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This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (Oct. 23)

October 23, 2020/1 Comment/in Features/by seniorsskiing

Classified Launch, Response, and Advice, Chile Season Review, Serious Question For You, Mystery, Maine Guide Advice, How To Ski With COVID.

Last week, we launched our new Classified Ad feature with a special introductory $1 for 30 days offer. We are happy that there are readers who are posting their ads and hopefully getting some responses.

Here’s what Bill Cohen, San Jose, CA, had to say about his ad posting experience. Boy, did that make us smile.

Hey, just wanted to thank you guys for setting up a classified listing program. I just posted my first ad (CHRISTIE LODGE ROOM AVAILABLE) and wanted to let you know it was EASY, FAST, covered all the bases, and hopefully will get my extra room filled! So thanks for providing this and I hope others will take advantage of both POSTING and READING the classifieds – GREAT EXTRA SERVICE to the Senior Skiing community. Bill Cohen in San Jose, CA

Based on what we’ve seen so far, here is some advice:

Post a picture with your ad. It is easy to upload a .jpeg or .png photo. In fact, you can post more than one, a gallery if you wish.
Be sure to include any details re: shipments or transactions. Many readers are using PayPal as a payment method. It is simple and easy to setup.
Think about your headline. Make it short and get to the point.

If you want to view classified ads already posted, click on the blue menu bar, second box from the left.

As more hikers explore the White Mountains, calls for help climb, too.

A Boston Globe story on increased visitations to the White Mountains of New Hampshire with subsequent additional calls for help from lost or injured day hikers is a warning. There are people who are heading to wilderness areas to escape virus constraints without proper equipment and with the wrong expectations about what a walk in the remote woods is all about. Recently, three men died in six weeks, one from a freak accident where a boulder severed his climbing lines, the others from falling off cliffs. Click here to read the Boston Globe story.

As a result, SeniorsSkiing.com is asking readers to think about their day hiking plans and review what to bring along. A great source is expert advice provided by REI, the outdoor equipment company. You may think some of these recommendations of what to bring are a bit over the top, but if you need, say, a compass, and you’re stuck in the woods without one, you’ll quickly find out how valuable it is.

Click here for REI’s Day Hiking Checklist as well as advice about how these items can play a role in your safety.

REI’s checklist of equipment to bring for day hikes is definitely worth bookmarking.

Finally, we’re reprising an fantastic resource for those heading to the woods. It’s a valuable document you can download and print out, published by the State of Maine, by Maine guides. Alone In The Woods is a homespun collection of advice for surviving in the woods if you get lost. With more hikers headed out leaf peeping and conditioning-walking, this is an important source of information. The illustrations may be a bit cartoon-ish, but the information is valuable and might save your life. Click here to read and download.

This Week

Our Question For You this week takes a personal bend as our editor asks readers who have experienced a joint replacement how they returned to the sport. Why personal? He’s facing a hip replacement in January. Gulp.

Correspondent Don Burch offers some basic advice for getting ready for the season of skiing with COVID. As Henry V said in Shakespeare’s play, “All things be ready of our minds be so.”

Correspondent Casey Earle provides a summary of the ski season in Chile in the times of COVID. As we have seen from reports from Australia, the virus has had a heavy hand in how the resorts operated this past season. Those constraints and a lousy snow season made for a fair to middling snow season. What can we learn from both these south of the Ecuador experiences?

Mystery Glimpse is trying something different this week. Correspondent Don Burch has curated a video of some vintage home movies taken in the 50s and 60s. Can you spot the locations?

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

Report From Chile: The COVID Season

October 21, 2020/7 Comments/in International/by Casey Earle

What We Can Learn From The Ski Season In Chile During The Pandemic

Only four ski areas opened in Chile this year, due to the pandemic, all in the last third of the normal season (late August). The country was in the midst of a severe drought when the entire metropolitan region of Santiago shut down in May. An “atmospheric river” arrived late June, and over a period of 10 days it snowed more than it had in a decade. All one could do was look longingly at the webcams and pray the snow would last until restrictions were lifted. In June, the ski area association presented a protocol for opening to the government. At the same time, Chile had one of the worlds highest infection and death rates from the virus, so nobody really believed there would even be a ski season.

La Parva on July 5. Looking via webcam, not skiing. Credit: Casey Earle

Corralco mid-July. Snow but not open to skiing. Credit: Casey Earle

The quarantine lasted to late July in some of the districts of Santiago and the first ski areas were opened on August 18, specifically El Colorado and La Parva. At the end of August Corralco and Las Araucarias, in southern Chile, opened. Rules were strict and at times confusing. Masks, properly worn, were required, as were gloves, online sales only, two skiers per quad, and no restaurants. The number of tickets sold was limited to the equivalent of an uncrowded day. At times a lift attendant would berate skiers for not spacing enough in the few line-ups that occurred and take your temperature on your wrist.

The police were controlling access to the mountain road and were strict about not letting anyone by that was not from a district that had advanced to the correct stage. This produced line-ups and long waits, which I avoided by going up at 6:30am. Use of second residences was not allowed, weekends were quarantined (closed ski areas), and a curfew was (and still is) in effect.

In order to ski, one had to fill out a fill out a health declaration online, and sometimes show it at the bottom.

With only 20cm having fallen since early July, the conditions for the August 18 opening was a bit disappointing. But a final 20 cm fell on August 26, and what a day it was.

Fortunately, the run maintenance was superb, and we skied the groomers through to mid September, when the lack of new snow was taking its toll and the heat was turned up. La Parva closed on September 25.

Lift line trying not to block the run.Credit: Casey Earle

Most days there were so few people that one could ride and empty lift and ski an empty run.

Few people. Credit: Casey Earle

In early October we set out to Villarrica to ski the volcanos of the south, but promptly went into quarantine and had to sit out the remainder of the season. Corralco was open until October 18.

That we could ski at all was a miracle. I must say, however, that skiing, properly regulated, is probably one of the most socially distanced sports around, but much depends on the individuals respect for the rules.

Question For You 15: Returning With New Joints

October 20, 2020/42 Comments/in Features/by mikemaginn

What Does It Take To Come Back With Artificial Parts?

Here’s a question for a subset of our readership. This question is being posed by your faithful editor because he is facing the prospect of a hip replacement. Assured by our capable and competent orthopedic surgeon that skiing and other athletic activities (not running or impact sports) are in the offing, we wonder how others have fared after getting a new shoulder, knee, or hip.

If you’ve had a joint replacement, please share what it was like to come back to your sports regimen? What was that first ski run like? How did you muster the gumption to give it a try? What did you do to prep? What helped? What hindered? What advice do you have for those facing replacements?

From what we’ve heard, joint replacements have become the most common surgery in North America. Since osteoarthritis seems to be the reason for that surgery and since OA is most likely found in older folks, we have a suspicion that a good proportion of our readers have been down that path.

Please share your thoughts in the Leave A Reply box below.

2020-21 Survival Guide

October 20, 2020/7 Comments/in Features/by Don Burch

Buckle Up, Bundle Up And Buck It Up.

NSAA recommended signage for this season. Credit: NSAA

Never before has there been as much trepidation about a ski season as for this one. Given all the tumult that occurred during this year, it’s no surprise we’re anxious. What follows are some insights that will help us get the most out of what will be a most unique season.

Above all, we need to go into this season with realistic expectations. Things are not going to be the same as ski resorts strive to provide us the best possible experience in the midst of the pandemic. Be prepared for limits on the number of skiers allowed at resorts each day and in many instances we’ll have to reserve these days in advance online. The result is that we will likely not get to ski each and every day that we would want to, and we will likely not get to ski as many total days as we’d like.

As resorts work to ensure social distancing across all phases of our visits, we can expect changes to how day tickets are purchased, how food and beverages are purchased and where they are consumed. There will be changes to how lift lines are organized, rules about who can ride lifts together and how many people unfamiliar with one another can ride together. Because resorts will be limiting the number of people allowed in lodges, we need to be prepared to boot up, warm up, and eat in our cars.

It will behoove each and every one of us to be as self-reliant as possible.

There are a number of stakeholders in skiing, and it helps to understand that we all share the same goal: to make skiing as fun as possible for as many people as possible and to keep everyone safe. We are all in this together and the 2020 ski season will be th ebest possible if we recognize our interdependence. If people choose not to follow the rules, it could lead to further restrictions.

In addition to the demanding tasks involved in reopening each year, resort operators are facing a daunting array of challenges including redesigning how services are delivered, complying with federal, state and local mandates, financial challenges, acquiring an adequate work force and doing all this amidst tremendous uncertainty.

As a result, resorts are not going to get everything righ,t and we should expect things will not always run smoothly. In essence, we need to be understanding and patient.

Because the impact of the pandemic is so fluid, resorts will likely change policies throughout the season. So, know before you go. Staying up to date on information regarding a resort’s policies will help us avoid unwanted events.

Now the lemonade: The thing we love most about ski trips is the actual skiing, and this season time on the slopes will be just as much fun as ever. Additionally, we may come to like some of the changes. Strategies for more “low-touch” interaction with guests may lead to smoother and more efficient ticket sales, use of passes and quicker access to food and beverages. Resorts are considering some very creative options for dining such as food trucks, other satellite food stations and take-out.

So, buckle up, bundle up and buck it up.

Mystery Glimpse: Those Eyes

October 13, 2020/5 Comments/in Mystery Glimpse/by seniorsskiing

The Face Of Intensity.

Here’s the first of our Mystery Glimpse feature for this new season. We post a picture from snowsport’s past and you guess who the person, place, or thing is. Write your response in the Leave A Reply box below. If you know any details about the photo or the situation, let us know.

Here’s a racer whose name you should be familiar.

Credit: Ski History Magazine

Question For You 14: How Do You Decide What To Buy?

October 13, 2020/13 Comments/in Features/by seniorsskiing

Shopping For New Stuff?

Now is the time of the year when thoughts of pulling out the plastic and splurging on gear and clothing permeate our waking hours. After all, those old bindings are past their sell-buy date, and those cracked boots don’t quite fit the way they did seven years ago. And that dirty parka is simply falling apart.

And retailers are hanging out the discount signs. Although there won’t be ski shows this year, there might be some online versions thereof to entice those with a hole in their pockets.

Bob Skinner’s Ski And Sports, Newbury, NH.

We’ve often wondered how you, dear reader, makes decisions about what to buy. Do you look for articles in the magazines and blogs to guide you? Are they helpful? Do skiing friends tell you about what works for them? Do retail sales specialists guide you through choices? How do you judge? Do you know what you’re looking for at the start of your search? Or, are you working from some impressions gathered on last year’s lift lines? Share your thoughts. We’d really like to know.

As you know, we’ve been publishing ski and boot recommendations for since we started SeniorsSkiing. Has that made a difference in your buying decisions?

If you are considering buying new gear for the new season, how do you decide what to buy?

Please respond in the Leave A Reply box below.

Make More Tracks: Rendezvous Ski Trails

October 13, 2020/1 Comment/in Make More Tracks/by Jonathan Wiesel

Catch Early Snow in West Yellowstone.

West Yellowstone Rendezvous Trails might be the center of XC in North America.

If you head to West Yellowstone, MT, in late November, you can visit the early winter cross-country ski epicenter of North America: the Rendezvous Ski Trails.

There are a bunch of fall camps in the Rockies – including Silver Star, BC, Crested Butte and Steamboat Springs, CO, plus Mt. Bachelor in Oregon – but the Yellowstone version is the oldest, largest, and incredibly convenient: literally right beside town (http://www.skirunbikemt.com/yellowstone-ski-festival.html). You can fly into Bozeman, MT, and stop to downhill at Big Sky Resort on the way to or from the Rendezvous Trails.

For decades, West Yellowstone was known as Snowmobile Capital of the World, partly because Yellowstone National Park is right next door (geysers! wolves! bison!). These days, the winter economy is also driven by cross-country skiing. (The Park isn’t open to over-snow traffic until December 15^th this year, but you can ski from town before that onto snow-packed roads inside Yellowstone.) XC has changed from a handful of locals who thought XC was cool to a community where skiing is a life-style for a lot of residents.

A Lovely Trail System.

“West” has as lovely and lilting a trail system as anywhere in North America. What’s remarkable is that the roughly 35 km are loved by racers (like the Norwegian, Latvian, and German national teams, who trained there for the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics) and recreational skiers. Perhaps the favorite recreational trail is the Rendezvous Loop, which passes by the biathlon course. A lot of competitors like a good long workout on Dead Dog and Windy Loop, on the far end of the network.

The Rendezvous Trails routes can hone your technique but aren’t a survival challenge (there’s only about 200’ of vertical change). And while they’re full of free-skiers and Fall Training Camp participants around Thanksgiving, the rest of the winter (especially non-holiday weekdays) they can be so peaceful that you can be out for an hour and see only a dozen people.

The trail system is a cooperative venture on U.S. Forest Service land, managed by the Forest Service, the West Yellowstone Chamber of Commerce, and the non-profit West Yellowstone Ski Education Foundation. A WYSEF Director once told me, “I would personally love to see West Yellowstone known as the Cross-country Ski Capital of the World. Our proximity to the trails inside Yellowstone National Park, our lengthy ski season, and competition-worthy grooming lend themselves to this possibility.”

Several thousand skiers, from beginners to families to elite athletes, flock to “West” in November for the marvelous skiing, moderate altitude (around 6,700’), superb grooming, and reliable snow. In rare years when the white stuff arrives a little late in town, groomed skiing begins on a higher plateau, accessible by four wheel drive vehicles.

Yellowstone Ski Festival.

YSF has racing, but there’s a lot more including Pilates, kids activities, clinics, classes, demos. YSF is modified for this year but may be back full strength again in 2021

Before the upcoming “interesting” winter, the Fall Training Camp was known as the Yellowstone Ski Festival. It included natural science programs for kids, Pilates, backcountry films, indoor equipment expo and clinics, beer tasting, on-snow ski demo, and an end-of-week party. While the indoor component has been reined back – thanks, COVID-19! – there’s still a wide-ranging array of XC clinics with outstanding coaches, biathlon, and an FIS race (Ma Nature cooperating). Winter 2021-‘22 may be back to full-scale festivities.

Post-Festival, there’s still plenty of activity, with the winter schedule getting nailed down as I write this in early October. There are plans for ski races, biathlon (ski-and-shoot) competitions, and fun events, perhaps including the annual “Taste of the Trails.”

West Yellowstone has a daily trail fee (probably $12). Amenities along the trail are pretty limited (there’s a trailhead building with bathrooms and a communal room), but you can rent skis at several locations in town. Freeheel and Wheel (www.freeheelandwheel.com) has instructors, clothing for sale, and equipment rental and retail – plus they’ve got great coffee and a sense of humor!

There’s a mix of hotels and motels in “West”—check http://www.skirunbikemt.com/sleep.html for recommended lodging.

Rendezvous Trail System. Something for everyone.

Prepping Your Mind

October 12, 2020/0 Comments/in Features/by Steve Hines

Adjusting Your Attitude Is Important, Too,

As I think about preparations for the upcoming Nordic ski season, lots of details come to mind. Fitness of course tops the list. Stepping up my walking and cycling regimen is a must. Making small incremental increases in intensity and duration and taking appropriate rest days are essential to the senior cross-country skier.

I once read that perfecting one’s XC stride is a lifetime’s pursuit. Now seventy, I still call myself the eternal intermediate skier, and equip and prepare myself accordingly.

I also try to prepare mentally. These readings help me prepare intellectually and emotionally for a long and lustrous winter. Here’s three:

Cross-Country Cat by Mary Calhoun (1979) with Illustrations by Erick Ingraham.

This charming story follows the adventures of Henry, the lovable, mischievous Siamese cat. He is accidentally left behind at a ski lodge by his human family. Now, he must figure out how to get back to them through deep snow and raging blizzards. This funny, cute tale which has tickled every child I have ever read it to should be read by every senior skier to their grandchildren.

About Erick Ingraham’s illustrations, Publisher’s Weekly wrote, “Competing with the author’s tale in verve and artistry are Ingraham’s snowy scenes in exactly the right shades of blue, sepia and gray, set off by glaring white.”

Henry’s message of persistence in the face of difficulties and challenges spoke to both me and my children but in a quaint and amusing way. His “stupid cat” chant as he kicked and glided toward his home and human family continues to inspire me when I’m on a long ski trek in the Maine woods, for example. It also inspired our children at the end of a long ski day to stow gear, take showers and finish their dinners before collapsing for the night. Memories I cherish.

Some of Calhoun’s other titles about the intrepid Henry include:

Hot Air Henry
High Wire Henry
Henry the Sailor Cat
Blue Ribbon Henry
Henry the Christmas Cat

I strongly recommend as many “Henry” stories on your grandchild book shelf as possible

Cross-Country Skiing: A Complete Guide by Brian Cazeneuve (1995).

The range of topics in this book dazzles. Through Brian’s work, I first became interested in back-country skiing. He covers basics, gear, weather, technique and more in this thorough work.

Cazeneuve intersperses his sage advice with lyrical, humorous bits about the sport itself. “Cross-Country skiing, unlike hang gliding, cattle rustling and iambic Swahili, is disproportionately more difficult to perfect than it is to learn.” (p.10). This tongue-in-cheek advice has helped me laugh at myself when I take a fall and helped me get back up.

Chapter 11, “Going Farther”, promotes taking the kids (and grandkids) on Nordic adventures as well as teaching seniors who may be considering getting back into xc skiing or trying it for the first time. This book is a must.

Self Renewal by John W. Gardner (1964).

A psychologist and head of the department of Health, Education and Welfare in the Johnson administration is a personal hero of mine. In this insightful work, Gardner asserts a society’s ability to renew itself hinges upon its individuals. It is the waning of the heart and spirit—not a lack of material might—that threatens American society. He states that “all humans have several key commonalities: They are flexible, eager, open, curious, unafraid, and willing to take risks.”

With age comes some wisdom. We seniors who continue hit the trails and slopes each winter probably agree with Gardner, “…even the self-renewing person has fixed habits and attitudes, but they are not the sort that interferes with continuous renewal. If the scientist changed his (sic) pipe weekly but never his theories, he would be in serious difficulty. The moral is clear. If we must have continuity in our lives—and we must—let it be of the sort that does not prevent renewal.” (p.130). I know my cross-country ski goals and ambitions must change as I age but the continuity is each winter to renew and go skiing again.

Renewing the heart, mind and spirit are critical to me as the seasons change and we transition to and hope for a snowy winter for kicking and gliding during these incredibly difficult times.

private group scheduling app for sharing a ski house or other co-owned or jointly-owned property

Using a Scheduling App for Co-ordinating Ski House or Club Stays

October 8, 2020/0 Comments/in Sponsored Content/by Alice Winthrop

The Challenges of Shared Vacation Property.

I’m connected to a group that has access to a special piece of real estate. It’s not grand or luxurious, but it’s in an epic location and holds years of memories of celebrations, vacations and good times with family and friends. It’s a privilege to be able to go there, and the co-owners work hard to maintain it, to enable fair use, and to share expenses evenly.

The upsides of sharing a vacation property are obvious, but there are challenges. Some of these can be made easier by judicious use of technology. Software can’t repair damaged relationships or solve every problem, but it can go some way to reducing friction and making a shared property easier to manage.

Scheduling Use

The first issue that typically arises in group sharing is how to plan use. In our case situation, there was just one person who managed a paper calendar, and you had ask her about availability by phone 9-5 Monday-Friday.

This was difficult for a number of reasons:

On a particularly good weather weekend, people would be unsure if the place was in use or not and sometimes they would just show up in case no one was there. This didn’t always go over well with people who had called in advance and were already in residence.
Some people found it awkward and uncomfortable to call and potentially disturb the calendar manager.
It often took more than one call to make a reservation. Playing telephone tennis to establish whether the place was available on a particular date felt like work.
People don’t always make plans 9-5 M-F. Waiting till the next business day to check availability dragged the process out.

Making It Fair

The second issue that we commonly see, and that was the case in our group too, is making use feel fair.

Some members of the group live out of state and might only visit once per season. Others live a short drive away and visit often, when conditions are good.

If everyone is sharing expenses, this lopsided usage is clearly unfair and can prompt bad feelings. We planned to tally up everyone’s use and charge an additional use fee, so infrequent visitors would feel fairly treated.

Building A Website

I’ve been building websites since 2005 (including SeniorsSkiing.com) so it seemed obvious to me that these problems could be solved by a shared online calendar with multiple users.

Rather than build one from scratch, I researched off-the-shelf options. My criteria were:

Group members should be able to see the live calendar.
Group members should be able to make reservations.
The calendar should be private because no-one wants to broadcast when a property is empty.
The available time slots should be customizable so that it’s simple to book a day or overnight, or multi-night stay.
There should be a way to specify use types for example: member, guest or rental. This so different use rates can be calculated.

It seemed simple but I struggled to find something I could adjust to meet our needs. Google Calendar was an obvious option but there was no way to share a calendar without making the link public even if it was unlikely anyone would find it.

There was also too much flexibility—group members could book 10 mins, overlapping stays, and edit the past. We had no way to standardize use and simplify the options.

I must have demoed at least 30 promising apps over the years, systems designed for inns, campsites, rentals management, hair salons, gyms, yoga studios, and even shared workspaces, but all of them had some blocking feature.

In the end, I became resigned to building a website from scratch. Each owner had a login, you could check the live month-view calendar, see who was going and what days or weeks were available. Reservations were made by clicking on a date and picking from a few simple options and you didn’t need to re-enter your details each time.

The effect was liberating. Everyone had access to the calendar 24/7. There was no need to call a third party. Options and time slots were standardized, it was easy to understand. Members paid extra according to use. We had more money to cover capital expenditures. A big chunk of stressful communication was removed. Sharing felt easier.

Turning It Into A Web App

A few years later the group had a wish list of additions for the site, and there was interest from others wanting a website for their ski house, boat or beach house. It seemed that this was a tool that could potentially do good and maybe generate some income.

I realized that if I created an app that could help groups share with less stress that would feel good, and if special places were kept intact rather than split up and developed there would be a land conservation benefit, too.

Fast forward to 2020 and I contracted with a developer to turn the website I had built into a web application. A web app is essentially one codebase that can be used by multiple separate accounts instead of many separately coded websites. For web apps think Gmail, AirBnB, Shopify etc. I called the app Resercal because it was the most simple and descriptive short .com name I could find.

The new features added by popular demand were:

Annual report of use. Our group’s manager had been tasked with manually tallying visits each year by referring to the original website. It was a time consuming task that had to be correct. Now that’s automated by the app.
Editable Rules page. We had a rules page on the original site but any changes had to made by me as the code had to be edited. Now a manager can easily add to or edit text on the account’s rules page without worrying about code.
Cancellation window. Managers (an admin role) can edit the cancellation window and members (regular users) cannot change their reservation once it’s within X hours of the start date. They also can’t edit dates in the past. We had no bad behavior in our group but it was trust-building to know that no one could edit their past use to reduce their contribution; or block off a date and then cancel on the day to avoid being charged the use fee.
Temporary member suspension. There haven’t been any transgressions in our group but one common issue is that there is no consequence for egregious behavior like not paying your share or constantly breaking agreed upon rules. Now managers can temporarily suspend a member so they can’t see the calendar or book use until they are re-instated. This feature can be used or not according to a group’s bylaws, rules or customs.
Waitlisting. We found that out-of-towners sometimes got blocked out by local members who reserved a date and didn’t know it was the only weekend the member from Florida was able to visit. Now, with waitlisting, you can signal your eagerness to jump in if the original reserver is less invested in that date, or if they are going to cancel anyway. In our group the locals would quickly stand aside for a less frequent visitor if they saw them appear on the waitlist.

Launched In 2020

Now Resercal, the scheduling web application for sharing groups, is available for an annual subscription.

For the original group that I am connected to, the annual subscription cost is a line item in the budget along with accounting fees and utilities. When we calculate the hours of “busy work” saved at an hourly rate it easily makes sense.

2020 has been a strange year so far. We hope that Resercal can make it easier to manage shared use. We’ve already used it for a summer pool club that needed to separate visitors by “pod”. In that case, use was reserved hourly.

As winter approaches we are gearing up for the ski season, helping clients manage scheduling when dealing with multiple pods, high risk users, work-from-home skiers, and kids who are remote-learning.

Features In Development

We also have some new features in the pipeline:

To-do list where members can easily write notes or post photos communicating repairs needed or low supplies and mark issues as resolved.
“Multiple reservables” so you can have several cabins or main house/guest house etc. in one account and show/hide them in the calendar.
Manager moderation turns member-initiated reservations into requests that are received by the group’s designated scheduling manager. The manager can then edit/confirm or deny the request based on the rules and customs of the group.
Invoicing so managers can bill members for use and/or for their share of expenses.
Payments so members can pay invoices online via ACH or credit card.

How To Get Resercal

If you would like to learn more about how Resercal could work for your ski house, cabin or club please contact us. We’d be glad to schedule a call and learn about your needs, we can also send you a demo link.

If you have features you would like to see developed please let us know. We are keen to hear what ski cabin sharers or ski club members need.

The Resercal shared property scheduling and management app is available on an annual subscription basis from Resercal.com.

Question For You 13: CBD?

October 6, 2020/12 Comments/in Features/by seniorsskiing

Fad Or Fabulous? Does The Cannibis Derivative Work For You?

Getting high is not the point of CBD.

We are curious about the emergence of CBD as a medicinal potion for a variety of ailments. Surely, we bet most of you remember the furtive days with Mary Jane back in college. Actually, let’s not go there.

CBD is different. Cannabidiol or CBD has rapidly become the celebrity ointment or additive for everything from sore joints to anxiety. Although CBD has been around for over 70 years, it’s only in the past three or four years that it has a become ubiquitous on the retail market.

Our question for you. Have you tried CBD? What condition were you using it for? How has it worked out? Would you recommend it?

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (10/2)

October 2, 2020/3 Comments/in Features/by seniorsskiing

And So Begins The 2020-21 SeniorsSkiing.com Publishing Season.

Fasten your face masks firmly in place; this winter is going to be like no other.

Masks were everywhere in the Perisher lodge. Credit: John Harris

The entire snow sports industry has spent the summer planning how to open up when the snow flies. Uncertainty about the future makes people anxious, however, the semblance of a cohesive, cogent plan with precautions goes a long way to calming customer nerves. The industry has done a terrific job trying to figure out how to manage this unprecedented public health threat. Changes in business as usual are keys to managing the “Covid Season.”

We’ve created some changes, too, that might help you as this strange winter starts to evolve.

Classifieds Are Coming!

For one thing, we’re going to launch our brand new Classified Ad section next week. Starting 10/16, you will be able to place a classified ad on SeniorsSkiing.com. We’ve developed a number of categories where you can offer everything from gear or collectibles to ride shares and meet-to-ski to condo rentals. As a introductory promotion, you’ll be able to post an ad for 30 days in any category for $1. Regular rates will be quite reasonable and based on how long you want your ad to be accessible to our readers. As with all dealings online, readers are encouraged to use caution and common sense in contacting others through this service.

Alternatives to Alpine: Make More Tracks

Over the summer, we’ve been watching industry news releases and have scrutinized some of the plans for re-opening ski resorts. All of these plans are thoughtful and respectful of both the virus and customers. All contain a degree of restrictions on customer behavior which may or may not wear well as the season goes on. In fact, the Cross-Country Ski Area Association has extrapolated that the rise in walking and bike riding this spring and summer might correlate with increased interest in Nordic skiing, snowshoeing and other ways to get outside in the winter and “make more tracks”.

As a result, SeniorsSkiing.com is introducing a new section, “Make More Tracks”, initially devoted to articles about XC skiing, snowshoeing, fat biking, and other snow activities.

Nordic or XC skiing and snowshoeing are ideal for the Covid Season. Outdoors, of course, socially distanced, reasonably priced, uncrowded, the sports lends themselves as a perfect alternative to Alpine skiing. Snowshoeing, by the way, is also ideal for seniors who have given up skiing due to health, fitness ,or lack of interest reasons.

If you haven’t tried XC skiing as a senior skier, you are missing a completely different way to enjoy winter outdoors. If you’ve been away from the sport for a while, you have a plethora of new types of equipment and gear to learn about. And, if you haven’t noticed, there are many XC-oriented resorts that have grown in the past decade that offer unique winter vacation experiences.

Our Make More Tracks initiative includes a Resource Guide with tips and advice from Roger Lohr, editor of XCSkiResort.com, and Jonathan Wiesel, international XC trip planner and guide, trail designer, and resort owner, both experts in all aspects of XC skiing. We will include at least one Make More Tracks article per weekly issue of SeniorsSkiing.com and devote an entire issue in November to these sports.

This Week

We’re publishing our new boot recommendations for seniors, developed in cooperation with America’s Best Bootfitters (ABB) and the 2021 Masterfit Buyer’s Guide. This is an industry exclusive, Subscriber-Only offering that can be accessed after confirming your name and email address. Click on the third box in the top menu to get to the story. Boot recommendations are graded by traditional or walking, including specific boots for men and women.

The ski season has just concluded Down Under. We can learn a lot from the experience of Australian skiers and how resorts managed the virus. John Harris, our new correspondent in Australia reports on the recent season, noting what worked and what didn’t. Despite a dearth of snow, the season went on, and “car parks were full.” Click here for the story.

One aspect of the Covid Season that hasn’t been discussed is what happens to shared ski houses. The problems of distancing, scheduling, cleaning and the like are important consideration. Correspondent Alice Winthrop discusses these issues and proposes some approaches. Alice is the designer of Resercal, a new app for scheduling and managing shared vacation properties. Ski clubs, this is for you. Click here for her story.

Crested Butte Nordic has rentals for $20 a day. Credit: CB Nordic

XCSkiResorts.com publisher and SeniorsSkiing.com Nordic editor Roger Lohr discusses the impact of the Covid Season on Nordic skiing. This is the first of an ongoing series of Make More Tracks articles.

As a regular early-season feature, we’ve been watching winter weather forecast conditions every year. This year, La Nina is in. Find out how warmer waters in the eastern Pacific are going to impact snow levels in North America. We also share the Farmer’s Almanac’s prediction for 2020-21. Compare and contrast.

And to celebrate the last gasp of summer, here’s an article from correspondent Josh Foss on lessons learned from surfing with dolphins.

Finally, here’s touching video below from Alta, praising the work and dedication of the ski patrol. These guys keep us safe, and they deserve this impressive shout out.

Thank you for reading SeniorsSkiing.com. Please tell your friends and remember, there are more of us every day, and we aren’t going away.

Pandemic Skiing In Australia

September 30, 2020/4 Comments/in International/by John Harris

Impossible Or Just Tricky?

Resort skiing in Australia is in the Australian Alps straddling the border between our most populous states, New South Wales and Victoria, with capitals in Sydney and Melbourne.

The season officially opens in early June and closes early October.

Thredbo Supertrail mid-August. Credit: John Harris

NSW’s biggest resorts—Perisher (acquired by Vail Resorts in 2015) and Thredbo (Mountain Collective and Ikon links)—lie in Kosciuszko National Park in the Snowy Mountains. They cater mainly to Sydney’s five million people a six hour drive away.

Victoria has three resorts. Mt Hotham and Falls Creek were also recently acquired by Vail Resorts. Mt Buller is the other. They cater to 5.6 million folk, most of whom live in Melbourne.

This year’s opening was delayed for several weeks in NSW. The National Park closed for the long opening weekend amid all the concerns and regulations surrounding the pandemic back then. Tricky!

June saw a rush on sales of backcountry equipment amid fears the resorts wouldn’t open at all. Gear was in short supply with importation restrictions. Tricky!

Perisher’s restrictions. Credit: John Harris

In early July, just when seasoned skiers expect skiing conditions to be okay, a second wave of coronavirus hit Melbourne, and Victoria went to lockdown. Victoria’s ski resorts closed and remained closed for the season. State borders shut then so snow sports became limited to NSW and Canberra and impossible for residents from all other states. Nearly 17 million Australians had no access to the resorts this year. Impossible for them!

Perisher and Thredbo in New South Wales opened later in June.

Perisher offered Epic Australia season passes but for the first few weeks everyone including pass holders had to prebook days online to ski . One staffie I spoke to only managed to find three days available during this time due to the limited tickets. The website crashed often with the traffic. He checked every morning, hoping more tickets would come online. Thredbo was similar. Tricky!

My favourite lunch spot at Perisher only available to hotel guests in 2020. Credit: John Harris

Skiers who had booked resort accommodation had no guarantee of getting lift tickets. Communication with Perisher was only possible online. Emailed inquiries yielded an automatic reply promising a reply within days. Tricky!

There were no group ski lessons and no assistance by staff getting on chairlifts. Some restaurants were restricted to hotel guests. It was suggested that skiers bring food and drink in case venues were full. Tricky!

Despite the restrictions, the skiers came. Sydney had a few covid cases and locals were worried they’d bring it down. A trace of virus was detected in Perisher’s sewage and face masks became mandatory in the resort, inside and out. They still are. Tricky!

Thredbo is linked to Mountain Collective and Ikon groups and is an all year resort. Its restrictions were similar to Perisher. This year the resort did not offer season passes, saying they usually had a large proportion of skiers with season passes, and it wouldn’t have been workable. 70 years plus day passes were just $A25 but available days hard to find. Masks were not worn outside. Tricky!

Thredbo closed a week after this picture was taken. Credit: John Harris

Thredbo’s Supertrail closed a week after I took the photo above due to snow melt. As runs became fewer, Thredbo credited the accounts of people who had pre-purchased tickets with a proportion of the cost. The resort closed prematurely two weeks ago.(Editor Note: mid-September). Commendable!

Perisher plans to stay open till the end of the school holidays on October 9. Its rules are unchanged. I have been very impressed with how professionally both resorts have handled difficult and changing circumstances and how co-operative the public has been. Hopefully, your North American winter will run smoothly with fewer changes needed and good powder.

I visited Perisher on Sunday to see how things were going. Here’s what I found.

Demand remains high at Perisher with a full car park. Credit: John Harris

Most patrons were wearing face covering and happy laughter was everywhere.

Masks were everywhere in the Perisher lodge. Credit: John Harris

Okay, this senior’s tally wasn’t too impressive in the pandemic, one day at Perisher so far, one at Thredbo. But what a wonderful sport. Age hardly matters. You get pulled up the hill, and gravity takes you down. People of widely different ages can relate to each other and be friends. And so much laughter.

2020 skiing down under was tricky but for many of us not impossible.

La Nina Is Here

September 29, 2020/4 Comments/in Features/by mikemaginn

She Is Bringing Snow For Some. Find Out Who.

La Nina is has been lurking around the west coast of South America since August. That frosty little senorita brings cooler temperatures to the mid- and eastern Pacific waters which in turn impacts atmospheric circulation, which affects the shape of the Jet Stream across North America. And that determines precipitation and temperatures across the entire continent, essentially shaping the severity of winter storms.

The National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center foresees that the La Nina will hang around for the entire ski season into Spring 2021.

La Nina raises the potential for more hurricanes, which we are currently experiencing. As of this writing, we’re up to 28 named storms since the start of the hurricane season.

Classic La Nina weather patterns feature a wave-like jet stream flow across North America, which causes colder and stormier than average conditions across the northern tier and warmer and less stormier conditions across the south.

That’s good snow news for Alaska, western Canada and the northern Rockies, northern California, Wyoming, and the Northwest. It’s probably drier and warmer for New Mexico, Arizona, and Southern California. Utah and Colorado, and the Northeast as well as parts of the Midwest are in the uncertain zone.

For an interesting discussion of the different impacts of El Nino and La Nina conditions, click here for seasonal correlations for resorts from Australia to South and North America.

Secret formula at The Farmer’s Almanac has different outcomes. Credit: Farmer’s Almanac

Compare the Climate Predication Center’s forecast with the 2020-21 prediction from the Farmer’s Almanac. The venerable publication uses its own formula and data for weather prediction, and, as you can see, this year’s future picture is different than what we are hearing from NOAA.

Take your pick.

Sharing a Ski House During a Pandemic

September 28, 2020/4 Comments/in Features, Sponsored Content/by Alice Winthrop

How Does Everyone Stay Safe In Close Quarters?

Has your ski club thought about managing a shared ski house? Credit: Camilla Stahlschmidt

In the Internet era, we keep hearing about the “new sharing economy” with tech companies like AirBnB, Uber, Zipcar all capitalizing on otherwise under-used assets like spare bedrooms and cars. But in the ski community we’ve been ahead of the curve for years with ski clubs maximizing occupancy of ski houses, families sharing use of second homes, and even college buddies teaming up to buy a ski house together. The sharing economy is not a new concept to skiers and snowboarders who were the original couch surfers!

Despite all this experience in sharing places to stay near the mountains, the pandemic adds a new dimension. Ski resorts, hotels and inns are fretting over plans for opening, but what does it mean for all the private sharers? Do we pile in together as usual or stay in smaller “pods” to limit exposure even though that might mean fewer ski days and less social interaction?

Health experts are still learning about the Novel Coronavirus and how it is transmitted but for now it seems safe to say that you don’t want to be inside sharing air with people who may be spreading the virus. It’s much, much safer to be outside and at least six feet apart. The data also shows that older people and people with pre-existing conditions are more likely to suffer a severe case of COVID-19 if they are infected so our 50+ demographic has to be extra careful.

With that in mind it may be worth doing some additional thinking about your accommodation plans before the snow flies. If you are sharing a house with others, are they all already in your “pod” or are you potentially exposing yourself to a new group—and all the people they may have interacted with in recent weeks?

Some houses have separate apartments or cabins which would be ideal for spreading groups out while still allowing for outside social time while skiing, snowboarding, or trying other winter sports, and of course for après.

Ski clubs may want to consider spacing people out, reducing use of communal gathering spaces or even following the school model and splitting members up into smaller cohorts with each cohort going at a different time. Maybe even sorting by age and giving older members the option to visit at child-free times?

One option to help with organization, minimize risk, and avoid confusion in shared spaces is Google Calendar. Another, specifically targeted at ski clubs and private houses is Resercal.com (disclosure: the author of this article created this product). There are many other online booking systems that can help you organize your season depending on what you need. Many are aimed solely at hotel/inn managers or for rentals-only so look carefully for the features that best fit your situation.

Consider leaving a buffer in the schedule between uses for cleaning. That should reduce the chance of virus being transmitted by air or on surfaces.

You might also want to think about making your shared ski house work-from-home compatible. With many people working remotely, it may be possible to spread family, friend, or club member use over more dates than in past seasons. For example a family with kids could visit for a whole week, remote-working, and “distance-learning” from the ski house, instead of just staying on weekends. Spread out over the season, a few longer visits in smaller pods might add up to a similar number of ski days for all involved.

What are your thoughts and plans? How are you or your group preparing for this unusual season?

Question For You 11: How Will You Share a Ski House In COVID Time?

September 28, 2020/1 Comment/in Features/by seniorsskiing

How Will Your Ski Club/Family/Partner Ski House Shares Be Different This Year?

Will you hail, hail the gang’s all here this year?

We wondered how many of our readers are involved in sharing private accommodations near ski areas. And, if you do, are you making special arrangements for 2020-21 due to COVID-19 like scheduling use?

This question came up because our website designer recently created Resercal.com, an online scheduling service to make it easier to share a ski house or other vacation home.

If you had a shared house during the summer, what issues came up? What will be the most difficult aspects of sharing a ski house in the upcoming season? And what any changes are you making this season to your sharing plans due to the pandemic?

Make More Tracks: What Has Covid Wrought For Nordic Skiing?

September 28, 2020/2 Comments/in Make More Tracks/by Roger Lohr

XC Skiing And Snowshoeing Are Perfect Forms Of Recreation For The Pandemic.

Based on activity with walking and bicycling last spring, many people in the snowsports business are anticipating a surge in XC skiing and snowshoeing this winter. If alpine ski areas are restricted in ways that lead to excessive waiting such as the amount of time waiting to acquire lift access reservations via the Internet, waiting to get on the lift, waiting to get lunch in the lodge, waiting to go to the restroom, etc., we predict there may be a resulting influx of alpine skiers to XC skiing and snowshoeing. And, perhaps we’ll see:

People who have tried XC skiing in the past but not continued (lapsed skiers) may be motivated to try it again.
People who have never gone XC skiing or snowshoeing may be encouraged to try it for the first time—because of associated wellness benefits.
And people who already enjoy XC skiing or snowshoeing will go more often this winter.

We do not know if there will be similar restrictions at XC ski areas, but it is expected that people will go XC skiing and snowshoeing with or without restrictions at commercial XC ski areas, which charge a fee for groomed trail access.

A Forbes Magazine article cited that “the younger generation doesn’t ski and some of them think skiing is ecologically destructive and too bourgeois; under forties people feel that it is all artificial snow that requires paying a fortune for gear, clothes, and lessons.” I’m not sure what statistics the Forbes article is drawing on, but COVID surveys conducted by Spot seen in content posted on SeekingAlpha.com revealed “33% of skiers said there is a reduced likelihood of skiing in the upcoming season; 30% fewer season passes have been sold, 24% said they’ll be skiing less frequently, and less travel is expected due to limited resort amenities and services.”

We’ve become accustomed to all the protocols that will be in place at XC ski areas (distancing, contact-less transactions, masks in crowded areas, etc.). All the ski areas both alpine and XC are taking a wait-and-see attitude, hoping that availability of a COVID therapeutic or vaccination will change everything. The predictions are that many of the mitigation efforts will be necessary with or without vaccinations across the population as it will take months for the vaccination to bring on normalcy. Most ski area operators have already set their operational plans to open despite the pandemic and skiers will hear about them as the season approaches.

Product suppliers and dealers are salivating about hoped-for increases in product sales, but some of them are certainly somewhat apprehensive (considering that about 27 million jobs have been lost) about the level of consumer enthusiasm to purchase new gear this year.

Touring is Nordic is XC. Credit: Dynafit

With all of this anticipation, one thing is clear: the reality is that XC skiing and snowshoeing are perfect forms of recreation for the pandemic. Both XC skiing and snowshoeing are exactly what the doctor ordered, that is, healthy benefits such as physical fitness, psychological wellness, and a door to a deep emotional connection with nature. The feeling of passing through the snow covered forest at a slow pace provides a wellness indoctrination that is unavailable from other activities.

It would be beneficial for the people who are newcomers or returning lapsed skiers to get exposed to the advancements in XC skiing such as equipment that makes the sport easier and better. I’ve heard from people who are talking about finding the good in all of the challenges that we have faced since March 2020. More seniors who love the outdoors and winters will be discovering XC skiing and snowshoeing because it will be a great boost and alternative for all those folks. Let’s Make More Tracks!

Click Here For SeniorsSkiing.com’s Make More Tracks: A Resource Guide To XC, Snowshoeing, Fatbiking.

Five Life Lessons From Surfing with Dolphins

September 28, 2020/0 Comments/in Features/by Josh Foss

Nature has many lessons to teach us about living. Especially now, when COVID limits where we go and what we do.

A few years ago I was surfing at Huntington Beach, California. It was 2016, and I was 73.

All I hoped for was a few hours of good surfing. The fresh salt air awakened memories of when I first surfed there in 1964.

Lesson 1: The phenomenon of sounds and smells often brings a flurry of memories. Nature has a way of stimulating them.

As I entered the water, a growing swell caught my attention. It was rapidly transforming into a substantial wave. I jumped on my board and paddled fast to dive under the incoming break.

Lesson 2: Nature is always in a state of change. Sometimes it’s rapid; sometimes glacial. Most of us resist change. Though conditioned to expectations and routines, whatever our age, we have the ability to grow.

Paddling past the forming swells brought me near a pod of dolphins. They were watching, their heads high out of the water. My senses told me they wanted to play

Lesson 3:. Trust in our senses and heart-felt feelings opens us to new life experiences.

I paddled faster and dove under the incoming break. One of the dolphins followed, cutting into the building wave. Suddenly, a curl of water arched into a beautiful tube; a portal into timelessness.

Lesson 4: Time seems to accelerate as we age. Being in nature makes us more present and aware. I experience this when surfing, floating in deep powder or running the rapids. Even simple changes in less exotic daily routines make us more present and can slow things down.

Pressing forward on the board sped me toward the opening of the tunnel. Behind me the wave collapsed, pushing a spay and blowing me out and up over the backside.

Farther out two dolphins cut across the face of the incoming wave. One made a swift cut upwards, spinning high, turning and diving back to the sea. Show off, I thought. Dolphins often like to perform and play in waves with surfers. They knew I was impressed.

Lesson 5: We become much more alive when we are aware of and sensitive to our surroundings and those in them.

Experience tells me that most of us want more years in our lives. Regardless of who we are or what we can do, being more present and aware provides us with more life in our years.

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (July 31)

July 31, 2020/4 Comments/in Features/by seniorsskiing

Hints Of The Coming Winter, Questions For You, Covid Fitness, Ski Canada And Covid.

Wow, turn around, and it’s the end of July, and August is upon us. Has Covid-19 accelerated the clock? It seems like we are rushing into fall. And all the uncertainty that will bring.

One thing for certain, we know most people don’t like uncertainty, ambiguity, vagueness; we like the opposite much more: predictability, certainty, clarity. Well, that ain’t happening these days, so we might as well get used to it, because it is definitely going to affect winter sports next winter.

Take Australia, for instance. It’s winter down there, and ski resorts began operating in late June, but a record high of 191 new coronavirus cases hit the state of Victoria on July 7, prompting Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews to revert to stage three restrictions, similar to stay-at-home orders issued in the United States this spring, for six weeks. In response, Vail Resorts, operator of Hotham and Falls Creek in Victoria, announced that it would suspend operations at the two resorts, according to a report in Powder Magazine.

Boom. Closed. At least for a while.

Mt. Hotham trails open report from the resort’s website. Owner Vail Resorts closed down the area after a spike in virus infections.

On the other hand, resorts in New Zealand are operating without the usual Covid restrictions, because the country locked down tight in late March, flattened the curve, and beat the virus. However, it’s a domestic crowd hitting The Remarkables and Mount Hutt, resulting in 50-80 percent of normal visitations. International visitors won’t be making the En-Zed scene this year due to travel restrictions.

Meanwhile, The Remarkables in Queenstown, NZ, are open to domestic visitors only. NZ locked down in late March and beat the virus. At least so far.

So, while US and Canadian resorts will be limiting visitor capacity, accepting only online reservations, practicing distancing on lifts and lift lines, frequently sanitizing facilities, restricting food service and even terrain accessibility, if the virus peaks again regionally, some local resort owners could do what the Victoria areas did and shut down for some length of time.

That will leave winter sports lovers with some choices. At SeniorsSkiing.com, we feel—based on our survey responses—that readers will either find somewhere else to go or start or re-introduce themselves to cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, or fat-biking, outdoor winter sports that may satisfy the need for cold weather activity. Should that future scenario unfold, SeniorsSkiing.com plans to help our readers make a transition to alternative winter sports with information resources and recommendations specifically for our senior readership.

Look for “Make More Tracks” coming up this fall.

This Week

Downtown Banff. Bike rental on Banff Ave. which was closed to traffic this summer for social distancing. Credit: SkiBig3

SeniorsSkiing.com correspondent Yvette Cardozo reports on preparations underway in some leading Canadian resorts, anticipating the US-Canada will be open by the beginning of ski season. One thing is for sure, uncertainty is out there, but planning the details helps boost confidence in visitors.

Have you been keeping up with your Covid-era exercise and fitness program? We ask that question in one of our Questions For You. Also, SeniorsSkiing.com correspondent tells about what Covid has done for him, physical-fitness-wise.

We also have a question for you about our upcoming SeniorsSkiing.com Classified Ad section. We’d like your input on what categories you’d like to see and your impressions about carrying classified ads in our online magazine.

And finally, speaking of “Make More Tracks”, here’s a GoPro promo video of a guy named Chuck Patterson skiing down some waves in Hawaii. Perhaps we should all be learning to ski on water? Global warming? Eh?

Thanks for reading SeniorsSkiing.com. Be safe out there. Wear a mask, wash your hands, distance. And remember there are more of us every day and we aren’t going away.

Ski Canada And Covid

July 30, 2020/6 Comments/in International/by Yvette Cardozo

Ski resorts are still trying to figure out what the next season will look like.

We heard from a few Canadian ski area representatives and whatever finally happens, next year your favorite resort won’t look like what you remember from the past.

Many resorts opened for a revised summer season that several called “a great dress rehearsal” for next winter.

Downtown Banff. Bike rental on Banff Ave. which was closed to traffic this summer for social distancing. Credit: SkiBig3

It involved limits to daily lift ticket totals, spaced tables in restaurants (and a lot of outdoor eating), social distancing in lift lines and yes, restrictions on lifts themselves.

But the final details for winter, everyone said, are still being determined.

Not so, though, for Air Canada.

Tony Celio of Air Canada had a very specific list:

Touch-free checkins, mandatory masks on board, hand sanitizing stations throughout the airports, health questions and temperature checks (top temp is 99.5).
In the boarding area, no lining up to board. Everyone stays seated until their group number is called, then boarding is back to front, window to isle.
On board, free packs containing hand sanitizer, wipes, mask, gloves, bottle of water, snack and headset are given to each passenger. Crews wear masks and gloves. Everything is sanitized between flights with hospital grade disinfectant and HEPA filters are being used for the cabin air.

Air Canada has this video on its website:

As for resorts, they are not expecting massive crowds since they assume their international visitor counts will be down.

Tamara Melanson of SilverStar said hotel guests have been naturally spaced out because there is a mandatory 24 hour gap between check out and the next check in so rooms can be deep cleaned.

But specifics for winter, she and others admitted, are all still being worked out, though Melanson could speak to what they’re doing about lift lines and lifts now.

Interestingly, this is the busiest year they’ve ever had for cyclists going up the mountain but still, they are limiting tickets to keep people socially spread and keeping people in a single stretched out line to board.

In summer, they have only the six-pack lift and gondola open. And for now, it’s one person (or group of friends) to a gondola and a max of two strangers to a lift. She figures seating on the resort’s quads and the six pack in winter will be similar.

Andre Quenneville, general manager of Mt. Norquay added that some resorts are experimenting with spraying lifts with disinfectant.

Jen Kyles of SkiCan which represents resorts across Canada said, “People will need more patience.” For instance, they will need to make prior reservations for rentals which will then have timed entries to keep folks spaced. Many resorts, she said, are thinking of shifting dining into their conference facilities where the rooms are larger. And buffets will be gone.

Top of lift, Norquay, this summer. Credit: Mt. Norquay

Resorts like Mt. Norquay and Panorama Mountain Resort, not exactly known for crushing crowds, don’t expect to have problems with spacing on-slope.

Meanwhile this summer, Banff has closed its main downtown corridor to provide more space for people on foot. Restaurants have 50 percent occupancy indoors but also have spaced dining on the street. And while masks are encouraged, they are not required, though that may change.

Quenneville of Norquay said he feels confident his resort will be open for winter and expects the US-Canada border will be open by then. And Steve Paccagnan, CEO of Panorama, referring to shuttles from the Calgary airport, said they would be offering private travel for those who want it along with buses with “safe practices,” meaning spacing people out.

In the end, everyone agrees, it will be a lot of trial and error.

Question For You 9: Corona Making You More Fit?

July 29, 2020/22 Comments/in Features/by seniorsskiing

It’s Been Four Months. Where Are You On Your Fitness Plan?

The season ended abruptly for everyone in mid-March. One day, you were on the lift line at Killington, and, boom, next day you were heading home. Just like that.

We know that many of your resorted to picking up new activities. With the gyms. pools, tennis, and golf clubs closed, we and you were left to our own ingenuity. Everyone started walking. Some got into a yoga routine. Cycles came out when the weather cleared. All good.

Four months on, how’s it working out for you? Our yoga routine stopped short when we pulled a muscle. We know folks that got tired of walking the same three mile loop. So, here’s the question:

Please write your response in the Reply Box below:

Have you maintained a new Corona exercise routine? Have you gained/lost weight? Gained muscle mass? Flexibility? After four months, are you still doing what you started doing back in March? What’s changed?

Question For You 10: Classifieds?

July 28, 2020/41 Comments/in Features/by seniorsskiing

Help Us Decide If/How SeniorsSkiing.com Classifieds Should Work.

At SeniorsSkiing.com World Headquarters, we get frequent requests from readers looking for ski partners, places to go, house or condo rental information, and many other topics. So, we decided to create a classified ad section within SeniorsSkiing.com to accommodate these kinds of wants, needs, and desires.

What we are planning is a relatively inexpensive way to post stuff for sale of different kinds. Options include a one-week insertion all the way up to 10 weeks in the classified ad section. Prices range from $10-$50, depending on duration of the ad. Readers can post the ad themselves, including pictures (to some extent), and pay using a credit card. Nice and simple.

Here are the categories we are thinking of. Please let us know what you think. Here’s the question for you:

What do you think? Good idea? Bad idea? What categories are missing? Which of those listed are not important or irrelevant? Would you post a classified on SeniorsSkiing.com?

Please write your response in the Reply Box below.

Proposed Classified Categories

Alpine Equipment For Sale	Nordic Equipment For Sale	Accessories, Gizmos, Electronics For Sale	Non-Winter Sports Gear For Sale
Guides/Instructor Services	Seasonal/Weekly Rentals	Trucks, Campers, Trailers, Cars For Sale	Ride Share
In Search Of	Looking For Ski Buddies	Ski Club Trips Open To SeniorsSkiing.com Readers	Vintage equipment, collectibles, antiques

SeniorsSkiing Guide: Jackson Hole—Not For Experts Only

July 25, 2020/4 Comments/in West/by Evelyn Kanter

There also are dozens of trails and cirques for the rest of us mere mortals.

Now, that’s a blue cruiser at JH looking delicious. Credit: Jackson Hole

I’ve been skiing here since I was locked into that famous and frustrating “intermediate plateau” and took a chance on defying Jackson’s reputation for experts only. Besides, the town sounded like fun, with wooden sidewalks and real cowboys coming into town from the ranches that ring the resort.

If you’ve never skied trees, this is the place to learn. The short bursts of glades under the Sweetwater Gondola or Casper chairlift are ideal, because you if you get into trouble, you can bail out to one of the blue or green groomers alongside, or just wave or shout up to a lift rider if your trouble is serious.

When you get better, head into Moran Woods, in between the Casper or Teton lifts.

I always plan my day to be at the lodge at the bottom of the Casper quad for that mid-morning pit stop, and sometimes for lunch, since it’s always less crowded than the other mid-mountain lodges and restaurants.

The Teton is one of Jackson’s newer lifts, and accesses a network of blue and green cruisers that you can take back non-stop to the base area, down some 3,000 of the resort’s massive 4,129 vertical. The Kemmerer trail off the top is named for Jay Kemmerer, who bought the resort in 1992 and credited with turning it into a world-class destination.

It’s a fast groomer that links to the Werner cruiser. That one is named for Buddy Werner, an internationally renowned ski racer and member of the US Olympic ski team, who died trying to outrace an avalanche in the Swiss Alps in 1964. You could do laps here all day. I have.

Werner was the choice of the resort’s original owner to be the first ski school director. That went instead to Pepi Steigler, who won a gold medal in slalom and a bronze in giant slalom in the 1964 Olympics. It was the same Olympics in which Jimmy Heuga and Billy Kidd became the first Americans to medal in the slalom, a couple of deep breaths behind Steigler, who ran the Jackson Hole Ski School for more than 40 years before retiring.

But I digress.

Of course, you must take the famous Jackson Hole Tram to the top, and pick your way down Rendezvous Bowl to the groomed trails below. Be sure to do it on a sunny day, unless you want to hear my near-horror story about skiing it in socked in weather. Jackson Hole often is subject to inversions, when it is bright and sunny at the bottom and socked in up top. If the tram isn’t busy in the middle of the day, that’s the reason.

My favorite spot on the mountain is Laramie Bowl, off the Thunder quad. It’s really more a funnel than a bowl, with VW-sized bumps on the right and “regular” bumps on either side of a bail-out groomer.

Jackson Hole is also a great destination for multi-generation winter vacations with the grandkids. The really young ones get to ride to their own dedicated teaching slope in a wagon powered by a snowmobile. The kids love it, and we grandparents love taking photos of it.

Where you stay in Jackson Hole depends on whether you prefer base area convenience or downtown shopping and restaurants.

JH has prioritized improving the intermediate ski and snowboard experience to give guests a variety of terrain. Here’s a blue blue. Credit: Jackson Hole

Convenience is the Teton Village base area, with hotels, condos and restaurants in all price ranges and amenity levels. Best, I think, are the Four Seasons with heated walkways for no-slip snow-free access, and the Alpenhof, with a true European vibe, one of the first hotels to open when the resort opened in 1965.

Apres ski in the Village centers around the Mangy Moose, named for the dusty taxidermy moose for which it is named.

Downtown, the premiere place to stay is the Wort Hotel, one of the members of the Historic Hotels of America group, known for its rustic charm and attentive service.

The Blue Lion is known for its elk filets. Another top dining choice is the Snake River Grill, whose menu identifies the local ranchers and farmers who supplied the lamb, pork or artisanal cheese.

Apres ski downtown means The Cowboy, which features live music and country western dancing in season. This is where I learned to two-step at free Thursday night lessons. Just keep walking past the saddle-shaped bar stools in the front to the tables dance floor in the back. The burgers are pretty good here, too.

Locals and any visitors in the know head for The Stagecoach in nearby Wilson, at the base of the Teton Pass, on Sunday nights. A five-piece band has played here for more than 40 years, including a few of the originals still wielding a banjo or guitar. Be forewarned that the repertoire is usually sprinkled with a few ditties that could make a sailor blush.

Take an afternoon off the slopes to visit the National Elk Refuge just outside town, where thousands of these majestic creatures spend the winter. If you time it correctly, you can also visit the National Museum of Wildlife Art on the other side of the road, with its impressive collection of landscape paintings and Remington sculptures.

Jackson Hole is a member of both Ikon Pass and Mountain Collective, neither of which provide discounts for seniors. If the only place you intend to ski or ride this season is Jackson Hole, the best deal for the 2020/21 season is the Plus Pass, which offers 25 days of lift access for $505.

Click here for Jackson Hole Trail Map

Click here for Jackson Hole Web Cams

Nordic Skiing Terminology

July 5, 2020/0 Comments/in Make More Tracks/by Jonathan Wiesel

XC, Nordic, Touring, Cross-Country. What’s What?

Touring is Nordic is XC. Credit: Dynafit

If you’re new to the sport, you’re going to find people using terms that may be a little confusing at first. Here’s an explanation of most of the jargon you’re likely to meet.

Nordic skiing is the catch-all term that includes classic technique, skating, ski touring, telemarking, even jumping and biathlon… In all these cases, your boot’s toe is fixed to the binding and your heel is free to lift up, as opposed to the fixed heel in downhill (or alpine) skiing. Nordic skiing is about a jillion years old; downhill is a relative newcomer.
Grooming lets you glide on top of a solid, consistent base that’s been prepared by snowcats or snowmobiles pulling special attachments. Groomed trails are used by both classic skiers and skaters.
Cross-country refers to skiing on machine-groomed surfaces – track for classic skiers and compacted snow for skaters
Classic technique (also called diagonal stride). You’re moving straight ahead instead of skating.
Skating is a relatively new technique (was introduced to racing in the early 1980s) involving an ice-skating like motion of arms and legs, thrusting out to the side. It’s dynamic and relatively exhausting.
Ski touring means skiing on ungroomed snow, whether it’s playing in your backyard or day-long treks in the mountains.
Track skiing (for classic skiers) means skiing in precise machine-compressed grooves, with snow compacted on both sides of the track for planting your poles.
Telemarking is an elegant and practical descent and turning technique.
Ski joring means being pulled, usually by a dog, though I’ve also been pulled by a horse, reindeer, and VW bug.
Biathlon refers to skiing and target shooting, usually with a rifle.
Kilometers are how cross-country ski trail lengths are measured. A km is a little over 1/6^th of a mile. Skiers get more of a kick out of saying, “Hey, I skied 10 km today!” than “Well, I skied about 6 miles.”
Nordic Combined naturally enough refers to the blending of ski jumping and cross-country skiing.

Track Vs Tour

July 5, 2020/0 Comments/in Make More Tracks/by Jonathan Wiesel

Groomed Vs Bushwhack? Both Have Positives.

Classic diagonal style goes down easy on groomed trails, also essential for breaking trail. Credit: WebCyclery.com

For the past 50 years or so, there’s been a generally amicable debate whether cross-country skiing on machine-groomed trails is preferable to making your own way o’er the fields and through the woods. The argument has a lot of angles, including “Free vs. Fee” and “Pristine, Silent, and Serene vs. Speedy, Social, Service-based, and Secure”.

Clearly, you don’t have to choose one over the other – they’re both delights (and the world’s best exercise), in somewhat different ways. The thing is, as my increasingly complaining bones and joints frequently announce, groomed trails for classic and skate techniques have more and more going for them.

One huge differentiator is that if you want to take up the sport, you’ll be smart to start with one or two lessons from a professional instructor at a cross-country ski area, learning and practicing efficient movement. Undesirable options are learning by yourself off-track (I know someone who tried to do that while consulting a printed manual – results were not pretty, and the manual got soaked) or getting often-incoherent suggestions from a friend while floundering in unpacked snow (‘nuff said).

Whether you’re a long-time practitioner or a newcomer, groomed trails make things easier, faster. For classic style/diagonal stride, you’re riding on a consistent, packed surface, with your skis guided forward in compressed, parallel tracks. (It takes some effort to get lost that way too; whereas I’ve been known to ski in circles in fresh snow, totally convinced I was moving in linear fashion.) Gotta love it, especially if you have balance or vision issues, as I do.

Almost as important but often not noted, your pole tips are digging into packed snow and no further; while breaking your own trail, the entire basket may sink, throwing off your balance and helping you to get up close and personal to the snowpack. And as many of us have discovered, getting up in deep snow is challenging (though your instructor can show you best techniques there too).

Skate skiing has its own techniques and gear. Credit: HuffPost Canada

Skate skiers (for downhill skiers, skating can be easier to absorb than classic style) need a packed surface even more than diagonal striders. Two or three inches of fresh snow even on a machine-packed trail are enough to catch an edge and tip you over. It’s nearly impossible to skate in ungroomed snow except for glorious spring crust-cruising (not the same as skiing on ice – you can set your edges), which gives you a solid, consistent surface – crust lets you go almost anywhere, speedily zipping along. Euphoria!

One of the delights of cross-country is that you can evolve from a groomed trail skier to an off-track tourer (fields, forests, hill country, parks, golf courses…). You’ve developed good classic technique in the tracks; you know how to make your legs do the work and your arms help out – now you can apply those skills in a quieter setting, with shorter strides but still good balance.

Cross-country areas have services – anything from plowed parking to lodges with food and drink, heated bathrooms (also heaven on a brisk day!), rental, retail, even overnight accommodations. Groomed trails may have signs, maps, possibly ski patrol, probably snowshoeing – and if you’re wild for something different, increasingly there’s fat biking available.

If you’re taken by the charms of overnight tours, there may be Forest Service cabins in your area (bring your own food, clothing, sleeping bag…). And finally, for true adventure, there’s snow camping (bring your own stove too). Touring with a pack in fresh snow can be truly character-building (been there, done that, I happily leave it to today’s kids – but there was a time before groomed trails…).

Out-think Your Feet With XC Lessons

July 5, 2020/0 Comments/in Make More Tracks/by Jonathan Wiesel

It’s Not Like Walking. But Not Complicated To Learn.

Lessons make a difference. Credit: White Pine Touring

In the early 1970s, in a visionary but totally wrong-headed move, the fledgling Nordic ski industry declared that, “If you can walk, you can cross-country ski.”

Retrospectively, it would have been a lot more helpful and realistic to say, “If you can walk, you can learn to cross-country ski. And it takes only a single lesson from a professional to learn how to glide.”

Those were times when an alpine resort manager pigeonholed skinny skiers as, “Guys who head into the woods Friday night, and come out Sunday without having changed either their underwear or their $5 bill.” We were on the defensive – and dang, it’s tough to fight clever stereotypes!

Those were also the days that New Englander John Frado, who designed a lot of the best trails in North America, coined the hilarious phrase that’s the title of this article. And boy, was he right, because you’re going to become a better skier, use less energy, go further faster, and have more fun sooner if you start the sport with instruction. (And by that I mean ideally not just one lesson, but one, followed by practice, then another. And so on. Believe me, this approach works!)

Cross-country can be filled with grace – not just the dynamism, incredible self-discipline, and athleticism you see at the Olympics, but true beauty. Or it can be an awkward downer.

So here are half-a-dozen tips to make skiing euphoric, quickly.

First, please do something the Nordic business has never been able to, and come up with more endearing descriptions than “lesson,” “instruction,” “teaching,” and “ski school.” Who wants to go back to studies when you’re out to have winter fun?

Next, don’t even think of learning from a loved one – instead, learn from a ski professional. There’s always an uncomfortable level of stress and self-consciousness if your instructor is also a relative, or your sweetie. Too distracting; and incidentally, your kids or grandkids are likely to absorb everything depressingly faster than us oldies. But once you can glide, that’s the moment you discover that cross-country becomes incredibly social, skiing side by side with friends and family.

Third, learn to ski at a cross-country area or club with machine-groomed trails, where the compressed tracks will guide your skis. (More on this in a future article—promise!) Two outstanding resources on places to go are https://www.xcski.org and https://www.xcskiresorts.com/, which introduce you to marvelous places in both the U.S. and Canada.

Fourth, your ski pro needs to explain, early-on, how and why to hold your poles properly (my very own cliché: reach for the sky up along the shaft, then shake hands through the grip). Grabbing the poles tightly and ignoring the straps means you’ll be upright, stiff, walking rather than gliding, and a lot more fall-prone. Oh yeah, and wear gloves to avoid cold and abrasion.

Fifth, if you’re renting equipment, check to see if your instructor uses the same skis you do. It kinda levels the playing field.

And finally, think about a second lesson – or a private lesson – that concentrates on the whole range of descent techniques on these narrow skis that don’t have metal edges or heels held down, while you’re using footwear akin to sneakers. Wedge turns, step and skate turns, parallels, telemarking, traversing with kick turns, side stepping… – they’ll all get you down that hill.

And as I found even in my prideful youth, sometimes you just have to take your skis off and walk down. It’s all legit!

As we said, fun lessons. Credit: Mazamas

Tag Archive for: senior skier

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What We Can Learn From The Ski Season In Chile During The Pandemic

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If you’ve had a joint replacement, please share what it was like to come back to your sports regimen? What was that first ski run like? How did you muster the gumption to give it a try? What did you do to prep? What helped? What hindered? What advice do you have for those facing replacements?

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Buckle Up, Bundle Up And Buck It Up.

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If you are considering buying new gear for the new season, how do you decide what to buy?

Catch Early Snow in West Yellowstone.

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Yellowstone Ski Festival.

Adjusting Your Attitude Is Important, Too,

The Challenges of Shared Vacation Property.

Scheduling Use

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Our question for you. Have you tried CBD? What condition were you using it for? How has it worked out? Would you recommend it?

And So Begins The 2020-21 SeniorsSkiing.com Publishing Season.

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If you had a shared house during the summer, what issues came up? What will be the most difficult aspects of sharing a ski house in the upcoming season? And what any changes are you making this season to your sharing plans due to the pandemic?

Nature has many lessons to teach us about living. Especially now, when COVID limits where we go and what we do.

Hints Of The Coming Winter, Questions For You, Covid Fitness, Ski Canada And Covid.

Thanks for reading SeniorsSkiing.com. Be safe out there. Wear a mask, wash your hands, distance. And remember there are more of us every day and we aren’t going away.

Ski resorts are still trying to figure out what the next season will look like.

It’s Been Four Months. Where Are You On Your Fitness Plan?

Have you maintained a new Corona exercise routine? Have you gained/lost weight? Gained muscle mass? Flexibility? After four months, are you still doing what you started doing back in March? What’s changed?

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There also are dozens of trails and cirques for the rest of us mere mortals.

XC, Nordic, Touring, Cross-Country. What’s What?

It’s Not Like Walking. But Not Complicated To Learn.

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