soul skiing

The Squaw Soul Skier

The Squaw Soul Skier

Every ski town has them, I have been one, and in fact many of my readers probably have. The ski bum or I prefer to use the term ‘Soul Skier’. It’s the guys or girls who live to ski, who do everything in their power to be able to ski most days of the season, and do so (in some cases) year after year. They maybe pro, maybe not. They may have given up a real career or relocated just to pursue their passion. Either way, they are pretty much the biggest rippers and chargers on the mountain, adding to the mountain scenery in spectacular ways with their finesse, athleticism, and energy.

Whilst skiing around my recently adopted local mountain Squaw Valley, California this season with a group of local Soul Skiers, I was thinking that there’s no other sport that quite attracts the level of commitment that skiing (I speak equally about boarding) does.

Chasing The White Gold Rush - Part II

Chasing The White Gold Rush - Part II

PART 2: REVELSTOKE

Mrs Simpson, wife of Don Simpson, the original visionary and former resort developer of Revelstoke, once described Revelstoke to me as ‘It’s like Aspen was in the 60’s’. Of course, I wasn’t around in the 60’s in Aspen to be able to verify, but it’s a pretty complimentary comparison, and I think I can see why. 2011 marked 125 years of the community of Revelstoke, originally founded as a railway town, when the Canadian Pacific Railway was built through the Selkirk and Monashee mountains, the town soon saw the tourism potential and named Mt Revelstoke a national park in 1914.

Myth Busters - 1

Myth Busters - 1

In my last blog post I interviewed Mike about his first heli skiing experience. Apart from the questions I asked him for the blog we also got talking about heli skiing in general and why it took him so long to hear about it. One of the things that stood out during my conversation with him was the fact that, there are a lot of myths and pre conceived notions, most of them wrong, about heli skiing. These myths are what put a lot of people off the idea of trying heli skiing!

So, as I sat to write my latest blog post, I am positive that busting a few myths would be a good idea….Here is the first in my series of Myth Busters blogs….

ISPO 2011

ISPO 2011

But then again, ISPO 2011 isn’t exactly your every day trade show. What’s ISPO you ask? Well, it’s the world’s largest sporting goods trade fair, and it’s literally a gear freak’s wet dream. The most extensive ISPO is held in Munich every year, and has grown to a size no less than 12 (Yes 12) massive exhibition halls full of every conceivable brand of sporting goods ranging from winter to summer sports that you can imagine.

The fact that one hall alone was dedicated to Scandinavian outdoor companies, another 3 to skiing, that Moon Boots were having  a revival, and ABS airbags even had a large stand…well, see below, you get the picture.

Slack Country Powder Skiing

Slack Country Powder Skiing

Out the back of Kicking Horse Ski Resort with Great Canadian Heliski Mountain Guide- Dave Rutherford.

Ever wondered why a guy who gets paid to heliski would want to strap on a pair of skins and walk up hills for fun? Well, meet Dave Rutherford. A Canadian BC powder country local who started his career as a Banff liftie, and progressed to become a Level 4 Canadian Mountain Guide, and ‘2IC’ at Great Canadian Heli skiing. Ask him this question, and he might tell you that he appreciates the fortitude from ‘earning your turns’. That’s easy for him to say……