The Wizard. Photo by: Andrew McLean
If you’ve spent some time in the Wasatch backcountry, you probably have crossed paths with a grizzled dude with twinkle in his eye. That guy is the Wizard of the Wasatch, Bob Athey.
“I was going to be a lawyer, but I discovered powder snow,” Athey says. “So I went skiing instead, and have been working on a different education.” Read More …
Making out with the twins at the end of our first date.
It was my friend Kevin who first hooked us up. “Come on, you’re going to love them. You three will get along so well. They’ll change your life.”
“Yeah man, I hear ya, but they’re way too tall for me, and… how can I put this delicately? They’re really fat!”
Hey, they may have some extra girth at the waist, but they’re really curvy, and that makes a huge difference. Just take them out for an afternoon, have yourself a quickie, and you’ll understand.”
Kevin spent a little more time convincing me, and eventually I gave in. I agreed to take the Megawatts out for a date. I wasn’t sure if Kevin was right, but I’m a pretty open-minded guy and willing to try (almost) anything once.
Photo courtesy Ski the Himalayas
Ski The Himalayas, a 90-minute documentary that chronicles three climbers’ 2009 and 2010 attempts at climbing and skiing 23,389-foot Baruntse is on Dish Network Pay Per View through April 14, 2011. Read More …
Backcountry.com fraud manager Jamon Whitehead stripping his skin during a pre-work tour.
You met up at 6:00 in the morning and have been skinning for two hours. Now you’re on the ridge and ready to drop in. Well, almost. You unclip your bindings, take off your skis, and sink into your waist in the two feet of freshies that fell last night. Then you peel your skins one at a time, but you get snow stuck to the bottom since you’re waist deep in it (good luck putting those back on for lap two). Looking around at your friends, you realize that they’re already ready and not-so-patiently waiting for you to finish your yard sale. You still need to stomp out a platform and crawl back to the surface, buckle your boots, stash your skins, and put your skis back on. After that, you better ski your ass off to make sure you get invited back tomorrow.
How did your friends go through all those steps so quickly? They didn’t. They stripped their skins and adjusted their boots without ever taking off their skis. Put a little practice into this simple trick and you won’t be the one that everyone else is waiting for.
Jamon Whitehead and Pip Hunt discuss their options before dropping into the soup.
“Think for yourself / Question authority” — Tool (channeling Timothy Leary)
I took my first avalanche course about 10 years ago and learned a lot about the causes of avalanches. But the most important thing I learned was how to have an opinion and speak my mind when I didn’t like something. My instructor’s lesson was very simple. He skied out in front, and we all followed along. After a while, we ended up above a creek and below a nasty-looking slope. It was a terrible place to be, but I hadn’t even noticed. Then he turned and asked me if I was comfortable standing where I was. I looked around and answered no.
“Then why the hell are you here, Adam?” he asked me.
“Because I was following you.”
“Well, why did you follow me into here?”
“Because you’re teaching the class.”
“So?” he finished. And I turned around and got the hell out of there.
The lesson stuck, and I always take it with me into the mountains. Timothy Leary was right. You should think for yourself and question authority (such as more-experienced skiers). It may just save your life.
Read More …
Andrew McLean
It’s never too early to start thinking about your next epic ski trip. Backcountry.com Pro Athlete Andrew McLean, the StraightChuter himself, gives us the lowdown on how to effectively plan for your next ski adventure.
Being organized and prepared can often make up for any failings in your climbing and skiing ability. You can be the greatest ripper in the world, but if you can’t make it to the base of the peak, thou shall not shred. Read More …
Ski mountaineer Greg Hill
How’s this for a New Year’s resolution: to climb and ski two million vertical feet (609,600 meters) in one year?
Lofty, we think (pun kinda intentional).
Canadian ski mountaineer Greg Hill has set out to do just that.
Sun, snow, and Mt. Superior
With weather worthy of sandals and shorts in Salt Lake City, June 5th, to me, seemed like an excellent day for skiing. Lots of late-season snow and consistent melt/freeze cycles with little rain left considerable coverage on favorable aspects above 8,000 feet. And after more than 20 consecutive weekends of charging down the fall line, the idea of another Saturday without strapping sticks to my feet made me feel a little dead inside. It is an addiction, after all.
Photo courtesy: Petra Cliffs
Last month, three unlucky skiers were caught in a large avalanche in the Alaskan backcountry. Guide Steve Charest of Petra Cliffs and one of the skiers were taken for a ride and partially buried. The other skier was fully buried and nowhere to be seen. Read More …
Photo by: Steve Charest
A few weeks ago I was on the last leg of a red-eye from Los Angeles to my home in Vermont. I was haggard. As I was zoning out at my window seat, a young woman sat down next to me, looking equally as tired. “Are you as ready as I am to get back to Burlington?” I asked.
“You have no idea.”
With a knowing smirk, I waited patiently for the typical sob story of missed connections, bitchy airline employees, and lost baggage.
“I’m coming back from Alaska … I was caught in an avalanche.” Read More …
GTS: Get The Shot
By: Adam Riser | June 25th, 2010No Comments »
This is the beginning of all hell breaking loose, but I missed all the gnar.
“I’m ready!” you tell your friend above, and a couple seconds later hear the distant response of “OK, dropping!” You fire off frames as your friend bursts from the lip of the jump, but he lets out an “Oh S#!T” as soon as he’s in the air, and you both know this is going to end badly. You have two choices. You can either lower your camera, and cringe as your buddy takes a massive digger, or you can hold down the shutter release and fire off frames like a machine gunner making his last stand. Either way, strange as it may seem, the first thing your friend will say when you get over to him is, “Tell me you got a picture of that.”
I’ve seen some pretty nasty stuff happen to friends while I was holding a camera, but I rarely got the defining photo because I didn’t want to be that jerk who stood there taking pictures while his friend got broken off. Read More …
Tags: backcountry skiing, climbing, outdoor photography, photography
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