​Stoke the Fire Athlete Edits: Jim Ryan

Being the new guy in a crew is always an intimidating prospect, especially when the crew is out there filming TGR's latest ski movie Stoke the Fire. For Jim Ryan, facing that fear meant hitting it head on with two things he’s pretty damn good at: dedication and a relentless sense of humor. Besides, when Jim moved to Jackson six years ago to pursue his big mountain dreams, the whole idea sparked from watching TGR flicks and wanting nothing more than to be in one. If you spend a lot of time skiing around Jackson Hole, it’s a pretty sure bet you’ll share a lift ride with Jim Ryan. Then, two things will happen. He will almost certainly make you laugh and the second he steps off the lift, you’ll immediately see how dedication to the sport has gotten him where he is now. And by that, we mean he’s got one of the meanest turns in the biz. With an absolutely epic storm cycle blanketing Jackson Hole under feet and feet of snow this past February, Volkl and Helly Hansen athlete Jim Ryan got to tick off a whole slew of classics both inbounds and out the gates of the resort, skiing alongside his close friends Caite Zeliff and Veronica Paulsen. But who is this mystery man gracing your screen in Stoke the Fire? We caught up with the Vermont-born ripper to learn more. Stoke the Fire tickets are on sale now, find a tour stop near you!

With the crew blessed with a bottomless February, shots like these were easy to come by. | Stephen Shelesky photo.

TGR: Jim, welcome to the squad, this was your first year filming with us, what went through your mind on your first day out?

Jim Ryan: It’s like being the new guy anywhere. You’re wondering what the rules are. Then you realize that there are no rules, I can do what I want. Filming with TGR was cool though. I’ve filmed with a lot of people at this point, and the ownership that TGR gives you over your segment is huge. There’s so much faith placed in the athletes. It’s like “hey you’re here for a reason, you’re very good at this, how do you want to display that?” That actually made it one of the hardest winters of my life because I had so much thinking to do. I wanted to make it good. I wasn’t put into this box, it was more along the lines of “show us what you got.” That was intense! It was so much more than being a skier, I had to really think about what I wanted to display from a skiing standpoint and a culture standpoint. In the end, it was really empowering, and I think we have a lot of pride in what we made.

Sometimes you don't need to take things too seriously. | Stephen Shelesky photo.

TGR: How would you describe what you made?

JR: We had all these broad concepts, mainly because skiing in Jackson is so many things. We went in wanting to show all of these really big classic lines. But when filming a ski segment, you have to eat the fruit that’s in season - that’s just how it goes. So what we ended up making was this ultimate ode to Jackson Hole sidecountry powder skiing. Really every time we tried to force the other thing, we got kind of shut down. You can’t let the uncontrollable variables out there dictate your day. If you show up every day ready to work hard and work with what you’re given, you’ll do alright. Luckily, what we were given was an incredibly deep February, and we filmed it, and we were there for it, and our segment really shows that. It also leaves so many things on the table, so I’m excited because there’s so much potential for more. We did an incredible job telling one story, and now there’s so many more stories to be told.

TGR: Give us the Sparknotes on your life. Where are you from, how did you get here?

JR: I’m from Rutland, Vermont. Killington is my home resort. Which is an incredible place to be from. It’s the best introduction to the outdoors and gets you really proficient, and then sets you up just enough to know that there’s somewhere else in the world to do those things even better. That place just happens to be right here in Jackson Hole. Vermont gave me a huge appreciation for the outdoor community, and especially skiing. The passion out there for skiing is really something else. I went to school in Maine, so spent four years at Sugarloaf. I learned how to ski ice. You ski in the rain. You get ‘er done!

TGR: What ended up bringing you out here?

JR: No joke, I wanted to film for TGR. So I graduated college, and went through this really destructive one year, where I was kind of lost. The year was kind of climaxing in this moment, where I was in Ottawa, Illinois, living on a drop zone for a skydiving outfit. I was making it work, kind of, living in a trailer at this drop zone. We’re talking destructive behavior with no focus. I had just left ski racing and I thought that skiing was over for me. My buddy who was living in Boston called me, saying “I don’t want to participate in the real world anymore, let’s go be pro skiers.” I didn’t even really think about it and just said OK. It was something the two of us had been thinking about since we grew up together, and it was just time to go do it. It’s hard to do, it doesn’t feel like a real option, but at that time neither of us really had anything to lose. So Jackson Hole was the only place we could think of where we could do that.

A lifelong dream of filming with TGR became a reality this year for Jim Ryan. | Stephen Shelesky photo.

One of the things that I was doing during that year of being lost was watching TGR movies every single night. It was my escape and something that gave me hope - watching the athletes made me want to live a life like that. Having that mentality of joy, adventure, and camaraderie was something I really wanted to be a part of. In a way, the films are so much more than just entertainment. So we moved to Jackson and just participated. We moved into this absolute skid palace, and proceeded to just pursue with unwavering determination this singular idea of working for TGR. That was six years ago now. Made it. It’s been a trip.

TGR: Are there any TGR legends you’ve looked up to?

JR: Sage. Oh my god. It would appear that he knows something the rest of us maybe don’t. I got the ability to hang out with Dash Longe, and that rounded out this idea of him in my head. Love that guy. He gets it, for sure. To meet these people that you have made as your hero and have them fulfill that in your life as actually being that cool is a great feeling. The first time I worked with Angel - I was just helping with Angel and Hadley’s seg - I remember skiing with her and just being blown away that she was actually that good at skiing. That woman is incredible, and now she’s sailing ships across the ocean. I’m excited to meet some of the other ones. I’m not so sure I agree with the sentiment of “never meet your heroes” - so far it’s been pretty cool.

Surf's up. | Stephen Shelesky photo.

TGR: Highlight of the season?

JR: There was this one day Veronica, Caite, and I just scored. At this point, it’s like Groundhog Day. We’re getting up early every day, getting in Tramline at 6 a.m. or getting on Bridger Gondola first thing. Every day is a grinder, we maybe got a couple of shots in the can, but we don’t know. Tough days filming pow. So we show up this one day, it kind of feels like the rest, but there’s a little something different in the air. The three of us get our first turns out the gate, and it’s coming up over our shoulders just traversing. None of us wanted to talk about it at that point, because we’d worked so many days and it hadn’t been that good ever. We knew that the hounds would be at our heels, so there was this unspoken pact of don’t talk about anything until we got shots in the can. Our first run was magic. Then our second run was even better. Somehow the crowds just didn’t materialize and it just worked out for that one day, after weeks of grinding. I’ll remember that one for a while. That day we knew we were building a segment. Caite and V were just stoked, and it was a great reminder on why we do this.

TGR: How about a low point?

JR: I definitely had a low point early on. I crashed coming out of Once is Enough and actually broke my nose. There was blood everywhere, but now that I think of it, it kind of stopped being a low point. I was sitting there, injured and concussed, and all this shit happened, but I remember my thoughts were focused on how happy I was to be doing exactly that. Even at the worst point I can remember of this year, I wanted to be there. Really, it was just a good year.

TGR: What’s your process for picking apart a line?

JR: I have to see the whole thing in my head. I need to be able to close my eyes and at least see a way out. I’m never dropping into something and then trying to figure out how to get out of it. That’s how you get hurt. I did that when I was young, and it often didn’t work out. You can’t film a seg if you’re getting hurt on every other line. That’s just not how that works, you have to be consistent. It’s a volume game. It’s not just your sickest huck, it’s getting out there every day and doing it for the camera day in and day out. Really, it’s just more fun. Getting hurt sucks.

This year, Jim discovered a level of work ethic and skiing he never thought possible. | Stephen Shelesky photo.

The team is invaluable. You have a team of five or six, and everyone is vital. The cines are exercising such a huge level of skill out there. The communication that forms between us out there is so cool, and so important. They want you to succeed, but you also want them to succeed. For one, you want to create this thing together. You kind of feel like you owe it to them, because they’re working just as hard as you are. They’re out there every single day too, hiking, carrying gear, doing their thing, waking up early. So I want to try so hard for them. That builds trust, especially when they are on the radio telling you “you got this.”

TGR: So, what did you learn this year?

JR: Oh man, first of all, I learned that Caite and Veronica are absolute sickos. The things they are prepared to do, the way they mitigate fear, is so impressive. They are so committed to making their part as badass as they can. It’s inspiring to see the human behind the segment. I learned that I love those two women.

I also learned that I have a level of work ethic and commitment to the film game I didn’t know I had. Stepping up this year to film with TGR really showed me what I’m capable of. Every time you accomplish something like that, there’s this feeling of “that was awesome, holy shit, what’s next?” It’s addicting, and it felt really good to go so far beyond where I’ve been before.