Shredding stereotypes: Ebony Ice paves way for Black skiers, snowboarders

FRANKLIN, Wis. - On a cold February day, a group gears up for an evening on the slopes at Crystal Ridge in Franklin. After locking into their skis and snowboards, they quickly shred snow. Watching them weave and slide is a thing of beauty. But realizing they are all Black is the true vision. 

Ebony Ice

What they're saying:

Ebony Ice is changing the narrative that Black people do not ski or snowboard. Sirr Grice has been skiing since he was three.

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android

"Organically, Ebony Ice is about trying to get minorities into a sport that no one sees us in," Grice said. "If you don’t get to see people who do it, then you don’t know what your opportunities are."

Sirr Grice

Who is skiing?

By the numbers:

The National Ski Areas Association says more than 60 million people visited ski resorts during the 2023-24 season. Eighty-eight percent of visitors at resorts were white, while just over 1% surveyed identified as Black. Those are numbers that have hardly changed over the past decade.

"When we go to ski resorts all over the United States, we don’t see many of us on the slopes or people of color on the slopes," Edna Abernathy said. 

Abernathy is one of the founding members of Ebony Ice, which is a chapter of the National Brotherhood of Snowsports.

"I went to one of their summits in Steamboat, Colorado in 1988," Abernathy said. "I came back and said we can create one of these here in Milwaukee."

Edna Abernathy

Completing workshop

Local perspective:

Over the decades, Abernathy has influenced skiers and snowboarders of all ages. In February, FOX6 News was there as she honored a new group of young skiers and snowboarders for completing a four-week workshop.

Conquering the slopes is what Vaughn Anderson sets out to do each winter. "It feels good," Anderson said. "Sometimes it’s hard, but it’s real fun."

Vaughn Anderson

Anderson’s mom, Tangela, made sure to immerse him and his sisters in the winter sport. "I don’t want them to think that there isn’t anything they can’t do," Tangela Anderson said.

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

Vaughn Anderson isn’t just a skilled snowboarder. He’s a guiding force for his two sisters.

"It’s fun, but it’s also stressful because I have to worry about, ‘Oh, are they getting down the slopes? Did they fall?’" Vaughn Anderson said.

Falling is part of the sport. Ebony Ice makes sure to pick people up with support and camaraderie.

"It’s real peaceful. It’s mind-clearing," Edna Abernathy said.