When Noah Dines answered the phone, his breath was labored, and I could hear crunching snow in the background. It was July 5, and he was skiing uphill on Mount Hood. As of that phone call, the 30-year-old Bedford, Mass., native said hed already logged 2,067,000 vertical feet uphill toward his goal of hitting 3 million in a year.

　　Thats like 400-something-thousand feet ahead of pace, he said. His previous record in a year was around 700,000 vertical feet. When we spoke, he sounded cautiously optimistic about his shot at this world record.

　　Theres a lot of emotions. I think you have to be pretty darn confident, Dines said. And I havent gotten there yet, so who knows? Its huge numbers with a pretty small margin for error.

　　The current record holder, Aaron Rice, climbed 2.5 million vertical feet in 2016. Dines began this journey at the outset of 2024. He started in January in Stowe, Vermont. In February, he skied in Chamonix, France. Through March, he was in Innsbruck and Saint Anton, Austria. Then, he came back to Vermont, New Hampshire, and Utah, and eventually traveled on to Oregon.

　　His sights are set on South America next.

　　In January alone, Dines broke the record for most uphill skied in a single month, climbing 378,024 feet. He has yet to break Rices 2016 record. But he is well on his way, with 5 months left on the clock. And if he reaches 3 million before the end of the year, he said he wont stop. That figure is just a guide. In all likelihood, Dines will be up the very next day, racking up more vert.

　　Maybe Ill sleep in the morning after 3 million, he said. But also, maybe I wont. I might just be so psyched that I need to go skiing.

　　GearJunkie caught up with Dines ahead of the world record to discuss his journey, its highs and lows, and his gear — as well as to clarify a few things for the haters.

　　Noah Dines QA: Skiing 3 Million Vertical Feet in a Year

　　(Photo/Noah Dines) GearJunkie: What inspired you to set out to break the record for the most vert skied uphill in a year? Noah Dines: In some ways, it was a long time coming. Id been increasing volume and skiing a lot. Id done an everesting on a bike and an everesting on skis. And I was kind of at a transitional period in terms of work and jobs and whatnot I was driving back from a not-so-great date in Burlington, and it kind of just came to me like, I should go for Aaron Rices record.

　　People had suggested it before. But Id said, No, that sounds unfun. But I just think I was at a place where I could do it, and it would be fun; that my fitness was there, that my mental fortitude and, in some ways, my calmness was there. So that was early February 2023. And thats been pretty much what I think about since then.

　　View this post on Instagram A post shared by Noah Dines (@noah.dines)

　　What does an average day look like when youre trying to ski 3 million feet uphill in a year? It really depends on where I am. A Mount Hood day is I wake up in my truck — the back of my totally underpowered 2003 Toyota Tacoma. (For all the people on the internet who are all so sure that I have a trust fund).

　　And then I drive to the rest stop in Government camp, use the bathroom, then I grab two cups of coffee, drive up to the hill, boot up, start walking. I ski 10-12,000 feet. Get down. Drink a can of Coke. Sit around in the parking lot for a while. Maybe even fall asleep. Drive down, hang out, go for a swim. Go food shopping. Complain about the heat and eventually fall asleep around 10:00 p.m.

　　Have you taken any significant breaks since you started skiing? No. I have 6 days without touching snow I dont take rest days or anything.

　　(Photo/Kayla Henry) What have been your health priorities and recovery routines, then? Health-wise, I definitely have toned down the skiing a little bit. Not a lot, but, eating, fueling, and making sure that I feel fueled throughout the day and week are really important.

　　And for recovery, Im a really big fan of resting — but not sleeping. So, like, vegging on a couch or in the truck or wherever. Just, like, really chill. And thats my priority. I dont have crazy, complicated routines. I make sure I get lots of carbs, get some protein. But if Im not skiing, I just try not to burn a lot of energy.

　　What kinds of foods does your diet include? Bread products In France and Austria, I ate a ton of pastries and fresh bread. Here, a lot of, like, packaged muffins and bagels and whatnot. Haribo candy, that kind of stuff on the uphill. I dont have a nutrition sponsor, so Im free to eat whatever crap I want And then, like, chicken turkey sandwiches and, you know, whatever is available. Its so location-dependent.

　　Were you traveling specifically to ski good snow? Or traveling for personal reasons? I kind of knew I would have to travel but have tried to reduce it because traveling is exhausting, expensive, and environmentally not great. Hence, the big blocks. [New Hampshire] was just a day trip to the Whites Everything I am doing this year is in pursuit of the goal. I wasn’t going to visit anybody or anything.

　　View this post on Instagram A post shared by Noah Dines (@noah.dines)

　　Why not stay at a place like Hood all year long and knock out all 3 million safely in one spot? Because conditions are generally terrible, requiring tons of walking late in summer and unsafe with avalanches and weather in the winter For example, y0ou can’t ski at Stowe in July. Everywhere has a season [Also],. Stowe ran out of snow, and access to the mountain with manmade snow is severely limited.

　　So you mentioned people online making comments about how you must have a trust fund. How have you been funding this endeavor? So the money thing has been very funny because people are so sure I have a trust fund. If I do, Id love somebody to tell me about it. I could really use it. But. Yeah.

　　Turns out people on the internet love giving me money, so Ive gotten a lot of crowdsourced funding. I didnt want to do that because people should go take their money and ski. But I guess people derive entertainment from what Im doing, so thats fine.

　　I also came into this [prepared] and am still prepared to spend a lot of my own savings. Im doing this because I want to do it, not to get rich. Ive been good with money. Ive never worked a fancy job; Ive worked in education my whole life. I dont spend a lot of money on stuff and whatever. So I have savings.

　　(Photo/Noah Dines) Have you had much luck getting sponsors behind you? Theres a little bit of sponsor money, and Im hoping that as Ive proven myself, more will come. I came into this with really no athletic background or anything. So I went to companies saying, Hey, Im going to do this. And they were like, Maybe. But probably not. And why would I believe you?

　　They werent actually saying that, but they were thinking it. Like, Who are you? But now that Ive shown that I can throw down some big numbers and ski with some bigger names, Im hoping [to get more sponsorships].

　　When you hit 3 million, whats the plan? Are you going to keep skiing? Or are you going to call it right on the mark? No. I set out to ski and challenge myself for one year and to see what I can do in a year. The 3 million is like a guide and a goal. But, you know, there are other numbers. The numbers keep going up after 3 million. 1,000,000 meters is something. Its a reach goal. Thats like 3,280,000 feet. Im not committed to that, but I know that number exists. I want to do my absolute best.

　　View this post on Instagram A post shared by Noah Dines (@noah.dines)

　　What have been some of the biggest challenges along the way so far? Weather. Its been hot. Ive intentionally skied more in spring, but especially when I was in Europe, it was incredibly hot, and there wasnt snow. So that was super draining and frustrating. There was a big heat wave here like a week or two ago. And also, when I was skiing in Utah, it got to like 77 or 78 degrees at 10,000 feet. Which is just really hot. Its sick if youre doing one lap. But its a big challenge if youre doing five or six.

　　Then, trying to recover but living in the truck. When its hot, its really hard because instead of recovering your body is still fighting to cool down. And youre just getting zapped and losing energy when you need to be bringing it back. So thats not fun.

　　(Photo/Jeremy Jones) On the flip side, what have been some of the high points for you? Especially on this West Coast swing, Ive met and gotten to ski with some really damn cool people. You know, some civilians and then, like Steven Nyman, who is the American downhill or Fischer boy. He came in with me and then I lived at his house for like 10 days or something. Just the nicest guy in the world. Ive run into Shaun White and Jimmy Chin.

　　And then, the other day, I summited Mount Hood with just an absolutely absurd cast of all-stars. Jeremy Jones. Kai Jones. Cass Jones. Parkin Costin and their friend Hayes It was really cool Oh! And we were talking about the haters [earlier]. The people who have been most interested and supportive are the ones who have achieved and know what its like to push themselves. Theres a cool mutual admiration and awe.

　　View this post on Instagram A post shared by Noah Dines (@noah.dines)

　　The Gear Taking Dines to 3 Million Vert We couldnt talk with someone like Dines without the topic of gear coming up. Naturally, we were curious about what kind of equipment the aspiring world record-breaker holder was using to pursue his goal. Any skimo gear that can hold up for 3 million vertical feet is worth touching on.

　　Heres the shortlist, with some of Dines commentary.

　　Fischer Travers CT Touring Boots: The pair Im on currently has just about 1.7 million vertical feet — the shells, not the liners. Which Ive been pretty blown away by that durability. Its not the lightest boot, but it skis quite well. Fischer Trans Alp RC Carbon Touring Skis: Its a skimo ski, but its nice and stiff and snappy, and its just damn light. And for skimo, its the best skimo ski Ive ever skied. Fischer Trans Alp 86 CTE Pro: Its really fantastic on steeps. Its still quite light. Steeps, ice, that kind of stuff — going edge to edge. Its just a marvelous ski. ATK Trofeo Binding: ATK makes the best bindings in the world, and, the Trofeo is my binding of choice. Simple. Durable. Light. Sturdy. And critically like, I dont think about it. It just works. TR carbon race poles: I just wore through the cork grip, which is now being placed. Maloja Berber Jacket: Its just the best for moving quickly through the mountains. Its got two big skin pockets. Fits really well. Keeps me cool and keeps some elements out. Skins: Ive used most skin manufacturers this year Uvex Pace Stage CV glasses Follow Dines to the World Record

　　(Photo/Noah Dines) Dines said hes learned a lot about creating content and keeping people posted about his journey since he started. Peruse his Instagram account (@noah.dines) and youll find frequent video posts and updates about Dines progress toward his goal. His Linktree links to his Strava account and substack (titled The Big Ski Year).

　　If you want to donate to his crowdfunding, Dines GoFundMe account can be found here. And if you want to listen to him talk more about his quest for the world record of vertical feet skied uphill, he appeared on episode 283 of the Out of Bounds podcast.

　　Dines was cautious not to talk about the record in the past tense, even though hes so close now. He mindfully qualified any statement about finishing with, I havent gotten there yet. Hes ahead of pace, though —by a wide margin. Follow him on social media to stay up to date and to stay tuned in for the day he breaks the world record for vertical feet skied.

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