Last Friday, Kyote Miyake – a Japanese rider from the resort of Hakuba, on the main island – died while snowboarding. According to his friend Zach Hooper, he fell off a “large structure” and ruptured his heart.

“Last year my brother Aaron and I went to Hakuba to film for Sol Food with Forrest Bürki and Steve Aoki,” says Zach. “While we were there we met up with locals Kyota Miyake, Yuta Kobayashi and Masaki Kitea. They graciously showed us their zones. They also showed us that they rip at snowboarding.

Aaron made the decision to extended his trip and focus on filming these homies for the next month. Kyota invited Aaron and Forrest to stay in his home in Hakuba and Steve and I travelled back to the US. Over the next month these boys, who were bonded by snowboarding, became very close friends.

My brother has made this tribute video for Kyota. His dream was to be a part of the snowboarding community. I hope that you will take the time to watch his love of snowboarding and life.”

It is a poignant film that captures the beauty of Japan, the friendships snowboarding can bring and one man’s riding talent. Rest in peace Kyota.