Now defunct Canadian skate/snowboard website push.ca produced a series called Living Legends. It shed some light on some of the great (Canadian) names in our sport. This is their take on ex-Forum 8 member Chris Dufficy, overall rad guy and inspiration to many, including the guy who writes these lines. These are 10 minutes down memory lane that are defo worth your time!

The idea behind Living Legends is a simple one, we want to honor and document the careers of professional skateboarders and snowboarders that have made a significant impact on their sports but remain in the game.

Living Legend: Chris Dufficy

[ words by Pete Andersen]

“I always knew he was going to come back. It’s not even a come back, I think he just took a year off to let everyone else catch up. Duff’s the king.” – Sean Kearns
Duff is the king, no question. They don’t come much better than him, period. A grin from ear to ear is permanently attached to his face and the personality, outlook and attitude that goes along with it is entrenched in his being, it’s just his nature. His laugh and positive attitude have saved many a crew on overcast days in the backcountry from spiraling out of control into bitterness. Not only can he see the positive in everything and everyone, he has an uncanny ability to see lines, jumps and angles to shoot from that made him an absolute favorite for any photographer or filmer to work with.

Born and raised on the mean streets of Kamloops, BC, Chris linked his first turns at the local shred haven, Todd Mountain, soon to become Sun Peaks. Soon after he met Sean Johnson and at the tender age of 15, Chris would spend many a winter snowboard trip with him in North Vancouver. In the midst of the Whiskey madness, Chris kept his focus and positivity squarely set on snowboarding and soon he was turning heads in the industry. After being named to the legendary ‘Forum 8′ squad, it was obvious a successful pro career was on the horizon and with Chris’ work ethic, attitude, and raw talent, it seemed nothing was going to stand in his way.

In 1999, after a couple knee surgeries – rather common speed bumps on any pro snowboarder’s career path these days – Chris was back on track and as healthy as ever. Then that spring Chris found himself in a struggle for his life after hitting the back of his head and neck on a tree at Mount Seymour in North Vancouver. After being unconscious for three days he awoke to an empty hospital room and the realization that something was very, very wrong. “You will never ride again,” the doctor’s words reverberated through him like an earthquake. For a year and a half Chris worked in and around the snowboard industry and, against the wishes of his doctors, could only snowboard recreationally, all the while never losing his trademark smile, laugh and spark. At the beginning of the 2001 season Chris felt great and had no symptoms of his previous concussions so he went to his neurologist to get the low down. After numerous tests he was given the green light to snowboard again with a helmet and mouth guard at all times. In true Duff fashion, back on snow with the Forum crew that never left his side, Chris filmed his best snowboard part to date for True Life.

Chris continued to snowboard and produce groundbreaking video parts for a decade or so before turning his attention to the next chapter in his life. Now, stronger than ever with the determination and positivity to back it up, Chris is doing everything he can to become a firefighter. Knowing Chris and his penchant for life, I can’t think of a better next step for the eternally smiling ‘Duffman’ that has done so much for snowboarding and it’s community. Chris Dufficy is indeed, a Living Legend.

Whoever uploaded this gem from around 2001, we salute you. Abandon work for the week, crack open a brew and check out the Canadian Wildcats crew in their heyday. Awesome movie.

For those of you wondering where those dirty Icelanders who produced the now-infamous A2M movie got their inspiration, watch this and pay special attention to the 15-odd minutes post-credits where the magic truly happens…

And if you’re wondering where these guys got their inspiration from, watch this.

Return of the Wildcats is the second snowboard video from the infamous Canadian/American crew and as you would imagine the vid contains plenty of sick footage…Although a lot of the video is made up of footage of the likes of Trevor Andrew pissed and falling around the place, there’s also a lot of good snowboarding…All the team riders have good individual sections…Kale Stephens has the first section with plenty of snowmobile action as well as some sick snowboarding including a massive cab 900. Chris Brown’s section is one of the best with the tune “I’m an Arsehole” by Dennis Leary going down very well. Also features Max Jenke, Devun Walsh, Chris Dufficy, Dionne Delesalle, Joni Malmi, Paavo Tikannen, and plenty of others.

Featuring: Bjorn Leines, Chris Brown, Dave Cashen, Dionne Delesalle, J.F. Pelchat, Kale Stephens, Pete Andersen, Brad Plamus, Chris Dufficy, Devun Walsh, Gaetan Chanut, Jacob McIntyre, Max Jenke, Rob Dow

After a couple of MDP-produced team movies, Forum and co. hired Sean Johnson (previously of Wildcats fame) to produce Video Gangs. As well as having the regular roster of Forum über pros like Bjorn Leines, Devun Walsh, Joni Malmi (though no JP Walker as, rumour had it, he’d signed a deal to only film with Mack Dawg), Video Gangs also included Jeenyus riders (RIP Jeenyus, you were awesome) Eddie Wall, Andreas Wiig and Chad Otterstrom, and also introduced the world to a young Finnish rookie fresh off the production line – Lauri Heiskari. In addition to all this, it also inspired a hack on the internet to write a paragraph with an excess of parentheses in it nearly 8 years later.

That being said, this sure takes us back. Enjoy.

Here is a clip from Alterna Films’ Hello World featuring Chris Dufficy & Devun Walsh. Download the entire film here: alternaactionfilms.com!

Featured riders: Mikey Rencz, Eero Niemela, Johnny Lyall, IIkka Backstrom, Dustin Craven, Andrew Geeves, Kale Stephens, Jody Wachniak, Benji Ritchie, Kevin Griffin, Devun Walsh, Chris Dufficy, Shin Campos, Todd Malus, and Charles White.

More episodes to drop on a monthly basis & more information on their website.

* And here’s 8Mile explained in 8Mile’s own un-minced words:

“8mile,  originally the basement suite of Mikey Rencz, Johnny Lyall, and Eero Niemela in Creekside, Whistler B.C., was home to many of the worlds top pro snowboarders. Night after night the sh*t kept piling up and morning after morning the stories grew. 8 Mile is now a lifestyle…we ride it every day and live it every night! This is a snowboard movie of professionals living their (sometimes not so glamorous) lifestyle, filmed and edited in the interest of good times! This movie isn’t just about rad snowboard footage but the lifestyles and personalities of snowboarding today. No holding back!…ok maybe a couple things”