The Story Of The Yellow Ski Suit
Ski Suits Don’t Age, Just Their Owners.
In 1974 while living in Vienna, Virginia, I had a midlife crisis. On December 27, I turned 40 with the thought that I had reached middle-age and would have to limit my skiing.
In the past, while living in California, the family had gone skiing on my birthday. Now in Virginia, my nine-year-old son, Bill, said, “There aren’t any mountains. If you want to ski we’re going to have to go to Utah or Colorado.” There was only one thing to do, jump into the Mercedes and drive to Utah, where we all loved to ski.
Bill Emerson in his yellow ski suit on his 40th birthday
As a belated birthday surprise my wife provided me with a form-fitting yellow ski suit. My first day with the yellow suit was spent at Park City, enjoying a beautiful sunny day.
Thus began a tradition of skiing on special birthdays in my special yellow suit. Between those events, the yellow suit hung in the back of a closet.
It emerged next in 1984 for my 50th. My very grown up son and I headed to Snowbird to celebrate. The yellow birthday suit went with us.
After that trip, the suit moved again to the back of the closet. Its next adventure w
Bill skiing Park City on his 80th
as 25 years later. This time on my 75th.
In September 2014, approaching my 80th, I returned to the gym to work off a few pounds. I wasn’t going to celebrate on skis without the suit or my son. He was over 40, older than I was when I received the suit on my 40th.
We agreed to meet at Park City.
The cold day required wearing a newer and much warmer red jacket.
At one point I donned the yellow suit so Bill could snap a few shots of my yellow ski suit and me.
Commute, Rent, Or Buy?
The Best Way To Enjoy Your Ski Time.
Choose a small chalet…
While some snowsports enthusiasts are fortunate enough to live and work in ski country, most skiers and riders have to commute from their homes, often two, three or more hours from their favorite mountain. For the frequent skier—those who want to spend every weekend, plus vacation weeks on the slopes—their commute can become very tiresome.
This can be especially true for families with young kids. Parents, and grandparents, have to get the kids organized every morning to get in the car at an early hour so as to be at the slopes for the start of the day. If the kids are in some kind of racing program or weekend recreational class, hitting the road in a timely fashion becomes even more important. “Did you remember your gloves, goggles, hat”, even “your boots”, is sometimes heard as the car heads out the driveway.
…or a luxury, slope side condo. It all depends…
Credit: Steamboat Springs
Many families opt out of this weekly hassle by renting a house or condo near their favorite resort or perhaps in close proximity to several areas so they have a choice throughout the season. Ski gear and clothing can be left there, they can drive up on Friday evening, relax and be ready to go on Saturday morning without the stress of an early morning drive, and return after a day on the slopes for a relaxing evening.
What should you look for when renting a property in ski country?
Well, that depends a bit on your lifestyle and the resort where you want to spend your time. If very young grandchildren children are part of the mix, you might want to find something slope side or very close to the mountain so one family member can take a child home when he tires out. A ski in, ski out unit is best for this, but even a house or condo a mile or two from the area will let someone be delivered home easily without disrupting the entire family’s day.
Another thing to consider is what you like to do in the evening. If you’re content to return to your rental after the lifts close, have dinner in, watch tv or movies or play games, then you might look for something out of town in a quiet, country setting. But if you want entertainment, like to eat dinner out frequently, sample the nightlife, then perhaps a house in a town or around the base area (depending on the resort you choose) is a better option.
As far as the actual property goes, you need to again examine your lifestyle as well as your budget. How many bedrooms do you need? Will you or your children or grand children be bringing guests? Is one living space, whether large or cozy, where you can all be together preferable? Or would separate spaces for relaxation work better for the family? Do you prefer something upscale, in a condo community with amenities such as a spa, swimming pool, workout equipment? Or will a simple house work fine for your group?
Budget is an obvious important consideration. If you rent a single family house, in addition to the rent, you will likely be responsible for paying utilities including cable and wifi as well as plowing costs. Be sure to ask about the type of heat the house has and how efficient it is. Fuel costs over the course of a winter can sometimes come as a big, surprising shock, and you want to be prepared.
When searching for a seasonal rental property, it is a wise idea to use a real estate rental agent. These folks know the properties and, by asking a few questions, can often direct you to something you might not find on your own. They will have a handle on expenses for the winter, condition of the property and lots of tips on location relative to the mountain and other activities that may be of interest to you. There are plenty of ways to book lodging on line, but if you go this route be sure to use reputable web sites and ask a lot of questions.
Another option is purchasing a home in ski country, clearly a more complicated process which will be addressed in a future article.
A Wad of Tobacco, A Chairlift, And A Ford Maverick
A Long Forgotten Incident Comes Rushing Back.
Don Burch, circa, 1970, with the infamous Ford.
In the late 70s, I was working at a ski resort and poor as could be. When the Head Maintenance Engineer asked around for someone to pick up a part for one of the chairlifts, I quickly volunteered. He probably figured I knew what I was volunteering for and wouldn’t have done so without a pickup truck or some other appropriate vehicle.
It was after hours, and we needed the part in order to run the lift in the morning. The supplier agreed to stay open until I arrived.
As a twenty-one-year-old male, there may have been some other decisions I made without much forethought. In my mind, the part was a few bolts or something like that.
Though I was to drive 90 minutes in the dark on country roads, I had confidence in my mature Ford Maverick (Yes, the photo is of the car I used). It was starting to snow, but I knew my new retread snow tires were up to the task. Using the finest workmanship I could muster, I had recently jury-rigged an eight-track tape player under the dashboard so I knew the trip wouldn’t be totally devoid of entertainment.
When I arrived later than promised, the supplier was grumpy as hell. He spat a wad of tobacco into the snow, pointed to large gear laying against a fence post and grumbled, “How the hell are you gonna get that in there?”
Sliding the front passenger seat all the way back, it looked like the gear might just fit. With the grizzly old guy providing special lubricant in the form of sub-vocalized mutterings, we managed to get it in. The car listed unnervingly to starboard.
With no more words spoken, the receipt was tossed in the car, and the parking lot lights were off before I was out the driveway.
On the return trip, the crown of the road, under slippery conditions and tilt of the car, overcame my ability to keep the old Maverick on the road. Into the ditch I went.
To my great relief, a pickup truck pulled over just minutes after the mishap. With the sweet smell of liquor wafting from their breaths, two good Samaritans offered to pull me out. One attached a chain to their hitch, and the other hooked up somewhere under my car. I took a moment to look under the car, saw the hook on the steering rod and moved it to the frame.
I profusely thanked my new best friends, made it back to the mountain, the chairlift was operational by morning, and I had a windfall of $22.00 bonus.
Thanks to Harriet Wallis whose recent article entitled Lift Maintenance 101 sparked this long forgotten memory.
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