Ben Boyko

Out Of Nowhere: The Ben Boyko Interview

As Slopestyle contests go, Crankworx 2007 won’t go down as one of the best in memory.

Marred by crashes and injuries, most riders never got their groove on the course. Many said it lacked flow and riders would traverse – often detouring for trannies and stunts – in a desperate attempt to find a line they liked. After the first round of the finals there was very little suspense – Ben Boyko made sure of that.

One of the biggest critics of the course, Boyko went out and put together a solid run anyway. It appeared his lead would be insurmountable as rider after rider fell or under-performed in round two, and indeed his victory was sealed before he arrived at the drop in for his second run. I figured Ben would just style it out and treat his descent as a victory lap but apparently that’s not his style.

Run two was just as burly and had fewer flaws in the eyes of the judges putting more distance between himself and the rest of the competitors. The crowd went ape when he again spun three off the huge final drop to end the contest and further cement his victory. Finally a Canadian had won the Crankworx Slopestyle.

In the off season Ben was kind enough to answer some of my questions about life as a pro rider. Check out what he had to say below as well as epic photos and sequences by Harookz.

Read the FULL INTERVIEW on NSMB.com