The kids were up at 6, ready to go. You’d think that with a season of real early mornings and real late nights, a guy in the ski industry could sleep in because someone else is taking care of everything, but not in this family — it was time for first tracks.

Midwinter conditions and snow at Jay today. Very windy, all high-speed lifts were closed including the tram. We all stepped out of the condo and yarned back on the bridal as the sub freezing temps hit us like a ton of bricks. We layered up and prepared ourselves for a mid-winter day. We skied down to the base lodge alongside the magic carpet.

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Have you ever wondered what it’s like for an owner of a ski area to visit another resort? Is he constantly checking out the lifts, the prices of food, if the ticket people are friendly, or the kind of snowmaking guns they use? Or is the idea to get away, forget about your profession for a few days and just ski — and let someone else deal with things?

This week, Laszlo Vajtay, owner of Plattekill in the western Catskills, is skiing with his family at Jay Peak in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. He’ll be checking in with reports about his vacation: skiing, food, accommodations, skating, curling, or just hanging out with the kids. Here’s the first installment, about his arrival at Jay.

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