Refinement is one of the most beautiful things that people are capable of. The process of trial and error, adding and subtracting ingredients until that near perfect product is produced, it’s something that no other living creature has been able to do. At least, not at the caliber that we have. As humans, we instinctually apply this procedure to everything. From rocket ships and smart phones, to the silly craft of skiing and documenting, we take, we analyze, and we refine.
For many years within the ski world, it seemed that this exercise solely consisted of adding more. Ski movies needed more locations, better cameras, crazier music, and so on. Skiing itself was also primarily a game of addition only, with riders pushing for more spins, higher heights, and faster times. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of all these things. Who doesn’t love seeing a new spot in an annual film? And you’re lying to me if you say that no part of you wants to watch a kid who can’t even buy booze yet land a new world first. But at a certain point, you have to take a few steps back to make a move forward.
As of recent, refinement by subtraction has become more prominent. With riders like Daniel Loosli taking it back to basics, pulling in their own flair from the ground up, a new element of aesthetics has been re-introduced to skiing. New Zealand’s Finn Bilous seems to be on that wave as well, literally and figuratively. In his latest project with Quiksilver, appropriately titled ‘White Noise’, Finn and a team of friends take away the drone shots, loud music, and huge lines, to reveal what skiing has to offer at its core; serenity.
The posse descended on Finn’s home mountain of Treble Cone after the lifts had stopped for the season, and with the help of mountain bike trail crew Flux Trails, they transformed a section of the hill into the wonderfully bounding track that you are about to lay eyes upon. Without a doubt, they put some serious work into crafting this run, but the mountain supplied a lot of the assistance “au naturale”, as they say in baguette land. The easy banked turns and cascading hills go hand in hand with Finn’s surf inspired skiing, causing the terrain and style to meet in perfect unison. The lack of music and consistent natural noise makes each well dialed trick and smooth flowing turn pop all the more.
With any luck, we’ll see more individualized projects from both Finn and Quiksilver soon. Clearly both the brand and young Bilous have a keen sense for refining a project down to exactly how they envision it. And in the ever expanding world of skiing, more personalized style, both in the skiing and filming, is always needed. Now turn off the lights and throw in the headphones, it’s time for some white noise.
