Washington is a sort of snow sports mecca, Baker and Whistler to the north, Mission Ridge, Crystal and Alpental to the south. Thousands of trails and miles of back country with deep powder offer a serene rush of adrenaline.

One Oak Harbor family has seen its fair share of blessed snow. John Speer and his son, Jayson, have been riding since 1989 and have traveled up and down the West Coast seeking the perfect kicker.

“I’ve decided the less seriously I take it, the more fun it is,” Jayson, a 1998 Oak Harbor High School graduate, said.

Jayson has shredded his way to some notoriety in the sport of snowboarding. Having won his division at the Mount Baker Banked Slalom in 1999 and 2000, he said the sport still appeals to him, even after 15 years carving in the deepest pow-pow.

“At this point, it’s getting away from everything else — it’s an escape,” he said.

The thrill from landing a trick in the back country still pumps through his veins.

“It’s a rush when you land it and you look back and say ‘Wow, I just did

that?’ ” Jayson said.

Jayson’s father, John, started snowboarding after his son took up the sport, but has yet to look back upon the world of the “two-plankers,” skiers to the rest.

He said his first experience with snowboarding was when his son, then 9-years-old, saved enough pennies to rent his father a snowboard for the day and pay for lessons.

“He wanted me to snowboard so bad that he saved up his pennies and he rented me a snowboard and a set of lessons,” John said. “I got so beat up I didn’t board for another four years.”

“He went on the worst possible day — it was icy and cold and crowded,” Jayson said. “He took a beating. If it’s that hard, it’s not that fun.”

John said he learned to snowboard in the fall of 1993, after an early storm dumped about a foot of snow on north Whidbey. Having just purchased a snowboard on a whim, he trekked to the top of a hill near his home and charged it for an hour every day.

“By the time the lifts opened, I was at least ready for the bunny slopes,” John quipped.

Jayson’s paths in the back country led to some promising opportunities, which have included appearances in magazines and numerous sponsorships. An accident at work in December of 2002, literally crushed those goals. Having to sit out six weeks with no snowboarding left Jayson with a bad need to hit the slopes.

When it came time for the annual banked slalom at Mount Baker, he didn’t let a fractured ulna and torn ligaments stop him.

“I said ‘It’s not an ankle and I’m going,’ “ he said.

Sponsorships from Option Snowboards and Smith Goggles keep Jayson hooked up on the slopes. Not bad for someone who by the time he was 14 had summitted Mount Shuksan and plummeted over 75-foot cliffs.

For his father, however, snowboarding presented a different world of opportunities. John was already selling photos to various wind surfing magazines since the ‘70s, when he was stationed in Hawaii. Having skied since he was 3-years-old, the transition to shooting on the slopes was an easy one.

After the Navy moved his family to Concord, Calif., regular trips to Tahoe began, where John honed his skill as a snowboard photographer.

“My favorite way to shoot is to go up there and find people who are having fun,” John said. “I have a lot of fun with riders who have a lot of fun. Even with windsurfing, it was more fun than a job.”

Johns photos have appeared in publications such as Snowboarder, Transworld Snowboarding and Heckler in the United States. In addition, John has been published in European mags such as Playboard and Onboard.

Despite all of his photo credits, John said the money he earns from the photos is nothing to speak of.

“You’re not going to get rich just being a snowboard photographer,” he said. I’ve got three kids, and it pays for their equipment, film and some travel.”

But he still shoots for love — the same reason why people snowboard. For the love of it.

“We’re definitely blessed with Mount Baker here,” John said.

For those who wish to join John and Jayson at Baker, take a breath, because the sultan of snow is closed until Friday because of heavy rains.

You can reach News-Times reporter Eric Berto at eberto@whidbeynewstimes.com