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In the first episode of 2022, we sit down with LJ Strenio coming off his retirement announcement to look back on his ski career. @TwoPlankerPod https://www.instagram.com/twoplankerpod/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4DoaAVYv69xAV50r8ezybK Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/two-planker-podcast/id1546428207 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRvAYQSF4s3bsC887ALAycg Show Notes: 0:00:00 Line Skis ad read 0:00:28 Introduction 0:01:40 Stepping down from professional skiing and social media 0:05:25 Working remote, NASA internship 0:09:50 The start, Rails 2 Riches, Groups, Orage Masters 0:17:30 Next steps film skiing and college, Meatheads and Rage Films...

My freshman year of college I bought a Subaru Outback explicitly to go skiing in. I had a car that could get me to the mountains, and keep me entertained on the way. I bought that car right at the tail end of the golden age of mix CDs. What can I say? I crashed a lot back then, trying to ski from the backseat with aggression. I remember the trip a friend brought his own CD and introduced us to Odesza, and Phantogram....

LJ Strenio, pro skier. Nix that, LJ Strenio, data scientist. Kidding on the last part… maybe - machine learning is his specialty. Nice AI only, c’mon, LJ. The move comes after five years of grad school and getting his Masters Degree. I didnt even know what computer science was like a year before I started studying it. LJ said, Now Im super excited about it. My body wasnt going to support me forever....

Its a conversation that nearly everyone who’s spent a lot of time skiing will recognize. The conversation always starts like this, dude, we should totally make an edit this year. Once all the challenges of producing a ski crystallize, though, it gets more difficult. Not necessarily a failure, but certainly not a success. Our efforts joined those countless others whoalmostmade a ski video. Luckily, there are plenty of people who have managed to figure this whole videography thing out....

So instead, heres a follow-up to Thursdays roundup of things I read this year that helped me write. Hopefully you find some of these resources interesting. Muddy Colors Muddy Colors is my favorite art website. Every day it has a new post from a working fantasy artist or art director. Scott Fischers Youtube Channel I sort of hate-watch many youtube artists. Theyre often so formulaic and smug. But Fischer isnt a typical youtube artist....

Cover photo courtesy of FIS The past week saw two big events for athlete’s Olympic ambitions go down at COP in Calgary this past week. For the first event it was properly Canada cold, to the point where many Albertan resorts had to close, but the freezing condtions mellowed for the second event, with Calgary’s famous wind playing causing issues instead. The differing conditions for the two events did nothing to change who stood on top of the podium, however, with China’s Eileen Gu taking the top spot in both women’s events and Brendan Mackay going back to back on the men’s side....

Theyre just as sweet too. Raised in Montana, Rian always rode horses growing up. Thats wild considering she then went on to compete in Moguls on the NorAm tour. Shes now a yoga instructor and still loves horses and plans on producing a sweet skijoring video.

Its been nearly 2 years since I skied powder of the champagne variety. If you live in the state of Washington, the last week has been absolute insanity. Snow in the metropolitan areas isnt super uncommon, it usually happens once or twice each winter. What IS VERY uncommon, is the consistent temperatures we have been having throughout the storm cycles. It has been cold. When that happens, its typically frigid up in the mountains, and it has been....

Inspiration isnt the right word, these pieces didnt spur me to creativity with some great blast of insight. So here are things that helped me write this year. Maybe theyll help you, or maybe theyll just kill some down time this holiday season. Damnation Spring Ash Davidson This was one of my favorite books in recent memory. Its a well-researched, well-written novel about the tail end of old-growth logging in California....

Last week I cranked outsome stained glass window saints. But it’s impossible to thank everyone who makes resort skiing possible in just five windows. So here are a few more. Ya’ll are great. Thanks for doing what you do, even during the holidays. And a special shoutout to anyone who’s cranking out the lodge cafe chicken tendies. You’re the best.

Shape/Flex/Construction: Both skis feature pretty similar constructions and rocker profiles. They even have the same footprint on paper. But these really are very different skis. The Whitewalker is much stiffer than the JJ UL and features pinned noses and tails. Both the tip and tail did have some give though, and I quite enjoyed buttering around on them. The JJ UL is much softer all through the ski. The JJ UL, by contrast, is below average on hardpack, even for a fat ski....

Something that stood out in its grandeur above every other run Ive taken. I dont know, I used to imagine a lot of things. And then two weeks ago I woke up to my wifes alarm beeping gently. We geared up, and walked the block to the shuttle stop in our boots. The only other people on the bus were resort employees. Making good time uphill next to my favorite person....

Sometimes all you need is to be shown whats possible, after all thats how we all started. The rest was filmed with the homies Patrick grew up skiing the streets with. All the features in the project are just people I was with during winter. I even got to get my childhood friend Emerson Hochevar his first street clip. I always think its dope to hear stories behind the shots when it comes to street parts....