Parinacota is a striking strato-volcano on the border of Chile and Bolivia that towers over the Andean Altiplano (high plains). It caught the eye of Antonia Galmez in a photograph and she began hatching a plan to summit and ride the remote and majestic mountain. She assembled a team and rode the volcano in the spring of 2023 (South American Fall). The film Payachatas documents everything that went into this incredible undertaking.

S.T.A.Y. Denali

Stay denali header
Last spring, Marissa Krawczak, Amanda Hankinson, and Kaytlyn Gerbin spent eighteen days on Denali in Alaska learning, splitboarding, and raising awareness for STAY: Somebody's Thinking About You. STAY is a non-profit founded two years ago by women in the snowboard community who were dissatisfied with the mental health resources and treatment options available to action sports athletes. In honor of National Suicide Prevention Month and in support of the STAY Denali project, Spark R&D will match donations to STAY up to $2,000. Please consider a donation to this worthy organization.

Spark R&D Team Trip: 2023

splitboarding in Austria
In January 2023, Will, Luke, and Dan from Spark R&D met up with some of Spark's Team Riders and Shred Fam ambassadors in Badgastein, Austria for three days of splitboarding, high-fives, good meals, and good times.

Elena Hight – Edge of the Earth

Last season, I was lucky enough to team up with TGR, Griffin Post and Jeremy Jones for the creation of what became the film Edge of the Earth. The adventure behind the riding is really what got showcased during this film, which I love because that is what draws me to splitboarding; the challenge it takes to find good snow, technical lines, or just go somewhere you have never explored.

Treasure State Series

Last season, we set out to film three short splitboard edits in our home state of Montana. We wanted to ride three different ranges, with three different groups, and tell three unique stories.

An Interview with Rafael Pease

Interview with Rafa Pease header
We had a chance to catch up with Team Rider, Rafael Pease. We chatted about filming with TGR in Alaska last season for the Mountain Revelations project and spoke a little bit about what he's up to this winter.
Last winter, Tear Rider Tamo Campos spent several weeks camped out at Mt. Cain on North Vancouver Island in Canada. He and his friends experienced a lot of different extreme weather and were able to explore all that the island has to offer on their splitboards.

Carpe Diem Episode 17

Carpe Diem Ep 17
Carpe Diem is the splitboard driven web series from Spark R&D Team Rider Aurelien Routens. In Episode 17 he explores the Park de Ecrins in France.
antti Autti splitboarding
SCAN is Antti Autti's latest all-splitboard documentary-style film where he explores familiar zones in northern Norway with a fresh set of eyes and no specific goal other than to spltiboard as much as possible. Antti's progression as a freeride snowboarder and splitboarder has been impressive to watch. The drive that allowed him to rise to the top of the freestyle competition scene is now directed towards exploration and human-powered missions.
GNFAC Forecasters
The GNFAC is a tremendous resource for our backcountry community and I’m stoked they’re letting me spend a day in the field with them. As an active reader of the daily avy forecasts the center puts out, I’m pretty interested to see how the cake is made, as they say.