(projector whirring) - [James] Let's see what we got here. (gentle music) These slides haven't come out since before you were born, Johnny. (slide clacks) My whole philosophy of
wanting to turn new corners, I very rarely skied the same thing twice. You can only get so many
missions in in the winter if you're a weekend warrior. (slides clacking) (dramatic music) - Do you wanna just, is this in the frame? Lay down, down. Thank you, good boy. Salt Lake has just grown so much. I mean, we got a crane right there building some sort of new thing. But it's just like, it's
gotten extremely popular, and that's, I think, partly due to the
proximity to the mountains. There's a ton more
traffic, a ton more people making their way up into the mountains. And the access is the same, and the terrain, and the
landscape is the same. There's not more mountains
than there used to be. There's maybe less, and
there's just more people. So it's like, how can we all share that, and how can we all have an
enjoyable experience out there that we're looking for,
kind of in harmony? (inspiring music) - I started really exploring hard once I was done with the
ski racing thing at the U. (slide clacks) I coached for three years,
and in those three years, I got very interested in
being in the backcountry, and turning new corners in
the mountains around here, and mountains around the West. Mountains were beckoning, and there was much more to do than ski area skiing around here. And I wanted to go explore the mountains. I've always been drawn to the mountains, and I've always been drawn to turn new corners in the mountains. - The first idea was going to ski a bunch of the lines that my
dad pioneered back in the '80s. As the winter progressed, and we kept getting more and more snow, the lines weren't always skiable, depending on the conditions, so we were looking to
find other objectives. We were finding a lot of
people in these specific zones. So kind of in flow with the project, it became less of following
in my dad's actual footsteps, and more about following like, what he taught me mentally,
instead of physically. In five, four, three,
two, one, yeah buddy! (rock music) Yahoo! (rock music continues) - [Sam] Little nervous for this ski, but we'll just get it done here. I'll do my best. I just have to make
that really gnarly move. Dropping in five, four, three. (rock music continues) Five, four, three, two, one, yoo! (rock music continues) - [John] Did you look for anything, like in a backcountry skiing partner? What did you look for? - What I'd look for in a
backcountry skiing partner, number one, was someone
that has the attributes that your mother does. Is gonna have fun no matter what. Just to be out there in
nature is gonna have fun. - If I would've had too much pride, I never would've gone out with anybody. I would've said, oh, I just
need to go out by myself. I'm fit enough. Ooh, but I suck on the downhill. Like, where am I? You know, I learned a
lot about the terrain, and where I was in the Wasatch. There were a few people at
Snowbird that I worked with who skied on tele gear, and so then there was sort of a clan, 'cause you could keep
up with al those people, 'cause I mean, it took
me a while to learn. In the beginning, there was
a lot of dirtbag skiers, and a lot of people, those
were the ones that ski toured. They were kind of poor, and they couldn't afford
to go to the resorts. Then when the gear got better, it seemed like people
were skiing the resorts and the backcountry. - [John] What is it,
specifically, that you like about that experience
more than a ski area? - [Deborah] The idea of earning it. Appreciating exactly where
you are, as you're going. You become embraced by nature when you're out in it, and then the whole
ambiance of the experience is kind of magical. (pleasant music) (birds chirping) - It's always funny trying to film in the backcountry, especially in a popular
small range like the Wasatch. But we had this really
cool experience with Bjorn. We get out to the zone, run into Bjorn, and we're both filming like, is it, are we just gonna be butting heads trying to like, fight over lines? But you know, without a plan, we both had the same idea,
we have the same goals, and all we did was overlap 'em. I really trust his
experience in the mountains, and I think he had enough trust in us that we were able to just like, coexist in the space and work together. - I think I've been riding
in the backcountry probably, I mean realistically,
since I was about 15, so that'd be about 30 years ago. So about 30 years. - [John] So yeah, what would you say the more experienced guys could do? - I try to post online,
do like some analysis, and some certain things where, you know, while you're showing the community, and granted it's social media, so it is what it is, it's social media, but try to have a presence on there where you're not reckless. Where you're really
truly showing like, hey, this is like, life or death out there. So you also have to be very humble, and willing to look at
everybody else's opinions, and understand that like, you can't have like an expert halo. You can't be the guy that's like, I know what I'm talking about,
listen to me, I'm the boss. So I think it's, you know,
it's a very open environment, but at the same time,
you have to be willing to kind of assert some of your knowledge, and when people are maybe
making a risky decision, be a good mentor for the younger guys, and pass down some of
the mistakes I've made, and or haven't made, like, just coming together as a group,
really, more than anything. (rock music) If this pulls out, because of how it traverses across, I have a mega safe spot to pull out to, and I can look back and
see what's happening, and see if I want to finish it or not. So, I actually feel really good about it. (rock music continues) - Yeah, I'm imagining the whole thing's just gonna be shedding as I ski it, and I'll also be going somewhat slow, so I'll be playing it by ear a little bit. Five, four, three, two, one, woo! (rock music continues) I think the main thing my dad
really wanted to teach us, like he was the leader, and he was like, choosing
where we were going, but we weren't just, he didn't allow us to just like, blindly follow. He wanted to make sure
that we were learning every time we were out. - With the mountains being
as crowded as they are summer and winter, and a
lack of mentoring going on about how to treat nature, a lot of people are
just heading outta doors not knowing what to do
with their own poop, let alone if something is safe to ski. There's a lot of ignorance out there, because the education coming
from machines, and not mentors. You see people out in the mountains, especially in winter, where they may be your rescue, or you may be theirs, and
they won't even look at you. You try and say hello to a stranger, and for some reason, your being there is lessening their experience, and they won't even look at you. (pleasant music) - People now, with having that access, and oh, this is where I'm going. I know exactly where I am at all times. That they lose the
humility to be a beginner. (upbeat country music) ♪ Oh I couldn't see you coming ♪ ♪ From the seat I was sitting in ♪ ♪ Lost in the crowd I
knew only where I'd been ♪ ♪ 'Til one day I stood up ♪ ♪ I took a look around ♪ ♪ That skyline possessed me,
yes I was mountain bound ♪ ♪ I'm mountain bound, mountain bound ♪ ♪ Skyline possessed me,
yes, I was mountain bound ♪ ♪ I'm mountain bound, mountain bound ♪ ♪ You can wrap me up ♪ ♪ But you can't slow me down ♪ (upbeat country music continues) ♪ Oh them city streets
are filled with freaks ♪ ♪ All going to their shows ♪ ♪ So to ease the beasts in waiting ♪ ♪ Their tips are dipped in snow ♪ ♪ Well I know it won't take
long to tell which way I go ♪ ♪ I don't need a map, no,
to know which way is home ♪ ♪ 'Cause when life has
been getting me down ♪ ♪ I look left, I look right,
indeed you do surround ♪ ♪ You live in every corner of this town ♪ ♪ So light that match, burn the bridge ♪ ♪ I'll be mountain bound, come on ♪ (upbeat country music continues) ♪ I'm at the whim of a mighty river ♪ ♪ I've been swallowed by her swells ♪ ♪ I tell myself to stay away ♪ ♪ From where I know those demons dwell ♪ ♪ But if you find me on the banks ♪ ♪ With the glint gone from my eye ♪ ♪ Know that this is the life I love ♪ ♪ I knew that I could die
and I'm mountain bound ♪ ♪ Mountain bound ♪ ♪ Oh that skyline possessed
me, yes I was mountain bound ♪ ♪ I'm mountain bound, mountain bound ♪ ♪ You'll find me with a smile ♪ ♪ Happy, broke, and beaten, drowned ♪ - People want to be experts without paying their dues
and gaining the experience. You know, instant expert. You know, and the internet allows for a lot of that, and all that. What we're seeing a lot out
there in the backcountry, there's a lot of experts, and you don't learn, then. If you already know, you can't learn. Like, they don't have
that fear of the unknown, like, ooh, which makes you humble. Like, I don't know how to do this, I'm not sure where I'm going. In the beginner's mind, there are many possibilities. In the expert's mind, there are few. To come, to have the
humility to be a beginner, and to say, well I wanna learn. It may give you knowledge, but it doesn't give you wisdom, right? And you know, the time spent
learning, you gain wisdom. I'm having an experience. Mm, then you know, it
seems like you're growing, and you're evolving as a person. You know, because you'll
never be an expert, 'cause there'll always be
something else to learn. - The root of it all, basically, like we go skiing because
we think it's fun. How do we keep it fun for everyone? - [James] You know, it's
still fun to play here. Is it more crowded, do I wish it wasn't? Of course. So, these people are out
there getting a dose of nature that I can only help but think is gonna lead to them
to be a better person, and treat this planet better, and have respect for nature because of the experiences they're having. Time spent in the mountains cannot be deducted from one's life. (slides clacking)
(projector whirring) (light clicks) (door clicks) (upbeat rock music) - I feel like I've like,
thought of all these things I've wanted to say, but now that we're actually interviewing, I can't think of 'em. (upbeat rock music continues)
