Paydirt...


The Vertical Integration crew found some goods out there amongst the bushes and rocks. Alta had some sweets in the trees for those who wanted to work for it. Jon Gurry and I hooked up with Ben Geiger and we went out and zeroed in on the pow. It is still pretty scetchy out with snakes lying just below the surface around the next turn. Ben took a good one right on top of the knee for some reconsideration as to whether he should be wearing knee pads. We all agreed that would have been a wiser move as we all tapped our knee pads with our ski poles. Hell, I was in full impact gear. No major harm though, just a flesh/ego wound. It is starting to look a lot like christmas finally. Snow is getting more regular, and the local bases are starting to accumulate. A little scetchy out in the Snowbasin backcountry right now up high in the northy's due to a weak layer from some stale old stuff below the new dump. We saw a couple of inches of windload on top as well. Just make note. We hit up some low angle trees in the Jungle for some paydirt. $$$$.

Snow, finally...


It has dumped here in Utah. We have recieved like two feet of snow. However, two feet on nothing is not enough to ski much. We are still skiing the man made trails at the resorts and a few grassy openings here and there. Pretty thin out there still. I am feeling better though cause it looks and feels like winter finally. The pic is a little view from my kitchen. Looks all good to me. My two girls are checking out the new freshies and itching to get out in it. Christine's only gripe was that she couldn't take out here new fat skis yet cause we are still just runnin groomers. Soon... soon enough. Murphy the little golden pup was slaying it up out in the front yard in the new untracked snow. She turn farmed up the patch between the two sidewalks, very nice work. In new ski news, Zach Houston, Jon Gurry, and I have all recently been picked up by Alta ski resort here in SLC. We will be filming a part of a "Utah" segment there with our buddy Dylan Crossman and others for the new TGP project for next fall. The "HarmLess" television show will be broadcasting in January on RSN, insiders should be able to check it out at the OR Tradeshow in SLC as well. We've got some big plans for our nonprofit organization, Vertical Integration, and I am stoked to see this idea taking on a life of it's own. Some new trips coming up include Austria with the Ydream Productions boys, and Alaska with the TGP crew and for the World Championships at Alyeska. Also, we are planning short "dump run" trips to areas like Jackson, Tahoe, Mt. Baker, or where ever it is "dumping". The free flight pass is the sickest perk in the world. Gurry and our ski buddy Wes are now working at Delta too so we have even more participants. All is well, Christine and I are heading down to Phoenix for a couple days to hang with some old bros, Ryan and Bryan. Should be a good time. Cheers to new snow and busy bees.

Nothing new, just thinkin on it

I was just staring at the mountainscape to the west of Terminal C at the Salt Lake International Airport while I work, and the sun goes down to my back. The new snow is gorgeous and it makes me tingle to think ahead on all the lines. I have been getting really frustrated with the ski industry politics, movies, segments, movers and shakers, aligning and scheming, and all the other bullshit that goes along with this profession I have chosen. I don't get paid enough for all this peripheral crap. However, as I stare off and dream about what matters, the skiing, I am comforted by thoughts of why I still slave for pennies. It is, the skiing, that keeps me coming back. Lord knows it is not the money or the glory. TJ Burke said it best in the old skiing classic "Aspen Extreme" when he said, "skiing is the easy part, Carl." It really is the truth though. I get so downhearted and defeatest sometimes, but every once in a while I have a moment like today when I remember what it is really all about, again, THE SKIING. All I really want to do is evolve the sport and push my limits to new heights, but other factors always have a way of making that more difficult than it has to be. I am going to come away from all of this with that concept engrained in my mind, THE SKIING, THE SKIING, THE SKIING, and THE SKIING.

Back in action


I know, I know, it has been a longtime since I last posted. In my defense, I had a lot of technical difficulties for a while. Me and my little dog Murphy are hanging out here and I figured I should get this thing dialed back in for the winter. Nobody really wants to hear about working two jobs everyday anyway. The new Lipstick Films movie, "Since We Last Spoke" is out on the market now. You can peep the goods at www.liptick-films.com. Cody Smith and Josh Madsen did a killer job on the flick and it is a lot of fun to watch. I didn't get the best luck with weather on the trips I took with them last season, but this winter we will try again. Check out the site. Also, we have had some snow fall out here. Just a teaser though. Vertical Integration is moving right along with our Utah segment with TGP and their new release "HarmLess" due out around Thanksgiving. You will be able pick up the DVD at www.toughguyproductions.com around then, and catch it on the Resort Sports Network (RSN) this winter starting in January. We are bringing a premiere to Salt Lake and Ogden some time around the first weekend of December. If your are in Europe or going there this winter keep your eye out for the Cinema Tour of Extreme Sports. Vertical Integration teamed up with Ydream Productions out of Austria for the short edit they are doing for the tour. We are planning and really looking forward to our trip over there this winter to do some shooting on their side of the pond. That sums up the latest and greatest, I guess. You can look forward more posts now that I a back on top of this new age computer wi-fi stuff.

Another acquisition...

So my ski sponsor Karhu skis was not so recently acquired by Line skis a couple years ago. Then, just this season K2 purchased both Line and Karhu skis. Now, Jarden Corporation has just purchased K2 this week. Apparently, the majority owner of Jarden is a adrenaline junkie ironman stud who has also recently acquired Coleman. Looks good for us in the adrenaline industry so cheers, I guess. Karhu is rumored to be safe as well as Line and K2 skis, but who knows anymore. I just hope Karhu keeps rolling out the best telemark skis in the industry and I get to keep ripping them up as they come off the press. So far so good. Another acquisition, but all is well... as far as I know.

Looking forward...

I am currently looking forward to summer. I am trying to get over to New Zealand this summer to visit my bro Chris Erickson who is living down there now. VI is planning a film trip to capture all the madness. The last VI trip resulted in a series of inverted cliff hucks for over 80 feet. Crazy cats. I dig though. Something takes us over in times like these and pure madness insues. On the darker side though I am trying to get back to Wisco this week to visit my grandpa who had some emergency surgery this week. Feeling bad for him, but he is a tough pizano and he is pulling through. Send out some love to Papa Don so he has a quick recovery.

Technical difficulties...

I have been having some technical difficulties these days with my internet as well as this weblog. My username and password would not work for the longest time. It was a real pain in my ass. It has been some time since I last posted as a result of this bullshit. A lot has gone down and I am stoked to tell about it. I have been back for about a week now. I was gone for about three weeks. First, I flew up to Alaska with Stephane Riendeau and Kevin Klein for a Karhu heli trip in Valdez. It was off the hook. I was skiing with Ryan Boyer, Jamie Parks, Sarah Clemenson, Andrew McGary, and Eric Henderson was our esteemed guide. That place is something else. This was my first time in AK, first time in a heli, and Rachel Jines bought me my first taste of king crab. Tasty, tasty all of it. After I skied my last line in AK I jumped back in the heli and cruised it down to the airport where I jumped a series of flights over to Innsbruck, Austria for a tele-cross race. Dylan Crossman and I represented the United States in the World Championship race and of course, our luggage did not show up in time. We did the race in rental gear, street clothes, and sunglasses. It was pretty funny to see, but we did our best with what we had. I made it to the second heat of the finals, but no further. We partied like rockstars with the international cast of skiers and saw a couple of nice sunrises as a result. The folks were great, and the bar was on fire, literally. They actually started the entire circular bar on fire with lighter fluid during a remix of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire". It was pretty sweet, you don't see that in the States. Then back to Utah where the season is finished and the summer working season has begun. Back to Geiger & Wood Stone Masonry and also my night job at Delta. Work, work, work is the name of the game now so that I can pay off the credit card debt I have incurred over the winter. It was a good one to say the least. The snow in Utah did not cooperate, but we still got it done. Look for the action from this year in next season's releases from Tough Guy Productions, Lipstick films, and Summit Side Productions. Vertical Integration is trying to get over to New Zealand this summer for some extra madness, but we will see if we can pull it off. Stoked on the winter, ready for summer.

Ramblin' man


Here is a shot from our Cedar City trip back in late January. I have not been able to post for a while cause I have been a ramblin' soul for the last month. My girlfriend has forgotten what I look like, my dog has lost my scent, and my travel ski bag is worn through. I was in Jackson Hole for a week with the Lipstick Films crew. We shot a lot of storm footage cause it never stopped snowing the whole week I was there. I have some more work to do with them to get some more variety of shots. The following week the Vertical Integration crew flew up to Seattle and spent the week at Mt. Baker. Baker was skiing three feet deep and we caught some bluebirds. The place was going off, and Zach Houston threw an 80 foot backflip for the crowds that gathered above chair 8 to watch all the carnage. The locals were throwing it down too. I had to go up and throw my own 100 foot lawn dart front flip to try to one up my partner, but instead I exploded my new boots. Scarpa wanted me to test the limits of their gear and I guess that about 95 feet is the limit. Good to know. I've got some replacements on the way to try again. Since then it has been going off in Utah and we are getting a bunch of good powder shots. The avalanche danger is really high right now so we are buying our time until we can get up to the higher bowls and backcountry classics. The big lines are finally setting up and we are drooling all over ourselves waiting for the slide danger to come down so we can get out and kill it. The powder shots are sweetness though. I can't complain.

New Sponsor!!!!


I am stoked to announce my new partnership with Scarpa North America. Scarpa is the leading telemark boot manufacturer, and I am so fired up to finally be a part of the stellar cast of athletes that represent Scarpa. I've added them to my links page so you can check out their new gear. I talked to Scarpa's Chris Clark at the end of the day on the last day of the OR Tradeshow and he was quick to sign me up for their boots. Apparently he had heard some good words about me from some influential folks in the industry, which made it a lot easier for him to give me the nod. I am glad he did. So I'll raise a glass to my new partnership and I look forward to producing for Scarpa as I have for the rest of my sponsors. Now I am set up with the stiffest burliest boots in the industry, the most rigid bindings in the industry, and the fattest big mountain skis in the industry, so I guess I have no excuses now. Time to go out and show everyone how hard this gear rips. Cheers.

Deep breath....

I've been on the road and under the gun for the last couple of weeks. Vertical Integration has been hard at work to finish up shooting for the TGP television show "Open Windows". Also we just got back from a trip we took to Cedar City and on to Las Vegas for the SIA tradeshow. I will put up some pics of our latest adventures once Gurry sends them to me. The red rocks of southern Utah make for quite the backdrop in our film and photos. We are stoked on the potential of the area once they get some more snow. We will definitely be going back. Trevor and Ryan from Brianhead ski patrol showed us the goods and we got some tips from my buddy Spencer Porter who used to be a local down there. Tons of potential there. We kicked it at Pizano's Pizza at the base and rapped with the owner about the sweets in the area over a nice pitcher of Wasatch Evolution. Stoked to get back down there later in the year. Gurry partnered up with Fortress Eyewear to help them market their new Kreed goggles while we were at SIA. I am excited to see the new material he can put together for them. Back in SLC now for the OR tradeshow this weekend. Stoked to see everyone in town. Here's to it.

Shoot shoot shoot......


The name of the game now is to shoot and shoot and shoot everyday. The Vertical Integration crew has been shooting mad amounts of footage and stills. Vertical Integration is what we have come to call the consortium of rippers that are multi-talented people in many different aspects of the industry. The crew includes athletes Ben Geiger, Zach Houston, Jon Gurry, and myself. Gurry is a top-notch published photographer and Freeheel ripper. Geiger, Houston, and myself are filmers with footage appearing in ski movies, commericials, and television shows. We have all come together to gather as much material as possible by integrating the different avenues of the industry into one to achieve common goals. The VI crew is pooling talented athletes, resources, equipment, and networks together to build one joint production force. We are involved in projects with Tough Guy Productions, Lipstick Films, Freeheellife.com, and a variety of other companies including Descente, DNA, Parks Sportsmen, and Ogden city, Utah. So far so good as we are getting it done even with the low snowpack we have been experiencing here in Northern Utah. It is tough going right now, but we are finding the goods out there.