Droppin’ In on The Progression Sessions 2017

Words: Ashley Giangregorio-Lynch

Another season and another successful Progression Sessions ladies camp has come and gone. We lucked out again this year with a weekend of bluebird days that are hard to come by in New England. The cooperative weather along with some killer features by Loon’s park crew and 60+ ladies to rip with made this TPS another one for the books.

Coaches this year were:

(Snowboard)
Mary Walsh
Christine Savage
Faye Gulini
Nirvana Ortanez
Jackie Lammert
Ari Marrone
Ashley Giangregorio

(Ski)
Meg Clinton
Maggie Stout

We started out day 1 in the Governors’ Pavilion with some traditional yoga lead by Nirvana, Jackie, and Ari. We all had to be proactive because believe me, these girls hammered on the full send button all weekend. Early morning conditions at Loon are pretty firm, so I started the day off with TEAM FUN LOON and some flat ground progression until the parks were prime. No matter how novice or advanced, every rider can benefit from carving, buttering, and edge awareness drills.
Everyone learned something new and some park rats realized you CAN have fun in the blank space between the lift and the park. Who’da thunk it?
It was a successful morning and a great start to the weekend. I have to believe I may have redeemed myself from last years first run mishap with Team Fun…we all know taking out skiers is frowned upon. Just kidding, spray skiers! No don’t – seriously.

By the afternoon our private park was bumping tunes and ready to go. It could get a little congested at times but luckily Loon has multiple parks for a variety of skill levels and we had no problem keeping the flow between Springboard and Little Sister. I was super pumped when my whole group agreed to hit a beastly box that has around a 15ft flat box to a 20 or 30ft down box. You’ve got plenty of time to think about life on this thing, put it that way.

Favorite highlight of the weekend:
While working on street style approaches, one slightly zealous shredder, Kath Bukis, decided to drop in on a street style down rail. She’s coming onto it and at the last moment while looking at me square in the face (not at the feature) says “wait is this a ride on?!?” We all yelled “NO” simultaneously as she managed to squeak out an ollie over the death knobby and grease the rest of the rail.

Savage.

I should add a little fun fact: the theme for the weekend was “be your own unicorn” which was taken in the most literal way. There were unicorn horns on helmets and full unicorn onesies raging on the hill as well as a piñata to bonk and jib until it’s rainbow candy guts were strewn across the park. It was a majestic sight. Our annual Bunyan Room party really brought out the unicorn in everyone. Also lots, and lots…and lots of glitter. It was an epic night as expected.

It’s not every day you get to rip with 60 super motivated and inspirational women.

All fun and games aside this event is seriously one of the greatest and most rewarding experiences I’ve ever had the opportunity to be a part of. I love seeing an increase in ladies’ clinics across the country and how successful they are. There is just something about the positive energy at these events that sticks with you long after they conclude. Special shout out to our BOSS LADY of the weekend, Kristen Fiocco, who demonstrated over the years one of the best “can do” attitudes not only in her own skiing but also her encouraging support of others. She walked away with a full Oakley kit and the Boss Lady Trophy.

Huge thank you to Loon Mountain, The Progression Sessions, Christine Savage and Mary Walsh. Much Love. Also thanks to the event sponsors Oakley, Kind Bar, Bai Drinks, Coola Suncare, and Rad Roller.

If you want to take a peek at ALL the photos from TPS you can find them here courtesy of Mary Walsh and The Progression Sessions >> HERE!

And Drop in with Ashley from last season’s Progression Sessions here!

It’s not too late to register for TPS Chile 2017 with Christine Savage and S&D Tours!
https://www.sndtours.com/TPSChile17.html