Skippress - Index

Skippress - US Vol. 7 No. 2 - Index

SNOLIFE
Van on the Run
SCOT SCHMIDT’S ULTIMATE SKI-BUMMING VAN
Hybrids may be the future, but the retro extravagance
of a $100,000 turbodiesel V-8 4x4 pop-
top campervan will always take a piece of your
heart. Fresno, California-based Sportsmobile
takes Ford E-350s — the vans typically driven by
church groups — and turns them into UAVs.
That’s Ultimate Adventure Vehicles, the baddest
off-road toys you’ve ever seen.
“Yeah, I used to fl y, but now I can hang out with
buddies, camp, visit hot springs or whatever along
the way,” freeskiing legend Scot Schmidt said
about using his bright-yellow 2005 model to tour
the Rockies each winter. “It even has a dieselburning
furnace, so I can set the thermostat, go
skiing all day and come back to a heated home.”
Schmidt leaves his actual home in Santa Cruz,
California, in January and doesn’t return until April.
He both drives and lives in his Sportsmobile UAV
as he makes appearances and skis with clients in
Canada and all over the American West. Still in the
game, he has a signature ski from Stockli (Stormrider),
exclusive deals with Island Lake Lodge and
the Yellowstone Club, and runs Gowithapro.com,
an adventure-travel company that uses pro athletes
as guides. He’s even partnered with fellow North
Face athlete and climber/photographer Jimmy Chin
and gone into rental real estate in Sayulita, Mexico,
near a mellow surf break.
But it’s the van that gets the typically quiet
Schmidt to talk.
8 THE TRAVEL ISSUE 2008
“This thing is unbelievable. You can move it without
moving it,” he said about the UAV’s 26 inches
of suspension-articulation, 10 forward and two
reverse gears, and fi ve different driveline confi gurations
for micro-adjusting how the 4 x 4 eats up
the trail. Put the rear axle in neutral, for example,
lock the rear wheels with the parking brake, set
it in front-wheel drive and turn the steering wheel.
Now, hit the gas and you can turn the van
90 degrees without moving forward.
“I don’t use it like that,” said Schmidt. “But you
can’t beat this thing in the snow. It’s the ultimate
ski-bumming van.”
LOST AND FOUND
In the humble opinion of the snow freaks at Ski Press USA,
Teton Gravity Research makes the best ski movies in the
world. Not only were they the fi rst to unite skiers and snowboarders
on celluloid, but they’ve been pushing the envelope
on peaks and in pipes all over the world.
This season’s Lost and Found dropped our collective
jaws all over again with point-of-view video that’ll make
your palms sweat, and truly inspirational footage of the
recently paralyzed Marc-André Belliveau ripping on a
sit-ski with all the fury and fi nesse of a gravity-fed snowmobile.
tetongravity.com. — Peter Kray
Photo: Sport Mobile Photo: Scot Schmidt
“You can’t beat this
thing in the snow.”
The UAV also has $20,000 of electronics, including
GPS, satellite television (DirecTV with two
fl at-screen monitors), satellite radio and a gangsta-worthy
sound system. The inside is plush yet
utilitarian: pop-top, two beds, a full kitchen and
tons of storage. The outside is rigged with a
heavy-duty roof rack, bumper and jerry can. All it
lacks is a hot-tub.
And they’re working on that.
www.sportsmobile.com, 1 800 827-3071
— Philip Armour
Photo: Pete O’Brien
Marc-André Belliveau
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