Ten Years After
Gauging the generational impact of ski films
By RANDOLPH GREEN

I once told friend and filmmaker Scott Gaffney that certain sports don't age particularly well. It started with me mentioning that I had watched an "outdated" kayak movie the other day. His immediate and sarcastic (and Gaffney-esque) response was, "Was it called Walls of Freedom?"

It's fitting that a few years later, a week after one of the biggest dumps to hit the Sierra in recent history, I find myself packed into a Squaw Valley bar for the "ten years after" showing of Walls of Freedom, perhaps Gaffney's best-known film. I stand shoulder to shoulder with Pat "Pony Boy" Campbell, Shane McConkey, and Robb Gaffney, as well as a new generation of Squaw rippers including Patrick White, Cody Townsend, and Ingrid Backstrom.

It's amusing how many times I overhear the phrase, "I can't believe they're doing that on skinny skis!" during the show. There are hip-checks a-plenty, and the stars often make 10-20 more turns down certain lines than we (perhaps even they) would now. But I catch myself admiring the talent in the film as though I am seeing it for the first time.

As skiers, we all draw inspiration from someone, and in the film the then-young phenoms Shane McConkey, Robb Gaffney, and Jim Moran give credit to the man who most inspired their skiing: Scot Schmidt. Now here I am, standing among the athletes who influenced me, looking back on the images that drove me to leave my comfort zone and migrate west in search of more from skiing.

It is at this moment that I realize why I am present this evening. It's not to poke fun at what once was, nor is it to drink myself silly every time someone hip-checks or every time Shane or Scott appears on screen with long hair (just a few of the drinking games Gaffney and cronies have devised for the night). I'm here to pay homage to the skiers who inspired me and my current lifestyle.

Just as Shane and Robb give their respects to Schmidt in the film, a new generation of 20-something rippers fills the bar this night to honor OUR heroes. I'm still almost hypnotized by the images that flash across the screen. J.T. Holmes is nearby, and I overhear him quoting certain scenes that he's watched probably dozens of times. I notice that the majority of the skiers at the bar are watching the movie with rapt attention, ignoring the party scene around them.

Despite the clothes, the gear, and the skiing styles of the performers, the images are awe-inspiring. Although many things have changed since 1995, the upper limits of what is considered possible on skis have not. Shane, Robb, and Scott can still ski just about anyone off the mountain. Their generation of athletes has stood the test of time.

It's funny to think that maybe 10 years from now a fresh generation of skiers will be filling a ski-town bar somewhere to pay tribute to the skiers and styles that are inspiring them today—skiers like J.T. or C.R. Johnson or Rodd Adams. And they in turn will take their places in skiing history.

It may not be filled with much glamour, as Mr. Gaffney preaches, but as long as skiers continue to drive toward a higher realm and search for the greater side of the human spirit, future generations will take notice and put themselves "on or within Walls of Freedom."


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