Armada’s New Web Series Is The Most Unhinged Thing You’ll See All Winter

Ben Richards’ season on the Freeride World Tour started off with a bang that no one quite anticipated.

The Kiwi skier showed up to the first stop of the year at Baqueria-Beret swinging, and laid down a heater of a run that landed him on top of the podium with a score of 86.67. He simultaneously hard-launched his new ski sponsor and their new ski.

Armada’s newest athlete, and his new Antimatter skis, continued to dominate, winning the next tour stop and the first-ever Freeride World Championships.

Meanwhile, Sun Valley-bred skier and fellow Armada athlete, Toby Rafford, was hot on Richards’ heels, coming in second at Baqueria-Beret and winning Rider of the Day. Following two cancelled FWT stops, the first round of finals took place at a reimagined venue in Haines, Alaska, where Rafford would be the one to break Richards’ winning streak and come in first place.

With one FWT stop left in the season, Rafford and Richards are ranked one and two on the FWT, respectively, and both have a good chance of taking the overall title in Verbier.

If you can’t wait to see Rafford and Richards ski more before the Verbier XTREME, we’ve got great news. Armada has released the first episode of a new mini-series that follows these two on their tour season.

Watch the first episode of NUB TV below and keep reading for more.

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At this point, there’s no question that Rafford and Richards are two of the most talented and stylish young freeriders around, and this new series gives viewers a deeper look into what goes into a season on the FWT. However, it’s far from your average, dramatic, BTS series.

True to Armada’s candid style, Rafford and Richards are giving the unfiltered version of the tour, as exemplified by the quotes Armada provided from the two athletes below:

“Our season is full of so much outside of comp runs, but people just don’t see it. I’m excited to be able to show the real side of the tour in our own way, rather than just whatever the tour decides they want to shine light on,” said Richards about the series.

“Wow. That’s a low bar, Ben. This project feels like a breath of fresh air for me. I feel that people have a very specific perception of the Freeride World Tour, and it doesn’t really align with how my friends and I actually are. This video sheds light into how our winters really unfold. And Ben’s Pants are way too short,” replied Rafford.

“We can’t all be 5-foot f*ck-all like you, Toby.”

Unfiltered. Toby, Ben, please never change.

Related: See the Stunning Runs That Won the Freeride World Tour in Alaska