Beyond Black: The World's Top 10 Classic Steeps
By Alistair Wearmouth
The first Scandinavian hunter-gatherers who happened upon the ingenious idea of attaching wooden planks to their feet in times of wintery excess would no doubt be perplexed by today's multi-billion dollar industry. Why, they might wonder, didn't we think of that?
It's all downhill from here
Photo © Greg Von Doersten/JHMR
Post-Pleistocene era, the industry manages to draw millions to some of the most beautiful scenic spots on the planet. The allure of the winter slopes attracts its fair share of headcases, too, for whom the joy of a leisurely glide down slopes layered with soft powder just won't do. No, these brave souls insist that steeper, icier, and downright scarier is better. The resorts, for their part, are only too happy to oblige: After all, didn't Adam Smith argue that supply will eventually meet demand? If you lift-serve it, they will come—and throw themselves into the jaws of extreme exhilaration, again and again and again.
It is to these sick-steep marauders that we doff our caps, presenting ten of the world's most fearsome, resort-accessible runs. GORP teamed up with author Peter Oliver and champion skier Alison Gannett to compile the top-ten classic heart-in-your-mouth steeps. This is to be followed by ten unheralded runs that dare you to ride the gondola all the way to the top. Alison's five expert-only picks are to be read, inwardly digested, and only attempted if you are a double-diamond expert with the appropriate safety equipment packed on board. You have been warned!
| Classic Piste |
| 1. |
Ruby Bowl, Whistler Blackcomb, BC |
6. |
Trefide Couloir, La Grave, France |
| 2. |
Corbet's Couloir, Jackson Hole, WY |
7.
|
Highland Bowl, Aspen, CO |
| 3.
|
Hangman's Hollow, Mammoth Mtn., CA |
8.
|
Big Couloir, Big Sky, MT |
| 4.
|
The Palisades, Squaw Valley, CA |
9.
|
El Marte, Las Leñas, Argentina |
| 5.
|
Les Grands Montets, Chamonix, France |
10.
|
Valluga, St. Anton, Austria |
Peter Oliver: Peter is a contributing editor of Skiing magazine and author of Endless Winter, featured in the 2003 Outside Traveler annual. Also the author of several books, he wrote Stowe: Classic New England. The book, with more than 200 photos, is published by Mountain Sports Press and is available for $49.95 from Barnesandnoble.com, Borders.com, and all good bookstores. Peter lives down the road from storied Mad River Glen, in Vermont.
Alison Gannett: Alison strives to tackle those things people say she shouldn't. A World Champion big mountain skier and travel addict, she also dabbles in green home consulting, ethno-botany, 24-hour solo mountain bike racing, yoga, surfing, women's steep-ski camps, and writing. She skis and works from her self-built Victorian straw home in Crested Butte, Colorado, with her cat, Terra, who has not yet blown down the house.
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