Im not sure if my story is relatable but I feel a good amount of riders have gone through this type of thing.
As a passionate snowboarder finishing my 6th season with 60+ days, an aspiring free lance photographer
and a broke as F*** college kid it can be very hard to try and make my parents and elders understand what I want to do. For them life is about going to school, getting a job, buying a car, buying a house, getting married and starting a family. For me, and I am assuming many of you reading this, thats not what life is about. Life for us is about living the life, always having fun, and pursuing what you are passionate about. This is where it becomes difficult to explain our lifestyle to someone outside the Ski/Snowboard culture.
I am 20 years old and until this season my family never understood why I wanted to live my life as a "ski bum". I would tell them "I don't want to be a ski bum my whole life, I just want to snowboard, whatever it takes" (This would be shortly followed by some sort of what's the difference type of comment). This use to frustrate me, now I use it as an opportunity to explain what snowboarding is to me.
For an "outsider" snow sports are a hobby, something you do on the weekends when every thing else is done. For riders it is life. We live to ride, simple as that. The first run on a pow day, landing that one trick after lapping the park all day, or just being out there and having fun with your friends.
My roommate said to me once "All snowboarding is about is mustaches, high fives and having fun." I think he was attempting to insult me, but I took it as a perfect representation of the life Im living. I might not have the most money or the nicest car and the only girls I talk to are lifties and the occasional singles line snow bunny, but Im happy and I am living the life I dreamed of as a kid, to be a snowboarder.
Besides, I have all summer to make money.
So NS, have you ever had trouble with family, "outsiders" etc. explaining why you spend so much time, money and effort skiing/snowboarding? Maybe your family has been skiers and snowboarders for years and supported you since the beginning? Share your stories or discuss what I wrote, as long as we are discussing the unique lifestyle we live as passionate riders, filmers, photographers, graphic designers, etc etc etc etc.
ONELOVE-Skiing/Snowboarding
