Welcome back to the Next Level Skiing podcast, brought to you by Wagner Skis. Unless you live in Crested Butte, you likely haven't heard about Rob Dickinson. He's a former big mountain competitor who moves like a ninja through the Butte's scary steps. You really only catch glimpses of Rob … a flash in the trees, a splash of snow on a rocky face, a blur beneath impeccable tracks. He's coming up on 20 years skiing Crested Butte and is one of the mountain's handful of inspirational soul skiers.

Rob doesn't have a sponsor. He runs his own painting business. But he's got skills and style for miles. Tune in and hear the 45-year-old Rob riff on how CBMR has honed his skiing, how to ride the clutch in technical terrain, and why you should never drop your uphill hand in gnarly steeps.

Topics:

2:20: From upstate New York to New Hampshire to Steamboat

4:15: Crested Butte keeps you honest

7:10: Ride the clutch to stay fluid in technical terrain

11:10: Competing in big mountain comps from 2009 through 2014 with a CB shred posse

18:30: Injuries, replacing body parts, and shifting your mindset

24:15: How steep creek kayaking hones ski skills, risk assessment

26:10: Taking vanity out of the equation.

28:00: Check in with yourself

31:00: Finding happiness in healthy, sustainable places

33:00: Gear adjustments and added protection for steep skiing

36:30: Don't change anything on race day

37:30: Play, don't work, in the ski industry

Photo credit: Garrett Grove

Quotes:

"All I did was chase skiing and kind of got the feeling that maybe I was chasing skiing from too far away." - Rob Dickinson

"Trying to get better and trying to pull better results at, at freeskiing competitions, like, you just learn how to, I always say, ride the clutch, learn how to instead of like jamming on the brakes to see what's coming next." - Rob Dickinson

"Crosstraining is really, really valuable." - Rob Dickinson

"You have to steel your mind and you have to make yourself present and you have to check in with yourself." - Rob Dickinson

Resources:

Precise Painting CB

Wagner Custom Skis