Images: Courtesy of Vital Films
When you think of halfpipe skiing, it’s nearly impossible not to think of Alex Ferreira. A local to the Roaring Fork Valley and Aspen mountains, Ferreira has been a competitive skier for the majority of his life. His first introduction to the sport was moguls, but the skier soon discovered halfpipe and has never looked back. A dominant competitor in the discipline, Ferreira has racked up enough awards to be one of the most decorated athletes in the sport, including two Olympic medals, seven X Games medals—three of which were gold—and 16 World Cup podiums. Last year, Ferreira became the first halfpipe skier to have a perfect season, winning every single contest he entered.
Ferreira’s skiing highlights don’t stop there. When he’s not competing, you’ll often find him dressed up and filming as his beloved alter-ego, Hot Dog Hans. A crusty old man Ferreira says he models after his own grandfather, Hot Dog Hans is an internet sensation with mind-boggling talent on skis, despite his “old” age.
In preparation for the 2025 Winter X Games in Aspen, we caught up with Ferreira to dive deep into his competitive mindset, what he does to get ready and how he keeps his cool amidst a highly-competitive field of skiers. Continue reading below for the full interview.
How are you? Do you have an off season, or do you prefer to stay on skis year-round?
I’m doing wonderful, thank you for asking! We do have an off season. It’s usually late May through June and then it picks back up late June, early July. If you wanted, you could have no off season, that’s for sure. This past November, things kicked off when I went to Austria where we were doing a pre-season halfpipe training camp. It was pretty nice.
Do you think it’s important to have an off season?
For me, personally, I think it’s very important to have an off season. For one, we’re always in winter time, so it’s really nice to enjoy summer. Put your [bare] feet on the ground and just enjoy the sunlight on your skin. I also think it’s good mentally speaking because you can get away from competition—the stress, the scariness of it—because what we do is very intense and crazy and I really enjoy being able to step back and not be in that environment all of the time.
What are your favorite ways to stay fit when you’re not skiing?
I have a pretty regimented routine when it comes to fitness, I’d say. Monday, Wednesday and Friday I’m in the gym doing lifts and then Tuesday I am doing sprints and yoga, and Thursdays I am on the road bike or mountain bike. After that, it’s usually a little bit of trampoline and then rollerblading as well as hot tub, sauna, chiropractor, massage, sports psychiatry—all different types of things, as far as activities go. In the winter, on Tuesdays I go cross-country skiing and on Thursdays I go ice skating. I’d say I’m pretty active, I love to be outside, I love to move my body. I’m a huge fan of all sports, I played all the sports as a kid. My dad was a professional soccer player and my mom is a long-time marathon runner, so I just love being outside and moving my body.
Rest days are underrated—what are you doing to recover from hard training sessions?
I am a big rest proponent, rest is very good for the routine. I take Saturdays and Sundays off, it won’t be any structured activity if there is any activity at all. Maybe go for a trail run, I love to walk a lot. Walking on the grass in my bare feet feels really good. I always go to the sauna and usually hot tub every day off. I try to get a massage or physical therapy—anything like that and honestly I love just putting my feet up and watching movies. It’s my favorite thing to do [laugh]. If you get into a good movie, you kind of forget what’s happening in reality.
Your Columbia teammate, Cassie Sharpe, is having a big comeback after giving birth and taking two years off. In this year’s Warren Miller segment you helped her get back into the pipe—where was her head at before you worked together?
Cassie is amazing, I’m super proud and happy to be her teammate through Columbia. We obviously do the same sport, so I understand a lot of the struggles and stresses she must be going through, as we all do, but to have a child on top of it is insane. I feel like it’s hard enough taking care of my own body and mind, let alone having to do sports and take care of a young child as well. She’s pretty amazing, I would say, and I think along her journey she was maybe a little hesitant because she didn’t know she could do both, but as soon as she told me—I’m always an advocate for positivity and faith—I told her she can do this if she sets her mind to it. If she just plans everything out, prioritizes her baby and prioritizes her training, she can definitely do this once again and I think that’s exactly what she’ll do.
Did you see the shift in her confidence as you continued skiing together?
Yeah! I don’t see her at every camp because she is with the Canadian national team and I am with the United States national team, so our schedules align at all of the competitions, but not all of the camps. But when I do see her, I feel like she’s gaining confidence each day. I feel like a switch in her confidence was a little bit before the Warren Miller shoot, she had come to Aspen for a different shoot and she was on it. She had her mom taking care of the baby and she was very positive about coming back to compete and I think that’s the biggest thing, the mindset.
What were the biggest lessons learned in that process?
Just watching her whole situation, her life is a learning experience. Understanding that I am capable of what she’s doing now as well. I can’t imagine how difficult it is but I’ve learned through her that it’s all possible. For me, I guess the biggest learning lesson was to be more patient. She has to be extremely patient with her baby and her mom helping her with the baby and all of her sponsors wanting her to come out, it’s a lot, it’s stressful. She’s traveling with an infant, that’s not really easy to do, and then she’s got to perform. It’s not just writing emails, it’s putting your body on the line and it’s risking a lot. It’s very impressive, every time [I see her] I feel like I’m learning from her.
You and Cassie share an outerwear sponsor, Columbia—what has it been like being on that team?
Being with Columbia is amazing. Obviously I’m biased because I’m sponsored by them but even if I wasn’t, I would strictly buy Columbia gear because their technologies are unbelievable. For instance, their heating technologies like Omni Heat™ Infinity and their dry technologies like OutDry ™. I’ve tested all of the products through many different conditions and they’re superb.
I’ve been on the team since 2018, and they’ve always been supportive of what I want to do. I’m making a film right now and Columbia is going to support it. They’ve supported previous film parts in the past. It’s awesome, they want to see us do well competing, they support us through that but they don’t just want to share the story of competition, they want us to move forward with our creative endeavors as well. I’m extremely grateful. And the company itself is amazing. I’ve been to their headquarters numerous times, I’ve spoken at events for them and everyone is really chill and they’re super cool and they do their work.
Would you change anything about it?
If it was one thing, I would say add more people to the team! If they could do cross-team camps or meetings that would be really cool. They sponsor some professional anglers, as well as Bubba Wallace from NASCAR. I would love to meet Bubba [laughs].
Have you had any big setbacks in your career that you’ve had to come back from? What did that comeback look like for you?
I’ve had a few injuries, one being a neck injury. I had to have a foraminotomy done on my C4, C5 and C6 and that’s basically where the nerve roots that are coming out of my spinal cord are being pushed down by a small annular tear in one of my discs and it leaves very little room for the nerves to breathe. [While] the surgery was pretty non-invasive—they shaved down the bone to give the nerves room to breathe—[it] was definitely the most difficult part of my life. I was feeling an extreme amount of pain and no matter what I did, sauna, grounding, physical therapy, electroshock magnetic therapy, hyperbaric chamber—no matter what I tried, brushing my teeth at the end of the day was an alarming amount of pain.
That was a huge setback and it was going into the 2022 Winter Olympics, so while I’m getting surgery, my competition is using that time to train and get better at their craft. It was super difficult because when you’re in that much pain, you’re pretty demoralized to do anything. It’s like nothing really matters and everything sucks because you’re in so much pain and can’t enjoy doing anything—even laying in bed, I was just in so much so much pain. So finally, I got this surgery and it was life-changing. I remember being able to walk around without pain and for that, I was so grateful and happy.
So yeah, I’ve had setbacks before. Six weeks prior to the 2018 Olympics, I broke my collarbone. Again, my competition was training and I’m sitting there with a broken collarbone. Thankfully, both times I’ve managed to get on the podium but I would like to enter one Olympics fully healthy and give it my absolute all, and that’s what I foresee in the 2026 Olympics. I just try to stay positive and move forward.
There’s a whole mental side to coming back from injury, how did you manage that?
Yeah, you’re right. It’s really difficult and the mental side is actually the hardest part because you have to stay positive. If you are positive, I’m a firm believer that the body will heal quicker and everything speeds recovery if you’re in a relaxed state versus if you’re worrying. Subconsciously, all of your muscles will be clenched, so I’m a firm believer in positivity. How did I stay positive? I would go to a sports psychiatrist and we would talk about everything that was upsetting me or worrying me, going into big events and coming back from injury and that helped immensely. Just gaining that confidence and also being around close friends and family. It’s the smallest things that are the biggest things, right? My mom being able to walk up the stairs and bring me food instead of me having to get up and cook, that was huge. I would also program my brain at night. I would get on YouTube and I would have 12-hour videos where someone is saying positive things over and over again, it’s like a brain programming thing.
Obviously training and practice in the pipe are important leading up to a big competition like X Games, but what other things do you do to get ready?
There are ways to simulate the halfpipe without doing the halfpipe. If it’s summertime, I go rollerblade or jump on the trampoline to simulate air awareness or kinesthetic air knowledge. Rollerblading is a great way to feel the speed and balance similar to skiing, getting the small muscles in my feet to articulate to that. I also visualize a ton. Seeing myself in the big moments like X Games, third and final run, I’m the last person to drop and I swear if I visualized it, it would happen. It’s hard to fathom that stuff is real, but I would say visualization is the strongest technique because you don’t need anyone or anything, you can do it anytime. I do it laying in bed, and I’m basically thinking or manifesting what I want to happen.
Do you ever experience mental blocks or performance anxiety around competing?
That’s a good question. Certainly when I was younger, I think I would have more mental blocks or overthink things quite a bit. I’m 30 years old now, and I’ve heard it all the time that your 30s are great. You’re more comfortable with your place on this earth, you feel more relaxed, and I certainly feel that way. I’m not too stressed, no matter what happens, I’m good because my family is alive and healthy, I’m healthy. As far as mental blocks go, thankfully—knock on wood—that doesn’t happen to me anymore. I’m a firm believer in the training and I just train until my head hurts [laughs].
I’ve heard you say one of the best things kids can do to get better at skiing is to have time for free play, can you elaborate on that?
I watched this documentary called In Search of Greatness, and it was about three athletes—Wayne Gretzky, Jerry Rice and Pelé—in their respective sports; hockey, football and soccer. The characteristic that stood out (it was also a statistic in the documentary) was the collective reason that they made it or that they were the best in their domain is because their parents let them go free and play. For example, Wayne Gretzky would play roller hockey in the street all of the time, he would watch games and sit there with paper and pen, draw a hockey rink and then follow where the puck went with his pen. His dad helped him set up a backyard hockey rink and he would put holes in the net where he wanted to put the puck. The parents never told their child they needed to go to practice or run laps in the backyard, it was always the child, or Wayne, reaching out to his parents to help him and they got creative together.
Same thing with Jerry Rice, he would lay in his bed with the lights off—he didn’t have a TV because he grew up really poor—and he would throw the football back and forth in the air, catching it in each hand and he would do this over and over and over. They would play in the streets with their friends, knock on doors and just play. They talk about it in the documentary as a widespread theory that if you let the child play, they will get better and will effectively become the best. Honestly, that’s my case as well. My parents are super athletic people, but they did not care whatsoever what I was doing—they wanted me outside playing with my friends and that’s what we did. We’d build jumps in the front yard, we’d build rail setups, and if we needed lights—my mom would go get us lights. My parents would facilitate, essentially. They’d keep the bumpers on, like bowling, but let us do whatever we wanted to do.
Parents ask me all of the time how their kids can be great and I always say, have them call their friends, go outside, play all the sports, do everything, go to the movies, be a kid, don’t worry about anything but having fun and the rest will take care of itself. If they’re motivated and driven, they will find a way to get what they want.
On that note, your alter ego Hot Dog Hans is an internet sensation—how did this character come to be, what was the inspiration?
The character came to be because of my friend and business partner, Matt Hobbs, who owns Vital Films, and his business partner Cael Jones. They came to me and said, “Hey, we should dress you up as an old man.” Cael had seen some of the Uncle Drew stuff with Kyrie Irving and we thought we’d have some fun and create some clickbait. But then within the first 15 minutes, it was more than just clickbait. I was fully method acting and I don’t act, I’ve never done an acting class. I was just thrown into this and I was honestly acting like my grandfather—they call him ‘Inappropriate Bob,’ an 87-year-old guy who is completely out of line. So I just figured I’d do what he does and obviously over-amplify and exaggerate and the character took on a life of its own. We were having a lot of fun, people were interested, but we were just going with the flow—just playing.
Do you have any standout moments as Hot Dog Hans?
There’s this one moment where they were having a small USASA event at Snowmass and they had a part of the small park fenced off but there was a jump onto another feature that I could jump over the fence and land in the competition. So Hans jumps over the fence, gets into the competition and slays the rails, kinda kills it, and the emcee announces, “We’ve got a poacher in the park, but he’s pretty sick though so we’re not too upset about it.”
That’s my favorite part about Hans, totally going with the flow, hilarious, everyone’s involved and when you watch the film, you can see the older people looking like, what the hell is going on?
What was the response from your sponsors to this idea?
So far, everyone loves it! It’s hard for them to believe I do this because when they meet me in person, they can’t put the two together because Hans, I would say, is the antithesis of me. Columbia, especially, has been super cool. They’ve supported us and made Hans 3 and 4 come to life. So I have nothing but a huge thanks to Columbia for that. My other sponsors like it as well, but I think some people are a little concerned to put their name on it because we find the line and try to cross it but for the most part, everyone seems to be on board and that’s awesome.
Are we able to look forward to more Hans content in the future?
Yes! We are coming out with Hans 5, Hans goes to Switzerland. [Watch Hotdog Hans 5 HERE]
Are you listening to music while you’re practicing in the pipe? What’s on the playlist?
I don’t ski without music, I will turn around if I forget my headphones [laughs]. Currently on the playlist, always Bruce Springsteen, the boss is great. On my fall playlist right now, a lot of EDM stuff, Lil Wayne “Twist Made Me Do It,” 50 Cent “God Gave Me Style,” “Raincoats” by David Pope, just really anything that hits the ear nicely for me. I’m not picky when it comes to music, as long as it’s good.
What’s your gear setup?
I am sponsored and ride for Völkl skis, Marker bindings and Dalbello boots. I am on the Revolt 84, 174 cm length and I am in the Dalbello Veloce 130. It’s been a wonderful partnership, so far. The gear is top-notch quality and I can say that because I ride all of it and I’ve tested a lot of the different products, same with Columbia.
Again, the family at Völkl is awesome. My team representative, Jean-Claude Pedrolini, is the best guy in the world. If I didn’t have a dad, I would ask him to adopt me [laughs].
Do you have any pre-X Games traditions or superstitions?
So long as I stretch and get a steam or sauna in before the contest, I usually feel like I’m going to do pretty well. I try to veer away from the superstitions, so that I’m not bound to anything, but I do put my left sock on first and I usually put my left ski boot on first and when that happens, I know I’m going to do well.
What about a pre-comp meal? What are you snacking on before you head out to compete?
Whatever my mom will make me, I don’t like to go out the days leading up. I don’t cook, so I’m usually going out to eat, but my mom is a wonderful cook and I love her cooking so she will usually make some sort of soup or a pasta bolognese, which is my favorite.
You live in Aspen, home of the Winter X Games, does that add any sort of extra pressure performing in front of your hometown crowd?
It definitely adds some pressure, but I like performing under pressure. I like being an entertainer and giving the crowd what they want. Honestly, I feed off of the crowd, especially a lot of the people at X Games are from Aspen and a lot of them are coming directly to see me because I’m pretty well enveloped into the community. I do a lot of fundraisers for people, I know a lot of the kids from ski club and I’m there all of the time. It’s kind of beautiful, a lot of people come to support me and I truly feel the love, I can hear them screaming. Please keep coming, please keep supporting me. I love it—it’s exciting.
Do you have any favorite X Games memories?
Last year, 2024 X Games was the third time that I’ve won and it was the sweetest victory I think I’ve ever had. The year before in 2023, I took two really bad crashes and I was feeling all of the emotions. It’s embarrassing, it’s frustrating, annoying, it’s sad. So, to be able to come back the next year and not only excel, but do the run that I wanted to do and win on top of it, it’s hard to put into words but it was euphoric, really fantastic. I’ll never forget it. All of my family was there, my friends were there, I got a lot of messages of support and I really felt the love.
Is there anything you’re hoping to achieve at this year’s X Games?
I’d love to win again [laughs]! That would be awesome. To win again with style and class.
What are your favorite X Games events to watch when you’re not competing?
I love to watch Women’s Ski Big Air as well. Tess Ledeux is absolutely crushing it; Megan Oldham with the triple fourteen; Eileen [Gu], if she competes, would be awesome; and Mathilde [Gremaud] is obviously a threat, she’s skiing super well consistently. Those are my two favorite events to watch and I know the girls are going to throw down.
My [other] favorite event to watch is Men’s Ski Slopestyle. I would love to see Birk Ruud win again, that would be awesome. I don’t even know what they’re doing sometimes, they’re so impressive and I’m just a huge fan.
Outside of the pipe, what does the ideal ski day look like to you?
Huge powder day! Give me three feet of bottomless powder all morning and all afternoon, shred until my legs don’t work and then go back for a nice hot tub or sauna and then wake up and do it all over again.
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