Sponsors/Support if any: Western State College of Colorado

What makes you passionate about skiing?
It is really just the feeling skiing gives me. I get butterflies in my
stomach and I’m even breathless when looking at an untouched powdery pillow
line, or any great line. I know that sounds cheesy, but its true. Then the
feeling of actually skiing is even better, sometimes its spiritual by being
my way of getting connected to the natural world. It makes me happy, and
eases any worries. I feel like I can always push myself more, and I can
choose to do it at any pace, my own or with someone better than myself. How
can you not be passionate about something that allows you to have unlimited
possibilities...extreme and FUN ones! I look back and skiing is something
that has been with me my entire life. I really identify with it and I have
progressed so much, but I still have so much more to gain.

What are your aspirations in skiing?
I want to know I’m at my best, that I can ski with the best. I was on an
alpine race team in middle and high school back in Maine, and I knew I liked
ski competition. But when I came to Colorado for college I didn’t have the
desire to keep racing. Instead I got interested in a new kind of skiing.
Last year I finally entered my first extreme skiing competition at Crested
Butte, and realized I still really enjoy pushing myself in competition.
What better way to improve? This year I’ve signed up for the North American
Tour in hopes of really stepping it up. I hope to do at least six
competitions right now. Beyond that, I dream of being in ski videos,
especially doing heli skiing. Everyone in the videos seem to have all the
fun! I really enjoy backcountry skiing and earning my turns, and that’s a
big part of why I have been involved with search and rescue and taken
avalanche courses throughout the past four years. I know filming is not all
fun and games, but if you’re smart, you will have amazing experiences
pushing the envelope in skiing. I want to make sure I know what I’m doing in
the backcountry while enjoying the sport I love.

Who are your current role models or who inspires you?
There are of course so many people who have inspired me throughout my
skiing life. But for a while now, I have really looked up to the career of
Alison Gannett. She is an inspiration both in and out of the skiing arena.
When I was a freshman at Western State College in Gunnison, she did a slide
show about an all female ski trip she organized called Betties in Bhutan.
It was so amazing. I asked her after the show if she didn’t mind telling me
at what age she became a professional skier. She said she didn’t start
until she was 27! I thought, I have plenty of time! Furthermore, I just
graduated with a degree in Ecology and Environmental Biology, and Alison is
also very conscious of the environment. I am hoping to get an internship at
or volunteer with her company the Office for Resource Efficiency, based out
of Crested Butte. I just think she is an amazing woman, a good person and a
SICK skier!

What is your greatest personal achievement in the mountains? (Competition/Line/Trip)
Since my competition experience thus far is limited, and I have had so many
good ski experiences, what stands out for me relates to something a bit
different. Being involved with the Western State College Mountain Rescue
Team is bound to lead to some intense experiences in the mountains. Sadly,
they do not all have happy endings. However, one of my greatest personal
achievements is from a rescue that did have a happy ending. One of my
teammates and I spent over six hours following tracks which we believed to
be those of a lost hunter, through two feet of fresh snow. Although I
cannot give details, we caught up with the hunter in the nick of time. It
is an unbelievable feeling knowing that you and your team’s efforts helped
save a person’s life.

How have you dedicated your life to the mountains and adventure?
When I first came to Colorado I chose Western State College because it was
in the mountains near a great ski resort, because it has strong
environmental and biology programs, and because it has the only college
based mountain rescue team in the world. I have loved the outdoors since I
was a little girl, as I was lucky to have parents who loved the outdoors
too. I have wanted to study biology for such a long time because I want to
help protect the natural environment from overdevelopment and pollution,
among other things. I also knew that getting involved with rescue would be
a great way to become a more safety-concious backcountry user. I have
volunteered hundreds of hours to the rescue team and I have learned so much.
I spent two years doing fundraising for the team and now I’m in my fifth
year on the team and my second year as the President. Both in and out of
rescue, if you want to find me at my best, it will be me in the mountains.
Whether its hiking, camping, biking, climbing, rafting, skiing, or any
myriad of things, that’s where I’m happy. I moved across the country to
further dedicate my life to the mountains and adventure.

Why have you dedicated your life to mountain pursuits?
There is no place on earth that compares to the mountains. Pure, raw
nature was here before all of us, yet we as a species threaten it daily. I
want to be a part of the movement that is trying to turn this around so we
can keep pushing it in the mountains...skiing and enjoying the spirituality
of the wilderness. I feel like it is my responsibility. I love the
mountains, and so I want to protect them so all creatures can enjoy them and
survive in them.

What are some things the mountains have taught you that have proven valuable in the real world?
First of all, I think the mountains and wilderness are the real world, and
our human developments are the scary part. The mountains have taught me so
many things, but most importantly, they have taught me to trust my
instincts. Know when to listen to yourself, and know when to listen to
someone else. Whether in the wilderness, trying to decided whether it is
safe to go forward or not, or in a “real world” situation making any
important decision, always stick to you gut feeling. In dedicating my life
to the mountains, I have learned so much in the mountains, in the classroom,
and in the real world. I have not listened to my gut in a rescue situation,
and ended up stuck in a hail and lighting storm on a steep face, wondering
if I’d loose my toes or worse. I have learned to stick to my gut in any
situation, which also includes listening to more qualified people if
necessary.

How will the scholarship enable you to further pursue your skiing aspirations?
The way I see it, I have a love-hate relationship with money. I love it
because I need it and I hate it because I need it...what a pain! I wouldn’t
have been able to go to college so far from home if not for scholarships, so
they’ve had a huge impact on my life in that way. I have never applied for
a skiing scholarship, but I know it would have just as much of a positive
affect on my life. It would allow me to reach even farther into the
competitive realm, paying my entry fees or gas money to competitions, and
making vital industry connections. Not to mention the gear! I mean, I no
longer have “book” money to spend on skis!

How can you be a Biglines.com ambassador?
Any company who provides opportunities like this scholarship deserves to be
well represented. I will spread the word, and the name, whether I am a
finalist or not. Furthermore, I have held a number of jobs where my duties
include promoting something, including working for Western State College’s
admission office, and for Guest Services at Crested Butte Mountain Resort.
I only work these jobs because I truly support my employers, and loved being
there. I would do the same for Biglines.com, especially if I were given the
chance to learn more about the company.

Comments- All I can say is thanks so much for this opportunity, you are
pioneers...and of course, Pray for Snow!!!

Check out the other girls in the running for this year's Freeride Scholarship.

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