FILM PREMIERES DECEMBER 10th @ 5PM PT + LIVE CHAT w/ZAHAN AND TGR.
How much can we gain from the mountains? How much can we lose? Between our own perceptions and the reality of the hazards, how much space exists? And in that gap, how do we decide what we are willing to risk? Solving for Z explores IFMGA guide and father Zahan Billimoria’s relationship to the intoxicating highs and crushing blows of a life in the high-consequence environment of big mountain skiing.
Education is a crucial part of the equation. Learn about Zahan's Samasara Mountain Experience programs, or be sure to seek out opportunities in your own backyard: https://samsaraexperience.com/
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
are they going to steam it on YouTube?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
@kitenski, yes they probably will - I guess they will release the link a bit closer to the time - usually you can "subscribe" to an upcoming premiere on youtube and then you get an email when it starts
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
I thought differentials would be involved.
After all it is free
After all it is free
philwig wrote:
I thought differentials would be involved.
I haven't watched it as I'm on the work network. Does it have speeded up clouds like all the other ski movies and a deep growly voice over like the narrator has throat cancer?
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
Rad slide at 20:30mins.
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
I didn't get it. It was 27mins of nothingness. Not enough skiing for a ski film. Not any information for it to be educational. Mountain guide losing friends in accident and then returning to being a mountain guide is hardly a unique experience worthy of a documentary.
I find him (and many others in that kind of business - pro skier, climber, guide etc.) very frustrating. It's the same cycle of live quite a risky life, accident happens that makes you re-evaluate lifestyle, decide you need to be safer for sale of family, then go back to same risky lifestyle as before anyway. At least he acknowledges how selfish it is. Either don't have kids and live your life how you want, or be a bit more responsible if you choose to have a family.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
I quite liked the lack of a series of staged tricks shot on different mountains and different days edited together.
Those things seem to caricature the sport, which this didn't do.
The technically easy bits were very well shot. The clips of the actual slide made it look very flat,
which if clearly was not - but that wasn't shot with the the fancy Red camera.
We don't know what steps he's taken to care for his family once he's gone, so can't really comment on his level of responsibility of that's what you mean.
The vast majority of professional snow sports people aren't in that "cycle". If the film shows that guy is, well I at least won't be riding with him.
If it shows the futility of that, well that's not a bad thing, is it? I think that it at least shows the connexion between the risky behaviour and real
life, which a lot of faked up stuff fails to do.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Quote:
The vast majority of professional snow sports people aren't in that "cycle". If the film shows that guy is, well I at least won't be riding with him.
You are probably right. I guess the majority of guides are doing pretty mundane things with inexperienced tourists where risk is probably pretty low. That said I think a lot of the top athletes are definitely in that cycle. In today's red bull sponsored world where everything needs to be pushed to the extreme perhaps not so surprising. Lots of pro athletes are making questionable decisions about safety because they need that photo/line for their sponsors. Look how glamourised it is to ski out of an avalanche.
I think in free solo when Alex's girlfriend is talking about ueli steck dying and leaving his wife behind and how upset she must be and Alex says something along the lines of "but what did she expect" sums up it.
That's not to say here are not some putting a big focus on safety. Fifty project is a great example of combining ski film with educational stuff.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
@boarder2020, I've really enjoyed the 50 series, and like when he talks about when they turn back etc
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Yeah I love 50 series, it's great hearing about decision making process. In comparison finding for z we never really learn about the avalanche his friends died in or the one he got caught in later. Just some philosophical stuff about gaps between knowledge and reality (which while true I'm not sure is a great message - with enough snow science understanding you can really minimise the risk). It's a shame as those 2 events could have been used as excellent teaching points about backcountry safety and us learning from their mistakes.
I seem to be the exception though, YouTube comments seem to all love the film.
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
@extremerob Interesting clip and never a bad idea to be reminded of what can happen and how it feels if it hasn't happened around you recently. I thought it was an honest communication by the guy and fair do's for that. He's sharing his experience of having always wanted to do dangerous things in the mountains and how it panned out and how he feels about it after various ups and downs. It's not an educational clip or a ski thrills film so not fair to criticse it by those measures. I don't think it's even necessary to agree with or share his point of view in order to respect it. Two points I could relate to were 1, if you are in a group that starts really pushing the boat out (week after week I mean) and get intoxicated by that, something will almost certainly go badly wrong at some point, 2, even when someone 'masters' their environment as he does (not me obviously) the unexpected will occasionally happen.
I agree the 50 series is much more useful and 'real' for any humble real world outings I'm ever likely to make. Thanks for the link.
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Quote:
It's not an educational clip or a ski thrills film so not fair to criticse it by those measures
Fair point. If it's not educational and not ski what exactly is left though? A documentary about z? Seems like a nice enough guy, obviously a solid guide, but not particularly interesting or a leader in his field. (Actually the story how he became a guide from seemingly not a huge mountain background may have been quite interesting). I don't get the impression he is pushing it so much relative to some others (cham lines guys seem to be pushing it more for example and more enjoyable to watch). A documentary on one of the people really pushing things and taking big risks and how they justify it may have been a more interesting subject.
Like I say just my view. I just think it's quite a lot of nothing with some pretty "normal" mountain guide stories/experiences thrown in. Seems most people really like the film.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
boarder2020 wrote:
Quote:
It's not an educational clip or a ski thrills film so not fair to criticse it by those measures
Fair point. If it's not educational and not ski what exactly is left though? A documentary about z? Seems like a nice enough guy, obviously a solid guide, but not particularly interesting or a leader in his field. (Actually the story how he became a guide from seemingly not a huge mountain background may have been quite interesting). I don't get the impression he is pushing it so much relative to some others (cham lines guys seem to be pushing it more for example and more enjoyable to watch). A documentary on one of the people really pushing things and taking big risks and how they justify it may have been a more interesting subject.
Like I say just my view. I just think it's quite a lot of nothing with some pretty "normal" mountain guide stories/experiences thrown in. Seems most people really like the film.
I can see you may have found nothing new or revelatory in it and
I guess they may be "normal" guide stories of losing friends etc given they likely all have such tales but I felt he got across how it felt and how it was still a major shock when it happened even though he knew it might. Such things may have happened to you in which case you'll know how it feels but many YT viewers will not have had that. In among all the Gung Ho leaping off things clips on YT I felt it was a sound reminder of what can and does happen. Of course we may both be right!
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
boarder2020 wrote:
I didn't get it. It was 27mins of nothingness.
Yep, nearly a whole half hour of my life I won't get back. Would you go out there with someone who had lost so many dear friends? No, nor would I. Quite why Patagonia would put their good name near this kind of tosh is beyond me - and they weren't even wearing Patagonia. And it's 'Zed' not 'Zee'
Yep, nearly a whole half hour of my life I won't get back.
you did better than me, I made it to 1m08 seconds before hitting the stop button. Guess I've got ADD or something but I didn't like the way he skinned.