When planning any trip around snowboarding and the winter, one begins to watch the weather and gear up for the conditions ahead. Regarding the less than ideal conditions I found the previous year in Andorra, I was crossing my fingers and watching the weather reports endlessly. Let’s just say that the weather obeyed and we timed it right. Andorra had received well over a meter the week of my arrival and the streets were stacked with snow.
My eyes danced as we drove into Vallnord, with the 2 lane streets narrowed and buildings covered I couldn’t help to begin looking at spots and allowing my mind to wander through all the potential. Immediately after unloading the car we jumped back in and began exploring street spots. Within a mellow 15 mile radius we must have found at least 50 spots with real potential. Then it was just down to rounding up the crew and making an attack plan for the next week.
After enjoying the powder for a couple of days in the amazing Vallnord resorts it was time to hit the streets. With the help of local David López-Materos aka Yopis and Madrid buddies Lalo and Arturo, we set up feature after feature and stayed productive.
When you take snowboarding to the streets in foreign countries you never really know what to think. Not only about what features you will be able to find but also what the locals and local law enforcement will think. For the most part, I’ve found most foreign countries to be almost confused by the event of snowboarding in the streets. A lot of people may stop and watch, enjoying the surprise of something new. In Andorra this was the case with one spot in particular, having the owner’s son of the location actually come out and help pull the bungee. I found this to be pretty entertaining and wished it was always this easy; something that in the States the owner would have made us leave or called the cops on us, but he actually told his son to help us as he watched on. I can’t say I wasn’t a little surprised by the reaction of the locals, but I definitely wasn’t complaining.
What I liked about the street mission in Andorra, not being the classic city, was the fact that we had to get a bit more creative to hit the spots. Dropping off roofs, jumping off roads, and sliding fences it was. This aspect of stepping out of the standard spot check list and really racking our brains for unique features added to the experience. This aspect of snowboarding and filming in specific is something I truly appreciate. It’s easy to get stuck in our ways of riding what’s in front of us, and what’s easily accessible. It’s not ’till the barrier is broke and our mind is opened that the true adventure of snowboarding is found.
