Sponsored, Episode 6: Michelle Parker

On this episode of the "Sponsored" podcast, presented by Powder Radio, host Mike Powell interviews Michelle Parker, one of the most well-rounded skiers in the sport and an eternal optimist.

"Skiing is the most fun thing in my life. It is my biggest passion. I love it so much," says Parker. "The second that it starts to become not fun, I'm doing something wrong and I need to reevaluate. My whole thing was no pressure, have fun with it, always smile."

Parker retains her positivity despite the number of difficult injuries and tragedies she has experienced among her Lake Tahoe community.

"I don't think it's normal for someone my age to have lost more people than I can count on both hands that I consider to be close to me," says Parker. "Every death I personally deal with it differently, and the most recent one that affected me super deeply was Timy Dutton, and he was my best friend since day one and we were like babies together and our moms were super close... I haven't had the nerve to delete his name from my phone. When I think about him, I have to laugh."

Michelle Parker Show Notes

1:50: What has Michelle been up to? 2:37: Knee injuries and positivity 3:35: Mike Powell Story 4:50: Life as a ski racer and the transition into free skiing 6:00: The scene in Squaw while Michelle was coming up, getting sponsored and more 9:45: Contest mentality 11:26: The fine line between being a great skier and a professional skier 13:06: Creepy things photographers do and strange photo shoots 16:08: Contests and learning sportsmanship from her Pro Tennis Player dad 17:55: The Pain McShlonkey and growing up with Shane 19:12: Coping with death in Squaw Valley 21:24: The community of Squaw Valley 22:35: Black Panther and other call names 23:18: Winning the 2013 Female performance of the year at the Powder Awards 23:48: Losing her sponsors and then kicking ass 26:10: What does Red Bull do differently? 29:00 Michelle talks about her first time going to Burning Man 30:22: Michelle plays her Ukulele and sings us an original song. 35:50: Safe As 37:44: When will Michelle be back on snow