A perfectly sunny day with powder, but not lots of powder, just enough to land in… a foot or so, a diverse mix of skiers and boarders including Dash Longe, Pep Fujas, Argentine Mauri Cambilla, Garrett Russell, and Robin Van Gyn among others. Throw in a mini-golf playground with not-so-obvious cliffs and jibs, and it makes for an interesting day of riding.

The day started in Laguna and ended in Laguna, a partial circle shaped ridge at the top that runs into flat and transitions onto a second stage comprised of a cirque-type bowl that empties onto a frozen lake at the bottom. The whole group from SASS was already in the upper region of Laguna, some were hiking, some were watching from the bottom, and some were filming by the time I reached the Laguna via a short hike. Much to my surprise, everyone was repeatedly hiking certain features and avoiding skiing all the way down to the lake, the most tempting route to follow. This meant snow, rock, and sun all day with no lifts, no noise, and no resort, fine by me…. That is unless you include the yet to be functioning poma that will improve access but add noise and lazy people to the encompassing tranquility.

The day rolled on from there with a very organic session that developed and evolved as the sun moved across the sky. Cliffs and rocks were hit in such ways that made the apparently limited options to huck seem limitless. From hand drags, to rock rides, to switch landings and take-offs, a group effort to push the creative envelope forged on until the day was over and there was no place left to put a bomb hole. The highlights of the day where the riding of the 60ft wall of rock, first by Pep, then Dash and Mauri, Pep’s butter to switch 3 over a rock band (with a little in-run preparation), Dash’s 180’s over the same rock band, and Garrett’s switch rock ride. These types of skiing antics that deftly move the sport into a more progressive state take place when individuals bring a jib/park mentality and way of seeing the mountain to natural terrain... cliché in words, perhaps…innovation on the snow…and rock, most definitely. It is this type of energy and creativity in the pursuit of pure fun that can transcend cultural and economic barriers, bringing otherwise distant people together….except for the fact that on the economic side, going to the mountain is expensive and therefore not too many economic barriers will be transcended, especially in Argentina.