Snowboarding's Next Generation
Mar 14 2007 / Los Angeles, CABarely old enough to drive, but ready to dominate. Meet four young rippers who are nipping at Shaun White's heels.
Think Shaun White is young? Think again. These days in snowboarding, 20 is over-the-hill. A new crop of young riders are terrorizing the slopes with skills that rival, or beat, riders years their senior. The next generation of riders are going bigger, spinning more and putting the fear in the older pros, who have to work extra hard to keep up with riders who still have their original ACL’s. Here are four riders who are leading the charge and who should be at the top of the list of possible contenders for the US Open of Snowboarding.
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Danny DavisDOB: 6/22/1998
Danny Davis went from total obscurity to a top rider in just a couple of years. He grew up in Michigan and at age 15 headed off to snowboard academy in Vermont, where apparently, he got really good at riding the halfpipe. And at the tender age of 18, he barely missed making the Olympic team, but did win Japan’s biggest contest, the Nippon Open, and the US Open quarterpipe competition. Even though two years earlier no one had heard of him, by the end of ’06, everyone stopped to watch when Davis was riding, thanks to some of the most stylish back to back 1080s in the business. In the US Open halfpipe competition, Shaun White’s performance was far superior to most of the competition, but it was Davis’s runs that really kept him on his toes, and Davis walked away with a respectable second.
So far in 2007, Davis has continued to stay close to White, with his most recent finish being second to White's first at the World Superpipe Competition on March 11th.
Read an interview with Danny Davis here>
Watch Danny Davis in action from the 2006 US Open
Elena HightDOB: 08/17/1989
At 16, Elena Hight has almost made it to veteran status. She’s already been to the Olympics, where she placed a respectable 4th. She has a 900 under her belt, the pinnacle of women’s halfpipe competition. And she is likely to be the first woman to stomp a 1080 in the pipe. Despite Elena’s age, she is more capable than most pros, and is adept at balancing school with traveling around the world. Her team managers often joke that she is more together than the rest of the team combined. And being a top pro at so young certainly has its perks -- this summer Elena was awarded the MVP award at the Abominable Snow Jam, which came with a brand new Volvo. Not bad for someone who just got their driver’s license.
Read an interview with Elena from this year's Grand Prix stop in Breckenridge.
Luke MitraniDOB: 7/20/1990
Luke Mitrani is the youngest of three snowboarding brothers, and he’s spent most of his short life trying to keep up. So far, he’s done a pretty good job. He is the youngest rider ever to make the quarterfinals at the US Open, and was the youngest rider to make the US Team at age 12. But Mitrani has really been in the public’s eye from the age of 9, when he began competing, and dominating in the USASA amateur snowboard series. Of course, since started he snowboarding at age 6, it’s no surprise he rides like an old pro. Most notably, he goes huge, not just because he’s pint-sized so it looks bigger. Mitrani soars as high as people with 100 pounds on him. Just wait until he goes through puberty.
Mikkel BangWhen Norwegian ripper Mikkel Bang burst on to the scene, he was just 14, and looked even younger. That didn’t stop him from winning the prestigious European Open slopestyle competition, or possessing a bag of tricks to rival a lot of pros. These days Bang is 16, has shot up about a foot, and finally looks old enough to snowboard as well as he does. His style and accomplishments though, are still much older than his measly 16 years. When asked what he wants to be when he grows up, he responded, “A snowboarder and get my own pro model.” Seems like he’s off to a pretty good start.
