Progression, Succession, and Some Skiing
Words by Simon Bell
Photos by Nash Mader
This article was originally published in The Goodland Journal Volume 2
If you asked the greatest thinkers, doers, and achievers what they have for inspiration, I bet they’d all say the same thing at some point: a person, place or thing that has motivated them along their journey. It seems critical to the success of a person to have mentors and inspirations. Someone that’s better at something, a person who has mastered their craft, or a place that sparks imagination is often the reason for attraction to and progress toward something.
As a twenty-something, I can respectfully say that I’ve come a long way. But, being a young man, newly licensed dentist, and outdoor enthusiast, it seems the room for improvement in most aspects of my life is literally sky high. It can often be overwhelming to find your personal rhythm and authentic style in life these days with all of the influence we have. How do we find our way amongst millions of ways to do things?
Let’s apply the concept to sliding on snow. There are many ways to ski: in bounds vs. out of bounds? Skiing solo to improve vs. skiing with your buds to drink beer? Skimo, freeski...freemo? At some point you latch on to something.
For my ski world, it was the mountains and a small group of dudes who cared about being outside, pushing physical limits, finding good snow, and staying super safe in the backcountry. Being relatively new to the sport, it took a while to catch up with the knowledge, fitness, and awareness. But my backcountry partners were vital in igniting the fire while simultaneously creating a vision of where I wanted to end up. And the mountains, well, they spoke for themselves.
This spring we were on the East Side. The Sierra are California’s pride and joy of spring skiing. Being in those zones is always a whirlwind of sentiments but this time specifically I was overwhelmed with the joy of the perspective of where I came from both literally and figuratively. And I was doing it with friends. Friends who I’ve learned from and who have inspired me to push toward a goal.
Despite all attitudes toward skinning up icy hardpack or the boot pack up exposed couloirs or the long approach, I’ve got to say the feeling of euphoria after ripping skins and skiing is far out.
So it seems that progress requires a vision. That vision is usually created by a person, friend, father, grandfather, personal hero, who has come before you and made an impact. Keep your eyes open! Then the figurative trigger is pulled and initiates the rest: thinking, planning, putting in the hard work, asking for advice, taking the class, finding a way to make the vision a reality. The mountain top is the pinnacle – the realization of the dream come true. Then the fun begins as you take your turn to feel what it means to accomplish and reap the reward for taking initiative. But I promise you, on that mountain top as you look deeper into the mountain range, you’ll see someone or something else that will energize you again. Therein lies the addictive property of progression and success. Reach one blissful peak to envy another and so on. So again: on your quest, whatever or wherever it may be, don’t forget to ENJOY IT!