Emiliano Silva had a vision for his film when he arrived in Jackson Hole for Kings & Queens of Corbet’s. The 24-year-old French skier and filmmaker had been invited as media to watch the competition, shoot some ride segments around the resort, and document his experience. In the end, he wanted the mini-documentary to culminate in him dropping into the infamous couloir himself.
So, on the morning of the competition, when Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (JHMR) staff told him there was no way he would be allowed to drop into Corbet’s that day, his face fell. I was standing next to him. We were just about to board the tram with all the competing athletes when Silva turned to me and shrugged woefully.
“I don’t know what I’ll do if I can’t ski the couloir,” he said. “The film doesn’t work if I can’t ski it.”
I felt for Silva. The couloir had been closed for the competition all week, and he’d been itching to hit it. But before I could offer any consolation, we were being ushered onto Jackson Hole’s Aerial Tram with all of the excited competitors. That was around 8 a.m. I lost track of Silva after that and forgot about his couloir dilemma entirely.
But that was not the last I’d hear of it.
Emiliano Silva: Vidéaste Ski, Poacher of Couloirs, Hopeful K&Q Competitor
Silva had already had an incredible week up to that point. He’d ridden fresh Teton powder for days on end, bought himself a cowboy hat, got to meet pros, and skied with bona fide members of the Jackson Hole Air Force — a gang of middle-aged shredders who, once upon a time, allegedly earned their bones by skiing forbidden terrain after hours on the resort.
It had been a wild ride. He’d gotten tons of incredible footage. He’d even gotten to roll dice on the floor of the Ariel Tram during a breakout gambling session. But none of it mattered to Silva if he couldn’t ski Corbet’s.
Later that night, as I was driving home to Colorado after covering the competition, my phone dinged with a text. It was a friend who worked closely with JHMR in a group thread with Silva and several others. I laughed out loud when I read the message.
“I got a call from patrol today when they saw Emiliano poaching Corbet’s from the WebCam,” it said. The message was quickly followed by a photo.
Silva replied, “I deserve my AirForce sticker.”
‘Banned ‘Til Next Season’
Jackson Hole Ski Patrol, from what I heard, was none too pleased to be fleeced by a Frenchman like that. Understandably, they can’t have people ducking ropes and hitting closed terrain all over the mountain, or chaos would ensue. There are rules, and they’re there for a reason. Silva was subsequently banned from Jackson Hole for the rest of the season.
However, before JHMR could pull his pass, he did get to ride the couloir again the following day, legally this time. You can watch his descent in the video he made about his Jackson Hole trip below. He called it “the most difficult run in the world” (which sparked some understandable controversy).
Breaking resort rules isn’t Silva’s modus operandi. If you watch his videos, he’s a respectful traveler. They’re tasteful mini-documentaries that highlight the culture and people who live in the places he skis. And Silva, a Columbia- and Majesty Skis-sponsored athlete, skis a lot. He posts new videos almost every 2 weeks.
“I use skiing to show cultural things. So I speak with locals, learn about the place and the culture, and get some idea where it is in the planet, what it was in the past,” he said. “The viewers are entertained by the skiing and the action. But you actually learn something from it.”
Silva has been making films and videos since he was 11. He didn’t go to school for it. Rather, at 18, after getting his high school degree, he decided to pursue his passion for ski filmmaking full-time on his own. Today, he has 122K followers on Instagram, and his YouTube videos get tens of thousands of views each. “It’s working so great,” he said. “I think it’s what I will do with my life and never let it go.”
Silva’s Hopeful Return
Silva said when he was coming to the U.S., he was a little nervous. After all, he’d seen the news reports about ICE raids, gun violence, riotous protests, and political discontent in America.
But the actual experience completely changed his perspective. He said it blew his expectations out of the water. The friendliness with which he was welcomed into the Jackson ski community and the hospitality he was shown made him fall in love with the place.
He might be banned from Jackson Hole until next season, but he said he hopes to come back. In fact, he would love to compete in the Kings & Queens competition if he were ever invited.
“It’s such a legendary thing,” he said. “I would love to just turn off the brain and drop in … and then, the rest of your life you have the fact that you dropped into Corbet’s and you made a trick in it.”
Check out Silva’s YouTube page to watch more of his videos.
