Terje Haakonsen with Burton Founder and CEO, Jack Burton, and his wife, Donna Carpenter, President of Burton.
It’s not everyday that Scooter crosses paths with rappers, producers and snowboarding stars all in one room. But that’s exactly what happened a few weeks ago during fashion week, when Burton, the snowboard lifestyle brand held a premiere of its new film, “13.” Hosted by musical artist RZA of Wu-Tang Clan, the event featured a screening of the extreme sport flick and a reception with some of snowboarding’s most famous faces.
We caught up with Norwegian competitor Terje Haakonsen, 37, who for the last twentyodd years has dominated the half-pipe competition of the sport. He even boycotted the Olympics when he felt his sport wasn’t being respected and has fought for snowboarding’s prominence at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Most importantly, he’s a loving father. Scooter wanted to learn a bit about how he engages with his kids, if they even like snowboarding and have they made the transatlantic journey to New York City? It took a while to track him down—he’s a globetrotter—but we managed to hear from him.
Did the kids come with you to the city? Have they been before?
The oldest (15) has been a few times and the rest have been a few times to Tokyo, they love it. Lifts and trains everywhere!
How did you like your time spent in New York? What are your favorite places and things to do here?
There is a lot of great food that I like, but just cruising around is a good time. So much to check out!
How do you balance your career and being a father?
Ha! You just have to plan well; sometimes I’m gone for three weeks at a time. Not that cool… I always miss them and miss something they are doing. But knowing they are well is nice.
What sort of activities do you do with your kids for fun?
We play some soccer, we all snowboard and we do cartwheels
Where does the family hit the slopes?
We ride in Oslo, a place called Tryvann Winter Park and my home resort Vierli in Telemark.
Sounds like Scooter should venture past Vail and head to Scandinavia!
Follow Benjamin-Emile Le Hay via RSS.
