Air Bag Tour: Dan Wakeham tells girls to get involved

Imagine throwing yourself off a massive kicker and being guaranteed a nice, soft landing every time? 

Ladies: This is not the stuff of dreams. It’s a reality thanks to the LG Freeze Air Bag Tour 2008. 

The kicker’s probably bigger than anything you’ve ever attempted before and, in normal life, it would be strictly for the pros. 

But – on the other side of it – is a massive, er, air bag. So that’s where you’re going to end up. Brilliant. 

The tour – which ends at the FIS World Cup event at London Freeze, taking place at Battersea Power Station from 23 to 26 October – has six more stops before it hits the Big Smoke, so there’s time to get involved. 

Powderroom caught up with Dan Wakeham when the tour pit-stopped in Milton Keynes. 

“If you are going to get into jumps and tricks, it gives you the opportunity to try hitting a kicker without the consequences of messing up on a normal park jump,” he told us. 

“You can grab your board or try a trick that you’re normally too scared to do. It builds your confidence.”

But there’s a meaningful message behind the fun. 

LG Tour spokesman Mike Tew explained: “The idea is to get to the grassroots of the sport and to give riders an opportunity to do something they normally wouldn’t get to do. 

“They have to pay for their slope time, but everything else is free. It’s a chance to practise their skills in a safe environment. 

“The airbag has been around for a while, but no-one had really taken it on. It’s great that LG has seen its potential, and the tour represents the values the company’s trying to promote – style and looking good.”

While we had him to ourselves, we asked Dan his thoughts on the Freeze showdown in London. 

“I think it’s going to be a really good show,” he said. “There have been Big Air events in London, but this is the first ever World Cup, so there should be a lot of talent from around the globe doing their stuff as well as some quite progressive riding.” 

He was also pretty excited about the music, especially headliners Cypress Hill. 

“I remember putting on Black Sunday in the car with my mum when I was a little kid,” he reminisces.

Dan’s mum: Powderroom salutes you. 

LG Air Bag – Remaining tour dates: 

15 Oct – Sno!zone, Castleford

16 Oct – Sno!zone, Castleford

17 Oct - John Nike Ski Centre, Chatham

18 Oct – Snowdome, Tamworth

20 Oct – Ski & Snowboard Centre, Bracknell

21 Oct – Ski & Snowboard Centre, Bromley