Chairlift chats with Xavier De La Rue [Video]

Xavier de la Rue is a multiple snowboard cross world champion and Freeride World Tour winner, who has snowboarded in locations as diverse as Alaska, Svalbard and Antarctica. He survived an almost fatal avalanche and has strong views about risk-taking in the mountains. 

Hi Xavier. You’re recently back from Antarctica. How did that trip go?  

It was a The North Face project that I’ve been planning for five years. I went with my brother [professional snowboarder Victor] and my daughter [aspiring freeskier Mila]. I love exploring and it was great to be on a big trip like this and see it through the eyes of my daughter and brother. 

Antarctica is very different to the Alps. Any cliff can become a rideable pitch, so you end up riding slopes around 65-70 degrees. The snow is amazing for riding steeps, as it’s quite dense.   

We saw really different conditions from my …