Images: Matt Georges
Ever since we saw Arthur Longo going bonkers inbounds a few seasons ago, doing huge gaps and transfers all over the mountain, we had to have a chat with him. He’s been blowing minds worldwide! It’s safe to say, Arthur’s now the side hit king and has a very unique way of making something so simple, so sick.
It’s given us a whole new perspective on all those shitty traverses, green runs, cat tracks and anything else that can be jumped off. Hell, we may never step foot into the backcountry again.
Transfer: What project have you been focusing on this winter?
Arthur Longo: The season was truly amazing for me, I rode so much. We scored great snow pretty early in Europe and it kept storming all the way until the end of the winter. For that reason, I spent the rest of the season in the Alps after the trip we did around Vancouver to shoot ‘SHE’ in December. As opposed to the previous season, when I focused on only one movie (Landline), I took part in many projects and was switching up crews and destinations a lot. I filmed with Elias for his upcoming movie, with Vans for the project ‘First Layer’ and also shot some stuff with Tanner Pendleton. Then a little bit with Mat Crèpel too. He has a rad movie coming out in the fall. To end it off, I closed up winter with an awesome mellow train trip through Switzerland and Austria with Volcom. It was an awesome winter, everything felt smooth and I was always surrounded by really good friends.
Is that the way snowboarding is going, not so much emphasis on the one video part but being a part of more projects?
I think main movies and bigger productions are so important and I’m really thankful we get to see so many good flicks every year in which people dedicate a lot of passion and energy. On the other hand, it’s really enjoyable as a rider to switch things up to avoid getting stuck in the same kinda program all the time. I like to have a shorter perspective, a limited time frame to reach our best and juggle with whatever was possible to make during that time.
Are you planning on making another “SHE”?
Originally the plan was to make a solid one with all the ideas that were there, and that’s it. Then we did a second one that looked pretty much the same. I regret we didn’t capture more stuff from other friends yet, so I guess that this could happen in a future one. Regardless, I want to have more of “SHE” type of riding in different projects I’m involved with.
Did you have a plan to film this or did it just happen naturally?
I thought about it for a while, and I had it in my mind a long time before we did it. Eventually, I bought a camera and a gimbal and talked my friend Oli into it.
Have you always ridden the hill like this or did this evolve because you were bored with the mountain?
As far as I can remember I always loved to ride this way. Back when I was doing more contests and frequently riding pipe, sometimes I would see other riders straight lining down a slope to commute to the pipe as fast as possible. I couldn’t believe it. I have intense memories of side hits on my way to a contest where I thought it was a thousand times more fun, and I thought that it should be a thing of its own. Anyways, the best memories I can recall from the hill are when you’re with a group of friends hitting one thing after another, doing tricks, stopping, watching, falling, laughing… feeding each other with inspiration and good memories.
I feel that there is a new generation of riders that do more tricks on anything in their own way, a bit like a surfer utilising every second and all the variations that a wave offers. Talking about surfing, I certainly get inspired by it, as well as skateboarding and street snowboarding.
Maybe we don’t ride our resorts to their full potential, and instead should start to explore the possibilities right in front of us…
That’s true. And of course, I still think that there’s nothing better than fresh tracks and good terrain and all that but the perfect days are so rare that if you only look for them, you’d end up so frustrated. Also, most people don’t have the chance to chase conditions, so they ride whatever’s in front of them, whenever they have some free time. You have to be able to enjoy those days, regardless of conditions. Things are always going to be better somewhere else, so why not try to forget about somewhere else and make the most of what’s right in front of you?
Did you find most of this stuff naturally or did you have to put in some shovel time for the hits?
Sometimes there’s a little tuning to do. Some spots are just too good to pass up and let go. Hitting natural stuff is, of course, always preferable and I’m generally against too much building, like putting a take-off where there is nothing already and so forth… But man, if you’re just in for a few minutes of shoveling away for a fun rest of the day, you should definitely do it.
As Australians and Kiwis, we don’t seem to travel to Europe as much as other destinations to ride. Could you be so kind and let us in on your favorite hill over there, and why?
If this is true, you guys should definitely pay a visit! Riding in Europe could seem a little overwhelming at first when you don’t have an idea of the geography, but it’s actually really simple to read. Bear in mind that there are a lot of local weather systems so the differences in conditions from one region to another can change greatly. Luckily though, it’s super easy to travel around and choose your spots according to conditions. I don’t even want to name one place because I think we always end up in the same spots even though there’s so much more to discover. But if you could go to only one, I’d say go to Chamonix, my last crush, you’ll see why. Oh, maybe the best general advice I could give you is to avoid school holidays!
What about side country and out of bounds spots – any favourites?
Every region has its charms and specialties. It’s easy to travel around here, catch a flight or a train and switch up sceneries pretty quick. Towards the end of the winter, and the beginning of spring, nature is blooming. It can be warm, green and beautiful down in the valleys and still cold and all-time in the mountains. I think for a little “trip within the trip” in Spring, the island of Corsica in France is a must. Check it on Google images, and it will make more impact than my bad English.
