By Susan Wood

Olympic gold medalist Hannah Teter, who snowboards for Sierra-at-Tahoe and hails half the time from the South Shore, has written a book about her sport.

The “how to” book called “Mastering Snowboarding” reveals its “seven truths” as told by one of the best. Teter has won many awards, including five medals in the Winter X Games in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2010. Most notably, she won gold for the United States in 2006 at the Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy – for which she was tapped as the U.S. Olympic Committee’s Sportswoman of the Year.

Now – at a the mere age of 26 as of Jan. 27, she has elected to share the secrets of her craft with beginners and moderates as well as advanced riders.

Everyone has to start somewhere. For Teter, it was the back yard of her parents’ home hitting a jump her brother had built.

“I think I got a little banged up, but I had the bug from (then on) and never looked back,” Teter told Lake Tahoe News.

When asked why she is giving away her secrets in such a competitive sport, Teter added: “I wanted this book to be something that any rider from the first-day beginner to the up-and-coming pro could pick up some tips from, (ones) that I wish I had been presented with when I was coming up.”

This isn’t the first time Teter has given back. She is an active philanthropist – especially when it comes to the world’s poor. She started Hannah’s Gold in 2008, named after her family’s maple syrup that comes from her hometown of Belmont, Vt. The charity donates profits from the foundation to the village of Kirindon, Kenya, where the money goes to securing clean drinking water, schools and farming projects. Her efforts got the attention of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream of Vermont, which labeled a flavor after her – “Hannah Teter’s Maple Blondie.” (Note: This reporter from Vermont tried it a few years ago on a visit to the company’s Waterbury factory and highly recommends it to all sweet tooths.)

This time, Teter gives back by warning snowboarders in her seven truths, that yes, “Everyone fails.” It’s all a part of the risk one takes to advance in any humbling sport.

“It’s easy to get down on yourself when you first start snowboarding,” the book says on how to “stay positive” in the “What to expect” chapter highlighting the seven truths. “Practice makes perfect.”

The other six truths sound simple and include:

• You are going to feel uncoordinated.

• Feeling embarrassed is optional.

• Visualizing helps.

• You may love or hate snowboarding right away.

• If you are optimistic and focus on having fun, you will enjoy the ride.

• You are going to be sore at the end of the day.

The “Getting the most out of your ride” chapter may reduce the soreness of workouts. Techniques involving crunches, dumbbells, medicine balls and stretches are featured.

The book, which is co-written with Tahoe Snowboard magazine founder and editor Tawnya Schultz, highlights a little of the snowboarder’s own language. For example, the “ollie” means to use the momentum of your body on a jump.

There’s also a host of rail tricks with cute names such as the tail and nose taps along with the wall ride. The tricks chapter represents the most compelling tips Teter said she wants readers to take away from the book.

“Some fun tricks in there aren’t super fun to learn,” she said of the challenge.

Once again, most things worthwhile in life don’t come easy.

“There are many tricks to be learned, and they are well diagrammed,” randyw22 posted on Amazon.com, one place where the book can be purchased for $15.17 in softback as a coffee table book and $11.99 on Kindle.

It appears Teter is challenging herself yet again for the upcoming Winter Games in Russia in 2014, telling Lake Tahoe News she’s working on a few new tricks.

“I’m hoping to have (them) dialed in before the end of the season,” she said.

What’s the biggest obstacle to honing the craft?

“(It’s) always mental. Once you release that self-doubt (that) is the biggest obstacle to success … the sky is the limit,” Teter said.

Teter knows all about a limitless sky.

She came across the opportunity to write the book through her management. The publishers, Human Kinetics, have come out with a slew of recreation-oriented how-to books on a range of topics – from social dancing and high-scoring baseball to senior fitness and the triathlon anatomy. The Illinois-based company has released seven “mastering” books in the series, which also highlights mountain biking and judo. Beyond Amazon, Teter’s is available through Barnes & Noble and Books a Million.

“We obviously picked her because she’s well known in the sport. It’s great we got someone of her caliber,” the Illinois-based company’s Publicity Manager Alexis Koontz told Lake Tahoe News.

Koontz announced Teter’s book a month ago, and it has received rave reviews. One came from the head coach of the U.S. Snowboarding and Freeskiing Association.

“Hannah has not only won Olympic gold and silver medals, but she has also lifted women’s snowboarding to the next level during her 10-year pro career. ‘Mastering Snowboarding’ lays out a clear path so you too can reach your potential, feel great and have fun,” Mike Jankowski said in a statement.

Of course, a girl has to have some fun, and that’s something Teter has come to embrace when she’s not working.

The pro snowboarder, who has perfected the skills of flying through the air above the manicured, hard-packed superpipes, enjoyed the oh-so different experience of carving Tahoe’s recent holiday powder at Sierra-at-Tahoe before hitting the road.

“I had the time of my life. Sierra-at-Tahoe is family to me. It is the most fun mountain to shred in all of Tahoe,” she said.

The ski resort west of Meyers rewards the pro with her own “walk-of-fame-style” preferred parking spot marked by a star just next to the slopes.

When she visited, she dropped off a copy of the book to Sierra General Manager John Rice, whom she mentions in the book’s acknowledgements alongside marketing manager Mindi Befu.

“Hannah has become a true champion in many aspects of life, as a competitive snowboarder and as a philanthropist. Her passion for the sport and for life are what set her apart from other successful athletes. We wish her all the success in the world with her latest project as an author,” Rice summarized.

After a quick read, Rice said he found the book to be “a very complete guide to snowboarding” – from the tricks and gear to health and safety.

In particular, the Sierra chief also liked the way she covered all aspects of the sport, including its origin. “The History of Snowboarding” in Chapter 1 notes “snurfing” in the 1970s from an East Coast surfer sliding on lunch trays strapped to his feet. Snowboarding gurus Jake Burton Carpenter and Tom Sims took notice, and the sport’s popularity took off in the 1980s. In the decade’s second year, the first National Snowsurfing Championships were staged at Suicide Six ski area in Woodstock, Vt. – this reporter’s hometown. The first ski area in the United States was launched within a mile from Suicide Six – Mt. Tom.

Violet has been in the shelter system for more than a year. She was transferred to our Meyers shelter in the hopes of finding a home at Lake Tahoe.

She is 5 years old and is very affectionate with people, but she’d rather be your only pet. Violet has her own large covered litter box.

Violet is spayed, microchipped, and vaccinated. She is at the El Dorado County Animal Services shelter in Meyers, along with many other dogs and cats who are waiting for their new homes. Go online to see photos and description of all pets at the shelter.

Call (530) 573.7925 for directions, hours, and other information on adopting a pet.

For spay-neuter assistance for South Tahoe residents, go online.

— Karen Kuentz

By Mark Glover, Sacramento Bee

Low interest rates were blamed for a year-over-year decrease in net income at consistently profitable El Dorado Savings Bank.

The Placerville-based bank reported a profit of $9 million in 2012, down from $10.2 million in 2011.

Fourth-quarter net income was $2.8 million, compared with a profit of $3.3 million in the last quarter of 2011.

“We continued to experience strong growth in new accounts and deposits during 2012, but record-low interest rates have made it challenging to invest the funds profitably,” said Thomas Meuser, chairman and CEO. “We maintained our focus on originating good quality residential loans in our local communities, and the portfolio continues to perform well.”

The bank operates 32 branches in California and three in Nevada.

By Alexander Nevsky

A spotlight was shone this month on the harmful practice of steroid use during Lance Armstrong’s interview with Oprah Winfrey, where he admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs in all seven of his Tour de France victories.

For an adult, the use of steroids is dangerous, but for youth who are still growing and developing, steroid use can be devastating. In 1993, a top Russian TV Channel shot and aired a documentary, introducing me as natural, drug-free, bodybuilder. Since that initial exposure and publicity, I have used every interview and public appearance to articulate my anti-steroid message and have parlayed it into a 20-year, international anti-steroids campaign.

Article Tab: In this July 24, 2005 file photo, Luke Armstrong, rear right, tries to touch the winner’s trophy held by his father, Lance Armstrong, after Armstrong won his seventh straight Tour de France cycling race, in Paris. During the second part Friday, Jan. 18, 2013, of Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Armstrong, Armstrong talked about talking with Luke after his son had defended him concerning doping allegations.

It is well-documented, through reputable medical studies, that anabolic steroids can cause many serious health risks, including kidney failure, liver damage and high risk of stroke and heart attack (even in young people). While adults can be expected to be informed about these potential dangers, younger users are unlikely to fully understand, or give credence to, the grave consequences.

With that in mind, I decided to produce a full length documentary film, “Mr. Universe,” to promote my international anti-steroid campaign. An ancillary goal of the documentary is to clean up the sport of bodybuilding, which has suffered dramatically from steroid scandals.

The president of the World Fitness Federation/World Bodybuilding Federation, Edmundas Daubaras, is working with international anti-drug organizations to bring doping tests to all bodybuilding contests and competitions. Executive Vice President Robert Madrid is also coordinating the anti-steroid message of the WFF/WBBF in the United States.

I have a strong hope and wish that young athletes today will not repeat the mistakes of Lance Armstrong, and other prominent sports stars, who literally “took the wrong road” and stand to lose one of the most valuable gifts of all: their health.

Alexander Nevsky was crowned Mr. Universe in 2012. This column first appeared in the Orange County Register.

By ESPN

ASPEN — Shaun White brought X Games Aspen 2013 to a close Sunday night with another emphatic performance in the superpipe he all but owns.

The greatest competitive snowboarder in history routed the field, earning the night’s top two scores, including a 98 that began with a record-setting 24-foot, 1-inch backside air above the walls of the Buttermilk Mountain pipe. He rides for Northstar

With his win, White matched snowmobile snoCross racer Tucker Hibbert’s six-peat from Sunday afternoon, the first and second time that’s been done in Winter X Games history.

White, the oldest competitor in the field at age 26, distanced himself from the youngest athlete of the group, Japanese eighth-grader Ayumu Hirano, 14, who claimed silver in his X Games debut with a 92.33. White landed the same run that earned him a perfect 100 in last year’s final, highlighted by back-to-back double cork 1260s on his final two hits.

Finland’s Markus Malin earned the first medal of his X Games career with bronze (91.33).

By Marek Warszawski, Fresno Bee

Extreme skiing can be defined in five simple, morbid words: If you fall, you die.

The terrain these expert skiers seek out is so steep that any slip or stumble almost certainly would send them hurtling toward rocks, cliffs, crevasses … you name it.

In other words, something way beyond your typical black diamond run.

Clouds Rest isn’t a ski slope, either. It’s an enormous expanse of high-angle granite, nearly a mile high and a mile wide, that sits just northeast of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park.

Few people would even entertain the idea that skiing down Clouds Rest was possible. Jason Torlano is an exception.

Torlano, 37, grew up in Yosemite — his mom worked at the park medical clinic — and was introduced to its wilder ski terrain as a teenager.

Extreme skiers mark their accomplishments with first descents. Torlano has 28 of those in Yosemite, but Clouds Rest was the one he wanted most.

“From our school playground I could always see Clouds Rest,” said Torlano, who lives in Foresta, a community of private cabins within the park. “And skiing it was my dream.”

On Jan. 16, that dream became a reality. Taking advantage of ideal conditions, Torlano and Jonathan Blair of South Lake Tahoe became the first people to carve ski turns down Clouds Rest’s massive northwest face.

“This was definitely the most committing line I’ve ever done,” Torlano said. “Five thousand feet of no-fall zone? I’ve never skied anything like that.”

The two-day effort required not only skill, stamina and planning but also a great deal of nerve because of the severe avalanche risk. The descent also involved 500 feet of rappelling — necessary to negotiate cliffs too steep to hold snow.

“Your reaction is, ‘You can’t ski that. It’s vertical. It’s cliffs,'” said Tim Messick, a Yosemite ski pioneer who introduced a teenaged Torlano to the park’s steepest terrain.

“But, yeah. Jason’s doing it.”

It has been quite a winter in Yosemite. December storms covered the valley and its surroundings with a thick blanket of snow, and cold temperatures kept much of it from melting while consolidating the snowpack.

Compared to rock climbing, ski mountaineering and ice climbing don’t draw much attention. But when conditions are prime, like they were this month, possibilities exist for both.

On Jan. 3, Torlano and Greg Loniewski climbed Widow’s Tears — a rarely formed frozen waterfall on the Valley’s South rim. (Four recorded parties climbed Widow’s Tears this month.) The following week, Torlano traded his ice axes and crampons for skis and made a first descent of Quarter Domes.

It was during the first descent of Quarter Domes, granite formations located between Half Dome and Clouds Rest, that his longtime dream came into focus.

“I was looking at Clouds Rest the whole time thinking, ‘Man, if the snow’s good here it must be good up there,'” said Torlano, a former U.S. Army paratrooper in the 173rd Airborne Brigade who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Last summer, Torlano climbed Clouds Rest — not an easy feat in itself — and scoped out a potential ski route that avoided most of the cliffs and other hazards. Now he needed perfect conditions. Too much snow, and the avalanche danger would only increase. Too little, and it wouldn’t be skiable.

Torlano also needed a partner, and his friend Blair was itching for some action after missing out on the Quarter Domes descent. (The two met while working for Yosemite Search and Rescue in the mid-1990s but never really had climbed or skied together.)

• Lake Tahoe Community College has a revamped website.

• On Feb. 22 at 1pm the movie “The Avengers” (with free pizza) will be shown at the South Lake Tahoe Branch Library, 1000 Rufus Allen Blvd.

• Carson Tahoe Health is opening a clinic inside the Gardnerville Walmart.

• The bike advisory committee to Measure R meets Feb. 1 from 9-11am at Lake Tahoe Airport.

• Here is the El Dorado-Tahoe and Sierra Caltrans roadwork schedule.

By Cathy Locke, Sacramento Bee

Boats and other watercraft will be subject to inspections before launching in Donner Lake under a Truckee town ordinance intended to protect the lake and other local bodies of water from invasive species.

If established in local waters, invasive species such as quagga mussels and Eurasian watermilfoil could degrade aquatic ecosystems, inhibit recreation, damage infrastructure and equipment, and cause depreciation of property values, according to a town news release.

The new ordinance requires that motorized and/or trailered watercraft be inspected before launching in Donner Lake, as well as other water bodies within town limits.

For more information, call Teresa Crimmens of the Tahoe Resource Conservation District at (530) 587.4911, or email tcrimmens@tahoercd.org.

Sugarloaf Fine Arts Camp brings a unique camp experience to the students of El Dorado County. The weeklong sessions provide a supportive environment for campers to expand their fine arts skills and to experiment with new ones.

The camper’s week focuses on their specialty major and an elective of their choice and includes a daily recreation period and nightly campfire program. Sugarloaf is an overnight camp that runs Sunday to Saturday for each of the two sessions.

The staff includes many El Dorado County teachers and many Sugarloaf alumni. To be eligible, students will need to have completed fifth grade and not yet completed 12th grade by July of the year of camp. S

ugarloaf Fine Arts Camp is administered by the El Dorado County Office of Education. Priority for enrollment is given to El Dorado County students with out-of-county applicants also eligible. Sugarloaf Fine Arts Camp takes place at Sly Park Environmental Education Center in Pollock Pines.

Online applications for Sugarloaf Fine Arts Camp 2013 will be taken from Feb. 4-18.

United Blood Services donors can now complete their health history questionnaire online on the day of their donation. By choosing to fill out the online questionnaire before they come to the blood drive, donors will likely reduce the in-person interview to only a few essential follow-up questions.

Donors who complete the online health history questionnaire print out a Fast Track Donation Ticket and bring it with them to the blood drive.

United Blood Services will have a blood drive at the Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District Station No. 3 – 193 Elks Point Road – Zephyr Cove on Jan. 30 from noon-5:30pm.

To schedule an appointment, log on and use the sponsor code: TAHOEFIRE or contact Kate or Carrie at. (775)  5883591.