Mr / He / Slayer of all 

Golden, CO

Golden, CO

Owner of Weston, Wearer of Many Hats

AIARE Rec 2

The first time I remember that I couldn't sleep was the annual family ski trip. We didn't have much financially so we rented everything and could only afford one day trip. It wasn't until I was a teenager and started working that I could finally afford to buy a 2nd hand SIMS and remember snowboarding in my Sorrels when I started. I would go ride in the backcountry because I couldn't afford a pass every time but I wanted to ride as often as my older friends would take me. 

When my brother was old enough to drive we bought season passes to Loveland (cheapest pass at the time) and I would still frequent the backcountry to shred logs, build jumps, and hitch hike for quick laps. One day, it was nuking out and the jump line needed to be re packed so I decided to just hike over to these tree's I had been looking at from the car. It was the first time I floated in the deep pow and I've been hunting for that high ever since. 

Best day is doing snowmobile accessed to some big mountains with friends. The avalanche danger is low, the temps are cold, the powder is still deep, the wind is not existent, and the sky is clear. Our objective is a 2000ft+ couloir with huge walls on each side. 

The crew I can trust with my life and are experienced riding sleds, experienced with being in Colorado's avalanche terrain, and I know they can handle the terrain we are about to hike up and put a line down. 

We've discussed our plans the night before, came up with a plan A, B, C and predict the forecast for the following day. We confirm the forecast. Gas up, gear up, and head out. Everyone's sleds fire up no problem. We do our beacon checks, discuss what gear we all have, and throttle out. 

No one gets their sled stuck on the way to the start of the skin. We discuss our approach, identify risks, and mitigation strategies and start stomping snow. The views at the top of the line are vast. Taking in my summit zen and thanking Mother Nature for my life and to experience this moment. I eat my summit fruit snacks and we transition. 

Everyone drops safely and all we see is clouds of smokey pow and hooting as each person drops to the next safe zone. We leap frog down the couloir and party down the apron back to the sleds. Pounds all round and looking up at awe at the incredible line we just slayed. 

A humbling day in the backcountry is when nothing goes as planned and we just have to love being in nature. Getting sleds stuck, people getting injured, avalanches, people getting separated, etc all make us appreciate the good days when none of these occur. 

There is a saying that any day in the mountains is good day and this can not be more true. Problems always occur and I can not think of many days that I have had a perfect day. Something is always going come up and it is very rare that we have everything aligned. 

When everyone makes it back to the car alive and safe is a good day in the backcountry. This is always my goal. Having fun and riding pow are always secondary blessings. The backcountry always requires humility. 

I first started as a shop employee with Weston before becoming the owner. I remember vividly, the first time I walked into the shop in Minturn, there was a 1979 Tucker Snocat parked out front. When I walked into the shop, there was a sign that said "Go Forth and Slay Pow."  I wondered the shop that had a beautiful line up of boards and a backcountry shop that had my eyes wide as a kid in a candy shop. I know this I where I wanted be for the foreseeable future. 

Backwoods Carbon 157 Split, Backwoods 152 Wide, Logger 152, Great White 166

Goofy, slightly wide, +12 / -3

My wife