DIYX STRT Jam

A love song to snowboarding. Snowboarding’s finest take over the streets of Stockholm. 

Interview Stella Pentti | Photos Alba Pardo

Reflecting back on one of the best weekends of the year with Ethan Morgan and Chriso McAlpine.

I remember attending the first DIYX STRT JAM in Innsbruck back in 2021. It was post-Covid times, and the restrictions for travel had just been lifted, resulting in the most love-infused-chaos-driven event I’ve ever had the pleasure to attend. People were ecstatic to reunite with friends they hadn’t seen in over a year. The air was buzzing with excitement, evoking a blend of pure joy and a zoo-like frenzy — both at the setups and afterparties. Remember Zeb Powell flying through the narrow gap between two pillars and Joe Simpson climbing up a pole just to leap off it? Yeah, we do too.

Now, three years and four events later, that same love and thrill still pulse through DIYX STRT JAM, making it a true tribute to everything we love about the snowboard community. We sat down with the masterminds behind the event, Ethan Morgan and Chriso McAlpine, to talk through what went down at this year’s DIYX in Stockholm, Sweden, and what to expect next.

Why did you decide to do it in Stockholm this year?

Ethan: We wanted to switch locations and get away from Innsbruck fully and, as we had already done Helsinki, we decided to go to Stockholm. We wanted to make a new kind of style of event on one of the days to see how it would work out and, being the sickest rail jam in Europe, we thought of Frontline Rail Jam. We decided to give the nod to Kareem and the Frontline Rail Jam and add our DIYX twist to it.

Chriso: The Castle [2023 event] was always a one-and-done event. We all decided we wanted to stick to the plan of our original idea of moving this as a traveling circus. I wanted to bring it up to Stockholm to coincide with Method Mag’s 30th Anniversary and bring back the infamous Frontline Rail Jam, which we did the livestream for in 2013. We decided it was time to wake up the Scandis. Stockholm and the Nordics have a deep-rooted DNA in snowboarding, and we feel there hasn’t been a big event up here in a while. Plus, it’s my hometown, so I could be on the ground. 

What are your overall vibes on this year’s event?

Ethan: It was beautiful. Everyone had the best time ever, and this time, I could really enjoy it way more as we had an amazing crew of people working with us. Special thanks to Chriso, who carried this event with all his force as he lives in Stockholm (we won’t do Stockholm again tho, don’t want to put him through this again!). haha). And, of course, Jacco and Kristiin, who have been doing this shit since day one with us. But we also have learned a lot in the past years, so we came prepared to avoid bigger problems. So, all in all, I feel like this event was a big success and very professionally done. The only downside was undercover cops searching people at the afterparty and kicking people out who were “too” drunk. Sweden has to learn how to chill out with cops. Shit is lame.

Chriso: Mixed feelings, to be honest. I think the event as a whole ran really smoothly. The weather was amazing (which is a deciding factor to make or break an event up here). Always tough to really enjoy an event that you are in the middle of, but the team we had was incredible and made sure we delivered the best event we could. We all got so many fantastic compliments, which made it worthwhile. Some people said it was the best STRT JAM out of all of them. I loved the energy that all the riders, shapers, volunteers and spectators brought to the spots. And, of course, burning shit in the middle of the city center guarantees a solid crowd! 

And finally, what are some of your best memories from DIYX Stockholm?

Ethan: Dillon and Fridge’s boardslide through the challenge rail, right after each other, breaking their boards but still landing. It might have also been the most broken boards I have seen in two days: there must have been around 15. Also, Lolo putting me on her shoulders during Trouble Andrew and, by doing so, dislocated her ribs. That’s how you get points to win this shit.

Chriso: Lots of forgotten memories. Ha! But a few things that stood out for me were that I saw sooo many amazing girl shapers and volunteers busting their asses off to build up the set-up. It was really inspirational. And how many girls threw down on the set-up. Getting to watch Rene Rinnekangas’ incredible movie by the talented Anton Kiiski and releasing Rene on our cover of the first issue was special. Also hanging out with my kids at the event. They were so pumped, fist bumping all the riders and getting to keep their broken boards. 

What’s next for DIYX STRT JAM ?

While Ethan’s still on the mend, rumor has it Snoop Dog gave Chriso a call justafter the event. Maybe he’ll be the one to fundthe next one – in Vegas.