Emil Granbom is something of an anomaly in the modern-day ski scene.
He’s not very interested in the spotlight and he’s certainly never wanted to be ‘the best’.
He’s one of the biggest talents of his generation, a prodigy.
I wanted to find out why.
_
Hey Emil, whats up?
I know you dropped a big project earlier in the season, so talk to me about Childsplay.
What does that movie mean to you?
How did it come about?
I’ve been called Child since my early skiing days.
And the idea of being Child has formed me as a skier as well.
I tried to get inspired by that.
So thats why I wanted it to call it Childsplay.
Its also about unlearning some of the things society imposes on us.
Its about having an open mindset on things.
Kids arent afraid to try new stuff and see where it goes.
I did the editing myself.
That was super fun, it had been a long time since I edited something myself.
And maybe it can inspire other people too, not just skiers necessarily.
Just let the child within all of us lead the way from time to time.
First of all, Head.
Ive been riding for them for so many years now, and Im super grateful to them.
That relationship has just been growing.
Its a big thing for me to work with people I know and respect.
Theyve taken me to some amazing places and have amazing people on board.
And then Ruroc has been huge.
Obviously, being on the same team as Tanner Hall is super inspiring.
Hes taught me so much with his experience in the backcountry and his long career.
Stellar Equipment hook up my outerwear, and the stuff is insane.
I never really knew how good clothes could make a difference before linking up with them.
I just signed with Deuter, a German backpack and outdoor brand.
Oh, and Nocco!
The Swedish energy drink.
It really feels like they are partnerships that support me wherever the journey takes me!
It was really difficult even staying on the Swedish national team because everyone was so freaking good.
So there was a lot of, like, competition within the group.
I’m not also just not that jot down of repetitive person when it comes to training.
When I do a trick for the first time, that’s the experience itself for me.
Ultimately, because of all of those factors, I was not the best comp skier.
Looking back on it now, given what motivates me, it was such an obvious step.
If you don’t nail those runs, you go away feeling like a disappointment.
And skiing is so much more than that, so it honestly feels like a relief.
Dont get me wrong, either; I loved competing, but in the end, it felt stagnant.
So even in the park, it brought some of the freedom back.
Yeah, you seem to be a lot happier with the new status quo!
So what about day-to-day life… Do you still live with Skimanguy?
I live in a place called Duved, near Are.
I’m actually not living with Skiman anymore, at least not in the same apartment laughs.
We both met our girlfriends, and in that tiny apartment, it just became a bit much!
We have a go at go out on missions and explore new terrain and catch a sauna together.
We have a good thing in that we thrive on each other and like and inspire each other.
Hes been a huge inspiration for me getting into the backcountry and freeskiing the proper way laughs.
Shout out Skimanguy, who will always be my brother.
So, what does a normal day of skiing look like for you?
I guess it starts with knowing if it’s gonna be a clear morning.
If I can get some good lines, then thats always the first priority.
I guess there’s no real, normal day; its always different, right?
And then if there’s energy, go to the climbing gym and then have a sauna.
Have dinner and go to bed.
You’re in the backcountry a lot now, especially filming Head/Tyrolia stuff.
Is that where you see your skiing headed?
Are you gonna go full Jacob Wester on us?
I would love to learn as much as I can and do what he has been able to do.
Theres so much more to think of in terms of planning.
Do you trust the people you’re surrounded with?
How far do I feel like I can push this?
And everything requires a group behind you; skiing kind of becomes a team sport.
But a more real team where you have to work together.
And now, for sure, I see myself skiing bigger lines.
Oh sick, where was that?
One was a mountain up in northern Norway, and then one in Kosovo.
The park will always be there, somewhere deep inside.
Sounds insane, but you never were one to take it slow.
So what other trips have you been on lately?
I kicked the season off in Ruka with the Ruroc team.
just clocking a crazy amount of laps and getting the feel back for skiing again.
They are really motivated to make the best stuff for us, so that was really cool.
I got to share a room with Tanner, too.
Hearing his history and how he’s been skiing professionally pretty much his whole life… Obviously hes going to keep going too, but you know what I mean.
Dope, and then youve been shredding at home?
Do you have more trips lined up?
Yeah, I forgot to mention that I went skiing in Kosovo in January.
Well, I mentioned the descent but not the trip.
Going up to undiscovered mountains and feeling that super small person, big terrain feeling was crazy.
The snow wasn’t great, but we managed to ski some cool stuff.
Its always kind of fun to figure that out.
And I learned a lot about the history there, with the wars and so on.
And then the rest of the season, well, next I’m going to Turkey actually.
Another big trip where I know it’s pretty undiscovered terrain.
That’s extremely special.
And who knows, maybe there’ll be a Childsplay part two after all of that!
Im definitely following where the inner voice takes me, at least.
