On Thursday, November 18th, 7 pm PT, Alpenglow Sports will kick off its 16th annual Winter Speaker Series, presented by Tahoe Mountain Realty. Established in 2006 at Alpenglow Sports, the Winter Speaker Series is widely considered North America’s premier adventure storytelling event, designed to motivate, inspire and educate. Past speakers include Lynn Hill, Jeremy Jones, Tommy Caldwell, Chris Burkard, Alex Honnold, and Emily Harrington. The series is free and traditionally held at Palisades Tahoe’s Olympic Village Lodge, in a five-part event that showcases one show per month from November through February.
Due to the global pandemic, last year, Alpenglow Sports took the 2020-21 season “on the road” to living rooms around the globe in a virtual capacity, attracting thousands of viewers and raising over 350k per show for Tahoe non-profits that season. This year, the series is back both in person at Olympic Village Lodge as well as streaming live and free with five shows and another ambitious line-up, including Dave Nettle (11/18), Elena Hight (12/16), Nick Russell (1/6), Hilaree Nelson (2/3), Conrad Anker and Malik Martin (2/17). The goal for this year is to raise 100k per show for local non-profits.
While each show is free, Alpenglow Sports uses products donated by the sponsors of each presenter to sell raffle tickets. Proceeds are matched by the Donor Party, the philanthropic arm of the Alpenglow Winter Speaker Series, and 100% of the funds raised are given to the associated non-profit to utilize in their community endeavors. Benefiting charities this year include the Tahoe Institute for Natural Science, SOS Outreach, Sierra Senior Services, Boys and Girls Club, and the Gateway Mountain Center.
Due to Covid-19 safety precautions, event capacity at Olympic Village Lodge will be limited and entry will be offered on a first come, first serve basis. Attendees have to be over 12 years of age, and proof of vaccination and masks will be required. Admission is free of charge.
To register and purchase giveaway entries for the virtual streaming of the shows, visit: wildboundlive.com
Dave Nettle (11/18) – Big Fun in Little Switzerland
As co-founder of the Winter Speaker Series, Dave Nettle has cultivated mountain community in North Lake Tahoe through his compelling tales of adventure for well over thirty years. Filled with his signature humor, his show “Big Fun in Little Switzerland” will take us on a supersize mountaineering expedition to Alaska’s Pika Glacier, named “Little Switzerland” for its dramatic alpine peaks and rock spires. Get ready for a full Alaskan-style adventure of rock climbing, ski touring, bushwhacking through grizzly bears, and floating wild, glacial rivers.
Elena Hight (12/16) – Breaking Through Comfort Zones: Pipes, Powder, and Post Holes
As a competitive halfpipe rider for 16 years, Elena Hight ventured from her local mountains in Lake Tahoe to places around the world and ultimately to the top stage of the Olympics. In “Breaking Through Comfort Zones: Pipes, Powder, and Post Holes,” Elena reflects on a 19-year long career as a professional snowboarder, tracing her larger than life successes and failures: Two Winter Olympics, seven X-Games medals, one US Open Championship, one million travel miles, one “never been done” before trick, twelve concussions, one hip surgery, six lost toenails, nine days crossing the Sierra, three feature films, countless failed river crossings, many endured sandbags, and more smiles than recordable to explore the choices we make and the risks worth taking.
Nick Russell (1/6) – Dreamer by Design
In “Dreamer by Design,” the third show of the season, Sierra-based snowboarder Nick Russell shares his story of how an East Coast transplant manifested a childhood vision turned into reality. By utilizing human power fueled by a splitboard and a healthy appetite for stepping outside of perceived comfort zones, Nick’s adventures have spanned mountain ranges across six continents. He will speak to the freedom associated with dirtbagging, the importance of maintaining a positive attitude in the face of despair, and conservative decision-making in consequential terrain.
Hilaree Nelson (2/3) – TBD
As a seasoned adventurer, Hilaree Nelson has more than 40 expeditions to some of the most remote corners of the globe under her belt. She is the first woman to climb two 8000 meter peaks, Everest and its neighboring peak Lhotse – in a single 24-hour period. In 2018, she returned to Lhotse to complete the first-ever ski descent of the 4th highest peak in the world with her partner Jim Morrison. In “Truth or Consequence,” Hilaree will share stories from a 2020 expedition with an all-star team to interior Antarctica to realize a decades-long dream of adventuring into the Ellsworth Mountains, the highest mountains on the Antarctic Continent. What unfolded during their three-week expedition humbled everyone on the team and proved that, no matter how experienced one is in the mountains, there is always more to learn.
Conrad Anker in conversation with Malik Martin (2/17) – Black Ice
Conrad Anker has been pushing the limits of mountaineering for the last 30 plus years. The Bozeman, Montana-based father of three, is a prolific explorer and mountaineer. Equally, at home in Antarctica, the Himalayas, or his home ice in Hyalite Canyon in southwestern Montana, Conrad continues a deep appreciation for wild places passed on from his father and grandfather, who hailed from Big Oak Flat, California, just outside Yosemite National Park.
Throughout his career, Conrad has pioneered difficult new routes in the most remote places on earth and been a mentor to many, including Johnathan “Malik” Martin, a rock climber and Memphis native who has spent the last five years being dedicated to telling the different stories from his community.
Malik Martin is the social media manager and photographer for Memphis Rox, a state-of-the-art climbing gym that has transcended the classic business model. With a “pay what you can” approach, Memphis Rox is more than a gym and bigger than climbing. It’s a glimpse into the future where a climbing gym can become a crucible for diversity, inclusivity, and community.
Anker and Martin met during the filming of the documentary “Black Ice,” which follows a crew of aspiring ice climbers from the Memphis Rox gym who travel to the frozen wilds of Montana, where Manoah Ainuu, Conrad Anker, and Fred Campbell share their love of winter adventure in the mountains. The two will be discussing the documentary as well as bringing inclusivity to the outdoors.
Proceeds from this fundraiser can and will be used to shut down snowmobile accessed terrain around Tahoe.