Tag Archive for: Vermont skiing

mikemaginn

This Old Moriarty Hat

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Who owns a hat for 50 years?  Well, if it’s a Moriarty hat, perhaps you understand why.

Getting ready to shovel the driveway one cold morning last winter, I reached to the top shelf of the hall closet for a hat.  My fingers felt the double-thick headband of my old Moriarty hat tucked up out of sight.  I pulled it over my ears and went a-shoveling.  Working the shovel in knee-deep in snow, a thought occurred to me.  Wait a minute.  I bought that hat from Mrs. Moriarty’s shop on the Stowe Mountain Road in 1964.  That made it fifty years old.  My hat was fifty.  It has been with me in trunks, suitcases, boxes and dresser drawers in moves from New York to California to Japan back to California and then to Massachusetts.  Been with me at Mammoth Mountain, cross-country in Appleton Farms, MA, going to class in Syracuse, sailing the Gulf of Maine, walking to work from North Station in downtown Boston.  Fifty years is a long time to own a hat.  Of course, I had other hats, but my Moriarty kept popping into my hand from time to time from the top shelf.  How did this happen?

It's quite the hat. Back in the 60s and 70s, Moriarty hats were iconic.  The Preppy Handbook lampooned them as an essential part of the spoiled college kid outfit.  Almost everyone I skied with at Song Mountain, Tully, NY, had one.  The three points on the top were like a rooster’s cockscomb, distinctive and bold.  You wore your hat down tight over your ears with your goggles wrapped around your head.  No helmets in those days.  It was a “look” that even the most tentative skiers could exhibit.

Mrs. Moriarty founded a cottage industry around weaving those hats.  Soon outpaced by the volume of orders, Mrs. M. enlisted an army of fifty weavers in Stowe village, producing as many as 40,000 in 1965.  At its height, the Moriarty hat was as ubiquitous a symbol of skiing as Head skis and Marker turntable bindings.  An ad in SKI was bold enough to say, “The people of Vermont make great maple syrup, great cheddar cheese and the best ski hats in the world.”  As I said, icon status.

You can buy a vintage Moriarty hat on eBay or from the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum that somehow has a stock of left over inventory from the later days of the company.  The Moriarty family got out of the business in the 80s.

Mrs. Moriarty was told by skiers that "they skied better" with her hat on. Credit: SKI January, 1965

Mrs. Moriarty was told by skiers that “they skied better” with her hat on.
Credit: SKI January, 1965

Don’t ask why I never sent my hat off to the Salvation Army.  Despite the odd moth hole, it has simply always been part of my kit along with a handful of books, a banjo, a lighter from my Navy destroyer, and other small remainders of the past.  Things that travel through life with you have value.  When you pick them up again after many years, memories start to emerge in layers.  Even after many years.  Even a ski hat.  That’s why I love my Moriarty hat.

Do you still have one?

For more information, check out Retro-Skiing.com as well as Ivy-Style.com.

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

 

 

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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Deep Powder Cat Skiing: $25 Per Run

We’ve carried several articles about Powder Mountain, the enormous, old-fashioned resort about an hour northeast of Salt Lake International Airport. It was purchased a few years ago by a group of investors, and improvements are underway. It’s the go-to place for untracked powder long after the other resorts have been skied out. The place has so much acreage and so few skiers that untracked runs are available all day long and for days following the last big snowfall. It also offers a variety of snowcat skiing experiences, with single rides as low as $25.
Guided half and full day adventures are higher, but still quite reasonable. For newcomers to powder skiing, its acres of broad, gentle terrain make it a great place to learn. For the more experienced, there are long pitches to satisfy most appetites. Whether you live here or plan to visit, Powder Mountain is an adventure worth experiencing.

MASSACHUSETTS

Jiminy Peak‘s 2017/18 Zephyr season pass (six non-holiday days per week, Sunday to Friday) on sale for $349. Purchase now and get same perks for rest of current season.

PENNSYLVANIA

Several Pennsylvania resorts also have season pass deals that, if purchased now, let you ski free the rest of the season. Among them: Blue Mountain Resort, Camelback Mountain Resort and Roundtop Mountain Resort. 

VERMONT

Okemo‘s Spring Skiesta Card offers unrestricted skiing/riding from March 17 through end of season. Price ($139-$159) based on when purchased. Some purchasers will be entitled to $99 off ’17/’18 season pass.

seniorsskiing

Short Swings!

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CALIFORNIA

Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows received 25 inches over the holiday weekend. Wow, what a difference from last year.

COLORADO

In recognition of National Safety Month (January) Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA) member resorts are hosting special safety-related programs and activities to raise awareness and demonstrate how to be safe on the slopes. Events include joining ski patrol on end-of-day patrol sweeps, demonstrations with avalanche dogs, and increased awareness about helmet use.

MONTANA

As it has for the past decade, Big Sky Resort hosted a holiday dinner for more than 1,500 workers. Resort management served the food and cleaned. This year, Big Sky employs about 600 new out-of-state workers and roughly 114 international employees. The area provides free ski and snowboard lessons and rentals to all employees and their children.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Jackson Ski Touring Center’s Get 4 and Go program is a great way to learn x-country! Participants pay $199, for four days of cross country ski and boot/pole rentals, two group lessons, and two private lessons. Upon completion, participants receive a Certificate of Achievement and a season pass for the rest of winter — a total value of $423. The center also has a variety of other discounted offerings to encourage people to learn x-country and skate skiing. Kids under 10 ski free. Nice outing for parents/grandparents with small children/grandchildren: towable kid-sized sleds. Oh, that aching back!  Thanks to Roger Lohr, publisher of XCSkiResorts.com for the tip.

PENNSYLVANNIA

The Area Agency on Aging of Luzerne and Wyoming Counties hosts a free ski/snowboard/telemark clinic, 9:30 AM, Wednesdays starting January 4 at Jack Frost Mountain. Participants will need equipment and lift ticket. A special luncheon, with presentations about eating well and remaining in shape, is scheduled for January 18.

UTAH

The U.S. Speed Skating Championships will be held at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns (Salt Lake City), January 6-8. The best U.S. short and long track speed skating athletes will attempt to qualify to represent the U.S. in the World Cup and World Cup Sprint circuits. Admission is free.

December’s snowfall has given Utah over 100% of its average snowfall to date. In the past week, many resorts received 2 to 4 feet of snow.

VERMONT

Woodstock Inn & Resort, a quintessential New England ski hostelry, is offering several ski and snowshoe packages. The resort includes the Suicide Six Ski Area.

OTHER

January is Learn to Ski & Ride Month. Seventy-five+ US and Canadian resorts are expected to go for a Guinness World Record for the largest ski and snowboard lesson ever taught. About 6,000 people took part in last year’s record attempt.

MDV Sports is new name of the corporate owner of the Marker, Dalbello and Völkl brands. A company announcement states the three brands will cooperate in the areas of R&D, production, sales and marketing.