Tailer Gray Spinney

Tell us about your background:
grew up skateboarding and surfing on the east coast. Thanks to my bestfriends dad, I was able to learn how to snowboard at age 15. It wasn’t until I moved to Lake Tahoe at 20 yrs. old, that I dove deep into the snowboarding culture. It filled my veins with passion and drive that I carried into the backcountry with split boarding ultimately landing me in the ‘ski guide’ world. I guide mostly throughout the Eastern Sierra and the southern Cascades and have been working on my AMGA Ski Guide certification which has put me in wild landscapes like Alaska and Antarctica. Immersing myself in these remote landscapes continues to inspire me to share these experiences with others where I have the space to teach them about the peoples that have cared for the lands we are on long before us and how we can leave them better than we found them.

What was your craziest adventure or experience so far:
I feel so lucky to have been to many wild and remote locations. To immerse myself in the beauty, magic, and powerful energy that nature radiates. Among it all, a couple years ago, myself and a couple of my closest friends road our bikes about 200 miles to a remote mountain range in Norther California where we split boarded in to make basecamp and find good snow. What made it the craziest trip were the conditions, the bike portion was filled with a long section of tragic burn scar from the Dixie wildfire, endless logging trucks, rain, snow and strong crosswinds. The approach into the range, was terrible conditions, low snowpack resulting in challenging navigation, bush whacking, and so many river and stream crossings. Getting to camp proved that all of the terrain I dreamed of riding was closed due to high avy conditions. However, we did find rewarding knee deep powder on a north facing peak that made it all worth it! We made a short film, The Spring Branch Road, that highlighted the direct impact of climate change that encompassed the entire experience.

Bucket list / Dream trip:
This is a hard question, I have so many dreams. My ultimate dream is to sail to an island in the South Atlantic Ocean and do an expedition traversing the island, exploring the landscape while painting turns and hopefully see a giant King penguin colony.

Why become a Haglöfs Ambassador:
The quality of the gear and the mission of sustainability is something that aligns with me and my life goals and is a company I can confidently represent.

What´s your favorite Haglöfs gear:
I love the L.I.M. and Vassi series.

Quote you live by:
Explore more and show respect to the peoples who have cared for this land for time imemorable.