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“That’s what I kind of don’t like about the thought of going pro—it would be
just [work] all the time, not being able to go up to the resort and have fun.” For
now, though, it’s still enjoyable and exciting.
Being in between the Am teams and the pro teams pretty much means you have
to bust your ass all the time, which is exactly what Larson does. Since none of his
sponsors are cutting him checks yet (and most landlords don’t accept shred gear
as rent money), you can usually catch him scanning tickets up at Snowbird full-time.
Like many a pro before him, he’s working at a resort for his pass and shredding
for his sponsors for gear. When Larson isn’t up at the ‘Bird checking passes,
he’s usually cruising around the city, looking for new urban spots, flexing that
creative muscle, finding things no one has hit yet. Lately, Larson has been out and
about filming with the Lick the Cat crew and making edits to send to his sponsors.
Hopefully, he’ll have enough footage to score a part in the Lick the Cat video at the
end of the season. With any luck, all of this hard work he’s put in will pay off, so
he’ll be able to flip the ‘Bird and fully claim pro-status.
Larson is wholeheartedly devoted to making it in the snowboarding industry, but
he’s also a realist. He acknowledges that things don’t always go as planned, and
life, unfortunately, is not a fairy tale. “It’s a shot-in-the-dark type of thing,” he says.
If things don’t go as planned, he has other dreams as well, including possibly
opening his own board shop. “I’m definitely going to go to school and get a
degree if this doesn’t work out,” he says. That’s refreshing to hear when you live in
Salt Lake and every kid who’s half decent at snowboarding thinks he’s going pro.
Just because he’s a realist doesn’t mean he’s not an optimist, too. Plus, he’s got
a lot of people encouraging him to reach his goals. “Cole has become a mentor
over the past few years,” he says. “He’s really been the one pushing behind
me.” His friends motivate him as well. “Ben [Bilodeau] just has so much fun
snowboarding––it’s really inspirational. I watch him and it just makes me want
to go ride,” says Larson.
Snowboarding is one of the most cutthroat industries there is, and making a name
for yourself in this world is no easy task, but Larson seems to be doing a pretty good
job. Between Technine, Neff and Electric, he has a solid foot in the proverbial door
of the industry, but he realizes how quickly that could change. The thought of that
door slamming in his face keeps him on his A game. Expect a lot from this kid in the
future—he’s likely to be one of the next big names in snowboarding.
Considering how hard he works at his craft,
there’s no doubt Brady Larson’s going far.
Brady Larson, nose slide to pretzel out.
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