Souvenir Outerwear at Miloposport - 5/27/26
For something that began as a safe space for misfits and outcasts to express themselves freely, present day snowboarding often casts a hardened “you don’t belong here, you haven’t earned it” stare at newcomers. These stares come from heritage brands who earned their spot long ago and they rule a kingdom protected by a moat. The moat’s turbulent waters defend these brands from the threat of licensees and fast fashion companies, protecting the “how it used to be” from the “how it is now.”
The drawbridge has dropped a handful of times over the years, allowing a commoner a seat at the round table. In recent years, Autumn and Howl outerwear have established themselves space on clothing racks at independent snowboard shops and box stores alike. Clear brand identities, quality products, well rounded teams, and a modern day approach with respect to snowboarding as a whole have positioned these young brands amongst the noble L1s, Burtons, Airblasters, and 686s.
Over the last few winters, a dark horse has appeared on the horizon. A Canadian stranger, sauntering towards the kingdom to see what this hype is all aboat.
Born in Montreal in 2021, Souvenir is “where the past meets the future of snowboarding”. Souvenir faced the same barriers to entry as Autumn and Howl on top of being an outsider to the American market. Conversion rates, tariffs, and overall weaker exposure to global consumers are inherent hurdles for the Canadian company. Despite these obstacles the dark horse saddled up for the journey towards the kingdom, first crossing the border towards local snowboard shops in New England. In the last three years it has trekked down the mid-atlantic, crossed the great lakes into the midwest, and continues its way west into shops like Milosport in the Rockies and beyond in the western states.
The dark horse’s journey has been anything but mundane. Since its inception, the brand has put out a short video, several promotional videos, and supported a handful of Mt. Hood team trips, hosted rail jams, navigated a few brand collaborations such as Howl x Souvenir, and pulled off stunts like repainting red ledge red.
I wore Souvenir this last season and can say I am overall extremely satisfied with their fits and style. I especially appreciate the quality and subtle details unique to each piece. I clock in at a tall 5’3” with a small frame, for size reference.
S2000 Insulated Cargo Pant - XS - The perfect baggy pant, in my opinion. The right weight to warmth ratio, I wore these on summer days at Mt. Hood and negative degree days in Minnesota. The velcro pant cuffs are functional and stylish. The waist is proportioned to the fit, so your wagon is never saggin’.
3 Ply Ripstop Jacket - XXS - There are a few non-negotiables I look for in a shell jacket. Those are water and wind proof yet breathable, cinch-able at the waist, and a large adjustable hood. The utilitarian design is functional and subtly stylish at the same time.
Everyday Puffer - XXXS - I wore this puffer a lot, both on and off hill. The synthetic down kept me warm on clear weather, cold days snowboarding and looks good with a pair of jeans wandering around town.
62 by ABG: From Start to Premiere - 10/27/2026
From making our snowboard movie to reflecting on it, starting something is the hardest part. Staring at my glowing blue computer screen to write this, the blank digital sheet of paper in front of me feels incredibly empty. Envisioning the final product is easy, but taking the first step across the raging river that is the process is terrifying. In our case, the far bank was the premiere, and getting there started with taking that first step.
January 2026 was where we began, Maggie Galloway, Rori Avelar, and I, standing on the edge of the river squinting towards the far bank, unsure of what it looked like or how we were going to get there. By then, together we were ABG, and by February we found ourselves sitting on a couple of clips. After a last minute trip to Duluth, MN, a 20-something-hour drive there and back in 5 days, we collected a few more clips to add to our stash, enough at this point to convince ourselves we had something worth working towards. April came and went, and so did winter. With a couple of last minute buzzer beaters before the snow melted, the clips we had were the clips we had. Summer provided ABG some rest from leaping stone to stone and a shift from the physical task of snowboarding to the mental challenge of editing the video.
Welcome to unknown territory. This stage of the river crossing was something I couldn't have expected to enjoy so much. We each fell into our natural roles, Maggie took the lead on editing, I focused on art and concept, and Rori handled social media and a zine. As a unit, ABG edited very well together. We experimented with ideas and songs, were honest and constructive with feedback, and used each of our strengths for the crew’s greater good. With additional clips from Ella Sorensen, Miyu Oishi, and Charlotte Flowers, we were making progress. Stone to stone, we approached the shore with our final product, 62 by ABG, a creative and authentically ABG street snowboarding video, promotional materials that complemented it, a support system excited to see our work, and a date locked in at Milosport in Salt Lake City to show it all off.
October 22, 2026, a winter, spring, and summer's worth of work was compiled into one Google Drive file, ready to press play. Being my employer and a group of the best homies ever, Milosport felt the natural place to show our video, alongside Jaylen Hansen’s “Growing Pains” and Jack Coyne’s "Caterpillar". The day itself was a whirlwind for a multitude of reasons, yet suddenly the river calmed.
The night’s flyer said 7pm and that was as far as the plan went. I had been at the shop all day and with the crew’s help felt confident in the set up. The projector was dialed, clothing racks were moved, and after my list of to-do’s were checked I headed home for a shower and as many beers as possible before heading back. At the shop, the crowd was growing. I lost the rest of ABG, shook some hands, kissed some babies, and we got things started. With music bumping, we organized a push-up and a break dance competition to give away some snowboards then got the movies playing. Jack introduced his video ‘Caterpillar’ first, an uber-creative documentation of Japan, Utah, and Washington pow featuring himself, Jake Lang, Izzy Gomez, Rori Avelar, and Bode Merrill. Next was Jaylen Hanson’s ‘Growing Pains’, a Minnesota rooted street video featuring herself, Jayva Jordan, Isla Pepelnjak, Gwynnie Park, and a soundtrack by Caymen Chatlin. And there ABG was, one stone away from the unknown river bank. Looking back, the river didn't seem nearly as daunting as it had at the start. Six minutes and one second later, it was a wrap… I think the crowd liked it.
I can’t express enough how grateful I am for this whole experience and all the support along the way. From our sponsors’ support, our friends’ help, the community’s interest, Milo’s backing, and everything in between, thank you everyone.
Vans Boots at Milosport - 7/8/26
It’s early September. It’s 80 degrees, humid and it’s not even 8 am. I looked forward to the first day of school like I looked forward to all the mosquitos bites I got that summer. Dad walks older brother and me to the bus stop, little brother is in his arms. Little brother’s too little for school. A mom from two doors down assembles the crowd of neighborhood kids for a picture. Dad lets little brother to the ground and little brother scrambles to the front of the crowd with the other littles.
Amongst the rowdy crowd, we three Ruddell kids look like siblings but our familial ties are confirmed by our matching black and white, checkered slip ons. Matching so there were no complainers, and slip on because velcros for dorks. The mom from two doors down snaps the photo, the bus’s brakes are heard around the corner and Dad scoops up little brother to walk back home. This is how each first day of school began for us Ruddell kids. A new grade, a new neighborhood photo, and a new pair of Vans.
20 some years later, my last first day of school was a couple falls ago, but it’s about the same time of year I start looking for my next new pair of Vans, Vans snowboard boots.
The Van Doren Rubber Company cobbled their first pair of shoes in 1966. Their shoes were simple, rugged, and unintentionally appealed to the quickly growing surf and skate scene of southern California. 20 some years later, enter Vans Snow. Applying decades worth of footwear expertise, Vans develops and drops the ultimate all-mountain snowboard boot, hand crafted for all weather performance in 1995. The Hi-Standard boot sparked the beginning of Vans'long held leadership in the snowboard boot market, becoming a permanent resident on boot walls at retailers like Milo.
Boots are tough. Feet are shaped weird and not everyone is looking for the same type of comfort or performance when it comes to their snowboard boots. Vans offers a comprehensive catalog with every type of boarder in mind. A simple 3 tier feature system diversifies their line, that breaks down like this:
V1: Budget friendly out-of-the-box comfort, forgiveness, and progression.
V2: supportive and responsive. The boots you want when you start going a little faster, a little steeper, and a little bigger.
V3: premium package where comfort and performance excel.
These three levels are applied to a boot’s liner, footbed, harness, and outsole. This combination system gives way to a range of boot models complete with features for kooks to shredders, broke to rich, groomers to pillow lines and everything in between. So this September, it’ll be 100 degrees but at least it’s a dry heat in Salt Lake City. Start looking for your next pair of Vans boots at Milosport. No matter your experience, budget, or riding style, Vans has a boot you’ll want to try on.