FRESH POWDER Mitch Reeves breathed in cold clean mountain air He looked up at the steep cliffs in front of him Snow covered the slope as far as he could see It was every skier’s dream fresh powder In a few minutes a helicopter would take him to the top of that mountain Then he would ski down it There could be cliffs to jump over or narrow passes to get through There could be dangerous patches of loose snow It was up to him to figure out the route he would take Nothing had been marked because Mitch was not at a ski lodge He was on a remote mountain in New Zealand heliskiing with some of the best athletes in the world Mitch was nervous but he could not be too scared He had to trust himself Mitch breathed in deeply as the helicopter came its blades chopping loudly as it got closer and closer It was time to conquer the mountain
GETTING STARTED High far and fast That’s what heliskiers like They want to stretch their limits They already know how to ski They want to take it up a notch Helicopters carry them to reach high mountains in remote areas When the skiers step out of the helicopter fresh snow stretches for miles around them No one has skied there yet Heliskiers make their own trails A piste is a trail that has been marked for skiers Off-piste skiing is not marked It takes skiers off the beaten path Heliskiers are big-mountain skiers who find difficult slopes and tackle them with style They may find a Crashing through fresh powder is the dream of every heliskier 6
mountain filled with twists and turns There could be cliffs to jump off There may be long open stretches to speed down Every mountain is different Every time they ski they face a new challenge Skiing down an unmarked trail is more challenging than a regular run 7
