Report from May 19, 2026
I drove to Palisades Tahoe, CA, from Mammoth Lakes, CA, on Sunday evening.
I dropped my wife off at the Reno airport on the way, but the real goal was to get the D-Spin 720°.
I didn’t like the one jump Mammoth had left and I knew the one at Palisades was money.
I’ve been doing this trick since 2004, when Matt Brogan forced me to do it in the Squaw park.
For some reason, it clung to my brain and I’ve been able to do it every year since (barring two injury years: 2013 and 2015).
But I hadn’t done one yet this year…
My goal with this trick was to copy legend Mike Douglas (whom the trick is named after) and keep landing it until I was 40.
Then Mike did it at 52 and I’m trying to keep up.
We’ll see… To be clear, I was terrified to do this trick yesterday.
Alex Ferreira told me on our podcast that he does affirmations that helped him win the Olympic gold medal this year.
So I tried it.
About 100 times that morning before the jump, I said, “I, Miles Clark, will land a D-Spin 720° today.”
I think it worked…
I got into the park and went through my normal progression: 2 straight airs, 2 360°s, 2 backflips, then the D-Spin.
An east wind made things dicey, and I almost walked away.
At my age, I try not to force anything anymore, but for some reason, I decided to force it that day.
I knuckled the first straight air then greased the second one.
Then the park crew came out to refresh the jumps – four laps of waiting…
Mojo gone…
I started again.
Straight air to the knuckle.
360 to the knuckle.
Another 360 to the knuckle.
That damn east wind.
At this point, I’d knuckled 4 of 5 jump attempts – no bueno.
But I kept forcing it.
I started skating in and tucking the in-run.
I landed way too deep on the first backflip and barely pulled it off.
Second backflip was right in the money spot.
I was so nervous, but I knew it was time to go for the D-Spin.
I usually take my time and visualize everything.
This time I didn’t.
I heard a kid giving advice to another kid: “Just go for it and don’t think about it.”
So I did.
Right then, I skated off and tucked.
I know that for the D-Spin, I need extra speed because the trick slows you down in the air, and you lose distance.
I threw it slowly, knowing the jump was on the bigger side.
It felt weird but clean as I set it.
The next thing I knew, I was just clearing the knuckle and landing ever so smoothly.
I hooted and hooted and threw a spread eagle off the next knuckle and looked like a total kook.
So much is wrapped up in this trick for me and it scares me half to death.
I went back up for another, but the wind was even stronger and it was easy to say no and head home.
I packed up quickly, jumped in the car, and headed south to Mammoth.
I made a quick stop at Moondunes Beach on the north shore of Lake Tahoe and jumped in.
The water was cold and lovely.
I felt alive.
The drive to Mammoth down the “Ice Cream Highway” was green, lush, and superb.
Palisades Tahoe is open until May 24th, and when I was there, the skiing was great because of a cold wind on both Gold Coast and Shirley.
This one is for Bernie.
Thanks for the great late-season park, Palisades Tahoe, and thanks, California!
Photos in Chronological Order
