Words: Pete Long

I was so hyped to see this video of Jarryd's recent trip to Japan with World Cup legends Alex Deibold and Rene Brunner that I felt compelled to share it with you all. At only 19 years of age, Jarryd Hughes is a World Cup gold medalist, Olympian and X-Games competitor. It is these accolades that will no doubt help to paint the picture of a kid who can best be described as a 'natural'.

One thing that always stood out to me when he was a grommet is that he likes to go fast — real fast. Having said that, it was no surprise that he took to the racing game like a pig to shit, and we have since watched his rapid rise through the boardercross ranks, from Interschools to representing his country at the Olympics as a World Cup champion in less than 3 years. When he made the decision to pursue the racing side of things, Jarryd's love for pow, park and pipe never diluted, but sometimes had to be put on the back burner due to the time constraints and traveling schedule of the pro tour.

I caught up with Jarryd for a skate at Woodward Copper a few weeks before the Olympics last year (at that time he was ranked number 1 in the world), and we got to talking about what he wanted to get out of his snowboarding career in the future. He told me he just wanted to go ride pow and hit jumps. It hit me then — this kid is one of our best chances for a snowboard gold medal next month, and all he wants to do is go lap the park and chase some fresh lines — what a fu*king boss! 

To sum things up, Jarryd could very well have competed successfully in the slopestyle event at Sochi, then headed into the backcountry the next day and stacked some legitimate booter and natty line footy. To be honest, this kid could — and no doubt will — achieve every single goal he ever sets himself. Strong minded, extremely hard working and with in-depth understanding of why it is he chooses to snowboard, J-Rad is an amazing role model for all young Aussie riders across every aspect of snowboarding and I look forward to watching him cement his name as one one of our top all round rippers in the years to come.