Tag Archive for: Alta Ski

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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Would you pay an additional $49+ not to wait in the lift line? Express lines have been available for years for members of exclusive clubs and for skiers accompanied by instructors. Now it will be available for a fee on a day-by-day basis at Snowbird (UT), Killington (VT), Copper Mountain (CO) and Mount Bachelor (OR), all areas owned by Utah-based Powdr Corp.

Years ago, friends at Snowbird with “black passes,” went to the head of the line on the Tram and other lifts as a benefit of membership in the resort’s pricey Seven Summits Club.

In the late 60s I skied Chamonix with an American photographer living there. Organized lift lines were nonexistent. He pushed his way to the front of the pack and slipped some francs to the lift attendant. It was uncomfortable to me, but perfectly normal to him.

Now that privilege will be accessible to anyone with spare change. Dedicated fast access lanes are being established at the most popular lifts at each of the participating resorts (Snowbird’s Tram, not included). Starting Nov 1, skiers can purchase the Fast Tracks add-on in advance or on-mountain. Fast Tracks — quantity to be capped daily –will be available to all skiers holding day passes, season passes or Ikon Passes.

Is this new level of premium pricing a natural evolution of how lift tickets are valued? I think so. A few years back, areas assigned different values to lift tickets based on how far in advance they were purchased, day of the week, holidays., etc. Some areas discount passes based on military service, student status and age. Remember when 60 year olds got free skiing? In the US, the age threshold has been steadily increasing. Now, generally, you need to be 75 or 80 to get a deal, if any exists.

Most resorts and the bundled pass offerings discount for early purchases. Their purveyors get to invest that capital any number of ways.

Who will make the add-on Fast Tracks purchase? Anyone with a cushy account planning a trip to the mountains. They paid for the flight, the lodge, lift tickets, etc. Why spend time on the hill waiting in line? That’s the market…and those to whom the added cost means nothing.

So much about skiing, like life in general, has changed, and those changes may grate on those who have been enjoying it for decades. If this works for Powdr Corp, it’s just a matter of time before paying the additional fee to get to the head of the line will be commonplace.

The Season Is Underway…

…at least in Finland where Levi and Ruka have opened with the benefit of recycling last season’s snow. The procedure, know as “snow farming” stores snow from the previous season in protective structures and redistributes it on trails once temps have dropped enough to keep it from melting. Here in the US, Copper Mountain (CO) fired up its guns last week to prepare for US Ski Team training staring October 22 and its general opening on November 22. And, as of this writing, resorts around the West have been dumped on. Alta has about 18.” Wolf Creek opens Saturday; Arapahoe Basin on Sunday. Winter is here!

Welcome Ski Idaho!

Ski Idaho, which promotes the state’s 17 ski areas, is our newest advertiser. The best known of the resorts is Sun Valley. Less frequented but with substantial vertical and snow are Grand Targhee (actually in Wyoming but a participant in the Ski Idaho initiative), Schweitzer, Tamarack, and Pebble Creek. Many private jets are parked at the airport in Hailey, the gateway to Sun Valley. Not so at the other areas. Any senior skier wanting to expand the list of areas skied or planning a reasonably priced family ski holiday is well-advised to look into Idaho. Its official nickname is “the gem state.” Precious minerals and stones aside, it is one gem of a place to explore and ski!

Snowboarder To Be Featured on $1 Coin

Source: US Treasury

Vermont will be represented in a series of new $1 coins issued by the U.S. Mint.The coin will feature an image of a snowboarder. The “American Innovation” series of $1 coins started in 2018 and will eventually include a coin for each state, the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories. Vermont’s coin, to be released in 2022, shows a snowboarder holding the edge of her board while doing a trick.

Full Tilt to be Retired

Source: Full Tilt Boots

The 3-piece  boot, particularly popular with many SeniorsSkiing.com readers, will be retired after this season. It is made and distributed under the K2 umbrella.

Man Completes London Marathon in Ski Boots

Credit: Guinness World Records

Paul Bennett ran the London Marathon in ski boots, as a fund-raiser supporting injured military personnel. His time: 5 hour, 30 minutes, 20 seconds. He was 7 seconds faster than the last ski boot marathon runner.

On this side of the pond, last week, 87 untramarathoners in Utah ran into a blizzard that dumped 12″ – 18″ on portions of the high-elevation, 5o mile course. Officials called off the race, and there were no injuries; a far different outcome from last May’s mountain race in China when 21 runners died from exposure.

New Aspen Logo

Old Aspen logo. Source: Aspen

New Aspen logo. Source: Aspen

 

 

The original aspen leaf design was introduced in 1946. Now, 75 years later, it has a cleaner, new look. The design’s last iteration was an aspen leaf with ski tracks forming the stem. The new version is an outline of an aspen leaf. More on how the resort will be celebrating its 75th in future issues.

 

Big Expansion for Sunday River

Sunday River to expand into Western Reserve. Source: Sunday River

Sunday River (ME) announced a major expansion that will get underway in 2022. This, as reported in The Storm Skiing Journal website. The terrain expansion will eventually double the size of the resort. Click here for resort’s explanation.

30% Discount on Ski Books

Use code SENIORSSKI when placing online orders for any of the 27 ski titles published by Arcadia Publishing. The offer is valid through November 7.

Air Access to Mammoth Mountain Increases

United Airlines is starting flights from L.A., San Francisco and Denver to Eastern Sierra Regional Airport in Bishop (CA), about 49 miles from Mammoth Mountain. Another service, Advanced Airlines, which bills itself as providing “public charter flights,” will provide flights to Mammoth Yosemite Airport from three Southern California airports (Burbank, Carlsbad and Hawthorne). It’s 12 miles from the resort.

This Ski Film Was Made 101 Years Ago!

Arnold Fanck, a German documentary filmmaker and pioneer of the mountain film genre, is credited with creating one of the first ski films. “The Wonder of Skis” (Das Wunder des Schneeschuhs) was issued in 1920…101 years ago! It shows skiers in a variety of alpine beauty spots, executing surprisingly beautiful turns. Length of this segment: 30 minutes. Click on image to screen.

 

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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I don’t know how it happened, but between last season and this one I lost my custom foot beds. They were made about 15 years ago when I purchased my first Surefoot customized boots and, like the boots, they were pricey. Those beds stayed with me over the course of three or four subsequent boots. Then they were gone.   

Foot beds can improve ski performance by stabilizing the feet in a way that helps maximize the ski boot’s primary role: transferring energy from body to skis. That, admittedly, is a gross oversimplification. There are master boot fitters with medical-grade knowledge of foot anatomy, especially as it relates to skiing. I plan to solicit an article or two from one of these experts about the intricacies of creating an effective foot bed.

Brannock Device

But this week I needed new foot beds and visited the Dale Boot store in Salt Lake City to have them made. The whole process took about 20 minutes. The fitter started by measuring my feet with an old-fashioned Brannock, the same device that fascinated me as a kid in my grandfather’s shoe store in Schenectady, NY.  Next, I placed my feet in a Masterfit machine that took an impression of the contours of my foot soles. He then placed Masterfit foot beds in the machine where they took on the shape of the bottoms of my feet. That was followed by cooling the beds with cold packs and trimming some excess material before placing them in the boots. 

Patrick, the boot fitter, clearly knows his stuff and approaches his job with the same quiet pride I’ve noticed among other boot fitters. Boot fitting is a craft in which many of its practitioners appropriately treat it as a profession. He attends educational workshops including Masterfit University and related courses. He mentioned the pleasure he gets sharing war stories about helping all kinds of people with and without foot problems to get the most out of their boots.

Quality ski and boot shops provide boot fitting as a service built into the boot’s cost.  Getting foot beds customized (typically a $100 – $200 add-on) or purchasing boots with the help of a professional boot fitter is clearly a smart step to greater comfort and performance. A resource for well-trained boot fitters is America’s Best Bootfitters.com.

A few months ago, Jackson Hogen of RealSkiers.com, suggested rewarding the work of these pros with a gratuity. Given the critical service provided by fitters like Patrick, I could not agree more. 

Fire Claims Aussie Ski Resort; Others Threatened

Australia’s devastating fires destroyed Selwyn Snow Resort, the country’s most northerly ski area. The New South Wales resort employed 60 during the season.  Falls Creek and Mt. Hotham  in Victoria are being evacuated. 

Bait and Switch at Northstar?

Two older skiers are suing Vail Resorts for breach of contract and fraud. The essence of their complaint is that Vail, which owns, Northstar Resort (CA), sold non-refundable season passes before announcing a parking fee. According to the claimants, the cost of parking will add thousands of dollars to their cost of skiing at Northstar. Each is seeking free parking and $200,000+ in damages.

Good News For Taos Skiers

Taos Air is now servicing the Carlsbad-San Diego and Hawthorne-Los Angeles airports, starting at $125, one way. The service is available Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays, and holiday Mondays through March 29. The airline started last season with daily direct flights to Taos from Dallas Love Field and Austin-Bergstrom International. The airstrip is 30 minutes from Taos Ski Valley.

Tree Well Safety

Courtesy Ski California

Suffocating in deep snow is a concern for many Western skiers. Evergreen branches capture snow, cusing deep pits to form around the tree’s base. Skiers falling into these “tree wells” are subject to breathing in powder snow. The problem is exacerbated by landing head-down or injury. It’s extremely difficult to get out, even with help from others. I had the experience years ago catskiing in the Canadian Selkirks. Fortunately, the well wasn’t too deep and the person I was with got me out quickly. Fifteen tree well deaths have occurred in California since 2001, the most in the nation. Tree well safety advice is available from Ski California, the state’s ski area trade group. Click here for more.

Winter PrideFest Jan 30 – Feb 2

Winter PrideFest, the multi-event weekend celebrating diversity and inclusivity of the LGBTQ+ community and its allies, will hold its third annual gathering January 30 – February 2 in Bend, OR and Mt. Bachelor. Activities include  skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, ice skating, panel discussions, and evening social functions. For information or to register, click here.

Senior Deals at Belleayre

Belleayre, the venerable Catskills ski area north of New York City has great deals for senior skiers during the second week of January, February and March. Skiers and boarders who are 65 or older get a lift ticket for $10, when they go with anyone with a paid lift ticket, and they can purchase coffee for $1 and breakfast sandwiches for $2.

Happy 80th Harriet!

Harriet Wallis, a prolific contributor to this publication, celebrated her 80th birthday at Alta earlier this week. What a silly helmet cover!!!

Alta Old Timer Celebrated in New Video

Lloyd Johnson moved to Utah for work in 1973, having never skied before. One Sunday, after an Alta church service, a friend convinced him to give skiing a shot. Now, at age 87 and almost five decades later, Lloyd is still making beautiful tele-turns at Alta,  His kids and grandkids follow his tracks. This short video tells his story, one that reflects the lives and loves of many dedicated skiers.

 

Harriet Wallis

SnowSports Leader: Alan K. Engen

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When Alan Engen was born, Dr. Wherritt put wooden tongue depressors—like miniature skis—on the bottom of his little feet and handed the newborn to his legendary father, Alf Engen.

“I think I can safely say that I came pretty close to being born on skis,” says Alan. He learned to ski when he was two.

Thus began a lifetime of ski achievements. He competed at nine, earned a place on the United States Ski Team in the 1960s, and won the United States Ski Association Intermountain Masters Alpine title six times. He served Alta for 50 years as an instructor, the ski school director, and then the Director of Skiing.

Alf Engen and Alan Engen jumping at Alta, circa 1949.

Alan and Alf—both world class ski jumpers —put on jumping exhibitions to demonstrate “Summer Snow,” a cornstarch-like substance. Father and son schlepped the product to the Los Angeles Fair Grounds for exhibitions on a 130 foot jump. In the grand finale the twosome jumped through a flaming hoop. After the demo, they shoveled the “snow” into gunny sacks and hauled it away.

Alan has dedicated more than six decades to skiing (click here to watch a video about Alan’s career) and is a member of the U.S. National Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame. The Engens are the only family to have four Hall of Fame members: his father, Alf; two uncles, Sverre and Corey; and Alan.

Importantly for the entire skiing community, Alan is an accomplished scholar, author, and historian. His dream to showcase hundreds of Alf’s ski trophies and memorabilia in a small museum grew instead into the $10.5 million Alf Engen Ski Museum at Olympic Park in Park City, Utah. It was funded entirely by private donations (including Utah’s famed Quinney and Eccles families).

Alan with wife, Barbara.

Alan also is an active contributor to SeniorsSkiing.com where he serves on the online publication’s Advisory Council.

His advice to senior skiers: Use new boots, bindings and skis because the technology will help you enjoy skiing more.

This article is adapted from the original which first appeared in SkiUtah.com.