EPisode 5
EPisode 4
EPisode 3
Episode 2
EPisode 1
Season One
Season Two
The group of seasoned pros assembles at the edge of Uncompahgre Gorge, starting this first-ever, multi-stage competition with a climbing contest where they must choose two sport routes to lead on-sight.
EPISODE 1: DROPPING IN
See who has the top climbing sends before relocating to Red Mountain 3, where the altitude takes its toll as the athletes race up to the 12,859-foot summit. Then comes the fun part: the downhill.
EPISODE 2: Summit sprint
The athletes transition to a Big Mountain Descent, navigating high-speed lines down steep, cliff-lined terrain. Then the competition moves to the bike challenges, starting with an Air DH flow race.
EPISODE 3: Finding Flow
As leaders begin to emerge after the mountain bike race, a backcountry freestyle course offers a chance to catch up. But variable spring snow conditions throw wrenches when slopestyle skills meet tricky landings.
EPISODE 4: hard knocks
The judges review performances across the event’s trio of core alpine sports. With the final points tallied, the hosts crown the inaugural men’s and women’s Ultimate Mountain Athlete champions.
EPISODE 5: the ultimate prizE
EP. 2
EP. 3
EP. 4
EP. 1
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MEET THE ATHLETES
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WATCH THE SERIES
COMING JULY 13 EPisode 5
Welcome back to Ultimate Mountain Athlete for the start of Season 2. Our hosts welcome eight all-new athletes to Colorado where they begin an intense first day of the competition: technical rock climbing in Ouray's world-famous Uncompahgre Gorge. Who will take the lead? It will surprise you.
EPISODE 1: Climb On: The Competition Starts Vertical
We pick back up in Colorado's Uncompahgre Gorge for the final rock climbing sends. After the climbing competition, we transition to the technical and tempestuous Silverton Mountain for a ski mountaineering race. Can Sienna hold a top spot in the sport she knows best? Or will she fold under the pressure?
EPISODE 2: FROM HARD ROCK TO HARD SNOW
Jumping right back into peak action, we find out who won the ski mountaineering (skimo) climb, then transition our focus to the descent: 2,000 feet of descent for time with eight points-hungry athletes letting gravity pull them at warp speed. Last stop: the finishing corral. Who will have the grit to go all-gas, no brakes?
EPISODE 3: SKIMO: WHAT GOES UP, MUST COME DOWN
After a race of pure speed on a 2,000-foot ski descent of Silverton Mountain, it’s back to Red Mountain Alpine Lodge for a well-earned day of rest. Or not. Instead of a rest day, the athletes get a surprise course in avalanche rescue training. But that’s OK because the avy beacon search is rewarded with cold hard cash.
EPISODE 4: HARD WAY DOWN TO AVY BEACON HUNT
Picking back up at Red Mountain Alpine Lodge, we learn who came out on top in the cash-prize avalanche beacon search competition. After that, we head to Durango's Mesa Park for the first two of three parts in the mountain bike portion of the competition: the Flow and Downhill challenges.
EPISODE 5: CASH RULES AVY THING AROUND ME
COMING JULY 20 EPisode 8
COMING JULy 20 EPisode 7
COMING JULY 13 EPisode 6
Picking back up in Durango, Colorado’s high-desert Mesa Park, the athletes have completed their Flow and Downhill events. We find out our frontrunner as we jump into the Impossible Climb event: a diabolical uphill trail riddled with obstacles intended to buck even the most capable rider.
EPISODE 6: FLOW & SPEED: MOUNTAIN BIKING BEGINS
We pick back up on the Impossible Climb portion of the mountain bike competition and learn the final results before heading back to Silverton Mountain for the final challenge of the season: a freeski competition. Our eight athletes mix style and skill as they break out their best bag of tricks on this custom-built freestyle course.
EPISODE 7: THE END OF MTB, THE START OF FREESKI
The final freestyle run is the last chance for the athletes to push for the UMA podium. A fall here can be devastating. With the last athlete through the finishing arch, we head back to the lodge for the judges’ roundtable. The only thing left to do is crown the Season 2 winners of the Ultimate Mountain Athlete.
EPISODE 8: AND THE WINNER IS…
An unprecedented skiing-climbing-biking competition
To be a great mountain athlete, you need to become a master of your sport. To be the Ultimate Mountain Athlete, you need to master the mountain in every sport and season. For Season 2, Ultimate Mountain Athlete returns to Colorado to crown a champion in one of America’s finest all-season outdoor playgrounds.
Parkin Costain
You could say Parkin has been training for this competition since he was two years old. He still skis with the fearlessness of a mountain town grom and the natural ease of someone who’s spent their life on the snow. A pro freeride skier with Teton Gravity Research, he’s no stranger to competition, winning the 2020 Kings & Queens of Corbet’s with a perfect double backflip. If he goes half as big on the bike or the rock, look out.
Thorn Merrill
Carter Krasny
Celeste Pomerantz
Ana Eyssimont
McRae Williams
Sienna Peterson
Kelsey Wittels
Meet the competitors vying for the title of Ultimate Mountain Athlete, along with the hosts and judges of the competition.
The Hosts
The Judges
25 BIG SKY, Montana
"When I was a young kid, my mom used to tell me this dream was not likely to work out. So you have to put in as much effort as possible to make it a reality."
Most of the athletes in Season Two have competition experience, but none have a resume quite like McRae, who represented Team USA at the 2018 Winter Olympics as a freestyle skier. And while he may have reached the biggest stage in skiing, don’t call him a single-sport specialist. The Park City local prides himself on his versatility as a climber and mountain biker, making him a well-rounded threat in the competition.
36 SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
"I watched the Olympics from my couch and get that fire and feel that feeling in me. I wouldn't be too upset taking the title and getting that winning feeling one more time."
Whatever he’s doing—whether skiing waist-deep powder, sending complex climbing routes, or speeding down technical trails on the bike—Thorn always brings a sense of fun and creativity along for the ride. That doesn’t just make him the life of the party; it helps him thrive in every discipline. Off the mountain, Thorn is an environmental scientist. Maybe a serious understanding of the alpine provides an edge?
31 SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
"My dad gave me good advice: You can have big goals but you don't need to be there now. If you point yourself in the right direction and take small steps, you can achieve more than you think."
Carter’s the only bike-first athlete on the men’s side, and while that bold riding style—defined by big gaps and daring lines—should worry his competitors, his skiing’s nothing to shake a pole at, either. Carter spends Whistler winters dropping huge cliffs and spine lines worthy of any freeride competition, displaying the same fearlessness as he does on the bike. Our guess is heights won’t scare him too much as he takes to the rock to round it all out.
27 WHISTLER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CAnada
"My love for biking and my love for skiing have kind of hurt each other, but they also make me better at both."
Speed, style, and guts won’t be a problem for Celeste. She’s a former racer turned big-mountain athlete in both skiing and mountain biking, proving that she knows when to go for speed and when to stomp it. Hailing from Squamish, British Columbia, Celeste has a deep love for all three sports in the competition—even the uphill challenges, she says. That combination of drive and experience makes her a unique threat.
31 SQUAMISH, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA
"My parents signed me up for mountain biking when I was a kid, it was cheaper than daycare. By the end of the summer I was obsessed."
Plenty of people are comfortable doing backflips on the trampoline, where Ana began her sports career as a gymnast. Hardly anyone hucks backflips in Corbet’s Couloir, but that’s how you become the Queen of Corbet’s on your first attempt. Whether this Utah local is dropping cliffs and slashing powder in Little Cottonwood Canyon or scaling red-rock towers in the desert, she brings a fun, fearless style to everything she does.
30 SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
"My ski experience is maybe a little scarier than what normal people enjoy."
The youngest athlete in the competition should not be underrated. This 19-year-old Salt Lake native has a lot of experience under her belt (or, more appropriately, her climbing harness). Whether on the mountain, in the desert, or on the water, she lives for unforgettable experiences in wild places. And if it sounds like she’s just up for some freewheeling outdoor fun, think again. Sienna has competed in international events for the US Ski Mountaineering team, so she knows how to turn up the heat when needed.
19 SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
"I have a mantra. Stand in high places and manifest destiny. I think about that a lot—the community I'm surrounded with, the people I put myself around, the type of lifestyle I'm living."
It’s hard not to become a well-rounded mountain athlete when you grow up in Lake Tahoe, but Kelsey gives a whole new meaning to well-rounded. She’s already proven herself as a winner in both skiing and bouldering competitions, including the Red Bull Raid, an uphill skinning/downhill freeride event. Kelsey loves to go big and isn’t afraid to fall, even while sport climbing, which, in her words, is just “bouldering but easier.” That confidence is sure to make an appearance in Colorado.
33 LAKE TAHOE, CA
"I compete because I love competition and winning is an awesome side effect. But at the end of the day I want to be in the mountains and outside the rest of my life."
Our resident ski expert is Outside’s own Sierra Shafer, editorial director of SKI magazine. Sierra is an expert of all things snow, and with her experience working with the editorial teams at Climbing magazine and Pinkbike, there’s no doubt she knows what to look for in a true mountain athlete.
Sierra Shafer
This Mountain Bike Hall of Famer and Godfather of Freeriding understands that sometimes chasing greatness on the trail means following the trail over cliffs. With bonus chops as a former pro snowboarder, Brett has an eye for bold style in all mountain sports, making him a perfect judge.
Brett Tippie
As a year-round climbing guide in the San Juan Mountains, Dawn is a judge that’s also playing host. She knows her home range like few others, and as a guide for clients of all ages and ability levels, she knows an expert when she sees one. Anyone who can impress Dawn on her own rock could earn major bonus points.
Dawn Glanc
The Atheletes
The HOSTS
You might recognize Craig’s voice before anything else—this legendary Canadian snowboarder is frequently on call for major events like the Winter Olympics. When he’s not behind the mic, he’s in front of the camera, either hosting shows for Canadian television or filming backcountry backflips and creative street segments. Craig’s a famously laid-back guy, but he knows what competition’s all about.
Craig McMorris
The JUDGES
You couldn’t ask for a better guide for this mountain journey. As a pro skier, Amie knows what it means to chase big mountain turns year round, appearing in films for TGR, Warren Miller, and more. As a media personality, she’s hosted events and competitions around the world, and when she’s not working in the world of snow, she’s working to protect it as an environmental advocate.
Amie Engerbretson
Season 1’s female champion made a big splash in her debut season on the Freeride World Tour, with podium finishes that earned her a Vice World Champion title. With her adventuresome spirit and infectious enthusiasm, there’s no doubt she’ll be as successful as a judge as she is as an athlete.
Molly Armanino
This ski pro took the crown in the men’s division in Season 1. Nick brought a unique blend of skill and determination to the competition, displaying a cross-discipline versatility earned on award-winning performances and pioneering expeditions alike. That experience gives him exceptional qualifications as a judge.
Nick McNutt
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In the San Juan Mountains, male and female athletes face off across three sports—climbing, mountain biking, and skiing—earning points for skill, style, and endurance. The top male and female athletes will each walk away with the title of Ultimate Mountain Athlete and a $20,000 cash prize.
Vertical Sprint: This uphill race contains both skin track and bootpack sections, and is judged on time only. Big Mountain Descent: Exactly what it sounds like—judged on execution, flow, and creativity. Freeride: Athletes show off their style on custom freeride features. Points are awarded for execution, flow, trick difficulty and variety, and creativity.
Ski
The ski competition takes place on the rugged upper terrain of Silverton Mountain Resort. Athletes compete in three events, focusing on uphill efficiency, downhill execution, and style.
Bike
On the world-class mountain bike trails of Durango, athletes compete in three events, testing downhill speed, style, and endurance.
Climb
Athletes scale the dramatic canyon walls of Uncompahgre Gorge, just across from the legendary Ouray Ice Park. Each athlete lead climbs three sport routes rated between 5.9 and 5.12b in difficulty. They’re scored on a number of criteria, including:
Freeride: Athletes show off their style on custom freeride features. Points are awarded for execution, flow, trick difficulty and variety, and creativity.
Learn More
Vertical Sprint: This uphill race contains both skin track and bootpack sections, and is judged on time only.
Big Mountain Descent: Exactly what it sounds like—judged on execution, flow, and creativity.
Climb: Ascending a highly technical trail, athletes compete on distance (time is a tiebreaker).
Downhill: A straight-up speed race as riders bomb down expert trails.
Style and risk: Judges award points for more ambitious climbing.
Route difficulty: Athletes benefit from climbing harder routes.
Air Downhill: At Mesa Park, one of the biggest bike parks in the country, riders score points for execution and style.
Time: Athletes are rewarded for speed, and whether or not they finish the route.
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