For the 8th Annual Shred For Red at Deer Valley, March 28, 2026

I MADE IT TO 1,000,000 VERTICAL FEET !!!

I can’t believe I made it! I crossed the 1,000,000 Vertical Foot mark on Monday March 9th at Copper Mountain, CO. Phew! This is exhausting…but nothing compared to what our son Tristan went through in May 2022. His journey from elite rock climber to acute myeloid leukemia and back makes skiing 1,000,000 vertical feet feel like a piece of cake. You can read Tristan's remarkable story here in Climbing Magazine. LINK 

But it ain't over ’til it's over. I’m headed to Shred For Red at Deer Valley Resort ® on March 28th - which means more skiing and more vert. Aiyah! Wondering what it took to reach a million vertical feet? In a nutshell: 1,000,775 vertical feet (so far !); 50 ski days; 724 lift rides up and 724 ski runs down; skied 916 miles of trails; made 105,322 turns (some more graceful than others); drove over 7,800 miles around MA, NH, VT, ME, and CO; sustained two injuries - crashed into a tree (!) on Day 45 and then pulled a hamstring on Day 46 in Colorado. And by some strange coincidence, I reached my 1,000,000 vertical foot goal on the 2nd Monday in March at Copper Mountain, the same day and place that I reached my 528,000 vertical foot goal last season.

As Blood Cancer United Ski Ambassador, I found that about 1 in 3 people I speak with on the chairlift knows someone who has or had blood cancer. That’s a scary statistic. They are super appreciative to get information about our free patient resources (financial assistance, clinical trial navigation, and access to information specialists.) I’m super grateful to be out there helping people with my boots-on-the-snow campaigning. If you or a loved one are dealing with blood cancer, Blood Cancer United has free resources for them. Call (800) 955-4572 or visit https://bloodcancerunited.org/resources/patients .

Blood Cancer United's advancements are responsible for the blood cancer survival rate doubling, tripling, and even quadrupling. By the numbers: $2 billion invested in cancer research since 1949; 200 research grants around the world; $234 million provided in co-pay financial assistance; and 70% of the blood cancer treatment options approved by the FDA since 2017 (including AML and CAR-T)

Thanks,

Chesley Chen, Trustee New England & Ski Ambassador, Blood Cancer United.

I came. I skied. I cured.

Email me at [email protected] to learn more.