Pro skiers Ingrid Backstrom and Jessica Sobolowski share tips during their recent freeskiing camp at Squaw Valley to teach women how to tackle big-mountain skiing, from scouting lines to self-arrests. By Olivia Dwyer
![It comes from hard work. You need to figure out new ways to do things. I present my sponsors with alternatives that go beyond the status quo—you need to be more than the guy who did some contests, got sponsored, and moved on to photo and film shoots. That’s what all the top pros do but it can be a short career. To succeed long-term, you need to make yourself a personality and a brand. In 2005, I was bored and jaded and thought about retiring. I was sick of doing whatever other skiers were doing. I thought about how I could separate myself from the pack and came up with skiing the fourteeners. I turned to ski mountaineering because I love it but also because few people are exposed to it. Now my career is going better than I ever imagined. —Chris Davenport One More Thing from Chris Davenport:“I keep a case of Red Bull in my car. When resorts want to charge me $20 to park, I flip the guy four cans and he lets me park free.” [Editor’s note: Another secret to Dav’s longevity: plugging his sponsors whenever possible.]](https://www.skimag.com/.image/ar_16:9%2Cc_fill%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cg_faces:center%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_620/MTQzNTgzMzYyMTUwNzcwMDY0/how-to-stay-sponsored.jpg)
Get up in super-deep snow, how to find a free, and warm, place to sleep in a ski town, and 17 other skiing tips.
Squaw Valley's Erik Roner shows you how to handle exposed terrain.
There have been whole books (like Squallywood, by Robb Gaffney) written about how to ski the gnarliest lines at Squaw Valley, California. So there aren't a lot of secrets left. But we uncovered a few insider tips (with help from local pro skier Elyse Saugstad) that might help anyone planning a visit to Squaw.
The Colorado Mountain School's Mike Alkaitis shares tips on how to de-ice skins while backcountry skiing.
Including advice from Seth Morrison, Chris Davenport, and Alaskan heli-ski guide Kirsten Kremer, we offer up a crucial list of facts and tips you need to know before you head out of bounds.
Setting a bootpack is as simple as hiking up hill with skis on your back, but doing it efficiently can leave you some gas in the tank for another lap.
America's rebel ski racer Bode Miller surprises everyone by taking bronze in today's men's downhill in Whistler.
