Thursday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.—Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum’s Virtual Red Bench Series presents “Uphill and Beyond; Ski Legends Go Deep on What Covid Means for Resorts and the Backcountry” on Thursday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. via Zoom.
What will backcountry ski travel look like this winter? How will the skiing economy deal with the uncertainty Covid presents? Will trailheads be packed? Backcountry Magazine’s Adam Howard joins ski industry legends to discuss what Covid means to the backcountry community and resorts grappling with a booming uphill scene at American resorts this winter, on Thursday, Nov. 12 as part of Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum’s Red Bench Series.
Howard will be joined by film stars Mike Hattrup and Chris Davenport, backcountry pioneer Andrew McLean, and freelance writer and editor Megan Michelson. A Q&A session will follow.
From the U.S Freestyle Team to Greg Stump’s eponymous film Blizzard of Ahhh’s, ski guide to product developer, Mike Hattrup is both everyman and everything but. He built the K2 telemark and backcountry brands and is now the U.S. Alpine Products Manager at Fischer skis. He joins from his home in Ketchum, Idaho.
Middlebury graduate Megan Michelson is a freelance journalist based in Tahoe City, California. She’s an editor-at-large for Backcountry Magazine, a correspondent for Outside Magazine, and a senior correspondent for Powder Magazine. She covers skiing and the outdoors for publications like the San Francisco Chronicle, REI’s Co-op Journal, and more.
U.S. and Colorado Snowsports Hall of Famer and two-time World Champion freeskier Chris Davenport is one of the top big mountain skiers in the world today. Among his many ski mountaineering achievements, Davenport became the first person to ski all fifty-four of Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks in one year. He’s starred in more than thirty ski films by Warren Miller and Matchstick Productions. He’s also author of two beautiful coffee-table books, “Ski The 14ers” and “Fifty Classic Ski Descents of North America.” He lives in Aspen, Colorado.
Andrew McLean has skied all seven continents including trips to Baffin Island, Antarctica, Svalbard, Morocco, Kashmir, Iran and numerous Alaska expeditions. In 1995 he wrote “The Chuting Gallery–A Guide to Steep Skiing in the Wasatch Mountains” and is a frequent photo and article contributor to backcountry skiing journals. Before becoming a professional skier, he worked as a product designer for Black Diamond Equipment where he invented the HotWire and LiveWire carabiners, Camalots, Peckers, Talons and his personal favorite, the Whippet Self Arrest Ski Pole. Andrew lives in Park City, Utah.
Moderator Adam Howard grew up in Cambridge skiing at Smugglers’ Notch Resort and backcountry skiing with his parents in the shadow of Mount Mansfield. He studied journalism at Western State Colorado University before interning at Powder Magazine. He’s worked various roles at Backcountry Magazine since the late 1990’s and he’s now President and CEO of its parent company, Height of Land Publications. Skiing has taken him around the world, but he’s happiest ripping with his family at Smuggs where he’s a freeski coach at Smugglers’ Notch Ski and Snowboard Club.
Reserve your Zoom ticket at vtssm.org/new-events or us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_usDUmoJ9SH6tW8r9uGf0ow. Virtual doors to the Museum open and the discussion begins at 7 p.m.. The event is complimentary; but a $10 donation from each guest is encouraged. Visit vtssm.org.
