Ripzone

PLACE OF ORIGIN: North Vancouver
DATE OF BIRTH: December 05 1983, Presents welcome!;)
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Whistler
TEAM RIDER SINCE: 1997

I'm just a girl that has a passion for the mountains and having fun. I love what I do, from competing to free riding, I don't think there's a day that goes by in the mountains that I don't have a huge smile on my face! I like hanging out with good, passionate, nice people, and don't have time for the negative ones. I might be a little too competitive for my own good, don't play cards with me! I like to challenge myself as often as I can, I love to learn new things, I'm the one always asking questions. xoxo

PLACE OF ORIGIN: Montreal
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Montreal / Squamish
TEAM RIDER SINCE: 2005
STANCE: Regular

PLACE OF ORIGIN: Kamloops, BC
DATE OF BIRTH: October 9, 1984
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Whistler, BC
TEAM RIDER SINCE: 2008

My name is Helen.. I am from Kamloops, BC but have been living in Whistler for the last 9 years. I love the outdoors and being active; biking, hiking, running, gym time.. everything to get the body ready for the winter months. I've been doing some correspondence courses in the off season to keep my mind busy. They are on Nutrition which I find super interesting. I am somewhat extreme about health and nutrition but it's kinda "my thing" so it works for me! There's a lot worse of hobbies to have than that. My pet peeve is indecisive people.. make up your mind! My bad habit is my impatience. I get it from my dad.

My brother started me on the board about 12 years ago at Sun Peaks. He is one of my biggest influences growing up and he definitely beat me up enough then that I know how to take a beating when out on my board now. We were part of a snowboard club called West- Tech. We would travel all over BC to boardercross and halfpipe events. I was part of the Canadian National Development Team for quite a while before I decided it wasn't for me and I wanted to get into the backcountry side of the snowboard industry.

PLACE OF ORIGIN: Ottawa, Ont
DATE OF BIRTH: Dec 13 1985
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Whistler, BC

My name is Justin Van Der Poelen, I grew up on the eastside of Ottawa in a small town called Cumberland where i learned to snowboard on the side of a quarry. people call me a slew of different things: Gypsy son, Jerry Christ, VDP i guess all of which show my different personalities. All of my alter egos besides Jerry dwell deep within the world of snowboarding. Jerry on the other hand likes to party...alot, not to worry though even Jerry has manners. This winter I have been keeping him in hibernation in order to stay motivated and it has payed off so far.

In my off time im juggling work, family time and playing music with friends, I just learned how to surf this past year and i want to make it part of my life because of how amazing and free it feels. One can only snowboard for so long so in the next 5 years I intend to get my degree in business and transfer all i have learned about marketing myself in the snowboard industry to my future job Hopefully within the same industry. i love free riding and feeling really nervous before dropping in, landing something i didnt think was possible halfway through the air, spring pipe runs, greasing a handrail first tee, traveling and meeting nice people.

PLACE OF ORIGIN: Vancouver
DATE OF BIRTH: August 10 1984
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Whistler

My friends call me shwank and i like snowboarding more than anything. What do i like about snowboarding you ask? All the scantily clad young ladies. Not to mention traveling, partying, shredding and acting like 5 year olds with all my best friends all season long. There is a good chance this lifestyle may not take me anywhere besides the clinic and I really do wish cared! I have always done what i want and I would not trade it for the world.

What about life outside of snowboarding you ask? My summers are mostly spent working construction. I have been doing it since i was young because i like it and it pays. Its really important to have this 'normal life' time because it keeps me home and healthy for at least a few months a year before the voleurz party bus picks me up for another video tour! Plus anytime i can fit a surf trip in to the mix i am always down- call me

PLACE OF ORIGIN: Vancouver Island, Canada
DATE OF BIRTH: March 5, 1981
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Vancouver, Canada
TEAM RIDER SINCE: 2004

I've been snowboarding for about 15 years now and it's been the biggest anchor in my life since day one. I grew up in a small town and didn't feel like I really had a path to follow until snowboarding opened up the doors for me. I've been fortunate enough to ride all over the world, meet some of my best friends in life while riding for Ripzone, and learned to love and appreciate snowboarding for everything it is. These days I work with several magazines and get to write a lot and travel for articles. Showing up in a foreign area with a group of like minded people to create something centralized around snowboarding is probably the most fulfilling scenario I could ask for. When off the board, I try to surf a lot, ride my bike around Vancouver, and drink beers with good people. I don't have a lot to say about wisdom, but be happy with what you have in life and always make the most of it.