Tag Archive for: senior skier

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: More Ski Jumping

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[Editor Note: As the new year begins, SeniorsSkiing.com is again asking our readers to contribute to support our online magazine. Yes, we have grown in the number of subscribers and advertisers. But our expenses have also grown. You can help us defray some of these expenses by helping us out with a donation.  This year, we have a mix of premiums for different level of donations, including stickers, sew-on patches, our new SeniorsSkiing.com ball cap. All donors will be entered into a drawing for a pair of bamboo Polar Poles to be drawn in late March.  You can donate by clicking here.]

While We’re On Ski Jumping…

Two jumpers? Looks like a long time ago.

Last week, a few readers who know their ski history, nailed the Mystery Glimpse Big Jump as the Big Nansen Jump in Berlin, NH (see below).  Let’s see if anyone can identify what is happening here and where. Hint: Not New Hampshire.

Last Week

The Big Jump is Big Nansen, the venerable jump in Berlin, NH. Some highly knowledgeable SeniorsSkiing.com commentators got the facts exactly right. Built circa late-1930s, Big Nansen dominated US ski jumping for many decades. Here is an excerpt about the jump published in the Journal of the New England Ski Museum (Winter, 2018):.

“Built on steep trusses and towering 171 feet high, the Nansen jump was at the time the largest ski jumping tower in the world. In 1938, the jump’s inaugural winter, the Nansen hosted the Olympic trials. Over the next several decades, it would be the site of the myriad jumping competitions, from Winter Carnival events to four U.S. Ski Jumping National Championships in 1940, 1957,1965, and 1972 before falling into relative obscurity.”

The last competition was held there in 1985. A severe accident to a college-age ski jumper in 1977 had brought a lawsuit to the US Ski Association, the Nansen Ski Club, and others that added to the jump’s decline. However, in recent years, the Friends of Nansen Ski Jump was formed to revive the jump and the sport in Berlin. Red Bull, the energy drink folks, happened to be working on a documentary about US Ski Team Jumper Sarah Hendrickson, and became interested in restoring the jump. In 2017, Hendrickson took off from Big Nansen, the first jump from the structure since 1985.  She went on to compete in the Pyeongchang Olympic games.

The Friends Of Nansen are planning to use the site as a training ground for young jumpers.

SeniorsSkiing.com highly recommends exploring The New England Ski Museum and its well-researched Journal. The Museum has two locations in New Hampshire, one at the base of Cannon Mountain’s gondola in Franconia  Notch, and a newly opened Eastern Slope Branch in North Conway. For more information, consider visiting online and in person. 

Sarah Hendrickson’s jump from a restored Big Nansen in 2017. Credit: Red Bull

Marc Liebman

Coping With Flat Light

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[Editor Note: As the new year begins, SeniorsSkiing.com is again asking our readers to contribute to support our online magazine. Yes, we have grown in the number of subscribers and advertisers. But our expenses have also grown. You can help us defray some of these expenses by helping us out with a donation.  This year, we have a mix of premiums for different level of donations, including stickers, sew-on patches, our new SeniorsSkiing.com ball cap. All donors will be entered into a drawing for a pair of bamboo Polar Poles to be drawn in late March.  You can donate by clicking here.]

Ski In It If You Must. If You Must, Here’s Some Advice.

Go slow and watch the snow. Credit: MechanicsOfSport

If you’re like me, skiing in flat light isn’t fun, but it beats not skiing. It is as if one is skiing inside of a milk bottle. Like different types of snow conditions, we’ve all had to deal with it.

For the record, flat light occurs when there’s no contrast, and one can’t see shadow and/or gradients of light that define shadows. On a mountain, flat light occurs when it is snowing, or under a thick overcast or when you are skiing in the clouds and sunlight can’t reach the trail on which you are skiing. In other words, there’s little or no contrast, and you’re eyes can’t see the “texture” of the snow surface.

Flat light affects everyone differently and us older folks are more affected than young whipper-snappers. You can’t change the weather that leaves three choices:  Ski only when the sun is out; ski wearing goggles that improve contrast; and/or alter the way you ski.

Not skiing is, at least to me, not an option so let’s move to goggle technology. The buzzword is visible light transmission or VLT. Lighter tints of amber, yellow, rose, green, gold colored lenses transmit more light than the same level greens, copper, browns and gray tints. Flat light varies from on one slope from another and day to day. Sp, if you need goggles to manage flat light, wait until you get to the ski area and step outside to see what shade lens works best.

To see “better” in flat light, years ago, I tried yellow and other colored lenses which helped but….still not great. Frustrated, I tried a pair of yellow Ray-Ban shooting glasses that were better than goggles with yellow lenses. On my last trip, I wore polarized sunglasses with the brown Serengeti tint. They were better than yellow lenses, but not practical when it was snowing.

Goggle makers such as Oakley, Smith, Scott, Giro all have products they claim help you see better in flat light. Be prepared to spend big bucks, i.e. $200+ for a pair. How well they work depends on the ambient/flat light, lens color, tint of your glasses or contacts, the health of your eyes, and other variables.

There is something that works and doesn’t cost a dime. It is how you ski the mountain. Here are four tips that will improve your flat light ski experience.

  • Tip 1: Ski near the trees, snowmaking guns and lift towers along the side of the trail. They provide contrast, faint shadows, and reference points.
  • Tip 2: Avoid skiing bowls, wide-open areas, and trails because in flat light, the subtle differences in “height” needed to create shadows doesn’t exist.
  • Tip 3: Slow down, give yourself more time to react to moguls, surprises in the terrain, and avoid obstacles.
  • Tip 4: Wear bright or ‘dayglo’ colors. You want other skiers to see you.

Best advice for flat light is be careful and ski within your limits so you can enjoy the skiing. If you’re uncomfortable or tense, find a trail that works for you and stick with it.

Decide for yourself if this is for you. Credit: MechanicsOfSport

 

 

seniorsskiing

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (Feb. 15)

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Gratitude!, Snow Floods And Deserts, Big Jump, George at 101, Folk Tale, Steamboat Guide, You Never Know.

The response to our appeal for financial support to help defray expenses at SeniorsSkiing.com has been extremely gratifying. We are humbled by the donations we’ve received, and thank each contributor most heartily. If you haven’t yet considered making a donation (and getting a premium gift), please click here and check out your options.. If you have made a donation, we will be mailing your premiums in a couple of weeks. We had to order more hats, patches, and stickers!

Get a SeniorsSkiing.com cap for $50 donation

Here we are in mid-winter, Ground Hog’s Day is behind us, and we are looking at enormous snow “floods” in the Northwest and the Sierra. Mammoth Mountain will be open until July 4th, working on its base of 446 inches, the deepest snowpack in the country.

And there are deep, deep snows in Colorado. Here’s where we are as of Feb. 12. Not as crazy deep as California, but still an abundant year for the Rockies.

Credit: Joe Durzo

Meanwhile, New England is doing okay, snow-wise, up country. New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, experiencing varying days of cold, warm, rain, snow. Hey’s it’s New England.

But Boston? It’s a snow desert. Where’s the snow this year? There’s a record lack of snowfall in the metro area. Why is this important? People correlate the amount of snow on their lawns with the snow depth at local ski areas. Not logical, but there you go. And, there has simply been no cross-country skiing in the Boston area. None, zero, nada, zilch, zip. Not happy about that. In fact, with 4.7 inches on the books for the 2018-19 season, the view here is that our urban snow scene is “Downright Lame.”

Boston gets mild, not snow. What’s up? Credit: WBZ-TV

So, what about the Midwest. Cold from the Polar Vortex seems to have lifted. Winter Storm Maya gave a moderate dump on the middle section of the country before brushing New England, but certainly not monstrous.

In any case, Boston is feeling a bit bruised, ego-wise, with this year’s snow snub. However, we do remember it is only February. Recall March, 2018 with its four major storms leaving three feet of snow and hundreds of trees down and power out for thousands. Stay tuned.

This Week

We have another interesting Ask The Expert question from a reader: What does it take to get up from a fall and what exercises can facilitate that move?

Our Mystery Glimpse involves identifying a ski jump that is…stupendously big. Last week’s historic rope tow was in Maine, not New Hampshire, at a ski area long gone. Find out where and what here.

Correspondent Pat McCloskey offers an ironic recounting of the kind of folks you can run into in the world of snow sports. Humbling.

Harriet Wallis captures one of the greatest senior skiers, George Jedenoff, who celebrated his 101st birthday at Alta. On skis. His attitude is indeed an inspiration to us all. Read his secret to keeping going here.

Co-Publisher Jon Weisberg visited Steamboat for the first time a couple of weeks ago. Here’s his Resort Review of that famous ski area and town.

And finally, Ted Levy, a reader who spends his winters and summers in Park City, tells us the tale of a lesson learned from a Finnish folk tale and how it helped he and his wife solve a cross-country skiing dilemma.

Thanks for reading SeniorsSkiing.com. Tell your friends and remember, there are more of us every day, and we aren’t going away.

 

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: Jumpin’ Big

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[Editor Note: As the new year begins, SeniorsSkiing.com is again asking our readers to contribute to support our online magazine. Yes, we have grown in the number of subscribers and advertisers. But our expenses have also grown. You can help us defray some of these expenses by helping us out with a donation.  This year, we have a mix of premiums for different level of donations, including stickers, sew-on patches, our new SeniorsSkiing.com ball cap. All donors will be entered into a drawing for a pair of bamboo Polar Poles to be drawn in late March.  You can donate by clicking here.]

Hint: It’s Functional Again!

Wow. That’s a ski jump. A BIG jump. Know where? Significance? How about what folks called it? Thanks to the New England Ski Museum for this picture.

Credit: Dick Smith, New England Ski Museum

Last Week

Grab that twirling rope! Credit: Ski Museum of Maine

Nice guesses out there. However, the photo shows the very first rope tow in Maine. According to the Ski Museum of Maine which contributed this pic, this is Jockey Cap in Fryeburg circa 1936. Back then, ten young business men in Fryeburg got together and formed a corporation, with each member putting in $25.00. So at a cost of $250.00, plus contributions of considerable labor from the corporation members and many of the townsmen, the Ski Tow, under the direction of Henry McIntire, was built. It is said to the the first actual ski hill in Maine.

In those days, the ski train was often the only way to get from Portland to Fryeburg. Here’s an ad for a day trip on the train for $.98. And you can rent your gear on the train. The train continued over the state line to North Conway as well. Sounds like a long day, but what fun it must have been on the ride up and back.

The focus of the Ski Museum of Maine is to educate the public about the significant role the State of Maine has had in the development of skiing.

Pat McCloskey

You Never Know…

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[Editor Note: As the new year begins, SeniorsSkiing.com is again asking our readers to contribute to support our online magazine. Yes, we have grown in the number of subscribers and advertisers. But our expenses have also grown. You can help us defray some of these expenses by helping us out with a donation.  This year, we have a mix of premiums for different level of donations, including stickers, sew-on patches, our new SeniorsSkiing.com ball cap. All donors will be entered into a drawing for a pair of bamboo Polar Poles to be drawn in late March.  You can donate by clicking here.]

The People You Meet.

I was admiring my handiwork the other day adorning my Yeti water cooler with ski stickers collected from a couple of areas that I frequent.  In my lifetime, I have skied in a lot of different areas with the majority being in the New England area around the time I was preparing for my PSIA Certification Exam many years ago. I met a lot of characters in those days.  PSIA Examiners, coaches, and people like Toni Matt who recounted his famous Inferno Run down the Headwall of Tuckerman Ravine for the New England Ski Hall of Fame. The recording was collected at a PSIA event and dinner and I was fortunate enough to have a chat with the old master himself. In 57 years of skiing, I have been to areas in Canada, Europe and all over North America.  Not boasting – just accompanying the humbling tale I am about to unfold. 

Feeling pretty proud a couple of years ago with all of this, I ran into an older gentleman in the ski lodge at Seven Springs Mountain Resort.  We started chatting casually, and he introduced himself as Ogden Nutting.  The bell immediately went off in my head and I recognized the name as the patriarch of the local newspaper conglomeration The Ogden Newspapers. 

Turns out that ONI, as it is currently known, is the 10th largest newspaper communication entity in the country.  Aside from the ownership of the newspaper giant, Mr. Nutting and his son Bob are the owners of the Pittsburgh Pirates Baseball Club and Seven Springs Mountain Resort which is where I grew up skiing.  He asked if I skied Seven Springs frequently .  I said outside of a stint as a ski instructor in Maine in 1977, I have been a regular at the Springs since 1961.  He was happy and asked if I had skied anywhere else.  I proudly puffed my chest and said, “Well Mr. Nutting , I am proud to say that I have skied in 109 different areas in my lifetime.”  He looked at me with the eyes of a true enthusiast and quickly remarked that he had skied in over 500 different locations in his lifetime, all over the world.  Feeling like an icepick was being shoved into my already inflated chest, I said, “Wow Mr Nutting. That is truly impressive,” to which he replied, “Sonny—you have a long way to go.”  I will never catch that record.  No way no how. 

The point is you never know who you are talking to.  Kind of like when my friend Jan Palmer showed up at a local masters race and asked if he could forerun.  He was interning at WVU Hospital and wanted to have a go at a USSA GS Race in the area.  All the kids in the start area kind of snickered when Jan entered the starting gate with jeans, an old pair of Rossi Stratos, and old Lange Comp boots with the yellow cuffs.  There they were with all their capes and two pair of skis. Old Jan just blistered the course and blew everyone away.  Their eyes widened when they saw the time, and they all asked who that was.  I said, “Never judge a book by its cover, boys and girls.”  You never know who you are speaking to or skiing with.  You see, Jan was on the US Ski Team at one time with Billy Kidd as a 16 year old downhiller.  The fastest guy in the country at the time and gave it all up for medical school.

Humility was the lesson for me in the ski lodge that day with the venerable Mr. Nutting.  And the race kids on the hill that day got schooled by an old pro and a large slice of humble pie was served after Jan rocketed out of the starting gate. 

seniorsskiing

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (Feb.8)

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Mellow Sundance, Tow Line, Backstage World Championships, Bike In Winter, Ask The Expert.

[Editor Note: As the new year begins, SeniorsSkiing.com is again asking our readers to contribute to support our online magazine. Yes, we have grown in the number of subscribers and advertisers. But our expenses have also grown. You can help us defray some of these expenses by helping us out with a donation.  This year, we have a mix of premiums for different level of donations, including stickers, sew-on patches, our new SeniorsSkiing.com ball cap. All donors will be entered into a drawing for a pair of bamboo Polar Poles to be drawn in late March.  You can donate by clicking here.]

Why Senior Snowsport Enthusiasts Should Practice Yoga.

The NFL has embraced yoga to make muscles and joints supple and flexible. So should you.  Credit: Equinox

Preface: We are not medical experts, health care professionals, or physical therapists. We have, however, been practicing yoga for the past three years. Twice a week for most weeks. So, we can report what the impact has been on our body and our ability to feel athletic outdoors in winter, whether skiing down a hill or cross-country skiing across a field.

As we age, it is essential to keep our muscles and joints toned up. Basically, it’s a use-it-or-lose-it scenario. Working out with light weights on a consistent basis can keep sarcopenia—the weakening of muscles as you age—at bay. If you aren’t aware of sarcopenia’s effect on senior muscles, you aren’t alone. Click here for our discussion of what sacropenia is and what you can do about it.

But there is another important aspect of conditioning that seniors need to pay attention to: Flexibility. That’s where yoga comes in. Tense, contracted muscles, ligaments and tendons inhibit motion, cause pain, and can lead to pulls and sprains.  Those querulous hip flexors and lower back muscles can wreck your day (or week) or even cause you to give up outdoor activities.

Think of yoga as a sophisticated and comprehensive process of stretching and moving muscles and joints throughout your body.  Add a focus on breathing which helps concentration and facilitates movement as well as the discipline of sustained, varied, and regular practice, and you have a means of transforming your body. We’ve found our posture is improved, we find suppleness when we ski, we can get our boots on without gasping, and we’re more in touch with our physical being, aware of how we stand, sit, and move. 

So, we recommend our readers find a good instructor and head to yoga practice.  There are online apps like DownDog. which can get you started.  However, an instructor can give you nuanced cues on how to correctly do the different poses and provide variations that will allow you to get the best of what you can do. Positioning your body properly makes a huge difference, something that is often not specific in online instruction.  There are also different types of yoga to choose from. We think you should start with an “easy” or “basic” class. This level of yoga will not have you contorting into pretzel shapes or standing on your head. Instead, you will be systematically working throughout your physical landscape. When you feel those tight shoulders, hamstrings, or hips lose their tension, and the stress disappear from your neck, you will feel positively different.

If you currently practice yoga, let us know what your advice is for neophytes. 

This Week

Last week’s Mystery Glimpse is revealed.  We are amazed some readers actually identified a ritual snow dance performed by members of the Ute tribe at Vail’s inaugural season back in 1962. BTW, it worked. Pete Seibert had it right.

Correspondent Harriet Wallis offers two articles: A resort review of a very mellow-sounding Sundance resort and a backstage look at what goes on in a world championship competition.

And, if you live in that part of the world were snow is scarce, you can still head out to the hills on your mountain bike. Correspondent Pat McCloskey shows how to ride your bike in the winter, what it takes, and offers suggests for different required equipment.

Check out our new Ask The Expert feature, too.  This week, Steve Cohen of MasterFit offers advice to a reader on how to get a decent pair of ski boots.

Thanks for reading SeniorsSkiing.com. Please consider sending in a contribution to support our online magazine.

Tell your friends about us and remember, there are more of us every day, and we aren’t going away.

Sundance Timpanogos. Credit: Harriet Wallis

mikemaginn

Mystery Glimpse: Tow Line

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[Editor Note: As the new year begins, SeniorsSkiing.com is again asking our readers to contribute to support our online magazine. Yes, we have grown in the number of subscribers and advertisers. But our expenses have also grown. You can help us defray some of these expenses by helping us out with a donation.  This year, we have a mix of premiums for different level of donations, including stickers, sew-on patches, our new SeniorsSkiing.com ball cap. All donors will be entered into a drawing for a pair of bamboo Polar Poles to be drawn in late March.  You can donate by clicking here.]

A First But Where?

This one might be a bigger challenge than normal. Hint: New England. Where is this? What is the significance of this lift?

Last Week

Snow dance prayer ceremony at Vail’s inaugural season, 1962. Credit: Colorado Snowsports Museum

In December 1962, Vail co-founder Pete Seibert was worried about the snowfall for the resort’s inaugural ski season. Long before settlers came to the Gore Creek Valley, Southern Ute Indians inhabited the area as a summer home. Because Pete knew this, he reached out to the area’s oldest known residents for help and invited members of the tribe to perform a snow dance prayer to bring snow. Eddie Box Jr. and Sr. were present at the 1962 ceremony. Eddie Box Jr. and his wife Betty performed such ceremonies since the 1962 event, one being in 2012. Wouldn’t you know, both years saw a lot of snow.

And thanks again to the Colorado Snowsports Museum for this amazing, historic photograph.

Harriet Wallis

World Championships 101

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[Editor Note: As the new year begins, SeniorsSkiing.com is again asking our readers to contribute to support our online magazine. Yes, we have grown in the number of subscribers and advertisers. But our expenses have also grown. You can help us defray some of these expenses by helping us out with a donation.  This year, we have a mix of premiums for different level of donations, including stickers, sew-on patches, our new SeniorsSkiing.com ball cap. All donors will be entered into a drawing for a pair of bamboo Polar Poles to be drawn in late March.  You can donate by clicking here.]

Here’s An Inside Look At What Goes On Behind The Scenes.

This championship course is watchable from Solitude’s base area. Credit: Harriet Wallis

When I covered my first World Cup ski race many years ago, I was really naive. I thought the winner would be awarded a huge silver trophy. I was disappointed to learn that racers earn points. No trophy.

But my race stupidity gave me an idea that I’ve pursued ever since. Maybe readers would enjoy an inside look at what goes on around a major race venue. Not just the champions. Not just results. Other stuff. Here we go.

Background Facts

For 10 days in early February, 1,400 elite amateur athletes from 40 countries come to Utah to compete in the World Snowboard and Freeski World Championships at three Utah resorts: Deer Valley Resort, Park City Mountain, and Solitude Mountain Resort.

Practice Day At Solitude

Skicross and snowboardcross take place at Solitude where a special rolly-poly course was built for the competition. As explanation, four athletes start at the same time and race for the finish. It’s similar to the Kentucky Derby where all horses start at the same time. Good luck getting in front.

I was at the snowboardcross training day at Solitude. All racers could take run after run to get used to the course. There was no timing. There was no winner. It was a day for individual practice.

Walk Right Up To The Course

While the words “World Championship” sounds lofty, most courses are usually super spectator friendly. I walked right up to the course, and race spectators can also. It’s like being on the 50 yard line for the Super Bowl. 

A ski patroller watches the course just in case. Credit: Harriet Wallis

Snowboarders careened down the course, jumped the rollers, and headed for the finish. Repeat, repeat, repeat. I got bored, so I moved along to take other photos.

With her little mittens flying, #8 gives the victory sign as she heads back to the lift for another practice run. I don’t know who she is or from what country, but she’s happy. Credit: Harriet Wallis

Inside The Press Room

Off to the press room to get out of the blazing sun. The press room is the sanctuary for writers and photographers from around the world. They munch on snacks, tap away on laptops, and jabber into their phones in foreign languages.

Then there’s a press conference.

International camera people jockey for position before the press conference. Credit: Harriet Wallis
2018 Olympic champion Michaela Moioli of Italy and U.S. snowboarder Anna Miller at the press conference. Credit: Harriet Wallis

These are the faces of BoarderCross athletes — 2018 Olympic champion Michaela Moioli of Italy and U.S. snowboarder Anna Miller. They tell the press conference what it’s like out there on the course.  Moioli likes the straight stretches where she can pick up speed. And Miller says she’s “ready to get the job done.” Women to watch.

Going Back Into My Files. Meet An Athlete

Several years ago, I happened to ski at Deer Valley on a similar World Championship training day. I stopped to watch athletes launch themselves off the “kicker” to soar, flip and spin then hope to land right side up. Their athleticism was amazing. But I’m not heavy-duty into aerials, so I went for lunch.

There was a guy gobbling down a big bowl of Deer Valley’s signature turkey chili. He was wearing a race ID, so I asked if he was an athlete. He introduced himself as Jon Lillis. He was fueling up before going back onto the aerial course to flip and spin upside down. Holy cow! Right after lunch!

Now, at Solitude, I bumped into Jon Lillis (Rochester, N.Y.) again. He is the reigning aerial World Champion. He’s a force to watch.

Jon Lillis fueled up with a bowl of chili before practicing more upside down spins and flips. Credit: Harriet Wallis

Watch At Home

With 10 days of world class competition, tune-in and watch as history is made. NBC Sports will showcase more than 25 hours of 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championship programming, including more than 10 hours of live coverage, on NBC and the NBC Sports networks.

Additional coverage will also be available on NBC Sports Gold – NBC Sports’ direct-to-consumer live streaming product – and the OlympicChannel.com digital platform. A full broadcast schedule will be available on both USSkiandSnowboard.org and 2019WorldChamps.com.

To read more from Harriet click here for her stories on SkiUtah.

seniorsskiing

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (Feb. 1)

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Ask An Expert, Mystery Incantation, Robert Frost, 70s Ski Test Reality, Glen Plake Tour.

White Mountains, Franconia Notch. Artist unknown

Last week, we pointed out that of three competitive New Hampshire ski resorts along I-93, two offered low day lift ticket prices for seniors and one didn’t. To review, both Waterville Valley and Bretton Woods offered $29 and/or $32, depending on when you buy and if online or at the window. The third resort, the venerable Loon Mountain, offered $75-$79 online for a senior (65-79), one day ticket for mid-week end of January.

We asked Loon to clarify the senior ticket pricing policy. Here’s Loon’s point of view from Greg Kwasnik, the resort’s media contact:

“We believe our resort window ticket pricing accurately reflects the quality of the product we offer. We encourage seniors – and all skiers and riders – to purchase lift tickets online (http://loonmtn.com/lift-tickets). By purchasing lift tickets online, seniors can get significant savings.

Perhaps our best deal for seniors (ages 65-79) is the Loon Midweek Senior Pass, for $369, valid Monday-Friday at Loon. (http://loonmtn.com/season-passes/midweek-senior-pass)

Another great way for seniors to save is the Fly32 Card (http://loonmtn.com/lift-tickets/fly32). For $129, cardholders get one lift ticket, and they can use the card to save up to 20% on already-discounted online lift tickets every time they purchase through our website (http://loonmtn.com/lift-tickets). The card essentially doubles the discount you would already receive by purchasing tickets online. The card also provides exclusive access to a number of bonus discount days throughout the winter for even larger discounts.”

A couple of thoughts: 1) Passes do provide discounts, but not everyone wants to buy a pass, especially if you like to ski at different resorts in a geographical area like the I-93 corridor. 2) Finding this discount information requires diligently sorting through the resort’s website. 3) Even with the discounts described above, Loon’s net day ticket price with discounts is still at least twice the competitors.

So, if you’re a vagabond senior skier who likes to try different resorts in a kind of a la carte mid-week safari, you have some choices. If you’re willing to pay the extra freight for one or two days at a classic resort, go for it. If you are being cautious about expenses, there are other just as classic resorts to accommodate you. Just be aware of the differences and choices you have.

This Week

Our Mystery Glimpse photo this week again comes from the Colorado Snowsports Museum. It looks like there is some kind of ceremony about to take place on a mountain top involving Native Americans. What’s up? When? Why? Last week’s spectacular photograph of an abstract Alpine landscape comes from Ray Atkeson’s remarkable collection of the western mountains. Find out where it was taken.

We lost Robert Front 56 years ago on January 29. To remember him, we’re publishing his poem, “An Old Man’s Winter Night,” perhaps appropriate for these very frosty times, especially for those involved in this week’s Polar Vortex.

Correspondent Marc Liebman’s 70s ski testing series wraps up this week with a description of the political fall out from ski manufacturers, marketeers, and ad sales people when data-driven ski recommendations hit the pages of SKI magazine. Pressure from advertisers was a factor that revealed a flaw in the specialty magazine business model: Dependency on ads for survival. What did SKI do?

We are reprinting an article from friend and colleague, The Ski Diva, who reports on free-styler and ski celeb Glen Plake’s tour of mid- and small-ski resorts. Glen is bringing attention to Mom and Pop resorts around the country, resorts that offer perfect places for families and seniors to have winter fun but are disappearing at a relentless rate. We salute Glen’s novel tour and his flashing a light on what we think is the archetypical resorts that seniors love.

We are starting a new feature in this week’s edition: Ask The Expert. We get lots of questions about technique, gear, location, and general advice about skiing with others. So, we’re going to try to provide a forum for those questions and have some of the experts in SeniorsSkiing.com network answer them. Ask away.

Thanks for reading SeniorsSkiing.com.  Remember there are more of us every day, and we aren’t going away.

 

seniorsskiing

Snow In Literature: An Old Man’s Winter Night

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By Robert Frost

Credit: Brittenovallis.com

All out of doors looked darkly in at him
Through the thin frost, almost in separate stars,
That gathers on the pane in empty rooms.
What kept his eyes from giving back the gaze
Was the lamp tilted near them in his hand.
What kept him from remembering what it was
That brought him to that creaking room was age.
He stood with barrels round him—at a loss.
And having scared the cellar under him
In clomping there, he scared it once again
In clomping off;—and scared the outer night,
Which has its sounds, familiar, like the roar
Of trees and crack of branches, common things,
But nothing so like beating on a box.
A light he was to no one but himself
Where now he sat, concerned with he knew what,
A quiet light, and then not even that.
He consigned to the moon,—such as she was,
So late-arising,—to the broken moon
As better than the sun in any case
For such a charge, his snow upon the roof,
His icicles along the wall to keep;
And slept. The log that shifted with a jolt
Once in the stove, disturbed him and he shifted,
And eased his heavy breathing, but still slept.
One aged man—one man—can’t fill a house,
A farm, a countryside, or if he can,
It’s thus he does it of a winter night.

Wendy Clinch

From The Ski Diva: Why Glen Plake’s Down Home Tour Matters

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[Editor Note: Friend and Colleague, The Ski Diva publishes a terrific, award-winning site for women skiers, snowboarders, and snow sports enthusiasts. With her permission, we are reprinting this week’s edition about extreme skier, freestylist, and US Ski Hall of Fame member Glen Plake’s country-wide tour to small- and medium-size ski resorts, the little family and senior friendly areas that we love. Here’s her story.]

Last week I ran into Glen Plake. Yes, that Glen Plake. I was at Pico (VT) for the on-snow Industry Demo Days, where people in the ski industry get to try next year’s goods. (Yes, it’s a lot of fun). So I’m sitting in the lodge getting ready to remove my boots, and I look up…..and there he is, star of the iconic Blizzard of Ahhhh’s and US National Ski Hall of Famer, Glen Plake. Glen is an Ambassador for Elan Skis, so undoubtedly, that’s why he was there. But there’s another reason, too: Glen’s on his Down Home Tour, and Pico must have seemed like a good place to stop.

What’s the Down Home Tour? Basically, it’s Glen and his wife, Kimberly, hitting the road in a custom RV and stopping wherever they feel like skiing. Mostly these are off-the-radar ski areas, with a few larger ones thrown in. But their main mission is to draw attention to the smaller places out there. Because while all of us know about Vail and Aspen and Breckenridge, we don’t all know about Hermon Mountain. Or Black Mountain. Or Titcomb. And yes, even though these are small, they’re very, very important (more about that in a minute).

I’ve been following Glen on Instagram since the start of his tour. I’ve seen pictures of him skiing at places like Camden Snow Bowl in Maine, where it looks like you’re actually skiing into the sea; Northeast Slopes, a community area served by the oldest continuously running rope tow in the US; and yes, even Pico, where I bumped into him in the lodge.

Me with you guessed it.

Which was actually pretty embarrassing, because I morphed from being a fairly articulate, confident person into a jabbering, star-struck idiot. All the things I wanted to say about why I loved the Down Home Tour flew out of my head. Sure, he doesn’t need to hear anything from me, but I wanted him to know that I think what he’s doing has meaning, and that like him, I support the smaller areas out there.

And now here’s why it’s important.

Skiing has changed a lot over the past decade or so. It’s easy to romanticize small areas, but they’re more than just quaint relics of a bygone era. Small community hills are the heart and soul of skiing. It’s where kids and families can have a heck of a good time without sacrificing a week’s pay. Where the important thing is the skiing, not real estate development. And where there’s a measure of character and community involvement that larger, more corporate areas can’t seem to match.

Sadly, though, the recent consolidations in the industry make it harder and harder for smaller ski areas to survive. After all, what’s the incentive for a skier to go to a smaller, independent resort, if they can purchase an Epic pass and have access to multiple resorts for the same amount they’d spend for one? And with Vail and Alterra having such deep pockets for investment, how can a smaller area compete? Before you shake your head and say, well, that’s the market at work, survival of the fittest and all, consider this: Since the 1980’s, roughly 33% of US ski areas have gone out of business and up to 150 more are considered threatened by industry experts. Sure, there are a lot of factors that have caused this to happen. Many of these places were smaller Mom and Pop hills. And though they had limited lifts and trails, they also nurtured beginner skiers and served as feeder hills for resorts like Vail.

Are there ways for smaller areas to stay competitive with the consolidated resorts? Not many. In recent years, the ski industry has seen little to no growth, so skiers who go to one resort tend to take business away from someplace else. In short, one resort tends to cannabilize another. For example, Vail sold about 50,000 season passes less than a decade ago. Now the number is closer to 550,000. These skiers are choosing Vail over some other resort. And while it’s great for Vail, it’s not so great for wherever it is they’re not going.

Anyway, Glen, if you’re reading this, I applaud you for what you’re doing. And while I didn’t get to say it during our very brief meeting, thanks for fighting the good fight.

I can’t wait to see where you’re going next.

seniorsskiing

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (Jan.25)

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Buried Alive, Magic Mt., Brian Head, 70s Ski Testing, Mystery Snowfields, Rope Tow Memories.

There is prolific snow in New England these days, and despite the brisk cold, we went skiing last week in New Hampshire in the famous Ski 93 corridor. First stop was Bretton Woods on a frosty bluebird day with far-ranging views of Mt. Washington and the historic Mt. Washington hotel. Great snow, uncrowded, roomy base lodge, wonderful experience. Senior lift ticket for the mid-week day: $29.

Second stop was back down I-93 to the legendary Waterville Valley. Overcast, flat-light-ish, but great snow, uncrowded, etc., etc. Senior lift ticket for the mid-week day: $32 (bought online in advance. The next day’s seniors ticket was $29 online.)

Ironically, we were staying at a condo directly across the road from another venerable New Hampshire resort. Advance sale mid-week senior ticket prices for one day ranged from $70 to $87.

Three competitors in a relatively close geographical area.  Two with competitive prices for seniors, one with huge price disparity. We wonder why. 

At press time, the resort in question’s media contact has not yet responded to our inquiries. We will let you know what we learn next week.

This Week

Correspondent Harriet Wallis give us a description of a scary incident that happened to her skiing companion who got buried, not in an avalanche, but by falling in deep, fresh snow on a gentle slope heading back to the lift at Brighton, UT. Unusual? Not so sure.

Marc Liebman continues his remembrance of ski testing back in the 70s. In this week’s installment, he talks about SKI magazine’s on-snow test regimen and how performance was correlated with bench test statistics. Interesting history.

We have two resort reviews, one from Brian Head in Southern Utah, the other from Magic Mt., VT. They are both appealing and accessible to senior skiers for similar reasons. Is there a “sweet spot” for ski resorts for seniors? We could be seeing convergence of opinion.

Our Mystery Glimpse this week features a fantastic photo of an Alpine wilderness. Tell us where it is and who took the picture. Last week’s Mystery was revealed as none other than Princess Elizabeth stopping off at the Mittersill Alpine Resort in 1951. Find out how she happened to visit what was then a remote outpost of Tyrolean ski culture.

Finally, Don Burch serves up a memory of riding on rope tows as a youngster. We thank cartoonist and ski journalist Mike Roth for contributing an original illustration for this piece.

And remember one and all, January is Learn To Ski and Snowboard Month. Now is the time to re-boot your interest in snow sports and get back into winter. Or bring a friend or a grandchild. Deals abound.

And remember to tell your friends about SeniorsSkiing.com.  That’s how we get new readers.  There are more of us every day, and we aren’t going away.

 

 

Harriet Wallis

Buried Alive In Deep Snow

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Where’s Laurie? She’s Gone.

 

That’s Laurie under there. Credit: Harriet Wallis

Here’s a lesson for vacationers and anyone else who skis in the West.

Let me set the stage.

A snowstorm dumped several feet of light, fluffy snow, and we were skiing at Brighton, UT, our home resort. We know every inch of the mountain—its steeps, its trees, its gentle slopes.

Dreams are made of fresh snow like this. Fearsome steep slopes become mellow ones. Moguls disappear. It was deep, and it was bottomless. It was hero snow.

Then to get back to the lift, it was a wide open slope. Learning skiers like the slope because of its gentle pitch. It had been recently groomed, so the new snow there was only half as deep. Although it’s a basic, easy slope, it’s still fun to bounce along in the fresh snow.

Then Laurie—my skiing companion—disappeared. Where’d she go? Did she ski around the little grove of trees? Did she pass me? Where is she? She’s gone. Holy cow, she’s suddenly vanished.

Scanning the slope I saw a black dot. It was just a few inches of the bottom of a ski—her ski—sticking out of the snow. After all the steep, deep slopes, she fell on the easy slope.

But why wasn’t she wallowing to get up? Why was there no movement? Something was wrong. I struggled up slope and reached the ski, but still no Laurie.

There was no crater. There was no hollow. There was no indication that an entire human being was buried right there. The only tell tale was the tip of her ski sticking out of the snow. I began digging,

She had fallen forward, head first, into snow that was as soft as feathers. The soft snow poofed up, buried her, then settled over her as though nothing had happened. It pinned her down. She couldn’t move. Couldn’t thrash. Couldn’t call out for help.

She could have died there. It was an avalanche burial—but there was no avalanche. It was in bounds, on an easy slope, and in snow that wasn’t very deep.

It was a lesson that verifies what we all know: Mother Nature can play nasty tricks. Don’t ever ski alone.

To read more from Harriet click here for her stories on SkiUtah.

Marc Liebman

70s Ski Testing: On The Snow

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Step 2: Go Out, Do It.

One of the joys of working at Ski Magazine was that I was paid to test skis!!!  Ski manufacturers shipped skis to our lab for testing and when it was completed, the skis were covered with self-adhesive shelf-paper and numbered so the testers couldn’t identify the ski. 

Mother Nature dictated our location and we didn’t want to test at the same area Skiing used.  One year we started at Mount Hood but weather and poor snow forced a move to Mammoth before we settled on Park City the following year.

Areas were picked that could give testers access to a lift that served terrain suitable to our needs.  To create a hard, icy surface, the area allowed us to spread ammonium nitrate on the snow to create a hard frozen granular.

For racing skis, we set up a NASTAR type course with thirty gates and applied ammonium nitrate to make it rock hard.  Racing skis were tested just like the others before we pulled them aside for the days when we would ring them out on a racecourse.

Our contract testers – six men and four women – and me were all certified instructors with either coaching and/or racing experience.  John Perryman and his wife Joan were expert skiers and were part of the test team.  We wanted strong skiers who could ski consistently and could handle a ski without changing their technique. 

To get it right, it wasn’t about blasting down the mountain on one ski after another.  SKIpp demanded a disciplined methodology.  Each year, we reviewed the on-snow maneuvers designed to replicate how beginners through experts skied.

Because some brands were putting their name under clear P-Tex, testers were not allowed to pick up the ski prior to skiing on them.  To help ensure that each ski was tested the same way, the methodology was designed to minimize the tendency of a tester to adapt his/her technique to the ski.  Testers were limited to two runs per ski. 

 The tester came to the tent to score the test ski and write his or her comments before taking another ski.  Each day we tested ten skis because we learned beyond that it became hard to differentiate each ski’s performance.

The best skis didn’t generate many memorable comments although one tester wrote “On the icy snow, this ski tracks like a train on rails and in the soft stuff, it will derail you.”  Another wrote, “A two-by-four with an upturned end would be better than this ski.”

In the evening, skis were prepped for the next day and the day’s data tabulated.  Even though it was preliminary, we were pleasantly surprised at how well the on snow results compared to the lab’s prediction.

Testing ten skis took us to lunch.  For the afternoon, the testers could pick a ski from that day or prior days to enjoy.  It was tough, demanding skiing, but somebody had to do it!

Don Burch

Rope Tow Escapades

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Grabbing That Twirling Rope Was Not Easy.

We’ve all been there. Cartoon Credit: Mike Roth

It was the early 1960s, I was in first or second grade and learning to ski at Mohawk Mountain in Connecticut. At the time Mohawk had just installed the first chairlift in Connecticut but most of the experiences I remember where on their numerous rope tows.

The first thing newbies had to master was slowly gripping the rope. Despite instructions to slowly grasp the rope, all first-timers, including myself instantly use a death grip. As a result I’d get hurled up the mountain about five feet before doing a face plant.

To my relief (and later amusement) there was no shortage of people making the same mistake. Every so often there’d be heaps of beginners tossed about on both sides of the tow. Sometimes people got so jumbled up it was impossible to tell whose arms, legs, skis or poles belonged to whom.

After repeating this several times in front of my laughing, older siblings and their friends I finally learned to adjust my acceleration by gently grabbing the rope. Once underway it was an exhilarating ride up the hill.

It was exhilarating because the rope tows at Mohawk moved at about 16 mph. To put that in perspective, modern-day high-speed chairlifts travel at about 12 mph.

After a few tiring rides up the hill someone showed me how to reach my left hand behind my back and grasp the rope while still holding on with the right hand. This did wonders in making the ride physically tolerable.

Another essential skill was learning how to stop once underway. This skill was needed when someone further up the tow fell and blocked the path. Until this skill was learned there would be spectacular pileups. Easing up on your grip wasn’t sufficient because the friction of the rope would tear your gloves apart. Instead you would have to turn one of your skis perpendicular to the hill and use it to keep you from sliding backwards.

The people who didn’t learn this skill would inevitably slide backwards down the hill bumping those behind them. I remember struggling to maintain my place on the tow while two or three skiers slid back into me.

Being six or seven years old the last thing I wanted was to be on the rope tow without others close ahead and behind me. Without other riders close by I would desperately try to hold the rope up off the snow. Being so heavy I’d have to bend over and hold the rope just inches above the snow; a backbreaking way to ride up the hill.

Another challenge was following a tall skier and when you’re a little kid they’re all tall. One of my friend’s fathers was 6’2″. When I rode behind him I’d have to reach up at head level to hold on to the rope. This was another excruciating way to ride up the hill.  In the lift line there was always jostling among my friends to be in the middle of the pack among like-sized skiers.

Being the youngest of three brothers and skiing with a bunch of boys from our neighborhood there was no shortage of mischief. When unloading from the rope tow the older boys would whip the rope in an attempt to knock those following off the tow.

The art form was perfected when one could whip the rope enough to knock off a follower but not so much as to get yelled at by the lift attendant. Those who excelled at this learned to look innocent and express dismay over what happened.

Years later it occurred to me that it was ironic that rope tows, one of the most difficult lifts to master, were most often found serving beginner slopes. I guess they served to toughen us up.

End note: I just recently learned about rope tow speeds at Mohawk having read Nicholas Howe’s fabulous article The Wonders of Walt in the December 2004 issue of Ski Heritage Magazine. Walt Schoenknecht was the ski visionary who founded Mohawk and soon after Mount Snow, Vermont.

Fryeburg, ME, 1936. First rope tow. Credit: MaineSkiMuseum

seniorsskiing

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (Jan. 18)

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Silver Streaks, PopUp Problem, Snowmaker Gloves, 70s Ski Test, Mystery Guest, Conditioning Advice, Big Bromley Resort Review.

We stopped at Waterville Valley’s Silver Streak corner in the base lodge last Monday to introduce ourselves and spread some SeniorsSkiing.com stickers to the members who had gathered for coffee and donuts. Silver Streaks is a club program that is supported by the WV management with a separate place to park, gather, store equipment, have parties, races, and other special events. Correspondent Tamsin Venn wrote an article about the Streaks in 2015. Click here to read it.

The Silver Streaks is the oldest senior ski program in the country. We think it’s a model for other resorts.

But something that one member said got us thinking. We asked if they had heard about SeniorsSkiing.com, and one member said, “How would I have heard about you?” Excellent question and difficult to answer. SeniorsSkiing.com doesn’t advertise, we do have a modest Facebook presence, we try to link to other sites and stories. The best and most effective way for new readers to find us is to be referred by someone who is already a subscriber. Please spread the word.

This Week

Whoops.

We explain our annoying Popup Problem that came with last week’s edition. We are very sorry some readers had an issue with re-entering name and email address countless times.

Pat McCloskey gives us a steer to snowmaker’s gloves that really can make a difference if you ski in wet, wet conditions.

Marc Liebman continues his series on ski testing with an interesting article that describes how the parameters of ski performance were actually defined back in the 70s.

Our Mystery Glimpse this week is quite challenging. You might be able to identify the mystery guest, but where did this person stay? There are hints.

Orthopedist Dr. Peter Schmaus contributes his advice for focusing your conditioning on core muscles and why that is important, not only for skiing or other snow sports but for living as a healthy senior.

Finally, we hear from Tamsin Venn with a Resort Review of Bromley Mountain, VT., a classic ski area with “just right” skiing for seniors.

 

 

 

 

 

Remember folks, January is Learn To Ski And Snowboard Month. Bring a friend, bring your grandchildren. Get out there and enjoy the cold. Click here for more.

Thanks for reading SeniorsSkiing.com. Please tell you friends, it’s how we get new readers. And remember, there are more of us every day, and we aren’t going away.

Bromley is right-sized for seniors, lots of do-able trails, even the Black Diamonds. Credit: Bromley
seniorsskiing

PopUp Problem Perplexes Publishers

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Last Week’s Edition Had Some Issues.

Whoops!

Imagine our surprise when we began to receive complaints—some strongly worded—from our readers about having to re-enter their name and email to access our online magazine. That is, re-enter again and again and again. And again.

We thought it was a typical but annoying problem that is usually on the reader’s side of the screen: When “cookies” are disabled or the reader uses a different browser or device, a similar set of symptoms happens. The solution is usually pretty simple: Turn on cookies on browser.

But no, not this time around. We believe the problem can be traced to a flaw in the popup software we use as a result of a WordPress update. We thank our stalwart software designer Alice Winthrop of Gate-House Design who tracked down the developer of the software and disabled the popup until the problem can be corrected.

Which brings us to why we have a popup in the first place. For one thing, we want to offer visitors a chance to subscribe for free. The popup also appears if a subscriber—or a non-subscriber visitor—is trying to access our Subscriber-Only Content. We ask subscribers to confirm their information before getting access to such assets as Free (Or Almost Free) Skiing For Seniors, Ski and Boot Recommendations, our Historic Ski Poster e-book, and other items.

The alternative to the popup is for subscribers to create an account with a username and password. That is not something we want to manage, nor do we think it is necessary for an online snow sports magazine for seniors. Nor do we believe our readers want to remember yet another password. Hence the popup.

Let us know if you have any issues, suggestions, concerns. We love to hear from you.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Pat McCloskey

Snowmaker’s Gloves For Wet Weather: The Joka Waterproof

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Wear What Works In The Wet.

Joka Glove is $28, mittens also available as are other models.

I usually take most of my vacation time in the winter because I like to ski out West and in the Adirondacks.  And more often than not, the trips are something to look forward to when you live in the Mid-Atlantic and have to deal with the rain and sleet events that plague our winters here in “the banana belt”.  I always tell everyone if you can stay dry, skiing in the rain is not bad since the snow is soft, and the turns are, well, hero turns on hero snow.  Enter the Joka Waterproof Glove.

If you go to the CHS Snowmakers web site, you will find an array of perhaps the finest waterproof gloves that you will ever purchase for a very reasonable price.  Joka gloves are rubber and have an inner, removable fleece liner  that can be easily removed and dried.  These are true snowmaker gloves and are perfect for skiing in the rain.

I have a Pro Gore-Tex from Patagonia that keeps me completely dry, but the Achilles heel has always been wet leather gloves that get soaked and cold.  When I found the Joka gloves on a recommendation from a friend, I became a believer and an evangelist. You can literally submerge these gloves up to the fleece lining  in a bucket of water and never get wet. Everybody is buying them down here in the banana belt, and you should too if you venture out in weather that is not quite optimal.

The other nice thing about the gloves is that you can “squeegee” your goggles without scratching your lenses. When it really rains, I have to reach up and clear the goggles and these gloves are non -abrasive to the goggle lens.  A definite plus for expensive goggles that are sensitive to handling.

My suggestion: Do yourself a favor, buy a pair.  You can use them in the yard, on a mountain bike, or skiing in the rain.  As my friend the Shark always says, “No such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing choices.”

 

 

seniorsskiing

Focus On Conditioning: Still Time For This Season

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[Editor Note: This article was contributed by Peter Schmaus, MD, Orthopedic Spine and Sports Medicine Center, Paramus, NJ. and Senior Attending Physician, Hackensack University Medical Center. SeniorsSkiing.com is very grateful to have his view on conditioning.]

Pay Attention To Body Tuning Before You Hit The Slopes Or Trails.

Many of us pay more attention to our equipment than the most important equipment of all—us! Many ski injuries and overuse syndromes can be avoided by simple preventative maintenance. While sharpening your edges and maintaining bindings are smart, even more important is a musculoskeletal tune up on yourself. This is even more crucial as we age and the musculoskeletal system inevitably displays the wear and tear of the years.

We lose muscle mass annually as we age over 40, but this can be reversed with the correct exercise regimen. Joints inevitably become stiffened both from cartilage thinning as well as tightening of the soft tissues surrounding the joints and spine. These conditions, while not completely reversible, can be managed with exercise programs stressing both flexibility and strengthening.

While stabilization and core are buzzwords frequently used in the fitness field, for snow sports those words cannot be repeated too often. Fitness trainers, therapists, and physicians refer to muscle groups that are core stabilizers. These include the rectus abdominus, external and internal obliques, back extensors, and the pelvic floor muscles.

These are your natural weight lifting belt and lumbar support muscles. They stabilize and support the spine in all planes, and a strong core helps provide balance and force required to carve a turn or navigate a field of moguls. Core muscles even support your spine when pulling off your boots at the end of the ski day. Exercise methods include Swiss ball, back extension, modified crunches, various planks and supermen. All can be done in the home without elaborate gym equipment. And do not forget the simple push up and proper squat.

We frequently refer to the posterior chain, which includes the gluteal muscles, the hamstrings as well as latissimus, and back extensors. Regimens can include lunges, modified dead lifts, squats, kettle bells and burpees. If your bodyweight does not provide sufficient resistance, add some light weight. Simple flat plates, kettle bells, or even resistance bands will suffice. Then move on to side-to-side exercises, which simulate ski motion.  Keeping your center of gravity well centered is the physics behind a good day on the mountain.

Be mindful that snow sports, while not overly aerobic, do require exertion and therefore increased cardiovascular activity. That is aside from the long walk uphill though the parking lot with all your heavy equipment.

Also important especially as we age are balance exercises. Stand on a balance or wobble board. Not a challenge? Hold two light weights. Go through your regimen while remaining balanced on the board. It is not easy in the beginning, but the benefits of enhanced balance and stability are crucial on uneven terrain. Constructing a preventative exercise program well in advance of those first days on the mountain will reduce the risk of injury, making those days on the mountain more enjoyable and injury and pain free.  

Tamsin Venn

SeniorsSkiingGuide: Big Bromley

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Bromley Mountain Is Just Right For Seniors.

Bluebird day at the top of Bromley Mtn, VT. Credit: Tamsin Venn

At Bromley Mt. in southern Vermont, runs are not too long and not too short, just right for senior legs to make a top-to-bottom, 1,300 vertical-foot run without a thigh-burn break.

Although you would be remiss not to stop. Views from the top of the Sun Mountain Express stretch from the Adirondacks to the White Mountains. In the near distance, snow-dusted hills and ridges roll away. Trails curve through bright deciduous trees, and dipping into a glade is a friendly undertaking.

I found the sweet spot on a trail called Corkscrew over to Pabst Peril, smooth as Guernsey butter, after a recent seven-inch snowfall. The Pabst reference is to Bromley’s original owner, Fred Pabst, grandson of Captain Frederick Pabst, founder of Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer.

Black diamonds here are really what other areas would call blues, reducing the high alert meter. A high speed lift and groomed trails ensure sharable speed and vertical feet tallies on your Ski Tracks app. A south facing slope, flooded in sunshine on a wintry day, is enough to banish SAD for the entire winter, although some skiers’ fondest memories are sun-and-shorts spring ski days, and the world is grand.

Bromley is known as a young family-friendly mountain, which is always good news for seniors. It welcomes a lot of others as well: tele skiers (a popular annual telefest); moms (Feb. 8 is Mom’s Day Off); snowboarders  (Sochi Olympics medalist Alex Deibold is a native son); uphill skiers sunrise through dusk . (The Appalachian Trail swings around back.); and exchange students (who trade Lima, Peru for Peru, Vt., to work here in their summer). Also innkeepers, young racers guided by the Bromley Outing Club, and lines of kids in weekly afternoon school programs.

Bromley is right-sized for seniors, lots of do-able trails, even the Black Diamonds. Credit: Bromley

As an independent mountain, managed by Brian and Tyler Fairbank of the Fairbank Group, which also runs Cranmore Mt. and Jiminy Peak, Bromley still has a senior’s season pass, and senior day pass discounts as low as $39 for a midweek day ticket if bought at least a day in advance.

The Silver Griffins is “for skiers 60 plus with a sunny attitude.” For $15 annual dues, you get parking near the base lodge midweek non-holiday (the youngsters have to park on the other side of Route 11), discounts in the cafeteria, ski shop, rental and repair service area, plus a name badge, monthly after ski parties in the Stratton View alcove, other social functions, and lots of tall tales from when Bromley was a two J-Bar mountain.

Fun Facts

Marvie Campbell celebrates 50 years as a ski instructor at Bromley.

Seniors Seasons Pass: 70 plus, $549; age 65-69, $599. No blackout dates.

Advance Sale Lift Tickets: As low as $39, depending on day and month.

Bring the grandkids: Bromley put in a terrain park this year, built by the experts at Arena Snowparks.

Fat Tire Fridays: Burger and Beer Special for $10 in the Wild Boar Tavern.

Skiing History Day: March 2. Fanatics unite. https://www.bromley.com/winter/events/

Why Stay Home Lodging: Midweek $99/night, includes lodging, tickets, and breakfast for two. http://lodgeatbromley.com/vermont-vacation-packages/

50th Anniversary: Marvie Campbell celebrates her 50 years as a Bromley ski instructor this year.

Mountain Stats

  • Summit Elevation 3,284 feet
  • 47 Total Trails
  • Nine lifts
  • 86 percent Snowmaking
  • www.bromley.com

Click here for trail map

 

 

Roger Lohr

Memoir Of A Telemark Skier

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“Telemarketers” Found Each Other To Practice Their Distinctive Style.

[Editor Note:This remembrance of Telemark skiing by Roger Lohr first appeared in his publication XCSkiresorts.com.]

The North American Telemark Organization set a record with this group turn at Mad River Glen in 1980.

In the 1970s, telemark skiers were called the free heelers, telemarketers, and the Lunatic Fringe. But these skiers performing the historical telemark turn down the slopes at alpine ski areas were seen as “the vanguard of the slopes” by many for their ability and skill descending the runs at high speeds, in the moguls, and landing aerials on their cross country skis. But telemarkers were often heard commenting that they were only riding the lifts at alpine ski areas to improve their downhill skills for the backcountry. Some claimed “free the heel, free the mind”, but they became intoxicated with riding chairlifts rather than getting their thrills in the backcountry.

These days, as alpine touring and backcountry skiing become more popular, the telemark subculture may be a declining breed at the alpine ski areas. However, there was a time when they were racing down through the gates and partying hard and celebrating their differences based on what was perceived as their retro ski techniques. They were dressed in wool pants or knickers with ear flapped knit hats with elongated tassles (designed by Vermonter Poppy Gall, a woman entrepreneur, designer, and currently a co-director of the Vermont Ski & Snowboard Museum).

NATO Founder and Telemark legend Dick Hall wiggles through a narrow spot.

Today, telemarkers, or what is left of this group, are no longer counter culture, but in their heyday, telemark festivals, traveling clinics and workshops, and more were the brainchild of the North American Telemark Organization (NATO) created in 1975 by Richard (Dickie) Hall of Waitsfield, VT. In 2017, Dickie Hall was inducted in the Vermont Ski Hall of Fame, which is a long way from his first time telemark skiing with a dozen others as a group at Pico Mountain, Vt. in 1974.

According to author David Goodman’s article about telemarking in Powder Magazine, “the telemark turn was invented in 1868 by Sondre Norheim in the Telemark district of Norway. As alpine skiing and techniques took over, it was not until Rick Borkovic of Crested Butte, CO, sparked a revival and a number of Nordic skiers rediscovered the old technique.”

I found out about telemarking from the 1977 book “Skiing Cross Country” by Canadian Ned Baldwin while I was living in southern Vermont. Most of us regarded Steve Barnetts’s “Cross-Country Downhill” as the bible of telemarking as it covered downhill techniques in depth. As I improved, I got to know many of the telemarkers in the region, mostly men but there were some women, too. We ran a race series, but beside the competition, it was really a clan of telemark skiers who met on scheduled dates at different ski areas.

As a racer, I felt disadvantaged on my Trucker Light Edge skis, which were narrower and softer compared to the Rossignol Randonee skis, which handled the ruts and hard pack better and were used by most of the other skiers. Always blame the equipment. But Dickie’s motto “Ski Hard. Play Fair. Have Fun” was not so much about winning as it was about spreading the telemark gospel.

Hall developed NATO, (according to Hall, it’s the peaceful one) to conduct workshops, training courses, expeditions, and festivals. He traveled as a telemark evangelist from his home in Waitsfield, VT, and visited the states in the northeast, the Rockies, California, and Alaska among others. These NATO telemark events would feature instructional clinics for all ability levels, and equipment suppliers’ gear for demo use. Hall created the telemark ski school at Mad River Glen as one of the first in the US, and he helped others to become telemark instructors across the country. Over the years, Hall estimated that he has introduced, instructed, or just shared his love of telemark skiing to about 40,000 people!

In 2015, NATO held its 40th and last telemark festival at Mad River Glen, which attracted about 200 participants, a far cry from the 13 attendees at the original Pico event. The races held at the festivals were usually the focus point at these events, but the “group telemark turn” was an activity we all shared together. The telemarkers in Colorado and Alaska would try to top the eastern telemarking crew of deplorables at Mad River Glen, but it is believed that 128 eastern telemarkers in a group turn is the standing record.

At Mad River Glen, Dickie was a task master when it came to the group telemark. In Dickie’s mind, it was paramount that we link two telemark turns for the attempt to count. The photo in the 1984 NATO Eastern Telemark Festival Series poster (and used in many other NATO materials) exemplifies one of those record-breaking group telemark attempts. On the day of that photo (I was there), many of the telemarkers who were near the end of the line got whipped into a gully, and it ended in a yard sale of significant proportion. No injuries, lots of laughs—indeed we played hard and had fun.

NATO is now defunct but Dickie Hall telemark videos are still available via email request at nato@gmavt.net

Author Roger Lohr and two buddies try a three-man tele turn. What’s with the group turning thingy, guys?
Harriet Wallis

Ladies, Don’t Wear Black Underpants On Super Cold Days…

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…And Other (Unusual) Tips On How Everyone Can Stay Warm.

Yup, it’s cold outside. Credit: Harriet Wallis

We all have our tricks to stay warm when the temperature plunges. Here are a few you might not have thought of.

Cheapo Hand Warmers

Cheapos worn under your ski gloves might work.

I’ve used the shake-’em-up hand warmer packets and tried every kind of liner. Splurge $1 and buy the stretchy little gloves that you can find everywhere: grocery stores, drug stores, big box stores. The knit fabric is the best for keeping my hands warm. Most are black, but choose a colorful pair. You’ll have a better chance of seeing them should you drop them on the locker room floor.

Hot Buns

If you buy those little gloves, then you won’t need the hand warmer packets in your gloves. Instead, put them between your base layers, especially if your ski pants gap in the back. The packets stay in place between base layers and they keep your lower back warm.

Potato Ears

Before the days of microwave ovens, my mother stuck a nail into each potato before baking. The nail conducted heat into the potato, and it sped up cooking. The same concept applies to earrings on cold days. A post through your ear conducts the cold into your body. Skip the fashion statement. Stay warmer.

[Editor Note: Eyeglass frames can also be cold conductors. Try skiing with prescription goggles or contacts, or go native and take off your specs.]

Two (Or Three) Sock Day

Wear one pair to the mountain, then change your socks before you put on your boots. Feet exude moisture even if you swear your feet don’t sweat. If it’s a really bitter day, change your socks at lunchtime too. It makes a big difference. I dare you to try it.

Some Assembly Required

About that black underwear. On really cold days, it’s a project to get assembled: Tuck this in, pull this up, pull that down over.

My base layers are black, and so are some of my undies. More than once I’ve toddled out of the ladies room wondering why I’m hobbled. Duh. Too many black layers. My underpants are still way down there. Retreat and reassemble. Don’t wear black undies on cold days. Go for your brightly colored ones. They’re easy to see as you put yourself together.

To read more from Harriet click here for her stories on SkiUtah.

Marc Liebman

Safe Driving: Wrap Tires With Chains

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How Many Readers Carry Chains And Actually Know How To Mount Them?

Back in the old days, many of us had knobby snow tires even studded ones mounted on a separate set of rims stashed in the corner of the garage, ready for mounting.  Tire designs and compounds changed over the years.  Snow tires still exist, but all season tires are the norm. If you have a car/SUV that has four-wheel drive, you are good to go for most winter conditions.

Last year, in Box in the Back, I listed what you should carry for emergencies when you headed into the mountains.  What Else Should You Have In Your Car provides suggestions on what to do/not to do if you are forced to stop for a long period, either by an accident or road closure.

The best time and place to learn how to put on tire chains is in your driveway on a nice day. Worst: roadside in a snowstorm.

What wasn’t covered was chains with which I have a love-hate relationship.  They’re clunky, a pain in the rear to install on the side of the road.  If one section comes loose, it can beat the crap out of a fender, wrap around an axle, or rip out a suspension component.

While most of us prefer not to install chains, there are parts of the country where the local gendarmes have the right to insist you use them even on a four-wheel drive vehicle equipped with mud and snow tires.  No chains, no going any farther.

Some states require chains on snow-covered roads. You have no choice, so you better know how to use them.

Point one.  If chains are required, getting told to put them on is not the time to turn around, drive back to the last town you passed, and buy a set.  They should have been bought before you left the house and kept handy, i.e. where you can get to them without having to pull everything out of the trunk.

Research chains types to pick the ones that are the best fit for your vehicle and your needs.  Click here for a really helpful link that offers instructions on selecting the right chains. –

Point two.  A chain “inspection/installation” station is not the place to learn how to put your chains on because it is cold, snowy, and often dark.  Don’t rely on some helpful soul to rescue you.  Putting chains on slush, cinder, sandy wheels is a dirty job, so be prepared.  Practice putting them at home before you leave. Put them on and take them off several times so you know the drill.  One enterprising soul I know has the instructions downloaded on his iPad as a reminder.  While it is a helpful reminder, a video is not a substitute for actual experience.

Point three.  While you don’t need a separate pair of overalls and boots, carry a small rubber mat you can kneel on and a pair of heavy rubber gloves you can slide over a pair of ski glove inserts.  Leather work gloves also work. This will keep your fingers from getting cold and numb or cut.  Practice with the gloves on.

You make be like me and hate chains, but don’t leave them behind because, one day, you’ll need them or possibly lose a day or so of skiing.

seniorsskiing

FAQ: Why Do I Have To (Constantly) Re-Enter My Email?

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We Get This Question From Time To Time. Here’s What Happens And How To Solve This Problem.

If you are being asked to re-enter your email to confirm your subscription to SeniorsSkiing.com, you might be a bit annoyed.  We don’t blame you, but there is an explanation.

You are accessing SeniorsSkiing.com through a device that is different from the one you originally signed up on. Subscribing to SeniorsSkiing.com puts a “cookie” on your device.  If you use a different device, no cookie, so you are viewed as a non-subscriber. If you re-enter name and password, you’ll be okay with the new device.

You have disabled cookies or cleared browser history on your device. Even iPads can accept or disable cookies. Turn cookies back on, and you’ll not have to re-enter again, or leave it disabled and realize you have to re-enter each time.  Your call. 

You are trying to access our Subscriber-Only Content.  Instead of building a firewall that requires usernames and passwords, we elected a much simpler way of getting to our exclusive content: Just confirm your name and email.  You will have to do that each time you want to get to that information, which, by the way, is under the Community tab at the top.

You have upgraded or changed settings in your operating system or browser.

Those are the usual conditions that prompt the re-entry pop-up. If you are still having trouble, please contact us at info@seniorsskiing.com.  Hang in there!

seniorsskiing

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (Jan. 4)

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Holy Ticket Shock, Favorite Article of 2018, Belleayre, Ski Test Series, Flyin’ Mystery, Encore For Layering Basics, Sir Arnold Lunn.

There is a reason SeniorsSkiing.com tries to promote reasonable pricing for seniors who have been supporting the sport for decades.

News like the following is evidence that the voice of seniors is needed to get a lot louder in the corporate halls of the ski industry. The headline is from New England Ski Industry.com.

In case you can’t read it the graphic, it says “Stowe Sets New England Record With $147 Lift Ticket.” Read the whole story by clicking here. All of this is designed to push consumers to purchasing Epic season passes which may or may not be a good deal, depending on how often you ski and where you go.

This week’s Short Swings has an excellent summary of the lift ticket/season pass situation in a Ski History article by none other than John Fry, long time snow sports journalist and member of the US Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame. If you’re a relatively infrequent skier—say five or six times a season—you’re going to be paying the highest ever ticket prices. If you are a frequent senior skier, you’re not going to get the big discounts you used to get at big resorts. Clearly, the multi-resort season pass is focused on the sport’s “best customers”, those who ski frequently and who often head to destination areas, but who represent only about 28% of the total skiers. Pareto Principle, 80-20 rule. Does this strategy make sense?

Favorite Article Of 2018: Free Skiing For Seniors

That is why many of our readers favor “mom and pop” areas, the archetypical ski resort that has low-key facilities, moderate terrain, and reasonable prices. In fact, many of these areas offer free or almost free skiing for seniors. And that is also why our annual listing of resorts that offer free or almost free skiing was the most read article of the year.

If you haven’t seen our directory of 145 ski resorts in the US and Canada that offers free or almost free skiing to seniors, click on the third menu box that reads Free Skiing For Seniors. You may be asked to re-enter your name and email address to access subscriber-only content.

This Week

We have a new resort review for Belleayre Mountain, a two-hour drive from the NY metropolitan area from Bob Nesoff, a veteran snow sport and travel journalist. Did you know Belleayre has a brand new gondola to whisk skiers up the slopes? A gondola in the Catskills!

Janet Franz reports on the basics of layering, based on a presentation by North Face’s Stan Kosmider at the recent Northeast Winter Weather Summit. There are nuances about what is worth wearing and why that we didn’t know. If you’re wearing the same old waffle long underwear that you’ve worn for years, you’ll want to think about how to re-dress.

Our Mystery Glimpse this week is a family affair. Should be quick recognition for those who live and play in a certain part of the country. ‘Nuff said. Check out the clue and read about last week’s amazing snowboard Olympic champ, Shannon Dunn-Downing.

Correspondent and long-ago SKI magazine associate editor Marc Liebman brings an introduction to his new ski test series that offers a history of how it was done ‘way back in the 70s. Remember, that was a time when the number of products proliferated, and readers needed a way to sort through and make decisions. Both Ski and SKIING magazines pioneered ski testing. Marc presents a capsule history.

Finally, Jan Brunvand offers a delightful selection from Sir Arnold Lunn’s The Mountains Of Youth (1925) from the early days of “ski-ing”. Lunn was the British athlete who set the rules for downhill racing, advancing the sport and attracting untold numbers of new skiers.

 

 

January is Learn To Ski and Snowboard Month.  Bring a friend and get some discounts. Find out where and how by clicking here.

Happy New Year! Don’t wait, go out there and enjoy the winter. Tell your friends about us.

Remember there are more of us every day and we aren’t going away!