(photos by Craig Robinson and Miriam Lottes)
Have you ever dreamed of surfing snowy mountains? I never did until I got invited to Bataleon Big
Mood Week in 2023. I come from skateboarding, so for me the cold weather, wet environment and
the fact of being attached to the board were cons enough to not
feel attracted at all to the chance
to try snowboarding ever. I didn't know that my perception would change forever.
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But, what is Bataleon Big Mood week about? An incredible group of women who simply make the perfect combination: on one hand, the Bataleon women's team and all the women in their brand team (thank you Claudia, Bo, Rubina, Sophie, Kara and Yaiza for making everything possible), and on the other, key women in board and mountain sports. On the Bataleon team: Maria Kuzma, Uki Saga, Meri Hidalgo, Vildis Edwins, Saana Korhonen, Virginia Amengual, Laura Rogoski, Haley, Kaili Randmae, Summer Fenton and Rashida Aoulad. The rest of the guests were: Ane Gyll (Grlshred), Agata (designer of Method Mag apparel), Joy Dizzle (writer of snowboard magazines like Method Mag), Merida Miller (Projet Fearless), Alba Pardo (SnowboardInternational) and Raisa Abal (Dolores Magazine).
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All these people and the towering peaks, pristine snow, and endless bluebird skies makes the Big Mood Week, THE WEEK. This year for the second time, I was lucky enough to fly to Salzburg and spend a week riding with them again in Flachau, and let me tell you, there’s something magical about it.
The starting was amazing because Saana, Kara and I arrived early on arrival day, and there was a bit of snow on the back property, so we grabbed some tubes and boarded back home. It was so cool!
Big Mood Week Video
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As we are a lot of people and there are a bunch of days, the week is organized into: snowboarding in the mornings and activities in the afternoons: In the morning Craig and Ryan come with us to the ski resort, thus generating footage for the new collection of material, content for us or just boarding. Every afternoon is different: we do an afternoon of snowboarding video-parts, a mental health awareness session with We Are All Mental, Tattoo Party with Niklas, and talks explaining our personal projects: Grlshred, Dolores Magazine, Project Fearless, Recycle+Build and more.
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Exchanging ideas and visions between women, especially from different industries, seems very important to me in order to continue opening new paths, with new opportunities for us in sports. There is still a long way to go, but the snowboarding industry is very advanced compared to the skateboarding industry for example. We need more women behind brands, teams, sites, photography and video making, media events, marketing and communication strategies. It's time for change, and we bring a new, fresher and more innovative point of view. I wish all brands would do their own Big Mood Week.