I’m Lucie Fink.
I’m a video producer at Refinery29 but every so often, I like to try other people’s jobs.
Today, I’m in Vail, Colorado and I’m gonna see if I have what it takes to be a pro snowboarder
for the day.
This is Lucie for Hire.
I’m Kimmy Fasani.
I’m a pro snowboarder for Burton Snowboards and I was just awarded the Rider for the Year
for Transworld Snowboarding.
Your first challenge is to gear up.
Making sure you have the right product is gonna make you feel way more comfortable out
on the slopes.
I took Kimmy’s direction and geared up appropriately.
First, a base layer to keep me nice and warm.
A sweater to layer up.
A bib so I can look really cool.
A jacket, the most important layer.
A hat to lock the heat in.
Socks to keep my feet dry.
Gloves, particularly the oven mitts, to keep my hands really toasty.
And boots, the most essential part of my gear.
Making sure they’re comfortable so I can enjoy the whole day ahead.
Once you have your outerwear all set, it’s time to get you the proper board.
Kimmy!
Hey!
Hi!
It’s good to see you.
You too. How do I look?
You look perfect. You look so good.
You look great.
I love this blue.
That’s what it’s about, looking good.
Let’s go get a board.
Yeah, let’s do it.
The first thing to consider when you’re looking at boards is size.
Making sure that you have a board that’s right under your chin is perfect.
Here’s all the women’s boards.
This is what I think is going to be good for you today because it’s a step-on so it’s
going to be really convenient for in and out access for your bindings and then the height.
Go ahead and put that up there again.
Yeah, it’s like right under your chin so I think that’s perfect.
Perfect!
Awesome.
My first impression of Lucie is that she’s
super ambitious, really motivated.
I think she’s gonna do great out there.
It’s gonna be an awesome day on the mountain.
Your second challenge is to fuel up.
Fuel up?
As in food?
Yeah!
Okay.
Like, what you do to maintain your energy on the hill.
What do you do?
I do a lot of things.
I always have snacks in my pocket.
I actually brought you a handful of snacks.
You brought me snacks?
Yeah so that you can have kind of a variety of Cliff bars like an energy block, a builder
block, high protein, then a little mojo which is like nut-based bar.
That way you have little bites throughout the day.
Because I always find the lighter meals you eat, the more it’s going to be a long lasting
energy rather than sitting down for a burger and feeling really weighed down.
So these are for me?
Yeah.
Oh my gosh!
After we fueled up, it was time to shred.
So, this would be an uncool way to carry your stuff.
Alright!
Now I’m cool.
I’m really excited to be out on the slopes with Lucie today because I get to show her
all the foundation building skills that she’ll need to get up the hill and down the hill.
I haven’t been on a board in about ten years.
Once I’m on, what are the major pressure points I should be putting in my feet?
Your heel edge is gonna be in control of all of your heel side turns.
It’s also control for stopping.
Then toe side edge is going to be for your toe side turn and any time that you feel that
you want to angle across the mountain, you just go a little more on your toe side and
you’ll be able to make a sharper turn.
We rode the chairlift up together and, just like that, started shredding.
What’s even better?
I was pretty good, if I do say so myself.
I landed some jumps, took some tumbles, and even face planted after trying to throw and
catch my GoPro stick.
Wooo!
We had a great time.
Lucie was so good!
She acted like a natural.
It was like she’s never taken anytime off of this sport that she hasn’t done in years.
If I were the one doing the hiring, I would definitely have Lucie as a pro snowboarder.
So your final challenge is cool down.
What do you do to cool down?
For me, I like doing some yoga, I like stretching, taking an ice bath will really help replenish
your muscles so that you aren't sore tomorrow.
But an ice bath?
After this situation?
Back in my room, I took Kimmy’s cool down advice.
I did a ton of stretching and even some meditative yoga.
When I was ready, I finally prepared that ice bath Kimmy told me I should do.
Since my legs were the most overworked part of my body on the slopes, I slipped in from
the waist down and I tried my very best to relax.
As my snowy snowboarding day came to a close, I realized that being a professional snowboarder
is a lot harder than Kimmy makes it look.
It takes serious practice, discipline, and physical strain to perfect but spending
the day with the rider of the year was a real privilege.
Kimmy made me feel like I could be the next big pro.
Thank you so much for watching my video with Kimmy Fasani, 2016 Rider of the Year.
Click here to watch another amazing video of her.
And right here to subscribe to Refinery29 on YouTube.
Woo!
Let’s keep shredding.