Back in The Saddle Again

It has been almost 4 months to the day since I had a new ACL put in my knee…. So I decided it was time to get back on the big bike and have some fun DH style

Openning Day at DV

The Season Ender: On The Side Lines But Not Out Of The Game

So it has been quite a while since I last posted on this thing and much has happened…

Last I wrote I was well on my way to diving into teaching AIARE Avalanche courses through White Pine Touring, I was looking to Shadow some backcountry ski guiding companies in the Wasatch, and I was just about to sign a contract with Telemark Skier Magazine.
Well, as life often does… I got thrown for a BIG loop and many lessons to follow.

While doing some soul skiing up at Alta with Weston D. I tore my ACL.
No, it wasn’t that simple, but it was that strait forward. Before you ask- No I was not hucking my meat or skiing some spectacular line, I was simply enjoying the first significant storm after our January dry spell. We had about 15″ of fresh, slightly wind affected snow on top of a sun/rain crust. I simply hit the icy layer underneath and sat back, giving a bit of a butt check, when I stood up POP!

That was the end of my season. It took about two weeks until my denial and that of my physical therapists broke down and we decided I should go in for an MRI. Of course the outcome showed a full tear of my ACL, with surgery and the inevitable end of ski season being the outcome.
It has been exactly one moth since surgery and I have been on a wild journey of sorts. I am not going to dive into the dark places I have gone or the emotional roller coaster that has been the product of a super athletic and physical being, being kept from the only form of meditation and emotional outlet they have ever known, but I will say it has been a struggle, one that I was not really prepared for, but I guess no one ever really is.

Since tearing my knee I have managed to do a few cool trips. I went and supported the Telemark Freeskiing National at Alpine Meadows. There, I was able to catch up with a bunch of my friends that I only really get to see when competing. It was actually a really cool experience getting to go to the comp, cheer on all my friends, film a bit for Telemark Skier Magazine, and have a place in the community even though I was on the sidelines (which has never really been my favorite position).

Last week after being cleared from using crutches I headed up to the Telemark Skier Magazine Ski Test in Powder Mountain. Of course I was not able to partake in the physical test, but after expressing my need and desire to stay as connected to the goings on of the industry to Josh Madsen ( friend and editor of TSM) we decided that I would head-up the writing of the 2012 Gear Review. This meant I would take notes at each nights debrief, compile all test sheets, and create an incredible list of the most tantalizing gear you must have! It was a super fun four days of obligatory libations being funneled through a plastic flamingo lawn ornament, AKA the BeerMingo accompanied with great new faces and tons of laughs not to mention a bunch of skis, binding, and boots that I am drooling to get on next season.

Again, being in the periphery has been a challenge, but through a hopefully increasing sense of clarity I have found that if I truly love this sport, then I just have to push a bit harder to make my physical inactivity disappear behind my motivation and drive to continue being relevant through other means.
There are so many lessons and realizations that I have had through all of this. That is not to say that I have become enlightened though it, more like dumbfounded by my own habitual behavior that now doesn’t work. I have gained a new awareness, that I have to learn some new tools, because the old tricks don’t work so well when trying to bend with the braided lattice that is life. So I am on another sojourn and I am sure lessons will continue to trip me along my path, but with each stumble I will gain more balance and continue to gain strength and perspective.

Huge thanks to all my friends, family and sponsors who have been so supportive!

Avi Path: The road to becoming an educator

December and January are the months of building. We build strong legs, while waiting for our snow pack to grow, we become inspired by the white peaks and start developing our season tick list, and we begin to keep track of what Ullar is laying down. Quickly, the anticipation for the winter season turns into deep powder days of excitement and before you know it, we have found our rhythm and are entrenched in the ski season.

For the past four years I have taken December and January to be a time of not only building my legs, and excitement but also building my understanding of the snow and mountains, where I spend most of my days. This season I chose to take my knowledge and dedication of understanding our snow to the next level.

Previously I had taken the level 1 AIARE Avalanche course, the Freeride Avalanche Summit over at snowbird, and countless refreshers, beacon clinics, and snow study discussions and seminars. This season, however I have decided to embark on a path a little more involved, marking the beginning of my long sojourn into the world of backcountry guiding.

There are many ways to approach such a career, but I thought there was no better way to begin this process than by working on becoming a snow science educator. The way I see it, if I am going to make a life out of being in the backcountry I want to make sure that the people I share that environment with are equally in the know of the potential hazards, proper travel and rescue techniques, and have and know how to use their avi rescue gear, because

…well, you never know who might be the one there to save you.

So, the first step was to take my level II Avalanche course. I chose to go through Crested Butte Mountain Guides as they have some of the most highly experienced and accomplished instructors, not to mention that learning the science of snow in some of the most dangerous and unstable snowpack in the country seemed to be an excellent opportunity to really get my hands dirty.

So on the 16th of December I packed up my truck and headed out with Weston D. for Crested Butte, CO.

I am not one of those people who loved school, or even excelled in the classroom environment, so needless to say embarking on this more classroom and science oriented program was more than slightly unnerving. Never-the-less I pushed on, following my desire to become a professional in the outdoors (beyond my career as an athlete).

With a new notebook, my BCA snow study kit, beacon probe, shovel, saw and a mind ready to be filled with terms, data, and concepts I headed into the classroom.

During the course of our Level 2, C.B. proceeded to get hammered with a southwest flow, locally known as “The Pineapple Express“. We received over 5 ft of snow in our three days and the storm could not have provided a better venue for learning and exploring in depth the bonding, layering, metamorphic process and a slew of other topics and concepts.

With a mind full of new dorky data and information based around snow crystal type and temperature gradient, I returned home to Utah just in time for the holiday season to kick into gear. I waded through the onslaught of family and friends all vying for attention, tried to catch a couple pow days in between, and just surrendered to the fact that, until  my AIARE Instructor Training Course in January, my life was gonna be hectic.

So on it went, and yes it was quite crazy, even managed to squeeze in a trip to Sister’s Oregon for Hoodoo’s annual Tele Festival. But, like you always do, I managed to make it through.

So here I now sit, having just completed my Instructor Training Course.

Being re-inspired by developing a new goal and vision for my future has been a really exciting process, one that started this past summer. However, I have decided that I really have to make sure that this “vision” I have for my future actually feels right in reality. While the Level 2 was the start and a prerequisite for the ITC (Instructor Training Course), it was not indicative of my hoped future career.

The real test was heading to Silverton, CO for my ITC. I headed out there alone, with the only familiarity being the Triangle Motel where I had stayed last year with the Trew Crew, and was staying again. It is interesting, when you come out of a period of feeling a bit lost and fragmented, those pieces tend to realign themselves, offering such clarity. And that was the space I was in heading out to Silverton last Sunday. I headed out with the only expectation of experiencing something new and by the end of the course feeling out weather my supposed path was holding up to reality.

The course could not have been more inspirational, educational, and valuable. Tom Murphy, Tim Brown, and Ben Pritchett came to the table with years of invaluable experience, clear teaching techniques, and a free flowing concept of a continued development framework that highlighted AIARE’s dedication to the continual growth a progression of Avalanche awareness and education.

It was an intensive 3 day course with each student teaching one mock level 1 section and an overall frame work of learning the Level 1 curriculum, Teaching techniques and skills, and then furthering our professional development on all aspects.

With only three days it is hard to imagine that so much could be accomplished. I was quite fortunate to be in a group and a class filled with seasoned guides, educators, and rescue workers all who had previously been in professional leadership roles dealing with backcountry safety. Now, at another point in my life (or even two weeks ago) I would have felt completely in adequate and self conscious. However, with my newly re-acquired perspective I was able to feel only inspired and look up to each of my classmates as mentors. With their experience they were able to ask insightful questions, add phenomenal first hand accounts that were applicable to the topics, and provide analytical commentary.

The course came and went and I felt like a sponge trying to soak up each morsel of information. I am not sure anyone could absorb, in entirety, the multitude of ideas and concepts of the three days. However, I do know that I have been inspired!

It is now the middle of January and I am finally feeling the flow. I have completed the first major step on this new journey and am hungry to start practicing my new skills and see where this all will lead.