Vail's a very important place for me. Everyone kind of took me in and accepted me in that town, and they still have to this day. I wouldn't be a downhill skier if I hadn't been there.
I had some friends who were great skiers who I would hang out with, like Jonny Moseley, the Olympic moguls champion, who tried to date my sister once.
When I first moved to Vail, it was like I was a little celebrity. You know, everyone knew my accomplishments. I was a young, fast teenager and making waves in the ski world. And it was really cool.
The idea that skiing might not be fun, might not be for everyone, had never occurred to me. Where I come from, the sport signified pleasure, nature, family happiness.
As a ski bum and someone who came up in a ski bum family, I understand the essence of what Colorado is all about.
In the late 1960s, I ended up in Telluride, Colorado. It wasn't like the country club that it is now. It was very raw. Skiing was there, but snowboarders have now entirely overrun it.
I'm still having fun and as long as skiing is enjoyable, I'm going to continue to do it.
I discovered and fell in love with skiing long before I started to climb. Skiing was really my first calling. As a kid, I grew up skiing in jeans in Minnesota.
When I was born, my parents were huge into skiing. I grew up on Mont Blanc, skiing on that hill. I was really a ski baby. Loved it; I still love it.
