Jackson Hole Skier Magazine 2017

JACKSON HOLE jhskier.net

PHOTO GALLERY | P 94 MOUNTAIN RESORTS | P 14 BACKCOUNTRY GUIDES | P 68 ALPINE MEDICAL ADVICE | P 83 WINTERING WILDLIFE | P 60 WHISKEY & BEER | P 52

Jackson Hole Winter 2016 – 2017

THIS IS NOT KENTUCKY

I CAN TREK AGAIN #ICanAgain ST. JOHN’S MEDICAL CENTER

Jackson Hole resident Jane Baldwin is a hiker. But a few years ago, her hip made walking, not to mention hiking, painful. After considering her options, she came to our Peak Joint Replacement Center.

JA NE BA LDWIN H IP RE PLACE M E N T PAT IE N T

Immediately after her hip replacement surgery, her hip felt better. Less than 3 months later, she put her new hip to the test on a trek across Nepal. How did she do? “My hiking partners had doubts about my ability to hike, but I knew I could do it. On day 2, we did 11 kilometers and 3,500 steps.” That’s about the height of the Grand Teton.

For #ICanAgain videos and stories, visit tetonhospital.org/stories. tetonhospital.org/stories . #ICanAgain

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JEWELRY ORIGINALS 41 YEARS OF INSPIRATION AT 6000 FT. Gaslight Alley • Downtown Jackson Hole • 125 N.Cache

www.danshelley.com • info@danshelley.com •307.733.2259 ALL DESIGNS COPYRIGHTED

RESORTS 14 24 26 41 42 44 54 57

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort JHMR Access & Resources JHMR Alpine Guides JH Ski Patrol Rescue Dog Trading Cards Snow King Mountain Resort SKMR Access & Resources Grand Targhee Resort GTR Access & Resources

BACKCOUNTRY 27 68 70 74 78 80 82 88 91

B-T National Forrest Avalanche Center Teton Range Skiers’ Best National Park Exum Mountain Guides Jackson Hole Mountain Guides Teton Backcountry Guides Backcountry Zero Teton Pass Ambassador & KHOL Valdez Heli-Ski Guides Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides

FEATURES

8 Photo Gallery — The Stoke Room

28 Powder 8 Contest

30 Calico & Mangy Moose Turn 50 34 Pepi Stiegler Fund

OPTIONS TO EXPLORE 40 Caldera House Rising

50 Hole Bowl, Eat Drink Roll 58 Sled Dog Tours 60 Wildlife Tours

36 Teton Adaptive Sports

116 Restore Your Faith In Politics

46 Triple Crown, Jackson Hole Ski Club

122 Kids’ Fun

39 Doug Coombs Foundation

48 Ski Club Grads Race FIS World Cup 52 Wyoming Whiskey

53 Snake River Brewery 64 Igneous Skis 66 Maiden Skis

83 Alpine Medical Advice

118 Diversions — More To Life Than Skiing 123 Restaurant Guide

126 Index of Advertisers 127 Lodging Directory 128 Resort Trail Maps

130 Town of Jackson Map

84 St. John’s Medical Center 86 Teton Orthopaedics

94 Photo Gallery — 14 Photographers

108 TGR Turns 21

111 Storm Show Studios Popular

112 Reality TV Features Teton County Search & Rescue 113 John Griber Wins Emmy 114 KGB Films Monumental

Cover: Skier Kevin Brazell; photo: Wade McKoy Contents: Skier Tanner Flanagan; photo: Fredrik Marmsater Publishers: Bob Woodall and Wade McKoy, dba Focus Productions, Inc. Editors: Wade McKoy, Bob Woodall Copy Editor: Mike Calabrese Art Director: Wade McKoy Graphic Art: Janet Melvin Photo Manager: Eric Rohr Intern: Mari Hanson Advertising: Debra Snyder, Bob Woodall

The JACKSON HOLE SKIER annual winter visitors’ guide is free when picked up at one of 160 distribution points throughout Jackson Hole. Receive one in the mail by sending $6 to JH SKIER, P.O. Box 1930, Jackson, WY 83001.

Contributing Photographers: David Bowers Wade McKoy Jeff Buydos Josh Metten Jimmy Chin Carson Meyer David Cleeland Brittany Mumma Cody Downard Taylor Phillips Wade Dunstan Sam Pope Chris Figenshau Jonathan Selkowitz Mark Fisher Eric Seymour Jay Goodrich John Slaughter Matt Haines Garret Smith Chris Kitchen Mike Stoner Lance Koudele Greg Von Doersten Nancy Leon Bob Woodall Fredrik Marmsater

Contributing Writers: Jeff Burke Steve Casimiro Mike Calabrese Dr.Jeff Greenbaum Matt Hansen Dr. Chris Hills Lanny Johnson, PA

Sandra Keats Brigid Mander Wade McKoy Blair Pendleton Melissa Thomasma Lisa Van Sciver Bob Woodall

Copyright—2016 by Focus Productions, Inc. (fpi).

All rights reserved. www.focusproductions.com, focus@bresnan.net No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.

The Stoke Room

Skier

Jason Tattersall

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

The answer is always powder.

Teton Pass

The question is how to get more.

Dave Moe, aka Captain Powder

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Skier

Tanner Flanagan

Photographer

Fredrik Marmsater

Location

Grand Teton National Park

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Skier

Jeff Annetts

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

Green River

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Skier

Sam Schwartz

Photographer Carson Meyer

Location

Gothic Couloir

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Skier

Owen Leeper

Photographer Lance Koudele

Location

S&S Couloir

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Skier

Bryce Newcomb

Photographer Jay Goodrich

Location

Rendezvous Bowl

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Skier

Rick Armstrong

Photographer Bob Woodall

Location

Rendezvous Bowl

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Jackson Hole Mountain Resort An Insightful Look At The Gentle Giant

O

Story by Steve Casimiro ne midwinter day, I came to find myself in a dead-end gully in Jackson Hole’s infamous Expert Chutes. How I got there is innocuous, really: Instead of zigging left, I zagged right. Much

more interesting was how I planned to get out.

Ten feet of point rocks blocked exit down the fall line, while steep

walls prevented a traverse out on the left or right. Pride, and my friends waiting below, kept me from climbing back out the top.

Continued next page

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the 1993 edition of JH SKIER. Twenty-three years later it still rings true. A few of the facts have changed, duly noted, but the story remains the same.

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Skier

Hadley Hammer

Photographer Jay Goodrich

Location

Hoops Gap

So, there I stood, contemplating the nature of life, granite, and gravity's inexorable pull. The solution to the situation was obvious – point my skis straight down the gully, jump, and pray that I had enough speed to clear the rocks – but I wanted, you know, to think about it a little.

So, there I stood, contemplating the nature of life, granite, and gravity’s inexorable pull. The solution to the situation was obvious – point my skis straight down the gully, jump, and pray that I had enough speed to clear the rocks – but I wanted, you know, to think about it a little.

Then I heard skiers behind me. I glanced back, and recognized one of them immediately – Glen Plake, he of hair and air fame. He made a couple of hop turns above me, said hello, then arced off the side of the gully and flew 30 feet over the rocks. The next skier came down – I didn’t know him – hit the side of the gully a little higher, and flew nearly 50 feet.

I was inspired. Man, was I inspired. Not to jump, mind you, but to think: to think about Jackson Hole, its skiers 16

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and terrain, its culture and legends, and its unique place in the landscape of American ski resorts. Jumping, that can come later.

There is no “best” place to ski, and, despite what some magazine surveys might tell you, there is no “number one” resort in America. Ski resorts are too much like a slow dance with your favorite partner – organic, sensuous, ineffably personal – to even think about ranking them. (Anyone who tells you otherwise is trying to sell something: magazines, advertising, or lift tickets.)

As the managing editor of POWDER, I’ve skied all over the world. Chamonix, Cortina, St. Anton, Val d’Isere, Aspen, Snowbird...l’ve skied nearly all the world’s major resorts and countless of its minor ones. I’ve had w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Skier

Monica Purington

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location Ranger

There is no “best” place to ski, and, despite what some magazine surveys might tell you, there is no “number one” resort in America.

Ski resorts are too much like a slow dance with your favorite partner – organic, sensuous, ineffably personal – to even think about ranking them. mind-blowing days helicopter skiing in the deepest fluff in British Columbia and frightening ones in deadly avalanche terrain in Greenland. When people I meet hear about where I’ve skied and ask me, as they often do, “What’s your favorite place to ski?” my response is always the same: “Every place has its strengths and its weaknesses, so I really couldn’t narrow it down to one, but, you know, hmm...Jackson Hole wouldn’t be a bad place to visit...or spend the rest of your life.”

No other resort in the world matches Jackson for a combination of varied terrain, consistent snow, beautiful 18

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scenery, cool people, wilderness flavor, and American freedom. No other resort has more potential for a skier’s happiness, face shots, scaries, and life-long memories.

Of course, no other resort has the Hobacks, Corbet’s Couloir, and the Grand Teton.

OK, OK. Rave, rave, rave. Enough hype. Why is Jackson so great?

I can think of a thousand reasons. Here are five. Jackson Hole is big. You can get lost here. You cannot ski every trail in a week’s vacation, and you might hurt yourself trying. Should you make a top-to-bottom non-stop w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Skier

Blaine Gallivan

Photographer Lance Koudele

Location

Stash Park

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Skier

Jeff Leger

Photographer

Bob Woodall, TGR

Location

Corbet’s Couloir

No other resort in the world matches Jackson for a combination of varied terrain, consistent snow, beautiful scenery, cool people, wilderness flavor, and American freedom. No other resort has more potential for a skier’s happiness, face shots, scaries, and life-long memories.

Of course, no other resort has the Hobacks, Corbet’s Couloir, and the Grand Teton. run off the tram, you will most decidedly be stepping on your tongue. Should you attempt to make more than one top-to-bottom run without stopping, you will surely rue the 172 consecutive days without exercise that led up to today.

This, of course, will be your last thought before you pass out. When you come to, you will realize that despite that last thought, Jackson’s size is a blessing, for nowhere in the United States can you have this kind of wilderness experience with so much variety and so much room to move.

Jackson Hole is a skier’s mountain. Its whole reason for being is skiing. Skiing, not shopping. Not strolling in furs. Not seeing or being seen. Skiing. What’s that mean? It means that, except where conditions are hazardous, you can ski where you want!

Jackson Hole is unpretentious.

Jackson knows what it has, and so does everyone else. There’s nothing to prove, no need to preen, no reason to remind everyone that Jackson has the largest vertical drop in the whole flippin’ United States.

This downhome feeling extends to the town of Jackson, which has one of the most vibrant, honest, and real ski cultures anywhere.

Jackson Hole has something for everyone. I’m serious. Although known as an expert’s mountain, Jackson has excellent cruising and beginner terrain, not to mention a huge ski school headed by Olympic medalist Pepi Stiegler.1 Of course, the expert terrain is mind-blowing.

Steeps, jumps, avalanche chutes filled with powder, cruising downhill courses, sheltered tree runs...you w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

name it, and it’s there. It’s for good reason skiers like Doug Coombs and Jon Hunt, winners of the first and second annual World Extreme Skiing Championships, make their home here.2

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Skier

Jess McMillan

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location The Crags

Skier

Owen Leeper

Photographer

Greg Von Doersten

Location

Four Pines

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Jackson Hole is big. You can get lost here. You cannot ski every trail in a week’s vacation, and you might hurt yourself trying. Should you make a top-to-bottom non-stop run off the tram, you will most decidedly be stepping on your tongue. Should you attempt to make more than one top-to-bottom run without stopping, you will surely rue the 172 consecutive days without exercise that led up to today.

Jackson even has rocks, including some blocking the exit to a little gully in the Expert Chutes, where the shadows were lengthening on a midwinter day. I knew if I kept moving at my nonexistent pace that I was going to need a shave, a haircut, and a new driver’s license by the time I got to the bottom of the run. I thought a few more seconds about the kind of commitment and dues-paying and fear-facing that it takes to ski at Plake’s or his friend’s level and I thought about all the legendary skiers who’d made their mark here, and then I took a couple steps uphill for more speed, pointed my skis straight for the rocks, and jumped.

That’s the thing about Jackson: When it comes right down to it, it’s not about thinking, or talking, or bragging...it’s about action. It’s about skiing.

Steve Casimiro was an editor at Powder magazine from 1987 to 1998 and National Geographic Adventure from 1998 to 2009. He's the founder and editor of Adventure Journal quarterly.

1 Pepi retired from the ski school in 1993 when the Kemmerers bought the resort. He stayed on as Jackson Hole’s first Ski Ambassador until 2000. Jim Kercher took over the ski school directorship, followed by Brian Maguire. In 2015 Kercher returned as Senior Director of Mountain Sports School. Brian Maguire is now Director of Guest Services at Snow King Mountain Resort.

2 Doug Coombs died in 2006 in a ski accident in La Grave, France. His wife Emily and son David still live in Jackson. Emily is founder/ executive director of the Doug Coombs Foundation and David is a seventhgrader who loves soccer and skiing.

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Skier

Unknown

Photographer Bob Woodall

Location

Cody Bowl

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JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT

ACCESS & RESOURCES

Skier

AJ Cargill

Photographer Bob Woodall

Location

Werner, Arpés Vous

New Gondola

Everyone is excited to ride the latest JHMR lift. Sweetwater Gondola, opening December 17, 2016, will transport 2000 people per hour from the base area to Casper Restaurant and chair lift, significantly increasing the resort’s out-of-base-area capacity. The gondola climbs 1,276 feet up Jackson Face and replaces Eagles Rest and Sweetwater chairlifts.

At mid-station next winter will be a new and enhanced children’s ski school facility called Solitude Station.

True Impact Clinics

Looking for a little more than a group lesson but don’t have time for a four-day camp?

Check out the True Impact Clinics. These clinics help intermediate, advanced, and expert skiers build and fine-tune their skills, develop camaraderie, and confidently explore Jackson’s legendary terrain – all while incorporating perks like lift-line priority, early access, video analysis, and lunch in a convenient twoday format. True Impact Clinics are offered every Tuesday and Wednesday of the season.

Kids’ Ranch

The Kids’ Ranch offers age-specific activities and lessons for children from 6 months to 17 years old. Ski and snowboard lessons, multi-day camps, teen programs, evening activities, and a fully licensed childcare facility are conveniently located in the Cody House.

At the Kids’ Ranch, youngsters can learn, be challenged, make friends, and walk away with lasting Jackson Hole memories.

Stash Park

“It’s a dream come true for snowboarders,” said Ranyon d’Arge, JHMR Park and Pipe supervisor. “To be able to hit four perfect rainbows (bent-over trees with both ends touching the ground) in a row, that’s huge.”

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“The Stash Park changed the way freestyle snowboarders ski Jackson Hole,” said Rich Goodwin, a Park and Pipe crew member. “You talk to the high school and middle school kids, they don’t even remember what run they used to take because now the Stash is all they take.”

Jackson Hole’s four Stash parks are located on Campground, Ashley Ridge, Deer Flats, and at Antelope Flats. The Antelope Flats park is “super friendly, low on the ground, and meant for the kids,” d’Arge said.

“It has a playground-like structure for a dropin, which makes it fun.”

Stash parks are eco-friendly, all features constructed from deadwood, rock, and dirt rather than the more traditional plastic and steel components. “Instead of having burn piles, we clean up the hill and recycle a lot of the deadfall,” D’Arge said. “We don’t harm any live trees.”

JH Tapped / Twitter

The jacksonhole.com website is also smartphone-compatible. Download the resort’s free app, JH Tapped, for maps, weather, useful tips, and mountain info. See which runs are groomed and which are closed. Locate yourself along with your friends and family on the Jackson Hole trail map, courtesy of Google Latitude. Record your runs and log vertical feet and distance. Display your tracks on the trail map. E-mail images to friends, post them to Facebook, or view them in Google Earth. This smartphone app does all that and more. Check the resort’s Twitter feed, @jhski, for frequent updates on snow conditions and status of lifts.

Mountain Hosts

Jackson Hole Mountain Hosts lead complimentary orientation tours for intermediate-

level skiers, departing from the Mountain Hosts’ meeting place, directly behind the general store at the base area, daily at 9:30 a.m.

Backcountry Yurt

Who says there isn’t luxury in the backcountry: enjoy an overnight stay in the Rock Springs Yurt to find just that. The “Yurtmeister” prepares dinner, dessert, breakfast, and hot drinks. Ski to the yurt through the backcountry gates or tour up from the base to the scenic location in lower Rock Springs.

Don’t want to stay overnight? Ask about the hot gourmet lunch option or an après ski event.

Vertical-Foot Club

Become a lifetime member of the Jackson Hole Vertical-Foot Club by skiing 100,000 feet in a week. Earn a certificate of achievement and a Western belt buckle for a lifetime total of 300,000, 500,000, and 1,000,000 feet.

Open to all visitors. For more details on how to enroll, check in with the Customer Service Center. Smartphone users can download the free JH Tapped App to log vertical feet by GPS.

On-Mountain Dining

Piste Mountain Bistro, located at the top of Bridger Gondola and Marmot Chairlift, is a sophisticated yet casual dining experience.

Gather with friends for a bistro-style meal with a Rocky Mountain twist. Patrons enjoy celebrating their experiences on the mountain and relaxing in a casual setting.

Top of the World Waffles – Ride the aerial tram to the summit and enter Corbet’s Cabin for freshly made sweet or savory waffles.

Off-Piste Market – The home of Sicilian pizza and plenty of grab-n-go options, located at the top of the Bridger Gondola, where quick but comfortable food keeps skiers and snoww w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Access & Resources boarders out on the slopes.

Rendezvous Cafeteria – Located at the top of the Bridger Gondola, where floor-to-ceiling windows provide impressive views for a nice lunch on the hill. Rendezvous features Asianstyle noodle bowls, a full grill, salad bar, and Idaho salt-baked potatoes.

Casper Restaurant – Stop by for a few minutes near the roaring fire or take a load off outside on the sundeck during a warmer day.

Casper Restaurant offers classic gourmet ski comfort food, ranging from the burger bar to burritos. Find the best on-mountain bar at JHMR here as well, pouring local beers and mixing warm drinks with a kick.

Saturday Music in March

Live music from a variety of bands playing under the tram dock, the snow bar brimming with libations, everyone can join the crowd gathering after skiing during Saturday afternoons in March! It’s a great way to celebrate the arrival of spring.

Jackson Hole Rendezvous Spring Festival

From March 16-19, enjoy four days of free live music, in both downtown Jackson and Teton Village. Rendezvous Spring Festivals past acts include: Michael Franti, the Zac Brown Band, O.A.R., Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, Blues Traveler, G.Love & Special Sauce, and Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats.

Environmental Responsibility

Situated in one of the world’s most pristine environments, the resort steadfastly maintains its pro-environment practices.

Piste Mountain Bistro is a member of 1% for the Planet, further complementing their already established eco-friendly practices. The majority of ingredients are sourced within a 250-mile radius, menus are designed seasonally to reduce the carbon footprint, and local farmers’ markets and ranches are extensively resourced. Since 2012, the resort’s signature restaurants have partnered with 1% for the Planet, contributing 1% of all profits to local environmentally focused business and nonprofits.

JHMR also has a Golden Eagle Environmental Award, the highest standard of environmental achievement in the ski industry issued by the National Ski Area Association.

JHMR is a founding member of the National Ski Area Association “Climate Challenge.” This voluntary program is dedicated to helping participating ski areas reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and reap other benefits in their operations, such as reducing costs for energy use.

In 2015, JHMR met its five-year quantitative goal by reducing the company’s GHG emissions from electricity, natural gas/propane and vehicle fuels by over 10 percent. The results were driven by updates to building heating systems, year-round use of B10 diesel fuel and conversion of multiple vehicles to run on 100 percent waste vegetable oil collected from JHMR restaurants.

JHMR recycles nearly 1/3 of its trash and offsets 100 percent of its lift electrical energy usage with renewable energy, which further demonstrates responsible mitigation of resortw w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

Farewell Eagle’s Rest It was the day after Christmas 1965 when the Jackson Hole Ski Resort opened for business with its three new chairlifts: Eagle’s Rest, Teewinot, and Aprés Vous, then known simply as lifts 1, 2, and 3. The tram would debut the following summer.

As the years passed and the lifts aged, locals jokingly dubbed the ski area “America’s Lift Museum.” But new ownership slowly upgraded the aging lifts in the 1990s.

Last winter, though, with the retirement of the venerable 51-year-old Eagle’s Rest Chairlift, the “museum” finally closed it doors. Tyrolean music, playing at the top terminal of Chair 1, was an Alpine touch added by longtime lift attendant Harley Rolf.

Many a beginner learned to snowplow using the agonizingly slow uphill conveyance. Some instructors told tales of amassing 100,000 vertical in a season using the 300’ vertical lift, all while accompanying beginner students.

This December 17, 2016, the gleaming new Sweetwater Gondola’s bull wheels will wide environmental impacts.

And in the fight to save the white bark pine from chronic beetle infestation that has killed vast numbers of the 1,000-year-old, high-alti-

begin spinning to transport skiers not just to the top of Eagle’s Rest run, but high up to Casper Bowl.

And the old chairs? They were curated to different “museums” in an online sale for $500 each. Proceeds went to the Pepi Stiegler Fund (page 34).

Rust in peace Eagle’s Rest.

— Bob Woodall

tude species, JHMR and the Bridger Teton National Forest has sprayed 250 trees and placed pheromone patches on 575 trees.

— JH SKIER

Fast, Affordable and On Your Way. McDonald’s® of Jackson Hole

Open & Serving your favorites 5:00am - Midnight Daily

Free Wi-Fi 1110 W. Broadway, Jackson, WY • 1 mile west of Town Square

307-733-7444 2 0 1 7 J AC KS O N H O L E S K I E R

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JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT

BACKCOUNTRY

S

Hire a guide and ski beyond the boundary

kiing out of bounds puts you in the untamed Tetons – no ski patrol assistance, no marked runs, and no avalanche mitigation to the slopes.

Inherent dangers lurk in the backcountry. Learn the proper mindset for this wild mountain environment by hiring a guide.

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort Alpine Guides is one of the oldest ski guide services in the U.S. and boasts a worldclass roster. They know where to uncover the hidden powder stashes and how to enjoy a safe, fun day in the mountains.

Some important points for all backcountry travelers to consider: • Think with your head, not with your ego.

• Don’t use a hit-list for the backcountry. Go with the safest option for the day. Every day is different for avalanche conditions: aspect, wind, new snow, etc.

• Have the right gear and know how to use it. Beacon, probe poles, and shovel. Make sure to turn your beacon ON and test it with your buddy.

• Ski with a partner and let someone else know where you are touring.

• Beware of sucker tracks.

• When you are on a big slope, before you make your first turn have an exit plan in case it slides. Look for an island of safety anywhere you have to stop.

• Be courteous by not skiing down on top of other parties.

• Study the weather and avalanche data and forecasts.

— JH SKIER

Skier

Jason Strong

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

No Name Face

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Access & Resources

B RID GER - T ETON N AT ION AL FOREST

AVALANCHE CENTER B

By Lisa Van Sciver

efore the Jackson Hole Mountain resort opened its slopes to skiers more than 50 years ago, avalanches on its terrain posed little threat, other than to rocks, trees, and whatever flora and fauna lay in their paths. The advent of skiers on the resort’s steep, snowladen terrain changed all that. The Forest Service took note, designating the ski area “Class A” avalanche terrain.

Juris Krisjansons, a Forest Service Snow Ranger, established the ski area’s first avalanche program, developing routes to mitigate avalanche threat and installing remote weather stations that helped inform and shape skiers’ interactions with the slopes. Krisjansons left his position in 1971, and Gary Poulson, a Forest Service snow ranger, assumed responsibility as lead avalanche forecaster.

Daily, Poulson would step off the aerial tram and ski down 4,000 feet, diligently recording snow, weather, and avalanche conditions. Initially his observations were made available only to the ski resort, but as humantriggered avalanches occurred in the backcountry his data and observations came to serve a greater audience. In January 1974, a guided group in Grand Teton National Park was struck by an avalanche that killed three students. Two years later, three other skiers were taken by avalanches, one outside of Grand Targhee Resort and two below Jackson Peak. In light of these tragedies, Poulson started a daily avalanche-hazard forecast.

And in December of 1976, his role went public with the birth of the Bridger-Teton National Forest Avalanche Center (BTAC) in December of 1976.

The BTAC was one of the first three avalanche centers in the country. Today the center provides daily a.m. and p.m. avalanche-hazard forecasts at jhavalanche.org or by phone (307) 739-2607. Its web site displays weekly snowpack summaries, NWS weather forecasts, data from remote weather stations, historical weather and avalanche data, Google-Maps technology locating avalanche activity and more.

The center expanded in 2001 through a partnership with Wyoming State Trails. Because of increased snowmobiler traffic in the backcountry, the daily forecast began to include Togwotee Pass and the Wyoming and Salt River ranges. The center’s existence benefits from support by local sponsors, community donations, and essential partnerships with the National Weather Service and ski areas at Jackson Hole, Grand Targhee, and Snow King.

Because snowpack conditions are constantly changing, the center values and incorporates frequent input by local backcountry skiers and mountaineers. This winter, consider sharing your insight into the snow’s w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

characteristics, how it changes, and how it rides. Contact the avalanche center, via internet or phone, to share your observations and add to the ever-growing database.

Lisa Van Sciver is a Jackson Hole Ski Patroller who assists with operations for the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center.

Green River Canyon Wade McKoy photo

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Powder 8s Return Triumphant Jackson Hole brings back historic Powder 8s after 15-year hiatus Left: Contestants await their turn and watch other teams make 8s.

Photographer Wade McKoy

Right: Cody Bowl, also called Powder 8 Face, is an ideal venue for contestants and spectators.

Below: Brothers Jon and Rick Hunt pose with cousins Lynsey Dyer and AJ Cargill, two local, family themed teams.

Photographer Bob Woodall

I

By Matt Hansen

t’s easy to forget that, not too long ago, skiing any part of Cody Peak was forbidden.

Until the 1999-2000 season, when Jackson Hole Mountain Resort flung open its backcountry gates, all anyone could do from the top of the tram was gape at its perfectly skiable slopes, particularly the vast north-facing bowl that held a dreamy pitch and copious amounts of snow. As part of the untouchables, Cody Bowl sat like a mirror on the wall reflecting all those skiers’ desires.

Yet there was a loophole. Once a year, starting in 1975, the bowl was opened for the Grand National Powder 8s. The contest ran until 2001, as Jackson Hole hosted teams

from all across the country to crown the greatest powder-skiing duo. The event became a cultural phenomenon, and the bowl became known as the Powder 8s Face. “Some people

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had a heart attack going up Cody,” said Jeff Zell, who won the event three times, twice with Doug Coombs and once with Chris Leveroni. “But since we were going out of bounds all the time, it was nothing for us. We were prepared.”

It was with that sense of history and cultural significance that Jackson Hole gave rebirth to the Powder 8s last winter after a 15-year hiatus. GoPro supported the event by throwing in a $10,000 prize to be split by the top three teams.

Twenty-two teams representing eight Western ski towns, including six local teams that moved on from a qualifier two weeks prior during a blizzard in Bernie’s Bowl, climbed to the ridgeline above the Powder 8s Face on a crisp bluebird morning on February 6. Nobody, it should be noted, had a heart attack on the bootpack.

It should also be noted that none of the more than 40 people who stood atop the bowl that morning took it for granted, even though that very slope is open and free any day of the week.

“This is our first-time ever doing powder 8s,” said Brigid Horigan, standing beside her partner Sarah Felton, as they readied for their run. “We’re standing up here with the cultural icons of skiing. Regardless of what happens, we’ve had a blast so far.”

Two of those icons, Lynsey Dyer and AJ Cargill, took the first lane via lottery pick the night before. This meant they’d be running far skier’s left down the bowl, most of which had sloughed during snow-control efforts.

But in keeping with traditional powder 8s’ protocol, they dealt with the hand they’d been given by negotiating any terrain features in their path, be it rock, bomb hole, or chicken heads.

Dyer could hardly contain her excitement.

“It’s good for the sport,” she said. “It brings together so many people from different walks of life for a singular purpose. It’s so awesome seeing so many different people coming out to compete in low-angle pow.”

But what does it take to win? Because fat skis and freeride dominated skier sensibilities during the past 15 years, skiers, even the most experienced among them forgot how to make 8s.

Rich Lee, who competed in every Jackson Hole Powder 8s’ comp from 1978 to 2001 and helped judge last winter’s event, and whose silver handlebar mustache solidifies him as a powder-skiing expert, set the record straight.

“We judge three categories,” he said. The first is like a Police album, synchronicity, or how well the two skiers match each other’s turns. Second, judges look for dynamic skiing, w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

“which is movement down the hill. We want really good, solid skiing, not the old hop and turn method from thirty years ago,” Lee said.

Third is turn shape. “Basically, how the tracks look. Are they even, are they round, are they uniform? What we want is uniformity, roundness and consistency,” he said.

Each category had a possibility of 15 points. With five judges, the total points possible was 225. The judges watched live on slope, and then reviewed video afterward for four hours. “With the prize money, you have to be right on,” Lee said. “Surprisingly, the judges are pretty close. There were no big discrepancies. A point here or there, but we all had pretty much the same scores.”

Back up on Cody, it became pretty clear that these were not your daddy’s 8s. Unless you were Theresa Gerdin, who teamed up with her dad, Victor. Both wore matching brilliant blue and gold Descente one-pieces. “My w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

strategy is for her to ski as hard and fast as she can—and I just try to keep up,” Victor said. “If I fall, that’s just the way it goes.”

But you had to leave it to the team from Aspen to be the best skiers on the mountain, at least that day. Turns out that ski instructors Jim “Schanzy” Schanzenbaker and Thomas Roennau had quietly been hosting their own powder 8s’ competition in Aspen ever since Jackson discontinued its event in 2001. They were practiced, and it showed, as they resembled fighter jets moving down the bowl in perfect unison, taking out local favorites Chris Denny and Halsy Hewson, Bart and George Flynn, Brendan Levine and AJ Puccia, Tanner Flanagan and Jeff Leger, and Jon and Rick Hunt.

“I had a great partner,” summed up Schanzy. “It was so easy to go up there and make eights with my partner, Thomas, and we crushed it.”

By the end of the day, the bowl had been

sufficiently raked by more than 20 sets of eights, a perfect reflection of Jackson’s history. But they would all be gone soon. The next storm would take care of that.

Matt Hansen is the editor-at-large for Powder magazine. At last year's Powder 8s’ local qualifier, he and teammate John Verdon had too much fun skiing blower and, thus, failed to advance.

POWDER 8S REDUX

Saturday, February 4, 2017, skiers return to Cody Bowl to lay down powder 8 tracks and vie for first place with teams from across America in the Grand National event. Twenty-four teams compete, including local winners of the qualifying Powder 8s held January 4. The ski patrol and ski school each have a team, too.

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100 Years of Good Times Calico Pizza Parlor and Mangy Moose pass the half-century mark

W

Story and Photograpy by Bob Woodall

hen the fledgling Jackson Hole Ski Resort spread its wings in 1965, après ski and dining options were few.

Teton Village was home to only three restaurants and après ski spots, the next closest was 12 miles away in Jackson. Shortly, though, others would settle in the nascent resort area.

Most notably, in 1966 a relocated and repurposed Mormon church became home to Calico Pizza Parlor on the Teton Village Road, and a year later, the Mangy Moose Spaghetti Emporium opened its doors in Teton Village.

Over the next 50 years these two restaurants would fledge and flourish to their present glory, earning their status as beloved Jackson Hole institutions.

At his namesake dart tournament, Ski Patrolman John “Bernie” Bernadine takes aim at the board. Held during the ski season, the Tuesday-night Bernie Cup was a Calico tradition.

CALICO PIZZA PARLOR Things got rolling, literally, in 1966 when Sandy MacKay, through a sealed-auction bid to the National Park Service, won the vacated Mormon Church that sat on the east side of Mormon Row in Grand Teton National Park. MacKay shelled out $666.66 for the former house of worship.

The elder MacKay tried to gift the church to his son Tim for a house, but with no money to do anything with it, the younger MacKay reached out to Newport Beach friend Tom Jewel. Both were fond of a bar in California called “Blackies.” Jewell figured they could create something similar in Wilson and serve pizza as well.

So Jewel purchased six acres John Becker and Tim MacKay helped celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Calico in October 2016. from the Linn Ranch on Teton Village road and and the elder MacKay made the former church building Tim’s contribution to the enterprise. They painted it red with white strips and named it after the ghost town of Calico, near Barstow, California. Jewell

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would pass it on his trips to Jackson Hole and liked the name.

The folliowing spring, Jewell went to MacKay and told him “I’m out of here. I can’t stand the mosquitoes, it’s yours.” After agreeing on the price, Jewel headed back to sunny So-Cal. Halfway between the new ski resort and the town of Jackson, the Calico was a hit. “We had lots of people come out from town for pizza ‘cuz it was really good, ” MacKay said. “ All the locals came together at the pizza parlor.”

In 1971 MacKay and carpenters Peter Crosby, Butch Burdick, and Don Hanson, added the south addition, more than doubling the building’s size. The old Mormon Church side became a gathering place for families and children.

“It was great, ‘cuz all your friends were there every night, all the families from town. The tourists came, and they loved it.” – John Becker The addition, boasting a pool table and dartboard, quickly became the living room and an après ski hangout for ski bums and ski patrollers.

“That really made the difference,” MacKay recalled. “We started to have boogies on a regular basis. It was packed.”

MacKay had been a patroller since the late 1960s. “We played darts in the patrol room at the top of the tram, and John “Bernie” Bernadine loved darts. At his suggestion, a Tuesday night competition, the “Bernie Cup,” took off, with “Commissioner” Mike Dunn running the winter-long tournament. It eventually took on classic status.

After a 10-year run, MacKay sold the business to his accountant,

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The Mangy Moose has long been a popular aprés ski hangout, especially on sunny afternoons. Before its second expansion the saloon was much smaller.

Dick Podmore. “I regret ever having sold it,” he lamented. Podmore had an arrangement with another local restaurateur, Dean Betts, to operate the parlor, but Betts soon decided he wanted out and sold out to local Johnny Becker.

Just out of the army, Becker had arrived in Jackson Hole for the winter of 1968. His first job was cooking at the Calico. After that winter, he moved back to Utah to attend school. But then, he recalled, “I thought, ‘Why bother with that?’ So I moved right back up here.”

money,” said Becker. So to help them out he allowed a couple hundred to run tabs. “I only got stiffed on one,” he proudly stated. “My philosophy was, once you get the locals, everything else will follow.

“It was just really fun; that twenty years were the best years of my life,” Becker said. “It was great, ‘cuz all your friends were there every night, all the families from town. The tourists came, and they loved it.

Our reputation was really good, food was really good, and service was really good.”

By 1994, Becker began tiring of the business, telling his partner Theresa Zellmer, “I got one more year and I gotta get out.” That winter, by sheer happenstance he was riding Après Vous chairlift with Jeff Davies, a fellow restaurateur, and owner of the RMO Cafe at the Mangy Moose. Davies told Becker that he wanted to buy the Steak Pub, a valley restaurant south of Jackson, to open an Italian-style eatery. “I said, ‘How about the Calico?’ He almost jumped out of the chair,” Becker recalled, chuckling.

Davies said, “I have no idea why I was on AV that day. I never skied that side of mountain. I ran into Becker and Johnny said, ‘I’m finished.

“In the old days it was colder and skiing was better – we had a lot of fun back then. It was the ultimate ski bum place.” – John Callahan

The original saloon was added to the Mangy Moose Spaghetti Emporium in 1972 and started an enduring musical tradition in Teton Village.

After he took over in 1975, most ski bums didn’t see much of a change. Becker preserved many of the traditions, although he toned down the boogies a bit. “We started having Halloween parties, but they got out of control and I had to stop,” he said. “I was worried about putting drunks out on the road.

“It was always a ski bum hangout, but they don’t spend much w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

I don’t want to do it anymore.’ After a few more chairlift rides we had it figured out.”

Taking over on October 1, 1995, Davies pretty much ripped out the old addition and was able to reopen by mid-January 1996. The restaurant and bar swapped sides, which nearly tripled the size of the restaurant. “Becker had a very successful business and in order to make it work for me and him, I had to double the business, which is pretty hard to do,” said Davies. He ended up tripling it.

“The hard part was keeping the character of the place,” said Davies.

“This place is based on a lot of good karma.”

Although the Bernie Cup has been retired, the Calico carries on, as have two early employees, John Callahan and Libby Burchfield, who’ve each hung since the late ‘80s.

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Callahan, who hired on in 1989, joked that, “In the old days it was colder and skiing was better—we had a lot of fun back then. The atmosphere was looser, much looser. It was the ultimate ski bum place,” he said. “Prices were cheap, and Becker let you run a tab, as no one had money—no one in town lets you do that now.”

Another tradition still maintained is the Calico Garden. Started by Susan Walker in an unused volleyball court, it has flourished and is one of the gardens providing locally sourced produce to area restaurants.

“We have never gotten credit for being in the vanguard of the fresh farm stuff,” lamented Becker. “We have been growing organic vegetables for thirty-five years. We invented it in Wyoming as far as I know.”

“Its been fun,” said Davies, “fun to be part of it. A nice place to be in, pretty comfortable—everything nice and low key in part because of John Becker.”

MANGY MOOSE SPAGHETTI EMPORIUM Meanwhile back at the former Crystal Springs Ranch, the Mangy Moose charged onto the scene in 1967 in what is now Teton Village.

Dave Speck had come to Jackson Hole from Cleveland, Ohio, and opened the Mangy Moose Spaghetti Emporium.

But living in Jackson Hole did not suit Speck. “He didn’t want to be here, it was too cold. He didn’t ski, and he wanted the city life,” said Pat Mahin, the eventual owner of the Mangy Moose. Speck asked Mahin, then the restaurant manager at the Alpenhof, if he wanted to run the place, and then asked if he wanted to buy it. They worked out a deal.

“I lived upstairs,” recalled Mahin. “I hosted, I cooked, even served tables sometimes. It was so slow. So I stayed, never left. We made it for a number of years.”

A break arrived when Alex Morely, from the JH Ski Corp, offered Mahin the liquor license from the 7-Levels Lodge. Although he didn’t have the cash to buy it, Felix Buchenroth of the old Jackson State Bank loaned him the money on a handshake. “That’s what he did in the old days,” said Mahin. “I never saw any papers for two or three months. It was good to be here in the old days.”

Armed with the license, Mahin added a bar onto the mountainside of the Emporium, and the Mangy Moose Saloon was born. The two-level

“It was good to be here in the old days. We did stuff back then, things were much crazier than they are today.” – Pat Mahin saloon and liquor store provided a new dimension to the growing Moose.

Now there was a music venue for the growing après ski scene.

In 1972 Jim Terry, Mahin’s longtime friend and college roommate came on board to partner in the flourishing restaurant and saloon. Mahin had majored in restaurant management and Terry was an economics major. For the growing Moose, this made for a good partnership.

The restaurant and its role evolved. King crab legs shared the menu with spaghetti. Skillets of sautéed mushroom caps tempted local patrons while music filled the bar, and the Mangy Moose Saloon matured into a full-blown ski town legend.

The Mangy Moose blossomed into a local village hangout for après ski and dinner, often serving over 600 meals a night.

Mahin, a self proclaimed junk collector, would take trips searching for stuff to decorate the establishment’s walls and ceiling with what has been described as “pack rat décor.” Two prominent fixtures were an Avro Triplane in the restaurant and a moose pulling a sleigh high above the barroom floor.

It was the moose that attracted the attention of the ski patrol. “They thought they could do anything they wanted in the old days,” said Mahin. One night a patrolman managed to climb from the balcony into

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The 1987 expansion tripled the size of the saloon, and a bull moose pulling a sleigh was hung high above patrons and bands. But before finding its current location, two JH Ski Patrolmen managed to climb aboard the sleigh.

the sleigh. “We moved it,” he said.

“We did stuff back then, things were much crazier than they are today,” recalled Mahin. In the age of wet t-shirt contests and other eyebrow-raising events, the Moose became the Teton Village place.

And there were plenty of other rowdy nights. “One time ‘Indian John’ Corcoran came in drunk and tried to fight with people. I had a couple of really, really, really tough bartenders,” Mahin said. “They grabbed him and ran him through all the tables, knocked them over and threw him out. After that we became friends.”

But good times and good music were more characterisic of the early days. In 1987 an expansion more than tripled the Moose’s size and nationally known music acts started to fill the saloon. Named for bartender Mark Wolling, ‘Wally World,’ in the upstairs bar, made it “the place to be,” boasted Mahin. “Back in the ‘80s we got voted a number of times by ski magazines as the number one après ski bar in North America.”

In 2001 another happenstance meeting, this time between Mahin and Davies, culminated with Davies and David Yoder buying out Mahin’s interest in the Moose in October of that year. Yoder had moved to Wilson after selling a startup business in San Francisco. “I was unemployed and needed something to do,” Yoder said. “I knew the Moose and enjoyed going there. When that chance became available, I jumped at the opportunity.”

By partnering with Davies, also owner of the renamed Calico Italian Restaurant, the two sometimes-competitive businesses were then joined in common ownership.

w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Well aware of the Moose’s revered tradition, Yoder and Davies set out to carry it on. “What we are trying to do is remain local. We want them to have a place where they can come and enjoy themselves and be treated fairly and get a benefit for their money,” said Yoder. “We didn’t just want to be a tourist place, ‘cuz we’ve always been a local place and we want to make sure to focus on that.”

As the Mangy Moose approaches 50 years, Yoder is also looking back. “We want to have affordable options, but we are also bringing back things like crab legs, things that people have historically enjoyed,” he said. “It’s always a conundrum to balance. We don’t just want to buy inexpensive food, so we are trying to balance by buying locally sourced meat and produce.”

“What we are trying to do is remain local. We want them to have a place where they can come and enjoy themselves.”

– David Yoder From the original spaghetti emporium the Mangy Moose has evolved far beyond its humble beginnings and is now an iconic, eclectic place. Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, the site now harbors a wine shop, grocery store, and souvenir and art shops. The Moose provides most “anything that anybody would want when they visit, regarding food, drink, and entertainment,” stated Yoder.

And then there is music. “We have tremendous local artists,” said Yoder. “The venue just really lends itself to music, bands love to play here. It’s funky but the sound is good, with an intimacy that even large bands really enjoy.

We even had the Glenn Miller Orchestra here.”

Having had on stage such national acts as Richie Havens, Taj Majhal, Little Feat, Grace Potter, Robert Earl Kean, and Ben Harper, it’s easy to see why Forbes Traveler named the Moose one of the top 10 hottest ski bars in the world.

Summer and fall of 2017 will see a number of events for the 50th anniversary celebration.

A yet-to-be-announced big-name musical act is in the works for next summer. “Stay tuned,” said Yoder.

These two Jackson Hole institutions carry on traditions that have evolved over half a century. For many patrons they have provided much more than just food and fun. They have been family for the myriad of ex-pats from around the nation and the world. So the 50th anniversary celebration for the Calico last October wasn’t just a party: it was a family reunion. And the upcoming Mangy Moose celebration should prove to be the same.

w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

The Original Mangy Moose.

Having Fun Since 1967.

Breakfast • Lunch • Dinner Aprés Ski • Live Music Gifts • Groceries Wine Store

Located at the base of the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

www.mangymoose.com 307-733-4913 2 0 1 7 J AC KS O N H O L E S K I E R

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THE PEPI STIEGLER FUND Community rallies behind legendary skier

Story and photos by Wade McKoy Austrian Olympic champion, Jackson Hole’s first ski school director, father of two World Cup skiers, Pepi Stiegler continues to climb life’s mountains. He has prevailed over MS for decades, and now, at 79, he’s making a comeback from a fall that almost claimed his life.

marketing program to help raise awareness of Pepi's plight. We created ‘I Ski With Pepi’ and produced apparel and stickers with an old-school look, and helped organize the fundraiser party.”

The party at the Moose featured an auction with intense bidding for items such as a Pepi Stiegler autographed pair of skis made by Wilson Powder Tools, a guitar owned by Peter Stiegler, and two refurbished chairs from Eagles Rest chair lift, which was

“I suggested a cause-related marketing program to help raise awareness of Pepi's plight. We created ‘I Ski With Pepi’ and produced apparel and stickers with an oldschool look, and helped organize the fundraiser party.”

— David Sollitt, pepistieglerfund.org

Pepi Stiegler, 1980s , with his glider in Driggs, Idaho March, 2016, on a starry night, the Mangy Moose Saloon was humming as The Powder Clause warmed up the crowd for the main act, The Rockin’ Tyrol with Peter Stiegler. The room hushed to a low rumble when Peter’s brother rolled in through a side door. Pepi Stiegler, the man of the hour at this $100-a-head fundraiser in Teton Village, Wyoming, had arrived.

“Are there any ski patrolmen here?” Pepi asked, standing up from his wheelchair at the podium, behind which a large screen would soon project a live video message of love and support from his children, Resi and Seppi, who were ski-racing in Sun Valley. The sea of friends standing in the Moose, a gathering that spanned six decades of Jackson Hole ski culture, parted to make way for the old patrollers.

“The ski patrol and the ski school used to not like each other,” Pepi continued as veteran patrollers Kirby Williams, Callum Mackay, Jimmy Farmer, and John Huff stood facing him, smiling broadly. “The politics of the ski area in the old days pitted the two departments against one another. But now it’s all smoothed over. And you each spent a hundred bucks to help me out. It’s a good gesture. Thank you.” Then, the patrollers enthusiastically shook Pepi’s hand.

In October 2015, Pepi Stiegler survived an accident at his home in Jackson, Wyoming, when he fell from a two-and-a-half-story porch onto the frozen ground below.

Three months, four medical facilities, and one rehab center later, Pepi had recovered sufficiently to return to Jackson. He lived at St. John’s Living Center from January until May, when he returned to his house to live with full-time care.

The Pepi Stiegler Fund (pepistieglerfund.org) was organized by businessmen David Sollitt and Keith O'Toole, a manager at Pepi Stiegler Sports.

“We'd both heard of the accident,” explained Sollitt, then a marketing consultant for Pepi Stiegler Sports. “I suggested a cause-related

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taken down that summer after 50 years of service.

The Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) donated the chairs, refurbed into a bench and a swing, and also sold 30 more Eagle’s Rest chairs in their current, weathered condition. All sold online within five minutes.

The resort donated the money to Pepi in person last summer at an event to commemorate the 50-year anniversary of the Aerial Tram, which opened in the summer of 1966.

Pepi Stiegler’s enormous impact on Jackson Hole’s ski community and skiing at large is well documented, his notable accomplishments enshrined in hallowed halls. In 2014 he was inducted into the newly formed Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club Hall Of Fame. He had already been inducted into the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame in 2001, the Professional Ski Instructors of America-Intermountain Hall of Fame in 2004, and the Intermountain Hall of Fame in 2004.

Pepi’s ski history is a brilliant rush of ski-racing success that led to a long career as the Jackson Hole Ski Area’s first ski school director.

His story never lacked for drama.

Born in 1937 to a Vienna-schooled professional photographer mother and an Austrian Postal Service worker father, Pepi’s weekend forays onto the snowfields above town began at age six. Those weekends – put against the tedium of school – became cherished. By age 15 Stiegler was Austrian Junior Champion in slalom.

Stiegler continued to ski well, garnering the attention of coach Othmar Schneider, an Austrian alpine ski champion in the 1952 Olympics.

Schneider took Stiegler on as a protégé and groomed him for the 1960 Olympics scheduled for Squaw Valley. There Stiegler won a silver medal in giant slalom, joining Austria’s champions of the day: Toni Sailer, Anderl Molterer, Walter Schuster, Ernst Hinterseer, Hias Leitner, Egon Zimmermann, and Karl Schranz.

Stiegler was riding high in 1961, winning the Austrian National Championships held in Lienz that year. He still calls his winning lap, “The best run of my life,” as he told the Jackson Hole Skier in an interview several years ago: “My first run was very slow, two-and-a-half seconds behind the fastest – Ernst Falch, a slalom specialist. And I said, ‘What! Those guys from north Tyrol gonna beat me? Here, on my home mountain? And I’ve w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Ski Community

Pepi Stiegler on a powder day, 1970s already won two World Cups? I can’t handle this!’ And so The Holy Anger – ‘Die Heilige Wut,’ a German expression for extreme anger – grabbed me.

“I skied in my second run 2.6 seconds faster than Falch, and that was the run of my life, so to speak. That gave me the slalom victory. It also gave me the combined victory, which meant that I was the Austrian Champion. It was a big deal to win the combined, which was three events: the GS, slalom, and downhill.”

However, he crashed in subsequent trials and did not qualify for the Austrian team in the years running up to the 1964 Winter Games in Innsbruck. Still, under the hard lobbying of dignitaries from Lienz, Pepi’s hometown, he ultimately made the ’64 Olympic squad. As if to show the selection committee they’d made the right decision, he won a gold medal in slalom, sharing the podium with U.S. racers Billy Kidd (silver) and Jimmy Heuga (bronze). Stiegler also took the bronze medal in GS home to those die-hard supporters in Lienz.

“I have to give Othmar Schneider a great amount of credit,” said Stiegler in 2014. “God bless him, because he helped me to achieve a very good life. When Paul McCollister was looking to fill the ski school directorship of his new resort (in 1965, the Jackson Hole Ski Area), he offered it first to Buddy Werner. But Buddy Werner got killed (in an avalanche in St Moritz). Then he offered it to Othmar. But Othmar already had a very good job in Boyne Mt, Michigan. So Paul asked Othmar, ‘Who do you recommend?’ and Othmar said, ‘I recommend Pepi Stiegler.’”

Stiegler moved to America and for the next 29 years worked for McCollister. He built a prestigious ski school from scratch, hiring eight top European instructors and several top Americans the first year. He created a world-renowned ski-guide service, essentially enlarging the resort’s skiable acreage five-fold. Pepi was NASTAR’s (National Standard Race program for the skiing public) “Zero Pacesetter” – the fastest in the nation. He demonstrated steep-skiing bravado in the early days on Cody Peak, with a first descent of Four Shadows and a new, radical approach to Once Is Enough. He ventured into the Tetons, a customary right of passage for many local skiers of those days, most notably Bill Briggs. He married and started a family. He learned to fly gliders and airplanes, eventually piloting his Cessna 180 – the tail-dragger, musclecraft of the mountains – to Alaska and back. He built and owned a retail center in Teton Village and licensed his name to help create Pepi Stiegler Sports. He weathered a divorce and moved to Montana for a few years, where he earned a degree in English Literature from Montana State University. w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

“My first run was very slow, two-and-a-half seconds behind the fastest – Ernst Falch, a slalom specialist. And I said, ‘What! Those guys from north Tyrol gonna beat me? Here, on my home mountain? And I’ve already won two World Cups? I can’t handle this!’”

His children, Resi, 30, and Seppi, 27, have been skiing since age 3 with instructors at JHMR and coaches from the Jackson Hole Ski Club on Snow King. They were both bound to become successful alpine racers. Resi has skied on the World Cup since 2003. She was the U.S. Champion in slalom and giant slalom in 2007 and skied in the Torino and Sochi Olympics. Last winter she podiumed three times, including a 2nd in the National Championships in Sun Valley. This winter, as of press date, she placed 16th at the season-opening women’s slalom in Levi, Finland. Seppi won bronze at the U.S. Alpine National Championships in 2013, and in 2011 he was NCAA Champion in giant slalom and World University Games Champion in slalom. In 2014 and ‘15 he raced for World Cup points on the privately funded Team America. He recently started coaching and this winter is coaching the FIS group at the Jackson Hole Ski Club.

Seppi lives with Pepi when he’s not traveling to race, train, or coach, and this summer he was away much of the time. And Resi is almost always on the move.

Pepi’s condition continues to improve and he is enjoying life in Jackson Hole. He takes several short walks daily while using his walker. His days are much like they have been over the past few years, filled with exercise, reading, listening to classical music, keeping in touch with friends and family, spending time outdoors, and taking an afternoon siesta.

“You keep on going because of the exercises,” he said. “Going out there and walking a little bit.”

Walking along the foot of Snow King Mountain, Pepi has what he needs. “I’m fine now,” he said, smiling. And he is.

Postscript: Private duty in-home care is enormously expensive and Pepi's care needs are great. Donate at pepistieglerfund.org.

Facebook: I Ski With Pepi.

This article was originally written for Skiing History magazine and appears in the August 2016 issue.

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TETON ADAPTIVE SPORTS

Providing equipment, instructor training, and financial assistance for physically challenged skiers

Skier

Odie Pierce

Photographer Garret Smith

Location Hobacks

By Wade McKoy, with Mari Hanson reporting “The thing about skiing is, everybody digs it,” said Kurt Henry, Teton Adaptive Sports co-founder. “It doesn’t matter whether you use a sled, or a ski, or a snowboard, or ski bike – it’s a universal joy.”

Henry knows that truth inherently. He moved to Jackson Hole in the 1970s to pursue the ski-bum lifestyle. But he also brought a passion for teaching physically and cognitively challenged kids, something he’d discovered as a college student in Cleveland working summer jobs as a camp counselor.

“I moved to Jackson to ski,” Henry said. “After a few years of one hundred-day ski seasons, waiting tables, and bartending, I was ready to get back to my chosen field.”

Don Carr, the adaptive P.E. teacher at C–V Ranch – a residential school and treatment facility for disabled and emotionally disturbed youth – originally founded what is now the adaptive ski program at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. He hired Henry in 1988.

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Carr eventually moved away and Henry took over, heading the program for the next 20 years. In 2005, he co-founded Teton Adaptive Sports, a non-profit support organization for the adaptive ski program.

In 2008 the operation was expanded to include Grand Targhee, and last spring TAS opened a new office in Teton Village. The public is welcome to stop in (next to Teton Thai), meet the staff, and learn more about winter and summer opportunities for people with disabilities.

Among the hundreds of adaptive athletes helped by the program, one recent local standout is Odie Pierce, who relocated to the Tetons a few years ago after finishing trade school.

“My dad always said Jackson is the biggest and best skiing in the lower 48,” said Pierce, who followed not only his father’s advice but his trail as well – the senior Pierce moved Jackson Hole in 2013. Soon after Odie made his move, he landed a job utilizing his degree in smallengine repair.

Pierce was born missing his spinal cord from T-4 to L-2, a “T-4 paraw w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Ski Community

“Growing up I remember my older brother Cole going off to ski with his group every Saturday. Because of the adaptive ski program, the next winter I got to start skiing, too. It felt like, ‘I’m no different than anyone else.’” — Kira Brazinski

Skier

Kira Brazinski

Photographer Garret Smith

Location Sublette

plegic complete,” he explained. At age 12, using a bi-ski (two skis mounted to a special chair), he began skiing in Montana and later a little in Michigan.

Instructors with the JHMR adaptive ski program encouraged Pierce to try a mono-ski. The device, one ski attached to a specialized chair, opened a new world to him: the ability to carve like all skiers do.

“After the third day, I was skiing top to bottom everywhere,” said Pierce. “I was totally hooked for life.”

Such rapid progression can be hard on equipment.

“Last year I broke 14 skis,” he said. “The guys at Teton Adaptive Sports were totally cool with it. They told me that’s what happens when you’re progressing, pushing it.”

Nonetheless, Pierce invested his hard-earned cash on the latest adaptive ski gear. His new sit ski has some extras, like $1,000 shocks and a $1,000 carbon-fiber seat. But the coolest component is made right here in Jackson Hole. w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

“Maiden Skis put together a specialized ski design,” said Pierce.

“They’re the strongest skis I’ve ever skied on, because they were purposefully built for sit skis.”

Maiden Skis sponsors another local skier and former adaptive-skiprogram participant, 24-year-old Kira Brazinski, a Jackson native who skis on one leg using outrigger poles, a method called 3-track.

“Maiden gave me a couple of skis to try out,” said Brazinski. “And they want to work on making a custom ski with me. It’s been awesome to try out different shapes, lengths, and styles.”

Brazinski, an early benefactor of the adaptive ski program, began skiing with Kurt Henry when she was three years old.

“Kira was an incredible kid,” said Henry. “I used to call her my second-favorite kid, because my own son was my first-favorite kid. But it felt like she was my kid, too. She had an incredible attitude and was one of the most physically balanced people I’ve ever met.

“She never thought of herself as disabled. I think, because of that, 2 0 1 7 J AC KS O N H O L E S K I E R

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“Skiing means freedom from the chair. Get out of the chair, go fast, and make big turns with all your friends. You’re included in everything.” — Odie Pierce

Skier

David Poole

Photographer Garret Smith

Location Hobacks

no one else thought of her as disabled. She was just Kira. She could do what everyone else did, and she excelled.”

“Growing up,” reminisced Brazinski, “I remember my older brother Cole going off to ski with his group every Saturday. I really wanted to go, too. My mom, a ski instructor (at JHMR), reached out to Kurt. The next winter I got to start skiing. It felt like, ‘I’m no different than anyone else.’”

Kira skied so much with Kurt that people thought they were father and daughter.

“It was kind of a joke in the ski school locker room,” Brazinski remembers. “If my mom came down to ski with me, they’d be like, ‘Oh, you’re skiing with Kurt’s daughter.’ My mom would say, ‘Uh, no, she’s actually my daughter. I get really lucky if Kurt lets me ski with her.’”

As an adult, Brazinski continues to push her boundaries by skiing with the high-level of ski talent in Jackson, and she has enjoyed learning the backcountry, too. But at her core, the family bond runs deep.

“My favorite ski buddies have always been my mom and my brother,” she said. “Skiing was a family activity growing up, and every Christmas my brother still comes back to Jackson and we ski together.”

The hook for Pierce, though, remains a strong connection to Teton Adaptive Sports, which is sponsoring him and Brazinski this year. Early on, TAS encouraged Pierce to go to JHMR’s Steep and Deep Camp.

He did, and has participated every year since.

“I picked up a ton through that,” said Pierce. “That’s the best way to learn to sit ski: seeing, and chasing other people who are way better than you. You see what’s possible and you say, ‘I can do it.’ That’s the attitude you have to have.”

Brazinski, now a yoga instructor, still loves to ski, but she picks her days carefully. Born with PFFD, proximal femoral focal deficiency, one of her legs is shorter than the other.

“I stopped skiing when I was about 13 because I developed plantar

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fasciitis, and it became really painful,” she said. “It was a hard point in my life. I tried other things, like swimming. I was on the high school swim team, the Stingrays.

“But of course, now I’ve come back to skiing. I ski because it feels good. You find that rhythm and the flow in the snow. It’s a feeling of freedom and of being out in nature. It’s like that in yoga, and meditation.

That moment of pure conscious awareness, when you get up to the top of the hill and look at your line. The snow looks good and you start turning, thinking about nothing else. You’re one hundred percent there and present in the bliss of that moment. Everything else fades away.

“I love deep-powder skiing. I love fresh tracks. I love exploring the trees, finding my way through. I love fresh corduroy and going as fast as you possibly can. Feeling each turn in fresh corduroy feels so good.

Kurt and I used to do a lot of that – just go, just fly.”

Pierce also credits skiing for his path to freedom and inclusion.

“Skiing means freedom from the chair,” he said. “Get out of the chair, go fast, and make big turns with all your friends. You’re included in everything.

“You’re on such a level field with able-bodied riders. I can ski the same runs, and so it’s cool because I’m right there, fully participating in everything that everyone else is doing. I get to go out with my brother and all his teenage buddies and just shred. They don’t see that there’s anything different.”

For skiers who connect with Teton Adaptive Sports, the way to a more independent life is clear. By tapping into state-of-the-art adaptive ski equipment and specialized ski instruction techniques, literally everybody can go skiing.

For more information on adaptive skiing in the Tetons, contact Teton Adaptive Sports at 307-699-3554 and like them on Facebook.

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Ski Community

DOUG COOMBS FOUNDATION

Providing children an opportunity to join their peers.

carry on Doug’s legacy than to share his passion of skiing with the people who need it most.

“The parents of these kids, many of Hispanic origin, work in Jackson in hotels, restaurants, shops, construction, cleaning homes,” Coombs continued. “The wages paid in the service industry in Jackson, even with both parents working two jobs, aren’t enough to cover basic expenses, let alone the cost involved to ski. By helping these kids, we end up helping the entire community by enabling the entire town to function and have a population of active, happy children who are integrated with their peers in school.”

Ellen Kappus, an English-language specialist at Jackson Elementary, explained: “Through skiing, these kids are getting the invitation to join the Jackson community. They go into the classroom after a weekend on skis, and they can share a common experience with their classmates. And it’s not just the kids anymore. Five years ago, you would never see Latinos at the mountain. But now, you go to Snow King on a Saturday and you see over 100 kids and their parents. It’s incredible!”

Jorge Moreno, the proud parent of two boys enrolled in the Doug Coombs Foundation said, “You know, when you’re skiPhotographer ing, as my kid tells me, you’re just there. It’s you and the mounBob Woodall tains. It doesn’t matter what kind of car you drive, or how big your house is. I can’t think of a better way to bring my kids into love skiing! It’s like you’re flying,” squealed the 11-year-old girl sand- the community… make them feel like they belong.” wiched between her two friends on the Casper chair. “Even falling. Your The Doug Coombs Foundation continues to rely entirely on financial goggles fly off, and you get snow down the back of your jacket. It’s hi- donations. To find out how you can get involved, visit www.dougcoomblarious.” Her two friends bobbed their helmets in agreement. sfoundation.com. — Doug Coombs Foundation All three girls, whose bright blue ski jackets could not match the bril“When you’re skiing, it’s just you and the mountains. It liance of their smiles, were first-year members of the Doug Coombs Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to breaking down the barriers that doesn’t matter what kind of car you drive, or how big your prevent kids from low-income families from joining the Jackson Hole skihouse is. I can’t think of a better way to bring my kids into ing community. the community and make them feel like they belong.”

Established in 2012 by Emily Coombs, the Doug Coombs Foundation — Jorge Moreno grew from 28 participants to more than 150 children and 25 parents over the 2014/15 ski season. But Coombs isn’t yet satisfied. “Our long-term goal is to provide the Tracking the Wild Coomba – The Life Of Legendary Skier Doug Coombs opportunity for all low-income children to get out in the mountains,” she said. “Ideally, our comWriter Robert Cocuzzo became fascinated “So began my four-year quest tracking munity will become a role model for ski towns all by the legacy of Doug Coombs and vowed to the life of Doug Coombs around the world,” across the West.” share the inspirational saga with others. writes the author of Tracking the Wild The Doug Coombs Foundation has come a Coomba, “meeting his family and friends, long way since 2012. In its infancy, Coombs proskiing some of the runs he skied, and living vided ski rentals, ski instruction, and lift tickets in the mountain towns where he lived. Along out of her own savings. Hearing about the fledgthe way, nearly everyone I spoke to said the ling project, K2, Marmot, and Smith––all desame thing: ‘He changed my life.’ The realvoted Doug Coombs sponsors––offered their ity was that after hundreds of hours of intersupport. The 2012/13 pilot program was so sucviews, thousands of dollars spent on travel, cessful that stories of the happy kids on skis and countless nights lying awake pondering began to attract attention locally and nationhis life, I would never be able to know Doug wide. An influx of donations allowed the proCoombs like they did. I began to fear that gram to double in size the following year and to Coombs would forever remain a story told expand into activities outside the ski season, into me, an article clipping, a scene I watched cluding hiking, rock climbing (donated by Exum on scratchy videotape. Then one day, as I Mountain Guides), soccer, lacrosse and even boarded a flight to the remote French village enrollment in summer camps. of La Grave, where he spent the last days But skiing will always be at the heart of the of his life, I realized that through some cosDoug Coombs Foundation. “Skiing had a huge mic energy, Doug Coombs had taken me on influence on my life, as well as on the life of the greatest adventure in my life.”

Doug Coombs,” explained Emily. “Doug skied Cocuzzo hoped his book would pass as a child at a tiny ski hill in Massachusetts. We muster with those closest to Coombs. By met through skiing and, until his death in 2006, that measure, it’s an enormous success. we shared a lifelong passion of skiing together Even more triumphantly, Tracking the Wild in the most beautiful mountains on earth. I canCoomba inspires all readers – not just skiers not begin to describe how much joy it brings me – with a palpable sense of adventure, tenacto see these kids smiling from ear to ear when ity, and pioneering daring-do. we put them on skis. There’s no better way to

“I

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CALDERA HOUSE

Red-hot gathering spot

Rising like a Phoenix from the ruins of the beloved Village Café and Wilderness Sports, Caldera House debuts this winter to widespread anticipation among Teton Village devotees.

Two years of high-decibel construction and rumors of an exclusive club harboring a private skyway to the tram can now be put to rest.

Hungry skiers and snowboarders can once again duck in for a quick slice of pizza between rides on Big Red, and do it in the same spot where the VC and Bear Claw Café once reigned supreme.

The new owners want true grit – and not just for the well heeled, either. They want the real skiers of Jackson Hole to come in and make it their own. And they want their lodging guests and Alpine Members to rub shoulders with those locals.

“The owners wanted to create a vibrant hub at the base of the Village,” said General Manager Pamela Lenci. “A place for them to stay that’s connected to the local ski community.”

Early on local architect John Carney joined the team, whose firm designed the Bridger Center and the Tram building, and in 1998 was involved with the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort’s master plan. The goal was for the new building to capture the essence and character of the resort.

“I think we designed a building that contributes strongly to that,” said Carney, “with its stone piers and generous arcade welcoming the public in and leading them to the tram.”

From the parking lot to the ski slopes, wide outdoor stairs cut through the building past an arcade of retail and food services open to the public – The Mudroom ski shop, the Southcable Café and adjacent restaurant, and a gallery displaying the history and culture of mountaineering. Movable window-walls, opened in good weather, connect those spaces to the outdoors.

“The whole concept has a great local perspective,” said Lenci. “Our managers are not just business operators. They’re established Jackson Hole skiers who’ve had the privilege to create something they personally wanted at the base of their home mountain.”

Gov Carrigan, former manager at Pepi Stiegler Sports and Caldera’s new retail manager, created two ski shops, one on-site and one off. The Mudroom in Caldera’s bright, modern space comfortably houses retail, demos, accessories, and Stio soft wear. Nomads, located off-site two doors north in the Alpenhof hotel, displays the most technologically advanced service center in the valley.

“At Nomads folks can watch the techs work behind a glass wall as

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they use our new Wintersteiger Mercury, complete with an advanced race package which delivers precise finishes with greater efficiency,” said Carrigan. “We’ve always strived to break the barriers and bring the bar up a level.”

All boot fitting will be in the Mudroom.

“We put a lot of thought into the design of our boot-fitting space,” he said, “and we have the right boot fitters on duty.”

Carrigan and his crew are well known from their days at Pepi’s (now shuttered) for their high-quality hand tuning and top-notch hard goods.

“I like selling things that are made for real skiers, whether they be dish washers or vacationers staying in the valley’s nicest accommodations, “ he said. “The goal in our shop is to view people as ski enthusiasts, real skiers with a passion for the sport. We want to share that and to elevate the shop experience – for all skiers, no matter their economic status.”

Cate Watsabaugh, a native of Jackson and a longtime food and beverage manager, created the café offerings for the Southcable Cafe, including those long-missed pizza slices. The adjacent restaurant captures sweeping slope-side views. Southcable also has a slope-side, open-air component that faces the namesake tram cables and all their innate wonders.

The eight condos – four measure 5,000 square feet, four are 1,500 square feet – are still under construction this winter. When finished, though, they will all be available for short-term rental.

“They’re amazing,” said Lenci. “Every piece of furniture is unique and has been selected with a story and character, creating a soulful,

Hungry skiers and snowboarders can once again duck in for a quick slice of pizza between rides on Big Red, and do it in the same spot where the VC and Bear Claw Café once reigned supreme. warm space. There are original Molesworth pieces layered with those from Hans Wegner and George Nakashima. ” Commune, the LA-based interior design company, along with Jackson-based Carney Logan Burke Architects, P.C., made the selections.

And, directed by the owners, they gave the building a European alpine flare with some Western influence – but no antlers. It’s mid-century, contemporary, and each condo is unique.

Though the lodging space is still incomplete, the Alpine Membership facilities are in full swing.

“The Alpine Membership is the core,” said Lenci, citing its management by well-versed valley resident Dave Dussault.

Members avail themselves of valet parking, a huge locker, and storage for six pairs of skis. In the Mudroom they get all the ski tuning and advice they’ll need for the ultimate on-mountain experience. Members dine in a private facility on an upper floor. Their daily rigors are eased in a spa, a whirlpool, an outdoor sauna, or in the message room or fitness / yoga studio.

“And maybe the person who skis the most vertical on the mountain gets a free membership for a year,” said Lenci.

News flash! Someone in the 100-Day Club might get a pass to the fourth floor! — JH SKIER w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Ski Community

Trading Cards Feature Avalanche Dogs JH Ski Patrol aims to educate with fun social activity

Photography by David Bowers A couple years ago, ski patroller Rick “Frosty” Frost became concerned when the patrol correlated the increase in skier-code violations and other safety issues with the increase in skier numbers at the resort. He had an idea that might help: Avalanche Dog Trading Cards.

People’s natural love of dogs, Frost figured, might make a difference if he could encourage good skier behavior through a fun social activity like trading cards. He enlisted the photography skills of fellow patroller David Bowers, and the trading cards idea became a reality.

“Our best chance is to get to kids,” said Frost. “The adults are gonna do what they’re gonna do. But kids these days grow up aware of other people’s ways. And they love those dogs. We can use the dogs to get their attention and, hopefully, they absorb the safety issues and the skier code becomes ingrained.”

The cards are free and can be picked up at the top of the Bridger Gondola in the ski patrol station and at the ski host desk, at the Teton chairlift summit patrol station, and at Mountain Station at the top of the Aerial Tram.

Responsibility Code National Ski Area Association • Always stay in control.

• People ahead of you have the right of way.

• Stop in a safe place for you and others.

• Whenever starting downhill or merging, look uphill and yield.

• Use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.

• Observe signs and warning, and keep off closed trails.

• Know how to use the lifts safely.

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Cricket with Rick “Frosty” Frost

The Dogs & Their People Cricket & Rick Frost Goose & Pete Linn Josie Wales & Chris Brindisi Sable & Shannon Brown Retired Dogs: Cornice, Jake Elkins Grover Cleveland, Glenn Jacques

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s

Snow King Mountain Resort Big plans, bright future

By Melissa Thomasma

now King Mountain provides a dramatic and beautiful back drop to everything that goes on in the town of Jackson below. From summertime farmers’ markets and concerts to frosty evenings ice skating in the Town Square, it’s no surprise that the “Town Hill,” as it’s still affectionately known, plays a promi-

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nent role in so many of our earliest skiing memories.

In the winter of 1988, my parents stuffed my three-year old feet into stiff boots, clipped me into tiny bindings, and – with my dad’s help, of course – sent me up the rope tow for the first time. His hands under my arms, my miniscule skis nested

within the larger triangle of his, we slowly cruised down the gentle slope making big, sloppy s-turns.

Skiers today can still make big turns on the King’s north-facing slopes, but twice as many now thanks to modern lifts and expanding ski-area boundaries. More intermediate and advanced terrain has

When it opened in 1939, Snow King Mountain’s lone lift was a rope tow powered by a modified Ford tractor. Generations of Jacksonites learned to ski on the “Town Hill” while ski racers from around Jackson and around the world honed their skills and competed on its challenging slopes. opened, and even more will as development continues. The old Rafferty lift, iconic for its vintage yellow chairs, has been retired and replaced by a Dopplemeyer highspeed quad, a welcome change, increasing speed as well as rider comfort. Additionally, it goes further up the hill than the Rafferty lift, but

still offers a mid-hill unload for more beginner access. Ride it all the way to the top to check out some of the new intermediate runs, some whimsically tabbed, like Moose and Flying Squirrel.

State of the art lighting has significantly expanded opportunities for night skiing, a unique way to enjoy the hill, downright magical with the glittering lights of town unfurled below. Cutting edge snowmaking technology has not only improved the quality of the mountain’s snow cover, but has also markedly lengthened the hill’s operating season.

I grew up skiing the King and was making laps on the rope tow on my Left:

Skier

Carter Snow

Photographer

Jonathan Selkowitz

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Below: Fireworks and a torchlight parade usher in the new year on Snow King’s slopes

Photographer Wade McKoy

own at 4, piling up hours of racing down the tiny hill, gazing longingly at the yellow chairlift that swept big skiers much higher up the mountain.

I would ski until my little hands were too frigid and exhausted to cling to the rope, and finally had to admit defeat. Still in my snow pants and coat, I’d fall asleep in the car long before we reached the driveway.

Snow King not only still provides a place for young skiers to learn the basics, but also works closely with the local Jackson Hole Ski Club to nurture highly talented young racers. The “town hill’s” slopes play host to a diversity of events sponsored by the club, ranging from official races on the national and international circuit, to more fun, relaxed and community-focused events like a weekly freestyle competition at the terrain park and the Margarita Cup. “Students practicing on the hill is something you see here all the time,” said Keely Herron, marketing director for Snow King. “It’s a big part of Snow King culture and everyday life!”

Truly a rite of passage in a young Jackson Hole skier’s career, skiing from the summit was a big deal.

Somewhat ominously known among the elementary crowd as “the black chair,” the summit lift carries skiers to the apex of the resort, 1,571 feet above the valley floor. I’ll never forget the tangle of nerves and anticipation in my stomach as my dad and I slid onto the chair and rode upward over the dappled shadows of the trees. Even more memorable than the ride to the top, though, was the sense of accomplishment 2 0 1 7 J AC KS O N H O L E S K I E R

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The resort’s coming development phase includes plans to retire the summit lift and replace it with a more convenient and comfortable gondola.

Skier

Brian Salatino

Photographer

Jonathan Selkowitz

Location

Snow King

and pride when we arrived victorious at the bottom. “That’s right,” I would tell my friends at school on Monday morning, “We skied the black chair.”

The resort’s coming development phase includes plans to retire the summit lift and replace it with a more convenient and comfortable gondola. The ride up will not only be shorter, but warmer and more enjoyable in blustery conditions. In addition to providing access to the entire mountain for skiers, it will deliver other guests year-round to the summit to enjoy other coming amenities, among them a restaurant, meeting facilities, and worldclass observatory. Snow King also plans to expand the current ski area boundaries, opening up even more intermediate terrain.

SNOW KING MOUNTAIN RESORT

ACCESS & RESOURCES Cowboy Winter Coaster

This roller-coaster thrill ride zips, twists, and turns down the mountain for a mile of

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Snow King remains not only the first snowy classroom and playground for locals, but has also become a world-class resort for visiting skiers, from families and first-timers to competitive racers.

“For locals and visitors alike, Snow King really is a great family option,” noted Herron.

Though recent and ongoing developments have expanded the array of Snow King’s activities and amenities since my first rope tow

ride in 1988, the “town hill” is still central to the Jackson culture. And in a few years, I look forward to tucking my own little girl’s feet into stiff boots, clipping her into tiny bindings, and heading toward the rope tow together.

loops, curves, and hairpin turns. On the way up, riders enjoy unsurpassed Teton views from 456 feet up Snow King Mountain. Call Snow King Mountain Sports at 307-201-5096 for the current schedule.

tuning experience, its techs have the knowledge and skill to consistently produce highquality ski and snowboard tunes for local racers and recreational enthusiasts. Located in the Snow King Hotel just underneath Hayden’s Post.

307-201-5096; e-mail: store@snowkingmountain.com

Snow King Mountain Sports

Snow King Mountain Sports houses Jackson Hole’s newest rental fleet and a worldclass race tuning shop. The store features a selection of top-brand race gear, ski wear, and accessories. The rental fleet allows customers to choose from a wide selection of skis and snowboards. With more than 20 years of ski

A Jackson Hole native, Melissa Thomasma is a freelance writer who loves the local landscape, culture, and history. When she’s not writing, she can be found fly fishing or getting creative in the kitchen.

Night Skiing

Watch the lights come up on the town of Jackson at the only night skiing available in Jackson Hole. After the sun goes down, Snow King Mountain comes alive with skiers and boarders taking advantage of this one-of-aw w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Access & Resources kind evening activity that keeps the stoke going for hours after dark. Upgraded in 2014 to Bright Lights™, the King’s innovative lighting system reduces night-sky light pollution, more effectively covers the slopes, and lowers energy consumption. Night skiing at Snow King is available Tues.-Sat. from 4-7 p.m. Adults, $25 Jr/Sr, $20. More info: 307734-3194.

Snowmaking

New snow guns (21, of course, and part of a $3.5 million capital improvement project) get everyone on the slopes earlier than ever.

A combination of permanent and traveling snow guns fill in the runs from the summit to the base, thanks in part to hydrants along the way that also supply potable water to the mountaintop.

Uphill Travel

Sometimes going up the hill is the best part. Jackson locals know that “skinning the King” is an amazing way to experience skiing in Jackson Hole. Snow King Mountain generously offers this activity to locals and visitors at no charge, but skiers must sign a waiver and purchase a pass-carrier to display their Uphill Travel Ambassador pass. Passes and pass-carriers are available at the Summit Lift Ticket office and at Snow King Mountain Sports during normal operating hours. For more information and to read the full Uphill Travel Policy, visit the website at snowkingmountain.com/uphilltravel.

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Terrain Parks

Snow King Mountain enhanced its terrain park experience last season. A slope-style park with intermediate and advanced features, including ramps and jumps, is accessible just along the Old Man’s Flats trail, itself accessible by the Cougar lift. There’s also a base area rail and box park with a variety of rails, jumps, and slides to test a rider’s skills.

Access to the terrain parks is included in the price of the lift ticket during normal operating hours. Call 307-734-3194 for more info.

King Tubes

Just plain fun! That would be King Tubes.

Piloting these “doughnuts” on the smooth, groomed run promises to bring out the kid in everyone. Hard to tell whose enthusiasm is greater, the kids’ or the grownups’. Easy access provided by a rope tow. Hop on, then head down the slope. Riders must be at least 42” tall. Mon.- Sat., from 2-7 p.m.; weekends and holidays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The office is located at the corner of Snow King Ave and King St. Phone: 307-734-3194.

Mountain Sports School

Snow King Mountain Resort has been teaching skiing for over 75 years. But Snowboarding, a relative newcomer to resort slopes, is supported with equal zest at the King. Its Mountain Sports School specializes in children’s and adults’ group and private lessons.

For the full array of courses and clinics, visit snowkingmountain.com or call 307-734-3188.

Pond Skim

The season may wind down in spring, but the fun continues in high gear. Snow King plays host to a fresh take on polar dipping: pond skimming. Another of the mountain’s end-of-season gems, competitors don suitable attire, buckle into skis or snowboards, then gather courage and speed to launch themselves across an ice-hemmed pond.

Spectators and competitors happily partake of the festivities, which also include food, beverages, and a contagious enthusiasm. Details at snowkingmountain.com.

World Championship Snowmobile Hill Climb

The hill’s final event is an unqualified spectacle: The World Championship Snowmobile Hill Climb. Now in its 41st year, the event is held on Snow King’s pitch-perfect slopes.

Riders throttle their way straight up the King’s snowbound terra firma, trying to nail the speediest high-mark. The event benefits the Jackson Hole Snow Devils’ various philanthropic missions. Slated for March 23 through March 26 this year. Call 734-9653 or go online at snowdevils.org.

Ice Skating

Snow King Sports and Events Center, located at the base of Snow King Mountain, provides a rink full of activities and is home to the Jackson Hole Moose hockey club. For more information, visit the center’s site at snowkingsec.com or call 307-201-1633.

— JH SKIER

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Ski Community

The Triple Crown JACKSON HOLE SKI & SNOWBOARD CLUB EVENT CELEBRATES WINTER SPORTS TRADITIONS Each year, local ski enthusiasts vie for the throne of the Triple Crown – the overall fastest racers in the Nordic Moose Chase Marathon, the Town Downhill, and the Karen Oatey Pole Pedal Paddle. Competitor points accumulate with each event and are published at jhskiclub.org. The men’s and women’s winners are crowned

King and Queen at the PPP Awards Ceremony at Astoria Hot Springs. This ski club event celebrates Jackson’s winter-sports traditions and answers the question, “Who are Jackson Hole’s best winter-sports athletes?” Congrats to Johnny Springer & Meaghan Wheeler, 2016 King & Queen.

Town Downhill

Moose Chase

Photo: Jeff Buydos, Teton Creative Visuals Photo: Nancy Leon, JH Nordic

Photo: Wade McKoy

Top: U.S. Ski Team downhiller Marco Sullivan flies off the pro jump in the Town Downhill on his way to winning the 34th annual event last winter.

Above: Adam Carman, JHSC alumni and current coach, nails the Money Turn.

Left: Despite its whimsical title, Moose Chase contestants get after it!

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Pole Pedal Paddle PPP photos, clockwise from top left: A racer pushes off from lower start of the downhill.

Steve Hahn skates through a turn in the Nordic leg.

The bike leg often benefits from dry spring weather.

A Fun Class boat sprouts blossoms on the Snake.

Some portions of the alpine leg briefly resemble a Chinese Downhill.

Photo: Wade McKoy

Photos, above and below: Wade Dunstan, David Cleeland, WRKSHRT Productions

Photo: Bob Woodall

Photo: Jeff Buydos, Teton Creative Visuals

JACKSON HOLE SKI & SNOWBOARD CLUB EVENTS ON SNOW KING Snow King Mountain continues its partnership with the Jackson Hole Ski & Snowboard Club (JHSC). Once again, as the JHSC celebrates its 78th anniversary, a full calendar of winter events with local ski areas highlight this winter season.

Town Downhill, the Mini-Hahnenkamm

The Town Downhill (TDH), a JHSC event, has been a Jackson tradition since 1982.

The origin of its nickname, the Mini-Hahnenkamm, dates back to the 1950s, when Jim Huidekoper Sr., one of the ski area’s founders, named Snow King’s steepest run The Steilhang because it reminded him of a slope on Austria’s famed peak, the Hahw w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

nenkamm. This season’s race is scheduled for March 11-12. With divisions for Pro, Recreation, Telemark, Junior, Fat and Baggy, and Snowboard, the event is the club’s way of recognizing that skiing – and ski racing – is truly a lifetime sport. Jackson Hole is one of the last places in the country to organize and support a non-sanctioned downhill race.

This community favorite draws over 200 competitors and 500 spectators. Everyone is welcome to join in for live music, food, and a great race.

Pica’s Margarita Cup

The season opens with the Pica’s Margarita Cup, five adult team-racing events.

Run from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Mondays this crowd-pleaser boasts prizes, weekly raffles, food, a bar, and straight-ahead enthusiasm.

January 16 and 30, February 6 and 20, wrapping up on March 6.

Wednesday Night Lights

Other notable winter-season events include the mountain’s Wednesday Night Lights activities, now in its ninth season and clearly a winner. Held on Wednesday nights, of course, these evening showcases and competition draw the young and the inspired to rail jams. Spectators are as thrilled as the competitors coursing over the white stuff and the rail in impressive skillful, acrobatic displays. Under the lights, Wednesdays from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on February 17 and 24, and March 2 and 9.

National & International Ski Races

The JHSC will also host nearly 20 days of regional and national-level events at Snow King Mountain Resort, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Grand Targhee, and Trail Creek Nordic Center.

— JH SKIER

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Ski Community

JH Natives Possess World Cup Résumés Resi Stiegler, Seppi Stiegler, and Breezy Johnson among world’s elite skiers Photos by Jonathan Selkowitz Resi Stiegler (below), 30, and her brother Seppi Stiegler (top), 27, grew up skiing with instructors at JHMR and coaches from the Jackson Hole Ski Club on Snow King.

Resi has skied on the World Cup since 2003. She was the U.S. Champion in slalom and giant slalom in 2007 and skied in the Torino and Sochi Olympics. Last winter she podiumed three times, including a 2nd in the National Championships in Sun Valley.

This winter, as of press date, she placed 16th at the season-opening women’s slalom in Levi, Finland.

Seppi won bronze at the U.S. Alpine National Championships in 2013, and in 2011 he was NCAA Champion in giant slalom and World University Games Champion in slalom. In 2014 and ‘15 he raced for World Cup points on the privately funded Team America.

He recently started coaching and this winter is coaching the FIS group at the Jackson Hole Ski Club.

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Another Teton native and Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club alumni, Breezy Johnson (below) continued her ascension in the ski-racing world last winter as she competed on the 2015/16 NorAm, Europa Cup, and World Cup circuits. Johnson

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scored World Cup points with a 28th-place downhill finish at Garmisch- Partenkirchen, Germany. She won a Europa Cup downhill at Altenmarkt, Austria. She also won a NorAm downhill at Lake Louise in Alberta, Canada. — JH SKIER

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Aprés Ski

JACKSON HOLE’S NEWEST APRÉS SKI ACTIVITY Story by Bob Woodall

endezvous Bowl, Laramie Bowl, Cheyenne Bowl are just a few of the legendary ones nestled in Jackson Hole Mountain Resort terrain.

Another bowl, though, has been added to our ski-town landscape: Hole Bowl bowling in downtown Jackson. No need to click into the bindings to experience this one. No extreme runs, just extreme fun.

To many, aprés ski means heading to a tavern or lounge to toss back a few libations. But not for everyone. Hole Bowl, now in its first season in Jackson, is serving up another option for the aprés scene. Something of a lane change, if you will.

The enterprise’s small but classy structure has led owner Jessica MacGregor to describe it as “modern chic boutique bowling.”

Home to eight dazzling high-tech public bowling lanes and two equally stunning private lanes, the facility offers way more than

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Photo Bob Woodall

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Hole Bowl

Kay Wilson launches the ball down the lane.

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a first-class bowling outing. “We’re not just a bunch of lanes,” said MacGregor. “We designed it so it would fill a need in Jackson as well as work as a place for people to just come hang out.” Its Pinsetter Restaurant and Bar, artfully embedded in a

“It is fun to get off the mountain and come into someplace warm and indoors, and continue activity.”

— Jessica MacGregor designer fun-center, serves up a striking menu, from salads to steaks. And with an arcade, pool tables, shuffle board, free darts, a photo booth, and 12 big-screen TVs, the valley’s latest recreation spot doubles down as both a sports bar and a festive gathering place for family and friends.

Evenings at the center reveal another fresh take on the sport: black-light bowling.

“The cosmic bowling kind of takes it up a whole notch, a whole other level,” said MacGregor. “Everything glows in the dark— pins glow, the floor glows, the balls glow.”

Since opening in mid July 2016, Hole Bowl has hoasted gatherings ranging from baby showers and rehersal dinners to fundraisers and even a candidate forum. "I have enjoyed seeing the variety of ways in which the locals have utilized the space," said MacGregor.

“It will be fun to get off the mountain and come into someplace warm and indoors, and continue activity,” MacGregor said. “As my husband likes to say, ‘Nobody skis bell to bell anymore.’ Kids get worn out, and people take a day off or come into w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

said I could do this alone— we have a very strong team behind us, from an incredible head chef, Jason Mitchell, who puts out consistent food, day after day after day, to Director of Operations Erin Oda, who really knows what she’s doing,” said MacGregor.

“The concept was Jessica’s,” Oda said. “She wanted, in addition to the bowling, a great restaurant and lounge, and it was important to have great food at affordable prices so that people could come here more than once a week and it wouldn’t break the bank.”

“It’s a team effort around here, with a great loyal At Hole Bowl the entire family can participate in aprés ski fun. staff,” MacGregor proudly town to shop. I am really hoping that we will noted. “I am hoping that this really turns into be on everyone’s radar at the Village and a great place to après.” throughout town. It is a great facility for skiWhen the powder bowls are all tracked club parties.” out, the legs burning from “bowling” the While raising three children in Jackson mountain, and the kids worn out from doing Hole, Jessica saw firsthand the need for an too many “pizzas and French fries” on the indoor play area. Two and a half years of slopes, winter enthusiasts may want to step planning by MacGregor culminated last July. out of the bindings and strike out for down“I may have been the driving force,” she town Jackson and its newest bowl of fun, stated, but it was investors and support from food, and festivity. the community who made it happen. “I never

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Walk in or reserve a lane • Full Restaurant, Bar & Lounge • 8 Social Bowling Lanes • 2 Private Lanes with Lounge • Cosmic Black-light Bowling • 12 Big Screen TVs • Arcade Games • Free Shuffleboard • Free Darts • Free Wi-Fi

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Located in the Powderhorn Mall

980 W Broadway, Jackson, WY • 307-201-5426

Open: 11am - 11pm

www.holebowljh.com | info@holebowljh.com

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Aprés Ski

Wyoming Whiskey

SMALL BATCH BOURBON COMES OF AGE ention of Wyoming usually brings simple associations to mind for the rest of America: coal and fossil fuel extraction and beef cattle ranching dominate the state economy, while the romanticized Old West images of cowboys, hayfields, and wide-open, sagebrush-dotted spaces are actually still relevant. Skiers, of course, think of the Teton Range and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. And Yellowstone National Park’s fame attracts the majority of Wyoming’s tourists.

There is a small cadre of people, however, who have recently undertaken to add something new to the image of the country’s tenth largest, and least populated state. Their vision: Make it the home of premium bourbon, under the label Wyoming Whiskey.

It’s an ambitious entrepreneurial project for Wyoming Whiskey, a small, young distillery based in Kirby, Wyoming. Yet the people behind the project, a trio of skiers and cattle ranchers, have never been accused of thinking small.

“We aim to become America’s next great bourbon,” David DeFazio, one of the three founders, will tell you without batting an eye. With that out on the table, despite the daunting task laid out, the company has been blazing away on its goal. The distillery opened in Kirby in 2009, began selling limited quantities of whiskey in 2012, and today boasts three products: small-batch bourbon, single-barrel bourbon, and a new release, a straight American whiskey called Outryder. It is sold in 38 states, and according to DeFazio, has grown production by 83 percent in the last two years, with no signs of letting up. “Sales are rising at a very healthy pace,” he said.

The inspiration hit in 2006, when Wyoming cattle ranchers Brad and Kate Mead were wintering their cows in the Big Horn Basin of northcentral Wyoming. The land practically handed the idea of a bourbon distillery to them: all the ingredients needed could be found right in the basin––grains, proper climate, and under their feet a limestone aquifer as a water source. The Meads teamed up with DeFazio, an attorney friend in Jackson, Wyoming, who shared their love of the mountains, the outdoors, and most importantly, of bourbon. The naming process was simple: Wyoming Whiskey fit the bill perfectly.

A very important factor for the Meads and DeFazio was to make a finished product that was a 100-percent Wyoming creation. The company was launched with an understanding that all the ingredients and

It’s an ambitious entrepreneurial project for Wyoming Whiskey, a small, young distillery based in Kirby, Wyoming. Yet the people behind the project, a trio of skiers and cattle ranchers, have never been accused of thinking small. production should be from and in Wyoming as an uncompromising ‘foundational value,” said DeFazio. Although the high plains of Wyoming are certainly an untraditional place when compared to more well-known bourbon distilling areas such as Tennessee, the Big Horn Basin in central Wyoming has everything needed to make high-quality bourbon. Hand-selected corn, wheat, and barley used in the process are all grown and harvested in Kirby, Byron, Thermopolis, and Riverton.

They conducted a study that said the climate would be right for whiskey.

But the water source was the clincher. Pure glacial water to make the bourbon with provided the final ingredient, and a key ingredient at that: quality water plays an integral role in distilling, no matter where the distillery is based.

Next they hired a former Maker’s Mark master distiller, Steve Nally, who guided the company through its first few years. The very first releases were a little early and sporting a cowboy taste that was a bit rough around the edges. But the distillery has begun to hit its stride with more aged releases, making for a pleasant sipping whiskey that’s now

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Photo courtesy Wyoming Whiskey

M

By Brigid Mander

Head distiller Sam Mead samples the brand with a whiskey thief.

nurturing a growing circle of enthusiasts. And bourbon connoisseurs have taken note. Wyoming Whiskey won several awards in 2015 in national craft distillery competitions and in 2016 it took home two silver medals from the American Craft Spirits awards, for single barrel and barrel strength.

As it enters its next phase as a distillery, the company plans to stand on its own two feet as a truly Wyoming product. Brad and Kate Mead’s son Sam, Wyoming-born and raised, has recently taken the helm as head distiller for the brand. Sam grew up working on the family ranch, but also working hard as a ski athlete. The younger Mead competed in slopestyle and halfpipe through high school and college, even finding himself atop the podium in the USASA (United States of America Snowboard and Freeski Association) nationals, twice for halfpipe and once for slopestyle.

After school, however, Sam turned his attention to the new family business of whiskey distilling, studying the craft and joining the distillery in 2014. Mead is sticking to the classic bourbon distilling methods, but plans to bring his own touch to the process. While it will take until late in 2019 for any whiskey to be released completely from Sam’s work, he has taken over the daily operations of the distillery. A day for the skierturned distiller now involves testing cooking mash, tasting, testing and blending barrels, and bottling – often a solid ten-hour day.

However, by the time the Wyoming born and bred whiskey hits the market in about three years, the creators’ passion for Wyoming, ranching, the mountains, and skiing, may likely be thoroughly associated with the whiskey.

“Hopefully, we can just keep expanding, and making Wyoming Whiskey something that people from Wyoming can be proud of,” said Sam. And the whiskey itself just may be well on its way to adding a little more flair, pride, and diversity to the image of Wyoming.

A Jackson-based skier and writer, Brigid Mander is now training her palate to discern good whiskey. w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Snake River Beer

BREWED FRESH IN DOWNTOWN JACKSON

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By Brigid Mander

he tradition of après-ski is embedded in ski culture the world over, from over-the-top parties at glamorous resorts to happy groups of backcountry skiers sharing a six-pack of beer back at the trailhead.

In Jackson, the rough and tumble feel of the Old West persists, even as the ski area has moved onto the global stage. Locals prefer a casual, roughshod celebration of a day in the

Photo Bob Woodall

Long-time favorite local beer supplier Snake River Brewery offers après libations proudly crafted from the local land and supplies. mountains to a genteel after-ski gathering –– and the classic cowboy combo of a beer, a little whiskey, and some good company is the perfect recipe. To that end, long-time favorite local beer supplier Snake River Brewery offers après libations proudly crafted from the local land and supplies.

“A quality beer is a reward for whatever you did that day,” said Krissy Zinski, the brewery’s marketing director. “We have such a huge ski culture here, and a huge après-ski

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scene. In Jackson there is snow practically nine months of the year –– that goes hand in hand with drinking beer!”

Snake River Brewery is a local institution, having now served Jackson skiers with Snake River brewer John McCarthy tending the grain. local brews for 21 years. Since fundraisers,” said Zinski. “And at après now, I then, other local breweries have popped up, think people appreciate the quality more too. but Jackson’s original craft-beer brewery has I see so many more people with our craft beer a strong regional following and presence. cans in their hands, as opposed to quantities “We brew great beer,” said Zinski. “We of cheap mass-produced beer. It’s changed a have incredible resources right here in lot since I moved here ten years ago. And we Wyoming, so we try to keep it local and full [Snake River] like to be involved in après as circle. The grain comes from nearby in Idaho. much as we can!”

We have the best water you can find, and Ultimately, there are plenty of ways to celeven our cans are made in Worland, ebrate a great ski day, and plenty of libations Wyoming. A local ranch comes and picks up to choose from, but the tried and true simplicspent grain to feed the cows. And our brewers ity of a good cold beer is a perfect way to are really happy being here in the mountains, close out a day in the mountains of Wyoming. so that goes into what they create.”

Après ski is, after all, just another way to dive SRB wants to share the merriment and into and experience the winter recreation culwhat they think is the best taste of local life ture tied together by the love of skiing. and tastes with visitors and residents alike.

“We try to help keep ski patrol supplied with Brigid Mander is a writer and skier living plenty of beer during the season. We also in Jackson Hole. have special low prices for nonprofits doing

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Grand Targhee Resort Find your rhythm

Right:

Skier

H

Kelly Mackenzie

by Melissa Thomasma

igh in the Rocky Mountains, nestled into the folds of the Tetons’ rugged western slope, lies a secret. A powdery gem of a secret: Grand Targhee Resort. Okay, so it’s no secret among Jackson Hole locals that Targhee is a place worth its weight in snow. And there sure is plenty of snow!

In the mid-1960s, local ranchers – whose fields lay dormant for the winter – joined together to start the Grand Targhee ski area. Their original goals were twofold: to give locals some wintertime excitement, and to bring some new energy to the community’s economy. The Grand Targhee Resort opened its doors the day after Christmas in 1969. Since those early days, Targhee has been family owned and operated, and has managed to maintain a culture and ambiance all its own.

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As a young skier in the early 1990s, I always relished a trip to Grand Targhee. Though it wasn’t far – around an hour’s drive – the hill had a magic to it that felt a million miles away from the bustle of the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. I remember long runs in soft, pristine powder, floating past trees that, to my young imagination, seemed frosted like a gingerbread forest.

Unlike the popular lifts in Teton Village, those at Targhee often had no lines at all. It was just run after run in spectacular snow.

Targhee always felt relaxed somehow, the pace of the resort’s culture slower, more easygoing. And that, according to Marketing and Social Media Manager Jennie White, is the essence of what Targhee has striven to maintain for all these years. “The laid-back vibe is what everyone ap-

Photographer Cody Downard

Location

Happy Hunting Grounds Left:

Skier

Gary Mackenzie

Photographer

Fredrick Marmsater

Location

Steve Baugh Bowl

preciates,” she says. “From longtime staff members to visitors alike.”

While the mountain’s chill culture has endured, its infrastructure has needed some updates since the early days. In recent years, Grand Targhee Resort has not only made significant upgrades to the amenities on the mountain, but has also developed an impressive diversity of other wintertime activities.

Among them, fat-biking, tubing, and powder-chasing snowcat advenw w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

“As a young skier in the early 1990s, I always relished a trip to Grand Targhee. I remember long runs in soft, pristine powder, floating past trees that, to my young imagination, seemed frosted like a gingerbread forest.” — Melissa Thomasma

tures for those seeking excitement, and sleigh rides, snowshoeing and sunset scenic tours for the more relaxed visitor. The array also boasts nature tours with expert guides, Nordic skiing on beautifully groomed trails, or the opportunity to simply get a sense of all the mountain has to offer on a free daily mountain tour.

The ski hill itself – still the highlight of any Grand Targhee excursion – recently made mountain w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

access even more convenient for skiers of all ability levels. Once a somewhat intimidating double chair, the Blackfoot Chair has been replaced with a fixed-grip quad equipped with safety bars to make it more comfortable for intermediate skiers and kids. The ride used to take twelve minutes, but is now down to seven.

Four other lifts continue to offer access to a wide variety of terrain for beginners to advanced skiers.

Kids and first-time skiers will love Shoshone lift and the easy trails it accesses. Dreamcatcher and Sacajawea lifts climb higher on the mountain, and offer no shortage of thrilling and challenging topography.

And no matter where you’ve enjoyed your day on the slopes, there are plenty of spots to kick back with an après ski cocoa or cocktail before dinner.

Thanks to Targhee’s location on the western slope of the Tetons, the 2 0 1 7 J AC KS O N H O L E S K I E R

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“With snow that’s always good, and the relaxed small-town atmosphere, everyone feels welcome when they come to Targhee.” — Jennie White

Skier

Max MacKenzie

Photographer

Fredrik Marmsater

Location

Steve Baugh, Peaked in background

Fat-Biker

Niki Williams

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

Targhee Nordic trails, fat-bike single track

weather patterns that deliver its snowpack are very different from those that cover Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and Snow King.

Annually, Targhee opens earlier and closes later than these other mountains, and frequently is doused with generous helpings of light, sweet

powder. Sporting over 2,600 acres to explore, and an average snowfall of over 500 inches, Targhee really does have reason to crow.

“With snow that’s always good, and the relaxed small-town atmosphere, everyone feels welcome when they come to Targhee,” White said of the boutique resort.

“Whether it’s your first time here, or your thousandth, everyone is part of our unique culture and history.”

As you’re making plans for your ski adventures this winter, be sure to keep Targhee in mind. Though it’s only a short drive from Jackson Hole, you’ll feel like you’re in a snowy world apart. And I have a feeling you’ll love it.

A Jackson Hole native, Melissa Thomasma is a freelance writer who loves the local landscape, culture, and history.

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GRAND TARGHEE RESORT Mountain Characteristics

2,000 acres of lift-serviced terrain: 10% beginner, 70% intermediate, 20% advanced.

Vertical rise: 2,270 feet. Base elevation: 7,851 feet. Groomed trails: 500 acres. Ski lifts: two high-speed quad chairs, one quad chair, one double chair, and one magic carpet.

Nordic, Snowshoe, & Snow Bike Trails

15k of groomed Nordic trails make great cross-country skiing, ski-skating, fat-tire snow biking, and snowshoeing, all of it rolling past the base area into the surrounding forest, glades, and meadows.

Activity Center Adventures

Stop by the Activity Center to book a myriad of winter adventures. Snowmobile through Yellowstone for close-up views of bison and Old Faithful or tour other regional attractions like Mesa Falls and the Big Holes. Ride on a horse-drawn sleigh with an authentic cowboy and his trusty steeds to a high-altitude yurt and a Western sleigh-ride dinner.

Ski & Snowboard School

Under the direction of Mark Hanson, Grand Targhee Resort’s Ski & Snowboard School offers PSIA/AASI instruction for adults and children, as well as a special adaptive skiers’ program. The Start Me Up package for firsttimers combines soft snow with experienced instructors, beginner equipment, uncrowded slopes, a dedicated beginner learning area, and the Papoose Conveyor lift. The Kids Start Me Up package is nationally recognized as an

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ACCESS & RESOURCES

excellent children’s program. Grand Targhee’s Kids FUN Zone offers great terrain specifically designed to accelerate the learning curve.

Early Tracks is for intermediate skiers and riders looking to get a jump-start on their day and enjoy Targhee’s powder paradise before the lifts open to the public. More info: 800827-4433.

Terrain Park

Boasts at least four to six rails per line, plus a jump section and two lines of features – one for beginners, one for more advanced skiers and riders. Look for new features this season with monthly changes and a local competition series.

Tube Park

A $14 day ticket includes use of snow tube, tube runs, and lift access on the Papoose Magic Carpet. All riders must be over 42 inches tall. Special rates available for groups of 25 or more. Reservations are recommended for tubing after 6 p.m. Open Weds. through Fri. from 3-7 p.m. and weekends from noon to 7 p.m.

Mountain Tours

Join a Mountain Host at the base of Dreamcatcher daily at 10:30 a.m. for a mountain tour. They’ll unveil the viewpoints and lesser-known areas of the three mountains that make up Grand Targhee Resort.

The Nature Center

Satisfy your wonderment of the Tetons’ flora, fauna, and geology with a resort natu-

ralist. Just stop by the Nature Center cabin between the Kids’ Club and Ski School. You can also book a 2-hr. naturalist-led snowshoe tour at the Activities Center.

Guided Snowcat Adventures

A hallmark of Grand Targhee, cat skiing on Peaked Mountain affords breathtaking views of the Grand Tetons. Twelve people ride a huge powder reserve of over 600 acres and up to 20,000 vertical feet in a day. Professional guides lead clients through a variety of terrain – expansive bowls, mellow glades, and steep, treed pitches. Reservations required.

Call 800-827-4433.

Green Practices

A leader in environmental resort practices, Grand Targhee Resort received the Golden Eagle Award for Environmental Excellence in 2009 and 2011. In 2007 it became the first North American organization to carry out an in-depth inventory of greenhouse gas emissions through The Climate Registry. A central mission in Grand Targhee Resort’s Sustainability Charter is to limit its environmental impact by making integrated changes in waste management, energy use, and local ecosystems. Grand Targhee is prioritizing sustainability by taking powerful steps to manage its carbon footprint.

Shuttles

Daily round-trip shuttles run from Driggs and Jackson Hole. The resort is a scenic 48 miles from the Jackson Hole Airport, 85 miles from the Idaho Falls Airport. — JH SKIER

MUSH! HIKE! LET’S GO! Sled dog tours, a storybook experience

Surprisingly, the dogs are silent as they go about their work on the trail.

Photos by Bob Woodall

By Sandra Keats

A warm swim rewards mushers at Granite Hot Springs.

T

he tale is tried and true. Whether it was Lassie and Timmy, Dorothy and Toto, Travis and Old Yeller, Duncan and Rin Tin Tin, or Buck and John Thornton, dog has always been man’s best friend.

But 12 Totos pulling Dorothy, Tin Man, Lion, and Scarecrow down the Yellow Brick Road?

Not in Dorothy’s wildest dreams!

Well, what if Dorothy had found herself trudging down a trail deep in the Yukon? Maybe then she might have swapped the ruby red pumps for a dog sled and her precious Toto for a team of Alaskan huskies to pull her home.

Dog sledding combines that primal relationship of man and his loyal canine with the rush of whisking through snow-covered country and disappearing into the wild. It’s the Jack London storybook experience.

Imagine a day where a foot of untouched powder settles over the Jackson Hole Valley.

You leave your skis at home and, bundled in layer upon layer with a thermos of hot choco-

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“Mush! Hike! All Right! Let’s Go!” the musher calls out to his team.

late in hand, you take to the trail with a local musher.

“Mush! Hike! All Right! Let’s Go!” the musher calls out to his team. The dogs explode into motion, and off you go, dog and man, on a picturesque journey across frozen rivers, snowblanketed valleys, dense forest, and rugged mountains.

For you this is a one-day adventure. For the musher, though, it’s a lifestyle.

Just ask Jackson Hole’s eight-time Iditarod veteran Frank Teasley. It was the romantic allure that initially grabbed him and pulled him into the dog-sledding lifestyle. But now it’s the rewarding relationship between a musher and his dogs – and the commitment to those dogs – that keeps him involved year-round in this hobby.

“There’s a difference between a musher and someone leading a dog team,” Teasley said. “A musher lives, eats, sleeps, and breathes dogs – 365 days a year the dogs come first. It’s like having a very large family.”

Dog sledding combines

that primal relationship of

man and his loyal canine

with the rush of whisking

through snow-covered

country and disappearing

into the wild. It’s the

Jack London

storybook experience.

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Teasley, owner of Jackson Hole Iditarod Sled Dog Tours, started running dogs in 1979 with three Siberian huskies and a chair nailed to two skis. He now owns the largest touring company in the nation. He refers to his 200-dog company as a “pension plan” for his veteran racing dogs and “high school” for his younger, less experienced pups.

“It’s like having more than 200 kids, which is extremely demanding, both physically and emotionally,” Teasley said. “Recognizing that every decision, like taking a vacation, is based on (the) dogs. The first priority, always, is that the dogs are taken care of.”

And it’s thanks to them that Teasley has successfully raced through Oregon, Montana, Minnesota, Alaska, Wyoming, and even Argentina. They’ve won the Race to the Sky in Montana three times, the UP 200 in Michigan in 2004, and hold the record for the Bear Grease race in Minnesota. Teasley’s team has run the Iditarod eight times, including their best time in 1991, a sixth-place finish out of 74 racers. That same year, they received the Sterling Silver Award for the most improved kennel and the Leonard Seppala Humanitarian Award for the “best cared-for team” in 1989.

During his earlier years competing in the Iditarod, Teasley and other racers voiced concern that “The Last Great Race” wasn’t easily accessible to spectators. Spectators could view the start in Anchorage and maybe the finish in

Nome two weeks later. But unless fans snowshoed deep into the Alaskan wilderness, sometimes in 40-below-zero temperatures, most of the 1,000-mileplus race remained a mystery.

“I have to give credit to the Iditarod for putting dog sledding on the map,” Teasley noted. “It’s a great race; it will always be a great race.”

But Teasley decided in 1995 he was a bigger fan of the “Stage Stop” race concept, which enables the media and spectators to see teams cross the finish line each day. So Teasley created what is now the largest dog-sled race in the lower 48 states: The Eukanuba Stage Stop Sled Dog Race.

Now in its 21st year, and boasting nine different starts and finishes in seven different Wyoming towns and one each in Montana, Idaho, and Utah, the 400-mile race provides an alternative to the typical marathon-style races.

Teasley says this type of race is much better for the dogs than marathon races, where dogs rest only as much as they run. But a stage race allows the dogs to rest more than they run.

Additionally, every dog in the race is examined by a veterinarian and “microchipped,” a high-tech procedure involving implanting a microchip under the dogs’ skin, so their vitals can be routinely checked.

“The dogs have no ulterior motives,” Teasley said. “You take care of them, they take care of you.”

A JOURNEY BACK IN TIME

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by Blair Pendleton

ounds of nature and the swooshing of the sled’s runners through the snow create the soothing soundtrack to our journey.

Snow-blanketed trees seem to fly by as we mush along at nearly seven miles per hour. It seems to me, however, that we’re maxingout around 20 mph. Could be. When racing, these same dogs average a speed of 17.8 mph for a total of 60 miles!

At one stop, we switch drivers, and I take a seat in the sled’s cradle to become another musher’s cargo. Riding so low to the ground offers a totally new and amazing scene. It’s as if I’m one-on-one with the dogs. I notice their every movement and begin to pick my favorites. One dog, Ally, enjoys the snow so much, she repeatedly bumps her behind into the snow bank by the trail. Another looks back at me each time we pause for a picture break, a pleading look in his eye, waiting for the cue to continue: “Alright!” Really, it sounds more like “Aaahh-ight.” But the dogs definitely understand and bolt into a run at each command.

After a few hours, we make it to Granite Hot Springs, a pool constructed in 1933 by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Steam rises from the 112-degree water and brilliant rays of sun poke through snow-heavy limbs hanging precariously over the spring. We excitedly make our way toward the pool to soak in its warmth.

JACKSON HOLE IDITAROD SLED DOG TOURS Hosted by Jackson Hole’s own 8-Time Veteran Iditarod Musher, Frank Teasley A recipient of Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian Award • Learn Mushing First Hand Drive your own sled team!

• Jackson based tours in the Bridger-Teton National Forest • Meals, transportation, supplemental clothing provided • Half-Day and Full-Day Tours, Reservation Required • Serving the immediate and surrounding area • Enjoy a soak in a natural 105° hot springs on our famous Granite Creek Canyon tour For Reservations or Information

Call: 307-733-7388

JACKSON HOLE IDITAROD SLED DOG TOURS P.O. Box 1940, Jackson Hole, Wy 83001 www.jhsleddog.com

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Photos by Bob Woodall & Wade McKoy/Focus Productions, Inc.

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Winter Wildlife Behold the richest habitat in the lower 48 Photography by Taylor Phillips & Josh Metten, Eco Tour Adventures

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ig-mountain skiing and a vibrant après-ski scene are not all that Jackson Hole has to offer. Part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, Jackson Hole is home to some of the richest winter-wildlife habitat in the lower 48 states. Elk, moose, bison, and wolves all become more visible as they move into the valley floor to escape the high country’s deep snow. One way to enjoy the winter environment’s colorful offerings is in a warm vehicle while an experienced naturalist serves up the best spots for viewing wildlife and the stunning landscape.

“This is the only place in the U.S. that you have a world-class ski destination next to this array of public lands, with our national parks right there,” said Taylor Phillips, owner of Eco Tour Adventures. “For the winter visitor, I want them to understand the uniqueness of the area.”

Taylor’s enthusiasm is just one reason that wildlife tours have become a popular diversion for folks looking to take a day or half-day off from skiing to explore their national parks.

Phillips studied environmental science and philosophy in college and did his thesis on eco-tourism. While on a summer road trip in 2002, he found Jackson Hole and decided to stick around, establishing his company in 2008.

"Our main focus is to maximize our guests’ time in the parks, " he said. "Grand Teton National Park is known for its wildlife and stunning scenery, but it is so much more. We enjoy educating our guests on the region’s wildlife, history, and geology as we take them to the great wildlife hotspots.

“We want to connect our guests to this incredible national park, the larger ecosystem and the natural world in general.” He added, “Our programs can be life changing!"

All of their guides have backgrounds in the sciences and love sharing their knowledge.

Guide Verlin Stephens, a former member of Continued page 63

Top: The Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) is a native species in the western mountainous regions of North America. They were introduced from Europe in the 1800s and now appear from coast to coast in North America. Typically solitary, you may find pairs forming in winter as breeding is occurring.

Above: Bald eagles (Hailaeetus leucocephalus) migrate to, and out of, Jackson Hole for the winter months. In addition, there are also year-round residents that call this area home. Look for the year-round residents on their territories along our river corridors hunting waterfowl. The migrants typically will be seen on the National Elk Refuge scavenging.

Right: Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis) have special adaptations like a large tendon linking their skull and spine in addition to a double-layered skull to help absorb the impact from their collisions. In late November and early December males are challenging each other for dominance and shortly thereafter females are receptive for breeding.

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Top: The sun rises over a frigid Elk Ranch Flats in northern Grand Teton National Park. As copious amounts of snow accumulate in portions of the park, our larger mammals migrate to lower elevations and south-facing ridges where there is less snow.

Above: The grey wolf (Canis lupus) generally has better hunting success during the winter months because of weakened prey animals and deep snow the prey have to navigate. When the grey wolf was reintroduced to this ecosystem in 1995 about 20 percent of the individuals were black in color. There is scholarly thought that the occurrence of the black melanistic color variant is due to a mutation in domestic dogs and was carried to wolves through wolf and dog hybridization.

Right: Moose (Alces alces) are found around the world at northerly latitudes.

There are 4 subspecies in North America, with the moose in our region being the Shiras and the smallest of the different subspecies. The Alaskan Gigas moose are the largest of the subspecies. Not a surprise, as generally the farther north mammals live, the larger individuals tend to be, which limits heat loss through a decrease in the surface area to volume ratio.

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Top: The stillness of winter in the low valley is in direct contrast to the whipping and bitter winds found on the summit of the Grand Teton at 13,775 feet. The Grand Teton was first skied from the summit in 1971 by local legend Bill Briggs.

Right:The Raven (Corvus corax) is sometimes thought of as having the second best vocabulary of any animal, second only to humans in the world. During the winter months they can roost in the hundreds at night, sharing information about food availability. The pair here is likely courting in advance of the breeding season, which occurs late winter.

Below: Elk (Cervus canadensis) migrate out of the mountainous regions of Northwest Wyoming to the lower valleys to escape deeper snow accumulation. This migration brings 7,000-9,000 elk to the National Elk Refuge, where they overwinter. The refuge was established in 1912 to protect habitat and provide sanctuary for one of the largest elk herds in the world.

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the Interagency Grizzly Bear Recovery Team, likes to ask his group “What are you wanting to see?”

He continued, “I like them to ask questions—you ask questions and you will learn more. I treat the trip like a joint venture and a learning experience for both of us.”

The outfit’s three safari-style vehicles feature pop-up roof hatches so guests can stand, observe, and photograph wildlife from a safe location. “This also disturbs wildlife a lot less than if we were outside the vehicle,” said

Bighorn sheep can avoid predation from wolves and mountain lions with the help of their superb eyesight and specially adapted hooves. Their hoof is split into two toes and the underside of each toe has a rigid outer ridge and a softer pad within. They are able to “edge” extremely well on small rocky ledges and are able to “smear” their softer pad on steep slopes.

Phillips, “and everyone gets a great view. We also get out of the vehicle, take some short hikes on packed trails, observe, and look at tracks in the snow.” Binoculars and spotting scopes are available for guests to use, too.

Sliding windows on the vehicle allow for viewing and photographing without having to look through glass.

Half- and full-day tours include transportation from the guest’s lodging. Half-day sunrise trips include a light breakfast along with hot and cold beverages. Sunset trips include beverages and snacks as well. Full-day trips also include lunches, served either in the field or an indoor heated shelter.

If a guest would prefer to set up a tripod and wait for the perfect picture, Phillips suggests booking a private photo tour. A combo National Elk Refuge program combines a four-hour tour of Grand Teton Park, followed by a sleigh ride among the elk on the refuge, and a tour of the National Museum of Wildlife Art. Multi-day Yellowstone programs are also available. — JH SKIER w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

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SKI BUILDERS

Igneous

Handmade skis by Mike Parris

Igneous owner Mike Parris began building skis almost 20 years ago when the garage-based company was virtually alone in a field dominated by a dozen long-established brands. Today, over 300 companies make skis, but few build them by hand, or make them truly durable.

Or make them in America, for that matter.

“When we started doing this, people didn’t believe in it,” said Parris. “Skis were made by Austrian factories, not a bunch of kids in a garage. It turns out, they’re made by Chinese slave labor. And by kids in garages.”

Automation and computer technology have opened the skimaking craft to the masses, but Igneous almost alone remains true to the core – literally. Parris hand makes his skis’ wooden cores.

“I don’t think there are many Mike Parris in his shop with his dog people doing what we do here,” Yoshi (top); with Adam Sherman in he said, “There’s a guy in France, 2006 (middle); spreading epoxy Peter, who builds skis on the scale (bottom) that I do, one hundred pair a year, Photographer and builds them all himself, by Wade McKoy hand.”

Parris said many of the new companies sell skis made by robots. And, ironically, he doesn’t want any part it.

“When I came here with my robotics background, I had this idea to fully automate the process,” he said. “But once I got my hands dirty, I realized that’s what I like about it. I like fitting up the edges and filing them by hand. I like shaping the cores and testing their flex before they’re in the ski.”

Mike Parris did, in fact, build robots. As a fine arts student at Carnegie Mellon University he took an elective sculpture class entitled Robotic Art Studio. Parris, collaborating with two computer science and engineering students, built a robotic exoskeleton that, once encased in a human arm, could learn human movement patterns and take control of the arm. That led to building prototypes of the lunar and mars rovers for NASA. So, how does a guy working for NASA come to live in a ski town?

Parris grew up at a ski area and skied every day.

“My family worked at Blue Knob in Pennsylvania,” said Parris.

“Putting me on skis was day care for them.”

On his 16th birthday, his father said, “You’re on your own. Figure it out. I’m not buying you a ski pass.”

Young Parris was no stranger to work. In high school he landed a job with the National Ski Patrol at Blue Knob – with special per-

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“When we started doing this, people didn’t believe in it,” said Parris. “Skis were made by Austrian factories, not a bunch of kids in a garage. It turns out, they’re made by Chinese slave labor. And by kids in garages.”

mission from the organization to hire the under-age Parris. But the idea for Igneous Skis would hatch years later in the mind of another Blue Knob boy, Adam Sherman.

Sherman and Parris, like so many youths, grew up watching ski movies in their basements. The Jackson Hole footage always sent their minds racing. Eventually, by separate but common ski-bum-driven trajectories, they landed in Jackson in the late 1980s as young pilgrims seeking the ski life.

On a quest for free gear, the enterprising twentysomethings traveled to the massive SIA (Ski Industries of America) show in Las Vegas during an era remarkable for the emergence of a vibrant new sport: snowboarding.

“There were all these new snowboard companies,” Parris said, “and they were just dudes working in their garages.”

Parris described the early ‘90s scene, a pivotal moment in ski history.

“The ski industry side of SIA was the same dozen brands that we grew up with. All middle-aged dudes wearing suits. And the Snowboard hall was DJs and videos. People dancing. It was a party. There was so much more energy in the snowboard world.”

Sherman took this energy to heart and founded Igneous in a friend’s garage in 1993.

Parris stayed involved, intermittently, during long breaks from college, and moved to Jackson to help Sherman full-time in 1999. They became partners in 2001.

“In 2007, Adam moved to Baltimore to become a firefighter, a paramedic, and now is a physician’s assistant,” said Parris. “I stayed here and made skis.”

The Igneous business model hinges on low volume.

“Making 100 pair a year, I get to know everyone I’m making skis for. And I get to ski

with a lot of those people,” he said. “A lot of my customers have been buying skis from us for 15, 20 years now. I’ve built them seven or 10 pairs. I can ski with them and see how they’re riding on the last pair I built, and see what their next pair ought to be.”

Such personalized attention extends to the wood cores and wood top-sheets in Igneous Skis.

“The cedar cores I made for Nate Brown’s new powder, touring, mountaineering skis are from an old timber that his clients gave him,” he said. “It was a big post from their house he was remodeling – old growth cedar from the West Coast. I haven’t found a source yet to buy it. It’s super light, and strong, and used in crew racing boats and canoes.

“For Bill Bowen I made several cores from a Douglas fir that he cut down 20 years ago,” he said. “He saved it for some special project, he didn’t know what. He brought the timbers here and we sawed them up. I made four pairs of cores, built three pairs of skis for him, and there’s one left for a future pair.”

The current wood top sheets are made from local logdepole pine.

“All that beetle-kill up Mosquito Creek,” he said. “Robbie Fuller cut down the standing dead at his ranch, ran it through a Jack saw, gave me 2-to-3-inch planks, and I sliced them up and am making top sheets out of them.”

Pine, usually blond or yellow in color, becomes streaked in pretty blue-gray hues when killed by pine bores.

Wood top sheets, beautiful to look at, enhance the ski’s overall performance.

“The wood is the core, the feel, and the ride of the ski,” he said. “Wood top sheets make the ski even more lively. It rebounds more quickly than plastic.

“And it’s really beautiful to look at.”

— JH SKIER Bill Bowen with his special project: Igneous cores

Photographer Wade McKoy

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SKI BUILDERS

Maiden Skis

Handmade skis by Kelvin wu

Kelvin Wu began building skis in his garage 12 years ago.

Working as an engineer in Seattle and skiing weekends at Crystal Mountain, Wu aspired to take the mystery out of the skimaking process. He experimented with his own ski designs and tested new ideas that might improve on commercial options.

This do-it-yourself enthusiasm led him and two friends to create skibuilders.com. The website would help fellow hobbyists build skis in their garages, too.

In 2011, Wu’s motivation for this enterprise reached a crescendo. He quit his job and moved to Jackson Hole. With mountains now at his doorstep, he could more easily test his ski designs. A year later he founded Maiden Skis and began a full-time pursuit to build custom skis.

The Maiden ski factory houses an array of high-tech equipment, including an impressive industrial CNC (computer-controlled) router to shape wooden cores and a sublimation printer for custom top-sheet graphics.

“Each ski is handmade, one at a time, using state-of-the-art equipment,” said Wu. Maiden’s three-step process – Define, Design, Build – produces a personalized ski built for big-mountain skiers. He encourages his clients to fully engage themselves and be hands-on during building and design. Or they can simply watch the procedure in his airy studio in south Jackson. Maiden’s out-oftown clients can complete these steps over the phone and by e-mail, as can locals.

His methodology follows a logical progression. Define your size, ski ability, and the terrain. Design the shape, flex, profile, and material use. Build the ski by carefully pressing the layers of material and trimming them to perfection.

Maiden uses maple for their custom-routed wooden cores.

“I have the wood-core blanks made on Vashon Island,” Wu explained. “We do all the profiling.” That’s where the computer-controlled router comes in, and it’s a site to behold. Clients can watch or, even better, help build the skis at every stage.

While there, clients can check out another point of interest, the sublimation printer. This advanced printing process enables the artwork to remain clear and vibrant for years. A large-format photo printer transfers crisp graphics to the top sheet and a custom heat press allows the top sheet to thoroughly absorb the ink.

The art itself is striking and serves as the ski’s graphic component. Clients design their own graphics by working with one of Maiden’s artists, or use an artist’s existing work and modify the colors to make each pair of skis unique.

Kelvin Wu in his shop (top); cutting and attaching edges (middle, bottom); routing cores (facing page)

Photographer Wade McKoy

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“There’s definitely been a lot of new ski companies popping up in the last four-to-six years,” Wu said. “Obviously some of the small companies have come and gone. But we have a good clientele.” percent national and international.”

Despite the demands of starting and running a new business, Wu still finds time to test his new skis. Now, though, family life has intervened and changed the habits of the backcountry skier who cut his teeth in the north Cascades and on the big volcanoes of mounts Adams, Hood, and Rainier.

“I skied the Jackson Hole backcountry when I first moved here and I had more time,”

he said. “But now, with the kids, I’m more of a resort skier. You can get a lot more runs in a few hours by riding lifts.”

Maiden Skis welcomes one and all to visit their studio in south Jackson. Visitors can see how one small ski company has made a big difference in the lives of skiers from across the nation and around the world.

— JH SKIER

“I work with several artists, mostly locals,” said Wu, picking up a stylish ski from a rack inside his shop. “Mainly, Ilka Hadlock. She did this grizzly bear and the owl. The tiger is by Kate Hourihan.”

In addition to building custom skis for all, Maiden developed a niche market in building sit-skis for adaptive skiers. Wu has crafted sitskis for Paralympic athletes and for participants in the Adaptive Steep and Deep Camp at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. His clients also include adaptive skiing programs at other top ski resorts in North America.

“Off-the-shelf skis are not designed to handle the weight and forces that adaptive skiers place on their gear,” said Wu. “We engineer every aspect of our custom sit-skis to absorb extra force and maintain an optimum flex through the turn.”

Local adaptive skiers Kira Brazinski and Odie Pierce both ski on Maiden Skis.

“They’re the strongest skis I’ve ever skied on,” said Pierce, “because they were purposefully built for sit-skis.”

Maiden gave Brazinski, a 3-track skier, a couple of different skis to try. “It’s been awesome to try out different shapes, lengths, and styles,” she said. “And Kelvin wants to work with me on a custom ski, too.”

Wu also has a large following in another niche market, the do-it-yourself community.

His website, blankslateskis.com, provides supply items for ski construction, and business is good.

“There’s a big, do-it-yourself community out there,” Wu said. “ We sell a lot of supply – edges, fiberglass, base material, top sheets – to hobbyists and other small builders all over the world.”

His original company and website – skibuilders.com – is still going strong, too.

“It’s pretty cool to see what people come up with, how they solve their problems,” he said of the how-to site. “We show people how to build a mold, how to build a press, how to build all the stuff to make your own skis.”

Wu isn’t bothered by the recent proliferation of boutique ski makers.

“There’s definitely been a lot of new ski companies popping up in the last four-to-six years,” he said. “Obviously some of the small companies have come and gone. But we have a good clientele, about 50 percent local, 50 w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING & SKI MOUNTAINEERING Famous among alpinists worldwide for decades, the Tetons are now imbedded in the minds of skiers, too.

Backcountry skiing, like all alpine pursuits, demands complex thinking. One thing many skiers do to simplify it: hire a guide.

Here are three guide services that can show you the way.

Skier

Chris Figenshau

Photographer Jimmy Chin

Location

Grand Teton National Park

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EXUM MOUNTAIN GUIDES America’s oldest guide service and school of mountaineering

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he senior-most guiding operation in America, Exum Mountain Guides, also holds the distinction of being the oldest guide service in Grand Teton National Park. For over 80 years, Exum has imparted wisdom and skills to clients seeking summer adventure in the Teton landscape. They’ve ushered thousands of people of all ages to the summit of the park’s tallest peak, the Grand Teton.

In winter, Exum shepherds skiers and snowboarders through their extensive array of seasonal programs. Jackson Hole skiers are sitting pretty, too. The Tetons, with dozens of roadside canyons cutting through their 7,000-foot vertical relief, reign as America’s best mountain range for skiing and snowboarding.

Exum’s president, Nat Patridge, described his company’s clientele: “We welcome a full range of skiers, from novices to the backcountry to experienced backcountry skiers who want to get into technical ski mountaineering. Many of our clients ultimately ski the range’s most challenging objectives, such as the Skillet Glacier on Mount Moran.”

The guide company offers a variety of outings, beginning with mellow introductory ski-days up Mail Cabin Creek on Teton Pass. The other end of the spectrum, skiing the Grand Teton, rounds it out. With all that’s in between, skiers can find something in the Exum portfolio that personally suits them.

“The greatest value in guided skiing,” said Patridge, “is the pairing of terrain with a client’s ability and desire, especially in the Tetons, even with accomplished skiers.

“You can ascend a multitude of peaks and ski into numerous valleys by using ramps and other features most people don’t readily know about. It makes for a beautiful tour and a satisfying day when you ski a variety of terrain. Most people can achieve more by going with a guide than they ever could on their own.”

The company was founded in 1926 by Paul Petzoldt, one of the godfathers of American alpinism. Five years later, Glenn Exum joined Petzoldt as an apprentice guide. On their first trip together guiding a client up the Grand, Glenn Exum pioneered a new route, thereafter named the Exum Ridge.

“It’s amazing that on Glenn’s first time guiding with Paul on the Grand Teton, they pioneered a new way up it,” noted Patridge.

Successful route finding on uncharted mountain terrain relies on a number of factors coming together.

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Left:

Above:

Dave Coon, Gail Jensen

Dan Corn

Skiers

Skier

Photographer

Photographer

Location

Location

Wade McKoy

Grand Teton NP

Mark Fisher

Son of Apocalypse

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

“We welcome a full range of skiers, from novices to the backcountry to experienced backcountry skiers who want to get into technical ski mountaineering. Many of our clients ultimately ski the range’s most challenging objectives, such as the Skillet Glacier on Mount Moran.”

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Skiers

Louis Erickson and Brady Johnston

Location

Buck Mountain , GTNP

Skier

Greg Collins

Location

Idaho Express, Grand Teton

Photographer Mark Fisher

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

“You can ascend a multitude of peaks and ski into numerous valleys by using ramps and other features most people don’t readily know about. It makes for a beautiful tour and a satisfying day when you ski a variety of terrain. Most people can achieve more by going with a guide than they ever could on their own.”

Continued from page 70 “They were very creative and good problem solvers. And then, they were very bold,” he ventured. “That combination of attributes allowed them to see the route where others might not have in the past.”

Early western mountaineers also had to be creative with their gear.

“Glenn climbed in a borrowed pair of leather football cleats, two sizes too big,” said Patridge. “There weren’t many options for footwear back then, and that was the best athletic shoe he knew about.”

Modern ski equipment makes it relatively easy to travel deep into the backcountry. But safe mountain travel in winter requires more than just having the proper gear.

“We have an intermountain snowpack that poses a lot of snow-stability problems in many years,” he said. “On average we have issues, at least for the beginning of the winter. Often by the time snow depths reach mid-winter levels, those instabilities tend to no longer react to a

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skier. But in the spring they sometimes can be awakened.

“Early season, however, it’s almost always game on.”

Nat Patridge has an informed, broad perspective on skiing at resorts and skiing the backcountry. He’s guided around the world for 22 years, including heli-ski guiding in Valdez, Alaska, and locally, and backcountry guiding at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and in the Tetons.

“I think backcountry skiing – and ski mountaineering – is the highest form of skiing, the purest form of the sport,” he said. “Climb up on your own power, make all your own choices, and lay beautiful tracks down pristine snow.”

It might just be the perfect solution. Find out for yourself by calling Exum today.

— JH SKIER

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN GUIDES F

Take the backcountry experience to new heights

or over 50 years Jackson Hole Mountain Guides have been sharing the beauty of Jackson Hole with clients from around the world. They lead ski trips throughout the Tetons and conduct a variety of educational courses on winter skills, camping, touring, ski mountaineering, and expedition training.

New this winter, JHMG is encouraging skiers to participate in a series of camps, or “experiences,” as they follow a progression to achieve ski acumen, fitness, and knowledge in mountain travel. The progression – Introduction To Backcountry Skiing, Classic Teton Descents, and the Ski Mountaineering Experience – includes, ultimately for a few, skiing the Grand.

Each experience takes place as a three-day package. Brian Warren, JHMG lead guide and winter operations director, is keen on the exponential benefits of multi-day ski touring over a single day in the backcountry. It allows skiers to progress and begin to learn the range and all it has to offer.

The first experience, Introduction To Backcountry Skiing, takes skiers on easy-to-moderate tours in the Tetons and on Teton Pass. They learn how to set a good track, do efficient kick turns, and pace themselves. Avalanche safety, beacon mechanics, and companion rescue round out this early winter camp.

“Anyone that’s fit enough to ski the resort on multiple days could easily hop into a pair of Dynafit bindings and be introduced to touring,” he said. “Then, by mid-winter, once they’ve gotten their ski legs under them, they can join us in the Classic Teton Descents program.”

This second level of experiences in JHMG’s progression moves skiers up to bigger tours, including the Turkey Chutes, Shadow Peak, and Albright Peak. The skills learned in Classic Teton Descents cover a broad spectrum and include how to prepare for a full-day tour, what to carry in your pack, and what kinds of nutrition and hydration work best.

“We cover things to think about when you’re no longer going into the backcountry off the tram for just a few hours,” said Warren, “the skills and gear you need to get up these 4,000-foot climbs, the skills of what I call mountain travel. You’re looking at weather, accessing terrain and snowpack, all while transiting yourself from trailhead to summit and back to trailhead.”

The final progression, the Ski Mountaineering Experience, occurs in spring when the snowpack has matured and many skiers have advanced sufficiently to challenge themselves at the highest level.

“Having a rope, crampons, and an ice axe opens a whole new world of skiing: Buck Mountain, the Grand Teton, Mount Moran,” Warren noted. “And it’s not always technical ski mountaineering. It’s extensive alpine mountain travel while skiing esthetic descents.”

The Ski Mountaineering Experience camp also introduces skiers to the wide range of equipment needed to safely tour into the highest alpine zones.

“We teach introductory knots, ropes management, belaying, rappelling, proper crampon technique, self-arrest, and ice-axe use,” Warren explained. “We teach people how to belay, how to set snow and rock anchors, how to rappel with skis on their feet and with skis on their pack. We go over climbing etiquette and communication, and how to access certain terrain.”

But Warren emphasizes that many of the big Teton descents do not require rope work.

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“We cover the skills of mountain

Above:

travel. You’re looking at weather,

Jess McMillan and Tanner Flanagan

accessing terrain and snowpack, all while transiting yourself from trailhead, to summit, and back to trailhead.”

Skiers

Photographer

Fredrik Marmsater

Location

South face of Teewinot, GTNP Right:

Skier

Dave Coon

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

Buck Mountain, GTNP w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

“Having a rope, crampons, and an ice axe opens a whole new world of skiing: Buck Mountain, the Grand Teton, Mount Moran.

And it’s not always technical ski mountaineering. It’s extensive alpine mountain travel while skiing esthetic descents.”

Above:

Skier

Rick Hunt

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location GTNP

Right:

Skiers

JHMG group

Photographer Lance Koudele

Location GTNP

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

Skier

Shroder Baker

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

Teton Pass Continued from page 74 “The Tetons draw many people who think they need rope skills to ski the big peaks,” said Warren. “And, though the Grand most certainly requires a lot of rope work, it’s one of the few big peaks that does.”

The unparalleled knowledge of Jackson Hole Mountain Guides comes from their accumulated years of experience, whereby they’ve mastered the skill sets covered in each “experience.” These skill sets are easily transferable to the aspiring ski mountaineer. That transfer of knowledge and education is what the guides of JHMG thoroughly enjoy, take pride in, and look forward to every winter. — JH SKIER

Backcountry Experiences Introduction to the Teton Backcountry (3 days, $1,050) December 16-18, 2016, and January 13-15, 2017 Classic Teton Descents (3 days, $1,150) January 27-29, 2017, and February 10-12, 2017 Teton Ski Mountaineering (3 days, $1,200) March 3-5, 2017, April 7-9, 2017

EXPERIENCE THE BACKCOUNTRY AIARE AVALANCHE EDUCATION CLASSES BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN GUIDES

www.jhmg.com • 800-239-7642 • info@jhmg.com

Photo credit: Wade McKoy

SKI MOUNTAINEERING

Licensed concession of Grand Teton National Park / Permittee Bridger-Teton & Shoshone National Forest

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TETON BACKCOUNTRY GUIDES An alpine hut system in the Tetons

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Photography by Mark Fisher

ots of skiers can lead others into the backcountry, but Teton Backcountry Guides also provides shelter in the alpine zone. Their overnight and hut-to-hut trips into the heart of the Tetons make it possible to live in the mountains for a few days.

Whether Mother Nature is quiet and peaceful or windy and stormy, whether the night sky reveals shining peaks under the Milky Way or snowflakes falling in darkness, you’re there, warm and dry.

Diane Verna, co-owner of the Alta, Wyoming, based company, believes their niche lies in providing a unique wilderness skiing experience.

“When our clients ski from the yurts, there aren’t skin tracks everywhere, there aren’t people everywhere, and it’s not tracked out,” she said. “What’s there is 200,000 acres of wilderness to explore on skis.”

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“When our clients ski from the yurts, there aren’t skin tracks everywhere, there aren’t people everywhere, and it’s not tracked out.”

Skier

Jeff Brines Bottom:

Location

Baldy Knoll Yurt

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

Skiers

Casey Jilson, Britt Mumma, Louis Erickson, Jeff Brines, Liz Barret

Location

Baldy Knoll Yurt

Overnight hut-to-hut trips in the heart of the Tetons make it possible to live in the mountains for a few days.

Whether Mother Nature is quiet and peaceful or windy and stormy, whether the night sky reveals shining peaks under the Milky Way or snowflakes falling in darkness, you’re there, warm and dry.

Take the Plummer Canyon yurt, for instance. The ski terrain includes steep runs and some that are moderately pitched. Stable snow conditions are required to ski the long, north-facing runs into the South Fork of Game Creek. When the avalanche risk is too high – and sometimes because the lower-angle slopes hold better skiing – skiers can work the slopes off Rhodesia Ridge or Mt. Wow. “And at the end of the ski day, you don’t get back in a car and leave the mountains,” she said. “You stay there—in comfort, and not in a tent.”

The wooden-floored yurts, made by Pacific Yurts, even boast operational windows and a sky dome. The firewood is cut and stacked, the propane tank is full, and the kitchen is outfitted with quality cooking utensils. Sturdy bunk beds sport three-inch-thick sleeping pads.

And the guide is also a good cook.

“Our clients eat well,” Verna said. “We provide deluxe, fresh, and organic meals.” Dinners include wild Alaskan salmon, mixed greens, and fresh vegetables.

Guests awake to fresh brewed Starbucks coffee, fresh fruit salads, and other homemade treats.

“All our clients need to bring is a daypack with extra clothes, and we take care of all the rest,” she added. “It’s a real vacation for them.”

The hut system includes three winterized w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

yurts, each in a unique setting. Guides are available to lead groups on multiday tours, but experienced skiers can also rent the yurts unguided.

“We take pride in having top-quality, clean yurts,” said Verna. “We scrub them thoroughly every season and clean them weekly throughout the winter.

Most important, perhaps, “Our huts are for exclusive use,” she added. “Your small, private group does not have to share the yurt— or the terrain—with others. No congested trailheads, no dog-eat-dog for first tracks, no

GIMMMEER !!

SHELLTTEER

group following you all day. And it all comes at a fraction of what a heli-ski vacation costs.”

TBG also leads day trips on Teton Pass and the Tetons, and teaches ski mountaineering and avalanche courses.

“Our guides are among the region’s most experienced and knowledgeable backcountry skiers and riders,” Verna said. “We find the best snow and terrain to suit our clients’ abilities. We also provide instruction and interpret the natural environment for a fun-filled and educational outing.”

— JH SKIER

teton hut system day trips & hut tours D.I.Y. hut rentals deep wyoming powder teton pass grand teton national park

307.353.2900 skithetetons.com Authorized concessionaire of GTNP and permitte of CTNF. PHOTO: TUCK FAUNTLEROY

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

GETTING THE MESSAGE Backcountry Zero wants you in the know

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by Jeff Burke

very year, a number of unfortunate souls in the American West fall into the jaws of misadventure and die. Backcountry skiing and climbing are the common denominators in Jackson Hole mishaps. Since 2010, 24 people have died in avalanches in the mountains surrounding the valley.

Right:

Skier

Dave Miller takes a safe route down Pinedale Canyon

But peril isn’t limited to climbing and skiing. Kayaking, hiking, mountain biking, hunting, and paragliding have their own objective hazards too. Realistically, there are innumerable ways to experience the wild backcountry throughout the valley and neighboring mountain ranges. But they all have one thing in common: the element of risk.

With growing numbers of recreationists venturing into the backcountry, so too is the specter of serious injury or death. Backcountry Zero is Jackson Hole’s attempt to provide accessible opportunities and education to the area’s ever-expanding adventure populace. Its mantra: Be prepared, practiced, professional, and present.

Backcountry Zero, a new branch of Teton County Search and Rescue (TCSAR), is funded and operated through the TCSAR foundation. Based on Sweden’s Vision Zero, a countrywide effort to reduce motor vehicle death, Backcountry Zero aims to reduce the number of backcountry fatalities in the southern Yellowstone ecosystem.

It works like this. With the assistance of partners, sponsors, and business supporters, Backcountry Zero has established a presence

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with several user groups, including the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, WYDOT, and Grand Teton National Park, among many others. “It’s not just education,” said Stephanie Thomas, executive director of the foundation.

“We’re coming at this with a holistic approach, so we’re looking at all the elements of what we’re doing.”

Part of the approach calls upon experienced people in the valley. Mentorship plays a huge role in Jackson Hole, with evolving, accumulating knowledge being passed down each generation. BC Zero hosted an expert forum at Teton County’s search and rescue hanger last fall. Discussions focused on what it means to be an expert in the valley’s outdoor community, what’s expected of members. “It’s a great way to tap into potential mentor assets who have their fingers on the pulse,” said Thomas.

“I was lucky because I had good mentors,” said Eric “Doc” Janssen, a Jackson Hole Ski Patroller who’s been skiing the area backcountry for two decades. Many young, ambitious men and women come to the area with a ton of athleticism but little backcountry savvy. “At first, I had no idea what I was

Left: Skiers hike to retrieve gear lost in the avalanche

Photographer Wade McKoy

doing,” added Janssen. “And I got away with stuff I probably shouldn’t have.”

The ambassador program is a simple tactic that addresses those concerns. “It’s a way to reach specific user groups,” said Thomas, “to get in touch with people involved that we don’t have the first touch with.”

In order for the program to gain traction in the community, each user group has to embrace the vision and figure out what’s going to work for them. “Last summer we launched it with the thought that while maybe you won’t recognize a SAR Volunteer,” said Thomas, “you might recognize this [more visible community] person, such as local athletes, guides, and working professionals.”

Cade Palmer, for example, is a paragliding ambassador for BC Zero who is embedded within that community. This past summer he w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

“I was lucky because I had good mentors,” said Eric “Doc” Janssen, a Jackson Hole Ski Patroller who’s been skiing the area backcountry for two decades. Many young, ambitious men and women come to the area with a ton of athleticism but little backcountry savvy. organized a “What’s in your pack?” first-aid meeting with specifics for paragliders of all abilities. Fifty people showed up. “I wouldn’t be able to reach that audience, but he was,” said Thomas.

BC Zero’s online podcasts take outreach a step further. “The Fine Line” is a monthly podcast series, featuring true stories of adventure and rescue in the backcountry of Jackson Hole. Thomas likes the podcasts because there’s something more visceral about them than reading an account or looking at a poster. w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

“It’s hearing people’s stories, their voices, and experiences,” she noted. “It engages people on the higher level.” One story, for example, is about a grizzly encounter. “I could hear the bear and feel the experience,” Thomas said.

Sarah Carpenter is the owner of Jacksonbased American Avalanche Institute, an accredited avalanche-education school with a long history in the valley. The institute teaches everything from basic snow science to safe winter-backcountry travel protocols, route finding, forecasting, and rescue practices. “I

think by building a community around being more prepared outside, Backcountry Zero can help foster a positive community dialog for near misses and accidents in the backcountry,” said Carpenter.

All these efforts aim at preparing recreationists for when things go sideways in the mountains. How people deal with the unexpected has long been the challenge of surviving backcountry misadventures.

Jeff Burke is an editor and writer living in Jackson Hole.

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BACKCOUNTRY SKIING

THE WORD Teton Pass skiers need to know

Skier

Jason Tattersall takes a safe route down Twin Slides Below: It was this unknown skier’s lucky day that this slab avalanche was in small terrain.

Photographer Wade McKoy

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ast winter, Teton Pass Ambassador Jay Pistono teamed up with local radio station KHOL to broadcast live reports from Teton Pass. Working with DJ Cass Lee, Pistono filed new snowfall amounts from two locations as well as that day’s snow study-pit scores.

His on-air conversations with Lee touched on other hot topics regarding cold-weather reality on Teton Pass: how often the parking lot was full, wind data, updates on skiers’ interactions with other people’s dogs, and information from WYDOT, the highway patrol, the sheriff’s office, and Teton County Search and Rescue.

Topics included, “beta about the vibe on the Pass, who is riding which line, and when people skied into central Taylor or Unskiabowl (high-consequence lines).”

A show might end with, “Consequences we see from poor decision making: where

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people decided to ski, hitchhiking glitches, and drama at the parking lot. I focused on when a skier/rider triggered any snow that avalanched onto the road. Even when these are ‘small’ events, they make us all look bad as a group,” Pistono said.

Some riders seem to think it’s okay to hang out in huge avalanche zones while other riders are above them. Pistono hopes to disabuse these folks of this foolish notion.

“Last year there were several times when groups were hanging out about a third of the way down Glory, slightly skiers’ right, clustered up, checking out photos,” said Pistono.

“Some of those people traversed from there back to the up-track, staying as high as possible and crossing Twin Slides, because they didn’t get the shot they wanted.”

Pistono often sees this from skiers and ‘boarders shooting pictures and videos.

“I mention it because people tend to hang out on the slope in groups, and not always in the safest spot. They may want the most dramatic shot, so they might be on lines with high consequences.

“The bottom line: we cannot afford to have skiers’ and snowboarders’ actions cause snow to avalanche onto the highway below.

“Here’s the thing on the Pass: when riding Twin Slides and Glory Bowl, I always suggest riding the entire line and exiting with speed, stopping in a safe zone. With high numbers of people on the Pass, as a group we must promote a high level of responsibility, because with more people comes a higher chance of

mistakes being made.

“For a lot of us on the Pass, the bottom line is access to parking, which potentially goes away if riders put enough snow on the road.”

And just as important as how people handle themselves on the slope, are their interactions with WYDOT highway personnel.

“In their daily cycle, they have to work around us,” said Pistono, describing the point of view of the snowplow drivers. “Skiers on the road, with dogs, hitchhiking, sometimes with tough visibility – suffice it to say that we’re not making their jobs any easier. They’re a great group of people, doing a great job, and if we do our best to work with them, they will work with us.

“I’ve had the donation box up there for the last several years to treat the WYDOT guys to a pizza party at the end of the season to show our appreciation for their work. Look for it when you’re up there and help spread the thanks.”

Skiers & Snowboarders • Please work with enforcement agencies: WYDOT, highway patrol, sheriffs, search and rescue.

• Carpool and park tightly.

• Take care of your pet in all respects.

• Spread the good word.

Thanks! — Teton Pass Ambassador w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

ALPINE MEDICAL ADVICE

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TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF

ccidents happen, or so the saying goes. And for the few unfortunates who have one at a resort, top-notch emergency care is at hand. The article on the next page explains the Jackson Hole Ski Patrollers’ preparedness and St. John’s Medical Center’s services. If a skier’s luck goes south, they’ll be in good hands.

Avoiding accidents is also good vacation strategy. Two of the following articles written by the docs at Teton Orthopaedics will help skiers dodge some known dangers.

First, though, here are a few highmountain pitfalls that visitors should be wary of:

Injury Due To Improper Equipment – Boots that don’t fit correctly, bindings improperly adjusted, choosing the wrong skis.

Anybody can have an accident.

Cuts from ski edges, bone breaks from hitting rocks and trees, torn muscles, head injuries – those are the minor traumas most often seen in the emergency room. It’s the other range of preventable issues the doctors and ski patrol hope to see less of.

— Jeff Greenbaum, MD

Cold-related injury – Frostbite, frostnip.

Top right: Sixty-two-year-old knees, worn to a crippling state from a lifetime of skiing and hiking with heavy loads.

Altitude Sickness – Headache, fatigue, lack of appetite, frequent waking from sleep, and nausea.

Bottom right: The same knees after total joint replacement at St. John’s Medical Center.

Snow Blindness – It hurts and, on top of the pain, you can’t see very well.

Below: Bissell Hazen reflects on his next move during his descent of Teton Glacier (1990s).

Injury from the icy environment – Falls on ice and motor vehicle collisions.

Injury Due To Fatigue – Most ski accidents happen on the last run of the day.

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Photographer Wade McKoy

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ALPINE MEDICAL ADVICE

by Jeff Greenbaum, MD

Wade McKoy

MEDICAL DIRECTOR, SAINT JOHN’S MEDICAL CENTER EMERGENCY DEPT. MEDICAL DIRECTOR, JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT SKI PATROL

Teton Village can be a magical place in winter

Bob Woodall

Kevin Brazell, JH Ski Patrol • Adam Johnson, MD • Jeff Greenbaum, MD • Austin Sessions, TC Fire/EMS, JH Ski Patrol

Each ski patroller is certified in Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC). The course requires an annual online examination, as well as hands-on training in CPR, airway management, on-mountain immobilization techniques, and basic first aid.

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— powder snow falling from the sky, music blasting from the speakers on the tram dock, smiling faces enjoying a skier’s paradise. The amenities are there, too, with restaurants, shops, bars, and lodging of a caliber you’ve come to expect at a world-class resort.

Guests might wonder, though, what to do in case of illness or injury. The Village is 12 miles away from the complete medical services in the town of Jackson. But rest assured, the medical community has you covered. In addition to my role as the medical director of the emergency department at St. John’s Medical Center, I also serve as the medical director for the Jackson Hole Ski Patrol.

Ski patrollers are dedicated professionals who arrive at dawn each morning to prepare the mountain for everyone’s enjoyment. The process includes avalanche-hazard reduction and placing ropes and signs for safety. But did you know that every ski patroller is also a medical first responder? w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Each ski patroller is certified in Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC). This unique course offered by the National Ski Patrol (NSP) is designed to provide the skills necessary for onmountain rescue. The course requires an annual online examination, as well as hands-on training in CPR, airway management, on-mountain immobilization techniques, and basic first aid. Supervising this training are the Board Certified Emergency Physicians from St. John’s Medical Center, so you know that the ski patrol is familiar with the most current procedures and techniques.

Rounding out the medical training program are twice monthly “Doc Talks,” one-hour sessions with local and visiting physicians covering a variety of medically related topics.

The obvious next question is, “What happens after the ski patrol rescues me off the mountain?”

Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. At the base of the ski area, just beneath the Kid’s Ranch, is the Teton Village Clinic.

This facility is operated by St. John’s, under the medical direction of Dr. Adam Johnson from the hospital’s Emergency Department. At the Village Clinic the injured or ill are attended to by registered nurses, emergency physicians, and our very talented Physician Assistant Mary Widener, PAC. The clinic offers evaluations for both medical- and traumarelated complaints, but is limited in scope to urgent care. We have two dedicated X-Ray machines and the ability to perform some basic lab tests, like urinalysis and strep screens.

There are no blood tests, nor CT scanner, so serious com-

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Providing the final link in our chain of medical care is the Teton County Fire/EMS agency. This organization is comprised of paramedics, EMTs, and fire fighter/first esponders. They are conveniently stationed west of the Snake River for rapid response times to Teton Village. plaints like chest pain or difficulty breathing will require transfer to the Emergency Department at the hospital. Walk-ins are welcome from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., but keep in mind that the most serious injuries (like those brought down the mountain by the ski patrol) will receive priority.

Providing the final link in our chain of medical care is the Teton County Fire/EMS agency. This organization is comprised of paramedics, EMTs, and firefighter/first responders. They are conveniently stationed west of the Snake River for rapid response times to Teton Village and, of course, they operate 24 hours a day. The phone number is 911.

To summarize, while visiting Teton Village and the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, if you need assistance on the mountain, call the Jackson Hole Ski Patrol; if you need walk-in medical care, try the Teton Village Clinic; if you have a serious medical concern call 911; and if you are not certain, call St. John’s Medical Center (307-733-3636) and a nurse will help you decide.

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SKIING AND SNOWBOARDING INJURY PREVENTION

Don’t become a statistic!

by Chris Hills;

Tens of thousands of skiers and snowDO, SPINE AND ORTHOPAEDIC SURGEON, TETON ORTHOPAEDICS

In fact, traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of death and catastrophic injury in the ski and snowboard world.

can be life-changing events that may lead to significant debilitation and/or even death. In fact, TBI is the leading cause of death and catastrophic injury in the ski and snowboard world. Unfortunately, TBI and SCI are occurring with increasing frequency, most likely due to an increased participation in “big air” jumping and acrobatics.

An emphasis on prevention is critical in addressing TBI and SCI given a lack of therapeutic interventions to restore neurologic function after these devastating injuries. For those just starting in the sport, receiving proper instruction prior to getting on the slopes is critical to injury prevention. Appropriate, wellfunctioning and adjusted equipment is no less essential for participant safety. A helmet is a must! Surveys have shown

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Bob Woodall

boarders hit the slopes and backcountry each winter to enjoy the thrill and excitement of gravity-powered alpine sports. Although less dangerous than other high-energy participation sports, these alpine activities come with inherent risk for participants of all ages and skill levels. Fortunately, most injuries are minor and can be treated with a little rest, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medication, or bracing. However, brain and spine injuries can range from a mild concussion or neck/back sprain to a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) or spinal cord injury (SCI). These injuries Sometimes luck saves the day. This freeride competitor was unscathed after tumbling through rocky terrain. that only approximately 45-50 percent of U.S. skiers and snowboarders routinely wear a helmet. Those that do wear a helmet enjoy a 30-60 percent reduction in the risk of head injuries.

Next on the precaution list in injury prevention is exercising common sense.

The majority of injuries occur after lunch, when fatigue and dehydration begin to set in. The classic story of an injury occurring on the last run of the day is all too often told upon arrival in the emergency department. Therefore, know when to slow down, take a rest, or call it a day when your legs are no longer functioning like you wish they would. Most importantly, ski or board within your ability! Be familiar with the terrain and conditions that you are riding, taking extra precautions when venturing out of bounds or in the backcountry. Do not let poor judgment be the reason your day on the slopes or the terrain park comes to an end.

Additionally, the National Ski Area Association (NSAA) has provided the Responsibility Code, which every skier and snowboarder should practice to prevent

and minimize injury.

The seven points of the code are: 1. Always stay in control.

2. People ahead of you have the right of way.

3. Stop in a safe place for you and others.

4. Whenever starting downhill or erging, look uphill and yield.

5. Use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.

6. Observe signs and warning, and keep off closed trails.

7. Know how to use the lifts safely.

Remember, the promotion of injury prevention (to include regular helmet use, exercising sound judgment and common sense, and adopting the NSAA’s Responsibility Code) is critical in combating the increasing incidence of TBI and SCI. Always consider the added risk prior to dropping a cliff, going huge in the terrain park, or hitting the steep and deep in the backcountry. If you adhere to the above tenets, you will minimize the risk of injury, and avoid becoming a statistic!

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MEDICAL SKI TIPS

Bob Woodall

TECHNIQUES TO KEEP YOU INJURY-FREE Safe skiers and snowboarders maintain focus and center of gravity when skiing and riding by three main mechanisms: l) Visual cues from the environment. 2) Kinesthetic sense by feel from our body. 3) Equilibrium from tiny floating stones in the cochlea of the middle ear. When these three things agree, balance and motion is golden.

The number-one threat to losing this balance on the mountain is vision. When light becomes flat or conditions are whiteout, we lose critical vision. This leaves only undependable kinesthetic and cochlear senses. What we sense as flat actually may be a drop off and what we perceive as steep in fact may be level.

At times in a whiteout we are so unstable that while on snow-sports equipment we can fall over when simply standing still! The erroneous information from the body and inner ear can completely fool us. Regardless of ability and experience, this can lead to injury by skiing essentially blind! Bumps, dips, cat tracks, and gullies can hammer the body unexpectedly, resulting in twisting injury and impact that can lead to fractures and sprains or even chest and abdominal trauma.

Avoid flat light, avoid injury. Just how far we need to see or how flat the light can be for safe skiing is not established. For survival use a few of these tips: 1. Wait for periods of clearing before descending; the blowing snow and cloud cover always varies, and periods of better visibility even for a second can be a leg saver.

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Lanny Johnson, PA I Chris Hills, DO, Spine and Orthopaedic Surgeon 2. Ski in widely spaced trees or on the sides of runs where trees actually cast shadows in flat light and give clues to terrain features.

3. Wear clean, un-fogged goggles.

4. Ski or ride slower than usual and get off the hill while bad conditions continue.

5. Ski runs familiar to you rather than blindly in places you've not traveled. — Lanny Johnson, PA

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HELI-SKI ALASKA

Helicopter skiing in North America’s expansive northwest is many things to many people: a pilgrimage for faithful ski addicts, an annual junket for industry folk, a stage for movie makers.

These two Alaskan heli-ski companies are Jackson Hole originals, started by local legends, the late Doug Coombs and the late Theo Mieners.

If you’re a strong intermediate skier who loves and respects the mountain environment, you have everything you need.

Skier

Doug Coombs, 1990s

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

Thompson Pass, Chugach Range, Alaska

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Valdez Heli-Ski Guides THOMPSON PASS, ALASKA

or the last 24 years Valdez Heli-Ski Guides has offered the finest guided steep skiing in the world. The concept (not to mention the industry in AK) started with VHSG’s founders Doug and Emily Coombs in 1993. Today’s crew, several of whom have been with the company since its inception, continue to pay homage to their predecessors. “They were the originals,” said Scott Raynor, who bought VHSG from Coombs 15 years ago. “They started it all. We are proud of our roots.”

Few things have changed around VHSG and Thompson Pass since the early ‘90s. Thanks to its unprecedented snowfall averages, reaching upwards of 1,000 inches per season, the eastern Chugach guarantees VHSG clients the best of the best, year in and year out. “As a pioneer, Doug had his choice of big mountains. He chose Thompson Pass for a

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reason,” said Raynor. “Our snow quality is unparalleled, in large part due to the fact that our ski terrain elevation is much higher than almost anyone one else in Alaska. That keeps us above the rain line and quality powder well into May.” Yet, while Valdez Heli-Ski Guides still thrives on guiding steep-anddeep terrain, it has expanded its operation to include a new clientele: skiers and riders seeking a lot of pure fun with just a little less adrenalin.

“We continue to offer the radical steeps, but we’ve also branched out to include powder skiers who want a more mellow day,” said Raynor.

Some of these new skiers are actually return clients who, after skiing the steeps year after year, aren’t as interested in doing it quite as often.

“Our typical days always involved exciting landings, followed with w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

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Valdez Heli-Ski Guides continued big-mountain skiing in couloirs and huge powder bowls,” he continued. “But now we’re hearing from clients who want the Alaska experience without all the exposure, without the tight landings and the constant challenge.

They want to get out of the helicopter and ski down a sweet powder slope, and then do it all over again. And we have plenty of terrain

heli-pad, at the end of an epic day of riding is over the top.

“The Tsaina is a beautiful heli-ski lodge in the middle of the Alaskan mountains,” Raynor pointed out. “You can be skiing the best pow-

der in the wildest mountains of your life, and ten minutes later, you’re back in your private room taking a hot shower. It’s one the most comfortable lodges in Alaska.”

Housing 32 guests in 16 single and 8 dou-

“At Valdez Heli-Ski Guides a typical day involves exciting landings followed by bigmountain skiing in couloirs and huge powder bowls.”

— Scott Raynor that’s moderately steep but not too intense.

Many people want to ski a super-fun powder run, like Cracked Ice, a 4,000-vertical-foot VHSG classic at 38 degrees. We can ski runs like that all day long.”

But both the adrenaline junkies and the mellow powder hounds can agree that returning to the Tsaina Lodge, just steps from the

Looking out the heli window

Photographer Mike Stoner

Skier

Adam Bronfman

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Photographer Mike Stoner

Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides The copter pulls away from the LZ.

Photographer

Matt Haines, Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides

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THOMPSON PASS, ALASKA

he Blue Hole. Sounds like a good spot to be, and on Thompson Pass in Alaska’s Chugach, it is.

Forty five miles up the Thompson Pass from Valdez is a spot long known to locals as “The Blue Hole” of the Chugach. An Alaskan ski guide pioneer named Theo Meiners recognized this site as the prefect location for a full-service lodge, tavern and heli-ski base. Now in its 16th season, The Rendezvous Lodge and Heli-Guides has built a potent reputation for delivering the goods to ski and snowboard enthusiasts across the world.

Surrounded by seven enormous peaks “Our Rendezvous Lodge is located farther to the north than many of the other

“Rendezvous Lodge is located farther to the north than many of the other heli-ski operators in Valdez, putting our guests closer to the Blue Hole of Thompson Pass.”

— Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides heli-ski operators in Valdez, putting our guests closer to the Blue Hole of Thompson Pass. Storms often clear from the north, so we can take advantage of the most skiable days,” notes the lodge’s press release.

From the adrenaline and excitement in the mountains, to the bar that never sleeps, the Rendezvous is where luxury meets extreme. The brochure’s final menu item: “The Rendezvous lodge employs trained chefs who will wow you with a delicious, diverse menu. There is no better place to relax in the mountains of Alaska.”

Continued page 93

“The Tsaina is a beautiful heliski lodge in the middle of the Alaskan mountains. You can be skiing the best powder in the wildest mountains of your life with VHSG, and ten minutes later, you’re back in your private room taking a hot shower.”

— Scott Raynor ble rooms with private baths, the Tsaina’s other amenities include a boot-drying and gear-storage room, a fitness facility, a reading room, massage services, and multiple outdoor seating areas. The Tsaina Bar has an old-school skier vibe, and rightly so: it’s rich in history. This history is balanced by the mouthwatering gourmet meals served from the Tsaina’s state-of-the-art kitchen. Locally sourced seafood, succulent meats, and yummy desserts fuel the appetites built out of a full day in the mountains. The dining room looks out onto sunsets, Worthington Glacier, the peaks of Thompson Pass, and the North-

ern Lights. The Tsaina’s setting in the heart of the Chugach is absolutely unmatched.

And right out the back door looms Dimond Peak, for many the ultimate Alaskan ski mountain. “It’s one of the world’s best ski runs, and it’s right here in our backyard,” Raynor said.

Dimond’s many ski routes all lead back to the lodge. That is, after about a 5,600-foot vertical drop. Two big, steep chutes descend the peak’s western slope, and the north face

holds a consistent 40-degree slope for over 2,000 feet. “The top pitches are steep runs,” said Raynor, “but not radical. The majority of our clients can ski them. It’s tantalizing to think about skiing a 40-degree slope in powder.”

Valdez Heli-Ski Guides offers several different all-inclusive packages. You just need to get yourself to Anchorage for a short flight to Valdez, where you are greeted by VHSG staff, then shuttled to the lodge in Thompson Pass.

VHSG ACCESS & RESOURCES

Season – Late Feb – Early May Contact Info & Social Media – Website: www.valdezheliskiguides.com; Email info@valdezheliskiguides.com; Find VHSG on Facebook & Instagram Years in Operation – 24 Down-Day Activities – Snowcat skiing from the lodge.

Lodging Amenities – Luxury double- and single-occupancy accommodations, fine dining restaurant, infamous Tsaina bar, full gym, reading room, laundry facilities, gear storage room, and free airport shuttles from/to the Valdez airport.

Pricing – Single-day skiing: $1,200; All-inclusive 3- to 7-day packages: $4,744 to $11,076; All-inclusive private ship packages: $97,157 — JH SKIER

Terrain Overview – With more than 2,500 square miles of glaciated mountains, the terrain accessed by Valdez Heli-Ski Guides offers everything from scenic glaciers and powder bowls to steep couloirs and big mountain faces. The cold maritime snowfall in the region is world renowned, enabling VHSG to ski some of the steepest terrain in North America with a confidence and security not possible anywhere else. Runs average between 3,000 and 5,000 vertical feet with our longest run at 6,200.

Location, distance from airport – 35 miles from Valdez airport Touring and Snowcat options – While we all hope to heli-ski every day of the week, we know that’s not always possible. A snowcat keeps us skiing and riding every day of your stay.

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“Storms often clear from the north, so we can take advantage of the most skiable days. A typical day includes about 30,000 vertical feet on peaks with elevations up to 6,800 feet and descents up to 5,000 vertical.”

— Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides

Snowboarders Top: Mike Trombetta Right: Kaelin Bamford

Photographer Matt Haines

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Continued from page 91 Alaska Rendezvous Heli-Guides Experience here is not limited to a single life-changing moment; skiers will come back year after year. There is a package for everyone. The Rendezvous is where the ninety-nine percent meet the one percent, and everyone speaks the language of high fives.

A typical day includes about 30,000 vertical feet on peaks with elevations up to 6,800 feet and descents up to 5,000 vertical. With an annual snowfall of 30-80 feet, it’s no wonder that Valdez is home to the original big-mountain experience.

ARHG ACCESS & RESOURCES

Terrain Overview – For 16 years, the Alaska Rendezvous Guides has operated out of the ‘Blue Hole’ of the Chugach Range with a commitment to a professional and fun experience. The location offers fast and easy flights to some of the most incredible topography in Alaska. Mile 45 creates easy access to amazing terrain, and depending on your choice of accommodations, you can scout your lines from your hotel window, motor home, or poking your head from your vestibule.

Some of these life-changing runs are sustained 55-degree 4,000+ vertical foot faces, leading to mile long glaciers. Perfect powder pitched peaks and untracked freshies is the MO of ARG. The Alaska Rendezvous Guides offers something for everyone, and will only pair you with people within your same ability.

Location, distance from airport – 45 Miles North of Valdez, AK Touring and Snowcat options – Touring options on down days Season – March 4 - April 29 Contact Info & Social Media – Info@arlinc.com; 907.822.3300; facebook.com/alaskarendezvous; Twitter: @ak_rendezvous; Instagram: @AK_Rendezvous

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Skier

J. Michael Carr

Photographer Matt Haines

Years in Operation – 16 Down-Day Activities – Cross-country skiing, touring, snowshoeing, Wiffle ball tournaments Lodging Amenities – Eight-room lodge with two queen beds per room, 250 sq. feet, bathroom, boot driers, laundry facilities, sauna and massage services.

Pricing – $1,110 for one day (six runs), or $10,200 per person double occupancy for seven nights. 36 runs, lodging, all food and non-alcholic beverages, all equipment including BCA airbags and Blizzard skis. Additional charge for single occupancy.

— JH SKIER

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Image Gallery

Photographers

Photographer

Mark Fisher

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Skier

Adam Fabrikant

Location

Mount Moran

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Photographer

Carson Meyer

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Skier

Morgan McGlashon

Location

Grand Teton

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Photographers

Photographer

Cody Downard

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Skier

Jake Hawkes

Location

Grand Targhee Resort

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Photographer

David Bowers

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Skier

Pam Weiss

Location

Beaver Mountain

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Photographers

Photographer

Jonathan Selkowitz

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Skier

Jason Tattersall

Location

Mount Glory

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Photographer

Fredrik Marmsater

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Snowboarder

Iris Lazz

Location

Mount Glory

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Photographers

Photographer

Greg Von Doersten

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Skier

Lynsey Dyer

Location

Cody Peak

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Photographer

Jay Goodrich

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JH Ski Patroller

Jen Calder

Location

Rendezvous Mountain Station

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Photographers

Photographer

Jimmy Chin

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Alpinist

Mark Synnott

Location

Grand Teton

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Photographer

John Slaughter

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Skier

Becca Gerber

Location

Mount Glory

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Photographers

Photographer

Lance Koudele

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Skier

Monica Purington

Location

Teton Pass

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Photographer

Eric Seymour

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Skier

Jessica McMillan

Location

Jackson Hole Resort Backcountry

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Photographers

Photographer

Wade McKoy

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Skier

Lynsey Dyer

Location

Cody Peak

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Photographer

Bob Woodall

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Skier

Chris Newson

Location

The Cirque, Jackson Hole Resort

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Media Props

TGR Turns 21

Teton Gravity Research sets stage for ski movie genre, wins awards

I

By Wade McKoy

n a nutshell, the genesis of Teton Gravity Research goes like this: Four ski-bums garnered the attention of established still photographers and movie makers, got filmed, didn’t like the movie footage, went fishing in Alaska, then used the money to buy cameras to shoot skiing and snowboarding illustrative of their vision.

TGR’s ski flicks instantly became wildly popular. Over a period of 21 years, in addition to creating a ski film every year, they made 40 movies and numerous TV episodes that depict skiing, snowboarding, surfing, and mountain biking. Along the way, they collected numerous Powder Video Awards, an Emmy, and an induction into the Ski Hall of Fame’s greatest ski films of all time for their first film, The Continuum.

In their office in the mountain town of Wilson, Wyoming, I sat down with Todd and Steve Jones, two old friends and the remaining principals of TGR. I wanted to congratulate them, and talk about the business of shooting skiing for a living.

How did four ski bums become such big kahunas?

Steve Jones: Early on, someone told us to write a business plan.

Our mission statement was for TGR to become the premium actionsports lifestyle brand in the world. Not just a ski-film company. We wanted people to feel like they’re part of a tribe representative of edginess, adventure, a certain irreverence, and youth culture. Our first clothing catalogue included skateboard and climbing shots, and the whole spectrum of outdoor lifestyle and youth culture.

As I recall, you spent a lot of time partying. After, of course, working hard in the field.

Steve Jones: Work hard, play hard – that came from my dad when we were kids. And in the ski lifestyle, that’s what presents itself. That’s the whole tight-loose thing (referring to TGR’s latest film Tight Loose).

The tighter your show, the looser you can be. Make sure you’re doing the heavy lifting, the hard work, so when the time comes you can let

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Skier

Corey Gavitt, 1980s

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

Teton Pass Left: Todd Jones drives the Tangerine Dream with passengers Steve Jones and Dirk Collins

Photographer Bob Woodall

Location

Teton Village

loose and the top of the cooler is not going to fly open and all your stuff is on the side of the road, and you’re exploded, out of food, because your show was “loose loose.”

Talk about the progression in cinema cameras used to shoot skiing.

Todd Jones: For years, all we used were Arriflex 16mm film cameras. They’re Vietnam-era cameras used by war journalists. Portable.

Durable. We bought a camera-and-lens package and, as we expanded, bought new ones. All of a sudden we had six Arri packages. From 1995 to 2007 that was the game – buy another Arri. It was the gold standard in our field. The video cameras couldn’t resolve the extreme highlights of water and snow. Film has that magic to it, that surreal feeling. It captures what it feels like to be out there that day.

In 2007 the digital revolution came. It started with the Red cameras, w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

and when the Canon 5D came out, the whole industry started to get on board. It had evolved to 4K, a big enough file to have a workable color space. In the last four years everything has become 4K. The iPhone is 4K. Everything is evolving, not just the cameras – the stabilization technology, the post-production technology. So now you play the game of keeping up with it, where before, all you had to do was buy a new Arri. It’s a different universe. It’s cool because so many people can have these powerful tools, whereas before the cost was prohibitive. w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

Steve Jones: We’re flying Reds around on drones now.

Todd: We used to spend $100 to shoot three minutes of footage. And there was no distribution platform for it, unless you invented one. Now the whole thing is tipped upside down: affordable 4K cameras, affordable software, access to the largest distribution network in the world – the Internet. More specifically Vimeo, YouTube, and Facebook.

The whole universe is upside down.

You filmed each other the first year, including your two original partners, Dirk Collins and

Corey Gavitt. Who else did you film those first couple years? When did the higher-profile, pro skiers begin to appear?

Steve: Kevin Brazell Micah Black, Sick Rick Armstrong, Todd Johnson, Doug Coombs, Jason Tattersall, Julie Zell.

Todd: Kristin Kramer – at the time we were diehard ski bums and we had connections to Squaw (Squaw Valley, California).

Steve: All that stuff happened because of Alaska. Before TGR, we had been going to Alaska for the Extreme Comp, and to bum helirides. All of a sudden this international network 2 0 1 7 J AC KS O N H O L E S K I E R

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Top: Principal players in TGR’s genesis, from left: Todd, Steve, and Jeremy Jones; Corey Gavitt, Dirk Collins Middle right: Todd Jones supplies the on-camera talent.

Middle left: Todd Jones’s Ariflex rests on his tripod while he rewires his batteries.

Photographer Wade McKoy

Bottom: Steve Jones waits to load the tram on a snowboarding day off.

Photographer

Greg Von Doersten

TGR continued of ski bums were connecting, so every once in a while, when Jackson would turn on, Jeff McKittrick would show up and sleep on the couch. Or Dean Conway, or Kent Kreitler. It was all very organic.

Who was in your second movie, “Harvest”?

Todd: Similar, but we had started to get some sponsorship traction. Charlie Adams at Dynastar said, “Hey, will you check out (Jeremy) Nobis?”

Steve: Gordy Peifer came in from Rossignol.

Todd: We said, “Yeah, Gordy’s cool,

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Swany’s (Dave Swanwick) cool, we’ll film those guys.” It started to take a little bit of shape. But we were still handing the camera back and forth. I think Uprising, our third film, was the last one we were in.

The talent pool snowballed to include lots of great skiers. Who is the longest-tenured athlete?

Steve and Todd in unison: Jeremy (Jones, their famous snowboarder brother).

Steve: He’s in this year’s film, and he’s in the first film. How crazy is that? 21 years later and he’s still full on.

Todd: We have filmed with him on a project every year for the entire 21 years.

There are a lot of long-standing guys: Sage (Cattabrigga-Alosa) is now 12 years. He was in Tangerine Dream, our 10-year anniversary film.

Steve: Dash (Longe), how long with him?

At least 12 years, too.

Todd: Since he was 14, in Tahoe.

Who decides how the movies are scripted?

Obviously, they focus largely on travel.

Steve: The script is, as you said, “travel.”

So, what can you do within that? You can up the production level and the creativity of how you shoot things. We put a lot of effort into live moments, making sure the athletes are synched with high-quality audio gear. It’s really hard to later describe the feelings of those moments in the field. The audio can bring viewers into that.

Todd: There’re a lot of other projects we have going on that are somewhat scripted, like a documentary on the life of Andy Irons, a surfer who died tragically at age 32, and Jeremy’s series, Deeper. Further. Higher. Our new mountain bike film, Unreal, has a script of unreal moments tied in with real moments.

Steve: For years we thought of scripting w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Media Props

Darrell Miller’s Storm Show Studios a Local Favorite Jackson native Darrell Miller continues his life-long focus and 17-year filmmaking career on snowboarding and skiing the region’s jagged peaks with his contemporary pioneers of ski mountaineering. His 16th film, Zero2Hero, premiered in Jackson last fall with

a huge show and party. The proceeds from a silent auction and raffle were donated to the Brent Newton Memorial Foundation and The Jackson Hole Ski Club.

In an age of extravagant, high-budget ski films, Miller’s prefers to capture winter in Jack-

Darrell Miller on the job at Jackson Hole

Photographer Eric Seymour

son Hole from the trenches. The resulting film’s are still sleek with time-lapses, slider moves, and emotionally raw music, but the focus is on climbing and riding big mountains and deep powder.

Two of Miller’s films landed coveted spots on The Ski Channel’s “Top 100 Ski Films Of All Time.” His films have also received numerous “Best Of” accolades from the Powder Video Awards and the Cold Smoke Awards.

In 2016 he was voted Best Filmmaker by readers of Jackson Hole Weekly.

“My filmmaking influence comes directly from the life-changing experiences I’ve had in the Tetons,” he said. “The goal is simple: inspire people to accomplish what they set out to do, be it climbing and riding a mountain, or whatever personal goal they set.

“I’ve always looked at the mountains as a Pink Floyd scene – trippy and surreal. I try to bring that to the movie by using effects like timelapses, graphics, and animation.

“My favorite filmmakers outside the ski genre are Stephen Spielberg, George Lucas, and the classic Westerns of Clint Eastwood.

They can tell a story without much dialogue or narration and let the audience interpret it for themselves.”

Steve Jones frames his shot in the Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia, Canada

Photographer

Greg Von Doersten

something, and we did with Area 51, right?

We had all these scenes with the chase, and the microfiche, and it was fun, and it was niche. After thinking about it for a long time, after we had started doing TV that had a deeper level of storytelling, we started to realize what this thing is. The theater goes quiet when were trying to over-tell a story. This thing is a stoke piece to kick off the season. Crack w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

a beer. Don’t overthink it. Throw the most balls-out, high-intensity skiing on the screen and let people relax and check out from the real world for a minute.

Todd: The Way Of Life, prior to Almost Ablaze, had a very light script, but we overscripted it. We went into Almost Ablaze saying, “Let’s just capture and document the vibe of this entire experience, bring people inside

these guys’ worlds.” And it won Movie of the Year at IF3 (International Freeski Film Festival), it won Movie of the Year at the Powder Video Awards, it won everything. It was pretty good recognition that people love that nonscripted approach.

Steve: We made this huge effort to not do anything, just revert back to action-sports porn – high-stoke, lifestyle-oftravel adventure. Literally, it was de-evolution.

Todd: We were watching the cuts, saying, “Yeah, this feels right. This is us.”

Steve: The reason I haven’t gotten bored with that, and I definitely would have, is because we have other, deeper, storytelling projects on the table. Those keep me stoked to do ski movies. It’s a breath of lightness for me.

There’s nothing too confusing about it. No screen notes in meetings.

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Reality TV Focuses On Search & Rescue

Local filmmaker Dirk Collins exposes Teton County Search & Rescue to mass audience D

irk Collins wanted to produce a reality TV series that would do more than just entertain. He wanted to shine a light on the personal sacrifices made by local search and rescue personnel when they come to the aid of folks who’d run into trouble in the great outdoors. So, with his production company, OneEyedBird, Collins pitched the idea to the Teton County Sheriff’s Office.

“It took three years to develop this, and we’d already been hearing about it for a decade at TGR,” said Collins, who co-founded Teton Gravity Research. “People kept asking us to do a show on search and rescue, but there was no appetite for it.”

This time, though, the Teton County Sheriff’s Office was open to the idea, reasoning that publicity for Teton County Search and Rescue could help their mission. They tasked Collins to convince the all-volunteer rescue workers. He met with the TCSAR board, got their blessing, and then met with the 40-member team.

“Most said yes, but some were not interested,” Collins said. “Enough wanted to do it that they gave us a trial period. They were concerned that we would get in the way of the rescues or the searches.”

Collins and his associates, cameraman Arden Oksanen and producer Brittany Mumma, shot footage during two days of TCSAR training. That allowed search and rescue members to see how the film crew interacted with them. Collins had picked his team carefully.

“We all had to have the same skills as the search and rescue team,” he said. “I’ve admired Arden’s work for a long time and I trust him, as I do Brittany.”

Things went well. The next test would be a real event. Soon, they were filming a cave rescue in Darby Canyon.

“Some kids from BYU got lost in the Wind Cave,” he said. “They got rescued and the story had a happy ending.”

Collins used the footage to test the interest of cable TV. “A couple of networks looked at it but didn’t think the characters were big enough,” he said.

“They wanted controversy and fighting, and we said, ‘No, that’s not this show.’”

As luck would have it, Collins next pitched Outdoor Network at a ripe moment. The cable TV outlet wanted to broaden their demographic beyond hunting and fishing. They were interested.

To cement the deal, OneEyedBird partnered with Warm Springs Productions, based in Missoula, Montana.

“Warm Springs hired David Madison, a story producer and a writer who had worked with me at TGR,” said Collins. “We filmed it last winter and he came down a couple times to make sure all the story ends were tied up.”

Collins hopes the series is successful in portraying just how much skin in the game there is for search and rescue workers across the nation.

“A lot of people don’t even know there is a search and rescue team in their community,” he said. “They just know that if they get hurt and call 911, someone comes to help them. We want to show who these people are, and how they juggle the act of putting their lives on the line for people they don’t know.”

The series, Backcountry Rescue, premiered in November and runs through this winter on the Outdoor channel. It showcases events from

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Photography by Brittany Mumma, OneEyedBird Below: Dirk Collins Right and bottom: TCSAR members practice short haul technique

the previous winter.

“We filmed about ten rescues and several bad accidents,” said Collins. “People died in a few cases: a young man snowboarding Pyramid in the southern Tetons died in an avalanche; two skiers died in an avalanche in Rock Springs Bowl; two skiers fell off Rock Springs Buttress, lived, but were badly injured; a man died of a heart attack at Targhee; a skier died in a cornice fall at Targhee.”

To capture these moments, the film crew remained on call all winter.

They had to stay within a half-hour of the TCSAR hanger in Jackson and had to keep all their gear for skiing, climbing, and winter camping – and filming – in their vehicles at all times. ““We had to totally revamp our lifestyles,” said Collins. “But it was an interesting winter and I had a really good time. I made some new friends and became better friends with people that I’ve known a long time.”

And now a new light shines, showing a large audience what Teton County Search and Rescue volunteers do, the sacrifices they make, and the dangers they willingly face when they rush to help people who’ve come to no good in our vast natural world.

— JH SKIER w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Media Props

John Griber Wins Emmy

Jackson-based cinematographer receives award for work on reality TV show L

ast fall local cinematographer John Griber won an Emmy for his work on Life Below Zero, a reality show on the National Geographic and BBC channels. The honor affected him deeply.

“When I left The North Face and decided I wanted to become a cameraman,” he said, “I never thought I would be filming reality TV. And it just blows my mind that in ten short years I was able to win an Emmy.”

A professional snowboarder for 17 years, Griber initially learned his way around cameras by being the subject, along with his fellow North Face athletes on mountaineering expeditions. As video cameras got smaller and started producing higher-resolution images, The North Face started asking their athletes to shoot the expedition footage in an effort to cut expenses. Soon afterward, Griber switched sides permanently.

Fortunately, his first job as a cameraman was on the extreme-ski documentary Steep, shooting B-roll and assisting veteran L.A. lensman John Armstrong. The two men hit it off, and soon Griber was traveling the world with Armstrong for the Discovery Channel’s Man, Woman, Wild and learning the ropes of shooting reality television.

“Filming skiing, even documentary filmmaking, is far different than filming reality TV,” he said. “It’s a big switch in thinking, in how to film, in how to tell a story. Fortunately, I wasn’t filming cheesy stuff. It was all outdoors in Alaska, Mongolia, all over the world. I’ve traveled more as a cameraman than I ever did as an athlete.”

For Life Below Zero, Griber films various people living unique lifestyles north of the Arctic Circle. The film crew is small and often Griber works alone.

“When I go on a moose hunt, we can’t have a caravan because these people really do want to shoot a moose,” he said.

That means Griber must both shoot and produce the story line.

“We don’t go with a shot list,” he said. “It’s totally organic. We go into the field with an open mind and see what unfolds. You want to dig deep into these characters, get in their head. Some of these guys have been in eighty episodes, so the viewers really get to know them, find out what makes them tick. That’s what makes a show like this interesting.”

The camera gear he uses runs the gamut, from Canon C300s to GoPros.

“I use a ton of GoPro,” he said. “I keep it in my pocket and can capture unique angles, in the moment. But you can still run and gun with the Canon. We don’t go light on kit. We bring duplicates and a full range of lenses.”

He doesn’t go too light on crew either.

“The DIT (digital imaging technician) is the most important assistant,” he said. “They deal with the media once I’m done shooting.

They charge batteries and help keep everything clean. And they’re eager to shoot second camera – time-lapse and B-roll.”

Some of the difficulties of such work seem obvious: living in a tent, working in the cold, legendary clouds of mosquitos. But other aspects can actually facilitate creativity.

“We shoot for four days to create a 15-minute episode, so we’re not in a hurry,” he said. “I think that’s a big reason we got an Emmy.

We can be creative because we’re not rushed.”

To win their Emmy, Griber and the other cinematographers on Life Below Zero had to knock off a Goliath. Deadliest Catch has won the Outstanding Cinematography award every year since 2006.

“That was a big deal that we took it away from them,” he said.

“They had a long run. Give huge credit to those cameramen.”

Another aspect of his team’s win also hits very close to home for Griber.

“Danny Day, one of our cameramen also nominated, started off as my assistant,” said Griber. “His father, Tom Day, is one of the cinematographers who I worked with when I was a TNF athlete and who taught me a ton. That’s pretty cool to have it come full circle.”

— JH SKIER w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

Left: John Griber, on location in Russia

Photographer

Greg Von Doersten

Below: Griber drops Kirby’s Ramp into Corbet’s Couloir

Photographer Wade McKoy

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Monumental: Skiing Our National Parks New KGB film tracks original explorers

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Photography by KGB

ackson-based film company KGB recently unveiled a project that had been simmering in the minds of principals Sam Pope and Chris Kitchen for many years. In their college days, on a backpacking trip into Olympic National Park, they saw the range’s glaciers for the first time and vowed to return one day and ski them.

With the release of Monumental: Skiing Our National Parks, the two filmmakers realized that older goal and a handful of new ones as they honored the National Park Service on its 100th anniversary. These wild places remain yet unchanged and, in winter, untrammeled, points central to the film.

“The national parks really are ‘America’s best idea,’” Kitchen offered, “And, as much as they’re overcrowded, the moment you step off the trail you realize they really are the crown jewel, over national forests, over BLM. They really are our most special, most unique places.”

The film documents skiers Andy Mahre, Lynsey Dyer, Griffin Post, Colter Hinchliffe,

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Kalen Thorien, Greg Hill, Max Hammer, and Connery Lundin as they work the landscapes of Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Glacier National Park, and Olympic National Park.

Powder magazine’s Powder Productions brought REI onboard as the sole sponsor and is promoting the movie, a series of web presentations, and a hardcover book.

Each of the movie’s park segments opens with a local who describes their personal relationship with that park. It then segues to tales of original explorers with scenes animated by parallax treatment of historic photographs.

KGB’s dynamic camerawork of their athletes in these settings, and the film’s evocative music, deliver a creative, enjoyable film.

Solitude, intermittently broken by wildlife sightings, dominated the skiers’ experiences.

Most notably, the Glacier team watched a wolverine cross a snowfield and climb rocks, no doubt drawn to their camp by the smell of bacon sizzling. The footage will surely excite w w w. f o c u s p r o d u c t i o n s . c o m

Media Props

Locations

Left: Grand Teton, from northwest Right: Glacier NP Bottom right: Colter Hinchliffe, Yellowstone NP Bottom left: Griffin Post, Grand Teton NP

moviegoers, especially biologists who’ve been studying the reclusive, fierce creature for years.

Each camping trip lasted about a week, so the cinematographers packed all the batteries and cards needed to shoot without recharging. Winter camping requires participants to carry heavy loads; everyone had to pitch in. With long approaches to remote locations, difficult duty lay ahead for all.

But it was nothing compared to what the original explorers endured.

“That’s another point that comes out in the movie,” Pope said. “These guys blazed the way, two hundred years ago. What we did is small by comparison, even with our modern equipment.”

Still, the challenges were many. For the Yellowstone segment, to exit Sylvan Pass the team had to ski 12 miles amidst dangerous exposure to avalanche terrain. In Glacier they hiked nine miles, bushwhacking over and around downed trees, then skied to their snow camp where it rained on them for two days. But it was their college-inspired quest that dealt the most challenging hand.

“The Olympics were tough,” said Kitchen. “It was an eighteen-mile hike to the glacier, through the rain forest, starting near sea level. Then we climbed and skied Mt. Olympus.”

Pope added, “It was the most surreal thing, walking through dripping forests with skis on our backs. There were a lot of downed trees, huge, the size of this room. We had to climb over them.”

The Tetons, their easiest assignment because it required no camping, was also the only park where they saw other alpine skiers.

“But at the same time,” said Kitchen, “we went up Garnet Canyon, saw three other parties, and everybody got to ski their own line.”

In Yosemite they rode bicycles up the closed road to the snowline and skinned 12 miles to a hut. A comfort compared to tent life, the hut put them within a two-hour tour of numerous ski objectives. It also put them back in touch with other humans. Cross-country skiers touring the John Muir trail – a 15-day winter traverse of the high Sierras – use the hut to cache food. w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

“We met this cool old German couple, “said Kitchen. “Seventy years old, doing the whole traverse. Several groups picked up their caches while we were staying there.”

Meeting these ski tourers informed another of the film’s themes.

Pope wants moviegoers to realize, while these places are difficult to get to, they’re also comparatively accessible.

“In the continental United States there aren’t that many places that have that exploratory component, and the parks still do,” Pope explained. “You don’t have to go on an exotic trip. Your backyard, so to speak, has exotic, rarely skied mountains that are very accessible to most people.”

Monumental: Skiing Our National Parks is touring the country with 19 official shows in 19 cities, and many independent shows along the way. More info at monumental.powder.com.

— JH SKIER

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Restore Your Faith In Politics

Local skiers, as politicians, help protect our environment

We saw it on Facebook last winter. Jackson local Christian Beckwith posted a photo of fellow local Mark Newcomb skiing powder with the comment, “Restore your faith in politics.

Go skiing with this guy.”

Beckwith, an avid alpinist and co-creator of SHIFT, has a keen interest in the environmental awareness of recreationists, including politicians. He knows firsthand that Newcomb, a Teton County Commissioner and fellow avid alpinist, has the utmost respect for Mother Earth.

As skiers, ice skaters, and winter outdoor enthusiasts, we depend on cold winters and legendary snow years. Winter storms are our lifeblood. Time is running out for our glaciers, our snowpack, and our frozen lakes.

We salute those who serve in the political arena and support the initiatives to combat global warming.

Please support those officials and decision makers who put our planet first.

– JH SKIER

Skier

Commissioner Mark Newcomb

Photographer Wade McKoy

Location

No Name Peak

Ski Community

Roster of Elected Skiers

Jonathan Selkowitz photo

Greg Von Doersten photos

Andy Schwartz Wyoming State House of Representatives, elected 2014 Mark Newcomb Teton County Commisioner, elected 2014 Greg Epstein Teton County Commisioner, elected 2016 Andy Cavallaro Teton County Assessor, elected 2014 Sara Flitner Jackson Town Mayor, 2014 - 2016 Pete Muldoon Jackson Town Mayor, elected 2016 Jim Stanford Jackson Town Councilman, elected 2012 Kate Mead Teton County School Board, elected 2008 Joe Larrow Teton County School Board, elected 2014 Teton County School Board, elected 2016 Annie Band Our apologies to any skiers or snowboarders we may have omitted.

Councilman Jim Stanford

Commissioner Greg Epstein

Commissioner Mark Newcomb

Don’t be late for après...

Be prepared, practiced and present in the mountains.

If you don’t know, don’t go.

Join us. Become an advocate for A project of Teton County Search and Rescue w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

backcountry safety at backcountryzero.com.

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S

MORE TO LIFE THAN SKIING

Bob Woodall photos

D • I •V •E •R •S •I •O •N •S

By Mike Calabrese

ometimes, too much of good thing isn’t enough. Take parks, for example. Although it borders both both Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks, the valley itself recently welcomed a new one, the R Park. Winter and summer aren’t the same for walkers, bikers, strollers and – most importantly for winter recreationists – for skiers!

The 40-acre playground, nestled right on the Snake River’s banks and ideally set between Jackson, Wilson, and Teton Village, also happens to be connected to one of the

Ice skating on the Jackson Town Square can take on a disco feeling with music and lights.

country’s coolest new pedestrian spans – right over the stunning Snake River.

Great video and info about the new R Park and the pathways bridge at http://rendezvouslandsconservancy.org Aside from its own groomed ski trails, the R Park connects to those of the Centennial pathway and the Emily’s Pond pathway, both also groomed for cross-country and skate skiers by the Teton County / Jackson Parks and Recreation Department. Already just about the best and busiest rec. outfit this side

of the Mississippi, it maintains nine crosscountry tracks, about 20 miles of both classic and skate terrain.

For a trail map, track grooming schedules, ski conditions, and more info, visit the website: www.tetonparksandrec.org.

NATIONAL ELK REFUGE – Officially it exists as a refuge for elk. But time and circumstance now force these majestic ungulates to share that winter range with bighorn sheep, bison, mule deer, and yes, Virginia, sometimes wolves and mountain lions. Even grizzlies have been spotted crossing its scenic expanse. The National Elk Refuge rubs up against the town of Jackson, affording visitors the chance to mingle with wildlife – unimpeded by zoo bars or cages. And running quietly through that high-altitude savannah is one of the country’s most famous trout streams, Flat Creek. You can look, but don’t unholster that rod until late summer. For the latest on the refuge, visit www.fws. gov/nationalelkrefuge.

ICE SKATING –The local parks and recreation organization sets up and maintains four rinks around the valley. A perfect activity for families looking to enjoy relaxing exercise. For rink locations, hours, and restrictions, visit www.tetonparksandrec.org.

HOCKEY – “Go Moose!” is the battle cry for the Jackson Hole Moose, who play full-check hockey in the Elite Senior A division of the USA Hockey Association. Grab all the home action Friday and Saturday nights at Snow King Sports and Events Center. Visit the Moose online at jacksonholemoose.com.

A sleigh ride on the National Elk Refuge allows people to get close to the elk without spooking them.

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RECREATION CENTER – Of course we have heated indoor-recreation outlets! Even the hardiest of locals come in from the cold every now and then. Just two blocks north of the town square on 155 East Gill, Jackson’s first-rate rec. center houses a gymnasium with full-size basketball and volleyball courts, an aquatic center, locker rooms, and a public meeting room. The aquatic center consists of an eight-lane competitive-workout pool, a therapeutic pool, a leisurewater pool, a hot tub, a water slide, a teaching pool, and sauna steam rooms. Open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday; from 12 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, and noon to 7 p.m., Sunday.

For daily fees, call 739-5056. Go online at tetonparksandrec.org.

Bob Woodall; Wade McKoy (top)

SNOWSHOEING – Walk softly but carry a good camera, especially in mountain country! Grand Teton National Park offers ranger-led snowshoe hikes at 1:30 p.m. every day, from late December to March, weather and conditions permitting. A $5 donation is requested but snowshoes are provided. A popular activity for locals and visitors, so reservations are recommended. For more details call 739-3300 or visit the park’s site: nps.gov.grte and download a PDF on crosscountry skiing and snowshoeing in the park.

Fat bikes have opened up a whole new season for cyclists.

CROSS COUNTRY SKIING IN THE PARKS – For the independent-minded, both Yellowstone and Grand Teton parks harbor trails and unparalleled landscape for cross-country skiiing. Conditions, access questions, or transportation possibilities are all best researched at either www.nps.gov/grte or www.nps.gov/yell.

THE EUKANUBA STAGE STOP SLED DOG RACE – Don’t be put off by the cumbersome title. Competitors certainly aren’t – not when the purse is $10,000! Launching from Jackson’s Town Square, mushers and their enthusiastic charges press on through the snowy landscape of four states: Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and Utah.

The festive kickoff, on January 27, 2017, is itself

SKI JACKSON HOLE

49’er Inn and Suites Elk Country Inn Antler Inn Cowboy Village Resort •

•

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Shriners’ Jackson Hole Ski-Joring Championships

3 Days Skiing • 3 Nights Lodging • From $289 per person, double occupancy

Great Ski Packages Complimentary Ski Shuttles Fireplace Suites . Log Cabins . Hotel Rooms Swimming Pools . Hot Tubs . Fitness Centers Rooms for Every Budget The Town Square Inns are located in the heart of Jackson Hole, just minutes from world-renowned skiing at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. www.townsquareinns.com . Jackson, Wyoming Reservations 1-800-4-TETONS 2 0 1 7 J AC KS O N H O L E S K I E R

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Bob Woodall photo Tram Jam performs at the base of the Bridger Gondola every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

reason enough to hit downtown Jackson.

Go online at sleddogcentral.com or wyomingstagestop.org for photos of cool canines, celebrants, and festivities surrounding the event.

SNOW-BIKE RACES – An offshoot of mountain biking, snow biking continues to earn new adherents. And a growing number of snowbike races are held on Nordic tracks and groomed snowmobile trails. Distances range from 15k to 30k. Grand Targhee Mountain Resort hosts races this season and snow bike demos are available before and after the race. Grand Targhee also allows snow bikers on its Nordic trail system throughout the season. Snow King Mountain Resort will host the Snow King Fat Bike races. For more info visit snowkingmountain.com and grandtarghee.com.

SHRINERS’ ALL-AMERICAN CUTTER RACES – A Western version of horse-drawn chariot racing, the event always attracts a huge celebratory crowd during President’s Day Weekend.

Now in it’s 46th year, it’s slated for February18 and 19, 2017. Teams run two abreast in a 1/4mile sprint to the finish at the polo grounds south of Jackson. Competitors are auctioned in a Calcutta wager before each heat, so high stakes and excitement mark this celebration, which raises money for the Shriners’ philanthropic mission. Go online at jhshriners.org for more info and for heart-

Wine Shoppe over 1600 Different Wines

pounding videos of this classic event.

SHRINERS’ JACKSON HOLE SKI-JORING CHAMPIONSHIPS – If the cutter races ignited a fever for horses, racing, and snow, or if you missed all the fun, the Shriners’ Jackson Hole Ski-Joring championships run on the following weekend, February 11 and 12, 2017. Not to be outdone by horse-drawn charioteers, skiers trust their skills and reins to cowpokes and their steeds while barreling along the track.

Thundering hooves, blazing speeds, and airtime off jumps guarantee thrills for all. Online at jhshriners.org.

TRIPLE CROWN PURSUITS – Watch or be watched in these winter festivals that push everyone’s adrenalin into the fun sphere: The Moose Chase on Saturday, February 18, 2017, at Trail Creek at the base of Teton Pass; The Town Downhill on Snow King Mountain, March 11,12 2017; and the big daddy of them all, the Pole Pedal Paddle, slated for Saturday, March 25, 2017, at Teton Village, along Wyoming highways 22 and 26, and on the Snake River, from South Park to Astoria. All events sponsored by the Jackson Hole Ski Club. Check ‘em out at www.jhskiclub.org.

MARMOT COOMBS CLASSIC – Iconic skimountaineer and Jackson Hole local Doug Coombs (1957-2006) earned legions of admirers. His passion for adventure skiing inspired countless others to explore the backcountry and carve the sidecountry. To commemorate

RNAN’S O D

Cabins

1&2 Bedrooms with/full baths & kitchens

SPUR RANCH CABINS

Access to cross-country trails and Teton views

12 miles North of Jackson in Moose 120

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Pizza & Pasta Restaurant Trading Post

Grocery & Gas X-Country Ski & Snow Shoe Rentals

Gift Shop Spur Bar – Wi-Fi ATM

www.dornans.com

307-733-2415

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his remarkable skiing life, Marmot and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort will again host the Marmot Coombs Classic, this year in March. Cool raffle prizes, too, from Marmot and K2. A party featuring live music will follow the event outside of Nick Wilson’s Cowboy Café. To sign up for the event, meet at the bottom of the mountain by 8:30 a.m., where you’ll pick your desired route and receive your commemorative patch.

Visit jhrl.com/marmot-coombs-classic.

JACKSO N HO LE HI STO RI CAL SO CI ETY & M U S E U M – While you’re online, try this address: www.jacksonholehistory.org. It’ll transport you to the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum and the days of yore. We love this place, and it’s perched just a few blocks from the town square. Truly a worthwhile visit or side trip if you’re in the downtown area.

STARSTRUCK—Jackson Hole Style—Take in the beauty of the night skies, all year long.

Peer through a Dobsonian telescope while experts reveal the heavens’ majesty. As free as the night skies, too! Meet at the stunning Jackson Hole Center for the Arts in downtown Jackson. Scope out the details at wyomingstargazing.org.

THE DICK’S DITCH CLASSIC, Jackson Hole’s premiere race event for 18 categories of skiers and snowboarders, run on elaborate courses of man-made and natural terrain.. Snowboarders will face off on one weekend, skiers on the other. March 2017. Visit jacksonhole.com and scroll down to the event for details.

Bob Woodall; Wade McKoy (top)

SNOWMOBLING – In most places, winter is tolerated, not embraced. But this is snow country! With so much of the white stuff carpeting Wyoming’s mountains each winter, learning to love it is a necessity. And a great way to appreciate this plush ermine mantle is astride a snowmobile. So saddle up and head into the great white open.

There are several major snowmobile destinations in northwest Wyoming, each with its own special features. Some are snowmobile playgrounds, others are primarily for viewing nature’s wonders.

Togwotee Pass, Granite Hot Springs, Green River Valley, and the Greys River Valley are the playgrounds, while Yellowstone and Gros Ventre areas are for observing wildlife and the natural world.

Nightfall over the town of Jackson brings on the lights at Snow King Mountain

PARAGLIDING – Clear days and light winds in our valley help set the stage for another equally astonishing view of Jackson Hole – from a paraglider! This breathtaking experience requires no athletic ability, and experienced pilots can even help those a bit daunted by heights.

Or, for a fresh take on over-snow travel, try your hand at snow kiting. Call 307-690-8726 or visit jhparagliding.com.

TETON COUNTY LIBRARY – Need time to chill? Or maybe to warm up? Recently expanded, Teton County Library can easily lay claim to one of the valley’s best-known secrets: Libraries are flat out sweet! And this one is second to none, from high-tech to page-tech to service and setting.

Check it out, like most locals do. Go online at www.tclib.org and plug into Jackson Hole.

Snow King’s Pond Skim culminates the season with a splash.

SKIS

NOTEWORTHY MUSIC BOOKING AGENCY

Volkl, Line Armada, Head

• The finest live music acts in the region • Jazz • Swing • Rock • Country Solos • Duos • Trios & Big Band • Impeccable references

Michael Calabrese 307-733-5459 P.O. Box 289 • Wilson, WY 83014 www.noteworthymusicagency.com jhnoteworthy@gmail.com

K2, Atomic Rossignol, Fischer,

We deliver high quality service, ski, and snowboard rentals direct to your front door.

7:00am - 10:30pm

307.733.4077

www.d2dskis.com

Slope-side at The Inn at Jackson Hole, Suite 128, Teton Village

and Icelantic

SNOWBOARDS Lib Tech, Never Summer, and Burton

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ackson Hole beckons grownups and kids, outdoors and indoors. Why not make a family affair out of your winter adventure? The whole brood will get a kick out of slope-side antics like skiing under the stars and evening lights.

Or tubing down those runs! And there’s always plenty of room on a sleigh ride into the heart of the elk refuge. But sometimes kids— and honestly, parents—have to come in from the cold. A dip in the county rec. center’s hot tub or heated pool will help end the day on a festive note. Anytime, though, is perfect for celebrating in Jackson Hole, say, with a pizza and ice cream party after ice skating on the town square rink! There’s even a kids’ museum in the valley, where parents can hold that fiesta and enroll the young celebrants in craft classes. Jackson makes it easy to keep it in the family.

A ride with King Tubes brings out the smiles.

Photos Bob Woodall

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KICKS ARE FOR KIDS

The Hole Bowl offers an entirely new take on family fun.

HÄAGEN-DAZS ICE CREAM

PINKY G’s PIZZERIA

All natural ice cream (Gluten-free flavors available). Non-dairy sorbet, huckleberry shakes, smoothies, sundaes, shakes, espresso drinks, ice cream cakes. We make our own waffle cones!

Locally owned and operated.

Since 1993, southeast corner of the Jackson Town Square.

Cozy up at Pinky G’ s Pizzeria! The local favorite. Located ½ block off Town Square. Televised on Guy Fieri’ s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Voted Best Pizza in Jackson Hole. Try the menu favorite, The Abe Froman, with spiced sausage, mozzarella, and basil. With 20 beers to choose from, full bar & live music, we are sure to keep you entertained. Jackson’ s only place OPEN LATE! 50 W. Broadway | Jackson 307.734.PINK (7465) www.pinkygs.com

90 E. Broadway | Jackson 307.739.1880 www.haagendazs.com

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The widest selection of toys in the area especially Lego, Melissa & Doug, and plush animals.

10 E. Broadway South Side of Jackson Town Square Located Inside of Lee's Tees 307-200-6066

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JACKSON HOLE SKIER

Photo Brian Beers Evans, ColdCloudImaging.com, Alpnehof Restaurant

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DINING & RESTAURANT GUIDE

Alpine, Soups, burgers, brats, & entrees, Fondue, Aprés Ski Swiss, full fondue, Wiener Schnitzel, Jager Schnitzel, wild game & fish

TO

CH

S

AE DS MC VI

Eclectic American, Steak, Pasta, Lamb, Seafood, Game, Vegetarian

TO

CH

Blue Lion 733-3912

R

D

Y

120

Dornan’s Pizza & Pasta 733-2415 X-204

N

LD

Y

124

Figs @ Hotel Jackson 733-2200

R OT

BLD

Y

TO

CH

Häagen-Dazs 739-1880

131

JH Buffalo Meat Co 733-4159 800-543-6328

124

Lotus Cafe Organic 734-0882

Credit Cards ALL ALL

Organic Local

Family Friendly

L S

124

Haydens Post Kitchen & Bar 734-3187 at the Snow King Resort

Sustainable

Take-Out Delivery

CH CH

Alpenhof Bistro 733-3242 Alpenrose Restaurant 733-3242

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Y Y

TO TO

124 124

124

Y BLD Y-OT D

Beverage Service

Restaurant

Meals Served

Page

Reservations

ackson Hole sports a raft of adventure opportunities, so it better have a way to fuel the very bodies enjoying some of nature’s most dazzling features. Diverse appetites and a range of pocketbooks, among visitors and locals alike, demand an equally expansive menu of gustatory stimulation.

Here are a dozen dining delights as colorful as Jackson Hole flora and fauna. Some are already noted for their coveted dining awards, others are ready to make their mark. There’s no pretense among these outlets. Whether nestled in the heart of downtown, along a stunning valley byway, or perched atop one the most spectacular vantage points anywhere, these eateries promise to complement the Jackson Hole experience. From artisan hot dogs to cuisine nodding to the globe’s four corners, at ground level or the summit of the slopes, Jackson Hole serves up a heady collection of culinary creations to nurture both body and spirit.

— Mike Calabrese

ALL

Y

AE DC DS MC VI

N

LD

N

TO

Yes

N

AE DS MC VI

AC OT

BLD

Y

TO

Yes

OL S

AE DS MC VI

LS

AE DS MC VI

AC

BLD

Y

TO

Yes

Yes

AE DS MC VI

TO

Type of Food, Specialty

Pizza, Calzones, Pasta, Soups, Salads, Sandwiches Shared plates, cocktails, foodie focused, Mediterranean-inspired Wyoming fare All Natural Ice Cream & Sorbet, Gluten Free Available, Espresso New American Rustic, Campfire-inspired Fare that matches modern-day tastes with the Favors of the West, Local Meats Retail & Mail Order, Natural & Sustainable Buffalo & Elk Meat Organic Meats, Vegetarian, Vegan & Gluten-free Options, Bakery, Pastries, Smoothies, Tonics & Full Bar

25

McDonald’s 733-7444

N

BLD

N

TO

Yes

33

Mangy Moose Restaurant 733-4913

R

LD

Y

TO

CH O L S

AE MC VI

American Steakhouse, BBQ ,Seafood, King Crab, Vegetarian

33

Mangy Moose RMO Cafe 733-4913

R

BLD

Y

TO

CH O L S

AE MC VI

Grab N’ Go Foods, Pastries, American & Mexican

122

Pinky G’s Pizzeria 734-PINK (7465)

N

LD

Y TO/DL Yes

125

Pinsetter Restaurant 307-201-5426

N

LD

Y TO/PP CH

21 125

Piste Mountain Bistro at 9,095’ @ JH Mountain Resort 739-2675

R OT

LD

Y

PP

21

Rendezvous Cafeteria 739-2675 & Off Piste Market

R

LD

Y

53 125

Snake River Brewing Company and Restaurant 739-BEER

N

LD

125

Stiegler’s Restaurant 733-1071

51 125

Teton Pines 733-1005 Wild Sage Restaurant 307-733-2000

ALL

AE DS MC VI

Freshly prepared breakfasts & regular menu favorites

Pizza, Soups, Salads, Gluten-free Options, Comfort Food, OPEN LATE

LS

AE MC VI

CH

S

AE DS MC VI

Sophisticated-yet-casual dining at the top of the Bridger Gondola Gather for a bistro-style meal in a casual setting

PP

CH

OL S

AE DS MC VI

At Bridger Gondola Summit, Seasonal Menu Featuring American Cuisine w/Rocky Mountain Roots, Local Meats

B/W Yes

Yes

L S

AE DI MC VI

Wood Fired Pizza, Pastas, Burgers, Local Meats Sandwiches, Soups & Salads

L

AE DS MC VI

Aprés with 1/2 off drinks, and an under $10 Aprés Menu

AE DS MC VI

New American

R

D

Y

R-OT

LD

Y TO-CT

TO

R

BD

Y

—

— —

AE MC VI

Salads, Flatbread, Sandwiches, Steaks, Comfort Food

Austrian Continental, Classic Continental, Fine Dining, Aprés Ski

Reservations: R-Recommended; AC-Accepted;Y-Yes; N-No; OT-Opentable.com; Bar Service: Y-Beer, Wine, Cocktails; B/W-Beer/Wine only; Take-out, Delivery: TO-Take-out; DL-Delivery; CT-Catering; PP-Private Parties Credit Cards; AE American Express; DC-Diners; DS-Discover; MC-Master Card; VI-Visa; Healthy Options: O-Organic/Natural, L-Locally Sourced, S-Sustainable;

Scan QR Code to view the Mobile Friendly version of the Jackson Hole Dining Guide S jhdiningguide.com

w w w. j h s k i e r. n e t

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JACKSON HOLE SKIER

DINING & RESTAURANT GUIDE FIGS HOTEL JACKSON

FIGS, a Mediterranean-inspired Wyoming fare restaurant, offers plates to share, fresh salads, sophisticated entrées, seafood specials, and hand-crafted cocktails. It’s a place where people can come get a taste of the freshest local and regional ingredients and have a great social experience inside the award-winning Hotel Jackson. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily from 7:00 am – 9 pm 120 N. Glenwood | Jackson 307.733.2200 FigsJH.com

HAYDENS POST KITCHEN & BAR

Inspired by its surroundings and local traditions, Haydens Post offers a sophisticated, yet approachable, m e n u of Mountain West regional cuisine. The rustic atmosphere, with spectacular views of Snow King Mountain, makes Haydens Post the perfect location for an intimate dinner or a celebration with family and friends.

Snow King Resort | Jackson 307.734.3187 www.haydenspost.com

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JACKSON HOLE SKIER

DINING & RESTAURANT GUIDE

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JACKSON HOLE SKIER

INDEX OF ADVERTISERS APRÉS SKI, LIQUOR STORES, MUSIC GRAND TARGHEE RESORT THE TRAP BAR & GRILLE (800) TARGHEE PG 57

NICK WILSON’S COWBOY CAFE – PG 21

KIDS SHOPS TETON TOYS – 307-200-6066 PG 122

LODGING

CUTTY’S BAR & RESTAURANT 307-201-1079 – pg 124

GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, MOOSE DORNAN’S PIZZA & PASTA – M-F 11:30-3; Sat/Sun 11:30-5; Bar 10-6. 307-733-2415 ext 204 PG 120

JACKSON

GRAND TARGHEE GRAND TARGHEE RESORT’S – (800) TARGHEE, GrandTarghee.com PG 127 GRAND TARGHEE SPA – 1-800-TARGHEE PG 127

NOTEWORTHY MUSIC AGENCY – 307-733-5459 PG 121 SNAKE RIVER BREWERY – 739-2337 PG 53 WYOMING WHISKEY – wyomingwhiskey.com PG 2

JACKSON-TETON VILLAGE ROAD BLUE LION RESTAURANT – 307-733-3912 PG 124

GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, MOOSE DORNAN’S SPUR RANCH CABINS – 307-733-2522 PG 120

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT

JACKSON

HÄAGEN DAZS – 307-739-1880 PG 122 HAYDEN’S POST – 307-734-3187 PG 124 JACKSON HOLE BUFFALO MEAT – 307-733-4159 800-543-6328 PG 131 LOTUS CAFE ORGANIC – 307-734-0882 PG 124 MEAD RANCH NATURAL BEEF – 307-733-0166 PG 130 McDONALD’S® OF JACKSON HOLE PG 25 PINKY G’S PIZZERIA – 307-734-PINK(7465) PG 122

ALPENHOF BISTRO – 307-733-3242 PG 124

ANTLER INN – 307-733-2535 or 1-800-522-2406 PG 119

PINSETTER RESTAURANT – 307-201-5426 PG 51 &125

MANGY MOOSE SALOON – 307-733-4913 PG 33

COWBOY VILLAGE RESORT – 307-733-3121 or 800-9624988 PG 119

PISTE MOUNTAIN BISTRO – 307-739-2675 PG 21 & 125

MANGY MOOSE CELLARS – 307-733-4913 PG 33 NICK WILSON'S COWBOY CAFE – PG 21

ASPENS & TETON PINES TETON PINES – 307-733-1005 – PG 51

SNAKE RIVER BREWING – 739-2337 PG 53

ELK COUNTRY INN – 733-2364 or 800-4-TETONS, townsquareinns.com PG 119

STIEGLER’S AUSTRIAN RESTAURANT – 739-2337 PG 125

JACKSON HOLE HIDE OUT B&B – 307-733-3233 PG 127

WILD SAGE RESTAURANT – 307-733-2000 PG 125

THE PINES RESTAURANT – 307-733-1005 PG 51

WESTSIDE WINE & SPIRITS – 307-733-5038 PG 125

JACKSON HOLE SUPER 8 – 800-800-8000/307-733-6833, jacksonholesuper8.com PG 127

SKI & SNOWBOARD RESORTS

BACKCOUNTRY GUIDE SERVICES

49ER INN AND SUITES – 307-733-7550, 800-4512980,townsquareinns.com PG 119

GRAND TARGHEE RESORT – (800) TARGHEE PG 57

EXUM MOUNTAIN GUIDES – 307-733-2297 PG 73

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT

JH BACKCOUNTRY GUIDES – 307-739-2779 PG 17

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT – 1-888-DEEP-SNO; snow conditions 307-733-2291 PG 17

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN GUIDES – 307-733-4979 PG 77

ALPENHOF LODGE – 307-733-3242 PG 127

SNOW KING MOUNTAIN RESORT – 307-733-3194 PG 45

TETON BACKCOUNTRY GUIDES – 307-353-2900 PG 79

THE HOSTEL – 307-733-3415 PG 127

SNOW KING NIGHT SKIING – 307-733-3194 PG 45

BOWLING, POOL TABLES, ARCADE

JACKSON HOLE RESORT LODGING – 800-443-8613, 307733-3990 PG 127

MUSIC BUS SERVICE

SKIING–NORDIC SKI CENTERS GRAND TARGHEE NORDIC CENTER – (800) TARGHEE PG 57

HOLE BOWL – 307-201-5426 PG 43

TETON PINES NORDIC CENTER 307-733-1005 PG 51

MANGY MOOSE SALOON – 307-733-4913 PG 33

GRAND TARGHEE EXPRESS – 307-734-9SKI PG 57

NOTEWORTHY MUSIC AGENCY – 307-733-5459 PG 121

START BUS – 307-733-4521

THE TRAP BAR & GRILLE (800) TARGHEE PG 57

SKI & SNOWBOARD SCHOOLS GRAND TARGHEE SNOWSPORTS SCHOOL – 1-(800)TARGHEE PG 57

CAMERA SUPPLIES & PHOTOGRAPHY

MEDICAL & EMERGENCY CARE

JACKSON HOLE KIDS RANCH – 307-739-2788. PG 17

DD CAMERA CORRAL 307-733-3831 – PG 129

ST. JOHN'S CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN ORTHOPAEDICS 888-739-7499 PG 4

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN SPORTS SCHOOL – 307-7392779 PG 17

ST. JOHN’S CLINIC AT TETON VILLAGE – 307-739-7346 PG 85

SNOW KING MOUNTAIN SPORTS SCHOOL – 307-7333188 PG 45

CUSTOM MADE SKIS & SNOWBOARDS IGNEOUS – 734-8788 PG 65 MAIDEN SKIS – 307-264-1640 PG 67

ST. JOHN’S FAMILY HEALTH & URGENT CARE – 307-7398999 PG 85

HELI & CAT–SKIING

ST. JOHN’S EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT – 307-733-3636 PG 85

ALASKA RENDEZVOUS LODGE & HELI GUIDES – 307734-0721, 907-822-3300 PG 93

TETON ORTHOPAEDICS – 307-733-3900, 800-659-1335 PG 87

GRAND TARGHEE SNOWCAT POWDER ADVENTURES – (800)-TARGHEE PG 57

REAL ESTATE

HIGH MOUNTAIN HELI-SKIING – 307-733-3274 VALDEZ HELI-SKI GUIDES – 907-835-4528 PG 89

ICE SKATING

SLED DOG ADVENTURES JACKSON HOLE IDITAROD SLED DOG ADVENTURES – 307-733-7388 PG 59

SPORTS SHOPS & APPAREL G R AN D TAR G H E E R E SO RT

CALDERA HOUSE – calderahouse.com PG 3

TETON MOUNTAIN OUTFITTERS AND BOARD SHOP – (800) PG 57

RESTAURANTS – CAFÉS – GROCERS GRAND TARGHEE RESORT

JACKSON – TETON VILLAGE – WILSON DOOR 2 DOOR 307-733-4077 PG 121

SNOW KING CENTER – 734-3000 PG 45

THE BRANDING IRON GRILL – (800) TARGHEE PG 57

HOBACK SPORTS – 733-5335 PG 131

INFORMATION – SERVICES

SNORKEL’S CAFE AND BISTRO – PG 57

HOLE IN THE WALL SNOWBOARD SHOP – 307.739.2689

THE TRAP BAR & GRILLE – PG 57

PG 17

AVALANCHE HAZARD & WEATHER FORECAST 307733-2664, jhavalanche.org

GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, MOOSE

GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK 307-739-3300

DORNAN’S PIZZA & PASTA – 733-2415 ext 204. PG 120

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK 307-344-7381

DORNAN’S TRADING POST GROCERY – 733-2415 PG 120

JACKSON HOLE & GREATER YELLOWSTONE VISITORS’ CENTER – 307-733-3316

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT – ON THE MOUNTAIN

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT GUEST SERVICE – 307-739-2753 PG 17

CASPER RESTAURANT – PG 21

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN HOSTS – 307-739-2697 PG 17

CORBET'S CABIN – PG 21

JACKSON HOLE SKI CLUB – 733-6433 PG 49

OFF PISTE MOUNTAIN BITRO – PG 21 & 125

SKI & SNOWBOARD STORAGE & LOCKERS – 307-7392755 PG 17

CAFE 6311 – PG 21

JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT – TETON VILLAGE

JH RESORT STORE – 307-734-6045 PG 131 JACKSON HOLE SPORTS – 307-739-2687 PG 17 PETER GLEN SKI & SPORTS – PeterGlenn.com PG 120 STIO – (307) 201-1890 PG 27 TETON VILLAGE SPORTS – 307-733-2181 PG 132

GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, MOOSE DORNAN’S GIFT SHOP 733-2415, ext 301 PG 117

TUBE PARKS-TERRAIN PARKS KING TUBES PARK – 307-734-8823 PG 45 GRAND TARGHEE TUBING PARK – PG 57 SNOW KING ICE PARK – 307-733-2297 PG 45

SKI & SNOWBOARD STORAGE & LOCKERS @ THE HOSTEL – 307-733-3415 PG 127

ALPENHOF BISTRO – 307-733-3242 PG 124

TETON COUNTY LIBRARY – 307-733-2164

ALPENROSE RESTAURANT – 307-733-3242 PG 124

WILDLIFE TOURS & EXPEDITIONS

MANGY MOOSE – 307-733-4913 PG 33

ECOTOUR ADVENTURES – 307-690 9533 PG 63

JEWELRY – ART

MANGY MOOSE MARKET – 307-733-4913 PG 33

DANSHELLEY JEWELERS – 307-733-2259 PG 5

RMO CAFE – 307-733-4913 PG 33

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JACKSON HOLE SKIER

LODGING DIRECTORY & INDEX Alpenhof Lodge

The European-style Alpenhof Lodge is located next to the tram in Teton Village.

The Alpenhof is known for friendly professional service, cozy rooms and creative Swiss cuisine. Many rooms feature fireplaces and/or balconies and everyone enjoys a complimentary breakfast to start the day.

Grand Targhee Resort

P.O. Box 288, Teton Village, WY 83025 1-800-732-3244 www.alpenhoflodge.com res@alpenhoflodge.com

Alta, Wyoming 83414 800-TARGHEE (827-4433) GrandTarghee.com

Hostel

Jackson Hole Hideout B&B

Recognized for its value, location, and atmosphere, the Hostel is a Jackson Hole tradition. Our guestrooms have either a king bed or four twin beds, daily housekeeping service, private bathrooms, free coffee & wifi, and access to our game room.

All this and the lowest slope side rates.

Private Room: $79-129, Bunks: $28-42 each.

6175 Heck Of A Hill Road, Wilson 307-733-3233 info@jacksonholehideout.com www.jacksonholehideout.com

Teton Village, Wyoming 83025 307-733-3415 www.thehostel.us, info@thehostel.us

Jackson Hole Resort Lodging

Jackson Hole Super 8

750 S Hwy 89, Jackson, WY 83001 800-800-8000 / 307-733-6833 www.jacksonholesuper8.com jacksonholesuper8@wyom.net

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McCollister Drive, Teton Village, WY 83025 800-443-8613 Fax: 307-734-1077 www.jhrl.com, info@jacksonhole.com

Rates Based on Double Occupancy

Conveniently located in the heart of Wilson, this beautifully handcrafted lodge style B&B is sure to please.

Set into the hillside amidst soaring evergreens, the Hideout features five individually decorated guest rooms with private bathrooms and patios, fresh hot breakfasts, and 24/7 access to a coffee and snack bar.

Experience true Western hospitality in the heart of Jackson Hole. Just steps away from the free city bus and ski shuttle. Complimentary breakfast, evening popcorn, free wireless internet, microwave/refrigerator, and free local calls.

Group rates.

Conveniently located next to the Bodega Grocer & Bottle Shop, in the main parking lot of Teton Village. Ski-in/Ski-out lodging and accommodations for all seasons. Affordable condos to luxury vacation homes, for family getaways and reunions. Properties available in Teton Village, the Aspens & Teton Pines.

HOTELS ~ MOTELS LODGES ~ RESORTS

Our selection of slopeside rooms will fit any style, budget and truly complete your vacation.

The mountain village and rustic base area offers all the necessities to shopping, dining and access to 2,602 diverse acres.

In-town vacation homes offer great access to Teton Valley and the resort.

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JACKSON HOLE MOUNTAIN RESORT

Mountain Characteristics

Base elevation: 6,311 ft. – Summit elevation: 10,450 ft.

Vertical rise: 4,139 ft. (longest continuous in the country) Skiable terrain: 2,500 acres of in-bounds terrain Open backcountry gate system accesses over 3000+ acres 22 miles of machine groomed terrain 10% beginner, 40% intermediate, 50% advanced Longest run: 4.7 miles 22 miles of machine groomed terrain Average annual snowfall: 38 feet (456 inches)

Lifts

• One 100 Passenger Aerial Tram • Two eight person high speed gondola • Four detachable quad chairlifts • Four fixed grip quad chairlifts • Two double chairlift • One fixed grip triple chairlift • One magic carpet

SNOW KING

MOUNTAIN RESORT Mountain Characteristics• Base Elevation: 6,237 ft.

Top elevation: 7,808 ft.

Vertical rise: 1,571 ft.

Skiable terrain: 400 plus acres 300 acres of machine groomed terrain 15% beginner 35% intermediate 50% advanced Longest run: 9/10 mile

Winter Activities

• Cowboy Coaster • Night Skiing • King Tubes Snow Tubing Park • Terrain Park

Ski Lifts

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• One quad chair • One triple chair • One double chair • One surface tow

GRAND TARGHEE RESORT

Mountain Characteristics

Total Acreage: 2,602 Annual Average Snowfall: 500+ inches/41+ feet Vertical Drop: 2270 Base Area Elevation: 7851 feet Summit elevation 9862 feet 10% beginner 70% intermediate 20% advanced Longest run: 2.5 miles

Lifts

• Two-High Speed Quad Chair • One-Quad chair • One double chair • One magic carpet

Snowcat Skiing on Peaked Mountain

Skiable acres: 1,000 plus Vertical rise: 2,000 ft Longest run: 3.2 miles

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BOWLING LANES Hole Bowl – 7 JEWELRY – GIFTS – PHOTOGRAPHY DD Camera Corral – 26 Dan Shelley Jewelers – 19 Hines Goldsmiths – 30 Jackson Hole Resort Store – 29 KIDS SHOPS Teton Toys – 24 LODGING Antler Motel – 23 Cowboy Village Resort – 11 Elk Country Inn – 10 49er Inn – 12 Jackson Hole Super 8 – 4 MEDICAL SERVICES St. John’s Family Health & Urgent Care – 3 St. John’s Medical Center – 33 Teton Orthopaedics – 32

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MOUNTAIN GUIDES Exum Ice Park – 34 JH Mountain Guides – 2 RESTAURANTS – CAFÉS Blue Lion Restaurant – 15 FIGS – 16 Häagen–Dazs – 28 Haydens Post Kitchen and Bar – 35 JH Buffalo Meat Company – 2 Lotus Café – 20 McDonald’s of Jackson Hole – 6 Pinky G’s Pizzeria – 22 Pinsetter Restaurant & Hole Bowl – 7 Snake River Brewery & Restaurant – 13 Wild Sage Restaurant @ Rusty Parrot– 14 SPORTS SHOPS & APPAREL Hoback Sport – 9 Stio Mountain Studio – 25 Igneous Custom Skis – 1

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