“We may be pretty old by the time [climate change] really impacts us. But I’ve got two kids and I’d like them to grow up and have powder days too.”
Last April, I spent a day down at Kirkwood watching skiers Bobby Brown, Gus Kenworthy, PK Hunder and Russ Henshaw ride the biggest slopestyle course any of us had ever seen. It covered the entire length of the mountain and had six giant features. They called it, appropriately, MegaSlope. We’ve all had to keep the project mum since April, but today, the news is out about the private Red Bull course. Check out my story from Kirkwood, which went up today the homepage of ESPN.com.
Silver Lining
This was the Airstream that really kicked off my obsession with the sleek, silver trailers. I’ve still never slept in an Airstream but someday, I have a hunch I may own one. For now, though, I’ll just keep looking at them like eye candy on the highway.
Here’s an essay I wrote recently for Elevation Outdoors magazine about Airstreams and how to enjoy one if even if you can’t afford one.
Adventure Photography Workshop
In the journalism world, there are words people and there are photo people. I’ve always been a words person, someone whose best form of storytelling was through letters, phrases, characters, quotes. But I’ve always enjoyed photography and a few years ago, I bought myself a nice camera, which I still barely know how to use.
Which is why I decided to sign up for this Adventure Photography Workshop in Jackson, Wyoming, in September. We’ll spend a week photographing climbing, kayaking, mountain biking, trail running, camping and more and learning from top professional photographers and editors. It’s not too late to sign up if you want to join me!
Road Less Traveled
You know those top 10 lists you see on magazines covers? The 10 best adventure hotspots! 10 places you must ski before you die! 10 most scenic campsites in the country! Yeah, those lists. I’ve penned my fair share of those lists over the years and I always feel a little guilty about it. The locals who love those places have to deal with the random magazine readers who actually show up in their private stashes. And putting something on the map and telling people where to go eliminates that feeling of exploration, like you’re actually discovering something on your own.
I wrote an essay about this very subject for the summer issue of Mountain Magazine, on stands now. And in case you still need a little direction on where to start your next adventure, I’ve also written up a few of my favorite off-the-beaten path spots. But the moral here? Don’t take my advice. Go out on your own, chart your own path.
Oh, and that photo above? I took that of my friend Drew on a mud-clogged road en route to a volcano in Iceland (we were trying to go skiing). It was pouring rain and the van eventually couldn’t continue on down the road, so we stopped, had a picnic in the rain and then turned around. An epic time, on a road you’d never find in a magazine…
“As far as the story, we don’t want to do a traditional adventure film in terms of ‘We planned, we came, we conquered, we left.’ We want it to be more of a human story, but we’re not sure what that’s going to look like.”
“The mountains are demanding the best out of us. In that way we really get to know who we are in a very short amount of time.”
The Kirkwood Messenger
I just returned from a couple of days at Kirkwood ski area, near South Lake Tahoe. I was there covering the Freeride World Tour for ESPN.com (that’s me, above, speaking with women’s winner Jackie Paaso). I first wrote about the Freeride World Tour as a feature for Skiing Magazine, around 2008 when the European tour first launched. Since then, the tour has evolved and merged with the Freeskiing World Tour. It’s still an incredible display of raw talent in the mountains. If you have time, please check out my story about Peter Hawks, the father of Ryan Hawks, who was killed at the FWT at Kirkwood in 2011. Peter is doing incredible things with the foundation he set up in his son’s honor, the Flyin’ Ryan Foundation.
Women's Movement
So many magazines and websites geared toward women are filled with fluff: beauty and sex tips, how to tone your abs in the gym, and the perfect $200 sequin tank top. There really aren’t many (or any?) publications for women who like to spend time outside, travel, and care about the world at large and want real, honest stories aimed at intelligent women. Introducing WomensMovement.com, a new site started by my friend Erinn Morgan that finally offers women smart stories related to travel, adventure, health, fitness, gear and more.
My first story for the site is an interview with my friend Elyse Saugstad (pictured above, photo by the talented Heather Erson). Elyse was the only survivor of the Tunnel Creek avalanche that killed three of our friends last February. It’s been nearly a year since that day and not a day has passed that I don’t think about what happened and the three men we lost. I still have so much sadness, regret, and grief. But there is one good thing that came from that day: We got to keep Elyse, and for that, I’m extremely thankful.
Sometimes it takes a storm to see the light. I took this photo of my friend Sam in a snowcat on a cold, windy day on Jones Pass, Colorado.
Snowfall: The New York Times
Today, the New York Times published a story called “Snowfall: The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek,” which gives a 16,000 word, gripping account of the avalanche on the backside of Stevens Pass last winter that claimed the lives of three incredible men. It is one of the longest stories the New York Times has ever run and the interactive media components of the project are sure to set the stage for what’s possible in the future of digital media.
I was there that horrific day and wrote about it for Outside Magazine in October in a story called “Tunnel Vision.” When New York Times writer John Branch first contacted me about his piece, I was skeptical. How was he going to paint the picture of what happened that day? What kind of judgment would he pass on our decision making? And, when 34 people were killed in avalanches last winter, why has there been so much media attention on this one in particular? (See Gawker for more on that.) In the end, John Branch did a truly exceptional job — he offered the most detailed, well-reported account of that day I’ve ever heard, he explained the lure of backcountry skiing to a mainstream audience, and most importantly, he honored Chris, Jim, and Johnny.
My love goes out to their families and everyone involved that day. I’m sorry we have to re-live it again, but if stories like “Snowfall” help even one person avoid the same situation we found ourselves in, then I am thankful.
Sportgevity
Robb Gaffney—the Squaw Valley-based former extreme skier and current PhD who literally wrote the book on the gnarliest lines at Squaw—recently launched a new website called Sportgevity.com, which seeks to shift the outdoor and action sports industry to prioritize longevity and sustainability in sports. The sites uses academic research, interviews with long-lasting athletes, and other experts to help offer smart, safe ways to stay in your sport for as long as possible.
I believe in what Robb is doing, which is why I’ve started writing for his site as well. You can check out my interview with Jasper Shealy, an expert on ski-related injuries, and my interview with mountain guide Martin Volken about smart decision making in the backcountry. Stay tuned to Sportgevity.com for more stories, too!
Into the Mind
I’m fascinated by the idea of what goes on in an athlete’s brain before and during their sport. Especially amongst skiers, a breed of people who seem willing to take massive risks for the chance to enjoy a few undisturbed powder turns. Which is why I was particularly interested and in awe of the new trailer recently released by Sherpas Cinemas for their new film, “Into the Mind,” which will debut in the fall of 2013. The film will examine skiers’ psychological process of risk taking and decision making in the mountains. The trailer is beautifully produced. Read more about the film in this story by Molly Baker on ESPN Freeskiing.
Reset, Refresh
I just finished up a two-day avalanche refresher course here in Tahoe, taught by the honorable Lel Tone, Alaskan heli guide, Squaw Valley ski patroller, and avalanche educator and forecaster. My peers in the class were a collection of some of Tahoe’s most talented female skiers, including Ingrid Backstrom, Michelle Parker, Elyse Saugstad, Amie Engerbretson, Jackie Passo, and Sherry McConkey — a good reminder that even pro skiers are getting refresher courses in avy education. We did some classroom work (looking at case studies, analyzing terrain and route selection, discussing human factors and decision making, and more) and then did some rescue scenarios and practiced searching with our beacons out in the snow. Find an avalanche course near you at www.avalanche.org. Here are some photos from the course.
The manuals.
Elyse Saugstad with her four backcountry essentials: beacon, shovel, probe, ABS backpack.
From left, Lel Tone watches as Ingrid Backstrom and Jackie Paaso rehearse a rescue scenario.
Amie Engerbretson, Michelle Parker, and Sherry McConkey practice pulling a BCA airbag pack.