Jess Kimura

Snowboarding has been waiting patiently for a young woman like Jess Kimura to arrive. Not since the groundbreaking video parts and female feats of Dakides or Meyen, has women’s snowboarding been so electrified by one rider. While most worthy female shreds end up stuck on the narrow path of competition, Kimura sidestepped the whole “contest girl” scene. After claiming Canadian Junior titles in pipe and boardercross during her high school years, Jess walked away to go filming and boarding on her own terms.

Filming with ThinkThank, Jess put down one of the most celebrated women’s video segments, ever. Her hard-hitting part in 2010’s Right Brain/Left Brain earned the 24-year old Canadian TransWorld SnowBoarding’s Video Part Of The Year Award & Reader’s Choice Award. She also managed to film another part the same season with the all-girl cast in Peep Show films’ Let’s Make Better Mistakes Tomorrow. With a go-for-broke approach, Jess’ riding stands out in contrast to her peers—brutal slams and tech street moves come in equal measure, showing she’s got not just tricks, but heart. And in case you haven’t figured it out by now, she’s no girly girl; Jess skates, plays guitar, and works construction. Yes, construction. Maybe that’s because Jess understands the relationship between labor and success. And right now, she’s putting in work.