Chasing the High

Etched in the heart of every skier is an artist dying to lay brush strokes on the untouched canvas of powder that their soul is in constant pursuit of. Skiers are taught from a very young age that there are “No friends on a powder day.” It is our creed. We will spend our lives sniffing out untracked snow, endlessly and tirelessly pursuing our “white whale.” Powder is our priority.

Honestly and truly there is no greater high than floating through the untracked powder. When the snow is so deep that your smile gets frozen to your face. The moves are effortless, the snow reads your thoughts and you dance, following the mountain’s lead.

It is the adrenaline of cocaine without the come down. The wonder of acid without the low. The pure elation of ecstasy, and just as addictive.

See, that is the catch. This drug is so addictive people will do anything to chase its high. They will put themselves and others at risk seeing out more and more and more. No amount t of turns is enough. No trail is empty enough, no snow is deep enough. Once we get our fill, we constantly seek out our next bump, the next hit, the next best high. The endless pursuit of powder is clouding our perspective.

No more are we willing to settle for a few good turns, groomers are too easy, moguls are too much work, trees are too cramped, and it goes on and on and on. If it isn’t neck deep and untracked we don’t want it. We are powder addicts, and none of our other usual drugs can satisfy our high.

We are all consumed seeking perfect Warren Miller moments, chasing our powder high and it is causing us to neglect, ignore, and marginalize all the moments that made us fall in love with this sport to begin with.

“We need to understand the joy of the sport itself, not the snow conditions.” -Glen Plake