COVER Robin Van Gyn calls 2016, when Full Moon was released, a “make it or break it” year for her and many of her compatriots. Here, she makes it in Haines, AK, on her first run of the day. Robin’s part in the film earned her Women’s Video Part of the Year from Snowboarder Magazine and solidified her as one of the top big mountain riders in the world. Surprisingly, this shot never made print until now. Read more about Robin’s perseverance in a profile on pg. 062. Photo: Ben Girardi UP TOP 01 “Takashi Minamiura and I have adventured around Hakuba together ever since we were young. This was my first time shooting last season. Snow fell almost every day in January, so this moment of sunlight was a rare opportunity.” Photo: Tsutomu Endo 02 “At first we went to this spot kind of unprepared. I didn’t have a traction pad, but I tried it anyways… around 60 times. We came back two days later with some grip on the top of my board, but I still battled a couple hours to get it. Doing the inrun unstrapped with a winch was super sketchy. This was definitely the most satisfying make of my life.”—Gabriel Gosselin Photo: Jaysson Gallant 03 “Nearing the end of a full day of riding at Stowe, VT, in March 2021, we’d reached our final drop-in point on the ridgeline before descending into the val-ley. We sat in a circle among the snow ghosts, soaking up the sun and taking in the peak of winter in Vermont. Without warning a raven landed on a tree about 30 feet from our circle and started pecking at the top of a snow-coated tree. It only stayed there for a couple minutes before flying away. Apparently, ravens do this when they feel threatened.” Photo: Nathanael Asaro 06-07 04 “It was one of the deeper days last season, which generally lacked for snow. We had received about a foot and a half of light snow overnight and started off the morning riding lift-accessed woods in the sun. As we decided to venture up and out into the surrounding backcountry, a storm was brewing. By the time we reached the strap-in point the winds had picked up and snow was flying. Here, Tomas Ruprecht, Ralph Kucharek and Steve Dave are preparing to drop into a foot and a half of blower just below the summit of Mt. Mansfield in Stowe, VT.” Photo: Nathanael Asaro “Nora Beck had been in Minnesota for most of February, and on this day late in the month it was 45 degrees and the snow was melting fast. Dan Tyler, Blake Geis, Alexis Roland, Nora and I were making do with what little snow was left on the ground. After a handful of attempts and a few slams Nora got this front blunt with a hop over the chain to land back in front blunt.” Photo: Stephan Jende 08 05 “Toward the end of last season, Victor de Le Rue linked up with Fredi Kalber-matten to film for Victor’s new movie, Versatile . The forecast called for fresh snow above 8,200 feet on the Saas-Fee glacier, but when we arrived, there was much less than expected. Victor asked Fredi if there was a crevasse he could jump over and Fredi had just the spot. We stayed on the mountain late getting everything set up and returned the next morning to hit it. But when we got there, I could tell no one was in a rush to drop in. Messing up the speed on a gap like this would be a total disaster. Eventually, Victor dropped first, and we were stoked to find that everything lined up perfectly. Victor landed five tricks and Fredi got six. My favorite from him was this slow backside one that he styled out at the end of the session.” Photo: Ahriel Povich “Ben Ferguson, his brother Gabe and some of the Burton crew were lurking around Jackson, WY just before the first stop of the Natural Selection Tour. When I linked up with them for a day in one of my favorite spots, it was my first time meeting Ben. Seeing young riders with fresh eyes on features is always wild—watching the way they read the terrain and find creative new ways to ride it. Ben’s frontside 360 seen here was kind of a warm-up for the event, and he crushed the Natural Selection course a week later.” Photo: Ben Gavelda 09 “Mark Carter and I have stared at this rocky spine wall for many years—he told me it’s been on his mind for about 10 seasons. Conditions and motivation had never quite lined up until last February when the face got a nice coating of snow. The entrance is sketchy, the rock is razor sharp, and the whole thing is super steep. Mark managed to pull it off, practically wheelieing down the thing. The scratch of board on rocks echoed through the valley and completely destroyed his base, too.” Photo: Ben Gavelda THE SNOWBOARDER’S JOURNAL 015
The Snowboarder's Journal The Snowboarder's Journal 19.1: Page 15
