Jenny Jones, 31, is Britain's most successful female snowboarder. Having started to compete in 1999, Jenny has made coming first a bit of a habit, winning golds at the Winter X Games in Aspen in both 2009 and 2010 in the Slopestyle event as well as gold in the Winter X Games Europe in 2010. Not bad considering Britain is not known for it's snowy terrain.
You started off as a gymnast, what made you take up snowboarding?
I had a free half hour lesson on a dry slope and then went away on a week long holiday in Italy with my college to the Alps. After that I decided I would like to do a whole season, so after my A Levels I went to the French Alps and worked as chalet maid in Tignes.
What type of training do you have to undertake?
A few months before the season starts I will do about seven sessions of training a week which involves strength training, cardio training and balance core work. During the season I do a few gym sessions but mostly riding on the mountain for about five hours a day. In the summer season I try to mix it up and enjoy surfing, cycling and general fitness, it's a bit more of a chilled time.
Where in the UK do you go to train?
I only really do dry land training in the UK, at the local gym in Bristol and cycling around where I live. However, you could ride in the local snow domes around the UK.
Which is your favourite country to snowboard in?
I don't have a favourite but I do like Breckenridge, Colorado, for their awesome parks, Mayrhofen, Austria, for their parks and great free riding and Morzine, France, for variety of the terrain and friends.
Performing all those technical spins must mean there is potential to seriously injure yourself, what has been your worst injury to date?
It's a toss up between an ACL knee reconstruction and two 6-inch metal plates in my left arm.
You also like to surf, did you find it easy to transfer the skills of snowboarding to tackling the waves?
There are some similarities. However, I had to learn a whole new set of skills, for example duck diving, paddling out, learning how to read waves and there is different weight distribution in surfing. For example it is a bit more like powder riding with your weight on your back foot.
What is the next big tournament that you are working towards?
The competitive winter season doesn't really kick off until January next year where I potentially will be competing in the Dew Tour.
You have also featured in a few snowboarding movies, is acting something you would like to do once you stop competing?
Although I did get an A* in my GCSE drama exam, acting is not something you'll see me doing in the foreseeable future!!
You can keep track of Jenny's success through her own website: www.jennyjonessnowboarder.com
