The Sammy Carlson Invitational kicks off today at noon PST, and all of the action from Mt. Bachelor can be seen in real time at freeskier.com/live.

Freeskier will be on-site at SCI bringing you behind the scenes coverage. Stay tuned to the site for updates, and be sure to follow along via social: facebook.com/freeskier | instagram.com/freeskiermagazine | twitter.com/freeskier.

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Q&A

Tell us about the inspiration for this Ski The 13ers trip:

I just love a good old fashioned road trip, especially in the springtime when the ski mountaineering gets good. It’s just fun to load the truck or RV with a bunch of friends, we’re working with Whole Foods Market so we filled up our RV with awesome food from Whole Foods and just hit the road. It’s good living, you get up at 4:30 a.m. every day, you eat, you hit the trail and we’re done at 1 or 2 in the afternoon and we get to chill or drive to the next trailhead and it’s just such a fun adventure. I just love skiing new mountains, new peaks that I’ve never been on, because every time you stand on a new summit you get a different perspective and a different view of the world and other mountains and that’s exactly what’s been going on.

Who’s on the trip with you?

A lot of people, it’s a rotating cast of characters. The three principle people behind this project are myself and Ted and Christy Mahon. The three of us are trying to complete this project together. We’ve all skied all of the 14ers, Christy was the first woman to do so and Ted completed them after I did. So, we wanted to sort of be the first people to raise the bar once again, ski the centennial peaks, the hundred highest peaks in Colorado, that’s never been done.

How does this compare to skiing the 14ers?

It’s exactly the same. These peaks in some cases are just a couple feet shy of being at 14,000 foot status. They’re often times almost even better, you never see any people on them and it’s a lot of similar trail heads. They’re cool because there’s no inclination out there on skiing a lot of these 13ers because there’s a lot of information out there on the 14ers of course, partly because of me and my book and everything else I’ve done on the 14ers, but the 13ers, we don’t really know that much about them, so it’s that much more fun for us to create content and share it with people and sort of spread the word about the skiing on these awesome 13ers.

How’s the snow been?

The snow is absolutely incredible, it’s one of the best springs that we’ve had in years in Colorado. There’s tons and tons of snow from the April snow storms and even in May we had snow. We’ve got cold temperatures so the mountains are holding on to some great snow and this is the perfect time of year for ski mountaineering because the avalanche danger is minimal right now if its early in the morning when the temperatures are cold, which is when we go. This is the time to ski the big lines and get out and tour these mountains. The conditions are phenomenal right now, I’d say almost as good as it gets for ski mountaineering in Colorado.

Have you had any weather issues?

No, we haven’t had any weather issues. We’ve had little bits of weather here and there but we’re pretty dialed on our weather forecasting. We work with Joel Gratz with OpenSnow and he sends a forecast, we watch the CAIC forecast, so we’ve got a pretty good idea when there’s bad weather. Last Monday (5/13/2013) we took the day off, it was pouring rain and snowing. We just try to manage it and right now the weather’s awesome for the next five days. So, we’re out hitting it hard, we got two yesterday and one today, we’re going to go for two more tomorrow and our goal is to get eight or nine this week.

What did you ski today (5/22/2013)?

Today we skied Mt. Oklahoma. It was nice because we had a moment of silence on top for the victims of the tornado in Moore, OK. It was cool to be on the summit thinking of those people. Mt. Oklahoma is an amazing peak with a huge East face. We skied this gnarly couloir, which was awesome and we got some incredible, incredible photos. We’ve been having a really good photographer come along with us, my partner Ted Mahon is a great photographer himself but also Scott Rinckenberger, is from Seattle and he drove out last week and he’s just been slaying it. He worked for Chase Jarvis and he’s a really good photographer so we’ve been getting some great images on the project and that’s been a ton of fun as well because we love creating cool content.

What’re the peaks you’re headed to next?

We’re going to move the RV this afternoon, we’re still in the Sawatch Range between Leadville and Buena Vista, CO, and we’re going to be in this area called Clear Creek for some mountains tomorrow called “Ice Mountain” and “North Apostle.”  Ice Mountain has a really famous north facing couloir called the “Refrigerator Couloir.”

How many peaks have you bagged so far on the trip?

20 after today.

Was there any peak that was more difficult than the others?

I think the hardest ones that we’ve done so far are Teakettle, Teakettle is down in the San Juans sort of between Telluride and Ouray, that’s a really challenging one. There’s a steep, steep couloir on it that wasn’t in great shape because the San Juans had a big dust layer from some dust storms in April. The skiing was decent, it wasn’t awesome, but it was technically pretty fun, pretty challenging. Cathedral Peak, right outside of Aspen was a really good one, we got incredible powder snow in the Pearl Couloir. Pearl Couloir is a famous line that doesn’t get done very often and we opened that up in great conditions. I think the Refrigerator Couloir tomorrow, that will be pretty challenging also. One of the biggest challenges of this skiing is not necessarily the technical difficulty of some of the lines, it’s just staying fit, staying motivated every day after day after day to keep going. Getting up early, getting enough calories, staying healthy and pushing your body basically as hard as it can possibly go.

How do you guys go about doing that, staying motivated?

It’s kind of hard when you wake up at 4:30 in the morning. It’s pretty tough to get out of bed, your body’s tired and it wants to keep sleeping but once you get a pot of hot coffee going and you start walking, the sunlight happens and you’re up above treeline, you see the beautiful blue sky day emerging, you’re body wakes up and that’s kind of what it’s all about. It’s all an out of body experience of staring at the natural beauty of the mountains and surroundings and you can scope out a ski line and you do it, get to the bottom and high five and hug your friends and you’re like “Yeah! We did another one.” It’s just a super positive experience.

How does going on a big mountain road trip in Colorado compare to other adventures you’ve had around the world?

I think Colorado is a fantastic place to do this type of adventure because there are so many big mountains here, much more than any other place in North America. We’ve got 650 mountains over 13,000 feet. Nobody else has anything close to that, and there’s pretty good road access. So, if you want to do a road trip, Colorado is just the perfect place because there are so many objectives, so many things to do. It’s fun for me, because it is my home state and I like pushing the boundaries and raising the bar here at home.

Have you given any thought to what your next big adventure is going to be?

Oh my god, yeah! I’ve given a lot of thought to that and I’ve got a bunch of plans already for next year but nothing that can be revealed quite yet.

What’s the first thing that you’re going to do once you get back home to Aspen?

Hang out with the kids because I’ve been pretty delinquent on the parenting side of things, I’ve been traveling pretty much non-stop since January and so definitely would like to hang out with my family and bike and run and maybe sleep a little bit too.

Any plans for the Southern Hemisphere later in the summer?

Of course, I’ll be down in Portillo, Chile in August. It’s my fourteenth year in a row going to Portillo and the tenth year in a row for my Superstars Ski Camp that I run out of Portillo. I’ll be down there guiding in August and my family will come down in August and I’m definitely looking forward to that but, I’m looking forward to some summer too, I look forward to being out of ski boots because I’ve skied about 160 days this year already.

For more information on the Centennial Peaks Project and to follow Chris, Ted and Christy on their adventure head to CentennialSkiers.com.

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From Aspen/Snowmass on Vimeo:

“Thanks to a very snowy late season, when Aspen Mountain opens this weekend for summer operations, there will be lift serviced skiing and riding on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, May 25th-27th! Hopefully you haven’t packed away your winter gear, because this is a weekend that is not to be missed.”

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Press Release by Beartooth Basin Ski Area

RED LODGE, MT (May 23, 2013) Beartooth Basin Ski Area, formerly known as Red Lodge International Ski and Snowboard Camp, announced today that its lifts will start spinning Memorial Day Weekend. Located near 11,000’ in Montana’s Beartooth Mountains, Beartooth Basin offers big mountain, racing and freestyle terrain for camps and individuals until early July, conditions permitting. The scenic Beartooth Pass Highway, accessing the ski area from Red Lodge, Montana, is scheduled to open Friday.

“The crew has been hard at work digging out the lifts and getting everything ready for the season,” says Beartooth vice president and co-owner Justin Modroo. “As always, we’ve got a great variety of terrain. We have freestyle bump lines, race lanes, a terrain park and also the big mountain aspect, so there’s really something for everyone–from the professional that wants an edge on their competition next winter to someone that just wants some June corn skiing.”

Established in 1962, Beartooth Basin has long been a destination for international skiers to hone their skills during the late spring months. While originally organized as a summer racing camp by a group of Austrians, the area has evolved to host a variety of camps, events, and competitions, as well as daily skiing and snowboarding for the general public. From its humble beginnings in racing, Beartooth now offers a unique summer skiing setting, surrounded by wilderness and national forest.

“Beartooth Basin offers a great, wilderness experience mixed in with lift access skiing for big mountain skiers, racers or whoever wants to improve their skiing skills in the off season,” says Beartooth president and operations manager Austin Hart. “These lifts were put in by a group of Austrians that were Olympic athletes and racers that trained across the world, so there’s a great historic value along with having good fun and keeping summer skiing alive.”

Prices for 2013 are as follows: $45-full day; $35-hald day; and $20-power hour, in which skiers can take as many laps as they can in an hour. For more information consult http://www.beartoothbasin.com or call (307) 250-3767.

The post Beartooth Basin Ski Area opens for summer skiing May 26 appeared first on .

“My little boy this year skiing his butt off! He doesn’t really know how to turn so the hockey stick helps keep him under control. Some of this footage was from before he turned 2! Big thanks to The Little Ski Hill: Best freestyle terrain in Idaho, night skiing, and 10 dollar tickets!”

Ditch the harnesses ski parents, hockey sticks are the best learning tool. Think about how good this kid will be in just a few short years!

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From Killington’s Conditions Report:

1:32 p.m. 5/23/13–Given the intensity of the rain we received last night and the forecast of significant rain starting tonight through the day on Saturday, our operational plans have changed since last night’s communication. This weekend (May 25th & May 26th), we will be offering FREE skiing and riding for all at Killington! Walking between snowfields will be required in several spots.   Ma Nature is charging into summer and has other things in mind for us other than skiing, like golf and Mt Biking? To push any remaining snow to make connecting bridges would only hasten the melt process.  Please note we are now going to operate Saturday and Sunday only, from 8-5, on the Superstar lift and trail.

We gave it our best shot to get into June, thus at the end of business on Sunday we are calling it a season. We thank all for your patronage and support this year. Don’t forget to buy your season passes for next year’s greatest value opportunity by June 13th!

Remember only 130 days until we’re at it again for 2013-14!

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“Let’s all take a run through Whistler Blackcomb’s park with Cole Drexler accompanied by A$AP Rocky, 2 Chainz, Drake & Kendrick Lamar filmed by Westward.tv. Enjoy!” [This video contains explicit language.]

The post Cole Drexler don’t care: Shreddin’ Whistler Blackcomb in a Hawaiian shirt appeared first on .

“Join Drift team skier Aurélien Ducroz as he heads out heli-skiing with his Drift HD Ghost onboard. All shot in the back-country of beautiful Lofoten, Norway.”

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After much deliberation, the 2013 ‘Spirit of Sarah Scholarship’ has been awarded to 15-year-old Carly Lavielle, from Orangeville, Ontario. Carly was a runner up last year and impressed the judges this time around with her passionate video entry and original song about Sarah. Check out Carly’s entry here:  https://vimeo.com/64457623. Carly will receive a free all-inclusive week of training at Momentum Ski Camps in Whistler, BC this July.

Carly has been skiing on the Ontario freestyle ski circuit for the past few years and is currently competing at provincial level in slopestyle and halfpipe. She is a previous 3x camper and was fortunate to have been coached by Sarah, who taught her to land her first 360.

As well as receiving the free ski camp, the Sarah Burke Foundation has kicked in an additional $500 to help Carly fly out to BC.

Carly, who has dreams of one day being an Olympian, says, “Sarah Burke is the main reason I am where I am today. She always had this inspiring smile on her face and it brought out the best in people. One of the most important things Sarah taught me is how to believe in myself and how never to give up, no matter what!”

There were many worthy entries this year from all over the world and the panel of judges, including Sarah’s mother, her husband Rory Bushfield, National Team Coach Trennon Paynter and Camp Director John Smart were moved by all the stories, dedication and passion of a new generation of skiers following in her footsteps.

Smart says, “Sarah was a true role model to young women and we will always keep her memory alive by offering this scholarship to our Girls Week at Momentum each year. It’s been really inspiring to see what a wide impact Sarah has had on these young women, many of whom never met her. Carly’s presentation truly captured this spirit of Sarah and is reflected in her own personality. She was fortunate to have connected with her in person and was clearly deeply influenced by her.”

The ‘Spirit of Sarah Scholarship’ was created in honour and memory of long time coach and former camper Sarah Burke, who died in a tragic ski accident in 2012. One of the causes dear to Sarah’s heart was encouraging young girls to follow their dreams and believe in their skiing abilities. She inspired so many young women through her incredible skiing talent, but more importantly through her demonstration of modesty, kindness and her wonderful approach to life. Sarah was a camper with Momentum for 4 years and a coach for 11 years.

Also Read: Sarah Burke Foundation announces first annual scholarship award winners

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Press Release, by Ski.com — Aspen, Colo.

Ski.com announced today the launch of a photo contest that’s sure to catch the eyes of skiers and snowboarders interested in extending their season in the Andes this summer. To help one lucky winner keep the #goggletan they worked so hard on over the past winter, Ski.com is giving one lucky winner a vacation in Valle Nevado, Chile and gear from POC.

To enter, participants should first take a photo of themselves or others doing what it takes to keep their #goggletan this summer. This could include lying on the beach, mowing the lawn, playing volleyball or hanging out on a boat—while wearing a pair of goggles. To submit the photo, participants can post it to their Instagram account using #goggletan and tagging @skicom and then visiting Ski.com’s Facebook Page, click on the Photo Contest tab and fill out the form, including adding the name of the Instagram account that posted the photo. For users who don’t use Instagram, photos may also be uploaded from within the Page’s Photo Contest application.

Participants can submit photos from now until June 16, 2013. A panel of judges from Ski.com will then select their top 21 photos to become finalists. From June 17, 2013 to July 1, 2013, everyone is invited back to Ski.com’s Facebook Page to vote for their favorite photo from the list of finalists. The photo receiving the most votes will win the grand prize of a seven-night stay at Valle Nevado’s Hotel Puerta del Sol, lift tickets for Valle Nevado, El Colorado and La Parva, breakfast and dinner daily, a pair of POC Lobes goggles and a POC Fornix helmet. The four runners up will also receive Lobes goggles from POC.

Winners will be announced in the July 2, 2013 Ski.com Inside Track eNewsletter.

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“Skiing the Couloir Spencer with Yan Andre, and the Mallory on the North Face of the Aiguille du Midi with Dave Rosenbarger, Thor Husted and Oli Herren. Special turns on the Qui Remue by the Bird.”

Also watch: Nate Wallace presents “Deeep Part II” from Chamonix, featuring Seth Morrison

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I had heard stories about Tailgate Alaska. It sounded like a gathering of smelly sledneck snowboarders together in an RV up on some mountain pass in Alaska! So when my friend El told me that she and a bunch of SheJumps girls, an organization that “strives to increase female participation in outdoor activities”, were going, I was in! Well…tentatively. There were some logistics I would have to figure out first. Logistics? Who am I kidding? I usually just wing it! Which is what I ended up doing. I bought a one-way ticket to Anchorage, AK a day before my departure.

Boarding the plane in Denver, I wasn’t sure how I would get from Anchorage to Valdez, nearly a six-hour drive. I was arriving a few days into Tailgate, so all of the SheJumps girls were already there and had no idea if I was even going to show up or not. I wasn’t worried though. I knew something would manifest. Sure enough, there were two homies of mine from Crested Butte on my flight who were driving to Valdez the next day and were happy to deliver me to the lion’s den. They even shuttled me all over Anchorage helping me get my skis mounted and my airbag canister filled. Little did I know that this was the beginning of my month long, smooth flowing dream trip to AK!

Driving towards Valdez, I was in awe! Massive mountains jutting out of the sea and stretching for as far as the eye could see. Already I could feel their magnificent power! As we passed Rendezvous Lodge and began climbing Thompson pass, the anticipation was building. Under a beautiful alpenglow, we pulled into Tailgate. There were RV’s galore, but it didn’t take us long to find the SheJumps RV. It was decorated with prayer flags and smudged into the dirt on the back was written She Jumps.

They must have seen us pull up because as I was opening the car door, the RV door swung open and out popped my friend Liz. In typical girl fashion, I started jumping up and down, might have let out a drawn out “yaaaay”, and ran to give her a big hug. Right behind her was my good friend Dayla, a fellow Aspenite. I was so excited to finally be in Alaska after years of dreaming of this magical place! They told me to grab my stuff and stick it wherever it would fit. I was the ninth and final addition to the RV of girls that questionably slept nine. There were four beds in the back, a bed that fit two above the drivers seat, and the couch that folded down and slept two. Then there was my bed, the kitchen table that was supposed to be able to turn into a bed, but as I would later find out, didn’t really. Nine girls in a single RV seemed to be the talk of Tailgate. In my first twenty minutes of being there, multiple guests stopped by to check in and make sure we were doing all right. I unloaded my bags and stuck things where they fit, like my BCA bag and boots in the shower. I tried to keep most things contained in my bag because I could foresee things going missing very easily. There was an explosion of nine girls belongings everywhere.

I barely had time to collect myself before another visitor stopped by to recruit us for the bonfire that was happening down at Rendezvous Lodge. Sounded fun. How were we all going to get there? No problem! A nice Norwegian fellow named Trond offered to drive us all there in his plush RV. Rendezvous had a pretty cool scene going on. People were hanging out setting off fireworks around the large bonfire outside and then a live band from Girdwood was playing inside the bar. After the fire died down, most people migrated inside. We were all hanging out around the pool table when a large bell hanging next to the bar caught my eye. I almost went to ring it when suddenly I had the notion that there were implications to ringing that bell. Sure enough, ringing that bell meant you had to buy the entire bar drinks. The person later in the night who rang the bell unfortunately did not have the same premonition as me. Seconds later, I felt something wet slide across my back. I turned around to a crusty, old, bearded man and asked, “Did you just lick my back?” He responded, “We hardly ever see that much skin in Alaska!” I guess rather than a handshake, that’s how they welcome girls to AK.

After uncomfortably sleeping on the small bench, because I couldn’t get the table to lower and turn into a bed, I awoke excited to ski for the first time in AK! It was April 4^th and a magnificent bluebird day. Besides all of the excitement, there was stillness in the air. The same kind of surreal feeling that I had two years ago to the day when I was skiing with some friends off the back side of Highlands Bowl and kicked off an avalanche that took our friend Adam Dennis’ life. This was my first day skiing in Alaska, a place where the mountains are so powerful and always have the final say. I knew that Adam was there with me on this particular day.

Me and two other girls set out to find some generous boys that might be willing to give us a bump up to the foot of our boot pack on Python. A couple winks and smiles later, we were side hilling through powder, going up on one ski and holding on for dear life. There was a sled super highway right next to where we were going up but I think they wanted to show off their sled skills. Little did they know, not only were we not impressed; we were actually kind of terrified. They did however drop us off safe and sound at the foot of Python. As we began our ascent, something didn’t feel quite right. We continued on until Dayla said she didn’t feel good about it. Right then I realized that when I took a layer off in the RV to wrap around my camera I had taken my beacon off and had left it behind. I couldn’t believe it! With out any questions asked, we all turned around and began our descent back down to the RV. None of us were upset because in the end, we would all live to ski another day, and there would be plenty of opportunities in the future. It’s that kind of female energy that I love being around and is not always common among a group of men who seem to have a harder time listening to their intuition. It turned out to be somewhat of a strange day and a reminder of how quickly and easily circumstances can change. One must always respect natural forces far greater than themselves.

Sure enough, the next day we had the opportunity to safely ski some rad lines! A crew of us skinned up to the promise land, split up into smaller groups and all chose a couloir to boot up. It was another bluebird day and spirits were high! Reaching the top of our line felt so rewarding! I thought of my brother who had spent time skiing these lines who was home with two broken legs from a ski accident. We often times take having a healthy capable body for granted and look to less worthy things for fulfillment. To be standing on top of that mountain at that moment was an absolute blessing! After exchanging high fives at the top, we one by one proceeded to rip the shit out of our lines. Dayla went before me on her split board. It was the steepest line I think either of us had ever skied. She inspired my run by how fluidly and fast she went down. I had an awesome run with a small air and ducked into a little chute at the end off to the right that had variable snow. The rest of our crew was waiting at the bottom cheering. There were high fives all around and the stoke was high!

The rest of Tailgate was a blast. There were activities, laughter, and music around the fire at night in the Alaskan Brewing Company beer garden where everyone would exchange stories from that day. It turned out Tailgate wasn’t just a bunch of smelly, sledneck snowboarders. Rather it was a bunch of motivated fellow outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy being out in the mountains! All in all it was an amazing trip and I think that everyone there was happy to have our spirited female energy. I was so stoked to meet the other SheJumps shredder goddesses and can’t wait to go back again next year!

After saying goodbye to the SheJumps girls, I proceeded to meet up with some other friends in Valdez where it happened to dump for four days straight. We hunkered down in the RV for the first day and then decided that we were going to turn our down days into up in the sky days. We went and skied some mellow lines in the trees and built some jumps right above the ocean in Valdez. It was the deepest snow that I had ever skied. I was literally submarining! I also tried my first backflips! We kept busy on down days by throwing gainers off of the giant fish in town, and doing some much need laundry. When the weather cleared up the winds picked up. That night our whole RV was shaking and when we woke up in the morning, the wind had blown all of the snow away and scoured the mountains. So much for the epic refresh, but I guess that’s the name of the game in AK. So, we packed up and shipped out to Girdwood.

From Girdwood I got a call from a family friend who was out at the Tordrillo Mountain Lodge. I almost didn’t pick up because it was an unknown number. Luckily I did! He said “if you can get to the Million Air in Anchorage by 6 p.m. tonight, you can get on the helicopter that is headed for the Lodge and come spend a few days heli-skiing.” Done! I would be there. I spent the next few days at the Tordrillo Mountain Lodge heli-skiing with Olympic gold medalist Tommy Moe, Greg Harms, Lel Tone, and Bill Dyer, soaking in the wood fired hot tub, drinking Baha Fogs, polar plunging, snowmobiling around the lake, and eating amazing gourmet food. I was in heaven! Towards the end of my stay, professional K2 skiers Seth Morrison, Sean Petit, Andy Mahre, and Pep Fujas showed up on the scene along with Travis Rice and his crew. It was cool to see them behind the scenes of their filming project.

Returning to Girdwood, spring had sprung. I knew it was time to get back to Aspen and to my brother who needed my help. It had been a dream trip to Alaska and I was so happy to be living in the flow of life and the seasons. I hope I can return to Alaska year after year to experience its ridiculous grandeur!

The post Katrina DeVore and the SheJumps crew road trip through Alaska appeared first on .

As I write, the countdown reads: 02 Days | 20 Hours | 53 Minutes | 22 Seconds.

This Saturday, May 25, the Sammy Carlson Invitational returns to Mt. Bachelor, OR. The aforementioned timer (posted on freeskier.com/live) counts down to the start of the official live stream—hosted right here on freeskier.com, and slated to begin at noon PST.

A stacked group of skiers have confirmed attendance. Among them: Tanner Hall, Henrik Harlaut, Phil Casabon, Paul Bergeron, Will Berman, Tim Durtschi and Clayton Vila. These guys, and many others, will join together for multiple jam sessions, throwing down over a hefty booter and across an 80-foot-wide, curved wallride. $15,000 is up for grabs, to be awarded throughout the day to the top performers.

The wallride comes together at Mt. Bachelor. Photos courtesy of @SammyCski on Instagram.

“My goal is just to get everyone together, and build the biggest, best features possible for everyone to throw down on and show off their stuff,” said Sammy in regards to his motivation for hosting the event. “Sort of like an end of season hurrah.”

After having a look at the photos above, you’ll surely agree: It’s going down—in a big way. Be sure to tune in.

Freeskier will be on-site at SCI bringing you behind the scenes coverage. Stay tuned to the site for updates, and be sure to follow along via social: facebook.com/freeskier | instagram.com/freeskiermagazine | twitter.com/freeskier.

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“Some seasons are longer than others. This wasn’t the longest but April in Wyoming was as good as it gets: bluebird powder days and a long hike in Grand Teton Nation Park to ski the Dartmouth Couloir.”

The post Matt Philippi gets redemption on a season plagued by injury appeared first on .

Right in the heart of the Cascades, Stevens Pass appears a sleepy little resort at first glance. Don’t be deceived by its tranquil persona—it’s a rowdy mountain with deep snow and hidden technical lines. Wenatchee Bowl is one of its hidden gems.

You’ll first spot Wenatchee Bowl from Stevens’ eastern parking lot, looker’s left of the resort. Situated along the Northeastern crest of the resort, Wenatchee Bowl is guarded at its summit by old growth trees and rocky outcroppings. Many of the lines at Stevens are characterized by tight entrances with technical crux moves that eventually yield to friendly terrain. Once past Wenatchee’s entrance, the bowl opens up into a wide powder field that’s frequently wind loaded with deep snow. It’s not uncommon to find significantly deeper conditions here than anywhere else on the mountain.

Tyler Ceccanti shot by Ian Coble

From the base, ride Big Chief chair and then Double Diamond chair. Head out the access gate to your left, along Polaris Ridge. There are no signs for Wenatchee Bowl along the ridge, but you’ll hike past the Death Chutes on your left and continue past the ski area boundary sign, hiking to the high point of the ridge (about a 30-40 minute hike from the top of the chair). This high point marks the start of Wenatchee Bowl on your left hand side. You’ll know you’re in the right place if there is a large, wide-open bowl to your right side (Highland Bowl). There are no clear or obvious paths into Wenatchee Bowl and all entrances will require navigating tight, off camber chutes, bare rock or mandatory airs. You may find cleaner entrances if you work your way a little past the high point. Once you near the bottom of the bowl, you’ll want to head hard skiers left to return to the resort. Eventually, you’ll reach the Highway 2 on the East side of the Pass and a short hike along the shoulder will bring you back to the base.

Wenatchee Bowl is prone to avalanches. Be prepared. As mentioned above, the entrance has some highly technical moves. Go with a local.

Hike: 3
Ski: 7

Like this? You may also want to ski Brown Shorts at Revelstoke.

*Hike and ski ratings are in terms of difficulty: 1 being relatively easy, 10 being very challenging. This article originally appeared in the 2013 FREESKIER Backcountry Issue. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

The post Lift-Accessed Backcountry: Drop into Wenatchee Bowl, Stevens Pass appeared first on .

Below, SMP’s own Zach Berman and Susie Floros pose with some of the talent on-site. I also included a snap of one of the many impressive cars they’ve brought in.

http://instagram.com/p/ZlqpkVI6sm/

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“Steve is diagnosed with a horrible disease and goes to Colorado to meet some pros. Is surgery the answer?”

The post Steve Stepp bummed to be amateur while all his friends are pro appeared first on .

Watch the event live this Saturday, May 25. Here’s all the info you need.

Day 2 of the Wallride build.Getting so stoked to shred this with everyone this weekend! Make sure to tune in! #SCI twitter.com/SammyCskiing/s…

— Sammy Carlson (@SammyCskiing) May 21, 2013

The post Update, Sammy Carlson Invitational: 80-ft wallride coming together appeared first on .

“En l’an de grâce 2012, nous traversâmes le grand océan sur le dos d’un oiseaux de fer à la promesse des pentes vierges et enneigées du grand nord canadien.

Nous établîmes notre campement sur le sol crasseux d’un camarades francophone québecois. Contre un maigre loyer payé en grande partie par de la bière bon marché, le soulard et sa douce nous invitèrent à dormir sur la moquette de leur humble hutte.”

Ultra rough translation, courtesy of Babylon:

“In the year of grace 2012, we crossed the large ocean on the back of iron birds to the promise of the virgin and snow-covered slopes of the Canadian far North.

We established our camping on the filthy ground of comrades Quebec French-speaking person. Against a thin rent paid mainly by cheap beer, the boozer and his soft invited us to sleep on the fitted carpet of their humble hut.”

The post Pow for days: GPSY Feelin does Revelstoke appeared first on .

With the passing of Sarah Burke in 2012, Smith Optics lost a key member of our family. Sarah had been a leader on our ski team for close to a decade, and we all felt blessed to have her involved with Smith. While her ability and talents brought her all the accolades in the skiing world, her willingness to include others in her life, this brand, and the sport of skiing were her biggest achievements. Sarah embodied what Smith is all about; she was the best at what she did, yet remained humble and inclusive, all while pushing the boundaries of what is possible.

To honor Sarah, we created a limited number of I/OS goggles, inspired by her favorite colors, sayings and designs. In just a couple of months after releasing the Sarah Burke Memorial I/OS goggle, we are proud to announce that we have sold out and will be making a donation of $26,000 to the Sarah Burke Foundation. This donation will be used to assist Sarah’s favorite charity, The St. Jude’s Children Hospital, as well as make it possible for future generations of winter sports athletes to achieve their dreams.

Also Read: Freeskier’s Photo Annual exhibition raises $4.7K for Sarah Burke Foundation

The post Smith Optics donates $26,000 to Sarah Burke Foundation appeared first on .

May 20, 2013 – Aspen Skiing Company announced today that with the start of summer operations, the top of Aspen Mountain will be open for skiing and riding on Memorial Day Weekend, May 25-27. Heavy spring snowfall has left the top of the mountain covered in snow as the traditional summer operating season begins.  With a base depth of 33 inches up top, the mountain will open with 16 runs and nearly 90 acres of mostly intermediate terrain, served by the Ajax Express chairlift.

Skiing and riding will be from the 11,212-foot summit with uploading and downloading on the Silver Queen Gondola from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. The gondola will be running from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. with last ride down at 4:30 p.m. for regular summer operations. The Ajax Express chairlift will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.  Open runs will include Silver Bell, Pussyfoot, Silver Dip, Blondie’s, Dipsy Doodle, Dipsy Headwall, Summit, Buckhorn, Pumphouse, Tourtelotte Park and North American. The Sundeck restaurant and Ajax Tavern will be open for dining and beverages.

“We’ve received nearly four feet of snow since Aspen Mountain closed,” says Rich Burkley, vice president of mountain operations, Aspen Skiing Company. “In fact, it’s snowing at the top of Aspen Mountain right now. If it won’t quit snowing we shouldn’t quit skiing.”

Aspen/Snowmass Premier, Premier Silver and 6-and-under passholders ride free with their 2012-13 winter passes.  All other Aspen/Snowmass passholders pay a discounted rate for skiing and riding; adult, senior and youth passholders (age 13 and up) will pay $18 and child season passholders (age 4-12) will pay $9. Skiing/riding tickets will be $36 per day for ages 13 and up. Children’s (age 4-12) tickets will be $18. Tickets will be sold at the Aspen Mountain ticket kiosk on Gondola Plaza from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Regular summer rates will be in effect for sightseeing tickets.  Tickets can also be purchased online at www.aspensnowmass.com and over the phone by calling 970-923-1227.

Four-Mountain Sports, located at 520 E Durant Street, will be renting skis and snowboards for $29/day and will be open for rentals from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. In addition, enjoy the spring season by renting skis and a bike on the same day for just $50 (based on 4-hour Cruiser bike rental).

The post More on Aspen’s Memorial Day Weekend opening appeared first on .

FREESKIER magazine is excited to appoint Donny O’Neill to the position of Assistant Editor, effective immediately. In his new post, O’Neill will write and edit copy for FREESKIER magazine and its digital properties, and will contribute to FREESKIER’s overall editorial directive.

O’Neill comes to FREESKIER with a strong writing background, having most recently worked for Vail Resorts’ OnTheSnow.com, where he focused on product testing and travel writing. Prior to his work with Vail Resorts, O’Neill served as a contributing writer for Unofficial Networks.

“We’re very excited to add Donny to the FREESKIER team as we enter another publishing cycle,” says Managing Editor Damian Quigley. “His education and experience with travel writing and gear testing will be a great asset to both our print and digital products.” Quigley adds, “Donny is the first of a number of new hires for us here at Storm Mountain Publishing, and we’re thrilled to be strengthening our team during a time of such growth in the freeskiing world.”

A skier since age 3, the New Hartford, CT native cut his teeth on the eastern slopes of Killington, Jay Peak and beyond. More recently, O’Neill has spent time at western resorts including Snowbird, Mt. Baker and Stevens Pass. A graduate from the University of Vermont, O’Neill majored in English and minored in Film.

“I’ve been an avid FREESKIER reader for years, and the opportunity to become a part of the family is mind blowing to say the least,” says O’Neill. “I’m stoked and can’t wait to start working with the team.”

O’Neill currently resides in Denver, CO. In the coming months, he is tasked with assisting in production of the 2014 Buyer’s Guide, which hits newsstands in early September, 2013. O’Neill’s updates and contributions can be viewed at freeskier.com, and via Twitter: @oneill_dm.

The post Donny O’Neill joins FREESKIER magazine as Assistant Editor appeared first on .

The big question among industry insiders is, “What will Source do with the various titles?” Now living under the Source umbrella: Surf, Surfer and Surfing, along with Skateboarder and Skateboarding, and Snowboarder and Snowboarding—among many others. How Source will choose to organize these titles is of great interest (and perhaps concern) to many.

How would you like to see Source proceed? Share your comments below.

The post Grind Media reportedly purchases Transworld Media appeared first on .

THE RUMORS ARE TRUE! We’re opening for skiing/riding this weekend on Ajax. More details coming soon. twitter.com/AspenSnowmass/…

— Aspen/Snowmass (@AspenSnowmass) May 20, 2013

The post Aspen Mountain to open for skiing, weekend of May 25 appeared first on .

Next up in the Ask a Pro series: Sammy Carlson. Have a question for Sammy? Post it here.

Tom’s A’s to your Q’s:

1. @MaryOski asks: Of all your accomplishments in filming and competing, what are you most proud of/stoked on, and what is on your bucket list of yet-to-achieve or experience?

• I’m probably the most proud of my gold medals from X Games in Aspen and Tignes, and a few of my previous film segments. One in particular that I was really stoked on was my segment in Level 1′s Refresh. Looking forward to more film segments and working towards an entire year of filming at some point in the future.

2. @SamSandmire asks: How did you balance college with pro skiing?

• It was mainly a matter of good scheduling and being able to separate and focus on each individually. It’s a lot of work and I just had to force myself to do school work after skiing everyday. Exhausting but not impossible!

3. @FreeSkiForLife asks: Besides living the dream of being a world known professional freeskier, what else do you want to do/accomplish in your life?

• I guess I’m not really sure. For now, I’m really happy doing what I’m doing and I still have a few more things left that I’d like to accomplish in the sport. After I’m done skiing, I’m not sure what I’ll be doing. Hopefully something fun and outside!

4. @FredyFerl asks: What is your favorite edit/segment that you’ve ever been in?

• My original Superunknown edit that first put me on the map is still one of my favorites. I just love the flow of the whole edit and it’s always meant a lot to me because of how much work I put into it.

5. @TopherRitz asks: Any tips for a beginner park skier in Virginia?

• Best tip is to just get out there and ski as much as you can. The east coast is a great place to grow up. The laps are usually really quick and there’s a lot of night skiing possibilities. Just get out and shred whenever you can! Practice makes perfect.

6. @murph784 asks: Ever think about coming back home to Pittsburgh area and shredding at Seven Springs or Wisp?

• Definitely. I love coming home and shredding at Springs and Wisp. The season is just so busy these days that I never really seem to get a chance. Hopefully I can make it back more in the future.

7. @Blake_Warmenhoven asks: At what point in time did you start considering yourself as a professional skier, or realize that you had become a professional skier?

• I guess I started to consider myself a professional skier in 2009 when I first won a major contest [Dew Tour at Northstar] and was starting to actually get paid by sponsors to ski.

8. @CSnow5252 asks: I’m a beginner park skier and a pretty decent trail skier. Do you have any tips or ways to keep motivation up, because nothing is worse than riding down the slope smoothly and then coming to the park and not knowing a thing. Thanks and keep up the good work.

• I’d suggest just trying to do the park more often and eventually it’ll seem easy. It might be easier to get into park skiing if you find some friends that are into it, and have people to ride with and watch. It’s always easier to learn when you have friends to push you and people to watch.

9. @drluk asks: Where is your favorite place in the U.S. to ski… mountain, face, even specific trails?

• I love skiing King’s Crown terrain park at Park City, and skiing via my snowmobile in Guardsman Pass, PC backcountry.

10. @MaryOski asks: How’s the season been filming for “The Wallisch Project” with [Kyle] Decker? Have you had successful, productive trips stacking lots of fun footage? Has it been a rewarding experience so far? How has this season compared to filming with multiple production companies?

• It’s been a very rewarding and amazing experience. I’m really excited to see more of my footage compiled into a single segment than in the past. We had a lot of great trips, but still it was a bit of a struggle trying to compete and film all season. Tearing my MCL in January really slowed down production, but I think it’ll turn out really well in the end. Hopefully everyone will enjoy it!

11. @Chris asks: Throughout your journey from start to now (related to skiing), what is the hardest decision you’ve had to make?

• I guess this season, leaving all of my relationships with film companies and choosing to work on a solo project. I love the crew of guys at Level 1, 4bi9 and Field. Having to break ties with everyone and work on something on my own this season was a really hard decision.

12. @Drew asks: With all of the Olympic regulations, how much has it affected your everyday life? Are there things you can no longer do that you used to?

• Umm, not really, the only major difference is that I have to always be available for drug testing. Luckily, steroids aren’t my thing so it isn’t really a big deal, haha.

Next up in the Ask a Pro series: Sammy Carlson. Post your question for Sammy now.

The post Ask a Pro: Tom Wallisch answers 12 of your best questions appeared first on .

Have some videos that you think are worthy of an appearance in Monday Morning Wake Up Call? We want to see what you’ve got. Send your ideas to henrik@freeskier.com, or hit up @Freeskier on Twitter with the hashtag #MMWUC.

Want more? Here’s what you need to know about the 2013 Sammy Carlson Invitational, set to live stream via freeskier.com/live this coming Saturday.

The post MMWUC: Epic Candide Thovex POV and a man who summons UFOs appeared first on .

“Russ describes what it feels like to be flying through the sky, and gives us an artistic insight into the world of freeskiing.”

The post Russ Henshaw opens up about his comeback from knee surgery appeared first on .

“Its ‘Game On’ at the Verbier Xtreme! This season has been building up to this day for the riders on the Freeride World Tour. Nadine Wallner and Charlie Lyons are both new comers on the FWT and have dreamt about competing at the Verbier Xtreme. We see the excitement, the anticipation, the highs and lows for the riders—this episode has all the behind the scenes action. This is the season finale.”

Featuring: Charlie Lyons, Nadine Wallner and Sam Smoothy.

Also Watch: Oakley White-Allen discusses challenge of Verbier Xtreme in 13-minute documentary

The post New edit from Völkl highlights ups and downs of 2013 Verbier Xtreme appeared first on .

“Hope you guys like it! Sérieux Flip by Vincent Gagnier.”

Also Read: Vincent Gagnier wins 2013 AFP World Champs/WSSF big air at Whistler Blackcomb

The post Vincent Gagnier stomps mind-boggling “switch rodeo 540, pretzel 180″ appeared first on .

“From near the summit of Teakettle Peak, a 13,823′ mountain in the San Juan Range of Colorado.”

The post Chris Davenport checks in from 13,823′, summit of Teakettle Peak, CO appeared first on .

“This is an air I love to do and usually stomp. But the angles were off and my ninja vision wasn’t quite on so I tried to gap 50 feet and came up short, and paid with 13 tomahawks! I found all my gear and skied away fine, just a little sore the next day.”

The post Dude comes up short off cliff, tomahawks 13 times appeared first on .

“Earlier this month at the Armada Skis Global HQ, Mad Steez, STiNK, and Kyle Norris spent a couple days blowing up the Armada office walls with their own graffiti work. This is what came of it.”

The post Armada HQ gets a new paint job, complete with backflipping Easy-E appeared first on .

In just a little more than a week, the Sammy Carlson Invitational (SCI) will invade Mt. Bachelor, Oregon. For the second straight year, the course setup will feature a big air jump into a wallride. $15,000 is up for grabs—to be awarded throughout the day to the top performers—and with sights set on a bit of cash (and perhaps internet glory, too) the contestants will undoubtedly put on quite a show. The most exciting news regarding the event: an 80-foot-wide wallride will be utilized. That’s 2.2 school buses. Just think about it…

On Wednesday, we caught up with Mr. Carlson himself, who expressed excitement for the upcoming event. “My goal is just to get everyone together, and build the biggest, best features possible for everyone to throw down on and show off their stuff,” Sammy explained. “Sort of like an end of season hurrah.”

Sammy felt confident that the 2013 invitational would be bigger and better than ever, citing lessons learned over time. “Having done this a few times before, we’ve learned so much about the planning process,” he said. “We started much earlier this year, and everything is dialed. It’s no stress. It’s going to be smooth… I’m stoked.”

When asked about what’s in store for the layout this year, Sammy noted, “we’re hosting [SCI] a bit later in the season than we did last year, so we’re not working with quite as much snow. That being said, the jump won’t be super huge. The main focus is going to be the wall ride.” Sammy then described the 80-foot beast, indicating it’s designed to have a left and rightside alley-oop wall, with a mellow bend towards the center. “Like a big horse shoe bowl,” he said. While it may be difficult to envision the monstrosity, rest assured it’s going to inspire riders to go big, and to be creative.

To date, the confirmed list of athletes includes Tanner Hall, Henrik Harlaut, Phil Casabon, Paul Bergeron, Will Berman, Tim Durtschi, Clayton Vila and many others. Sammy, who’s feeling healthy after a long season—the highlight of which was a gold medal performance in the X Games Real Ski Backcountry contest—also expects to ski.

With just nine days until go-time, Sammy expressed thanks to Mt. Bachelor for assisting in making his dream become a reality once again. “These guys have been such a great partner,” he said. Sammy also mentioned how special it is for him to host the contest on his home turf. “It means a lot to bring all these guys out to Bachelor,” he said. “Oregon is where I grew up… it makes it that much sweeter for me. Plus, all my family and friends come, too.”

Additionally, Sammy wishes to thank APO Snow—the presenting sponsor this year—in addition to Rockstar Energy, Nike, Oakley and Dakine.

With two jam sessions on the docket—one forty minutes in length, and the other lasting a full hour—spectators are in for a treat. For those unable to make it out to Mt. Bachelor, we have good news: The live stream will be hosted on freeskier.com/live … the action kicks off at noon PST on Saturday, May 25.

Freeskier will be on-site at SCI bringing you behind the scenes coverage. Stay tuned to the site for updates, and be sure to follow along via social: facebook.com/freeskier | instagram.com/freeskiermagazine | twitter.com/freeskier.

The post 2013 Sammy Carlson Invitational to live stream on freeskier.com, 5/25 at noon PST appeared first on .

“Beau-James Wells full part, 2013. Filmed by: Jackson Wells, Sam Molloy, Patrick Pdub, Kaleb Weston, Felix Lundin, Hamish McDougall, Pete Legnavski, Jossi Wells, Nick Rapley. Filmed on location at: Breckenridge, Keystone, Mammoth, Flachua in Austria, Park City, Cardrona in New Zealand and Silvaplana, Switzerland.”

The post 2013 Highlights: From the streets to the park with Beau-James Wells appeared first on .

“Even though he possesses undeniable talent in the park and the streets, Shay Lee is most at home in the mountains. Despite keeping busy with winter travel, he was able to find some time for an escape to Montana’s ultimate backcountry destination: Cooke City.”

The post Shay Lee goes stuntin’ in the Montana backcountry appeared first on .

“Some of the last few days at Breckenridge. It still felt like mid-winter, no spring days this year.”

The post Waffle House crew drops spring edit from Breckenridge appeared first on .

Think you have what it takes to ski this couloir? Read Brody’s account of his recent adventure.

The post Skiing the ultra narrow Terminal Cancer couloir with Brody Leven appeared first on .

I know that similar lines exist around the world, but their beauty and rarity amaze me. It’s as if mother earth decided to floss her teeth of mountains and accidentally cut her gums a little too deep.

Finding dreamy ski lines isn’t the easy part, regardless of what all of your friends drooling over Couloir X and Y Face and Mount Z tell you. But when you find the apple of your eye, approach it with a steady willingness to accept whatever it may offer. And make sure you bring partners who are on the same page.

My friend Alex [Taran] called and asked if I would ski Terminal Cancer with her the next day. I told her that was, strangely, already my plan. I met her and our friend Caroline [Gleich] at a Nevada trailhead at 10pm and christened my new-to-me car by laying down the backseat and plopping a sleeping bag in its place. Alex slept in her trunk and Caroline pitched a tent nearby. Asleep to stars, awake to five inches of new spring snow.

The approach is quite straightforward. You find the tiny slash in the mountain’s vast face, skin to its base, and put your skis on your back. The rest is a stair-stepper, constantly exposed to the objective hazards inherent in a snow couloir with walls of crumbly rock. Regardless of your attraction to its beauty, the faster you’re up, down, and away from the couloir, the safer you are.

The wind-scoured top featured gravel and a shallow dusting of snow—the stuff (my) dreams are made of. The rest of the couloir was boot-deep powder with a perfectly manageable slough. Early morning sunshine illuminated the right half and the blue sky kept spirits high during an outing that lasted only two hours, car-to-car.

Terminal Cancer: Nevada’s Only Thing That Isn’t A Casino?

Under these conditions, Terminal Cancer is not a technically difficult nor scary line. The avalanche danger is very real, as is the popularity. It is not awesomely steep, it is awesomely narrow, and snow conditions don’t really dictate how you descend. Largely, there are only two speeds to ski it: slow and a little faster than slow. The width only allows for one other speed, and it really isn’t even an option for mortals.

You’re probably a ripping skier. Perhaps you’ve never skied in a narrow and sustained couloir—most people haven’t. They’re hard to find, never in resort boundaries, and always dangerous. This kind of line requires you to tone down the aggression, notch up the care, and maintain a level of awareness and humility found in conscious backcountry skiers. Instead of scoping double-stagers and slashing walls, you’re considering escape options and filtering through streaming snowpack information. It isn’t unreasonable to toss in a jump-turn or 70, and no one will hassle a side-stepper. Turning around before the top is as common as reaching it, and pride is delayed until you’re sitting at home talking about the reality of your outing.

Terminal Cancer’s reputation precedes it, yet somehow neither adds nor steals anything from the experience. Photos show the narrowness, numbers describe the pitch, and videos illustrate the descent. But stories don’t take you to dreamy lines. Your feet do. Your brain is what gets you home.

Also Read: It seemed like a good idea at the time: Biking, then hiking for turns near Tioga Pass

The post Avoid or try? Skiing the Terminal Cancer couloir, Nevada backcountry appeared first on .

Josh Bibby has always talked about getting a crew together to head out to his family’s cabin in the interior of B.C. The idea being: to access some of the area’s amazing terrain via snowmobile. This winter, the trip finally came together with skiers Riley Leboe, Tanner Rainville and Dan Treadway—plus myself and filmer Darren Rayner—along for the ride. Together, we joined Bibby for a week of reckless chaos, out in the sticks, completely off the grid.

The ideal location for a cabin—with a pristine, calm lake at your doorstep—and all-time sled skiing half an hour away was the setting for our adventures.

Armed with a topo’ map and GPS, we headed out to find some good skiing terrain. Josh had been to one of the zones once before, but it would take a while to find the actual access point. With Dan Treadway taking the lead, we boon-docked through multiple drainages, clear cuts and thick forests to reach the alpine, which proved to be very worthy for skiing. The Sawtooth Range as our backdrop, we accessed multiple pillow lines, spine walls, cliffs and endless natural takeoffs. With Dan and Riley killing it on their sleds, we had perfect trails set up for tandoming (side-by-side doubling) ridge lines. Every mountain drainage provided us with more epic terrain, and with the weather cooperating, we managed to ski a lot of lines, and burn a lot of fuel.

Each night when we arrived back to the cabin, beers and whiskey flowed as we replayed the day and laughed about the antics that went on. Once the sun went down, the bonfire was lit up and the firearms came out, providing much more rowdy entertainment.

The week continued with decent weather, great snow, and loads more fuel and alcohol being consumed. The photos above provide a quick glimpse of the action, but keep your eyes peeled for the real goods—the featured story—slated to hit the pages of Freeskier Magazine in the upcoming cycle.

Subscribe to Freeskier now. For more photos from Bryn, visit brynhughes.photoshelter.com.

The post Ski, Sled, Shoot: Rocking interior B.C. with Bibby, Leboe, Rainville and D. Treadway appeared first on .

“In the second installment of The Way Up, 17-year-old Aspen, Colorado-based freeskiing phenom Torin Yater-Wallace pinpoints his breakthrough moment on his journey to becoming a pro and joining his idols on the podiums of nearly every major event from X Games to the Dew Tour.”

The post The Way Up: Torin Yater-Wallace talks about his rise to the top appeared first on .

“A usual skiing day for Candide in his home resort, could have ended in a better way this time! Out skiing with his friend Aziz Benkrich (red pants), we should probably tell you: don’t try this at home!”

Also Read: Candide Thovex: A skier on his own terms, a pioneer in his own words

The post Watch badass GoPro footage of Candide Thovex shredding his home resort appeared first on .

“Professional skier Shane McConkey pushed the limits of possibility in big-mountain terrain. As a friend and mentor to Erik Roner, his 2009 passing was a huge loss. Erik decided it was time to honor his friend by disposing of Shane’s snowmobile in the only way that made sense—by BASE jumping it off an 800-foot cliff. With former pro snowboarder Jim Rippey in tow to help with the stunt logistics, Erik hits the road to Fernie, British Columbia and a massive cliff face. Watch as Roner pulls the throttle and pushes his own limits for Shane.”

The post Erik Roner jumps Shane McConkey’s snowmobile off 800-ft cliff appeared first on .

“Simon Dumont offers a glimpse into Red Bull training camp from Aspen, Colorado. Throughout the year, Red Bull seeks to help their athletes improve their performance by providing an atmosphere to allow for enhanced fitness, training, and progression. Simon sessions the spring jumps alongside fellow X Games freeskiers Bobby Brown and PK Hunder. The goal this week is to have fun and keep the confidence levels up on a variety of tricks as Simon looks forward to more summer training and preparation toward next winter’s Olympic-focused competitions.”

The post Simon Dumont takes you behind the scenes of Red Bull training camp, Aspen appeared first on .

“POV footage filmed across BC, Canada over the 2012/13 ski season.”

The post Nick McNutt drops rowdy POV highlights from 2012/13 season appeared first on .

Have some videos that you think are worthy of an appearance in Monday Morning Wake Up Call? We want to see what you’ve got. Send your ideas to henrik@freeskier.com, or hit up @Freeskier on Twitter with the hashtag #MMWUC.

Want more? KC Deane’s new POV edit includes a close call with an avalanche. Read his account of the experience.

The post MMWUC: 6 hot ski videos, swimming with a great white shark and more appeared first on .

The post JP Auclair shreds late season pow in Chamonix appeared first on .

Today, the votes are in. And the award goes to (drumroll, please) … Line Traveling Circus! The TC crew wracked up more than 1,100 Likes, narrowly edging out the 4BI9 Mahalos. For their efforts, the gang walks away with 5K in cold hard cash, along with the ultimate bragging rights.

“The nice thing about having 40 film-skiers and a bunch of camera jockeys all in one place is that just about anything and everything gets caught on tape,” said Mike Nick, mastermind of the Orage Masters and brand Marketing Director. “We offered the teams an opportunity to edit together a short clip that had something to do with the event. Simple.” A wise decision, indeed, as the six edits that were submitted are quite spectacular—each highlighting the outrageous event, which will go down in skiing lore as one of the all-time greats.

Congrats to the Traveling Circus on the win, and thanks to those who cast their votes. With the Clip Contest all wrapped up, Orage Masters 8 is officially in the books. For now, we can only hope that the event returns for its 9th installation next season.

Also Read: Level 1 “Constructions” win 2013 Orage Masters at Sun Valley

The post Line Traveling Circus wins $5,000 via Orage Masters Clip Contest appeared first on .

90-Day Wonders:

Magically, around the middle of every May, like the Swallows of Capistrano, a fresh, greener group of co-eds instinctively flock to the mountains for the summer. With out-of-town plates and Greek lettering plastered on their cars, this demographic has the soul intention of living in the mountains, so they can say, “they lived in the mountains.” Goofy accents and their use of the word “summer” as a verb aside, you may never have better odds in a ski town than the two weeks surrounding Memorial Day. All ski-town social hierarchy is thrown out the window, and the simple fact that you’re a local pretty much makes you Bobby Brown, regardless of how well you can ski.

Activities:

Yes, mountain biking is sweet, but it’s also expensive and, let’s face it, you’re probably not in the position to be dropping several grand on a bike. Do yourself a favor and buy one of those sweet Dakine tailgate protectors for your truck and spend any leftover cash on tubes for the river. Be a presence at the local floating stretch, emphasizing how nice it is to cool off after all those downhill laps that morning on your 29er.

Music:

For whatever reason, ski-towns across the country pride themselves on their summer music scenes. Consisting of mostly C-list national acts and “influential” bluegrass bands, these concerts are nonetheless the place to be. Grab some local microbrews and set up a slack line. If there’s a better icebreaker than balancing half-buzzed on a piece of nylon while listening to bad music, people in ski towns haven’t discovered it.

The Lake:

If there’s a proverbial chairlift to the top of the ski-town social pyramid, it’s having a boat—or at least a friend with a boat. Like being on top of the mountain on a bottomless powder day, the lake will make you the envy of virtually every one of your peers. Sadly, gents, boats—and, more specifically, other guys owning boats—will be your biggest hurdle to mingling with the fairer sex. “Sorry, bro, we only have enough space for your girlfriend/sister/roommate. Maybe next weekend?”

Talk About Skiing:

Lastly, never forget the entire reason you landed in Gnarlington: to irreversibly change the world of skiing. While the snow may be a distant memory, your radness shouldn’t be. There may be no better time than summer to spray about how hard you kill it. Half the people won’t know what the hell you’re talking about and the other half won’t be able to call you out. Highlight how you owned the right side jump line in the main park, how boring the rails were by the end of the year and how you’ll be trying a triple the first chance you get next year. Tom Wallisch will be shaking in his boots come November.

Summer in a ski-town is good times but fleeting times. Before you know it, that summer fling will be packing up his/her things to move back into the Lambda Chi Alpha/Delta Gamma house. So, make haste. Summer only comes once a year, so take no prisoners—you’ll be able to patch up all those burned bridges with the locals come fall.

Also Read: So, You’re Moving To A Ski Town: How to survive in Gnarlington

The post So, ski season is over: How to survive summer in Gnarlington appeared first on .

“Kim Boberg enjoys all four seasons of weather within a day of shredding the park in Åre, Sweden.”

The post Armada’s Kim Boberg pairs hot tricks with heavy metal appeared first on .

“Follow skier Alex Schlopy as he allegedly ‘spins himself into the future’ at Winter X Games 2013, finding himself in a world filled with dubstep, chocolate milk and girls in bikinis.”

The post Monster Energy drops “Back From the Future” edit starring Alex Schlopy appeared first on .

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SPT Mountain Movers, series teaser

As stated in the official press release, “Mountain Movers profiles the SPT crew’s every move—from battling with avalanche control to building a halfpipe in blizzard conditions. In each episode, we’ll see passion at work. No one understands how to move and shape snow like this team.” In 16 years of existence, SPT has designed and constructed more than 250 competition courses; among them are the courses you see annually at X Games in Aspen and Tignes, the Winter Dew Tour, and the Burton U.S. Open of Snowboarding.

The series kicks off tonight on NatGeo at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT. This first season will feature eight episodes in total—airing each Thursday through late June. To quote that press release once again, prepare to see “metal, wood and snow… transformed into something Mother Nature never dreamed of.”

Also Watch: SPT Mountain Movers promo features rad aerial and time-lapse footage

Mountain Movers TV Schedule:

Episode 1: Stairway to Hell
Airs: Thursday, May 9, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

Episode 2: The Meltdown
Airs: Thursday, May 16, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

Episode 3: The Big Time
Airs: Thursday, May 23, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

Episode 4: All Hands On Deck
Airs: Thursday, May 30, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

Episode 5: Bear Of A Job
Airs: Thursday, June 6, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

Episode 6: Monster Jump
Airs: Thursday, June 13, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

Episode 7: U.S. Open
Airs: Thursday, June 20, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

Episode 8: Judgement Day
Airs: Thursday, June 27, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NatGeo.

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“After a rowdy eviction party, we hit the road early on April 1st with Alaska segments from old MSP and TGR movies burned in our brains. With 2500 miles in front of us, we knew we were in for a long ride, but the prospects of skiing steep blower spines kept our spirits high. Loaded with 5 snowmobiles on an old rusty trailer, we were clueless as to the hardships that would be brought on by the rough roads of Northern Alberta and the Yukon.

Bomb Snow TV Episode 4, the last of the season produced by the Bridger Brigade, is a brief account of our adventures to Alaska. From Montana, to Valdez, to Haines, and back to Montana, our journey was filled with highlights and disasters. We have gained a new understanding and appreciation for the Alaskan skiing journey. After 7 days and 6 nights in the truck, 4 blown trailer tires, and 2 broken trailer arms, our hardships were outweighed by a plane drop and an unreal 4 days spent on a glacier in Haines (Minute 10).

Needless to say, the Alaskan experience was humbling. The sick terrain and incredible challenges have revamped our ambition toward skiing. With new determination and new goals, nothing will stop us from spending our springs in Alaska.”

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But the king of all of them is the aesthetically perfect San Joaquin Couloir at the end of Bear Creek Valley. Visible from the eastern edge of Telluride Ski Resort, the couloir is a linear marvel. Starting at 13,460 feet, the shot drops 1,000 vertical feet at a near 50-degree sustained pitch. Between the dark rock walls, it’s an average of 10 feet wide but chokes to a ski length at the crux.

From the ski area, offload Revelation lift to your left, shoulder your skis and hike the Gold Hill access road. Skate and hike past Gold Hill Chutes to the closed gate on your left (long story: know before you go). Gain the south side of San Joaquin Ridge, traverse across to the prominent northwest face and enter the couloir from the obvious slot. Drop straight in down the gut. From the exit apron, veer right (east). There are multiple options for a descent out of Bear Creek. Some routes include mandatory airs or sliding down a rope over 30 feet of rock and snow, so you need to know where you’re going. The final trail out of the valley that leads back to town is obvious.

A snowboarder died in a slide in the Bear Creek drainage last winter. Also, the area is plagued with private property issues, so read up on current regulations.

Hike: 5
Ski: 9

Like this? You may also want to ski Brown Shorts at Revelstoke. Photo above of Dr. Dan Hehir, shot by Brett Schreckengost.

*Hike and ski ratings are in terms of difficulty: 1 being relatively easy, 10 being very challenging. This article originally appeared in the 2013 FREESKIER Backcountry Issue. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

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Today, the Sarah Burke Foundation announced the winners of its inaugural “Up and Coming Scholarship” awards. Eighteen year-old Landon McGauley, 15-year-old Taryn Baker and 14-year-old Winter Vinecki will each receive a $7,500 grant from the Foundation, which provides financial assistance to aspiring young athletes who have demonstrated personal excellence in their sports and communities.

Qualified applicants had to be 18-years old or younger, compete in winter sports, exhibit consistent academic success, and a philanthropic spirit in keeping with that of Sarah Burke. Each candidate was also required to submit three personal references that could attest to the person’s good character and generosity.

The applicant pool exceeded expectations. The Foundation initially had plans to offer two scholarships, but after identifying three equally qualified and deserving candidates, the organization chose to extend a third grant. “The applications we received were incredible. There is so much young talent out there and we continue to be awed by the many people who Sarah inspires on a daily basis. After reviewing Landon’s, Taryn’s and Winter’s applications, we really had no choice but to create another scholarship to honor all three of these amazing teenagers,” says Foundation President, Rory Bushfield.

The “Up and Coming Scholarship” award winners are:

• • 18-year-old Landon McGauley, a Para-alpine skier from Quesnel, British Columbia, who sustained a T5 spinal cord injury in a downhill mountain biking accident three years ago. Though he is now confined to a wheelchair, Landon hasn’t let his accident slow him down. He is already training for a career in alpine racing, with the ultimate goal of making the Canadian Para-Alpine Ski Team. In his spare time, Landon volunteers at local schools in his community.

• • Heavenly Valley, Calif. freestyle mogul skier Taryn “Smiley” Baker’s commitment to her sport is matched by her dedication to mentoring others off the slopes. The high school student currently holds a 4.2 grade point average and dreams of someday becoming a World Champion freestyle skier.

• • Winter Vinecki is an avid triathlete and skier whose sights were set on alpine skiing until Sarah Burke’s performance at a water ramp camp in 2012 inspired her to change course. Winter is now pursuing aerial skiing and is a renowned philanthropist. She has raised over $400,000 for prostate cancer research through “Team Winter,” a charity she founded. Winter dreams of becoming the youngest person to complete a marathon on every continent, and she is already well on her way.

Winning these scholarships is a honor for all three budding professional athletes. “Words can’t express what it means to me to be accepting the first annual Sarah Burke Foundation Scholarship. The privilege of helping carry on Sarah’s legacy, her passion for freestyle skiing, her love for life and her empathy for helping others is a huge responsibility and honor. This scholarship will help fuel my determination and drive knowing that I’m not only chasing Gold for myself but also for Sarah,“  says Winter.

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“After his final dive, Rory Bushfield becomes the very first Splash champion.”

Also Watch: Rory Bushfield wins ABC Splash, unveils “Best of Rory” edit

The post Watch Rory Bushfield’s winning dive from ABC’s Splash appeared first on .

Following the conclusion of the program, Bushy announced via Twitter the release of his new “Best of Rory Bushfield” edit, which features highlights of his skiing career, daredevilish stunts off-snow, and more. The footage comes courtesy of MSP, TGR, Sherpas, PBP, Level 1 and Nitro Circus, among others. While many Splash fans will be Googling Bushy’s name in the weeks and months to come, we can only hope they’ll stumble upon this new clip—perhaps then they’ll get an idea of where Rory gets his sense of aerial awareness. Enjoy!

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“The best of Windells Ski Camp Summer 2012—the pros, invited guests, coaches, counselors, kitchen crew, all of ‘em!”

Related:

- Ski camps summer 2013: Windells
- How to do ski camp right: Get your summer shred on in 2013

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“We partnered up with our friends at Sony to hook up each of the 11 Superunknown X Finalists with Sony Action Cam kits when they arrived in Sun Valley. They spent the week-long shoot documenting everything that went on, and we compiled the best shots right here.

Hit up apps.facebook.com/my-polls/actioncambestshot to vote for your favorite shot between Monday May 6th and Friday May 10th to determine the winner. We’ll be randomly selecting the name of one lucky voter each day and hooking them up with a Sony Action Cam, so get your vote in.”

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As quoted from pizza-compass.com, “Some people might say: ‘This is the most important app ever made. Ever.’”

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“We are pleased and proud to announce our partnership with Arlberg as Epic Pass holders can now ski the best resorts in the world in three countries on one pass,” said Kirsten Lynch, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Vail Resorts. “Vail Resorts continues to look for opportunities to enhance the incredible value of the Epic Pass that our guests already receive and enjoy. In March, we announced that we increased the number of free days of access to Verbier, Switzerland, from three to five for the 2013-2014 season and we added, Eldora, a local Colorado ski area to the Epic Pass.”

Lynch continued, “Epic Pass holders already enjoy an incredible experience with unlimited, unrestricted access to Vail Resorts’ seven world-class resorts in the United States, including Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone,  Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood, as well as Arapahoe Basin and now Eldora, but the addition of world-class skiing in both Austria and Switzerland makes the Epic Pass even more compelling for our guests looking to take a ski vacation to Europe.”

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“LymeLight is a Lyme Disease awareness film that serves as an inspirational story for those who have fought to overcome chronic illness and physical setbacks. It delivers a powerful message of the importance of living a healthy, active lifestyle on a daily basis.

Angeli VanLaanen is one of the top female freeskiers in the world and a well rounded athlete with expertise in all areas of her sport. She has been featured on the cover of Skiing Magazine and in renowned skiing publications such as Powder Magazine and Freeskier Magazine. Angeli has also competed in high level halfpipe events such as the X-Games and Dew Tour.

LymeLight is a 30 minute documentary film based on Angeli VanLaanen’s battle with Lyme Disease. Angeli, now 27 years old, started showing Lyme symptoms at the tender age of 10. After developing a chronic sinus infection, fainting spells, dyslexia and fatigue, Angeli faced over a decade of misdiagnoses. Through the years, her symptoms fluctuated and progressed into a debilitating chronic illness. In the summer of 2009 VanLaanen was sleeping for multiple days at a time and experiencing crippling body pain. Lyme Disease is a bacterial infection spread by the bite of an infected Black Legged Tick (commonly known as a Deer Tick). Many children and adults cannot recall a bite because young Deer Ticks can be as small as a poppyseed. If caught promptly, Lyme Disease can be treated in a matter of weeks. Angeli’s story of misdiagnosis is all too common due to the lack of knowledge in our society and in the medical community.

After her diagnosis in November 2009, VanLaanen was forced to put her competitive halfpipe career on hold at the peak of her career. ‘It’s the lowest I’ve ever felt,’ Angeli says. ‘With no guarantee that treatment would relieve my symptoms, I had very little to hold on to.’ Motivated by her struggle, Angeli linked up with Director John Roderick of Neu Productions in November of 2011 to make an awareness piece sharing a raw account of her experience. ‘Our goal with LymeLight is to educate people about Lyme Disease, where it comes from, what the symptoms are and the challenges people face reclaiming their health,’ says Roderick. Neu Productions is a diverse action sports and adventure production company based in Breckenridge, Colorado, producing powerful digital content.

After taking 3 years off from halfpipe for Lyme treatment, Angeli returned to competition and placed 6th at the FIS World Championships and is ranked 9th in the world on the AFP points list for the 2012-2013 season. Halfpipe skiing was recently added to the list of events to premier at the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia 2014. VanLaanen’s dream of becoming an Olympian is possible now that she is symptom free and in remission. After the Olympics next year, Angeli plans to tour LymeLight in schools around the country as a part of an awareness program she has created. ‘When I was young I just flicked ticks off of me.’ Angeli recalls ‘I didn’t know to tell my mom or doctor.’ With the help of the LymeLight Foundation, a nonprofit VanLaanen is a spokesperson for, she will educate kids about Lyme Disease prevention and overcoming hard times.”

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But Candide was never really overly concerned with the scene. His skiing has always been bold and aggressive; his manner off the hill shy and unassuming. He has let his skiing speak for him, preferring to stay tucked under a pom-pom wool hat, while he quietly earned the sport’s highest honors: X Games gold and World Freeride champion. It’s not hard to argue that he’s the sport’s most well-rounded athlete—ever.

Watching Candide ski is bearing witness to a powerful, almost surreal level of connection with the mountain. He combines all elements of freestyle, alpine and freeride into a spellbinding mix of athletic power on the hill. But there is no hype or boasting from Candide. He really is a man of “few words” and as such, is notoriously difficult of the media to find and interview.

After several weeks of calling and emailing, I was able to triangulate Candide’s position to the island of Mallorca off the coast of Spain, where he was taking a quick two-day hiatus before the world tour of his two-year movie project, Few Words, kicked off in Paris. He spoke with me openly about his injuries, shyness, achievements and personal vision for the importance of well-rounded skiing. We also touched on the Olympics and what it’s like to be bitten by a wolf.

Q&A

You are a mystery man to many in North America. Given your success in the sport, why is it that we don’t know you as well as other skiers?

I’ve never been that much of a front-page guy. I’ve been pretty bad at [media communication]. I was pretty shy. I would like to let the skiing talk. I broke my back in 2007. And I was doing too many things at that time. I was kind of losing the pleasure of skiing. I wanted to get back to the pages of just skiing. And that’s what I did. I stopped everything else. The doctor said that I would not be able to ski and jump the way I used to. I went away and just wanted to get back into it. That’s when I did Candide Kamera. I left everything else on the side. Just skiing. At the time, we didn’t know what we wanted to do, but then finally we concentrated on one thing. We put more cinematic style into it.

You burst onto the scene in the States when you were just 15. We were all like, “Who is that and where the hell is he from?” And of course, you are from La Clusaz. What do they put in the water there?

I learned everything there. My father took me out when I was 2. It’s a place called Balme. This is where I used to do my event. The terrain is a natural snow park. When I was a kid, I was skiing every day over there. I was doing a lot of mogul skiing. [Candide was French national mogul champ at 14.] We had coaches, and I had the chance. They would always take us out and ski in that place in Balme. For them it was more important for us to have a ski base. When snowboarding got famous in France, I had been learning everything from there. When I came to the US, before that I hadn’t ever skied any other place.

What are the moments in a run down the Balme that make you the skier you are?

It is bumpy, very bumpy with big domes everywhere. It’s amazing, a natural terrain park. It all goes back to bumps. I used to [have] all my in-runs in the middle of moguls. And the landings, too. You had to absorb the bumps, and there is nothing straight. We would follow the same run every day. There were many, many jumps between rocks, and between creeks you can do some jumps. It’s really a kind of a terrain park in a mogul field. We kept it natural. This was constant learning.

It is a huge leap from the Balme to Chad’s gap. What prepared you for that gigantic leap?

Well, I would wake up and look at Balme every day. And we would always try to go bigger and bigger. We would do gaps, and we would try to go as far as possible. When I got to Chad’s gap it was just a matter of the scale—and, of course, it was a matter of staying on your feet. And having the balls for it. But right away, I knew it was possible. There would be a lot of compression. I didn’t have big legs at the time. Actually, I still don’t! But it all goes back to Balme. It really shaped how I look at things.

You have had such a great long-term relationship with Quiksilver.

Fifteen years. Quiksilver picked me when I was 15. I always liked their vision. And you know, they are usually more about surfing, snowboarding and skateboarding, but they have always helped me out. We’ve always had this very strong relationship. There is a lot of trust. Fifteen years is a long time. I’ve been changing a lot of skiing sponsors but stayed with Quiksilver.

You have skied for Dynastar, Salomon, Rossignol, CoreUPT and now for Faction. Tell us about this sponsor and the relationship.

Super excited to work with Faction. Great people. We are doing a lot of projects together. We have a full Candide line of skis. I was skiing with CoreUPT and things were not super great; the business side was a challenge. I signed with Faction for five years. I don’t really want to move from brand to brand. For sure we are aligned in business and vision.

With other brands I couldn’t do the same things that I can do with Faction. I had a lot of good feedback on their product. They have amazing skis. I am very involved. We have been working a lot on the weight. For backcountry, well, I am not a big guy, you know. I need my ski to be light. I want to be able to launch straight into lines. We’ve been working on that.

How is the recovery from your injury in 2007?

I’ve been really lucky. We had a big jump for the Candide Invitational. I hit it, but was missing some speed. I landed on the knuckle and I broke my L1. It was bad. When you break your back, you are always very close to being paralyzed. The doctors said that I might ski again, but never the way I used to. Look, they are trained to be realistic—doctors don’t do what we do. And the mental side [of recovery] is very important. I knew I was going to ski again. I was confident in myself.

Photo by Christoffer Sjøstrom_Quiksilver

I did surgery right away, and went to a rehab center for a month and half. When you break your back, you either don’t get surgery, and you cannot move for months, or they do the surgery and you start to walk in two days. One year after the crash, I started to ski. But even a little bump would hurt. I started wondering, “Maybe those guys are right, I won’t be the same on snow again.” But I was getting better and better. I started skiing in the powder. It was softer and easier on my back. I just wanted to get back into skiing. Get fun back. One year later, I decided to do some competitions. First I did the Red Bull Linecatcher. I wanted to see where my skiing level was. And then, when I won I thought I should try the Freeride World Tour.

So the gnarliest big-mountain tour in the world, the Freeride World Tour, was rehab?

Ha! No, the rehab was before. This was a great feeling, thinking about what the doctor said the first time. I was super stoked and proved to myself that I could win a contest again. When I won the X Games in 2000 [big air], I blew my knee right afterward. Then it took me some time to get back to my level. By 2003, I was back, and that year I won again [pipe]. Then I blew my knee. It took time to come back. Then I won in 2007 [slope]. Then I broke my back at La Clusaz. The level of the sport always is getting better and better while I’m out.

You helped pioneer the sport in the halfpipe, in big air, in slopestyle. Now two of those three disciplines are in the Olympics. How do you feel about the Olympics?

It’s a good thing for the sport. It’s a wider audience for the sport. More brands, more resources for the athletes. But at the same time, I’m a bit scared because I want to keep the spirit [of the sport]. When we started that sport, we wanted to get away from everything that was too serious. We were inspired by snowboarding. It was about fun. I don’t see why we have to be like every other sport. I understand it needs to be more serious, training and all that. In France, I can see it. They are interviewing the coaches, they are calling the skiers “athletes.” And it is getting away from where we started. For the eyes of the kids, we want the sport to remain cool and fun. We don’t want it to be too serious. We wanted to get away from this. I know personally I was watching snowboarders because there was some creativity and freedom there.

As we approach Olympic competition, what are your feelings on style?

Every year there are new tricks. Some guys are still evolving. The sport right now is still good when it comes to style. The Olympics will not change that. Personally I will not enjoy watching a rotation contest. It is all about style and creativity. It is important to me to recognize that there are many types of skiing. No powder? Go in the park. Powder? Go ski the mountain and the powder. I understand that it is becoming very siloed, but my vision on this is that we have the chance to have a sport where one can do everything. Every type of skiing is complementary to the other. Freeriding will help your alpine skiing and vice versa. If you stick to just one thing in all this, you are going to get stuck. That is my vision. I always love to do everything.

And to answer the question, the sport is still going in the right direction. The style is still there. I just hope it is going to stay that way and that the Olympics don’t change that.

Do you pay attention to what other skiers are doing in movies and magazines?

I’m really not watching enough. But I like Henrik [Harlaut] and Phil Casabon. I like the style there. Tom Wallisch. Sammy Carlson has really good style.

You have a reputation for executing your tricks perfectly. How do you come up with your tricks and the inspiration for them?

The inspiration—if you go back to the beginning—was really coming from snowboarding. Snowboard tricks were a big influence at the time. Snowboard had style. It was clean. I wanted to do the same. I like to do things clean, and I think like everyone, you never want sketchy. Hey look, sometimes I’m sketchy, too. But skiing is all about style. I just ride. It comes naturally. I think that the base of everything in skiing is not to wonder too much. Just go with your own natural mental flow. It all comes to the mental. When I was competing earlier, I would work on tricks in my head, but you just have to try and try and not think too much. Just try to have fun. Everyone has their own style. That’s where the word freestyle comes from. That’s what makes the sport.

I think I used to worry too much when I did contests. I was stressed and stuff about contests. When I stopped worrying about the results, that’s when I won. When I was just having fun, that’s when I did the best. Some people have good results under pressure. But that’s not me.

Do you want to compete on the AFP World Tour or go to the Olympics?

It is itching me for sure. But I have not been riding park since I broke my back. I am focusing on other things, like my movie. But it is definitely something that is itching me. I’m not going to make any decisions. But I’m thinking about it. I just want to ski and not to wonder too much, to ski and see where my level is. If I feel good about it, then why not? I’m not 100-percent sure. After doing the Freeride World Tour for a while— and doing a lot of freeriding—it might be good for me to get back into park and see where I’m at.

What do you hope people take away from your film Few Words?

I don’t know. I was really, really involved in the editing of Candide Kamera. Matt Pain [Few Words director] has come in to the project and he used to do snowboard movies. He didn’t know much about skiing or me when he came into the project, which is good in a way. It is a story about me, with a lot of interviews. This is good because usually I don’t like so many interviews. This is a good external vision.

What was your best day of filming, and why?

I really enjoyed filming in Revelstoke. There was this peak that no one has skied before. Eagle Pass. First descent. It had never been ridden before. I don’t know if it is true or not but it was a great moment.

What was the worst day of filming? I heard a wolf bit you?

Yes, I was bitten by a wolf when we were filming in Canada. We were filming with a wolf because we try to focus on nature a lot. In the movie, we are filming animals because skiing is about nature. When you hike to the top and you see the chamois running around, this is what skiing is to me. Nature. We wanted to capture that. So we were filming, and this wolf came around and he bit my leg. It was not too bad. I just had a mark. The wolf was pretty pissed though. I was scared.

Candide in Arlberg, Austria. Photo by Matt Pain_Quiksilver.

Tell us about almost dying in Sonnenkopf.

Yes, we were skiing and filming in Austria. That was pretty scary. It was the first day we were there. There was some amazing powder. So we decided we were not going to film, “Let’s just ride for ourselves and have fun.” It was for the cameraman to have some fun. It was a place where skiing in the forest was forbidden. But there was such deep powder, we were like, we have to go.

We finished in a valley. So we followed a frozen river in the valley to go back to the resort. At one point, there was a steep drop, maybe 15 meters, and it was all blue ice. I had one cameraman with me and the other was way back on a snowboard. I said, “I’m going to go first and let you know, and hopefully there is no ice on the landing.” I did one turn and the ice broke around me. I found myself in a waterfall. I was stuck in it. I was holding on with my elbow, taking all the water on my face, a shower of super cold water. I was like that for half an hour. If I fell, I was going to fall into a black hole that led to the water under the ice and four or five meters of snow. I would have drowned. The first guy tried to help me, and he slipped and fell. By the time he got to me, I had been in there for 15 minutes. He tried to get me and dislocated his shoulder. I thought I was fucked. If I was going to fall, I was not going to recover. Luckily, two Finnish guys showed up and did a human chain, and they saved me. I was frozen. My left side was totally frozen. I couldn’t feel anything. We had to walk the forest for almost two hours. I had a puffy jacket, so I was soaked and cold. When we got back to the resort it was dark. I was really lucky in this situation. Really lucky.

How would you like to be remembered by the skiing community?

I don’t know. You know, I’m not wondering too much about this. I always try to do my best. The most important thing is to enjoy skiing. Sure the other things are cool, X Games, the Freeride Tour. But then—I don’t know, I’m just not wondering. The most important thing is the skiing. That’s it. My dream when I was a kid was to do something in skiing. And now I’ve been able to live my life in skiing. And that is enough for me.

*This article originally appeared in the 2013 FREESKIER Photo Annual. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

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“Dose was on the red carpet at the Tribeca Film Festival paying homage to Shane McConkey for the premiere of “McConkey,” a feature length documentary about his groundbreaking career as a freeskier and base jumper. We spoke to J.T. Holmes, Shane’s long time friend and fellow skier, wife Sherry McConkey and the directors about the massive imprint that Shane has left behind for generations to come.”

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“Watch as Tom Wallisch and GoPro’s own Caleb Farro learn double front flips together in Laax, Switzerland.”

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In regards to the slide, we had been out in that zone the day before, so I was familiar with the stability and snowpack. We picked a north/north east facing aspect that me and my friend Kye [Petersen] felt good about, and did two test runs. He dropped in first, and the snow was solid. I skied my line, and ski cut the top as I was dropping in, and the snow was solid. We then moved toward two lines that were over exposure. Before we skied our lines, we dropped a cornice on a hanging snowfield above Kye’s line. He then ski cut the top and skied his line without any issue. I worked my way over to the entrance into my route—which was about 50-feet skier’s right of his line. Feeling fairly confident after watching him ski, not to mention feeling good about the precautions we took that day, I dropped into my line. The rest, as you can see, was fairly intense.

I made a last second decision to point it, because I knew I needed to stay on my feet, or get pulled over the exposure below me. As I hit the funnel and went into the white room, I was thinking, “I don’t know if I am going to make it out of this.”

I was carried for what felt like a ways, and got pushed down to the bed surface. When I felt the weight of the snow pushing me down, I deployed my airbag. As things came to a slow, I was propelled towards the top, and managed to pull myself out of the debris.

Looking back, I had mixed feelings for a while. I mean, after skiing in the backcountry and doing beacon drills with my dad since I was maybe 7 or 8 years old, it makes you feel almost stupid for getting yourself in that situation. But then again, you never know when, or if things are going to go wrong.

Now, as I reflect, I feel like we were being smart and safe. It just goes to show how fast things can turn into a dangerous situation, and why people, including myself, need to take serious precautions before going into the backcountry.

*Catch another angle of KC’s close call at the 2:50 mark of Voleurz’s “Resurrection” video.

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No matter the goal, hut trips are synonymous with fun. If you’re a skier with any backcountry knowledge and even a small desire for adventure, don’t let another winter pass by without experiencing a night in a mountain hut. The day could bring navigation challenges, frostbite, blisters and fear of spending the night under a space blanket, but the night will include a soft bed, card games, a warm dinner and memories around a crackling woodstove. Pack a map, some food, a med kit, a sleeping bag and down booties, and get on your way. Here’s some advice and inspiration to get you on your way to the best (and cheapest) trip of your winter.

Why go on a hut trip?

1. It’s an alpine slumber party.
2. As long as you can find the hut and build a fire, you’re guaranteed a warm, dry night’s sleep.
3. You can access terrain you’d never get to in one day.
4. You can complete a point-to-point route without having to backcountry camp.
5. Alcohol tastes better in a hut.
6. Bacon tastes better in a hut.
7. You can spend time with your friends and/ or family without a wireless connection.
8. It’s always an adventure.
9. It’s a great first date if you want to see what he or she is made of.
10. Downtime at the hut is an opportunity to practice locating a buried beacon.

Rules:

1. Research and plan. Consider fitness levels, snow conditions and terrain goals. Be prepared for the approach—routes are sometimes six to seven miles, with substantial climbing and require backcountry skiing skills.

2. Reserve ahead. Plan early when booking a weekend. Midweek reservations are easier. You can book an entire hut or single spots, which might mean sharing the hut with other groups.

3. Route finding is crucial. Know how to use a topographic map and a compass. If your group lacks navigational skills, consider hiring a guide.

4. Everyone in the group should have some level of avalanche education. Start with a formal course. Beginning weeks before and leading through your trip, monitor weather and snow conditions via local avalanche forecasts and online forums.

5. It always takes longer to get to the hut than you think. Start earlier than you want to. Pack a headlamp, just in case.

6. Get familiar with your equipment long before the trip. Don’t use the trip to break in new boots or test out a pack.

7. Avoid over packing. Items should be lightweight and compact. Plan out your meals to share Sherpaing duties with the group. Pack lightly; you’ll be plenty warm skinning and sitting by the fire. And that woodstove will dry everything overnight.

8. Always travel and ski with a beacon, shovel and probe. And know how to use them.

New Huts:

Looking to explore a totally new zone or sleep in a hut that’s not as old as dirt? Check out one of these backcountry huts recently opened in North America.

Point Breeze Cabin, CO

This one-year-old cabin near Leadville, Colorado, is privately owned, but you reserve a bed through the 10th Mountain Division Hut Association. Bring deep lungs: The hut is at 10,500 feet in elevation, near the top of the Continental Divide. $33/person/night, huts.org

Points North, AK

In 2011, Alaska’s Points North Heli-Adventures obtained a nonmotorized ski touring permit and opened their “Arctic Oven” tents to the public last winter. You’ll get dropped off by a heli and then ski tour from there. $45/person/night (8 people, 7 nights), alaskaheliski.com

Broome Hut, CO

Part of the future Grand Huts system that will eventually link nine huts over Colorado’s Berthoud Pass, the Broome Hut is the first, and it was just completed this fall. It sleeps up to 16 people. $35/person/night, grandhuts.org

Cascade Huts, OR

Two new huts opened this summer on Mt. Hood, Oregon, for hut-to-hut mountain biking and backcountry skiing. Each hut is stocked with a stove, lamps, cooking supplies and sleeping bags. $19-$30/person/night, cascadehuts.com

Opus Hut, CO

Opened in 2011, the Opus Hut in Colorado’s San Juans (the nearest town is Ophir) has solar-powered electricity and hot water and a true novelty: indoor plumbing. $35/person/night, opushut.com

Weekend Warrior Huts:

Here are five huts easy to reach from major metro areas for your quick-in, quick-out skiing pleasure.

Denver: Francie’s Cabin, an 80-mile drive from Denver followed by a 1.5-mile skin, offers high-alpine skiing and a wood-fueled sauna. $35/person/night, summithuts.org

San Francisco: Accessed off Donner Summit, three hours from the city, the Peter Grubb Hut delivers powdery bowls and a cozy A-frame. $55-$60/person/night, sierraclub.org

Portland: Ninety minutes from Portland, the Barlow Butte Hut provides gorgeous views of Mt. Hood and quality skiing. $150/night for the whole hut, cascadehuts.com

Seattle: The Scottish Lakes High Camp, a nine-cabin commune surrounded by remote powder stashes, is two hours from downtown. $60-$90/person/night, scottishlakes.com

Vancouver: Just north of Whistler, you’ll find tranquility and world-class terrain at the Wendy Thompson Hut in Marriott Basin. $12/person/night, accwhistler.ca

Hut Listings:

Below are 16 of the greatest backcountry huts, yurts and refuges from Chamonix to California, New Hampshire to Argentina.

Access ratings are from one to 10: One being a tram ride or heli drop and 10 being a serious slog. Terrain ratings are from one to 10: One being mellow tree skiing and 10 being serious big-mountain lines. Pricing is per night, per person unless otherwise noted.

1. Amiskwi Lodge, Golden, British Columbia

Amiskwi raises the luxury bar for backcountry hut living with a cushy log cabin, indoor toilets and a wood-burning sauna perched at treeline. A 20-minute heli ride from Golden, it’s best known for its friendly glade skiing and tantalizing views of the Freshfields Icefields, but when conditions are right, steep alpine lines are there for the taking.

Access: 2
Terrain: 6

Price: $850/week (includes heli) amiskwi.com

2. Baldy Knoll Yurt, Teton Range, Wyoming

A cozy yurt perched on the western slope of the Tetons, Baldy Knoll has endless powder slaying opportunities. Out your door are daunting chutes to powdery aprons, basins, trees, and for the more ambitious, big Teton lines and traverses, such as the one you can do on your last day, ending with beer in Teton Village.

Access: 5
Terrain: 8

Price: $44/$49 (plus tax, weekday/weekend) skithetetons.com

3. Bell Lake Yurt, Tobacco Root Range, Montana

To get to Montana’s Bell Lake Yurt, located an hour from Bozeman, you’ll take a short snowmobile ride, then skin two and a half miles and 1,700 vertical feet. Your reward? Powder-filled bowls and couloirs throughout the Bell Lake cirque and a 450-square-foot yurt that sleeps six and allows dogs. Go for the catered option—the huckleberry pancakes are worth the extra fee.

Access: 6
Terrain: 7

Price: ~$41 skimba.com

4. Bill Putnam Hut, Adamants Range, British Columbia

The Bill Putnam Hut (or Fairy Meadows Hut, as it’s commonly referred to) is surrounded by granite peaks and glaciers. Access is a 20-minute heli from the staging area. Combine 4,000-foot runs, couloirs, steep north facing lines and deep Selkirk pow and it’s no wonder that Fairy Meadows is the most popular hut in B.C. A lottery takes place in the spring each year, so plan ahead if you want to book.

Access: 4
Terrain: 10

Price: $875/week (includes heli) alpineclubofcanada.ca

5. Cajón Grande Refuge, Las Leñas, Argentina

Within a day from the refugio, one can ski a steep 5,000-foot run from Cerro Campanario, a classic 12,795-foot peak. Chamonix snowboarding legends Serge Cornillat and Serge Vitelli run the hut, which has six hot spring tubs nearby and serves traditional asados. Stays are typically one week, as the three-hour bus ride from Malargue to the staging area in Los Loicas only runs on Sundays. From there, it’s a 4×4 drive or horse ride to the refugio.

Access: 4
Terrain: 10

Price: $60 (includes meals) cajongrande.com

6. Cosmique Refuge, Chamonix, France

At 11,850 feet and just a short hike down from the Aiguille du Midi, the Cosmique is one of the most famous backcountry lodges in the world. If you’re going in the spring, book early, and get ready to have your mind blown. From the Vallée Blanche to some of the gnarliest ski terrain on earth, the hut is a launching pad.

Access: 2
Terrain: 10+

Price: ~$45 (includes breakfast) 33(0)450544016

7. Eiseman Hut, Vail, Colorado

The Eiseman Hut is the 10th Mountain’s most alpine hostel and offers arguably the best skiing in the hut system. Within the rugged and scarcely accessed Gore Range, numerous faces and couloirs abound. There are even some steep treed shots nearby when the weather moves in. The massive and newly remodeled structure is more of a chalet than a hut and sleeps 16 people. The reward comes at a price—the skin in is roughly eight miles.

Access: 8
Terrain: 8

Price: $33 huts.org

8. Emilio Frey, Refuge, Bariloche, Argentina

Frey Refuge is a gateway to classic Argentine Andes skiing. A spectacular epicenter of tempting spire-flanked descents surround the hut. The solar and wind-powered structure boasts a caretaker, a cat, character-filled common space, kitchen, and upstairs bunkroom.

Access: 6
Terrain: 9

Price: 80 ARS (~$17) clubandino.org/refugios-y-campings

9. Lammernhütte, Bernese Alps, Switzerland

As Swiss Alpine Club huts go, the Lammerenhütte is a freeskiing paradise. Gorgeous and glaciated terrain surrounds the large stone structure—which is perched on a cliff—like a cathedral. And the access village of Leukerbad is as charming as any you’ll find in the Alps.

Access: 4
Terrain: 10

Price: $70 CHF (~$75, includes half board) laemmerenhuette.ch

10. Opus Hut, Silverton, CO

Relatively new, Opus is a beautiful, off the grid, backcountry skier’s take on a luxury ski vacation (heated floors! running water!). Entirely off the grid with more amenities than most huts, plus a caretaker, Opus accesses the gamut of ski terrain, from safe zones during high avy danger to steep faces, couloirs, and challenging features to get rad on.

Access: 6
Terrain: 9

Price: $35 opushut.com

11. Ostrander Hut, Yosemite National Park, California

One of the Sierra’s winter gems is the 71-year-old Ostrander Hut, a two-story, lakeside cabin located deep in Yosemite National Park and surrounded by a glacial cirque that holds prime ski lines. The stone hut is hard to reach with an approach of up to 10 miles, but that doesn’t temper its popularity, so plan ahead.

Access: 10
Terrain: 8

Price: $35/$55 (weekday/weekend) yosemiteconservancy.org

12. Snowbird Hut, Hatcher Pass, Alaska

Perched on the edge of the Snowbird Glacier in the Talkeetna Mountains, the newly remodeled Snowbird Hut is rumored to be the best in Alaska. Accessible from Archangel Valley on Hatcher Pass, the 8-by-18 foot hut sleeps six comfortably, but you can squeeze in a dozen. It’s part of the Bomber Traverse, a classic Alaska hut-to-hut trek. Pollux Aviation provides helicopter charters to the hut.

Access: 10
Terrain: 6

Price: Free americanalpineclub.org

13. Snytindhytta, Gullesfjord, Norway

Deep powder. Fjords. Dramatic peaks. World-class descents. Northern lights. Sauna. Appealing? Fly into Harstad for this isolated backcountry stash, one of over 1,000 ski huts in Norway. The hut gets significantly more snow than nearby areas, and has the terrain to match. Be prepared: buy maps, do research, and contact the hut association.

Access: 6
Terrain: 9

Price: 200 NOK per group (~$35)/night ut.no/hytte/snytindhytta

14. Wallowa Alpine Huts, Wallowa Mountains, Oregon

Anyone who says there’s not good skiing in eastern Oregon hasn’t been to the 10,000-foot-high Wallowas, which get 400 inches of dry snow each winter and offer high-alpine steeps and gladed, old-growth trees. Choose from three separate yurts or have an animated guy named Zobott guide you on a Euro-style hut-to-hut trip.

Access: 6
Terrain: 6

Price: $200/person (3 night package, $250 First-Day-Guide fee for new users) wallowahuts.com

15. Wuhrstein Alm Hut, Chiemgua Alps, Germany

The Alps are stocked with hut systems perched along traverses through gnarly terrain. If you don’t have glacier travel skills, head to the Wuhrstein Alm. Cozy living and Austrian food go along with stellar skiing: open bowls, steeps, and exposed ridges that lead to endless backcountry options.

Access: 2
Terrain: 8

Price: 22 euro (~$28.50, includes breakfast) wuhrsteinalm.de

16. Zealand Falls Hut, White Mountains, New Hampshire

With nearby waterfalls to huck and a healthy forest to capture powder, the Zealand Falls Hut stands out among its Appalachian Mountain Club brethren for its ski terrain. It’s also located on the edge of the Pemigewasset Wilderness, so the chances you’ll run into other backcountry skiers are slim to none.

Access: 6
Terrain: 6

Price: Subject to dates and availability. outdoors.org/lodging

Five more yurts:

Yurts, circular tents originally made from wood and felt, have been used as dwellings by Mongolian nomads in central Asia for at least three thousand years. In the last few decades, however, yurts have become popular with a different culture: backcountry skiers. Here are five more yurts worth checking out.

Yurtopia Yurt, British Columbia

Operated in conjunction with Wildhorse Catskiing, you can access the Ymir Yurts via snowmobile, cat, or ski touring. Once you’re there, you’ll enjoy 2,000-vertical-foot descents and perfectly gladed trees.

From $39/person/night ymiryurts.com

Rendezvous Backcountry Tours, Wyoming

The only backcountry hut system in Wyoming’s Teton Range, Rendezvous offers guided hut-to-hut trips or yurt rental at their four backcountry yurts on the western slope of the Tetons.

From $44/person/night (plus tax) skithetetons.com

Williams Peak Yurt, Idaho

You and 13 friends can reserve these two Mongolian-style yurts, which sit side-by-side in Idaho’s northern Sawtooth range, at the base of some rugged ski terrain. Bonus: There’s a wood-fired sauna.

From $40/person/night (8 person minimum, $250 fee for first timers) sawtoothguides.com

 40 Tribes, Kyrgyzstan

Opened in 2010 by Coloradoan Ryan Koupal, 40 Tribes’ handmade yurt sits in a remote range in Kyrgyzstan. You’ll skin up a path used by locals tracking wolves and renowned Canadian mountaineer Ptor Spricenieks will be your guide.

From $150/person/night fortytribesbackcountry.com

Three Sisters Yurt, Oregon

These two yurts in Oregon’s Three Sisters Wilderness have stocked kitchens, a wood-fired sauna, and access to 280,000 acres of bowls and old-growth hemlock trees. You can even have the staff deliver a keg from the local Three Creeks Brewery.

From $45/person/night (2 person minimum) threesistersbackcountry.com

*This article originally appeared in the 2013 FREESKIER Backcountry Issue. All prices/rates are subject to change. Illustrations by Chris Hotz. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

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Have some videos that you think are worthy of an appearance in Monday Morning Wake Up Call? We want to see what you’ve got. Send your ideas to henrik@freeskier.com, or hit up @Freeskier on Twitter with the hashtag #MMWUC.

Want more? Don’t miss this recent video of a skier taking a nasty tumble on Tuckerman Ravine.

The post MMWUC: Skiing on colored snow, the amazing “Shift It” commercial and more appeared first on .

“A day in Sölden at the media booter, featuring Tobi Gratz, Toni Höllwart, Lukas Eisl, Julius Gerhart, Viktor Moosmann, Spencer Keirnes, Luggi Brucic, Dennis Ranalter.”

The post The headbud crew sessions a massive booter in Sölden, Austria appeared first on .

More explanation to come, but follow the line of argument for a second. It would be easy to dismiss this edit from Antti Ollila because it’s all park rails or boxes and (relatively) small jumps. But, wow, the dude has his tricks on lock. Technique? He has it. Who knows (I don’t) if he can do those tricks on a street handrail or on a big ol’ Level 1 size kicker. But there is no denying the range of tricks in his edit or their execution.

Watch it. Enjoy it. Question the Finnish park features at Rukatunturi (1,500 vertical feet, 500 miles north of Helsinki). Question my opinion. Just don’t question the skiing, ’cause it is damn fine ski shreddin’.

Antti Ollila:

Oh, and if you wonder how you get to be this good at skiing, it doesn’t have anything to do with the Olympics or hiring some washed up skier or mysterious old man to be your coach. Just start practicing, skiing, jumping and sliding rails as soon as you can walk. Do it every day and when you turn nine, maybe, just maybe you can put out a season edit like this one from Eelis Heimonen. Or maybe you have to be from Ruka, Finland to ski like these two.

Eelis Heimonen:

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“On April 6, 2013, the Orage Masters, aka the Anti Comp (now better known as the “craziest scene skiing has ever seen”), crash landed for its 8th edition at Sun Valley Resort, and officially became a thing of legend within the world of ski contests.

8 teams of skiing’s elite film crews featuring the likes of Level 1 Productions, 4bi9 Media, Traveling Circus, Stept Productions, Inspired Media, The Kids, Toy Soldier Productions and Me Gustan Aviones came costume clad, ready to throw down and eager to claim bragging rights and the $10,000 cold hard cash compliments of GoPro that come with 1st place.

Level 1 took top honors and the white dinner jackets. 4bi9 Media claimed second and a trip to Retallack Lodge. And The Traveling Circus rounded out the top 3 earning a 5-day trip back to the host resort, Sun Valley.

Call outs to Johnny G’s subshack for feeding the crews and of course Freeskier Magazine for playing the role of our fantabulous media partner of choice.”

Like this? You might also enjoy Freeskier’s Orage Masters 8 highlight reel.

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The morning started off carefree and fun. LJ, Spencer Milbocker, Tim McChesney, under the gloomy dark of a Scandinavian winter morning, set off from our hostel to hit a rail in the suburbs of Helsinki. “We were re-upping on this double kink, the classic Finland double kink that was sessioned in Refresh,” says LJ from his bed. “I did a four pretz two on it that felt really good, and I was stoked on the shot. I thought I’d tee up the six on ’cause Wally [Tom Wallisch] did it [earlier in the 2012 season], and I heard that’s what’s hot. I had a few really good ones that were feeling clean, was starting to lock into the rail coming out forward. I just wanted to lock one in 100-percent and maybe even put a front two in there. I came off a little stair heavy, and my knee went underneath the rail into the last support. One hundred and eighty pounds of me and 25 miles per hour of me was 100-percent into the front of my kneecap.” [Watch video of LJ's crash here.]

After stomping this 450 disaster, LJ could have quit for the day. Instead he wanted to make a bigger disaster and ended his season. Photo by Abbott.

The sound wasn’t definitive like you’d expect. Even with the blurted, “Ohmyohmyohmy!” before he slid to a stop, I wasn’t sure what had happened. The trip, before and after this moment, was a wild blur of sleepless nights, endless driving, stomping feet to fight the cold and some happy moments when a shot worked out. The next 30 minutes though, they stick in my mind just like LJ said later that night. LJ knew his kneecap was shattered, and we worked quickly to get a jacket on him, throw all our gear in the van, find a hospital on our GPS, get him into the van and navigate Finnish street signs to get to the small hospital.

Once we got there, it still wasn’t exactly smooth sailing. “Going to a hospital in a foreign country is the worst experience I’ve ever had,” says LJ, with the ordeal fresh in his mind. “No one spoke English. They wanted to operate immediately. It was miserable. I couldn’t even understand what they were saying to me. It took four hours to even get an X-ray.” Eventually though, we got a hold of his father and doctors in Utah, where LJ wanted to have the inevitable surgery to mend his shattered knee.

Less than a week earlier, I was on the phone with Kyle Decker talking about putting together a trip to shoot for Level 1’s movie Sunny. With dismal snow in North America, we made a snap decision and, two days later, jetted off to Helsinki with LJ, Spencer and Tim. We reached out to some local crews, organized a van and lodging, and started the long process of finding spots to hit by watching video clips, pouring over files of photos and scribbled addresses, and cruising Google Street View.

On our first day, we went to a super-long down rail. We had an address and had seen some photos and video, but still, our GPS sent us circling and cursing while we peered out the dark windows of the van. When we finally got it together, each of the skiers made relatively quick work of their tricks, and I thought the hard part of the trip wouldn’t be the skiing. Aside from two big smashes, that held true.

Our second day, we spiraled toward an old snowboard video clip and a Google address by the city’s waterfront and eventually found some stairs off a large apartment building. The rail leading down them was soft aluminum, but Tim decided to step up to a sizeable drop over the rail. It took the skiers from an angled wall ride to a landing way below, right on the limit of being stompable. For numerous attempts, Tim fought to land his 180 after the 20-foot drop. One extra abrupt landing, a little wide of the small pile of snow that masqueraded as a tranny, left him bleeding from his nose. Still, he persisted and got a clean landing on the trick a couple of tries later. After Tim’s long battle, I was surprised to see that LJ still wanted a crack, but with the short day fading, he stuck another 180 after only a few tries.

You saw McChesney’s bloody nose in the gallery above, but that flat landing didn’t come close to stopping him from going back and stomping his 180. It actually gave him something to aim for, a small target like a torero’s red cape. Photo by Abbott.

While two solid shots would often earn us a little rest, these skiers flew around the world for a short trip, and they wanted to drive on. And drive they did. Actually, it was Decker who did the driving. The van was an enormous beast, perfect for hauling our gear around, but it wasn’t exactly perfect for navigating the tight, snow-packed streets of the city, especially with the confusion of Finnish street names and unfamiliar surroundings. I will also take this opportunity to apologize for my merciless heckling of Decker’s driving because having a team captain to push us on was, ultimately, what made our trip a success.

That night, after a few hours of scouting, we ended up at the double kink that would claim LJ’s kneecap the next day. Our rental generator didn’t cooperate, so we called the mission until morning. As memorable as that day was—for all the wrong reasons—the days after LJ left were a blur of street shooting. “I knew he would want us to keep hitting stuff and going hard for the rest of the trip,” says Tim. “So we had to just put it in the past and keep on going. Pretty much right after he left, we got right back to where we were going.”

We drove hours north from Helsinki to visit a string of successful features. We battled traffic, cold, spotty GPS directions, a barely functional generator and lack of sleep with endless cups of coffee, torn puffy jackets, daytime shooting and a single-minded desire to find any rail worthy of shooting. We shot another double-kink rail late at night, followed by a dark drive back to Helsinki. We found a gap to down rail on a random street far from any spot we had heard about. We set up and Spencer got a 270 pretty quick. Then, as Tim worked on his switch 270, a couple of police officers showed up. Decker talked to them (while Spencer filmed the proceedings). “They ended up being real cool with us,” recalls Tim. “Usually in America, it’s the complete opposite.” They moved their van away from the landing and on his second try, with the police patiently observing, Tim pulled the trick perfectly, and we drove off to our next feature without so much as a warning.

Certainly, LJ’s injury is the most intense memory that remains from the trip, while the rest of the experience blends together. It takes some blood—a little pain—to bring out the best in each of us. LJ is scarred by his injury, but he has those shots and his memories. Just this past week, as I was finalizing this story, LJ skied up to me in Park City. He chatted with me for a couple minutes, then skied off. As I rode the lift for my next run, I watched him do a perfect 270 onto a down rail.

[Ed's Note: In the time since this article was originally published, LJ went on to win the 2013 War of Rails at Bear Mountain, and he was also a member of the "Level 1 Constructions" team, which took first place at Orage Masters 8.]

*This article originally appeared in the February 2013 issue FREESKIER. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

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“At this time we are excited to officially announce our upcoming film, All Damn Day. Here is an early teaser for your viewing pleasure. Supported by Saga Outerwear, The North Face, Nordica, Philpark, K2 Skis, Tall-T Productons, ON3P Skis. Enjoy!”

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Revelstoke Mountain Resort is best known for its epic inbounds skiing, deep snow, alpine bowls and endless glades, and the lift-accessed backcountry makes it even better. Once the rope to the upper mountain is dropped, a short bootpack from the top of the Stoke chair up to the subpeak reveals a plethora of lines, with the not-so-distant peak of Mount Mackenzie staring you right in the face.

Photo by Garrett Grove

The most iconic line is visible from the backside of the ski hill, all the way down to town. Best scoped from the subpeak, it lies no more than fifty meters looker’s left of the peak. Deemed “Brown Shorts,” the aesthetic chute is impossible to miss, running straight and steep from the col at the intersection of the main face and the left ridge. This line is the real deal, with an exposed approach, a sporty entrance from a cornice and a sustained fall-line pitch. This is avalanche terrain with considerable consequences, so make sure you and your partners know what you’re in for.

From the top of the Stoke chair, the hike to the Mackenzie Peak takes just over 30 minutes. Bootpack straight up to the subpeak, scope your line and follow the ridge towards Mackenzie Peak. You’ll be heading up the south-facing slope to the summit. Breathe in the 360-degree view of the Selkirk and Monashee ranges and drop carefully off the backside, moving down the east face and trending left. Be aware of the 100 foot cliffs below, one slip could result in airing into the abyss. Find the obvious entrance to the chute on the left side of the face. Pucker up and drop in. Hopefully you don’t have to check those shorts.

Hike: 8
Ski: 8

Like this? You may also want to ski Shuksan Arm at Mt. Baker.

*Hike and ski ratings are in terms of difficulty: 1 being relatively easy, 10 being very challenging. This article originally appeared in the 2013 FREESKIER Backcountry Issue. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

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“Tanner Hall returns to moguls and gets his first podium of the season in Åre’s Hot Doggers contest alongside his crew, ”Jon the Gooners.’”

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[Video contains explicit language.] “Ashton takes one for the team.”

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Wiley is a perfectionist, always willing to work hard to get the shot and stay positive—pretty much a perfect person to shoot with. Since that trip in the Kootenays, I have shot with Wiley all over B.C. with great results. He is always looking for unique features, lines and jump locations, knowing what will look good on film. He will hit features multiple times until he nails his trick perfectly, and in return he has been published multiple times in Freeskier as well as many other publications, worldwide. His Level 1 segments show off his rounded skills in all areas of skiing including big mountain lines, tricking off natural features, backcountry hits and park. His 2013 ESPN Real Ski segment showcased those talents, and Wiley took home the People’s Choice award against some of the best skiers in the industry.

I asked Wiley about some of his adventures in the skiing world. Here’s what he had to say:

I grew up in Montana shredding with my little bro, Jeremy. We never had a park or anything, so backcountry was my only way to get any sort of freestyle stuff dialed. We shredded a bunch outside of the Big Sky area. It was so fun and I think my bro is the reason I started pushing myself with skiing. That kid could shred so well.

Style is key with skiing. It’s tough to maintain good style when you don’t have a park to get in everyday. I try to make a point to get in the park every season to fine tune it, which becomes more of a brush-up on old tricks. New tricks always come with a pow landing.

Filming was my spot from day one. Remember Theory-3 Productions? It was Jeff Thomas’ film company from back in the day. Him and Teddy Knapp (RIP) were tackling “photoplay” in like, 2006, and somehow through hanging out with Mike Hornbeck I got a segment with them. Then I was nominated for a Powder award against Ian Macintosh. In my head, it was go time… I didn’t want to compete or do anything but film in the backcountry.

2013 Real Ski Backcountry: Wiley Miller

Then it was Level 1, TGR, and eventually just Level 1. I have been working with Level 1 for a time now and it’s worked out well. Their films are getting better every year. It’s great to be a veteran with them now, too. Seeing the crew grow and new filmers come on board, like [Voleurz's] Darren Rayner, has been so cool to be a part of. I really feel proud to be a part of such a good crew and film every year.

X Games… When I got the invite [to compete in Real Ski Backcountry], I couldn’t have been more fired up. Josh Berman got me lined up with Rayner and I packed up my stuff and booked it for BC in November. I was so hungry, so ready to try some new stuff, be creative and also have creative control and direction with Darren. I loved every day out there. It’s cool ESPN includes a People’s Choice award. It’s really anyone’s game at that point. It was an honor to win the people’s vote, I couldn’t be more happy for that. I can’t thank every individual who voted, but I am so thankful for everyone’s support.

The [Real Ski Backcountry edits] were some of the best segments we’ve seen in the backcountry to date. Everyone put so much effort into it. Dane Tudor, who sacrificed his whole season for this edit, put something together with no time at all. You gotta respect that. It’s true for everyone… everyone worked hard. Even Parker White. I heard he stopped drinking for a few days to film. [laughs] Just kidding. Kinda.

As always, much gratitude and appreciation to 4FRNT Skis, Saga Outerwear, Spy Optic, Daleboot Boots, and Kombi Gloves.

The post Speaking with Wiley Miller on his rise to stardom, X Games Real Ski and more appeared first on .

The videos will be judged by a panel of X Games judges, but a Fan Favorite award will also be dished out—based on the popular vote. The results will be announced in conjunction with X Games Barcelona. To date, Ingrid trails Maya Gabeira (professional big wave surfer from Brazil) 49% to 51% while Michelle trails snowboarder Jess Kimura 46% to 54%. With a little help from skiers around the globe, those tables can turn.

Round 1 of voting will be open through May 6. Second round voting will be open May 7-13, and the final round of voting will go May 14-19. Watch the videos and cast your votes now, and do skiing proud!

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Presenting Lyman Currier’s “Black and Color” season edit.

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“We caught up with Kolby Ward for two days at Breckenridge, CO.”

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[Note: Video contains explicit langauge.] “This is just one quick shot of the mayhem that is Tuckerman Ravine every spring. Shot 4.27.13.”

It’s certainly a good tumble, but we think this one here might take the cake for best ever Tuckerman spill captured on camera. What do you think?

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“We took two years off and the teams brought more pent up Masters energy to Sun Valley than we could have imagined,” said Orage Global Marketing Director Mike Nick. “And being that they’re film crews, we figured it was only fair to give them an opportunity to document the debauchery they brought to the event. We gave them a few weeks off to recover and to edit a few clips so you could witness, through their eyes, exactly what the hell happened during those three infamous days in Idaho.”

Relive one of the wildest, wackiest events of all time—drop in to the clips below, and be sure to vote for your favorites. It’s up to you to decide which team takes home the Clip Contest title. Voting will be open through May 6.

4BI9

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Level 1 Productions

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Line Traveling Circus

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Me Gusta Aviones

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Stept Productions

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Toy Soldier Productions

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Note: Clips were not submitted by The Kids nor Inspired Media. And, of course, be sure to check out Freeskier’s own Orage Masters highlight clip.

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(S) Peter Olenick (P) Nate Abbott (L) Mammoth Mountain, CA

“When the weather turned bad during the annual Monster Energy team shoot, I wanted to lay around all day watching TV. Peter, however, decided that, despite the 120 mph gusts and well below zero temperatures, he would have a mai tai and enjoy the spring weather. He forced me to bring all my camera gear out just to ‘get a photo,’ but I think he just needed to ice his knee and couldn’t find our hotel’s ice machine.” — Nate Abbott

“It’s always sunny in California. We were in Mammoth for a Monster Energy photoshoot and had a nice day on our hands. Basically I like to have fun, even on down days, so I took a trip to Ralph Lauren and picked myself up a nice matching Hawaiian shirt and shorts, grabbed a mai tai from the bar, and we were ready for a day at the beach. Of course, my drink spilled and I had to go get a new one. As warm as I look, it was freezing. Thanks to Nate, Davey and Todd for helping get this shot.” — Peter Olenick

*This article originally appeared in the 2013 FREESKIER Photo Annual. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

The post April 2013: Final Thought with Nate Abbott and Peter Olenick appeared first on .

Level 1 has released a handful of videos showcasing the Superunknown X finals at Sun Valley. In this latest release—the fourth—we see the 11 Superunknown X finalists shred rails on Dollar Mountain, and we relive the awarding of the winner’s cheque to Magnus Granér.

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“Some late season storms rocked the rocky mountains this spring, making for some of the best conditions of the year. My dog Lauti-man came along and def’ had his deepest runs of his life!”

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“evo Team Rider Collin Collins schools you on the nose butter 360.”

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“I flew out to CO and met up with the Nordica crew: Kieran McVeigh, Lupe Hagearty, Jeremie Veilleux, and Dane Grashuis. We filmed for the few days before Breck closed for the season. Snowy conditions in April? We made do.”

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Mammoth locals Nick Miles and Scotty Donahue remind us why Unbound is one of the best spots to shred park during the spring season.

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Have some videos that you think are worthy of an appearance in Monday Morning Wake Up Call? We want to see what you’ve got. Send your ideas to henrik@freeskier.com, or hit up @Freeskier on Twitter with the hashtag #MMWUC.

Want more? See 20 stunning images from the 2013 Freeskier Photo Annual.

The post MMWUC: One of 2013′s best jump sessions and an awkward news blooper appeared first on .

*This article originally appeared in the 2013 FREESKIER Photo Annual. Subscribe to the magazine, or get it on the iTunes Newsstand.

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The post You’ll wish you were a part of “80′s day in Engelberg” appeared first on .

The post Guy stomps backflip-to-pond-skim at Big Sky while wearing one-piece bathing suit appeared first on .

Q&A:

I read on Facebook that you got pulled over. What made this particular encounter with the law so unique?

I got a 1975 Honda CB400 motorcycle.  It doesn’t have insurance, registration, front headlights or blinkers. Long story short, I got pulled over. The cop asked me my occupation and I told him I was a skier. He told me he’d kicked Toy Soldier Productions’ guys out of a few spots around town. But that he was also a huge fan of their films. Whatever they hit over on “Ellis” is apparently his favorite shot. Still wrote me a ticket though.

Congrats on winning 3rd in the X Games Real Ski contest. Did you think you’d ever end up with an X Games medal around your neck?

Thank you. To answer your question, no, I didn’t.

You were the only competitor to film almost your entire segment outside of North America. How did you end up in France?

I was just going to over there for Linecatcher and then planned to go to B.C. afterwards, but it got warm in B.C. So I just hung out, and Europe was good. Leo Taillefer, his homie Yann, and Raf Ragazzoni showed me around a bunch of spots. It was probably one of the best trips I have ever had, actually.

Does filming in Europe offer any advantages (or disadvantages) over filming in North America?

Disadvantage: Chez Bou Bou Genepi hangovers. [Genepi is a local specialty liqueur in the Savoy region of France, and Chez Bou Bou is the hangout in Les Arcs.] The advantages are lift access to zones, and a predominant 80’s “groomer exclusive” type skier who won’t track your shit.

You went to Nashville to edit your Real Ski segment and record the track for it. How was that? 

We came up with it hunting this summer on the Missouri River. I stayed in way too nice of a hotel, went and saw live music every night. I actually gave a bum ten bucks ’cause he told me he just had brain surgery, and two nights later I caught him tripping on acid. We had a good-ass time.

What was that food you said you ate there?

Pulled pork on sweet potato pancakes. If that’s not Southern I don’t know what is.

2013 Real Ski Backcountry: Parker White

It was sick that you got second at Linecatcher. Was doing that event a break from your usual schedule? What was it like skiing and competing with guys like Sage, Richard Permin and Rory Bushfield?

Well, being at an event or a competition in general is pretty different for me. Every person who was in that contest, in my book, is cool as f#ck. Nobody was there to win. Not that I could tell anyways. That’s how it should be.

Had you been to Europe before?

Yeah, I went to Champery, Switzerland with Level 1 last year. When I was sixteen I came to France for a big air and rail jam to try and gain support for the Olympics. Kind of ironic.

Why is that ironic? Are you anti-Olympics?

It’s a little more complicated than anti- or pro-Olympics. It’s good for a lot of reasons, and it’s bad for a lot of reasons. It’s going to bring more attention, but the way that it will effectively shape park and halfpipe skiing is a bad thing. People will ski in a very specific way and it won’t be as free-minded or original.

Do you think there’s a chance for FIS to learn from the mistakes of the past?

No. I think that FIS thinks in a very specific way. Hopefully it will put our sport as a whole out to a larger crowd. Say that a million more people find out about freestyle skiing. Maybe fifty thousand of those will go out and buy a Level 1 video. It’ll indirectly benefit the sport, but directly, what it’ll do to the sports that it’s controlling is bad.

What’s your take on backcountry freestyle? You came up as a park skier, and now you’ve graduated to the level of an all-mountain shredder.

I started out skiing park, but the more and more I ski pow and mountains, that’s what I really like. I can still incorporate the park side into it, which is cool, but the more I shred pow the less I want to do anything else.

Do you think there will come a time when all you want to do is ski powder?

I think that’s kind of where I’m at right now.

How much harder is it to stomp a 720 off a cliff than on a park jump?

You have to think for yourself. When you’re skiing backcountry or urban, nothing’s perfect. It’s not like “Here’s the in-run, start here,” to a perfect-transition landing. You have to adapt to what’s there, instead of having features that are just given to you.

You had a lot of success last year. Do you feel that success?

It feels good to put a lot of effort into something and be rewarded for it. It makes you feel like what you’re doing is worthwhile. It’s cool to have that recognition and know that people see what you’re doing.

How’s the rest of your season shaping up?

Well, I [was in] Pemberton to heli ski with Bibby, T-Rains, Wiley, and Freedle. High Fives’ TRAiNS event… and now Sun Valley [with Level 1]. Then after that I have no idea.

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“Andrew Whiteford stomps a massive backflip in the Jackson Hole backcountry!”

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On display were a collection of large prints showcasing the 2013 Photo Annual selections, in addition to a handful of our favorite Sarah Burke shots. All of the photographs were available for purchase through a silent auction, with the proceeds benefitting the Sarah Burke Foundation.

Today, a few months later—after tracking down the last bit of promised money—we are pleased to present a check for $4,704.35 to the foundation. The funds will support the group’s mission to further the generous ideals and spirit to which Sarah dedicated her life.

Given the success of the exhibition in its first go-round, we’ll be looking to make this an annual affair. We extend thanks once again to all who joined us in Denver for the occasion, in addition to the photographers who were generous enough to allow their work to be auctioned off.

If you are interested in supporting the Sarah Burke Foundation further, visit sarahburkefoundation.com. Read more about Freeskier’s Photo Annual exhibition here.

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Our friends at RESQWATER are hosting a contest via the brand’s Facebook page, where users have an opportunity to upload a photo for a chance to win a custom Sole bicycle.

Here’s how it works:

1) Head over to the RESQWATER Facebook page.
2) Like the page.
3) Upload a photo through Facebook or Instagram, apply the #RESQWATER hashtag.
4) Boom! You’re eligible to win. Contest ends 4/29, so don’t delay—submit a photo today.

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“evo exclusive! Eric Pollard’s POV mashup from Nimbus Independent.”

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Age: 29
Hometown: Christmas Valley, CA
Mountain: Kirkwood Mountain Resort
Sponsors: Salomon, Dakine, Kirkwood Resort, Clif Bar, Smith Optics, Discrete, Mountains Calling
Results: Freeskiing World Tour champion, 2012

By Josh:

I grew up just outside of Detroit in the town of Rochester. It’s a completely different lifestyle than what I have grown accustomed to while living in the mountains. Life seems to revolve around work there. My folks are the hardest working people I have ever met. There’s a totally different mentality in Detroit: it’s all work and no play. Which is almost opposite of the way I live my life. I work hard so I can play as much as possible.

From a young age, my parents would take me, my brothers and sister skiing up in the northern part of Michigan. We would only get to ski a couple times a year, but we always had so much fun. I remember the first time my parents took the family on a ski vacation to Colorado. I was so captivated by the mountains and knew that one day I had to live in the mountains.

It wasn’t until high school that I really fell in love with skiing. My cousins and I joined the high school ski team so we could catch a bus ride up to the local hill everyday. We would skip race practice to play on the mini jumps in the “snowboarder park” and explore the expansive terrain of Pine Knob’s 200 feet of vert(!) It wasn’t much, but it got us on our skis and we loved every minute of it.

Throughout my years in high school, I worked two jobs and saved all my money toward moving out west to be a “ski bum.” I worked my ass off, and after graduating high school, I moved to South Lake Tahoe.

Q&A:

How has your skiing progressed over the years? Ten years ago when I moved to Lake Tahoe from Michigan I could hardly buy a turn, I just loved skiing and shredding with my friends. I’d work my ass off all summer and save my duckets to ski every day in the winter. Skiing with Freeski World Tour legend and Kirkwood hero, Craig Garbiel, really changed my skiing. He pushed me to be a better skier. Skiing with Craig, I learned to ski faster, smoother and how to take airs to my feet.

Any big crashes or injuries that changed your outlook on skiing? Over the years, skiing has inflicted multiple injuries from broken ankles, to torn knee ligaments, to broken ribs. Sadly enough, I have experienced them all. Never did these injuries slow me down, or make me question, “What am I doing?” I am always eager to get back on the horse and go ski again. There’s an internal drive in me that just keeps pushing me to go bigger, faster, smoother, better.

Best place you have skied? That’s tough. There are so many amazing places to ski all over the world. Sorry to be “that guy,” but what really makes skiing a certain place awesome is enjoying where you’re at, at that given time, with the people you are surrounded by. Living in the moment.

Describe your skiing style. My style is simple. I’m your typical big-mountain skier. I like to ski fast, hit big airs and send big backies to my feet.

Future for you? Skiing’s future? It seems the natural progression of a skier these days is park to powder to mountaineer. I am definitely inspired by what kids are doing in the park, but unfortunately it’s a little over my head. I would say I’m in my “powder” stage, so naturally I’d like to progress toward ski mountaineering. It’s really cool to see the lines and faces that people are skiing these days… kind of sickening, really.

In terms of fitness, what do you do to stay on top of your game when you’re off the snow? The best training I have found for skiing is mountain biking. They are very similar sports. Biking keeps the body strong, brain quick and it’s a whole lot of fun, too.

You work with creative filmers… Salomon Freeski TV, for example. Do you like where ski movies are heading? I am stoked to be working with SFTV. Those guys are arguably the best in the game. It’s hard to find new ways to keep ski porn interesting and creative. I like that more films have veered from individual segments and are focused more on telling a story. It reminds me of the old Greg Stump movies. Classic!

Are you filming with anyone else this year? Aside from SFTV, my GoPro occasionally, if that counts?

Ski Objectives? Any “Shining Glory” you want to ski? I want to go heli skiing in AK!

Bucket list? Before I die, I really want to fly a wingsuit off a large cliff.

Places you want to travel too? I have never been anywhere tropical. I want to go to the beach, swim in warm water, learn to surf, go mountain biking and wrap up the day with a base jump… wait, was this supposed to go under my bucket list?

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“Traveling Circus GoPro extras from Japan!”

Related:

- Will Wesson’s GoPro footage from Japan will make you want to ski right now

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