Jeremy Jones, snowboarding pioneer and eight-time Big Mountain Rider of the Year, annouced yesterday that he was breaking away from long-time sponsor Rossignol and intends to launch his own snowboard brand, focused on freeride culture and technical demands.

The new company, set to launch at the Snowsport Industry Association's tradeshow this winter, will leverage Jone's almost legendary status in the freeride world as well as captialize on the growing segment of backcountry/big mountain snowboarding culture. This rapidly growing part of the sport has had Jones as their choosen leader from the beginning. Outside Magazine said of Jones in a 2000 article highlighting the top 25 "Superheros" in the outdoor industry:

"Jones rips the seemingly convex pitches of Alaska's intimidating Chugach Mountains, pointing his board straight down the fall line of slopes where you drop 20 feet with each turn. He rails open faces at 60 mph and then shoots off 50-foot cliffs. Apparently fearless, Jones first earned his reputation as snowboarding's primo big-mountain freerider from stunts in the 1997 snowboard flickTB6, but he's equally famous for riding the Chugach's fluted spines—steep, wind-carved ribs of snow that protrude from the guts of the mountain"

The freeride movement has been heavily romantized over the last decade through media and film. Outfits such as Teton Gravity Research and many other grassroot filmmakers have taken the Big Mountain experience to our living rooms and continue to inspire dreams that fuel the Alaska heli-ski industry. In many ways, Jones Snowboards is synomous with these high-adrenaline, high-altitude movies; in addition to the numerous feature ski pornos that Jones has starred, a new new project is currently in-the-wings to take the backcountry snowboard experience to a new level.  In partnership with TGR and filmmaker Chris Edmunds, Jones has been producing a two-year film project entitled "Deeper," in which himself and a small team of other freeride riders set out to slay some of the most badass and remote lines in the world. The catch is that they don't use mechanized vehicals to access the terrain... rather they hike, climb, camp and rip old-school style.

Anyway, I digress. All this company really needs is a touch of celebrity cache and to hammer the production of the first generation of snowboards (take a note from Black Diamond's debacled foray into telemark bindings). Best of luck Jeremey: for now keep championing big lines and sharing your story and people will follow... (i.e. buy)

Published statement on Jones Snowboards website:

Obsessed, addicted and immersed in the mountains since 1983, I have written my life story around snowboarding. I have been all in from the beginning — hiking resorts before they allowed snowboards at age 9, all night drives to Jackson Hole in high school to score first tram of the year, hiking all night to earn a first descent at dawn. Becoming a pro snowboarder was not an optional career, there was no back-up plan.

Now 26 years after stepping on my first snowboard I feel blessed to have been given the opportunities I have. From riding some of the world’s wildest lines to naming mountain peaks to the countless signature products I have helped create, it’s been an honor to be a part of the snowboarding’s evolution. During this journey I have often focused on the performance of my equipment. How can we make this board better… rail an edge harder… weigh less without sacrificing durability? After ten years of working with the R+D teams on new designs and technologies I’ve made significant progress towards my dream board but the time has come to take that quest to the next level…

For 2010 I am proud to announce the latest offspring of my life-long commitment to snowboarding—Jones Snowboards. I have started Jones Snowboards to develop the highest performance all-mountain weapons on the market—freeride boards that reflect everything I’ve learned both on the snow and in the factory. Every snowboard we produce will be born of my passion and our designs will mirror the performance demands of my riding matched with the environmental demands of my conscience.

Jones Snowboards is a natural evolution for me. Snowboarding is not my job, it’s my life. Come experience the progression. Ride with me.