SPIRITUALLY STOKED
Dave Downing is keeping it real—as a top snowboarding pro and follower of Christ.

by Jeremy V. Jones

Everything goes silent when you drop off a 100-foot cliff. Time slows down and you feel like you’re flying. Oh, and it’s better to exhale. Holding your breath makes you tense and then you flap your arms and lose your balance and . . . ouch, you don’t want to go there.

That’s what pro snowboarder Dave Downing tells me anyway, and I’m gonna take his word for it.

Dave talks casually about dropping off cliffs like you might discuss popping off a 2-foot jump. And watching him in numerous snowboarding videos, it’s easy to start thinking those skyscraper-sized cliffs are really no big deal. Don’t get me wrong; it’s awe-inspiring. But the cliffs actually look like a fairly small part of the thousands of sheer mountain feet that Dave flies down, jumping a rock face here, cutting a huge sweeping arc into fresh powder there, making it all look so smooth and effortless. The guy’s got style.

He’s also got a whole lot of respect in the snowboarding industry, a solid walk with Christ and maybe the most fun job in the world: snowboarding all winter, then surfing during the summer off-season. “Dave is the perfect example of how a professional rider should interact with his company, promote himself, promote snowboarding and at the same time help everyone around him achieve their goals,” says Rene Hansen, director of Team Marketing for Burton Snowboards. “Dave is basically the man!”

That seems to be a consistent sentiment about Dave both inside and out of the snowboarding world. “He’s the real deal. Everybody loves him,” says Bob Mackenzie, Dave’s friend and pastor at North Coast Calvary Chapel in Carlsbad, Calif. “He loves God and loves people.”

Dave also obviously loves snowboarding. And in a sport often known for its darkness, he recognizes that it’s the arena where God has placed him to be a light. “I’m trying to live through example in my life and what I do. It’s hard to be a good example in a sport like snowboarding. But I think that’s what God wants me to do,” Dave says. “I’m trying to show kids that you don’t have to be partying to be a snowboarder. You can have a great time and be a normal person and a Christian and love God and love life.”

MASTER OF THE MOUNTAIN

Although he didn’t move from the water to the snow until he was 21, the now 35-year-old can do it all on a board. He’s known for his all-around ability, and he brings the fluid style of a surfer to his snow riding. He loves the backcountry, but he’s also a master of halfpipe, terrain park, handrails, jumps—you name it. Dave’s a complete rider. “I love the variety in snowboarding,” he says. “That’s my favorite thing: being able to adapt to different situations.”

In a day of big-air or terrain park specialists, such a broad range of expertise is somewhat uncommon. “There aren’t too many professional snowboarders who can ride everything these days,” Rene says. “He is very creative, and he can make a powder turn look good in any condition.”

That’s because he’s constantly trying to learn new aspects and details of snowboarding. “Dave really works at the fundamentals of riding. Style’s important to him. He’s good at everything,” says his wife, Shannon Dunn-Downing. She should know. Shannon is also a pro snowboarder with her own impressive list of credentials, including X Games SuperPipe gold and Olympic bronze. “He loves hiking the backcountry and finding unique lines, and then he rides rails and jumps. When a lot of people watch him, they think he rides effortlessly. He makes everything look pretty easy and really fun.”

Despite his multidimensional talent, don’t expect to see Dave riding in the X Games. He rarely competes. “I’m just not a competitive person,” he says. Instead he pushes himself to constantly improve. And the sponsorship dollars of snowboard gear and apparel companies Burton, Hurley, Gravis and Nixon allow him to spend his time riding outside the confines of contests. His professional duties include promoting, testing and helping develop new equipment. One item that Dave has been instrumental in creating is Burton’s split board, which comes apart to serve as cross country skis to get you into the backcountry snow, then reconnects for the descent.

Of course, riding is Dave’s primary duty, and his snow sessions are frequently photographed or filmed for the latest magazine or snowboard video. Often that means Dave and some friends, fellow freeriding masters, are heading into untouched territory with a film crew. “When he goes out in groups to shoot photos or video, he’s like the leader,” Shannon says. “He’ll be the one to pick the spot or the good line to take and help build the jumps.”

Although he loves all aspects of snowboarding, riding in the natural beauty of backcountry powder holds a special spiritual allure. “When I’m doing something like snowboarding or surfing, a lot of other stuff in the world gets blocked out, and I think that my relationship with God is closer,” Dave says. “I know for sure that it’s worship.”

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Shannon describes Dave as humble, mellow, level-headed, consistent and full of integrity. “He’s fun and can be serious at times,” she says. “He just enjoys life.”

There’s a warmth and graciousness that come across when talking with him, and I’m not the first to notice. In December 2000, Transworld Snowboarding magazine wrote, “Dave has influenced everyone he’s met for the better; as a person and as a snowboarder he’s touched them with his familiarity. . . . Dave makes you feel as if he has always been there in this mad world of snowboarding, and been there as a friend.”

Rene describes his friend as “a great, down-to-earth, honest, passionate and real person.”

What great descriptions of a follower of Jesus. Fans and industry insiders obviously notice—and respect—a difference in Dave. “Everybody knows we’re Christians,” he says. “A lot of people are intrigued by it. I think they see me and the way I live my life and think, Oh, he’s living a life he believes in.”

He loves hanging out with his snowboarding friends, but when the focus shifts to partying, he declines. “It’s stupid. People go to bars and you can’t even hear the person talking next to you. There’s smoke everywhere, and you’re yelling to try and talk to this person. I just don’t get it,” he says. “They’re looking for something so much that they go to some club or party to be around a bunch of other people. They don’t know what they really need to do is just walk outside where nobody else is around and pray and be with God. That’s the best thing.”

Unfortunately, lots of people—Christians included—get sucked into the dark side of the culture, whether they’re snowboarders or not. For guys who’ve fallen short and feel like there’s a barrier between them and God, Dave has this advice: “A lot of kids think, Oh, God’s going to get mad at me if I pray or ask for forgiveness for this. That’s not the case. You don’t have to be scared to go back. God’s not a God who’s going to yell at you and ground you for a week. Once you accept Christ, the Holy Spirit is in you and He’s your best friend. No matter what you do, He’s right there. No matter how sketchy you are, or what thought is in your head, or whatever you do, He’s going to forgive you and give you a hug right then. He loves you and cares about you. He’s not an angry God who’s just going to yell at you.”

Dave is living proof that you can walk closely with Christ and excel in whatever area He’s gifted you, snowboarding included. He stands out on the mountain because of his riding and his faith—and you can too.

“Just be yourself. If you’re a kid who loves to snowboard and is a Christian, then be that,” Dave says. “Being a snowboarder is just standing on a snowboard riding down a mountain. If that’s what you’re into, then that’s awesome. Don’t try to be somebody else. Just because you see snowboarders or skaters acting a certain way doesn’t mean that you have to act that way. You don’t have to listen to that kind of music. You don’t have to do all that [negative stuff]. You can be yourself. You can be a Christian and a snowboarder at the same time.”

TIPS FROM THE TOP

Gear: “The main thing is having your boots and bindings fit. If your feet feel good, you’ll like it. With boots, try everything on because everyone’s foot is different.” Beginning: “If you’re learning to snowboard, take a lesson; you’re going to learn so much faster that first day or two. You won’t be as sore; you’re not going to fall down as much. Learn the proper things to do. After that you can progress at your own rate.” Foundation: “The basis of being a good snowboarder is being able to control your board in any situation. Be able to have really good board control before you start progressing into other things.” Jumping: “When you learn how to jump, take everything slow. Learn the 180 before you learn a 360. Learn how to do a 360 before you learn a 540. Just take it in steps.” Backcountry: “It’s a scary place, but that’s what makes it so exciting. When I became a pro snowboarder, I was like, ‘This is something I need to learn to become better.’ I read a lot of books, watched a lot of videos and took avalanche safety courses. I hung out with people I respected and learned from them and took it slow.”