Swedish wakeboarders the Hoppe brothers scored a ‘Hoppe-trick’ last year when all three claimed national titles in their respective classes. The trio, from a set of seven siblings, have a surname which translates as ‘jumper’, which is quite apt for the former divers who now leap across water attached to a board. The middle and oldest wakeboarding Hoppes, 17-year-old Mattias and 21-year-old Benjamin, talk sibling rivalry and rocks in the run up to Sweden’s first Red Bull Up Stream event next week.
When did you start wakeboarding?
Mattias: I first started to ride seriously in 2004, ever since then I’ve been trying to ride as much as possible wherever I can. During the winter in Sweden it could be pretty hard though because almost every bit of water is covered with ice. So the wakeboarding season is just for a couple of months here. We usually go to Thailand for a couple of weeks just to keep it up.
Benjamin: I started to ride wakeboard mainly because I wanted to have something to do in the summers since it can be quite tricky to ride snowboard in summer time. But, yes, you will also need a permission to ride in all the good lakes in Sweden, so it’s quite hard to wakeboard in here. But we do the best we can.
You are three of six brothers and a sister. Are all your family into sport or just you three?
Mattias: Well not everyone is into wakeboarding but they are all sporty more or less. Ever since we’ve been kids we have been into athletics like gymnastics, snowboarding/skiing and well, all kinds of sports.
Benjamin: But it’s only the three of us that are competing on an elite level.
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What's the scene like in Sweden?
Mattias: Wakeboarding as a hobby has grown a lot in the last few years but there are still not many riders competing. But the level of riding in the competitions has increased a lot!
Benjamin: Yeah, I think the older guys don’t seem to have as much energy as they used to. At the moment it seems that the sport doesn’t grow and the number athletes is not very high. We’re in the middle of a generation shift, so to speak. But we all hope that this mean that the sport will evolve and grow after this shift and become better than ever before.
What's your proudest wakeboarding achievement?
Benjamin: When I won the Swedish championships last year. It was a big one for me.
Mattias: This summer when I won the Oysteins Summer Rail Challenge tour. It was three winch competitions in Scandinavia where a lot of great riders were invited.
What do you think of the Up Stream event?
Mattias: I’ve never seen anything like it! It’s It’ll probably be the coolest thing I’ve ever tried on a wakeboard but also the most dangerous I think. I can’t wait!
It’s something that no one else has thought of.
Benjamin: It sounds really cool and interesting so it will certainly turn out great. It’s something completely new to us and that makes it unique.
Do you worry about wakeboarding on white water?
Benjamin: I’ve not even seen the place so it’s hard to say. But as long as I don’t see anyone land on a rock or something it should be cool.
Mattias: I’m excited to try something new, but, yeah, there is the worry I could hit my face on a rock. That would really suck. I hope I’ll be able to ride in the current. It is really wild and the waves are pretty huge. And did I mention the big rocks?
Who will be your biggest competition on the day?
Benjamin: I think any one of us can bring it home. So the answer is everyone!
Mattias: My brother Benjamin, for sure.
Up Stream uses a winch and cable. Are you equally happy behind a cable as a boat?
Mattias: I usually ride behind a boat but cable is as much fun so I enjoy the difference.
Benjamin: As long as I have something to ride behind it doesn’t matter.
Do you think you will win? How to you rate your chances?
Benjamin: With some luck maybe…
Mattias: In this competition I think that the person who has the most guts will win so it’s all up to how much I’d like to stay alive that day or whether I’m willing to make some sacrifices to make a cool run.
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