photo – TetonAT.com

TGIF friends, those of us in the Northern Hemisphere are 1 week closer to ski season! In celebration of Friday I compiled a list, in no particular order, of some of my favorite Fictional Ski Movie Heroes of All-Time, enjoy.

Johnny Kapahala – Johnny Tsunami

I’ll probably get some heat for this one, but for those of us born in the 90s who watched the Disney Channel (i.e. myself), Johnny Tsunami was somewhat of an icon. A bonafide surf stud from Hawaii, Johnny Kapahala is forced to move to Vermont when his dad gets a new job. In his new town the skiers go to private school and the snowboarders are public school kids. Although Johnny goes to the private school his background as a surfer pushes him down the road of the knuckle dragger. The movie goes on with the skiers battling the snowboarders with a heart warming reconciliation at the end. By the way although the movie is set in Vermont, it was filmed at Brighton in Utah which asks the question, why not just set the movie in Utah? Last time I checked Utah and Vermont looked pretty different. 

Johnny and his boys shreddin’ “the fattest runs on the hill.”

Harkin Banks – Hot Dog…The Movie

Harkin Banks is quite simply, the man. He’s the raddest skier on the mountain, lures Shannon Tweed and Tracy Smyth to bed and puts the despicable European ski villain in his place. Harkin hails from Idaho and is dedicated to proving his worth at the freestyle skiing competition at none other than Squaw Valley. Harkin joins the fun loving Rat Pack lead by Dan O’Callahan and enters into a war with Austrian Ski Champion Rudy Garmisch. Their feud is settled in the only real way it could be…the Chinese Downhill.

Lane Meyer – Better Off Dead

I’ll leave my dislike for John Cusack out of this. Better Off Dead is a cult classic, after his girlfriend Beth  dumps him for the captain of the high school ski team, Roy Stalin, Lane Meyer decides that the only solution to his misery is suicide. Turns out he’s not very good at that and after a failed suicide attempt he must prove himself by skiing the infamous K-12 and beating his rival Roy. The majority of the ski scenes were filmed at Alta, with a little bit of Snowbird in there as well.

Here’s Lane learning how to ski, “All you have to do is go that way, really fast. If something gets in your way, turn.”

Rick Rambis – Out Cold 

Out Cold is just awesome. I don’t care what Rotten Tomatoes says, I love this movie. With Zach Galifiniakas in one of his funnier roles (my opinion) and Jason London sticking it to Lee Majors, what’s not to like? Rick, whose dream is for a lift to be built to access the tallest peak of Bull Mountain, Hangman’s Peak, battles John Majors, a slick Colorado businessman, who wants to turn Bull Mountain into “Snownook” where yuppies abound and you can always find a good espresso. In the end, Rick and his buddies triumph and their dream lift is built.

Here’s Rick winning King of the Mountain:

James Bond – The Spy Who Loved Me

Now, The Spy Who Loved Me isn’t necessarily a ski movie but it sure does have a badass ski chase scene. In the scene Roger Moore evades some Russian goons in Austria with some nice moves, he even has a ski pole that kills! He ends the awesome chase by casually base-skiing off a huge cliff. 

Jerry Cramer – Ski Patrol

Jerry Cramer is the cool guy on the ski patrol. Along with the rest of the patrol, Iceman, Eddie, Stanley and Tiana, they try to thwart the efforts of Sam Maris who, a greasy land developer.

Jerry and the gang stickin’ it to the man, “FREE FOR ALL!”

TJ Burke – Aspen Extreme

TJ Burke (Or should I say Doug Coombs) and his buddy Dexter move to Aspen from Michigan to fulfill their skiing dreams. They get jobs as ski school instructors and train for the upcoming Powder 8 competition. Like our other heroes, TJ strikes up relationships with multiple hotties, while Dexter contemplates entering the drug trade to make some greenbacks. Unfortunately Dexter dies in a training accident towards the end of film, and TJ must avenge him at the ski competition.

Dave Marshak – Ski School

As you were so quick to point out my lapse in judgement, Dave Marshak (Dean Cameron) from the movie Ski School (and Summer School), the movie with quite possibly the greatest poster of all time.

Marshak leads the party hard group of Section 8 against Reid Jansenns in order to save their jobs and restore justice to the ski world. Shot at Mount Hood and Whistler, this film is “the hottest action ever to hit the slopes.”

Additions and Comments are Welcome, 

HAPPY FRIDAY!