Winter at Astoria

 

With the Holiday season winding down, Christmas over and New Year's around the corner, Gemma Cleanslate decided to stop at one more winter place to write about before the year's end. Astoria was a little quieter than some she visited as there were no stores. But there was plenty to do from skating, to snowboarding, or just enjoying the scenery and animals. She also took a trip back to the Dickens Project to watch a performance on stage by Virtuoso Performing Arts.

Read Gemma's article in Places. 

Three More Winter Fun Places

With Christmas arriving, many of us will be spending time away from Second Life with friends and family. For those of us sticking around on the holiday, or need a break, there's some places to check out for some winter-themed fun. Gemma Cleanslate's done many articles about locations where one can take part in activities. So was there more? I found a few more places: Linden Lab's Winter Wonderland, Caledon Downs Christmas Express and North Pole, and Roos Holiday Village. 

Read more in Places.
 

Chamonix City

Gemma Cleanslate's winter activity articles are coming to a close, at least for now. But before she hung up her heavy winter coat in the storage closet, she headed to a place with plenty of cold-weather fun: Chamonix City. Named after the location of the world's first Winter Olympics, the location has a number of sports to try out from "hockey, snowboarding, cross country skiing, sledding, ice skating, and more."

Read Gemma's story in Places. 

Winter Wonderland

On Thursday December 17, Linden Lab opened the "Winter Wonderland" area to residents. Accessible through the Linden-owned public square Portal Park, the place has much to offer from a picturesque village to a snowball fight arena to a snowboard track, and more. Gemma Cleanslate, fresh from her time at the Winter Expo, went to see the place, and was quite happy.

Read Gemma's article in Places.

Chamonix City Winter Games Delayed until December

In February, The East River Community Blog announced that Chamonix City would be hosting a "Winter Games" event, lasting from March 15 to the 22nd. And soon a series of areanas and tracks were constructed in the area for the event. Unfortunetly, as those who stopped by found out, there would be no games. First they were postponed a week, then it was announced they wouldn't be happening until next winter, in December.

As much as it pains me to have to say, the Winter Games are being postponed until December of this year. Initially, they had been postponed one week, due to some extenuating circumstances, but after much deliberation, they’ve been moved back to December. To be completely honest, I might have been too ambitious, with my initial date of mid-March. This being my first major event, I might have tried to rush things a bit. But I must say, people have really rallied around this concept, and we have got some really special things to show you for the Games.

So the event is a no-go, at least for now. In the meantime, there's a number of areas and courses for people to drop by and give a try, such as the snowboarding course.

Image Credit: Drewski

Hat tip: Daniel Voyager

Bixyl Shuftan

Two Events this Weekend: Winter Games and Cross-Sim Snail Race

Weekends in Second Life are full of events. Two sports events stand out.

One event in the Second Life Winter Games, set in the Chaminox City area. Daniel Voyager described them as, "you can sign up for exciting competitions such as snowboard races, curling, ski jumping, ice hockey, snowboard half-pipe, downhill ski races and much more." Taking a quick look at the place, the Second Life Hockey group, the GOHA is pretty big there. Some tracks, such as snowboarding, were open for people to try out.

Cross Check (99/95/22)

With the Relay season under way, there are plenty of Relay for Life events. Among them is RacerX Gullwing's "Giant Snail Cross Country Race." The race is open to all, with at least 500 Lindens required to enter. But for 2500L, one can start a little further ahead. The race will take place over a few dozen sims. While there isn't a prize, the winner gets bragging rights, plus his victory shown on SL tv.

The event takes place twice on March 15, at both 10:30 AM and 2PM SL time (here).

Get Ready for Winterfest 2010 (Dec 10-18)

Are you ready for the best (and busiest) time of the year? Be sure to mark your calendars for some fun this holiday season at Winterfest 2010: Friday, December 10 through Saturday, December 18.

Hosted on the Global Online Hockey Association’s (GOHA) six wintry regions, and featuring activities and events put on by numerous communities from around Second Life, Winterfest offers plenty to do, see, and pummel with snowballs. Whether you like snowboarding, playing hockey, ski jumping, cross-country skiing, ice skating, scavenger hunts, winter carnival rides or simply listening to some live music, we think you’ll find just what you’re looking for to get you in the spirit of the season.

By popular demand, we’ll be bringing back the annual Lindens vs. Residents snowball fights. If you’ve ever had the desire to throw something at a Linden, this is the event for you. Bring it on, everyone. We’ll be ready!

Need a new pair of ski pants? Got some for sale? The Winterfest category on the Second Life Marketplace is a great spot to look for new items to help you get outfitted for the season. Merchants with winter-themed content are welcome to post their wares to the appropriate sub-category for gift-giving and retail therapy enjoyment. We’re offering 13 different sub-categories under Winterfest for easy searching:

* Apparel (clothing and accessories, avatars, tattoos, costumes)
* Decorations (tree decorations, candles, menorahs, kinaras, bells, party decorations, fireplace stockings, snowman building, etc.)
* Greenery (trees, garlands, flowers, plants)
* Textures (snow, ice, gift wrap, etc.)
* Gestures
* Food & Drink
* Cards & Invitations
* Music
* Sets (environments for land, parties, indoor scenes, etc.)
* Scripts (AOs, HUDs)
* Sports (skiing, sledding, ice skating, hockey, etc.)
* Other

Curious about what else is going on in Second Life to celebrate the season? Take a look at the Winter events channel on the Destination Guide. If you’ve got some ideas for more wintry fun to add to the channel, then take a look at our call for submissions blog post for winter activities.

We’ll be announcing the full schedule of Winterfest 2010 events very soon. So, until then, bundle up, lace up your skates, and get ready for a full-fledged winter extravaganza!


From Delby Linden on the Official Blog.




Video from the Second Life Destination Guide