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Brooke Williams Speaks with the Dead
UNDERSTANDING AVALANCHE PROBLEMS
SALIDA CRANK AND PLANK
Winter Music Fests
Vail RACE GUIDE
Colorado’s Best Athletes CHRIS DAVENPORT LEADS THE PACK
100 years of
ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK
Celebrate in Estes Park, basecamp for Rocky Mountain National Park. Join us for year-long centennial events and special Estes Park programs. Estes Park Music Festival Concerts, Sundays through April Estes Park Winter Festival, January 16th - 19th Frost Giant 5K, & 10K, January 25th
Rocky Mountain National Park s 100th Birthday Party, January 26th Whiskey Warm-Up, February 7th - 8th Rails in the Rockies Model Train Show, February 14th - 15th Find centennial deals and details at VisitEstesPark.com/Centennial
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CONTENTS
January-February 2015
GREAT SELECTION OF MSR Snowshoes at HUGE savings!
features 20 colorado's top mountain athletes In a state full of mountain athletes who are the best of the best? We asked our readers to vote for the top snow, running, paddling, climbing and cyling beasts. Meet the winners.
23 CRANK AND PLANK Want singletrack and powder in the same day? We have you covered.
DAVID CLIFFORD / DAVIDCLIFFORDPHOTOGRAPHY.COM
No Place Like Home: Chris Davenport shreds Aspen. Oh, he also crushed the snow sports category in our Top Mountain Athlete reader poll.
26 SPIKE HIKES Forget the snowshoes. These hikes are ideal for mini-crampon tramping.
30 BACKCOUNTRY GEAR Our favorite backcounry goodies.
departments 9 EDITOR’S LETTER Backcountry lessons.
10 QUICK HITS Hut trip gourmet, mulled wine, skijoring, Vail secrets and more.
27 HEAR THIS
14 FLASHPOINT
32 THE ROAD
Learn how to minimize your exposure to backcountry avalanche danger.
An ode to the brotherhood of mountain-town rec sports leagues.
17 STRAIGHT TALK
38 ELWAYVILLE
Brooke Williams talks with long-dead nature mystic Richard Jefferies.
Who cares how you do it? Just enjoy the pure beauty of the turn.
Don't miss these winter music fests.
18 HOT SPOT Elevate your game in Leadville.
19 THE TRAIL Skin in for a weekend at the Colorado Mountain Clubs's Arestua Hut.
ON THE COVER Chris Davenport won the snow category in our Top Colorado Mountain Athlete readers' poll. Next up, you get to vote for the ultimate winner. By David Clifford / davidcliffordphotography.com
january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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FREEDOM SL
www.scarpa.com/freedom-sl
Elevation Outdoors is proud to par tner with Ar t of Winter and co-host the annual Indie Ski & Snowboard Makers Galler y. Skis and boards will be on display at Crave Desser t Bar and Lounge between Januar y 20–Februar y 3. Drop by and check out the ar tistr y behind Colorado’s ski and snowboard companies. Across the street from SIA!
LOGOS BRAND HORIZONTAL TYPE LOGO STANDARDS January 22 - February 1 12/15/2014
artofwinter.co | @artofwinterco | #aow2015 Denver’s Winter Festival celebrates the culture of winter with snow-inspired EXHIBITS, EVENTS and PANEL DISCUSSIONS
DENVER’S WINTER FESTIVAL
JAN 22 - FEB 1
2015
FULL STACK UP
LOGO MARK
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CONTRIBUTORS What is your greatest feat of mountain athlete performance?
ElevationOutdoors.com E D I TO R I A L EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN doug@elevationoutdoors.com SENIOR EDITORS CHRIS KASSAR chris@elevationoutdoors.com CAMERON MARTINDELL cameron@elevationoutdoors.com DIGITAL EDITOR AARON BIBLE aaron@elevationoutdoors.com CONTRIBUTING EDITORS ADAM CHASE, ROB COPPOLILLO, LIAM DORAN, JAMES DZIEZYNSKI, SONYA LOONEY, JAYME MOYE, CHRIS VAN LEUVEN EDITOR-AT-LARGE PETER KRAY CONTRIBUTING WRITERS krista crabtree, jedd ferris, devon o'neil, heather ridge, zach white, brooke williams
ART + PRODUCTION ART DIRECTOR MEGAN JORDAN megan@elevationoutdoors.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER LAUREN WALKER lauren@elevationoutdoors.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER JESSICA CASE jesscase@elevationoutdoors.com
A D V E R T I S I N G + BU S I N E S S PRESIDENT BLAKE DEMASO blake@elevationoutdoors.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER ELIZABETH O’CONNELL elizabeth@elevationoutdoors.com SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE MARTHA EVANS martha@elevationoutdoors.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE CARSON HOGGE carson@elevationoutdoors.com BUSINESS MANAGER MELISSA GESSLER melissa@elevationoutdoors.com CIRCULATION MANAGER AVERY SHOOK avery@elevationoutdoors.com PROMOTIONS JAKE HOWE
D I G I TA L M E D I A ONLINE DIRECTOR CRAIG SNODGRASS craig@elevationoutdoors.com ©2015 Summit Publishing, LLC. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission of the publisher.
ELEVATION OUTDOORS MAGAZINE 3000 Pearl Street, Suite #202 Boulder, Colorado 80301 (303) 449-1560
DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN Racing in the Scufoneda telemark comp in Italy. And surviving the party afterwards.
CAMERON MARTINDELL The Crested Butte 3P was the first time I "raced" uphill on skis. Plus, how often do you ski, bike and kayak in one day?
Learn to ice climb, soak in our famous hot springs & stay in cozy Ouray *Starting at $399 per person*
Elizabeth O’Connell As a developing skier, my greatest feat thus far is bucking up to drop into Lover's Leap last year at Blue Sky Basin.
AARON BIBLE Riding 200 miles in one day from Glenwood Springs to Colorado Springs, with my old friend and trainer Robert Hicken cracking the whip.
Plan Your Adventure: www.OurayColorado.com/iceandsteam
CARSON HOGGE The Power of Four Trail 50K. Over 9,000 feet of elevation gain, covering the four mountains of Aspen-Snowmass.
ROB Coppolillo High arches, fresh pedi, and she'd lotioned 'em up just that afternoon. We were in the hot tub and I...what? Oh, feat. Blueberry donuts, Alexander's Chimney, my boys and sunrise. A dreamy morn.
Devon O’Neil Not falling off a six-inch-wide, slipand-die rock ledge while hiking into our ski zone with 70 pounds in our pakcs during a 2009 expedition to far western Nepal.
Zach WHITE
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Simply still to be alive and in relatively good operating condition after so many years (decades?) of flailing around in the woods.
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january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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NOTES
A Backcountry Education LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
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FAR EAST: DYLAN FERGUSON ELEVATES IN THE HOKKAIDO SIDECOUNTRY.
he first time I wandered into the backcountry, it was on a snowboard. I was living in a cabin in Montana's Madison Range and my friend Jay and I hiked out into the wilderness with our snowboards strapped to our packs, sweating bullets and getting smacked in the back of the head every time we took a post-holing step up to earn turns. We had no idea what we were doing and backcountry snowboarding gear did not yet exist—most days we would lumber along far enough in waist-deep snow to get in a few turns. That riding felt magical since it was all ours out there. By the spring, we managed to hike and ride a peak called the Sphinx, shaped like a massive ready-to-break wave. We railed the gully down the gut of the thing in long swooping turns on perfect corn snow. I learned how to telemark ski because I was going to join a group who planned to climb Denali. They told me flat out that I couldn't bring a snowboard and I would have to learn how to freeheel if I wanted to join them. It changed my life. I took to telemarking immediately. I fell in love with the beauty of the turn, with the discipline of learning it, an art that I continue to perfect and open myself to some 20 years later. And most of all, I loved the way it got me out exploring the Montana backcountry with a tribe of other like minded freaks. We were mobile, free of the costs of the resort. We were out skiing mountains on their own terms. Skiing the backcountry became my one true passion. We would seek out deep quiet powder stashes in the Madisons. We would scare ourselves on steep lines in the Tetons in the spring. I moved to Washington and skied massive volcanoes like Rainier and Adams. I moved to Colorado and discovered powder stashes deep in Rocky Mountain National Park. I skied off-piste lines in far off parts of the globe like the Dolomites, Switzerland and Japan. This life became my story. I realize now that in the midst of all that fun and exploration, I made some dumb choices. And that awareness has only increased for me now as the backcountry gets more and more popular, as more people push the limits, as friends die. When I was interviewed about the 2012 Stevens Pass slide that took the lives of three skiers and that some of my friends survived, it dawned on me that I would have been right there with them had I been on that trip. A glaring fact hit me sqaure on: I have simply been lucky out there. But luck is not enough. So I began to better educate myself on how snow behaves, on how my mind and decision making process can influence the way I read the dangers in the backcountry. I love the freedom of dropping turns in the wild too much to give it up. But I love my family more and I know, too, that the mountains deserve respect. The truth is you need education if you want to earn that backcountry bliss. Backcountry gear keeps improving and I personally am a big proponent of avalanche air bags since I have interviewed people who have survived slides with them, but your gear is not going to keep you out of a slide. Look, I don't want to suck the joy out of riding the backcountry, but I do want you to be safe out there. So take an AIARE Level 1 course. Read up. Learn to think when you are out there. Because when it comes down to it, living life to the fullest and continuing to come back (and tell stories) is what the joy of the mountains is really all about.
rey
J. F
Doug Schnitzspahn
COSMIC COULOIR GTX JKT Specially designed for ski mountaineering. Radical protective jacket for committed action built from GORE-TEX® 3L laminate. Reinforced shoulders, elbows and hem. Adjustable, protective, fixed hood with semi-rigid visor. Fixed snow skirt with stretch panel + pant-compatible connection system. 1 lb 5 oz.
WWW.MILLETUSA.COM
january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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SHORTS
QUICK HITS
TECHNOLOGY
Iridium Go Your smartphone is now a satellite phone. The Go weighs less than 11oz and creates a WiFi Network enabling voice, text, mobile web browsing and email (albeit at 2.5 Kbps) anywhere in the world with a clear view of the sky. $500-$1,200 per unit, service seperate; iridium.com
GEAR WE Stanley Mountain Vacuum Food System Dawn patrol starts can be notoriously rough. Take the edge off with a hot meal on the go—it could be a second breakfast gulped on the drive or noshed while in the field. This kit lets you cook up and save a hot lunch while you are making breakfast. $50; shopstanley-pmi.com
GET YOUR READ ON Climbing & Skiing Colorado’s Mountains Detailing 50 ski descents across Colorado, authors Ben Conners and Brian Miller bring incredible information and insight to what it takes to get out there. The majority of the routes are in the central mountains and the San Juans but you'll find a few in RMNP, too.This is a great book for beginners as well as experienced backcountry skiers looking to expand their reach. $25; falcon.com
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atavistic alpine tourers: These pups will Show you how to really ski the backcountry.
It’s a Dog’s Life
Aspen’s St. Regis Adds Skijoring to its Winter Lineup In January, the St. Regis Hotel in Aspen rolled out a first-of-its-kind ski program in the Rockies: skijoring lessons in partnership with the local shelter, Aspen Animal Shelter. For $150, guests and their dogs can take a two-hour private lesson with Aspen Animal Shelter’s in-house skijoring coach and dog trainer Louisa Morrissey. Left Fido at home? No problem. The executive director of the Aspen Animal Shelter, Seth Sachson, is an avid musher and skijorer (with his own team of seven sled dogs) and will pair guests with an appropriate loaner dog from the shelter. “We’re so happy to share the sport,” he says. “Off the slopes, skijoring is the time of your life.” Skijoring originated in Scandinavia, where athletes are pulled on skis by a horse, dog or motor vehicle. When skijoring with a dog, both the animal and the human wear harnesses connected by a towline. While the dog pulls, the human powers through the snow with skis and poles, making it a team effort. At the professional level, the goal is speed. Recreationally, it’s a great workout (for both
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Seth Sachson
man and beast), and a lot of fun. “Skijoring allows for the thrill of dog sledding without having to own a whole team of dogs,” says Sachson. For the St. Regis’ program, Morrissey will lead lessons on the scenic trail around the hayfield at Cozy Point Ranch, a working ranch and public equestrian center located six miles from town. She recommends participants have a basic understanding of cross-country skiing (the sport is done on skate skis), and that the dogs weigh at least 35 pounds, as well as demonstrate the energy, stamina, and willingness to take part. Beginners will skijor with a single dog, although it can be done with more—Sachson likes to use a pair of dogs for the ultimate rush. In the past, Aspen Animal Shelter has partnered with local hotels to provide kennel services, as well as loaner dogs for guests to take on strolls, and even keep for cuddling overnight at dog-friendly establishments like St. Regis. But this is the first time a resort has been interested skijoring. “We have quite a few dog lovers who work for the hotel who wanted to do more with the Aspen Animal Shelter,” says Sally Spaulding, a representative of St. Regis. “Given Aspen’s ski culture, it seemed a natural fit to offer something fun and unique like skijoring to our guests.” Bow wow to that. —Jayme Moye
SHORTS
If you’re a fan of alpine ski racing, you need to be in the Vail Valley at Beaver Creek and Vail for the FIS World Cup event February 2–15. Here’s how to do it Right. EAT Vail: If, for some reason, you want to get away from the crowds packing into Championship Plaza for the opening and medals ceremonies (and the free concerts), head down to Lionshead and check out The Tavern on the Square at the Arrabelle. Executive Chef Douglass Dodd provides a range of dishes from casual to upscale for breakfast, lunch, après and dinner. arrabelle.rockresorts.com Beaver Creek: While it’s great news that The Osprey Hotel—which is renowned for its fine dining, and friendly, service oriented staff—has rearranged its lounge and dining area, the truly exciting news this year is the new $10 breakfast burrito and hot drink the hotel is offering from 7-10 a.m. outside right next to the Strawberry Park Chair Lift. That will certainly fuel you up for the day. Eat it there with other burrito breakfasteers or see if you can get it all down while you are on line and riding the lift. ospreyatbeavercreek.rockresorts.com
SLEEP Vail: Equidistant from Gondola One and Championship Plaza in Vail Village, The Lodge at Vail underwent substantial renovations throughout the entire building this past fall. The 52-year-old lodge has been updated to include all the modern amenities we wish other lodging had (think USB plugs by the bed). Without leaving the building, hit up Elway’s Colorado Steakhouse with food from hardy burgers to South African Lobster Tail. Finish at the lodge’s intimate spa for an incredible après relaxation treatment. lodgeatvail.rockresorts.com
jim heath
The Vail Valley
QUICK HITS
Beaver Creek: Ranked in the top five best resorts in the west by Condé Nast Traveler readers, The Westin Riverfront Resort and Spa sits right at the base of the Riverfront Express Gondola with easy access to the mountain and truly embodies the Beaver Creek slogan “not exactly roughing it.” Check out the new “Mikaela Shiffrin Way” ski package (Mikaela is The Westin’s resident Olympic gold medalist) including a private ski conditioning training session and, among other things, dinner at the new Maya, a modern mexican restaurant run by Chef Richard Sandoval, which overlooks the slopes. westinriverfrontbeavercreek.com
PLAY Aside from the endless entertainment the FIS Alpine World Championships will provide, check out the RMX Skijoring in Minturn over the noon hour on Thursday February 5 along with the free concerts with Michael Franti & Spearhead on
Gut Check: Laura gut carves up beaver creek.
February 3, American Authors on February 6 and Phillip Phillips on February 12. Oh, and don’t forget to go skiing or snowboarding yourself. You’re in Vail and Beaver Creek after all. —Cameron Martindell
january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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SHORTS
Hot Pocket
Ski tour like a European with hot mulled wine right by your side.
Kaibab Path
INSTANT GRATIFICATION: WARM THEM AND THEY WILL DO THE SAME FOR YOU.
Leave it to an award-winning Australian winemaker who also owned a luxury ski lodge in Lake Wanaka, New Zealand, to create a portable hot adult beverage. “When guests came in from skiing, I’d have a pot of mulled wine cooking,” says Michael Hasler, winemaker and co-owner with his wife Carolee Corey, of the Boulder-based What We Love Winery. Dubbed Decadent Saint, the wine’s label pays tribute to vintage ski posters and the St. Bernard—the rescue dog with the barrel. Hasler then created a pocket or pack-friendly pouch that can be heated. “It’s best to prewarm the pouch in a hot water bath and use the Decadent pouch warmers that come with it to maintain warmth,” advises Hasler. $10-14, whatwelove.com
After traveling over 450 miles and crossing numerous roads, a female grey wolf was the first to be spotted on the Kaibab Plateau on the north rim of the Grand Canyon in over 70 years this November. According to Wildlands Network Executive Director, Greg Costello, “The presence of this newly-arrived wolf at the Grand Canyon is proof positive that Wildlands Network’s conservation approach and habitat connectivity theories work. But, if we want more wolves to follow the Kaibab wolf’s path, we need to do more to protect wolves, and to protect and connect the habitat she passed through so these wide-ranging species have room to roam, adapt to climate changes and maintain healthy biodiversity overall.” Together, promoters of connectivity, aficionados of wide-ranging gray wolves (now threatened with delisting by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) and others wishing to protect the Grand Canyon ecosystem itself, are urging concerned citizens to: a) Contact local USFS supervisors and ask them to support connectivity in forest service planning processes; b) Contact state wildlife agencies and ask them to make your state safe for wolves and other wide-ranging native carnivores; and c) Support the proposed National Monument designation for the Grand Canyon Watershed. wildlandsnetwork.org —Cameron Martindell
It’s a long way to the top when you start at sea level. Earning turns in Iceland – Fritz Sperry
—Krista Crabtree
Wolves and other animals need wilderness corridors
Krista Crabtree
QUICK HITS
Introducing Technical, Insulated Apparel Outfitting Dirtbags Everywhere... Tents • Sleeping Bags • Pads • Apparel
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Women’s Sunshine Jacket & Men’s Third Pitch Jacket
Cameron L. Martindell / offyonder.com
QUICK HITS
backcountry bourdain: Your mountain kitchen awaits.
Haute Cuisine
Splurge a little on your next hut trip and prepare some of this gourmet grub. Skinning up the last few miles to a remote cabin surrounded by fields of fresh powder leaves you feeling exhilarated, exhausted and hungry as hell. You came for the snow and phenomenal views, but kicking up your menu planning will have you taking just as many photos of the food. Hors d’oeuvre. You’ve just burned off more calories than you could possibly carry with you in that pack, so go big here. Hard cheeses and dried salami pack and keep well, even on multi-day trips. Smoked salmon comes vacuum sealed at the store these days and works well with sliced cucumbers as non-crumbling crackers. For a vegetarian option, try dipping these in a container of whipped cream cheese you’ve topped with a pesto spread and sun-dried tomatoes. Pitted dates wrapped and cooked in a slice of bacon are a great way to warm up the hut and make some new friends. Dinner. Marinate meat or potatoes ahead of time by cutting and double-bagging them in Ziplocks to season as you hike. To add a bit of class, choose an unusual meat like bison or venison. Serve over quick-cooking grains like quinoa or parboiled rice that won’t use up too much fuel (or patience). For leaner meats that might stick to a pan, try wrapping the cuts in a slice of bacon, which will add a bit of flavor while greasing the pan. A good, firm side vegetable like broccoli or zucchini will hold up in your pack and can be sliced and steamed or sauteed in, you guessed it, bacon.
Cocktails. Limes are essential and easy to squeeze into an already stuffed pack since the pressure will only help loosen the juice on your way up. A Nalgene filled with 2 parts tequila and 1 part Cointreau or Grand Marnier will come in handy when you get to the top. Simply squeeze in the juice from a couple of limes and pour over glasses of fresh snow. Prefer a hot drink? Try “Bubba’s Special”, a recipe from the new Wilderness Ranger Cookbook put out this year by the Society for Wilderness Stewardship in honor of the Wilderness Act’s 50th anniversary. Brew a cup of tea (black or green) and stir in a slug of whiskey along with a few slices of lime. If you have any bacon left, canned bloody mary mix with a swizzle stick made of bacon is a great way to wake up on a hut trip. —Heather Ridge
aDrIaN cOiRiEr/rEvElStOkE jAcKeT/ AlTa, uT
#wIdEaNgLeLiFe january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
Photo: Fredrik Marmsater
dessert. Ice cream made from snow is hut cuisine at its finest. A small can of condensed milk and some frozen berries or half a vanilla bean stirred up in a big bowl of snow is a crowd pleaser. One 12 ounce can will make about eight servings (or one really satisfying serving just for you). If the pack is starting to get a bit heavy, a dark chocolate bar is light and decadent treat at the end of a meal. It’s generally a good idea to pack at least one extra.
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ISSUES
FLASHPOINT
Ben Pritchett/AIARE
What’s Your (Avalanche) Problem?
LUCKY BREAK? Six skiers survived this double slab avalanche on White Mountain near Crested Butte in 2008. The skiers triggered the slides remotely via the line between the two bowls.
learn to understand the language of avalanche bulletins and you can better manage the risks when you're in the backcountry. by rob coppolillo olorado leads the nation in lots of good stuff—fittest population and most 14ers to name just two categories—but we’re also tops in avalanche deaths. Part of that is because all these fit people are constantly skiing off the numerous 14ers. A good chunk of that dubious honor, though, is due to our bitchy snowpack. Cold temps, relatively little snow, and plenty of wind make for lots of “avalanche problems.” “Avalanche problems” is just a simplified term that takes categories of avalanches that might occur and helps us translate them into specific risk-management strategies we can use in the backcountry to minimize our exposure to danger. The Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) issues daily bulletins that highlight what problem(s) we’re dealing with and then coaches us on what risk-management strategies we can use. Simple, right? Yes and no. Read on.
Consistency Several years ago avalanche centers from across Canada, the U.S., and New Zealand began discussing the effectiveness of their public messaging. Academics, forecasters and guides hoped to streamline the language and layout of avalanche bulletins, so when you and I travel to a different venue we find consistent language across zones and borders. When forecasters in Revelstoke warn us of a “persistent slab” problem, it will mean the same thing down on Red Mountain Pass as it
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does the next state over in the Wasatch. After a lot of back-and-forth, a bunch of thoughtful discussion, and a bit of arguing, North American and Kiwi forecasters agreed on categorizaions for eight avalanche types. We Americans added a ninth—glide avalanches—in 2012. Building on these types, the “avalanche problem” incorporates factors that include spatial distribution, likelihood and size of potential slides. Now, we at least agree on what we need to talk about in bulletins. Once the nine problems were adopted, avy centers shared feedback on how these were to be described and what risk-management strategies they could recommended for each. Over the past couple years, the messaging within avy bulletins has grown more consistent, making it easier for backcountry recreationalists to grow accustomed to interpreting the problems and, most importantly, to develop habitual risk-management strategies for each of them.
Problems Writing in The Avalanche Review in 2012, co-authors Brian Lazar, Ethan Greene (both of the CAIC) and Karl Birkeland (of the National Avalanche Center) explained, “The flavor of the avalanches we expect to encounter can be more influential in our risk-management practices than a given danger or stability rating.” By this they meant that rather than focus on
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how sketchy conditions are, we could focus on what kind of sketchy they are. Are we dealing with two feet of new snow overnight or newly drifted snow from a couple windy days? Recall two seasons ago, the year of the Sheep Creek tragedy on Loveland Pass in Colorado. The CAIC had identified one of the avalanche problems as a “deep persistent slab” for several days, which led into several weeks. While the danger ratings (often moderate to considerable) weren’t more elevated than other days of that year or previous years, the avalanche problem (that "deep persistent slab") signifies an entirely different problem than, say, a “storm slab." Next time you’re online, visit the CAIC site and click on Forecasts. In the drop-down menu you’ll notice a Help tab. Click that, and you get a page describing all nine of the avalanche problems and some corresponding strategies to minimize your risk. If you read the storm slab problem and compare it to the deep persistent slab, you’ll realize you’re dealing with a different beast entirely, even though the danger rating might be the same on a given day. Deep persistent slabs are “very destructive and dangerous … particularly difficult to forecast for and manage … destructive and deadly events that can take months to stabilize.” Storm slabs, on the other hand: “… typically last between a few hours and a few days … Storm slabs are most dangerous on slopes with terrain traps, such as timber, gullies,
ISSUES
Gear That Could Save Your Life The bottom line in avalanche safety is avoidance, but we all make mistakes. Just like the air bags in your car, avy gear hedges your bets in case you throw a wobbler and end up on the spin cycle in the Jonny-Gnar Couloir. Here are a few sexy pieces of snow-safety gear you might want to consider for the upcoming season.
FLASHPOINT
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1. BCA Float 27 Tech Geared for the European market, this avalanche air bag weighs in at just 6.8 pounds and is equally relevant for single-day tours stateside. Helmet carry, lined goggle pocket, ice axe loops, hydration compatibility and the same Float system that’s already saved a number of lives. Cool detail: the trigger position adjusts vertically on either shoulder strap, so it’s always in the right spot, no matter your height or preference. $599; backcountryaccess.com
over cliffs, or terrain features that make it difficult for a rider to escape off the side.” While either avalanche problem can be lethal, the deep slab problem lasts longer, is less predictable and is always more destructive.Storm slabs demand caution, too, but can be more predictable and don’t generally carry the same risk, especially when one is careful to avoid terrain traps.
2. Ortovox Kodiak 3.1
Strategies
Hardened 6000-series aluminum in the shaft and blade, a rubberized grip, D-ring handle, and the ability to use it in “hoe” mode—the 790gram Ortovox Kodiak 3.1 is a great shovel. How great? I paid full retail for the damn thing on my ski exam in Canada. Why? Part of the ski exam entails a crevasse-rescue drill, so one must dig a ski anchor before hauling off of it. A friend on the exam had a Kodiak and was crushing with it, saving minutes on his digs. I took the bait… and you might want to as well. $100; ortovox.com
3. BCA Tracker 3 The Tracker 3 builds upon the reliable, intuitive Tracker 2 beacon, adding a signal-suppression function, while shaving weight (215 grams, 40 less than the Tracker 2) and size (it’s now the thinnest multi-antenna beacon in the world). You’ll never get the stand-and-wait-and-losevaluable-time “hand icon” so commonly seen on other beacons, too, due to BCA’s commitment to keeping the Tracker 3 simple and focused. $335; backcountryaccess.com
4. Alpine Threadworks Ski Guide Rescue Tarp (not pictured) A rescue sled? Damn staright. I hope to never use it, but I’ll be psyched if I have to. Handmade in Calgary, this rescue tarp sled has pre-sewn haul points, as well as siliconized nylon at the perimeter, so you can burrito-wrap a patient easily. Marry it with an inflated Exped pad on the inside, and you can move somebody to an LZ, the hut, a snowcave, or down to the car for tall boys. If you’re backcountry skiing, you should have a plan for an evac. You don’t? Well, now you do. $241; alpinethreadworks.com —R.C.
Now that you’re looking for one of those nine categories, you’ll grow accustomed to the characteristics of each: how long they last, where you’ll find them in the terrain, what sorts of avalanches they might produce. Avalanche bulletins from the Southern Alps of New Zealand to the Chugach in Alaska will describe the problems similarly, using the same language and similar graphic icons to highlight each.
Cold temps, relatively little snow, and plenty of wind make for lots of “avalanche problems.” Avalanche centers will coach you on locating and identifying each avalanche problem (what aspects, what elevation, what terrain features), and they’ll also mention specific risk-management strategies to help you stay out of trouble. While you’re browsing the CAIC’s Help page under the Forecasts section, read your avalanche problem of the day, and notice the final bit of the description: what to do to minimize your risk and exposure. Now, you have hit paydirt! From the storm slab section: “You can reduce your risk from Storm Slabs by waiting a day or two after a storm before venturing into steep terrain.” If you’re dealing with a deep persistent slab,
the problem gets trickier. As these are difficult to forecast and predict, your risk-management strategy becomes avoiding these slopes altogether. Doesn’t sound too fun, eh? The best in the business get surprised by these, though, so if you’re in the game for the long haul, outright avoidance might indeed be the best call.
Process Avalanche problems, you’ve got ‘em, so now what? You’re reading the bulletin closely for information on the problems themselves and what risk-management strategies you can take. Check. I hope you have a trusted crew with which to slay the gnar. If not, find some reliable, smart, reasonable buddies to join you in the backcountry. Before you step in at the trailhead, though, think about your planning and prep. “You need a repeatable process,” says the CAIC's Brian Lazar. “Something you do every time you plan a tour.” Research shows working safely in a high-risk, high-stress environment demands an established process, with checklists and sound communication amongst team members. Bruce Tremper, of the Utah Avalanche Center, echoed Lazar’s sentiments in a recent piece in Powder: “We can’t engineer all the uncertainty and variability out of the medium of snow and weather; there’s no way we can make that risk zero,” he said. “But we can get very close by practicing a rigorous system.” If you don’t have a system or process for your backcountry planning, then consider taking an AIARE 1 course this winter, offered by various providers in Colorado including Kling Mountain Guides, the Colorado Mountain School, and Aspen Expeditions, among others. Check avtraining.org for a list of providers throughout the US. In the meantime, read the bulletin, every day. Focus on the avalanche problem(s) and relate them directly to risk-management strategies. Get in the habit, even on days when you’re not skiing. You’ll soon internalize that part of the puzzle and you’ll be safer for it. Now get some!
—Rob Coppolillo is an IFMGA-licensed, AMGAcertified mountain guide, and an AIARE instructor. january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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Q&A
STRAIGHT TALK
Richard Jefferies
A noted author and environmentalist has a conversation with... a dead man, who has plenty to tell us about how we see should see our life on this Earth. by Brooke Williams Why have you come back now? Come back? I haven’t been gone. What do we need to know? You think you’re special and you are—never in history have humans knowingly contributed to that which threatens to destroy them. But you can change. One day as I moved up the sweet short turf near my home, my heart seemed to obtain a wider horizon of feeling at every step; with every inhalation of rich pure air, a deeper desire. The very light of the sun was whiter and more brilliant. I was utterly alone with the sun and the earth. Lying down on the grass, I felt the earth’s firmness—I felt it bear me up: through the grass, there came an influence as I could feel the great earth speaking to my soul.
Living Proof: Brooke Williams sensing Richard Jefferies (left); The Story of My Heart (right)
ast February, winter eased its chokehold on the high desert. The sun was warm enough for both mud and sweat, and I sat on our south-facing deck, eating a carrot and squinting while the desert quiet hummed like a huge and distant insect. I had been working for months to make personal sense of a book published in 1883—The Story of My Heart—and a man, Richard Jefferies (1848-1887), the 19th century Naturemystic who wrote it. My wife Terry Tempest Williams and I discovered the book years ago in the far corner of a dusty bookshop on an island in Maine. We read it out loud to each other, proposed to a publisher that it be re-issued, and traveled to England to walk on the ground that inspired it. I was near the end of 18,000 “after words” that would become my contribution. I’m not sure when, during the course of this process, I became obsessed. That bright day on that deck, I felt my obsession turn to frustration. I knew Jefferies was out there—from strange insights I’d had since finding his book, from “visits” I can neither explain nor justify. I’d read Robert Pogue Harrison’s book, The Dominion of the Day, which comforted me with the matter-of-fact description of the role of the dead in encouraging the living to “keep the story going” into the future. I had the strong sense that Jefferies had picked me to complete his unfinished business. “Why me, Richard Jefferies?” I was tired and needed a day off from poring over his florid but densely beautiful prose, which
Brooke Williams
I was sure held clues to our modern situation. I’d asked this question many times as I struggled to capture the meaning I knew hid in those old pages. I needed to know this. I needed to know many things. “Why me, Richard Jefferies?” I asked out loud as a breeze swirled in front of me. This time he answered. “If the eye is always watching, and the mind on the alert, ultimately chance supplies the solution.” I clearly heard those words which had become familiar during the two dozen times I’d read The Story of My Heart. I’d begun to rationalize: Obviously, I’m so close to this book that its words are now stored in my unconscious ready to use when I need them. But then I heard, “You seemed ready when you found it on that bookshelf. I had been waiting for a long time.” This was the opening I’d waited for. I seemed to have discovered the portal between life and death. Not wanting to waste the opportunity to interview Jefferies, I jumped right in. You’re dead…? Such a limited, term, "death." Because? You moderns talk about it, but you give no real credence to the immortal "soul." You say you know the soul leaves the body at death, but you ignore the "souls" of your dead when you have much to learn from them.
Your point is….? You people pave everything. Or drill it or dig it for the carbon fueling your lives. The great earth cannot be heard through pavement, over the drilling and digging. We are working to protect wild place from paving and drilling. You speak of saving these wild places as a reminder of the past brilliance of our evolution or because they are havens for other species. This is true, but limited. You save these wild places because they will save you. The great earth is speaking about all that is at stake for the future of humans. Those who profit from paving and drilling do not know this. Not only do they refuse to hear what the great earth says, but also profit from silencing the great earth. We do our best. That is only part of it. Your people are strong and brave and capable of finding your way to the far corners of the Earth—no matter the season, no matter how extreme. This is admirable. But the earth-knowledge you need to save yourselves comes up through your feet anywhere that is wild, anywhere the natural system continues to function. You need only to slow down. You need only to open. This is how you evolve. You need to evolve. How much time do we have? Time is not what you think. Then the air around me grew quiet, and so did Richard Jefferies.• The re-release of Richard Jefferies’ The Story of My Heart (torreyhouse.com), first published in 1883, features essays by Brooke Williams and an introduction by Terry Tempest Williams. january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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ESCAPES
HOT SPOT
Altitude Attitude
Want a truly elevated outdoor experience? Go play in the highest city in colorado this winter. leadville, colorado
Leaf Treinen
by CHRIS KASSAR
Nordic Start: Racers pole into the Loppet 44K in February
ure, you think you know Leadville. Each summer, a host of runners, riders and hikers test their mettle on grueling trails around this spunky mining town that claims the title of highest incorporated city in the U.S.A. But, check the place out in the winter, and you'll find even more raw adventure, sans the crowds.
PEDAL POWER Thought you had to trade your bike for skis once Jack Frost grabbed hold? Not here. In Leadville’s Winter Mountain Bike Series, brave souls ride trusty steeds (a.k.a fat bikes) on exciting courses that follow snowmobile and groomed Nordic ski trails. These races (three of which are held at night) emphasize fun and camaraderie and are followed by food, drinks and laughter. And, it’s all for a good cause; proceeds support the advocacy efforts of Cloud City Wheelers. cloudcitywheelers.com
SKI IN LUXURY With over 25 kilometers of world-class, groomed trails, the Tennessee Pass Nordic Center (perched at 10,500 feet) is a must-visit for nordorks and even those who simply dabble in skinny skis. Enjoy striking views of the Sawatch Range as you ski and snowshoe over a range of varied terrain, from steeper, forested trails to open glades for all abilities. Lessons, rentals, a coffee bar and snacks are available on-site. After working up your appetite, enjoy an intimate, delectable four-course dinner at the Cookhouse, an inviting, rustic yurt warmed by a wood burning stove. Make a weekend of it by spending the night at a ski-in yurt located just one mile from the center ($225/night, sleeps up to six). Reservations required for yurts and meals. tennesseepass.com
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MAKE IT HAPPEN
GET HIGH A winter season that lasts well beyond most other spots in the state gives you more time to shred the vast high country surrounding town. For liftaccess alpine skiing, hit Ski Cooper (skicooper. com), located atop Tennessee Pass. Or skin out into the San Isabel National Forest and Mt. Massive Wilderness Areas for backcountry options. Nordic enthusiasts (including snow bikers and snowshoers) can enjoy trails in a variety of spots like Colorado Mountain College campus, the Mineral Belt trail, Turquoise Lake and the Mt. Massive Golf Course & Nordic Area. Pick up a copy of the new winter trails map at area businesses or the Visitor Center at 809 Harrison Avenue. visitleadvilleco.com/wintertrails
FUEL UP: Delicious baked goods (we love the mini-quiches and giant ginger cookies) and tasty caffeine concoctions abound at City on a Hill Coffee & Espresso (cityonahillcoffee. com). This quaint café located on Leadville’s main drag (508 Harrison Ave) is the meeting spot in town. For lunch or dinner, we love the Tennessee Pass Café (222 Harrison Ave) offering up a wide selection of unique sandwiches (like our favorite the Dill Havarti), burgers, soups, salads and entrees (like the Goat Cheese & Spinach Enchiladas). Don’t leave without trying the Brussel sprouts!
REST UP: For 14 years, Wild Bill Clower &
EMBRACE YOUR INNER CHILD Remember how much fun it was to plummet downhill at breakneck speeds as a kid? Well, grab the kids—or some friends—and relive those days at the Dutch Henry Tubing Hill, just one minute south of downtown Leadville on Highway 24. Bring your own sledding apparatus. It’s free. Or, rent a new, luxury tube from the Recreation Department on weekends from 11 to 5 pm ($5 per hour, $3 per half hour).
HORSE PLAY The Leadville Ski Joring and Crystal Carnival (March 6-8, 2015) is a must. Festivities center on the skijoring competition, that famed spectacle of a cowboy on skis towed over obstacles by his horse. Countless other activities including sledding, balloon rides, Nordic ski sprints, snowshoe races, sled dog competitions and Mineral Belt Mayhem (part of the Winter Mountain Bike Series) make this an unforgettable experience. leadvilleskijoring.us •
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Cathy Hacking have run The Leadville Hostel (leadvillehostel.com) a clean, 41-bed inn for travelers. Bill and Cathy greet each guest at the door and from that moment on they put their hearts into making sure every patron leaves well rested and feeling like family. The common areas overflow with camaraderie and buzz with activity as explorers of every ilk share stories. Clearly, this dynamic duo is doing something right: upwards of 300 guests return year after year and they’ve stopped advertising because they hate turning people away. Rates start at $25/night.
GEAR UP: Looking for homegrown gear? Melanzana designs and produces high-quality, stylish outdoor clothing right in their shop (716 Harrison Ave). Stop by to purchase their latest and get a sneak peek of locals busily sewing each piece by hand. melanzana.com —C.K.
GPS ADVENTURE
THE TRAIL
The Perfect Weekend
Pressed for time, but looking to squeeze in a quality hut trip? Download the free ViewRanger app and the coordinates to escape to the Colorado Mountain Club’s Arestua Hut. by CHRIS KASSAR ocated between Eldora Ski Resort and Rollins Pass Road, the Arestua Hut (a.k.a. Guinn Mt. Cabin) serves up peace and quiet that makes the steep and strenuous 4.5-mile climb up the flanks of Guinn Mountain from the ski area well worth the trip. Arestua is free and available on a first-come, first-served basis, so you may end up getting cozy with fellow adventurers, especially on weekends. Though you can’t make reservations for the eight bunks, you can check out the "reservations calendar" to see if anyone else is planning to be there (http:// calendar.yahoo.com/arestuahut) and add your name (as a courtesy/possible deterrent to others) by emailing the Hutmeister (arestuahut@yahoo.com). Here’s how to get there.
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The Trailhead Since the trailhead is just 40 minutes from Boulder, you can be there quickly and without battling resort traffic on I-70. From Nederland, travel 0.6 miles south on Colorado Highway 119. Turn right (west) on County Road #130 and follow the signs to Eldora Ski Area. Bear left at the turn-off for Eldora Cross Country Ski Trails, park and put on your skins or snowshoes. Leave behind the busy parking lot and jump on the Jenny Creek Trail (808) which begins left (east) of the Ho-Hum chairlift. Look for signs as you start climbing south along the trees that border the beginner’s downhill slope. Once you crest the hill, head behind the Little Hawk ski lift and follow the marked trail west through the woods.
Jenny Creek Trail You reach the Forest Service Boundary soon and the trail begins its scenic and steep drop through the forest toward Jenny Creek.
Hit the Road After about 1.5 miles, the trail joins with the old Jenny Creek Road (502) and begins gently curving right. Follow the old road for about .25 miles until you reach a fork.
Guinn Mountain Trail Here, the Guinn Mountain Trail (820) forks right (north). If you’d prefer to take a longer way in, continue straight up the Jenny Creek Road. After .8 miles, there is a four-way intersection with a cutoff to the Guinn Mountain Trail. To the left (south), another trail continues to the Moffat
TRAIL GEAR Fischer Outback 68 With full-length metal edges, a premium waxless base and shaped design, these light, maneuverable skis are perfect for cruising through untracked terrain. They are tailored for easy turning, built to grip on the uphill and glide smoothly on the flats. $270; fischersports.com
Fischer Offtrack 5 When you’re ready to make tracks of your own, throw on these comfortable yet bomber high-performance backcountry boots complete with wool liner, integrated gaiter and sealed zipper closure that guarantee your feet stay warm and dry. Plus, the ankle support cuff and the boot’s medium flex add power and stability to ensure that you perform well in varied conditions. Compatible with a Standard NNN BC binding. $160; fischersports.com
Road and Yankee Doodle Lake which makes for a great side trip or day trip from the hut. To head directly to the hut, begin the steep climb on the narrow tree-lined trail that heads north. Soon, the trail opens up to an off-camber slope that requires side hilling for a bit. Shortly after that, you pass the ruins of an old cabin and then climb steeply up a ravine. Eventually, you head back into an enchanted wooded area thick with trees (seriously, keep an eye out for gnomes) which breaks open to reveal a giant alpine meadow and the Arestua Hut.
Home Sweet Home Your palace, actually a cozy hut that sleeps eight and is warmed by a wood burning stove, awaits in a small clearing south (left) of the trail. Perched at 11,000 feet, the Arestua Hut offers beautiful views of the Front Range and plains and makes the perfect weekend getaway in winter and in summer, too.
Guinn Mountain Depending on how far you want to venture, you can tour to Yankee Doodle Lake, drop into the Indian Peaks Wilderness or plan a through-trek to Winter Park and use the hut as mid-trip resting spot. Regardless, be sure to check out the fantastic summit of Guinn Mountain. After a short jaunt south through the trees, Guinn opens up to reveal a spectacular tundra landscape and expansive views in every direction. • january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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RED BULL CONTENT POOL
COURTESY SCARPA
COLORADO's
TOP MOUNTAIN ATHLETES by Doug Schnitzspahn
Colorado is full of outdoor athletes who push the idea of what’s possible. They shine on every stage from the Olympics to YouTube. But who rises above the pack? Who are Colorado’s Best Mountain Athletes? We wanted our readers to answer that question. So we asked our contributors to nominate the state’s top athletes. We then went through the tough process of narrowing down those choices to the three best male and three best female athletes in five disciplines. When it comes to mountain sports in Colorado women and men play together so we let them compete against each other. Then we put them out there for a month and let readers, vote for the winners. So here they are, the top mountain athletes in Colorado. 20
SNOW SPORTS
CLIMBING
Hometown: Aspen Big Achievements: One of the preeminent ski mountaineers on the planet, Dav made his big claim to fame when he became the first person to ski all Colorado's 14ers in less than a calendar year. Now, he's five mountains away from skiing the Centennial Peaks, the state's 100 highest summits. A sevenpart Red Bull video special, "The Faces of Dav." is currently documenting all the different aspects of his personality. When we asked him what he thought his biggest achivement was in this largerthan-life career, he went stright to the top of the planet: "The turns Colorado native Neal Beidleman and I made on the Lhotse Face of Mt. Everest really stand out," he says, "and the summit a week later was the icing on that big cake! But most of all, it's being able to maintain a solid career as an athlete while raising a family of three boys. That's my greatest achievement."
Hometown: Boulder Big Achievements: This category saw the closest voting and a big victory for Alex who just beat out the legendary Tommy Caldwell to win. No surprise though, Puccio has won the American Bouldering Series eight times and finished second at the 2014 World Boulder Championships in Munich. So what does she see as her biggest feat? "This year has been my best year yet on rock. I have had a lot of great moments and surprising accomplishments," she says. "If I had to pick one, it was when I climbed Jade (V14/8B+) in Rocky Mountain National Park this past summer," she says. "I climbed it so much quicker than I though I would and realized I can do more than I thought. I realized my body was already at that level for a while and that I just needed my head to be on the same page."
CHRIS DAVENPORT
Top FEMale: Mikalea Shiffrin Runners Up: Lindsay Vonn, Gretchen Bleiler, Bobby Brown, Taylor Gold
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ALEX PUCCIO
Top Male: Tommy Caldwell Runners Up: Madaleine Sorkin, Paige Classen, Josh Wharton, Daniel Woods
MEGHAN HICKS / IRUNFAR
RUNNING
STEVIE KREMER
Hometown: Crested Butte Big Achievements: Stevie Kremer is a true mountain endurance athlete, winning the 2014 Matterhorn Ultraks Skyrace and Sierre-Zinal Mountain Race in Switzerland and winning the 2013 Marathon du Mont Blanc. So who inspires such a beast on the trail? "All female athletes who compete with a positive, happy attitude and don't let the outcome of the race affect their whole day and are confident no matter what," she quips. She's also a top national ski mountaineeering racer, finishing third at the North American Championships in 2012. "There are some strong girls in Colorado!" she says. Top Male: Rickey Gates Runners Up: Jenny Simpson, Scott Jurek, Sage Canaday, Darcy Africa
CYCLING
TEJAY VAN GARDEREN
Hometown: Aspen Big Achievements: When we first profiled Tejay in Elevation Outdoors in 2011, we called him the "Kid Who Could Be King." Were we ever right. In 2014, he won his second straight USA Pro Challenge here in Colorado, adding to his victory at the World Team Time Trail Championships, a fifth place finish in the Tour de France and a 2013 win of the Tour of California. He is favored to win the Pro Challenge again this year. "My ultimate goal is to win the Tour de France," he told us. "And when my cycling life is over, I want to devote more time to skiing. It's a
BRAD KAMINSKI
little embarrassing living in Aspen and being a very mediocre skier." Top FEMale: Heather Irminger Runners Up: Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski, Katie Compton, Mara Abbott, Howard Grotts
PADDLING
Jenny MacArthur
Hometown: Aspen Big Achievements: Jenny MacArthur shines in a the up-and-coming paddling discipline of downriver SUP. Born in Australia and married to paddling savant Charlie MacArthur who owns Aspen Kayak and SUP, Jenny has won SUP Downriver and Paddle Cross events at the Vail Mountain Games, Fibark, CKS Paddlefest and the National Whitewater Stand Up Paddle Championships. In 2012 and 2013, she was crowned SUP Whitewater National Champion. "I'm most proud of competing and winning against athletes half my age," she says. Top Male: Ken Hoeve Runners Up: Brittany Parker, Natalie Kramer Anderson, Dustin Urban, Fred Norquist
VOTE FOR THE ULTIMATE WINNER! We have five finalists in five different disciplines. Next, just for the fun of it, we pit the five of them off against each other to determine who gets bragging rights for the whole state. VOTE NOW: ElevationOutdoors. com/colorados-best-mountain-athlete/
ERIN BRENNAN
NOT FORGOTTEN It was not easy to narrow the fields down in each sport category when we were looking for the best mountain athletes in the state, so our list was sure to miss some important names. We also noticed, sadly, that the list was not very diverse, which shows that outdoor sports in Colorado still need to grow to look more like the country as a whole. So who else should have made the list? The first name to come up was world champion triathlete Mirinda Carfrae. We also missed endurance machine and ski mountaineer Sari Anderson and climbing beast Steve House. It was hard to leave Colorado icons like sixtime Leadville bike champ Dave Wiens and blind athlete Erik Weinhenmayer off a list of Colorado's best. We also wished we could have had a place for Fort Collins' mountaineer Alan Arnette and part-time Boulder resident Pasang Lhamu Sherpa Akita both of whom summited K2 this season. And let's not forget paralympic world champ Maureen Beck.
january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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your lifestyle needs a home Brian Dixon The Live Where You Play Guy Keller Williams Advantage Golden, Colorado Specializing in open space and trail side homes
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GEAR OF THE YEAR
Shawn Lortie
THERE AND BACK AGAIN: The author pedals along on S Mountain and shreds Mirkwood Bowl on the same damn day.
Shawn Lortie
Crank and Plank In a quest to find the perfect place to ski powder and rip singletrack in the same day, we head to Salida, where that task is just another day in the lives of the locals. by ZACK WHITE or many, one sport a day is plenty. But for those of us who are more gluttonous, even an afternoon of kneedeep powder isn’t enough to keep the mind from drifting through miles of dry singletrack switchbacks on a mountain bike while stuck on the lift back up for another run. Luckily, Colorado offers as many micro-climates during the winter as it does outdoor adventure possibilities, and the idea of playing on planks in the morning and cranks that same afternoon is a legitimate wintertime option. The available combinations of places to ride dry trail and get a fair share of turns in at a resort in the same day are impressive throughout the state, but when it comes to consistency in both trail and snow conditions—and their proximity to one another—Monarch Mountain and Salida’s Arkansas Hill trails are a standout duo. A mere 20-miles apart, the weather conditions between Salida and its neighboring ski hill usually sound like they’d be a half-day’s drive apart rather than than just a half-hour. But the Sawatch Mountain range that nestles Monarch has an amazingly consistent habit
of stopping westerly weather fronts in their tracks, then milking every single inch of snow from them while stalled overhead. How consistent is this weather pattern? While Monarch averages an impressive 30-feet of snow per season, Salida is lucky to see 30-inches. Yes, those numbers are correct: 30-feet of snow a season just 20-miles up the road from trails that usually see less than 30-inches of snow a season. Welcome to crank-and-plank paradise.
The Mountain Monarch Mountain is a surprising impressive 800-acre ski hill that is rarely crowded and offers a fantastic variety of terrain in a small, relatively inexpensive package. And on those rare crowded days, the head count on the slopes still pales in comparison to big-name resorts. Sure, the twoseater lifts are slow, but on a deep day, those longer lift rides offer up a welcome rest between runs, especially when there isn’t a wait to get on said lifts. At most, it’ll cost $69 a day this season for access to five lifts (eight if the conveyor
and surface lifts are included) that serve the 1,162-vertical-feet quite nicely. Check online or in local newspapers and magazines for deals as Monarch always seems to have discounted tickets available somewhere. For those looking to earn a few turns, there’s the hike-accessed goods found in Mirkwood Bowl—an off-piste, double-black playground that funnels back into the resort via a catwalk down below. Amongst the usual crowd of hyperfit locals that make the 300-vertical-foot, boot-packed hike to the top look like child’s play, keep an eye out for professional athletes like multi-time, multi-discipline national champion mountain bike racer Kelli Emmett and national cyclocross champion Katie Compton doing multiple laps on Mirkwood in the name of “training." The extra 130-acres of Mirkwood are filled with glades, steep chutes, cliff jumps and excellent tree skiing. If hiking out of a perfectly good, lift-accessed ski resort isn’t your thing, or you’re simply wanting to keep your legs fresh for an afternoon of mountain biking later that day, there are plenty january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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Wolf Creek Ski Area!
Seas
onal
Lod ging
hw c i h W
a
Shawn Lortie
Where you will find the Best Vacation Value at
More Pow-and-Pedal Destinations After years of extensive research, I have concluded that Salida and Monarch are hard to beat for a crank-and-plank day in the Rocky Mountains. But there are definitely some other options that make putting both bike and board(s) on the roofrack worth your while.
Disco
Powderhorn Resort and Grand Junction Trails
unts
n? ur t ou y l l i yw
Powderhorn is only about 45-minutes from downtown Grand Junction, which is a reasonable starting point to access the Lunch Loops trails. Powderhorn is a small resort with a more laid back vibe than the big hitters, and the Grand Junction area trails stay dry most of the winter. Something to keep in mind, too, is that when trails in that region are too muddy to ride, it’s a good sign that there’s fresh snow up the road. So bring your skis/ boards on that next winter or spring mountain bike trip to the Western Slope. powderhorn.com; visitgradjunction.com/biking
Vail Resort and Eagle Trails Though less consistent than Salida or Grand Junction in terms of dry winter trail conditions, Eagle is surprisingly arid much of the winter, and only a half-hour from Vail, which is obviously not a bad place to search for great snow. vail.com; mountainbikeeagle.com
Summit/Grand/Boulder County Resorts and Front Range Trails
Rio Grande Country has three unique towns waiting for you … Near South Fork, at Wolf Creek Ski Area, you will find limitless snowmobile & nordic trails, sledding, ice skating and ice fishing for the whole family. Nearby Del Norte, gateway to history and culture, features a new trail system, museum and restored historic sites. Monte Vista is home to the annual Sandhill Crane Festival in March and wildlife refuge. No matter what you like, there everyone here is something for every yone one in Rio Grande Country!
The options here are almost endless in regards to finding a place to make turns, and a trail dry enough to ride later that day. The problem is that time spent in transit between snow and dirt can be upwards of two hours, each way. Eldora is the best bet when conditions allow, but often the same weather that warrants a trip up to the resort makes a mess of the trails 45-minutes down the road. eldora.com; bouldermountainbike.org
Crested Butte Resort and Hartman’s Rocks Crested Butte is a great place to be on a powder day, and there’s a chance of Gunnison-area trails being dry enough to ride, too. That said, Gunnison is notoriously frigid in the winter months, which keeps the 50-ish inches of snow around longer, and makes for less-than-ideal riding conditions. skicb.com;gunnisoncrestedbutte.com —Z.W.
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of inbound options to choose from. In addition to the roughly 30/30/40 split of green/blue/black runs, there’s also the decent Never Summer terrain park to play in. Over the years, I have lucked into a legitimate powder day at Monarch far more often than not, even if it hasn’t snowed in the last few days. Of course, the locals will rush the resort during deep dumps, but they’re usually back to work by noon, and leave behind plenty of untracked stashes for the rest of us. “Us” is usually a mix of out-of-state visitors whose Scotch-guarded blue jeans don’t seem to last long enough in fresh snow to afford too many runs, a handful of locals with the whole day off who disappear into stashes you’ll never find without befriending them, and a minority of Coloradans who prefer Monarch’s worn-in charm to the shiny resorts to the north.
The Trails Most mountain bikers know Salida as the base camp for riding the Monarch Crest Trail in the summer. But over the last handful of years, the town has developed an impressive network of trails literally right on the edge of town. An interesting mix of city land and BLM, Arkansas Hills (often referred to as “S-Hill” for the giant S on the hillside facing town) is an ever-expanding mountain bike trail system that stays dry most of the winter, and offers a good mix of difficulty levels to choose from. It’s by no means a system warranting a multi-day trip specific to riding,
Monarch Cross Training: The short hike up Mirkwood Bowl is the perfect cardio warm up for some serious spinning later in the afternoon.
but where Salida is lacking (for now) in quantity, the place more than makes up for it in trail quality. Factor in the ability to ride here almost all winter, and it’s more than worth packing the bike during ski season. The trails are well-marked and relatively easy to find, but it’s still a great idea to swing into one of the local bike shops and ask for trail conditions, directions or suggestions on what to ride for your style. If you stop at Salida Bike Company on the corner of F and Front Streets, they can literally step out their door and point to Frontside Trail, which is the main climb up into the system from town. (But don't miss out on the beta at Absolute Bikes, either.) There are also a scattering of pump tracks throughout the valley, but they're not consistently well-maintained, so it’s always a good idea to ask the shop guys which one is worth riding at that time. While chances are incredibly high that the trails will be dry, it is a good idea to call ahead and get a report from one of the local shops. And, even if the trails are downright dusty, daytime temperatures at roughly 7,000-feet can still be frigid, so pack your cycling kit accordingly. I’ve had days of riding comfortably in shorts in February after a 15-inch powder day up at Monarch, but that’s not always the case with typical winter highs hovering around 45-degrees in town.
joey
light, packable, built
The Town Salida in and of itself is a treat to visit. For such a small town, there’s always something happening that doesn’t seem to fit its otherwise quaint feel. If it’s not a Roller Derby bout at the Fairgrounds, it’s the self-described throbbing 32-piece band of masked chaos, a.k.a. Itchy-O, marching the streets of town with a huge crowd of locals in tow. Even on a slow night, grabbing a brick-oven-baked pizza and microbrew from Amica’s, or a game of shuffleboard at The Victorian (call it“Vic’s”, or expect to be pegged a tourist) is a great way to end a big day of skiing and riding.
www.travelchair.com
Zach White has a decades long history of playing outside, and is a full-time city firefighter in his spare time. january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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radha marcum
Spike Hikes
get a grip: spots like the top of boulder's green mountain in the flatirons ARE A GOOD PLACE TO GET YOUR WINTER TRACTION ON.
Skinny skis and snowshoes can be overkill when Colorado trails get packed down with hard snow. Invest in spikes underfoot and open up (and simplify) a whole new world of winter trails. by Cameron Martindell While the higher reaches of Colorado get buried in massive heaps of snow and trying to travel on the great white blanket can be near impossible without snowshoes or skis, the lower elevations along the Front Range may only end up with a few inches to contend with. Snowshoes will often be overkill along these trails where the trampling of the masses converts those few soft white inches into a slippery and often icy mess. Fret not. Strap a set of spikes onto your favorite footwear and you’ll be hitting the trail sure-footed and without worry.
THE FRONT RANGE The predominantly east-facing slopes here catch the morning and midday sun to begin the melting process on a microclimate level. Then, once the sun sneaks behind the mountains, the melting stops and the freezing starts. If there’s still any moisture left the trails can be slick. Not a problem when you are spking it. Here are some of our favorite spots. Boulder is littered with trail options. Any of the trails near Chautauqua including Royal Arch and those to the base of the iconic Flatirons are going to be slick after snow falls. Further north, the trails around Sanitas where Mapleton Avenue moves into Sunshine Canyon run the gamut from the steep Sanitas Summit trail, the gentle Sanitas Valley trail, and the moderate Dakota Ridge Trail. The more ambitious can always make a winter attempt up Bear Peak. With less traffic to trample down the snow compared to the other trails, snowshoes might be a better idea. Golden offers up incredible access to some unique hiking features like the trails on and around the mesas of North and South Table Mountain Parks. The trails can be steep in places to get up on the table tops but once up there, you’ll forget you’re in the middle of the city. Mt. Galbraith is just across the narrow valley cradling northern Golden from North Table Mountain and initially offers views of town until you slip around to the backside where again the proximity to civilization is easily forgotten. The trail starts steep but mellows out once over
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the hump. For more kid-friendly options, check out Lookout Mountain. You probably won’t need your spikes for the Nature Center but bring them for the adjacent 110-acre preserve providing habitat for mule deer, mountain lion, bobcat and elk. Look for their tracks in the snow. Southern Denver offers a stunning contrast of snow on the red rocks in Roxborough State Park. It's lesser known, though very similar to the famed Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. The low cost of entry to the State Park is well worth it for the whole family. Jump in on the many geology talks, kids hours and other interpretive activities provided by the park rangers and volunteers. Colorado Springs also offers some great winter hiking. Of course, there's Garden of the Gods, but be sure to consider some other great options like the many trails of Red Rocks Open Space, Waldo Canyon, Mt. Cutler and Cheyenne Mountain State Park. cospringstrails.com
FURTHER AFIELD As you get away from the Front Range, there are plenty of prime winter hiking trails throughout the state. The specific weather conditions will determine if these trails are better with spikes or with more substantial winter gear like snowshoes and skis. For example, not far off of highway 285, Burning Bear Trail, near the town of Grant, gets surprisingly little use in the winter. Likewise the wonderful solitude of winter can be found in places like the trail to Chicago Lakes near Idaho Springs, North Ten Mile Creek out of Frisco, Grizzly Lake and the ghost town of St. Elmo near Buena Vista, as well as Treasure Falls in the southwest near Pagosa Springs. •
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Foot Fetishes Winter hiking is beautiful and peaceful, but the cold and snow brings a few extra hazards. Be sure to watch out for avalanche danger and dress appropriately for the weather. Don’t be afraid to bring a backpack to carry the Ten Essentials or to stuff that extra layer. Spikes come in a number of styles ranging in their aggressiveness of traction. Below are a few options, all of which simply strap right onto whatever shoes or boots you like: Stabilicers Hike These traction devices are one of the less aggressive styles. A rubber cage wraps around the foot and a few rows of short spikes provide good grip on moderately icy surfaces. These don’t do well on wet snow which sticks to and buries the spikes. They run small so order a size up. $28, 32north.com Kahtoola Microspikes Kahtoolas step up the traction substantially and feel like a miniature version of the chains that go on your car tires. Be sure to remove them, before going inside, they will easily damage a hardwood floor. Also check out the new Kahtoola NanoSpikes. They are lightweight and minimal, with carbide spikes instead of chains. $65; kahtoola.com Hillsound Trail Crampon Another very aggressive hiking crampon with an array of little stainless steel spikes, these provide excellent traction on most any icy surface. They slip on very easily and stay right in place; and they peel off easily when you’re done. $60; hillsound.com —C.M.
C U LT U R E B I N
HEAR THIS
Cold Chillin’
Just because the summer is over doesn’t mean the festival season is DONE. Get to these Rocky Mountain Winter Music Happenings this ski season. by JEDD FERRIS
Courtesy WinterWonderGrass
The Jammin’ Is Quite Delightful: The Infamous Stringdusters heat up WinterWonderGrass.
So Chill:Warming up at Snowball.
estival season really never stops. Even in the chilly months you can find plenty of outdoor gatherings packed with big bands to satisfy your urge to catch live tunes. Bundle up and get ready to groove:
and dub-step hero Skrillex. On Sunday, the sound shifts back to rap with the hazy rhymes of Wiz Kalifa. Tickets for the shows can be purchased individually or all together as a discounted four-show pass. xgames.espn.go.com
January 5-10 The MusicFest Steamboat Springs, Colorado
January 30 Icelantic Winter on the Rocks Morrison, Colorado
For a week in January, Steamboat becomes a stomping ground for Texas twang. The MusicFest has brought guitar-slinging outlaws from the Lone Star State to the Rockies for the past 30 years, through its tenure hosting legends like Guy Clark and Billy Joe Shaver. At a wide variety of venues— from an outdoor stage and tent to hotel ballrooms and bars—the festival showcases a huge list of Americana upstarts and independent roadhouse legends. Notable acts to catch on this year’s 50-band bill include Jack Ingram, Charlie Robison, Reckless Kelly, The Black Lillies and the Turnpike Troubadous. themusicfest.com
Catching a show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre is a longstanding summer tradition, but, for the past three years, Icelantic Skis has hosted a winter rager at the legendary outdoor venue. Held during the SIA Snow Show, the chilly party brings a huge crowd (each year has sold out) to the rocks to dust snow off the stone benches and dance in ski jackets. This year’s bill features Diplo’s electro-hiphop project Major Lazer and new school reggae icon Damian Jr. Gong Marley. icelanticskis.com
January 23-25 X Games 2015 Aspen Music Festival Aspen, Colorado
Closing in on a decade in existence, this annual winter bluegrass fest brings some serious strings to Big Sky. Ski the steep terrain of Lone Peak by day and dance to some fast and furious picking by night. Throughout four days, shows take place at different venues in Big Sky’s Mountain Village, so you can catch Leftover Salmon’s big headlining set on Sunday in the Missouri Ballroom or the band’s opening night show at Whiskey Jack’s. Additional acts on the bill include the Travelin’ McCourys, Della Mae, Darol Anger, Grant Farm and Pert Near Sandstone. bigskybiggrass.com
It would be tough to assemble a better live soundtrack to the big-air action of the X Games. This year, while the world’s best are showing off their skills on boards, skis and snowmobiles, the base of Buttermilk will be bumping with an impressive bill of EDM and hip-hop acts, starting strong with a headlining set on Friday night by Snoop Dog. Then on Saturday it’s all about the dance beats and bass drops with separate shows from electro-duo Chromeo
February 5-8 Big Sky Big Grass Big Sky, Montana
February 20-22 WinterWonderGrass, Avon, Colorado Telluride Bluegrass is still six months away, so if you need a pickin’ fix before the summer, this new festival has you covered. Returning for a third year after some successful initial runs, WinterWonderGrass brings a packed line-up of progressive string slingers to Avon’s Nottingham Park. This year the fleet-fingered action will be led by newgrass king Sam Bush, home state heroes Leftover Salmon and festival mainstays The Infamous Stringdusters. Over three days you can also catch sets by Elephant Revival, the Wood Brothers, Jeff Austin Band and Primus front man Les Claypool in his acoustic Duo De Twang. winterwondergrass.com
Dates TBD SnowBall Music Festival, Denver, Colorado This typically stacked fest relocated last year from Winter Park to Denver’s Sports Authority Field. Held during the first weekend of April in 2014, SnowBall featured 60 bands from around the world on four stages, headlined by local favorite Pretty Lights, along with Knife Party, GRiZ, MiMOSA and Busta Rhymes. Although now in the big city, the festival still honors its ski roots by offering attendees shuttles to nearby resorts, so they can still hit the slopes during the days. Look for a new line-up soon. snowballmusicfestival •
Jedd Ferris is senior editor of Blue Ridge Outdoors and regularly writes about music for a range of publications, including The Washington Post. january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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experiential learning ADULTS
fo r adults!
Guide
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Bentgate.com Presents Backcountry Sessions: Join us Tuesday nights from 6-8 p.m. for a FREE lesson in different aspects of the backcountry experience. From Hut Trips to Forecasting Perspectives with CAIC, we have something for everyone. Check out our calendar at bentgate.com/events for more details. Come out and get schooled! 1313 Washington Ave, Golden, CO 80401 877-236-8428 | bentgate@bentgate.com | bentgate.com/events
Avid4Adventure: This summer, experience the power of authentic outdoor adventure. Avid4 Adventure camps teach pre-K through 7th graders of all levels to climb, paddle, bike, hike and thrive in the outdoors. Camp locations in Bailey, Boulder, Golden, Highlands Ranch, Denver Washington Park and Denver Stapleton (NEW in 2015!) Boulder, CO 80306 800-977-9873 | info@avid4.com | avid4.com
Colorado Mountain School: We provide unforgettable climbing experiences, backcountry skiing and avalanche education. Our AMGA certified guides are some of the best educators in the game. They will enable you to progress to new levels of adventure, and introduce you to the world-class, vertical environments and backcountry of the Front Range. 2829 Mapleton Avenue, Boulder, CO 80301 | 800-836-4008 info@coloradomountainschool.com | coloradomountainschool.com
Boulder Rock Club: We offer Day Off School and Holiday Climbing Camps for ages 6 to 14. Join us at Boulder Rock Club for a fun indoor rock climbing experience. Our expert instructors will teach basic safety skills, climbing technique and play rock climbing games. Voted Best of Boulder 11 years running! 2829 Mapleton Ave. Boulder, CO 80301 303-865-3557 | jherling@totalclimbing.com | boulderrockclub.com
First Descents: First Descents provides free outdoor adventure programs to young adults age 18-39 impacted by cancer. The programs are designed to empower participants to climb, paddle and surf beyond their diagnosis, defy their cancer, reclaim their lives and connect with others doing the same. 3001 Brighton Blvd Ste 623, Denver, CO 80216 303-945-2490 | info@firstdescents.org | firstdescents.org
Boy Scouts of America Merit Badges: Rocky Mountain Outdoor Center offers merit badge courses for rock climbing, kayaking, and whitewater. Certified instructors are available for private instruction or groups of any size. All equipment included. Great camping facilities are located nearby. Group rates are available. 14825 US HWY 285. Salida, CO 81201 719-539-2420 | customerservice@rmoc.com | rmoc.com
Leadville Trail Run Training Camp: Open to all runners, this camp offers an introduction to high-altitude trail running. Veterans provide an informative and fun tour through the beautiful trails of the LT100. Join the Leadville family for a first-hand look at Colorado’s most scenic and challenging run course. 213 Harrison Avenue, Leadville, CO 80461 719-219-9351 | along@lifetimefitness.com | leadvilleraceseries.com
No Barriers: No Barriers Youth is focused on providing transformative educational experiences for youth of all abilities and backgrounds. Through domestic and international travel, we get students and their educators out of their comfort zones and into the mindset of overcoming the obstacles that stand in their way. 224 Canyon Ave., Suite 207, Fort Collins, CO 80521 970-484-3633 | info@nobarriersusa.org | nobarriersyouth.org
Boulder Outdoor Center: Join us on one of our great outdoor adventures, lessons or tours. Summer Adventures: Kayaking, Canoeing, Rafting, Hot Air Balloon Rides, Hiking, Multisport Adventures, Stand Up Paddling Instruction, Rentals, Zip Line Tours, Horseback Trail Rides, Glider Rides/Soaring, UTV and ATV Tours. Sign up online today! 2525 Arapahoe Ave, Boulder, CO 80302 303-444-8420 | info@boc123.com | boc123.com
GOALS for Youth - Get Outside and Learn Something: GOALS combines a unique curriculum and the magic of wild river canyons to shape young lives. Kids arrive at the take-out of a GOALS program feeling more confident in themselves, connected to their peers, and aware of their purpose than they were at the put-in. Evergreen, CO 720-560-8056 | brett@goals4youth.org | goals4youth.org
Paragon Guides - Companion Rescue Clinic: This clinic will involve indoor classroom time and outdoor field practice. We will focus on learning the fundamentals of avalanche Companion Rescue, an introduction to avalanche rescue equipment, beacon search, probing, digging and leadership and rescue organization. Outdoor portion does not involve ski equipment. 210 Edwards Village Blvd, Suite B107, Edwards, CO 81632 970-926-5299 | trips@paragonguides.com | paragonguides.com
100 Elk: Revealing the possibilities within. At 100 Elk, we provide students and people of all ages the opportunity to develop their abilities and skills, learn about themselves and overcome previous social, educational and physical boundaries through outdoor activities in an extraordinary setting. 18325 County Road #366, Buena Vista, CO 81211 719-395-2468 | mhaslam@100elk.org | 100elk.org
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14825 HIGHWAY 285 SALIDA COLORADO 81201
ADULTS
This summer, experience the power of
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ADVENTURE CAMPS PRE–K through 7TH GRADES Bailey Boulder Denver Golden Highlands Ranch
Save $15 per session!
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DECEMBER:
PRESENTS
BACKCOUNTRY
SESSIONS TUESDAY NIGHTS 6-8PM Join us every Tuesday night for a FREE lesson in different aspects of the backcountry experience. Check out the Calendar to the right and visit bentgate.com/events for more details. Come out and get schooled!
9TH The Forecasters Perspective W/Ethan 16TH Travel Safe W/ Russel 23RD Last of the Ski Bums 30TH Split Boarding 101 w/ Matt F. JANUARY:
6TH The Forecasters Perspective W/ Scott 13TH Friends of Berthoud Pass AVY 101 20TH Travel Safe W/ Russel 27TH Tuning 101 W/ Greg FEBRUARY:
3RD Hut Trips 101 10TH Beacon Tech BENTGATE MOUNTAINEERING
1313 WASHINGTON AVE, GOLDEN CO 80401 PHONE: 877. BENTGATE
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bESTgear 6
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The Best of
Backcountry Gear
We spend lots of time out in the wild untracked stuff. Here’s the equipment that rose to the top of our tests.
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by Doug Schnitzspahn 1. Big Agnes Third Pitch
4. Marker Kingpin 13
7. G3 Synapse Carbon 101
Meet the perfect layer to slip on after you just finished a sweaty skin and are waiting for your buddies to reach the top. This comfy 850-fill, hydrophophobic-down hooded puffy keeps you nice and warm but only weights in at 6.5 ounces and packs away easily. $450; bigagnes.com
The Kingpin, which Marker put out in limited release this season, but will hit the mainstream in force next fall, is the first truly DIN-certified tech binding. It combines a tech toe piece with a more traditional alpine heel. That melding of design adds up to a binding that offers up the best of both worlds: It tours with ease but clamps down hard when you want to charge in the resort. $649; markerusa.com
A do-it-all plank, the Synapse Carbon is light enough, at two pounds, 13 ounces per ski, to burn up tours, but still capable enough to hold an edge on nasty steeps at the resort. The early rise tip levitates in pow, but still has the mettle to crush crud. 103/101/118; $870; genuineguidegear.com
2. Black Diamond Razor Carbon Built with aluminum in the upper shaft and carbon in the lower section, these easy-to-adjust poles withstood lots of abuse during hikes over rocky, exposed Front-Range talus slopes and still felt nice and light when we swung them through powder turns. $125; blackdiamondequipment.com
3. Millet Matrix 30 MBS French brand Millet rethought the way a pack carries skis here: the sleek, asymmetrical pack holds them steady with a diagonal carry system and offers up pockets for crampons, shovel and probe. But what really won us over was just how comfortable it felt on our backs when fully loaded. $190; millet.fr
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5. Eider Blow Alpha Polartec’s Alpha is breathable insulation, which makes this light (just over one pound) layer ideal for skinning laps on cold days or even as a mid-layer on the way down. It never gets too hot but keeps out the chill. $280; eider.com
6. Dynafit Radical ST Tough and light, that’s the m.o. of this binding that we have put through the paces on quick backcountry tours as well as big ski mountaineering objectives. With a release value ranging up to 10, it’s solid but not overkill. $500; dynafit.com
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8. La Sportiva Vapor Nano We still don’t understand how this ski can be so damn light (2 pounds, 12 ounces per ski) and still so confident underfoot. It’s the sports car of backcountry boards. Impress your friends. 130/103/120; $1,200; sportiva.com
9. Rocky Mountain Underground Apostle Colorado brand RMU crafted the perfect quiver of one weapon here. Built with rocker in the tip and an early rise tail, the poplar-wood Apostle has the guts for the resort and the soft touch to shred pow. And oh how it mashes breakable crust. 126/105/114; $799; rockymountainunderground.com
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18 10. Dynafit Denali
13. BCA Magic Carpet Skins
Dynafit has led the game when it comes to serious touring, but the Denali is a ski that is just plain fun. At 100mm underfoot, this paulownia-core board with carbon stringers is nimble enough to thread through tight trees, yet stable enough to open it up on big, open pow shots. Of course, it’s also an able tourer. 133/100/118; $900; dynafit.com
Backcountry Access designed these ascending shags specifically for those big planks (115, 130 and 145mm skins) you love to take into untracked snow. $150-$180; backcountryaccess.com
14. K2 Ultrasplit Kit
Nothing wastes more space in your pack than a water bottle. That’s why we are big fans of these collapsible flasks that you can just stuff away in a pocket when you are done sucking them down. They come in several sizes. $20, 500ml; hydrapak.com
The backcountry belongs to snowboarders just as much as it does to skiers these days, thanks in big part to systems like this that make it so easy for soulful knuckledraggers to get back to the goods. The light, responsive, rockered Ultrasplit board loves to eat up steep-and-deep terrain and the kit includes Blend skins, heel risers and the Voile Canted Puck system. $1,000; k2snowboarding.com
12. Scarpa F1 Evo
15. G3 Ion
Is it possible for a boot to change your life? Well sure, especially if you are a true light-and-fast speed touring dork. Tighten up the Boa closure on these stable, two-pound, seven-ounce slippers and take off. Best of all, they switch from ski to walk mode automatically when you click in. $699; scarpa.com
Canadian brand G3 made a big name for itself with its iconic telemark bindings, but its AT bindings have not lit up the market. Until now. We were quite impressed both by how easy it is to step into this baby and how sturdy and attentive it felt underfoot. We put it to the test on a hardpack day at Solitude,
11. Hydrapak SoftFlasks
Utah, and in sketchy couloirs in the Wasatch backcountry $500; genuineguidegear.com
16. Falke Longsleeve Zip High-end German brand Falke has recently entered the U.S. market with its ergonomic apparel, designed for high-intensity winter pursuits. We used this merino-and-polymide blend top for everything from skate skiing to backcountry touring to bowling after we were done. $195; falke.com
17. ColdPruf Classic Crew Sleek and warm, this 100-percent merino baselayer costs less than similar brands, but does the job just as well. It became our go-to layer in our alpine and backcountry kits. $64; coldpruf.com
18. Fly Low Compound 2.0 Yes, we get excited about pants. Especially, these pants. Built with Polartec’s waterproof and noticeably breathable NeoShell and designed with pockets in all the right places, they endured a full season of abuse. $450; flylowgear.com • january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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B A C K YA R D A D V E N T U R E
THE ROAD
Rest Your Life Devon O’Neil
Sure, skiing, climbing and biking might be the things that draw you to a mountain town, but play in a rec sports league and you can finally call the place home. by Devon O’Neil ooking back on my brief but transformative life in the mountains, there are many memories to consider when I try to pinpoint the to moment that truly held me here: The drive into town. The first powder run. The first rowdy night out. The first summit. However, while nature and adrenaline can draw you in, to stay in a mountain town you need to feel a sense of community. You must want to be part of that community. Or at least I did. My sense of community took root not on a peak or a trail but on a flat grassy field surrounded by, of all things in the American West, a chain-link fence. It was September 2003. I was 24 years old. One month prior, I had visited a physical therapy office at the Breckenridge Recreation Center. Rob, the therapist on duty, had watched me mope around the building for three months while I recovered from foot surgery. I sat on the table and we got to talking about our former lives as athletes. I told him I had played football and baseball in college. He mentioned a town flag-football league that was soon to start. “What position did you play in school?” he asked. Receiver, I told him. “We might need an extra guy,” he said. “You should come try out.” I laughed inside. Try out? For a rec sports team? I went, of course—I missed the idea of being on a team too much not to at least see how bad a ski-town flag-football league could be. When I got to the field inside the fence, I met my would-be teammates. There was Rick, a wide-eyed, thicknecked plumber from Detroit, smoking a cigarette on the sideline. Next to him stood Mike, his best friend and colleague, who, I would learn, weighed 170 pounds but played like 230. There was Pino, the shifty chairlift mechanic; Chip, the Harleyriding web developer; Smoke, the snow-removal contractor; Timmy, the 5-foot-7 carpenter who blitzed like a badger; Dave, the relentless door-andwindows wholesaler; and Todd, the fiery defense attorney/tight end. Off to the side stood Iggy, a
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21-year-old rabbit-quick tailback from Holyoke, Massachusetts. He and I soon learned we were the only ones trying out. We ran some patterns, caught some passes, juked a time or two in traffic. Eventually we split up and played an informal scrimmage. Iggy and I held our own, so at the end of the audition, Rob and Chip—who were both 10 to 15 years older— informed us we were on the team. They said it nonchalantly, like there had never been a question, but it felt good nonetheless. Our team was called Ullr’s Donkey Punch. (Ullr’s was the Main Street bar that sponsored us.) It wasn’t until our first game that I learned we were the two-time defending champs. We won that game easily, and the next game, and the next. Our only loss during the regular season was to a team called Grand Timber, our archrival and the last squad to win the league before our reign began. We met them again in the championship game. It was tied 23-23 when I went up for a pass in the end zone and tore a ligament in my big toe when I landed. But I caught the ball. We held on to win. I distinctly remember walking home from Ullr’s that night in my shorts and cleats. I lived three blocks up the hill, it was 18 degrees out, and my toe was injured badly enough that I wouldn’t be able to ski for two months. But I couldn’t have cared less. Winning with the crew we had, in a tight game, then raging at Ullr’s (the manager, Big Steve, served us lobster and New York strips) felt just as good as winning the conference championship my senior year in college. Which astounded me. I remember thinking that night that I could live in Breckenridge for the rest of my life. he next summer, Rob and Todd invited me to join their Thursday-night men’s softball team. This led to an opportunity with the premier team in the county, Summit Cable, on Wednesdays. Iggy played on that team, as did his brother Matty, who would join our football team
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that fall (sans tryout). In general, the rosters of various sports overlapped. People moved to and from the county, standard turnover for a mountain community. But for the most part you saw the same faces each season, year in and year out. I played on a basketball team for two winters as well, alongside Rick and Timmy. I hoisted bricks, but it was worth it just to watch my 6-foot-6 buddy Boffey, an ex-college center, tussle with a 50-something guy under the basket one night while chasing a meaningless rebound. That’s the thing about rec sports. They make you feel young again. You can jostle and scrap, dive for a deep pass, throw someone out at the plate—and feel the rush course through your body like an electric charge. It’s rad to ski the steep-and-deep and rip down alpine singletrack, too, but it’s not the same. I didn’t grow up in the mountains, I grew up playing team sports. I think that’s why competing for a common goal has always trumped solo contests for me. This is not to say rec sports don’t cross the line from time to time. After beating everyone in the league but Ullr’s Donkey Punch for five years, Grand Timber got a little chippy (they practiced and had plays drawn up on cards; we drank beers during the game, winged it on offense, and never practiced). One night during the regular season, a fight broke out between one of their guys and one of ours. It escalated into a brawl, and one of our guys ended up with a broken eye socket. From then on the cops showed up whenever we played Grand Timber. The Ullr’s Donkey Punch legend grew as we won our sixth straight title. The newspaper covered our games a couple of times a season, and Big Steve mounted a trophy case between the pool tables at Ullr’s. Our rallying cry was “K-Q-B!” in honor of a 6-foot-2, combat-boots-wearing lineman named Kelly Quinn Brennan—the heart and soul of the first Ullr’s championship team. KQB died in a ski accident two months later, in January 2002. Just as I took great satisfaction from winning,
Devon O’Neil
THE ROAD
Back on Top: Motherload Tavern, the 2014 Champs.
the end of our reign inflicted more emotional pain than I ever imagined rec sports could produce. We were playing a semifinal in five inches of November snow. Shortly after the game started, Iggy tried to cut and felt his knee explode. As he lay writhing on the ground, screaming, we all knew his ski season was over. The other team kept it closer than expected, then, on the last play of the game, they scored to tie the score with no time left. On their conversion attempt (no kicks allowed), their cocky quarterback narrowly eluded my grasp and darted into the end zone for the win. It took me a week to get over the loss. We came back to win the next year, but due to budget cuts, the town eliminated the league in 2009. I spent six weeks in Nepal that fall while a bunch of teammates drove over to play in Vail’s league, but they said it wasn’t the same. Too much chaos, not enough respect among teams. In the absence of football, I got more into our softball team. The heart of our crew is a frizzy-haired shortstop who goes by the name of Sideshow, sleeps outside, and moonlights as a sports bookie. For the past five years, we have been known as the Northside Crooks, represented by the classic sponsor combo of a bar and a defense attorney. We don’t win every game, but we win enough to keep the fire stoked, and one time we came back from 12 runs down in the final inning to beat the best team in the league. We scored our last eight runs with two outs. I left my car in town and took a taxi home that night. y the time I reached my mid-30s, I had made peace with the town’s decision to end my football career, and so had my aging body. But in 2013, in a surprise move, they brought the league back. It was six-on-six instead of the old seven-on-seven, but that didn’t matter. Soon enough group texts were flying around and we had a team again. Ullr’s had gone out of business (then been revived by a new owner in a new location), and most of our players had moved away or retired. Only three of us remained from the dynasty of the early 2000s: Pino, Smoke, and me. Among our new players was a state wrestling champion named Jake and the prize of the free-agent pool, Joe, the one-time starting quarterback at Ohio State. We steamrolled like the old days, outscoring our opponents something like 220-40 and finishing the regular season undefeated. Our run continued to the championship game, where a team we’d beaten earlier stunned us on a long touchdown pass with 23 seconds left. It was agony all over again. Worse, I tore my hamstring and couldn’t ski until December. This past fall, we recruited a few players and returned to right the wrong. After an inauspicious 1-2 start, we found our groove and more or less coasted to the title, winning 30-13 in the championship game. We hit the Motherloaded Tavern (our new sponsor) hard that night, noshing cheese fries and tater tots and highfiving across the bar. At some point, we determined that our average age was 33, by far the oldest in the league, and that our team contained seven current or former bartenders. Late that night, I saddled up next to Pino and Smoke and took stock. It was each of their eighth flag-football championships, counting the seven they won with Ullr’s, and my sixth. But as great as it felt, it also rang hollow not to be celebrating with our original squad. So I sent Rob and Chip a photo of us and wrote, “Thinking of you both.” Chip, by now 48 years old, replied: “Congrats boys. I can still run a 6.3-second 40-yard dash if you need a deep threat.” —Devon O’Neil is a staff writer for ESPN.com and a frequent contributor to Skiing and Outside magazines. His work can be viewed at devononeil.com. january-february 2015 • ElevationOutdoors.com
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RACE & EVENT GUIDE Stage Coach Classic - Devil’s Thumb Ranch Tabernash, CO | January 24, 2015 devilsthumbranch.com
Collegiate Peaks Trail Run Buena Vista, CO | May 2, 2015 collegiatepeakstrailrun.org
Howelsen 8 Miler 8M & 4M Trail - SSRS Steamboat Springs, CO | June 20, 2015 runningseries.com
Abominable Winter Obstacle Adventure - L2S Como, CO | January 31, 2015 abominablerun.com/adventure-run
Fear the Dear Trail 1/2 Marathon - L2S Littleton, CO | May 9, 2015 fearthedeer.co
Rocky Mountain Brew Runs - L2S Various Locations in CO | Starting July 2015 rockymountainbrewruns.com
Old Man Winter Bike Rally Boulder County, CO | February 8, 2015 oldmanwinterrally.com
Taos Lilac Festival 5k Taos, NM | May 17, 2015 taoslilacfestival.com
Mountain Madness 13.1M & 10k - SSRS Steamboat Springs, CO | July 4, 2015 runningseries.com
Moose Chase Nordic Ski Race Jackson Hole, Wyoming | February 14, 2015 jhskiclub.org/moosechase
Kaiser Permanente Colfax Marathon Denver, CO | May 17, 2015 runcolfax.org
Leadville Silver Rush 50 MTB - Life Time Athletics Leadville, CO | July 11, 2015 leadvilleraceseries.com
Jackson Town Downhill - Jackson Hole Ski & Snowboard Club Jackson Hole, Wyoming | March 14-15, 2015 jhskiclub.org/towndownhill
The Grand Junction Off-Road - Epic Rides Grand Junction, CO | May 29-31 2015 epicrides.com
Leadville Silver Rush 50 Run - Life Time Athletics Leadville, CO | July 12, 2015 leadvilleraceseries.com
Ben Myers Ridge-A-Thon Taos Ski Valley, NM | March 20-21, 2015 raisetheridge.com
Ragnar Trail Snowmass - CO Snowmass Resort | June 5-6, 2015 ragnartrail.com/locations/snowmass-co
Summit Challenge Trail Run Arapahoe Basin, CO | July 26, 2015 arapahoebasin.com
Alpenglow Ascents Rando Challenge Arapahoe Basin, CO | March 21, 2015 arapahoebasin.com
Steamboat Marathon Full, Half, 10k - SSRS Steamboat Springs, CO | June 7, 2015 runningseries.com
Colorado-Eagle - River Ride - SOS Outreach Vail Valley, CO | July 26 2015 sosoutreach.org
Pole Pedal Paddle - Jackson Hole Ski & Snowboard Club Jackson Hole, Wyoming | March 28, 2015 jhskiclub.org/polepedalpaddle
FIBArk – America’s Oldest Whitewater Festival Salida, CO | June 18-21, 2015 fibark.com
Gran Fondo Taos, NM | August 1, 2015 taossports.com
The Whiskey Off-Road - Epic Rides Prescott, AZ | April 24-26 2015 epicrides.com
Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back Logan to Midway, UT | June 19-20, 2015 ragnarrelay.com/race/wasatchback
Ragnar Relay Colorado Copper Mountain to Aspen/Snowmass | August 7-8, 2015 ragnarrelay.com/race/Colorado
Crested Butte Pole Pedal Paddle Crested Butte, CO | April 26, 2015 crestedbutte3p.com
Leadville Trail Marathon & Heavy Half - Life Time Athletics Leadville, CO | June 20, 2015 leadvilleraceseries.com
Tour of the White Mountains - Epic Rides Lakeside, AZ | October 3, 2015 epicrides.com
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Point-to-Point XC Ski Race & Snowshoe Tour Devil’s Thumb Ranch to Winter Park January 24th, 2015 Trek from Devil’s Thumb Ranch to downtown Winter Park through the original Idlewild Ski Area. Traverse 15km or 30km of groomed trails through private and Forest Service land that is only accessible for the Stagecoach Classic. Entry fee includes commemorative pint glass and after-party with live music and beer tent. Reserve your room now at Devil’s Thumb Ranch or Vasquez Creek Inn in Winter Park. Race t-shirts and posters available at www.devilsthumbranch.com. A portion of the proceeds benefits Trout Unlimited. Register online at www.stagecoachclassic.com or 970-726-8231
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FRONT RANGE LIFE
ELWAYVILLE
The Beauty of the Turn Who cares exactly how you get down the hill? let's just praise the joy of every kind of freeriding. by PETER KRAY I caught a lot of grief for a column I wrote about the trouble snowboarding faced (and is still facing) here three years ago. Only because I thought too much of the media surrounding it was selling attitude, and not the timeless backside blasting beauty of an actual snowboard turn—like in deep powder when you carve up that curtain of snow then dive back through it, like a superhero leaving a vapor trail as he soars off the ground.
Kevin Howdeshell / kevincredible.com
t’s always interesting to me that some people want to draw a line or create a difference between the many ways in which they enjoy a snow-covered mountain. They're skiers, they say, if they get a thrill from the cold, clear click of a locked-heel binding. Or free-heelers, if they love the long elegance of a waltzing turn. Or boarders, if they think the snow is a frozen wave to surf. Then they migrate off together in little fast-moving tribes. Which is fine, and healthy and fun as hell... both utterly overflowing with and yet still completely devoid of meaning. Or as the great Mohawked master of big mountain skiing, Glen Plake, once said of lapping chairlifts, “It’s the best way I know of wasting time.” The problem is when one or another of those blissed-out powder pilots starts to chain their preferred mode of descent with all the potential prejudices and trappings of a religion. As if the way they make a turn described the very difference between being a Buddhist, an atheist or a Christian. And worse, that there might be an actual hierarchy or ranking system when it comes to religions, or in this case, the way you make a turn. Seriously, why? Or better yet, how could it possibly matter which way you prefer to enjoy your on-slope time? Sure I get that some people
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think alpine skiers are uptight, snowboarders are saggy-pantsed slackers and telemark skiers are just passive aggressive hippies who want everyone to know how hard they’re working. But as much as I respect everyone’s individuality, I prefer to just lump them into one happy community of gackedout gravity hounds, freeriding down the line. Because that's what matters more than any kind of equipment you choose for sliding—that you are free, and you are riding and that your only reason for doing so is because it’s just so much freaking fun. With the celebration of every kind of freeriding in mind, here’s a little bit of praise for every kind of turn. Snowboarding Alongside mountain biking, snowboarding may be the single greatest action sports innovation most of us will have the pleasure to experience in our lifetime. For a land-locked Colorado kid with limited skateboarding skills, it still lets me feel like I’m surfing, albeit on a giant frozen ocean. And from fat boards to halfpipes and terrain parks to rockered tips and a whole new adrenalized rush of new snowsports participants it absolutely re-energized the time-trapped sport of skiing. (Thank you snowboarding).
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Telemark Skiing When news broke this fall that Black Diamond Equipment was shuttering its telemark boot production, it was greeted with a blaring echo of “Free-Heel is Dead!” headlines. But to quote the mythic American skier Tack Strau, “Skiing is made of gravity and speed. It’s dying all the time.” And to be honest, people have been trumpeting tele’s demise for at least the past 10 seasons. Lots of folks I know say they left tele because alpine touring equipment got so much better (it did!) and they no longer “had” to make a tele turn. But I didn’t start telemarking to access the backcountry. I got into free-heel because my local hill was having a crappy season, and learning something new seemed like a great way to enjoy the limited terrain. I’ve stayed with it—mostly in the hardpack days of early season, or arcing slush under a warm spring sun—because I love that feeling of stepping from turn to turn, gripping an uphill edge with your pinkie toe, and two-planking down the mountain. Tele has never been about the uphill for me. It’s more about stair-casing the steeps and the fact that tele is the only way you can ever carve more than 300 screaming centimeters of effective edge at any time. Alpine Skiing Whenever I alpine ski after a day on my telemark boards, I feel like I’m strapping on the seatbelts in a sports car after touring around in a VW van. There is a level of control on alpine skis, of on-snow authority and pure rocket board speed that, personally, I just can’t find in other kind of sliding. Anytime there’s more than a couple inches of fresh snow, or I’m going to a place I’ve never before, I instinctively put my alpine skis on the roof rack, because I know that’s what I’m most confident on. My brother likes to say that when it comes to skiers, “there are drivers, and there are riders.” He’s a driver, meticulous and technically proficient, steering every turn. I’m a rider, standing on my skis and watching the world pass by. If you are too, then come on along. There’s room for everyone. Elevation Outdoors editor-at-large Peter Kray is the author of The God of Skiing. More than 10 years in the making, the book has been called “The greatest ski novel ever written.” Buy it at mirabooksmart.com
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