Joe Gill of Modesto, California, may call himself an everyday Joe, but to the many who follow the world of snowmobiling he is anything but. He is someone who is shifting the snowmobile film industry.
Why? Because he loves to ride and he enjoys being able to make a difference in the sport. A true love of snowmobiling courses through his veins. Sometimes he’s out boondocking with his buddies, and sometimes you’ll see him out in the backcountry with his most-treasured sidekick, his 10-year-old daughter, Sierra, named after the Sierra Nevada mountains of course.
High Country Octane Productions started off modestly. Gill laughed, “I remember the moment high above Lamoille Canyon in Nevada watching the Union Bay Big Bores climb chutes. I was in awe! I wanted to film these riders, which is how it all began.”
Gill started production with very limited technology in 2005. A $500 computer, which didn’t even have the capacity to send or receive emails, and a very primitive $200 video camera started the beginning of his production company.
Initially Gill started with short YouTube clips which he shared with his friends on the snowmobile forum Snowest. The response to his filming was encouraging. Gill loved to film the adventures spent with his ride crew, capturing even the not-so-great moments of crash burns and scorpions rarely seen in big production filming. “We were everyday riders on everyday types of iron. Turkey Reinhart from the 509 films . . . well that was us in real life!”
They weren’t sponsored riders. They weren’t film stars. They were a crew of passionate riders who were addicted to the sport of snowmobiling. That was much of the appeal that prompted Gill to create even more YouTube clips. After a while people asked for DVDs of his compilation of sled edits. Gill then started the Sled'diction snowmobile film series.
In 2010 Gill released his first full-length snowmobile movie. Elko, Nevada, tourism used this film to help promote Elko as a snowmobile destination, sending Gill feet first into the snow show scene. Never had he attended such an event! He handed out many movies to the eager snowmobile crowd, which increased his popularity even further.
Trial and error through the next couple years found his movies more refined and of higher quality. Gill started expanding his reach, filming riders such as Caleb Kesterke who was just starting out. In 2014 Gill received the Yeti Award for best amateur film for Sled'diction 4 at sledfilm. The sledfilm amateur award contest, sponsored by GoPro, is the largest and longest running snowmobile and snow bike amateur award contest in existence. In 2015, the Yeti was again awarded to High Country Octane for Sled'diction 5.
“I feel fortunate to create a film that appeals to everyday men and women riders," he said. "High Country Octane can help give budding sled stars a start.“
Truly an everyday Joe, Gill enjoys reaching out to new riders in the sport, sometimes spontaneously helping out those he meets in the backcountry. After meeting an older couple on the trail, he noticed how new to the sport they were. Gill took time with the couple, helping them learn how to manage her machine, and by the end of the day she was all smiles, carving through the snow. “I will reach out to anyone; I want to grow our sport and help new riders learn the ropes.”
High Country Octane Productions now has riders in the U.S. and Canada submitting footage for his next Sled'diction film. Watch for the High Country Octane crew on social media to learn more about this Everyday Joe Gill.
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