Issue link: https://bluemagazine.uberflip.com/i/24995
That was three years ago. Since then, Basich has become more than a well-recognized American snowboarder. After dozens of international half pipe competitions on the World Cup circuit, another go at the Queen of the Hill where she placed in the top ten and a third place finish this season in the Big Air competition at the Winter X Games, Basich has come into the spot light as a leading competitor. But there's more to her career than competitions. Two years ago, she designed her own signature pro board that's one of the top sellers in the Sims snowboarding line. She also helped launch a women's snowboarding clothing line and was instrumental in getting Boarding for Breast Cancer (BBC), a Lollapalooza-like snowboarding event that raises money and aware ness about breast cancer, off the ground. She's become a marketing mogul for anything she uses, and in her free time she sculpts and paints-toenails, fin gernails, canvas. She's as girlie as it gets and tougher than any of Charlie's Angels could have been in real life. Tina Basich is the epitome of a profes sional woman snowboarder. And whether she knows it or not, she's leading the way into the future for women athletes. - - Representing more than thirty percent of the current market, the fastest growing segment of new snowboarders. But it wasn't always Basich started snowboarding with her brother, pro rider Mikey Basich, at Donner Ski Ranch some ten years ago, she was among only a handful of females. "The girls who I remember back then," says Basich, "were Bonnie Zellers and Jean Higgins. There were halfpipe competitions but there were only, like, three or four of us who entered. " UNLIKE WITH OTHER SPORTS SUCH AS SKIING AND SURFING, WOMEN �W-I EU:Nj� R-j;;uu;jj AT. CO f ITION , 'S DIFFERENT WITH SNOWBOARDING, PERHAPS BECAUSE IT'S NEW SPORT AN EXCITING, BUT EVERYONE IS JUST STOKED YOU'RE EVEN T THERE-MAINLY T GUYS: SAYS BASICH, -AND IT'S EVOLVED INTO TONS F GIRLS COMPETING A D THE GIRLS BECOMING REALLY UST STOKED ON OUR RIDI G ABILITIES.· three years] real ly ha the right attitude. [S kcountry extreme rider] Victoria Jealouse and [halfpi e) queens Shanno t g instead of being timid about it ... "The girls wh were snowboarding durin the 'explosion of women' [�he p�st unn and Michelle Taggart are encouraging. We tell new women on the eirc ' hat they can do it, too. We were a group of women who charged the indus This has rattled other sporting industries into action. This season, six boot manufacturers produced women's technical alpine ski boots, and more than nine ski man ufacturers developed skis geared toward women that have a softer flex, super sidecuts .. •••• ••• •••••• •••• •••• •••••••• ••••••••••••• ••••••••••••••• ........................................................................................................................................................................