2012: The Snowshoe Rises

Like many a twenty-something film buffs, I’m drooling in anticipation over this summer’s upcoming Batman threequel The Dark Knight Rises.  But, with my pragmatic mind, as much as I love a good superhero showdown, I’m even more excited about next winter.  After all, a movie is at best a two and a half hour popcorn feast, but winter is a whole three months out of the year.  And this winter (at least for the snowshoe buffs here on the East Coast) has been fairly lackluster, or, dare I say, practically nonexistent in terms of snowfall.

All this has left me yearning for some more opportunities to do some close-to-home snowshoeing.  Not to discredit climatologists or derail any environmental movements, but it’s looking like the culprit in this instance was not necessarily global warming, but rather La Niña, a regular fluctuation in seasonal weather patterns occurring every decade or so.  Just look at Europe, which had a very bountiful snowfall this year.  When the pendulum swings one way, momentum will bring it back to smash the other.  It’s simple physics really.

So, while I failed to get much action on my Baldas Snowshoes this season, I predict that come Christmas 2012, the situation will be reversed.  And just in time, too.  A godly belch of frothy flurries is exactly what we need to satisfy all those aspiring snowshoers locked inside and glued to the tube by this season’s paltry snowfall.  Everyone I’ve talked to over the past few months has explicitly told me that despite this season’s pitfalls, snowshoe numbers are nonetheless growing (hint hint, Wall Street).  With so much at play, next winter, the snowshoe will rise.

By their very nature, snowshoes are just too darn irresistible for them not to be loved.  They’re easy to use and you can go almost anywhere.  Newcomers all over are learning the lingo, albeit casually at first.  So, whether you are young or old, get ready to tap into your adventurous side for the 2012-2013 Winter and truly own the snow by purchasing a new pair of trendy snowshoes.

Start by considering the baby boomers.  Yes, they have command of the marketplace, and yes, they are looking for excitement just like everyone else.  At age 65, it might be a tad late to pick up skiing or snowboarding, but it’s never too late for snowshoes.  If you can walk, you can snowshoe, but you’ll still want to do both with poise and style.  Snowshoes are rapidly transitioning from a piece of equipment to an all out fashion accessory.

And a lot of the time, you don’t even need to pay those pesky ski hill tolls as you can just pull off to the side of the road and go.  This brings up a very valid point – paths are for pushovers.  In an age where GPS trackers are planted in almost every new electronic device, exploration into the unknown is the new high.  At least, that’s the hook for the college kids.

For decades, snowshoes have been shoved aside by the ski and snowboard cliques, but their comeuppance is nigh!  Snowboards force you onto slick, open downhill trenches while cross-country skis groove you into a forested track like you’re riding a streetcar.  And who do you think built those cross-country tracks in the first place?  Snowshoes can go anywhere; up a mountainside, or even deep into the woods to investigate that long abandoned, and probably haunted, log cabin.  Plus, snowshoes are fantastic for multitasking, so all those youngsters can amble through the snow and never miss a gossip-filled text on their smartphones.

Market research shows that snowshoes will soon emerge as a household top-of-mind item, and maybe even surpass their snowbound brethren in overall popularity.  Become a pundit now – early adopter as the technical term – before everyone else hops on the band-toboggan.  That way when the ski lift breaks down, you can slip on your snowshoes, ascend the slope and shout back, “See you at the top, suckers!”

Let’s talk Baldas for a minute now.  First comes function, then comes fashion, and nobody knows couture like the Italians.  As snowshoes grow in popularity, so too will the need to be fashion forward when strutting your stuff out on the hill.  Good thing Baldas is already the sartorial snowshoe, so you’ll always be dressed to impress.  As well, they’re wholly made in Italy so you know the long-lasting durability is all there.  Furthermore, each model has a special binding for maximum comfort and arthritic soothing.  Snowshoe in style, snowshoe with Baldas.

So, this summer, while you’re sitting in that cool, air-conditioned theatre watching the latest, greatest superhero boondoggle, never forget that winter is coming.  And for all those apocalyptic party poopers who might contend that we won’t even make it to 2013, let me remind you that at least a third of the possible End of the World scenarios involve a snowball Earth, or some form of long, harsh winter.  How stupid will you look when you can only move through the blanketed terrain at a mile a day?

Armageddon or not, next winter, the snowshoe will rise.  If you’re looking for another The Dark Knight Rises connection, just know that Batman most definitely owns a pair of super hi-tech snowshoes that he uses to fight criminals atop Gotham Mountain.  As goes Batman, so goes what’s vogue.  You better get on board now before you’re left out of all the fun!

For more information on Baldas, visit http://www.baldas.caribou.ca.

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