Friday Night Lights on Black Mountain

(Durham, April 2, 2019) Andrew Drummond of Conway, New Hampshire currently holds the speed record for hiking all 48 of New Hampshire’s 4,000-foot mountains. Drummond is not only an expert hiker, but also an expert at alpine touring – a type of skiing that allows you to ski not just down the mountain, but also up and across snow covered terrain.  On the next WINDOWS TO THE WILD, host Willem Lange learns more about Drummond’s passion for the outdoors and alpine touring.

Born and raised in New Hampshire, Drummond took a break from the winter and made his way to California to pursue his passion for surfing.  During this time he spent a few weeks every year visiting his brother in Alaska.  It was during one of these visits in 2012 where he started to learn about backcountry skiing, and he was hooked.  Drummond recalls, “I went from skiing with no purpose to skiing with a lot of purpose.”

Two years later, he ended up back in the Granite State, where he began his business.  “This all evolved eventually out of necessity,” Drummond explained. “There was no one here in the valley doing backcountry rentals with modern gear. It was stuff that I was using and an experience that I thought was worth sharing.”  

Alpine touring is one of the fastest-growing segments in the ski industry, and Drummond allows New Hampshire folks to experience it every Friday night through his event called Friday Night Lights at Black Mountain in Jackson, NH.

Long after the last scraps of daylight disappear, 80-120 skiers don headlamps, clear goggles, put climbing skins on their skis and make their way up the trail with family and friends. Once they make it to the top of the mountain, the skiers shed their climbing skins, adjust their bindings and are ready to hit the slopes as downhill skiers. Some turn right around and head down the slope, others take their time to warm up inside the hut and socialize with fellow skiers.

Because alpine touring is fairly new, skiers come out to not only enjoy the sport, but to take in the sense of community they gain from being there on Fridays.  According to Black Mountain ski patrol director, Dave Aibel, “Andrew has built a community first and the business followed.”

Learn more about Andrew Drummond and Friday Night Lights on the next episode of WINDOWS TO THE WILD, airing Wednesday, April 3, at 7:30 pm.

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