Mark Newcomb

Born and raised at the foot of the Tetons, Mark grew up on skis following his father as he was doing research on snow and avalanches. After finishing college and exploring Asia for a year, Mark returned to Jackson, took up mountaineering and started exploring the relentlessly vertical terrain of the Teton backcountry. It wasn’t long before he combined his mountaineering instincts with his ski abilities to tackle steep lines that had not yet been descended on skis. Continually raising the bar, he eventually completed first descents of the Hossack-McCowan Couloir and Otter Body routes on the Grand Teton, and high-altitude descents in Asia that included Shishapangma’s Unsch Couloir (26,000’) and Sepu Kangri (23,000’). Mark was the lead avalanche hazard forecaster and operations manager for Valdez Heli-Ski Guides until 2000 and 2005 respectively.