Chris Davenport, one of the world’s most renowned big-mountain skiers and mountaineers in history, sat down to discuss his new web series that debuts October 9, along with his family life, his most pinnacle achievements and even his admiration of Woody Harrelson.
CraveOnline: Tell us about ‘The Faces of Day.’ What makes this so different and special to you?
Chris Davenport: I’ve been involved in ski films, documentaries, and TV projects for almost 20 years, but have never had this unique opportunity to script my own original series. So it’s really all “behind the scenes” type stuff that you would never see in a ski film. It’s raw and real and is my life, and I’m proud of it. When you get handed a clean slate and given the opportunity to create something special, you look inside yourself and draw from life experience to do something really cool- I think viewers will love the honesty and of course the action.
CraveOnline: How do you balance fatherhood, family life, and your career?
Chris Davenport: It’s all about balance, and it’s something I’ve gotten much better at over the years. One of the traits of highly successful people is they can handle many aspects of work and life at a high level. I aspire to be one of those people and do a lot of planning and logistics to manage my time and work load. Ultimately it’s all about family- that is number one. My time with my awesome wife and boys is so special and so amazing that it motivates me to go out and be a better pro.
CraveOnline: What is your favorite place to ski and why?
Chris Davenport: This makes the “Top 3 most frequently asked questions” list! It’s a good one but the simple answer is “wherever it’s good”. There are so many awesome mountain ranges in the world that at any given time during the winter can be skiied really well, yet these same places can be pretty bad at other times, this is just the way Mother Nature is. But if I had to pick 5 spots I’d say Aspen, Portillo, Chamonix, Valdez, and the Antarctic Peninsula.
CraveOnline: You’re one of the most respected and revered ski mountaineers of our day with an endless amount of accomplishments. What moment are you most proud of and can you describe to us the feeling you had climbing Mt. Everest. That’s just amazing to us. Give us the inside scoop, Chris.
Chris Davenport: There have been a lot of “pinnacle” moments, and they aren’t always on the biggest or gnarliest peaks. This spring I was climbing and skiing a high 13,000′ peak above Telluride called Dallas Peak with my partners Pete, Ted, and Christy. This mountain is part of our Centennial Peaks Project and it’s a tough one that doesn’t get skied much, even though its so close to town. The peak had over a foot of new snow and it’s over a 5000′ climb from the valley floor. The summit is a steep cliff that isn’t skiable but we wanted to make the top- so I led on a rope up the mixed gully with my ice tool and crampons and basically no protection. It was a really tough lead and I thought about backing down and even falling a couple of times. But I stayed tough and pulled it off and was super psyched on top as my friends came up the rope. It was just one of those moments that was personally really rewarding.
As far as Everest goes, that experience is one of the greatest of my life. Despite what the media portrays the scene as, it’s a totally amazing and beautiful peak that offers really fun easy climbing on an incredible ridge on summit day. I was guiding one client and we did our homework to be really prepared, so that when the time came to go for the summit there was no doubt in my mind that we would make it. On a big mountain like those in the Himalaya it’s all about good planning and preparation. If you think of every little detail and eventuality the chances of something going wrong are reduced significantly.
We had an awesome climb and descent with no issues and were able to descent to base camp safely, where the next day we flew by helicopter back to Kathmandu and then on to the USA. I was back in Aspen 6 days after summiting, which is very fast.
CraveOnline: What was the most terrifying moment of your career?
Chris Davenport: I’m not really sure I’ve had “terrifying” moments- but I’ve been in a couple of decent size avalanches and when you lose control like that and are sliding down the mountain towards an uncertain finish it can be pretty scary. I find that in those situations I remain pretty calm and just do what has to be done, which is to say I fight like hell and focus on staying on top of the snow.
CraveOnline: What do you do in the off-season to keep yourself occupied? Do you have any other hobbies?
Chris Davenport: My other hobbies are just other sports- I ride my bikes all the time, both road and mountain and also love rock climbing and paragliding, even though I don’t get to fly much anymore. I trail run and love cruising up Colorado 14ers in the summer and fall. But honestly I ski all year around so there isn’t a ton of time for hobbies.
CraveOnline: [Hypothetically] They’re making a big budget Hollywood film about your life and you’re in charge of casting. Who’s playing you?
Chris Davenport: Shoot, I would probably have to go with Woody Harrelson. He and I skied together a few years back and he was so awesome and hilarious, and he is a bit irreverent like me, so that might work.
CraveOnline: What plans do you have this winter?
Chris Davenport: Well I have quite a bit of private ski guiding and corporate group ski trip stuff going on. I’m also hosting a bunch of ski weeks with CMH Heli-Skiing in Canada, which you can check out here. As far as projects go, I’m only 5 peaks away from completing my Centennial Peaks Project with my friends Ted and Christy Mahon of Aspen. We are trying to be the first folks to climb and ski the 100 highest peaks in Colorado. It’s been an amazing project and has taken me places that I never would have visited had I not set a goal like this one. And we will see but if you guys all really like this Red Bull series then maybe we will get to shoot a second season.
CraveOnline: What is the ultimate goal left for Chris Davenport?
Chris Davenport: Well I just got a chance to drive through a grown cornfield so I checked that one of the list. Hmmm, so I think the ultimate goal for me would be to live to a ripe old age, skiing every day, and be able to look back on my career with no regrets.
Photos courtesy of Volcom
Joshua Caudill is a writer for CraveOnline Sports, a surfing enthusiast, an unhealthy sports fanatic, and an expert on all things Patrick Swayze. You can follow him on Twitter @JoshuaCaudill85 or “like” CraveOnline Sports on Facebook.
