Britt Horowitz / Photo: Hailey Ronconi
Three songs got stuck in my head after interviewing Brittany Horowitz, a University of Vermont senior who somehow finds time to run the all-female Mascara Militia snowboarding crew: “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” by Cyndi Lauper; “Jamming,” by Bob Marley; and “Come As You Are,” by Nirvana.
It makes sense. Horowitz is a young Vermonter on a mission: to have fun and snowboard as much as possible, to inspire other young females to unite and feed off of each other’s energy, and to do it all with a punk-rock attitude that says, “Be you.”
Ride Vermont caught up with Britt as she was making final preparations for the Not Your Girl Rail Jam, held recently at Bolton Valley. She also happened to be recovering from a snowboard-related elbow fracture. Badass.
Ride Vermont: Where are you from and where are you now?
Britt Horowitz: Originally from East Quoge, NY. Now I’m in Burlington and going to school at UVM.
RV: Tell us about the Not Your Girl Rail Jam you helped organize at Bolton.
BH: It’s all-girls and open to skiers and riders. We aren’t out to make money so with this jam we are basically making it the purchase of a super discounted lift ticket just to give back to the snowboard community. [Entrants received an all-day lift ticket, plus entry fee, for just $20].
Any day on a snowboard is worth smiling about. Britt Horowitz / Photo: Shannon Scarbrough.
RV: What is Mascara Militia? Why did you start it?
BH: I always felt like I had no girls to ride park with. I’d go to competitions and only see one or two other girls there, and it was hard to get taken seriously. You can go online and find tons of videos of guys riding around having fun, but you can’t find any videos of girls.
Then I met a couple girls who ride Sugarbush and Bolton and thought, “We should form an all-girl crew and promote women’s riding.” We figured we could inspire younger girls and tell them, “You can do this, too.”
RV: Since then the Militia has grown, and you have something like a dozen girls in the crew. So who are these girls?
BH: They’re girls who just live to ride and are not only promoting women’s progression in freestyle snowboarding, but positive attitudes and good vibes. Not all of our girls are the best of abilities, but I’ve chosen them based on both ability and inspiring attitudes. Most of them ooze confidence and you can tell on-hill that other people look up to them.
A third of the Mascara Militia. L to R: Sullivan Mclaughlin, Victoria Ashley, Britt Horowitz, Jessa Gilbert and Bekah Ashley at Sugarbush. Photo Courtesy of Mascara Militia.
Some notable results for Militia members this season:
Jessa Gilbert: 1st Place, Loaded Turkey rail jam at Killington.
Bekah Ashely: 2nd Place, Loaded Turkey jam. 1st Place, Pipe Dreams at Loon Mountain. 2nd Place, Transworld Trans Am at Waterville Valley.
Britt Horowitz: 1st Place, People’s Jam at Sugarbush.
Photo Courtesy of Mascara Militia.
RV: It’s not all about competitive skill, so what else does it take to be in the Mascara Militia?
BH: We are not fans of girls staring down girls in the park, complaining about the results of competition, or talking trash about other riders. We are promoting friendliness and encouragement between girl riders. We aren’t looking at other competitors as competition, just potential friends!
RV: What lies ahead for Mascara Militia?
BH: We are trying to increase numbers at competitions and put out videos of girls throwing down. We aren’t quite a brand yet but we will most likely be selling gear later on, and the scraps of cash we make will go straight back to the girls for their competition fees, traveling, lift tickets, film equipment, etc.
Keep an eye out for Britt at Sugarbush, her adopted home mountain (she should be cleared by the elbow doctors any day now). And don’t be surprised if you find yourself muttering “daaaamn” when you see here in the park. 
Front board at Sugarbush's People's Jam. Britt Horowitz / Photo: Shannon Scarbrough.
