Adam Umarov was born and raised in Chechnya. He moved to the US when he was 8 years old. The climate in Chechnya is wonderful, there's ample natural beauty, and with an established infrastructure skiers the world over would line up to take on the country's slopes.  Violence, among other things, stood in the way of this ideal winter wonderland. Until now! Word has it that construction on a modern ski resort named “Veduchi” began in Chechnya in 2017.

When I first met Adam, he never thought skiing would be an activity he'd ever try. The idea seemed out of his reach. Being raised in the Caribbean, I empathized. But I’ve been skiing almost 10 years, and would not let a year go by without at least one weekend on the mountain. Nothing compares to the meditative equanimity one feels when locked-in, locked-down, but not locked-up for speeding.

I took it upon myself to introduce Adam to Sensei Mogul. I didn’t want to scare him, so I whet his appetite with Spring Ski. I’m of the "Go Hard or Go Home" mindset and as such there was only one option: “Beast of the East" AKA Killington Ski Resort.

Much to no one's surprise, Adam caught on quickly. Congrats Bro!