Shaun White on Mountain Fits, Pushing the Limits, and His New Snowboarding League
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Shaun White may have built his career atop a snowboard, but he’s just as susceptible as the rest of us to the allure of a balmy day. “I just got back to L.A.,” he says as he logs onto a video call. His face breaks into a wide smile. “It’s T-shirt weather here.”
Be that as it may, we’re chatting because it’s definitely not T-shirt weather everywhere. Winter is nearly here, and White is once again starring in a campaign for a brand that’s mastered dressing for the season: Moncler Grenoble. This time around, White is joined by slalom skier Lucas Pinheiro Braathen and mogul skier Perrine Laffont in the Swiss Alps for a series of stunning photos by Mario Sorrenti. And, for the second time, Moncler has partnered with White’s own brand Whitespace on a high-end, performance-forward snowboard that also happens to look incredibly damn cool.
All of which adds up to a pretty impressive slice of wintertime style. So I decided to pick White’s brain about what it’s like working with an iconic cold-weather brand, how people are dressing on and off the slopes, and what’s next for the three-time Olympic gold medalist.
Keep reading for a few (condensed and edited) highlights from our conversation.
On working with Moncler
I was always a big fan of Moncler. I knew a bit about the brand, obviously, but I was invited to a fashion show in Milan just before Covid and I was just blown away. I was like, “Wow, they’re really pushing the envelope on this fashion in the winter space.” And I just thought it was so cool and wanted to be a part of it. I became one of their brand ambassadors, and as I started my brand, they were just like, “Hey, look, maybe there’s something we could do together.” So it’s evolved from just being an ambassador for the brand to being a true collaborative partner in a way. And now we’re really throwing some fuel on the fire and making incredible boards that I just think look so cool really speak to what we’re about at Whitespace as well, the function-meets-fashion sort of thing.
On pushing the creative envelope
They’ve been giving us more and more liberties. If you go on our Instagram—my Instagram and the Whitespace Instagram—we did a collaborative post with Moncler and we shot that whole thing ourselves. Which is really cool. They’re like, “Go for it.” It’s been nice to step out of our norm to do something really, really high-end with them.
On après ski vibes
The fashion is shifting in a really cool way. It’s like, “Hey, can this jacket flip inside out and double as a coat I could wear to dinner?” More versatile. For instance, I’ve designed travel pants for our line that double as an under layer for when you’re on the mountain so you can go ride, and then easily peel the outer layer off and you’re hanging for après ski. Après has been huge in Europe, but now it’s really catching on in Aspen and all these places. It’s the culture behind the sport. It’s not like you have to crush it on the mountain. Go have a good time, and then go enjoy your time with your friends and the people that you want to spend time with.
On the way on-the-slopes fashion has changed
Obviously, baggy’s back; everybody’s going bigger and bigger with the style. Which is funny on the mountain because you’re just catching wind. It’s not really a fun thing. I remember it was baggy, it went a little leaner, and now baggy is coming back—but there’s a lot of technical. Before, technical-looking gear wasn’t very cool. Now it’s becoming like, “Oh, no, this is what I’m into. I’m going to represent that I’m sporty and I’m into this culture.” What’s beautiful about snowboarding and skating, these sports, you can really lean into your vibe and your style. I love that about these worlds.
On seeing Whitespace fans in the wild
When I see somebody on the mountain with our gear, I feel such a connection to them. It’s like we like the same music or something. “Oh, they get it. They’re vibing with what we’re doing here.”
On what’s next
Big stuff. Whitespace and Moncler is very exciting, of course. And then come March 7 and 8 in Aspen, we’re launching our first ever Snow League competition. Snowboarding doesn’t really have its own world-class tour or series. So we created this league and we’re going to do about three to four events this first season. And then we’re going to bump it up to 12 to 15 events in the next three to four years. It’s just so exciting. NBC is our broadcast partner. We just announced a bunch of our athletes that will be joining. And it’s all in the lead up to the Olympics, so as an NBC partner, we’re going to have this beautiful carry into the Olympics. You’ll get to see these athletes and really hear their stories and watch them compete.
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