f t That Makes Tracks nowboard can be j u s t like a blank canvas giving artists a new avenue for expression' A n d y W a r h o l once called a r t " a n y t h i n g you can g e t a w a y w i t h . " Today w e ' v e towards Warhol's perspective, and leaned local a n d m o r e a n d m o r e companies are m a k i n g boards w i t h interesting visual appeal. artists are c r e a t i n g w o r k s t h a t can d o f a r m o r e t h a n h a n g o n t h e w a l l . One t h e m e a m o n g British Columbian artists is a concern w i t h nature and the outdoor environment. Our local c o m m u n i t y is a h o t b e d of artists who are finding endless new ways of Prior Snowboards, a snowboard manufacturing c o m p a n y t h a t b e g a n o p e r a t i o n s in North V a n c o u v e r n e a r l y t e n years ago, strives t o use local c r e a t i v e a r t o n t h e i r c u s t o m b u i l t b o a r d s . In t h e fall o f 2 0 0 0 , f o u n d e r Chris Prior decided to move the company North to expressing t h e beauty of this province. Whistler, b u t t h e c o m p a n y ' s roots were crucial to Dean in its Shore development. general One of these new "venues" actually According Thomson, represents a meshing b e t w e e n sport and art. G o t o a n y o n e of t h e N o r t h winter resorts and you'll Shore m a n a g e r of Prior, " N o r t h Van w a s and is definitely an influential base for snowboarding and s n o w b o a r d lifestyle." Today, Prior prides itself o n u s i n g artists f r o m t h e s u r r o u n d i n g mountains to design unique, locally understand: h e r e is a n a r t g a l l e r y in m o t i o n . L o c a l l y built s n o w b o a r d s have b e c o m e canvases for high quality h o m e g r o w n artwork. inspired topsheets (the t o p surface of the s n o w b o a r d ) , a m o v e T h o m s o n says w a s W i t h o u t a d o u b t , w h e n it c o m e s t o w i n t e r sports like s n o w b o a r d i n g , style is t h e n a m e o f t h e g a m e . The s p o r t o f s n o w b o a r d i n g is a c t u a l l y r e l a t i v e l y n e w ; it w a s o n l y in the 1980's that the first boards w i t h f o o t bindings were introduced. N o w that the natural for the company. "There are several very talented artists in this area, so it's a great fit. These artists are i n s p i r e d by t h e s a m e e n v i r o n m e n t w e are a n d share a s i m i l a r p a s s i o n f o r snowboarding] lifestyle. We get [the !!!!!!!!! s p o r t is o f f i c i a l l y a c c e p t e d in t h e O l y m p i c s , m o r e a n d m o r e p e o p l e are t a k i n g n o t i c e , beautiful t o p s h e e t s i n s p i r e d by t h e local valley a n d November | December