Photo: alextorrenegra

[Editor's note: This post is sponsored by our friends at REI.]

WHILE SKIING AND SNOWBOARDING are classic winter sports for the family, there are several up and coming winter sports that give you unique ways to have fun and explore outside. Here are five we have our eyes on this season:

Ski joring

If you’re looking for a sport that includes the furrier members of your family, this is it. Ski joring is a combination of dogsledding and cross-country skiing in which a dog or a team of dogs pulls along a rider on skis.

Unlike dogsledding, you don’t need a team of malamutes to start ski joring – any medium to large-sized dog can play, as long as they don’t mind a romp through the snow (most dogs don’t). Since ski joring harnesses don’t have any reins to steer, you’ll want to teach your pups basic dogsledding voice commands before heading out.

While any pair of cross-country skis will work for ski joring, serious racers prefer skate skis made by companies like Atomic Team. To reduce the risk of accidental injury to your dog, avoid skis with metal edges.

Don’t forget to equip your four-legged teammate either. To protect your dog’s paws, set them up with a pair of cold-weather booties. The best booties will have rubber bottoms with plenty of traction, like Ruff Wear Grip Trex. If your dog is a shorter-haired breed, a dog coat will help them stay comfortable in the snow.

Sledding

Sledding may still be kids’ winter sport of choice, but that doesn’t mean that adults can’t enjoy it too.

Photo: thousand.birds

Unlike normal plastic sleds, high-performance designs like the Hammerhead Sled work just as well on the mountain as they do on neighborhood sled hills.

The Hammerhead’s shock-absorbing aluminum frame and included skis can handle everything from hard-pack to light powder; with the optional powder skis, it can handle much deeper snow as well.

For mountaineers, winter trekkers, and anyone else who needs a sturdy sled, the Paris Company Expedition Sled is made for hauling gear through winter conditions. The sleds are made to be used with a harness, and have grommet-reinforced tow holes for extra durability.

Splitboarding

Like their name suggests, splitboards are snowboards that can be split in half to become skis, opening the way for traversing backcountry terrain without having to lug around snowshoes

In board mode, a splitboard rides just like any other snowboard. Switching over to ski mode only takes a couples of minutes and involves undoing a series of metal clasps that join the halves together.

While splitboards aren’t nearly as common as traditional decks, a few manufacturers produce their own models. Burton’s S-Series Split Snowboard has a solid reputation and comes at a reasonable price.

If you’re planning on heading off-trail, make sure that you’re well-versed in backcountry safety. REI is a great resource for information and expert advice on avalanche safety as well.

Ice climbing

Ice climbers use specialized gear like ice axes and crampons to climb frozen waterfalls and other ice formations. While ice climbing isn’t for everyone, adventurous types can catch some of the mountain’s greatest views, not to mention the rush of going up something that normally goes down.

Photo: HK James Ho

REI has some great resources and articles on ice climbing equipment and technique. Proper footwear will go a long way towards keeping you safe and comfortable on the ice. Modern mountaineering boots are made specifically for climbers and have removable inner booties designed to speed up drying time. You’ll use the same harnesses and ropes that you’d use for rock climbing, plus sport-specific devices like ice screws.

Like all mountaineering and climbing, ice climbing should only be attempted with proper training and practice.

Snow skating

You could call snow skating the feisty little brother of snowboarding. Instead of the traditional gear, the sport uses a board that resembles a thick plastic skateboard deck, usually with higher, boot-friendly kicks. The result is a ride that has the feel of a skateboarding session.

Which kind of board you pick depends largely on where you’re planning on riding it. Alpine boards have one or more ski-like runners, as well as a leash to stop runaway boards in case of a fall, while decks made for neighborhood freeriding often sit directly on the snow, using grooved channels in the bottom of the board to stop it from spinning.

Just like skateboarding, protective gear is a must for safe snow skating. At minimum, you’ll need a helmet and wrist guards; if you’re just getting started, knee pads aren’t a bad idea either.

Community Connection

For ideas to help you get your family outdoors this winter, check out 8 Winter Adventures to Get Kids Excited About the Outdoors.

Although SUP surfing has been around since the 60s, only recently has it become a popular sport. Stand-up builds on balance skills and technique to allow surfers to catch waves early while using a paddle to manipulate turns.

Today, SUP surfers come to competitions likeHennessey’s International Championships and the annual Quiksilver Ku Ikaika Challenge sponsored by C4 Waterman to compete and show off their skills.

Then there are bold characters like Garett McNamara, the award-winning surfer who was the the first person to surf the giant waves created by calving glaciers in Alaska. He’s now taking stand-up paddle to new extremes by attempting hurricane swells. Beginners, we suggest starting elsewhere.

Community Connection

Learn more about the sport in Stand-Up Paddling: A brief History of C4 Waterman.

(Feature photo: bobbymond.)

Soccer fans can get a little wacky about fouls. Catch them on a good day, and they’ll not only let you get away with a blatant, violent foul, like Zinedine Zidane’s infamous headbutt, but they’ll name you best player anyway. Catch them on a bad day, and they’ll start calling for your blood.

The second is what’s now happening to Thierry Henry. During a World Cup qualifier against Ireland last week, the French captain committed a handball while setting up a teammate for a goal. Because referee Martin Hansson didn’t see the foul, he had no choice but to allow the goal. As a result, France ended up winning 2-1, and Ireland lost its last chance to qualify for the World Cup.

The press exploded. The Daily Mail said that Henry had “blatantly cheated”, and questioned whether he would ever live down the foul. Former French international Eric Cantona said that he would have punched Henry, had he been on the Irish team.

“If I’d been Irish, he wouldn’t have lasted three seconds,” Cantona said.

‘La Mano de Dios’

At least one player has gotten away with a bigger handball in soccer history. In the 1986 World Cup finals, Diego Maradona scored the game-winning goal that way in a match against England. Because of the foul, Argentina took home the World Cup, and Maradona became a hero. There certainly weren’t any former Argentine players publicly fantasizing about beating him up.

Despite having owned up to his error soon after the game, Henry is catching much more flak. Henry told L’Equipe that the criticism directed at him was so strong that he briefly considered quitting international soccer.

In response to the controversy, FIFA president Sepp Blatter has called an emergency meeting for next week, at which it is widely expected that FIFA’s executive committee will recommend a rule change that would add two new assistant referees to the field.

Some officials have gone a step further, arguing that FIFA should introduce video replay to help referees make more accurate calls. Sir Alex Ferguson, manager of Manchester United, said that the technology was key to keeping the game fair.

“I like justice in sport and I believe football has a big responsibility today to see how we want international life to go on and to be an example for people who watch the game,” he said.

Community Connection

Does Thierry Henry deserve what he’s getting? Should soccer refs have access to instant replay? Let us know in the comments.

Photo: bredgur

1. Bull Durham

A spectacularly written movie which captures the vernacular of baseball, metaphysics and sex. It gets everything right about minor league baseball. If any man can recite Crash Davis’ soliloquy to Anne Savoy on his belief system to me, I’ll marry him.

2. Raging Bull

Filmed in black and white, Martin Scorsese’s direction and Robert De Niro’s portrayal of tough but volatile boxer Jake Lamotta are poetic and brutally honest. Better than that other famous boxing film (sorry, Sly).

3. Hoosiers

A move about Indiana basketball in the 50’s, when the sport was an all-white, farm boy affair. A fallen coach, played by Gene Hackman, takes a struggling high school team to the state championship. Hoosiers has a message about what it takes to become a great team (hint: sometimes you have to pass the ball).

4. Offside

Offside was filmed at Tehran’s Azadi Stadium during a 2005 World Cup qualifying match between Iran and Bahrain. The story tracks a group of female fans, who, banned by religious decree from going to the stadium, attempt to sneak in disguised as men.

Willing to risk arrest and censure, this group of young women know their soccer. Until I watched Offside, it never occurred to me that cheering on your favorite team wasn’t a God-given right for everyone, regardless of gender.

5. Eight Men Out

Baseball wasn’t always multimillion dollar contracts and signing bonuses. In the early 20th century, the game’s best athletes played for skinflint owners whose idea of a bonus was cheap champagne.

Eight Men Out is the story of the Chicago White Sox of 1919, who were labeled “the Black Sox” after they conspired to throw the World Series for some much-needed cash. In this movie, we find out who the bad guys really were.

6. Caddyshack

A classic comedy with an all-star cast. Bill Murray is the pot-smoking, gopher-obsessed groundskeeper, Chevy Chase is the smooth, smarmy country club pro, and Rodney Dangerfield is himself in hideous golfing outfits. Almost three decades later, it’s still hilarious.

7. Chariots of Fire

The story tracks two runners competing in the 1924 Olympics, each of them with a higher purpose. One is a Jew trying to fight anti-Semitism through athletics; the other is a Scottish missionary who believes his talent on the track fits into God’s plan.

The film won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1982.

8. Anything by Warren Miller

This pretty much sums up what we powder hounds crave every winter. Warren Miller’s been king of the ski flick ever since his first film, Deep and Light, came out in 1949.

The latest offering from the 60-year-old Miller dynasty is this year’s Children of Winter

Community Connection

Do you have a favorite sports film that we didn’t mention here? Shout it out in the comments.

It was the fourth inning of the Pirates-Padres game, and Dock Ellis was throwing 1970´s first no-hitter. His teammates from Pittsburgh kept their mouths shut: it was bad luck to talk to a pitcher in the middle of a no-no.

Ellis was more worried about striking out Jimi Hendrix. Just hours before the game, Ellis had taken several tabs of LSD, under the mistaken impression that he didn’t have to play until the next day. Around the beginning of the inning, the home plate umpire had turned into Richard Nixon. Now, Hendrix was standing at the plate, brandishing his guitar like a bat.

Dock Ellis ended up getting his no-hitter, the only (known) time that an MLB pitcher has done so on acid. Inspired by the story, No Mas and James Blagden took a 2008 NPR interview with Ellis and set it to super-trippy animation, retelling the story of the no-no in Ellis’ own words.

Community Connection

Learn about the history of weed with Brave New Traveler.

You can find more videos on Matador TV.

Photo by barbara.keyworth.

1. Bare Buns Fun Run West – Issaquah, WA

Now in its 19th year, this clothing-optional 5K challenges runners with a dirt course up Tiger Mountain, located outside Seattle. Fraternity Snoqualmie, a family nudist park, sponsors the event, whose tag-line is “Be brave, be tough, beat the mountain in the buff!”

2. Doughnut Run 5K – Ames, IA

The Doughnut Run, put on by the Iowa State University Triathlon Club, rewards participants for eating Krispy Kreme doughnuts at designated stations on the route. Runners earn subtractions from their finish time for each doughnut consumed and successfully held down.

North Carolina State holds a similar run, in which participants must run two miles to a Krispy Kreme store, consume a dozen doughnuts, and run back to the start.

3. Fat Boy 5K – Baton Rouge, LA

The Fat Boy 5K groups runners into three divisions based on weight: Clydesdale, for runners between 200 and 230 pounds, Super Clydesdale, for runners between 231 and 260 pounds, and Ultra Clydesdale, over 260 pounds.

Runners have the option of competing as a team, but members’ combined weight must be at least 650 pounds. The event provides refreshments like doughnuts, chocolate milk, beer, and coke.

4. Fremont 5K and Briefcase Relay – Seattle, WA

Teams of five compete in this 5K relay, passing a briefcase full of canned food from one teammate to the next. The cans are donated to a local non-profit, and participants are encouraged to dress in their own interpretations of “business attire.”

5. Chase the Gorilla Down Argilla 5K – Ipswich, MA

Put on by the Ipswich YMCA, participants in this road race chase a person in a gorilla suit, nicknamed Argy. Argy sticks around after for photos, but the gorilla’s identity is a well-kept secret.

6. Beat Beethoven 5K – various locations

Instead of competing against each other, participants in the Beat Beethoven 5k race against Beethoven’s famous Fifth Symphony, trying to finish before the last note of the 32-minute piece. The race has has caught on across the US and Canada, and various cities now hold their own versions. The music is piped in along the course or, like in Covington, KY, played by a live orchestra.

Photo by nolaclutterbusters

7. Pajama Run 5K – various locations

Several US cities host pajama runs, nighttime races run in pajamas. Participants tend to get creative with the pajama concept, wearing footie pajamas or nighttime face cream. In Charleston, SC, the race is followed by a pajama party, and benefits cancer research.

8. Red Dress Run – various locations

These runs are put on by chapters of the Hash House Harriers, a social drinking and running club. The events draw both male and female participants, and involve a significant amount of cross dressing, hilarity, and drinking. They’re essentially massive, costumed pub crawls.

The largest Red Dress Run is in New Orleans. About 2,500 people registered for the “three to four” mile run in 2009.

Community Connection

If you’d rather be pedaling, check out 8 Quirky Bike Rides Across the US.

The 2009 AIDA Freediving World Championships start on Wednesday at Dean’s Blue Hole in the Bahamas. Dozens of the world’s top free divers will compete in the tournament, which concludes with finals on December 5.

This year, Herbert Nitsch is the diver to beat. The Austrian diver currently holds the world records for three of AIDA’s eight disciplines, including the ultra-competitive No Limits. With a record 702 feet, Nitsch has free dived almost ten times as deep as most divers can go on scuba.

In this video, Herbert Nitsch shows off his crazy skills by breath-holding it through a flooded cave and the inside of a sunken ship. The man’s a breath-hold Buddha: he seems totally tranquil, even with a layer of rock between him and the open air.

Community Connection

Check out more videos at Matador TV.

Photo by mariachily.

This year’s festival took place in Yangshuo, China, from November 13-15. In recent years, Yangshuo’s popularity has skyrocketed, attracting bikers and rock climbers with its stunning landscape. With all the tourism traffic, locals want to ensure their home remains attractive and unspoiled.

According to the festival’s website, the event’s goals are noble.

“The twin goals of the Yangshuo Climbing Festival are to promote a sense of community among climbers throughout China in a fun, friendly, and casual atmosphere and to support the sustainable development of rock climbing in the Yangshuo area. The Festival organizers will donate the money raised via Festival entry fees to local Yangshuo development projects in an effort to encourage a long-term collaborative partnership between climbers and the local community.”

Greenliving Blog reports that festival attendees are hooked up with rental bikes in an effort to reduce the use of motor vehicles, and local traders are encouraged to sell food and drink to the climbers.

Reducing your climbing footprint

Rock climbing can have surprising negative environmental consequences. While some people seek out new climbing challenges, others flock to densely populated areas, which results in overcrowded parking lots, litter, damaged trails, and destroyed vegetation.

Photo by iwona_kellie

The following are a few tips offered by Leave No Trace Climbing for practicing sustainable climbing:

Be prepared. Make sure your equipment is in top shape, find a climb that meets your skill level, find out if the area requires permits and special practices, and carpool.

Cut the waste. Reduce the use of chalk, remove overused gear when leaving the site, and do not relieve yourself on grass near the climb.

Don’t mess with the route. Use removable protection whenever possible, check with local managers before placing any bolts, and avoid areas on the rock surface that require lots of cleaning. Don’t try to force a new route.

Know the surface that you’re climbing. Avoid areas prone to erosion, use quick draws when possible, and use established trails. Don’t wrap rope around trees, as it may destroy the bark.

Respect your neighbors. Don’t disturb the homes of animals that nest in the cliff face. Also, respect your fellow climbers by choosing less popular times to climb, reducing noise while waiting to climb, and stepping back to give other climbers the space they need.

Community Connection

Get some tips on how to become a better rock climber. If you’d rather live climbing adventures vicariously, check out our photo essay on trekking El Calafate glacier.

Photo: permanently scatterbrained

Maybe Manny Pacquiao will be able to make boxing popular again. It would surprise the hell out of me.

Pacquiao, the Filipino boxer who is being held up as the sport’s latest savior, has done some very impressive things. On Sunday, he beat Miguel Cotto to win the World Boxing Council welterweight title and become the first boxer in history to have been champion in seven different weight classes.

“The fight has left boxing fans hungry for more,” Time’s Howard Chua-Eoan wrote after the match. “The trouble, however, is that they have only one Manny Pacquiao to go around. The roster of exciting talent is thin.”

This kind of thinking misses the point.Yes, Pacquiao’s talented. He’s beaten some of the game’s biggest names, Oscar De La Hoya among them.

But lack of talent isn’t why boxing is losing viewers to UFC. There are legions of active, first-class boxers around, like Humberto Soto and the Klitschko brothers. If talent was the issue, boxing would have made its comeback years ago.

The sport is doomed on an organizational level. Professional boxing has five major governing bodies, each of which puts together its own rankings and crowns its own champions. Add in smaller leagues like the International Boxing Organization, and you’re looking at seven or eight “world champions” at any given time. Is it any wonder that no one gives a hoot?

In the UFC and other mixed martial arts competitions, fighters compete inside a centrally-owned league, just like other major US sports. An athlete who wins a title in his or her weight division is the champion. Not one of five champions, the champion. Boxing could gain back a lot of its legitimacy by adopting the UFC model.

Unfortunately, promoters and organizing bodies have discovered that drama makes more money that athletics. A championship fight, even between two mediocre boxers, is easier to sell on pay-per-view than a normal match. For boxing’s governing bodies, five times as many championship matches means five times as many sanctioning fees.

The result is a pro boxing circuit that’s as over-hyped as it is watered-down. Speaking as a boxer and boxing fan, I know that it can be more than that.

Any attempt to “fix” boxing has to start with the sport’s status quo. Unless Manny Pacquiao’s next fight is going to be against boxing’s governing bodies, it’s time for fans to find a new savior.

Community Connection

Can Manny Pacquiao save boxing? Let us know what you think in the comments section!

Photo above by andrusdevelopment.

At 7 p.m. on November 18, the Ski Club of Great Britain and Henry’s Avalanche Talk are hosting a live, online information session for eco-travelers and mountain dwellers. HAT is a team of experienced ski-professionals, while the Ski Club of Great Britain is a non-profit organization with goals of making snow sports less expensive and more available to all ski and snowboard enthusiasts.

The webinar is especially useful for off-piste skiers and snowboarders, and deals with issues like avoiding avalanche danger. For those who are unfamiliar with the sport, off-piste skiing/snowboarding takes place on snow that has not already been compacted by other skiers and snowboarders. In unfamiliar territory, the risks are very real.

Photo by kentgoldman

The Off Piste Ski Guide recommends first-timers take a guide along for the ride and never ski or snowboard alone. Other general tips include: checking the weather forecast beforehand, checking for avalanche warnings, bringing collapsible shovels, bringing a transceiver in addition to a cell phone, and staying aware of surroundings and conditions..

Hosted by HAT’s Henry Schniewind, the online discussion will offer more in-depth information regarding skiing and snowboarding safety, while allowing the opportunity for viewers to ask questions and speak with Schniewind himself.

The webinar costs £7, and registrants can view the discussion online for seven days after the talk takes place. To register, wander over to HAT’s Live Webinar page.

Community Connection

Get some tips on how to survive an avalanche from Traveler’s Notebook.