It’s
sunny out, winds are light, and we’re all bundled up like two year olds
learning to ski at the resort. I am staring at a little blue book that I have
been familiar with for a number of years, but could never get a true grasp off.
It’s filled with technical jargon, specialized symbols, and a table for
standard to metric conversions. My instructors are talking about things like
temperature gradients in the snow pack, elaborating on the sizes and shapes of
snow grains, and teaching us how to record our data in a standardized and
usable way. I had always known that my beloved winter playground was far more
intricate than it appears upon first glance and finally light bulbs are going
of left and right inside my head. My
time spent reading, and learning through personal experiences gains clarity
with the help of professional instruction. Until now I had been intimidated by
the thought of implementing science on a ski tour. I was unsure of my ability
to proficiently take part in the process. Was I recognizing the right problems?
Was I using the right tests to examine those problems? Were my interpretations
of those test results correct?
Last
weekend I was blessed with one of the coolest and possibly most valuable
learning experiences of my life. I
graciously received the Knox Frank Memorial Scholarship to take my AIARE Level
2 Avalanche course with Crested Butte Mountain Guides. Knox past in the spring of 2012, a tragic
avalanche had taken him in the San Juan Range of Colorado. Though I was never
able to meet Knox, conversations with his friends have revealed a few of his
undeniable characteristics; Knox it seems had an insatiable appetite for life
and his hunger was fueled by great friends and beautiful mountains.
I
applied for his scholarship two Decembers ago, slaving over my laptop for hours
to put together a slide show and spoken essay that would accurately depict my
passion for the mountains and the wonderful things they have brought to my
life. In January of 2013 I attended the awards ceremony at the Brick Oven where
Knox’s parents presented his scholarship to that year’s winner. I didn’t win,
but I was approached afterwards by multiple people on the judging committee and
encouraged to apply again next year, they said it was a tough decision between myself
and the recipient. I had never been more
honored to come in second place in my life. I remember leaving the Brick and
calling my parents to inform them of my not so good, but somehow great news;
people liked what I had to say about the mountains.
One
year later I inquired about the scholarship again, in late January Jayson
Simons-Jones informed me that this time I had received the scholarship. Having been in love with snow for as long as
I can remember and studying it in my own un-formalized ways since my early
teenage years I was beyond excited to be given the opportunity to learn from
real professionals, especially in my new backyard of Crested Butte where the
snow seems to be ever changing and plagued with instabilities.
Now
having completed my avalanche two course I am even more grateful for the
generosity of Knox’s Friends and Family.
In my course I learned invaluable skills that will guide me along a
safer path as both a wild snow recreator and hopefully future professional. I
have not waited to put my newly acquired knowledge to practice and have already
experienced an increased level of confidence in my own decision making methods
since taking the course. Alan Bard once wrote, “Passion and vitality for living
are some of the gifts we receive from skiing, particularly skiing in the great
beyond.” A statement I could not agree with more and one that defines my life’s
most basic goal; to live passionately in pursuit of powder skiing, while
sharing the quest with others who may not have the same fortune of such regular
doses. So THANK YOU KNOX, and
everyone else who was involved in facilitating my continued avalanche
education.
