I felt like I was called up from the minor leagues when Mike Hans "Hansee" asked me if I could make the trip to British Columbia to be the chef during an upcoming trip to Terrace. With only about 14 days to prepare, and some last minute wrangling to get my shifts covered at the Crested Butte Fire Department, I was ready to go! Leaving on the last day of the ski season in Crested Butte, my friends were puzzled until I told them about the opportunity that was given to me. Some helpful advice from former Terrace chef Jeff Graceffa (owner of the Secret Stash in CB, the best pizza house this side of the Mississippi) gave me the impression it would be a lot of work and the challenge called out to me like an ice cream truck that catches the ear of a fat kid on a hot summer day.

Arriving in Terrace, I was reminded of Gunnison – a small town just downstream from my home in Crested Butte. Our guide Yvan shuttled me around to the different grocery stores and was a wealth of information on my first day there. After loading up the van with food and supplies we headed up to the lodge to get set up. The lodge was really nice with a ping-pong table, bar, comfy couches, and of course a jumbo TV. I’d heard tales about lengthy downtime on trips like this due to weather, so I also had my Sony PS3 in tow to keep everyone entertained.

I rushed to get dinner ready and a table set up for snacks and drinks. It was about 8pm when Scott Gaffney, Mattias Fredriksson, Henrik Windstedt, and Fred Arne Wergeland showed up. Everyone aside from Scott had traveled from Sweden, so these guys were exhausted from the 23 hour flight they had endured! Cody Townsend drove all the way from Squaw and arrived later in the night… I could tell by the look on his face he was beat!

We had great weather the first couple of days and the guys set off and killed it while the blue skies held out. After about day three though, the clouds and coastal weather settled in and we started the downtime phase of the trip. The PS3 was put to good use and Call Of Duty was the game of choice. We went to a little coffee shop in town and that was our window to the outside world via the coveted wireless internet connection. With Mark Abma out due to another blown knee, we still needed one more skier and figuring out who that would be was still a bit of a mystery. Finally we heard that Rory Bushfield was coming up from Whistler to join us for the remainder of the trip. I forgot that Rory had spent time in Crested Butte and when he heard that I cooked at the Gas Cafe he was STOKED. We make this breakfast sandwich at the Gasser called the Burley, which just so happens to be Bushy’s favorite sandwich in the whole world. So every morning Bushy scarfed down two of these before proceeding to scare the whole town by jumping from a couple of local bridges. The first bridge was about a 90 ft. drop and he didn’t just jump, he threw a double backflip and nailed it. I thought to myself "Holy s#!t that was huge!” But it was just another day in the life for Bushy, so I bit my tongue and we carried on.

I had amassed a huge collection of boxes from buying food and I thought if we stacked them up and lit them on fire, maybe Bushy – being the stuntman that he is – would be down to jump through them. So with a little help from our trusty friend lighter fluid, we set the boxes on fire and Bushy built a short in-run and stomped a 180 through the tower of flaming cardboard. We also found this lawnmower that Harley owned which had been converted into a mobile fireplace by a friend of his. Bushy and Henrik built a jump and they were jumping over the flaming contraption on wheels while Scott and Fred filmed. Gaffney had this brilliant idea for me to get into an old Barney Rubble costume and pose underneath them while trying to whack them with a tree branch as they jumped overhead… I looked like something out of a bad Geico commercial and it was from then on that I was known as the "caveman”. Bushy was laughing so hard it was hard for him to keep standing at times. I guess when you have downtime the only thing to do is get creative and just try to make the best of what you have.

This being my first trip with Matchstick I was nervous and wanted to make a good impression on the crew. I have known the guys over at MSP for years and I was honored to be a part in this filming process. I’ll admit that I don't really watch a lot of ski or snowboard films, and when the boys host their annual screenings in Crested Butte I’m usually on the road. That being said, I’m definitely looking forward to seeing the new movie this year and reliving the great memories from BC.

The whole crew was extremely nice and polite and just generally a great group of people. It was great making new friends. Hopefully I’ll get the opportunity to do it all over again next year – until then, be good to each other out there and live everyday like it’s your last!

Much Love, Kevin "Caveman" Welch



Check out the full photo gallery from Terrace BC HERE

This last month will go down as one of the most successful in MSP Films' history. With three crews locked in, and the weather patterns changing for the better, MSP shot some phenomenal footage. Our crew consisted of Ingrid Backstrom, Eric Hjorleifson, and James Heim along with filmers Dustin Lindgren and myself, Murray Wais. We were camped out at a remote hot springs in the Coast Range of British Columbia. The skiing was amazing and the accommodations were equally peaceful. The trip was one of the best that MSP has been a part of to date, and we look forward to sharing more information about this amazing trip in our upcoming film! The pictures provided are from Adam Clark, and a very special thanks goes out to Heli Jake!

~Murray

Be sure to check out some photos from the trip HERE

We had the pleasure of heading down to the historic mining town of Silverton, Colorado for the past couple weeks. Along with myself, the crew consisted of Scott Gaffney and Dustin Lindgren on the cameras, Jason Ebelheiser on the still camera, and the tandem of athletes Jacob Wester and Alex Schlopy. We shot a ton in just a few weeks, and had a blast with Aaron Brill from Silverton Mountain. Jason was kind enough to provide this trip report from our time in Colorado's San Juan Mountains:

I now know why MSP produces the movies they do year after year. They're fast, efficient, and professional. It was quite the privilege and experience to shoot stills alongside Scott Gaffney, Dustin Lindgren, and Murray Wais as they filmed their athletes Jacob Wester and Alex Schlopy recently in Silverton, CO. The crew descended upon the small mountain town of Silverton, building some big and truly unique features over the course of their stay. The shoot was split up evenly between Silverton Mountain ski area, the surrounding backcountry, and the town itself. Massive dub corks, explosions, and watching Scott and Dustin ride two man on the Enticer II (my 92' Yamaha snowmobile) for a follow cam shot were just a few of the highlights. Big props to Alex & Jacob for going huge day after day. Hope to work with you guys again!

~Jason

Be sure to check out the full photo gallery from the trip to southwest Colorado HERE, and also check out Jason's website HERE

Man, what a trip to Golden Alpine Holidays! We just all got home, and this was one for the ages! Check out some play by play from the backcountry mission with myself, Heimer, and Hoji:

So we were the first people to roll in to Meadow Lodge at Golden Alpine Holidays this year. With that came digging our way into the cabin and the outhouses.



Heimer joined Hoji and I on the touring trip this year. He’s bracing for impact on this double line, and yes he stomped it.



We had amazing stability this year which allowed us to get into zones that we couldn’t touch last year. Hoji flashed a line in this zone that had me shaking my head in disbelief.



Our guide, Russ, taught us how to build an igloo, a skill that we were all stoked to acquire. This igloo served as my room for 1 night.



The igloo was more than just my room, this was our new chill spot. We could sit 6 people comfortably.



This was another zone that we never got into last year, that got hit this year. Take your pick.



The first morning we woke up at the Sentry Lodge, this is what was staring us in the face while we were eating breakfast. The entrance is a blind rollover, and with a lot of slough that day, it made this a pretty technical face to make it down cleanly.



This is Hoji managing his slough really well and once again skiing this line at breakneck speed.



Amongst getting to shred some gnarly lines we got to tour through some epic zones and have a some time to appreciate the area.



At the end of the day we got to come back to the lodge and chill in front of the fireplace that Hoji, Steve Hjorleifson, and Jenn Ashton had built the previous summer while Bryan Ralph would jam... good times!





Hope you enjoyed the update - we're off to shred the pow at Chatter Creek!!

Until next time,

~Abma

Back to Whistler after my first trip Golden Alpine Holidays outside Golden, BC with the MSP crew. Thanks to MSP, I have had another amazing opportunity to ski another great place!! Two weeks touring with Hoji, Abnar, Duster and Gaffney at Meadow and Sentry Lodges. Luck was on our side with good snow, a safe snow-pack, an awesome crew, and some decent light to shoot everyday. After 14 days of great snow I can see why Hoji would want to come back even though he has skied there 5 times!

It seems like a magical place where the snow is never bad and the terrain is plentiful. Full of pillows, spines, sick tree runs, and if you show up in the springtime, lots of alpine terrain. Can’t wait for another mission with the crew!!!

~Heimer

Be sure to check out the full photo gallery from the trip HERE

The Esplanade Mountain Range in January is about as much of a sure thing as there is in skiing.

This year the MSP crew decided to ski Meadow Lodge’s terrain for a week and then bump on over to Sentry Lodge for another full week. Both lodges feature nothing but human powered ascents, sick terrain, and tons of deep pow. The entire time we were there, the earth pulled almost every winter weather card out of its hat, except for WARMING. We had full days of blue, blizzards, temps hitting -27c and going all the way up to -1c.

The crew consisted of Scott Gaffney and myself on the cameras, Bryan Ralph shooting photos, and the uber crew of consummate professional athletes: Mark Abma, James Heim and Eric Hjorleifson. All three athletes were on "fire", but by the end of the trip, they were beat down.

We ended up skiing15 out 15 days in some of the most unreal snow conditions. Hoji has now skied 62 days in this zone and has yet to experience bad conditions – or even “just OK” conditions for that matter. It’s just been POW – pretty amazing.

These are the type of zones that we search all over the world for. On top of the perfect conditions, the terrain provides endless options for us so it never gets stale.

A huge thanks goes out to Golden Alpine Holidays, and John Bell, for making this yearly mission possible. See ya next year or maybe later this year!

~Dustin

Be sure to check out Bryan Ralph's full gallery from the trip HERE

The events prior to me actually arriving at Selkirk Wilderness Skiing did not bode well for a good trip: vehicle issues once again! When I actually arrived and got the sled fired up, and got to the top of a ridge to meet the rest of the crew, I suddenly knew it was going to be an awesome trip. I got there on Tuesday. The previous Saturday I had cut myself on a ski edge and received ten stitches, packed hurriedly that night, coached the second day of our Squaw Valley Next Level Women’s Camp, hitched up the sled on the trailer and drove out of Squaw on Sunday at approximately 5pm. 2am found me in Frenchglen, Oregon at the only gas station in town (closed) – I had already been through two towns with closed gas stations and had driven with the gas light on for 60 miles – not a good sign! Time to sleep here (a call to AAA confirmed that they could bring me 2 gallons of gas which would not get me to the next town); I put on my one-piece ski suit, Moon Boots with heat packs in each one, and piled up all my ski coats and pants and tried to rest in the back of the Subie. It actually went ok – I only had to get up twice to turn on the car and heat it up for a few minutes before snuggling back down. At 9am the proprietress sold me gas and I bee-lined it for Nelson, BC.

Selkirk Wilderness Skiing has some magic terrain – it’s almost like the mountains there were engineered perfectly for snow cat skiing. The lodge overlooks a massive valley with the Purcells across the way and Kootenay Lake nestled to the southeast; once you leave the lodge and begin climbing the snow cat roads, perfectly spaced glades and clear-cuts give way to big meadows and suddenly it’s featured mini-golf peaks all around. The peaks are all connected by long ridges – huge bowls in every direction, easy access by cat – and the more massive glaciated terrain feels like you could reach out and touch it to the north. I met the crew in their first afternoon after the driving debacle; I was so overjoyed to be out in the fresh air and not sitting in the car that I didn’t care what we did, I was just pumped to see all my friends at the top of a beautiful mountain. It was high overcast and the sun was rapidly setting (in January it gets dark there by 4:30 for sure), so we finished the scout mission they were on and made our way back to the lodge. What a set-up; we had rooms in the super kush lodge, a snow cat to ourselves, plus everyone had brought their sleds to facilitate quicker filming and easier access… and, the forecast said there was snow on the way – lots of snow! It started dumping that night while we were having dinner (something ridiculous like: roasted game hens followed by a ginger pumpkin cheesecake) and didn’t let up for close to ten days. Each day went in a rhythm like this: wake up at 6:30, breakfast at 7, load the cat with gear, wait for it to get sufficiently high up the mountain and build a road, burrow through all the new snow, and then follow its tracks on our sleds. We would find a zone, double each other on sleds to try to make quicker laps, take turns until the zone was fully shredded. Find a new zone, filmers don their massive backpacks and we would wallow down a run in waist deep pow while their cameras constantly get bombarded with weather, choke on pow, go into the cat to warm up and eat a Nanaimo bar, and then it would be time to already sled down in the dark. After skiing I would go strip off my wet gear in the huge drying room, chill for a bit (sauna or hot tub anyone?) before consuming a massive, delicious, home-cooked dinner, and then stretch before bed by 10 or so. I’ve never had so many days of filming in a row, and it’s certainly been awhile since I’ve skied that many days of deep pow in a row either – if ever. It’s not quick filming when it’s dumping like that, but hopefully we got some shots and were able to show the magic of the place along with the people who run it. Because in the end, the deep pow and food and amenities and all that is awesome—but the warm, funny, helpful and kind people who make up the staff and the Drury family themselves (as well as our sweet crew & skiers) are really what made the trip such a memorable one.

Be sure to check out the full photo gallery from the trip HERE, thanks to Adam Clark.

Until next time, happy shredding!

~Ingrid

After 30 plus cities and 35 plus screenings, we were definitely running on fumes. But we had enough gas left in the tank for one more show, then 2010 would be in the books!

Even more so than Anchorage, Alyeska Resort in Girdwood, which is forty minutes away, was pretty well caked with snow. The Resort was just days away from opening day and the locals were ready! This was only our second show ever produced in Alaska, but we felt that this one was going to be off the hook. It's always a big thrill to hear the hometown crowd react to footage shot in their back yard, and this year's AK footage was shot in all its glory literally right outside their windows! Energy was going be at an all time high!

The Hotel Alyeska, aka "Castle Greyskull", pretty much resembles a castle. Situated in the quiet resort town of Girdwood and at the base of Alyeska Resort, the Hotel Alyeska is an ideal place to hole up when conditions and light aren't good to go. Turned out to be great place to host a premiere as well, since my accommodations were on the same floor as our venue!

With doors set to open at 7pm, the Girdwood faithful were already lined up and storming the doors at 6:30pm, and not too long after that, the show had sold out! The locals filled the Enter To Win bucket and once again hung out with crew from Chugach Powder Guides. The crowd was certainly in party mode as the drinks were flowing hard!

We were lucky to still be pretty well stocked for the last swag toss of the year, along with the last giveaways of Helly Hansen and Smith stuff, and one final pair of CoreUPT Skis! Chugach Powder Guides threw in one more day of heli skiing, and Alyeska Resort gave away one more Powder Pass!

When the film rolled, we were ready for the volume to go to eleven! Yes, the cheering started immediately with Pettit, and continued through Bralorne, Ingird and company in Tahoe, the Swedes in Tulsequah, Abma and Hoji hikes, and Colby's recap. But as one could imagine, the place went absolutely richter ballistic when Alyeska Resort went up on the screen! The cheers were there all through the Alyeska shots, and it all came to an earth trembling climax when Gus officially declared "We are in Alyeska, AK". Of course, the volume went up a few notches at the sight of Bobby landing the triple! It was great to hear the crowd calling out their friends randomly, as they caught glimpses of each other on screen!

The AK love continued of course into Cody and Henrik's segment. Heard similar deafening roars when the boys chimed in together, "We're in A-K," and the Girdwood sign came on screen! Made the hairs on the back of the neck stand up a little! Cody nails the first cliff and it was all time cheering from there!

All in all, a very high energy show for our fist time in Girdwood! And a great way to wrap up our 2010 tour! Thanks to all from Girdwood for coming out, we'll be back and may have to add another screening! Thanks to our buds from Chugach Powder Guides, and our friends at Alyeska Resort for the hospitality and for being such gracious hosts!

The 2010 tour is history! It has been a long, but very satisfying haul, and we're all anticipating what 2011 will bring! Until then, everyone safely get your ski on! Thanks to all who came, saw, and supported!

Love and respect...

-Frankie

After covering the West Coast, East Coast and Inter-Mountain regions, it was time to ditch the lower 48 and head north to Alaska. As our plane touched down in Anchorage, it was dumping and the streets were covered with snow. We quickly received reports of skiers hiking and snowmobiling for turns, so a good ole ski movie was just the thing Alaskan's needed to step into full on winter.

The interesting thing about us hosting in Alaska was that it was MSP's first time producing shows in the state, despite the fact that we have been annually shooting there since the early nineties. Yet another frontier awaiting in the great state of Alaska...

The Wendy Williamson Auditorium sits on the University of Alaska's campus and is like a mini arena with comfy seating, good sight lines, and acoustics. The AK hardcore stacked the Enter To Win bucket and got to know the folks from Chugach Powder Guides and Friends of the Chugach National Forest. Everyone in attendance was treated to a complimentary lift ticket from our friends at nearby Alyeska Resort!

After a big Alaska-sized swag toss, we doled the Helly Hansen Outerwear, Smith Goggles and CoreUPT Skis. One lucky fan received a Powder Pass from Alyeska Resort, and another lucky one received a free day of Heli Skiing with Chugach Powder Guides!

At show time, Anchorage brought the noise! Virtually non stop loudness through all the footage from their home state! Great to experience that type of reaction!

What a great way to set off our first produced screening in Alaska! Thanks to everyone who came out! Shout outs to Fred Parke and the crew at World Cup Sports in Anchorage! You guys did a great job on the ground for us there, and we're looking forward to next year! Thanks also goes out to the Friends of the Chugach National Forest, and to Chugach Powder Guides for getting on board and providing some sweet prize packages! Finally thanks to everyone at Alyeska Resort for spreading the love in Anchorage!

One more to go in AK, and that will wrap it up for 2010! Girdwood, AK tomorrow night!

-Frankie

It has been an exhausting, but overall exciting and excellent pleasure to bring "The Way I See It" to the East Coast masses! Great to see old friends, and happy to say that we made a ton of new friends a long the way! Every show was energetic and off the hook fun! Looking forward to returning and bringing whatever fine product we turn out next year!

Bob and FOTM, Cranmore Mountain Resort in Portsmouth, NH. Saddleback in Maine. Al's Ski Barn/Untracked in Portland, ME. Ryan Rubino and the Ski Rack, and Kim Leslie and the Stowe Crew. Greg at Mt. Snow, and Heather at Jack Frost Big Boulder. Joe, Stacy, Nicole, Regis and Yaya at Red Bull. Melissa at Subaru of America. The Music Hall, The Brattle Theatre, The Port City Music Hall, The HIgher Ground, Merkin Concert Hall, and World Cafe Live Upstairs. And all of our friends, family and fans on the East Coast...Thank you all very much for being there for MSP! All the best...until next year, safe winter!

-Frankie