He was in 3rd grade when he first skied.
His mom told him he had to get a winter sport and he wasnt too good at basketball!
So he started an after-school ski program, at Bolton Valley Vermont.
The first time I ever went skiing, it was just such a weird and amazing way to travel.
Once you experience it, its impossible to not want to do it more.
The ability to fly is the only ability thats cooler than sliding on snow.
For three years that was a huge focus of mine.
I also did X qualifiers a couple times.
I did a bunch of photos and videos with theMeathead Filmscrew, I shot some stuff withLevel 1early on.
I was never great.
I was good at everything, but I was never great at one aspect.
I just loved skiing.
I was petrified to speak to this guy!
Hes like a physical god!
There is nothing bigger than Shane.
Candide, but Candides like this little French dude.
Shane was like this mythical creature.
I hesitate to bring it up, but I knew wed have to broach the topic eventually.
So, what happened on the April 29th, 2006?
I woke up in Mammoth that morning, it was the coaches retreat weekend.
My contract with the mountain had ended the day before.
This was kind of an end of the year wrap up.
A bunch of the crew that were there were from ski racing and stuff.
I didnt think many people would want to be going to the terrain park.
It was this 100ft step up.
The morning of my accident, things were a little different.
The biggest mistake was that I just hit a jump blind, that was something I never did.
Still, I dont know why?
But you cant rely on why, there is no way to ever get that why.
I remember, when I hit the jump, the second I hit I had gone so big.
I told myself to close my eyes because I didnt want to see the impact.
I did, I closed my eyes.
My body travelled 130ft and I came down from 30ft in the air.
No motor, no feeling, no anything.
I felt like my body got sucked back in.
Broken back, but still smiling
His injury is T12 incomplete spinal cord injury.
A guy called Bill Hudson, he actually sits on my board of directors, to this day.
He was the executive director ofSugar Bowl Ski Teamat the time.
They raised all this money for me and put it in this umbrella fund at Sugar Bowl.
For two years, I had the opportunity to not have any fiscal worries.
I wasnt living a frivolous life, but I could focus on recovery every day 6-8 hours a day.
That was made possible because of that fund.
From that, he knew that he had to pay it forward.
Pursuing a dream in outdoor sports or having an injury and wanting to get back to the outdoors.
How could we make that possible?
All these people made it possible for me, well I wanted to make it possible for everybody else.
So, he had the cause and the funds, now he just needed a name…
I actually wanted to call itFlip-Back,because I wished that if I had done a backflip.
I came to the realisation: close your eyes and wait for the impact.
I had wished I had done a backflip and now I knew I probably wouldnt ever do a backflip.
So I wanted to flip back, so that was the initial thought.
Then it really hit me, I didnt want to flip back, I wanted to move forward.
That name, that idea, that gesture came the morning after surgery.
The first thing we ever did was a ski event in 2008.
Roy first discussed the idea of a foundation with freeski superstar CR Johnson.
I actually met CR through my physiotherapy.
CR had his first brain injury in December 2005.
I had my spinal injury in April 06.
A guy by the name of Ladd Williams.
Ladd is a doctor of physiotherapy, but hes also a native American.
Ill tell you what, theres something there.
I cant explain it, but its there.
They hated having to keep going back to the hospital for two reasons:
1.
The smell of a hospital is disgusting.
Id figured that by now we would have helped 11 people.
The whole goal was one person a year, in the ski & snowboard world.
High Fives has grown way bigger than Roy could have imagined in that hospital bed.
We had our logo on the back of Joey LoganosNASCARChampionship winning helmet.
That helmet now sits in the White House.
There wasnt anyone that I could call for help.
It was navigating without a compass.
I think thats whats so important.
The pandemic has unsurprisingly interrupted the foundations plans.
Theyre operating on a no new/continue the mission approach.
I think thats where were at, continuing the mission and refining our purpose, but big plans?
Weve got them, but unfortunately, theyre on hold.
Weve been super blessed with both the individuals that weve supported and the things that they have achieved.
One of my favourite instances was a young girl who got hurt in an ATV accident.
Roy making dreams come true!
I think thats something that weve been able to do.
Weve been able to step back and give people that life and the community, to say No.
Lifes just beginning again, and it will be awesome.
I love talking to people on the chairlift.
Skiing now, I like to ski groomers that are groomed really nice and I can make turns.
Im petrified of catching air.
I still do it, because I want to ski and I want to show others.
There is another sport that Roy is excited about is mountain biking.
Roys Favourite:
Trip:I would love to go ski at the Hahnenkamm.
To go to Austria and just be in the presence of what skiing is there.
Trick:My favourite trick before, was just really big backflips.
Seriously, Gunnars in charge of the music now.
