YoBeat: Making Fun of Snowboarding Since 1997

Ready and waiting…

Some believe the swivels, tail drags, combos, and the ever common half-assed boardslides are destroying the style and skill that set snowboarding apart from rollerblading and extreme scootering. Thankfully the folks at Bonfire hired Jarad Hadi, Tyler Verigan, and Kevin Stevenson to judge the 12th annual Bonfire Pipe to Pipe. This panel was focused on style, skill, and danger factor. Their first order of business? Outlaw all rollerblade related tricks. If there was one way to win this event, it was with quality tricks and massive/dangerous air time.

Jarad Hadi is no stranger to danger.

The contest was split into three heats, an Am qualifier, a Pro/Am final, and a game of
“Ham” to crown a champion. The judges, and their celebrity entourage, didn’t acknowledge the rail jam setup because they wanted to see one thing; danger. Even celebrity announcer Scotty Arnold, or for you younger snowboarders Arnie 5000, passed the mic around and everyone asked for the same thing; air time. With all this pressure, the missing ingredient, danger, had finally been added to the day.

From left to right; Salomon TM Java Fernandez, Evan LeFebvre, Scotty Arnold, Jason Hume, Tyler Verigan, Ben Lynch, Kevin Stevenson, Nick Dirks, Jarad Hadi, Some guy…

The gold medal of air-related crashes was a half backflip over the double kink. The kid landed so hard on the back of his neck that he managed to press his kneecaps and neck into the snow at once. To rival the failed gymnast a die-hard, do-what-you-can-to-impress type youngster shot the moon on the wallride. After his flight, this random hero dropped roughly ten feet onto his head. Not one of the judges saw this swan dive, but the screams of those surrounding the impact crater got the everyone’s attention. My favorite crash of the day was brought to you by Salomon’s Sawyer Dean, who got bucked from the donkey dick onto his side. The fall was a fluke, and not something Sawyer saw coming, but the quote that followed almost four hours later was priceless. “Yeah I’m OK, but I’m still coughing up blood.”

Sawyer Dean is unsure as to why he is sideways…

These falls, and many others, were brutal for one reason: the heads in attendance put serious pressure on the kids to perform. Scotty Arnold, media geeks from both Transworld and Snowboarder, team managers, Tim Windell, multiple Skeleton Crew members and at least a dozen other people to send sponsor me tapes. The unsponsored, underpaid, and hungry snowboarders wanted to prove their gusto to not only win the $1000 cash prize, but to hopefully get noticed as well. The end result? Great falls, some injuries, and plenty of memories.

Big Red with a proper tailpress.

Nice job baggy blue, a squared frontboard.

Eventually enough kids hurt themselves to quench the judges’ thirst for blood. The game of SHRED, which was reduced to SNOW, and then again to HAM due to rain, was the final round for the day’s standouts. Riders came down a tunnel of heckling fans, photographers, filmers, and Skeleton Crew elite to chuck their meat onto a downrail. The girls, well they fell a lot. But the boys built a dramatic little battle. In the end Windells digger Scott Hoffman went head to head with event DJ and Cobra Dogs employee Matty Mo. Between hiking all day, spinning metal and hip-hop in-between runs, and Scott Hoffman’s ability to spin a lot, Matty was defeated. Scott Hoffman was crowned king of the snow portion of Pipe to Pipe. I think people called him Scotty Banger for a while, but that nickname was dumb and I refused to acknowledge it.

Pressure cooker of a run-in.

12th annual Pipe to Pipe snowboarding superstar, Scott Hoffman.

Congratulations Scott Hoffman, you were the best of the best to ride in the snow portion of the 12th annual Pipe to Pipe. Scott should thank Windells for hosting the event, Timberline Lodge for having snow and staying open all summer, and Bonfire for putting this together.

This is a girl. I don’t think the judges knew that. But congrats on trying the double kink.

Another girl mid boardslide mishap.

Another lady. Do you remember the pink helmet from this?

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