Xavier de le Rue, Snowboarder

Xavier de le Rue is a 3-time World Freeride Champion, a 4-time boarder-cross World Champion, and he has pushed the boundaries of big mountain riding so far, it is basically impossible to overstate his significance and influence. (Or his total badassery.) He also happens to be one of the smartest and most reflective skiers or boarders out there.

Among other things, Xavier and I talk about his philosophy of life and risk taking; why he thinks that riding faster = riding safer; the current state of the snowboarding industry; some of his former and current film projects; and what’s next for him.

TOPICS & TIMES:

• Where are you currently? (1:59)
• Snowboarding, Surfing, and Why XV hates traditional Fitness Programs (2:54)
• XV on risk, death, “progression,” and his film White Noise (5:27)
• Do you look at the younger version of yourself and think, “The risks I was taking then were stupid”? (13:59)
• Why Xavier gets nervous before every line he rides (17:25)
• When things start getting intense, do you get serious, or do you try to keep things light? (25:47)
• Who were your heroes growing up? Who were you drawing inspiration from? (28:23)
• The importance of boarder cross for XV; why he is disappointed in the current state of it; and what he might do about it (32:56)
• Why XV thinks riding faster = riding safer in the mountains (36:44)
• What do you think of the current state of snowboarding? (39:54)
• What XV is currently reading, and why he doesn’t watch many snowboard movies (45:32)
• XV’s DIY Project, and why he has moved away from more traditional films to his current projects (49:09)
• Xavier’s board — how it was designed to be ridden, and whether his taste in boards has changed over the years (54:17)
• Which of your films is your favorite? Is there one that you think is most representative of your riding? (56:53)

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