I moved to Medford, OR in 2006 from Billings, MT when I was 16. Moving at that age was difficult, switching high schools, making friends, and learning a new area. When I lived in Montana, skiing and snowboarding was a way of life. Mountains that reach over 10,000 feet, covered in a dry white powder just seems to have a calling to me. I started snowboarding when I was about 14 and enjoyed it, but never really got into it. It was fun, but I was never quite as good as my friends. I stopped going to the mountain for about a year, then I moved to Oregon.
After moving to Medford, I started making some friends and a few told me about Mt. Ashland. It seemed like a pretty nice place to get back into the sport. It was close and accessible, cheap, and a challenging terrain to improve your skills. Well after making some decent money during my first summer, I went and purchased all new equipment and really got myself excited to get back on the snow.
My first time on the mountain it took a while to work the kinks out, but I was back to riding and was even improving from where I left off. From there it was just like a drug, the longer I was away from it the more it called my name to come back. Just thinking about carving my edge in deep powder gave me the chills as I sat in class. It had really become a lifestyle to me.
During my first season I made myself a play list from itunes; and there were certain songs that I would listen for how I wanted to ride. If I was taking my time, I wanted something smooth and flowing, but if wanted to bomb the run, it would definitely be more up beat and hard. From that point on, specific songs I would hear from my play list, no matter where I was would bring me right back to the mountain. It could be the middle of summer with a high of 90 degrees and I would close my eyes and could feel the freezing wind and the sharp sting of the snow cutting my face, as I would carve my line.
Mt. Ashland has really given me a place that I will remember for the rest of my life. No matter where I am, or what I do, certain attributes will remind me of the lonely little mountain in the Siskiyou Range.
