Michelle Parker, initially a Tahoe jib rat, was one of the first female skiers to really try and send tricks in the backcountry, and still has one of the most confident-looking styles in the good ‘ol BC. No estranger to the comp scene, Michelle has Dew Tour podiums under her belt as well as enough knee injuries to fund her surgeon’s car payments, mortgage, and private school tuition for the kids. Michelle is core as it gets, and has injured herself landing on rocks, off jumps, and over-rotating a 360 off a 60 foot cliff way before any other girls would even look over the edge.
After a solid year off the hill Michelle is “hungry,” both to get back to slaying it on her Hellbents and also for the organic roasted corn pudding she has spent the winter perfecting. Michelle, creator of the healthiest munchies in the snowsports industry, has been skiing lightly since February and took the time to answer some questions from BroBomb.
photo: Joe Carlino
BroBomb: There are a number of female skiers, Ingrid Backstrom, Kaya Turski, Sarah Burke, and yes, Michelle Parker, whose skiing just blows you away, but for a long time, the talent dropped off relatively quickly. It didn’t seem like a lot of new blood was getting infused into the group, but now it seems like we’re seeing more up-and-comers. Why do you think women’s freeskiing took so long to grow? Were all the good athletes snowboarding or racing?
Michelle: That’s a tough question. I think that the ladies you mentioned have been continuously progressing and there are a lot of hungry young girls out there right now. Being that I was injured for the last year, I got to judge some female competitions and I was really impressed with some of the up and comers throwing down. It seems, to me, that every company has their girl. They’ve got that one girl that represents them. At least that was how it went for a while, not leaving much room for the young talent to move in a make a mark on the industry. Aside from the lack of female competitions (that’s a big one) it’s incredibly difficult for girls to get film parts and not because of lack of talent or commitment. They are out there and when the opportunity presents itself, they throw down!! It’s just a shame there aren’t as many opportunities (like a U.S. Open).
photo: Collin Wiseman
Biggest female-specific grievance about being a pro skier?
Being that this is a sport dominated by men or boys (in many cases), I tend to flock with them, travel with them, and spend every waking moment with them. That’s all fine and dandy because I appreciate every one of them, but men/boys have this annoying tendency to snore. It’s okay with me when they snore in synch, but when it sounds like my brother trying to learn the French horn; I have to draw the line and request to sleep elsewhere. Usually the team manager takes care of that in advance and I’m okay with a little less sleep on occasion…I can deal. Really though, I mean really…I’m a pro skier and life is good.
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