Gabe’s blog day 4
5th March 2008 by Gabe Taylor / comments (0)
Today was nuts. The bi-polarism of filming snowboarding sure did make itself evident. Our day started off like all others, with hours of snowmobiling, and then building a jump. The jump we built wasn’t that awesome but it got us looking around the huge mountain that was above it.
One of these photos is of me taking a backcountry dump. This usually comes on after the coffee kicks in and the bumpy snowmobile ride is through with. Notice how I am holding onto the back of the snowmobile. This provides great leverage so you don’t end up crapping on the back of your legs. A tree will also work well if one happens to be nearby. You may also notice the handy wet-wipes in my goggles reflection. These are also extremely important for a proper backcountry squat. Imagine snowmobiling over all those bumps, basically grinding your snowmobile seat with a dirty ass. Yuck. I want my ass to be spick and span.
If you ever find yourself in the Canadian backcountry with Benji Ritchie I advise you not to follow him on his snowmobile. Even if he says, “It’s pretty mellow”, do not listen to him as his views on mellow snowmobiling are not the same as most. Accessing this new zone we had scoped required some serious side hilling and was nowhere near mellow. Greg Wheelz, our grenade filmer, slaughtered the climb first try and had us all very impressed. Danny tried a few times and ended up just ghost-riding his sled down the hill while he snowboarded behind it. He eventually made it up to the jump.
Some successful filming behind us we followed Benji up and down miles and miles of glacier to reach a newer spot that had to be close to Alaska. The spot was a good 30 miles from the trailhead so f-ing up would not be convenient. The spot worked out and we started the mission back home. After one particularly long climb Greg’s sled started smoking and then, abruptly, shit the bed. Having your Engine seize up twenty miles from your car can be a huge problem. I should’ve taken more photos but I’m not much of a photographer and was trying to help out so sorry I don’t have photos of the ordeal but give me a break, I’m doing my best.
How to tow a sled:
After taking the belt off your snowmobile attach the rope you brought to the back of one sled and the front of the busted one. Tow the pile out. When your sled begins to overheat change to another and let yours cool down for a while. When confronted with an uphill it is usually necessary to tie the broken sled to two or more sleds and drag it up the hill. Remember that flying a sled out of the backcountry is $1200 or so, so if things get problematical, or you’re rich, call that chopper in. Upon reaching your car at 9:30 pm feel free to load up and head to the local drinking establishment. Tell your story to all who will listen and feel good knowing McGyver and Chuck Norris would be proud.
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