Utah's Kyle Whittingham uses skiing to cleanse soul

Many of Kyle Whittingham's counterparts choose golf to relax in the offseason, but the Utah head coach prefers something a little more fast paced.

Whittingham is an avid skier which is an important part his offseason routine, he told ESPN's Chantel Jenning.

"It cleanses my soul," Whittingham said. "There’s nothing like being up on the mountain, just being up there. Combine that with the exhilaration of skiing down the mountain, being able to go fast. I don’t know how to describe it. It just gives you a rush."

After skiing casually in high school, the 57-year-old now skis roughly 30-40 times a year and can get up to speeds of 73.1 mph.

"The geometry of the sport is forward," Whittingham said. "Everything forward. Hands forward. Knees forward. You don’t want to be in the backseat. That’s the biggest thing that separates the average to intermediate skier to the next level - being able to keep everything downhill. Your chest facing downhill. Keeping everything forward."

Coaches typically agonize over losses during a football season, but there is a sense of peace for Whittingham when he's on the slopes.

"There’s no such day as a bad day on the mountain," he said.