Climbing
Industry News
After announcing the conclusion of his project, The FIFTY, Cody Townsend is now brewing something new for finding the most incredible backcountry ski lines in the world. Townsend had skied 46 of the 50 lines recorded in the book, “The Fifty Classic Descents of North America,” before ending the project to allow him to ski the last four on his own time. Now, Townsend is back, and his new project will have him challenging himself like never before.
Introducing The FIFTY+, Townsend’s quest is to create his list of classic ski lines and take “The Fifty Classic Descents of North America” to new heights. In this project, the professional skier will use his metric of characteristics such as ski quality, dream quality, climb quality, aesthetics, and bragging rights to answer one question: “Is it a classic or not?” Each of these categories will be scored on a one to five scale, requiring a score of at least 20 to be deemed a “classic.”
Townsend, featuring various guest skiers, climbers, and adventurers, will be skiing lines that far outnumber fifty. On the professional skier’s previous quest, he would often find many more lines that were not listed in the 50 Classics book, and now, he has an opportunity to ski them.
The 41-year-old’s new journey starts in Girdwood, Alaska, home to the Alyeska Ski Resort and the journey’s first line: The Northstar Couloir. The Northstar Couloir is roughly 1,000 vertical feet, but despite it being on the smaller side, it has a distinct v-taper with difficult contouring, making it a great challenge for everyone who attempts to ski it. It is a 17-mile hike from the Winner Creek Trailhead, with the first mile being groomed before reaching the uphill section of the hike. There are multiple routes to take to get to the Northstar Couloir, each with a breathtaking view of the line.
Townsend, alongside his wife Elyse Saugstad and cameraman Dmitry Surnin, took the trip to Alaska to take on the couloir. On their first day of the trek to the couloir, they camped out on the route but were later forced to postpone skiing after testing the snowpack and finding it was too weak. Six days later, the group made the journey again in just one day and successfully skied the beautiful couloir.
After Townsend’s incredible experience with the Northstar Couloir, this line became the first “classic” on The FIFTY+. The approach, aesthetics, and dream quality were off the charts for the line, making it a certain classic in Townsend’s book. The elements of the Northstar Couloir and the excitement that it brings make it the perfect way to kickstart Townsend’s new project. The first episode of The FIFTY+ The Hunt for New Classic: Northstar Couloir was released on YouTube on October 30.
The Northstar Couloir is just the beginning of Townsend’s new journey. The FIFTY+ will feature many more exciting lines and will certainly live up to Townsend’s previous journey. Townsend’s enthusiasm and dedication when it comes to skiing are second to none, and his new journey will only further his contributions to the skiing community. There is no announcement for his next stop on The FIFTY+ tour, but with Cody Townsend leading the hunt for the next big line, it is sure to be a good one.
Who is the dude with the snowboard in the picture captioned Cody Townsend getting after it?