We were competitive as brothers, always trying to one up each other. As brothers do. We would climb up snowy hills and huck ourselves off 40-foot cliffs, yelling "Fuck it!”. This was the motto. You stand on top of a crazy feature that is WAY bigger than you want to jump off, and you yell "Fuck it!”. Then you jump.
CHAPTER ONE: THE DREAM
I grew up on this motto and it shaped me in many ways. It taught me to believe that if you do something daring you will be rewarded. And this proved to be true. For some time.
Our father was the first to notice the danger in all of this. On one occasion he was asked to hold a camera while we played out this regular, daredevil, routine. He suffered through no more than half a day—watching his kids clear rocks by the thread of a hair. He was ‘over it’ as the industry saying goes. But we weren’t. Not even close.
Having a ski hill 30 minutes away made it hard to keep us from the slopes. And having the bulk of Colorado’s best mountains within a two-hour drive made it all but impossible. We were chasing the dream.
I would soon switch to snowboarding, while our oldest brother, Jeff, picked up telemark skiing (a form of skiing similar to cross-country yet more fit for downhill). Zack, the middle brother, stuck to Alpine skis and just got really, really good. He pushed us all to the next level in both the terrain park and the big mountains—which is where this story leads.
We always knew that backcountry skiing had a number of risks, particularly avalanches. Our father used to go on hut trips and he would bring all the safety gear: transceiver, probe and shovel. He had taught us about this. But nothing can teach you like first-hand experience.
My first experience with an avalanche was indirect—I was a thousand miles away when it happened—but it would come home to affect me in a big way. My brothers lost a friend. A friend who had moved to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to work as a ski patroller. He was living the dream! Allen Wagner. I saw his sister looking at the photos of her lost brother. I will never forget that moment. It could have been one of my brothers.
Bu hikaye Adventure Magazine dergisinin April - May 2019 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Adventure Magazine dergisinin April - May 2019 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Papua New Guinea
Four reasons to add Papua New Guinea to your bucket list
The benefits of being a Multi-Trick Pony
"A broad skill base and how you can draw from one platform to the next – women often pigeon hole themselves"
The RELUCTANT adventurer
An eighteen-year-old princess, who paints his (yes, his) nails and dyes his hair bleach blonde, embarking on an adventure trip with his family, sounds like a plot for a bad 80s movie.
The Meaning of Tramping
What does tramping mean to you?
Keala Kennelly owns Red Bull Magnitude
The North Shore season of 1957 is recognized in the surfing world as the start of an era. When Greg Noll, a young Mickey Munoz and company went out and rode Waimea for the first time, it was a glimpse of what could be in the world of big-wave surfing.
North West Circuit Stewart Island
I found myself in limbo during the winter of 2020, in between jobs in a strained covid economy. And so, I did what any outdoors person would do with a large amount of free time on their hands. It was time to pack up my belongings and hit the road. It was time to leave behind home comforts and go adventure-seeking.
Emilie's adventure to Angelus Hut
“I want to be the leader!” Miss Six announced, pushing past me in her determination to be in front. Momentarily off-balance with my heavy pack, I narrowly avoided twisting an ankle on the sharp rocks and silently swore while cracking a bright smile.
Nancy Jiang Breaking stereotypes
I recently watched a youtube movie entitled, “Her Way” (check it out on the Adventure Website) which introduced a woman who had an overwhelming passion for running. The preface at the bottom of the clip, read as follows:
Adversity at Altitude
The wind and snow is whipping at my face. I’ve readjusted the stiff frozen fleece buff around my neck and mouth, desperately trying to protect myself from the -20 degree bitter wind. Adrenaline is still pumping through my body but I know I’ll start to get cold soon.
Last Great Mountaineering Challenge
Ground-breaking mountaineer Nirmal ‘Nims’ Purja MBE has attained an incredible new world record by submitting K2 as part of a collaborative team in the depths of winter. Until now, it was a record that was believed to be impossible to accomplish and was famously known as the ‘last great mountaineering challenge’.
