A decade of dropping the snow bomb
Kaz Willmer celebrates Snowbombing's 10th Birthday in Mayrhofen.
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I've always found Snowbombing strange, in a good way though. On one hand you've got your standard 'Brits Abroad' who are there solely to consume as much alcohol as possible and have no intention of riding the beautiful Austrian pistes. On the other hand you've got the 'Snow Lovers' who just want to get as much end-of-season riding in as possible.
But somehow it works. The Snow Lovers get up first thing to get in as many runs as possible before the snow turns too slushy, and the Brits Abroad happily sleep off their hangovers until it's time to start the next party. By early afternoon, the two groups converge, and the music and beer drinking starts...again.
For 10 years, this mish-mash of big name bands, massive DJs, unbelievable venues and thousands of people eager to enjoy themselves has not disappointed. Why? Because the Snowbombing crew know what works when it comes to venues, and this year they topped it off.
A decade of Snowbombing flyers and ads
Where else can you party in a 200-year-old backcountry hut, rave inside an igloo or get messy in a forest clearing? Not to mention the underground tennis-court-complex-cum-igloo and the Tyrolean fairy-light barn. Fill these venues with artists such as 2manyDJs, Dizzee Rascal, Biffy Clyro, Beardyman and High Contrast, add thousands of schapps-drinking, goggle-tanned revellers and you've got yourself Snowbombing.
But, to be surrounded by the Tyrolean mountains while at one of the biggest spring festivals is an experience in itself. Not only do the mountains provide their own acoustics but the whole atmosphere just keeps both Snow Lovers and Brits Abroad in a state of permanent happiness, whether they're enjoying a quiet schnitzel in the afternoon or partying in the forest.
The flights home were filled with a few too many broken limbs and hungover, sunburned faces, but when you're left with memories of raving in mass street parties, dancing in the Arctic Disco and enjoying perfect end-of-season snow conditions, back-to-work seems even harder to deal with.
Bring on 2010!
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A decade of dropping the snow bomb (text) by Kaz Willmer is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
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