Early Season Rituals

It’s funny how the flow of boating season and the ski season are so much different from each other.  Boating starts off the couch with high water radness right out of the gates.  Once those warm temps hit, all of the rivers around the state start to run all at once and some of them will be raging with whitewater.  Boaters begin scrambling to check off new rivers and also get on their favorite sections before the flows start to taper off.  Then only the bigger drainages will have water for mid-Summer paddling, and eventually all will be dried up to low flows.  Luckily, we do get a few late season releases in Gore Canyon and Bailey which keep the stoke alive a little longer.

On the other hand, ski season typically starts off slowly with intermittent storms that gradually build up a decent snowpack.  Snowmaking helps a little, but for backcountry enthusiasts we have to learn to be patient and wait for our favorite lines to fill in.  And it can be SO tempting to just get out there and fire it up after those first couple of storms, but we all know those turns just aren’t the same as they are after a good and stable base develops under a deep storm layer.  It’s hard to hold back and wait, but I know it’s for the best.  Here are a few things you can do to prepare for the season and fuel your need to get out and shred!

Videos – I am a bit of a dork and still like to keep a library of my favorite videos.  Some of them are old classics that remind me of my younger days on a snowboard.  But I also like to check out the latest bangers to see where the sport has progressed.  One of my favorite new clips of the season is from the Red Bull / Burton collab called Paved.  The opening clip features big name riders ripping some insane Alaskan lines with a heater song from the band Hum.  I highly recommend watching this to get yourself hyped for steep pow lines.

Recon – Now is a great time to get out there and start poking around your local zone.  See how your favorite lines are filling in, and also how the snowpack structure is shaping up.  Also a great time to start looking at some new objectives for the season.  You can start by studying maps for a while and then get out there and scope the approach.  This will set you up for success when the time actually comes to send it and it’s a great way to start getting in shape for future tours.

Rescue Practice – We all know that we should be doing this, but ARE YOU..?  Now is the time to get out there with your crew and at the very least get the gear out.  Make sure it’s still in working order and you can assemble it all quickly in case of an emergency.  And of course, a few beacon drills are necessary to remember what all those beeps and numbers mean.  You could also take an Avalanche Rescue Course in order to learn about the current best practices in the industry.

Enjoy all of those early season rituals – we will all be crushing deep lines with our homies real soon!