Zach Sanford: Riding Under The Influence

For the American snowboarder accustomed to an environment where snowboarding is first and foremost in the minds of many others and not only oneself, life in London can be disconcerting. Though the nearby domes offer respite with two "freestyle" nights per week, and there are an assortment of London shops in which to loiter and get stoked on shredding other days, snowboarding can still seem worlds away from the perpetually moist pavement of this soggy city. For these reasons, when snowboarding gets the odd mention in free daily papers, I always take notice. Though it’s of more relevance to holidaymakers than hardcore riders, the result of a recently published survey has piqued my interest.

Zach making the best of snow falling in the wrong place

Research conducted by More Than travel insurance finds that as many as 23% of British skiers and snowboarders have seven units of alcohol still lingering in their blood stream on the morning’s first chair. Being that this is nearly twice the legal limit for driving, it suggests a certain cavalier attitude in one of every four shredding Brits.

While not all are as gung-ho as the still-drunk 23%, 74% of those polled suggested that a heavy night of drinking does not affect one’s ability to shred properly the following day. A More Than spokesman said, “The findings of the research are extremely concerning. Brits abroad have a reputation for drinking to excess but throw a high-speed downhill sport into the mix and you have a very nasty combination. Drunk-driving is severely frowned upon and drunk-skiing should be too. It can be just as dangerous.”

What to make of this? Well, as one who opts for a puff over a pint when shredding is involved, I must say that snowboarding when drunk, either on a fresh binge or in the throes of a hangover, is incredibly unappealing. Admittedly, as practitioners (at least when the hours are dictated by chairlift) of an activity that typically ceases at four in the afternoon, hangovers, and specifically, the desire to shred despite them, are common amongst our ilk. But is the dedicated rider the problem?

Judging by the responses of British shredders I recently asked about the topic, I’d suggest not. None cited the effects of booze as being in any way beneficial to slashing, and while some choose to smoke grass while shredding, it doesn’t seem to have the same level of consequence.

A Denver lawyer, James H. Chalat, who specializes in personal injury cases arising from skiing accidents (Colorado is one place that does not view skiing collisions as a natural risk of the sport, in other words, one can be held liable for injuring other users of the slopes), says that over 29 years and hundreds of cases arising from skiing/snowboarding accidents, alcohol has been a factor in many, where as reefer has only been a factor in one legal decision in this time, and, believe it or not, that was a collision between two skiers!

UK Olympic pipe

While these results say more about the behavior of Brits on holiday in general rather than the holiday habits of dedicated shreds in particular, it is nevertheless important to catalog instances where snowboarding meets the mainstream, and acknowledge the ways they may shape public perception. Judging by the polite, accommodating response of the old bill to a group of us hitting a rail during the recent English snows, snowboarding is sufficiently under the radar here to have avoided the bum rap that may plague it elsewhere. With eyes on future anomalous English snows and the vast collection of architecture that will remain unridden until then, let’s keep it that way.