Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Lately: I feel spoiled

There some of parents out there that wouldn't comply with their child moving away from home to ski at a time when most of that childs peers are entering post-secondary education. Even less parents support that decision. Mine have. By no means have I had a lot of success here, but I'd be much worse off if my parents hadn't made moves to help me. Justifying pairs of skis and seasons passes as birthday presents, masking trips to comps as vacations, and paying for pricey car repairs as an early christmas gift, not to mention lending me money when work has gotten skimpy and I can't make rent. I thought the minute I left home that I had entered a world entirely of my own so I'm not sure where I stand on responsibility now. Some unlucky things have happened to me lately and I don't know whether I should shrug them off and pay the consequence or if these unfortunate events are evidence that I need to rethink things and make changes. I hope I can figure this out soon. Thank you to my mother and father for being so kind.

Lately: bullet points

-I've probably skied about 25 days this season
-I'm bussing/ working bar back at a local bar/ restaurant
-I got my drivers license October 29th and got my first car a few weeks later
-I've decided to do a few freeride world tour qualifier events and a few opens as well this season, as well as anything I can do to get photos/footage
-I was given free gear for the first time when Romp outerwear hooked me up with some jackets and pants last week (rompsnow.com)
-I got some training in throughout the fall and right before the season my max squat was 275 lbs
-Since opening day I haven't kept up to well but I've started yoga and seem to be past a period of apathy
-Skiing is going ok, I've been doing some park, some powder, and a lot of riding around doing random hits
-It's snowing very heavily outside at this moment

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Lately: Fall, rising to the winter

It's a point in time in which I am waiting. Not just waiting, but also preparing. I look forward to the point at which I can do what I love to do, however I need nothing but time between now and then in order to facilitate the resources that allow me to commit to this love. I stick to the grind, as it's all that I can do to connect these two places in time, however I know little of how this is all going to work out.

I  haven't been out much lately, only taking in a few shows in the city. When I get back to Whistler I slip into a mode of working and training, easily forgetting mental development as a priority. In the city I forget to train. I like to go Vancouver and walk with my friends in neighborhoods  we know better than anyone. We talk and observe what happens around us and it is a very easy way to go through a day.

All I can do is try my best, however if this is me doing my best, then I fear for a life of mediocrity. I'm happy enough right now, but without days of passion and adventure this time seems to lack something. I don't spend time thinking about skiing either, even in Whistler it seems to far off to be worth yearning for. All I'm doing is waiting.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Defining a Free Skier

I think that what defines a freeskier can be broken down into three sorts of values. These are both aspects of a skiers perspective, and of their skiing itself.


Originality
Originality within skiing is the choices you make regarding what tricks you do or what line you take. The way that your decision making has your skiing set apart from others. Within freeskiing today originality is the least common of these values.



Style
Style is your own twist on how you move skiing. Often, styles come naturally. Style is how you look. It can be influenced by music, your crew, or other sports you have done. Style is consistently evolving in skiing, but will never have a golden standard as it will always belong to the individual skier.



Skill
Skill is the level of your game, so simple it can be broken down into numbers. The spins you can do, the cliffs you can drop, and your ability to excel in all sorts of situations. Skills are what win competitions and are usually noticed right off the bat. A truly skillful skier is hardly denied credit.

Lately: ?

The summer has been an odd one. In the last few weeks I feel that I've sharpened my perspective on things, however this occurred after I had slowly shifted my mindset in a blurred direction throughout the summer. I've wasted a fair amount of time in the last few months. Choosing one job and and quitting another in the beginning of the summer. I ended up losing focus and never working a whole lot, spending lots of time doing nothing in particular. It wasn't a bad summer, however I do regret coming out it without producing anything. ($)

Even though it's still warm, it is fall now and coincidentally things have changed for me. I look forward to the rain for the sake of the simplicity it provides.The next few months won't be crazy, successes will numbers in the gym and lows will be bad days at work. However I'm sleeping with my skis bedside, not losing any focus.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Writing on skiing

I have many ideas about skiing that I would like to put out for others to read and respond to. Action sports generally are held on a pedestal by their very own cultures. This is especially true within Internet communities. Countless times I have seen videos with aspects potentially worthy of criticism only to read below a surplus of generic comments that really don't get to the point of what people like or dislike about the piece. This is not a matter of negative or positive feedback, but what I think is the result of a sport adopting a umbrella-like mindset. Conveying that anyone skiing shouldn't be is bad, however action sports are inherently art. Nobody skis the same and I like it when people have input on other peoples game that goes beyond good or bad. No one has to listen either. It's win-win.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Blading Clips

Last fall my friend Nathan got some clips of me rollerblading in my garage. I usually ride the park in Whistler. Song Bruiser Brigade by Danny Brown


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

What I've been doing. What I plan on Doing

Last time I posted in UnderWhiteSkies I was skiing park and it was springy and I was just flowing through the park and trying new things for fun. Little changed until the end of May but I became more and wild with skiing as the hill became more sunny more muddy and more scarred. I started working construction for the summer and no longer ski. I want to get a truck in the fall and save money and train in  the gym for 3 cold months in the fall and then I want to ski.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Lately: Longview

Haven't been doing much over the weekend after hurting my shoulder. Watching TV, sleeping in, amongst other things. I've done a bit of exercise to get my shoulder tightened up a bit, and in turn learned a bit about skipping rope. I'm pretty stoked on the skip rope, since it's intense as you make it, not to mention the fact that you never really stress your calves when skiing. In a couple days if skiing feels right I'd like to get a couple days in at bounce.

Here are some rap songs for your pleasure. I'll be back skiing park tomorrow and these are gonna be the main source of inspiration.




Friday, April 6, 2012

Toboggans

I've been in the ski patrols toboggan before. At first it was a thrill, now it's a claustrophobic nuisance, being locked in a potential projectile and slowly dragged down steep slopes. You are so immobilized that people could mistake you for a dead body. Yesterday I hurt myself in an odd accident, tumbling after being hit by a stray ski. I never consciously think about the thrill of skiing when I'm on the mountain. I just do things because they feel good. But when something  like this happens I begin to identify with the group of skiers that are about the thrill because I see the consequential side of this sport and I feel like I should embrace it.

I need to find something to do to pass the time. I'm really good at spending an entire afternoon getting a coffee, and I still thinking about grabbing a new but old video game system. A few couple essay ideas have come to me and I'm put those down on here when the times right. 

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Lately

These last few weeks have been good however, in a sense, uneventful. After a week of non stop snow where most of what a threw down was big drops and tricks, we got a straight week on sun where I found new lines everyday, mostly exposed, steep stuff that hasn't had adequate coverage or visibility. The steeps around peak chair have been a new proving grounds for me these last couple days. Maybe it's the sun shining on all these slopes, maybe it's a new personal perspective, but I've been finding new lines and variations of lines that have evaded me all year. 

A slide below Cirque. The cornices are HUGE right now

A new, steep line for me. Not sure what it's called but it's the far right entrance to the Cirque, PC'd until recently. It's nice not just to ski a line for the first time, but to also get it with some flow and technique.

It looks like it's gonna be cloudy and snowy this week. Unless it gets deep by tomorrow I'm probably going to try to get my park legs back. I've been in the park only a few of times this year. A side of me is doubtful about going back in the park when my skill set is so far behind compared to those skiing park all year. The other side of me is really excited about the massive creative palette that park skiing provides, like the huge potential in the variety of tricks and styles.  

Also, big ups to Dylan Siggers to landed a podium at a FWT in Montana a couple days ago. Seeing people you've ridden with up in a world class event is really inspiring. The tour is definitely in my sights for next year.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Traveling to Lake Louise

 Just finished up at Lake Louise for the Big Mountain Challenge this weekend. I stayed with the UBC freeride team. There's a good little crew here and that's not mentioning everyone else on the mountain. The first day I checked my twitter feed and immediately noticed a bunch of people I knew were shredding at Louise. I've some some shots and further thoughts I want to post when I'm back in Whistler. All in all it was a good weekend.



These mountains are beautiful too.
                      
Calgary



photos from my phone

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Photos From Whitewater

While we were in Whitewater my dad and I met up with family friends Jack and Louise Christie. Jack is an outdoor writer for several publications including the Georgia Straight. Louise and Jack were in Whitewater to document the Coldsmoke Festival. On Sunday we caught up and skied a couple of runs together and Louise grabbed some photos. Their article will appear in the Georgia Straight next year as a promotion for the festival. The photos really capture the skiing conditions we had, deep playful Kootenay pow.

photo by Louise Christie

photo by Louise Christie

photo by Louise Christie
photo by Louise Christie



Wednesday, February 29, 2012

shit's just getting better!


Got a clip on my phone in horseshoes today in harmony.




Feeling super good right now. Conditions are tight and the hill is filled with dope people. Also I'm seeing some big hits that I've never considered before, just got to wait until my ankle is 100% to approach them. I'm getting my hands on some of the shots taken by Louise Christie at Whitewater. I will elaborate and throw up the shots another day when I've got some in higher res., soon.

In the meantime here's a little teaser shot.


I'm getting tired of rushing to get these posts in between a day of skiing and going to work.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Nelson: Coldsmoke Powder Festival

Dad and I
 I just returned to Whistler from a road trip with my dad to Nelson. My father wanted a break from work and we had an opportunity to stay with one of his old friends just outside of Nelson for the weekend. Our trip coincided with two things: a decent storm system, and the Kootenay Coldsmoke Powder Festival. The first day I spent criusing the mountain and trying to get my ankle working again after a fall last Saturday, it wasn't snowing a whole lot so I didn't mind the mellowness. Whitewater is an old school steep tree resort a lot like Red Mountain but with a much more consistent slope, and bootpack accessible ridges behind it, not to mention a bit more snowfall. It also has amazing food.
Kootenay Lake
I didn't get to explore Nelson much, but I did enjoy the sight of the early 20th century buildings while passing through, not to mention the coffee. The second day we woke up to 30 cms of fresh Kootenay powder. My ankle felt strong and I got faceshots all morning, not to mention the opportunity to meet a few of the companies hanging out at the demo area. Later in the day I skied in the PowderKeg Slopestyle, a grassroots style event that had skiers and boarders competing against one another. The 15-18 category threw down huge tricks (1080's, double backflips) and despite landing very few, it was just good to watch. My first run was a total mess, with no landed tricks I was considering skipping the second heat and going skiing instead. I went against that partially just because the snow in the venue was so deep. My second run worked, I spun a true 3 off a sizable cliff, stomped it and got a couple waist deep turns in.
the trip home
That day and the next we continued to even more snow. The awards were on Sunday and to my surprise I ended up on the podium. The Coldsmoke Festival is a great thing to be in Whitewater for. It's a really good example of how personal and friendly the ski industry is. I definitely want to come back next year. I'm back in Whis now, and it's really good- so is the forecast.

The photos I took on this trip were fairly impromptu, perhaps even contrived. I just didn't seem to have any time to set up a good shot. Whistler village leaves something to be desired for photos but I'd like to bring my SLR on the hill and get some action shots with a good crew. I'm more interested in taking some quality shots on my upcoming trip to Lake Louise (airport photos) as well as taking photos with my friends in Vancouver. The next time I come across some cash I'm going to pick up a portrait lens.

Also, expect some good shots I grabbed up in Whitewater up in the next few days. I will say no more.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Dry

I feel that I've been experiencing lows since I got back from Red Mountain. Some where on my way back from Red I picked up a fun little disease called whooping cough which slowed down my early February. I pushed through it for a little while when the conditions were good, however I've taken the last week off skiing and now I feel considerably better. What would I do in my free time? I cleaned obsessively, listened to new hip-hop, wrote some hip-hop (the songs name will probably be "red socks"), read (Barneys Version), went through some agonizing work shifts, worked out (a little) and started a new TV series (Dexter). Now I'm back blogging, skiing, and I have some plans for the next couple weeks. I'm heading to Nelson for a weekend in the end of February with my father for some soul skiing and a Powder Slopestyle event (?). Seeing as Nelson is a beautiful town expect me to dust off my SLR and publish a photo essay on here, and perhaps meet some locals and get some shots on the hill as well. In the beginning March I'm set to go fly to the Smith Optics Freeskiing Challenge (why these long titles?) at Lake Louise which I feel very good about, I think I got the butterflies out at Red and and ready to enjoy myself and go kill it worry free.

I didn't miss skiing all that much when I was at home sick but after skiing the ice up top today I can say that my focus is certainly back and I'm looking forward to Saturday when It's supposed to snow again. I'm also looking back. Like hearkening to January when the snow was soft and the sun was up. My good friend Jon made an edit of his season so far, I am lucky to have the first two clips in it. I genuinely love this edit, the first shots match the pace of the song so well, it's not imposing, and the subtle text placement is right on point. My first line in it isn't bad either. 



Inside My Head: Red Mt.

This year at the Canadian Open I went through several considerably different mindsets and I would like to share with you how they affected my skiing, and the trip as a whole. The First day I arrived was the inspection, I definitely wasn't on my game, and largely due to the skilled competition I was doubting my myself. Me and my buddy Jon skied around Red which helped cleared my mind, however the anxiety didn't quit until I fell asleep that night. I woke up for qualifiers with a very focused mentality and because of this my confidence went up as well. I knew I could ski my line and built up the intensity up top to accomplish something I was fairly proud of.

 The second day was surely the hardest day of skiing I've gone through this season. I had cleared qualifying to 7th place, but the Semi Final and Final venue was on Mt. Roberts, terrain I had never skied or even really looked at before. This was my first time getting a snowmobile ride, wearing a beacon, and meeting a lot of the competition. I was encountering so many things I had never done before, all on a day that I had put an enormous amount of pressure on myself. Arriving at the top of the venue prompted memories of Lord of the Rings; jagged rocks, fog, ice, all sitting a top a razor sharp ridge. I figured out a line and spent several long hours inside the lodge, waiting for my run. There, I met a good man named Dylan who had coached for several years, he gave me some very good advice. Dylan said that the same energy that goes into fear and anxiety before a competition also is what makes us excited, or in skiers terms: stoked. Despite Dylan's good advice my fear got the best of me and I skied without focus and intensity, missing several lines, grabs, and at one point falling. I made it to the finals and knew I had to forgive myself and move on.

Though I can't say my mind was clear during finals, I knew I could handle the intimidating venue and had a line to ski my way,  so I popped in my headphones turned the Dr. Dre up and dropped.  This is now my go to mindset. I skied with confidence and style, and ended up in fourth. If I had a name for this psychological state it would be called -knowing you have it, and not giving a  fuck about the rest-. I was so caught up in fear that I forgot that just skiing it would ultimately yield better performance.

I'm still trying to gather photos and videos from Red, despite the seemingly abundant media coverage, I can't seem to find much on the internet.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

On NS

I uploaded a new header image and this post is largely to give credit to Red Mountain Resort for the photo. I just finished up with the Canadian Open Freeskiing Championships and now I am in Vancouver for some downtime and construction work. I ended up with an 8th place finish and though I can't say I skied my best throughout the entire event, I did have some moments and ultimately had a very good time. I'm waiting for more photos and possibly video so that I can write a more interesting and comprehensive post about the event. Can't wait to get back up to Whistler on Saturday to go ski all the pow I'm missing out on....  Bills Yo!




Read Newschoolers take on the Canadian Open Finals HERE

Monday, January 2, 2012

Jumping Cars

One day a couple of weeks ago it was raining to the top of the WhistlerBlackcomb, after a half day of wet skiing I retreated to my friend Max's cabin where he and my buddy Ryan had built a jump track through the property that ended with a jump over a car. I worked up the confidence to 180 it and Max got a couple photos. He's making a video for everyday he's in Whistler, http://www.youtube.com/user/themaximusprime1992 is his youtube channel. Each video has a nice blend of craziness and skiing. Here's a sequence of the car jump.


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