Industry News
In the last few years, skiers and snowboarders have had some impressive accomplishments logging big vertical feet on the ski hills. There have been 100,000+-foot days, five million vertical feet in a season, or more, including a world record. Also, we recently saw the first person to log over 20 million vertical feet on the Ikon app.
But those have been adults. What about the kids?
It turns out the sport’s youth are up for the challenge. Four young siblings from Steamboat Springs, Colorado, have all logged over a million vertical feet this season. Jeff Gebauer is the father of Liam, 13, Roman, 12, Fiona, 10, and Eric, 8, who all passed the million-foot milestone for the season on February 15.
Reaching the million-foot milestone was something the quartet had set their sights on from the beginning of the season. “The one million vertical was a goal that we all set,” Roman told SnowBrains. “We all kind of had the idea together. We knew it was possible, because Liam, our older brother, had done it the season before. That is what encouraged us to go for one million.”
Helped by a strong start to the season at Steamboat Resort, the kids spent 42 days on the mountain to reach the mark. All of them are school-age, so they had to utilize weekends and holiday breaks to log all their days, and staying consistent was critical.
“This season, we skied every day we didn’t have school,” Liam said. “We do not ski from open to close every day, but we do ski from 8:30 a.m. to about 12:30 p.m. most days. When we travel to different resorts, we often ski from open to close. In order to get as much vertical feet as possible during the time we ski, we almost always ride express lifts and rarely ride fixed-grip lifts. Also, we try to go where the lift lines are short. On powder days, we ski moguls and trees, and ride lifts that service more advanced terrain. On groomer days, we ski groomed runs and ride lifts that service those runs.”
Eric added that they average 20,000-25,000 vertical feet on most days and never complain about being on the mountain. “I never complain except when I am cold and want to warm up,” Eric declared. “Otherwise, we never complain. NEVER. We want to hit 1,320,000 vertical, which is the distance to the international space station!”
One of the other resorts they visited was Telluride earlier in the season when the kids logged 115,000 vertical feet in three days. They skied from open to close and had their single best day in their young careers, with 52,000 vertical.
Gebauer, in his own right, has been pretty impressive as well. He was the first person ever to log over a million vertical feet on the Ikon app in 2019 and currently sits in the third position for total vertical this season. “While I love skiing every day and tracking vertical, nothing makes me happier than skiing with my kids as often as possible,” Gebauer said. “They [the kids] have been rock stars this season. Even on powder days with long lift lines we are primarily skiing trees and bumps. They want to hit 20,000 or get as close as possible before leaving. Those days are so much fun anyway, and vertical comes a distant second to having a blast in the off-piste terrain.”
The achievement of these four young siblings skiing over a million vertical feet in a single season is impressive, to say the least. Given their adolescent ages, the sheer endurance, skill, and dedication required to reach this milestone make it even more remarkable. Yet, beyond the numbers, what truly stands out is the joy and passion they brought to every run, turning a season-long challenge into an unforgettable adventure. Whether carving down steep slopes, racing each other on the groomers, or cutting through deep powder, they proved that determination and fun can go hand in hand. Their story is not just about the stats. It’s a testament to the boundless energy and love for skiing that will undoubtedly fuel many more incredible seasons to come.
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