Wintersports
Snowboarding
Watch Kai Lenny and Travis Rice Snowboard the Alaskan Backcountry
“Life of Kai” director Keith Malloy shares all as the big wave icon takes his surfing to the next level, on snow.
Usually, Kai Lenny’s not in the co-pilot seat. Normally, (OK, fine, almost always) the man’s steering the ship, running the show, call it what you will…his vision’s always led him toward success. But in the brilliant new episode of "Life of Kai," we watch another iconic figure (in the snow world) take the wheel and tow Kai into a new element in the towering peaks of the Alaskan backcountry. On a mission to complete a double backflip in the snow — order to do one on a tow or foil board in giant surf — Travis Rice shows Kai Lenny the ropes.
What’s that like capturing this kind of story and action, and furthermore, telling Kai’s story throughout the entire season? Former pro surfer turned filmmaker Keith Malloy (this season’s director) fills us in on it all.
Kai Lenny snowboarding in Valdez, Alaska
© Chad Chomlack
So Keith, this newest episode of "Life of Kai" was epic to say the least. What was it like directing that? Challenging out there?
It’s funny because I’ve dabbled in snowboarding over the years, but I’m no great snowboarder at all, so it was kind of crazy being up there on helicopters. It was pretty out of this world. Some of it I couldn’t totally comprehend but I knew it was pretty great working with Travis Rice because he’s a beast and puts together visually some of the best stuff in that world. So, it was great working with him on that.
Logistically, it was tricky right off the bat. We had a little warm up run for Kai at Travis’ house in Wyoming, then the next thing we know flights were getting cancelled because there’s a volcano in Kamchatka that was sending smoke to Alaska. So, we had a good 24 hours of thinking the trip might be totally off.
Fortunately for us, it all opened up and we were able to catch our flight. Then you get up to Alaska and the weather day to day can be off for weeks at a time. We had a window of about a week and we were just crossing our fingers. Travis had looked into the weather and said it looked good, but you never know. So, yeah, those were some of the challenges right off the bat, but then actually getting up on top of those peaks and getting down them was heroic endeavor in itself.
Kai Lenny and Travis Rice snowboard in Valdez, Alaska
© Chad Chomlack
Kai Lenny and Travis Rice scoping lines in Valdez, Alaska
© Chad Chomlack
Kai Lenny snowboarding in Valdez, Alaska
© Chad Chomlack
Kai Lenny and Travis Rice scoping lines in Valdez, Alaska
© Chad Chomlack
Correct us if we’re wrong but… did we witness Kai outrun an avalanche in the episode? What happened there?
He did. I wasn’t quite sure that’s what that was when I saw it, too, but I remember one of the guides looked over at me and said ‘F—k, that was heavy.’ It looked heavy to me. There were actually quite a few of those slushy, small avalanches happening while we were up there. So, that was a whole other pucker-factor — going through the avi-training and figuring out how the beacons and all those things worked and doing a full half-day of avalanche training courses.
Wow. So, what would you say your favorite part about that episode was despite some of those obstacles?
Well, I definitely got sandbagged into getting up there and having to actually snowboard down, which I did not plan on ever doing. [laughs] Overall, at the end of each day, when the mission was accomplished, we were like the first helicopter out and the last one in, every time. Travis and Kai just pushed it to the limits staying out there. So, it was that feeling of accomplishment after the end of every day and witnessing people like them at their peak performance in such a drastic environment. That was amazing.
Kai Lenny and Travis Rice riding in helicopter in Valdez, Alaska
© Chad Chomlack
What was that like watching Kai suddenly take on the role of ‘the student,’ under Travis?
Yeah, I think Kai was just totally letting Travis lead the way. But Kai kind of blew everyone away because the cinematographer and the photographer that were with us were like, ‘OK, Kai can ride a little bit,’ and then by the end of the trip they’re like ‘Oh my god, Kai has gotten so comfortable, so quickly.’ He kind of blew everyone’s mind. So, it was definitely a situation where Travis was the ringleader and Kai had full respect and was just thankful to be up there with him.
It was one of Kai’s dreams to do this kind of trip with Travis, though. I think Kai was going beyond his limits, but trusted Travis and Travis knew what Kai was capable of after a couple rounds, and they just went balls to the wall.
Kai Lenny and Travis Rice pose for portraits in Valdez, Alaska
© Chad Chomlack
Has it been interesting directing this season of “Life of Kai”? It seems different from other work you’ve done in the past, no?
Yeah, I feel like Red Bull wanted to tell a more in-depth story, but at the same time we’ve been super mindful of keeping the audience engaged. I felt like there was an opportunity to really have more supporting characters fill in and help create the mood and the feel of the whole piece — not just having Kai verbally explain everything. But yeah, it’s been really great and kind being able to step out of our norm and create something new.
What’s that like working with Kai as a subject? How is he unique from other people you’ve worked with?
I’ve had my eye on Kai for a really long time, always respected him as a growing waterman, what with all the disciplines he excels at. Then, to watch him become one of the best big-wave surfers on the planet — I was totally blown away. So, to have this guy at the top of the food chain, dominating the sport, who’s just goofy and smiles and happy and stoked — that’s really refreshing for me to see and thrilling to work with. He’s just this happy-go-lucky character, who at the same time, is incredibly driven and dedicated to what he does.
Kai Lenny building jump in Valdez, Alaska with Travis Rice
© Chad Chomlack
What do you want the viewer to leave with after this season?
I think what we’re trying to do with this season is really dig into a deeper layer of who Kai is. I feel like there’s a little bit of a side of Kai that’s camera-ready, and then there’s one that’s little layer deeper. So, we’re trying to touch on that next layer. All of this is kind of unfolding in real-time, too, which, is interesting. The “Inner” Life of Kai, maybe? [laughs]. I feel like we’ve had an incredible opportunity to express how incredible the guy surfs and what level he’s on between the Eddie Aikau and the Backdoor Shootout and all these things. But I think is the year that he’s really proven himself all around as one of the best surfers in the world.
