Although Håkonsen never formally retired, it became increasingly rare to see him at competitions towards the end of the 1990s. Unhappy with the traditional competition format, he created his own competition, The Arctic Challenge, in 2000. The basic idea behind the competition was that it should be on the snowboarders' own terms. In 2002, The Arctic Challenge, along with other independent events, launched the Ticket to Ride World Snowboard tour. This tour, which is now known as the World Snowboard tour, is now the biggest, most prestigious international snowboard tour in the world.