second installment in the AK POV series. Join Dana, Seth, and I as we get dropped off, and then shred the steeps.
Monthly Archive for April, 2009
Things are great… clear skies are the “diamonds in the rough” while posting up in small fishing villages. Waking up to blue skies feels great but one thing after another seems to have thrown a wrench into our plans. So one cannot help but wonder if the stars have aligned? Will the weather hold? Hows the wind? Is the snow stable? is it warming up? if all gos well we will shred… as confidence grows we will step into bigger terrain, scare ourselves, push ourselves, and feel the rush of excitement.
One of the greatest feelings out here in these mountains is the solidarity of the landscape. one feels small and yet a part of it all. This photo of Seth gives me that feeling.
Seth Morrison charges out of the slough after ripping this line to pieces! I was blown away to see him rip this face like he did. Truly a full throttle run, two huge turns up top, crossing multipul spines, then ripping the bottom into a nice air.
Photo by Seth Morrison with Tilt shift effect This was another moment of total blindness right before the roll over. I used a tilt shift effect to get the “miniature” feel. I recently found out about this cool style from Tate.
Photo by Dana Flahr, This was a super fun run that was crazy deep!
After sitting through day after day of bad weather… watching radar, pacing back and forth, and snacking non-stop, it can be confusing what we are doing here. But glimmers of blue skies keep us hungry and focused so we occupy our time with “the little things”.
1. Go for a “Ripinsky” mission
Haines America
2. Go Maddd at the pioneer bar
3. Over produce some “head shots”
4. clone yourself
5. Ring the bell
6. Go out on a Fishing boat
7. Eat fresh crab…and salmon
8. Shotgun some beers
9. check out a totem pole
10. Dream of places like this…
Just a little POV teaser
Riding in Alaska is a unique experience, snow creates formations that seem to be out of this world, and huge pillows, spires, flutes and spines create an alien playground. The skylines are riddled with endless peaks, huge glaciers separate drainages, and distances are hard to gauge. With no visual references like trees or structures, to evaluate size, it’s easy to mistake a 2000-foot face for something much smaller. Cliff airs that appear to be ten-foot rocks turn into 40-foot drops. Only When the helicopter flies towards the face to drop off a friend do you finally get perspective of the size.
The posse is comprised of a world-class production crew from TGR, photographers Flip McCririck, and Adam Clark, Athletes, Seth Morrison, Tanner Hall, Dana Flahr, and myself. Several Other riders have cycled through here already this year too, Erik Roner, Ian McIntosh, and still photographer Mark Fisher just wrapped up the first leg of filming here.
I rolled into town early and had a string of blue bird days with them; the first window the crew had seen the whole trip. Plugging in with the group halfway through their session supercharged my re-immersion into the terrain. We quickly stepped into big zones after a day of snow assessment.
The crew was on fire, charging fast, with mad enthusiasm. Snow Was deep. The deepest snow I’ve ever skied on AK’s steep fluted terrain. Face shots were unavoidable, and on top of the normal challenges vision was spotty, you were forced to plan wayyyy ahead.
Erik Roner ski base
For the last few years I have been super lucky to venture north in the spring to continue my winter adventure in Alaska. The plan was to head to Hanies for a two week session, then drive to Anchorage and ski in the Girdwood area for a week, then venture into the Tordrillo mountains for the final two weeks of our trip. Seemed like a great plan with several great areas to ski and explore… the mountains had other plans. The tordrillos sits in the southern arm of the Alaska Range which is home to several large volcanoes including Mt. Spur, and Mt Redoubt, which started erupting during the end of March. This closed down air traffic in the whole area and covered the mountains with a thick layer of ash. So lucky we initiated plan b… stay in Hanies, which is a true Alaska heli mecca. It has a deep history of big mountain riding that started when TGR first set foot here over ten years ago. Now every years top ski and snowboard pros, hardcore guides, and eager clients make the pilgrimage from all over the world to shred here.
Having a good tune on your gear is super important. More and more I appreciate having my skis running smooth. Regular buffing and waxing helps, but I like to turn my beat up skis into freshies mid way through the season by getting a full tune. I take my skis to the Alta Peruvian Lodge ski shop where they specialize in big mt and powder ski tune ups. They use Wintersteiger tuning equipment and a hands on approach to give personalized tunes without the “production line” style of some shops. Having a fresh tune makes you faster, which gets you to the goods sooner. Also its easier on your body if your gear slides smooth, less resistance under foot is less abuse on your joints. Having a good tune is important even if you just ski powder!
