109: Evan was buried in an avalanche

What Was That Like - a storytelling podcast with amazing stories from real people

These days, snowboarding is really popular in the colder climates, and of course everyone knows what it is. But it’s actually a relatively new sport, especially when compared to traditional snow skiing.

The very first snow skis are dated all the way back to around 8000 BCE, and were found in northern China. They were basically long pieces of wood, like 6 feet, which is about 2 meters, and were covered with horsehair.

Snowboards, on the other hand, have come about much more recently.

Jake Burton is known as the “father of snowboarding”, and he recalled back when he discovered there was this new, unconventional way to move on snow. Those first primitive things were called “snurfers”.

The first ski resort to even allow snowboarders to share the mountain with skiers was in Vermont, and that was just in 1983. Snowboarding has continued to grow in popularity, and it just became an Olympic sport in 1998.

My guest today is Evan, and he loves to snowboard. He and his wife Kahlynn lived in northern California, they’re young and athletic, and they would go several times a year. It was pretty much their favorite way to spend a weekend outdoors.

But there was this one Friday morning on the mountain that Evan remembers in detail, because he almost didn’t come home.

You can contact Evan by email: [e-mail]

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