The Birth, Glory & Decline of Halfpipe Snowboarding

Before it became an icy 22-foot U-shaped monstrosity, the snowboard halfpipe was a hand-shaped, Roman Coliseum-style venue where snowboarders would go to see and be seen, meet other misfits, and throw down for a chance to be recognized as best rider in the world. In this episode, Jen and Tricia trace the snowboard halfpipe from its origins in backyard ditches to its machine-cut glory days across the world. They talk about the tools, technologies and tricks that changed everything, and which riders reigned supreme over these early eras. They track down who built the first superpipe (allegedly). They talk about how much it costs to build a modern-day snowboard halfpipe (hint: a lot). And they try in earnest to zero in on which nail was the exact last nail in the coffin for this lauded terrain feature. After an unapologetically lengthy deep dive, they bring in a live human expert, legendary pro snowboarder Todd Richards, to expound on what halfpipe has meant to snowboarding as a subculture and what the future of it may bring.