We’re on a mission to show our guests the finest ski & snowboard experiences around the globe.
REGGIE CRIST: Owner, Operator, Lead Guide
Reggie Crist has a professional reputation for being in exactly the right place at exactly the right time. Whether exploring deep into the Idaho backcountry, standing on top of a first descent in Alaska, or migrating to the Southern Hemisphere to chase snow in Chile or Argentina, Reggie is often first on scene and first in the heli when the sky cracks blue. His conditional awareness is no fluke, as his knowledge has been gleaned from over two decades of skiing big, bold, and aesthetic lines in the most dramatic mountain venues.
Nicknamed “Robert REG-ford,” for his photographic and directing skills, this jack-of-all-ski-trades was raised on the slopes of Sun Valley, Idaho, a place where he learned to charge groomers at redline speed. Crist ski-raced in the Olympics and spent a decade on the U.S. Ski Team before pioneering the sport of ski cross, a discipline that earned him a string of five consecutive X Games medals, including two gold. Yet the trademark of this skier is his sense of leading skiers to the goods when it is on, allowing him to become one of the industry's most experienced heli-ski guides. Reggie's life and career have been shaped by the mountains and few people have enjoyed more powder days, which is why his focus has naturally shifted towards showing others their best days ever.
Reggie started Stellar, an adventure travel and media outfitter focused on lining up unique adventures for clients while also servicing the production needs of pro skiers in such locations as Alaska, South America, Japan, and in his backyard of Idaho.
In the off-season, when Crist isn’t chasing after his three young kids, he has been known to put pen to paper for publications such as Men’s Journal, Powder Magazine, Skiing Magazine, and The Ski Journal, as well as generate web-series content for National Geographic. For rest and recovery, he flies his whole family south to the lefthand point break at Saladita, Mexico, to surf, sip margaritas, and watch the sun dip beyond the horizon. In the winter months, he is a local ski celebrity in Sun Valley and is not “officially” allowed behind the bar during après at Apple’s.
ACHIEVEMENTS
OLYMPIAN (1992) AND US SKI TEAM MEMBER FOR 10 YEARS
TWO-TIME X GAMES CHAMPION (2001, 2005)
PIONEER OF ALASKAN HELI SKIING INDUSTRY
SKI-FILM STAR FOR WARREN MILLER AND TETON GRAVITY RESEARCH
Our Lead Guides
JOE EPPLER
Joe resides in Tellurido, CO where he works as an avalanche forecaster and ski patroller at Telluride ski resort. He also works as a guide for Telluride Helitrax and Telluride Mountain Guides. In March and April he shifts his focus to heli ski guiding in Haines AK, where he has been guiding since 2012. In the summer months Joe works in the Grand Canyon as a river guide for Grand Canyon Dories and Oars, running 14-16 day whitewater row trips. In August and September he’s also been known to chase winter to the Andes, skinning up the end of winter in Chile and Argentina.
DAVE SUNDAS
Dave has been heli ski guiding in Alaska for the past 14 years. Like a black lab chasing a tennis ball, Sundnas is tireless when it comes to skiing powder. Professionally certified as an avalanche forecaster and Wilderness First Responder, Dave brings a wealth of experience to the Stellar Team. He also guides for SAT in Japan and South America.
RYAN “HOWDY” HOWE
Howdy has a warm hearted love for wild landscapes and sharing good times with others. For the last two and a half decades, he has made a full time livelihood as a guide, avalanche practitioner and educator. Howdy has garnered invaluable experience across a broad spectrum; Avalanche mitigation & forecasting, NREMT medical rescue, RFR trained high angle rescue, guide, mentor, trainer and operations manager. His 24+ years of professional field experience include over 1,400 operational days guiding and 1,900 operational days as an avalanche worker. Ryan holds certifications as an EMT, Rigging for Rescue and PRO-2 Avalanche Operations. Howdy is Operations Manager and Co-Owner at Telluride Mountain Guides, and works as an avalanche worker at Telluride Ski Patrol and faculty member at Silverton Avalanche School teaching professional operations PRO-1 and PRO-2 curriculum.
YANCY CALDWELL
Yancy Caldwell has been with Stellar from the beginning - whether it be filming or guiding in all locations- from Japan to the annual Haines migration and onto Chile. An Idaho native, Yancy has been honing his mountain sense in the big mountains of Alaska since 2013. First as a snowboard athlete, turned lead cinematographer for Stellar Media, and now as a guide for SAT- he has studied the Chilkat mountain range from all angles. He excels in the challenges of production guiding with a keen sense for what the film crews want, but enjoys the increase in powder turns and rewards that come with showing guests the best skiing experience.
KYLE TAYLOR
Kyle Taylor is a former NCAA ski racer, Freeride World Tour Competitor and professional skier with backcountry skiing experience in 15 different countries and heli skiing experience in 5. He studied Geographic Information Systems at Montana State University, focusing on backcountry terrain suitability and snow science. He is currently the Head Freeride Coach at Whitefish Mountain Resort where he teaches kids avalanche education and safe backcountry travel practices. Kyle is a Wilderness First Responder and PRO-2 Avalanche certified.
