After a successful inaugural season that saw attendance near 70,000 and TV viewership approach 26 million, the Winter Dew Tour announced Tour dates and locations for the upcoming 2009-2010 season.

Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado and Vermont's Mount Snow will repeat as host venues, with Utah's Snowbasin Resort replacing Northstar-at-Tahoe.

The Winter Dew Tour begins December 18^th in Breck, and wraps up February 7^th at Mount Snow. With a total purse of $1.5 million dollars on the line, spectators can once again look forward to seeing some of the world's best skiers and snowboarders going head-to-head on the slopestyle courses and halfpipes at each stop along the way.

All five of last season's champions - Shaun White (Snowboard Superpipe and Slopestyle), Kelly Clark (Snowboard Superpipe), Spencer O’Brien (Snowboard Slopestyle), PK Hunder (Freeski Slopestyle) and Tanner Hall (Freeski Superpipe) are expected to defend their titles this year.

I realized something this weekend - something other than how much I love hot dogs - I think snowboarders are beer snobs. I know I am, but that's no surprise. I prefer to drink beer that's not available in a can, and the funkier the name the better. But putting myself aside for a moment, I think the majority of my skiing and snowboarding brethren walk around with slightly upturned noses when it comes to their choice of adult libations.

Of course, I have no scientific evidence whatsoever to backup my theory, but hear me out: off the top of my head, I can think of at least a handful of snowsports themed beers: Magic Hat's Single Chair Ale, Breckenridge Brewery's Avalanche Ale, Avery's Out of Bounds Ale, Boulder Beer's NeverSummer Ale, and New Belgium's 2° Below. Furthermore, it seems as though a disproportionate number of micro and craft breweries are located in or close by a ski town - coincidence? I think not.

My final piece of evidence is an observation of the beers favored by my various groups of friends. The guys and gals back home in Connecticut - the ones who, although they may ski or snowboard once in a while, don't think of themselves as skiers or snowboarders first and foremost - they drink mainstream stuff like Budweiser, Coors, Miller, Sam Adams and Heineken. My friends in Vermont, and the ones in the ski and snowboard industry nationwide, will only buy Budweiser when they're cooking up beer can chicken. I rest my case!

What do you think? Are skiers and snowboarders a bit snobbish when it comes to beer? What's your favorite brew?

Image © Twitterific

Twitter. It's everywhere these days. Shaq tweets his congratulations to Kobe after the Lakers win the NBA title (how touching!). Republican politicians bait President Obama via Twitter. And, let's not forget, Paris Hilton and other celebutantes post their every move to the service. And now, About.com Snowboarding can be added to the growing list of Tweeting twits. That's right. I went there!

Believe it or not, there's a healthy number of snowboard related Twitter feeds out there. Industry stalwarts like Ross Powers are all on the site, and with the recent explosion of all things Twitter in the media, it's only a matter of time before more snowboarders and snowboarding companies get in on the gig.

For now, I don't plan on tweeting too often - it is, after all, the middle of the summer where I live. And I promise not to push product (unlike a popular resort, which shall remain nameless...) without explicitly stating as such. So after all this, if you're still interested I can be found at https://twitter.com/AboutSnowboard. And don't worry...I won't call you a twit for following my tweets on Twitter!

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I've come to the end of The Michael Jackson era. Out of reverence for the man, nay, the force that brought the snowboarding world The Michael Jackson, I will never again be able to attempt the insanity that is a Michael Jackson.

"What's a Michael Jackson," you ask? Check it: while sliding a box, rail, or other jib feature, the rider pops up onto the toe-side edge of the board - just like Michael in his heyday! It's a move that requires guts, balance, and a certain sense of showmanship - but when done correctly, it's a sight to behold.

On this sad day, I'm officially retiring The Michael Jackson from my terrain park bag of tricks. It was a great ride, MJ.

See The Michael Jackson in action, courtesy of TransWorld Snowboarding and Scott Stevens.