Living the Life: Tales from America's Mountains & Ski Towns - Softcover

Rothman, David J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1938633326 ISBN 13: 9781938633324

Publisher: Bower House, 2013

Synopsis

Skiing--like surfing, fishing, sailing, mountaineering and climbing--is an environment sport. It doesn't come to us--we must go to the places where it happens. The ones who are most committed to these places, who fall deeply in love with mountains and the alpine life, are not only athletes, but rather people who have chosen to live their lives in a particular way. This is a book for all those people--for the skiers, the climbers, the alpinists and the people who love mountains and live in them, for all those who have ever lived that life or who dream of living it. In thirty-eight tales of adventure and self-discovery, adrenaline and honesty, Rothman reveals the soul skier's raison d'être: to find exhilaration, faith, grief, laughter, love, and everything else that truly matters in the heart of the mountains.

About this title

About the Author:

David J. Rothman is a former NCAA Div. I alpine ski racer, mountain sports journalist, and ski-and-snowboard-academy headmaster who currently teaches creative writing and composition at the university level. He is cofounder of the Crested Butte Music Festival and poet-in-residence for Colorado Public Radio. He lives in Boulder, Colorado.

Review:

“It’s a select few who let their passion dictate their lifestyle. Doing so requires the sacrifice of a certain sense of normalcy, but the payback is tenfold in experiences that are extraordinary. Rothman is one of those few, and he articulates the highs, and lows, of that life choice perfectly in these pages. Living the Life is about one man’s relationship with the mountains, but the stories are applicable to anyone who lets his passion lead the way.” —Derek Taylor, editor, mtnadvisor.com, and former editor, Powder

“Poet, powderhound, musician, ex-racer, teacher, philosopher–all sides of Renaissance man David Rothman are on display in this collection, which ranges from satire to whimsy to the profoundly grateful and the essential questioning. Emerson? Check. Thoreau? Check. Petrarch? Only David Rothman would put Petrarch in a story about skiing’s 'earthly enjoyment.' In a voice that sparkles with intelligence, he is capable, in the end, of deep sincerity . . . David Rothman is a writer who skis and a skier who writes, very well.” —Peter Shelton, author, Climb to Conquer

“David has tuned his words as well as his skis, and this collection offers the equivalent of playful jump turns, graceful arcs and high-speed cruisers . . . He can be affectionate and smart-ass, funny and philosophical . . . At times David’s words conjured the wind-nip on my cheeks, snow billowing over my skis or a warm campfire surrounded by friends.” —Sandy Fails, editor, Crested Butte Magazine

“If you’re supposed to write what you know about, Rothman is clearly in his element on skis in the mountains. This is a mesmerizing compilation of essays as deep as the Wasatch snowpack.” —Eugene Buchanan, editor/publisher, Paddling Life

“This book is filled with well-written, thoughtful, and quick-paced essays that cover topics as varied as post-skiing food, the characters of a ski town, and the ancient Greeks and their thoughts on climbing peaks.”  —Backcountry Magazine

About this edition

• Publisher: Bower House
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1938633326
• ISBN 13: 9781938633324
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 226