The Will Wesson Interview

Interview by Geoff McDonald & Evan Williams

Where are you living right now?  

Brightwood, OR

What are you up to over the summer?

Coaching skiing at Windells Camp

What were some of the highlights from this past season with TC?  

TC highlights for me were definitely our Euro Trip and Midwest trip. They’re complete opposites as far as types of skiing, but both very fun in their own ways. In Europe, we had the deepest snow I've ever skied and in the Midwest, I skied countless park laps on towropes late into the night. 

The Swiss Alps. (Shane McFalls photo)

No Andy? What's it like not having him around when you were filming?  

Things are slightly less smelly sometimes, but he's always the one who's down for anything so it's better having him around.

The famous yet notoriously smelly TC van.

Where did you travel this past winter?  

Because of the unusually bad winter in most of the lower 48, I got to visit many places I never thought I'd go to ski.  Some of the more unusual ones were Sweden, South Dakota and Arizona.  I also ended up visiting Denver at least once a month from October to March somehow.  

Tell more about your travels to Europe. You went there to film for Level 1, Traveling Circus, and Meatheads?

First, I went to Sweden with Level 1 in November. They were having an unusually warm early season and we ended up driving super far north above the Arctic Circle to find snow. Definitely a fun adventure to start off the season.

Just after Christmas, I went to Germany, Austria and Switzerland with Traveling Circus. Sooooo much snow. That pretty much sums it up.

And finally, in March I ended up going to Switzerland and France with Meathead Films. Even with the crazy amount of snow they'd gotten mid winter, it was melting fast and we went back into snow searching mode. Definitely more challenging when there isn't snow everywhere like midwinter, but it forced us to get creative and we made the most of it.

(Kyle Decker / Level 1 photo)

Will Scoping a 4 kink while filming for Level 1 this winter. (Kyle Decker / Level 1 photo)

How did your season go with Level 1?  Did you film what you wanted to? 

I filmed more than I ever have for Level 1 and I'm pretty pleased with the results. As always, there's more things I would have like to get done, but there's only so much time in the season. The warm winter in the US didn't help much at times, so there's a bunch more spots I want to film for next year!

How did the season go with Meathead Films?  

Winter didn't give us much to work with in the Northeast this year, but we found ourselves over in Switzerland for a pretty unique trip in March, which was really fun.

Gonna be a bumpy ride. (Shane McFalls / Meathead Films photo)

Best thing that happened to you this past season:

Most traveling ever!

Worst thing that happened:

Not sure, it was pretty awesome overall.

Best food you ate and where:

Europe: Käsespätzle in Austria 

USA:  Many many Safeway Chicken Artichoke Sandwiches all around America

How much do you ski terrain parks vs. hitting urban?  Which do you like better?

Probably about 50/50.  I like them both because when I get sick of one I go back to the other.

Do you ever hit urban for fun or just when filming for movies/edits?

I've definitely sessioned rail gardens in Utah for fun, and filming for movies is a challenge which is also fun.

Will showcases his rail game in Switzerland shooting for Meatheads this winter. (Shane McFalls photo)

Most essential item for you when hitting urban other than outerwear and ski/boots/poles:

Water

3 ski edits you like from this past season (without you in them):

Nipwitz - Russia from Flatlight Films on Vimeo.

Real Skifi Episode 6 from Janne Korpela on Vimeo.

Do you think coming from the East Coast has helped or hurt your skiing?

Definitely helped my rail skiing.

Who were the skiers that you admired most when you were in high school?

Dave Crichton

Eric Pollard

Mike Nick

(Shane McFalls / Meathead Films photo)

Weirdest person on the LINE team and why:

Andy, no explanation needed.

What's the most cost-effective dinner to buy at the grocery store if your ski bummin it?

Pasta or Ramen

Last movie you saw in the theater:

Bernie, it wasn't what I expected.

What are you doing this autumn?

IF3! Then skiing somewhere!

Check out Will in Level 1 Productions "Sunny" this fall

(Kyle Decker / Level 1 photo)