I'm making a Westward Ho! odyssey driving cross country from Vermont to Utah with our 2 dogs in the car. This means much shorter driving days than a regular switching drivers run where you drive until you have to get out of the car before you go crazy.

This third night at pet friendly La Qunita motels finds us off I-80 in Lincoln, Nebraska. After leaving Illinois, crossing Iowa and a bit of Nebraska - where the treetops were the biggest things on the horizon until the buildings of Lincoln showed up - we checked in just in time to catch the World Cup Freestyle tape of the Lake Placid/Whiteface, NY competition.

Now I'm being treated to ESPN's live feed of Snowboard Slopestyle and Big air Skiing. Mark Morris of Canada won the SNB event with Sage Kotsenburg of Park City, UT second and Bobby Brown, making it all look so easy, took his second Big Air gold.

Tomorrow looks like a night in Cheyenne, WY where at least we'll be seeing some mountains and the X Games Skier X Finals.

I'll be skiing in Park City on Monday - and getting in there just in time to catch the next Deer Valley World Cup Freestyle competition starting Thursday 2/2 but with this year being the 10 year anniversary of the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games there's some celebrating happening with festivities, a concert and fireworks set for Wednesday.

What a ride across this great country - but it sure is worth it.

Connect With Mike: Facebook | Google+
Twitter: @MikeDoyleSki | @About_Skiing

_{Still driving Copyright Mike Doyle}

There's another big week of freestyle skiing ahead with the Winter X Games opening in Aspen, Colorado last night and a World Cup Freestyle stop on tap next week at Deer Valley, Utah.

The X Games memorialized Sarah Burke, a six time X Games gold medal winner, with a candlelight vigil at the top of the Superpipe and then a procession of athletes slowly, silently and solemnly sliding on their skis and snowboards down the length of the pipe.

The skiing competition at the X games kicked off with Kaya Turski winning her third straight gold medal in the women's Ski Slopestyle. Tom Wallisch won the Men's Ski Slopestyle gold medal Thursday night with the highest score ever, holding off 17-year-old rookie Nick Goepper.

More: X Games Schedule on ESPN | Freestyle Skiing

It's still January and it's still Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month, but I want to take that a step further and say ' Make every month learn to better month.'

There are group lesson deals and ski camps and ski clinics that make for great family ski vacations.  Kids camps for all ages are available at just about every resort, whether large or small, be they local or destination areas. Teens have plenty of options for either park, freeskiing or racing.

Mom and Dad have more opportunities than ever to improve their skiing in camps and clinics that cover everything from skiing with a celebrity pro to gender specific group camps and clinics - yes, Dad, there are camps for men only!

Check out some of the neat programs we can all benefit from at resorts around the country.

More: Make Every Month Learn to Ski Better Month

Connect With Mike: Facebook | Google+
Twitter: @MikeDoyleSki | @About_Skiing

_{Bumps for Boomers Clinic Copyright Mike Doyle}

zozi, an online marketplace for lifestyle experiences and travel adventures, has launched a new program, the  zozi Guru Celebrity Expert Experience - hosted by the world's preeminent adventure athletes and lifestyle icons including Olympic gold medalist Jonny Moseley.

This is an opportunity to ski with a heck of a skier and a really nice guy and you don't have to be an expert.

You can spend a day skiing at Squaw Valley with Jonny as your personal coach and skiing buddy. You'll be under the wing of someone who knows all the best places at Squaw and he is a great coach. With lift-line privileges you'll get a lot more time on the snow and by the end of the day you can be sure you'll be skiing at a better level.

After all the great skiing you then get to chill out at Rocker Bar, Squaw's hottest apres-ski scene where you can relive the day's fun with Jonny and crew over cocktails and appetizers and watch videos recorded throughout on the big HD flat screens.

If your game is already at a higher level you can join Jonny and a small group on a cat-skiing backcountry adventure in the Sierra Nevada mountains. You spend the day shredding the powder alongside Jonny, perfecting your technique and form while logging 12,000-14,000 vertical feet.

No lift lines, no crowds and at the end of the day you wind down with a backcountry apres-ski around a fire pit with hot toddies and scrumptious appetizers.

The way I see it, this is a really cool adventure program that is open to the public and not reserved for a special few. According to T.J. Sassani, zozi CEO & founder, "For the first time ever, zozi will authentically connect its customers to true legends, enabling them to shred down the slopes alongside an Olympic gold medalist while getting personalized coaching, or safely paddle whitewater with the most accomplished extreme kayaker in the world."

Check out zozi Guru Celebrity Expert Experiences for more info and here's what Jonny has to say.

Connect With Mike: Facebook | Google+
Twitter: @MikeDoyleSki | @About_Skiing

_{Jonny Moseley points out Jonny Moseley Run at Squaw Valley Copyright Mike Doyle}