I recently learned of the passing of a good friend of mine, it really bummed me out for a few days, obviously. I hadn't seen or talked with him since 1999, the last time I skied Smuggs. Looking back he was definitely a mentor of mine, darn good one too. So many firsts with this guy. He took me to Tucks, showed me all the rad stuff (now on the map) at Smuggs, taught me how to ski trees, was the first one to take me in the Birthday Bowls, Hourglass, Hell Brook, and countless other lines off of Mansfield, etc. He taught me that nurses from Quebec, and UVM chicks were easy (no disrespect), that's just the way it was.
All that aside, the biggest lesson I took from him is that being a part of a skiing community is more important that the actual act of skiing. It matters more who your with, it matters more that it's a lifestyle than a sport.
The past couple of days I've spent hours on the phone (yes, we still talk on the phone) with old friends reconnecting and laughing with Arch. Good times
