Though originally from Silverton, Colorado, Cory Smith has been living in the Wood River Valley for more than two decades, since he relocated to the area to work for Smith Optics. Prior to that, he was a sponsored snowboarder for K2 and working on Mt. Hood’s skate and snowboard camp Windell’s, which he helped start back in the early ’90s. After blowing out his knee and dashing any hopes of continuing a pro career, he moved to Ketchum, where the scene at the time was “full of skiers, and I was a punk rock snowboarder.” Luckily, he learned to love the town and its people, and when Smith (the company) packed up to move to Portland in 2015, he decided to stay behind and start his digital marketing company, Idarado.

Now almost ten years in, Idarado has five full-time employees and works with clients like Traeger, First Lite, Decked, Dickies, and more. Cory lives in Ketchum in a live/work setup with his two teenage daughters and their dog. When he’s not on the clock, he’s a man of many hobbies, including snowboarding (obviously), mountain biking, running, dirt biking, yoga, skiing (which he dabbles in now), going up to his cabin by Smiley Creek, Wintertux, and tinkering with Volkswagens, which he has a small fleet of. A self-described creature of habit, Cory’s perfect day in Sun Valley in April is pretty much his usual day in this town. “All of my days feel great living here.”

How does your morning start?

Cory: I do pretty much the same thing every morning: Alarm goes off at 5:30, and I go for a run with my dog, about 3­–5 miles. It’s super mellow. I started doing it five years ago every morning, and it made a huge difference in my mental space. It’s like an accomplishment that I got done early.

What’s after that?

Cory: I come home and do a little yoga and try to meditate—I’m sounding like a real guru here, but I’m a dirtbag. Then I get the kids ready for school—I try to get up before them and get mine in first, ya know? So get them to school and come home, have coffee, and go to work and circle up with the team.

What’s the rest of the morning like?

Cory: My office and the studio are only a block and a half apart, so I walk back and forth a lot. I’d go home and grab a quick midmorning breakfast. I’m a huge fan of this raw goat yogurt they make in Carey; it’s like crack. I’ll have that with berries and some eggs.

What’s the afternoon like?

Cory: Back to work. Then if it’s sunny, I’ll go to Baldy about 2–4. I love to do some College-College. If it’s pow, I love going off the back side, but in April, it’s groomers. I may or may not ski, depending on who I’m going with.

What’s after Baldy?

Cory: Then it’s time to deal with the kids. My youngest rides horses so I often have to drive her down to Bellevue for that, or take her to volleyball practice. Then I’ll either try to sneak in a gym session at Zenergy or hang out with my friends. Reflex Poles are right down the street, so I like to walk down there and hang out with the homies, or they’ll come over and help on the car.

What’s for dinner?

Cory: Then I’ll cook dinner for the kids or myself—meat and vegetables. I’m into archery hunting, so if I have some meat left, I like wild game.

What’s after dinner?

Cory: I’ll sit in the garage and tinker on my car. It’s sort of a release for me, working on mechanical things. Then I’m in bed early. I go to bed at like, 9 o’clock.