Risto Mattila is one of the most competitive and determined snowboarders currently riding at a professional level. With a daunting presence between the gates atop a halfpipe or slope course and an explosive onboard personality, Risto has established himself as one of Finland’s greatest amongst the likes of Markku Koski, Antti Autti and Peetu Piiroinen.

He first tried snowboarding back in 1993 and he and his friends soon began shredding nearby hill Louekallio whenever opportunity arose. Born in the small Finnish town of Kannus, Risto had early opportunities with access to a variety of sports at his disposal. Snowboarding however took precedence, so after high school he lived in a campervan at the base of Ruka, a popular Finnish resort and still considered one of Risto’s favourites.

His breakthrough happened more gradually than some of his riding buddies’, but a sponsorship from Flow took him from camper to Olympics in no time at all, and now Mattila is considered one of the top competitors on the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour. Fortunately, amidst all the media work and traveling, Risto still loves riding now as much as he did in the beginning and all the stress of the job quickly fades as soon as he straps in.

In an interview for the Scrapbook Project, a recent film endeavor and documentary focusing on the awesomness that is Finnish snowboarding, Risto gave some timeless advice for beginner snowboarders: “Ride a lot. Know your skills and get better without being foolhardy. Have fun with your board and ride everything that’s possible. Don’t concentrate too much on one thing only – use your imagination and trick on.”Great advice from a guy who’s become one of the most consistent and successful riders on the Swatch TTR World Tour with massive airs and a classic McTwists.

The 07/08 TTR season saw tremendous effort from the Finn, who racked up three, second place finishes at the 6Star Nissan X-trail Jam and O’Neill Evolution, along with another six top ten results throughout the season. A bountiful supply of ranking points landed Risto in World No. 4, his best end-of-season result to date. The 2008/2009 Season saw similar consistency, repeating his second place finish in the Quarterpipe at the 6Star O’Neill Evolution, another second in the Slopestyle at the 5Star Crans-Montana Champs Open and a fourth place result at legendary 6Sar Oakley Arctic Challenge. Risto managed to finish his 2009 season as World No. 5. Clearly, he’s doing something right.

In the 2009/2010 season, Mattila finished outside the top 10 of every TTR contest he entered, The Air & Style, O’Neill Evolution and the Burton European Open. His 08/09 season-end point bonus (a fifth place), however, helped him to finish the season in World No. 25.