208: Xavier De La Rue, Professional Snowboarder

The Ski Podcast

This episode is a special interview with professional snowboarder Xavier De La Rue. We speak about his competitive past, the cliff named after him in Verbier, his move into film making and adventures in places such as Alaska, Svalbard and Antarctica.
We also discuss his almost fatal avalanche and how it changed his views about risk-taking. Finally, we talk about sustainability and his Audi Experience Camps taking place in Verbier this winter.
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SHOW NOTES

Xavier broke his ribs while taking time off from filming in Lobufen (1:00)
FIS bought the Freeride World Tour in 2022 (3:00)
Watch the Freeride World Tour on YouTube
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Verbier Extrme this amazing night shot was captured (4:30)
Xavier went to Antarctica in November 2023 (6:00)
The trip involved crossing Drake’s Passage (8:30)
The Svalbard adventure took place in 2016 (11:00)
Xavier took brother Victor with him to Alaska (14:00)
Victor won the Freeride World Tour for the third time in 2024 (15:00)
Xavier’s daughter Mila is also on the Challenger Tour (15:45)
Xavier is from St Lary in the French Pyrénées (17:00)
Iain skied in the Bruson sector of Verbier in March 2024 (19:00)
Watch Xavier’s ‘How to’ videos on YouTube (20:15)
Learn how to ski on ice! (20:45)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjfh9F9eT34
We discuss Xavier’s avalanche experience (22:30)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6EXW_e2ETU
“Paranoia can be a good thing” (24:00)
Xavier has clear views on air bags (26:30)
Listen to Xavier’s sustainability podcasts (31:30)
Find out about the Audi Experience camps (32:00)
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