Being a newschool skiier from Las Vegas is an unusual pursuit. After seeing Teddy Bear Crisis I was motivated to be the best. I saved up for a pair of park skis and going up to our local mountain. After two seasons of being the only freestyle skier at our local mountain I suddenly saw another.
A short stocky Hawaiian was hucking ridiculous tricks on jumps/rails with almost no skiing ability. Five years later after consciousness experimentation, teaching the hellish kids club together, and finally completing our dream of moving to a true ski town, its over. I had to leave Mt.Hood for personal reasons, and remember hugging my best friend one last time and he said "I remember our first bong rip together at the ski resort, I love you, and I know everything with you will work out"
I turned on my phone today to multiple voice mails because my phones been off for a few weeks, planning to move back to Oregon asap. All of them were for him, checking up on me. The last one was a desperate, short call describing how he dropped in the wrong spot, and had attempted crossing a river, and had lost his skis in the process. After frantic calling I learned that my best friend had been found in a creek dead.
I know this is normal in our community, but I have never met a more driven person towards skiing. His first day skiing was halfway of his nineteenth year, and his career only lasted four years. I broke down watching footage from our first time at mammoth, and us being so excited to hit our first rail, and see EHEATH in real life. Every day and every night I was getting harassed by him in Oregon to go skiing. It hurts to think how I rejected those offers for rest, or drinks. I am in a state of confusion right now, and sorry if this post is out of line, but I just wanted to help remember him maybe a little.
Here's the news story, (To all the dick's who say he was intoxicated and it was his fault, yes, but have some courtesy. Thanks)
-Ian C.
http://www.katu.com/news/local/Skier-found-dead-in-creek-outside-Ski-Bowl-200824571.html
