The Winter X Games have just wrapped up at Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen, Colorado—a competition that includes the best snowboarders, skiers and snowmobilers in the world. Cody Borchers was born and raised in Alberta and has spent his life consumed with snowmobiling. His passion-turned-career has served him well, and he was named first alternate in the freestyle competition for the 2010 Winter X Games.
Borchers said he grew up dreaming about snowmobiling. From an early age, when he and his dad would go hunting, Borchers said that he would see snowmobile tracks in the snow and he knew that he would somehow own one—no matter how unattainable it seemed at the time. He finally worked out a deal to get a second-hand snowmobile with his uncle Larry in exchange for some hard labour.
“My uncle Larry owned an acreage just outside of Sherwood Park,” said Borchers. “I used to ride my mountain bike out to his place, which was a 40-minute mountain bike ride, one way, to mow his lawn. In exchange, I got a snowmobile that he had. Maybe that wasn’t the best payment plan but it was pretty awesome in my eyes.”
Borchers’ snowmobiling really took off from there, and is continuously gaining momentum. In 1997, Borchers and his brother were out playing in Alberta and met two other brothers from Golden, B.C., who told them they needed to come experience B.C. riding.
“We jumped on with them one weekend and it was history after that,” said Borchers.
A thrill-seeking history
Borchers has a background in motocross and has dabbled in competitive dirt biking, but after a couple serious crashes and injuries he returned to snowmobiling. His motocross experience has served him well though, and pulling tricks and jumping came easily to him—leading him to where he is today. Borchers has appeared in many snowmobiling films including Dave Craig’s snowmobile videos and Sled Necks.
“Sled Necks has the top guys for backcountry,” said Borchers. “I knew that I could hang with them and I knew that I could be in the mix, and I just kept pushing myself. I let motocross go and from there just kept growing and picked up some sponsors because I got full video parts.”
It hasn’t always been this serendipitous for Borchers, and he has had his share of bumps along the way. Being a Canadian competitive snowmobiler has proven to be a little tricky as the following and sponsorship is not on par with the United States. But Borchers is of the opinion that if you keep a smile on your face and work hard, good things will happen for you. Futhermore, Borchers just had his first experience of the Winter X Games and plans to come back stronger and better next year.
Taking risks
“I’ve broken my arm three times now and that just happens in this sport,” said Borchers. “The only way to learn and to get good is to keep pushing yourself. I took a break for a year to figure out if this is really what I want to do—and it is. There have been some lumps and bumps, but my progression has been good and fast. This is my first taste of the Winter X Games, and I can tell you this much—I’ll be back next year, with bigger and better stuff.”
Currently, Borchers is on a tour called Sled Necks Monster Energy Invasion combined with The International Series of Champions, a snocross racing organization that promotes snowmobiling in the U.S. and Canada. As part of the half-time show, Borchers and four other riders put on a freestyle performance for the audience.
“We put on a good show,” said Borchers. “We are pulling tricks and flipping and I am super excited to be on a good tour like this.”
