Downdays Magazine, January 2017 (EN) by Downdays Magazine

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If life is about taking one moment at a time, pause for a second. The next hundred are about to happen too quickly to remember.

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SAM COHEN

Choose Again “Before the Internet every girl was a lot more special.” Hank — Swiss Army Man (2016)

In light of recent events on the geopolitical stage, it may be worth all of us taking a small step back from the echo chamber known as social media. I am also guilty of speed scrolling through Instagram, spending an average .28 seconds viewing each image. Far from ranting about how superficial Instagram is—or how facebook’s inability to filter out fake news aided a shit-fest of bipolar propaganda influencing a farce of an election—the thoughts that I am attempting to make coherent here regard something that many humans seem to forget: choice, and the ability to choose again. Stepping back from social media doesn’t mean not using it; it means choosing how and when to use it. Example: if you are below a powder field you just ripped to pieces and are unable to resist taking a photo, consider uploading the photo while sitting on the toilet later that evening, not in the gondola with your mates, avoiding conversation. To put it simply: when you are in a real life social situation, avoid being glued to your phone trying to figure out the perfect hashtag for that snap. Choose again. To enjoy the company of other humans. To experience, reflect on, and remember real moments. Take a step back and choose again how and when you use social media and by all means, take the time to feast on and digest the media you enjoy. As I hope you will gouge yourself on this magazine. You may begin by finding out more about Canadian trick innovator Vincent Gagnier or Czech shifty whizz Daniel Hanka in their insightful interviews. Perhaps you prefer to ease yourself in with quick Q&A’s with rising-star of the freeride scene, Arianna Tricomi, or filmmaker and skier extraordinaire, Nikolai Schirmer. Or you may simply delve into the deep end with quite the diverse feature selection: beginning with the jaw-dropping high speed steep skiing assault of Jérémie Heitz in La Liste, followed by a fascinating round table interview with style gurus Phil Casabon, Henrik Harlaut and filmmaking legend Eric Iberg. Then you could continue with a behind the scenes account of an unusual video project recreating the many iconic era’s of freeskiing, or with the story of two confused and slightly paranoid Kiwi’s skiing in North Korea. With plenty other bits and bobs on offer, the choice is yours. I hope you find a quiet moment to relax, read and be inspired. It may offer a respite from the Jetstream of social media; and help you reflect and think a little. Perhaps you may choose to go skiing sooner rather than later, after reading this… Happy shredding, Mark

Editorial

Johnny Collinson exploring the Stikine region of the Yukon.

BUILT FOR THE PURSUIT

Andrew Miller

Text: Lukas Schäfer

Photo: Daniel Tschurtschenthaler

Skier: Lukas Schäfer

Spot: Plätzwiese, Italy

The Moon is powerful. We got lost in thoughts while watching this huge shining ball rise, dreaming about what could look cool inside as a silhouette. Daniel discovered that he could shoot the full moon with a really short exposure and so the idea of the skier in the moon was born. During our first try in February we failed in communicating the timing and the shutter was pushed too late. Bummer, we retried the next day but clouds rolled in and covered the sky. One month later I got injured and we thought we needed to postpone everything until next season. Just in time, a couple of days before flying to Oregon, the weather cleared up during full moon and the idea returned to our minds. There was still snow left and we built a new jump. Everything looked good and it paid off with a huge full moon rising above the ridge, shortly before sunset. Five hits later, we had the shot in the bag.

Intro

Downdays Magazine — January 2017 14

Cover Photo: Grant Gunderson Skiers: Eliel Hindert & Mattias Evangelista Spot: North Cascade Heliskiing/WA, USA 16

Contributors / Imprint

Interview: Daniel Hanka The Czech shifty master

Gallery

Gear

■

Setups to get down with 40

Background Recco’s SAR System

Creative: Sämi Ortlieb Beer Label Sketches

Question & Answer Arianna Tricomi & Nikolai Schirmer

Portrait: Paddy Graham The dry slope success story

Jérémie Heitz’s La Liste

●

A high-speed steep skiing mission ●●

BE Inspired Interview Wise words with Eric Iberg, Phil Casabon & Henrik Harlaut

Completely Clueless in North Korea

●●●

Two confused Kiwis explore the DPRK 76

Homage to History

●●●●

Recreating the iconic eras of freeskiing 88

Destination: Nordkette Innsbruck’s freeski gem

Interview: Vincent Gagnier Skiing differently

Night Glow An unexpected pow shot

Contents

■ / ● = Features

FREDERICK ILIANO [ SNOWPARK L A A X ]

# M A D E W I T H L O V E F O R S K I I N G

Contributors Lukas Schäfer & Daniel Tschurtschenthaler

Sämi Ortlieb From his home in the mountain-ringed Swiss canton of Glarus, Sämi Ortlieb has emerged as an unusual creative force in the European freeski scene. Unlike other Swiss riders focused on the contest scene, Sämi has turned to filming to represent his own unique style on skis. When he’s not filming with Level 1 Productions or the Line Traveling Circus, Sämi is hard at work running his own freelance graphic design business, sketching zany illustrations, motion graphics and more.

While spending most of their spare time outside skiing, standing on mountain tops, exploring the forest and observing animals, Lukas and Daniel aim to experience beautiful moments—and capture them with their cameras. A few years ago they met in the mountains and started filming each other skiing. In 2013 they decided to call this pastime Wild Zoo Entertainment. Aside from skiing, the South Tyroleans work as film producers and photographers; coming up with creative ideas, like a skier silhouetted by the moon, in the process.

Sam Smoothy & Will Lascelles

Pally Learmond

Anyone that follows the Freeride World Tour will know Sam Smoothy as the wild Kiwi that can string together jaw dropping runs in any conditions. Yet, Smoothy is also quite the thoughtful fellow, a talented scribe and an extraordinary adventure seeker. One half of the Wanaka, NZ based production company Colab Creative, Will Lascelles is not just an accomplished cinematographer, but an adventure seeker in his own right. Together, Will and Sam travelled to North Korea to discover the hidden secrets of this self-contained country.

A British expatriate that has found a home in Innsbruck, Pally is essentially an honorary member of Legs of Steel. He met Paddy Graham before Paddy’s upper lip even showed hints of peach fuzz; they spent countless winters shooting together, transforming into professionals of their chosen pursuit in the process. Not only an immensely talented photographer, Pally has developed into a bit of a wordsmith as well—and his unique perspective on Paddy’s career gives an insight into what it takes to make it from UK dry slopes to professional skier.

“Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.” Marilyn Monroe

Imprint Publisher Distillery Concept & Creation GmbH Innsbruck, Austria Editor-in-chief Mark von Roy | mark@distillery.cc Photo Editor & Production Manager Klaus Polzer | klaus@distillery.cc Art Direction & Design W—THM Büro für Gestaltung | www.wthm.net Layout Floyd E. Schulze | hello@wthm.net Image Processing & Desktop Publishing Klaus Polzer English Translation & Copy Editing Mark von Roy, Simon Kegler

Adverts, Marketing & Distribution Simon Kegler | simon@distillery.cc Print House F&W Druck- & Mediencenter | www.fw-medien.de Photographers of this issue Jeremy Bernard, Rachel Bock, Adam Clark, Dom Daher, Craig Douglas, Oskar Enander, Guy Fattal, Mattias Fredriksson, Grant Gunderson, Blake Jorgenson, Ole Kliem, Reuben Krabbe, Will Lascelles, Pally Learmond, David Malacrida, Chris O’Connell, Brady Perron, Klaus Polzer, Christian Pondella, Tero Repo, Marius Schwager, Sophie Sjöberg, Stephan Sutton, Daniel Tschurtschenthaler, Dan Villaire Writers of this issue Jérémie Heitz, Simon Kegler, Will Lascelles, Pally Learmond, Klaus Polzer, Lukas Schäfer, Sam Smoothy, Ethan Stone, Mark von Roy

Publishing House & Editorial Address Distillery Concept & Creation GmbH Leopoldstrasse 9 6020 Innsbruck Austria Tel.: +43 (0)512-307 811 Fax: +43 (0)512-307 812 info@distillery.cc www.distillery.cc Do you want to get the Downdays Magazine for your shop, chalet or bar to hand out? Please don’t hesitate to contact us! Downdays magazine is published in English, French and German. Downdays is also a website: www.downdays.eu Downdays Social Media: www.facebook.com/downdays www.instagram.com/downdays_eu

The magazine and all contributions are subject to copyright. Duplication, publication or any other re-utilisation, in analog or digital form, as a whole or in part, is only allowed with prior written consent from the publisher. The publisher and the editorial team accept no responsibility for text or images submitted for appraisal.

Contributors / Imprint

saalbach.com

ATOMIC.COM

Daniel Hanka

Interview

Growing up skiing a hill with no more than 250 vertical meters of slope, Daniel Hanka developed his approach to skiing independently and now, many years later, the creative Czech is finally being recognised as an innovator on an international level. Interview: Mark von Roy

Photo: gitgo.ch

Born: 01.09.1990 in Hradec Králové, Czech Republic Home: Vysoká nad Labem, Czech Republic Home Mountain: Destne v Orlických Horách, Czech Republic Hobbies: Rollerblading, wakeboarding, guitar & friends Sponsors: Faction Skis & Outerwear, Monster Energy, Skicentrum Destne v Orlických Horách, Excelent

Daniel Hanka

Portrait: gitgo.ch

Spot: Verbier, Switzerland

How did you get onto skis for the first time and what made you want to continue spending more time on skis? My father was a race skier, so I’ve been skiing since I can remember. It began in Destne, where my father taught me how to ski by attaching me to a rope and holding me while we went down the hill. Somehow, he managed to blow both his knees doing snowplough while skiing down with me this way. He put a lot of effort into teaching me how to ski. I’ve also been rollerblading since I can remember. For some reason I have this thing where once I’ve learned how to do something, it gets boring pretty quickly. I always tried to figure out different ways of doing things, so that I would continue to enjoy it. In rollerblading, I started jumping stairs and shit like that pretty quickly; which then brought me to the skate park. It was actually a little harder to learn how to ski well enough to not fall for an entire day of skiing. That was kind of how I measured myself for a while. It was fun simply trying not to fall. And then, when I was good enough to do that, I thought, ok, what else should I do? So I started to hit all the natural bumps that I could find. Because I was already rollerblading in the skate park, it kind of fit together—you have two separate legs with devices on them—and the mountain was my giant skate park. So I started shredding the slopes. I didn’t

even know snow parks existed. I really enjoyed the little snake runs that are in the trees next to the slopes. Eventually I found a rail somewhere, and my dad was fucking pissed about that. To him as a race skier, ski edges are like the foundation of skiing and if they are dull, the ski is useless. So every time he found dull edges on my skis he would slap me and tune the edges. Eventually he realised he could never stop me and gave up. I didn’t even know freeskiing existed back then and that there were other people doing similar things on skis. When did you first come across freeskiing? I think it was after I bought a pair of Magic Blades [Czech for Snow Blades/ Skiboards], which are like roller blades for snow. I am not really proud of it, and thinking about it now, it actually sucked. They were difficult to get speed on and kept getting buried in the snow because they were so short. After that I got my first proper twin tips, I started seeing freeskiing on the internet and slowly began to realise that there were people doing really sick things on skis. I even started seeing other freeskiers in the Czech Republic. It’s kind of funny actually, my first ski ever was a Candide Pro model and now I also ski on a Candide ski from Faction. I remember seeing a video of Pep Fujas doing a 360 critical grab and really wanting to do that trick

Photo: Tero Repo

Spot: Verbier, Switzerland

because I thought everyone else was spinning too much. It was the nicest thing I had seen on skis up to that point. Other than that, I think I was quite isolated back then; I just tried whatever was in my mind. When did you realise that you could get supported to ski full time as a pro? That’s kind of hard to answer. Around three years ago I started thinking it could be possible, but didn’t think it was actually going to happen. We have tiny mountains and while the parks are actually quite good, they are small in size and limit you. When I uploaded Speedin, which I filmed with Martin Bernard, on Newschoolers.com, it went ham and I was so surprised! We filmed it in a small snow park with tiny features in the middle of nowhere. Many people loved it and I was extremely hyped about that. We made more edits over the next two years, Downdays.eu started posting them and I was really stoked. I realised that people were actually interested in what I do and I started getting recognised on the slopes. That was a very nice feeling and I guess the breaking point as well. Pushing it to the next level was not easy because I needed money to travel and nobody wanted to just hand me cash. I ended up borrowing a lot; my friends helped me out and I wouldn’t be surprised if I owe some forgotten money. The first time I got paid by Faction I forwarded it straight to Martin, who had lent me a lot. It was my first ever pay check for skiing and not a lot, but he helped me out so many

Interview

times I wanted to pay back some of my debt. Borrowing money was a risky investment and it involved a lot of low budget living. What’s the scene in the Czech Republic like now? The scene is still really small. The Czech national team is trying to get more kids into skiing by launching a small academy where they can be coached. But it doesn’t look like there are many motivated young kids at the moment. There is one that is promising, but he’s too young for anyone to be able to tell yet. It’s hard to compete on an international level when the parks at home are so small and you basically have to get outside of the country to get better. I mean, there are 12-year-old kids out there doing triples. You have to ski with people that are better than you in order to get used to these fucked up tricks. In Czech, there are mainly hobby skiers that don’t attempt any hard tricks, so everyone thinks a double cork 10 is a crazy trick. But honestly, a dub 10 is nothing these days unless you can at least do it spinning all four ways. The up and coming Czech kids need to get out of the country and travel as much as possible to get better, which is pretty difficult. What motivates you to keep going? That’s also really hard to answer. I think it’s just inside me, and of course watching other skiers killing it motivates me. The trick standard is so high and you can never learn everything, I

guess that drives me. It’s fun to keep building on what you already have and there are so many different rad crews out there—like Keesh and the Bunch— to draw inspiration from. I love watching Jossi Wells ski—he’s probably my favourite skier—then there is Khai Krepela who has unbelievable flow and fucked rail tricks. I also really like what Parker White, Chis Logan and Sean Petit are doing in the backcountry. And I can’t forget Antti Ollila, he is a boss. All those skiers and many more keep me motivated to push skiing in my own way. Any final thoughts or shout outs? Thanks to all the sponsors that support me and the people that are hyped about my skiing; that is really important to me. I never thought this many people would like what I’m doing. I also need to give a shout to the Excelent Soldiers event in Destne: they bring some of the best freeskiers in the world to a really small resort in the Czech Republic, and I am really stoked to be involved. And a big thank you to Jürgen from the Freeski Crew for letting me stay at his place in Innsbruck for one month.

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AR P Q W.

Supreme daily quality through 180 Shapers More than 50 contest and lifestyle events More than 150 film- and photoshootings Mobile Apps for iOS & Android

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Pics: Roland Haschka, Martin Herrmann, Marco Joerger, Paco, Katja Pokorn, Patrick Steiner (all QParks)

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G LL R

Photo: Reuben Krabbe

Skier: Mark Abma

Gallery

Spot: Tordrillo Mountains/AK, USA

Photo: Guy Fattal

Skier: Flo Gรถller

Spot: Whistler Backcountry/BC, Canada

NR. 8 25

01 / 2017 January

Photo: Oskar Enander

Skier: Pep Fujas

Gallery

Spot: Engelberg, Switzerland

January

Photo: Christian Pondella

Gallery

Skier: Eric Pollard

Spot: Stellar Heliskiing/BC, Canada

Photo: Stephan Sutton

Skier: Christian Strรถmberg

January

Spot: Espoo, Finland

Photo: Ole Kliem

Skier: Evan McEachran

Gallery

Spot: European Freeski Open/Laax, Switzerland

Photo: Marius Schwager

Skier: Jan Berger

January

Spot: Hochjoch, Austria

Photo: David Malacrida

Skier: Jules Bonnaire

Gallery

Spot: Les Arcs, France

January

Photo: Mattias Fredriksson

Gallery

Skier: Johan Jonsson

Spot: Engelberg, Switzerland

Photo: Jeremy Bernard

Skier: Loic Collomb-Patton

January

Spot: Haines/AK, USA

Welcome to tamok

New line for backcountry freeriding

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Skis, Jackets & Pantsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;these are setups you can get down with.

Scott : Vertic Tour Jacket

Helly Hansen : Elevation Shell Jacket

Sweet Protection : Supernaut Jacket

3L Gore-Tex C-Knit Technology Big ventilating chest pocket for maps & skins Adjustable, helmet-compatible hood Internal mesh-pockets

Helly Tech Pro 3L fabric Fully seam sealed & mechanical venting zips Primaloft insulation pillows inside RECCO Advanced Rescue system

3L Gore-Tex Pro Technology 3D-optimized & long fit Optimized ventilation Dedicated backpack-compatibility

Scott : Vertic Tour Pant

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Sweet Protection : Supernaut R Pant

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Gear

Line : Pescado

Armada : JJ Zero

Dimensions: 158-125-147 mm Radius: 19 m Length: 180 cm Weight: 1950 g Bamboo Sidewall, Swallow Tail, Early Rise and Early Taper

Dimensions: 131-117-127 mm Radius: 17 m @ 185 cm Lengths: 175/185/195 cm Weight: 1900 g @ 185 cm Tour Ultra-light Core (20% lighter than the JJ 2.0), EST Freeride Rocker, Comp Series Base

Scott : Scrapper 115 Dimensions: 142-115-131 mm Radius: 23 m @ 182 cm Lengths: 182/189 cm Weight: 1800 g @ 182 cm Twin-Tip Rocker M, 3Dimension Sidecut, Sandwich Sidewall Construction, Full Length Woodcore with Carbon-Laminate

The SAR System

40 years after it’s founding, Sweden’s search and rescue specialist Recco is set to make the next big leap by bringing a revolutionary system to mountain and outdoor terrains around the world. Text: Simon Kegler Recco’s beginnings came at the hands of a tragic event. Founder and inventor Magnus Granhed was skiing in Åre in 1973, when an avalanche ripped down the slopes of Svartberget and left rescuers poking the snow debris with their poles for hours, before eventually locating two dead bodies. Magnus thought there had to be a better way, and a few years of research and testing later, the first reflector and corresponding detector were born. Recco reflectors are passive transponders that consist of two aerials joined by a diode, generating a circuit that transmits at a specific frequency. Once the detector’s directional signal hits the reflector, the diode bounces it back creating a double signal. This principle of signal reflection is referred to as harmonic radar. It allows rescuers to pick up signals from up to 200 m away through air (practical reach through snow in an avalanche

Background

situation is 20 m), a distinct advantage in first arrival rescuing. The system has become a standard tool for more than 850 professional rescue organizations worldwide, as it enables them to pinpoint buried persons faster and in larger areas. This development is complemented by the over 200 manufacturers that integrate the reflectors in their outdoor equipment. Going unnoticed for the most part, due to its size and low-key design, it has become by far the most widespread avalanche rescue system in the world. “Our chances to save lives increase dramatically if the victims wear Recco reflectors in boots or other equipment”, says Bruno Jelk at Mountain Rescue Zermatt, one of the first rescue operations to incorporate the system. In 2015, Recco announced its new SAR technology, specifically designed to perform rapid searches for missing people in high-alpine terrain as well as lower

forest areas and above water. The helicopter-carried detector, now in its 2nd generation, has improved antenna functionality and can search areas of 200 m widths at blazing speed, a massive improvement to standard search operations (according to its manufacturer, an area of 1 km2 can be scanned in 3-4 minutes). It also enables night-searches by helicopter and makes year-round rescue missions possible. A total of 15 SAR detectors will be ready for use by spring 2017—in Switzerland and other regions of the European Alps. Despite the obvious advantages of wearing supported gear, it is important to stress that the passive reflectors do not replace knowledge, education or the traditional avalanche gear consisting of transceiver, shovel, and probe used for companion rescue. The functional limitation of this proven, life-saving reflector stems from the need of a special detector and required knowledge of a local rescue team and equipment. Nonetheless Recco provides a necessary contingency system, that anyone wanting to experience the joys of our inherently dangerous, yet beautifully untamed natural world should take advantage of.

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Swiss skier Sämi Ortlieb is as talented with a pen on paper as he is with skis on snow. When he’s not busy filming with Level 1 Productions or the Line Traveling Circus, Sämi keeps busy as a freelance graphic designer with a zany style all his own. “This piece is a product of drinking a couple of beers,” says Sämi. “It’s a collage of drawings that we created by writing on the backs of our favorite beer’s labels. An idea by Cat King Carl, translated to this page by myself and Silvan Zweifel.”

Creative

SĂ¤mi Ortlieb

Arianna Tricomi From telemarking and alpine racing, to slopestyle and now freeride, Arianna Tricomi has given everything a shot—and with a 1st and 3rd place finish in her rookie FWT season, she may have found her mark. Interview: Mark von Roy

Photo: Klaus Polzer

Spot: Arlberg, Austria

What brought you to freeride? My mum brought me to freeride and I'm really thankful. In the beginning I went freeriding with my telemark skis and whenever there was some fresh snow I escaped from alpine training and got lost in the trees looking for pow! I think I always had freeriding in my blood! What’s the vibe like on the FWT? The vibe on the FWT is really fun and relaxed. I was positively impressed last year when I first joined the tour. There are so many different people, and you can just find your perfect vibe to chill and enjoy your time. What made your rookie FWT season so successful? I think having fun and no expectations made the season so successful. I love skiing, every time I jump on my skis I have a big smile on my face, no matter what the conditions are. I do it for myself and have a lot of fun while skiing, which I think makes a big difference during competitions.

How do you describe your own approach to skiing? Creative, fun and (hopefully) stylish. I'm working on my style a lot, because style is king. I take a lot of inspiration from surfing, snowboarding and from friends that I ski with. I would like to bring more freestyle into the backcountry and show that skiing can be as stylish as snowboarding. What is your background, what makes you the person you are today? I had the chance to grow up in the amazing nature of the Dolomites, with all the freedom and possibilities a teenager could imagine. My parents always supported me in every decision I made. I travelled the world alone a lot and experienced so many things, so that today I’m a really happy and satisfied person! Advice to young freeriders? Go out and enjoy exploring! Listen to your inner voice, be ready to skip good powder days if conditions are sketchy

Question & Answer

and always take all the necessary safety gear with you! Remember safety first, because it’s better to stay safe and ski until you are 80 !

Age: 24 Hometown: Alta Badia, Italy and Innsbruck, Austria Home resort: Alta Badia and Tyrol Mountains Hobbies: Skiing, telemarking, surfing, biking, hiking, exploring the world Sponsors: Scott Sports, Mons Royale, Alta Badia, Dalbello, Marker, Thule, Surftolive Results: 1st FWT Fieberbrunn 2016 3rd FWT Alaska 2016 3rd FWT Overall 2016 FWT “Rookie of the year” 2016

Nikolai Schirmer Being a professional skier and filmmaker simultaneously, Nikolai Schirmer is forging his own path in the ski industry. Interview: Mark von Roy Are you a skier that films or filmmaker that skis? While I love it, filmmaking has always been a means to go skiing. So passion-wise I'm definitely a skier that films, but if you look at my income, it's the other way around. Do you ever get frustrated when behind the lens, not being able to ride yourself? Yeah definitely, especially when the conditions are good! At the same time, the kind of riding you do for a lot of these film projects isn't very interesting as a rider. You know, one turn here, one turn there, so I actually prefer the challenge of getting a good shot. What are you most proud of? That I’ve been able to get through five years of law school, while doing full winters every season and establishing myself as a professional skier. Getting a spot in Linecatcher this season was huge.

Photo: Jeremy Bernard

Spot: Courmayeur, Italy

Most exciting adventure? The three months I spent in Alaska in 2012 with my friend Lars. We had no idea what we were in for. Those were some of my lowest lows and my highest highs. What is your involvement in the ski industry? I’ve had this dual role where I've both produced and skied for content. It took a few good results in comps and the release of some solid edits for brands to take me seriously as a skier, but then we already had this relationship to build off. What are your goals in skiing and in filmmaking? My main goal this season is to get back to Alaska and ski spines. If I get to do that every year till my bones can ski no more, I’ll be a happy camper. My goal in filmmaking is to tell compelling stories, while spending as much time in nature as possible.

Age: 25 Hometown: Tromsø, Norway Winter home: Chamonix, France since 2013 Home resort: Kroken, Norway Hobbies: Surfing, literature, music and science Sponsors: Norrøna, Black Crows Results: A few podiums on the FWQ

He’s one of the very few to make it from the unforgiving dry slopes of the UK to forging a career in the real mountains as a freeskier. And it turns out that Paddy Graham’s is no “Eddie the Eagle” story either. His orbit has been successful, versatile and long-lasting, so lets turn back those whopping 15 years of being a professional skier to find out where and how it all began.

Paddy Graham Text & Photos: Pally Learmond

Portrait

It wasn’t until 1999 at the ripe old age 11 that Paddy first clipped into a pair of skis on a three-day ski course at Sheffield’s dry slope. The first days on the slope felt slow to him, “mainly because all I wanted to do was send it in a straight line down the 20-meter plastic slope” he reflects over a mildly cold Guinness. “The slope was way too short and I just wanted to go faster. Eventually I learned how to turn though, which is not the easiest thing on plastic!”

friends up there—it was always so much fun!” After making surprisingly quick progress, Paddy started to have the thought that this skiing malarky was maybe his thing. “Even in the middle of summer there was nothing else I wanted to do but ski,” and it just so happened that dryslopes enabled him to do exactly that! About a year after he started, his school organized a ski trip to the east coast of America and he jumped at the chance to

A textbook kangaroo flip on a perfect jump in Zürs, Alberg in 2015. (top) In 2014 Paddy scored ideal conditions in Revelstoke while filming with Legs of Steel. (bottom)

After sorting the basics in no time, he noticed some of the snowboarders and skiers on the bigger slopes doing jumps and he knew instantly that he wanted to be over there with them. “Luckily, Sheffield was one of the few places in the UK at the time where you could do freestyle. The slope there was so sick when I think about it! There was a brand new snowflex fun park with a half pipe, jumps and rails, and I ended up making a ton of

Paddy Graham

experience sliding on real snow. “Everything suddenly became so much easier! There was less friction in terms of your speed, but at the same time you could actually use your edges and turn!”

Being in real snowy mountains caused something like an epiphany for young Paddy, “Everything just felt more real”, he reflects between sips of the iconic Irish stout. With his level starting to progress at a rate of knots, and after picking up a sponsorship with Line skis at the age of 14, Paddy was eventually gifted the chance to do his first season. “I was 16 and amazingly, my school and parents said go for it and if it didn’t work out I could always return to school afterwards”. Naturally, he never looked back. Thus from these early days, Paddy started to embed himself fully in the freeskier lifestyle, cutting his teeth at UK events such as the Artificial Indoor Mountain series. An ancient article from 2004 gives an incite to these early beginnings: “Sheffield skiers Paddy Graham and Mark Elliott both showed great style in their slopestyle runs, but Elliott proved more technical with his double shifty 180 over the jump to a fakie rail slide and won the first place in front of Graham.” Beaten by a double shifty 180 is actually quite impressive, but luckily Paddy managed to win the Big Air with a cork 540 that year. But 2004 was when things really started to kick off. “I remember staying a week with British skiing legend Jamie ‘Pikey’ Cameron in the back of his converted horse lorry in Tignes, and you were staying in that Land Rover ambulance next door” he chuckles. “Maybe seeing the ski bum lifestyle had some kind of effect on me, as not long after that I was doing back to back seasons!” Indeed, Laax in the winter and NZ in the summer became the cycle for the next few years. “Laax was and still is mind blowing. To have that world class park to ski every day was just so amazing. I used to love shredding the pipe there in those days.” Paddy rode the euro comp scene for a good while, putting down decent results, but he’ll be the first to admit it was not always his thing. With undoubted skills— and some good banter to boot—he was still impressing the right people, and 2006 signalled the start of a still enduring support from Völkl skis. “Without being cheesy, Völkl has been like a family. They enabled me to become a freeskier in the truest sense. I wasn’t put in a box in terms of park or backcountry, but could go where my heart led me”, and thus Paddy transformed into a well-rounded

“You don’t always win contests or put down a good run at events, but when you look back at what you’ve filmed, then that’s worth so much more to me than a place on the podium.”

skier. Indeed, he began a slow burn away from the comp scene and around 2008/9, Paddy started getting the true taste for powder. “It was British skiers like Jamie Cameron and Dave Young that got me into the backcountry. Jamie was king of hucking his meat off monster cliffs, and Dave was a smooth 180 kind of guy—I think I eventually fell somewhere between the two. Shredding pow and throwing tricks off cliffs was a whole new feeling that I loved, and I really credit those guys for getting me into that.” And so after commuting between the Alps and home in the UK for a few years, Paddy took up the offer to move in with ski buddies Bene Mayr, Thomas Hlawitschka and Tobi Reindl in Innsbruck. And so the Legs of Steel came to be. “It’s hands down been the most fun about my ski career so far. You don’t always win contests or put down a good run at events, but when you look back at what you’ve filmed, then that’s worth so much more to me than a place on the podium.” LOS has come a long way in just a few years, consistently receiving acclaim from their peers in the industry. “It’s funny, we went from a very small scale project to suddenly filming with helicopters and all sorts of rad stuff…it’s kind of unreal. I’m really proud of what

Paddy scored sweet freshies in Lofoten last season on a two-week touring trip with Sven Kueenle.

we’ve created, and to be given multiple IF3 and Powder awards for so many of the projects is just the cream on the cake!” So, just like “Eddie the Eagle” before him, Paddy Graham can add film producer to his growing CV, and even though he is edging ever closer to the dreaded 30, his passion for skiing and involvement in the industry is not letting up. From producing award winning ski

movies and designing outerwear, to shredding Canadian pillows and still busting out the occasional double cork, it’s safe to say that Paddy has steamrolled his own career path through skiing. And somehow, it’s nice to know that a young lad from Sheffield was able to do that.

Paddy lays out a stunning cork 720 tail grab in Davos, Switzerland in 2013.

Portrait

Born: 15th of January 1988 in Sheffield, United Kingdom Home: Innsbruck, Austria Hobbies: Hiking, travelling, biking, climbing, friends Highlights: 2016: Squawk Lofoten - Legs of Steel 2015: Passenger - Legs of Steel 2014: #skigoodmoneywillcome - Legs of Steel 2013: The Legs of Steel - Legs of Steel 2013: Part of Winning Team @ Skiers Cup 2012: WE - Poor Boyz Productions 2012: Hurt So Good - Legs of Steel 2011: Nothing Else Matters - Legs of Steel 2010: The Pilot - Legs of Steel 2010: Best Trick @ Red Bull Line Catcher 2010: 2nd London Ride Big Air 2007: 2nd Austrian Open Slopestyle Sponsors: Völkl, Marker, Dalbello, O’Neill, Red Bull, Oakley, Leki, Mons Royale

NORDKETTE FREERIDE The Hafelekar Run is one of the steepest ski runs in Europe. With an incline of 70 %, only the best can ride Innsbrucks ”Little Alaska“. Be one of them.

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Jérémie Heitz’s La Liste Portrait: Klaus Polzer

Text: Jérémie Heitz

Line-choice, speed and control. These three terms are what define Jérémie Heitz as a skier. As these happen to be judging criteria of the Freeride World Tour, it’s no surprise that this Swiss man from the small village of Les Marécottes in the Valais Alps—not far from Chamonix—has been close to winning the overall championship title of the Freeride World Tour multiple times. Last season he decided to up the ante even further. For his project La Liste, which he began the previous season, Jérémie reinterpreted and redefined classic steep skiing. He chose faces to ski according to historical significance as well as from an aesthetic standpoint. The 27-year-old demolished a row of massive faces that were up to 55° steep and occasionally predominantly icy, with unbelievable velocity and dynamic. It was a step into a new dimension. The fact that he just came short of completing all 15 faces on his list is just as secondary as the choice of his goals. What remains, is a phenomenal performance and the new perspective that Jérémie has opened up for the age-old discipline of steep skiing. Unifying stunning, intimidating mountains with skiing in such a harmonious way, bringing both aspects to the forefront, La Liste is a ski movie that authentically and beautifully captures this dimension, and is a movie that every skier should watch. The best photos from Jérémie’s ambitious project can be found on the following pages, as well as a few thoughts from the man himself. 50

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La Liste

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La Liste

previous double page (Photo: Dom Daher)

Lyskamm Northnortheast Face Summit: 4,527 m Location: 45° 55' 21" N, 7° 50' 9" E Vertical Drop: 700 m Steepness: 50° throughout, up to 55° First descent: Heini Holzer 1974

The Lyskamm, right next to Monte Rosa, has a long and fantastic north face. A face that immediately gripped me but that also taught me patience. The snow only tends to hold to the ice late in the season, towards end of June or July. Our descent was during not-so-ideal conditions. We had to wait at the summit for quite some time, until the snow had softened up enough. From the peak we could only see the first 100 meters, then the face rolled over to increasing steepness. The snow was still quite hard at the top when I started skiing, but the lower I got, the better the conditions were. After I passed the narrow section next to a big serac, the slope opened into a huge open face. I am really happy that I was able to share this unbelievable experience with Luca Rolli.

La Liste Production: Timeline Missions Skiers: Jérémie Heitz, Samuel Anthamatten, Luca Rolli Directed by: Guido Perrini Concept by: Jérémie Heitz Run Time: 47 Minuten La Liste is available in full and for free at www.laliste-film.com.

opposite page (Photo: Tero Repo)

Lenzspitze Northeast Face Summit: 4,294 m Location: 46° 6' 16" N, 7° 52' 7" E Vertical Drop: 500 m Steepness: 50° throughout First descent: Heini Holzer 1972

The Lenzspitze Northeast face is a perfect ice face; almost completely smooth from top to bottom. I skied this descent together with Samuel Anthamatten. The conditions in that face were so perfect that we decided to ski it together. It was pretty much a party shred! The face is steep right from the beginning and incredibly impressive, not to mention quite exposed above Saas-Fee. Yet again we had unbelievable luck that the conditions were exactly right for our project when we went there and we were able to really enjoy the descent.

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La Liste

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opposite page (Photo: Tero Repo)

Hohbärghorn Northeast Face Summit: 4,219 m Location: 46° 6' 45" N, 7° 51' 15" E Vertical Drop: 300 m Steepness: 50° throughout, up to 55° First descent: unknown

The Hohbärghorn was the first descent that I wanted to tick off my list. Before that I had skied similar lines, like the Aiguille de l’Amône, which wasn’t above 4,000 m and therefor not on my list. We scored perfect conditions at l’Amône, which gave me confidence that it was possible to ski such descents the way I wanted to. It was a fantastic day together with Sam Anthamatten on the Hohbärghorn. I climbed up to Hohbärghorn while Sam went up to the Stecknadelhorn. He descended first and waited for me down on the glacier. Over the radio he told me that the conditions were excellent and so I skied my line exactly the way I imagined it. It was the perfect start.

Jérémie Heitz Birthday: 28th of September 1989 Home: Les Marécottes, Switzerland Home Mountain: Les Marécottes and the Valais Alps Hobbies: Hang-gliding, mountainbiking, fitness Results: 4th FWT Overall 2013 3rd FWT Overall 2014 2nd FWT Overall 2015 7 podiums at FWT contests from 2013 to 2016 Sponsors: Mammut, Scott, Red Bull, Les Marécottes, Pomoca, Petzl, Salomon, Look Montagne, Fitness Vitamine following double page (Photo: Tero Repo)

Obergabelhorn North Face Summit: 4,063 m Location: 46° 2' 19" N, 7° 40' 5" E Vertical Drop: 350 m Steepness: 55° throughout First descent: Martin Burtscher & Kurt Jeschke 1977

The Obergabelhorn is a phenomenal mountain. This descent was definitely the most impressive experience of the whole project. I climbed the north face alone and the conditions were only good on half of the face. I had to find a route that didn’t include ice and after quite the search I found a good way down. To stand at the summit of Obergabelhorn is indescribable. Zinalrothorn, Dent Blanche and Matterhorn surround you. The Obergabelhorn was without a doubt one of the most difficult stages of our project, because the north face hardly ever has good conditions. In the end I was also able to tick off this descent and we—essentially—reached the goal of La Liste.

La Liste

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La Liste

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Henrik Harlaut

Photo: David Malacrida

Interview: Ethan Stone

BE Inspired: The Interview

BE Inspired ITW

Photo: Dan Villaire

Already in cahoots with Iberg since the debut of Inspired Media Concepts in 2010, B&Eâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new project is their most ambitious yet: A film called BE Inspired that puts the cinematic spotlight on Henrik and Phil alone. Packed with incredible action from two years of hard work, the film is a fitting culmination of the Iberg canon, an effort that will influence and inspire skiers for years to come.

Phil Casabon

Photo: Chris Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Connell

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Spot: Sapporo, Japan

How did you guys decide to start working on a two-year project? Eric Iberg: We were on a film tour for two months around North America and were talking about what’s next. Phil and Henrik wanted to make a film and they asked me to direct it. I said “Awesome, thanks,” and then said that this is the last film that I’m going to do after doing this for 18 years. So I said, “Let’s do it” — let’s go out with a bang and make the illest shit ever. Henrik Harlaut: Every day we had a three- to eight-hour drive and we would talk about what we could do with a new movie, a two-year project. After a lot of talk, we decided that it was time to make something ill happen in skiing again. Iberg is a good friend and partner that we’ve been working with on a lot of things, so it was natural. We’ve always looked up to all his movies in the past and in my opinion he’s the greatest film producer and director in the industry. It’s an honor to have the opportunity to work with him.

bit in movies the last couple years. When I was growing up, I would rewind and watch every ski movie I had on VHS until I couldn’t watch them anymore. That hasn’t really happened in the last few years. I wanted to do something that people can relate to—have it be dreamy style with the spectacular tricks, but also something that’s really styleful with our own flavor. Something that people want to watch again and again, before skiing and after skiing and in between skiing! Phil: We want people to relate to it. We added a park segment that has no exclusive features, just the early season Mammoth park. I think that’s a great piece to add because for most people, that’s what they’re going to relate to. People don’t really feel anything if they can’t relate to what they see. When you see a trick being done on a tube that everyone can hit, then the next day you can be like, “Yo, I’m gonna try all day to do this trick.” And that’s the goal, to inspire people to go out and try, do their best and progress.

opinion. They have a different view, and it’s wicked. They’re not trying to get that pristine shot with that pristine camera in a fake-like situation, which is pretty much what all the movies that we watch these days are. Who can relate to a huge park shoot that costs eighty thousand dollars? Who can relate to Alaska? Who can relate to all these things? That’s not what got me into filmmaking. So it’s fun to bring it back to the basics. The musical element is obviously a big part of what you do.Why is that important to you? Henrik: It’s basically everything, because it’s what makes the feeling for the whole edit or segment. The greatest part about it being original is that you don’t have a preconceived picture beforehand. Watching ski movies when I was young, we didn’t have Internet so I didn’t really listen to much music that wasn’t on the radio. When I saw a ski movie, the music was like an original soundtrack to me at the time. These days

“They are people of action, motivated and dedicated, and once they speak about something, they take the measures to make it happen.” Iberg, why will this be your last film? Eric: I got to the point where it’s like, what else can I do? I checked off all my main goals in ski moviemaking. I’m most proud of things like working with the Three Phils in the beginning and watching them make Pléhouse Films, and then watching Tanner Hall go off and do his own films, and then after Idea seeing what Eric Pollard and Nimbus Independent created. So I look at all that and say, what haven’t I done? Idea and Education of Style were with a cast of three skiers. I never made a movie with a cast of two skiers, and I never made a movie that was a two-year project. These are super big challenges, especially with just two people, because if someone gets injured, your movie’s fucked. I say it’s my last movie because I’ve done what I wanted to do in skiing. I’m content, I’m stoked, and I just want to go out on top. I think this movie is going to allow me to feel that way. What were your goals and motivations coming into this project? Henrik: One of my main motivations was to make a ski movie that’s fun to watch, one that you want to watch over and over again. I’ve been missing that a

BE Inspired ITW

Eric: The big point is, the movie without credits is 22 minutes long. That’s one of the things we focused on—the shortness—to get that vibe where it doesn’t get boring. You watch a movie that’s an hour long, and has to be that long because the sponsors pay the companies to put these riders in. And then all of a sudden you’ve got 30 riders in the movie, and then the movie has to be an hour long because they have to get enough product shots in. A ski movie isn’t made to be artistic anymore. My goal with these guys is to make sure that it’s something that kids want to watch. I think Henrik and Phil showed how well rounded they are in freestyle and actual skiing. Everything they do in this movie, you could do it. There are no helicopters involved. It’s all at friends’ houses or out camping. It’s like Idea on a freestyle crack element.You’ll see these guys landing in tracked out runs—there’s one shot where Henrik lands switch and rides through a snowmobile track in the landing. When you watch it, you’re like, that could have blown his knee! But it’s not even about it being a perfect landing. The whole movie is about having fun, and the craziest part is, Phil and Henrik are better than everyone else in my

it’s so easy and so accessible with all the music around, so it’s amazing to have an original soundtrack where you don’t already have an impression of the music before you watch the movie. Phil: Like Henrik said, the soundtrack to my life has basically come from the ski movies that I’ve watched in the past. All the shit that I listen to now sprouted from the ski movies that I watched. It’s fun to be able to give that to a kid. The artists on the soundtrack have an insane amount of music out, so kids can be introduced to these new artists and go and listen to their music. From an editors’ standpoint, you get excited when you have a hype song. When you’re editing to it, you get this feeling, you get the chills. If you don’t get that while you’re editing—if you’re not having fun and listening to something that you like—then it will show in the edit. But if the shit is banging, it’s definitely going to reverberate in the edit. Iberg, what’s it like to produce a soundtrack in addition to directing the movie? Iberg: The process is wicked. I’ve done a couple of soundtracks before, for Idea, Like A Lion, Retallack, Let It Flow

and a bunch of Inspired TV shows when we were into that. This one is pretty unique because I got to work with a guy named Walshy Fire of a music group called Major Lazer, which kind of happened to become the world’s largest group last summer with a song called Lean On. They were the first people to go over a billion views on Youtube and they’ve gone quadruple platinum in most countries around the world in the last eight months. I knew him from a dance hall era when he was with a different group called Black Chiney, and he made a mixtape for Cali P in like 2009. We were randomly reintroduced last February. We talked for a month or two, and then in April I said, “I’ve got these two awesome skiers, do you want to be the producer of my soundtrack?” It was funny because it was right before they really blew up, and it was interesting how that all worked out. For this soundtrack I wanted to hand-select reggae dancehall artists and put them with a hip-hop artist. I went through thousands of beats with Walshy Fire and we picked out beats for each segment. From there, we thought about which artist we wanted to put on, whether a rapper or a dance hall artist. You hear their voice and then you think, well, who’d be awesome with this guy? So the process was very long for each tune. It was beyond awesome, beyond crazy. I got to make some of my favorite songs with my favorite artists, and that all happened because of a ski movie. That was probably the coolest experience about this movie for me personally.

more people that these guys can tell you about. Phil: The first year when Henrik and I weren’t together I shot with a Quebec homie that I know well, Vince RC who I filmed Keynote Skier with. There was also Emil Granöö, who Henrik and I have filmed with every year since 2012. Henrik: It started out a little rough for me. The first year I didn’t get nearly as many clips as I have any other year—for filming it was unfortunately one of the worst seasons I’ve had. But it gave me a lot of time to think about what I wanted to do for the coming season. Phil was healthy for the first season, so I got to see how far he had progressed and stepped up and pushed his skiing. That motivated me and got me so inspired to really put all my effort and energy into it. Contests are pretty easy, you just go and compete when you have to—you just do your best run whenever it’s time to do your run. But the rest of the season went into only this movie. We didn’t even put out any edits or anything. It was just 100 percent, let’s make the illest movie we possibly can. Was it weird to button up for two years and not put out regular edits? Phil: For sure. Sometimes I felt the itch to have something come out, especially being hurt in the second year and having all the first-year footage seem so old to me. I’ve probably edited my footage twenty times in twenty different ways now, everything seems so damn redundant and irrelevant. So it’s definitely hard in that aspect, when you can’t come

Instagram every day and hashtagged their sponsors. To actually want to make movies, but not have the industry care about movies anymore, is a pretty big deal. So that’s why it’s so sweet that I got to do this with them. Henrik: I like holding on to the footage because that definitely sparked my motivation. When I went to contests, I wanted to do really well so people would realize, “Shit, he’s on to something.” I wanted to show at X Games and at the B&E Invitational and everything else that I’m skiing better than I’ve ever been skiing, but there’s a reason why you haven’t seen a lot of footage. You all have worked together for a long time, how did you come together and continue working together? Eric: Henrik was this kid who emailed me in 2003 or something and asked me if he could be in my movies. This was through Hotmail, right? We kept in touch, met up later, figured out how to get him on Armada, and we didn’t make a movie together until a decade later. Whenever paths are supposed to cross in life, everything happens. It was almost the same with Phil. I first saw him at the Orage Masters, and he was basically the only kid that got a free pair of Armada skis other than the original five, six guys. I got to meet him in that situation and be like, “Who is this guy that JP Auclair just put on?” It was a pleasure to finally start to work with them when Inspired started, and to be able to evolve it over the past six years to be able to create this project. That relationship took sixteen years to

“There’s a reason why we all gravitated towards each other, because we have similar mindsets on our approach to life in general.” Is there an album coming out as well? Eric: Yes. The album is the BE Inspired Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. It’s out under Walshy Fire’s label, Walshy Fire Presents, on all digital platforms. There’s also a physical release on CD and vinyl. How did you manage the filming? Was it difficult to organize, between injuries and competitions and other events? Iberg, do you still get behind the camera? Eric: I don’t film anymore, I just sit on the phone and the computer and try to make dreams happen. Brady Perron was the main man, and there were a couple

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out with something straight after you get the clips. In retrospect, I definitely prefer to release shit faster. But it all has its time. At the same time I’m completely happy with how this all went down. Yet, to be relevant and release stuff is much easier and natural than to hold on to footage for a while. Eric: That’s what everyone wants in this industry. It’s not like these kids’ sponsors are saying, “Woo hoo, thanks for not being relevant.” So it’s as much to blame on the people that pay these guys’ bills, as the feelings that they have. Also, the Instagrams and all this stuff—pretty much every sponsor would pay these kids more money if they did a 15-second

build and develop, and then dominate. That’s been pretty awesome and a privilege. Phil: There’s a reason why we all gravitated towards each other, because we have similar mindsets on our approach to life in general. It’s so easy to make stuff happen together. These two guys make dreams happen. They are people of action, motivated and dedicated, and once they speak about something, they take the measures to make it happen. Being here with those guys is a blessing, because it’s much easier to make stuff happen when you have other people who are incredibly focused and motivated in their fields of life. Our crew has an

Henrik Harlaut

Photo: Sophie Sjรถberg

Spot: B&E Invitational/Les Arcs, France

BE Inspired ITW

Phil Casabon

Photo: Chris Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Connell

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Spot: Sapporo, Japan

Henrik Harlaut

Photo: David Malacrida

Spot: Les Arcs, France

BE Inspired ITW

Henrik Harlaut

Photo: Sophie Sjöberg

Henrik Harlaut

Photo: Brady Perron

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Spot: Riksgränsen, Sweden

Spot: Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada

Phil Casabon

Photo: Dan Villaire

Spot: Guardsman Pass/UT, USA

“Anyone who thinks they need nice cameras and nice computers to make movies—that’s a joke.”

incredible synergy. It’s a blessing to have worked together. Henrik: I think everything has basically been said. Since I was young it was one of my biggest dreams to be in one of Eric’s movies, and becoming good friends with him and working with him, and then meeting Phil, naturally becoming really good friends, everything fit together. Bonding with music, with who our favorite skiers are, our other favorite sports—we have a lot of things in common. It worked out very well for every reason. How do you guys think Iberg has influenced ski films? Phil: He basically changed it all, in my opinion. His approach to his movies was exactly on point with my perspective of how it should be. To be able to wrap it all up with him seems like the most right

BE Inspired ITW

thing that could possibly happen. None of his movies are the same—there’s always a different concept, different music and a different approach that hadn’t really been seen before. Henrik: That was very well summed up. I’m very thankful that I had the opportunity to do two movies with Iberg. He definitely influenced my life and my path in skiing, and I’m very thankful and blessed and insanely happy with the outcome of this movie. Eric: Thanks guys. I’ve got to say something else though: these guys edited the whole movie on their own. Imagine a 15-inch laptop with no mouse, just a trackpad, and only editing on a threeinch screen in the corner. I’ve never seen that before, no one will ever see that, and it’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. So anyone who thinks they need nice cameras and nice computers to

make movies—that’s a joke. Big up to these guys. To watch this whole editing process get done on a laptop was unreal. That’s what made it fun for me as a director, always having different situations in the editing process and the production. This one was very unique and different from all the other movies I’ve ever made.

BE Inspired Directed by: Eric Iberg, Henrik Harlaut and Phil Casabon Filmed by: Brady Perron, Emil Granoo, Marco Gilbert and Vincent RC Original Soundtrack by: Walshy Fire feat. Raekwon, Kabaka Pyramid, Dillon Cooper, Sizzla, Cali P and more Supported by: Armada, Monster Energy, CL-95, Oakley, Blue Tomato, Garmin, RAD, D-Structure, Slytech

She’s holding a microphone, big eyes staring straight into mine. “Would you like to sing with me?” She asks, not accepting no for an answer. I follow her across the mountain top café to a screen and awkwardly try to retrieve my hand from hers to grasp the microphone. The music starts crackling from the speakers and as the words fly across the screen, I know I am utterly fucked. Text: Sam Smoothy & Will Lascelles Photos: Will Lascelles

Sam Smoothy (left), a local public servant and Will Lascelles

Completely Clueless in North Korea 70

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Sam Smoothy is lost in North Korea but not due to the fog.

SAM: The song is in Korean and my lovely host is imploring me to give it a try. Not wanting to offend, terrified of managing to do so anyway, I try to replicate the sounds she’s making in what rapidly disintegrates into a farce. She somehow smiles her way through my awful screeches and thanks me for the song as the music dies away. Welcome to lunchtime entertainment while skiing in the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea. I like skiing for many irrelevant reasons, but in some corner of me I like skiing because it connects me with that internal fight or flight survival mechanism, and generally people wont judge me for it. Maybe this is an extension of that, a way to cheat disaster one more time, but in an entirely new format, exchanging the risk of avalanche for a potential firing squad. Home safe in NZ months before, Will, the producer from CoLab Creative, and I had scoured the globe looking for the weirdest place to ski. After contacting Koryo Tours, one of the few companies bringing tourists into the country, we had a rough plan of attack. Days away from flying East and starting to regret this bold plan I call Will, who had set up the logistics. WILL:

SAM:

“Are we going to come home from this trip?” Sam nervously asks. “It seems I have grown somewhat fond of my life.” I sit quietly at my desk contemplating Sam’s anxiety, which stems from news of an American student being sentenced to 15 years hard labor in a North Korean camp for crimes against the state. And the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, has been shooting off rockets left, right, and just off centre in a show of power. Eeek.

I assure Sam with the utmost confidence. Internally, I’m not so poised but that’s what Sam needed to hear. We arrive in China on the first night of Chinese New Year. At Koryo Tours, we are given “The Talk”. A two hour long list of what not to do, served with a side of full body chill, with the cheery footnote that if we played by the rules, we would be in the safest country on earth. Customs. We get the feeling they know who we are, why we are there. Searching bags thoroughly, they open our computers and ask us to show them our movies folder. They find a bunch of POV GoPro shots, everything else we’d deleted earlier. Except Sam, who cleverly only moved his incriminating items to the trash. They allow us to enter. We are greeted by a smiling Reewa, one of two guides assigned to chaperone us. Outside, waits our second ‘minder,’ Chay. We pile into a van—the girls most amused by the massive size of our ski bags—and drive toward the city. Both gals are super friendly and eager to begin telling us about the accomplishments of the Republic. We arrive to find the most American past time, a bowling alley in the bottom floor of our hotel; unexpected. Billiards, karaoke; plenty there to distract the mind from the outside world.

North Korea

Constant lingering trepidation is offset by the peculiar situation and Will’s twisted humour; it’s strangely, darkly hilarious. Here we are, two idiots who’s much relied upon charm is rendered useless by stony faced incomprehension—but damn they’re nice hosts. Put up in the biggest mainly empty hotel of my life, comfortably sipping beers in a rotating penthouse restaurant staring out at the Pyongyang night lights we had thought non existent—we sat stumped. I had tried to

Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il

Day One in the Democratic Peoples Republic of North Korea and I’m seriously questioning my ability to not get myself shot. What. Are. We. Doing. Here??? come with an open mind, but DPRK makes this quasi impossible. How can you not feel, not have an opinion about a place that is so frequently in the news for the wrong reasons? Clasping a wreath, I approach the benevolent un-dead, the imposing golden statues of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. Timidly surrendering the wreath to their feet, I snatch my hands back, make a curt bow and awkwardly slink away. Surrounded by on guard military while my jetlag, general state of confusion, and Reewa’s incredibly fast English bring about my first and not so insignificant mistake. “Why is he called Little Kim Jong-il? It seems a little unfair. I mean he is little, but then most of you are kinda little, comparatively.” “Its LEADER Kim Jong-il, not LITTLE!! You can’t call him little, he hates that!” Fucksticks. Day One in the Democratic Peoples Republic of North Korea and I’m seriously questioning my ability to not get myself shot. What. Are. We. Doing. Here? We are taken to a Pyongyang supermarket and are surprised by the masses of Korean Kims buying beer and crisps. We’d heard about empty stores but this was packed. How could this many shoppers be staged? Surely this was impossible. Perhaps Kim’s only job was to buy beer and

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chips when instructed. Our reasoning fell apart and left us clueless. How could you even attempt to understand a place that totally eludes your grip. How do we know what is real and what is paranoia? After a few days of Pyongyang sightseeing we’re eager to head to the ski resort Masik Ryong, open for the first time to outsiders. The skiing is almost a side note to why we are here, but it is also the only time we are alone. Expected home by lunch we are finally set free, something that didn’t seem like a big deal until we realise that we can finally talk freely and go wherever we please. Even here in DPRK the mountains are free. Somewhat. My efforts to join the local synchronised ski team do not go so well, probably due to my inability to hold precise carve lines while balanced on my inside ski. Decked out in something akin to janitor’s uniforms, they tear down the piste in groups of four or five, in tight formation, leaving one set of perfect train tracks down the hill. They look on in mild muted curiosity as I look for little hits and rolls to play with, it feels like the butter 360s and little side hit airs impress them little. But we share the slope and everyone seems to be having a damn good time.

Smoothy’s idea of fun…

Heading up the modern gondola to the top of the mountain feels like crossing an international border.

…and a more restricted local version.

North Korea

Masses gather in the streets for official celebrationsâ&#x20AC;Ś

Paranoia aside, I am certain our room is bugged.

â&#x20AC;Śand for official celebrations only.

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WILL: Heading up the modern gondola to the top of the mountain feels like crossing an international border. Up here we are the only skiers, roaming the piste and snaking through the trees cloaked in clawing fog. Densely quiet and still, it feels like lift accessed backcountry skiing, but groomed. We savour the unique atmosphere. A rounded mountain, with large pistes cascading down the ridges that are perfect for high speed runs, with fat roll overs to send, the terrain is somewhat similar to East Coast America, just with kimchi instead of hotdogs. Sitting at the bottom station we meet the head ski instructor and learn that he and a few other lucky ones have been skiing for 30 years, starting up in the North of the country on Mt Paektu, the spiritual birthplace of socialist DPRK. It was here that the father of DPRK, President Kim Il-sung, was said to have been born and developed Juche Ideology; North Korea’s founding philosophy of self-reliance and strength. We hoped to ski Mt Paektu but, upon arrival, are firmly told this would not be impossible due to snow blocking the roads. We try ingratiating ourselves further with the ski resort hierarchy, so we meet and greet with the management and ski instructors. We give them a few pointers on improving the resort, tell them how much we enjoy seeing Koreans having fun skiing—things are off to a relatively jovial start. Trying to explain what we do I show them a video segment from Legs of Steel, of me skiing Alaska. With the laptop fired up, the helicopter on the screen, the music building; freeride ski porn at its best. But something is off, the room is icy cold and most of the instructors abruptly get up and storm out in the first minute. I glance around, nerves building, trying to understand, but there is no sign of help. Muted yet rapid fire Korean is the only sound, terse mutters from the ski area manager and the head instructor. It is time for us to go. We sit in our room as the rocket goes subsonic; solemnly following TV newsreader’s condemnation. Alarmingly, DPRK tested another rocket just days before we arrived. Holed up in Masikyong is not the most reassuring place to witness an inflammatory news report. We fire up the camera to film us watching the TV report but as soon as the camera powers up, all power is cut, leaving us wide eyed in the dark. Surely not; surely that’s just a coincident, right? Paranoia aside, I am certain our room is bugged. Every time we leave the room, after the maids have tidied up, we lace a shirt over a laptop or camera just so, and take a photo from a particular tile on the floor. Upon our return it is never quite in the same position. What were they looking for? Excitement builds as snow manically whips around outside and we hope a decent amount will pile up—so it’s off to bed early. We head high on the mountain with joyous hopes to plunder some of the sweetly pitched and spaced tree runs on the upper mountain. But like almost everything on this trip, our expectations are upended. We find a completely rain saturated snow pack that feels like skiing through three day old vegetable soup. But ski it we do and it’s still loads of silly fun. Regardless of where you go in the world, the conditions are still up to Mother Nature, and if you cant have fun skiing shit snow in such an exotic location, then maybe you’ve been a tiny bit spoilt. So we value every goopy turn and love the normalcy of being alone on a mountain, darting through the trees, slashing out slushy sprays—we could be skiing anywhere in the world. A feeling that quickly disappears once we retreat back to our Korean reality.

North Korea

After the weirdest snowstorm we have ever experienced, we head back to Pyongyang. The ladies want to show us Kim Il-sung’s modest childhood house. We enter what looks like a deserted amusement park, complete with frozen water fountains and a sky train. We are told this is a hot spot for the Korean people in the summer months. It’s hard to imagine. As we drive around, a large animal in a cage catches my eye. I glimpse what looks like a bear with a platypus face! “What was that?” I demand. “What was in that cage?” I explain what I saw. The ladies seemed to not comprehend despite their excellent English and the driver picks up speed. I look to Sam. We both agree this is one of those topics that you drop. On the way out, there isn’t anything in the cage. Did I hallucinate? Has paranoia fully taken over? Sam is due in Japan on the eve of late Kim Jung-il’s birthday. There would be celebrations on the streets so I decide to stick around. We take Sam to the airport early in the morning. After a big hug, he tells me to stay safe. I wave him goodbye. It dawns on me that I am alone. I no longer have my confidante with me. My stomach begins to turn. The mission for the day is to visit Kim Jung-il on his deathbed. I am told to dress accordingly—don a freshly pressed shirt, slacks, and a horrible tie. When we park the van near the Kamsusan Memorial Palace, I reach for the door to jump out but Reewa grabs me, instructing me to remain inside the van. Soon after, a cavalry of diplomatic vehicles rumbles up sporting flags from Russia, Pakistan, Syria and Nigeria. I feel very out of place. Once the diplomats exit their vehicles, I am invited to join the procession. I am reminded that my hands must remain at my sides at all times, not held together in front or behind me, but rigidly to the side. After being frisked for any kind of recording device, I enter the building. There’s no way in hell I am going to risk that. No way. Pictures and awards adorn the walls from top to bottom; diplomas from dodgy universities, doctorates from others. Eventually, we end up in the room hosting the man himself. It is dark; the walls blackened by thick curtains of dark velvet drapes. In the centre is Kim Jung-il himself. Lying rigid in a glass box with his body covered by a red silk sheet. His face, glossy with an overdose of embalming fluid, lays motionless atop a rounded pillow. It is hard to imagine him as the internationally abhorred leader he once was. I move with the crowd as they take turns bowing once to his feet, then to his side, around his head and once more his other side. I hear young girls, some of which weren’t even alive before the leaders passing, sobbing uncontrollably. It’s surreal. I can’t wait to get out of here. And finally, mentally exhausted, I am out, feeling a dizzying onset of brainwashing flooding over me. In the evening we arrive downtown where thousands of men and women are standing idly in front of portraits of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jung-un. The women wear brightly colored dresses straight out of 1950’s America; music starts and makes me laugh on the inside, while concentrating on remaining neutral on the outside. It sounds like a refined version of the chicken dance. The people swirl in circles, like a giant colorful organism expanding and contracting. Shortly into the proceedings, I’m asked to join. The people seem friendly enough and it’s almost fun; except I am super weirded out. I change partner after partner. No words are exchanged, only simple looks that leave me wondering: “Where the hell am I ?”

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Last season a few like-minded skiers convinced Red Bull it would be a grand idea to make a short film that recreates the iconic eras of skiing; that pays homage to the many eras of freeskiing and the skiers that helped pave the way. As complex as it was fun, it was a project that overcame various interesting hurdles along the way.

Homag e to Histo ry Text: Mark von Roy Photos: Klaus Polzer

Bene Mayr layed out a beautiful splaffy over Viktoria Rebensburg navigating the bumps.

Homage to History

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(first double page)

Ballet Dreams

1 Hot Dog Mogul fields are hard to come across these days. We started shooting in mid April and the last snowfall was long forgotten, as was any hope of finding a natural mogul field. So after consulting the expert, legendary German Hot Dogger Fuzzy Garhammer, we made our own mogul field. Apart from that slight complication, this was by far the most enjoyable segment to shoot. We enlisted Bene Mayr and Olympic Giant Slalom champion Viktoria Rebensburg to weave and spread eagle their way down the bumps. The awesome costumes, the skis, the moves—and the occasional hilarious crashes due to thirty-year old ski bindings—ensured that everyone had a good laugh. If I’d have to pin point at what time the spirit of freeskiing started to blossom, I’d say the development of Hot Dogging was that moment. While researching for this project it became very evident that ski films from back in the 70’s ticked all the boxes: radical moves and heavy crashes as well as plenty of booze and gratuitous nudity. While we didn’t have the latter two this time, that original spirit was most definitely with us.

Lisa Zimmermann: ex figure skater turned freeski pro; Mark von Roy: freeski journalist turned ski ballet amateur.

Homage to History

While some may posit ski ballet as a vestigial organ of skiing’s dark past, I would suggest the opposite. At least in its early stages ski ballet was the purest form of creativity on skis. No jumps, no terrain; just a simple slope and no rules. Decades before Boyd Easely championed them in the legendary Poorboyz movie Session 1242, butters, as well as an astounding array of pole tricks, were performed on low angle slopes from Spitzingsee, Germany all the way to Vail, Colorado. Unfortunately ski ballet fell victim to the rules and regulations of good old FIS and so we came across another problem: finding a ski ballet performer. I’ve always been a bit of a ski ballet fan, and so—after failing to find anyone better—I volunteered. We also managed to enlist freeski phenom Lisa Zimmerman; who happens to be an ex-figure skater. On the day of the shoot Lisa crushed it with beautifully choreographed pirouettes; while I had woken with the heaviest migraine imaginable and lay splayed in the snow with my eyes closed. Pretending to be a professional athlete I tried my best to grin and bear it. After literally falling on my face and head five times I finally managed to land one pole plant front flip. And while dreams of becoming a professional ski ballet performer will never come to fruition, somehow convincing a Red Bull production to film me doing ski ballet may be my biggest accomplishment to date.

3 Aerial Complications Originally we had Olympic Aerial skier Travis Gerrits for this chapter and after flying from Canada, he was greeted with three days of fog on the glacier and returned without being able to jump a single time. A week later we had our final chance to shoot the specially made aerials jump and while Travis was unable to come, we found a substitute in Igor Ishutko, a Ukrainian ex-Olympian who had recently lost his kiteboarding school in Crimea to the Russians. Needless to say, he had some seriously interesting stories. We requested that he didn’t jump with perfect regimented aerial style, but rather, he should try to emulate the somewhat uncontrolled original aerialists. “You want it look like shit?” he asked in a thick accent, “No problem!” After speed checking the jump twice, he put on his helmet went for a double backflip, under-rotated, literally belly flopped onto the knuckle and tomahawked down the landing. Miraculously uninjured Igor got up, proclaimed “Now I know speed!”, removed his helmet and proceeded to land multiple sketchy double flips wearing the old school goggles and hat we had procured for the shoot.

With a weather front approaching Igor Ishutko kept sending huge twisting double flips.

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4 Neon & Schmidt Turns

At the bottom of a 200 vertical meter couloir, Henrik Windstedt sent this compulsory cliff with radical style.

Homage to History

Sometime in the late 80s and early 90s, skiing got radical. With pioneers like Scott Schmidt (possibly the first professional freeskier) and Glen Plake (who definitely has the longest running professional career in skiing) this may have been the most iconic era of freeskiing—even if it was referred to as Extreme Skiing back then. We tried to get Glen himself on board, but unfortunately he was unable to make it. Luckily our fall back was Henrik Windstedt who, with a 1983 birth year, witnessed the era of neon and Mohawks—and was more than stoked to represent his forbearers. The director Lukas Tielke wanted me to film a lead cam shot, with Henrik all neoned-up, jumping turns in front of the camera. While I anxiously snowplowed through 15 centimeters of fresh snow on top of a steep, bumpy ice sheet—holding a brand new RED Weapon camera for the first time—Henrik was killing it with huge pole plants and solid Schmidt Turns. Then I got slightly too close to Henrik and swoosh; a huge spray of snow envelopes the camera. Emerging from the cloud of snow, the camera was dead and wouldn’t turn on. Terror. That’s €50,000 right there, and that’s not my camera! Fortunately, after a nervous and careful 40 minute drying process, the RED turned on good as new and Henrik proceeded to slay a heavy couloir with a beautiful mule-kick iron cross over a compulsory 30 foot cliff.

Misty flips were a staple of the snowblader and Bene had no issues laying one down for the ladies.

5 The Snowblade Influence

Another chapter of our history that some freeski aficionados may wish to forget, snowblades—or skiboards as the devotees usually called them—experienced a major spike in popularity in the late 90s. Legends like Eric Pollard, Skogen Sprang, Jason Levinthal and even Nico Zacek spent a season or two cruising around on planks that were one meter or shorter in length. While some may wish to deny it, snowblades undoubtedly played an integral role in freeskiing’s development; the first misty flips and rodeos were predominantly performed by bladers. Newly employed by Downdays, Roy Kittler was basically forced to strap on snowblades for this segment; but he played his part in good spirit. Not one to miss out on the fun, Bene Mayr also decided to join—a few misty flips and awkward grabs later and the segment was in the bag.

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6 Backcountry Jump Session The schedule for the entire project couldn’t have been any tighter. We only had a total of nine days to shoot ten different segments. Backcountry jump sessions were such an integral part of freeskiing (and still are) and our big problem was that there was no fresh pow for a decent landing. After a load of scouting, we found one viable spot that had an untracked landing. With a big warm weather front approaching, we only had one chance to make it work. This chapter aimed to emulate skiing from circa 2003; when backcountry jumps took centre stage in ski movies. While the jump could not be built as big as we wanted and the landing was definitely sketchy, Fabio Studer and Bene Mayr managed to land a few iconic tricks from that era before the weather rolled in. Fabio busted out textbook cork 360 no grab a-la Tanner Hall and Bene landed a swell flatspin 360 japan grab— good enough to get the message across.

The jump and the landing were not ideal, but that didn’t stop Fabio Studer from laying down smooth moves.

Homage to History

Jesper Tjäder stomped this super gnarly 180 on, to switch backflip in a very sketchy construction site.

Wheeling out an afterbang like a boss, Kai Mahler has the gangster steeze ingrained in his DNA.

8 Gangster Steeze

After Tom Wallisch won Level 1 Productions’ famed Superunknown video contest in 2006, countless aspiring skiers tried to emulate Tom’s silky smooth style. While Tom was not the only one to thug it out while skiing, he definitely brought it to the masses; the gangster style took hold in parks around the globe. This movement brought a well needed focus on style and while some may have been less convincing with a forced gangster steeze, the reaction to this was for skiers to develop and refine many other styles of riding. Kitted out in a massive triple XL long cut t-shirt, bandana and headphones, Kai Mahler definitely looked the part. It also helped that Kai is a pretty damn steezy skier as it is and so when we asked him to thug it out even more and Afterbang [essentially overstating a relaxed landing] everything, it all came naturally to him.

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Urban Madness While not so much an era of freeskiing and more an integral facet of it, while planning the shoot we nevertheless felt it vital to include urban skiing. Had we known the complications involved, we may have planned differently. Due to time constraints with the athletes and filmers, we had to film the segment on Stubai Glacier. As luck would have it, the new Eisgrat lift was being constructed and presented dope location. Gathering snow, sorting logistics, clearing construction rubble and building the features turned out to be far more strenuous and difficult in practice than in theory. Yet thanks to untiring crew and a few gypsy ploys we got three features set up for Jesper Tjäder and Nick Goepper. As usual, Jesper looked at the features we built and hit them completely differently to how we had intended. Heart migrated to throat as I watched Jesper 180 onto a 4 m high railing and switch backflip into a super sketchy landing. After a few groan inducing crashes, Jesper nailed it, and we had another segment wrapped up.

Homage to History

200 Ikea boxes later and we had the perfect crash mat for Jesper to frontflip inside of the Stubai gondola station.

9 One Of Those Shoots The advent of the affordable POV camera had an undeniable impact on skiing. Not only could everyone shoot themselves shredding, but a certain culture of one-upping other people’s POV runs developed. Everyone started to link together gnarlier and longer lines as well as adding more and more creativity into their runs. Then came Candide Thovex and not only raised the bar, but launched it out of orbit. While attempting to recreate the feel and vibe of Candide’s One Of Those Days edits, we came to truly realize the hard work and genius that went into these videos. Easily the most complicated scene of the whole film was the goal of getting Jesper Tjäder to ski into the gondola base station, slide a rail, make a quick turn, jump onto a ledge and front flip down 5 meters into a stack of boxes. Apart from not having enough boxes— leading to a last minute IKEA mission—coordinating all the people walking around the action was like trying to get a bunch of kittens to take a bath. Nevertheless, by around 10pm we had it all figured out and finally got the shot in the bag.

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10 The Grand Finale The final shoot involved trying to get every skier and skiing style captured in one shot. As the sun had melted away the jumps and any hopes of finishing the project in April, we postponed until November. The only way to get the epic shot we envisioned was to shoot at sunrise and somehow we convinced the athletes and crew to stay on the glacier to be ready to shoot at 5:30 am. Even though we witnessed a phenomenal sunset over Tyrolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stunning peaks, lying on the cold ground at 3000 m in a room with twenty snoring, farting individuals is not a night I wish to repeat anytime soon. Mother nature continued throwing curve balls in the form of wind and clouds, but against all odds, even the final shot was captured more or less how we had imagined. At this point there is no way of avoiding a massive thank you to the 40+ people involved in the project. It was a bit of a behemoth, but we I think we may have managed to put something quite special together. Want to find out? Keep an eye out for the final film and accompanying documentary to be released around the end of January on redbull.com and redbull.tv !

Getting everyone together for one final hurrah, was the perfect ending to a super entertaining and fun project.

Homage to History

The view from the top of Hafelekarspitze down to Seegrube and further to Innsbruck exhibits a winter wonderland for freeskiers.

Innsbruckâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s local mountain eminently towers over the town and harbours a number of welcome surprises nonetheless.

Nordkette Text & Photos: Klaus Polzer 88

Destination

When you ask what Innsbruck’s local mountain is, occasionally the answer is “Patscherkofel” where Austria’s alpine racing hero Franz Klammer claimed Olympic gold in downhill. Sometimes the answer is the rocky pyramid known as Serles, which guards the Brenner Pass. Yet no mountain in Innsbruck is as impressive and omnipresent as the Nordkette. Considered too steep for an ordi-

moving in this terrain. It is steep and avalanche prone pretty much everywhere and—depending on the snow conditions—the hidden runs involve a decent walk to the nearest bus station on the valley floor. If, however, you’ve managed to claim a spot in the packed first gondola, a real freeride dream awaits you: steep open faces that only end after a few hundred

edge in the many freeride contests that occur in less than ideal conditions. On days like this, the slopes are often empty and present the perfect opportunity to feel the rush of hammering at speed, as long your quad muscles can handle it. Those with enough knowledge and experience bring their touring gear and use the Hafelekarspitz as the entry point to the north facing Karwendelkare

Virgin powder fields like the one Lena Stoffel tracks in this image are a rarity on Nordkette unless you hit it directly after a snowfall.

nary ski area for far too long, the gondola—reaching to the Hafelekar summit looming above the city—was initially built as a summer attraction. These days however, this gondola is the main reason a hefty amount of freeride pros, not to mention a hoard of students, have flocked to Innsbruck. To travel from the town centre to the peak of the Hafelekarspitze can take less than half an hour in ideal conditions; perfect for a quick morning shred before class or an active lunch break. On a powder day however, you’ve got to plan differently to score. If you missed getting up early to line up well before the first gondola, it pays of to dip into Hitt und Söhne next door for a coffee, to make a plan of attack while the line of impatient froth-heads diminishes. Even on packed pow days there are plenty of opportunities to find an untracked line on the Nordkette, yet you should definitely know what you are doing when

Nordkette

vertical meters in a traverse to the Seegrube chairlift or—if you’ve really scored a perfect day—continue with epic tree runs all the way to the bottom of Hungerburg gondola. Sadly the Karrinne couloir, the Seilbahnrinne couloir directly under the lift and the Südhang under the gondola station are completely tracked out within half a day. Even the extreme variations of these descents don’t have to wait long to find an interested customer—and there are quite a few of these. Luckily there is a widely spread rumour that the Nordkette is only good for freeriding when there is fresh snow. Particularly when all the faces have been shredded to bits and the sun as worked its magic—turning ice into soft corn— the terrain offers fun and challenging possibilities; a particularly perfect training venue for ambitious freeride competitors. Those able to go full throttle to tame this terrain will have a definite

which can store a reserve of powder for weeks even when its T-shirt weather in Innsbruck. The Nordkette is not just a freeride Eldorado, jibbers of all ages claimed their slice of the Seegrube quite some time ago. There even used to be a halfpipe, where the occasional snowboarder used to prepare for the Olympics. Meanwhile the Halfpipe, as well as the slopestyle training course of the Austrian Ski Federation, has moved to Kühtai which has more space on a north facing slope. Yet this has opened the field for non competition orientated skiers, to jib and jump all day to their hearts delight. The Skyline Park may not be long, but it has a chill vibe, sports a number of super fun obstacles and has the occasional special features built by a dedicated park crew. Keen to continue innovating, the park crew is trying a new approach this season. Inspired by the Blank Canvas shooting with the Atomic team two seasons

The Innsbruck Nordkette: Also known as the Inntalkette (or Inn Valley Chain), the 10 km long mountain chain is the southernmost and shortest of the four mountain ranges of the Karwendel. Accessible with the Nordkettenbahn, the Hafelkarspitze reaches to 2,334 m and is directly north of Innsbruck, around about in the middle of the range. The highest point is found in the west, on the Kleinen Solstein at 2,637 m.

Getting there:

Jossi Wells shreds a setup he helped build during the Blank Canvas shoot two years ago.

ago—where Jossi Wells & co. designed and built their own shooting obstacle out of a mound of snow—the mountain management handed out blank park plans to all the local ski and snowboard crews. This gave the riders the chance to let their own creativity run rampant and the best ideas will be realized one after another over the space of the season. The jib community is thus blessed with innovative and ever changing setups. So the question remains, is this a spot that is only of interest to locals, or is it worth travelling here for a ski mission? The answer is simple: it’s always worth visiting the Nordkette and definitely worth staying for a while. Innsbruck is super easy to reach and offers a wide range of accommodation options not to mention a vibrant nightlife and a hefty concentration of ski and snowboard culture. Cloud 9, the igloo bar right next to the Skyline Park plays host to a club

night every Friday from 18:00 till 23:00 with international DJs. Alternatively, you can get your après Ski fix any day at Hitt und Söhne directly next to the bottom gondola station. Throughout the whole city you can always find exhibitions, premiers, concerts, parties and more, there’s lots to discover. And the longer you stay, the higher your chances of scoring a really magical day on the mountain over looking the city. Really, the only remaining questions is, when are you coming? Come and discover one of the best and most versatile “little” ski areas in the world.

You can easily reach Innsbruck from all directions via the Inntal- or Brenner Motorway, or the corresponding railways that follow the same route, as well as the international airport (INN). From the centre of town the Hungerburgbahn funicular travels up to a plateau that is 850 meters above sea level directly beneath the Nordkette. From here, one gondola ascends to the Seegrube and a second continues to the Hafelekarspitze. You can also reach the bottom station of the Nordkettenbahn with the bus or car.

Time to go: The Nordkette is known for many heavy snowfalls that can deliver stunning powder days early and late in the season. Due to the south facing aspect, however, the best conditions are usually found in January or February.

Tip: Founded by the entrepreneurial freeskier Bene Mayr, Hitt und Söhne, located directly next to the valley station of the Nordkettenbahn gondola, is a combination of café, bar and shop. Open between 10:00 and 19:00 it is the perfect meeting place or après ski location. A cosy but modern location that serves a banging coffee, tasty snacks and great drinks; not to mention the chance to browse and buy a quality selection of freeski products.

An empty terrace at Hitt und Söhne is a view only present during off-season.

Destination

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Interview

Vincent Gagnier: Skiing Differently Interview: Ethan Stone Portrait: Rachel Bock

Photo: Rachel Bock

Spot: Perisher, Australia

With grabs and rotations that defy the laws of physics as well as a deep-seated respect for the history of the sport, few other skiers have as much fun on the mountain as Vincent Gagnier; thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s why he is always smiling. 93

Vincent Gagnier

How have coaches and national teams changed the big air scene? The coaches have been there for a couple of years now, so there’s nothing new there. What I’ve seen so far, is if you do a triple cork 1440 safety, then you score a 90. It doesn’t have to be anything special as long as you can do the trick. So that’s what the kids want to do to make it. It’s probably not the best way to get onto the scene, to be honest.

Photo: Blake Jorgenson

Spot: Whistler/BC, Canada

Québec’s Gagnier family is well known in freeskiing circles. Oldest Brother Antoine was a pioneer in the early days of the newschool movement, experimenting with radically different styles of grabbing and grinding; some of the tricks he invented in the early 2000’s wouldn’t become popular until over a decade later. Middle child Charles brought the style pioneered by Antoine to the top of the competition scene—memorably beating Tanner Hall to win gold in the 2005 X Games slopestyle contest. Now it’s Antoine and Charles’ younger brother Vincent’s turn to get his share of the skiing spotlight, his chance to represent the family’s unmistakable style on the sport’s biggest stages. Like his brothers before him, Vinnie Cash, as he’s known to his friends, skis in a way that sets him apart from his peers—a breath of fresh air in a climate where tricks are increasingly becoming standardized. Whether it’s an unconventional grab, an unseen rotation or just clicking into his bindings backwards for fun, Vincent Gagnier always has something new to bring to the table. I hear you’re quite the sports fan. What are your favorite teams? For football the San Diego Chargers. Hockey, the Quebec Nordiques and the Montreal Canadiens. For basketball, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Toronto Raptors. Your entire family has a unique style of skiing.Where’d it come from? It’s all Antoine. He started it all. Then Charles followed Antoine and set his own mark, and I followed Charles and set my own mark. But Antoine is the true number one.

Interview

Your approach to contests challenges judges to appreciate unconventional tricks. Is that the way to keep the format fresh? It’s up to the judges, but it’s mostly the skiers that have to put more work into every trick they do, and not just always do the same thing. There’s no point in doing a trick that’s already been done, in my book. Skiers should try to be different from their teammates and not listen to the coach all the time. What’s the secret to adding a crazy grab like a dub genie (screamin' seamen, grabbing both skis) into a big rotation? The trick is to do the small rotations: start with the 7, the 9. Then in the contests, that’s when you send it and go for the bigger trick. When you have to go, you have to go. It’s easier if you grab than if you don’t grab. I don’t get why more people haven’t tried the dub genie. I don’t think it’s that hard. You can’t get your skis stuck with your other leg straightened out. Your attitude towards contests seems more laid-back than other competitor’s. What’s your mindset going into a contest? You can’t take it too seriously. You’ve just gotta have fun, take it easy and don’t think too far ahead. Just be in the moment and get into a good zone. A lot of kids are out there hucking triples these days.What’s going on with big air progression? Coaches. Blowing it. The kids too, they’re blowing it. They skip stages. They don’t understand. It takes time. You can’t just huck yourself. It works for some people, but I’m not like that.

Should big air skiers be more creative? I think that’s a better way. I would like to see new tricks. Skiers shouldn’t do the same tricks at all of the contests every year. It’s whack to see a skier always do the same thing to get points. You’ve got to up yourself every time. But it’s scary and dangerous, so I don’t blame anyone. Do you ever work with a coach? What’s your approach to getting ready for the season? I’m not out there “training.” I probably should, because I still have a lot of tricks to learn. I talk a lot to my brothers; Antoine tries to give me tips, but I don’t listen to everything. So have you got any tips for the kids on how to ski differently? I would tell them to watch old ski movies and get inspired by the people who made the sport what it is right now. You gotta learn from the best back in the day, because they were for sure doing more tricks that you would be capable of doing now if you’re learning. Where it’s at right now with all the crazy spins—it took me my whole life to get to that point, and it’s because of what those guys did. They did all those tricks first and broke all the barriers. Kids should go back and learn from the older days, because without them we would be nothing. That’s where everything came from.

Born: 21st of July 1993 Home: Victoriaville, Québec, Canada Home resort: Mont-Sainte-Anne, Québec Sponsors: Rockstar, O’Neill, Salomon, Anon, Faded Underwear, Axis Boutique Hobbies: Chilling, Madden NFL, sports fanatic Contest results: 1st Fenway Park Big Air, Boston 2016 1st Frostgun Invitational Big Air, Val d’Isère 2016 1st X Games Big Air, Aspen 2015 1st AFP World Tour Finals Big Air, Whistler 2015 3rd Air&Style Big Air, Los Angeles 2015 3rd Frostgun Invitational Big Air, Val d’Isère 2015 2nd X Games Big Air, Aspen 2014 Film appearances: Canvas - Blank Collective 2016 Blank. The Movie – Blank Collective 2015 Small World - Level 1 Productions 2015

NINE ROYALS

BRAND NEW FEATURE - ENDLESS OPTIONS 27.03. - 01.04. 2017 | KNIGHTS & QUEENS WWW.NINEKNIGHTS.COM

PHOTO: THE DISTILLERY | DAVID MALACRIDA

Text & Photo: Klaus Polzer

Skier: Mitchell Brower

Spot: Saalbach, Austria

You don’t usually think of powder during a park shoot, and when it begins to snow while you’re on one, it’s not exactly what you wish for. During the Blank Canvas shoot last winter, the snow started coming down thick and fast—soon enough it was impossible to do anything. The riders couldn’t get speed for the features and the cameras soaked up the moisture while not being able to capture anything through the dense flakes. This all went down during the planned night shoot and we had set up four very heavy LED lights, even heavier tripods and what felt like kilometres of cables. Wet and disgruntled we packed everything together. Naturally, when we finished, it stopped snowing. In a last ditch effort we set up a small zone and Mitchell sprayed a perfect slash on the side of the kicker; using a foil over a flash, the spray transformed into a colour explosion. So I managed to get at least one special photo, although it was very different to what I expected to do that evening. I guess you simply have to adapt to whatever gets thrown your way.

Outro

The new film project with Mammut Pro Team athlete Jérémie Heitz

www.eoft.eu

Skyfall. When our Pro Team athlete Jérémie Heitz puts gravity to the test on the Hohbärghorn, he’s well prepared and knows what he’s doing. And he knows he can rely on his equipment one hundred percent. For freeriders: www.mammut.swiss

Mammut / Tero Repo

COMING SOON