Last month, one of the world's top freeride skiers, Craig Murray, took on a challenge to conquer one of New Zealand's most prominent peaks with freeride skiing legend Sam Smoothy.
Located in Mount Aspiring National Park, Mt Avalanche consists of three distinct peaks, reaching a high point of 2606m. The climb takes hours, the exhilarating descent just a few minutes.
Murray answers questions about the incredible challenge.
How did you first get into skiing?
"I first got into skiing in Canterbury with my family. Mum and Dad initially took us in backpacks, so they could go skiing for the day.
"Once we could walk, we were put onto skis. From there, it pretty quickly progressed into freeride skiing all over the Southern Alps.
"I think my freeride skiing spirit truly started at the club fields in Canterbury. "
When did you change from just skiing to freeride skiing?
"I started jumping off things at about 10, but I didn't start competing properly until high school. I took it overseas when I was 17, after graduating high school.
"That was when I decided to have a crack on the world stage and it has gone really well."
What is freeride skiing?
"Freeride skiing can be anything. It can be just skiing an off-piste run, or it can be charging down some of the biggest mountains in the world, jumping off cliffs and doing tricks on your way.
"It's open to interpretation. It can be a great powder run or little jump off the side of a cat track, but for me currently, freeride skiing is about pushing myself down some of the biggest lines and some of the steepest peaks in the world."
What made you want to do a crazy challenge like this?
"I've been looking at that ski-line off Mt Avalanche all winter and I thought it would be awesome to try to ski it. I hit up Sam Smoothy, who's well experienced in the mountains, and proposed the idea to him.
"He was into it straight away and off we went - thanks to the support of Nutri-Grain Unstoppable - to achieve it."
What is the buzz you get from completing a challenge like this?
"I have to really push myself to get that buzz. I think it's because you get used to it.
"For me, I've done so much of this that it has become a normality, so you have to push it even further to get those same feelings. When you get that build-up of intensity and achieve the challenge, it's an incredible and unbeatable feeling."
How did the weather conditions affect your preparations and your ability to complete the challenge?
"The conditions are everything. We had to make sure the snow was skiable and that the weather was going to play ball.
"It's really hard to be in the mountains safely, if the weather isn't good for visibility, conditions and wind. It's important for the weather to be stable, because up at that altitude, the wind can be very high and they can carry clouds in.
"It can strip the snow off the ridges and leave it with just ice, so it's a bit of a gamble with each weather window. We really made sure that we gave ourselves the best chance in that weather window to get conditions we would be able to ski."
Is Mt Avalanche quite an intimidating mountain?
"Our ascent route was a thin ridge called a 'no-fall zone', where you can’t slip or put a wrong foot, because there is a lot of exposure down each side. I would say the most intimidating thing about Mt Avalanche is the exposure that drops off beneath you.
"It's a peak that sticks up above the head of the Bonar Glacier. It's really iconic, you can see it from Wanaka, dropping off either side to the valleys below.
"It also has a beautiful southwest face on it, which is what we climbed to ski."
Did you have any room for error when completing this challenge? Did you have any scary moments?
"There was a moment when Smoothy was climbing a solar pitch - a spot that has had a lot of sun baking on it during the day - and he fell through into a 'bergschrund' - where the glacier separates from the mountain. Luckily, he stopped himself and the snow only went up to his chest.
"He had his ice tools out, so he could climb out of it, but it definitely could have been much worse."
How long did it take for you to get up, compared to coming down?
"The climb took us five hours and the ski descent, from dropping in to finishing, took about two minutes. It's over very quickly.
"You have a lot of speed, because it's such a steep pitch, so you're just flying down it. Luckily, the conditions were good enough, so we could open our throttles up.
Would you look to take the challenge to the next level in the future, like taking on bigger mountains?
"Yes, for sure - it is something I'm super passionate about. I love the whole adventure experience and it gives a great perspective to what you're doing.
"I am looking to get to some different areas I haven't been to yet. I would also love to get back to some Himalayan ranges for some climbing and skiing, so I definitely have some goals I want to tick off."
What does the future hold for you?
"I'm planning a few filming projects for next winter. I'm also hoping to compete on the Freeride World Tour again and explore new mountains.
"Depending on global situations and the variables that could change 10 times in the next six months, I will see where the most stable goal is and aim for that."
This article was created for Nutri-Grain
