Next Level Skiing S7 E5 | Staying Aggressive In The Sharky and Spicy with Rob Dickinson
Next Level Skiing S7 E5 | Staying Aggressive In The Sharky and Spicy with Rob Dickinson
Rob Dickinson makes an impossible turn. Photo: Garrett Grove
Unless you're a Crested Butte local, you probably haven't heard of Rob Dickinson. A former big mountain competitor, Rob moves through the Butte's treacherous terrain like a ninja. He’s the kind of skier you only catch in fleeting glimpses—a flash in the trees, a spray of snow off a rocky face, or a blur beneath perfectly carved tracks. With nearly 20 years of skiing at Crested Butte, Rob is one of the mountain's most revered and soulful skiers.
Rob doesn't have a sponsor and runs his own painting business, but his skills and style are second to none. Tune in as the 45-year-old Rob shares insights on how CBMR has shaped his skiing, how to master the clutch in technical terrain, and why it's crucial to keep your uphill hand high when tackling steep, gnarly lines.
Topics
2:20 - From upstate New York to New Hampshire to Steamboat
4:15 - Crested Butte keeps you honest
7:10 - Ride the clutch to stay fluid in technical terrain
11:10 - Competing in big mountain comps from 2009 through 2014 with a CB shred posse
18:30 - Injuries, replacing body parts, and shifting your mindset
24:15 - How steep creek kayaking hones ski skills, risk assessment
26:10 - Taking vanity out of the equation.
28:00 - Check in with yourself
31:00 - Finding happiness in healthy, sustainable places
33:00 - Gear adjustments and added protection for steep skiing
36:30 - Don’t change anything on race day
37:30 - Play, don’t work, in the ski industry
Quotes
“All I did was chase skiing and kind of got the feeling that maybe I was chasing skiing from too far away.” - Rob Dickinson
“Trying to get better and trying to pull better results at, at freeskiing competitions, like, you just learn how to, I always say, ride the clutch, learn how to instead of like jamming on the brakes to see what's coming next.” - Rob Dickinson
“Crosstraining is really, really valuable.” - Rob Dickinson
“You have to steel your mind and you have to make yourself present and you have to check in with yourself.” - Rob Dickinson
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.
