For my Friends

Every year as a new season approaches, I feel as though a chapter of my life is coming to a close. Though it doesn't make me sad it allows me to look forward to a whole new chapter. A chapter filled with many new friends, experiences I could not even begin to predict, and another chance to begin a whole new story for myself. I always reflect back on my past and though there are many painful parts, their are so many wonderful memories that stand out among the rest. I have had amazing opportunities in my life but those wouldn't be as memorable without the people who helped me get there or the people I was lucky enough to share them with. I have traveled Europe once with my best friends in high school, and again with three of the coolest ladies I know. I have cruised the Caribbean with one of my best friends (even though we were both injured haha), I have lived through the ups, the downs and come out with a smile because of the people who were there through it all. I have so much more to do and much to share with every new friend I meet. I look forward, with every ounce of joy, anticipation, and wonder to what is next in life for Tucker Hawkins. I don't need to individually thank all of you who have been there for me because you all have the memories that will stay with the both of us until the end of time. The world is a small place and the short stories we all share will only continue to be written......

Great split trip from Snowmass mountain along the backside toButtermilk mountain!!

Holy hell, what an awesome day to go out on a split hike. The sky was a little grey but it was perfect because of how warm it was, the snow was icy but the views alone were worth every step. Today was my first lengthy splitboard trip into the backcountry, I went along with my friend Matt who showed me a few of the ropes to being comfortable on a long hike. In total the hike only took about 4 hours but it was all up, down, slick, and crunchy all over. True to its nature my splitboard did a wonderful job, kept me up above the deep crunchy snow and stuck right to the snow with my new Viole Split Decision climbing skins! I can not wait until my next trip coming up next week!! The full moon is just around the corner and I absolutely will be skinning up either Buttermilk or Aspen mountain or possibly both under the moon light. Every chance I get I will be going out on trips to see what this awesome place has to offer me in the backcountry:)

My buddy Matt, rocking one of his hand made SMOG hats, you could just see so far from the peaks it was as if the end of the world didn't exist

Words can't describe how awesome a feeling it is to stand atop a cliff and look at at the Roaring Fork Valley

just before our descent towards West Buttermilk

Trekking through the woods

The final steep before we came out on top of West Buttermilk

Bad shot, but this is at the very top of West Buttermilk right before the snow storm rolled in

A little delayed but here is some good shots!

Well I haven't had any Internet in about a week so I finally made a trip to library to update a little on here. Last week I had 2 days off and wow what a great couple of days, I got to ride open to close both days and it was beautiful out both days!! The second day of riding I decided to take the splitboard out for a test run and it is now one of my favorite boards to ride. Even with it split I feel confident and stable even at fast speeds, it will handle any kind of jump I throw at it, which also includes a medium backwoods booter. My APO splitboard will handle any kind of terrain with a breeze, I also recently received my climbing skins which I will be putting to the test this upcoming week hopefully.  I don't have much more to say that these photos can't say themselves! Next week I have a bit of time off so I will be out taking full advantage of the upcoming snow on my splitboard. I will make sure to get some great shots and also I will be deciding where to go next pretty soon since the winter season will be over with in late April out in Colorado, once I know where I will, it will be time to start a new chapter of this wild book......

This is my good buddy Stephen up on top of Peanut Butter Ridge, on his left it drops off roughly 150-200ft!!

What a beautiful place to spend some time riding!!

My favorite bar tender, Sam, at the Irish Shrine on Aspen. Even comes freshly stocked with Patron Coffee, Feckin Whiskey, and an awesome bottle of Port!!

May not look like much but my splitty is a tank!

The view from the top of Peanut Butter ridge

A special congratulations is in order for my older brother Brayden and his beautiful bride Kelly. Congratulations to the both of you and I hope you have many years of blissful marriage!!!

Stop telling yourself " I can't "

So many people I have talked with about their dreams and desires always follow them up with " I can't", why is that? Many of you that tell me about what you would like to do with your life merely sit back and watch life as it passes by, you continue to spend your money of things that only hold you back, you become complacent with how your life is and don't see any way or reason to try to improve it. I understand that the "normal" life for some is the path they want but for some of you all you have to tell me is how much you hate it where you are and how you wish to change it. I have made this offer to many of you and still no one has taken me up on it, if any of my friends need or just want to get away for a while and see what else the world has instore I will help everyway I can. You are the one that needs to come to me though, I will help you with finding a place to stay, food to eat, or a job if you plan to stay. I just don't believe that if you are somewhere that makes you unhappy as soon as you wake up is somewhere you should be and I would feel guilt aout not assisting you with a change. The point of this is to say don't just settle for what you have, strive and earn what you want.

Waking up in the mountains was one of my dreams that I can now say I lived, what dreams can you cross off of your list?

My First Splitboard Build!

         Well I decided since a splitboard costs between $400-$1000 to buy, I am going to build my own splitboard! Since I really have no experience doing this I figured I'd share the whole process with you and hopefully if it works maybe it will assist someone in building their very own splitboard!!!

1.) You will need to find the perfect board to use as your splitboard, make sure it is a board that you don't mind looking at as well as riding. I would recommend going to a used sports store and looking at what they have to offer, though a board may be used does not mean it doesn't have life left in it (I like to do things as inexpensively as possible as well and used sports stores help a lot). You want a board that is roughly the same size as what you would ride normally, maybe a little bigger if you will be in the backcountry quite a bit, it must have a solid wood core tip to tail, and it must have the standard 4 hole binding mount. You may be able to use the Burton 3 hole but I wouldn't recommend it.

The board I chose is a 2009 APO Amanite LTD 158. It has a wood core tip to tail, it is a stiffer board which I really like in a carving board, and the board is directional so I will already be sitting back in deep powder.

The board is in excellent condition for its age, no core shots or damage anywhere on the board except for a very small chip in the top sheet that was repaired. Cost of board $40

2.) Once you have the board you plan to split you will need to pick up a few things:

 

           - Saw ( circular saw, band saw, jig saw, or a table saw). Make sure the blade you have

              on the saw is for wood, plastic, and laminates.

           - Blue painters tape

           - Piece of sand paper ( try to get a fine grit between 100-120)

           - Yard stick

           - Two part marine epoxy

           - Drill ( Philips head, 1/8th bit, 3/16th bit, 19/64th drill bit, 3/4 inch wood boring bit, and

               a 3/8th counter sink bit)

           - Rubber mallet

           - File

           - Wood clamps

           - Hack saw
           - Saftey glasses
           - Safety mask

           - Permanent marker

           - Two saw horses

           - Voile Split Kit (DIY)

Here are just a few of the things you will need to begin building your splitboard

 

 

3.) Next is to put on the bindings you will be using with your splitboard, since I really only have one set of bindings currently, I will be using my 2012 Burton Cobrasharks. Once you have your bindings right where you will want them take the blue painters tape and tape on the outsides of your bindings so that it shows where they are going to sit. You will then take the painters tape and find the dead center of the board and put a perfectly straight piece of blue tape from the nose of the board to the tail. Also put a strip of the blue tape on the base of the board as well, this will help prevent any kind of chipping while cutting the board. Once the tape is on you will need the yard stick and marker, begin marking the center of the board straight down the tape, while marking always use the ruler to measure across the board to make the you are in the exact center through the whole board, you don't want to have a diagonal cut through your board.

Make sure the bindings are exactly where you will want them because once you install the Voile Split Kit you will not be able to readjust them.

Make sure you tape where the bindings will go before you put the center strip on, you will take the center tape off before the binding placements

Use the yard stick to double check that the tape is in the dead center of the board

As with the tape always double check with the yard stick that the cut line is in the dead center of the board, you DO NOT want a diagonal cut on your splitboard. I also put a small dot in the middle of the four mounting holes I will be using

Make sure the strip of tape on the base lines up perfectly with the tape on the top sheet, you don't want any kind of chipping on either side. the tape will help prevent that

 

 

4.) Next you will have to file through the metal edges at the tip and tail, for this you will want a diamond file that will leave a mark just thick enough for the saw blade to fit through. You need to file through the full edge that means the part you cant see inside the board as well, so roughly half an inch down. Then clamp down the board ( when I did this I did it with the top sheet up, I would recommend clamping the board with the base up so it will be easier to cut). Take the yard stick and clamp this to the board to use as a guide for your saw so that your line will be straight. Once you have your board clamped down and stable on the surface you will be cutting on its time to start! Grab your safety glasses and a face mask because there is fiberglass in the snowboard and you DO NOT want to breath that in!! ( Note: I do not recommend using a jig saw for the cut it does not always cut straight and it is just a better cleaner cut from a circular or table saw)

You don't need to file through the tip and tail to much just enough to get all the way through the edge, you do this to avoid ripping the edge out with the saw

This was my set up, not where I cut it though. I first tried out the jig saw, terrible fail haha but I then used a circular saw and it worked wonderfully, my cut may not be perfectly straight but I don't mind having a splitboard that's a little rough around the edges

Once you feel like your board is clamped down securely and you are ready to rip your board apart it's time to jump in and cut it!!

5.) Once you have cut the board you will need to take some of your sand paper and smooth out the raw wood, try not to sand any off of the base because you want your board to lock back together tightly. You can also sand down a little on the top edge, this way you don't have any fiberglass splinters catching you by surprise. Once the edges are cleaned up and sanded you will have to build a "trench" with the painters tape. Stick the tape along both sides of the exposed wood with about a quarter inch of he tape hanging over top of the raw wood on each side. You need this to help begin waterproofing and sealing the sides. You have two options with what you use to seal, I chose to use a two part marine epoxy and slowly drag the epoxy across the edge to cover any of the raw wood, you could also use a polyurethane sealant. As long as the product you use is waterproof, bendable, and will dry hard it will most likely work. Personally, if I build another split I would use the polyurethane, because with the epoxy it builds up where as the polyurethane would leave a nice thin almost unnoticeable coat. You want your pieces to fit as closely together as possible and you will have to sand off a bit of the epoxy to get the right fit.

You won't need to apply the epoxy, if that's what you use, very thick just enough to lightly cover the whole side wall. You don't want any raw wood exposed

You want the "trench" only about half an inch tall at the most, you want room to spread your coating. If you are using a polyurethane coat you won't need the trench instead just tape along the topsheet and base to keep the coating from getting all over the board

Allow the epoxy/polyurethane to dry for at least 24hrs so that it hardens completely and you are able to sand it down to a smooth flat surface

Before it dries though you will want to remove the tape, after you have applied the epoxy let it set for about 10 minutes and then remove the "trench" tape this way you won't be picking tape out of your dried epoxy. Once dry though you can sand it down, make it as thin as you can without exposing the raw wood

6.) Once your epoxy is set and sanded smooth it's time to start installing your Voile Split Kit. The nice thing about hte split kit is that it come with step by step directions as well. For the purpose of this I will be just touchig on a few things becuase there will be instructions for you right at your hand. You will first need a clean flat surface to work on, I used a tech bench in my shop. You will start with the conecting hooks just under the nose and tail exactly 1 inch in from the contact points at the tip and tail, you need to have smeone hold the two pieces of the board snuggly together while you apply the diagram sticker to the board. Make sure the dotted line is perfectly straight with the cut in the board. Place the hooks on the sticker to make sure it looks correct, once you have double checed you can drill the holes out and thread through the allen screws. Make sure you make the screw head perfectly flush on the base so that it will not catch when you ride.

Although my line may not be quite perfect you still need to make sure the dotted line on the sticker is straight all the way through your cut, you want the hooks to hold the board together tightly

Place the hooks on the stickers just to make sure they are placed correctly, they should fit right together like a puzzle piece

Thread the screws through the base once you have counter sunk the holes to make the screw heads fluch, make sure you DO NOT forget the spacers on the outside screws of each hook

7.) Time to install the touring brackets, take the template from your Voile box and find the balance point in the center of the  two splits and place the touring bracket template just above that point. Tape it down and begin to drill your holes, once you have the holes drilled take the bracket and screws, put them in place and double check it looks straight. On the base you will need to bore out enough of the base so that the t bolt will be flush once you epoxy the base. You will need to do this same drilling and base boring for the heel piece, as well as the pucks for the bindings. Make sure the baseis cleaned up before you apply the epoxy.

Make sure you tighten down all of your hardware, you don't want any screws coming loose when you take your board out for a maiden voyage

Take away as little of the base as you can, you want as much of the original base intact, Clean up the p-tex and wood that come up when you drill on the base

Before screwing any hardware down make sure their is no blue tape still underneath or you will have to remove the piece to remove the tape haha

8.) Once you have the touring bracket, and the heel piece on you will need to add the binding pucks. These are extremely important and you MUST make sure you have them exactly where you will want them because once they are drilled and on there is no changing them. Use the template stickers in the Voile box to set your binding angle and width (I recommend putting your bindings on the board before the build to get them exactly where you want them to be and then mark where that is. Once you have your pucks on take the binding plate and slide it over the pucks to make sure it is a good fit. Finally you can attach the tip and tail hooks as well. You will need to drill 4 holes, 2 in the tip and 2 in the tail and a third hole that is only 1/8th of an inch in depth. Use the template sticker in your Voile box and again make sure they are perfectly straight with the cut. Place the hooks and rivets into the holes and flare the bottom ends. You do not need to make these flush with the base because they will not make contact with the snow. Once you have done this, tough you are not quite done, take a step back and admire your work because you are 98% done building your splitboard!

Put everything together and double check that it all fits together perfectly and snug. You want everything to be a tight fit not loose spots

All that's left to do is fix the base holes with epoxy and sand them down!! Make sure you let the epoxy cure for at least 24hrs

9.) So take your 2 part marine epoxy and get it ready to fill the base, you will want either a ceramic heater or a blow dryer to heat up the epoxy so that it is more of a liquid and less of a paste. This will allow it to seep into every spot in the base holes. Try to keep the epoxy as smooth as you can so it'll be easier to clean later on. Also if you get any epoxy on your base do not worry, it will just peel up. The epoxy does not attach to the base. Once this has set and cured and is sanded you will want to clean the base and wax it so that you will have a nice smooth and waxed base for your first adventure! Though this wasn't the best step by step I really hope you enjoyed it and hopefully helped someone out there! Go out and enjoy the day and look forward to another post soon!!

Fill in he holes as best you can, make sure there are no low spots even if its raised you can sand it back to flush

Enjoy the fruits of your labor, it isn't easy to build a splitboard so be proud when your finished and for those still wondering how it works, stayed tuned I'll post some shots of it in action soon!!

The smoke shack boogie (One track leads ya to the shack)

Well the other day I got lucky and had a chance to ride most of the afternoon. My friend Stephen and I both had a split and it couldn't have come at a better time. It was bluebird skies mid thirties and the snow was incredible. Neither of us was really in the mood to ride through the park all day so we shot over to West Buttermilk to cruise through the woods on the mini park (so a little park, a little tree riding). Another one of our friends, Daelyn, had told us about this "fort" just off of West B Milk, most of the forts I've been too out here are just sweet little huts build out of logs just hidden off in the woods. So we went on a search for this new fort and ended up finding this single set of tracks that led way off into the woods so I decided to just follow it and Stephen was right behind me so he was up for a good wood ride! It was just one single track that led back to some of the deepest snow I've seen all year. There was such an awesome open area that was just powder for days, we continued to follow the track (which was not easy in such deep snow) until I saw this huge mound of snow just before the slope dropped off into a valley. It wasn't a mound of snow, it was a huge fort, the best one I've ever seen. It was two stories, had a deck, a patio, a fire place and even a grill with all the cooking utensils!! This fort was incredible, someone had out so much work into it. It's hard to get to and find and even harder to get out from haha but it was worth all the effort to get there and see it. Next few days I have off I plan on skinning up to the fort and maybe cooking out or at least spend some time writing on the deck. Ill keep posting about any of my riding adventures and stay tuned there will be a big post soon about my current project!!

The Fort! My buddy Stephen sitting roofside on the second story and even a little bar table underneith the deck!! this place is by far the best fort on any of the 4 mountains

Inside the cabin part

Stolen from my buddies IG, waist deep powder all over around the fort. All you have to do is search for the powder you will find it hahaha