ASPEN — Each year that Shaun White returns to the Winter X Games, his stature seems to gain another level, even when most think it can’t. Now 25 years old, White has gone from being the face of snowboarding to having his image out there on everything from home furnishings to chewing gum.
He is getting backed by new sponsorship deals, but his partnership with Target remains the strongest. His clothing line has taken off with the retailer. He even played himself in a recent Justin Timberlake movie.
On the eve of his 10th Winter X Games, White, who has won Winter X gold 11 times and Olympic gold twice, sat down to talk about all things boarding and life:
Q: With slopestyle now an Olympic sport and your return to it at the X Games last year, how are you focusing on slopestyle this year after not getting out of the qualifying round in 2011?
A: Last year was kind of the “walking into the slaughter” kind of thing. I knew I wasn’t going to do any damage. It was more about being there and learning what I needed to know with the new riders and new tricks. Half the guys there I didn’t even know their names. … But I think I got a lot of respect from the riders for just showing up. I could easily have just hidden until I was going to win. … I was content with the loss because I lost and I couldn’t compete with these guys. It’s tough when you know you have the winning run and you could do it, but I’m definitely a brand-new rider from what I used to be in slopestyle.
Q: You’ve been at your place in Breckenridge a lot more the past two months. How are you liking hanging out in Breck a little more this year?
A: Northstar is my home mountain, but since Breck is under that umbrella (with Vail Resorts), we are able to go there and get the same support. The park crew is just unbelievable. I bought them cases of beer. They were very accommodating. They were closing down certain parts of the park, and that’s never fun. I never want to be the guy to do that. So I was like “OK, I’ll hit it really hard at this window so then they can open up the park for everyone.” It was great, and the clincher was I learned a lot.
Q: Did you get caught up in the Broncos and Tim Tebow wave?
A: Oh, man, you should have seen the jerseys on the mountain at Breck. Everybody was running the Tebow thing on the hill. It was cool. I got into it. I was actually at Breck when the game against Pittsburgh was going down. … It was definitely a fun time to be there and take advantage of my place in Breck.
Q: What’s more weird: Having a clothing line and looking at swatches or having your own chewing gum?
A: I would definitely say the gum. It totally is what you think. I sat in a room chewing different pieces, and they’re like, “How does it feel, was there a cooling sensation, perhaps?” And I’m like writing all these comments out.
Q: Do you still have your first board?
A: Yeah. It’s in a pile in the attic with a bunch of others. But I think the funniest thing was the boots. The old Sorels, because they didn’t make snowboard boots in my size back then.
David Krause: 303-954-1893 or dkrause@denverpost.com
