2007 was my first real powder experience. 5ft fresh dump in Mt. Baker, Wa. I will never forget that season… Well honestly I don’t forget any season lol, but that time out in Baker was a amazing experience. I got to go back to the place that changed my life. Before Baker I had no idea there was such a place. before 2001, All I knew was East Coast; which I love always because it’s my home, but I never seen anyone hitch hike with a snowboard or meet strangers who would offer you a place to stay out east. I basically came back to Brooklyn pissed off at the scene here. Get to the mountain back home I see people with brand new set ups and gear every season and still can’t ride lol Not hating because to each is own, but in Baker you see dudes in crappy gear just sending it. Not comparing scenes but you get the point right? So here is a post deicated to that trip. Much respect to the heads that made my Mt. Baker experience even more epic:

Adam Harke, Nate Lind, Jon Schmidt, Alex Mc Cumber, Ian Spalter, Steve Shapero, Khalid West , E.J. Mablekos

epic

This is the first of many “Why We Shred” columns. I’m going to feature everyday people that love to Snowboard, Skate, Surf. Got to recognize that the people make up this industry. To me the people are the core element that makes shredding so much fun. I met the homie Karim out in Utah at the NBS East Coast warm up at Snowbird. What makes his story really great is that mountains has bought Karim and his dad closer. Karim’s dad  has been skiing for 20 years. When I Met Karim he was chilling with his dad in the lodge. I felt the energy between them, and I even had a vision of riding my own seeds one day!

I would like to get stories and photos from everyone so please send them to se7ennations@gmail.com with “Why We Shred” as the subject

Name: Karim Abdullah

Age: 31

Home Town: Sicklerville, NJ

Stance: Regular Stance (But Tried Duck Stance for a while)

Board: Salomon Burner 162

How long have you been Snowboarding? 4 Years

Where was your first Snowboarding experience? Steamboat, Colorado

What made you want to try it? My father has been skiing for over 20 years, as a member of the National Brotherhood of Skiers. So to disobey my father I wanted to try snowboarding. Turned out to be a great bonding experience even though we are two different cultures.

What is the most memorable day you ever had to date? March 4^th, 2010. Winter Park, CO. Hiked 1.5 miles, jumped of a cliff and then over a mile of tight trees to the nearest chair lift.

What was your worst day? 2007 Mammoth California coming down the mountain and my board hit an exposed rock. My front leg came out of my binding, but the board swung around with my back leg still strapped in. Helmet came off, and rolled down the mountain. End result was a severely sprained ankle. (Nothing that an ace bandage and some 500 mg Tylenol couldn’t cure to get ready for the next day of riding.)

Any places you would like to travel to ride? Any mountains in Foreign Countries especially South America and Europe. I would even like to visit the man made indoor mountain in Dubai. As long as I can shred.

Have you introduced the sport to anyone? My girlfriend and my little sister.

How do you feel about board sports in the Olympics? I think that the board sports in the Olympics are pretty good. I especially like the snowboard cross event. I would like to see a more advanced event like, something that takes place in the backcountry. I’m talking about deep ungroomed powder.

If there was anything you can change about the sport what would it be? To continue the movement; I would like to see more small children learning to board. I always see little kids learning to ski at age 3 or so. But how often do you see a class full of children under the age of five “shredding”. Just a thought!

Are there any riders out there that you respect in the game? The ones that ride for passion first!

I shred because? In my opinion shredding is a privilege not a right. Therefore I shred because as snowboarding has evolved, I want to evolve and enjoy all it has to offer. That means shred anywhere, with anyone. One Love!!

always some wild films coming out of India. Got to shred there some day. Peep the Tracker ollie at 0:44 LMAO

One thing I admired about a lot of early hip hop was that when a artist rapped about street life you saw the result which was jail or death. These days you see a lot of people speaking on the lifestyle, but never reflecting on how you can get sent away for the rest of your life.

Right now I’m still feeling the energy of the Harold Hunter Run. To see all his friends and supporters of the Harold Hunter Foundation come together for a great cause is a humbling experience. I only met Harold two times in my life. Everytime I met dude he was always cool and gave you respect even if you weren’t a die hard skater. Harold was a city kid such as myself. Growing up here in New York City in our era gave us a lot of challenges in our environments that still to this day alot of young people are still dealing with. Even though we lived in separate hoods; Harold in the LES and myself in Brooklyn, we still experienced the same things. But one thing we shared in common as kids growing up in the hood, was that the streets were our playgrounds. The missions running through dangerous spaces like abandoned buildings, running over broken glass, playing tag or manhunt were everyday things. Harold’s journey included Skateboarding which led him to a lot of oppurtunities behind it. I on the other hand chose to stop skating at 14 because it wasn’t cool to my friends and I ended up hanging on the streets around friends that sold drugs. Eventually I would get caught up in that life. I’m sure Harold was not too far from that scene, but decided he wanted to skate. Back then the taunts and jeers from peers that deemed skating to be a “white boy” activity was heavy back in the day. Harold had to have thick skin and say “fuck that. I’m doing me!” so I salute that brother for what he stood for.

I think sometimes we forget that everyone of us has something special to contribute to life. It’s the small things that make this world go round too. As I ran the 6.7 miles for Harold Hunter  / Camp Woodward scholarship, I could envision Harold skating around all the routes we took all the way to the end. I just kept pushing it to make it all the way and refused to take short cuts! Here are some photos from yesterday’s run. Please keep the movement going by making a donation to the Harold Hunter Foundation. Much props to Mike Hernadez and Jessica Forsyth for helping to organize this run.

“We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community… Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own.”—CESAR CHAVEZ

Getting ready for the run on Elizabeth street. Real hot that day.

Runners getting route info and group safety instructions.

Running down Prince Street.

Cooper Union Square.

Washington Square park photo op.