D-Jam

Words: Mathieu Richard
Photos: Robert Renaud

Not quite a competition, not quite a jam, D-Structure and Orage’s D-Jam was at Mont Orford, Quebec last Saturday for their second of three stops over the winter. Believe me when I say that this event is one of the most appreciated of the year for riders all across Quebec. The event is a crossover between a jam and a competition. Skiers have several jam sessions on different features and are awarded prizes for their tricks, style and burlyness.

The good guys from the D were handing out big prizes from Orage, Armada, D-Structure, Salomon and Voleurz to skiers who impressed the peanut gallery, and after having jammed each feature, one skier is selected as the best performing rider overall and is handed some swag and $100 spending money at D-Structure.

The event also featured the Air Bag for the first time in the four-year history of D-Jam, which gave riders the opportunity to work on jumps safely and to the sound of the event’s great music.

The second D-Jam of the year simply and literally blew the event organizers and announcers away, and by the literally I mean the wind actually blew away their tent. But despite the strong winds present throughout the day, skiers still threw down and went big, busting out disasters a veriety of spins on and off along with every variation and combo you can think of. Everyone was going hard and several people bailed hard but kept on hiking back up and doing it again.

The D-Jams have a very important place in the schedule of events in Quebec since it brings skiers together in a fun and non-competitive way. They are a big part of the reason why we have such a strong freeskiing community in Quebec and are just a blast to attend.

This has been my second D-Jam in two years and I always notice the thing I love most about the event: people discover that they are a part of a larger group than the mountain they ride at. They are Quebec riders, and when they all ski together the sense of community is really felt. D-Structure and Orage have been at the forefront of developing the community in Quebec, and with the D-Jams they are making the community even tighter and tighter. The third and final stop will be on March 20th at Mont Orignal. Make sure you check it out.