It’s that time of year again: the colors are changing, mornings are a little bit nippier, and ski magazines are sending out their annual buyer’s guides en masse. With that, winter has once again sunk its grasp into our collective souls and concocted emotions of powder-lust to fill our every waking moment. But alas, the snow has yet to fall and slopes are still replete with the foliage of many an off-season winter destination; mossy logs in British Columbia to the alpine sagebrush in Southern Idaho to the rugged beauty of yellowed aspens in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. With the change in season marks a change for many in hobby, nay, obsession.

For me, I begin to feel that itch. It is an itch that has patiently hibernated since the last time my feet were stuffed in plastic ski boots and found their way into the sky to commune with the wings of birds. As August wanes and September rushes in with all of its lustrous glory, I find myself looking to scratch that burgeoning itch and immerse myself in all that speed and weightlessness which skiing so dutifully affords us. In the absence of snow and ski equipment, I have forsaken my fear of impact and asphalt – the most dangerous of duos if you ask me – to pick up my shorty skatedeck and Sporting Sails to go find some gravity-based excitement.  With a home base in Snowmass Village, there is no lack of elevation to impede this process.

As you’ll see in the following video, I took quite a digger, and it really made me appreciate being prepared for a mission like this.  Having a helmet on for this mission, or any of the paddleboard/raft/bike/skate missions I find myself getting into, is super important; when you have crazy friends, crazy things tend to happen.  Wear a domepiece.  I think I also came away with a better understanding of that seasonal itch and what might be healthy ways to scratch it without disaster.  Jamie helped me film and Ed helped drive, so with the following video I hope to spread the word of helmet safety, but you can bet your bottom that I’ll be back out there sessioning the hill as more and more vacationers make their exodus and the roads clear up.

Product Review:  POC Receptor + multi-sport helmet (find it at Backcountry.com)