The Ski Life Blog

Another Comeback Season

Posted on by Harvey

I remember the Valentines Day storm in 2007 — or more accurately — I remember skiing the snow when I got there, after it ended. The storm dumped 40 inches of snow in the southern Adirondacks and the skiing was excellent for quite a while afterward.

The event was magnified by the fact that the 2006-2007 season — up until that point — had been a mostly a bust in New York. Probably just as important was that the big storm was followed by a trio of good cold storms over the next several weeks, extending the good skiing into April. What started as a washout was remembered as a pretty good season. At least I remember it so.

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Tagged: Ski Life13 Comments

In Defense of Skiing Alone

Posted on by Brownski

When Harvey declared that he was done skiing alone, I felt a post of my own forming in my head. Skiing solo is one of life’s great pleasures. I wouldn’t consider giving up skiing by myself any more then I would give up skiing itself.

no one around

One time this spring I found myself driving up the Thruway, skis and boots in the truck, with literally no idea where I was going. I reached out to a couple skiing buddies to see where they were headed but I was pretty ambivalent about finding a ski partner. One guy was at Plattekill (not on my MAX Pass), one was at Whiteface and another at Killington (both too far). I think I was subconsciously looking for reasons not to meet up with anybody.

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Tagged: Gore Mountain, Ski Life19 Comments

I’m Done Skiing Alone

Posted on by Harvey

When I was a little kid living on a farm, I’d play by myself in a big tractor tire that served as a sandbox. I developed a reputation for playing alone. “Harvey doesn’t need playmates, he’s happy all by himself!” It wasn’t true, down inside I didn’t like it, but I didn’t know myself well enough to push back.

“Trust me, this opens up down below.”

As I got older, I got more proactive. In high school, I joined the cross country team and made best friends for life. Twenty five years after that, I discovered skiing, and it took me another two decades to learn the lesson all over again, in a new setting. A single life-changing event twenty years ago — a solo backcountry ski tour — delayed my embrace of this lesson.

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Tagged: Catskills, Magic, Plattekill, Powder, Ski Life, VT20 Comments