Free Spirit: A Tribute to Luca Pandolfi
As backcountry skiers and riders, we’re understandably keen to study avalanche fatalities, so that we may learn from them and avoid the same fate. But rarely do we analyze a life—particularly a life well-lived—with the same scrutiny. Luca Pandolfi, a 47-year-old Italian big mountain snowboarder who passed away in Italy’s Gran San Bernardo Valley on March 17, lived one such life, both on and off the hill.
Behind the Memes: Uphill Fiend share more than just jokes
Uphill Fiend follows their passion of poking fun at tele skiing. [Meme] Uphill Fiend Three years ago, an eight-year-old explained memes to me. I wish I’d written his definition down, because I’m … [Read More...]
Hunting for Wind Slab: A custom continuing ed avalanche course
Sophia Schwartz and Sarah Carpenter investigate a windy, Wyoming summit. [Photo] Iain Kuo The cold Wyoming wind swirled wisps of snow across the couloir in Grand Teton National Park. I could see … [Read More...]
Colorado Reports Twelfth Avalanche Fatality of the Season
A skier was killed Monday, March 22 in an avalanche outside of Colorado’s Beaver Creek Ski Area. According to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC), the skier was traveling below tree line … [Read More...]
Renowned Snowboarder Luca Pandolfi Dies in Avalanche
Jeremy Jones penned an Instagram tribute to friend and fellow Jones teammate Luca Pandolfi. Italian snowboarder Luca Pandolfi died in an avalanche on Wednesday, March 17. He was splitboarding in … [Read More...]
A Return to Skis
The lifts are about to close as I skin up the groomed slope of Buttermilk Mountain outside Aspen, Colorado, on a February afternoon. The last skiers and snowboarders whiz by on their way back to their … [Read More...]
Gearbox: Ortovox Diract Voice
As an avalanche instructor, I spend a lot of time calling out directions to my students: “Zig-zag until you find a signal! Follow the arrows! Make sure the numbers are going down! Get lower to the … [Read More...]
Gearbox: Goggles
Editors’ Choice: Anon M4 Backcountry skiing often requires sacrificing style for functionality. Luckily, Burton’s goggle and eyewear company, Anon Optics, finds the balance between the two with … [Read More...]
Gearbox: Helmets
Editors' Choice: Petzl Sirocco They say the best helmet is the one you’ll wear. And for skiers who climb and climbers who ski, the dual-certified Petzl Sirocco gives no excuses to leave your … [Read More...]
The Art of the Sufferfest: How to make the worst ski days into the best memories
Photographer Andrew Strain tests his luck by bringing his date, Alix MacKay, on a bushwacking adventure with a three-inch snow base. [Photo] Andrew Strain So, you want to be a ski mountaineer? … [Read More...]
Travel Wisely: How to safely explore and enjoy the backcountry through a global pandemic
With Covid-19 still spreading across the globe, the only answer to the question, “What happens next?” seems to be “Who knows?” Ski resorts are just one example of a disrupted industry, and while a … [Read More...]
Mountain Skills: Streamline the Ride
The word efficiency gets used excessively these days. Everything has to be more efficient: cars, computers, factories and, yes, even splitboarders. Over the past several years, splitboard technology … [Read More...]
Mountain Skills: Managing Risk and Responsibility
In 2014, SnowSport Industries America (SIA) estimated that there were three million backcountry users out there, and industry professionals started to worry about the repercussions of a crowded … [Read More...]
Mountain Account: Unstable Intuition
In April 2013, photographer Chris Christie and three friends ventured north of Pemberton, B.C. to Sun God Mountain and its popular, steep, north-facing terrain. The group split up, and after observing … [Read More...]
Mountain Skills: Set a Plan and Stick to It
You’ve been playing it safe all day. Even though the avalanche bulletin called out “Considerable” hazard for the day (natural avalanches are possible and human-triggered are likely), you haven’t … [Read More...]
Hips Don’t Lie: How a solid foundation leads to strong skinning
In 2014, when Exum guide and longtime skimo competitor Janelle Smiley entered a hospital for double hip surgeries, she worried she might never skin again. She and her husband Mark, an internationally … [Read More...]
Mountain Skills: Essential Education
The list of skills and knowledge needed to get into the mountains is never ending. In fact, it’s subject matter that numerous careers are built on, but safe and efficient backcountry travel … [Read More...]
Mountain Skills: Take the time to be prepared for early season turns
It’s late fall and many mountains throughout the U.S. have seen some decent early season snow. As a result, stoke is high and people are itching to ski. Not many ski areas are open yet, however, and … [Read More...]
Higher Learning: The nuances of how, when, where and why to take a course
Two Marches back, as I stood on the edge of the frozen Bell Lake in Montana’s Tobacco Root Mountains, I knew I was exactly where I needed to be. Together with a half dozen no-longer-strangers, I … [Read More...]
