Andy Knights

My name is Andy Knights and I am the Sales Manager and Japan Product Manager for Ski Safari. I've been at the business now for 17 years.

Snowboarding has completely changed my life. At the age of 25, I hadn't even heard of snowboarding. I didn't even know what it was. But from the moment I first went to North America on my first-ever trip to Canada, which ended up being a ski season, which ended up being five, my life has completely changed. I wasn't sure at the time what I wanted to do. I knew it'd be something in sports, probably tennis-related.

25 years later, I've been to resorts across North America, New Zealand, Europe, Japan, and heli-skied all over the place. If I hadn't started snowboarding, none of these experiences would have come my way. I'd been on a tennis court, which is a happy place for me, but nothing beats being in the mountains. It's number one.

How lucky am I that I get to still be snowboarding?

I joined Ski Safari in 2007. At the time, I was working in Brighton's ski shop known as 'Surf & Ski'. A long-haired gentleman (Rupert) walked in and wanted his skis serviced. They were very nice skis. I commented on that and asked him where he was going. He told me Red Mountain, Whitewater, all these cool places that I'd been to myself in Canada. And I asked, "Is this a holiday?" He said, no, this was work. And then my interest was piqued.

He subsequently told me that he was working for a company called Ski Safari that specialised in quite exotic trips to Canada and the US and asked me to get in touch, which I did. I came and saw Richard Rice, our owner and founder. He said there was no job currently available, but in a year, there should be. And true to his word, I did start working a year later.

My role has certainly changed over time. I started as a Sales Consultant and from there I've worked my way up the ladder. I was Sales Supervisor a few years ago and that turned into Sales Manager and also I look after the Japan product.

So a few strings to my bow, and that's not all I do. There are many other things that go on behind the scenes that you might not know about, my days are pretty full...

One of my favourite mountain moments, and I can easily say that the greatest day on snow I've ever, ever had, and will ever have, was the day's heli-skiing in Alaska.

It had been a boyhood dream of mine to go to Alaska. I'd read a lot of material on it. The moment I stepped off the plane onto the tarmac in Anchorage was just something I'll never forget. That was a life dream come true.

Another trip that stands out to me would be the first time I went to Japan with Richard, our Founder & Chairman, with Matt, our Managing Director, Craig from marketing and Hannah from operations. I suddenly realised what all that talk was about that I'd heard, all the chat about Japan, you've got to go there for the snow. I was whooping and hollering and going, "This is what it's all about".

It really did deliver on the snow front, and then off-mountain, it gave me that experience that I'd never had elsewhere. Japan's very different, the food's very different, the culture's very different, and I realised what all the fuss was about for Japan. Then I could really chat about it to my colleagues, to our customers and felt confident selling it because it was just a mind-blowing experience.

I love being in the mountains, simple as that. Who wouldn't want to spend quality time with loved ones or friends in that incredible scenery, in the fresh air, having those experiences, either floating on top of a foot of fresh snow, cruising down and putting perfect carved turns on a groomed run, eating a nice burger on the mountain, having a nice beer, staying in some sublime accommodation, sitting in a hot tub at midnight with the northern lights dancing above your head.

Who wouldn't want to enjoy that? That's what keeps me snowboarding.