Gnar Chicken and Tea is back - returning for its first event for three years with a jam session on May 31 at Tamworth SnowDome.

The girl behind the contest series and the 2005 British all-girl snowboard movie Snowballs - Alexa Hohenberg - explains why she has resurrected the bird and the brew…

Check out www.gnarchickenandtea.co.uk for more info and to watch the 2005 movie SnowBalls. You can also follow the latest Gnar happenings and win some prizes on their Facebook page and join the discussion on the Snowboard Club UK forum.

What made you decide to bring the Gnar Chicken and Tea series back?

I had to take some time off to concentrate on my studies/injuries so now I’m all finished, it made perfect sense to get the ball rolling again. The emails I received asking to do another event were so inspiring.

It seems that in the last couple of years there has been less focus on grassroots events for girls and more on the professional-amateur level (some of the girls first introduced in the Gnar movie Snowballs, whoop whoop)!

I wanted to get some attention back on the grassroots level of UK snowboarding. That is where the fresh new talent will come from!

For those who weren’t around first time, remind us how you came up with the name...

‘Gnar’ being gnarly, ‘Chicken’ being short for chicks and ‘Tea’ because we are British. Pretty stupid really… I’m working on shortening it to Gnar Chicken!

Alexa at the last Tamworth event

How will this year’s events differ from the previous ones?

Hopefully everyone that had a blast the last time round will come down even more excited for its come back. The event will follow a similar format to the previous Tamworth events. It will be a jam where you can ride with your mates and make new friends whilst we cheer you on with prizes and general challenges! There will be a few famous faces getting involved on the 31st so I hope it will encourage some courageous jibbing skills. We have some great great prizes to giveaway thanks to our sponsors!

What did you learn from your last Gnar Chicken and Tea escapades?

That snowboarding is always more fun when you are in a crew of friends. I am fortunate enough to have always had this in Canada/Les Deux Alpes, so I wanted to give girls the opportunity to meet and go snowboarding together at home. It is super tough to do an event like this by yourself, so this time round I am recruiting extra pairs of hands and heads!

I loved how the best ideas came from everyone on the SCUK site so we are using the forum and all SCUK guys again for inspiration. There is also a Facebook page inviting fans of the event to give us some ideas. I loved the community aspect to the whole Gnar Chicken project, that is what it is all about!

What were your highlights of the last series?

The people that I met and friends that I made at each slope the tour went to. Meeting girls out in France that said they came to watch their boyfriend in an event and then decided to try snowboarding. Hearing that crews of girls played the movie each day before they went snowboarding on their seasons! Seeing it played in bars across Europe and of course the support that it received from everyone in the UK, the riders, the slopes, magazines and sponsors that were behind what I was doing from concept to completion.

How long will the event series run and where/when are you hoping to hold the rest?

At the moment there is only one event planned at the Tamworth Snowdome on May 31(the spiritual home of Gnar Chicken!). I would love to do another later in the year but for now, I am just keen to see what everyone feels about getting the project off the ground again.

How will these events be different from other snowboard competitions?

It will be, in no way a formal event, just a celebration of how far woman have come in snowboarding since the last events. I expect there to be a lot of girls coming down that haven’t seen or ridden with one another for some time so it should be a reunion of familiar face as well as some new ones!

The jam format where you can ride however much you want and fall over how ever many times, is my tried and tested way of competing in the best environment. I also find jam formats have the best atmosphere for progression so I’m gonna predict this event to be one fun party-shredtastic atmosphere!

Female winners at the last Tamworth event (pic by Danny Warren)

Will there be hits and jumps for riders of different levels?

We will work with the guys at the Tamworth Snowdome to make the best set up for everyone. Expect some boxes (small, long, kinked), rails, gas pipes, kickers and barrels etc. Last time we did a longest ollie comp so may be some elements like that too so everyone can get involved. I would like to invite people to discuss the slope set up. This is your event, lets figure out the best set-up so you can get the most out of it!

You’ve now finished your degree in Sports Tourism and Event Management – how are you putting that into practice working on the competitions?

My degree was really inspiring; it has helped me in approaching the events and understanding the needs of all stakeholders. I now work for a top global advertising agency so on all levels I am putting what I learnt into practice. I love learning and find the best way to understand what you learn, is to do it, so that is where I find myself now. I would love to see Gnar Chicken grow to events outside the UK but for that to happen I’m going to need some more love, pairs of hands and a couple of good heads!

How did you find the process of getting sponsors for the series this time?

I approached it from a more formal angle with a presentation document whereas the last event/movie concept I went down to the trade shows and chatted to every body. I think there are so many advantages to meeting people in person as it is harder to get your enthusiasm for your idea through on powerpoint via email! Every sponsor that has ever been involved in this project was so inspiring.

This time round, I have some amazing brands onboard that have the same vision to create more opportunities for woman in snowboarding (and skiing). I could not have done this without the help of Avalaan, Oakley, Vans, Ruroc, Concrete Lawn, Blue Skin, SCUK and Powderroom.net!

Are you still looking for more sponsors?

If any brand / people / riders want to get involved then please get in touch!

If people want to help out with the event, are you looking for extra hands?

Yes yes yes! Please drop me an email on alexahohenberg@gmail.com or leave a message on the Facebook page or SCUK. As you can imagine, there is a lot to do on the night so any help is greatly appreciated! I will be having a party after the event so come down and party with us on and off the slope! I promise you will have a good time!

So will there be another snowboard film this year? If so, tell us what you’re looking for people to submit…

I am talking about ideas at the moment but, it doesn’t look like anything is on the cards for this year. I think it is quite sad that there doesn’t appear to be any longevity for woman snowboard productions. I need to figure the reasons as to why my peers have found it so hard to keep it going and maybe then we can come up with some solutions. My advice to anyone inspired to film would be to get out there and be creative as possible. If I was to do another movie, I would like to take an artistic angle, like of Christoph Weber’s backflip intro in Lame (or was it After Lame?)…. That was so cool!

Anything else to share?

I’d just like to say a huge thanks to everyone I have ever snowboarded esp. Euan Southcott (filthy Arsenal supporter), Ben Williams, Ben McHugh, Vicci Miller and everyone in 2alpes this past season. Also a massive thanks to the sponsors Ruroc, Avalaan, Oakley, Blueskin, Vans, SCUK, Concrete Lawn and Powderroom.net and the Tamworth Snowdome!