Jacob Smith Photography
Tanner Smith
Belonging in Bend
The wind was blowing hard when we arrived at the base of Summit lift on Mt. Bachelor. The visibility had dropped to about 100 feet and I was mentally preparing myself for what was to come. Tanner Smith, who is apart of the lift maintenance crew on the mountain, loaded the maintenance chair onto the lift line and two chairs behind it, one for myself and one as a safety precaution.
Tanner and fellow crewmember, “Mr. Alex Ostrom”, as I was introduced, harnessed up and clipped into the maintenance chair. Two carabiners and a safety cord secured them and the lift started. We were off, up into the clouds, the higher and higher we traveled the less and less I could see. At some points I could barely see Tanner and Alex ahead of me. Every once in a while my chair would roll over the wheels of a lift tower, reminding me that we were still moving uphill. The wind and snow increased as we got towards the top. I had to pull my facemask all the way up and underneath my goggles to keep my face out of the wind and snow. I made sure not to have any skin exposed to the elements. I didn’t even bother taking my gloves off; instead I focused all of my concentration on which buttons I was pushing on my camera.
It was at this point that my mind started to reflect on what had got me to this point. On a closed lift, following these guys into what seemed like an empty cold abyss just for a couple of photos, I thought back to the adventurous couple of months I experienced with Tanner.
The car was packed and after a long day of classes, I set off east towards the Cascades with a story in mind. My target was Mt. Bachelor located roughly 22 miles west of Bend, in central Oregon. I wanted to capture a sense of community amongst the employees on and around the mountain.
I had no other plans but to stay in the Bachelor parking lot. I brought a stove, a sleeping bag, and leftover pasta from the night before for food. My plan was to meet and be-friend people who were staying in various campers in the parking lot to find a story within the community of Bachelor.
When I finally arrived at my destination, I saw a few trailers and vans parked for the night. At one trailer there was a blazing bonfire, casting a warm glow, I drove over to ask the guys standing around the fire where to park since I was planning on sleeping in the back of my Subaru.
The fire pit and two RV’s parked parallel to each other belonged to Tanner Smith and Daniel Maestas, both of whom welcomed me to join them without hesitation. Nothing about the two made me feel uncomfortable. Their laid back demeanor and their welcoming of a complete stranger into their personal space took me by surprise and we became acquainted with each other rather quickly. It didn’t take long to get into the topic of conversation about employment, since it was the middle of the workweek and the three of us were camping in a parking lot.
Tanner hangs out at home with his dog Taz before leaving on a trip.
Daniel talked about his seasonal job as a park ranger in the Sisters Wilderness. He lived out of his trailer the majority of the year and fully embraced the ski bum life.
Tanner told us that he was a member of the lift maintenance crew on Mt. Bachelor. His job at Bachelor immediately intrigued me. I asked him countless questions and wanted to know more. The thought of photographing Tanner at work on Bachelor slowly made its way into the subconscious of my mind.
The night carried on and we talked about work, life, skiing, and snowboarding. Meanwhile I had pulled out my camera and began snapping photos as the guys became more comfortable with a camera in their faces. Some time passed and guys told me about their plan to hike the cinder cone in the middle of the night to ride fresh tracks. They invited me to join them.
We left the parking lot around 11:30 p.m. and headed up the steep slope towards the summit of the cone. On our way up a snowcat passed by us grooming the run. I assume the driver was surprised to see us trudging upwards.
With wind and cold snow stinging our faces through our balaclavas, we reached the top around midnight. On our descent I photographed Tanner riding down the cone in knee deep, fresh powder.
A friendship was formed.
Roughly a week after meeting Tanner in the Bachelor parking lot, I received a text asking if I was interested in joining him and his friend, Zach Weinberg, on an attempt to climb and ski South Sister. I had always wanted to do a more serious alpine climb in the winter and the invitation was staring me in the face.
I said yes not knowing exactly what I was getting myself into. I had no alpine gear, other than snowshoes, but the weather was looking as if there was going to be a deep freeze the night before our attempt. This meant crampons and more serious gear than what I had.
The next day I talked to Dan Morrison, one of my professors at the University of Oregon School of Journalism, about my aspirations of going on this trip with Tanner. Dan jokingly made fun of my lack of experience and followed by offering me a pair of crampons and his ice axe, which he took to the base camp of Mt. Everest.
This was turning into the real deal. I was to meet Tanner and Zach at his house the night before to get everything ready. Thursday rolled around and I packed up my car and after class headed to Bend, OR. I arrived about 9 P.M. and was soon asleep on Tanner’s couch with my alarm set.
In the predawn darkness (1:30 A.M.) we packed Zach’s truck and turned onto Cascade Lakes Highway towards Mt. Bachelor. We picked up Tanner’s snowmobile, which we would load up and ride out to the trailhead.
The ride was bumpy and long, but we finally found the trailhead after what seemed like hours bobbing up and down over the rutted out trail. We loaded our packs, strapped on our crampons, turned our headlamps on, and headed up the hill. The first couple of steps were perfect, rock hard snow that we stayed on top of. But it was a mean trick of nature.
What soon followed was four and a half hours of grueling hiking that none of us were prepared for. The weather had turned and it was much warmer than we expected. Every step was a struggle. Every step Tanner and I sank down mid-shin in soft snow. The crampons did nothing but break through the snow and dig further.
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Carrying camera gear, extra layers, and skis on my back, I was not prepared in the slightest. Tanner was also struggling but Zach had the upper hand, he was rocking AT bindings and skins, so he was able to glide over the top of the snow without sinking. He had it easy.
Zach decided to charge ahead of us to try and make the summit of South Sister by sunrise, while Tanner and I were left to trudge on. Cursing at the snow every step, I knew I wasn’t prepared for this, but I kept going.
The higher we went the better the snow got. Little by little the snow firmed under our crampons and the last hour of the hike we were able to stay on top of the snow. By this time the sun was rising but we were a ways away from the base of South Sister. Somehow Tanner had cell reception so we were able to check in with Zach.
Tanner and I had taken off our packs and were snapping photos of one of the most beautiful sunrises I had seen in Oregon when we got a call from Zach. He was half way up South Sister and the conditions were concerning. The snow was covered with a sheet of ice and the wind blowing hard. He had resorted to taking off his skis and using his ice axe to make progress.
Zach made the call to turn around. It wasn’t worth it. The snow wasn’t what we thought it would be and as the sun rose the temperatures rose with it. It was turning out to be too sketchy for us to attempt a summit. Tanner and I respected his decision.
The descent only confirmed the wisdom of Zach’s decision. It was survival skiing at its finest. Every turn I was sliding over rock hard snow or rutted out slush.
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Experiencing this grueling and disappointing attempt with Tanner solidified a true friendship. He now knew what I was capable of and me him. We reached a level of comfort ability with each other that would prove crucial when I pursued the idea of taking photos of Tanner at work.
With the previous trip under my belt, I contacted Tanner about my idea of photographing him at work. He was stoked on the idea and we both contacted the necessarily personal we needed to in order to get permission.
We both got the go ahead and we set a date for the shoot. My persistence paid off. I knew I had possibly one shot at this and I knew I couldn’t mess it up.
On the drive over from Eugene, just past midnight on the day of the planned shoot, it started to snow and quickly escalated into blizzard like conditions. Tanner and I had specifically planned when I was to come around this storm cycle. We thought the harsher the conditions, the more ‘bad ass’ the photos would be.
I got to the parking lot before Tanner and I sat in my car checking off a mental checklist of items I had brought. Camera gear, check; ski pants and jacket, check; gloves, check; boots, check; helmet and goggles, check. I was ready, well as ready as I could have been.
Tanner finally arrived and with a “YEEEWWW!” jumped out of the Bachelor shuttle. We walked into the shop and up the stairs to grab a cup of coffee. Tanner introduced me as the crews of workers laughed and joked about his modeling career being propelled after this mornings shoot. After listening to the morning announcements and the briefing, I introduced myself to the maintenance crew. I immediately felt welcomed and a few more modeling jokes later, we layered up and hopped on a snowmobile (sled) to go open Mt. Bachelor.
By this time it had been snowing for a couple of hours and didn’t look like it was going to let up anytime soon, so goggles, gloves and a facemask were vital when traveling anywhere. I sat behind Tanner on the two-person sled, one hand holding on for balance and the other holding onto my camera attempting to take photos. Every inch of exposed skin felt the biting cold of the snow and wind.
Though cold, it was a blast. Under my facemask there was a childlike smile and laugh that could not be heard over the roar of the sled’s engine.
The first chairlift we reached to inspect was Cloudchaser. Tanner is apart of the maintenance crew that is assigned to the East side of the mountain. The operation works with crews at the top and bottom of the lift, communicating to each other and going over safety checks in order to start the lifts.
“We do a walk through inspection every morning and we would report if we found anything, also if people are clear of machinery and are safe to start the lift”, Tanner explained.
At the top of the lift Tanner climbed up the ladder leading to the engine room, which stands above the unloading area of the chairlift and where they inspect the lift line and various engine components. “We are checking belts and tires drive the conveyor system, leaks in hoses, checking the brakes. Pretty much a good look through of everything. We have documented weekly and monthly tests/inspections as well”, Tanner muffled under his facemask.
After the lifts that are scheduled to operate on that specific day are checked, the maintenance crew works on lifts, which are on hold. The day was turning into an overcast storm day on the mountain and all of the lifts were scheduled for operation except for the Summit lift.
The Summit wasn’t scheduled to operate since the wind and weather at the summit were getting too sketchy and unsafe for public traffic.
When Tanner turned to me and told me that he and another crew member, Alex Ostrom, were planning to go up to the top of Summit to make some repairs, I realized the photo opportunities. I had to find a way to go up with him. This is where the comfort ability between Tanner and I came into play. He knew what I could handle and he vouched for me. After a bit of negotiating, the big boss granted me permission.
Another cold sled ride and we reached the base of the Summit lift. The visibility had significantly decreased. As Tanner and Alex loaded the three necessary chairs, I was mentally preparing myself for chairlift ride of my life.
As the lift inched into the abyss upwards, my mind reminisced on the past couple of months. These months had led me to this freezing cold moment, one that I had been dreaming of for some time.
In the distance I could faintly make out a dark shape vaguely resembling a house. We were approaching the top of the lift and before we could go inside to take shelter, Tanner and Alex had to make one fix on the last tower. They quickly climbed up on to the tower. I couldn’t quite make out what they were fixing but they had to knock off a chunk of snow and ice to get to it, a great photo opportunity for me.
After they completed their task, the lift sprang to life again and we started moving. Finally into the shelter, I could relax and not worry about the biting cold. Tanner and Alex went around the carousel to get to the other side of the lift tower to make the same adjustment but on the opposite side.
From inside the top of the Summit lift, I was sheltered from the wind and snow that the guys outside had to face. From inside I had a new vantage point and continued to snap photos of the duo fixing the lift. After what seemed like twenty or thirty minutes I overhead Tanner radio down to “Mr. Frank Picard” to move the lift in reverse so the two could come inside and warm up before heading down.
They came off of the maintenance lift covered in a thin layer of ice. We walked to the back of the Summit structure to the operating room and took our gloves off to warm up our hands. We stayed there for a while shooting the shit and talking about all of the crazy times they have had on Bachelor.
“One time we were up here and we were de-icing the lift. Another crewmember was knocking ice off of the tower when a huge chunk of ice the size of a small refrigerator fell down. It nearly missed my head and crashed down onto the floor of the maintenance chair. It completely filled the bottom and the entire way down we were standing on a foot of ice. We had to duck every time we passed by a lift tower so we didn’t hit our heads” laughed Alex as he reminisced on one of his favorite memories on top of Summit.
Listening to Tanner and Alex talk about their jobs on Bachelor made it seem like they were born to do it. They never complained about the cold or the grueling work, all they talked about was how awesome of an experience it was and that they wouldn’t want to be doing anything else. Their enthusiasm for working in harsh conditions rubbed off on me a little and I forgot about the icy tundra awaiting us outside.
“Dang, the hardest conditions would have to be out at the top of northwest, had to have been about 50mph winds out on a tower clearing ice. Your goggles ice over and it was so hard to keep it clear so you can work”, said Tanner as he reflected on some of the harshest conditions he has faced on the mountain.
The two reflected some more on past experiences before we left the warmth and comfort of the shack and began our decent down out of the clouds and off of the summit of Mt. Bachelor.
A couple of days passed and I reached out to Tanner to ask him questions about the trip and get info on stuff I missed. I asked him what he likes most about his job and about the community within Bachelor. His response confirmed that I had indeed found a sense of community that I was looking for.
What do you like most about your job?
“I would say there is about 2 things. Every day is different, so you get to see and learn a lot. The second is just being at the mountain; people go there to be happy.”
Do you feel that there is a sense of community or belonging within Bachelor?
“Definity, all the locals are awesome. Every chair lift ride you can meet someone and good vibes all around the mountain.”
