The Year from my iPhone

I know the year's not over yet, but I was looking through my iPhone and noticed there were so many awesome photos, 400 to be exact, and I haven't shared hardly any of them. I got my newest iPhone this past summer, so I thought I'd share some of my favorites starting from then, until now. (You can click any of the pictures for a larger view.)

My two dogs, Dillon and Dan. Dillon (top) is a 1-year-old Golden Doodle Pug, and Dan is (7 in this pic), but now an 8-year-old Yellow Lab.

The staff dock at one of my favorite places in the world: Lake Owen Camp in Northern Wisconsin.

My first tattoo. Fibromyalgia awareness.

Another one of my favorite places. Our family's summer house on Minocqua Lake in Northern Wisconsin.

Where I spent a lot of my summer. Copper Mountain, Colorado.

I took a bike ride to the Frisco Marina before a storm rolled in.

Clinton's Gulch, a short drive from Copper Mountain.

One of my favorite views. Copper Mountain on the right.

Colorado Mountain College on the left with Baldy Mountain in the distance.

A rainbow from the patio of Colorado Mountain College.

The sky chutes, taken from Copper Mountain, Colorado. Can you see the word "sky"? You're looking at the backside of Breck. I heard it's illegal, but in the winter you can see tracks where people rode down them.

My friends longboarding on Boreas Pass Rd. I would follow them down the entire mountain, at the bottom they'd all pile in my SUV and we'd drive back up. We'd do this all day long...

The mountains looked so majestic when the smoke from the California wildfires moved in.

My friends getting ready to jump in at Green Mountain Reservoir.

Taking my roommate's dog Chaco for a walk on Baldy Mountain.

HAHA! My friend Rachel in business class. How does THIS happen?!

When my friends Paul, George, Tony, and Mark moved into their place they didn't have a lot of furniture. Here's Paul getting comfortable in a storage bin.

Fall starting to arrive in Copper Mountain.

Mother nature does beautiful things. Can you believe this is real?

My friend Jason parked his car outside a party not realizing his front right tire was not on the ground. He came outside to his car rolled into a tree, luckily it was completely unscathed. Everyone thought it was so funny we moved the party outside.

The hallway leading into a friends house. 5 people live here... so do 30 pairs of skis.

I didn't want to forget the date of our first snow storm.

My 2nd tattoo, which is just as meaningful as my 1st. This way I will always have a piece of winter with me!

My friend Paul fell backwards into a tree that was full of snow. It's the tree directly behind him that no longer has snow on it... Hmmm, I wonder where it all went?

My friend Ashley's car broke down in Silverthorne, Colorado. She lives in Park City, Utah. It's okay, I rescured her... and Taxi'd her.

My roommate Raven feeling mighty sleepy while getting ready for surgery on her broken wrist.

Rachel, I, and CJ having some fun in the gondola at Breck.

My roommates twin brother, Ryan, is a deep sea diver. We bought him this costume hat and he wore it the entire night while he cooked us dinner. To say the least, it fit perfect.

My friend Blake had an Audi. Had an Audi. He popped his tire and was too lazy to get it fixed so it ended up getting towed. I guess that's what happens when you're a lazy ski bum who can walk anywhere, including the mountain. He didn't care, he just hoped the towhees had fun digging it out.

My Romanian friend Alex took me to an Indian buffet restaurant and made me try EVERYTHING (not kidding). I've never tasted anything like any of it in my entire life.

No one really rides through the park at 8:30am, haha!

My friend Jason getting ready to drop a small cliff on a double black diamond run on Breckenridge. This picture does not do justice how gnarly that run was. It was an amazing powder day, and one of the most memorable riding days of the season.

The morning after a big snow fall from my deck.

One of the many hidden forts throughout the trees on Breck. It is terrifying climbing the ladder up to this thing in ski boots. I'm a chicken and take them off on the way back down. It takes a lot of skill to get them back on when you're on the last step without putting your feet on the snowy ground. HAHA!

I installed blue lights in my new X-Terra.

Me and a bunch of close friends hanging out on top of another one of the many hidden forts.

Me and my friends having a late backyard session.

Going through one of my favorite tree runs on peak 9 on a powder day.

Early morning at X Games in Aspen.

Glenwood Springs Canyon on the way back from Aspen. Just this morning a massive rock slide destroyed this part of the road. It's expected to be closed for months.

We snuck my friends dog, Tibby, into Northside, a restaurant we regularly hang out at. What? She likes to hang out, too!

After doing this blog, I can honestly say I am extremely blessed to lead this life. I am loving every single second of my college experience, and will never forget any of these moments. These are truly the best days of my life... and I thank God for that!

Spring is in the Air!

It's been really warm the last few days. It's weird to think there is only a month and a half left in the season. This year went by incredibly fast... and honestly I really don't want it to end. It has been more than I could have ever asked it to be. I love CMC, my friends, my town, my mountain... I haven't quite decided what I'm going to do this summer. I have two knee surgeries, so whatever it is, it will be low key.

I have already begun thinking about next year and what I want to do. I'm really looking forward to taking a snow-cat driving class at Leadville, though I will be taking the rest of my classes at Breckenridge again. I'm also excited that CMC is going to become a 4 year college, because I can't see myself living anywhere else.

If anyone has any job recommendations in the Summit County area, send them my way... I have to pay the rent somehow!

Life is Precious!

My 5 year-old second cousin, Robert, had a lump on his back surgically removed last week. Earlier this week we found out that it was cancerous, and he's going to be having surgery again to have more cancerous tissue removed. He has always been such a healthy and athletic little boy who's been raised by phenomenal parents, so it was shocking news.

Two days ago a 26 year-old ski legend, CR Johnson, was killed while skiing at his home mountain, Squaw Valley. He caught his edge on some rocks while jumping off a cliff and tumbled straight to his head and neck. CR sustained a brain injury back in 2005 that was thought to be a career ender, but he had an amazing comeback. He is said to be one of the most influential skiers to ever live, and has the record of being the first person to land a 1440, when he was just 17 years old. I would say that the odds of two severe brain injuries is what shocked everyone the most, but with the recent accident of Kevin Pearce, I can't say that is so.

No one can ever see accidents or illnesses coming. No matter how much you try to stay healthy or safe, there is still so much we don't have control over. I have always had a very strong belief that there is a reason for everything. Sometimes it's hard to believe that because you can't help but wonder why God would want such a thing to happen. But I believe that out of every tragic event something positive will happen. I try my best to take nothing for granted. I wake up every morning to a priceless view of Breckenridge Ski Resort. I get to ski almost everyday, go to school in the evenings, and be surrounded by so many incredible people. Everyday I wake up appreciating my life, family, and friends as much as I can. I am praying for a healthy recovery for Robert. And for his poor parents who are under some incredible stress. Even with the stress, they have continued to go above and beyond parenting. I am also praying for the Johnson family and close friends of CR. It's always tragic to see such young talent die so soon, especially after a triumphant recovery. But I know CR is up there shredding mad deep powder.

Hong Kong = Country, Not City

As I was watching the Olympic Opening Ceremony the other night it struck me as very odd that Hong Kong was introduced completely separate from China, so I did a little research. Turns out it's not a city like I thought it was...

Until 1997, Hong Kong was actually a colony of the United Kingdom that was ruled by a governor. Hong Kong is now a Special Administrative Region (SAR). Though it is a part of China, it still has it's own currency, legal system, and parliamentary system for the next 50 years. The Hong Kong dollar is not accepted in the rest of China, and the Chinese Reminibi is not accepted in Hong Kong. That being said, it is currently it's own country.

I couldn't find a picture from the Opening Ceremony, but here's one of Hong Kong walking in the Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony in 2008.

Mother Nature Sharing the Love!

Happy Valentine's Day! 
These pictures were taken by Breckenridge Ski Resort today. How ironic we get our first real pow day on Valentine's Day! I guess Mother Nature finally decided to share the love!

 

  

  

 

Mission Possible

It was a cold and windy day today on the mountain. It wasn't crowded, but there was as an abnormally large amount of tourists for a week day. Some of which looked like they semi-knew what they were doing, some of which didn't, all of which were in my way. I got frustrated and decided to head over to a run called Freeway, where the park crew had set up a number of different extra large features, including three jumps. The gaps of the jumps went from 45, to 55, to 65 feet. This is my first season skiing, and though I've so passionately wanted to do some big jumps, I just haven't been able to bring myself to do it. It kills me to watch my pro friends shred so comfortably you wouldn't know the difference if they were laying on their couch watching TV. I skiied to the top of the jump line and suddenly stopped, causing a spray of snow to cloud over my view. As the snow cleared something funny happened, and I felt like I was looking at the jumps for the first time from a different set of eyes.
"This is ridiculous," I thought to myself, "you can do this!"
I looked around and saw not a soul in sight. No one to save me if I were to fall and wreck myself, no one to witness if I were to land and ride away. I had absolutely nothing going for me, but I decided to go for it anyway. Without hesitation, without a second glace, I aimed my skis down the run, and went. It was only a few seconds later that I was safely on the ground on the other side, and only another few seconds for me to realize what I had done. That short moment I spent flying over a 45 foot gap would liberate me from any fear I ever had of heights for the rest of my life. I rode down the run with so much adrenaline I felt like I was glowing like a light bulb.
"My head was just above the trees, the treees!" I screamed out loud and laughed as I shook the ski poles violently in my hands.
I collected myself before I got to the bottom and played it cool, secretly hoping someone had saw. I quickly realized none of my friends were to be found, and if anyone had seen, it clearly didn't impress. As I was standing in the lift line waiting to go up again, life around me was going on as it normally does. No one could see the triumphant fireworks exploding in my eyes behind my goggles, or the silent celebration that was rattling my inner core. I suddenly didn't care whether anyone had saw. I suddenly didn't care what I could or couldn't do on skis, or that the mass proportion of my friends were better than me. I had a private victory that made me feel like I had made it; I had done something I never thought I would be able to do. I got on the chairlift with a hot young lad I had seen many times before, and I knew he was an incredible skier.
"I just stomped my first switch 9 off that jump, super stoked!" He said, with a tone meaning to impress, as he pointed to a jump that was barely pushing 30 feet.
"How's your day going?" He asked.
I politely grinned and responded, "Ohhhh, pretty good," and paused, "nothing spectacular."

It was my moment, and I no longer wanted to share.

Weekend Recap

This weekend I went to the X Games, and unfortunately it wasn't as fun as I thought it would be. Me and my friend Rachel got up at about 5:30am on Saturday so we could leave by 6:00. The drive was beautiful with the moon setting and the sun rising over the mountains. We got to Aspen, found parking, and took the bus to Buttermilk. Bobbie Jo, Dylan, Becky, and I started handing things out for CMC, but quickly got stopped by the security for "pirate marketing"... whattt?!? By 12:00pm it was extremely crowded, and I'm not a fan of crowds. I got to see a few of my friends who were competing for a few seconds, but they all seemed pretty busy and stressed. I didn't have a credential like I did for the Dew Tour either, so I was stuck at the bottom and couldn't get a great view of much. By 4:00pm we had had it with the crowd, and decided it would be best to head back to Breck. It was really cool to be able to see it in person, though. It was also fun to take my first real road trip in my new car!

 

  

 

It also happened to be the same weekend that Breckenridge was holding it's annual snow sculpturing contest, so after we got back me and Rachel went and checked them out. (Click on the pictures for a bigger view.)