Words and Photography by Chris Wellhausen

What do you do when snow lingers over your trails and you just want to send it on your bike? Do you travel to warmer locations, or do you embrace snow-sports while you wait for the trails to thaw out? Thanks to Red Bull, we recently had the opportunity to tag along as four riders took to the trails and slopes with their unique skillsets to scratch their itches in a way that many of us only dream of.

It all started when Carson Storch dreamt of a way to build the ultimate shred park that blended his two passions for summer and winter activities. From there Carson invited three friends who are influenced by each other’s riding style and respective disciplines for a late winter session. You see, Carson is born and raised in Bend, Oregon, a town that is high on the list of “Favorite places to shred” by both boarders and bikers alike. Although the world may know Carson as a die-hard mountain biker, he’s also been a passionate snowboarder with mad skills. While Carson’s talents on the bike are what took him to the professional level, many of his best friends growing up became pro snowboarders and to him, the two sports still influence one another as they ride with each other to this day.

After the roster of athletes was set, Carson and Red Bull reached out to Snowshoe Resort in West Virginia. Together they designed a snowboard/bike park that would offer a one-of-a-kind experience of interwoven runs top to bottom. Fellow mountain biker Jaxson Riddle would be representing to knobby tired constituency while pro snowboarders Luke Winkelmann, and Sean Fitzsimons would put in work for the winter world. Snowshoe resort was a natural fit as they will be the host of a 2021 UCI World Cup Downhill race and their snow tends to melt a bit earlier than some of the West Coast resorts. Lucky for our crew, the conditions were conducive to this dual-sport shred fest.

Let’s get to know the riders a bit more and what they thought about this project.

TLW: HOW DID THE IDEA FOR THIS LAST CHAIR, FIRST RUN PROJECT COME ABOUT?
Carson Storch (CS): I’ve had this idea for a while, originally because of my best friend and pro snowboarder, Ben Ferguson. Growing up with Ben, we always wanted to do this. Unfortunately, he couldn’t make it because he was up in Alaska filming. For me it’s pretty cool to be able to do this because there are so many similarities with boarding & biking. The tricks we do, the terrain we ride, and how they feed off each other all cross over. It’s also cool to see how mountain biking has grown to the point of where it is, a lot of snowboarders ride MTB to cross train and have fun in the off-season. Ripping through the trees feels the same on whatever tool you’re on. This project is cool cause we’re able to represent both sports, just session and have fun with one another.

TLW: FAVORITE MTB TERRAIN?
CS: Pretty focused on freeride terrain for the last 5-6 years after transitioning from Slopestyle competitions.

TLW: WHAT IS IT ABOUT FREERIDING?
CS: The opportunities and filming. Competing is awesome but slopestyle is pretty rough and just hard. I feel like the freeride scene is more creative. It lets creativity flow. I found more success in that, doing my own thing, and I have a lot of fun. Whether it’s a big mountain line in Utah terrain near the Rampage site, or anywhere really. Freeriding means anything on any bike. I enjoy riding my trail bike, slope, big bike…I just enjoy riding.

TLW: FAVORITE TRICKS ON A BIKE? CURRENTLY HAVE IN SNOWBOARDING? ASPIRE TO?
CS: My favorite tricks on a snowboard are Frontside Grab Front Three and a Cab 540, back in my golden era of snowboarding those are what I enjoyed. Most of all I love ripping powder, hot tubing off of cliffs- the good stuff.

Mountain bike tricks, I just like progression. All tricks. If I had to choose, it would be spinning any sort of feature is my favorite.

TLW: FAVORITE PLACES TO RIDE MTB?
CS: Oregon. I gotta be bias. There is so much variety in the state of Oregon. Mt. Bachelor, the desert, along the coast. Then Queenstown, New Zealand and British Colombia are my all-time favorites out of the states.

TLW: FAVORITE PLACES TO SNOWBOARD?
CS: Baldface, BC. That place ruined me. Haha. Mt. Bachelor is my next favorite.

TLW: FAVORITE SNOWBOARDERS?
CS: Ben Ferguson. I think he reps style in snowboarding. I am also a big fan of Luke Winkelmann. Travis Rice, obviously too. There are so many.

TLW: CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE SET UP?
CS: This course definitely exceeded my expectations. We’ve had so many Zoom calls, photo & video sharing. It’s hard to tell unless you’re here. The Snowshoe crew killed it; the bike stuff is rowdy, and the snow features are so dialed, unique, and creative. The features definitely complement one another. Bike course is fast, loose, greasy, and has decent size features. Snow side looks flowy and fun. It all has a creative aspect. I am excited to see the snowboarders to do their thing and how they react to all the features they have in front of them.

TLW: CAN YOU INTRODUCE US THE OTHER RIDERS?
CS: Luke Winkelmann is a young ripper turning heads wherever he snowboards. He had really good style and is super fun to watch. Jaxson is also super young, recently burst onto the scene, and is paving his own path. I highly respect his riding. He has a ton of potential. It’s fun to have him here as a teammate. Being new to this scene, he doesn’t have too much experience with this kind of filming. It’s his first Red Bull project. It is a cool opportunity to have him here, get to know him better, and watch him flourish in a different style of work.

Luke, I have known for a while through my snowboard friends, and we have ridden bikes together a lot. He goes to High Cascade Snowboard Camp at Mt. Hood, Oregon in the Summer and is a good dude.

I am just meeting Sean for the first time. He’s from Hood River, Oregon and I am stoked to have another Oregon homie here. He’s mutual friends with a lot of people I know. He’s got a sweet vert ramp in his backyard, he’s all around a really good skateboarder, snowboarder, and mountain biker. I am stoked to see that Luke has brought him under his wing on this project because Sean deserves the exposure. Psyched to get to know him better so we can ride more back home.

Thoughts on snowboarders now the shoot wrapped. I loved how Sean And Luke just cruised through the course. They looked like they were having so much fun and letting tricks happen as they go comfortable.

TLW: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN BOARDING AND RIDING MTB?
Luke Winkelmann (LW): Snowboarding since 5yrs old. Always biked but have been riding MTB for a year and half.

I started in Oregon during summer visits to Mt Hood. My friend Brock Crouch was stoked on it, got a bike, and that influenced me. I wanted one too. Biking added excitement.

TLW: WHO ARE YOUR INFLUENCES WHEN IT COMES TO MOUNTAIN BIKING?
LW: One of my first is Carson actually. I met him through friends, the Fergusons. Last Summer in Hood River we went to watch one of his jump sessions. It was so rad. Carson has a lot of style. Then we went to ride some of Carson’s private trails and that was blast to follow him around.

TLW: HOW HAS FINDING MOUNTAIN BIKING AFFECTED YOU?
LW: Biking has helped me overcome some snowboard fears. When trying things on your bike as a beginner you’re scared and spooked out. You don’t feel that in snowboarding when it becomes your everyday thing it because it comes naturally. When you’re put in a situation in snowboarding trying a new trick, it can get weird. Then I just gotta go back to where I am on the bike, try something new, commit, and push through the fear. That helps. You are learning scenarios more and more in a new area.

Shredding on bikes with Carson stokes me out. I get a grom perspective of what it’s like following a snowboard idol. Jaxson stokes me like that too. I found him through IG. We became homies after I reached out to congratulate him for getting on Red Bull.

I have a one-track mind. I find similar snowboarding feels in mountain biking. I literally first started biking and doing DH trails. For some reason it felt natural to find that flow. Choosing lines brought me same feels of riding in the trees or on a snake run. Or like a pow day and being aware of where you are and your environment. I fell in love with pedaling, trail riding and getting endurance. I get a full workout. I also get a good feeling of euphoria and enjoy earning the ride down. I love tech, but I am also into jumps and DH.

TLW: WHAT KIND OF MTB TRICKS DO YOU HAVE? ABLE TO RAIL BERMS, ROOST UP SOME DIRT? HOW ABOUT AIRTIME? ANY WHIPS?
LW: I got a scrub and getting closer to having a good whip. Being in the air doesn’t correlate for me yet. I am bit scared. I have plenty of air awareness on a board, but I have some work to do with the bike. For me it’s the lip. I need to get through it. I’d like to learn those one-handed tricks, like the T-Bog. A Backflip bike would be so cool and see how that feels in the air. The approach for jumping tricks for bikes looks similar to boarding. With whips, leaving jumps diagonal.

I also find riding DH bikes is literally like snowboarding in the Summer.

TLW: ANY OTHER MTB INFLUENCES?
LW: Aaron Chase. Legend.

TLW: FAVORITE PLACES TO SNOWBOARD?
LW: There are too many. I just love boarding. I find a lot of happiness at resorts. I love Laax, Switzerland, for its powder days and slopestyle set ups. My favorite in the States, has to be Mt Hood. I’ve been going for 13 yrs. All the Homies, the slush, and riding on a volcano, it’s unreal. The vibes are so good. Happy. No stress. No contest. Everyone is filming and clipping.

TLW: FAVORITE PLACES TO MOUNTAIN BIKE?
LW: North Carolina comes to mind. Our bike park called is Rocky Knub. There are so many techy rock sections. Pedal up. Ride down. It’s Insane. Oregon and Utah are my next favorites. Utah’s Deer Valley trails and bike park.

TLW: HOW DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT THIS EVENT?
LW: Carson and my Red Bull TM told me about it. I immediately said I am down. I thought it was sick to hear it’d be in the South too. I came for the sight walk last Fall. Snowshoe has an insane bike / snow course.

TLW: WHAT KIND OF CHALLENGES WERE THERE DOING THIS SHOOT?
LW: Timing with the bikes was weird. Channel gaps when they were just over our heads was a little spooking. Spinning tires so close.

TLW: FAVORITE FEATURES?
LW: The jump collab. Side by side airs was dope. Jaxson and I got eye contact to each other in the air. That sort of stuff has never really been seen. Just cool to do new stuff and be able to be involved with new people.

TLW: HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR IMPRESSION OF SNOWSHOE RESORT.
LW: Until our site walk, a few months ago, I have only come here once on a family trip when I was younger. During the time, the bike park was open, but I remembered the layout of the mountain. That was cool. I will come back more in winter because their rail garden has so many features and I love how their mountain is connected on two sides. You can board all over the place. I like being in different spots. Their bike park is insane too and I’ll probably be here most in the summer. I’d like to come back and watch the UCI DH race in September.

TLW: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN RIDING MOUNTAIN BIKES FOR?
Jaxson Riddle (JR): I have been riding mountain bikes for five years. Before that it was BMX and motocross.

TLW: WHAT IS YOUR SNOWBOARD EXPERIENCE LIKE? WHAT TRICKS DO YOU LIKE ABOUT SNOWBOARDING AND WHAT DO YOU ASPIRE TO STOMP?
JR: I have only snowboarded once, at Brianhead, Utah. I was so pumped to try it but got schooled. It was a cold, icy day. I like the style of a good method and like the way their cork spins look. I would like to get those kinds of tricks dialed.

TLW: WHO ARE YOU INFLUENCES IN SNOWBOARDING?
JR: Luke is on the top of my list. As well as the Red Bull snowboarders like Mark McMorris, Brock Crouch, and Ben Ferguson.

TLW: HOW DO KNOW LUKE?
JR: He was in Virgin and he hit me up. Once I got on Red Bull, we talked about linking up. He was my first direct connect to snowboarding. I really like his creativity. So good on the rails and jibbing. He looks fun. You can tell.

TLW: WHAT SIMILARITIES IN MOUNTAIN BIKING DO YOU SEE WHEN WATCHING SNOWBOARDING?
JR: The spin stuff. Our rotations, the off axis, the corks. When railing a turn, slashing a berm, throwing up a big roost, they all crossover.

TLW: HOW DID YOU FIRST HEAR OF EVENT?
JR: My Red Bull TM contacted me. Hyped to hear of Carson’s idea and that Luke and Sean would be involved. It’s so rad after seeing the course. I came in blind, not sure what to expect. Heard about the potential of cross-over feature and was stoked.

TLW: WHAT WERE YOUR TOP TWO FAVORITE FEATURES?
JR: The Y-tree and the last jump. It was all fast and flowy, then some tech after slamming brakes. The jump was perfect length. Morning mud was frozen. It ran fast didn’t spray in eyes. It had perfect gap and the landing was super sick. The ramp was dialed for DH bikes which is what I am more used to for doing tricks and felt right at home with that. It was so cool the jump was right next to the snowboarding jump cause when we were rolling in, I could see him and we were looking at each other in the air. That added an extra feeling that I can’t explain. Don’t know if anyone has ever done that.

TLW: WHAT WERE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES?
JR: Weather. It was a challenge and greatly affected how the track was running. Right before the shoot, it snowed. When it melted out, it turned slimy, but the Snowshoe trail crew made it the best it could be, and it ended up working really well. That was cool to see.

TLW: WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE TERRAIN ON A BIKE?
JR: Being at home at Virgin in the Rampage style stuff. It’s just something I ride every day and I am used it. I like being on the edge of getting scared. Or I’d have to say the Fest Series courses. Big jumps. That’s more my style. Kamloops is reminiscent of home, just a bit different dirt.

TLW: WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE TRICKS ON A BIKE?
JR: Supermans. I love stuff from Moto. I am influenced a lot by that. Tuck no handers. Sui-No Hand. Cool variations of no-handers. Corking when I jump; Turn Buckle Flat Spin…I like tricks.

TLW: DO FIND YOURSELF WANTING TO GET INTO SNOWBOARDING?
JR: 100% I want to get with Luke and those guys. Have them show me how it’s done.

TLW: DO WANT TO SEE MORE OF THIS COLLABORATION?
JR: Yes. For sure. It is cool to bring the two together, find similarities and taking inspiration from each other.

THAT IS A WRAP

Feeling the energy and getting the chance to interview and hear what Carson and the other rider’s perspectives were about this dual-sport showcase really supports the idea of chasing down your dreams. Carson has been wanting to make this project happen for years after the vision of blending his two passions together and it’s clear that the two sports have a lot of things in common. Watching the boarders flow through the trees, carve berms and catch air while riders were doing the same thing was a treat to watch and we’re stoked to see more fun collaborations like this happen. We’re not sure ski resorts will be adding winter time bike trails to the roster, but at least it gives us dirt fiends some hope.