California Archives | Adventure Sports Journal

Chasing the Shot

Photographer Fred Pompermayer on capturing California big-wave surfing and losing friends to wingsuit flying By Chris Van Leuven • Photos by Fred Pompermayer / theshot.com.br Mavericks – one of the best and heaviest waves on the planet. Combine “extreme” with “sports” and many millennials think of busting aerials on dirt bikes and inflated egos. Gen X-ers may think of Mark Twight’s book Extreme Alpinism, which is hardly a cliché because it came out 17 years ago, and it was titled before “extreme” had been used for everything from bikini contests to Doritos. Los Angeles based photographer Fred Pompermayer thinks of big-wave surfing and proximity wingsuit BASE-jumping. Originally from Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil, Pompermayer used that phrasing often as we talked over the phone in mid-August. When Pompermayer, 41, says that he captures action and extreme sports, it doesn’t sound like a cliché. Because that’s exactly what he does –...

Tracking California’s Fall Colors

Website offers up-to-date information on the best autumn foliage viewing throughout the Golden State In 2005, Mono County publicist John Poimiroo launched californiafallcolor.com – a website for finding fall color in California – to draw attention to the eastern Sierra’s colorful foliage. Poimiroo points out that most Californians and visitors consider the Golden State as being “without seasons” seeing as there is so little autumn color throughout the vast Central Valley and along the coast. He seeks to dispell that notion, reasoning that “California is huge and within it are large pockets of fall color that are truly breathtaking to behold. You just have to know where to see it and when to go.” Volunteer “color spotters” submit photos and status of the fall color in their area. For instance, in Inyo County, where the state’s first burst of explosive fall color is found, they keep an eye on...

Bike Like a Girl

Tahoe area organization offers support to female cyclists By Tim Hauserman Photo courtesy Bike Like a Girl. Bike Like a Girl was formed by three women with a passion for biking, who had a fierce desire to help other girls and women find the same joy and fulfillment from biking that they do. It’s a volunteer organization formed in 2015 with a three pronged approach to helping the sport of women’s cycling: They run camps to introduce younger girls to what a great sport biking can be; they support an ambassador program which focuses on getting women out riding together on a regular basis, while also learning about mechanics and fitness; and they established a small Elite Team of top women cyclists who proudly wear the Bike Like A Girl jersey as a positive roll model for women cyclists. The idea began with Julie Young, who spent 12 years on...

2016 California Enduro Series Round 6 (Golden Tour 2): Northstar Recap

Racers take on loose moon dust and burly rocks over two days of action packed racing at Northstar California Resort Words by Liam Ruff • Photos by Called To Creation • Video by Mitchell Nuyens and Sebastian Bauer The sixth race of the California Enduro Series (CES) and second stop of the CES Golden Tour took place at Northstar California and challenged all competitors with loose moon dust and burly rocks over two days of action packed racing. For the past two seasons the Northstar CES race has been one of the most anticipated and technically challenging events of the series and this year was no different. Riders enjoyed two days of racing on some of California’s most demanding trails with a mix of pedaled and lift assisted transfer stages – a proper test of a rider’s technical skills as well as physical strength. The weekend started off with...

Ear to the Ground Aug / Sept 2016

Outdoor News and Notes for the California Region Red Bull Heavy Water Kicks Off in San Francisco The Red Bull Heavy Water stand up paddleboard race is scheduled to take place in San Francisco in September. The exact date is TBD and depends on conditions. Requiring the perfect mix of paddling skills, ocean knowledge, supreme fitness and the courage to take on one of the most intimidating stretches of coastline in the world, the Red Bull Heavy Water will test the best stand up paddleboarders in what promises to be a dramatic challenge. An intense 12km course will see athletes leave from San Francisco’s notorious Ocean Beach to battle their way in and out of the surf towards the Golden Gate Bridge for possibly the most challenging race the sport has ever seen. Once the laps through the surf have been completed the athletes will be in the open ocean,...