No Show at Burke and Slave Labor at Stowe November 10, 2011

On Tuesday November 8th our class met at Burke hoping to see the helicopters that would put together the final lift towers needing to be completed for the new chair lift.  However, this ended up being a disappointment as we found out that the helicopters canceled and wouldn't be there until the next day.  We were disappointed about it, but were happy that we were done for the day otherwise and treated it as a day off.
On Thursday the 10th, we took our second trip to Stowe Mountain.  We went to look again at both the lift towers and the ski patrol building as well as to rake leaves out of the drainage ditch on the side of the mountain access road.  It was pretty amazing to see the new lift going through its tests for completion seeing as it was still under construction only a few weeks before then.
After looking at the bottom terminal we got back in the vans and took a trip a little more than halfway up the mountain to begin our unpaid labor.  It really wasn't too bad, but we had to rake and leaf-blow the leaves out of the drainage ditches on the sides of the mountain access road.  For the majority of the time, I used a really bad rake.  It sucked to say the least! It was still fun though and a good opportunity to chat with my classmates and catch up on things.  I did eventually get to use one of the leaf-blowers available and that was actually a good amount of fun! We were done pretty quickly and proceeded to head up to the top of the mountain.
At the top of the mountain we were able to check out the completed top terminal and the Ski Patrol building in the last stages of completion.  I was even able to check out the area underneath the bullwheel in the top terminal, which I didn't even know was possible.  As a group we also spread out hay on the ground around the terminal to help prevent erosion and we also checked out The Octagon restaurant at the top of the mountain.  It was really cool to see these projects completed and I took some more photos from the top of the mountain:

View from the Top Terminal

 View from The Octagon Restaurant

 View of the Top Terminal (left) and Ski Patrol (right)

Once we left the top of the mountain, we took a trip to look at the Pisten Bully groomer-maintenance facility at Stowe.  It was really impressive to see such a good work garage completely dedicated to working on groomers.  I was able to take a look at some of the most expensive groomers that Pisten Bully makes and was even able to check out Stowe's new Cab Cat that is used for cat skiing, where customers take trips in the groomers to areas not accessible by lifts.  I am looking forward to seeing what Stowe will do with their new fleet of groomers in the future.  Much like the first trip, it was both fun and informative.  Here are some photos of the shop and the Cab Cat:

 A Pisten Bully 600 w/o the Winch

The Pisten Bully Cab Cat

Padding Chairs at Burke and Chilli Cook-Off/Skate Jam

The first week of November was also a very busy week for the Practicum class.  On Thursday, we took a trip to Burke to put the seat pads on the Willoughby Chairlift.  While this seemed to be purely slave-labor at first, we actually ended up making a pretty fun game out of it.  Since we were able to put pads on two chairs at a time, one coming down and one going up, we split the class into two groups.  Each group would race to see who could completely strap their seat pads to the chair the fastest.  It was really fun and we were able to rotate out if we got tired.  I was even able to operate the chairlift and it was the first time I had ever done so.  Because we were able to work so quickly together, we were able to cover every single chair on the lift in only an hour and a half.  We felt very accomplished by this and operating the lift was great work experience.
That weekend weekend was also the Chili Cook-off and Skate Jam event that was being put on by Thom Anderson and Sean Doll's classes respectively.  While my class group, trail maintenance, had already put on our event the previous week, we still went anyways to enjoy the events.  I helped in the set-up of the Skate Jam, but, while riding in the skate park I fell and hurt my ankle very badly.  Luckily I was able to go inside and grab a bag of ice to put on my ankle and I think that it really helped in preventing swelling.  The competition ended up being better than I thought because the contestants were really going hard and putting on a show.  It was a lot of fun to watch.  The food at the Chili Cook-off was also very good and the weather was perfect for the event.  I think that both events were a great success and I think they greatly helped the Outing Club.  I hope that events like those continue in the future so that we can continue to help out the LOC.

Bretton Woods and the Community Clean Up Day at LOC

The week of October 27th, 2011 was a packed week for me.  As a class we took a trip to Bretton Woods, NH to learn about the recent improvements they've made on the mountain as well as to take a look at the Mount Washington Hotel.  We learned a lot about Snowmaking as well when we took a trip to the mountain's snowmaking facility.  We were able to learn about the canopy tours that Bretton Woods is now currently offering and were amazed at the rock-climbing wall that has recently been put in at the mountains main Base Lodge.  Bretton Woods, like Jay Peak, struck me as a mountain that is doing a lot in order to become a four-season resort.
We were also able to take a trip to the Mount Washington Hotel, which I thought was really cool.  I had learned about the Mount Washington Hotel before and how the Gold Standard was created there in the mid 1900s.  The hotel is extremely beautiful and we were able to take a tour of it as well.  Again, I took the opportunity to take some photos of the views there:

 View from the Right Side of the Hotel

View of the Hotel from the Right Side

The trips to Bretton Woods and the Mount Washington Hotel were both fun and informative, but the big event of the week for me was the Community Clean Up Day at the Lyndon Outing Club.  My group in class, Trail Maintenance, was responsible for putting on this event.  Unfortunately, despite considerable advertising and announcing of the event, there was very poor attendance from both the class and from volunteers.  However, those who did show up were well prepared and were ready to go to work.  We split the workers into two groups, one to stay inside and clean and maintenance the lodge, while the other went up the trails to cut down trees and widen the existing path.  I went with the trail crew and we had a fun time cutting down trees and the brush.  However, there were a few close calls where trees were falling down without notice and Sean Doll almost died!  It was pretty crazy stuff but luckily nobody was hurt and we were able to get our job done in a reasonable amount of time.  Overall, I think that the clean up day was very successful in that we accomplished our goals despite a lack of attendance.  In the future, I think that planning an event around holidays will allow us to have a better turn out and so we can accomplish even more in the future.  I also hope that a Community Clean Up day can become an annual event so that we can continue to help the LOC in the future.

Jay Peak Trip October 20, 2011

On Thursday October 20th, our class took at trip to Jay Peak to learn about their Master Plan and their current construction and improvements to the mountain.  It was a fun trip and was filled with very informative information.  When we first got there, I was amazed to see how close the new hotel was to being complete.  I skied late season at Jay Peak last year, and the hotel was still in very early stages of development.
The first thing we did was learn about Jay Peak's Master Plan.  We learned about the need to be aware of natural communities and wildlife before being able to expand a resort and put in new chair lifts and trails.  I was excited to see that Jay Peak was looking to expand the amount of ski-able terrain at their mountain and I hope that it eventually does happen.
After learning about their master plan, we were able to take a hardhat tour through the hotel that was still under construction.  The most amazing part of the trip was undoubtedly the water park that Jay is going to be operational this season.  I was able to take a great picture of it for the blog:

The coolest parts of the water park were definitely the looping water slide and the Flowrider artificial wave maker that allows people to surf on it.  They both look really cool and I can't wait to try them sometime.
After we were done with our tour, we were also able to take a look at the Ice Rink that Jay Peak has put in on the side of the new hotel.  All of these improvements have many of us believing that Jay Peak is one of the top East Coast Resorts that are taking large steps into becoming four-season resorts instead of just a winter mountain.  I think that Jay Peak has a lot of hype running with them right now, and it will be very interesting to see how the mountain does this season with all of their new attractions.

Master Plans at Burke October 13, 2011

This week we took a trip to Burke Mountain to learn about their master plan and look at both the lift operations and the Wind Tower on the mountain.  When we got there, we were brought into the Mid-Burke Lodge to learn about Burke's Master Plan.  A Master Plan is a prediction or plan meant to show where future construction and expansions can be made.  Master Plans are important and take a lot of work because they must work around many laws and regulations in place before they can even begin to happen.  Burke's Master Plan was interesting and I liked the idea of putting in another lift in the East Bowl that would open it up more and have easier access back to a chair lift.  Once we learned about the Master Plan, we went outside to look at the progress being made on the new chair lift.  We took a look at the area where the bottom terminal was going to be put in, and then proceeded to take a trip up the mountain access road to the top of the mountain.  Once we were at the top, we looked at the foundation being put in for the top terminal of the chairlift.  Nolan Pierce took some photos of the class:

(Photo Credit: Nolan Pierce, 2011)

After we were done looking at the lift construction, we took a short trip to the Wind Tower, completed in the late summer.  I have had experience with Wind Tower's before, since Jiminy Peak has had one for a few years now.  Either way, I still find them amazing structures to look at and watch in operation.  We were even able to take a step inside of the tower to take a look at the inside of it. It was really cool.  I enjoyed this trip and look forward to skiing Burke again this winter as well as to see their Master Plan come into existence in the future.

New England Ski Museum, Canon Mountain, September 29, 2011

On the Thursday of September 29th, our class took a trip to Canon Mountain to go to the New England Ski Museum. I thought this trip was particularly cool because we were able to take a look at the history of the Ski Industry.  It was really cool to see the progression in equipment, from the beginnings of shaped skis, to the first 3-piece boot.  There was a lot to take in and it gave you an appreciation for how far the sport has come in recent history.  Bode Miller, the most decorated Olympic Skier in US History, donated his Olympic Medals to the New England Ski Museum and I was able to take a photo of them for the blog:

After we took a look around the museum, we took a step into a small theater and watched a short film on the history of the area and skiing.  I thought it was a really cool experience.
After we left the museum, we were able to take a trip on the tram, one of two on the East Coast, to the top of the mountain.  Unfortunately the weather was quite terrible at the top of the mountain, so we were not able to enjoy any views from up there.  There was food though, and I was able to enjoy and overly expensive lunch at the top of the mountain.  We were also able to take a quick hike on a short trail at the top, and enjoy the sideways wind and rain with it.  Overall it was a fun trip and I would like to ski at Canon at some point this year because it looks like lots of fun.

First Trip to Stowe September 22nd 2011

On Thursday September 22nd, our class took a trip to Stowe Mountain Resort look at the installation of their new lift being put in.  I thought it was a cool idea to take a hardhat tour through a construction product and see the process of putting in a chair lift.  I wasn't particularly excited about getting up early for the trip, but luckily my Kuerig helps me make it through the mornings.
When we got there we were all given hardhats and started out tour of the lift construction.  We started by looking at the bottom terminal, as well as the building next to it that will hold the chairs at night to protect them from the elements as well as allowing for an easier start up of the lift in the mornings.  This was the first time I saw a system like this, and I thought it was pretty cool.
Another first for me was taking a climb into the bottom lift terminal:

This was my first opportunity to take a look at the inner workings of a lift terminal.  I thought it was a very good experience because I could very possibly be working with them in my future career in the industry.

After the bottom terminal we took the mountain access road to the top to look at the top terminal as well as the construction of the new Ski Patrol building.  I took the opportunity to take some pictures with my phone:

View from the Top Terminal

 Another View from the Top Terminal (w/ Sean Doll!)

 Third View Showing Lift Towers and our Class

 A View to the Right of the Ski Patrol Building

After we descended back down the mountain, we took a trip back to the parking lot at the bottom of the resort.  Once there, we went to work taking apart the old lift towers of the lift that was being replaced.  This was my first opportunity to take a look at a lift tower up close as well as to take one apart and see how it was made.  I think that gaining the engineering knowledge of a lift's construction could be very useful for someone looking to manage a mountain resort.  It was also fun to watch Dom go to town on the towers because he is a work horse and has an unbelievable amount of energy.  Once we had taken apart a couple towers, we were done and went home.  It was a fun and informative trip.

NEWSS September 15th 2011

On September 15th our class took a field trip to Sunday River Resort in Maine for the New England Winter Sports Summit.  While I can't say I was particularly a fan of waking up, having to dress up nice, and being ready to leave at 5 in the morning for the 2+ hour trip, I was excited for the opportunity to meet people within the industry I plan on starting a career in.  I think that networking is one of the most useful tools for career building and I'm very good at it so I was excited to go.  As a task for the conference, each student in the class needed to come up with 5 different questions to ask during the event.  When we first got there, I think that each student was impressed at how many different vendors there were. I know that I was.  We walked around and got to see all of the different booths, what they had, as well as snag some freebies.  I had the opportunity to talk with quite a few individuals and learned quite a bit.
The first vendor I was able to talk to was RAMP Skis.  I spoke with Mike Kilchenstein, owner and founder of the company, and Suzy Anderson, an employee for the company.  RAMP is a brand new ski company that Mike started when he left Rossignol after working there for 35 years.  When I asked him how he got into the industry, he told me about how he used to work at Rossignol making skis, and that he used that knowledge to improve upon it with the products hes making today.  He told me about how RAMP is doing things like direct to consumer shipping with a re-usable ski bag and how he spent 5-6 years on product development alone before finally feeling comfortable with the product he is delivering.
The second person I talked to was Mike Berry, President of the National Ski Area Association.  After I sat through his seminar about the current state of the industry, I was able to stick around afterwords to ask him a few questions.  My first question was that given the state of the economy, how did business go last season? He replied by telling me that despite economic woes in the US, the industry set new records for skier/rider visits last season at 60.54 Million visits.  He says that, "these are the golden days of skiing. The advancements in gear, shaped skis, and lift transportation make skiing more fun now than ever."  The second question I asked him is if he had any advice for someone trying to to start a career in the industry.  He told me to volunteer for the worst jobs there are.  He told me to work hard and make myself indispensable.  He said to be the first one in and the last to leave and that if I have a skill to highlight it.  I think that the advice he gave me was excellent.  I completely agree that in order to have a successful career in this industry, you need to be versatile. Working in all different parts of a mountain resort greatly increases your understanding and knowledge of the mountain, how it works, and it makes you a better worker because of it.
The third person that I talked to was Steve Daily who was a representative for Techno Alpin, a snow-gun manufacturer.  I asked Steve how he thought the industry as a whole was doing and he gave me an interesting answer.  He explained to me that the Ski Industry and the economy do not necessarily go hand in hand.  He said that even in times of economic hardship, people still need to and will continue to recreate.  Just because you can't take a trip to Vail doesn't mean that you can't ride local. Either way, you're still going.  I thought this was an interesting thought, that people will spend their money on leisure even when cash is tight simply because relaxation, stress relief, and fun are necessities in life as well.
The last vendor that I spoke with was Frank Tansey, creator of the Mountain Dew Vertical Challenge.  I asked him what his favorite part of the industry was. He told me that, for him, it was the people and the lasting relationships you make in the industry.  We agreed that the people who stay involved in this industry truly love what they do and are willing to support each other.  Frank also told me that there are rewards found in the commitment to quality and the satisfaction of a job well done.  I enjoyed my conversation with Frank Tansey, because I could tell that he was a nice guy and he had a very positive view of the Ski Industry.
Overall I think that the trip to the New England Winter Sports Summit was a great experience for myself and the rest of the Sophomore Ski Practicum class.  The ability to meet and make connections with people already in the industry, who also have connections of their own, is a wonderful opportunity for us and probably my favorite part of this course.  I'm a strong believer in the benefits of networking, and I think that attending the NEWSS in Sunday River, Maine was a great way to add on to my future business network.  I hope to take more trips like this through the next semester.