The snow keeps on falling...GET SOME!

March is typically the snowiest month in Colorado. Considering all the sunshine and 60 degree highs during the first twenty days in March, Mother Nature had a lot to make up for. With 35 inches of fresh powder in the past 4 days, it seems Vail Mountain just may not be steep enough...


(Ready to jump Lover's Leap)









Living the dream...in Vail, Colorado
Pictured: Me, Jackie, Jeff, Paul, Jose, Virgina, and me again.

Korean Night

Who is the most Korean, based on looks?

There's one full Korean, one Korean American, one half Korean, and one adopted Korean. Which is which?

If you can't tell, I'm the most Korean, because I have the whitest face (and I'm surprised it isn't whiter, because it usually turns white as the snow in any camera with a flash...). Haha.

For one night and one night only, a little piece of Seoul came to Vail. Four Koreans sat down on the floor to enjoy a traditional-style Korean meal in a lovely T-Ridge apartment. As Jackie put it, "We were living like Kings," considering the number of side dishes we had.

We had galbi (marinated beef ribs) with sam (lettuce) and Sam Jung (soybean paste), bap (white rice, yay rice cooker!), kimchi (thank you City Market) and lots and lots of banchan (side dishes). Jackie and I, like true ajumas (direct translation: married women; implied translation: old ladies with perms serving food at Korean restaurants), slaved in the kitchen, making koung na mul soup (bean sprout soup) and hobok jeon (fried squash). Meanwhile, Maeng, the true Korean, prepared japchae (sweet potato starch noodles) and kimchi jeon (kimichi pancake). We grilled galbi on the table, thanks to my mom's ex-pancake maker, and sat on pillows around the coffee table. Very authentic, I know.

We chowed down fervently and talked Korean the whole night. We discussed our favorited Korean words, and reminisced about good ol' Korea, laughing about subtle and noticible differences in culture. Do you remember all the ladies shielding their white skin with sun umbrellas? Did you ever eat off those food carts? Do you know nightclub Juliana? You know the other Sincheon, on the green subway line...? Maeng was so impressed with my Korean knowledge, considering I'd only spent a few summers in Korea.

The evening was a hit, complete with a Febreze spray-down (a traditional way of hiding the smell of meat in your clothes) for those moving on to ii-cha (round two). It was just in time before the cops arrived.

Our pesky neighbors below rudely called the cops about our noisy celebration--which is poor form in this town. Considering that we wake up to the sound of his guitar blasting through the amp at 6:30am (thank you, Scott, for the beautiful demonstation), it seemed fair to have some people over for dinner before 10:00. Luckily, the cops understood it was our special Korean evening and were surprisingly excited to hear of all the different dishes we served up. I think they would have happily sat down to eat had I fixed them a plate--Everyone likes Korean food! Thankfully, the cops left us with a warning, noting, "Call us next time you make Korean food."

Travel Channel Academy in Keystone, Colorado

I finally caved in. After years spent agonizing whether “to spend or not to spend” my hard-earned savings on the Travel Channel Academy, I finally committed. And for the most part, it was worth it.

You see, the Travel Channel Academy is a four day intensive digital filmmaking event and it essentially costs as much as plane ticket to Africa. Or, a down payment for a car, a semester in college, a MacBook Pro, four months rent, or 666 Coronas at Mez. Considering that I snowboard for a living, I’m not quite rolling in it...And since I already have some TV training under my belt (I mean, I used to get paid to be an intern at CBS), it was a hard decision to drop the cold hard cash. Was it was a real opportunity or a sneaky marketing ploy to make some profit? I didn't know. My friends didn't know. There was just no point in debating the question any longer. I had to see for myself.

So, as luck would have it, the Travel Channel spiced up their typical New York / D.C. / Santa Barbara lineup by adding a trip to the Rocky Mountains to the mix. They offered a session in Keystone, Colorado. Within an hours drive, I, too, could be there--Practicing the one-man band deal: shooting, editing, reporting, and potentially working one day for the Travel Channel. Ah yes, the Travel Channel Academy at Keystone would not begin without me.

THE ACADEMY
The course itself was a mix of class lectures and hands-on practice. Over the four days, we completed two one-minute stories. On the first day, our instructor Michael Rosenblum applauded my camera work, saying I had beautiful shots and that it would be a pleasure to cut the footage later. A++. On the second day, Michael was a bit less impressed. Sure, I had the editing down, but he said my writing was a bit like “bad local news.” Ouch. After all those years hanging out at the news station...it was of no use here at the Travel Channel. I had to recall something Michael's repeated often throughout the course, "Forget everything you already know." So my goal was to develop this new, causal style of writing. Day 3, we repeated day one and two. We shot and edited our second piece. It was good practice to hammer in the skills we'd learned prior. I found a wonderful family to help out with my assignment (Check out my video below). Day 4, we mixed audio, wrote scripts, and had one last show and tell. Overall, the Academy offered great hands-on experience shooting and storytelling, which reminds me: You can do anything you want, provided you have the motivation to actually do it. Writers write. It's as simple as that.

Here's my second story: The Kazmaier's Go Snow Tubing. I'm super stoked it's actually posted on Michael Rosenblum's blog!!! (http://www.rosenblumtv.com/)


Though the editing lectures were quite basic, Michael’s shooting and storytelling lectures made up for the difference. His fool-proof 5-step film tricks and storytelling techniques were valuable. It was good to hear him talk about how everyone has a fear of missing something (have you seen my photo library???). So, rather than shooting EVERYTHING, it’s important to have discipline when acquiring footage.

It was a real treat to work with Michael Rosenblum. He is a character! For a man who uses the F word at free will and refuses to wear any other color than black, he’s got a point of view and it works. He’s blunt. And while some people don't like that, but he’s the man. He gave us the truth, even when the truth hurt. His lectures were captivating, like good TV, and filled with noteworthy points and colorful stories. I have much respect for Mr. Rosenblum. I knew of him beforehand; he invented the show called 5 Takes (a show I once desperately wanted to be a part of). The show followed five travel journalists around the world, giving them $50 / day to live on, with the mission to blog and videotape their experiences. Was I a shoe-in for that or what! ;) I now know that Michael Rosenblum is a part of something much bigger. He knows how to make good TV, and better than that, he knows how to sell it in a business sense. He himself has a number of interesting business deals and negotiations in progress. He sees the industry changing from the once “paper world” to the present “screen world,” and he’s riding well on top of the wave. Soon, everything will be in video. There will be video on every business web site, video classifieds, video resumes...And while the demand for content is going up, the total number of viewers goes down, and so is the price companies are willing to pay for that content. In comes a new fleet of video journalists. Michael Rosenblum gets it. I walk away very impressed.

The best thing about the Travel Channel Academy was being around other travelers again and meeting some of my longtime internet idols in real time. Lori Rothschild Ansaldi, Executive Producer for the Travel Channel, was there, sharing a sincere desire to open her door to the Travel Channel. And, two Travel Channel Academy alum were there too, as instructors. Boulder-born Ryan Van Duzer and Vail native Allison Otto completed the course almost two years ago and have since been very successful in the world of travel journalism. It was fun hanging out and getting to know them.


Check out their web sites here:
Michael Rosenblum: http://www.rosenblumtv.com/
Lori Rothschild Ansaldi: http://traveltvgirl.blogspot.com/
Allison Otto: http://web.me.com/smalldogonthego
Ryan Van Duzer: http://duzertv.com

Special to Vail Daily: Ride of the Penguins

Special to The Vail Daily: Ride of the Penguins
By Juliana Broste and Jody Petit
Originally published in The Vail Daily newspaper on March 5, 2009

As any innocent bystander would attest, Vail was invaded by a rookery of penguins on Monday, March 2nd. 38 skiing and snowboarding animals did what any visitor would do in Vail. They lapped the Gondy, posed for Sharpshooters, frequented local watering holes, browsed gift shops, and even attempted business transactions at financial institutions…all the while entertaining tourists and locals alike.

“It was the single greatest day in both the history of skiing and penguins,” according to Penguin No. 7.

The day started at 11 o’clock, when the crew picked up their costumes and prepared to make history. The Penguins marched in line from Mezzaluna to the Lionshead ski yard, gathering before dozens of interested spectators.

“We had to be the biggest huddle of party penguins that Vail has ever seen,” said Penguin No. 4.

The colony took runs down Born Free and Lodgepole, appearing to be rather comfortable on snow. They ripped down corduroy, tore through the trees, mastered moguls, and even breezed through Bwana terrain park—proving these flightless birds are quite capable of flying through the air.

“I don’t think that humans can have anywhere near as much fun as we had!!!” Penguin No. 4 continues.

While searching for colder temperatures, the penguins received a warm welcoming.
Similar to other popular mountain mascots, like Pork Chop the Safety Pig and Crazy Coyote, the colony had quite a following. Friendly penguins paused often for paparazzi. They also charmed both young ladies and the parents of small children.

But not everyone was happy to see the penguins. There was a brief altercation with Ski School mascot, Ripperoo. And, one penguin even admits to being kicked in the shins and mugged by a small child. Luckily, the only loss reported was a Nature Valley granola bar and his dignity.

Penguin sightings continued well after lifts closed. Creatures in suits were seen scattered throughout Lionshead and Vail Village. Penguins paraded up and down Bridge Street, serenading patrons in bars and nibbling in restaurants. “They came in waves,” said Jenna Wazny, local bartender at the Tap Room, “People thought they were hilarious. But they didn’t eat any wings.”

The Ride of the Penguins concept began during a brief chairlift conversation three years ago and was revisited late in 2008. Three penguin suits were presented as Christmas gifts to the Founding Feathers, Jody Petit, Paul Rogers, a.k.a. “Laughing Crow”, and Jarrett Davis. Interest spread from there. Before long, over fifty aspiring penguins had signed up to be part of both an independent ski and snowboard movie / mockumentary and of what hopes to be an annual event in Vail.

Alpha penguin and Ride of the Penguins organizer Jody Petit says, “It’s a good excuse to cut loose and have a great time riding. Based on the turnout, I expect to see penguins on this mountain for years to come.”

“It was the best day I’ve had in the 18 years that I’ve lived here—and I’ve been to B. B. & B. 8 years,” said Penguin No. 2. “I can’t wait ‘til 4 @ 4 in penguin suits!”

Filming for the Ride of the Penguins movie will continue throughout the remainder of the season. Stop by Mezzaluna in Lionshead or visit www.rideofthepenguins.com for more information.