I was manning the registration table in the few days leading up to World Quarters. I told riders about the event schedule, gave them lift tickets, and made them sign waivers. For me, the best part about registering everyone was I got to see old friends and meet new ones. There were a ton of international riders I was meeting for the first time. Yuki Kadono and Brooke D'Hondt were some of those riders. They went on to become the 2023 World Quarters Champs. The brief exchange conversation I had with them the first day didn't give me enough information about them beyond their name and how much fun Mammoth is. I had to know more. I thought texting would be easier since both riders and myself had travel days after the event. Now I know more about them and have their numbers saved. Congrats again Yuki and Brooke! Read our text convos below to find out more too!

TEXT CONVERSATION WITH BROOKE D'HONDT

Congrats on winning World Quarters! Where are you from? What brought you to World Quarters? How old are you?
I’m from Calgary Alberta Canada. I was in Mammoth for the month riding halfpipe. I’ve been watching qp highlights the last couple of years and was super psyched that Pat got me in this year. I am 18.

Have you ridden a QP that big before? 
No that was actually my first time ever riding a QP.

Wow!! You looked so comfy and were boosting! Do you compete in halfpipe? 
Yeah I’m on the Canadian National Halfpipe team and have been competing in World cups for three seasons now.

What was your favorite part about world quarters? Which riders there were you stoked on? 
I really liked the vibe and feeling of community, everyone was cheering each other on and hyped when someone landed a trick.
I was super psyched on Raibu and Mikey Ciccarelli but I really liked watching everyone’s different approach to the QP and everyone’s personal style come out.

How do you think you’ll get better at QPs? Will you come next year? 
Absolutely! Already marked on my calendar, it’s an awesome way to end the season! Riding halfpipe translates pretty well to QPs so hopefully, I can come up with some new tricks next year.

Awesome! Congrats again! So fun to watch you ride! Any thanks you want to end with?
Thanks so much! Big thank you to Slush Magazine and Mammoth Mountain for hosting such a sick event along with with all the sponsors! Snowboarding needs more events like this.

TEXT CONVERSATION WITH YUKI KADONO

Congrats absolutely killing it at World Quarters. You came out last year and did well too. What keeps you coming back to this event?
Last year was my first time doing this event and it was so fun! And I'm coming back to this event every year just to shred with everyone!!

Do you ride QPs often? How are you so comfortable riding them? What type of riding helps? 
I don’t ride QPs much. But I use to ride pipe when I was younger. And I’m still riding pipe just for fun.




Sick. QPs are hard to come by. Where are you from originally and where do you live now? 
I’m from Hyogo Japan. Currently living in Jackson WY.

Sweet. A lot of Japanese representation at the World Quarters. And in snowboarding in general. How did you start snowboarding and what brought you to the States? 
At first, it was my father's hobby, and a month later it became my hobby.
I used to travel to America all the time from Japan. And 2020 after I won US Open Covid came to the US and I decided to stay in here. I always thought that I wanted to live in the US but I was afraid to do that. But many of my friends were very kind and made me decide to move to America.

Awesome. Stoked to always see you riding here and killing. It. Thanks for the time doing this! Do you want to end with any thanks or shoutouts?
I’d like to thank everyone who made this event a success. Slush magazine, Mammoth Mountain, park crew, all sponsors and riders! Much love❤️

FULL RECAP EDIT, PHOTOS, AND WRITE-UP HERE!