[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 18 (Tuesday, February 3, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S734-S735]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING BURTON SNOWBOARDS
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, for generations, Vermonters have
contributed to the global culture of winter sports. Whether the sport
is snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling or
[[Page S735]]
snowboarding, Vermonters never pass up an opportunity to claim the
first run of the day.
Almost four decades ago, Jake Burton's passion for winter sports led
to the creation of Burton Snowboards, one of the leading snowboard
manufacturers in the world. Jake at a young age enjoyed ``snurfing''--
surfing on snow--but he never anticipated the path he would eventually
take, becoming one of the pioneers in snowboard manufacturing.
In the late 1970s, Jake started exploring the idea of manufacturing
snowboards, building prototypes from a barn in Londonderry, VT. At the
time, most ski resorts did not allow snowboarders, as snowboarding was
not yet considered a sport, and gaining recognition as a sport proved
to be harder than one might expect. Jake didn't let his optimism or
passion wane, and interest in the fledgling sport finally spread. Jake
and his wife Donna explored the European market, eventually opening a
distribution center in Austria, while maintaining their national
headquarters in Burlington, VT. For a little-known sport, it quickly
gained international notoriety and stature. In 1998, snowboarding
debuted at the winter Olympics in Nagano.
Jake is now one of the most successful business leaders Vermont has
ever known. His commitment and passion allow him to remain one with the
pulse of his company, with consumers, and, most of all, with the sport,
on a level unique to Burton Snowboards.
The Wall Street Journal recently chronicled the multiple ways in
which Jake keeps himself healthy, in shape, and on the slopes. Jake's
lifestyle is one that truly speaks to the Vermont spirit. Marcelle and
I are proud to have Jake and Donna as friends.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the article
from The Wall Street Journal.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From the Wall Street Journal, Dec. 22, 2014]
Jake Burton, Snowboard King, Sets Multiple Goals for His Workout
(By Jen Murphy)
The founder and chairman of Burton Snowboards, finds
multiple ways to keep his lower body in shape for
snowboarding and surfing.
Jake Burton sets an annual goal of snowboarding 100 days a
year. A snowboard pioneer, and founder and chairman of Burton
Snowboards Inc. in Burlington, Vt., has hit that goal nearly
every year during the past 19 years, with the exception of
2011, when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Mr.
Burton went through three months of chemotherapy. In January
2012, his doctors gave him a cancer-free bill of health and
he slowly began regaining his strength in the pool and at the
gym. Today, at age 60, he is charging harder than ever on the
mountain.
``I got in 114 days this season,'' he says. And when the
snow is gone, he takes to the ocean for his other obsession,
surfing.
Mr. Burton relies on four regular activities--hiking, yoga,
swimming, and biking--to keep him fit enough to snowboard and
surf. He thinks of his workouts on a point system, awarding
himself one point per workout, with 10 being his target each
week. ``I usually manage six.'' Some days he tries to double
up on workouts by mixing business with an activity. He might
bike with a colleague and discuss new snowboard gear.
Mr. Burton includes his family in as many activities as
possible. He and his wife, Donna Carpenter, who is president
of Burton Snowboards, have trails within minutes of their
Vermont home in Stowe. They often set out together on hikes,
but ``hiking with Jake is a solo sport,'' jokes Ms.
Carpenter. ``He recently had a minor knee surgery and still
beat me up the mountain.''
He takes about six surf trips a year. This year he brought
his three sons, ages 18, 21, and 25, on a surf trip to the
Maldives. Recently, he and his wife started booking bike
tours when they visit cities such as Florence and Paris.
The Workout
Hiking is Mr. Burton's main form of cardio. ``I have to
keep it up to keep my weight in check,'' he says. One of his
favorite hikes is up the Pinnacle Trail, which is 10 minutes
from his home. It takes him about 50 minutes to hike up and
another 50 minutes to hike down. He will also drive to Mount
Mansfield, Vermont's highest peak, and hike the Long Trail,
which is nearly 5 miles round trip. Mr. Burton always takes a
watch when he hikes. ``My watch is like a heart rate monitor.
The times tell me how hard I'm working,'' he says.
In the winter he often hikes up the mountain with his dogs
and snowboards down four or five times before the ski resort
is officially open. Bigger trips, most recently to Japan,
allow him to have full days snowboarding in the backcountry.
While attending New York University, he was the captain of
the swim team and he continues to get in the pool every other
day when he is home. He swims intervals, warming up with 800
meters and then doing a few intervals of 500 meters and 50-
meter intervals for speed.
Two days a week, Mr. Burton uses weight machines at the
Swimming Hole, a nonprofit pool and gym facility in Stowe
that he and his wife helped fund. He does an all-body workout
with a focus on legs. ``The stronger my legs, the better my
snowboarding,'' he says. He says he used to lift more but
scaled back when he began practicing yoga. ``I might not be
as strong as I once was but I feel better doing yoga,'' he
says. ``It makes surfing easier and every day things easier,
like standing on one leg when you're drying your feet after
you get out of the shower.''
He takes a private Ashtanga-style yoga lesson in his home
once a week.
The Diet
Mr. Burton is pescetarian and tries to eat mostly organic.
He and his wife hire someone to help prepare meals, which are
left in the fridge. ``We're spoiled,'' he says. In the
morning Mr. Burton has a smoothie made from frozen mangos and
frozen peaches or frozen berries and bananas. Lunch might be
vegetable soup and an avocado and tomato sandwich with a tiny
bit of mayo on whole wheat bread. They might have a squash
soup with some cheese or lentils and a salad with avocado.
``I average more than two avocados a day,'' he says. His
wife's vegetable garden provides many of the ingredients that
go into meals. They freeze vegetables to use during the
winter. His splurge is pizza.
The Gear
Mr. Burton estimates he has about 30 different snowboards
at home. His favorites are the Burton Namedropper (retail
$419.95) and the Burton Barracuda (retail $519.95). Right now
he is riding with Burton EST Genesis bindings (retail
$329.95) and wearing Burton Ion leather boots (retail
$499.95). Mr. Burton likes to hike in Adidas trail running
sneakers. In 2006, Burton purchased Channel Islands
Surfboards and Mr. Burton is constantly trying out new
boards. He has recently been riding the Average Joe short
board (retail about $1,500) and a Waterhog longboard (retail
$765) from Channel Islands.
The Playlist
``I'm hooked on hip hop,'' he says. ``It drives Donna nuts
so I try not to listen to it at home but I'll put on my
headphones when I hike. The music is so clean and raw. It
really motivates me.'' He says he'll listen to the classics
from Biggie [The Notorious B.I.G.], Tupac, and 2 Chainz or
he'll put on the hip-hop channel on Sirius XM Radio. ``I also
love classic rock so much that my kids now like it.''
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