I’ve been hearing a lot of rumors and speculations lately that Quiksilver is looking to dump Rossignol, the ski company they purchased in March of ‘05 for just over $300 million. That doesn’t really come as much surprise seeing that Rossignol posted their first loss in 15 years under Quiksilver’s management. Not to mention that Rossignol doesn’t fit into the Quiksilver culture either.

In my opinion, this purchase was never going to be a good fit. Like I just mentioned, Rossignol just isn’t a company that fits into the lifestyle culture of Quiksilver. While they actually make some of the best skis out there, the company’s roots are just too deeply tied into ski racing. If Quiksilver wants to get into the ski game they should acquire a smaller company that’s core in the freestyle sector, someone like Line Skis would be perfect.

Although a much smaller company, Line fits perfectly right in with the action sports lifestyle. The company is breed on freestyle and has been a major factor in the innovation of skiing’s comback since the mid ’90s. They’ve been at the forefront with freestyle ski technology and have consistently sponsored and supported some of the sickest athletes in the industry. And although some years their products weren’t exactly the best constructed, that’s something Quiksilver could bring to the table which would help Line to the next level.

It’s obvious Quiksilver didn’t really understand the industry they were getting into. One doesn’t need to look any further for proof than the $4.8 million loss they posted in comparison to $3.7 million in profit the year before. The ski community would’ve responded better to Quiksilver’s entrance into the sport through a core company like Line and Quiksilver’s culture should never include ski racing.

Sources close in the company are saying that three different offers are on the table for Rossignol. They are also independent rumors that they’ll just dump a few of the companies under Rossignol such as Dynastar, Look and Lange. So what do you think? Should Quiksilver dump Rossignol?

The last thing most people are thinking about in July is snow. But if you’re a nut like we are then you always have that thought of snow on your mind. And the only thing many of us have to keep us from going into withdrawals is our ski porn collections. That and the anticipation of all the new flicks that come out every fall from the legends like PBP, MSP, and TGR.

Guess what? You can now catch a sneak peak for most of these flicks over on Freeskier Magazine’s website. They have a new video player that’s pretty slick with most of this year’s trailers. You can view all the trailers on one pop-up window in full screen. You can even download the trailers right to your iPod if you’d rather.

I’m already stoked for fall!