Photos provided by Daniel Rönnbäck
I published my first article on Newschoolers in 2019, it was a SLVSH Grandvalira 2019 preview in which I got every one of my predictions wrong by the end of the first round… a good start. It got me used to being called out by the community, something that would happen after every event coverage piece I subsequently wrote (love y’all).
This piece is not about my terrible prediction ability, although my $20 from the X Games staff pool and lead in the playoff bet with Curt may say I’ve improved (no guarantee this is accurate at the time of publication). This piece is about Kimbosessions, specifically, my dream to go to Kimbosessions ever since I thought I could turn being wrong about skiing into a full-time job. I’m pretty sure I’ve asked Twig to go every February since I first got beer money for a movie review. He used to say, ‘That’s the one event I’ll always go to,’ now he’s more of an ‘I hate people,’ cantankerous old Brit - I’m trending that way too but there’s life in this dog yet!
This year, it finally happened. Coach threw me in the game.
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It was quite simple, Kim Boberg said I had a spot if I could get myself to Sweden without using our dwindling content budget. Twig and I pulled some strings, made some calls and it was a go! I spent the week prior in Åre covering Jesper Tjäder’s Unrailistic (thanks Red Bull!) and barely made it out the other side in one piece to sample the best invitational freeski session in the world… I may have been wrong about much in skiing but this one ain’t it!
If you’ve never been to Åre Sessions - the closing weekend of the Åre ski resort, one massive party and one gargantuan hangover - you may not understand quite how fragile I was when I turned up. “I’m surprised you made it, most people that go to Åre before here [Kläppen] are usually dead,” Kim said one sunny afternoon (probably 7pm in reality). I didn’t make it out unscathed but had just enough juice in the tank to snipe some clips and Hunter S. Thompson my way through the week to write this article.
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Now, onto the meat and potatoes of this whole affair.
The overriding feeling about Kimbosessions is that “it’s tough to put into words,” (I’m gonna try) and ‘it’s the best shit ever!’ but we knew that already didn't we? The rumours are true, the sunsets do last an eternity, the vibes are impeccable and Kimbo Kitchen really is that fucking delicious.
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Kimbo attendees every lunchtime
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What else is there to say on the subject?
First and foremost, this is a holiday all skiers dream of attending, whether you’ve been grinding on the WC circuit, filming in the streets and the backcountry or you’re A Hall and have been doing everything under the sun this is an anti-stress style conference, there is no pressure, no deliverables, no icy jumps in wind storms, just 60+ homies and an excellent park. The crew is stacked.
You don’t get the invite to Kimbosessions unless you’ve got a certain je nais se quois about you. It’s kind of like Berghain, nobody really knows what it takes to get in, but if you’ve got it, you’ll make it past the surly German bouncer into techno heaven.
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Gotta get past the bouncer first!
NB: In this case, surly = affable, German = Swedish and techno = skiing.
It’s clear from the outset that Kim does this because he loves it, he kept his intro schpiel short and sweet because talking about the event pulls on his heartstrings and he wanted to remain stoic in front of a crowd of frothing freestylers. This year was Kimbosessions 9th edition - it’s crazy to think it’s been going on that long - and each year it’s the best it’s ever been.
Kimbo is not a progressions session - like other events that shall remain nameless - it really is just a hangout. There are about 6 or 7 cabins each housing 12-14 riders with saunas, balconies, and comfy ass sofas - unfortunately, I was in the hotel by the hill but it’s better to have Kimbo’d in the hotel than to have never Kimbo’d at all. One cabin gets turned into the Stu(dio) where Hugo Burvall and Mags craft beats and riders lay down bars across an array of genres - my favorite being the reggae tracks - you will have heard them in the recaps...
Mornings are leisurely, with lake swims, football, and definitely no cannabis smoking coz that shit’s illegal AF in Sweden. The park usually opens around 2pm and skiing ends when skiers are done, “lunch” occurs at around 6pm and everyone adjusts to the Kimbo timezone which is approximately CET minus 4 hours.
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To try and make this skiing heaven a bit relatable here’s some comparisons:
You ever taken a big trip with a bunch of homies from your school days and it’s like you just picked up where you last left off as if nothing has changed? That’s Kimbo.
Have you ever been to a festival, partied, and struggled through most of the day only to reach the epitome of flow and relaxation in a tent at 2am listening to a DJ you’ve never heard of with 3 best friends and 2 awesome strangers? That’s Kimbo.
Have you ever woken up late and ridden slushy park until you can’t anymore then smoke doobies and watch the sunset before repeating? Kimbo is that but on steroids, minus the doobies… illegal AF… lol.
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BMack put it pretty perfectly in a message to the group chat, sorry for sniping your words you nailed it more than I have:
“In every turn we take, every clip we film and every picture we snap we’re communicating culture, creating movements, building community and engaging in something bigger than ourselves, never forget that!”
These are words to live by in the real world as well. It’s especially poignant at Kimbosessions. I even caught the bug at one point, throwing my go to rodeo 5 critical on the biggest gap I’ve ever hit, then being fired up by Alex Ferreira et al. to take it to 7 - I did a misty 7 as my brain was less scared of that. But I landed my first 720 at 7:20pm, first try on a Friday. If that ain’t Kimbo magic I don’t know what is.
But essentially Kimbosessions is the best week of skiing for a reason. It’s by riders for riders and has the perfect blend of European laissez faire approach to, ‘if you hurt yourself you’re not gonna sue us coz we’re not in ‘murica,’ great people, better food and firee… oh yeah, lots and lots of fire.
TACK KIMBO!
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Video Recaps
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Photo Gallery
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