#9 – Andy Nudds

One of the Halifax golden generation that included Will Smith, Matt Macwhirter and Jamie Nicholls, Nuddsy has come a long way from lapping his local carpet. Indeed it’s a testament to the power of dryslope that it can change whole lives, and having discovered snowboarding this big, shy lad never looked back.

From Morzine to Helsinki via Tahoe, Nuddsy has pushed himself to be the best he can be and has helped raise the whole level of UK riding in the process (it’s no coincidence that he can count Smith and Billy Morgan amongst former housemates). While he’s a beast on booters, it’s at street spots with the Grindhouse crew that ‘The Nuddsinator’ has really made his name, throwing those meaty limbs of his down rails and ledges with machine-like precision. His insane opener in this year’s final film Afterlife – above several scandi talents who joined the crew – was richly deserved.

More impressively still, Nuddsy has achieved all this while holding down a day job as a postman. The snowboard industry can seem full of extroverts at times – all competing to harvest followers on social media – and it takes a certain brand to choose the quiet guy as their ambassador; Nuddsy, though, has stayed true to himself while navigating the perilous sponsorship waters and always let his riding do the talking. For this, we salute him.

“Hands down the most stylish rider to come from the UK” – James Stentiford, rider/guide

“His style blew my mind the first time I saw him, and it still does – every time. Style is subjective, but in my opinion he has the best of any rider ever in the history of the universe” – Jack Labbett, rider

#7 – James Stentiford

On the most recent of the many Whitelines trips James Sentiford has accompanied us on, he told us about when he went to buy his current van at auction and accidentally dropped a grand in cash out of his pocket on his way in. When we asked how he reacted, he simply shrugged and brushed it off. In essence, shit happens, and nothing really ever seems to ruffle Stenti’s feathers.

Some of that may be down to the sheer amount of time he’s been around: a professional career that’s spanned three decades and seen him clear the Baker gap, hit the same backcountry jumps as Travis Rice, get towed by a horse through the Cornish surf, lead Quicksilver’s European team, come third down the Bec des Rosses and explore Alaska on multiple trips. Ten years ago we made fun of him for being old – these days he’s still going strong, and remains the best freerider we’ve ever produced.

Now splitting his time finding lucky clients powder stashes in the winter and surfing/skating/teaching his son the dark arts in the Devonshire summer, he’s living the dream as envisaged by, well, all of us.

#sagaholidays

“The silverback. A genuine ‘lifer’, all round boardsports-man and the only one on the list I’d trust to take me to AK” – Ed Blomfield, Whitelines

“Purely for not stopping. Stylish, all-terrain, all-round shred rat. James has inspired and motivated for years and years, and this is set to continue for a very long time…” – James Sweet, SuperRad

#6 – Tyler Chorlton

A true citizen of the world, but still technically British, so we’ll have him. When we think of the quintessential ‘snowboarder’, it’s a Tyler Chorlton-shaped figure that pops into our heads: gangsta steeze even whilst in full Gore-Tex, and some of the best true snowboarding you’ll ever see if you ever get to see him ride up close – just classic style.

As well as video parts with Pirate Productions and his own WhatWeWant Films (some of the best ever pulled together by a Brit) he’s also got his own snowboard shop in the Andorran town he calls home and – by our count – two tricks that could very well be chalked up as Chorlton signatures: the frontflip-nosegrab and the backside 720 double stiffy.

From BC sled missions to Haute Savoie powder, the backcountry is where snowboarding’s soul resides, and no one from our fair land has made it their home quite like Tyler.

“I can’t count the amount of times Tyler has astonished me while riding in the presence of any rider in the world – he always stands out. He’s also had standout parts with some of the most respected snowboard productions in the world” – Henry Jackson, rider/MC

“So smooth and talented” – Neil McNab, rider/guide

Next up, the top 5 – check back tomorrow for more!