"It's no question that this season is unlike any other, but maybe, just maybe it will bring skiing and riding back to those simpler days." Alex Showerman gives us her take on how the early season backyard booter sesh brings snowboarding back to its roots - no lifts, beacons, or reservations needed. 

In many parts of the country, we are anxiously awaiting enough snow to begin to venture into the backcountry. Reservations and COVID restrictions have made getting in those early season laps at the resort to get a little bit more difficult. So the team brought it back to our roots. Hanging out on a mellow slope sessioning a jump and listening to tunes with our friends. 

I was brought back to one of my very first times snowboarding, it was a November snowstorm and we built a little booter in a field out of a piece of plywood, some old tires, and threw what little snow we had on the ramp. I could barely turn but egged on by my friends I hit it anyway and directly nose-dived off the end and stuffing my nose so hard it went into the dirt below. 

Undeterred, I kept hitting that janky jump enjoying the early winter snow with my friends. It was the day I hold responsible for getting me hooked on this life long passion. In fact, much of my early days of snowboarding was far from the resort. I was the only person who skied or snowboarded in my family and we didn't have a ton of money, so hiking whatever hill I could find and riding down was how I taught myself. 

Here I am nearly two decades later, and I got the call to join the super talented crew of Corey Van Aken, Brendon Glenwright, Carly Finke, Zach Griffin and Jacob J. Despite the freestyle vibe and strong talent on hand, the scene was decidedly Weston. We focused on helping each other's progression over one-upmanship. Cheers and socially distant air high fives for each other were given out whether a  backflip was stomped or an awkward straight air landing on your butt. 

Walking away from it I found myself feeling like that kid again. Snowboarding was not about venturing off deep into the backcountry for some big objective, or the glitz and glamour of the fancy resort. It was just pure joy of getting together with friends and spending a beautiful day outside. 

It's no question that this season is unlike any other, but maybe, just maybe it will bring skiing and riding back to those simpler days. We can strip away the stress and anxiety that our taking it so seriously has created and go back to the days like Marc Peruzzi discusses in Outside Magazine where we all boot up in the parking lot and eat squished PB & J's from a ziplock bag. We can find joy in the simple pleasures like this past weekend, where no lifts, no avalanche beacons, no snowmobiles, no reservations, and no apres bar are needed. Just some good friends, sunshine, and our favorite boards. 

Riders Choice:

• Corey Van Aken - Logger
• Brendon Glenwright - Logger
• Carly Finke - Rise
• Alex Showerman - Japow
• Zach Griffin - Hatchet 
• Jacob J McEachern - Logger