Stephen Koch

Today is the last day of the first week of the Burpee Challenge. I have yet to do mine today. Some days are harder to motivate than others, and today is such a day for me. But I will complete them before I have to pick up Axl from Taekwondo class. How has it been [...]

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In this short video I demonstrate and explain the “Burpee,” a wonderful all around exercise that requires only one thing, YOU! No props, no weights, bands, benches, balls or anything else to give you an excuse to not do them! Simple. All you need is a little encouragement and belief that you will be more loved if you do these. You will! You will love yourself for doing this wonderful all around exercise! The Burpee works your legs, core, shoulders, back, chest and face, hands (clapping), and face (from the inner joy that will emit from your being through your smile because you accomplished something that will benefit you greatly!).

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Greg Hill is going for 2 Million Vertical feet of skinning and skiing this year. Greg, a Canadian ski mountaineer, is well on his way to his goal with over 1,600,000′ skied this year! Massive goal! Massive Respect! In this short video Greg explains how he fuels himself, sometimes for 15 10K vertical days in [...]

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When it is cold and raw, like it is now in Jackson Hole, I reach for my wool. The new Merino wool is not uncomfortable and scratchy like its predecessor. This is not the wool sweater your mother used to throw on you. The new wool is luxuriously comfortable, warm and best of all for the active set, doesn’t smell worse than if you rolled around in the dogs mess, like most synthetic long underwear, after sweating in it.

The thing I like about I/O Bio is the styling of the pieces. They are made to function for high intensity activities like running, biking, climbing, skiing and snowboarding, but they also look good worn on their own. So you can be just off a backcountry skiing or snowboarding run on Teton Pass, peel off your soft shell jacket and head straight into work with nary a nostril flared nor eyebrow raised.

Last winer Darrel Miller and I partnered for a climb and descent of he Teton Classic West Hourglass Couloir. The WHC rises above Garnet Canyon at a lovely steep angle on a north aspect for around 2,000 plus feet.

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Winter will be here before we know it…don’t get caught without the essentials for a safe, fun and successful backcountry outing. Check it out… http://bit.ly/abcWqj Recommend on Facebook Tweet about it Subscribe to the comments on this post

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While climbing the north face of the Grand Teton earlier this month I took photographs of this beautiful, rare and unusual looking flower which I had never seen before, called Alpine Lantern, at about 11,900 – 12,000 feet, just below the Guano Chimney. After some searching and inquiring about it, this is what Dick Scott, [...]

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Water bladders are a wonderful invention and they work very well for many uses. There are times that I do not carry a bladder, yet still want water very accessible. My solution to this has been to make my own carrier using a few simple items and a used plastic water bottle. In this short [...]

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Hidden Falls is a beautiful 80-foot-high “waterfall” located near Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park. In the summer, park visitors can hike the trail leading up to the falls, one of the busiest in Grand Teton. The distance to Hidden Falls from the boat dock, where the shuttle boat drops you off, is a [...]

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This is a short video of my partner hiking up from the lower saddle towards the Black Dike on the Grand Teton last week. We started out in the rain and knew the forecast was for storms but went for it anyway knowing we would turn around if conditions warranted it. The gusts were in [...]

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I did not snowboard the north face of the Aiguille du Midi while I lived in Chamonix in 1990, although I wanted to. I did make some turns along the north side of the ridge traversing to the glacier on my way to ride the Gervasutti Couloir on Mont Blanc du Tacul. The “Gervasutti,” as [...]

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