Why I chose Jackson Hole, Wyoming

“The human element is the ultimate draw, the history contained is priceless…” Dave Reddick , Powder

If I ever have the oppurtunity to live out West in a ski town I would live in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. There a lot of things I could say to describe my motives and desires behind moving living out west. Just to name a few: the people, the culture, the fresh powder, the cool air, the desire to ski. To get a better understanding of why I have chosen Jackson Hole, Wyoming watch the trailer for the movie "Swift. Silent. Deep."

Happy Saint Powders day from Snowbird, Utah

Saint Patrick’s day is often noted as days to kick back relax and enjoy local festivities. For the people of Alta and Snowbird, Utah Saint Patrick’s day means skiing especially when a big storm comes into the canyon.

A storm moves into the Canyon the night before Saint

Patrick's Day, bringing nine inches of fresh snow

Saint Patrick’s Day at Snowbird proved to be a great one. A storm moved into Little Cotton Canyon the night before and put some fresh snow on the ground, nine inches to be exact. The storm called for nine to twelve inches so I could not complain with nine as a happy medium. I had trouble sleeping that night because I knew the skiing was going to be the best out of our time out there.

I awoke at six am ready to find the fresh powder, then had to wait in the tram line to find it

My Dad and I were out the door by 7:15 am ready to catch the first tram up the mountain. After a grueling forty five-minute wait the tram opened to the public at 8:00am. We missed the first tram twenty people but were headed up to the top of Snowbird by 8:30am. 11,000 vertical feet is a great place to find fresh tracks, espeecially at 8:45 am.

Our first run of the day came at The Cirque which had been the best run of the week. With nine inches of snow it was even better. I love The Cirque because of its steep vertical descent and wind blown powder. After a great warmup run we headed over to Gad 2 where we found the best snow of the day.

The trees of Gad 2 are some of my favorite on the mountain

There is something magical about the Gad 2 lift on a powder day. It is one of the oldest and slowest lifts in Snowbird but the skiing is always great there. On a really good powder day usually the game-plan is to head there first.

The video above is me skiing gad 2 early that

morning; conditions were ideal.

We spent a good few hours over at Alta but it ended up that the best snow of the day was at Snowbird. That is one of the great things about these mountains, one side of the mountain might have a few more inches of snow and significantly better skiing.

We headed in after a great day of skiing.

The facts don’t lie.

Duration on the mountain: 7 hours 32 minutes and 22 seconds

Distance Skied 19.5 miles

Statistics from iphone GPS Application ‘Ski Tracks’

1,334 Miles, 25 hours and 51 minutes Later

Friday April 1, 2011 I began an incredible eight days of chasing sports around the southeastern part of the United States. My journey started in Auburn, Alabama, and ended there ten days later. I will be recapping each specific event in detail but for now I want to give a broad overview of my travels and experiences.

I left Auburn, Alabama, Friday, April 1, 2011 around 6:00pm central time and drove to Duluth, Georgia.

Miles Driven: 134

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 2 hours, 20 Minutes

The next afternoon I played The Highlands Course at The Atlanta Athletic Club with a good friend of mine, Matt Bruder. This is the course that will be host to the 93^rd PGA Championship this August.

25 MPH winds and fast greens gave me and Matt issues
on the front nine of The Highlands course.

Our play improved dramatically: Hole number 8 Matt
puts a great chip within inches of the hole.

Great drives on Number 10 left Matt and I with
manageable approach shots for Par and Birdie. 

I awoke early Sunday, April 3, 2011 to return to Auburn, Alabama, for a golf tournament some friends and I had set up.

Miles Driven: 134

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 2 hours 20 Minutes

I played well on the course that afternoon and was excited about the week ahead of me. The next leg in my journey was a two day excursion to Augusta, Georgia, for Monday and Tuesday practice rounds at The Masters. I left Auburn, Alabama, Sunday evening around 8:30pm for Augusta Georgia.

Miles Driven: 247

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 4 hours and 20 minutes

Due to the time change, I arrived in Augusta, Georgia a little after 2:00am eastern time. It was a short nights sleep as we awoke at 5:30am ready to spend the day at Augusta National.

Monday at Augusta National left many lasting memories.

Dustin Johnson works with swing coach Butch Harmon,
who also assists Tiger Woods and several other golfers.

A perfect day at Augusta National.

From Left to Right: Ben Cantrell (First Masters), Myself (Second Masters), Andrew Bruen (Third Masters)

After a great first day my two friends headed home, and I headed to Columbia, South Carolina, to prepare for day two at The Masters.

Miles Driven: 72

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 1 hour, 16 minutes

After a short night of sleep, my friend who I stayed with awoke and I at 5:15am to prepare for another day at Augusta National. There were bad storms that moved through the Southeast that evening, which made the drive from Columbia to Augusta slightly longer.

Miles Driven: 72

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Day two at The Masters proved every bit as spectacular as the first one, but it got even better as the day went on.

Storms kept the course from opening on time Tuesday.

Great seats on the Par 3 13th provided a chance to see
rising starts such as Rory McIlroy (pictured above) and Ernie
Else (pictured below).

Another great day at Augusta National came to an end, and I had to drive back to Auburn, Alabama that evening.

Miles Driven: 247

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 4 hours, 20 minutes

Wednesday and Thursday lingered on as I had a presentation, project and test within those two days. 

Friday finally came and it was time to travel to Atlanta, Georgia, for the Atlanta Braves home opener against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Miles Driven: 107

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 1 hour and 50 minutes

A chance to see collected his 2,500 hit. In my book
he should be in the Hall of Fame.

My cousin had a chance to attend his first Major League
Baseball Game, which is always a thrilling event.

The trip back to Auburn, Alabama, from Atlanta, Georgia, was not a good one. We were in I-85 bumper-to-bumper traffic for several hours.

Miles Driven: 107 miles

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 4 hours, 15 minutes

Saturday, April 10, 2011 provided a day to rest in Auburn, Alabama, and prepare for one more travel day. I awoke Sunday morning April 11, 2011 and traveled to Birmingham, Alabama, for the Honda Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park.

Miles Driven: 107

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 2 hours, 15 minutes

Seeing the fastest cars in the world race in the world was an
adrenaline rush.

Meeting Danica Patrick was another great highlight of the day. We had a brief conversation, and I did not have the chance to give her my number. But I am sure another situation will arise, and we can meet up for coffee or dinner and discuss the racing industry.

A great ten days was coming to an end as I drove back to Auburn, Alabama.

Miles Driven: 107

Approximate time spent driving to destination: 2 hours, 15 minutes

As I reflect on the mileage I drove and the hours I spent in the car to reach my destinations, I can only think about how I am ready to get on the road again.

Total Miles Driven: 1,334
Total Hours spent in the car: 25 hours and 51 minutes

Combining My two greatest passions: Snow and The Masters

Lately I have been doing a lot of research on The Masters to prepare for the 2011 tournament at Augusta National. There are many great Masters videos on youtube right now. If you know anything about the Masters I highly encourage you to check them out, I get chill bumps from most of them.

This video combines two of my passions, snow and The Masters:

I will do some research on Jackson Hole golf courses and see if I can make this happen soon.