Skiers Tackle the Best of Alaska's Backcountry Ski Lines In New Film

Whether you know professional skier Caite Zeliff as the Queen of Corbet’s Couloir or from her massive hucks on the big screen with MSP, you know she’s no stranger to big mountains.

Raised on the slopes of New Hampshire’s Cranmore Mountain, Zeliff took her skills from icy eastern gates to the Tetons and then to some of Alaska‘s most formidable terrain to build her career.

Along the way, Zeliff found Morgan McGlashon, another ski racer turned big mountain aficionado. McGlashon was born and raised in the Tetons and spent her life playing in the range, even becoming the youngest woman to ski the Grand Teton at 18. After getting a degree in geology, McGlashon returned to the Tetons and subsequently became the youngest female ski guide at the prestigious outfitter, Exum Guides.

The parallels in Zeliff and McGlashon’s lives created a friendship that ran deeper than just skiing. Ultimately, this friendship led them on a ten-day expedition in Alaska’s Tordrillo Mountains.

You can watch Zeliff and McGlashon ski human-powered lines and navigate winter camping in My Ride or Die below, and keep reading for more.

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Zeliff and McGlashon are both undeniably total badasses.

Both of their pursuits on skis, whether human-powered up the toughest lines in the Tetons or heli-accessed in Alaska, take a lot of grit and bravery. However, after a big crash left her with a brain injury, Zeliff has started to explore a new approach to her career that emphasizes a duality between doing things with grit and bravery and slowing down and finding joy.

As familiar as she is with big-mountain lines in Alaska, Zeliff has often skied them by helicopter. McGlashon’s skill set as a ski mountaineer and guide was not only invaluable to the trip but also forced Zeliff to be a beginner again in some ways, which, in turn, forced her to slow down and find joy in learning again.

There’s no doubt the lines skied in My Ride or Die are impressive, but the film also explores the more complex themes of being a beginner again, trusting your friends, and the deeper bonds the mountains can form between people.

It’s a far cry from the shredporn-heavy films skiing sees too often, and gives a more vulnerable look at two incredibly strong skiers with a healthy dose of bluebird pow.

Lastly, having just spent a week in a tent in the backcountry with Zeliff myself, I can say she’s got the winter camping thing absolutely dialed now.

Related: Does Skiing Matter When The World Is Burning?