“It was Valentine’s Day and Garrett was in Revel-stoke, BC, exploring the backcountry with his date Johan Rosen, while his heart was probably partly in Portugal with his lady. Front 3 Melon locked in all the way, most likely the same as his FaceTime connection later that night.” Photo: Daniel Stewart Words Jason Robinson arrett Warnick, aka Worm, is one of the most underrated snowboarders out there. He’s resilient, an underground hero, seldom receiving the recognition he deserves. Granted, the 29-year-old is a bit of an enigma in the snowboard world. Instead of growing jaded, he hasn’t lost his focus, and has remained commendably respectful and humble. It’s hard to appreciate the struggles when going through them, yet inevitably we feel gratitude about the hardships we’ve endured. As one of Garrett’s former team managers said, “To those whose opinions actually matter within snowboarding, he’s recognized as an A-list talent.” Which was followed up with, “I wish we could’ve done more to support him.” As the adage goes, “Wish in one hand, shit in the other, see which one fills up first.” Fortunately, Worm knows his value and refuses to sit idle as empty promises fill his hand. Despite setbacks, Worm’s ability to remain highly motivated commands respect. With confidence to grab the reins and take control of his destiny, he is creating opportunities to showcase his incred-ible abilities. Truthfully, I can’t say I feel bad for globally known pros who are stepping out of $500k homes to load up new sleds into dope trucks to go get shots, but I certainly don’t envy them. I’m not saying they aren’t deserving of success, or that financial freedom wouldn’t be nice. Yet 30 years from now, sitting around a campfire with their grandkids, what’ll they tell them? That they were the most well-marketed, best-compensated snowboarder of their day? Grandchildren are gonna want to hear about the time you rode a bicycle to Alaska midwinter. How you hiked for days, swam across a river, broke into an old mining shack for shelter, all to ride a Haines classic at dawn—and ride it well. If I was one of those hypothetical grandkids, I’d prefer the inspiration of these stories over any level of pro-model royalties. Because when it’s all said and done, you can’t put a price tag on this man’s tales and you most certainly can’t buy his grit. G GARRETT WARNICK 043
The Snowboarder's Journal The Snowboarder's Journal 21.4: Page 43
