The Snowboarder's Journal - The Snowboarder's Journal 20.2
TRIP MENTALITY: Rolling Deep in Central Wisconsin
Words, Photos and Captions: Peter Limberg 2022-11-01 09:39:44
You’ve got to keep your base flat on the wall. Kevin Gillespie found out the hard way of what happens when you don’t. Here he makes his rebate, riding through the grit.
It’s February and nearing negative degrees Fahrenheit across the Midwest. Charlie Folkert is attempting to 50-50 the top of a chain-link fence before ollieing backside into a gritty bricked bank below. We’re shooting across the street from a bus station where people line up to film their own angles of the trick on their phones. In this neck of west-central Wisconsin, it seems most of the locals are more intrigued than annoyed by our presence. The same goes for the cops sent to the following spot we set up, who even let Chaney Gilmore hit a last-try buzzer beater before giving us the boot. So long as you’re not talking shit about the Packers, Wisconsinites witnessing street snowboarding are likely going to leave you be.
Some might suspect the residents of this city could care less because they’re so accustomed to snow sports—we are seventh in the nation for hockey players per capita, after all. But, like anywhere else, Wisconsin isn’t an entirely homogenous state. Wisconsin and the Cheeseheads who live there sometimes get put in a bit of a stereotypical box. Referred to as America’s Dairyland for being one of the country’s top producers of milk, cheese and butter, Wisconsin is often written off as little more than a flat flyover state full of farmland and conjunctive drawl. Sure, we’ve got plenty of that, but there’s also lively art and music scenes, particularly in metro areas like Madison, Milwaukee, and the low-key city where we are now working on a two-year film project called Riddles. I’d scoped this surprisingly hip downtown before, knowing that it’s big enough to offer up some serious infrastructure yet small enough to be overlooked by most snowboarders. Situated roughly 150 miles southwest and 200 miles west of Lake Superior and Lake Michigan, respectively, this area receives roughly 50 inches of snowfall each winter. Storms are typically brought through by the Lake Effect, which occurs when large cold air masses pass over the unfrozen Great Lakes, pick up moisture and increase snowfall downwind. Fortunately for us, of all the Great Lakes, Lake Superior has the greatest impact on local snowfalls, and the low temps in this region let their bounties linger for a while.
We’re rolling deep. Originally the crew consisted of Casey Pflipsen, Kevin Gillespie, Calvin Green and me, but by day two we had more than doubled our numbers with the additions of Tony Wagner, Collin Maynard, Chaney Gilmore, Charlie Shartin-Folkert, and Haley Boucot. Most of the riders in our crew live in Wisconsin, me included, or in its bordering states, Michigan and Minnesota, and have spent winter filming mainly in the latter’s Twin Cities, which at this point in the season feel a little stale. We were in much need of a refresh and new spots. Now patrolling snow-covered streets in search of features alongside an all-time group of friends, the energy is high. The possibilities, limitless.
With the sun quickly setting on the Badger State, we’re about to walk away with a hammer shot or nothing more by nightfall.
The size of the Airbnb: limited. We cram into the basement of the host’s house, which already feels a little congested, though a bout of beers and reorganization adjusts our flow pretty quickly. We spend the evening reviewing footage, cracking jokes and visualizing the following day. There’s a collective feeling that it’ll be a productive one.
We love it when things pan out. Filming street with this big of a crew presents its fair share of challenges, with eyes darting in different directions and clip-hunger leading to a tear in the group’s appetite for teamwork. But aside from the clown-car situation going on in the basement, we haven’t been experiencing many overcrowding issues. Everyone puts on for everyone. If someone isn’t actively working on getting their own shot, they’re ready with a shovel in hand, manicuring the landing after each of someone else’s attempts, taking their turn with a camera, or doing whatever they can to help the homies achieve their goals.
Following a weeklong onslaught on various features around the city we make our way to a zone that would soon become the backdrop for my favorite memory of the entire trip. Tony had set his sights on a triple set with individual handrails leading down each staircase, originally locating it on Google Maps and leading us there at golden hour on our final day. With the sun quickly setting on the Badger State, we’re about to walk away with a hammer shot or nothing more by nightfall.
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