Getting to know: Camille Armand

by Nick Baines April 23, 2019

We caught up with FLŌA team rider Camille Armand to find a little more about what he’s up to, and learn about his Fast Follow project….

At the age of 16, Camille left his hometown in the flat centre of France and headed out to live a life surrounded by mountains in Chamonix. While living in Cham, Camille began competing on the Freeride World Qualifier (FWQ) events and after 3 years earned one of ten snowboarding places on the Snowboarding Freeride World Tour.

We asked Camille what it was like turning pro – “At first it wasn't something I had ever imagined doing. It was my friend Leo Slemett who bought me a ticket to participate in a freeride competition saying I should give it a go because he believed in me.

I ended up second at that competition so I started doing more of them and participated at the FWQ when I was 19. Three years later I qualified for the FWT and started to have my first sponsors. I was really excited to be able to travel worldwide and enter the real game.”Fly to edit.

 

 

FAST FOLLOW

 

Men and women have learnt to use the body in ways to bring mental and physical enjoyment. Whether it’s painting and sculpting, making music, or swimming, these endeavours are as much about accomplishing a goal, as they are enjoying the experience.

Flow is that sacred ground where performance and pleasure converge. A state of consciousness where you become totally absorbed in what you are doing to the exclusion of all other thoughts. 

“Flow is about focus,” writes Jackson. “More than just focus. Flow is a harmonious experience where mind and body are working together effortlessly, leaving the person feeling that something special has just occurred.”

Although people often associate flow with peak performance, flow doesn't depend on winning and most often delivers a feeling more valuable that a medal. Perhaps this is why flow has an intrinsic link with solitary pursuits like skiing, snowboarding, surfing or climbing.

 

 

 

THE CHALLENGE-SKILLS BALANCE AND FLOW

 

If a challenge is too easy, we can do it without thinking, which often leads our minds to wander. To achieve flow, we need to be presented with a challenge that we believe we can do, but that requires concentration and our best effort. 

Having clear goals helps to focus our attention so intensely that we have no time or space in our minds to think about ourselves or other problems. By striking that perfect balance between our level of ability and a challenge that requires all of our skills, means we can hit that perfect line of concentration.

 

 

WHY FlOW IS IMPORTANT

 

When we’re concentrating, we usually put in our best effort, which pushes us to the edge of our limits. This is the main reason why flow is associated with peak performance. However, flow also has a close link with progression as the need to push the challenge-skill balance increases. 

Naturally, as we become more accomplished in our chosen sport, we need increasingly more difficult, or complex opportunities to keep those scales even. 

Too easy, and it’s not going to be fulfilling, but if we choose challenges that are too difficult, then we run the risk of missing the experience in a futile pursuit of victory. It’s that middle ground, that momentary experience that we need to hold on to as that’s where happiness and enjoyment truly lies.

Understanding flow allows you to develop as a sportsperson, but the fundamentals of flow are also applicable to other aspects of your life, allowing you to approach situations less stressed and chaotic, but calm, poised and focused.

 

Instead of chasing snow through the southern hemisphere, Camille is heading to the south of France to shred some waves. Enjoying some downtime while he plots his next filming projects for the 2019-20 season ahead. 

Camille Armand is part of our Professional Athlete team, as well as being sponsored by FLŌA, he also rides for Rossignol, Protest, Smith Optics, ABS, Mont Blanc Natural Resort, Racer Gloves and Concept Pro Shop

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