Intro
We’ve been super busy at Blister — including gearing up for the Blister Summit, announcing our new Blister Labs initiative, and putting out a ton of reviews, podcasts, and more. But that hasn’t stopped us from keeping up with a bunch of recent ski and bike media, too, and so What We’re Watching is back with a bunch of our favorites.
Dylan Stark — 2021 Mixtape
David Golay: Dylan Stark is wildly talented on just about every sort of bike imaginable, and his 2021 Mixtape features him going very, very big on everything from his BMX through DH bikes. It’s a banger.
Jess Kimura / North Face — Learning to Drown
Luke Koppa: I’m embarrassed to admit that I was not very familiar with Jess before watching this film, but man, her story is incredible. Learning to Drown is also fantastically produced (Felt Soul Media, of Damnation fame, produced it), and it does a great job of telling her story, from pioneering women’s snowboarding to having much of her life come crashing down, to coming back. It’s excellent.
Hoji — 2021 Season Edit
David: Hoji needs no introduction, and his recent edit from his stint last winter as a hut keeper for Golden Alpine Holidays features a ton of the ultra-precise skiing that he’s known for. Nobody else skis quite like Hoji, and it’s always a treat to watch.
Candide Thovex — Pretty Tight
Luke: I don’t have YouTube notifications set for many people, but Candide is one of them, and he never disappoints. Him uploading clips on a consistent basis has been one of the best parts of this season. “Pretty Tight” is probably my favorite so far, since it manages to fit in almost every classic Candide thing into 1 minute and 45 seconds: flips into couloirs, straight lines through moguls, perfect cork 7 blunts, skiing on things that aren’t snow, terrifying gaps, and a massive double backie over a building. You’ll probably want to watch it like five times in a row.
David: This isn’t a new observation, but Candide makes so much crazy stuff look easy that you can almost lose track of just how impressive it is. This one’s great, as always from him.
Kye Petersen — The Sacred Grounds: Part One | Formation
Luke: Similar to Markus Eder, Kye is one of those people who you can kinda forget about since you don’t see him skiing all that often, but when he does, you immediately remember he’s one of the best skiers on the planet right now. I was extremely excited to hear that he’s releasing a multi-part series, and the first episode consists of some of the best big-mountain skiing I’ve seen this year.
Freeride World Tour 2022
David: I’ve been very excited to see the Freeride World Tour get fired back up for 2022, and the first stop in Baqueria Beret was especially good. Rookie Max Palm’s winning run with the first-ever double backflip on the FWT was amazing, Abel Moga went absolutely huge to snag second place in the ski men’s field, and Olivia McNeill kept the youth-led charge going by winning the ski women’s comp in her first-ever appearance on the FWT. The whole event is well worth watching, but if you’d prefer a shorter version, the ski highlights video is good for a quick fix.
Luke: Yep, the FWT has definitely not disappointed this year. The past two weekends waking up and watching it lying in bed has probably been hilarious for my roommates as I shout out loud at each competitor. If you aren’t already watching it, you definitely should.
Brad Simms — Power
David: Speaking of people with a truly unique style, Brad Simms has charted an unconventional path through life as a BMX pro, and Power, the new documentary short on his career does a great job of both highlighting that, and showcasing his incredible riding. This one’s absolutely worth a watch, even if you’re not normally too plugged in to the BMX world for both the bonkers riding, and the story of how Brad got to where he is today.
Salomon TV — Girl Crush
Luke: Girl Crush follows the all-female crew of Mali Noyes, Mary McIntyre, Jessica Baker, Lani Bruntz (of Crested Butte fame), and Nicole Jorgenson as they camp and ski in the backcountry, and while their plans may not have panned out exactly as they hoped, the whole vibe of the video is just really great.
Drew Petersen x Salomon — Ups & Downs
Luke: This isn’t your typical ski edit, but it’s one of the most powerful and important I’ve seen in a long time. Ups & Downs tells the story of Drew Petersen’s professional ski career, and his simultaneous, ongoing mental health journey. It also has some beautiful skiing, but the main message of the film is both very important and I think Drew and the production crew did an excellent job of telling it in an honest fashion.
David: Yeah, this one’s really good and really important. Drew does a great job of opening up and talking about his mental health and the need for more conversations on the subject in the outdoor community, and the world at large.
Neko Mulally — Frameworks
David: I’ve been incredibly excited to see how Neko Mulally’s new self-designed World Cup DH race bike project goes, and his video series on the project, Frameworks has been great viewing. Episode 1 focuses on the origins of the project and getting the first pair of bikes built, with Frank the Welder featured prominently, and Episode 2 gets into Neko’s early testing and his take so far on the tradeoffs between his high-pivot bike and the more conventional one.