BASALT — After competing for eleven years in the ski world cup and taking part in three Olympic games, Simi Hamilton has retired (as of Spring of 2021); however, while retirement does mean that he'll get to spend more time with family and take on new challenges, it doesn't mean stepping away from skiing.
Hamilton has spent countless hours on the slopes and in the back country, skiing non-stop for the majority of his life, "I'm 34 now, so we'll call it 32 years that I've been on skis," Simi agreed.
From 2010 forward, he estimates that he spent about 900 hours each year just training for events such as the FIS Ski World Cup and the Olympics. He admits that at a certain point, this sport that he loves so much, became not just important, but necessary.
"To be able to feel that pure sense of just being really good at something and feeling this natural flow when you do it, not only is it addictive but it feels like it's necessary. It's like, I need it to survive, I need it as much as breathing in oxygen," stated Hamilton.
However now, as of Spring of 2021, Hamilton has retired from professional skiing; so what comes next?
He's got plenty of plans, like skiing in some of his favorite Colorado locations, seeing family more often, and of course working on building his house up in the Colorado high country.
"Yeah, I'm trying to figure that out," Hamilton commented, "right now I'm most excited about being back here, being close to family, being in these mountains where I grew up. I love to back country ski and alpine ski and cross country ski, obviously still; so it'll just be really fun to not be getting on an airplane every single week this winter and [having to live] out of a duffel bag and [also I'm] chipping away at this project."
In terms of what's next for this former Olympian right now, Hamilton shared that he's been invited to be a guide for the Paralympic Nordic Skiing team in the upcoming games.
"You know, I think I'm going to be the one who's learning so much from them."
His main goal and hope is to pass along his experience of navigating the games to a newer group of athletes, "Making travel easier, making the whole Olympics and Paralympics experience less like deer in the headlights and more like, OK this is how you get through this."
Following the upcoming games, Hamilton says he's looking forward to seeing what the future holds, it could be working more with the Paralympic team or it could be something else entirely.
For more information on Simi Hamilton, visit his Instagram.
