Galen was born and raised in Talkeetna, Alaska. He first learned to ski as a mode of transportation from his home, to the nearest road a mile away when he was two. Galen grew up climbing, skiing and travelling with his parents from a young age. His family often camped out in venue parking lots the night before Besh Cup races (even in Fairbanks.) At age 11 Galen became the youngest person to summit Denali. This upbringing instilled an adventurous and playful spirit in Galen that he still holds onto. Galen skied for Susitna Valley High school until his senior year in 2008 when he enrolled and raced for APUNSC through the Early Honors program. Galen then pursued studies at UAA and raced for the Seawolves for two seasons. Now, Galen loves coaching a spectrum of ages and abilities from Jr. Nordic age kids as young as five, to APUNSC masters pushing 90. Galen has been coaching full time for APUNSC since 2014. If you don’t find Galen on the trails coaching, or somewhere waxing skis for the next race, you’ll likely find him off gallivanting in the mountains with his wife Cheyenne, daughter Raven, and dog Norton.