Photograph by Andy Bardon
“I think I'm on 17 or 18,” says Jimmy Chin of how many times he has skied the 13,776-foot Grand in the Tetons. “I lost count after 15 a couple years ago. There were a couple years while I was training to ski Everest when I would ski it three times a week.”“I discovered and fell in love with skiing long before I started to climb. As a kid, I grew up skiing in jeans in Minnesota. Yup … I know … but I lived for it, and I still do,” says Chin, who now splits his time between Jackson, Wyoming, and New York City. “Jackson is totally incredible for skiing. Between the tram at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Teton Pass, and Grand Teton National Park, there is a lot of skiing to do—on piste, backcountry skiing, and ski mountaineering.”
“I was just stoked on life and to be up in the mountains with my friends,” recalls Chin of this moment. “It was a perfect day. We were all moving really well, comfortable with the terrain, and our timing was perfect. Conditions were great. I treasure and appreciate these kinds of moments more and more these days.”
Getting the Shot
“The biggest challenge while photographing this trip was just keeping up with Jimmy Chin. The dude is a beast,” recalls photographer Andy Bardon. Chin, known for his own stellar photography, was captured by Bardon in front of the camera this time. “This photo was made about 750 vertical feet below the summit of the Grand Teton. At this point we had climbed over ice bulges, bootpacked up steep couloirs, and ascended over 6,250 feet from the valley floor, so we were feeling it for sure,” says Bardon.
Bardon had never skied with Chin before but seized the moment: “Jimmy is such an ideal subject to photograph due to his technical mastery in the mountains. The guy is a ninja up there. Swift yet fluid, fast yet safe, and just cracking jokes the whole time. Frankly, I was just trying to keep up!”
Bardon photographed with a Canon 5D Mark III and a 16-35mm, f/2.8 lens.
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