Meet Briony Johnson, the newest badass lady to take the Southern Hemisphere snowboard scene by storm. Who is she? Where on earth did she come from? How can she turn that good?
Briony is currently 24 and spends most of her time in Myoko, Japan, bombing the powder populated hills and dominating the Japan leg of the Women’s Freeride World Tour qualifying series. She has gelled into a solid freerider, boasting a handful of podiums at freeride events. She shows up, blows up and then retreats back to the hills for soul boarding. When she’s not competing, Briony is showing DCP, Romain and JPS around her local resort, Mt Hotham.
For someone who spends roughly five months neck deep in powder, she’s got some great tips on what’s hot and what’s not.
What’s your favourite board of all time?
The HelYes. by YES SNOWBOARDS
What boards are you riding this season?
Yes 420 on neck deep pow days and the HelYes. for every other day in between.
Do you have any mods you make to tweak your binding?
I like to tweak the forward lean just a tiny bit on my Now IPOs when I’m carving. It helps me get right over that edge. You know, little feet, girl problems.
Do you detune a board before you ride it?
Absolutely! I like to take the edge off and smooth out my board roughly just in from the widest point, all the way around the kick of the nose and the tail. That way, if I’m jibbing or doing a butter I’m confident I won’t catch an edge. Between my feet I don’t like to detune my edges too much; this is purely for when I’m freeriding and on exposed terrain and I feel I really need that edge control.
What’s your secret to getting your boots dialed?
Footbeds are your best friend! A great friend of mine, Joe Stanco -owner of Joey’s Myoko – customised a pair of footbeds for me and my feet have never been happier! I wear lace ups too. That way, I have full control over how my boots are tightened. I like to crank the liner in real tight and back the shell off just over the top of my foot. I find this helps with long riding days when your feet start aching after you’ve been charging for hours.
Tight, fitted or baggy pants?
Fitted! Any girl with muscly legs will probably agree with me here – tight pants are just uncomfortable and if you’re like me, you’ve probably blown a few pairs out after a heavy landing. Guilty! Fitted still makes me feel feminine, which I like, and baggy pants just don’t do it for me.
How do you wear in a new pair of boots?
Vacuum. That’s my secret, vacuum the whole house in your new boots and I guarantee, if you do this a few times your boots will be ready to shred. But if I’m in a hurry, I just throw on some loud music, dance and jump around until I’m tired and this also seems to do the trick! I recommend heat molding though, if it’s accessible.
What’s on trend this season?
One pieces! They have my vote. They keep the snow out completely, keep you warm and have a waist zip for us females who have to go to the bathroom the hard way.
We all imitate someone, who do you imitate for style?
Robin Van Gyn, backcountry queen. She is such a powerhouse, rides strong and has the balls to send it huge off natural features. I admire how she throws down and still tweaks her grabs to make her tricks always look stylish. Another one is Christy Prior, I love watching her in the park, always so solid but has her style locked. Her body placement on rails and jumps is something I watch out for. It’s so natural and she always looks comfortable on her board, something that is not always easy when riding park, but she kills it!
Board: 149HelYes.
Bindings: Now IPOs
Boots: ThirtyTwo TM2’s
Goggles: Oakley Fall Line
Jacket: Airblaster Freedom One Piece
Pants: Dakine Mackenzie Bib
Gloves: Yuki Threads Legit Mitt
Beanie: Yuki Threads Metallic Car Beanie
Pack: Jones Minimalist 35L
