Andrew Hardingham

Freeride Collective

Home Town

Banff, Canada

Home Mountain

Rocky and Kootenay Range

Social

Interview

2016 Season Highlight:

I had the pleasure of staying home for most of the season and riding in my favorite mountains, the Canadian Rockies & the Purcells. This year I tried to attack them from the west side, not the east side like I usually had. I found a completely different snow belt on the west side and it meant more powder and better access to larger terrain. The trees were different as well - huge old-growth fur and cedar forests. So cool to experience a new style of terrain right in my own back yard.

Favorite Jones boards:

Ultracraft 156cm. It seems to be the board that most matches my style of riding - powerful powder and chutes. I feel like my slashes are more explosive and the leg burn is almost non-existent when I ride the Hovercraft!

What inspires you to keep snowboarding?

Girls… girls and flying. Flying high speed through deep powder on a steep slope is the best feeling on earth! If you can show me a bester feeling i'll show you a shiny Canadian dollar...

How do you stay calm and confident when riding exposed lines?

I love finding my comfort zone and then going pushing past it. I'm not actually comfortable very often when i'm riding at my limit. That might not be the answer your looking for but that's how I push my self. What does bring me into a place I feel relaxed is assessing every possible "BAD" outcome a line can have. That way, i'm ready to make split second decisions when shit hits the fan - how to hit a rock, what direction to ride out of an avalanche or the appropriate speed to leave a line. It helps me cope.

How has splitboarding changed your view of the backcountry?

I move more slowly so I look at everything properly. When you have more time and perspective you can better approximate the success rate of a technical line and then make an informed decision about whether the line is worth riding.

What is one lesson you learned in the backcountry recently?

Travel with people who can help you make good decisions and help you get out of bad ones. Also be a contributor, take the courses and practice your skills…always.

What's on your radar for the 2017 season?

I want to show the similarities between my summer activities and how they directly interact with my winter ones. A passionate snowboarder never stops snowboarding in their mind. Even when I'm hiking in the summer, I see lines I want to ride down in the winter and often I come back to them. I love that about snowboarding!

@hardinghama

Andrew Hardingham

Home Town

Home Mountain

Social

Interview

My Setup

Aviator

Hovercraft

Ultracraft Splitboard

Carbon Solution Splitboard

Higher 30L R.A.S. Backpack

Customers Services

Base Camp