A preface to summer

Pause for a moment and close your eyes. Let your imagination transport you to a sandy beach, surrounded by clear water and perfect swells. You’re holding a frosty Desperados beer with a slice of lime. You’re ready to kick off the warm season. Enjoy the taste of summer!

The urban surfing experience

When it comes to bringing crazy plans to fruition, the team at Desperados beer always takes it up a notch. After the successful Holi Colors event on the slopes of Davos, the party moved to an urban spot. The challenge thrown down there was to create, for the first time ever, an urban surfing experience… without any water. It might sound totally nuts, but the lucky ones who got to try it were stoked.

What are the ingredients for the perfect summer adventure? Simply mix together an industrial warehouse, sparkly metal plates, a gigantic rotating tube, a few hungry riders, inflatable palm trees perched on real sand, a kickass DJ, and a bar serving icy beer. It makes for a heavenly beach for concrete shredders.

Two days with the tube: A metropolitan surf trip

We were lucky enough to be invited to the video shoot. The first-string team was composed of three different Swiss Riders: French riders Julien Emch and Carlos Gerber, and female sensation Elena Könz. The three shredders had only two days to learn how to ride the metallic wave.

The whole event was supposed to happen on the river’s shore, but bad weather forced the party indoors. The moment we stepped inside, our eyes immediately locked on a huge rotating metal tube. We were both enchanted and incredulous.

But how to shred it? As soon as the first riders decided to take the risk, it was clear the surface was slick and riding it would be no easy feat. Even though water was missing, seasickness was recreated by the continuous rotation, quickly reminding everybody why it was called urban surfing.

Since the main purpose of the tube was to bring together different board sports, the Swiss snowboarders had to dust off their surfing and skateboarding skills. After several tries, most of the athletes opted for one of two different approaches to the feature. The first was influenced by the surfing world, full of long carves and stylish slides. And the second one related to the skate-skills of ramp riding.

In the end, it took two days and many bails before we got to see all of the board wizards throwing down proper tricks. Meanwhile, we sat down and chilled in the sand to share a few words and beers with our Swiss rippers.

Introducing the lucky riders who enjoyed the exclusive experience

Present yourself in a few sentences and describe your specialties:
Julien: I’m a snowboarder, half Swiss and half Austrian. When I am not snowboarding, it’s easy to catch me skateboarding and eating pizza!
Elena: I’m a professional snowboarder and I am part of the Swiss snowboard team. For the past few seasons, I’ve been traveling and competing around the globe. Beside slopestyle and big air, which are my main specialties, I really enjoy riding pipes and fresh tracks on powder days.
Carlos: I’m a 25-year-old snowboarder who loves the sea and sandy beaches.

Surf or skate skills?
Julien: Skate skills for sure! (I have actually never been surfing.)
Elena: During summer, I like to go skateboarding whenever I have time. I’m better at shredding bowls and mini-ramps. But sometimes I also like street skateboarding. On the other hand, with surfing I’m quite a beginner. I just spent three or four weeks in the waves, and I am really looking forward to spending more time surfing this summer.
Carlos: Both, but I mainly love surfing! Whenever I have the chance to ride a skate deck, I usually go for bowls and mini-ramps.

Why is it helpful, as snowboarders, to keep practicing other board sports once your season is over?
Julien: It helps improve both style and balance. In addition, practicing other sports keeps me inspired and open-minded for learning new tricks.
Elena: In my opinion, all the board sports are connected to each other. As a consequence, if you learn something on a skateboard, like pushing in the bowl, it will probably help you in some way once you’re on other boards. If not, at least you still had fun.
Carlos: To me, it’s always nice to participate in some other sports after the winter season! It helps me clear my mind and improve my balance skills. But most importantly, I‘m doing it because I love skateboarding and surfing!

Is it tiring to spend 365 days on a board?
Julien: Sure it is! But that is your biggest love, right?
Elena: Yeah, sometimes I definitely need a break!
Carlos: No, because every board feels different in some way. I am always doing something different and trying new tricks or just having fun. That is how I never get bored or tired!

In what ways do skateboarding and surfing influence your style on the snow?
Julien: It influences my riding once it comes to hitting spots. Usually, it helps me come up with
new angles and approaches.
Elena: I think skateboarding and surfing can help you getting a good position on a snowboard. Although I haven’t spent enough time on other boards to have it influence my snow style in any way. Maybe it is the contrary. I started snowboarding before I started skateboarding, so my approach to concrete is influenced by that.
Carlos: Keeping it loose is essential!

Have you ever thought about quitting your snowboarding careers to launch yourselves into a new board sport?
Julien: No, actually never! But you are always able to do more than one sport at time.
Elena: Sometimes, when I’m freezing on a mountain, I wish I were a skateboard pro or a surfer. Since I grew up in the mountains, without any concrete or ocean, I started skateboarding and surfing years after starting to snowboard. In the end, snowboarding is still my biggest passion.
Carlos: (Laughing) Yeah, sometimes I wonder about surfing. The good thing is I’m able to snowboard in winter and spend the summer surfing.

Favorite terrain to skate? Bowl, street? Ramp?
Julien: I definitely prefer street and mini-ramps.
Elena: Bowl, mini-ramp, and street.
Carlos: Bowl and mini-ramp

CARLOS: Switzerland is not known for its waves and dreamy beaches; how did you end up being a wizard on the waves?
Yes, definitely it’s not the best country for surfing! I got the chance to spend a couple of holidays at the sea with my family. At 16 years old, I tried surfing for the first time and haven’t lived without it since. Now, I am always chasing the next surf trip. It has almost become an addiction.

CARLOS: Surfing takes you into a complete different playground; how do you adapt your snow skills to water?
Since I really love water, it has not been difficult for me to adapt. When I dive deep, I feel like a fish.

CARLOS: What is the best part about going on a surf trip rather than a powder mission?
I think it is a bit the same. Basically, you always end up packing tons of things. The main difference is obviously the temperatures.

About the Tube experience

There are two ways to experience Urban Surfing: the first is to ride it from a skater’s perspective, meaning that the riders just glide from one side to the other like they would on a usual ramp, regardless of the rotation.

The other option was to follow the movement of the rolling pipe with a carve cruiser as if were surfing a wave. This style was the winner — it was pretty much like surfing an artificial wave.

Your first impression about the setup?
Julien: It looked sketchy and was totally new to me.
Elena: The setup looked quite impressive. I was wondering how crazy it must have been to build that thing.
Carlos: Weird… it’s this big pipe, so you can’t really predict how things are going to work out!

What was your big surprise?
Julien: The spinning effect, which makes you so sick after a while if you are staring at the inside of the pipe.
Elena: It was much more difficult to ride than I expected. As soon as it started to turn, I felt kind of confused. But on the other hand, it was really interesting to see how fast we learned how to react.
Carlos: The instability of the ground, and that the pipe was rotating on itself!

Was it any funnier or harder than you expected?
Julien: It was way harder than I could have imagined! It was completely different and not comparable to any bowl riding at all.
Elena: In the full pipe, you have no flat space like in a bowl or mini-ramp. The rate of motion is much faster.
Carlos: Yeah, it was really difficult and completely different from riding a bowl! It didn’t really feel anything like skateboarding.

What was your feeling confronting to your riding style (as a skater or surfer)?
Julien: It was a totally different feeling. It felt like learning a new sport from the beginning.
Elena: I really had to forget about how usually I skate and started to move as if I were surfing. Crazy switch!
Carlos: It was the same feeling as the one you get on a static wave in a river! My surfing instincts helped me a lot to ride this feature!

Do you relate this sensation more to surfing or skating?
Julien: Because of the fact I couldn’t find a skate feeling in it, I would say surfing (although I’ve never tried).
Elena: I think you can ride it as a skater or as a surfer. If you ride it like a standing wave, it feels like surfing on a skateboard.
Carlos: Surfing as if you were riding a static wave! Plus, the fact that you can ride it like a ramp makes it easier for every person to try and adapt himself to it.

To what sport is this most similar?
Julien: Surfing maybe, or longboarding?
Elena: Even if I have never tried, I think it was shaped on downhill skateboarding.
Carlos: Hum…. stakƒe and surf maybe inline too… There too many mixed sensations.

Where would you put the pipe after the event?
Julien: I would put it close to a beach!
Elena: I would give it to the guys from Nitro Circus.
Carlos: Easy — place it in a skate park!

Conclusions

Did the pipe achieve its goal of recreating the surf vibes?
Julien: I think it’s pretty much like surfing a static wave.
Elena: I think that rather than surfing real waves, it feels more like a static wave.
Carlos: Kind of… but, for sure, it’s not the same feeling as being on the water!

Would you ride it again?
Julien: It was more a one-time thing, I guess.
Elena: It was really fun to try it, but I’m more a snowboarder and skateboarder
than a surfer. But I’d definitely try it out again!
Carlos: For me, one time was enough but intense!

Your Desperados

Cold or icy?
Julien: Cold!
Elena: Cold!
Carlos: Cold!

With or without a slice of lime ?
Julien: With lime! Get some more taste in it!
Elena: Without!
Carlos: With!

The craziest method ever adopted to open a bottle:
Julien: Spinning wheel of a box.
Elena: Breaking the glass!
Carlos: With my iPhone.

Your ideal mix between two sports?
Julien: Skate and snowboard.
Elena: Cross-country skiing and basejumping.
Carlos: Hmm.

One word that describes the Urban surf event?
Julien: Crazy!
Elena: Interesting.
Carlos: Funny!

The right time for some Desperados cheers?
Julien: Chilling in front of some water (sea or lake) in the sun.
Elena: After a sunset surf session at the beach.
Carlos: Anytime, anywhere…

Was this a fun experience?
Julien: It was super fun! I think it’s super exciting for everyone who wants to try something totally new! The idea of this project is super sick.
Elena: It was fun but also a bit sketchy. It was pretty hard bailing on a moving floor. I think it’s a really cool idea to build something like that. Some of the guys were really killing it! Seeing so many different shaped skates on the tube was amazing!
Carlos: Yep it was really fun, that was real urban surfing!

Overall, the event was a big success, we all had a great time. The nine hours of driving with tired legs were nothing compared to the fun of the shooting!

Pictures: Nicki Antognini
Words: Nicki Antognini and Ale Pellanda
Location: Switzerland
Thanks to: Desperados beer, Super-Fi and the whole organisation