Well, it’s been a few days since my return from the “Great State of Alaska.” For those of you who tried to log on to this site and found no news updates, I apologize. Things started off really well (save for the difficulty in finding wireless internet hotspots) and the first week was full of travel, awe inspiring views and good times with close friends.

The next week was the week of the competition over at Alyeska, AK. It was the final stop of both the US and World Freeskiing Tours and hosted over 200 competitors and events staff in the small town of Girdwood. Things started off as usual for a freeskiing competition with everyone’s hopes up and the stress levels beginning their climb. The qualifier went off on Alyeska’s famed North Face under blue skies (the first of our trip!) and everyone played it safe on some of the steepest terrain any of us have ever navigated in a competition venue.

Finding the line that no one else skied, I took a little tumble in my run due to the fast-moving slough that kicked my feet out from under me. Luckily, I had the reflexes and focus to get my skis back on the ground with enough time to point it off the nearest point fall line from me. During inspection, I had originally planned on making a sneak move around and under a cliff to a narrow ledge/snow band that I was going to ski down into Christmas Chute to the left. Once the slough caught up with me in my comp run, I knew that if I let it take me to the cliff’s edge, disaster would be my dancing partner. So, with quick judgment, I stood back up on my skis and sent the entirety of the cliff I had planned on skiing around and paid the price by landing on my face. The following video is from that run:

With all the soft snow that fell a few days before the comp, the gut of Christmas Chute was filled with soft slough snow and provided some padding for my ungraceful faceplant.

Whew! Another crisis averted.

Well, it’s been a few days since this year’s Telluride Freeskiing Open finished up and crowned new champions for the 2008 season. Griffin Post and Hannah Whitney each threw down a series of runs throughout the two-day event to solidify their spots at the top of the podium.

The big news of the weekend came out of Aspen, which Frankie and Pauldo (the gracious announcers) dubbed the “Ripper Factory” for all the talent that has recently been coming out of the woodwork. John Nicoletta and Adam Moszynski came in 2nd and 5th, respectively; it’s great to know that the people I get a chance to ski with on a regular basis can rip so hard AND do it when the pressure of a competition is on. So proud of you guys, and the rest of the Aspen crew will be out in force at the rest of the competitions for the season, so watch out for the “Ripper Factory” to set a new standard in your home ski area.

In other news, my first day run sent me into the air in a sideways hangtime and my dream of a successful weekend was cut short by a hard impact into the middle of the main gully of Genevieve (the first day venue).

The following video is the first episode in a series I like to call Man vs Mountain. Each episode will be one of my competition runs from the US Freeskiing Series this year. Enjoy!

Well, I’m off to Telluride early tomorrow morning and the snow conditions couldn’t be any better. So stoked right now. I haven’t packed yet, but seeing as how I’ll be traveling to T-ride, then to California and back to Colorado, I’ve got to find a way to pack light. And, since the TatsVan isn’t quite rolling yet, there’s no room for the rice cooker OR my collection of Garbage Pail Kids cards. Oh well…

Check back for more updates from the road. I’ll be posting POV video footage from my comp runs daily. Get stoked, be stoked, and stoke out! Oh, and here’s a photo from the past few days of sicky pow skiing in Aspen. Love it! Mucho gracias to Frank Shine for the shot.

Check out my Facebook profile for more pics from this day.