Mind the Track

Ski Pow. Eat Ramen. Smile More. It was Kyle Smaine’s mantra. Jenna Dramise first met Kyle when she picked him up hitchhiking in New Zealand in 2010. While it wasn’t love at first sight, Jenna was drawn in by Kyle’s irresistibly positive energy and love for life. They started dating in their early twenties while competing together on the professional world circuit, Jenna as a snowboarder and Kyle as a skier. They moved in together, living in South Lake Tahoe with Kyle’s dad and brother. In 2014, Kyle and his dad taught Jenna to mountain bike, and although she struggled at first, she found her new favorite sport thanks to Kyle. Kyle also taught Jenna the ways of backcountry skiing and how to safely navigate terrain. But only two months after Jenna and Kyle were married, while skiing Japan in January 2023, Kyle was killed in an avalanche while transitioning in a seemingly safe place. Kyle’s positive energy and kindness has touched so many lives, and to celebrate his life, Jenna and Kyle’s father started The Smaine Fund, supporting young athletes in their quest to become professionals.3:30 – Introducing Jenna Dramise recording in the dirty south of South Lake Tahoe.5:50 – Shred the Gnerd gets philosophical about Mind the Track.9:45 – Janky dangerous side hits on the Tahoe Rim Trail.13:00 – Riding Scott’s Lake Loop in South Lake Tahoe.14:40 – How many times have you ridden Corral Trail?16:15 – Training for the Leadville 100.18:10 – Bikepacking the Toiyabe Crest Trail in Central Nevada.20:20 – Growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada and getting into snowboarding at Lee Canyon.22:45 – Moving to Truckee, joining Northstar snowboard team and competing in half pipe.25:00 – Half pipe snowboard tricks – flips, spins and the naming conventions.29:15 – Transitioning away from competition to becoming an orthopedic physician’s assistant.31:00 – Becoming an endurance athlete after Kyle Smaine teaches Jenna to mountain bike.33:50 – Recapping the 170-mile Plumas County fire lookout ride with Trail Whisperer and Jenna.39:30 – Racing the Mount Hough Enduro and getting second place.41:00 – Crashing and getting cut to bone at Rahlve’s Banzai Tour at Palisades Tahoe.47:40 – Learning to snowmobile and sled ski.50:54 – Meeting Kyle Smaine while hitchhiking in New Zealand.55:00 – The difference between halfpipe snowboarding and mountain biking.56:30 – From competitive snowboarder to backcountry splitboard filming trips.57:45 – Kyle’s love for skiing in Japan, Japanese culture and skiing fun pow.1:03:45 – The Japan avalanche that took the life of Kyle Smaine.1:15:20 – How has Jenna’s relationship with the backcountry changed since the accident?1:17:35 – Commemorating Kyle’s life by starting The Smaine Fund.1:34:00 – What is the future path for The Smaine Fund?1:37:30 – Using stolen plastic hand baskets to carry bike and ski gear.1:39:20 – Kyle visited while on our ride in the form of a huge bald eagle.1:41:00 – What does Mind the Track mean to you?

It’s peak dust season in Lake Tahoe and the trails are blown out with no precipitation in sight. Pow Bot is using his mountain bike as a drying rack for his wetsuit while Trail Whisperer goes to a Reno Aces game and cringes when he hears Sweet Caroline. The boys talk about new trails like Pines to Mines and Beckwourth Peak, pay respects to the life of Guy Eriksen, name some favorite pre-shred soundtracks, DOPE or DERP blasting that music in the parking lot while putting your ski boots on and DOPE or DERP quitting your job when ski or surf conditions are firing. Pow Bot introduces the concept of “Friction Country” – places that retain their unspoiled character because they are hard to get to and comment on the latest South Park episode about kids terrorizing neighborhoods on e-bikes. And a friendly reminder from Start Haus to get your ski gear tuned now before El Niño arrives! 3:20 – Mind the Track is a registered trademark!6:30 – Gordo has been mentoring PowBot in his Lieutenant Tangle wing foiling quest15:50 – Trail Whisperer focused on trail projects, but Floriston Fire impacts Verdi Ridge trail19:45 – Beckwourth Peak Trail in Portola is complete!22:50 – PowBot’s road trip to Mendocino28:00 – The concept of “Friction Country” – places that are hard to get to off the beaten path34:35 – More El Niño talk and flooding in the southwest37:25 – TW goes to a Reno Aces game and was very impressed, except for Sweet Caroline41:25 – ON A MUSICAL NOTE - PB shouts out Billy Strings for performing with Pearl Jam45:00 – DOPE or DERP – Pre-shred soundtracks – Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, Tool, Jane’s Addiction47:00 – DOPE or DERP – Blasting music in the parking lot before going skiing50:44 – An ode to the life of Guy Eriksen.56:30 – CORE LORD CALL-IN – Carter talking about doggy bags and limiting dog names1:02:20 – CORE LORD CALL-IN – Jed getting some brown pow and kudos to trail builders1:05:50 – Riding the new Pines to Mines Trail on Donner Summit1:08:10 – Mount Bohemia in Michigan tries to save skiing with a non-lift terrain expansion1:13:55 – DOPE or DERP – Quitting your job to ski pow in a big year1:19:55 – “Get so pitted” – channeling Michael Peasley - Making noises while surfing1:22:00 – Paying people to crowd out the surf lineup so you get more waves1:24:50 – The new South Park episode about e-bikes and kids terrorizing neighborhoods1:31:40 – Having Jenna Dramise on the show to talk about Kyle Smaine and The Smaine Fund1:32:55 – DOPE or DERP from the Start Haus – Get your skis and boots tuned now!

As meteorological Fall and the “ber” months arrive, the boys play some bike polo and continue talking about El Niño, with the hopes of a wild and wet winter. Meanwhile, in the absence of any rain, the Hawk Fire in Reno scorches 15,000 acres on Peavine Mountain, burning trails and 40+ homes. A woman swimming in Lake Tahoe is attacked by a river otter, a group of hikers become Dumb Ass Rescued Persons after asking AI to plan their ill-fated ascent of Mount Shasta and Vail Resorts faces a third anti-trust lawsuit alleging ski pass price fixing. Big Sally calls in with an Edward Abbey quote, Trail Whisperer rants about being a part-time crusader and the boys chew on a few DOPE or DERPs including taking home restaurant leftovers, fasting, paying to park and ride mountain bikes and Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline. 3:00 – The boys play bike polo at The Backcountry in Truckee9:00 – The beginning of meteorological Fall has arrived on Sept 111:20 – Wet weather is coming to Tahoe? More super El Nino hype14:15 – Devastating flash flooding in Grand Canyon, Zion National Park and in Nepal17:45 – Preparing for a 3-day bikepacking adventure with big mountain bike rides21:30 – The Hawk Fire in Reno burns a lot of Peavine Mountain and 40+ homes lost30:20 – A woman was attacked by a river otter while swimming in Lake Tahoe33:35 – Dumb Ass Rescued Persons on Mount Shasta after asking AI how to hike the peak41:45 – Vail Resorts is now facing a third anti-trust lawsuit, brought by a shareholder45:50 – Big Sally calls in with an Edward Abbey quote putting life into perspective52:00 – Lee from Marin County calling to say The Crooked Stuff is DOPE.55:00 – DOPE or DERP – Not eating all your dinner at the restaurant and taking home leftovers1:03:00 – DOPE or DERP – Fasting1:11:30 – DOPE or DERP – Paying money to park then ride mountain bike trails1:18:30 – DOPE or DERP – listening to podcasts in 1.5x or 2.0x speed1:19:35 – DOPE or DERP – Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline1:22:00 – Ski Bowl Songs – Top 40 songs listened to over and over again at Tom’s childhood ski hill1:25:45 – ON A MUSICAL NOTE - talk about Def Leppard, The Osees, KEXP and All Them Witches1:30:00 – Mount Rose Meadows – solving the ongoing winter parking issues along the highway1:35:45 – Going on a road trip and joining Harvest Host – service for 10,000 places to boondock

Wildfires, triple digit temperatures and dusty, blown out trails – it must be the middle of August in Tahoe. Episode 94 features a grab bag of topics including the relationship between dogs and bears, magicians and the ice cream man, new Tahoe trails, Heavenly opening its gondola to mountain bikes, Palisades Tahoe offering a midweek pass for $699 while Alterra gets sued for price fixing, poisoned trees in Incline Village and the development of the largest El Niño in recorded history. Also, the 888 COR LORD hotline blows up with voicemails, Trail Whisperer gives his initial impressions on his new Aventon Current EXP, issues a call to action in Nevada to stop Greenlink North and the boys shout out Kyle and Jessica Aster for donating $250,000 to TAMBA for finishing Meeks Ridge Trail. Throw in a couple DOPE or DERPs and On a Musical Notes, this is a variety-packed episode.3:00 – Buy a Mind the Track hat at Start Haus in Truckee!4:10 – Downieville Classic Recap – Tobin Ortenblad and Marco Osborne winners!6:50 – Cosbey witnesses carnage on Baby Heads8:30 – Big fires in Reno/Tahoe area – Bug Fire, Stallion Fire and Talbot Fire14:25 – Pow Bot’s two brothers visit from Michigan and ride Tahoe16:00 – Trail Whisperer gives his initial impressions on the new Aventon Current EXP20:00 – Core Lords Call In – Josh from Loyalton – Tahoe Donner, Glizzys and Bike Polo25:40 – Lauren – Picking up a new truck camper while listening to truck campers.26:40 – We have female listeners, Glizzy Gauntlet results and 7-Eleven is lame34:13 – Jon calls in and praises Gordo as well as prioritizing play over work41:17 – Eric calls in and shares a funny ice cream man story46:36 – Magicians are like the ice cream man – people don’t like either49:10 – Stop the Greenlink North power line from running along Highway 50 in Nevada53:00 – Does your dog make you safer in bear country?58:15 – Someone is poisoning and killing dozens of trees in Incline Village1:04:00 – Huge shout out to Kyle and Jessica Aster – THANK YOU for donating $250k to TAMBA1:06:50 – The new Panorama Trail at Heavenly opens, as well as the gondola opening to MTBs1:11:20 – Palisades Tahoe bringing back midweek season pass for $6991:12:30 – Class action lawsuit against Vail, Alterra, Powder Corp and Boyne for price fixing1:15:05 – The Super El Nino of 2026-27 seems to be a certainty at this point1:22:15 – DOPE OR DERP – Cell phone mounts on bike handlebars1:28:40 – DOPE OR DERP – Hand guards on a mountain bike1:35:50 – ON A MUSICAL NOTE – Organically Good Trio1:39:05 – ON A MUSICAL NOTE – Genesis Owusu1:40:30 – ON A MUSICAL NOTE – The Crooked Stuff1:49:20 – Sept 11-13 – Mount Hough Enduro and Grinduro. Be there!1:51:07 – The Crooked Stuff – Waking Alive

Regardless of whether you have a van, a pop-up camper, an RV, a rock crawler or just a basic old pickup truck, the vehicles we own help facilitate the adventures we want to have. In Episode 93, we camp at White Rock Lake with Harry Wagner of @harrysituations and KP Pawley of @zerodeclination and talk all about adventure vehicles and what set-ups are best suited for different purposes. Both Harry and KP have vast experience traveling around the globe and living in different rigs, gaining unique insights on what works – and more importantly – what doesn’t work. They’ve built, driven and seen nearly everything and share with us their experience. Topics include roof top tents, if you need a winch, diesel versus gas, traction boards, the best tires and the most common modifications that make people’s vehicles worse, not better. We also discuss the astronomical cost of new vehicles and some of the best used vehicle values that make for great adventure builds on a budget. Whether you have a six-figure build or just an old beater and a tent on the ground, you can learn a lot in this episode. 2:30 – Recording from White Rock Lake near Mount Lola5:00 – The legend of the Warren Lake trail8:00 – All About Adventure Rigs with KP Pawley and Harry Wagner16:02 – Old and new Toyota Trucks – slow and expensive but reliable19:00 – How Harry and KP know each other21:05 – Universal hatred for UTVs and side by sides24:08 – The difference between people who want a van vs a pickup with a camper26:20 – Pow Bot’s Ford Bronco he grafted a fiberglass camper onto29:25 – How important is the pass-thru from cab to camper?30:20 – A brief background on Harry Wagner’s 4x4 adventure career31:40 – A brief background on KP Pawley, living full-time in his camper33:20 – Taking 3 years to drive the Pan American Highway in 201634:50 – What was your biggest breakdown on the Pan American Highway trip?36:47 – Was there a piece of gear that saved your trip?39:00 – Have you ever been extorted by law enforcement?42:10 – Is a gray market import from a foreign country a good adventure vehicle? 44:50 – What was Harry’s favorite overlander/adventure vehicle he owned?46:40 – What is your most essential creature comfort in an adventure vehicle?49:40 – Roof top tents – Harry is not a fan. Why?54:00 – The rise of the six-figure adventure vehicle58:20 – Everything you do to your truck makes it worse1:01:20 – Why have Toyota Tacomas become so popular?1:02:10 – Harry is driving a 2015 Mercedes GL550 he bought for $10k1:05:40 – The astronomical cost of new vehicles1:08:30 – What are some used trucks that are reliable and affordable?1:13:35 – The shortsightedness of gas prices and old V8s versus new EVs and hybrids1:14:35 – Diesel vs gasoline – what’s more reliable?1:21:00 – Zero Declination – building a full-size truck camper that fits gear like a van.1:26:20 – What is it that pulls you away from the pavement?1:27:45 – Advice of what not to do, winches, traction boards and Hi-Lift jacks, best tires1:33:40 – The “power move” – one thing on your rig that makes other people jealous?1:35:45 – How important is a shower or a toilet?1:38:30 – You have $10,000 to go adventuring, what are you going to buy?1:40:40 – What does Mind the Track mean to you?