Says Standard: "The Winter of 2009 will go down in history as one of the most transitional times that snowboarding has ever faced..."
July 14, 2009, 5:01 PM
By: Tracy Anderson
The outlook is dark, the snowboard industry, tight. It's a survival of the fittest. But there's a light at the end of the tunnel. Standard Films can see it.
This is "Black Winter." The teaser doesn't mess around. It blasts Lamb of God, it's loud, intense. And it's full of bangers.
Travis Robb, director of "Black Winter," gave ESPN a few hints as to what we'll see with the full release. To start, Torstein Horgmo will have his most complete segment to date with Standard. The crew had a huge response to last year's top-to-bottom run he did at Northstar, so they created something similiar this year but at Park City with Jim Mangan and his park crew: all custom features with the last one being an 80-foot jump. Horgmo also put some time in the backcountry, and word is he nailed three different 1080 variations off one jump.
Fellow Norwegian Andreas Wiig filmed with Horgmo and brought more of that good Scandinavian energy. Wiig also locking down his strongest part ever with Standard. Impressive that Horgmo and Wiig have full parts when considering the number of contests they compete in.
On the big mountain side of things, Xavier de le Rue is a name to watch for. The French rider brings some serious all mountain flavor, with lots of footage of his winning runs at the Freeride World Tour. And then there's Xavier and Alaska—let's just say he likes to go fast. Real fast.
Mixing big mountain and big freestyle, there's the quickly rising star Lonnie Kauk. This will be his first real segment to date, much of it filmed in Terrace, B.C. He brings the freestyle aspect to large natural terrain, but can also put it down in the park. The rumor? Closing part.
The street flavor will be felt more than ever in "Black Winter," with parts from rail champ Halldor Helgason, jib rookie Jason Dubois from Quebec, as well as Andrew Geeves. Production Manager Waide Hoyt says it's the most urban riding you've ever seen in a Standard film.
In fact, about two-thirds of the riding cast is new this year. The roster includes Torstein Horgmo, Eric Jackson, Leanne Pelosi, Lonnie Kauk, Xavier de le Rue, Chas Guldemond, Andrew Geeves, Jason Dubois, Ben Lynch, Mark Landvik, Seb Toots, Andreas Wiig.
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Contributors
Tracy Anderson
Drinks coffee. Writes about snowboarding. Enjoys a strong snus. Appreciates a good back lip.
Mary Fenton
Would rather be riding pow, sucking at skateboarding or thinking up new names for her deaf dog and fake band.
Colin Whyte
Below the Fold. Beyond the Pale. Between the Lines. Beneath the Rose. He's a Secret Society of One.
Jesse Huffman
Loves a cold a.m. shred and late day skate. Thinks green is the new black, but should really be the new normal.
Brad Farmer
Grows seasonal crops. Where there's powder and shred news, a Farmer will follow.
Blair Habenicht
A Northwest-grown snow slider with a tendency to blow off any obligations if the snow is falling.
Nate Deschenes
Blessed with the attention span of a gnat. Prefers a #2 Ticonderoga and Trapper Keeper to a MacBook.
Tim Brodhagen
Tim Brodhagen shreds the ice coast on the reg, speaks Portuguese and almost never eats breakfast.
Melissa Larsen
Melissa Larsen likes slashing, sleeping, and talking smack. Not necessarily in that order.
