A “proposal” scene shocks the ski resort
On January 9, 2014, one day before the official start of the 12th Red Bull Nanshan Open, 36 riders from 11 countries including the United States, Finland, and China came to Nanshan Ski Resort for their final practice before the competition. As evening fell, one of the participating riders suddenly appeared holding a bouquet of roses, dropped to one knee in front of a woman, staging an on-the-spot proposal in a touching scene. The woman being proposed to, after a brief moment of surprise, responded with a loving hug and a gentle kiss on the forehead. However, just as everyone around was moved and offering their blessings, the involved parties laughed and clarified that this was simply a joyful gathering called “Red Bull High Night” held by the riders on the eve of the official Red Bull Nanshan Open.
Riders admire creative photos taken of them by photographers
At the “Red Bull High Night” event, photographer Fischi had just as much fun with the riders. Fischi is a professional photographer specializing in snowboarding, with 17 years of shooting experience. During today’s creative photo sessions, he often burst into laughter at the riders’ playful antics: “I absolutely love the photos of Tim proposing, and Seth doing tricks on the snowboard wall while holding a flower was also really fun. I did something similar during the Air & Style competition in Australia before—where all the riders would hold swords, and spotlights would project a dragon shadow onto the snow, and the riders would pretend to fight the dragon. We used to call the riders ‘dragon slayers.’” Whenever Fischi finished taking photos, the riders would come bouncing over to check them out, sometimes not even bothering to take off their snowboards. And as Fischi showed the photos, he would occasionally imitate the riders’ mid-air poses. In the cold evening of the ski resort, the atmosphere was “high” beyond measure.
The joyful atmosphere of “Red Bull High Night” also moved Istok Sumatic, the head judge of this year’s Red Bull Nanshan Open and also a judge for the slopestyle event at the Sochi Winter Olympics. Seeing everyone enjoying themselves, Istok couldn’t help but exclaim, “This is the true spirit of snowboarding!”