Just ride with it

Stephanie Schwartz is an extreme mountain sledder, an active spokesperson for snowmobiling and one goofy chick
by Kali Love - Article and images provided by SnoRidersWest

Stephanie Schwartz jokes that she was conceived on a snowmobile. Throughout her life, sledding has been an integral part of her family and her career. Her father is Ron LaRoy, the membership chairman of the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club, and he never left Schwartz at home when he went sledding. Her older brother, Jason, also helped pave the way for Schwartz on a sled and she had to work diligently to keep up with them. This year, the LaRoys were awarded the Canadian outstanding snowmobile family of the year from the Canadian Council of Snowmobile Organizations.

As a woman in a predominantly male sport, Schwartz has had her times of ups and downs. However, her career in snowmobiling has sky-rocketed and the fact that she is a woman has perhaps helped drastically. Her first job offer happened because someone saw her riding.

"My brother and I were up on the hill riding one day and we knew some people from Red Deer, Alberta," said Schwartz. "(One of them was a salesman) from a dealership and he saw me and talked to a guy that knew me, and said 'what's up with this girl? She knows her sled stuff,' and it was as simple as that. He called me and said 'are you interested in a job?' "