The plan was simple. Load up a van with surfboards and snowboards and spend the next two weeks either surfing or snowboarding through South America. The crew was set up perfect for this with two pro surfers, Shane Dorian and Ian Walsh and two pro snowboarders, Wolle Nyvelt and myself. From the start our goals were obvious, the snowboarders just wanted to surf and the surfers just wanted to snowboard. After four days of firing left point breaks, and with 5 of our 7 surfboards broken, the surfers got there wish and we haeded to the mountains.
Mid winter conditions were waiting for us and we spent our days doing long hikes into the backcountry riding untouched powder. The surfers progression was ridicoulouse and they moved throught the mountains with ease. After 5 days spent hiking we rewarded ourselves with a few Heli runs. With tired legs and cooked brains from being above 14,000 feet we ended the trip with a few more days of surfing. Going back and forth from insane surf to snow had us all shaking our heads in disbelief and no one wanted the trip to end.
-Jeremy Jones
We left for Chile in August with a world class posse featuring pro surfers Shane Dorian and Ian Walsh, and pro snowboarders Jeremy Jones and Wolle Nyvelt.
The trip was a crossover mission. The snowboarders would surf with pro surfers and the surfers would ride with pro snowboarders. Everyone was extremely fired up about crossing over between disciplines, and seeing if they could pull it off. One thing was for sure from the first day, the surfers wanted to go snowboarding and the snowboarders wanted to go surfing.
We started with surfing on the south coast of Chile. We rocked up to the break to find solid 5 foot swell barreling perfectly on a sand bottom left point break. Jeremy and Wolle sacked up and paddled out with the Shane and Ian. The wave was heavy with a ripping current. Jeremy and Wolle took numerous sets on the head but ended up getting some really good waves. Meanwhile Shane and Ian showed their surfing prowess, getting handfuls of glassy barrels. The wave proved it's might as they collectively broke 4 boards in the first two sessions. The big question was whether Shane and Ian were purposely breaking their boards so they could go snowboarding. The conspiracy theory was on.
After two more days of surfing the swell waned. Shane and Ian continued to break boards until we got down to one board left between them. They claimed we had no choice, no boards means no surfing, and we set our sites on going to the mountains. We drove the five ours to Termas de Chilian and checked into the MI Lodge for a stint in the Andes.
Our first day we hiked a couple hours to a really good zone to ride and film. The snow was soft and the avi conditions were low danger. Shane and Ian bucked up and hung in with Jeremy and Wolle. They took their lumps on the hikes and rode some good lines at high altitude. The next few days we continued our touring mission and hit a bunch of lines as well as building some cool jumps. Shane and Ian are addicted to getting air, and collectively hit at least a hundred jumps in five days. It was game on.
Our snowboarding climaxed with a drive to Valle Nevado for a day of heli boarding at 14,000 feet. The pilot had an oxygen tube built into his helmet, a TGR first. Shane and Ian were about as stoked as you could be as we took off. After a couple moderate warm-up runs Jeremy and Wolle took Shane and Ian to the top of a peak. It was a 45 degree 2,000 foot face that looked like Alaska. It was legit. Shane and Ian both had the run of their life. They shed their fears and sent it, to nobody's surprise. It was impressive. The day ended with a couple bouts of altitude sickness as we evacuated our patients with the help of oxygen provided by the pilot.
After we landed the heli, with the prodding of Jeremy and Wolle, we got into the vans and headed back to the ocean for a last couple days of surfing. Shane and Ian tried their best to keep us in the mountains for more snowboarding but Jeremy and Wolle were hell bent for surf. Off we went to the coast.
We arrived at the break to find small surf. Jeremy and Wolle stayed in the water all day, got a bunch of good rides and couldn't wipe the smiles off their faces. Shane and Ian were out of boards so they dabbled in a couple sessions and watched the boys having fun. It was then time to load up and head to Santiago for our flights home.
The trip was a complete success. The idea of crossover proved to be a hit by all accounts. Wolle and Jeremy rode big surf with Shane and Ian. Ian and Shane rode big mountain lines with Jeremy and Wolle. Each athlete wanted to ride the others' respective discipline rather than their own. Surfers addicted to snowboarding and snowboarders addicted to surfing. Everyone got on the plane with high stoke.
Chile is an amazing country of beautiful people, scenery and culture. We are going back and you should too.
-Corey Gavitt
Jeremy Jones & Corey Gavitt