I met Gaon’s family in Mammoth Lakes. At the time, Tristam was 13, and I was one of only two Koreans around. We had just joined the Mammoth team after our stint in Hawaii in pursuit of halfpipe, but I didn’t really know anything about snowboarding. What began as simple chats with Gaon’s mom in the cafeteria while we watched over the halfpipe gradually grew into something much more — they began mentoring Tristam.

The World Cup competition season has just kicked off, with the first event held at Secret Garden Resort in China, and the next stop is in Co