Cover Photo – Jeremy Bernard

After a 48 hour weather delay, the Austrian skies went blue and the fourth stop of the 2023 Freeride World Tour was a go on Thursday, March 16th! With a stupendous coat of fresh snow, the iconic Wildseeloder mountain could not have been more picturesque. With snow conditions varying around the face and both snowboarding groups having already dropped, there were challenging aspects to the day for our skiers. The remaining riders who made the cut following the previous FWT stop in Kicking Horse, BC were ready to rumble, and we were treated to one of the best performances of the season. The six women and eleven men who dropped in painted their way with a mix of big mountain charging and freestyle creativity; a perfect combination for all who tuned in. Below you’ll find results, highlights, photos and more from Fieberbrunn, Austria.

In the Ski Women’s field three of the six riders struggled to lay down their chosen line. Elisabeth Gerritzen (NS), Addison Rafford and Molly Armanino all encountered challenging conditions on their lines that happened to get the best of them. Molly had an incredible promising run as she charged her way across the entire course, but fell short just near the end as she couldn’t hold on to a large air in the final stretch. These three will undoubtably be hungry for more come time for the Xtreme Verbier. In third place was Megane Betend. The French phenom had an unbelievable recovery a third of the way through her line, as she rode out of what appeared to be an accidental 360 after getting hung up in an incredibly steep and rocky section of the course. While it was a maneuver that left everyone cheering for more, and the rest of her run was executed with style and strength, she was docked points in the Control category. Justine Dufour-Lapointe took home second place, making her the current leader in the Ski Women’s field heading into the fifth and final stop. While Justine’s run was incredible, complete with multiple airs, shifty, and powerful turns, the day belonged to Arianna Tricomi. With six years on the tour and half as many FWT titles, Arianna is no stranger to performing under pressure. She needed to perform great to boost her odds going into the finale, and perform she did. The Italian Stallion took a creative line on the lookers left side of the course, as she hit multiple airs, dialed in a 360, and held pristine control through blazing speeds.

“I had a lot of fun with my run. In some parts, the snow was a bit crusty, and other sections were good, so I came out with a lot of speed at times. My goal was to do a 360, which I did, so I really enjoyed it. Being back on tour is magical for sure!” – Arianna Tricomi

In the Ski Men’s field, we saw three riders, (Marcus Goguen, Max Palm, Finn Bilous) all receive NS on account of tough crashes during their runs. The remaining eight riders struggled to clear over 80 points, with only the top four finishers doing so. Granted, the scoring is challenging in these final two stops, but these scores also point to challenging conditions throughout. When considering this, the top scorers performances are quite admirable. It was the French rookie Oscar Mandin who took third place, adding to his previous second place finish during this years first stop at Baquiera-Beret. Oscar’s line took him to the lookers right of the course, with several large airs and beautiful flat 3. Second place belonged to the reigning FWT Ski Men’s champion Maxime Chabloz. Maxime has been relatively quiet on the tour when compared to his unbelievable performance last year, but the Swiss ripper has still had multiple podiums and is skiing lights out heading into the final stop. He stomped one of the larger backflips we saw out there, and while he was nearly caught up on a landing and a few turns, his staple cork 7 and sturdy turns towards the end brought him the podium. The first place finisher was none other than Andrew Pollard. Alta’s prodigal son put on arguably his best performance of the year, as he demonstrated technical big mountain abilities with a mix of freeride prowess, (including a tasteful daffy). With two lofty 360s and several transfer airs, Andrew painted his was down the Wildseeloder in mesmerizing style.

“It was a long week waiting for the conditions to be right, but we proved that the weather window works and that sometimes delaying the start is the best thing to do. I was happy to put down my run, which is always harder on a long venue like this. I didn’t think I could win anymore with all the young kids on tour, so I am just grateful to be here in Austria and stoked to win.” – Andrew Pollard

Ski Women’s Podium

1. Arianna Tricomi (ITA)
2. Justine Dufour-Lapointe (CAN)
3. Megane Betend (FRA)

Ski Men’s Podium

1. Andrew Pollard (USA)
2. Maxime Chabloz (SUI)
3. Oscar Mandin (FRA)

Click here for the official FWT replay from stop four. With the Yeti Xtreme Verbier finale just a few days away, stay tuned for action ahead. Wax your twigs and get fired up! It’s March Madness on skis, baby.

Photo Gallery

Photos courtesy of the Freeride World Tour

Photography by Jeremy Bernard

Shouldn’t the Freeride World Tour sell riders jerseys? That would be sweet. Xtreme Verbier here we come!

Related:

[Freeride World Tour 2023] Kicking Horse, BC – Stop Three Recap

The post [Freeride World Tour] Fieberbrunn, Austria – Stop Four Recap appeared first on FREESKIER.

Featured image: Izzy Lidsky

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. That’s right, it’s FREESKIER Ski Test, baby! Every season, we at FREESKIER gather a gaggle of the best skiers we know to hop on a variety of next year’s planks from myriad of brands. From brand-new constructions to totally unconventional designs and everything in between, we’ve employed our dedicated testers to ride, review and ultimately rate the best planks of the season for you—those who live to ski—to froth over in our annual Buyer’s Guide in the fall.

This season we are back at it again at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort for the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test. Notorious for its steep, demanding terrain, legendary snowfall—especially this season—and diehard locals who prioritize skiing over everything else, we couldn’t be in a better place to test the latest and greatest new product from some of the best brands in the biz.

Beyond the epic turns and non-stop faceshots, FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test is about bringing together stand-out humans to celebrate the weird and wonderful act of sliding down snow. Après parties, high fives and good vibes round out the week as we bask in the culture of this incomparable experience. And none of this would be possible without the support from our partners… our resort host Jackson Hole, the experienced testing crew at The Ski Monster, which also happens to be one of the best online and brick-and-mortar gear shops around, Continuum Hotel and Bar for housing our crew right at the base of the mountain all week, the famous Mangy Moose for all things après and live music, and Coors Light for fueling the madness once the lifts stop spinning and carry late into the evenings.

Now, we want to give you a peek behind the scenes at FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test with a photo gallery from the entire week. Stay tuned online for complete coverage and follow us on Facebook and Instagram; check out the hashtag #FREESKIERFEST for more; and be sure to subscribe to the print-version of the magazine to see the complete results from the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test land on your doorstep in the fall.

FULL WEEK PHOTO GALLERY

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it time and time again: We could not have a successful FREESKIER Ski Test without our incredibly talented and dedicated team of testers. Work hard, play harder is the name of the ski test game and it’s not for the faint of heart. We expect high-octane energy all week and a critical test for every pair of planks our testers step into. Early mornings, late nights and bell-to-bell skiing dominate the four days we take over Jackson Hole Mountain Resort but our testers never waver.

As a way to succinctly wrap up the week, we’ve compiled the largest gallery of the week, below, featuring our debaucherous testers in their absolute prime. From our welcome party the first night at the Mangy Moose, to many ski turns on the mountain, our epic après party at the Continuum Hotel Bar and our very fancy, very exclusive FREESKIERFEST Gala, we rolled out the red carpet—and Coors Light—for our band of misfits this week. Complete with our coveted denim vest awards and a few inaugural specialties to those who have devoted an ungodly amount of time to our tests year after year, including Henrik Lampert winning the Top Dog award, Geoff Curtis taking home the OG award and Ian Doherty claiming the [name] award.

Keep scrolling for the full photo gallery.

Related:

FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Day 4 Recap and Photo Gallery

The post FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Full Recap and Photo Gallery appeared first on FREESKIER.

“News Flash” is FREESKIER’s online column designed to keep you up-to-date with snippets of outdoor news you need to know about. This article is published weekly on Wednesdays and updated throughout the week.

Recent snowfall extends Snowshoe Mountain’s 2023 season

Many ski areas on the east coast have been blessed by the recent snowfall, including West Virginia’s Snowshoe Mountain. The ski area originally planned to call it a season on March 26 but will now operate through April 2.

Mikaela Shiffrin claims most World Cup wins of any skier, male or female

Mikaela Shiffrin has once again made history by claiming her 87th World Cup win—the most of any ski racer, male or female, ever. The historical moment took place in Are, Sweden, where the ski racer won her first World Cup title when she was just 15.

LINE athletes dominate the fourth stop of Level 1’s Rail Jam Tour

For Level 1’s fourth stop on the Rail Jam Tour, LINE athletes Tucker Fitzsimons, Marion Balsamo, Jackson Karsteter, Liam Baxter and Brain Gardiner all came out swinging for the coveted cash prize. When all was said and done Fitzsimons and Balsamo claimed the giant checks and bragging rights.

School’s out for Matej Svancer

You know what’s even better than graduating high school? Skiing through the damn building to celebrate. Matej Svancer is done with academics (for now) and he’s going out in Matej Svancer style.

FWT athletes make the most of their downtime

A postponement in the FWT competition schedule doesn’t necessarily mean these athletes are sitting around doing nothing. Follow the FWT ski men around as they make the most of the conditions and spare time.

Veronica Paulsen sits down with Out of Bounds

Veronica Paulsen has etched her name in skiing’s history book as the first woman to ever throw and land a backflip into Corbet’s Couloir during the iconic Kings and Queens event in 2020 and earning the crown. This year, Paulsen doubled down in the competition by attempting a double backflip—twice! She may not have stomped the dub but she won the People’s Choice Award and now she sits down with Adam of Out of Bounds to talk about the experience, what it’s like living in a mountain town and the progression of her professional ski career.

Michelle Parker brings Mark Abma onto the podcast

Two legends sit down together in Michelle Parker’s latest episode of her podcast, Care Less Do More. Mark Abma and Michelle talk about Abma’s 20-plus-year-career as a professional skier and what he’s up to these days. Hint: He’s STILL filming with MSP!

Seamus Flanagan gets candid on Two Planker Podcast

Arguably one of the most underrated skiers in the game, Two Planker sits down with Seamus Flanagan to talk about his rising career. Having two banger parts in Strictly’s ‘Delete’ and Child Labor’s ‘Why Not?’, Flanagan is on an absolute tear.

Related:

News Flash: Week of March 1, 2023

The post News Flash: Week of March 15, 2023 appeared first on FREESKIER.

Featured image: Trevor Brown, Jr./X Games

If you haven’t been paying attention to skiing’s golden boy, Colby Stevenson, we’re genuinely curious what you’ve been doing with your life the last few months. From claiming slopestyle gold at X Games in January, to an insane winning run off of Jackson’s famed Corbet’s Couloir and clinching yet another gold at Dew Tour’s Super Streetstyle, Stevenson is sweeping every single competition he enters. But his storied career doesn’t end there, he’s also a wizard on a snowmobile and doesn’t shy away from big backcountry lines.

Whether he’s stepping into a high-stakes start gate or teeing up a line for this year’s Good Company ski film, Stevenson has etched his name in skiing’s history books as one of the most well-rounded skiers in the game. Ever. His tenacity and ability to put a run down under pressure is second to none so we at FREESKIER wanted to catch up with Stevenson to understand how he does it all, and does it all so well. Keep reading for the full Q&A, below. 

You are on an absolute tear this year, having claimed gold at X Games, Kings and Queens, and Dew Tour, so far. Which win was the most satisfying to take home?

I would definitely say X Games gold because slopestyle is still my favorite thing to do and it’s definitely the most artistic and challenging to create a run. Also having my whole family there and my best friend. I won in 2020 and the last couple years I just barely messed up my run—that’s what made it so special, solidifying that I could do it again. 

I’ve heard some mumblings you’re also working on a film project, can you give us a sneak peek into what that project is going to look like? 

I’m filming with Good Company, which is Tom Wallisch and friends. I brought my roommate on this year, Jack Francis—this is his first year filming but he got a really sick camera and we started filming in December. We got some crazy shots in Jackson in early December and that kind of set the tone for the rest of the year, we’ve been filming a bunch of jumps and skiing lines. I’m really hyped with where we’re at, even if we stopped filming now I still think I would have a crazy part but we’ve got a lot more trips ahead and I’m really excited to be working on a movie project with friends. I haven’t had a full segment in a video really ever, I filmed IGNITE in 2019—a five-minute backcountry video—and I’ve really just been waiting for a year that I could top that but I wanted my next major film segment to show even crazier stuff. I’m really hyped. 

Do you ever sleep? 

You are a few years out from a catastrophic car accident, do you think in some weird or twisted way that accident was meant to happen and set you up for the path you’re on? 

Definitely. Some would say it’s just a healthy way to think about it but I definitely know in my heart that it happened for a reason. It gave me a new mindset and way to go about life, this new appreciation for life that I wouldn’t have otherwise. I’m really grateful I was able to come out of it healthy and with a redesigned plan. Also just realizing that it happened and I can now inspire other people to push through major injuries and terrible things that happen in life in general. All the worst things to happen to you in life are moments for growth. 

If you had to choose just one ski discipline for the rest of your life, steel or pow? 

It would definitely be pow because it’s such a finite resource we get to ride and it’s so limited. There are only so many places in the world where you can ride deep pow. It’s a lot easier on the body, too. It’s been my plan all along to ride steel and park and slopestyle for as long as I can and feel the need or want to, and then work on that transition of lifelong powder skiing and filming. The older I get the more I realize I will be surfing and skiing pow my whole life, that’s all I want to do. Just going to do whatever I can to make that happen.

What gets your creative juices flowing more, competition or film creation?

They are completely different creative juices for me. I love building a slopestyle run, that’s just my favorite art form. The backcountry is totally different. Before you build a jump, you’re visualizing where you’re going to put it and what tricks you’re going to do. That whole process is really fulfilling. Also just skiing lines, taking a photo of the line from the bottom and visualizing which tricks you’re going to do where, and then actually skiing it you see the differences of what you visualized and what you can actually do—I think that is such a cool and creative part of freeriding. You don’t always do what you visualize but it usually ends up pretty cool.

What do you wish to see more of in the ski industry? 

I wish to see more freeride-style events that aren’t the Freeride World Tour. I think there’s a lot of space for that and I think there are a lot of riders who would do well in that. I think that’s a side of the sport that still needs to be developed. I could see myself in a few years host an event like Travis Rice’s Natural Selection. 

What does the perfect ski day look like to you? 

It would probably be a mid-week sleeper pow day where you ski the resort the first half of the day then go get on my snowmobile, maybe even hit a pow-surf lap [laughs]. Then finish off the day in a hot tub with an ice cold Pacifico. 

Who is someone you’ve never skied with but wish to and why? 

Candide. I’ve never skied with him but I’ve met him a couple times. It would be so sick to ski the resort with him and just follow him around for the day. He’s the smoothest, he’s the best, he’s the one we all idolize and I think it would be so fun to follow his line. 

You’ve got three seats in a heli to fill, who are you taking? They can be dead or alive.

Oh shit…Definitely Seth Morrison is the first to come to mind. He’s my biggest idol for Alaska and heli skiing. Growing up watching him huck 100-foot cliffs, like who is this freak? And then…damn, that’s a tough question. Who else? I think Sammy C because I see him and I skiing the same terrain and feeding off of each other. One more spot to fill, dead or alive, I’m gonna have to go with Shane McConkey, the GOAT of GOATs. That would be insane, can you imagine!? Oh my god that would be the sickest heli ever [laughs]. 

Related:

Historical moments from X Games Aspen 2023

The post [Q&A] Catching up with Colby Stevenson — Skiing’s golden boy has swept every competition he’s entered this year and that’s not all he’s up to this winter appeared first on FREESKIER.

IMAGES: Elise Sterck

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. That’s right, it’s FREESKIER Ski Test, baby! Every season, we at FREESKIER gather a gaggle of the best skiers we know to hop on a variety of next year’s planks from myriad of brands. From brand-new constructions to totally unconventional designs and everything in between, we’ve employed our dedicated testers to ride, review and ultimately rate the best planks of the season for you—those who live to ski—to froth over in our annual Buyer’s Guide in the fall.

This season we are back at it again at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort for the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test. Notorious for its steep, demanding terrain, legendary snowfall—especially this season—and diehard locals who prioritize skiing over everything else, we couldn’t be in a better place to test the latest and greatest new product from some of the best brands in the biz.

Beyond the epic turns and non-stop faceshots, FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test is about bringing together stand-out humans to celebrate the weird and wonderful act of sliding down snow. Après parties, high fives and good vibes round out the week as we bask in the culture of this incomparable experience. And none of this would be possible without the support from our partners… our resort host Jackson Hole, the experienced testing crew at The Ski Monster, which also happens to be one of the best online and brick-and-mortar gear shops around, Continuum Hotel and Bar for housing our crew right at the base of the mountain all week, the famous Mangy Moose for all things après and live music, and Coors Light for fueling the madness once the lifts stop spinning and carry late into the evenings.

Now, we want to give you a peek behind the scenes at FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test with a photo gallery from the entire week. Stay tuned online for complete coverage and follow us on Facebook and Instagram; check out the hashtag #FREESKIERFEST for more; and be sure to subscribe to the print-version of the magazine to see the complete results from the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test land on your doorstep in the fall.

DAY FOUR — March 9th, 2023

IT’S THE FINAL COUNT DOWN! You know the rest. Day 4 marked our LAST day of testing skis here at Jackson Hole, and it couldn’t have come to a close any better. With clear skies over head, our testers saddled up for one more go as we sent out our skinniest skis of the test; 80-90mm under foot. Jackson Hole is certainly known as a wild mountain with incredible freeride and big mountain terrain. However, the corduroy here is not to be slept on. The gorgeous groomers under the Bridger Gondola, Casper Chair and beyond were the perfect strips of snow for our testers to tear down. They laid some serious hip from bell to bell as we made sure that no plank was left un-skied. Check out our Instagram story for the day to see what skis we loved for today’s conditions.

As the clouds rolled in this afternoon, we packed up our basecamp near the iconic Jackson Hole tram station at the base of the mountain. It’s always a bit sad to call the event after such incredible days, but we would be lying if we said our legs weren’t looking forward to the rest. We poured our hearts into reviewing the best skis in the world for you, the passionate and life-loving skiers around the globe, and what exhausting fun it was. Be sure to watch for more content from FREESKIER FEST in the coming weeks, and of course keep an eye out for our annual Buyers Guide next fall, which will include all the hard earned reviews from this week on all the greatest new skis of the year. Thank YOU so much for tuning in this week, and we hope we brought you some stoke along the way!

Hungry for gear talk right now? Check out our First Look digital catalogue.

Related:

FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Day 3 Recap and Photo Gallery

The post FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Day 4 Recap and Photo Gallery appeared first on FREESKIER.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. That’s right, it’s FREESKIER Ski Test, baby! Every season, we at FREESKIER gather a gaggle of the best skiers we know to hop on a variety of next year’s planks from myriad of brands. From brand-new constructions to totally unconventional designs and everything in between, we’ve employed our dedicated testers to ride, review and ultimately rate the best planks of the season for you—those who live to ski—to froth over in our annual Buyer’s Guide in the fall.

This season we are back at it again at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort for the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test. Notorious for its steep, demanding terrain, legendary snowfall—especially this season—and diehard locals who prioritize skiing over everything else, we couldn’t be in a better place to test the latest and greatest new product from some of the best brands in the biz.

Beyond the epic turns and non-stop faceshots, FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test is about bringing together stand-out humans to celebrate the weird and wonderful act of sliding down snow. Après parties, high fives and good vibes round out the week as we bask in the culture of this incomparable experience. And none of this would be possible without the support from our partners… our resort host Jackson Hole, the experienced testing crew at The Ski Monster, which also happens to be one of the best online and brick-and-mortar gear shops around, Continuum Hotel and Bar for housing our crew right at the base of the mountain all week, the famous Mangy Moose for all things après and live music, and Coors Light for fueling the madness once the lifts stop spinning and carry late into the evenings.

Now, we want to give you a peek behind the scenes at FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test with a photo gallery from the entire week. Stay tuned online for complete coverage and follow us on Facebook and Instagram; check out the hashtag #FREESKIERFEST for more; and be sure to subscribe to the print-version of the magazine to see the complete results from the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test land on your doorstep in the fall.

DAY THREE — March 8th, 2023

While the visibility was a bit low, the vibes were high heading into the third consecutive day of the 21st-annual FREESKIERFEST. Fast, firm groomers and surprisingly soft leftovers were top of the menu as we finished riding, rating and reviewing the last of the 100-110mm planks before switching over to the skinniest category. Sub-100mm skis can be so damn fun when you live out West and regularly ski wide sticks—particularly this season with the insane amount of snow we’ve been blessed with. It was a welcome change of pace ripping carving-oriented skis down 2-3,000 vertical feet of prime corduroy and soft bumps. Just as the ski day wrapped the faucet turned back on and we’re looking forward to a few fresh inches for the final day of testing.

But before we officially call it a successful ski test, we decided to treat our dedicated testers to the very first FREESKIERFEST Gala event. Complete with industry awards, a beautiful dedication to Kyle Smaine from Matt Berkowitz of The Ski Monster and even a guest-star appearance from Your Girl Catherine, we can finally say FREESKIER’s ski test is a classy event…sort of.

Related:

FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Day 2 Recap and Photo Gallery

The post FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Day 3 Recap and Photo Gallery appeared first on FREESKIER.

Images courtesy of JHMR

Say goodbye to red brake lights flashing in your face and hop a flight to Jackson Hole

With spring skiing and spring break fully on the radar now, there’s a lot weighing in your favor to tap into what has been one of the most epic seasons in decades. Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is more than 140% over average snowfall right now, and at this point there is literally nothing holding you back from some of North America’s best pow, liveliest slopeside concerts, and deepest discounts, in what the resort is calling The Best Spring Break Ever in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. 

And yes, like much of the central Rockies, they are having a banner season, now with 480 inches of snow reported as we turn the corner into spring — and more on the way. That, and you can fly there. So get those images of red tail lights on I-70 out of your head. And for those in the know, this is also the perfect opportunity for tapping into your Ikon pass one more time before the end of the season. Check out all the spring deals that are setting Jackson apart below.

Road to Rendezvous

Now picture this: after parking for free, you’re riding the gondi and skiing powder under clear blue Wyoming skies, the Teton Range as your backdrop, and you’ve got more than 2,500 acres almost entirely for yourself and your posse. At the bottom of the hill, the now-famed Road to Rendezvous concert series begins to warm up (every Saturday in March) leading up to the 16th annual Rendezvous Spring Festival on March 31-April 1 2023, where general admission is free. The Jackson Hole Rendezvous Spring Festival is a two-day fest with legendary music acts in both historic downtown Jackson Town Square and the base of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.

Air Credit

Like we said, flying has always been a great option to get into Jackson, but right now, they’ve got some pretty unique deals going on to help you forget driving altogether. Tap into their $400 air credit — a new program being offered where JHMR worked with Alaska, American, Delta, and United to save you up to $400 on each flight (up to $1,600 for four travelers) when lodging and a qualifying dollar amount of activities are booked. The beauty of this unique program is that it’s valuable to everyone from co-eds to families. And if you’ve never flown into Jackson, you’re in for a treat. It’s easily one of the most breathtaking landing strips in the world, with the Tetons towering above Jenny Lake on one side and the largest elk preserve in the country on the other, it’s a bucket list trip without a doubt. Seeing the wildlife on the short drive from the airport to the resort only gets you stoked for what you might see over the next few days on the mountain, as moose, raptors, coyotes, porcupines, and many other wild animals call the area home.

Dick’s Ditch

If you decide to pull the trigger on this trip over the weekend of March 17-19, you’ll also have an opportunity to experience Dick’s Ditch: a unique throwback, two-day Banked Slalom competition that runs through the natural and man-made terrain features of the famed Dick’s Ditch run on JHMR, from Nez Perce Traverse down to “Marlboro” area. Pro divisions earn cash prizes of $1000 for first place.

Discounts for Any Passholder

And there’s one more thing. JHMR is introducing something it’s calling the Golden Ticket for spring: it gives 50% off lift tickets for season passholders from any resort in the world, from March 14 to April 9. Paired with the Rendezvous lodging packages – lodging deals crafted specifically for the Rendezvous Spring Festival — and the $400 Air Credit, you’d be kinda crazy not to take them up on this season’s discounts. Carpe Skiem. 

After doing your homework, it seems the stats just continue to add up for Jackson’s Best Spring Break Ever: flights from 13 cities, 400 bucks back, 480-plus inches of pow, short lift lines, free live music, competitions, and evenings ranging from hot tub and chill to the Cowboy Bar. What are you waiting for? Push play.

Related:

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort ushers in a new era with upgraded Thunder Lift

The post <strong>Spring skiing in Jackson might just make the best Spring Break of all time</strong> appeared first on FREESKIER.

Featured Image: Elise Sterck

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. That’s right, it’s FREESKIER Ski Test, baby! Every season, we at FREESKIER gather a gaggle of the best skiers we know to hop on a variety of next year’s planks from myriad of brands. From brand-new constructions to totally unconventional designs and everything in between, we’ve employed our dedicated testers to ride, review and ultimately rate the best planks of the season for you—those who live to ski—to froth over in our annual Buyer’s Guide in the fall.

This season we are back at it again at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort for the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test. Notorious for its steep, demanding terrain, legendary snowfall—especially this season—and diehard locals who prioritize skiing over everything else, we couldn’t be in a better place to test the latest and greatest new product from some of the best brands in the biz.

Beyond the epic turns and non-stop faceshots, FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test is about bringing together stand-out humans to celebrate the weird and wonderful act of sliding down snow. Après parties, high fives and good vibes round out the week as we bask in the culture of this incomparable experience. And none of this would be possible without the support from our partners… our resort host Jackson Hole, the experienced testing crew at The Ski Monster, which also happens to be one of the best online and brick-and-mortar gear shops around, Continuum Hotel and Bar for housing our crew right at the base of the mountain all week, the famous Mangy Moose for all things après and live music, and Coors Light for fueling the madness once the lifts stop spinning and carry late into the evenings.

Now, we want to give you a peek behind the scenes at FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test with a photo gallery from the entire week. Stay tuned online for complete coverage and follow us on Facebook and Instagram; check out the hashtag #FREESKIERFEST for more; and be sure to subscribe to the print-version of the magazine to see the complete results from the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test land on your doorstep in the fall.

DAY TWO — March 7th, 2023

The second day of the 2023 FREESKIER Ski Test was welcomed in with cold temps and blue skies. We got the chance to chew up the leftover powder from the recent storm. With a few inches of additional snow falling last night, the conditions were as good as it gets. We broke out the 100mm – 110mm underfoot skis, and our testers sought out every nook and cranny around the mountain to put them through the wringer. We went through skis from top leading brands, as the testing went down bell to bell.

Jackson Hole is a mountain that holds plenty of soft snow and incredible lines days after a storm, so it wasn’t hard to find a few great lines today. The newly updated Thunder lift yielded some steep terrain in the Tower 3 chute, with a top tier groomer awaiting below. We found plenty of tight tree lines, bumps and cat tracks to boost off under the Bridger Gondola. We fueled up mid day with pizza from the Mangy Moose Cafe, and sent our crew of rippers out for more.

Of course, what day would be complete without a top to bottom lap on the signature Jackson Hole tram, which provided us access to over 4,000 feet of vertical terrain. As the chairs stopped spinning, we headed to the Continuum Hotel at the base of the mountain for a cold one and a proper après party. With hot tubs, a DJ and the best bartenders in the country, it’s arguably the most sought after place to wind down for a true Jackson après. Stay tuned for our third day of testing tomorrow, as we break out the all-mountain power house skis that will get you through every day on the hill.

Photo Gallery

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FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Day 1 Recap and Photo Gallery

The post FREESKIER Ski Test 2023: Day 2 Recap and Photo Gallery appeared first on FREESKIER.

Featured Image: Elise Sterck

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. That’s right, it’s FREESKIER Ski Test, baby! Every season, we at FREESKIER gather a gaggle of the best skiers we know to hop on a variety of next year’s planks from myriad of brands. From brand-new constructions to totally unconventional designs and everything in between, we’ve employed our dedicated testers to ride, review and ultimately rate the best planks of the season for you—avid gear junkies—to froth over in our annual Buyer’s Guide in the fall.

This season we are back at it again at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort for the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test. Notorious for its steep, demanding terrain, legendary snowfall—especially this season—and diehard locals who prioritize skiing over everything else, we couldn’t be in a better place to test the latest and greatest new product from some of the best brands in the biz.

Beyond the epic turns and non-stop faceshots, FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test is about bringing together stand-out humans to celebrate the weird and wonderful act of sliding down snow. Après parties, high fives and good vibes round out the week as we bask in the culture of this incomparable experience. And none of this would be possible without the support from our partners… our resort host Jackson Hole, the experienced testing crew at The Ski Monster, which also happens to be one of the best online and brick-and-mortar gear shops around, Continuum Hotel and Bar for housing our crew right at the base of the mountain all week, the famous Mangy Moose for all things après and live music, and Coors Light for fueling the madness once the lifts stop spinning and carry late into the evenings.

Now, we want to give you a peek behind the scenes at FREESKIER’s annual Ski Test with a photo gallery from the entire week. Stay tuned online for complete coverage and follow us on Facebook and Instagram; check out the hashtag #FREESKIERFEST for more; and be sure to subscribe to the print-version of the magazine to see the complete results from the 21st annual FREESKIER Ski Test land on your doorstep in the fall.

DAY ONE — March 6th, 2023

This season has been one for the record books throughout the Mountain West and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort has certainly not been missing out on the non-stop snowfall. With over 30 inches of new snow in the last five days and another three overnight, we kicked off the first day of FREESKIER Ski Test 2023 with a powdery bang. Starting with the fatties, anything 110 millimeters or wider underfoot were taken out to plunder the goods and we capped off the epic first day with an age-old tradition: FREESKIERFEST Flip Cup tournament. Team 4-Skin walked away with the bragging rights but honestly, with Jackson Hole’s current 117-inch base depth, we’re all winners this week.

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The best all-mountain skis of 2023

The post FREESKIER Ski Test: Day 1 Recap and Photo Gallery appeared first on FREESKIER.

“News Flash” is FREESKIER’s online column designed to keep you up-to-date with snippets of outdoor news you need to know about. This article is published weekly on Wednesdays and updated throughout the week.

FREESKIERFEST returns to Jackson Hole Monday, March 6

The best time of the year is BACK! That’s right, FREESKIERFEST—the much-anticipated annual ski test—returns to Jackson Hole starting this coming Monday, March 6. For five glorious days dozens upon dozens of testers will hop on a smathering of next year’s skis to let you know which sticks are worth spending next month’s rent. Stay tuned for daily updates starting Monday!

Dew Tour 2023 went OFF last weekend

Colby Stevenson grabbed yet another gold this season for Dew Tour’s ski men’s Super Streetstyle and Brendan Mackay snagged the top podium spot in ski men’s Superpipe taking himself over 18 feet out of the pipe. On the women’s side of things, Lisa Zimmerman took home first-place hardware in ski women’s Super Streetstyle. Unfortunately, there was no women’s ski Superpipe.

JIB LEAGUE just launched the inaugural episode

The first-ever Jib League event took place last week at Skyline Park in Nordkette, Austria. In the first episode of the first season, seven qualifiers from the Open Jam (open to all ages, genders and abilities) meet 12 world class pros and the three founders: Oystein Braten, Ferdinand Dahl and James Woodsy.

Megan Dingman and friends find too much pow!?

Megan Dingman has debuted her new YouTube vlog series for the 2023 season and episode two is DEEP—literally. In true Utah fashion, Dingman and her good friends set out to plunder the record-setting snowfall in the Wasatch backcountry and the crew arguably finds too much snow!? Check out her entire series on YouTube.

Braun Bernhard takes us on a Bavarian adventure in ‘SINNER FIELDS’

Braun Bernhard is a Bavarian at heart and spent his entire 2022 season exploring the Austrian Alps. Along with Joshua Braun and David Werner, Braun lives and skis out of his camper in true Bavarian ski-bum style.

Michelle Parker brings Coline Ballet-Baz on to the podcast

Coline Ballet-Baz got her start as a park competition skier and found many successes in that world but has recently transitioned to filming full time and the French skier has seemed to find her stride. Having produced two women’s ski films, so far, SKIVAS and RECIPE have proven to resonate with all women in the industry.

Nicke Goepper gets on the mic for episode 64 of Two Planker Podcast

Nick Goepper has been one of the biggest names in competition park skiing for the last decade but has recently stepped away from the start gate to pursue other ski passions. In this episode, Nick shares his candid insights on the influence of academies, how to make money as a pro skier and why he decided to step away from comp skiing.

The post News Flash: Week of March 1, 2023 appeared first on FREESKIER.

How many of us dream of quitting our jobs, packing up the car, and running away to the mountains to chase winter? I can still remember the day I loaded up my Honda Pilot and moved to the Tetons, one-track mind focused on skiing, unconcerned with boring real-world problems like health insurance, a 401k, or a bedroom with real walls. 

Chasing powder is a dream that many skiers can relate to. It’s woven into the very fiber of the sport, dating back to Warren Miller’s dirtbag days in Sun Valley in the 40s. We champion the ski bum, who holds the kind of social currency money can’t buy, and we congratulate those who’ve passed up careers and family obligations in pursuit of the addictive (yet fleeting) weightlessness of powder turns. But at what point do we start to look a little deeper, and question what those sacrifices really mean?

The Ski Town Fairytale, a new graphic novel written by Sam Morse and illustrated by Ryan Stolp, shines a spotlight on the realities of ski bumming as it is today (hint: unless you have a trust fund, it’s not as easy as Instagram makes it look). 

The graphic novel follows Sophie, an aspiring ski bum, as she ditches her corporate job and heads for the hills of Jackson Hole. She’s in pursuit of the “The Dream,” a carefree, adventure-rich life she’s derived from social media, as she tries to carve out a life of her own in the mountains. Yes, it’s a graphic novel about skiing, and yes, you can even read it to kids.

As a character, Sophie is relatable. Anyone who’s spent an extended amount of time in a ski town will recognize the issues she encounters: housing insecurities, precarious employment, obnoxious roommates, hour-long lift lines, social media addiction. These are the elements that millennial ski bums are up against as they seek out the carefree life plastered all over Instagram. “So much ski and outdoor media is aspirational in nature,” says Morse. “Everything you see on Instagram is the peak, superlative experience. But living day to day can be challenging. Most of the time you’re not actually skiing powder. We wanted to create a story in a fairytale format that was candidly honest about what it’s like to be a ski bum.”

Stolp and Morse agree that the age of social media and remote work has changed the landscape of not only what it looks like to be a ski bum, but the question of whether ski town dirtbagging as we know it is even possible any more. And while it doesn’t exactly follow the stoke-filled shreddy narrative of typical ski media, it brings a refreshing dose of humor to some of the harsh realities the modern day ski bum faces. 

Morse now lives in Salt Lake City, but spent his 20s as a ski bum in Jackson Hole, prioritizing powder turns over job security, working seasonal shifts and raft guiding in the summer. “It takes a deep psychological toll to move every few months and try to work three jobs. I’m a privileged, hetero, cisgender white man, and it was even hard for me to make it work as a ski bum (although still easier than it is for many). The only people who can really make it work are those who don’t need to work in the first place,” he says, adding that in many ways, the tumultuous life in a mountain town that everyone seemed to put on a pedestal wasn’t all that fulfilling. “I’d wake up each fall and feel depressed about not actually moving forward in my life.”

Stolp moved to Jackson six years ago and has been consistently fascinated by the rotating cast of characters who go to great lengths to cling to life in places like the Tetons. He is the author of the tri-weekly Lift Lines Comics, a series of often darkly satirical comics that poke fun at mountain town culture. As social media pushes the narrative and idealistic life of living in places like Jackson, he’s watched the disparity between the wealthy class and workforce grow, and the fabric of the community come undone as the middle class gets pushed out. “Van life has allowed people to live in a temporary dream at the cost of embedding in place and a community. The ski town dream can’t be one place, it has to be a mindset and has to be flexible,” he says, adding that “we can’t just put places like Jackson Hole on a pedestal. It’s not sustainable. The secret’s out and we’re bad at self regulating.”

Humor is an outlet for Stolp to process the outrageous dynamics at play in mountain towns, a lens that he and Morse share, and it leads to an artful blend of wit and social commentary. 

While the premise of ‘The Ski Town Fairytale’ may seem dark at times, Stolp and Morse aren’t trying to talk anyone out of pursuing happiness in the mountains. Yes, they poke fun at the fleetingness of the “Dream,” but it’s also refreshing in a sense, a much-need dose of humor for those of us trying to hang on while many of us watch our mountain towns crumble under the influx of digital nomads and big city refugees. So what’s the moral of the story? You’ll have to read it to find out, but I can guarantee it will make you laugh, think, roll your eyes, and most importantly: toss your skis in the car and head to the mountains. Because all is said and done, the best cure for skiing is more skiing.

‘The Ski Town Fairytale’ is available for purchase on Amazon or Ryan Stolp’s personal website.

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The post Is it still possible to live the dream as a ski bum? The Ski Town Fairytale has us wondering.  appeared first on FREESKIER.

There’s skiing in Michigan, and then there’s skiing in Michigan with Mike Hornbeck and Spencer Milbocker. The two local midwesterners show Phil Casabon around their home turf, making sure to hit a few tantalizing features, from S rails to track sheds, along the way. Along the streets of Grand Rapids and over to the iconic Matterhorn of the midwest AKA Nub’s Nob, the crew proves once again that it doesn’t matter where you are, it just matters how creative you can get.

Mike and Phil provide some unbelievably top tier riding throughout the entirety of ‘Truck Talk’. The two continue to progress the sport as they have for over a decade, showing no lack of style or any sign of complacency. We owe these two riders a great deal of thanks for everything they’ve done for the sport. Spencer’s film work is second to none, and deserves equal praise. This enjoyable 11 minute edit pulls you in every step of the way, from the audio to the visuals, there’s not a single second of misplaced footage. (The clip of Phil gliding through the fence, cut to quivering leaf as he glides by, capped off with a front slide back 180 out deserves an Academy Award of its own.) You’ll be glued to the screen from start to finish, so throw in those headphones and turn down the lights, because it’s time for some ‘Truck Talk’.

From YouTube – All aboard midwest’s snow safari featuring Michigan’s finest- Hornbeck and Milbocker as they take “Mista back to back gold medalist” Casabon on a ski journey through their home turf.

Photo Gallery

Photography – Spencer Milbocker

Skiers – Phil Casabon & Mike Hornbeck

The post ‘Truck Talk’ – Tune in to Mike Hornbeck, Phil Casabon, and Spencer Milbocker on a midwest ski safari appeared first on FREESKIER.

WORDS — David Steele

It’s not often in skiing that being so wrong feels so right. Especially about something that doesn’t involve the weather. Expansion, in the world of ski lifts, brings images of sitting on a fast-moving, seven-seater with a bubble covering you from the elements, and maybe even a heated seat as you scream up the hill towards another lap. “Improvement” can perhaps be tangibly expanded resort boundaries, where moguls crop up in what used to be your former backcountry haunt. But when Chair 5 at Whitefish moved in the fall of 2017, none of these typical things occurred. 

A little-used triple seater, Chair 5 had spent its winters caked in the rime of Ptarmigan Bowl since it was first installed in 1981, but was relocated to cut a straight line up the East Rim, a zone full of chutes, rocky “pepper” and sneaky traverse connections. The cliffs, now below the swaying chairs, remained unchanged; the glades were altered, but only slightly, the lift line now cutting through them. With this lift relocation, it was as if a patch of the familiar somehow moved closer to home, like the workshop out back had moved into the middle of the living room. A favorite zone of many locals, the East Rim could now be lapped with ease. 

The trail map fails to portray the somewhat confusing joys of Chair 5 on paper. So, to get a better sense of the terrain while you’re reading this story, let’s do a little exercise: Put your left arm out in front of you with your fingers pointing slightly downward. 

Imagine your forearm as the ridgeline of East Rim, as viewed from across the valley. Chair 5 runs a straight line from your ring finger up to your elbow. Along the ridge (your forearm), it is noticeably flat—it looks the same in-person—but off both sides the ridge, the mountain drops away into precarious, demanding and fun-to-ski black diamonds.

Where your arm hair lies, imagine the dense trees of First Creek and Don’s Descent off to the left. At your wrist, pinky side, moguls and the odd patch of ice reflect the bomb-tram line strung over the tube of North Bowl Chute (NBC), and your index finger points to the top of The Nose. Shelves of trees peppered with cliff bands are the signature taste of this spicy dish, but to get across the flats and out to the scratchy drop—which is worth a send—requires a bit of skating. From here, the trees lead to a step, flowing into the aprons of Whitey’s below. Lastly, following your wrist back toward your elbow, the right side of your arm represents the East Rim Face, a zone known for its smattering of big-mountain, gladed terrain. 

SKIER: Corey Seeman
PHOTO: Craig Moore
LOCATION: Whitefish, MT

You can put your arm away now, but with this visual still fresh in your mind, take note that some of the runs I’ve just mentioned aren’t actually labeled on the trail map; to find your way around the bounty off of Chair 5, I recommend you make nice with the locals and (fingers crossed) they’ll point you in the right direction.

All said, the sneaky, backwards charm of the relocated Chair 5 carries more than just being an old lift in new digs. Nothing about this lift is “high-speed” or “detachable.” Plus, Chair 5 finishes not at the summit, where you could access every other aspect of the mountain, but on a saddle 200 feet below it. 

This last part left many grousing in overtones of skepticism when the decision to move the lift was announced. It seemed odd to willingly take an old chair, pay to move it and not even point it back to the top. The usual complaints you’d expect flowed, but then a glorious thing happened: All those whiners, myself included, went and actually rode Chair 5 on its new course. And we realized that, though an island it had become, we could get happily marooned there. 

For those willing to commit to this relatively small  but fully loaded zone, you’ll find none of the hoopla like back at the base area. Those accustomed to skiing at Whitefish are used to unloading directly into the flow of traffic from the Ant Hill giving it the occasional, Frogger-esque thrill. But, on Chair 5, no longer did you have to live or die by the long road of Russ’ Street to connect back to a lift. Three laps later, most of the people cringing about the new limelight brought to East Rim were still there, and the grins on their faces said that they might even be enjoying themselves. 

Apparently, Whitefish brass knew what they were doing. There’s a magic to being sure in your salty bones that some form of change is downright wrong—and then being forced to admit that you’re actually the one who’s incorrect. Chair 8, in Hellroaring Basin, got a course change of its own during summer 2021. And, this time, I look forward to discovering how much fun it will be. 

This story originally appeared in FREESKIER Volume 24.
To subscribe to skiing’s independent magazine, click here.

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The post DESTINATION: Whitefish Mountain Resort appeared first on FREESKIER.

INTERVIEW • Jordan Grant-Krenz | PHOTOS • Courtesy of Simply.RC

Like any art form, skiing is constantly evolving. The styles and preferences of riders, judges and fans alike shift with every passing year. It’s tough, I imagine, to build your life around such an endeavor; where what is sufficient is never defined, but expected. Like artists, some professional skiers fall in and out of favor with their audience. Others, however, through an indefinable timeless style, remain mesmerizing to watch long after they’ve exploded onto the scene. Laurent De Martin is one of those skiers. His name is likely not a new one to those who have been following freeskiing for the past few years. From the Newschoolers die hards to the casual ski movie enthusiast, chances are you’ve seen a project with LDM in it. He’s had standout segments in three Level1 films, been a SuperUnknown finalist, competed with the Switzerland Freeski team, and recently created two films of his own. His creative vision and technical knowledge produce a set of skills that make LDM as comfortable riding the park or streets as he is exploring the backcountry. You could easily call him the Swiss Army Knife of skiers (no pun intended).

His 2021 film, titled Simply, was a standout hit, being selected to numerous film festivals and receiving the award for ‘Best Film’ at the International Freeride Film Festival in Tarbes, France. But last year, hot off the heels of such success, LDM was no where to be seen when it came to the latest and greatest ski movie productions. When Laurent came back into the limelight this fall, it was with the announcement that along with a few good friends, he would be starting a new chapter creating a ski brand; one that would take inspiration from the community rather than the competition that skiing can create. Thus, Simply. Recreation Club was born. FREESKIER wanted to find out what pushed LDM, who had found such success in the film side of skiing, into the world of business. We were curious what his plans were for the newly founded company, and what he thought it would bring to the ski industry. Perhaps we could learn a thing or two from our favorite skiers favorite skier. So we dialed up our Swiss companion to get the words straight from the source.

How has the 22/23 season been treating you so far?

It’s been good man. We got a lot of snow and it was really sick for one maybe two weeks at my home resort [Région Dents du Midi, Switzerland] . We don’t have much of a base but it was still great. It’s been really cold and dry since, but we are waiting for a second round.

You’ve had a busy last three years; creating two incredible ski films, changing sponsors, and recently launching your new ski brand, Simply. Recreation Club. Walk us through what led you here.

It’s been a good grind, thanks! When Level1 said they were going to stop making their annual movie, for me it was the right time to do something locally. That was certainly the start of this recent period of change for me. I wanted to travel less, but more importantly I wanted to collaborate with people from home. We have such great support in our valley and I really felt that push to do something special and to give it back to the community. 

It seemed right to do a project that showed we have everything we need at home to do those movies. Maybe not this year [laughs], but certainly in a normal year. The two films, From Switzerland with Love and Simply, were very much inspired by that sentiment. The same goes for the new brand Simply. Recreation Club. We wanted to build a local brand that showcased our home, our style, and why we love it all so much. 

Speaking of Level1, most skiers might recognize your name from your many annual appearances. What was it like to change gears and take lead on two films, (From Switzerland with Love 2020 and Simply 2021), and what did you learn from those projects that you otherwise wouldn’t have?

That’s a good question. Doing those two [films] I learned much more than just skiing, you know? It’s a whole other job to produce a movie. I had the talented Titouan Bessire editing and directing, which was incredible, but just to get the money, manage a sponsor and all the little things that make it happen takes so much. I took in a lot about the outside world that surrounds skiing, and the experiences definitely prepared me in ways for this next chapter starting a new business.

All in all it was really fun, but after we filmed Simply I needed a season off. It had been about 10 years of doing my movies or Level1 movies, so I wanted to step back from the large projects and ski with my friends without any pressure. Of course I still did the little things you have to do as a professional skier, but it felt like a needed mental break, so to speak.

Was taking the season off from big projects fairly productive?

Honestly, no. It was definitely not the year I had anticipated, but it taught me lessons that led me to this great new project, so I don’t think it was a waste even though I’d consider it unproductive. I put a lot of my writing about how I felt during that year on the Simply. website for those who are more interested, but essentially it was not what I had imagined at all. I was looking for something new in skiing… and I didn’t know where to look or what to do. I’m sure people can relate to that. Towards the end of the season I had a very sketchy incident with an avalanche which led to some really tough times, but it also brought me close with some of my best friends.

When I got back on my skis in the late spring we had some killer days in the park, and it made me realize how valuable skiing with people you love is. I think that was the turning point that put me in a new direction; to do something local, to do something different with great people and create a brand, create skis, and put my vision of skiing into something real. That idea molded into our new company, Simply. Recreation Club.

*Note – LDM’s writings give the full insight into his story from the past year. We highly recommend giving them a read.

Let’s talk about Simply. Give us a quick synopsis on the mission of the brand. How does it stand apart from others in the industry?

As a brand, Simply. is going to be focused on the fun of the sport. I’m talking about encouraging the next generation, the art, the events; all these pieces of skiing that don’t always get as much attention. This is what will make us stand out. Beyond that, we really want to foster a community, and to be smart with what we have to work with. I think the word I’m looking for is sustainability. We strive to work sustainably, locally, and to do a good job while also taking after the great role models that are out there. Overall it’s about bringing those two parts together; building skis that let you enjoy the experience, and doing so right here in Switzerland.

Where are the skis made and how did that connection come about?

The skis are made at First Track Lab, which is about 35 minutes from my home. I met a few people from First Track through some friends and we hit it off. They were working on their own projects but it was evident that we had similar values, which was a huge motivator for us to create the brand in the first place. We were both really motivated and wanted to make it happen. After the turning point in my life that I mentioned earlier, it really seemed like the right thing to do. 

The skis I got to try were such a big reason [we collaborated] too. We worked on what my friend Sampo Vallotton and I wanted in a ski, and when we tried them it just made me sure about doing it. I enjoyed the skis they made, the people there, and of course the fact that it’s a local Swiss company. Not only was the location preferable, but it was the main reason that we were able to build a brand in just a few months. It all made a lot of sense.

The ski you’re currently making is (fittingly) called the Recreation. It has a very unique butterknife nose and fish tail shape. Why did you choose that?

The aesthetic shape of the ski is inspired by snowboarding and surfing. So is the fish tail. We really wanted to do something different and pretty atypic and the ski outline was the first way to express this difference. The fish tail stands as the main feature. We did the first prototypes with it and I was seriously loving it. Having less surface area in the back can be wonderful and it seemed to help the ski as a whole find what we were looking for, which was something that could slash and snap quickly and playfully.

The final goal was to design the entire ski to be something really light, playful, flexy, with a short turning radius. We wanted to have everybody, whatever level they are, do a few runs and be having fun on it. It was meant to be easy to ski, to feel good on any terrain, and still be able to hold up for more aggressive or active skiers.

But to me, the best way to pitch the ski is to let the people try it. They’ve always come back with a big smile which says more than a thousand words.

How does it hold up when you’re skiing more aggressively outside of the park?

Oh yeah it certainly is firm enough under foot to charge, and you can lay a nice turn on it. European skiers can be more old school carving style, so we were thinking about that when we made it. It has a 15m radius, and if you wanted to power through it you can tighten that up further from what we saw. It’s pretty crazy to see that from a ski that’s 100mm under foot. Eventually we’ll be working on a wider ski for deeper snow, too.

Overall the ski is very intuitive and adaptive. It’s made to feel playful and surfy everywhere you go. Like I mentioned, the goal is to create a community and ski that emphasizes fun, and we think the Recreation does that.

For people wanting a reference, how would you describe your style and how does the Recreation cater to that?

I’m not sure how to describe my style exactly. Flowy, maybe? There’s plenty of videos if people want to decide for themselves. But I really love to ski everything, and we made this first ski just for that; to ski everything. Some airs, some speed, a few enjoyable turns. I think this ski and my style really compliment each other well.

What are you most excited about when it comes to the construction of the ski?

I’m so stoked on the overall look of the skis. The asymmetric shape brings something fresh. As for the components, we use something called Next Core© Technology. It’s one of the cooler things about the ski in my opinion. It’s a combination of oriented bamboo fiber and poplar which makes the ski really light but really reactive and poppy. It’s just so much fun to cruise around everywhere and nice to tour with. We haven’t talked about it, but it’s worth noting that we sell world class POMOCA skins pre-cut to the Recreation as well, because we really think this ski is a perfect fit for backcountry travel given its weight and how it skis.

What tangible or intangible benefits do you see Simply. bringing to the world of freeskiing?

I think the best thing we can do is to stay true to ourselves. We know how we want to do things and why we want to do them, and if we follow that course I think we benefit the ski world by being a sustainable, motivated, and fun community. We see ourselves as being very close to our community too, and this lets us create products that truly meet their needs, rather than the other way around. A tangible benefit would certainly be the Recreation itself. It’s such a versatile ski for many different skiers, and I think it’ll help people progress and love the sport even more.

If you had to choose anywhere in the world to ski on the Recreation, where would it be?

Honestly it would be my home resort of Région Dents du Midi in springtime conditions. There are these huge canyons to shred around in, perfect for the Recreation, and I’m really looking forward to more days with my friends out there with our own ski that we created. It’s a very special feeling.

Are there any future projects related to Simply. or outside of the brand that we should be keeping our eyes peeled for?

I want to do a movie again, and we’re planning to do one in the future so people will have to stay tuned for that!

There’s certainly still a lot of work to be done to grow the company more, so that will be a priority. Honestly though we hope people see Simply. Recreation Club as its name implies; as a club! We want to bring people together and give them the tools and connections they need for fun in the mountains. That’s what we want to grow it into, so that’s the main project right now.

Whether buying a pair of skis, going to a pop up event, or just checking out the website, what do you hope people walk away from the brand with?

I’ve said it a million times, but I hope people leave just wanting to have more fun and go out there excited to do what they want to do and to ski how they want to ski. That’s what the ski and the company are built around. If we can help make that happen, then we’ve done a great job. 

Thank you for the time, Laurent! And thank you for continuing to make the ski industry a better place year after year. Can you leave us with three songs to get people stoked up for their next day on the hill? 

Absolutely! Music is always a big part of how I get in the zone. I actually have a Recreation playlist people can listen to if they need some tunes for their time on the mountain. (Click here for LDM’s Recreation playlist on Spotify)

Simply.RC is currently only shipping within the EU. If you are an international skier and want to be the first to know when the Recreation (and future models) become available, click here to register.

LDM’s personal website

Simply.RC website

Photo Gallery

Images courtesy of Simply.RC

Photography – François Marclay, Ruedi Flueck, Christophe Voisin

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[LIMITED RUN] Ski companies are bucking the norm with smaller collections, and here’s why you should take notice

The post [Q&A] Catching up with Laurent De Martin – The Swiss freerider is breaking ground on the new challenge of starting a ski company appeared first on FREESKIER.

If there’s one thing the Line Traveling Circus crew knows how to do, it’s dwell on the past. And suck at playing Andy’s World. For the final episode of the 15th season of the iconic ski series, the gaggle of circus performers make their way up to White Pass Ski Resort in Washington to send the series off with an ode to the former shag wagon: the OG LTC van.

Parked in a fairly peculiar spot—literally in the resort’s terrain park—the OG van had a chance to live out its glory days. As did LJ Strenio! Technically retired from the professional skiing game, LJ couldn’t resist coming back for an episode to take one last big whiff of the OG van’s endearing stench.

Want to take a ride in—or technically, on—the OG LTC van? Head over to White Pass Ski Resort’s terrain park for a good time. Looking to self-sabotage? Might we suggest downloading Andy’s World and taunting Tanner Hall with it.

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SPOT CHECK — Minnesota

The post GET BACK IN THE VAN: Line Traveling Circus caps off season 15 with a familiar throwback appeared first on FREESKIER.

“News Flash” is FREESKIER’s online column designed to keep you up-to-date with snippets of outdoor news you need to know about. This article is published weekly on Wednesdays and updated throughout the week.

FREESKIER launches 2023-24 First Look

Take a peak at this inside guide to some of next year’s hottest new innovations, technologies and gear, as well as a look into some of the most significant trends driving the sport today.

The third stop of the Freeride World Tour rocked Golden, British Columbia

While much of Canada has seen below average snow falls this year, the faucet was turned on in advance this past week, and the riders were all the more thankful for it. French phenom Megane Betend and Max Hitzig topped the podium thanks Megane’s clean triple cliff drop and Max’s practically flawless GIGANTIC backflip off the pyramid feature lower down on the face. Click here for a full recap.

Nordica launches the brand-new Unlimited Boot

Brand new to the Nordica lineup is the Unlimited Boot collection. Available in a multitude of flexes and sizes, there is truly an Unlimited boot for every backcountry skier—even a 130 flex in a 265 BSL!

Nordica adds the 114 to the Unleashed lineup

Doubling down on its 2023-24 offerings, Nordica also unveils a new ski to the brand’s freeride-centric Unleashed lineup. The widest plank in the family, the 114 boasts the same construction as the rest of the line with even deeper rocker and more splay to improve flotation in powder and less metal to make it more maneuverable in the deep.

Enjoy the first episode of ‘On Scene’ with Wiley Miller

In the first episode of ‘On Scene,’ Wiley and crew head to Utah where they received over 100 inches of snow in the first two weeks of January. Hero snow was plundrered. On his way back to Montana, Wiley joins up with Ben Smith to ski a line he scouted while hunting Elk in November.

Two Planker welcomes Garret Whaley on the podcast

In this episode of the Two Planker Podcast, Child Labor’s lead editor Garret Whaley sits down with host Ethan Shafer. The two talk video parts, the nuances of editing and so much more.

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News Flash: Week of February 15, 2023

The post News Flash: Week of February 22, 2023 appeared first on FREESKIER.

Back in my day there was this nasty COVID pandemy, and you couldn’t travel nowhere! Well phooey is what I said to that. You’re not gonna stop me from scoring my sweet, sweet British Columbia powdah. Mask shmask! And who even needs an airplane? Not me. I made my own way to the land of Timmy Hoos. I’ll share some of my tactics with you kids incase you ever need to get north in a hurry to score some freshies. – The (not so) honorable Tag Dulouz

Do you want to ski in British Columbia this winter? Do you want to taste the sweet gravy atop a heaping pile of fries and curds? Drink a Kokanee? Start your day with a hot cup of bean water from Timmy Hos? Do you want to ride the lift and hear someone say “eh” every other word? Well, screw all that “you can’t travel into Canada” crap, start thinking outside the box and point yourself North.

Sure, the border between the United States and Canada might be closed right now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get there. There are over 5,000 miles of shared international boundaries between America and our trusty Touque (pronounced ‘tuke’)—you just gotta find the right way to sneak into the country. Thankfully, we’ve consulted our moose hunting, wood cutting, hockey playing, syrup trafficking friends to get the inside scoop on how to get across the border and score some seriously awesome Canadian pow.

Try one or try all, you’ll be a real courier des bois in no time, a real “runner of the woods,” a real pow chaser on a mad, ill-advised dash into a land of bottomless snow, poutine and hockey lovin’ babes. Or, you’ll be quickly tracked, arrested and slowly tortured—forced to watch ski movies on mute—by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Idea One: Buy a canoe, paddle across the border

Canadians love canoes. Why? We have no idea; they’re like the loser brother to kayaks. Kinda like a manatee, slow and cumbersome, and totally uncool. But, a true oarsmen might recognize its potential. With the simple stroke of the paddle, you’ll be out of Vermont and into Quebec in no time. Will you be right where you need to be? No, you’re more than 2,000 miles from the powder fields of Revelstoke but, hey, at least you’re in Canada, right? Now, if you really want to go the extra mile, really want to feel that sweet taste of success when you make it across the Saint Lawrence River, just carve your own canoe. It’s that simple. Just like the surfers of yore, who transformed hundred-year-old koa wood to form the first boards, you’ll be a pioneer, a craftsman and a fucking legend. And, it’ll be a lesson in “letting go.” Cause there’s absolutely no way you’re gonna lug that 1,000-pound monstrosity all the way from Quebec City to Calgary. You’ll want to leave it on the shoreline and find a place to hide… quick!

Idea Two: Join the Maple Syrup Cartel

It might not be easy but, once you’re an inside member of the most powerful maple syrup conglomerate (ahem… mafia) in the world, you’ll be untouchable, untraceable. Just like the movies. You ever seen The Departed? What a great flick. You’ll be like Leo in The Departed. Now, this is certainly easier said than done, so you’ll be playing the long-game.

The first thing you need to do: Realize the stakes are high. Right now, maple syrup from Quebec, stored in barrels and lining vast warehouses, is worth more than a barrel of crude oil. It’s literally liquid gold without Fort Knox to protect it. Next, you’ll want to get in touch with a guy named Ricky, a high-level black market syrup trafficker and a real die-hard Canadian. Although, in very un-Canadian fashion, he never apologized for organizing a black market syrup trafficking ring. Oh well, he’ll still be your go-to for all things “off the table” and your first source to getting in cahoots with the mob.

Once you’ve got the “in,” you’ll need to make yourself useful, and you’ll offer to drive the syrup from Montreal to Vancouver in a semi-truck. No questions, just do it. Along the way, you’ll stop in Alberta and British Columbia, watch the Oilers, the Flames and maybe even stop at a rodeo in Calgary, but you’ll also be inching ever-closer to the glorious, powder-laden Selkirk Mountains; that much closer to ripping powder. Canada’s Powder Highway is gonna take on a whole new meaning once you’ve become a syrup trafficker.

Idea Three: Befriend a moose hunter

Yeah, we know: This isn’t the most glamorous of ideas and it’s definitely not PETA-friendly. Who wants to hunt a moose anyway? Fuck those guys. Sometimes, though, we have to go to outrageous lengths to achieve great things—like scoring neck-deep snow at Kicking Horse or Whitewater. In this case, that “great” thing you’ll need to do is become friends with a moose hunter (which is a real thing), gain his trust and earn an apprenticeship under his watch. With your newfound life’s work, you’ll be able to gain a visa and long-term access to the Canadian Rockies or, better yet, you’ll be able to get your moose huntin’ friend to meet you at the border crossing, somewhere deep in the bush. Somewhere really out there. Somewhere between Regina and Kamloops—that’s where you’ll sneak across. Your last move? When you arrive, instead of hunting the moose, you’ll mount it and ride it bareback to the base of Whistler Mountain, where you’ll be revered for ages to-come. The Great Moose Wrangling Skier.

Idea Four: Become the captain of a men’s hockey team

Ey, bud, you know what every Canadian really likes? Nah, we’re not talking about lacrosse or Tim Horton’s (we’ll get to that later). And we’re not talking about apologizing for things unnecessarily. We’re talking about HOCKEY, the beautiful game of hockey. Canadians live and breathe that shit. Did you say, “Do you want to watch the Leafs game?” or, did you say, “Honey, I want to fulfill all of your deepest sexual fantasies?” … because I know which one the Canadians would choose. Here’s the plan: You’ll join a local men’s league somewhere in your hometown, make it to the regional championships and win. Kinda like the movie Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, you’ll then go to the national championships of C-league men’s hockey. You’ll win that game, too.

In literally no time at all, you’ve gone from zero-to-hero because you scored the winning goal in every game. Everyone wants autographs and all the dudes on the team are like “Hey man, great work out there!” but you’ve got something bigger at play: Scoring a storm day at Fernie. Soon, you’ll get a note in the mail inviting you and the boys to compete at the International Men’s C-League Super World Series Bowl Tournament at an arena in Banff. It’s all you need—an excuse. Your bag packed unsuspectingly with ski gear instead of hockey equipment, the only thing left to do is ditch the team, score a lift ticket and ski off in a blaze of glory. Do you believe in miracles? Yes!

Idea Five: Franchise a Tim Horton’s

According to this “news” article, eight out of every ten cups of coffee bought in Canada comes from a Timmy Hos. So how does a skier, insatiably dreaming of tit-level snow in the Canadian wilderness, capitalize on this situation? Easy. Open a Tim Horton’s breakfast franchise in whatever town you choose. Literally anywhere. Canadians, no matter the place, will welcome the new establishment. Studies show…

It’s a real win-win: You’re guaranteed good business from Canadians who seemingly can’t get enough of this stuff, and everyone loves coffee. On your way into Canada, just bribe the border patrol agents with a freshly brewed cup ‘o joe and they’ll be so infatuated with the watered-down flavor, they’ll forget they’re on the job.

Heck, just say your name is Tim Horton and see what happens. Everyone wants a taste of his finely roasted beans anyway. Best case scenario? Border patrol won’t ask questions, you’ll get a key to the city, they’ll fill up your tank and wish you “bon voyage” in a French-Canadian accent. Powder turns and coffee, the perfect ploy.

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Man hospitalized after returning to ski town bar, seeing everyone in the same spot

The post How to sneak into Canada appeared first on FREESKIER.

Cover Photo – Jeremy Bernard

Kicking Horse DELIVERED! Similar to stop number one of the 2023 Freeride World Tour, the heavily anticipated Golden, British Columbia venue was coated in a fresh blanket of snow and accompanied by blue skies over head. While much of Canada has seen below average snow falls this year, the faucet was turned on in advance this past week, and the riders were all the more thankful for it. This stop saw some see it to believe it type of action, and with freeride veteran Sam Smoothy making a return, this time in the commentators box, the full replay is well worth the watch. However if you don’t have an hour or two to spare, we’ve compiled a comprehensive run down of the Ski Men’s and Women’s fields complete with results, notable highlights, videos and captivating photos from the day.

In the Ski Women’s field, there was an abundance of speed and style; more than enough to go around. The day belonged to the French phenom Megane Betend. The 28 year old rookie had a relatively slow start at the first two stops of the year, finishing 10th and 5th. However, she came out of the gate in Golden ready to rumble. Dropping sixth in her field, behind both Men’s Ski and Snowboard posed significant challenges. With the course significantly tracked it was up to Megane to find a crafty line through, and find she did. She powered her way with large, clean turns into the trees and rocks halfway down her run, and proceeded to point herself off an incredible three cliffs in a row. The wild triple air and incredible control earned her a mighty score of 82.00. While no one else in the Ski Women’s field would be able to achieve such top tier appraisal from the judges, some came very close. Coming in second, third, and fourth places were Elisabeth Gerritzen, Addison Rafford, and Justine Dufour-Lapointe, respectively, with the rankings separated by no more than two points each! It’s so surprise that with scores this close the riding from all three was as technical and impressive as it gets. We saw incredible airs from each, with Elisabeth taking an impressive and very similar air to Megane. Justine might have had the highlight of the day, as she ventured into a low traffic zone and stomped a massive cliff under the pressure of a tricky run in and sliding snow to her right. With her third place finish, Addison Rafford secured the top spot in the field heading into the finals.

In the Ski Men’s field, this may have been the biggest highlight filled stop of the tour! We saw Xander Guldman toss a gutsy screamin seasman 3, Max Hitzig with arguably the biggest and most incredible looking backflip ever seen in the Freeride World Tour, Finn Bilous with a laid out and nearly corked 3, and the resident Canadian Marcus Goguen holding on to a jaw droping line that included a massive 360 and a backflip. These few highlights are just the tip of the iceberg, as the performance by these riders was mostly impeccable. (Huge shoutout to Leif Mumma for even attempting to fly off the iconic Logan Pehota hit with such low tide and walking away in one piece.) Among all this glorious ripping, there were however those who stood victorious. Max Hitzig was alone atop the podium thanks to his practically flawless GIGANTIC backflip off the pyramid feature lower down on the face. His run also included a solid 3 from the cornice and a stable air at high speed through a very technical section. This all amassed him a near perfect score of 97.67 from the judges. In second was the young stunner Marcus Goguen showing the visitors how a true Tim Hortons connoisseur lays it down. His run was maybe the quickest of the day, but it left our friends in the commentary booth laughing with astonishment. Lacing a step down 3 from the top cornice, holding on as he rocketed into the following chute and pinning it to his left into a fast thinking backflip off an untouched cliff. It was speed, style, and grace all rolled into one. Valentin Rainer stamped his ticket to the FWT finals with a third place finish. He was guaranteed to make the cut heading into the event, but that didn’t stop him from going all out. His creative line took him all over the hill, as he was able to hang onto a gutsy transfer air and a large backflip in the following section.

With stop three in the books, the FWT Finals Cut has been finalized. Moving on are the top 5 women and top 11 men, as they’ll get a chance for the title in the finals in Fieberbrunn and Verbier.

Ski Women’s Podium

1. Megane Betend (FRA)
2. Elisabeth Gerritzen (SUI)
3. Addison Rafford (USA)

Ski Men’s Podium

1. Max Hitzig (GER)
2. Marcus Goguen (CAN)
3. Valentin Rainer (AUT)

For the official FWT recap of stop three, click here. Stay tuned for the fourth stop of the 2023 Freeride World Tour in Fieberbrunn, Austria. With only two comps to go, this is the home stretch, baby!

Photo Gallery

Images courtesy of the Freeride World Tour

Photography – Jeremy Bernard & Dominique Daher

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[Freeride World Tour 2023] Ordino Arcalís – Stop Two Recap

The post [Freeride World Tour 2023] Kicking Horse, BC – Stop Three Recap appeared first on FREESKIER.

Rossignol just launched the brand-new Sender Free 110 and wants to outfit one lucky FREESKIER reader with a pair to play on for the remainder of the 2023 season. Enter the giveaway, below, for your chance to win. The giveaway ends on Wednesday, February 22.

Free Your Way

Rossignol first launched the BlackOps series in 2019-20 as a “skunkworks” project. The brand, at the time, had been relishing nearly seven years of great success with the incredibly popular 7 Series but when it came to providing proper planks for Rossignol’s hard-charging athletes—Chris Logan, Parker White and Tatum Monod, just to name a few—the brand admittedly fell short. After a few rounds of development and testing, Rossignol created exactly what its athletes wanted and needed to stomp, slash and play all over the mountain—the BlackOps 118 and 98.

While the 118 is geared toward the deepest days of the season, the 98 offers a width that can carry the majority of two-plankers through the resort on hard-pack days and it lands right at home in the park. But again, Rossignol athletes felt there was a large void between the two that needed to be filled. Enter the Sender Free 110.

The Sender Free 110 is essentially a lighter, slightly skinnier version of the BlackOps 118. Equipped with Rossignol’s proprietary air-tip technology, the reduced swing weight of this freeride weapon makes it a touch more maneuverable than its big brother and provides ample float for softer, deeper conditions. But don’t let the air tips fool you, the Sender Free 110 is ready to charge thanks to a layer of titanal underfoot and a progressive shape that lets you put the pedal to the metal—whether you’re straight lining under the lift or dropping into a steep, exposed line out of bounds.

A high-density visco material known as Damp Tech and a special carbon Diagofiber ensure this ski never gets pushed around while a near-symmetrical twin tip adds versatility. Whether it just snowed six inches or it’s been a week since the last reset, Rossignol intends for the Sender Free 110 to be a daily driver. Available in three lengths, 176, 184 and 191cm, the 110 was made for every style of sender and an eco-conscious approach to the development—a PEFC certified poplar wood core and made with 100 percent certified renewable energy—you’ll not only look good rocking the Sender Free 110, you can feel great about it too.

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[DEEP DIVE] Rossignol Sender Squad Review

The post [GIVEAWAY] Win a brand-new pair of Rossignol Sender Free 110s appeared first on FREESKIER.

WORDS — Alex Hunt

I threw my car into ‘Park’ and gently released a dangerous fart. Was the road closed up ahead? Why did I drink so much coffee? With the tightly packed line of resort-bound cars cemented in place beyond my windshield, I debated un-cementing my loosely packed innards with an emergency evacuation of my own. 

Finally I recognized some movement—not in my bowels, I’d get to that later—as the powder-covered snake of traffic crept up the snowy switchbacks towards the ski area. With the intensifying snowfall and diminishing visibility, it was hard to tell how far the convoy of red brake lights stretched up the canyon, but it didn’t take a briefing with the Secretary of Transportation to come to the realization that I wouldn’t be catching first chair. 

After an hour-plus of inching my way up the road, and a quick stop at an aptly placed porta-john, it became apparent what was causing the backup: an early 2000s white Ford pickup. It wasn’t the type of jacked-up 4WD monster truck you’d imagine blasting through a snowbank in an over-produced Instagram vid. No, no—it was the kind of single cab, rusted out, rear-wheel drive hooptie you’d see teetering sideways, halfway off the road. In fact, that’s exactly how it looked from my vantage point as I neared the veritable ruination of a perfect powder day, driving past the unprepared screwballs. 

What remained of each tire’s tread was, well, not much; they were as smooth as a slice of bologna and provided as much traction on the snow-packed asphalt as the soles of the First Mate’s Crocs. Tasked with the impossible feat of righting the wayward course of what I’ve named the S.S. Unprepared, this poor soul’s feeble attempts to nudge the land-skiff free resulted in nothing more than adding moisture to his already soaked hoodie sleeves, serving as makeshift mitts barely pressed against the truck’s tailgate.

Tire chains were nowhere to be found; there wasn’t a shovel on-scene, an ice scraper in the backseat or any other sort of useful apparatus anywhere in sight. And, it seemed as I crept passed, my neck craning to watch the scene unfold, the First Mate’s last remaining bit of common sense had clearly been abandoned in last year’s attempt at remote learning. By the sound of the engine revving and the speed of the spinning rear tires, it was clear the Captain of this stubborn vessel had the gas pedal Gorilla-glued to the floor. 

PHOTO: Lee Cohen
LOCATION: You don’t wanna know…

The driver gave the throttle a rest and hopped out to survey the scene for himself. Any competent Skipper should take time to evaluate his ship in a time crisis—what better way to do that than lighting up a Parliament and dropping a low-top pair of Vans into a foot of slush. After all, wet tube socks and a chronic, wheezing cough can fix just about anything… right? 

The Skipper dropped into a squatted position, scratching at his forehead while pinching the ciggy in his other hand; the First Mate looked on with equal uncertainty. All that wheel spinning had caused sheets of ice to form under the rear tires. Friction, heat, melt, refreeze—a highway experiment in thermodynamics. Eyeing the shipwreck, I crept along and onto the resort.

The thing is, I really don’t want to come off all high-and-mighty here. As it turns out, I’ve been in a similar situation—maybe not quite as unprepared—but I fully understand what it’s like to have a half-ton of steel uselessly taking up space on the side of a snowy road. And I’m sure most of you reading this have been ill-equipped for a wintry drive at some point along the way. Thankfully, though, I’ve never jammed my bumper into a snowbank and been the one to prevent powder junkies from getting their fix. That’s when you’ve hit a new low. 

What could the Skipper and his First Mate have done better? How could the S.S. Unprepared  have been… well… prepared? Here are a few things I’ve learned from years of chasing storms and navigating winding, snow-covered thoroughfares. First, good tires make all the difference. Second, it’s wise to keep a reliable shovel in the trunk to clear out snow from around all four tires before hitting the gas. And, third, knowing how to gently feather the accelerator with someone rocking the rig back-and-forth will get you out of most snow-versus-automobile related predicaments. That is my unsolicited advice. Do with it what you will.

But I digress… After one helluva day gobbling up leftovers from the morning’s pow feast, I loaded up and made my way out of the parking lot. As I prepared to merge onto the highway I saw it, tilted sideways like a weather-worn buoy, the S.S. Unprepared, parked haphazardly in the back of the lot. It was hard to comprehend how that jalopy eventually made its way up the road and somewhat terrifying to think about how it would get home; I was just glad I wouldn’t be anywhere near it when that happened. So, take note fellow shredders: Get your transportation situation dialed now. Shuck out a few extra bucks on snow tires before winter is in full swing. Grab your spade from the garden shed. And leave that pack of Parliaments at home. You don’t want to become the next speed bump on the Hershey Highway. 

This story originally appeared in FREESKIER Volume 24.
To subscribe to skiing’s independent magazine, click here.

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[Op-Ed] Don’t tell me how to ski.

The post [Muckraker] A cautionary tale of the incompetent skipper. appeared first on FREESKIER.