Sammy Carlson Talks His Mind-Blowing New Film

Earlier this fall, I spoke with Sammy Carlson to learn more about KAMASE, his yet-to-be-released seasonal ski movie offering (KAMASE is making the rounds with live screenings and will drop online on November 27th). The film centered our conversation, but, as is often the case during prolonged discussions, the occasional curveball appeared.

I was asking Carlson a somewhat selfish question that wasn't particularly relevant to KAMASE: I wanted to know who he thought the best freeskiers of all time were. Carlson provided a compelling case for his selections before going off script, asking me who I thought was or is the greatest freeskier ever. After a flustered moment -- answering questions when you’ve been nervously preparing to do the opposite is destabilizing -- I made the safest pick imaginable: Candide Thovex.

But as our interview concluded and I sat in silence at my kitchen table, I realized that I wanted to alter or, at the very least, mull over my answer a bit more. In my moment of reflection, I came to know that the man who’d been on the other end of the phone line -- Sammy Carlson -- deserved to be a part of the conversation.

Slotting anyone other than Thovex into the GOAT position is controversial. I recognize and appreciate that fact -- Thovex has earned every drop of the praise that showers him. But Carlson, who’s been a professional skier for the better part of two decades, has excelled in every facet of freeskiing, from park to backcountry. These days, he’s primarily seen as a pillow-popping powder weapon, making it easy to forget that over 10 years ago, on the flanks of picturesque Mt. Hood, Oregon, Carlson landed the world’s first switch triple rodeo 1260. Said stunt demonstrates his impressive, rarely-matched range as a freeskier.

With the online release of KAMASE, Carlson’s bid for a position in the history books will be ever stronger. The film covers three locales -- Japan, British Columbia, and Alaska -- each serving as a backdrop for Carlson’s continued evolution. During our interview, Carlson noted that he wished he would have performed better than he did while filming KAMASE in Alaska. However, from my vantage as a viewer, I struggled to see that segment, among others, as anything other than a depiction of a master in his element. Stellar cameo appearances from Vinzenz Keller, Yu Sasaki, Bull, and Todd Liagre only ratchet the adrenaline levels higher.

Still, Carlson’s observation, his commitment to constant improvement, makes sense and colors the ever-upwards trajectory he follows -- after 20 years in the game, Sammy Carlson is only getting better. That doesn't happen for those who rest on their laurels and avoid self-critique. Will Carlson's efforts land him amongst the all-time greats? It depends on who you ask, but I know where my money is.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

What are the advantages of working on your own with a small crew as opposed to signing up with a major production company?

I think the main advantage, besides working with people that you really like being out in the mountains with: it’s just more riding. That was kind of what initially sparked it. It was just tiring me out working with bigger productions. It can be such a slow process that it's really draining and kind of takes away from the fun of skiing when you only got, like one, two laps a day. I just kinda realized that if I was out there with a smaller crew, we could have just more creative freedom as well on what we're riding and then just the amount of laps you can get into.

What can you tell us about your new film, KAMASE?

Kamase is a Japanese slang word -- it means “go kill it.” And that was kind of just the theme of our year. We went to Japan, which was kind of a last-minute trip. And that just sparked the whole vibe and pacing of the season. Over there, early on in the trip, one of our good friends, Jackie, who was guiding us around, introduced us to the word kamase. And it's from the old Japanese kind of gang days. But now it’s more common in mountain communities. So you're on top of the line and about to drop in with your buddies and be like, ‘Kamase’! So we just had a really good time in Japan, and I mean, pretty much from the beginning, once we learned the word, we were saying it a lot. We decided to name the movie KAMASE, and here we are.

The movie is a little longer than YUP. I worked with the same post-production crew as last year, KuenyPearson. And I had primarily the same filmers working on the film and have been working with for the last few seasons. So I had Brody Jones, Danny LeBlanc. Also had Daniel Ronnback and Daniel Stewart out shooting photos. And this year, we brought in Kadison Pelletier -- the new FPV drone pilot that I hadn’t worked with in the past, and we're super excited to have some FPV elements attached to the film.

We had a segment in Japan, the British Columbia segment, and ended the year in Alaska. We have a pretty key segment from Alaska. Going back to Alaska the past few seasons, I’ve been starting to shift my focus more on to riding lines, getting out into bigger terrain, and just feeling more comfortable out there. So, this year was probably my best experience in Alaska, even though I didn’t quite get it the way I wanted to. I’ve learned a lot the last few seasons, so I feel like I was ready to step up to some bigger lines… But overall, I was really confident and just had so much fun riding lines, feeling like I was right where I should be and not overstepping. It’s super easy up there to get into terrain where you’re maybe not ready.

It's impossible to discuss your skiing without bringing up longevity, as you've been a professional skier for about two decades now. What does it take to remain at the top of your game after all these years?

It never gets easier, really. Trying to stay dedicated, put the work in -- you can’t skip steps, you gotta be 100% in and just committed. But it’s been a super cool journey and over time it gets better and better. Some of the day-to-day can feel a little bit more repetitive. But I think a big part of it -- staying in the game -- for me is just continuing to focus on what feels good. It’s fun for me to ride and be out there with people that I also enjoy riding with. And working with brands that are some of my favorite brands. 

If I wasn’t sponsored by them I’d still be using a lot of their products, you know. So that’s a cool part of it, to continue to evolve with my sponsors. With Armada, we’re making the Whitewalker 116 and 121, which both those skis were super fun to develop and then get them out in the snow. It unlocks new opportunities as a skier. So that’s exciting and just continuing to evolve. But definitely every year I have a day where it’s like, ‘Alright bro, you just gotta work hard,’ and there are no shortcuts. You gotta prepare before the season and you can’t skip steps.

Are you doing any kind of offseason training?

For sure. I try to focus on the off-season and when I’m training. [I try] to look at it like I’m not just training for skiing, but more just life. Trying to live a healthy lifestyle in the offseason and not just getting distracted and out of shape. But kinda maintaining shape and then now that the season is right around the corner kind of increase my efforts with the workouts. Definitely, I think training has been a huge part of my success, like taking the preseason training seriously. Just getting strong so if I mess up I have a shield, being strong so you can take the hits and get back up from them. For sure you gotta stay dedicated to the training. When I was younger and started focusing more on off-season training, I think that was what allowed me to really step it up and ride harder with more confidence.

Are you big into weightlifting, or is it endurance running, or some mix, or mobility exercises? I’m curious what that looks like specifically for someone like you.

I call it ‘ninja’ training. I think it’s a mix of all that. [I’m] lifting weights, cardio, stretching, really trying to have a well-rounded program by not doing too much of the same thing.

I’m definitely not a gym rat guy where I’m just trying to max out. I’m doing a lot more reps, lower weight with higher rep count, and a lot of its body weight. A lot of it’s BOSU balls, exercise balls that I’m standing on and then doing the exercise to have some sort of balance component in basically every workout I’m doing. And then I also got a leg press I hit up pretty hard in my garage, that’s kind of my preseason program. I’ll go out and tour most of the day and then get home and just get on the leg press. Just get it in until I can barely stand up and walk away from it.

Speaking of longevity and the things that you're doing these days to stay in shape, I've heard that back in the day you were a really big Skittles guy. Are you still into Skittles?

Oh yeah, I mean I’m not going to say I’ve bought them, or I would buy them, but if someone had some Skittles in the backcountry then I would definitely ask for a couple. I’m not eating candy like back in the day. What happened with Skittles was, Skittles sent me a big suitcase full of Skittles back in the day. So I was giving them out to everyone because I had a whole five-year supply of Skittles.

Yeah, definitely eating a lot healthier. I’m actually very allergic to eggs, super severe egg allergy. When I was growing up, I didn’t actually know that til I was like 18, or 17 til I figured out that I had a severe egg allergy. And my first couple of years, traveling around on the scene, I would eat pretty simple, basic foods. People would always laugh at the stuff I would want to eat. Now that I have the egg allergy all sorted, it’s helped improve my diet. I definitely try and eat super healthy -- replace the Skittles with smoothies.

What's your go-to meal for keeping you fueled up during long days in the backcountry?

I pretty much wake up every morning and whip up a smoothie. Kind of a protein blended smoothie with Athletic Greens and that would get me pretty far through the day. And then I’ll just have my favorite snack to eat out in the backcountry, clementines. I always bring clementines. For the big days, I’ll double up into peanut butter banana sandwiches out there with some clementines and then just a stash of bars in case I need another boost.

Do you do music or no music while skiing and, if music, who was your go-to artist last season while filming for KAMASE?

Yeah, going up on the hill, if I’m just preseason training bombing the hill, I’ll definitely go beats in. And a lot of times I’ll just go up there solo and I’ll just rip a few laps solo and just put the beats in.

If we’re filming, sometimes if I’m nervous about a line or feeling a little antsy I’ll put some beats on in my pocket so I can still be present and aware of my surroundings. But just have a little, maybe a little JID or some Griselda coming through. I’m a big music guy. That’s a huge inspiration to me. But in the backcountry, it’s a little dangerous to rock the beats. So put the phone on in the pocket -- it’s a good cheat.

Help me understand Vinzenz Keller. His parts in KAMASE left my jaw on the floor multiple times.

Yeah, Vinz is my main riding partner out here and an underground slayer. He’s from the Kootenays, Kootenay boy. We lived together. He’s a super dedicated, passionate skier. He doesn't really have any sponsors. He was doing that for a little bit but decided to work on his own in the summertime and stack some cash so he's able to take the winters off and ski as much as he can, you know, which I’m very proud of him for doing that and it's been really inspiring for me to spend so much time around him to see his overall passion for the sport.

I’m excited for everyone to see his shots. I feel like he’s out there 100% for the right reasons, he loves it. He actually got those shots in KAMASE while I was up in Alaska. He was out filming with another buddy, I was psyched to be able to slot him in.

You've built a huge jump in the backcountry, the light’s perfect and the sky is clear. What trick are you throwing first hit?

Probably drop in and do a switch dub or something, but these days I’m more psyched on standing on top of a line, snow’s perfect, you know, avy conditions [are good]. What line are you gonna ride? That’s more my focus these days, trying to ride lines. Not really building as many jumps, I think we built one big jump last year. 

Keep your eyes peeled for the online release of KAMASE on December 1st.

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