POWDER INTERVIEW: Checking in with Mike Hattrup

My first chance to meet industry legend Mike Hattrup and what does he do? He jets off to Europe. Geez. I didn’t think my story pitch was that bad.

Turns out it wasn’t (fortunately he has nothing against mud wrestling with chickens). He was just heading to the Alps for his usual spring stint as a ski guide, and to test next year’s line of telemark skis for K2.

Hattrup has one of the more diverse resumes in skiing. An upstart mogul specialist on the U.S. freestyle team in the mid '80s, his life changed dramatically with the 1988 release of Greg Stump's landmark Euro-extreme flick "The Blizzard of Oz." Along with co-stars Scot Schmidt and Glen Plake, Hattrup forever became a cultural fixture in the hallowed halls of ski history.

Barely out of puffy Day-Glo pants, Hattrup immersed himself in a burgeoning tributary of skiing known as telemark. (Perhaps you’ve heard of it.) Hattrup not only rode the trend as it thrust into the mainstream, he helped shape it by managing K2’s line of telemark and alpine touring skis, a job he continues to this day.

Along the way Hattrup also became an AMGA-certified ski mountaineering guide. Today he leads clients all over Europe and North America for Martin Volken’s Seattle-based Pro Guiding Service. Hattrup was kind enough to answer questions via email in between trips and while snacking on German pastries at his wife's parents' house in Munich.

Do you ever get tired of talking about "Blizzard of Oz"? (I hope not because...)

MH: Don’t get tired of talking about it—only explaining why I was wearing neon clothes and rear entry boots. Actually, it’s surprising how well “Blizzard” has held up. It’s certainly turning out to be a pivotal movie as far as ski flicks go.

Any chance that you, Plake, Schmidt, and Stump may do some kind of reunion movie? Do you still keep in touch with Schmidt and Stump?

MH: This idea gets batted around every few years, but I’m not sure anyone really wants to see a movie with a bunch of 40-somethings. We actually got together for a heli-trip in Revelstoke a few years ago, which was fun. But it’d be near impossible to find the time to do an entire film. A remake is probably a better as an idea than reality.

I talk to Stumpy every now and then, and see Plake at various K2 or ski industry events. I see Schmidt the least, though we usually catch up at Vegas during the ski show.

POWDER: What's on your hit list in Europe this year?

MH: I’ll be over here for 2 months, starting with a week in Verbier for K2 testing skis and meeting with the European distributors. Then I was scheduled to do some touring in the Verbier/Chamonix valleys and ski Mont Blanc with Doug Coombs and Gabe Rogel, but avalanche hazard was through the roof for the week we had open, so we cancelled. I’ll guide a trip for Martin in Norway, which will be our first one up there. Fjord hopping with a boat. Should be cool. Then guide a trip in Alagna, Italy, which uses lifts to access day tours with a focus on long descents.

Do you guide year-round, or just in the spring?

MH: Mainly just in the spring. I used to guide for RMI (Rainier Mountaineering Inc.) on Rainier all summer, but I’m too busy with K2 to continue that. Besides, I got tired of walking down a perfectly good ski hill.

What are your personal goals with guiding in the next five years (certifications, locations, etc.)?

MH: I’m mostly interested in ski guiding, and don’t want all my time in the mountains to be guiding, so I won’t pursue the full UIAGM certification. There’s no way I’d have time with my job at K2 anyway. Right now it’s a nice balance. As for locations, I’m always up for something new. Psyched to be going to Norway this year, and have wanted to guide a trip in Morocco for years. I think that area’s settled down now, so that may happen soon. Skied in Turkey before 9/11, and would love to guide a trip back there as well. Russia also interests me.

Does Martin assign clients/routes to you, or are you hired by those who know you by reputation?

MH: I mainly work for Martin. If someone wants to hire me for a trip, I send them through Pro Guiding Service. Running a guide service takes a lot of time and energy, and again, it would be impossible to do that and still manage the telemark and alpine touring lines for K2.