The following article was originally printed in the October 2022 Issue of Slush. To access the full article click here.
Words and Photos by: Bob Plumb
“GET IN THE FUCKING VAN!!!” I yelled out the window. We had just watched The Wolf of Wall Street and I had decided that this would be my persona for the morning. We were waiting for Colt Morgan to finish his spliff as he slowly walked over to the van and jumped in. “I’m not used to this type of hostility in the mornings,” he commented as he shut the van door. We all laughed.
We have all seen the Dustbox and the infamous van, but this wasn’t their standard van. They had left the comforts of the states to fulfill their dream of a European vacation. This dream had landed them in Helsinki where it seemed to be the one place on earth that had snow in February. Most of us would think about heading overseas to film for 10-14 days, but not these kids. They stayed there for over a month. Living out their salad days, smoking spliffs with the van door open, swiping right and stock piling trash to the ceiling in the Airbnb.
I had wanted to get out with these kids for many years. Last winter I remember trying to get in shape for the one day a year I splitboard by riding the stationary bike. My motivation to get on the bike was watching the Dustbox feature, Dreamcastle. Daydreaming one day It will be me in the streets with the kids drinking starbucks and poppin’ flashes. It was a big trip for me. I had doubts about my abilities. Did I still have it??? Would the flashes go off? Are the jokes I’ve had for the last 15 years still funny?! Would I be canceled because of my jokes?!? One morning I decided I would practice my alter egos and jokes in the mirror. I took a deep breath. I got this! It’s not like the wheel is getting reinvented. Dustbox is the natural evolution of the homie crew. You can feel the heart and soul of snowboarding alive and well on these types of trips. It lives for the streets. From Bozwreck, to Videograss, to Lick the Cat and now Dustbox. The context is similar, good friends with little budget making movies.
You might ask yourself a few questions. How did they get the whole squad to Europe and who pays for this? I have no idea how they pull this off but I’ll let you know what I witnessed. The Box has a small amount of funding. This goes to gas, places to stay, filmers and the food. If someone happens to come up on a little bit of extra cash, they help out the squad. They’ll stack as many people as possible into a room, a bed, a floor or under a table to save a bit of money. They stockpile groceries for the crew and with that food comes piles of trash in the Airbnb. After all, they are just a bunch of kids, not living at home anymore… whose job is it to take out the trash? You can’t help but be drawn to these kids and how much they do for very little. It’s pure passion and for the love of the game. The newest version of The Hard, the Hungry and the Homeless.
Filming is its own dynamic. True to themselves, they rarely break crew. Patiently waiting their turn to film. That turn can take days to pop up with the amount of people in the crew. That’s not easy on the mental psyche of a budding pro snowboarder. No one complains, they just run with the program. Maybe no one stresses because they know when they pull up to a city to film, they aren’t leaving for at least a month. I have no idea how they do that? I’d go mentally insane. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not all sunshine and roses out there. They all talk shit and tease each other. It’s a right of passage. Personally, I love nothing more than when people fuck with each other on these trips. Teasing is good for your character, and it makes the trip more entertaining...