When I was a teenager in the mid-1970's, the kids dragged main street every Friday and Saturday night. It had nothing to do with actual drag-racing, rather, it had everything to do with socializing and picking up chicks. Is backcountry skiing in 2019 more about the social event than real skiing?
I have been accused of being territorial of my home hill and admittedly I have said too much. I regret any hard feeling I may have caused because nothing is worth losing a friend, especially differences in politics, religion and yes, even BC skiing. That said, my home hill is small and short and can get tracked out very quickly. Face it, a group of six skiers can make mince-meat of Rectangle Bowl in less than 20 minutes. In comparison, if I was skiing it alone it would take me half a day to put down those same six sets of tracks.
Backcountry skiing of 2019-2020 reminds me of of my high school days when socializing was veiled by big, loud cars, belching stinky, blue smoke. Apparently I am not alone in this thought. Check out the article below from Issue #129 (November 2019) of Backcountry Magazine. It makes goods points about going in small groups, going wide and even going to the unpopular, manky destination to find solitude. If nothing else, be nice, be respectful and let the first person or group take that bowl or that line. Don't start skinning below someone else. It's discourteous and unsafe to expect someone high up on the ridge above you to sit there and wait while you ascend (poach) their skin track.
If any of these words make you think "that's impossible," perhaps it is proof that you need to go longer and farther to find the soul of skiing. Don't get pissed by my words! We all want the same thing but some of us are haunted by memories of a simpler time. I'm good for my word. I've spent decades deferring to those who got their first, both dragging Main Street or skiing Rectangle Bowl.
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