Next Level Skiing S7 E4 | The Skintrack Artist with Lou Dawson
Next Level Skiing S7 E4 | The Skintrack Artist with Lou Dawson
Lou Dawson skiing the North Face of Longs Peak (14,259′) on May 14, 1990. Photo credit: Glenn Randall
Lou Dawson is a ski pioneer who has been blazing the trail for countless skiers for decades. Since arriving in the Roaring Fork Valley as a teenager in the mid-1960s, Dawson has played a pivotal role in shaping the world of backcountry skiing. From becoming the first person to ski all of Colorado’s 14ers — completing this feat in the early 1990s — to meticulously documenting the evolution of ski gear technology, Dawson has guided backcountry skiing from its humble beginnings in the 1970s to its current status as a global phenomenon. His recent memoir, Avalanche Dreams, chronicles his journey from a fearless skier to a reflective father, husband, and alpinist.
Tune in as ski journalist Jason Blevins joins Lou to discuss his first ski tour, his near-fatal avalanche, spirituality, the WildSnow.com blog, touring gear, and the art of setting a skintrack.
Topics
2:30 - Life in Aspen in the 60s as a teenager with hippie parents.
7:40 - First-ever touring up to Conundrum Hot Springs at age 16.
9:40 - The “radical sensibility” of progressive adventurers in Colorado.
10:50 - The 1982 avalanche in Aspen Highlands Bowl.
13:40 - The Peter Pan Syndrome challenges many ski town men.
16:10 - The spiritual awakening after the avalanche.
19:00 - Finishing all the Colorado 14ers in 1991.
20:40 - Writing posts for Wild Snow, tinkering and modifying backcountry gear.
24:50 - The role of alpine tech bindings in ski mountaineering.
26:40 - How gear and improved education have helped protect backcountry skiers.
35:40 - North American versus European skin tracks.
36:40 - “A beautiful combination of technology and athletic ability and a mystical awareness of the environments and the mountains.”
40:40 - The fun of low-angle touring.
Quotes
“I started on wooden Bonna skis without edges and I literally would take those up and go powder skiing on those things back behind Aspen Mountain and places like that.” - Lou Dawson
“The difference between the 60-something millimeter skis we were skiing back in the 1970s and 80s with these with say an 80-millimeter ski or a 90-millimeter ski is like night and day.” - Lou Dawson
“In a lot of ski posses, people would look at you and think, ‘Well, I wish he or she had taken an avalanche course.’ And, you know, the avalanche course might not serve you to be able to predict whether a slope is safe or not, but it just makes you more aware of the danger.” - Lou Dawson
“I've always applied my craft to just anything I do. And I think one of the crafts of ski touring is the skin track. It's how you create it.” - Lou Dawson
Resources
For more listening, check out our full collection of "Next Level Skiing" podcasts here.
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Next Level Skiing Recorded by Jason Blevins.
