In the third installment of the Cosbey Chronicles, the boys sit down with Coz at his caretaker’s quarters on the shore of Gold Lake and dive deep into trails. Raised as a Mormon, by age 12, Coz knew organized religion wasn’t for him. At that same age, he rode a Honda Trail 90 motorcycle for the first time, and it was the beginning of the rest of his life. His religion became exploration on two wheels in the outdoors. Coz talks about the three years he spent laying out and building Mills Peak trail in Graeagle, as well as working on all the trails in Lakes Basin for the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship, an organization he co-founded. Coz talks about the future of recreation in rural mountain communities and encourages listeners to escape the negativity of life, losing their minds in the track, being present in the moment. He also encourages those with financial means to contribute their wealth to trails and trail projects, benefiting the public in an age where connection to place is being lost to invasive technology.
6:30 – Podcast – The Stuff They Don’t Want You to Know
8:25 – Coast to Coast Radio with Art Bell
9:55 – Car Talk with Click and Clack
11:50 – Recording at Gold Lake near Graeagle, California with Marc Cosbey
18:20 – Living through two winters in Lakes Basin – running naked out into a snowstorm
22:20 – Tuning into nature through the sounds of nature
25:30 – Being raised Mormon, not digging it, and instead embracing nature and trails as religion
30:05 – Riding a motorcycle for the first time in his life at 12 years old – beginning of the rest of his life.
34:30 – Trails are a pathway to spirituality – tuning out the world and focusing on the moment in the track.
36:15 – Building Mills Peak trail and spending years in the Lakes Basin improving the trails.
39:50 – What’s it like to ride a trail you built after 3 years of your life working on it?
43:15 – Stew McMorrow – a volunteer who’s had his life changed by the importance of trails.
45:15 – Where does Coz see the future of trails and trail organizations?
49:45 – Volunteers who have desk jobs that come and volunteer – it can change their life.
56:57 – What is the biggest challenge and opportunity for rural mountain communities in securing their future?
1:00:31 – What have you learned about yourself, community and public lands in the wake of devastating wildfires over the last 5 years?
1:12:30 – What trail is Coz most proud of building over the years?
1:13:55 – Building the North Yuba Trail from Downieville to Goodyears Bar and the enjoyment of designing a trail before it’s built.
1:18:27 – What was the significance of building Mills Peak Trail in Graeagle?
1:21:33 – What advice does Coz have for folks starting their own trails organization?
1:29:48 – If your life were a tree, what kind of tree would it be?
1:32:47 – What’s an epic ride people have to do in the Lakes Basin? Mount Elwell.
1:38:25 – What does Mind the Track mean to you?
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In the third installment of the Cosbey Chronicles, the boys sit down with Coz at his caretaker’s quarters on the shore of Gold Lake and dive deep into trails. Raised as a Mormon, by age 12, Coz knew organized religion wasn’t for him. At that same age, he rode a Honda Trail 90 motorcycle for the first time, and it was the beginning of the rest of his life. His religion became exploration on two wheels in the outdoors. Coz talks about the three years he spent laying out and building Mills Peak trail in Graeagle, as well as working on all the trails in Lakes Basin for the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship, an organization he co-founded. Coz talks about the future of recreation in rural mountain communities and encourages listeners to escape the negativity of life, losing their minds in the track, being present in the moment. He also encourages those with financial means to contribute their wealth to trails and trail projects, benefiting the public in an age where connection to place is being lost to invasive technology.
6:30 – Podcast – The Stuff They Don’t Want You to Know
8:25 – Coast to Coast Radio with Art Bell
9:55 – Car Talk with Click and Clack
11:50 – Recording at Gold Lake near Graeagle, California with Marc Cosbey
18:20 – Living through two winters in Lakes Basin – running naked out into a snowstorm
22:20 – Tuning into nature through the sounds of nature
25:30 – Being raised Mormon, not digging it, and instead embracing nature and trails as religion
30:05 – Riding a motorcycle for the first time in his life at 12 years old – beginning of the rest of his life.
34:30 – Trails are a pathway to spirituality – tuning out the world and focusing on the moment in the track.
36:15 – Building Mills Peak trail and spending years in the Lakes Basin improving the trails.
39:50 – What’s it like to ride a trail you built after 3 years of your life working on it?
43:15 – Stew McMorrow – a volunteer who’s had his life changed by the importance of trails.
45:15 – Where does Coz see the future of trails and trail organizations?
49:45 – Volunteers who have desk jobs that come and volunteer – it can change their life.
56:57 – What is the biggest challenge and opportunity for rural mountain communities in securing their future?
1:00:31 – What have you learned about yourself, community and public lands in the wake of devastating wildfires over the last 5 years?
1:12:30 – What trail is Coz most proud of building over the years?
1:13:55 – Building the North Yuba Trail from Downieville to Goodyears Bar and the enjoyment of designing a trail before it’s built.
1:18:27 – What was the significance of building Mills Peak Trail in Graeagle?
1:21:33 – What advice does Coz have for folks starting their own trails organization?
1:29:48 – If your life were a tree, what kind of tree would it be?
1:32:47 – What’s an epic ride people have to do in the Lakes Basin? Mount Elwell.
1:38:25 – What does Mind the Track mean to you?
With a focus on simplicity, minimalism and human-powered adventure, Nick Russell embodies what it is to be a free-spirited, big line splitboarder while making a living at it. Russell has eschewed guidebooks for true adventure, hunting for big lines and pow based more on a feeling than a calculation. This organic approach to becoming an expert in the backcountry takes years and more than a couple sandbag missions, but in the process creates a deeper connection with the land and with his comrades. Russell’s most recent mission, captured in the Patagonia Films feature Papsura – Peak of Evil, along with his partner Jerry Mark and filmers Morgan Shields and Blake Gordon, claimed a first splitboard descent on an iconic line in the Indian Himalaya, a month-long mission that exceeded all expectations – a rare occurrence PowBot refers to as “The Jerry Effect”, related to the late Jerry Garcia. The boys also chat about the state of public lands in the midst of an onslaught against government agencies, with Russell encouraging listeners to call (202) 224 3121 and tell your local elected officials what you think about the drastic cuts against the Forest Service, National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management.
4:45 – Introducing Nick Russell – core lord big mountain splitboarder.
8:30 – Follow up to the butt vest discussion – Nick endorses the concept of the butt vest.
15:15 – A little more about who Nick Russell is. Redefining big mountain splitboard freeriding.
18:00 – Starting out in Utah’s Wasatch and the organic process of getting into splitboarding.
25:00 – Living simply, minimalism to reduce expense and maximize free time….filming their Alaska adventure, a film called “Free” on Vimeo.
28:40 – Finding pow based “on a feeling” and the resulting Fun scale – Type 1, Type 2, Type 3.
37:30 – All about the Papsura film mission, spending a month in India to ski one line.
41:20 – The added complexity of having a film crew while accomplishing such a huge mission.
46:30 – “The Jerry Effect” – Not just with the Grateful Dead, but also in Nick and Jerry’s Papsura mission – everything went perfectly and according to plan.
58:00 – Reviewing the last week of avalanche conditions in Lake Tahoe and how Nick navigates dangerous snowpack and staying out of avalanche terrain when it’s high risk.
1:07:30 – Becoming more conservative in the wake of a serious injury falling into a crevasse in Alaska on Mount Saint Elias.
1:12:45 – How does a line that’s so difficult to ever ski make the 50 Classic Ski Descents of North America?
1:17:10 – Coping with the loss of friends in the backcountry over the years and the draw of social media FOMO feeding into dangerous situations.
1:23:35 –Nick’s take with the state of public lands and current federal workforce firings and budget freezes. Call 202 224 3121 – tell your local elected representatives what you think about what’s happening to our public lands.
1:33:00 – The potential silver lining in the recent attacks against our government and public lands.
1:37:25 – What does Mind the Track mean to you?
1:39:30 – Trail Whisperer and PowBot recap the discussion with Nick Russell.
1:42:00 – Recapping the recent four-day trip to Frog Lake Huts.
1:48:40 – PowBot encounters the Zoa Engineering Backcountry Tow Rope on the West Shore.
1:59:40 – Shout out to HeavyDSparks and the Diesel Brothers for recovering the plane wreckage and the victim’s body from Mount Jefferson with their Blackhawk helicopter.
Mind the Track
In the third installment of the Cosbey Chronicles, the boys sit down with Coz at his caretaker’s quarters on the shore of Gold Lake and dive deep into trails. Raised as a Mormon, by age 12, Coz knew organized religion wasn’t for him. At that same age, he rode a Honda Trail 90 motorcycle for the first time, and it was the beginning of the rest of his life. His religion became exploration on two wheels in the outdoors. Coz talks about the three years he spent laying out and building Mills Peak trail in Graeagle, as well as working on all the trails in Lakes Basin for the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship, an organization he co-founded. Coz talks about the future of recreation in rural mountain communities and encourages listeners to escape the negativity of life, losing their minds in the track, being present in the moment. He also encourages those with financial means to contribute their wealth to trails and trail projects, benefiting the public in an age where connection to place is being lost to invasive technology.
6:30 – Podcast – The Stuff They Don’t Want You to Know
8:25 – Coast to Coast Radio with Art Bell
9:55 – Car Talk with Click and Clack
11:50 – Recording at Gold Lake near Graeagle, California with Marc Cosbey
18:20 – Living through two winters in Lakes Basin – running naked out into a snowstorm
22:20 – Tuning into nature through the sounds of nature
25:30 – Being raised Mormon, not digging it, and instead embracing nature and trails as religion
30:05 – Riding a motorcycle for the first time in his life at 12 years old – beginning of the rest of his life.
34:30 – Trails are a pathway to spirituality – tuning out the world and focusing on the moment in the track.
36:15 – Building Mills Peak trail and spending years in the Lakes Basin improving the trails.
39:50 – What’s it like to ride a trail you built after 3 years of your life working on it?
43:15 – Stew McMorrow – a volunteer who’s had his life changed by the importance of trails.
45:15 – Where does Coz see the future of trails and trail organizations?
49:45 – Volunteers who have desk jobs that come and volunteer – it can change their life.
56:57 – What is the biggest challenge and opportunity for rural mountain communities in securing their future?
1:00:31 – What have you learned about yourself, community and public lands in the wake of devastating wildfires over the last 5 years?
1:12:30 – What trail is Coz most proud of building over the years?
1:13:55 – Building the North Yuba Trail from Downieville to Goodyears Bar and the enjoyment of designing a trail before it’s built.
1:18:27 – What was the significance of building Mills Peak Trail in Graeagle?
1:21:33 – What advice does Coz have for folks starting their own trails organization?
1:29:48 – If your life were a tree, what kind of tree would it be?
1:32:47 – What’s an epic ride people have to do in the Lakes Basin? Mount Elwell.
1:38:25 – What does Mind the Track mean to you?
