As the 2007/ 2008 winter season was winding down in Big Sky, spring snowfalls continued to add to an already epic winter. Throughout the west, everybody seemed to be experiencing what would appear to be a ten year cycle. Just when everybody was sure the run must be coming to an end, another storm would roll in creating yet another powder day. I had gone into this season with a fairly big winter event schedule, a couple of randonee races, a few nordic races and possibly a trip down to the Grand Traverse Race. In addition, to this busy schedule, I was trying to finish a large addition on my house, which proved to be a much larger tax on my winter plans then I had expected. It became brutally clear early on that finding “training time”, even with my usual night time and pre-dawn headlamp missions was going to be difficult to maintain. I quietly resolved, after several storms made the backcountry sketchy and the ski area awesome, that I was going to be riding chairlifts a lot this winter.

The problem was I couldn’t figure out how to ski and bang nails at the same time, no matter how diligently I skied, my house didn’t seem to be getting done. It was the weirdest thing, I would go skiing and come back at the end of the day and my house would look exactly the same as when I left. Alright, alright I get it, less skiing and more working is the only thing that is going to get my project done.

That was where I was at when I learned that Moonlight Basin was going to put on their 3RD annual Headwaters Race, a 1000ft time trial and a judged freeskiing competition. I had won this race once and placed second another time, so I was fond of this race. However, with the meager amount of training I had done this winter I was not mentally up for the challenge. This may sound lame, but I was reluctant to enter if I didn’t have a chance to win. So I resolved to not enter and finish out the season leisurely powder skiing. That was until my wife secretly registered me for the race. I learned a week before the competition that I was signed up, and I either race or forfeit my entry fee.

Left with little choice, I woke up on race day with only a vague idea of what line I would ski and no additional training days. It was brilliant, I had no expectations, I slept soundly with no sleepless hours wondering how I was going to stick the landing or how I was going to ski that technical section smoothly.
I woke up well rested and very casual about the entire event. It had snowed five to eight inches and it was a blue bird day. This couldn’t be better, a little exercise, a fresh line and a soft landing. I didn’t win the hike as I have twice before, I got second, but I did win the freeski competition. Outscoring both the top alpine skier, snowboarder and the rest of the telemark class to win the overall. It goes to show that when in doubt you might as well pony up and not sell yourself short.

Alex is a Cloudveil ambassador and lives in the Gallatin Canyon north of Big Sky, MT with his wife Suzy and 15-month old son. He is a sponsored telemark skier with four year’s experience competing in the US Telemark Freeskiing Series and was ranked second two seasons overall.