So, what's going on, Tucker?
What's that supposed to mean? Nothing's
going on. I'm living in my car.
I thought you lived in Colorado.
That's my winter home. I'm such a world trav-
eller, I get to have eight different houses.
Is it true all snowboarders are just skaters
who wanted to be pro but couldn't cut it?
Yes, it's true. I figured I was a failure as far as
skating goes, so I took the easy way out.
What's the snowboard industry all about?
It's pretty cool in general, but there's a lot of
people who are into it just to make a quick buck,
and they don't want to put anything into it other
than putting a sticker out and a label on a board
and making millions without putting anything
back into it. It's kind of a bummer. But they will
all fade out in a couple of years, and all of the
people who are really into it will still be there,
and that will be the end of it!
What's your favorite place to visit?
Canada. It's so big, and there's no ropes there
to keep you from hurting yourself. And there's
good snow, and it's not too crowded.
Wasn't So Cal your favorite trip?
Yeah, it was the first time I ever did good in a
contest. It was about time. Plus, I was stoked. I
was hung-over, and I won a contest. It was only a
stupid big air contest, but it was fun.
What about Alaska?
I went up there last spring. It's really scary, you
have got to spend a lot of time up there because
the weather changes so much, and there's dif-
ferent terrain to ride, so you have to use snow
cats, helicopters and airplanes, and you kind of
have to figure the whole scene out. You can't
just go fly to the top of a mountain and ride
down. When I was up there they were doing
flights up for the contest, and the plane after
mine, one of the skis broke off when they land-
ed, and the plane crashed. Then the next day. I
was going to ride this ghetto helicopter, and it
was crappy, so I just shined it, and the helicopter
was about 50 feet in the air and the engine
seized, and they crashed. Nobody got hurt, luck-
ily, but still, that's pretty sketchy.
Who's your all-time favorite snowboarder?
Definitely Terry Kidwell, 'cause he was doing
the new school thing about eight years ago!
Why the hell did you tear down your ramp?
Because I ran out of money to maintain it and
I got bummed on it. And it was just falling apart,
so I figured I'd give it to somebody and they
58 THRASHER
would rebuild it, and they never did. Now it's
gone, and I'm bummed.
What's the ideal Tucker Fransen automobile?
A '49 Ford two-door with a 427, no blower,
regular carburetor, primer black with gloss black
frames and a good stereo.
What about your family?
They've always helped me
out, I probably couldn't have
done it without them.
Anyone you want to thank?
Chewy at Dragon's, every-
one at Morrow, Joel at Ses-
sions, Berret, and everyone
else who has helped me out.
Clockwise from top: This cliff at
A-Basin in Colorado is one of those
launches where you either make it
or eat the rocks. High in the air
with an alley-oop Indy air at the
High Cascade halfpipe. Carving up a
plume of powder at Berthound Pass.
Shem Roose
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