Summary of 2011 Competitive Season

This season started with a bang! Almost literally, I hit a tree and severely sprained my ankle and tore some tendon from the bone. I missed the first Winter Dew Tour of the season and was crutch ridden for about a month. Luckily I have a good doctor who patched me up to heel and I was back on snow 7 weeks later.

The second Winter Dew Tour was at Killington in Vermont. The turn out was great for this invited riders only contest, I got in on a wild card spot. Almost every female pro snowboarder was there, including the famous Kelly Clark. I placed 9th in the contest, which I was happy with because I took all that time off snow.

The next, and last, Winter Dew Tour Stop was in Utah at Snowbasin and I again was the wild card. This place was baller, with a huge base lodge and a world class half pipe. The last contest was the championships for the series and everyone was here for the big pay out. I still held my ground to grab a 10th place overall finish and an invitation to next year's series. A coveted spot to say the least.

After Utah I traveled to Japan to check out Tokyo, Nagano and ride at Oze Tokura. My time there was amazing, Japan is such a cool and advanced place; you should take a look at the video blogs about it. My travel from Japan to the Burton US Open was hectic.

I went from Heneda, Japan to LAX; had a six hour layover then hopped on the rest eye to Toronto. I landed in Toronto at 5:30am and went to my parents place to sleep. I woke up at 12pm, said hello to some family, ate and was on the road driving to Vermont by 3pm. Hit a snow storm at 9pm and had to stop driving due to freezing rain and winds at midnight. What was supposed to take eight hours to drive was extended to twelve hours of driving and a overnight stay. UGH!

So, the Burton US Open was the last stop for this season. This contest is one of the biggest and attracts the largest number of riders. This year I had to qualify for the contest and out of 32 riders for qualification I placed 2nd. This meant I moved onto the next round with 16 invited riders. Semi-finals was a wet snow and low light day; after my last run the course was put on hold for two and a half hours because of fog. I placed 12th, which is my best finish at a US Open. The fact that my family came down from Toronto in a snow storm to support me was the best part of the weekend. I was grateful.

Overall, I'd say the season went pretty well. Minus an injury, which is just part of the game, I had a lot of fun. Now it's spring and I am starting the season where I learn new tricks, hit the gym more consistently, and enjoy the soft snow and sun. This is the best time of the year!

Lou's DASH

Lou was a great inspiration in my life and he will always be remembered in my memories. And this video.

Katie Tsuyuki's Video Blog 5: Wanaka Skydive

With bad weather and Cardrona closing I decided to spice up my trip. Watch me as I drop from the sky with Wanaka Skydive. It was an amazing experience that was worth doing. Enjoy.

Video Blog 4: Wanaka Have a Shot

With the weather not coopperating, again, I went with my friends to Wanaka Have a Shot. There you can shoot just about anything from guns to golf balls. A great alternative to snowboarding. Thanks to Soko, Moto, Taku Check out all our fun.

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All Shots are filmed with a SONY Bloggie!

Video Blog 3: Sasanoki

Hello Everyone...This week I am at Sasanoki, my favorite place to eat ramen, and I am learning to speak Japanese. A big thank you to Hisachi, Take, Sawa and the rest of my friends at Sasanoki for helping me. I am a beginner, please forgive my pronouncation :). Enjoy!

Video Blog: Jr. Worlds at Cardrona

Here is my new Video blog. It is taken with Robert Joncas who is the Director of Canada Snowboard high performance program. He is speaking about Jr. World Champs. We are at the Cardrona pips during training. Enjoy!

Video Blog1 New Zealand

Here is my first video blog with my SONY Bloggie. It features Sophie Meade who is an up and coming rider from NYC who rides the southern Vermont series. I am coaching her for a couple of weeks in New Zealand for Focus Elite snowboard team, www.focuselite.com.
I hope you all enjoy