Rice, to last year’s winner, Stein Retzlaff, an expedition cameraman and extreme sports enthusiast, the Golden Camelot Award shines a spotlight on those who lead with passion in whatever it is they choose to do.
Offenbacher teases this year’s Golden Camelot Award winner, saying, “It goes to a person who is considered to have done the most historic ski descent in history.”
This year, you can witness who takes home the 20th Golden Camelot Award, and enjoy the nail-biting, high-stakes films at Bally’s Lake Tahoe on Saturday, January 10. Doors open at 6 p.m. and films begin at 7 p.m.
