Official Operator Spotlight: Joel Bowman
Halfpipe protégé. Leading the charge for Mammoth Unbound.
Joel Bowman is currently in his 18th season of operating. He is the Halfpipe Supervisor at Mammoth Mountain in California, and he also is regularly contracted to build halfpipes across the country. Joel is the protégé of renowned halfpipe builder Frank Wells, and he is a force to reckon with in his own right, with a stellar reputation for excellence.
Tell us about your career and what helped you get to this point.
I started at a small resort in Illinois called Snowstar. Then I moved out to Colorado and worked for Keystone and the Area 51 team. I've been at Mammoth for 6 years now, and in a snowcat for 19 seasons. To get where I am now, it has taken a lot of hard work and staying consistent, operating every season. I have a strong love for snowboarding (and freeskiing), putting all of myself into making it the best I possibly can. In order to be successful, you must learn from your mistakes and always show up.
If you had to pick just one thing, what would you say has been the highlight of your career so far?
All the amazing people I’ve got to work with and learn from. It's hard to pick a single event, but I love working with all of the resorts: Much love to Phil and Noah at Copper, to Joey, Yannick, and Matt at Aspen/Buttermilk, to Logan, Tyler, and Casey at Timberline Lodge, and to Jarred, Frank, Alex, Paco, as well as Clifford, Steve, Finlay, and Chris at Mammoth Mountain.
What feature or capability of PistenBully machines/products do you find most critical for your work?
I’d say for me the 600 Winch that holds the 22’ cutter is absolutely critical.
What is your best advice for mentoring/training?
Stay patient and trust the process. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
What's something you want others -- especially those who are not familiar with your line of work -- to know about snow grooming?
That snow is not all the same. Depending on where you’re doing a project, it can be completely different from other places. Mammoth, compared to Copper, or Aspen, compared to Timberline, are completely different techniques in building halfpipes.
What do you do in the summer?
I help build the halfpipe camp in Timberline at Mt. Hood, and after that, I build new rail features at Mammoth.
