• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

SkinTrack

  • Lightest Gear
    • Skis
    • Boots
    • Bindings
    • Skins
    • Packs
  • Skimo Training
    • Training Plans + Skimo Manual
    • Transitions Videos
  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Andrew McLean interview: North America’s Skimo Pioneers Series

February 23, 2015 By Stano Faban Leave a Comment

andrew-mclean-skimo-pioneer-3
This interview kicks off a series of quick 5-question interviews with people that can be definitely considered North America’s skimo pioneers.
Without revealing the actual names, we are going to talk to some really interesting “skimo old timers” over the next few weeks.
» Interview series archive – North America’s Skimo Pioneers Series.
Series supporters:
This interview series is presented by Skimo.co and Cripple Creek Backcountry.
supporters

5 Questions for Andrew McLean

I am thrilled to start this series with Andrew for couple of reasons:

  • He is a person I tried to follow in my first ever skimo race on the North American continent (around 2002/03, I don’t exactly remember).
  • He was the very first person I interviewed for SkinTrack back in 2009.
  • And obviously, he is a North American ski mountaineering icon!

Q1: What is your sporting/racing and outdoor activities background?
I started skiing when I was about four years old and then rock climbing in my 20’s.  When I started working for Black Diamond Equipment in 1990, I became interested in backcountry skiing as it was a perfect hybrid of two sports that I already loved.
Q2: When and why did you decide to give skimo racing a serious shot? What did you think of the sport at that time?
I first knew about skimo racing from a trip to France where I saw a result sheet from a previous race and couldn’t believe how fast people were covering such amounts of vertical!  I started to look into the sport and thought it would be fun to bring it to the US.  John Scott at Life-Link had held a race at Jackson Hole the previous year, and the next season Black Diamond got on board to host The Powder Keg.
[The above paragraph refers to a period around 2000-2003.]
andrew-mclean-skimo-pioneer-2
Q3: Can you list a couple of your biggest accomplishments in skimo, in other sports and/or in the mountains?
I finished second place overall in the Dynafit/Life-Link series, which was fun, but I think some of my favorite skimo moments were putting on the first World Cup races in the US.  It was a two year process, and aside from becoming an International Judge, I had to complete quite a few other criteria, including holding a demonstration race.
The first World Cup was fantastic as some of the Swiss and Catalonian teams showed up and impressed everyone with what was possible in skimo racing.  The second year of the World Cup had even more people and we were able to do it on a fun, challenging course in great conditions.
[For more details on North American skimo history see our Manual for Ski Mountaineering e-book.]
Q4: What sports and activities do you enjoy the most these days?
Ski touring, especially to new and exciting places.  I also do some mountain biking, rock climbing and mountain unicycling.

Andrew and his partner used kites to reach ski lines on Baffin Island.
Andrew and his partner were (one of) the first to use kites to reach ski lines on Baffin Island.
Q5: With years of experience from multiple sports, what would be the two most important pieces of advice you would give to new comers into skimo?
Enjoy the overall event and the people.  Regardless of how well you do in the race, you will learn a lot about becoming more efficient in the mountains, which means more vertical, more powder and more smiles.

Beyond

» You can follow Andrew’s adventures and activities at http://straightchuter.com/.
Keep checking back and follow SkinTrack on Facebook, Twitter, or subscribe on YouTube.

Filed Under: People (Interviews), Skimo Racing Tagged With: Andrew McLean, Wasatch Powder Keg

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
Our Facebook Page

skimo-manual-banner-300px
 

Recent Articles

  • Kilian Jornet Interview: About His New Foundation, His Own Environmental Impact, and How He Wants To Help Athletes and The Outdoor Industry To Protect Nature
  • How Fast Are Glaciers Really Melting? How Will This Affect Your Mountain Adventures? Interview with Pascal Egli
  • Book Review – Art of Freedom: The Life and Climbs of Voytek Kurtyka
  • Forest Skis: Innovative, Custom Build, For Backcountry Skiing and Freeride
  • Lighter and Completely Redesigned: New CAMP Ultralight Ski Mountaineering Ice Axes

Categories

  • Contests & Giveaways
  • Crazy Tracks
  • Events & Races
  • Gear, Tech & Food
  • General News & Articles
  • Industry Press Releases
  • Movies & Books
  • News Shorts
  • People (Interviews)
  • Racing 101
  • Reports & Results
  • Reviews
  • Skimo Racing
  • Training, Tricks & Tips
  • Trip Reports & Conditions

Footer

About SkinTrack

Travelling through snowy mountains on skis is like flying… and experiencing life at its core.

Gear reviews, interviews, adventures, contests, skills, skimo training, race reports – we connect you to all things related to self-propelled skiing.

SkinTrack.com, created by Stano Faban, was born out of passion for ski mountaineering and ski touring. Over the years, it has become one of the most popular ski mountaineering blogs in North America.

Recent Articles

  • Kilian Jornet Interview: About His New Foundation, His Own Environmental Impact, and How He Wants To Help Athletes and The Outdoor Industry To Protect Nature
  • How Fast Are Glaciers Really Melting? How Will This Affect Your Mountain Adventures? Interview with Pascal Egli
  • Book Review – Art of Freedom: The Life and Climbs of Voytek Kurtyka
  • Forest Skis: Innovative, Custom Build, For Backcountry Skiing and Freeride
  • Lighter and Completely Redesigned: New CAMP Ultralight Ski Mountaineering Ice Axes

Useful Links

Comparing the lightest: Skis | Boots | Bindings

Skimo Training: Training Plans | Videos

Stay in Touch

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Copyright © 2025 SkinTrack.com. All rights reserved.