Stars Come Out for Woodward Tahoe Opening

SAM Magazine—Boreal, Calif., June 11, 2012—BMX pro Nate Wessel bunny hopped his bike over the striped tape, cutting it on the way down, to kick off the grand opening of Woodward Tahoe on Saturday, June 9.

Wessel was also a lead designer for the 33,000 square foot facility, also called “the Bunker.” A virtual playground, the Bunker houses six Olympic-size trampolines, a super tramp (one of only a few in the U.S.), skatepark, pump track, skatelite ramps into foam pits and resi landings, spring floor, tumbling track, bouldering wall and a GroPro wire-flown camera. It is certainty pushing the growth of freestyle action sports in Tahoe.

The day started on snow at 9 a.m. when Boreal reopened its terrain park—which featured an immaculate 22-foot halfpipe, airbag jump and more than a dozen jib features—before the Bunker opened to the public at noon. The facility swarmed with hundreds of eager visitors who were invited to session alongside action-sport heroes Ryan Nyquist, Tony Hawk, Todd Richards, Sammy Carlson, Tanner Hall, Chas Guidemond, Curren Caples, Anthony Napolitan and more. The beauty of Woodward is that it can host all of its various sports at the same time. Skis and snowboards equipped with inline skate-like wheels allow snowboarders and BMX riders to share the ramps at the same time.

Tanner Hall shared his thoughts on Woodward Tahoe with SAM. “The new Woodward is definitely the best facility I've ever seen in my life,” he said. “To have this many trampolines, and especially the super tramp surrounded by foam pits, and then the mega ramps into the foam pits, just to have a facility like this is not really all that normal. I've been to the one in Copper, but this is the Cali vibe, and it's one of the best in the world. A place like this shortens the learning curve in a huge way for both local kids and professional athletes.”

As for Woodward's impact on the progression of freestyle, “It's going to take it out of control,” Hall added. “Because if I was nine years old and I had a place like this to come to every day, I'd be scared to see what it'd be like 10 years down the road.

“And that's a perfect way to keep these sports going, because hopefully, in the future, action sports will take over ball sports. If we can grow awareness of action sports and get them more in the media, it's only going to help the freestyle movement. I think all the young kids are growing up wanting to be skateboarders, snowboarders, and skiers instead of football or basketball players, and Woodward is helping to strengthen that culture. No doubt about it.”

The 33,000 square foot facility cost Powdr Corp $6.5 million and was completed in just under eleven months. It's set to host to a slew of skate, BMX, cheer, dryland skiing and snowboarding camps throughout the year. Burton Academy director Chris Hargrave was appointed director of Woodward Tahoe.

For Boreal general manager Jody Churich, the goal of Woodward Tahoe is to provide a world class action sports environment to all levels of athletes. “It sounds canned, but progression training is the future of action sports. Everyone should learn to play with purpose.

“Pros that have been through Woodward Tahoe are finding unlimited options to challenge their skills. It we can offer unbelievable coaching in an amazing high performance training facility where kids are making life-long friendships and learning new skills during camp in a safe and progressive place then I've reached my goal.”

Woodward also has a family element. “I am already seeing campers arriving as a family, where mom and dad are enjoying hiking and golfing while their children are at Woodward Tahoe,” said Churich. “In addition, the response from the local community has been amazing,” she said. “The most typical comment is that the region needed a facility like this. So many Tahoe locals are sports minded, and there are no facilities that offer aerial awareness, tumbling and dryland ski/snowboard training.” Woodward Tahoe is the newest addition to the internationally acclaimed Camp Woodward training facilities & youth camps. For detailed information on Woodward's offerings, check out www.woodwardtahoe.com.