Randall Kisses The Sky

Photo Credit: “Backflipping Over” by Jake Ryan, www.jakeryancreations.com

Mt. Hood Meadows may be closed, but that won’t stop local athlete Jalen Randall from taking advantage of end-of-season powder.

While team sports across the country cancel their seasons, Jalen continues practicing under the guidelines of physical distancing, saying “I love the solo aspect of [snowboarding], it’s just you and Mama Hood”.

With a background in skateboarding, snowboarding’s concrete cousin, Jalen says he has friend Tony Carothers to thank for getting him involved in snowboarding so heavily.

In 2018 Jalen joined Mt. Hood Meadows Park Crew as an instructor, saying “I’ve been interested in snowboarding since I was a kid, but my family growing up didn’t have a lot of money to do a sport such as it… if I hadn’t had the opportunity to work there I probably wouldn’t be snowboarding”.

Jalen finds his motivation in the challenge itself, the exhilaration of each successful trick and repeating them countless times until the end of a sesion. “It’s really helped me for the better...with procrastinating, you really don’t have the time to do that when you are on the mountain every day.” Considering closures, Jalen has been doing what he can to continue practicing through the end of the season. Taking advantage of the last snows in early April, he was building his own jumps and snowboarding terrain to spend the day on the mountain.

Meadows suspended operations early on March 21st, and all uphill public access to their permit area was prohibited on March 25th, but they and snow sport enthusiasts are already looking forward to next season. Jalen plans to continue working on the park crew while developing his skills and exploring his creativity on new mountain slopes.

Photo Credit: “Backflipping Over” by Jake Ryan, www.jakeryancreations.com