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This April a low-tide spring in Alaska’s coastal mountains forced Amplid’s man in AK, Ben Reynolds, to head deeper into the Chugach Mountain range in search of un-ridden faces and fresh snow. Journeying in to the backcountry with their snowmobiles, Ben and his crew discovered a world of huge mountains, enormous hanging glaciers, extreme danger and incredible potential.
Amplid ambassador Andreas Gumpenberger, three fellow mountaineers, a photographer and cinematographer head deep into Pakistan's Karakoram Mountain Range to take first tracks on the imposing north face of Shimshal Whitehorn, a 6000m peak which is yet to be skied. Here's his story.
If you’ve watched one of the many edits emanating from Australia’s Perisher resort this summer, you’d be excused for believing that freeriding in Australia is a little limited and almost totally flat. However, if you’re prepared to hike deeper into the backcountry then the fruits are for the picking. Antony Von Chrismar and Lachlan Humphreys recently went in search of Euro-style lines at the fabled Crags.
In early February, Amplid's AK splitboard ambassadors, Ben Reynolds & Orin Rolando, made the most of stable conditions and a good weather window to ride dream lines in Alaska's Chugach range. It was meant a long day in the skin track to reach the drop-in, but for Ben , this hike was about redemption on a line which had previously tried to sluff him off the face.
In February, for the second consecutive year, Amplid's in-house graphics man, Mr Michi Hanauer, packed his Millisurf and headed east to Romania's Carpathian mountains for some splitboarding. Having seen the potential on his previous visit, Michi was eager to catch Romania at its best.
Amplid splitboard ambassadors Ben Reynolds and Orin Rolando take the short (by Alaskan standards) drive to Hatcher Pass on the cuff of the Talkeetna Mountains, to ride Golden Spine, one of Ben’s all-time favourite lines. In recent years Hatcher Pass, a busy thoroughfare during the early 20th century gold rush, has become a popular haven for backcountry skiers and snowboarders.
In Australia and hungry for some big-mountain lines, Milligram rider Antony von Chrismar took a weekend hike into New South Wales' Kosciuszko National Park in search of freeride terrain which would rival that of the Alps. A stone's throw from Perisher Mountain Resort, the area, which has many peaks above 2000m altitude, looks like it has plenty to offer!
Last month, Amplid homies Buell Steelman and Matt Strouder took advantage of the remaining snowpack on Mt Jefferson, Oregon's second highest peak, surfing perfect early summer corn on their Milligram splitboards. From the pictures, we reckon this mission was well worth the early start!
After two weeks of beautiful spring days, winter has returned to Bavaria, bringing heavy snowfalls and bone chilling temperatures. Making the most of the perfect snowboarding conditions and longer days, a crew from Amplid HQ headed to local resort Spitzingsee with the splitboards to poach some perfect pow.
In the past few years California has been given the cold shoulder by the snow gods. This year the snow is back and with 20ft of snow in January alone, conditions are all time! Amplid ambassadors Buell Steelman and Henning Schwalbe have been making the most of the spectacular conditions on their splitboards.
As the winter season gets underway more and more lines become rideable in AK, Amplid's Alaskan splitboard ambassador, Ben Reynolds, and fellow riders Orin and Uriah Rolando took the opportunity, on a clear day with stable conditions, to ride Kick Step, a well-known peak in the Chugach Range.
This week the temperature dropped to below freezing in the Bavarian Alps and the heavens opened leaving a blanket of snow for Amplid's ultra-eager office team to poach. Equipped with Facelifts, Ego Trip Evolutions, Milligrams and Morning Splits the team hiked up to the Summit of Spitzingsee's Rosskopf for a quick fix of pow riding.
While Europe basks in glorious spring weather, snowboarders in Alaska have been battening down the hatches as storm after storm rolls-in off the Pacific. Ambassador Ben Reynolds and a handful of friends have been making the most of the clear days to ride big lines.
Surrounded by the busy Ski Welt and Kitzbuhel, Kelchsau is a small village nestled in a beautiful tree-lined valley, which couldn't be further from the hoardes of Dutch ski tourists. Last week Ambush team rider Alex Proyer went on a tour with his Milligram to discover the area.
Splitboarding is great, what could be better than accessing beautiful peaks with thousands of meters of untouched vertical stretching out into the distance. Well that's the romanitic view, the reality can be very different. Amplid's Nico Antony recently spent 8 days in the Southern Alps exposing himself to awful conditions and learning essential survival techniques.
The Ahornspitze is one of the Zillertal Valley's most prominent peaks. Just under 3000m high, it towers above the resort town of Mayrhofen, basking in the late afternoon sun. For any freerider who spends time in the Zillertal it's on the bucket list of peaks to ride. Ambush rider Alex Proyer recently ticked it off his list.

Early Season in Aosta

Last year the Aosta Valley, which is tucked behind Mt Blanc near to the Italian border, had a bumper snow season. This year the snowpack looks like it's off to a good start. Amplid friend Patrick Raspo has been making the most of the early season precipitation on his LAB Carbon Split.
On Wednesday and Thursday the Northern Alps were treated to a very early season dump of snow. In total more than 50cm of snow fell at Amplid's local resort Spitzingsee down to altitudes as low as the car park. Amplid's owner Peter Bauer made the most of it with an early morning splitboard tour.
Our hearts are beating so hard we're beginning to wonder if Juergen is setting the pace a little fast. Juergen our guide for the day, who is almost certainly half human and half mountain goat, is breaking the trail on his Morning Split and still having to wait for us at regular intervals.
Boarding the magnificent Caucasus Mountains, the same mountain range where the Sochi Winter Olympics will be held, lies Georgia, a country rich in culture and incredible snowboarding terrain. ARC rider Anderl Zissler journeyed there last winter to check it out.