Training, trips abroad and time with family: the world’s best boarders prepare for new season

How have the world’s best riders been preparing themselves physically, mentally and financially for the new FIS Snowboard Alpine World Cup season?

“Putting down the squeegee and picking up my snowboard,” posted Cody Winters (USA) on Instagram in October after packing up his summer window-cleaning business ready for the 2022/23 campaign on the slopes.

The 22-year-old started Winters Window Washing in his hometown of Steamboat Springs, Colorado to fund his snowboard career, stating “this company is the reason I am able to travel the world to snowboard and I am extremely proud of that”.

Financial management is just one cog in the riders’ preparation. With the World Cup series running from 10 December to 19 March – pausing from 19 February to 5 March for the Bakuriani 2023 FIS Freestyle Ski, Snowboard and Freeski World Championships – pre-season is key. There’s little time to regroup once the 18 events across 11 locations are under way.

The boarders have had a little extra time to hone their training, nutrition, mental and physical health ahead of the tour’s start due to the week’s postponement of the Livigno, Italy-hosted competition. While a lack of snow delayed that event, how have the class of 2022/23 readied themselves for the months ahead?

Post-Olympic timeout

A well-earned break from the emotional and physical toll of the 2021/22 season, which included the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, was a priority for the riders. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many headed to warmer climes.

The 2022 parallel slalom World Cup winner, Switzerland’s Julie Zogg, practised her golf swing in Mauritius. Beijing 2022 parallel giant slalom silver medallist Daniela Ulbing (AUT) headed to Mallorca for sea, cycling and good food with her boyfriend and fellow elite athlete, slalom canoeist Felix Oschmautz.

Austria’s Alex Payer and Sabine Schoeffmann, meanwhile, the couple who paired up to win the mixed team parallel giant slalom World Cup on home snow in Simonhöhe in January, went mountain biking in Naturns, Italy and paddleboarding in their home town of Carinthia.

Activity clearly remains a priority even during downtime. Arvid Auner, the 25-year-old Austrian who claimed a first individual World Cup win in January – beating compatriot and three-time Olympic medallist Benjamin Karl to the top step – enjoyed a plethora of sports from basketball to football to ice hockey and skateboarding.

Another snowboarding couple, Switzerland’s Ladina Jenny and Dario Caviezel – who opted not to compete together in the team event last season – hiked in the mountains of Graubünden. They also had a little fun in the studio for a couples’ TV show, ‘I or You’, answering questions on their relationship.

Family time

Family time was also key. Winters celebrated his brother getting married, and two-time world champion Andi Prommegger (AUT) enjoyed bike rides with his daughter. Double Olympian Oskar Kwiatkowski (POL) enjoyed simple home comforts such as mushroom picking while taking his dog for a walk in Bialy Dunajec, a village in southern Poland.

Last season’s overall World Cup winner, Germany’s Ramona Theresia Hofmeister, made sure her nutrition was on-point, for herself and the environment. “As an athlete it’s important that I eat consciously, and with regional and seasonal food you can even save CO2,” the 26-year-old said on Instagram, encouraging others – elite athlete or not – to adopt her strategy.

Harry Potter fan Ester Ledecka (CZE), meanwhile, headed to the UK for a trip to the Hogwarts studios and to see The Lion King at the theatre. The three-time Olympic champion in Alpine skiing and snowboarding also relaxed by windsurfing and waterskiing in Greece after defending her parallel giant slalom title in Beijing in February. Unfortunately, a training injury has delayed the 27-year-old’s return to competition. A first appearance in the new year is now the aim.

Training days

In April, Zogg posted: “Vacation’s over, time to get back to training”, a road-bike trip with the Swiss team in Sardinia among the methods helping the squad back to full fitness.

Austria’s team used parallel skateboarding to return to the rhythm of Alpine snowboarding. Auner posted a cool bird’s-eye view:

In early September, 2019 parallel slalom world champion Zogg had her first glacier training of the year but many athletes had to be creative in chasing snow due to poor conditions in Europe where many would usually prepare.

Different athletes took different approaches. Some continued the tradition of heading to climes further afield. The men’s overall champion last season, Republic of Korea’s Lee Sangho, trained at Mt Hutt in New Zealand, while Winters headed to Chile.

Others needed to think more outside the box.

Athletes including Payer and Schoeffmann found themselves training at SnowWorld Landgraaf in the Netherlands. Payer concluded: “I totally agree that a supersize fridge is a strange place for the first training camp of the season, but if you believe it or not it was a good one!”

“Fun fact,” his mid-October post continued, “half of the European racing elite showed up there while we stayed. Looks like everyone has to deal with similar problems.”

Payer and Schoeffmann would also usually travel during autumn in search of the best training conditions, zigzagging from Switzerland to Italy, to the Netherlands or Austria. But the couple felt too much time had been spent in the car chasing snow in previous years. This time they hired a campervan for a month, staying wherever conditions were best. Austria’s Kaunertaler Gletscher proved a favourite spot.

There have been more days off from training on snow than usual for the Alpine snowboarders ahead of the 2022/23 season, which inadvertently created more time for a less pleasurable activity – housekeeping.

“As most of you already know I am really bad in taking breaks from doing something,” posted Payer, “so the days off haven’t been easy but necessary. I tried my best, cleaned up the flat, restructured the cellar, got the terrace ready for winter but if there is a chance to snowboard it’s hard to say no...”

All riders will agree with that.