[A Generational Coach] From Mont Chalet’s front yard to the World Cup stage, Bill Harris helped shape the foundation of Ashton Salwan’s journey in freestyle aerials.
Where Dreams Take Flight
In Chesterland, Ohio, a front yard became the doorway to a dream. Rising above the grass and spilling into a cool pond, Bill Harris’s Mont Chalet Freestyle Training Center may look humble, but for Ashton Salwan, it was everything. It was the first place he strapped on skis at age ten, learned to flip, and began developing the confidence that would carry him forward. Just as importantly, it gave him a steady place to learn and progress as his path in aerials began to take shape.
A Front Yard That Sparks Careers
Bill Harris didn’t just build a ramp — he built a gateway. What appears from the road to be a quiet family property is home to one of freestyle aerial skiing’s enduring grassroots development environments.
Mont Chalet features a single, handcrafted wooden water ramp and landing pond, giving athletes a place to develop foundational flips and twists into water during the summer months before transferring those skills to snow. For Ashton, those early jumps weren’t about results or rankings; they were about courage, repetition, and discovering what was possible.
Bill’s open door gave Ashton room to keep learning at a formative point in his development. Mont Chalet offered the space — and the inspiration — to keep moving forward.
“Bill didn’t just build a ramp - he built a path forward. I wouldn’t be where I am today without that first leap in his front yard.”
— Ashton Salwan
Over the years, Mont Chalet has helped shape generations of aerialists. Retired Olympic athletes such as Brian Currutt and Mariano Ferrario once honed their fundamentals here, underscoring the lasting influence of Harris’s program across decades.
Character Above All Else
At Mont Chalet, freestyle aerials were never just about tricks. From Ashton’s earliest sessions, Bill Harris’s standard was clear: discipline, respect, and accountability mattered as much as learning a new skill. He expected his athletes to show up, put in the work, respect the process, and carry themselves with integrity both on and off the ramp.
That standard created an environment that was both welcoming and demanding — a place where young skiers learned not only how to fly, but how to build character. For Ashton, those lessons became a compass that continues to guide him, shaping how he trains, competes, and approaches each new challenge.
Giving Back to Where It Began
When Ashton returns home to Ohio, he still makes time for Mont Chalet and Coach Bill — both to reconnect and to help inspire the next generation of young athletes now standing where he once stood.
Whether encouraging young athletes climbing the steps for their first jumps or reminding them that every repetition matters, Ashton sees his journey come full circle in Bill Harris’s front yard. For Ashton, giving back is one way of honoring the foundation that helped make everything possible.
A Lasting Legacy
Bill Harris is more than a coach. He is an architect of excellence — a pioneer whose vision created opportunities far beyond the boundaries of a single front yard. Mont Chalet Freestyle, and the role it played in Ashton’s development, represents the kind of impact that extends well beyond any one athlete.
“Coach Bill taught me how to fly, but more importantly, he taught me how to carry myself. Every time I go back to Mont Chalet, I’m reminded of where it all started - and I’m grateful to call him my mentor and friend.”
— Ashton Salwan
That legacy — rooted in generosity, discipline, and belief — continues through the athletes Bill has coached and the generations still coming up behind them.
