The Most Creative Summer Skiing

Most of us put our skis to bed at the end of the winter, but some of us are still frothing too much to ever leave them alone. But if you can't make it to the glacier, there's a need for creative solutions to keep you sliding through the summer. For some inspiration, we've pulled together the best and most creative summer skiing from the last decade. Skiing sand dunes or even the great wall of China; believe it or not, they've all been done.

First up, we have Line Traveling Circus, the OGs of creative summer skiing. Back in 2010, they released their episode Attack of the Sand People, which featured some dune skiing that looked so close to skiing on snow that it blew everyone's mind. 🙌

If you thought Line Traveling Circus' sand skiing was impressive, in 2016 Jesper Tjäder and Emma Dahlström seriously stepped it up in a Peruvian desert with GoPro. We've seen Jesper do all kinds of flips on and off rails in his famous Unrailistic project with Red Bull, but to see him flipping off metal rails in the desert, is something else! 🤯

Back in 2019, Real Skifi took their favourite powder skis, the Atomic Bent Chetler, to their local wake park. The results are nothing less than what you'd expect from these creative geniuses. If you're melting in the summer heat, this is the best way to cool off while you're still clipped into your skis. 🌊

It's no secret that Real Skifi holds a bottomless bucket of creative ideas, so no snow no problem. In episode 16, they ski rocks, grass, concrete, and literally anything else that's in their path (with the help of a winch and a ski sponsor for ruined ski bases). 😬

Three years ago, Candide Thovex broke the internet with his second Audi Quattro advert, AKA Ski the World. Now that the internet has just about recovered, you can watch it again. But if you haven't already seen it, jheeze, where have you been? In full speed ahead Candide fashion, he skis the Great Wall of China and many more breathtaking locations around the globe. 🌍

For those die-hard freeskiers, backyard setups have been popular for over a decade. All you need is a drop-in ramp, some cheap astroturf, a rail/feature to hit, and plenty of water to keep it sliding. However, along with their popularity growing over recent years, so has the absurdity and quality of these setups.

Here is UK freeskier Max Rye's backyard setup, which won Best UK Edit and 3rd Best Filming & Editing in the 2019 Planks Grassroots Video Competition. Max has a huge selection of different rails and a legitimate dry-slope surface (Dendix) for extra speed.

Then last of all, but most certainly not least, we have the king of backyard skiing himself, Kevin Salonius. Every year Kevin puts out a Summer Rail Edit, it is still unbelievable the different variations of setups and tricks he manages to get down in his backyard. Watch his edit from 2016 and get inspired!