Photo: Teton Gravity Research
It’s officially that time of the year – before that time of the year. The final (unofficial) stretch of summer when late August evenings suddenly give way to Labor Day weekend can be a funny time. Summer is never easy to let go of. But the pumpkin spice season eases that pain for some, while to others, it’s the kickoff to winter hype. For me, Labor Day was always time to buy last season’s gear at a discount. And buying gear that was new to me meant endless daydreaming about the season ahead. Never mind the fact that I would be lucky to see a chair any sooner than 90 or 100 days out, my mind always blasted through fall and straight into winter on September 1.
The only way to cope with not actually skiing or snowboarding through any of that was always simple: the season’s new films. Hence, that time of year before that time of year. When the new films start to drop and we all feed excitement by watching the biggest lines and craziest powder days of the year before. That’s always made ski films a greater survival tool than surf films for me in California, because I’d never have to be more than another day or two away from jumping into the ocean.
And that brings us to TGR’s new flick, Actually, It Is Rocket Science. The concept behind it is an interesting one. Whereas every good ski film tells a handful of stories tied together by a strong theme, this one may actually feed every powder hound’s backcountry intrigue with humor, and maybe even a little education. The film looks to have a tongue-in-cheek approach to showing athletes going as big as possible, treating every run like a science experiment, but it also suggests they’re exploring the X’s and O’s that go into every big line.
“How far can you push a line? How much can you calculate before instinct takes over? And what happens when the plan meets the mountain?” they ask. “Those questions are answered differently by every skier in the film. Some find their limits in the high alpine. Others find them in deep snow, steep faces, or the split-second decisions that turn an idea into a descent.”
I do plan to find a premiere. I need a fix before the snow actually flies.
