350k? I'd call that an Epic day

We all love checking our vertical on EpicMix. I've even been known to get quite competitive when it comes to upping my stats on the mountain. However, there are some die-hards who just want to take everything to the next level.  Like last month, when seven alpine adventurers chose to rack up as much collective vertical distance as possible in a single day against some tough odds.

You wouldn't know it by looking at the mountains today in their powdery glory, but in fact they had a bit of a snow deficit early on this season.  Fortunately, with the tireless efforts of some intrepid snowmakers, skiers and boarders alike were able to shred on through the uncooperative weather. It also provided this team of seven an unexpected opportunity to accomplish something incredible: skiing over 350,000 vertical feet in a single day at Vail.

The team set out with a goal of 50,000 per rider. They knew EpicMix would capture their day's progress, so they didn't need to worry about making note of which lifts they took. During their marathon session, they made up time by tuning and adjusting their gear inside the gondola. They had some wonderfully supportive family members hand off energy bars and Gatorade for some quick fuel between runs. Throughout their day, they never stopped for more than 5 minutes total.

Let's break down the numbers:

• The team represented ages 21-60+
• It took them 7 ½ hours to reach their goal, practically from first chair to last
• That equates to roughly 4,200 calories burned per person
• They rode 30 lifts each, 11 trips on Game Creek, 4 on Avante, 14 rides on the gondola and finished on Pride Express to push them over their mark
• They each covered 50,798 vertical feet - that's over 9 ½ miles
• Zero wipe-outs
• And one well-timed bathroom break

Now let's try and put those numbers into perspective. To reach 350,000 vertical feet (over 66 miles), you would need a stack of a dozen Mt. Everests on top of each other, taking you past the Ozone layer and out of our Earth's stratosphere. You could travel down through the Chunnel and back from the UK to France and still have some distance left over. 

After their exhausting, accomplished day, the crew posed for a victorious EpicMix photo and departed the mountain for some margaritas, nachos, and some well-deserved rest. Any group showing that much determination, adrenaline, and perseverance while having such a blast on the slopes proves what it means to be truly Epic. 

Shred on.

--Mac Jaehnert

Special thanks to Michael Ainbinder and the rest of the skiers - Steve Marton, Jordan Marton, Jordan Fishman, and Scott Fishman - for sharing your story with us.