Recent Posts
- Jumper Profile: Kate Devine / 17 May 12
- Jumper Profile: Nat Segal / 14 May 12
- 150 Months and Counting... / 11 May 12
Monday, 29 Jan 07
SheJumps: Have you taken any jumps (aka risks) in your life to accomplish your dreams?
Jamie Britt: I guess you can say I have taken lots of jumps in my life, some literal, some small, and some big. Whether it was traveling abroad by myself, moving with $36 in my checking account, plunging off those rocks on skis into the white snow below, or quitting that "good" job because I wanted to do something that made me feel more alive and free, most of the jumps I have taken in life have been decisions that were driven by my heart.
Last March I probably took the biggest jump of all. My boyfriend was seriously injured in a skiing accident in Jackson Hole. He sustained a serious brain injury, which left him in a coma for three weeks. Things were not looking so great, but with his family and myself by his side, we teamed together and never looked back at giving him the best chance for recovery. I left my home and job in Snowmass and moved first to Craig Hospital in Denver, and then Boulder. Now, 10 months later, almost five months of those in the hospital, Charlie, is making his comeback! He has had to learn everything over from eating, talking, writing, and walking. It has been one crazy ride, but last weekend we celebrated his birthday among friends while skiing and eating and telling stories back in Snowmass, all with Charlie, it was a joyous day! There have been many tears, and now much laughter over this whole journey, which is still short from being over. I know this experience has changed me forever, and I can't really pin point how I will live my life differently than before. Perhaps I will think differently about the risks I choose to take. I can't really say quite yet, but I do know that I have no regrets. It has made me more compassionate towards people, and it has surely taught me a lot about perseverance and not giving up. But most of all it has taught me the difference one person can make in the lives of others.
Taking turns in Aspen, Colo., for the Women's Skiing magazine photo shoot. Photos by Zach Ornitz/Aspen Daily News
SJ: In life, have you accomplished some of your goals? Which ones? What's next and how will you get there?
JB: This is a tough one. I have been fortunate to have really lived my passion of skiing over the past few years. I have traveled and competed all over and even though I may not have accomplished all my "result" driven goals in freeskiing, I know I excelled and pushed myself in the sport. I love skiing and it will always be a part of my life. On the skiing side of things I'd like to become more educated and experienced in the backcountry. I love being in the mountains when it's just you and your pals making turns and there is that peaceful silence of no one else around. Those are the really soulful experiences and probably why we all love skiing so much!
SJ: What's a motto you go by, or advice you would give to others?
JB: Hmm...advice? I'm not one for advice. How about live all things passionately. That's what I wish I could continually embrace.
Profile: Jamie Britt
Comment on this Post ANYONE WHO KNOWS Jamie Britt knows that she is a sweetheart. She is a loyal friend and partner. Within the last year, she has jumped fully into helping her boyfriend Charlie Gaylord recover from a traumatic head injury he sustained while competing in a freeskiing contest in Jackson Hole, Wyo. – Vanessa Pierce
SheJumps: Have you taken any jumps (aka risks) in your life to accomplish your dreams?
Jamie Britt: I guess you can say I have taken lots of jumps in my life, some literal, some small, and some big. Whether it was traveling abroad by myself, moving with $36 in my checking account, plunging off those rocks on skis into the white snow below, or quitting that "good" job because I wanted to do something that made me feel more alive and free, most of the jumps I have taken in life have been decisions that were driven by my heart.
Last March I probably took the biggest jump of all. My boyfriend was seriously injured in a skiing accident in Jackson Hole. He sustained a serious brain injury, which left him in a coma for three weeks. Things were not looking so great, but with his family and myself by his side, we teamed together and never looked back at giving him the best chance for recovery. I left my home and job in Snowmass and moved first to Craig Hospital in Denver, and then Boulder. Now, 10 months later, almost five months of those in the hospital, Charlie, is making his comeback! He has had to learn everything over from eating, talking, writing, and walking. It has been one crazy ride, but last weekend we celebrated his birthday among friends while skiing and eating and telling stories back in Snowmass, all with Charlie, it was a joyous day! There have been many tears, and now much laughter over this whole journey, which is still short from being over. I know this experience has changed me forever, and I can't really pin point how I will live my life differently than before. Perhaps I will think differently about the risks I choose to take. I can't really say quite yet, but I do know that I have no regrets. It has made me more compassionate towards people, and it has surely taught me a lot about perseverance and not giving up. But most of all it has taught me the difference one person can make in the lives of others.
Taking turns in Aspen, Colo., for the Women's Skiing magazine photo shoot. Photos by Zach Ornitz/Aspen Daily News
SJ: In life, have you accomplished some of your goals? Which ones? What's next and how will you get there?
JB: This is a tough one. I have been fortunate to have really lived my passion of skiing over the past few years. I have traveled and competed all over and even though I may not have accomplished all my "result" driven goals in freeskiing, I know I excelled and pushed myself in the sport. I love skiing and it will always be a part of my life. On the skiing side of things I'd like to become more educated and experienced in the backcountry. I love being in the mountains when it's just you and your pals making turns and there is that peaceful silence of no one else around. Those are the really soulful experiences and probably why we all love skiing so much!
SJ: What's a motto you go by, or advice you would give to others?
JB: Hmm...advice? I'm not one for advice. How about live all things passionately. That's what I wish I could continually embrace.
comments Comments are closed.