Photography: Matt Roebke | Featured Image Skier: Dane Kirk
Every summer, Timberline, Mt. Hood is engulfed by some of the most dedicated skiers in the world. As the summer slips away, these skiers, deeply embedded in the fabric of freeski culture, continue to add to the zeitgeist. Perhaps there is no better group to symbolize this passionate pact of year-round skiers than the Salomon Départ team. When we heard that members of this exciting project had descended into Oregon this summer, we could hardly contain our excitement.
Salomon Départ represents the brand’s long-awaited re-emergence into the world of freeskiing. Their new ski, the Départ 1.0, was designed and built by an incredible team made of up filmers, skiers and creatives. Three members of the Départ team, Dane Kirk, Sämi Ortlieb and Gavin Rudy, made it to Mt. Hood this summer.
Kirk is a wild Kiwi with a background that ranges from slopestyle competitions to Level 1 SuperUnknown. Rudy is a wildly talented and creative filmmaker who is the brains behind many of the incredible movies from Strictly. He can also hold his own with the best of them in the park. Ortlieb is the mastermind behind the Départ project who needs no introduction. For over a decade, he has been one of the most creative and respected freeskiers around.
These three all approach skiing in different ways; both in their careers and technical styles on the hill. However, this is what makes the Départ team so fun. They all bring a mixed bag of talents but a shared vision to make skiing more creative and inclusive. Luckily for us, Matt Roebke was positioned behind the lens while the Départ team spent a week at Timberline. With one of the best eyes in snowsports, Roebke captured Kirk, Ortlieb and Rudy in their element. While Timberline is soon ending summer operations, allow this gallery to tie you over until we’re all spinning hot laps in a few short months.
“I feel like I’ve met them before and skied with them in another life. Sämi humbly crushes through snow and designed a ski that looks at home on the mountain or on the beach. Danes’ powerful style and Gavin’s loose flow all tie together perfectly. We rode half pipe all of session 5 thanks to deep snowpack. Balancing photos between snow, ski and bike can be a challenge but every time we linked on the hill the Départ team made it worthwhile. It’s truly the best to shoot with them.” – Photographer Mat Roebke
