Riding park can be intimidating for female snowboarders. Not only do the large jumps, street-style rails and looming halfpipe look gnarly, but the task of riding amidst young, talented riders, who are dropping and snaking every feature can cause mild panic attacks. But, lady riders want to get into that park, so that they can stand on a stop and drop before a jump line, raise an arm if needed, and drop in. Sometimes they just need someone to help show them the way, give them the basic skills and park etiquette and then they're on their way. But, where can the average woman find this type of instruction and coaching? The options are limited. Except in New Hampshire, where Loon Mountain noticed a need for an outlet for park-hungry female snowboarders seven years ago and started Droppin' In, an annual weekend-long clinic for women of any age, from teen to seasoned adult, to come and progress their park riding. Whether someone has never made a turn into the progression park before or they are looking to dial intheir first 360, Droppin ' In has coaches that tailor the weekend to meet each rider's needs.

Each year the program has grown and this year was the biggest yet. Marketing Manager Stacy Lopes and Terrain Parks Manager Brian Norton really outdid themselves this year, with a private, pristinely groomed mini park just for the ladies (mini parks are so much fun, dudes were riding by drooling all day--luckily Norton was able to keep most of the park up for the rest of the season--come by Loon to hit the best mini hip) and did I mention the hot cocoa and cookie bar every afternoon post-riding?

At the risk of sounding sappy, Droppin' In is always an epic weekend of the season. When you get 40 women together to ride for two days, the energy and attitude of the crew is insane. Riders go from never having hit a jump, to landing their first grabs and 180s by the time the lifts are closing on Sunday. The mountain outside of the park is important, too--40 women tripodding down the hill and grilling the tails for highway hits and berms to ollie is a pretty awesome thing to see. Above all, everyone has a blast. The best thing to do is experience it for yourself (www.loonmtn.com), but for now, here is what MFR and Chanelle Sladics had to say about their first experience with Droppin' In.

BNQT: So how did you both get involved with coming to Loon for Droppin In?

Marie: I got invited by Liesl Holtz, our team manager at Oakley she's amazing. She [was] like, 'girl, I have to ask you to do this thing: it's an all girls clinic at Loon Mountain, it's going to be in March. The girls would be so stoked and I know it's a commitment and it's the middle of your season, but I would really love you to be there.' And I was like 'sure.' I didn't know much about it, but that's how it happened.

Chanelle: Yeah, same with me. Didn't really know much about it but, [Liesl] really wanted us to participate. I had never really coached before and I thought, 'yeah, why not.'

The Droppin' In crew under the NH spring sun. (p: Kristin Rainville)

BNQT: You both were in Europe right before you came to NH, can you describe what it was like coming in from a long plane trip from Spain on Friday night and walking in here on Saturday morning to start the clinic? What was going on?

Chanelle: We've had a pretty crazy season. Marie's been filming and I've been going contest, to contest, to contest, to contest, and then we went on a film trip for two weeks and it was far from vacation. There was very little sleep on this trip, but it was really fun. I was a little bit nervous to come out and be coaching for two days straight, knowing that I've come off of this crazy season already, but I was excited for something really different that I haven't done all year.

We got in late that night [Friday] and we woke up early the next day and it was awesome. I knew from the first morning that this is exactly where I was supposed to be because it was really refreshing to be around energy that was so excited [about] snowboarding and so hungry to learn. There's so much energy that it like, came into me and it fueled me, even though I was physically tired. So, I really enjoyed it. I've never coached before and I'm really passionate about yoga--I'm getting my certification this spring--so, it was really fun to share that with the girls and they were really open-minded.

There was very little ego floating around here, which was super refreshing. You could tell that the program had good momentum through the years and so for us to show up, I felt like it just made it even more enhancing.

Marie: It was crazy to come off the Spain trip, it was a crazy schedule, we were friggin' exhausted, like oh man, but as soon as you got with the girls they were just so positive and stoked that, I don t know, just somehow this energy came out of nowhere. It was sick. I m really glad I came.

Marie and Chanelle (p: Kristen Rainville)

BNQT: What did you guys think of Loon? This was the first time here for both of you, right?

Chanelle: In the past, I've never been a huge fan of the East Coast, growing up and being pretty spoiled in California I was kind of a little brat. But, the last few years I've really allowed myself to open my mind. This mountain has had the best vibes and the best park I've ever seen on the East Coast. Hands down. I'm actually surprised, but I m staying to ride tomorrow. I've never stayed ever, when I haven't had to, on the East Coast, ever. So, that's a lot to say. (laughs)

Marie: That means a lot.

Chanelle: I'm pretty exhausted and I'm looking for a break, but I'd like to go check out the mountain for myself tomorrow.

Marie: That says it all. This is a sick park. Usually, you come to the East Coast and those kinds of features will be up for contests, but never in the regular, every day, public park. The park was really legit. I was really impressed.

Chanelle ran a yoga class every morning.

BNQT: Now that the Droppin' In has wrapped up, what was your favorite thing about the weekend that you are taking away from the experience?

Marie: My favorite thing is that every girl came out of here learning new tricks after such a short period. I remember trying 360's in my backyard forever and crying over it (laughs) because I couldn't do it for so long, for months. I'm so stoked that these girls had never even spun before and in one afternoon they are already trying 360's and getting really close to landing them or landing them already. I don't know, it was just so rewarding to give back and see how stoked they are.

Chanelle: Yeah, I second her motion. It was really rewarding to give back because we have such amazing lives for what we do and we get to see the world and all these things. It was so amazing to come out here and know that we played a hand in [the women] progressing really quickly. I was blown away at the progression and really inspired by their hungriness to just get better so quickly. So, that was really cool. And leading yoga was really fun. That was a blast. For me, that s really rewarding.

Thanks to Loon, Oakley and POM POM for an awesome weekend.