Flylow Gear to Donate $2 from Every Quantum Jacket Sold Online To Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation

Ryan Hawks was one of us: a skier, a powder-lover, an all-around great guy. When he passed away on March 1, 2011, from injuries sustained during the Freeskiing World Tour at Kirkwood, California, his loss was felt throughout the ski community.

The Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation was recently established to remember Ryan and to enrich the lives of young athletes like him. Money raised through the non-profit memorial fund will go to support individuals who demonstrate Ryan’s leadership and sense of adventure, and will support their journey in wilderness education, mountain exploration, or contributions to the freeskiing community.

Ryan Hawks. Photo by Frank Shine

For this coming winter, there will be seven Flyin’ Ryan Ambassador coaches—Lars Chickering-Ayers, Dylan Crossman, Angel Collinson, Louis Erickson, Ben Blakely, Rob Greener, and Chuck Mumford—and those athletes will help conduct 16 clinics (Flyin’ Ryan Days) at ski resorts around the country. The clinics will take place alongside the Subaru Freeskiing World Tour’s junior stops and at Ryan’s home mountain, Mad River Glen, Vermont.

The Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation was formed by Ryan’s dad, Peter Hawks. “The purpose of the foundation is to honor Ryan’s humanity and to extend his principles for living (self proclaimed) in order that others might be inspired to elevate the quality of their lives by adopting Ryan’s ideas,” said Peter Hawks. “I think our Ambassador program has the potential to attract a significant number of participants who will, collectively, provide us with the ongoing capacity to place our scholarship dollars where they are most needed.”

Ryan Hawks. Photo by Frank Shine

Here at Flylow, we’d like to pay tribute to Ryan and all he did for us and the skiing community at large. Ryan helped us design our new Quantum jacket, a three-layer hardshell that, like Ryan, is as tough as it comes. So, starting now, we’re going to donate $2 from every Quantum jacket sold on Flylowgear.com to the Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation.

“This is a small gesture but it has a large meaning,” says Flylow president Dan Abrams. “Ryan Hawks was a big part of Flylow and we want to do what we can to support his legacy.”

Ryan Hawks. Photo by Frank Shine

About Flylow Gear

Flylow is a manufacturer of freeride apparel for skiers and snowboarders. Our gear is made tough like mountaineering apparel—long-lasting and storm-proof—but with a fit and style that’s more suited for the modern, powder-skiing, bootpacking, cliff-hucking skier. We got our start as a grassroots company based in Colorado and now our gear is sold around the world. http://www.flylowgear.com. For more information about Flylow Gear, please contact Dan Abrams at dan@flylowgear.com or 303-906-1091.

About the Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation

Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation is a not for profit endeavor pending 501c3 status. Ryan Hawks was a dynamic human being, with a passion and love for the mountains and skiing. He began his love affair with the mountains at the age of two, and that love affair never ended. The Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation was developed to support athletes or individuals that share the passion that Ryan brought to the sport of freeskiing, and reflect the spirit and extraordinary human qualities that Ryan had as a person and athlete. Proceeds from this foundation will go towards those individuals who demonstrate Ryan's leadership and sense of adventure, and will support their journey in wilderness education, mountain exploration, or contributions to the freeskiing community. http://www.ryanhawksmemorialfund.org. For more information about the Flyin’ Ryan Hawks Foundation, please contact flyinryanhawks@gmail.com.