Verbier Xtreme 2010

What I’m about to ski down is the scariest fucking thing I’ve ever skied down.

It’s been years since I was this legitimately scared on top of a line. A toxic brew of adrenaline and fear boils in my veins while waiting in the start gate. Suddenly the competition stops because Julien Lopez just played a poker hand with Señor Reaper. Dr. Death lost this hand but a helicopter still needs to come pick up Julien after a 50 mph tomahawk over a field of shark-finned rocks. The hold send my legs into lethargy. My body doesn’t want to go. My mind reassures that it’s okay, I can ski this. This face tried to kill me once before, how could it try to go two for two?

The intimidating Bec des Rosses

From the bottom it’s steepness almost makes it feel like it is a cresting wave shadowing over your head. The top pitch is measured at 58 degress. 58 degrees is steep, but with the piles upon piles of rocks below you, 58 all of sudden feels like trying to ski down your bedroom wall.

My chosen and skied line shown in red. The first 10 foot air that goes from skier’s right to left was one of the most committed airs of my life. A fall there would have equaled certain death. The next open field was sloughing like an Alaskan face and threatening to pull me over the pepper field below. After those two sections the 50 foot air in the middle and the double stage at the bottom felt like a Sunday drive.

Inspection day and the view from the starting gate. You don’t see much when pushing out of the gate. We hiked down to the rock below to see…

…this! Holy steepness! The field in the middle lined with the two slough paths was the field below my first air. You can see the consequences of a fall quite clearly in this pic.

One last look at the Bec.

This isn’t a contest against other skiers. This is a contest against yourself.

If you’re interested you can see vid of my run down the Bec de Rosses click HERE.

Posted by Cody Townsend on April 4th, 2010 in Switzerland and Verbier

Cody Townsend @codytownsend

I'm Cody Townsend, I write about the behind-the-scenes life of being a professional skier. I've appeared in ski films by Teton Gravity Research, Warren Miller, Match Stick Productions, among others. When not in front of the camera or competing I also write for Powder Magazine and Skiing Magazine. My current sponsors who make my lifestyle possible include; Salomon, Swatch, The Levitation Project, Porters Tahoe, Von Zipper, Hestra, Camelbak, Squaw Valley USA.