Happy Tapping - Lisa Filzmoser - Page 1
November 23, 2007 @ 8:16 AM
Photos: Daniel Deak Bardos / Elan Snowboards.
[To read this in German, go to Page 2].
She feels just as comfortable in a Dirndl as she does on kickers, rail and the backcountry. The well rounded 26 year old talent from Austria can do it all, but her heart burns for deep pow turns and slashes. You can check out her steez on a shred stick in this years all-girl movie Float (which is free and included in this months issue of Onboard). Read on and find out more about who impressed her most when filming, why she would have become a eurobics trainer in her second life and why she doesn’t like to make wishes.
Onboard: The ‚Float’ premier hit Munich a couple weeks ago, in which you’ve got one of the main parts. Have you already seen it?
Lisa Filzmoser: Yeah I to to checked it out. John Roderick, who not only produced it, but also filmed everything, did a really good job in my opinion..
OB: You’ve got footage in the Film of some pretty sketchy looking lines in Mt. Baker. We heard that living legend Barrett Christy showed you around the area. She told us that you’re riding really impressed her.
LF: Really?! Now I’m stoked! I thought it was really cool that she showed us Baker and that we got to ride and hang out with her. We even got to visit and meet her family, which was an honor!
OB: I can imagine! Her part in ‚Float’ is definetely one of the highlights. A shame, that Silvia Mittermüller was the only rider that made it to the premiere.
LF: Yeah I know, I couldn’t come because of a Nikita shoot I had to do in Vancouver. How was it?
OB: The party was cool. How was the Nikita shooting? Only girls---did ever get ‚real’ work done?
LF: It was super fun, cause all of the girls were vibing pretty well. We got to live in this huge house a little outside of Vancouver. I could send you some pics from our the halloween party. It was off the hook! Ben Fee, who was also in Vancouver taking some artsy shots for Nikita won the award for the ‚sexiest female costume’
OB: For sure! Would love to check out the Halloween pics. What did you dress up as?
LF: I was an Aerobics Trainer, and did weird excersises that the people on the dance floor had to repeat after me. I’ll email you the pic after we get done with this! From left to right ist Julia aka Julian, Maribeth as Gabby, Gabby as a scary doll, Ben the sexy woman, Raphael a the fat girl and me.
OB: Funny pic! I always wonder how you Pro’s make it to all these theme parties wih the costumes. Do you travel around with huge building sized suitcases full of theme party costumes?
LF: No, but the Aerobic Outfit was an easy one since I’m currently into the whole legging thing.
OB: We’ve got a big feature article about girls in the 95 issue (dropping on Dec 28th). The first page has got a shot of you clearing this huge road gap. Can you tell us more about that?
LF: Cool. I didn’t even know that! It was made during a Helly Hansen shoot in interior BC. On that day we actually did two gap jumps, where the first was way higher than the second, which is the one in the pic. So I wasn’t even that phased doing it. I’m a bit bummed that I was not able to do any spin tricks because of the lack of speed.
OB: In the moment, did you know it was gonna be a good shot?
LF: You never know if a shot is gonna be a banger or not. You can only guess if you styled out the jump or not. Everything else is up for grabs.
OB: Weren’t Shin Campos and Eric Themel also on that trip?
LF: Yeah they were. It was really cool to go ride and travel with them. They have so much knowledge of the backcountry. I definetely learned a lot from them about how to read the terrain, with how much speed to approach some features, and how to step away from the sketchier things. You definetely step up your game, when riding with older more knowledgable riders.
OB: Many of the younger riders don’t even know how to turn on a transciever let alone find someone that’s buried under an avalanche!
LF: It’s really important to know what you are doing in the backcountry and how to use a transciever when you need to. I’ve practiced finding someone with my transciever and how to react in such situations numerous times. Even though I hope I never find myself in such a situation, but you never know.
OB: There are still very few women riders that are pushing freeriding. Is it in anyway connected with the fact that most girl riders have to ride contests for media exposure and attention. I have the feeling that the men can choose whether they want to ride contests or go filming. Do you agree?
LF: I think that almost all Pro Snowboarders start their career’s riding contests. Some of them then switch to filming pretty quickly because they get offers from the film productions. There are a few girls that only film, but it’s really hard to reach that point. However, it’s not much different for guys. It’s really tough for anyone to get a part in one of the major productions.
OB: Last season was a tough one for girls in major productions (Absinthe/Pirates) other than in all girls flicks. Do you have a film crew that you would really like to film with? Describe how you see your pefect video part.
LF: Absinthe and the Pirates are probably the crews with the best video of today. I would definetely not say no to filming with them. My perfect part would consist of powder shots, pillow lines, cliffdrops, backcountry kickers and some pure lines.
OB: What do you like more - Backcountry or Park riding?
LF: Powder was, is and will always be the best thing you can experience while snowboarding. But, I also really like riding in the park, when there is not enough snow around. Kickers are hella fun!
OB: We had an amazing start into this season. Even our homeresort of Spitzing in the vicinity of Munich got dumped on with over one and half meters of snow. They usually open in December!
LF: Yeah it’s crazy. I’ve already got a couple pow shots for this season, and hope that the snow just keeps on falling. A couple of friends and I were in the Stubai valley and Axamer Lizum. I totally got sharked.(hai erwischen). Last weekend I was on the Hochjoch in Vorarlberg with my boyfriend Alvaro (Vogel) and Carlos Blanchard (photographer). It was so beautiful. Like being in a dream… November pow.
OB: You were involved with the Elan Trinity. How is it better than other boards?
LF: It’s not only a perfectly shaped twin tip, but is also the lightest board on the market with super dope graphics!
OB: Did you design it yourself? I heard that you got accepted to the Art Academy, but then decided to pursue a snowboarding career.
LF: No, a Slovenian designer named Mojca Dolinar did the design for it. She’s amazinng. I like to draw in my downtime, and could maybe see myself doing something in that direction later on in life.
OB: Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
LF: I’m not thinking about a time span of five years. Right now I’m just focusing on the now. Though, I hope that I will still be able to snowboard on a professional level in five years with it being still fun. My goal next year is to keep things fun, because I will stop as soon as it stops being fun. I feel more confortable on a board than I ever did before and have big plans and dreams.
OB: Ok, I’ll be more specific. What are your plans for this winter?
LF: I’ll be filming with a German-Austrian film crew called La Familgia and hope that someone will want to use the footage. I’ll also be taking part and competing in various TTR contests and doing various photoshoots.
OB: Ok, last question: If you had three wishes, regarding snowboarding, what would they be?
LF: I don’t want a wish of mine to come true just because I wish it. That would be boring.
OB: That’s true. It get’s boring really fast, if one always get what one wants. I just thought of another question; Was it a hard long and bumpy road to become a Pro or did it just fall into your lap?
LF: I think I did get a little lucky, and was supported a pushed by various people. But I think that things just don’t fall into your lap. It also involves hard work! Nothing comes from nothing.
OB: Alright, back to the three wish question. I’m being a pain I know.....
LF: Mmmmh, I would wish that Austria would always have enough snow for shredding, only because I wanted it so.....
OB: Hypothetically…
LF: And that there were less snowboard injuries.
OB: Those were only two.....one is still missing!
LF: Oh, that snowboarding stays the way we love it! That it stays a state of mind and a lifestyle rather than a training program.
OB: Thats a good ending! Thanks for the interview! Any shoutouts?
LF: Sure thing! A big thanx to all my friends, family and sponsors; Elan, Helly Hansen, Smith, Vans, Les Ettes and Dakine.
Name: Lisa Filzmoser.
DOB: 08.08.1981.
Hometown: Thalheim/Wels, Austria.
Stance: 61, +18, -9.
Board of choice: Elan Trinity.
Boots of choice: Vans Veil.
Bindings of choice: Elan Stella.
Outerwear of choice: Helly Hansen Plenty Jacket, Vega Pant.
Goggles of choice: Smith Phenom.
