The LINE Traveling Circus has been a part of my life since its inception on the porch of J Lev’s house in ‘08. Andy and Will didn’t want to get real jobs and were looking to us to help them achieve that goal. I’m happy we were able to support it, help to show the world how fun any type of skiing can be while taking the viewer all over the place and introducing them to such passionate skiers from all walks of life.
Will Wesson is to Andy Parry as Penn is to Teller. They’re both super talented but one talks a bunch while the other lets his skiing do the talking. They’ve been friends forever but are totally different people who share the same passion for a life of funemployment and new adventures no matter how weird they may be. The best thing about them is the complete lack of ego and an unwavering mindset of spreading the positivity of skiing, friends and life.
The mind of Eric Pollard is so damn multi-faceted I still can’t figure it out. Whether it be art, ski design or just life itself, he’s always coming up with ways to inspire me. His work ethic and positive outlook on life is infectious and inspires everyone around him to be a better person.
Failed backflips are tough to swallow as I’ve prided myself on doing a nice smooth backflip ‘til the day I die. Sometimes that just isn’t in the cards though and you lose your train of thought. A word of advice is don’t perform a failed backflip around Eric Pollard because that jackass will never let you hear the end of it. EP is one of the kindest human beings I know but has a sadistic pleasure of messing with people and an uncanny ability to never miss when punting a soccer ball at your ass when you lose in Duff. It’s ridiculous. Oh, and if he was pointing a camera at you when you royally screwed up the entire skiing world will know in the blink of an Instagram post. Watch out.
It’s seriously the worst when I find myself complaining about something in my life. I have good health, great friends and a sweet job that gives me the vehicle to see the world and meet more like-minded individuals. So I get bummed out, when I get bummed out.
The coolest place my job has sent me was Zermatt, Switzerland in 2009. I was 24 and found out last minute that I was going to go over to Europe for the first time. After 24 hours of travel I found myself staring at the Matterhorn taking shots of Fernet with Seth Morrison. It was a six day touring trip around Switzerland promoting Full Tilt Boots with Seth, whom I’d never met before, along with two others in a truck. We drove through the whole country and every stop we made we met more people halfway around the world who were just as passionate about skiing as I was. It was humbling and empowering to have the opportunity to be with such awesome people and to representing a brand I love.
My all-time favorite place to ski is Okemo Resort in Vermont. My family has had a funky ’70s ski cottage there since 1988. I grew up skiing there on the weekends with my two brothers and sister. It was a funny little area and has grown so much throughout the years but still has the down home East Coast skiing feeling. Maching over the rollers on World Cup; sneaking into the “snowboarders only” pipe and park; going in and out of the trees on Sachem and skiing through the woods on a self cut trail my dad made was awesome. Now my brother’s two kids are growing up skiing the same stuff and experiencing the same things which makes me happy.
The Pacific Northwest has been my home for over seven years and I’ve still only scratched the surface of its potential. Sure it’s gray and rainy sometimes but when it’s nice, it is the utopia of living. There’s ocean, mountains and city life that keeps you entertained everyday. Everyone should at least experience life in the upper left.
I hope skiing personally stays a top priority in my life that I can teach my future kids and enjoy the rest of my life. It keeps me grounded and gives me a sense of freedom that I haven’t found anywhere else. Skiing with friends is all time but I actually enjoy skiing by myself just as much. It gives me time to go my own speed, not wait for anyone, be on my own program and think. I like to just put everything else on the back burner and enjoy the day for what it is.
Professionally I hope skiing stays as positive for me as it’s always been. A wise man once said “It’s just skiing!” It should not be a source of frustration or pain. I just hope everyone around me stays safe and grounded. There’s too much one-upsmanship and G.N.A.R points going on these days. Everybody just chill out, no one cares you’re killing it more than the other guy.
The best professional advice I’ve ever gotten was from my favorite college professor, Dave Kaufman at the University of Vermont. He said “don’t burn bridges,” because you never know when you’re going to need a favor from that jackass teacher or boss or magazine editor, just kidding on the last one. If you let negativity get the best of you then you’ve lost. Also I’ve learned to never use the word “I” too much because everything is a team effort and you’re only as strong as the people around you.
The best personal advice is that my mom taught me to just be nice to people and that’s a pretty good way to get ahead in life.
Related: Things I’ve Learned: Mike Gutt bleeds K2 and has for almost 16 years
