Tom Sims was one of snowboarding’s pioneers, a cast-iron legend who sadly passed away in 2012. Last weekend, Soda Springs played host to the Tom Sims Retro World Championships.
The Californian resort first hosted the World Snowboard Championships in 1983, an event that stoked the rivalry Sims had with his east-coast counterpart, Jake Burton. As well as slalom racing, which was the standard for snowboard competition, this was the first to feature a halfpipe. The handmade kind, of course, and a far cry from what you’ll see at the X Games.
Last weekend’s event featured both disciplines, with only retro gear allowed. The list of legends who turned out included The Palm himself, Shaun Palmer, as well as Kevin Delaney, Shawn Farmer, Bob Klein and Christie Elder.
Even Danny Davis and Mark McMorris showed up, boosting as high out the ditch on rickety old boards as most of us would hope to do on the latest gear.
Legendary snowboarder Chuck Barfoot called this the greatest contest ever held, and judging from the footage and photos, he may have a point. There’s loads more good stuff from this year, as well as video highlights from those ’80s comps, on the event’s Facebook page – check it out!
