Bruce Tremper grew up skiing in the mountains of western Montana, where his father taught him the basics of avalanches at the age of ten. He was a member of the Junior National Ski Team and the US Ski Team Talent Squad; in 1973, he was NCAA Division Downhill Champion. Bruce's professional avalanche experience began in 1977 when he did avalanche control for Bridger Bowl Ski Area. He later was director of avalanche control at Big Sky Ski Area, an avalanche forecaster for the Alaska Avalanche Center, and director of the Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center where he worked for almost thirty years.