Skier Dan Noakes Releases New Episode of Popular YouTube Series 'Chillhop Ski'

You’ve probably seen them in your YouTube algorithm feed: the multi-hour music playlists with titles like “Chill Studying Vibes” or “Lofi Hiphop Radio.”

The YouTube sub-genre is endlessly popular, with video entrants often racking up millions of views. One mainstay Lofi music live stream has nearly 40,000 concurrent listeners at the time of writing this.

On Dan Noakes’ YouTube channel, skiers can access a snowsports-focused twist on the now-classic video format. Noakes is an avid backcountry skier who, at the urging of his friend, began setting POV footage of his out-of-bounds ski missions to soothing, laid-back tunes.

The latest release from Noakes—dubbed 5th Annual Chillhop Ski Music—dropped today, October 7, 2024. Watch below.

Noakes’ series is an odd amalgamation of internet culture and skiing that, over the years, has proven surprisingly sought-after. One of his chillhop releases garnered nearly one million views, which, in the digital ski content landscape, is quite the number. Edits from well-known professional skiers often languish with 20,000 views or less. So, to better understand Noakes’ project—and learn why he thinks it might’ve struck a chord—we reached out via email.

Did you expect these videos would be such a big hit, or did it come as a surprise?

"It definitely came as a surprise, of course with every upload to YouTube that a creator does, you hope that it will have success, but I didn't know that these videos would. YouTube is almost impossible to predict for me, I have no idea what will be successful or not. Since the release of my chillhop videos, I have seen others do the exact same thing, so it has almost become a sub-genre of slow TV at this point."

What's your process for obtaining ski footage? Are you just hitting the skin track as much as possible during the winter?

"No lifts were used in the making of this video, or any of the chillhop videos that I have released. I am proud to say that I hike every run. I estimated that there are a total of 90 runs on this video, give or take, which if my estimates are semi-accurate, and my math is not completely wrong, that is anywhere from 72,000-90,000+ vertical feet of ski touring. From juggling a full time job, being a parent, married, with a mortgage payment and a house that needs repairs most of these shots were filmed during the early dawn patrol hours."

How do you choose the music?

"Chillhop, the company, has a selection of tracks that creators can use royalty free on their social media channels."

What does your life look like outside of skiing?

"I am a father of a 5 year old, and my daughter will be born any day now. I love being a dad. I am a husband. I volunteer at my son's elementary school every Tuesday and Wednesday. I am an animator by trade. I work from home and I have been since 2014. In the summers I also have a junk hauling business to make some extra money on the side. I am constantly doing repairs and fixes on my house, as I bought a home that needs a lot of work. Just like a lot of people, I grind to make ends meet, I am not rich by any means, but I live close to some skiable backcountry terrain, which makes morning dawn patrols accessible. Of course, the terrain is always in danger of getting taken over by private developers. A challenge that other places are dealing with as well."

Finally, is there anything fun and new associated with the release of Volume Five?

"Not really, the only thing new is that a handful of shots are more remote than others which require ski packing/ski camping to get to. As the sport gets more and more crowded, I think ski packing to remote locations with a hot tent is the future."

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