PHOTO: Justin Hostynek
RIDER: Ingemar Backman Trast
RUN: Norgesvängen (Route to Norway)
LOCATION: Norwegian Tundra (near Riksgränsen, Sweden)
CAMERA: Canon EOS 1 (analog)
WRITER: Arlie Carstens ©
So, where to begin? How does one explain the importance of this method? Easy. It is perhaps the most iconic moment in all of snowboarding history. All in attendance felt it. Around the world, as the photos and video footage started to come out, no one could believe it. Yet, there it was. Ingemar Backman Trast doing the highest and most stylish method anyone had ever witnessed.
Prior to this, no rider had ever boosted this big out of a transition. No one. Ingemar was the first. And, like a true badass, he chose to do a method. From peak height to perfect landing, he traveled 8.5 vertical meters. More than 27-feet, which is roughly the height of a three-story building. It is important to note that he dropped in unannounced. No fanfare. No, “Hey, look at me.” Just—BOOM!!!
Of the many photographers in attendance that day, only a few got the shot of Ingemar’s jaw-dropping method. Those who didn’t got fired when they returned home to their respective media outlets. Yes, it really was that big of a deal. In total, it received more than five magazine covers around the world.
Recently, photographer and Absinthe filmmaker Justin Hostynek came across this frame in his archives. It was first published in 1996 as part of a sequence in Snowboarder Magazine. Where most other photographers chose to capture this moment from the deck, Hostynek elected to pull back and capture the entire scene. This unique perspective illustrates not only the rider’s position far above the deck, but also the reaction of the crowd cheering him on. History made.