Written by Casey Reed, Facilities Coordinator

Keeping your equipment waxed will not only make it last longer, but it will make for a more enjoyable time on the hill. With just a few items and a little practice, you can wax your board at home with ease! Here are the items you’ll need:

Waxing Iron
We recommend against using a clothing iron as there are a few disadvantages. Most have holes in them, which can retain wax. Also, clothing irons can have a higher variance in temperature, so it’s likely for the equipment to get damaged. After waxing with a clothing iron, due to it retaining wax, you cannot use it again on clothes.
Ski/Snowboard Wax
When purchasing wax, make sure it is ski/snowboard wax and not candle wax. Snowflex has some wax bars available to purchase if you’d like to go a safe route!
Scraper
A plastic scraper is another thing you’ll need and is available online for a low cost.
Base cleaner
You can get some ski/snowboard base cleaner online, or you can use Simple Green. Simple Green is a universal cleaner/degreaser and should be available to you locally and works well.
Paper Towel or Rag

Getting Prepared
If you’re waxing skis, get a thick rubber band and place it around one brake … Read More

Written by Lincoln Miller, Montview Recreation Manager

From the young child who is coming for their first time with their family to the old man who has been with his club longer than he can remember, bowling is a sport for everyone. It is not just for those who like to compete against others — it is also a sport built to compete against oneself. An important aspect of competitive bowling is to understand how and why to add spin to your ball, so let’s learn more!
Why Spin Is Preferred
There are different preferences within the sport of bowling. The balls can be light or heavy, supplied by the facility or a personal ball, and have different sizes for your fingers to sit in. Likewise, everyone’s approach to bowling can be different. Some bowlers walk up to the lane and try to aim as straight as possible and hit directly down the center. Others will give up on aiming and decide that the most important thing is to see how fast the ball can be thrown. While the most important thing is to find the form that fits your comfort best, a bowler should consider making the switch to spinning their ball. The spot most … Read More

Written by Milly Cavender, Assistant Director of Programming

Reining is not the wet stuff that falls from the sky practically every day in February. Reining is a type of equestrian competition where rider and horse execute a precise pattern of maneuvers meant to mimic the behaviors and skills a horse would need on a cattle ranch in the American West. Have you watched the first season of Yellowstone? Then you’ve seen reining.
The Maneuvers
All reining competitions center around patterns that contain a very specific set of maneuvers, or tests if you will. Patterns can have the maneuvers in a wide array of order, but all reining patterns consist of two types of circles, large and fast along with small and slow. They also include sliding stops, spins, rollbacks, and lead changes. Confused yet? This might be a good time to search “horse reining videos” so you can see it in action.
The Scoring
Every horse starts with a score of 70 the moment they enter the competition arena. From there, every maneuver gets a score that goes up or down in half point increments. Let’s say the first maneuver is a large, fast circle and the horse does it, but there’s nothing special about it. The … Read More

Written by Ben Sattler, Assistant Director of Operations

If I had a dollar for every person that came up to the range to watch a friend and tell me ‘I can’t shoot’ I’d… well, I’d have a lot of dollars. There are a lot of unfounded beliefs about people’s ability to use firearms, and it’s very natural! Firearms are not something that many people are raised around, and they have some serious negative image problems. They can be loud and if mishandled, much like a car or snowboard, they can be dangerous. But much like cars or a snowboard they can also be really fun. The difference between ‘unsafe’ and ‘really fun’ is all in the user, and that’s where we can come in.
Learning to Shoot Safe
The staff at Liberty Mountain Gun Club are all experienced firearms instructors who are used to working with people who have never shot before.  We will offer instruction where we work with you in a safe environment until you are comfortable with the whole thing. We like working with new people and offer patience, encouragement, and gentle reminders as needed.
You Have Options!
LMGC offers a number of different options to try out. If you’re totally new to shooting, … Read More

Written by Isaac Gibson, Programs Coordinator

If you were to ask someone if they have ever skied or snowboarded there are usually two main responses: “Yes, I love skiing. I go every year!” or “I went once and it was so hard. I spent more time on the ground than I did on my skiis.” Over the years, I have learned that people either fall in love and continue riding for nearly the rest of their life, or they have a terrible experience and never do it again. In the end, it all comes down to that first experience, and I highly recommend the first experience being a lesson with a trained instructor.
It’s Like Driving
I describe skiing/snowboarding for the first time like getting in a car to drive for the first time. If you get in with no experience, no one telling you how to properly operate the vehicle, and go straight out onto a busy highway… the result will most always end in an accident. There is a reason why Driver’s Education and behind the wheel instruction is required to get your driver’s license. It’s not because the act of driving is incredible difficult to learn, but rather because of the high level … Read More

Written by Harriet Carter, Farm Management Coordinator

All sports require a particular type of attire, and the equestrian sport is no different. Having the right apparel for equestrian riding is key for both safety reasons and comfort. Equestrian dress observes the sport’s physical and safety demands and considers the unique history of the sport. Whether you are stepping into the barn for the first time or looking for ideas to dress appropriately for the sport, this guide covers all the tips on feeling confident and well dressed in the saddle.
Long Fitted Pants
It is logical to assume that wearing shorts is appropriate for horse riding during sunny days. Unfortunately, shorts and the equestrian sport do not mix well. Friction from bare legs and the saddle moving from the horse’s natural motion leaves the rider with uncomfortable pinches down the legs [2]. Also, wearing baggy clothing such as loose pants, sweaters, or scarves is not recommended as they can easily get caught on the saddle, risking being dragged by the horse.
Dressing in long, tight fitting pants protects you from being pinched by the saddle and can keep sharp objects that may be lurking in the barn such as hay, farrier nails, and splinters off of … Read More

Written by Kimberly Counts, Barn Staff

Have you ever looked at a horse and wondered what they might be thinking? Horses communicate in mysterious ways, but if you look closely, you can figure out what they are trying to tell you.

Sounds
Horses are generally very expressive creatures who have an interesting way of telling you what they’re thinking! They have a unique system to communicate amongst themselves and people. I’m sure you’ve heard a horse whinny, but do you know what it means? Whinnying and neighing are a horse’s way of letting you know what they are feeling or telling you they want something. These sounds can mean a variety of things like: “I’m hungry,” “Take me outside,” or “Pay attention to me!” If you walk through the Liberty Mountain Equestrian Center around 4:30 P.M., you will hear a chorus of whinnies from hungry horses demanding their food. If we happen to be even a few minutes late, we have about 50 hungry horses telling us it’s time to eat! Horses thrive on a schedule and are quick to learn what time things get done.
Another way they can “talk” to us is through snorting. A snort generally means they’re alarmed by something, and it can be their way of assessing the situation. For the most part, the snorts are … Read More

Written by Victoria Dissmore, Marketing Employee

Snowflex… The Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre. You may have gone up for a fun event, or to go tubing, or to jump on the trampoline. But if you’ve ever skied or snowboarded or even sledded on the eponymous white carpet-y material, you may have wondered, what even is Snowflex?

Snowflex is…
According to the official website of the company that invented the artificial snow surface, Snowflex is made up of six layers from top to bottom:

Snowflex composite, sliding component—slick, springy, hard wearing monofilament
2 in.–5 cm. shock absorbing layer
Impervious membrane
Geotextile separating layer
Carefully selected gravel layer
Sculpted sub-soil layer

Let’s Break That Down

If you’re like me, you have no idea what a lot of these mean. Thankfully, the Internet is a helpful and easily accessible resource for deciphering some of the more technical terms.
Polymer Composite
The Snowflex composite is made of a material called a polymer composite, which is “a multi-phase material in which reinforcing fillers are integrated with a polymer matrix, resulting in synergistic mechanical properties that cannot be achieved from either component alone.”[1]
Basically, this material is a large number of similar units bonded together at the molecular level (that’s a polymer) that are then mixed with another material (making the composite). All this is made into a monofilament, which is simply a single strand of the … Read More

Written by Tanner Hoffarth, Marketing Employee

I’ve been wanting to take my ping pong game from 0-100 so I can ace my friends and family in some friendly competition. After doing a bit of research, I found some tips and tricks on how to up your ping pong game that you can take to the table.
First Things First: Spin
Spin in the game of ping-pong is essential. As a beginner, it can come off as very daunting but once understood can improve your play immensely. In ping-pong there are many different forms of spin, but right now we will cover the top three techniques.
Topspin
The first spin and the most common out of them all is topspin. Topspin can make the ball seem as if it is attracted to the table and can be a great way to keep the ball low on the bounce.
Backspin
The second spin that is great to learn to up your game is backspin. Backspin is a great way to begin to layer your strategy because when done well, it can completely change the speed of the game. When kept low, backspin can make the ball act as if the table is made of ice and slide. When the ball is … Read More

Written by Kimberly Counts, Assistant Coach/ Barn Staff

There are so many different activities and things you can do when it comes to riding a horse. Here at Liberty, the two disciplines we focus on are Western and English riding. Let’s take a closer look at the differences between the disciplines and find out what riding event you might like best!
Equipment
The most obvious distinction between English and Western riding is what the horse has on. When looking at the two saddles side by side, the most notable difference is the big horn on the front of the Western saddle. While many people think it’s an area to grab on to if they’re scared or nervous, there’s actually a very functional reason it’s there: ranchers use the horn as something to tie their ropes to, whether it be to pull or secure something. Western saddles are a lot heavier than English saddles and if you’re like me, it can sometimes be a struggle to heave the saddle up onto the taller horses’ backs!
An English saddle is smaller, more compact and not as flashy as a Western saddle. LU has saddles that are what we call forward seat, or close contact saddles. This type of tack … Read More