“American Dave” Rosenbarger, who grew up skiing Oregon and moved to France to ski pristine powder, died in an avalanche today on the Italian side of Mont Blanc.

Powder Magazine reported Rosenbarger’s death this morning, just several weeks after producing a multi-media feature titled “Untracked” celebrating him as “one of the most skilled ski mountaineers in the world.”

Rosenbarger told Powder Magazine that his main goal on skis was to “never cross another track,” and he died while pursuing perfect powder. He was sponsored by Technica Blizzard and was a Patagonia Skiing Ambassador who made radical descents in the Alps, Norway, Peru, Bolivia and Antarctica.  His Instagram feed is a deep-snow highlight reel of one amazing powder picture after another, from France to Antarctica.

Rosenbarger grew up in Gresham, Oregon, raced on Mount Hood, and earned a degree in biology and environmental science from the University of Oregon. He lived in Bend and skied Mount Bachelor in his 20s and experimented with telemarking and climbing, before heading to Chamonix for the best ski mountaineering in the world.

At this point few details are available about exactly how Rosenbarger died, but as the Powder profile showed, Rosenbarger definitely lived a life on the edge. Two of his skiing friends, Kip Garre and Arne Backstrom, died while ski mountaineering, and he told Powder, “Their deaths haven’t affected my skiing. It’s made me more aware, but I already feel I was.”

The subhead of the “Untracked” article was “‘American Dave’ Rosenbarger toes a dangerous line as one of the most skilled ski mountaineers in the world.”

Rosenbarger’s Facebook page is quickly filling up with comments from friends and families from all over the world.

Please feel free to add your remembrances to the comments section if you grew up with Dave and/or skied with him.

Here is an Epic TV video of Dave Rosenbarger skiing powder in the Alps in 2014.

Last modified: January 23, 2015