Welcome back to the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis!   A few years ago I got to join Kim Beekman on a ski trip to the San Juans. We skied at and around Telluride and all over Red Mountain Pass. I don’t think she ever wondered why everyone always wanted to ski those backcountry lines before her. It was because we all wanted to get down and watch her ski.   Few ski with more grace, ease, and power than Kim. She is a flawless skier. And an incredible writer. As the editor at Skiing and a longtime ski journalist, she has shepherded years of ski reviews ..read more

Welcome back to the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis.   I love watching Aaron Blunck ski the pipe. The Crested Butte native has spent 26 of his 27 years on skis and it shows, with amazing airs and unrivaled style. Earlier this season I got to see Aaron ski in the Copper pipe and he was throwing this ridiculously cool pipe-grinding, snow-spraying slash in the middle of his run, and the crowd loved it.  This is a fun chat with the three-time Olympian who grew up dreaming of competing in the X Games, which he won in 2017. He spent his younger years chasing h ..read more

Welcome back to the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis.   Reggie Crist keeps turning the page on one skiing’s most illustrious careers. A decade on the U.S. Ski Team. Pioneer in the Olympic spot of Ski Cross. One of the first to helicopter skiers into Alaska’s Chugachs. And now a globe-trotting ski guide whose Stellar Adventure brings skiers to Japan, South America, Alaska and the backcountry of Idaho.  Tune in as Reggie tells us where he would take us if we win the lottery and want to spend an entire year crushing powder.  Topics:  2:30 - Raised ..read more

It’s difficult to overstate the role of Scot Schmidt in big-mountain freeskiing. He pretty much invented the niche with his explosive, airborne exploits. His signature tucked-knees hop turn and high-speed hip-check smear on 223 downhill skis defined a style that changed skiing. Scot’s style inspired untold hordes of skiers in the 80s and early 90s, before skis got wide and rockered. His breakout role in Greg Stump’s seminal “Blizzard of Ahhs” ushered in a now 30-year-old era of ski porn.  Scot at age 62 is still skiing 100 days a year on big, stiff skis, spending his winters in Montana as ..read more

There are a lot of great ski movies out there. But only one ranks as the most important. In a year when U.S. suicides reached record highs and many mountain towns are reporting the highest suicide rates in the country, Drew Peterson’s “Ups + Downs” exposes the professional skier’s anguished struggle with suicidal thoughts.  Mental health is at a critical crossroads in mountain valleys and Peterson’s willingness to step up and reveal his own battles with overwhelming darkness is one of the most consequential moves in the history of ski movies. Skiing is awesome. It can help people learn ho ..read more

Today on the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis, Jason chats with American gold-medal Olympic ski racer Ted Ligety.    In 2011, Ted Ligety put the FIS on blast for the governing body’s new mandates for ski lengths, saying the rules would “will eventually ruin this sport.” The following seasons, as he skied longer GS boards, he earned the nickname “Mr. GS,” winning six World Cup races in 2013 and three in 2014 on his way to his second Olympic gold at the Sochi Games. Ligety is a renowned technician on skis with highly angulated hips, knees, and ankles. His s ..read more

Dan English was making waves in the world of high-tech when he veered into a new career focused on one of the oldest fabrics in the world. Today, the founder, president, and CEO of Colorado-based Voormi has infused the foundational principles of the technology industry into a clothing company that is changing how we think about wool and overhauling stagnant domestic manufacturing. On this episode of Next Level Skiing, Dan riffs on how the precepts of technological innovation can be applied to textiles and clothing, the best way to layer for an active day on snow, and how Voormi is moving on it ..read more

Welcome back to the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis. If you’ve ever crowded into the snowy, frigid lift line at the base of Silverton Mountain in the morning as groups are divided by skill level, you’ve likely heard requests for Kim Grant.   “Is Kim working?”   “Where’s Kim’s group?”   The 25-year ski guide who moves between the rowdy San Juans and the Chugachs in Alaska knows how to settle skier jitters like no other. Her relaxed vibe in stout terrain has led countless skiers to their best day ever.  She has all kinds of strategies f ..read more

Welcome back to the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis. Today’s guest is Angela Hawse. Angela is an award-winning guide, an alpinist, a sponsored athlete, a motivational speaker, and a recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Mountain Guide Association. Angela is the second woman in history to achieve that award. She has taken a stand for women in skiing and when speaking about climate change. Angela brings her unique experience as a skier and a climber when she shares her stories about women on the mountains.   Topics: [02:39] Angela’s introductio ..read more

Welcome back to the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis. Today I’m talking with the legendary Steve Casimiro. Steve harkens back to the skiing comeback of the 1990s. His unwavering love of skiing shines bright as we talk about everything from what skiing was like in the late 80s to what it is like now, and our responsibilities when it comes to climate issues. There are many ways to help others including respecting others, spreading positivity, and really thinking about how you are valuing your time. Topics: [01:37] Introduction to the resurgence of skiing in the 90s [04:00 ..read more