DAN GISH

Photo: Carson Meyer (@carsonmeyerphoto)

I grew up in the cold, flat Midwest.

But you see, we didn't know that it sucked. We thought that skiing with your buddies after school on a 200 foot ice hill was the coolest thing ever. We were known as the Rat Pack, and our passion for skiing has taken each of us to amazing places (including a Fila jacket-wearing Matt Sterbenz).

I steadily made my way to bigger mountains, first to Colorado for college, and then upon selling a software business, retiring to Verbier Switzerland.

Skiing has been a constant presence in my life, endowing me with confidence as a kid, and providing meaning and camaraderie as an adult. No matter how big the mountains get, I hope to always keep the awe of that Midwest kid simply stoked to be skiing an icy mound in Wisconsin.