Hype SquaD

I grew up as a skater kid but didn’t get on a snowboard until February of 2019 here at Taos. I instantly fell in love.

I love the freedom, the exhilaration, and camaraderie of snowboarding. Getting to spend an entire season here was huge for my riding. I went from barely being comfortable on a blue at other resorts to sending it off the ridge being confident enough in my riding to know that no matter what I got myself into I could get down.

But, that journey wasn’t easy. I’m deathly afraid of heights. Tower 10 on lift 4 might be my least favorite place. On one of my days off in March, I was out with two friends who had more experience than me but none of us had been up to Kachina yet so we decided to take it on. We were all jittery going up the lift knowing only the stories of the legendary terrain that is Kachina Peak. Low key, I was terrified. But the shared excitement and having these two hype me up the entire ride up, I conquered my fear and absolutely ripped down Main Street.

Riding is a blast. But riding with friends and hyping each other up is the key.