CITY Issue 51

5 heli-skiing myths debunked 1. You don’t have to jump out of a hovering helicopter. It’s a ski trip, not a James Bond film. 2. The snow isn’t always perfect. You’ll find plenty of powder, but wind crust and temperature swings can wreck havoc with the quality. 3. You don’t have to be an expert. Experienced, yes; Bode Miller-esque, no. The terrain is breathtaking, but guides are cautious and pitches are mostly mellow. (Note: Bella Coola is geared more towards the hardcore.) 4. You don’t have to take all your vacation days at once. Most outfits now offer shorter, 3- to 4-day alternatives to the traditional week-long trip. 5. You don’t have to be a gear-head. Specialized equipment—like fat skis, avalanche beacons, and probes—is provided on-site, so travel light. Three of the best guides: Canadian Mountain Holidays (left) www.canadianmountainholidays.com Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing www.wiegele.com Bella Coola Heli Sports www.bellacoolahelisports.com Crested Butte, CO H E L I C O P T E R S K I I N G : P H OTO B Y B R A D W H I T E . M A R G A R I TA : P H OTO B Y H A R P E R K AU F M A N . Extreme Limits Crested Butte thrives on the imagination. Anywhere you look within the 500-plus acres of the mountain’s Extreme Limits terrain you’ll see yet another line threading through cliff bands, chocolate-chip rocks, and gnarled pines that might, just might, be ski-able. Standing at the bottom of Third or Teocalli Bowls, The North Face, or The Glades, looking up at unmarked shots with locally-coined names like Body Bag and Dead-End Chutes, you can’t help picturing yourself on the fall-line: If I just stick that jump turn there, huck that cliff here, and straight-run out right there… And then you see tracks in the snow and realize somebody else thought of it first. I’ve spent four winter weeks there over the past three years without a perfect powder day, but the Butte remains my holy grail of steeps precisely because of what I have not skied yet. Even a longtime local will tell you that the possible lines outnumber the opportunities to ski them—and this is exactly what keeps them coming back for more. Vail, CO Minturn Saloon Minturn, CO, (970) 827-5954 At the end of a Vail powder day, locals duck through the Game Creek Bowl gates to bomb the infamous Minturn Mile, ending up here for perfect margaritas and Mexican specialties like chili relleno and charbroiled quail. two more white-knucklers: Corbet’s Couloir, Jackson Hole, WY The Palisades, Squaw Valley, CA the best rocky mountain margaritta CITY 63 forget the ’copter: to test your limits just take a hike http://www.canadianmountainholidays.com http://www.wiegele.com http://www.bellacoolahelisports.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CITY Issue 51

Contents Letter from CITY Our Friends Action Wanted City Moment The City Life Fast Food Fit Field Trip The Suite Life Paint the Town Red Fresh Tracks After the Sunset One City, Many Destinations The Winning Photographer The Entries By the Numbers The Finalists Expert Opinion Amateur Hour Meet the Finalists Nowhere Man Dune Raiders Just Go Where To Buy It Socials Icon

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