The idea of this trip was simple: Can three friends who dedicated a large part of their formative years to riding halfpipe in pursuit of Olympic qualification, still rip it up, a decade after their last competitive outing?

Those three riders are Dan Wakeham aged 43 (Turin 2006 Olympics), Dom Harrington, 39 (Sochi 2014 Olympics) and Ben Kilner, 35 (Vancouver 2010, Sochi 2014 Olympics). While each of them has maintained varying levels of fitness and healthy lifestyles, real life has meant that none of them have maintained the riding ‘muscle memory’ they used to possess. The crews travelled to Leysin, Switzerland, an old stomping ground of the three and the place where Dan bagged his best-ever World Cup finish – a fifth place in the penultimate World Cup of the 2006 season, which saw him qualify for the Olympics that year. Watch as the boys battle the elements and their creaking knees to find if they still have what it takes.

Filmed and edited by Lucas Brammall

Additional filming by Lucien Harris, Tommy bowers and Ben Kilner

Drone footage by Lucien Harris 

Change of Plan featured in The Reason Annual 2025