We are almost halfway April, which means we are entering prime splitboarding season. Long days, stable snowpack and warmer temperatures call for big missions in the backcountry.
From my side, after already five months of splitboarding, and travelling to trade shows, splitfests, other kind of events, and talking to a lot of people in the mountains, the main thought that comes to my mind is: surfers, we want you back.
Let’s put it into perspective: it all started when I was talking to some of my friends that quit snowboarding around 8 years ago. At that time, snowboarding seemed to only be XXXL clothing, jibbing and super-wide stances. Of course freeriding and splitboarding were there, but it just didn’t have enough strength to stand out in the freestyle world. Some of those people were not attracted to that style and slowly gave up on snowboarding… and went towards surfing. Surfing gave them the connection with nature they were looking for, the simplicity and the quietness.
I don’t blame those people for leaving snowboarding aside, in a way it made sense.
However, in the last couple of years, surfy shapes are in bloom in the splitboarding market, like the Jones Storm Chaser, Venture Euphoria or the Rossignol Sushi. In addition, carving seems to be trending now again, and people are more willing to earn their turns. Korua Shapes is killing it with their video episodes carving all over the globe, and the short film Life of Glide by the legend Jeremy Jones follows this trend aswell.
The final conclusion of this short editorial is that the splitboarding scene will always have die-hard mountaineers looking to achieve the most extreme lines, but we need to show to the people that a splitboard is also a tool to have fun in the mountains, not only for no-fall riding. Surfers know how to work hard for their turns, looking for a remote destination, camping and waiting for the swell to come. After all, it’s not that different from splitboarding.
Surfers, see you in the mountains!
