Means to Ascend follows Maxx Chance and Johnny Egan as they strap touring skis on their gravel bikes and attempt to summit Mount Blackmore on a 100% human-powered mission.

Blackmore is a peak whose northside can be viewed from just about anywhere in the city limits of Bozeman, MT, and is a classic ski descent for backcountry enthusiasts in the region and beyond. During the mud season from April to May the canyon road that leads to the trailhead is closed to motorized vehicles. So the only way to access the area is by bike.

More from Maxx:

“After moving up to Bozeman last year and riding Blackmore on my mountain bike, this has been something on my bucket list to ski. You can see the peak from anywhere in town and it is a quintessential part of the Hyalite area skyline. While Skiing and ski touring may have been a new activity to me after 8 plus years away from the sport chasing my dreams around the muddy fields of Belgium and the Netherlands all winter. All in preparation for the cyclocross world championships in February of each year. Skiing naturally took a back seat. But with some more freedom this winter and the seemingly limitless skiing up here, I couldn’t resist getting out in the mountains all winter. As the ski touring season was coming to an end, and I was back on my bike and outside more and more, I knew I needed to make an attempt at skiing Blackmore before the season was over. Making a little film was the icing on top.

I hope that this film can serve to inspire others to get out there and try something a little different from their “normal” adventure. And serve as a reminder that we can always go on adventures from our backdoors. Not everything has to be a big trip out to faraway places, sometimes the best adventures are the ones that you leave from your front door on two wheels. To me, new experiences, new adventures, and new mountain tops are what keeps life fresh and rewarding. I am already planning out more trips and more crazy adventures! Hopefully, I can convince Micah to come along and film some of them in the future too.

Until next time,

Maxx Chance”