The youngest Australian to compete in a Winter Olympics in 2010, Red Bull athlete Scotty James has continued to excel at his career as a snowboarder, taking out gold at the recent X Games and FIS World Championships.
While he continues to travel the world training for next year’s Winter Olympics (Pyeongchang), he also finds time to get out and explore – usually accompanied by his brother, Sean.
To find out more about him, we recently interviewed Scotty while he takes a short break in his home town of Melbourne. The below is a transcript of that interview.
Scotty James, Australian Winter Olympics contender.
Scotty, can you tell us a little more about your recent successes and what they mean to you?
This year I had an awesome season. I was on the podium at most of the competitions I entered and also managed to win some of the most prestigious events. Reflecting back on it now, it was very cool and I’m happy with how it all went. The clear highlight was the recent championships in Korea where I came out with some fire, put out some of my best work in a while and came home with a win.
I think we’re a little less than 12 months out from the Olympics, so now I’ve got to knuckle down, work on some new tricks and train. I’ll also get to spend some time training in Australia this winter.
How did you become a professional snowboarder?
I think my whole family were very much winter bodies, so we’d go up to the snow every Friday after school during the winter season. We’d mostly visit the Victorian resorts and I think Falls Creek stands out in my memories most. I was also fortunate enough to go spend some time in Canada while I was younger.
So I’m not sure if I chose snowboarding or it chose me, but ever since I’ve had the opportunity to compete at it I’ve been dedicated to it.
What other activities do you pursue when you’re not snowboarding?
Along the road I’ve had some great opportunities to do a huge range of different things. One of my favourites was heli-boarding in New Zealand. The scenery there is amazing and getting to be out there amongst it is always a great experience. I’ve also spent a lot of time in DC doing a lot of powder riding.
My brother Sean has been on the road with me for a while. He films and documents everything and we work as a great team together. Creating content, I love having that little piece of home.
Along the road I’ve had some great opportunities like heli-boarding in NZ. The scenery there and getting. Spent a lot of time in DC doing a lot of powder riding.
There have been some great adventures along the way and my brother Sean has been on the road with me for a while. He films and documents everything and we work as a great team together. Besides creating great content with him, I also love having that little piece of home with me wherever I am.
What have you thought of Australia’s snowfields the last few seasons?
Most people still don’t think we have snow in Australia. They think it’s just a big, flat desert land, but its’ not the case. The past four years have been some of the best I’ve seen for riding. The quality of skiing at our resorts compares favorably to the best of what you can find in the US, even if we don’t have mountains that are quite as large.
You also get a truly unique experience in Australia. Where else can you go skiing or snowboarding between gum trees?