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| Posted on Tuesday 2nd November, 2010 |
Times Viewed: 2012 |
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Relentless Freeze Festival 2010
by Kaz Willmer
Winter officially landed in London this weekend when the Relentless Freeze Festival dumped its immense load of snow and tunes on Battersea Power Station. Every year the festival just keeps getting better and better, and this year proved no different, providing the ultimate mix of top-form riding and epic music in a weekend of shred, dance and apres to remember. |
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Friday
The 32-metre big air jump was graced with the Whitelines Battle of Britain comp on the Friday where we saw the absolute pinnacle of British riding thrown down in front of our awe-struck eyes. The standard of riding really highlighted how far British riders actually push themselves and it was incredible to see – particularly on a narrow ramp in the middle of Battersea. Top spots went to Dom Harington (5th), Gary Greenshields (4th), Jamie Nicholls (3rd), and Scott Penman (2nd), but Billy Morgan (1st) owned the podium with his double backflip - apparently the only trick he owns. Pretty good trick to have in your box, really, especially if you can pull it off like he can! In our eyes the conditions looked awesome, the riding was off the scale, and we were lucky to be witnesses to such a spectacle.
Once the riding had ceased and the sun started to set behind Battersea, that's when the ultimate night of music set in. Jaguar Skills, Krafty Kuts, Scratch Perverts and Roni Size saw us through the night with an epic DnB and breakbeat marathon and two days later my limbs are still aching. The bass was heavy, the dancing was unreal, and we left knowing we'd seen the ultimate mix of top British riders busting out all alongside some of the top DJ acts. And then there was the Snowbombing after party we stumbled across – a beer-flowing, moustache fest, where few remembered how they got home.
Saturday
Despite a hazy morning and a desire to stay in bed, we arrived on Saturday in time to catch the trials of the FIS Big Air competition. We'd been warned of rain storms and high winds, so the blue skies and wintery chill meant the conditions were perfect on-slope. The Freeze team had been working all night to make the jump sweet, and so the riders took this opportunity to step up the riding, and what a show it was. We had some of the top international names in riding in front of us, throwing down perfectly smooth backside rodeos, 1080s, 900s, and whatever else they had in their trick-boxes. Double corks and 1260s were laid down as standard in the first FIS Big Air contest of the season.
Slovenia's Marco Grilc rode into first place with a perfect backside 1080 double cork – something you'd dream of seeing on the mountain, or dribble over on You-tube – let alone see it in front of your eyes in Battersea! Considering Grilc dislocated his hip at the same event two years ago, he was even more stoked to land first place. Second place went to Norway's Staale Sandbech with a 900 cab melon and a backside 1080 mute, while our very own Jamie Nicholls did amazingly to come in 7th place after showing the home crowd his backside double cork 1080 (which initially put him in 1st place) and slick backside 720. Out of 68 riders competing from around the world, having a British rider in the top proves how far British riding has come, and while the sun set behind Battersea on the second night of the Freeze Festival, we could not argue the standard of big air competitions this winter was set in London in front of our eyes.
As the Day 2 sun went down behind Battersea, the 15,000 buzzed spectators were treated to some retail therapy from some of the best snowboard stores, words-cannot-describe sessions from Duke in the Desperados tent, plus chill-out opportunities with Jeremy Jones in the O'Neill tent with showings of his movie Deeper.
But the cherry on the top of my Freeze iced-bun was DJ Yoda in the Relentless stage. Despite the pushing and struggling of Yoda-fanatics to make it into the tent (we somehow managed to slip in under the bouncer's arm!) DJ Yoda dropped it harder than ever before. With DnB halloween-special remixes of Ghostbusters Vs Adams Family Vs Simpsons Vs Don't Stop Believing, Vs every other immense track he played, it was a Yoda set at his finest. Those of us who made it inside left the tent with powder-day smiles. Those outside looked at us like we'd been taking something harder than just an injection of DJ Yoda. We hadn't, he just gave us the best party, standard.
We heard good vibes from those who went to check out Mark Ronson, but we hit up the Apres-Ski tent for some more drum n bass, more dancing, and an end-of-Freeze party we wish could strike London every weekend.
The End
My limbs are over-danced, my face is aching from permanent hyperactive grinning, and my bed has my name all over it, but the truth is Freeze gave me a dose of the ultimate drug concoction this weekend – insane riding from our British shredders alongside the world's top riders, never-ending live music from every corner, and a sick weekend with some of my best snow buddies. It was like we were dealt a royal flush of a winter festival weekender, with everyone going all-in. There's not much more you could ask for in a weekend. Winter has truly landed.
 
 
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