Krush Convos: Halldor Helgason Interview

Name: Halldor Helgason
D.O.B:  January 10, 1991
Age Started Snowboarding: 9 years old
Home Mountain:  Hlíðarfjall
Nickname(s): Harold (when I’m drunk), Halli Hondele, Hilldawg, Young Titty Boy
Sponsors: Nike, Oakley, Monster, Lobster Snowboards, 7-9-13 Belts, Hoppipolla Headwear, Switchback Bindings, Coloud Headphones, Neff Gloves, Spotdigger Kaleidoscope Skateboards, Chillbill

Krush: In just two(ish) short years you’ve already taken the snowboard industry by storm. How have things been going since your first major win at Winter X back in 2010?
Halldor: Thank you thank you, things have been going awesome! I have really good sponsors that back me up, I own four companies together with my Brother Eiki (7-9-13 Belts, Hoppipolla Headwear, Lobster Snowboards and Switchback Bindings). We have a fun thing going with Helgasons.com and our own movie project called Sexual Snowboarding, and a lot of good people around to help make all this possible. Can’t complain!

What was it like being named Rookie of the Year by your peers?
It was insane! So random since it’s nothing I would have thought would ever happen to me…

Your Rookie of the Year & gold metal made you an overnight star in the snowboard world. Did it make you an overnight star in the ladies world too?
Haha. It pretty much did, It Pretty Much Did… thank you thank you.

Heard you keep turning down modeling gigs, what’s up with that?
Yeah man, its so hard these days, so many male and female model shoots I have to turn down these days… since I’m going to focus on my snowboarding career for a little longer at least.

Your segment in Pepping was just insane. Where do you come up with this stuff?
To be honest I come up with most of the ideas while I’m travelling and just listening to music, then I always send it on the notes on my iPhone and come up with a trick list and ideas for the season. So, I always have a little bit of a mission for every season.

There were some pretty gnarly crashes in it. Which was the worst?
The worst one was probably when I fell strait on my face and got knocked out. I couldn’t move my head for like 10 days, but after that it was mellow. I also fucked my ankle up at the World Championship in Oslo. That was in March, trying a lobster flip. I was out until the beginning of May. Then I went to Val Senales and tried the lobster flip again and fucked my other ankle up. Hehe I was stooooked…

Do you think growing up in the mostly mountainless lands (other than volcanoes) of Iceland has pushed you more towards the urban elements of snowboarding?
Our hometown, Akureyri, is really small. It’s only 16,000 people living there but it’s a lot of cool urban spots and there’s usually really good snow. We never had any parks at our home mountain. We always just had to do everything ourselves and got use to the most sketchy setups. Hehe, so when we moved to Sweden and got to ride real parks, ones that were shaped like two times a day, we were soooo pumped! We just rode every chance we got.

Urban, park or backcountry?
Urban for sure! It’s so fun and it’s the easiest place to get creative I think.

How the hell did you find time to launch your own snowboard brand, Lobster Snowboards?
Everything is possible if you have your head in the right place and want to make it happen…

What tricks have you been working on in the off-season for the upcoming winter?
Not claiming anything my maaaan

Photographer: Olav Stubberud

How has it been working with the guys over at Nike? Any wild team stories?
Haha. It’s been awesome! All the people over there are really nice and really support of me. With everything that I’m doing, I could not be more stoked. Of course I have some insane team stories, since it’s the snowboarding world we are living in, but I’m going to have to keep that for me.

What was it like filming the Nike Snowboarding Project? Chapter 2 just dropped and it’s mind-blowing.
It was a lot of fun. Nike is making a full on movie this year that I’m going all in on filming for, so I cant wait for that!

How are the new Nike snowboard boots? Which ones are you riding?
I ride the Ites most of the time but also the Vapen when I want to have a softer boot.

What does your set up look like these days?
Vapen Nike Boots, Nike Outerwear, Oakley goggles, Monster Energy cans, Lobster Candy machine 148 snowboard, my pro-model Wing Switchback bindings, 7-9-13 pro-model belt, Hoppipolla pro-model beanie, Neff pro-model Gloves, Coloud Headphones.

Favorite Oakley gear?
Oakley Splice and the Frogskin sunglasses at the moment.

(Signature Question) Krush’s slogan is “lead the crowd.” How do you think you are leading the snowboard crowd?
I’m probably leading the snowboarding crowd in the wrong direction, so I hope people will try and go the other way, muhmuhmuuuu…

(Signature Question) What (to this point) has been your most “Krushable” (epic) moment?
Winning X-games big air in 2010, since it was so random. Hehe.

What’s next for you? Working on any projects, traveling, video parts, signature lines?
I’m filming in Iceland as we speak. Filming for the Nike movie and our own project. It’s been a really fun start to the season for sure! Can’t complain. From here on I’m just going to keep on snowboarding, do some contests and have a gooooood time!

Halli Hondele (aka Halldor) is unstoppable at this time. He’s slaying parks and the snowboard industry with his rising brands. Be sure to check out his website and follow his season on Facebook and Twitter. Trust us, his updates are AWESOME.

Got a question for Hilldawg? Post it in the comments below and we’ll get Harold (drunk Halldor) to answer it for you.

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