Everyone likes getting a good photo, and a true banger can be the one of the highlights of a pro snowboarder’s career. This winter we asked some of our favourite riders to pick out their all-time best picture. First up, Dom Harington:
“This picture was taken at the Kuanertal Board Test back in 2008. Johno Verity had spotted this road gap that had been built by some Austrians a few weeks earlier, and one afternoon a few of us went up to see if it was still doable. Normally it’s bad etiquette hit a spot that someone else had spent time building, as it takes away all the hard work that they had put into sculpting the jump, but the landing was so trashed and the jump had obviously laid in ruins for quite some time. I thought if anyone was brave enough to jump it then they deserved to give it a go.
This photo reminds me of one of the best sessions I ever had with my friend Nelson Pratt
One of the reasons I like this photo is because it reminds me of one of the best sessions I ever had with my friend Nelson Pratt, who sadly died a few years after this shot was taken. Nelson, Johno and I shaped the take-off as best we could whilst I tried not to think of what would happen if you somehow caught an edge on the run-in. Johno volunteered himself to go first and everyone fell silent as if watching a golfer preparing to tee off – except that a bad slice on this particular shot could have fatal consequences. Before Johno dropped in, he and Nelson hugged. I found that strange as everyone stayed so solemn, and all it did was make me more nervous.
As soon as Johno safely made it over the road, the atmosphere flipped to pure stoke and everyone was screaming and cheering. Nelson seemed fairly relaxed about hitting the gap and it was great to watch how awesome he was at snowboarding. I’d seen him hit a lot of park jumps but in this situation you could see how confident he was on his board. I only backside three’d this jump but the sensation of riding away after previously being so scared to hit the thing was easily one of the best feelings I’ve ever had.
Thanks to Dan Milner for taking this shot. I’ve been lucky enough to shoot with Dan on a number of occasions and it’s always been an adventure, but this was definitely one of the more memorable sessions.”
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