Vermont Ski + Ride Holidays, 2019

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The Best Little Hills You’ve Never Been To Where Olympians Learn to Ski * The Craziest Race * Magic’s Next Act AN ULTRA MODERN DREAM HOME

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THIS

CONTENTS FEATURES MAGIC’S NEXT ACT p. 30

Like pulling Bugs Bunny out of a hat, Magic Mountain is back with a retro, bad-ass, soul-filled vengeance.

IT TAKES A VILLAGE. 36

Head to one of Vermont’s remaining non-profit, community-run ski areas and you just might find the soul of skiing.

THE LIFT HOUSE p. 44

This new Killington home packs all the elements of a conventional ski house in an unconventional package.

FIRST TRACKS

COLUMNS

RESORT NEWS | ALTERRA MOVES INTO THE VALLEY,

p. 10

What does Sugarbush’s sale mean for skiers and riders? Plus, a new stone hut you can ski to, a fat bike downhill, Bolton Valley’s skatepark and more.

SKI TOWNS | AN OFFICE NEAR THE SLOPES

p. 19

Want to work from a ski town? These new coworking spaces make it easy. .

APRES | 31 NEW PLACES TO EAT, DRINK AND BE MERRY,

p. 19

International food, exotic cocktails and weird new restaurants hit ski towns.

HOME HILL | WHERE DREAMS OF MEDALS ARE BORN,

p. 25

THE START | INSIDE THE SNOW GLOBE, GEAR | FROM VERMONT, WITH LOVE,

p. 7

p. 51

Shop local this holiday season with these uniquely-Vermont gifts.

RETRO | THE CRAZIEST RACE,

p. 59

This winter the Stowe Derby is back with a vengeance —and turning 75.

THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR |

p. 63

CHAIRLIFT Q/A | HE SKIED EVERY MOUNTAIN,

p. 74

There are 110 peaks in Vermont over 3,000 feet. This guy skied them all.

Olympian Doug Lewis’s dream was set in motion at the Middlebury Snow Bowl.

ON THE COVER: Parker Herlihy does some soul searching at Mad River Glen, photo by Brooks Curran Above: Skiing under the moonlight, photo by Nathanael Asaro

.

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 5

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INSIDE THE SNOW GLOBE One sunny Saturday last winter we did something few people who live in northern Vermont usually do: we drove two hours south to ski. We had seen three weekends of epic snow —and epic parking challenges and epic liftlines— at the larger resorts and we were ready for a different scene. Our destination was Magic Mountain, a place I hadn’t skied in many years.

Pulling into the area was like entering a time warp. Vintage Swiss chalets dotted the short access road. Everyone in the parking lot seemed to know each other. That lift-line tension that seems grow as more and more powder-hungry skiers descend on the Greens, was nowhere to be felt.

We waited for perhaps five minutes before boarding the Red Chair to the top and then lapped steep run after steep run, tucking into the woods where there was still some untracked to be had even at 11 a.m.

While the majority of the 4 million-plus skier and riders who come to Vermont each winter hit the larger resorts, there are still gems like Magic where the lines are short, tickets are cheap and there’s still a craziness that many risk managers have steered other corporate-owned resorts away from.

Magic is not alone. In “It Takes a Village” we write about six communityrun non-profit areas, including Cochran’s where Friday night dinner and skiing costs just $12. And, to prove that size doesn’t matter, Doug Lewis—once one of the fastest skiers in the world, a guy who earned a bronze medal in downhill in the World Championships in 1985—writes about how he whetted his need for speed growing up at the Middlebury College Snow Bowl. (Full disclosure, the Snow Bowl is our home hill, too—just 20 minutes from the office—and we were a little reluctant to let the secret out.)

As Alterra continues to acquire resorts such as Stratton and, now Sugarbush (see p. 10), andVail Resorts (owner of Stowe, Okemo and Mount Snow) marches toward world domination, places like Magic, the Snow Bowl, Suicide Six or even tiny Northeast Slopes (shown above), seem like snow globes from another era, time bubbles of sorts. And, as Allison Thorner, granddaughter of Magic founder Hans Thorner says in “Magic’s Next Act,” “These days I think that bubble is not such a bad place to be.” —Lisa Lynn, Editor

Waterbury Waterbury

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CONTRIBUTORS You might recognize Doug Lewis from his time interviewing World Cup racers on TV. In this issue, the former Olympic downhiller writes about how growing up at the Middlebury College Snow Bowl groomed him for the speed and the skills he later used in races like the Kitzbuhel Hahnenkamm.

Erica Allen has traveled the world shooting primarily beauty and fashion for 20 years. She moved back to her home state of Vermont and Stowe to raise her two daughters with her husband. Here, she has found a new niche of photographing architecture and photographed “The Lift House,” seen on page 44.

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EDITORIAL Publisher, Angelo Lynn angelo@vtskiandride.com Editor/Co-Publisher, Lisa Lynn editor@vtskiandride.com Creative Director, David Pollard Assistant Editor, Abagael Giles abagael@vtskiandride.com Contributors: Brooks Curran, David Goodman, Ali Kaukas, Bud Keene, Brian Mohr, Lindsay Selin, Doug Stewart, Jeb Wallace-Brodeur

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FIRSTTRACKS

ALTERRA MOVES INTO THE VALLEY What does Sugarbush’s sale to Alterra Mountain Company mean for skiers and riders and forVermont’s remaining indie ski areas? By Abagael Giles

W

hen Alterra Mountain Company announced it intended to buy Sugarbush Resort on Nov. 13, the internet lit up with mixed reactions.

“Vermont ski areas are being eaten up by big corporate.

Losing the Vermont charm,” wrote one person onVT Ski + Ride’s Facebook page. “It’s going to be the American Skiing Company all over,” wrote another. Others were more positive: “Mixed emotions about this. Kind of gutted and kind of feel like it’ll be all good,” Kyle Watson wrote.

Sugarbush has been one of 11 independently-owned and operated ski resorts in the state—one that prides itself on cultivating its community and having a hands-on owner who is on the mountain nearly every day.

Win Smith, who spent 28 years at Merrill Lynch (the

10 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

investment firm his father helped to found), bought Sugarbush in 2001 from the floundering American Skiing Company. At the height of its expansion, ASC owned nine resorts across the country before it ran into financial difficulties.

After purchasing Sugarbush, Smith and his team successfully raised more than $20 million via the EB-5 foreign investment program. The funding went toward constructing the new Lincoln Peak Village, among other things. Terms of the Alterra sale have not been disclosed.

According to Smith, this fall the stars aligned for the Sugarbush sale after the Mad River Valley resort celebrated a record season and its 60th anniversary. Sugarbush saw about 400,000 skier and rider visits last season—a 10 percent increase over the season prior, he noted.

Sugarbush’s distinctive brand and loyal following—along with its proximity to major urban centers in the Northeast—made it a compelling ski area for Alterrra, said Alterra’s Rusty Gregory. In many ways,

Photo by John Atkinson/Sugarbush Resort

that brand is inextricable from the magic of the Mad River Valley.

However, as Smith outlined in a Nov. 13 letter to Sugarbush skiers and riders, the escalating cost of doing business (now and in the future) convinced him it was time to bring in a new owner to ensure the resort’s longevity.

“The recent acquisition of 16 Peak Resorts by Vail was the tipping point in my decision to sell,” wrote Smith, of the Peak acquisition, which was completed this fall. Vail Resorts now owns Stowe, Okemo and Mount Snow in Vermont, and owns or operates a total of 37 ski areas.

Alterra, which is privately-held, owns 14 resorts across North America, including Stratton Mountain Resort.

Smith also noted that he will stay on as Sugarbush’s president for the near future. “If you look at business for a long time, you learn that there are two things you want

to have if you’re going to sell,” says Smith. “First, you want to do it when you don’t have to sell and you’re doing well.

Second, you want to identify the right buyer. The fact that they were not going to change up the team here and that I get to stay on and manage the resort, at least through the transition, meant a lot.”

Smith doesn’t foresee any changes this coming season.

“We have the same products, the same plans, the same budgets, the same brand, the same website,” he says. “All of our passes will remain exactly as they were sold for this year.” Sugarbush has been part of both Alterra’s Ikon Pass (allowing Ikon passholders to ski seven days at the resort) and the Mountain Collective pass.

In fact, Alterra has done little to change up the teams vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 11

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RAMP IT UP This winter keep shredding long after the terrain park closes at Bolton Valley Resort. The resort’s skate park recently added a number of features purchased when Burlington’s Talent Skate Park closed. (It has since reopened on Burton’s downtown campus). Located at the Bolton Valley Sports Center (home to the Nordic and Backcountry Center as well), the skate park features a mini ramp, larger quarter pipe walls, fun boxes, a full-sized bowl, a wall ride/vert wall, as well as several street boxes. The Center has skateboard rentals, scooters and protective gear as well as lessons. A day pass is $5 or add access on to your season pass for $50 for the winter.

Fat Times at Suicide Six In 2018, Christina Mattson, the sports program director at Suicide Six and a certified mountain bike coach and racer, came up with what might have seemed like a crazy idea: combine the elements of a slalom ski race and terrain park competition for... fat bikes. Skiers, riders and the Woodstock area’s bike community loved it and so the first Abe-BERM-Ham race was born. The quarter-mile downhill course through gates was billed as “Mellow enough for groms but with enough berms and features to challenge everyone,” and featured an afterparty with live music. In 2019, conditions conspired to cancel the race but for 2020 it’s back, slated for Saturday, Feb. 29. Don’t have a fat bike? That’s not an excuse to miss this; there will be fat bikes for rent at the ski area.

From top: Hans von Briesen, courtesy Suicide 6, courtesy Sugarbusy Resort

at Stratton, and in the past few years the company has invested upwards of $6 million in new lifts, a mountain bike park and other improvements.

Smith does expect Alterra to bring the sort of resources that fuel innovation. “I think we’ll see a benefit when it comes to purchasing power,” he said. “For example, next year when we buy a new groomer, I think we’ll have a more competitive discussion than if we were doing it all by ourselves,” said Smith.

With the sale of Sugarbush, there are fewer and fewer ski areas in the Northeast that draw the sort of substantive skier visits that attract large companies. “We were one of the last three independents, I think, in the Northeast that had more than 250,000 skier visits a year,” said Smith.

Representatives of Alterra Mountain Company have also toured Jay Peak. When asked whether Alterra is interested in Jay Peak, CEO Rusty Gregory said, “We are very quiet about what we are looking at, but I can tell you that we are very focused on the East.

Proximity to large population centers is a big part of how we look at partnership and acquisition potential. Looking through that lens, we see a lot of opportunity in the East.” Stratton and Quebec’s Mont Tremblant and Ottawa’s Blue Mountain were the first mountains Alterra purchased in the Northeast.

However, Gregory sees a renewed opportunity for Vermont’s 10 remaining independent ski areas. “I really do believe that the bigger Alterra and Vail get, the bigger the gaps in the market are for well-positioned and strategic independents,” said Gregory.

SkiVermont’s Molly Mahar is also optimistic about the independents, which she says demonstrate a “nimbleness” that comes less naturally to a giant like Alterra or Vail Resorts. “Thanks to the affordability of season pass offerings, we are seeing more people buy multiple season passes, especially in the Burlington area. But we’re still seeing people make day trips to places like Smugglers’ Notch or Bolton Valley. I think the rising tide really does appear to float all boats.”

of skiers or riders spending the night in the woods. So far, there have been no fatalities.

“The vast majority of recent rescue calls have happened at Killington,” says Van Dyke.

“People see tracks going off the west side of Killington Peak, follow them and get sucked into this terrain that funnels out at Mendon where it’s a five-mile slog out. One Monday last season we had three or four groups all lost in the same place at once,” he says.

While Van Dyke is looking forward to using the drones, he’s cautious about how effective they will be. “The drones only have about 25 minutes of flight time, you can’t fly them in rain or snow, and not even the heat sensors will see through heavy vegetation.”

Instead of relying on Search and Rescue to find them, Van Dyke hopes skiers and riders will take more precautions before venturing off trail. “The biggest contributing factors

to people getting lost is a) they ski alone, b) they don’t tell anyone where they are going and c) often they don’t have maps or any way to navigate once they leave the ski area boundary,” he says. —L.L.

credit

If you get lost in the woods this winter, you may have a better chance of being found than in previous years. This past fall, thanks to a $105,000 federal grant, the Vermont State Police purchased a fleet of 11 drones, including three armed with heat sensors that are estimated to cost upwards of $20,000. Six of those will be available to Search and Rescue teams, says Neil Van Dyke, the search and rescue coordinator for the state’s Department of Public Safety.

In the past two years, there have been 32 reports of skiers venturing out from alpine areas and getting lost and 10 from Nordic or backcountry skiers. “Backcountry skiers tend to be better prepared,” says Van Dyke. “They often go out with navigation aids, know where they are going and have food, water and gear that can get them through the night.” While the majority of skiers are found within a couple of hours there have been several incidents

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madriverglen.com

Photo by Grant Weiler

LOST IN THE WOODS? CALL IN THE DRONES!

Photo by Kevin Dunhio/Vermont Huts Association

A New Stone Hut

For years, one of the most coveted reservations in Vermont hasn’t been at a swank hotel or spa but at The Stone Hut, a cabin that sleeps eight to ten at the top of Stowe Mountain Resort’s Four Runner quad. Nights at the cabin, managed by the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, are doled out by lottery each year and cost about $225.

But if you didn’t win the lottery, don’t despair. There’s a new stone hut you can book – albeit not one as swank or as easily accessible—for a lot less. New for this season, the Vermont Huts Association has announced that Shrek’s Mountaintop Stone Hut in Pittsfield will be joining its network of seven huts across Vermont.

The small cabin, which sleeps two to four, features a wood stove, fire pits and amazing views. The cost to book Shrek’s Mountaintop Stone Hut (via vermonthuts.org) is $65 a night.

Located between Killington and Rochester, the hut could serve as a stopover on the proposed Velomont trail, a route that would eventually link trails from Killington to Stowe. It is just off the Green Mountain Trails mountain bike trail network, a half mile hike from the parking area, off land owned by Spartan Race founder Joe de Sena.

And that’s not the only new hut in the works. “We’re also exploring the idea of locating a hut or yurt somewhere on Bolton Valley’s property and, possibly, another one in Huntington” says RJ

Thompson, executive director for Vermont Huts. “It’s exciting to witness the new energy and creative thinking up there at Bolton Valley. If a hut makes sense for all parties involved, we’ll do our best to make it happen,” added Thompson. —A.G.

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SKI TOWN LIFE

Your Office Near the Slopes In mountain towns aroundVermont, skiers and riders are setting up remote offices so they never miss a powder day.

O

ver there, we have this guy who works for Twitter, down the hall is a someone who works for Google, says David Bradbury as he walks through the uber-hip, stylishlydesigned Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies (VCET) coworking space in downtown Burlington.

“But we’ve also had Vermont start-ups like Renoun Skis, Inntopia, Skida, and OverEasy (which makes the Hood-E helmet covers) working with us,” he adds.VCET’s current members include Corinne Prevot, who started Skida as a teenage ski racer at Burke Mountain Academy, and has since been named to Forbes’s list of 30 under 30.

Bradbury (shown at right), an avid snowboarder who lives in Stowe, manages VCET, serving as a mentor, business advisor and den mother of sorts. Founded in 2005, the incubator offers not just “office” space (which can range from a private conference room to an open

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table), and perks such as free coffee, a “mother’s room,” bike storage and more—but also business coaching and advice on raising capital and direct venture capital investment and marketing.

“Perhaps the coolest thing is that our members often help each other. If someone, say wants to get in touch with IBM’s Watson group, we have a member who works for them here remotely who can help,” says Bradbury. “It’s made living and working remotely in Vermont if you’re working for a big company, all the more possible.”

VCET is one of a growing number of co-working spaces (many also serving as business incubators) blossoming in ski towns around Vermont.

After college, Samantha Sheehan moved to the Mad River Valley for what she thought would be a ski season. After working at a number of different marketing jobs she opened Valley.Works, a co-working space with 10 desks in Waitsfield in 2015.

“We get a lot of people who come here to ski and when they discover that they can have a quiet place to work, high-speed internet, and access to a printer and copier, they become members,” she says. Day passes start at $35 and full-time memberships go for $90 a month and include 15 percent off classes on topics that range from management strategies to “Next Steps for Instagrammers.”

Valley.Works is one of more than a dozen co-working spaces in an international network, The Mountain Co-Working Alliance, which

Photo by Lisa Lynn

has affliated spaces in ski towns from Jackson Hole to Chamonix.

“Vermont’s co-working spaces have been trying to put together a co-working pass, The Vermont Pass, that would allow people who are members of one space to use another, but so far we’re still working out the kinks,” says Sheehan.

Most of the Vermont spaces are independently owned and each has a distinct personality.

In Montpelier, one of the oldest co-working spaces, Local 64, doubles as a rotating art gallery.

Bradford’s Space on Main also has pop-up art shows as well as mindfulness classes, weekly yoga and meet-ups for like-minded professionals.

At Bennington’s The Lightning Jar, members can sign up for classes such as a six-week course on entrepreneurship taught by Robert Braathe, a former executive with Disney, The Gap and Apple.

Lyndonville’s Do North co-working space, not far from both the slopes of Burke and the 100 miles of mountain biking trails at

Kingdom Trails, is even busier in the summer than in winter.

One of the newest, Launch Loft in Waterbury, opened this past November just down the road from some of the town’s famous bars, like Prohibition Pig. And for those who do want to move to Vermont, in 2018 the Vermont Legislature approved a Remote Workers Grant, a grant of up to $10,000 to help reimburse relocation expenses, including co-working space memberships. About 110 people have taken advantage of it. For this coming year the grants are being extended to people who move to work for Vermont-based companies, as well.

While a recent report from the state auditor, Doug Hoffer, questioned the value to the state of the program Samantha Sheehan sees its effect daily: “The estimated average income of a remote worker using Valley.Works coworking space is roughly twice that of the average full-time resident in the Mad River Valley” she noted in a 2018 testimony to the legislature.

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Après

31 NEW PLACES TO EAT DRINK AND BE MERRY

This season the après-ski scene heats up around Vermont as new international, exotic and just plain cool places open in ski towns.

By Abagael Giles

V

Photo courtesy Social House

ermont is one of the rare places in the world where you can find world-class food—from farm-to-table restaurants to artisan cheeses and small-batch craft beers—in the strangest of places. This year, new mountain town restaurants have opened in places as diverse as gondola car cabins and an Airstream trailer. And across the state, we’re seeing an influx of increasingly diverse menus and ethnic food. From South Indian dosas at Dosa Kitchen (Leda Scheintaub and Nash Patel’s new restaurant in Brattleboro) to tacos that feature Pan-Asian spices at Over the Wall in Stowe to a new ramen bar in Waitsfield. One thing ties them all together: the fresh, wholesome ingredients that come straight from the Green Mountain state.

Above, at Manchester’s Social House, try theSpanish Octopus with avocado créme, piquillo peppers and arugula microgreens

SOUTHERN VERMONT When Dot’s of Dover, the Deerfield Valley’s legendary breakfast spot, burned down early in the morning during one of the biggest storms of January 2019, something incredible happened. First, staff at NOSH, a new restaurant in West Dover, started a GoFundMe.com account.

Locals and skiers alike banded together to raise upwards of $20,000 to

help Dot’s owner of 18 years, Betsey Reagan, rebuild. “Dot’s of Dover has always been a place for locals and weekenders to gather for good food and better company,” wrote staff on the GoFundMe page.

Over the next few months, Dot’s reinvented itself as a food truck and was scheduled to reopen the rebuilt restaurant as Betsey’s Dot’s of Dover in November.

West Dover’s other newcomer, NOSH, opened in December 2018 at the former site of Fennessy’s, and has been going strong since. General manager Mark Cascardi was previously the food and beverage manager at Mount Snow, and chef Robert Mazza used to be the chef at Harriman’s Farm to Table at the resort. The restaurant serves elevated, farmto-table comfort food, with local burgers and entrees like the white bean and spinach ravioli tossed with lemon roasted shitakes, Swiss chard, sweet corn and basil fondue and parmesan reggiano. Grab a drink at the newly opened Loft at NOSH, open Fridays and Saturdays. The black table cloth dining room features a fireplace, leather armchairs and its own food and drink menu, and is 21-plus.

At Mount Snow’s Carinthia Base Lodge, which opened in December 2018, check out Iron Loft, a new bar and grill on the top floor that serves small plates to share, like the prosciutto and fig sandwich with Brie and arugula pesto on sourdough bread, or the cracked pepper parmesan chicken wings. With big windows that look out on Carinthia Parks, an extensive list of Vermont drafts, wines and cocktails like the Mountain Cider Banger— Green Mountain Orange Vodka, apple cider, Galliano and an orange twist—it’s the perfect place to grab a bite and a drink after a day at the park.

For coffee and an epic breakfast burrito with scrambled eggs, chorizo, home fries and housemade pico de gallo with avocado mash, check out High Timber Lounge, also at Carinthia.

Big doors open onto the deck on sunny days.

And if you have a sweet tooth, try one of Ingrid Heyrman and Peter Creyf’s piping hot sugar waffles on weekends at the Waffle Cabin, also new for this season at Carinthia. The pair import a special variety of sugar from Belgium.

In downtown Brattleboro fans of the 2018 cookbook Dosa Kitchen: Recipes for India’s Favorite Street Food should check out authors Nash Patel and Leda Scheintaub’s new café storefront downtown,

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 19

Dosa Kitchen. Dosas are light and slightly tangy crepes made from a fermented batter of lentil and rice, and they form the basis for South Indian cuisine. Try a traditional dish like the Masala Dosa, with potatoes, house chutney and sambar, or dishes like the Grafton Cheddar Dosa, imbued with the earthy flavors of Vermont.

The couple have been serving up affordable soul food from their food truck since 2014 and the new café offers made-to-go curries for people headed to the mountain, as well as hot food to order. Keep an eye out for Scheintaub’s new pastry venture, Leda’s Ladoos, early next year. “Indian ladoos are spiced, round pastries that tend to be very sweet. I’m interested in creating a version that avoids processed sugars and blends creative flavors,” says Scheintaub.

In Manchester Center, a new Mediterranean restaurant called Social House opened in June 2019.The restaurant features small plates, designed to be shared and paired with creative house cocktails. Try the Squid Ink Fettuccini, a pasta dish tossed with Maine lobster, blistered tomatoes, sea beans, fresh basil, parmesan and lemon cream. The restaurant is chic but cozy, with big beams in the dining room and a copper-plated bar. Co-owner and maitre’d Debbie Pazos worked for seven years at the three-star Michelin-rated French seafood restaurant Le Bernardin in New York City prior to moving to Vermont in 2013.

If you’re looking for a cozy coffee shop where you can hunker down on a plush couch with a great cup of locally-roasted coffee, head to Bonnet and Main, which opened in May in Manchester. Pick up a breakfast bowl, like the Southwestern (with black bean corn salsa, avocado and a fried egg served on sweet potato or oatmeal) or order a sandwich to go.

Nearby, Stratton’s well-loved village

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At the top, skiers look out on the slopes with a Vermont craft brew in-hand at Rumble’s Bistro & Bar at Sugarbush’s base area.

Below, a fresh salad at the bar, outfitted with a diverse array of Vermont spirits and a great cocktail list, is a great option for slopeside lunch.

This year, the menu sees a makeover, with new chef Vanessa Davis.

CENTRAL VERMONT In August, Au Jus started serving up hearty homestyle meals like their pulled chicken sandwich, topped with barbecue sauce and swiss cheese, in Windsor—the perfect stop after a day of skinning at Mount Ascutney.

At the base of Killington Resort, a new bar and restaurant called Hops on the Hill opened at Mountain Green Resort in early November, serving Vermont craft brews, cider and wine with creative pub fare in the location formerly occupied by Rutland Beer Works.

Also at Killington, look out for a new craft cocktail program at Snowshed and Bear Lodges and the Long Trail Pub. Try sharing a small plate off of the new bar bites menu, like the local beef brisket sliders, glazed with maple and bourbon on a potato hash.

Okemo Mountain Resort is revamping many of its dining areas this season with a host of new menus. Upstairs at Summit Lodge, the new interior features an open floorplan, with exposed beams, natural stone and new lighting that evoke a (fancy) Vermont barn.

Downstairs, entering the new Robin’s Roost feels like descending into a speakeasy, with pressed-metal ceilings, a new spacious bar and fireside seating with high-top tables and upholstered chairs. The new menu features Southern-style comfort foods like chicken and biscuits, along with a revolving list of craft brews and signature cocktails made with house syrups and Vermont ingredients.

At the mid-mountain Sugar House Lodge, the lower level, now called the Mudroom, will be a kid-friendly zone with grilled cheese and mac n’ cheese. Over at Solitude Day Lodge, the mountain’s most popular lunch spot, Epic, has been rebranded as 43° North with a menu inspired by the dishes of northern France.

In Middlebury, an 1840s stone building called The Mill that sits on the edge of the Otter Creek has been remodeled and is the new home of The Mad Taco and Dedalus Wine Shop—both new to Middlebury. The mill was formerly the site of The Storm Café. Grab a cup of coffee at Lost Monarch Coffee, a hip, third-wave spot that shares the same space.

There’s a new brewery in downtown Waitsfield—Collaborative Brewing Company. They don’t yet have a tasting room but keep an eye out for their malt-driven lagers and ales at Mad River Valley restaurants this winter. In Waitsfield, Stoke Ramen Bar serves up authentic ramen with fresh Vermont ingredients to create fusion dishes like the Dark Wing (ramen noodles, chicken broth, cashew tare, braised duck, egg, roasted garlic aioli and pickled daikon with pea shoots) in an open-concept dining room that opened this fall. For local produce and meats, head to Roots Market in Middlesex, the storefront for Williamstown’s Bear Roots Farm which opened in May. At Sugarbush Resort, Rumble’s Kitchen will now be Rumble’s Bistro & Bar, with a slightly more upscale menu featuring the same locally-sourced ingredients in a fresh format.

In Montpelier, Caledonia Spirits, distillers of Barr Hill and Tom

Courtesy Sugarbush Resort

restaurant Benedict’s is adding three gondola cabins as private seating options for groups this season. With newly renovated interiors outfitted

by Stratton-based Vermont Barns, they make for the perfect Instagramworthy brunch nook.

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NORTHERN VERMONT There have been a lot of changes this season in Stowe. In early 2019, the Mountain Road in Stowe saw a new apres-ski joint open up when Over the Wall, a taqueria and tequila bar opened in The Red Brick House (formerly home to Cactus Café). The building was owned by Stowe Derby co-founder Erling Strom through the 1940s and features Asian-LatinX cuisine, like the ginger soy carne asada tacos.

Just down the Mountain Road, McCarthy’s closed this fall in Stowe after 45 years—the diner was known for its homemade corned beef hash and for being a local hangout. The Skinny Pancake, the Vermont chain known for its more than 10 farm-fresh creperies, is expected to take over the space.The Town & Country Bar & Game Room just reopened after bar renovations. It’s a cozy, rustic, chic space that features a familiar menu of

A bowl of ramen with homemade noodles, Napa cabbage, a local egg and pea shoots from Waitsfield’s Stoke Ramen Bar.

nachos packed with locally sourced ingredients and a game room with Nintendo and Pop-a-Shot.

If you’re staying at Town & Country, grab some oysters and a cocktail at the converted Airstream trailer bar at The Deep End, which opened this summer. For an entrée, try the Woodsman, one of their woodfired pizzas, with house-made venison sausage, Cabot cheddar, mozzarella, smoked foraged mushrooms and fresh rosemary.

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22 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

Photo right by Jeb Wallace-Brodeur

Cat spirits, opened a new bar and new distillery. Visitors can now order sophisticated cocktails like the Big City Cat—Tom Cat Gin, sweet Vermouth and bitters with cherry and orange.

In Richmond, One Radish has closed, but Fairfax-based Stone’s Throw Pizza is opening a second restaurant in that location. With delicious house vegan sausage, vegan crème brulee and woodfired pizzas like the Nomad, a pie made with house kimchi, glazed pork belly and local leeks, it’s a great stop after night skiing at Cochran’s.

Photo by Savannah Brown

hot Belgian waffles made-to-order back this season at The Waffle, a walk-up bar at the top of the gondola. For après-ski, head to the Whistle Pig Pavilion at Spruce Peak, and try the Manhattan—with 10-year Whistle Pig rye whiskey distilled in Shoreham and Boss Hog maple bitters.

If you’re looking for the perfect Vermont cheese or a wine to pair it with after a day at Stowe or Trapp Family Lodge, head to the new Woodstock Farmers Market in Waterbury Center. Pick up a sandwich like the “Moonlight in Vermont” which features roast turkey breast with Cabot cheddar, apple slices and mayo on sourdough bread.

For delicious and wildly affordable Thai food to eat in or take out, try Siam Valley Thai in Morrisville. Owned by veteran Stowe chef Pantita Pasukdee, the restaurant opened in May and features curries made with housemade pastes and delicious deserts like fried banana with coconut ice cream.

And if you’re looking for a cozy coffee shop (drip only) with pastries by a New England Culinary Institute-trained chef, check out North Country Cakes in downtown Morrisville. Their maple bacon donut is the perfect treat for your ride up the Mountain Road.

To the north at Craftsbury Corners, Blackbird Bistro started serving up farm-to-table fare and craft cocktails in November. Sip on an “Excuse Me Sir!” with balsam-infused gin, Aperol, maple syrup, fresh lime and tonic while you dive into Sweet Rowen Poutine, with hand-cut fries made from locally-sourced potatoes, gravy and Sweet Rowen farmstead cheese.

The wood-fired pizza oven at Stowe’s The Deep End offers up creative pies.

Order a cocktail from the bar—a refurbished Airstream trailer.

Last season, Craftsbury Outdoor Center revamped its dining hall to become a Vermont Fresh Network Gold Barn Member—a distinction awarded to restaurants that source ingredients from at least 15 different farms and purchase 35 percent or more of their food from local growers. That’s on top of the fresh cucumbers, zucchini, cabbage and winter squash they grow in their gardens to preserve for winter delicacies.

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 23

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Home Hills

WHERE DREAMS ARE BORN

Photo top by Jason Duquette-Hoffman; right, courtesy Doug Lewis

As a kid growing up skiing at the Middlebury College Snow Bowl, Doug Lewis already had his eyes set on the Olympics. By Doug Lewis

S

Above, skiers of all ages race down the Allen trail, with the lodge in full view.

With surprisingly steep pitches, the Allen is where Olympian Doug Lewis (right) cut his teeth.

ome of my earliest memories are of being in the ski lodge at the Middlebury College Snow Bowl, warming my toes by the huge stone fireplace surrounded by friends and family. We lived in Middlebury and my mom was a ski instructor at the Snow Bowl so my two brothers, my sister and I got to ski while she worked.

I was on skis by age three, part of the Junior Racing Club by age seven and had my sights set on the Olympics by age nine. The Snow Bowl had everything that I needed to become a champion; the snow, the terrain, the program, the competition, and a group of kids focused on skiing every inch of the mountain from before the lifts open until the family station wagon was leaving the parking lot.

My siblings and I were part of the Snow Bowl’s junior racing club, headed up by Howard Kelton and part of the Mid-Vermont Council. The group’s ages ranged from 7 to 17 and it seemed like every family had at least three kids in the program.We did everything together.We explored the mountain together. We trained together. We traveled to races together. We ended each day playing in the river (often in our ski boots) together. We got in trouble together. All without any supervision from our parents who were out skiing themselves or, more likely, enjoying a cocktail on the deck.

With no snowmaking back then and limited grooming, the Snow Bowl offered up a challenge at every turn, every day on every trail. As a kid learning to ski in Vermont in the late ‘60s and ‘70s, you had to learn how to ski over ice, moguls, crud, and often grass and rocks. It seemed like every turn was a test of agility and balance. You also skied on alert as you never knew what was under that next knoll or around the corner. In fact, there was a porcupine that hung out on one of the trails each winter, an obstacle to definitely avoid.

We skied only about 60 percent of the time on the groomed trails.The rest of the time, we were in the woods screaming (literally and loudly) through the trees on skinny, winding, rollercoaster tracks. Some of the best of these secret trails were the Proctor-Ross-Allen which connected all three trails off of the top of the mountain, and the myriad of woods trails off of the Lang Poma (now a chairlift). The most extreme woods trails were the ones off the back that were on either side of the old Bailey Falls Poma. However, those trails were only for the “older’ kids, as you could get lost back there, or so the rumors were.

Skiing in ever-changing conditions and in the woods honed my skills. I learned to look ahead, read terrain and make quick decisions.

Those mental skills translated into being able to carve, hop, slide, jump and sometimes stop at a moment’s notice. Add in the fact that we travelled in packs of 10 skiers at a time, often separated by just inches, and it became a reallife video game where crashing into each other and trees happened a lot—usually accompanied by fits of laughter and a few minutes spent trying to find everyone’s equipment (not as hard back then as we all wore safety straps).

Of course, there were famous (and infamous) challenges that you had to do to be part of the

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 25

THE SNOW BOWL TODAY The Middlebury College Snow Bowl (still operated by Middlebury

26 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

Lewis went from skiing with his mom and siblings at the Snow Bowl (top) to winning bronze at the World Championships in downhill in 1985, to a career as a T.V. analyst, covering events such as the World Cup.

BEST FOR: Families, kids, ski racers and anyone seeking fresh powder and no lift lines on a weekend. STATS: 3 chairlifts, 17 trails plus glades EAT, DRINK, STAY: In the morning, grab one of the signature sticky buns at Haymaker Bun Company. After skiing, stop at the Waybury Inn, stylishly updated since it served as the set for Bob Newhart’s Vermont inn in the Newhart Show.

The Inn also manages the food service at the Snow Bowl cafeteria.

For drinks in town, head to Two Brothers Tavern in Middlebury, owned by ski racers Holmes and Beale Jacobs. If you’re staying the night, the Middlebury Inn is a brick classic on the town green and the Robert Frost Cabins provide cozy cabins in the woods of Ripton, nearer the mountain. SIGNS OF SOUL: The volunteer ski patrol is still staffed by Middlebury College students and just west of the Rikert Nordic Center, the Robert Frost Trail celebrates the poet laureate and some-time Middlebury College professor who lived and wrote in a cabin just off the Nordic trails. DON’T MISS EVENTS: On Feb 1, 2020, as part of the mid-winter “Feb” graduation ceremonies, seniors who graduate in February ski down the Allen trail in caps and gowns. Last year, the Snow Bowl held its first pond skim. Dates to be announced. Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. weekends, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Day tickets: $40-60, $520 season passes. middleburysnowbowl.com

Photos courtesy Doug Lewis; Oppostie, Jason Duquette-Hoffman

cool group of skiers. There was the “Cliff ” in the middle of the Allen. You had to have the perfect line to make sure you didn’t land in the trees.You had to have the speed to clear the rocks. You had to put in that little extra jump to make it look cool. It all had to happen with perfect symmetry and timing.

I remember standing on top of it, staring over the lip into the abyss and trying to get my nerve up to huck it. My friends were screaming at me to go for it. “Come on Lewie, just go!!!

Hurry up!” Then I would take a deep breath and send it.

The elation and energy and joy I got every time I took that cliff built up my confidence that I could do anything. This proved useful many years later when I stood in the starting gate of Kitzbuhel’s Hannenkahm race and my coach would echo my friends: “Come on Lewie, go for it!!!”

Another rite of passage was jumping off of the 55-meter Nordic ski jump the college used at the college winter carnivals. You had to take a short trail through the woods to get to the jumps and then climb the in-run while hiding from the ski patrol. This was the real deal. It was a dangerous, crazy thing to do on alpine skis, especially when it was against the rules. If you got caught they would take your pass. So, when we were all staged at the top, we would take it, one right after the other, and then immediately disperse and hide. Usually the only kids who got caught were the ones who fell and had to pick up their equipment strewn all over the outrun.

Finally, one of our favorite things to do was to bomb the Voter Trail which started at the very top of the mountain and wound its way down to the very bottom. At the top were tight corners and a few steep spots, but the key to winning was having speed across the long flat section at the bottom.

College) serves as a training ground for some of the top ski racers in the country—both those who grew up skiing here, such as current U.S. National Ski Team member Abi Jewett, and the Middlebury College Division One ski team.

On Friday afternoons you’ll find a mix of former college racers (some with national and international competitions behind them), local business people and retirees all competing on the same gentle course for Middlebury Ski Bum league bragging rights.

Everyone gathers at a bar in town after to share stories, hear the results and win prizes offered up by local businesses. Often, that bar is Two Brothers, whose owners, brothers Holmes and Beale Jacobs, grew up racing against Lewis. On Tuesdays this season, telemark clinics take over the mountain. On weekends, there’s rarely a line and you can still find fresh tracks mid-morning and good glades runs.

This year, for the second year running, the Snow Bowl offers up a $50 weekend ticket that includes a half day at the Snow Bowl and a half day of skiing the extensive Rikert Nordic Center trails that snake through the college’s Breadloaf Campus, just a mile down the road.

The views from the trails, set high on the western flank of the Greens and surrounded by the Breadloaf Wilderness, are stunning.

The Nordic ski jump is no longer there but what hasn’t changed since Lewis was growing up, is this: families can still set their kids loose on the mountain knowing they will all find their way back to the lodge’s big fireplace for a cocoa after.

College racers and ski bums alike train on the Allen while a new generation of kids can find untracked powder on the trails and in the trees on even the busiest weekends.

Since I was always pretty small, the key for me was to hang out in the back until the final corner into the flats, and then carry more speed across the flats and draft off the bigger skiers. And, of course, if you could grab onto someone’s pole and slingshot off it, that helped as well.

The cherry on top was taking the huge jump at the very bottom and pulling a sweet spread eagle into the finish as the winner. I won this race quite a few times in my tenure there and I swear it played a big role in me becoming one of the fastest gliders in the world. I learned how to get my skis flatter and generate more speed across the flats of World Cup races better than almost anyone on the planet.

I still thank Middlebury College Snow Bowl and the awesome group of junior racers I grew up with on that mountain, for starting what became

a career in skiing. I hope that maybe another one of the kids who is still meeting up every weekend at the Bowl and exploring every inch of the mountain—racing from top to bottom, and laughing the entire way—will end up in the starting gate of the Olympics one day.

Doug Lewis, recently inducted in the Vermont Ski & Snowboard Museum Hall of Fame, competed in the 1984 and 1988 Olympics and was a bronze medalist in downhill at the 1985 World Championships. He currently serves as a broadcaster and analyst for a number of TV networks and commentator for the KillingtonWorld Cup. Doug and his wife Kelley run ELITEAM training camps (www.eliteam.com) for kids each summer inWaitsfield, Vt.

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Rikert Nordic Center, Ripton

in the hearth.

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Grafton Trails, Grafton

Bolton Valley, Bolton

Grafton Trails & Outdoor Center has 30 km of multi-use trails, available for recreation, fresh air, and outdoor adventure in every season. The rental shop has everything you need from skis and snowshoes to fat bikes and tubes. Get on the trails for a day or make it a getaway and stay at The Grafton Inn.

Edson Hill, Stowe

Trapp Family Lodge, Stowe

Our Nordic Center has been enriched with professional grooming equipment, great additions to our rental fleet, private instruction and a retail offering with some essential gear and Edson Hill logo-wear available. After a day on the hill, relax in elegant comfort in one of our rooms, and enjoy a meal by Chef Jason Bissell.

Woodstock Inn Nordic Center

The spirit of adventure is alive and well at the Woodstock Inn & Resort, and guests will find new things to do at every turn.

With an extensive network of winter trails throughout Mount Peg and Mount Tom, the Tubbs Snowshoes & Nordic Adventure Center offers groomed trails for skate and classic cross-country skiing.

MAGIC’S NEXT ACT

Old-school trails, narrow and winding, have not changed much from what founder Hans Thorner and his family originally cut. Opposite: New schooler Dan

30 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

Hatheway, son of current president Geoff Hatheway.

Photos sby John Hatheway

LIKE PULLING A RABBIT OUT OF A HAT, MAGIC MOUNTAIN IS BACK WITH A RETRO, BAD-ASS, SOUL-FILLED VENGEANCE.

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 31

O

On a sunny day last March, Rich Hart, a 44-year-old builder from Southington, Ct., stood at the base of Magic wearing a skin-tight, green racing suit and holding a beer. It was noon. The beer was not his first of the day.

“I’m pumped, but it’s going to be solid,” he said, looking up at the north face of Glebe Mountain. A thin layer of fresh snow covered a base that had hardened over spring’s freeze/thaw cycles into white asphalt.

Hart furrowed his brows, eyeing the top of the mountain and what has been billed as the steepest and toughest terrain in southern Vermont, with as much as a 45-degree pitch in places. Snaking off the summit were 39 trails and 11 glades, many of them old-school runs rolling down 1,500 feet of vertical over the natural terrain, plunging down ledges and snaking through tight trees.

Next to Hart stood Zack Wilkins, a 24-year-old ski shop employee who lives in Killington. “Now this is the guy I’ll need to beat,” Hart said, nodding to Wilkins, who was dressed in a baggy Fly Low parka and pants.

“That’s why the speed suit—I won’t be flapping around as much as Zack here,” Hart ribbed his friend.

The “race,” the Master of the Mountain Extreme Biathlon, was set to start at 1 p.m., to “crown the best overall skier or rider in the East.” A combination freeskiing competition and giant slalom, the Master of the Mountain sends competitors down the bumps of Witch, where they are judged on air, line, fluidity and speed, on down Black Line trail down to where a series of gates are set up. Overall time, top to bottom, is part of what makes a winner, but contenders are given points for jumps, style and control as well. At stake: a $1,500 prize purse.

Wilkins, the defending champion, had already won one of Magic’s trio of extreme events. On Feb. 2, 2019 he captured first place in The Road to Ruin, basically a Chinese downhill where heats of racers take

off in a no-gates mad dash to the bottom. Wilkins won that and a check for $1,000.

Both men had also competed in Tuck It! on Dec. 31—a straight-out, no-gates speed test. “We both clocked 70- to 71- mph,” Hart said. “But we didn’t win.”

As they talked, kids were shrieking with laughter as they barreled down a tubing park set up adjacent to Hocus Pocus. A guy on a Sno Go ski bike, a bike with a forward ski and two back skis, carved down the mountain and skidded to a stop, music blaring from a speaker mounted on the handlebars. “A lot of places wouldn’t let me use this on the slopes,” said the rider, Robert Dunn, who drives to Magic on weekends from New Jersey. “I just asked Geoff about it and he said ‘Sure, if you can handle this.’ Geoff’s done an awesome job with this place.”

He nodded at Wilkins and Hart, then headed off for another run.

RESURRECTING SOUL

The trio of races are just a taste of the out-of-the box thinking that’s made Magic Mountain’s latest act one that you don’t want to miss. “We’re trying to make skiing fun again and bring back some of the soul of skiing,” said Geoff Hatheway, the general manager, watching the action from the deck of the Black Line Tavern, where he sat in the announcers’ chair.

Hatheway, a Dartmouth grad and marketing veteran, has seen Magic through a series of owners and financial ups and downs. He grew up as a weekend skier, commuting from Westchester, N.Y. to spend weekends at the farmhouse his parents bought in Jamaica, Vt., a place that had no electricity at the time and operated on a generator. “I kept coming up after I was married, mainly skiing Stratton. Then one day after we had kids, we started to ski Magic. There were no lines. It had this old-school, relaxed vibe and I loved it.” He loved it so much that he left New York and went

After a good storm, Magic will sometimes open for a surprise mid-week powder day. When it does, skiers from all over Vermont head to its steep and deep glades.

32 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

Fueled by adrenaline from the Masters of the Mountain Race, Rich Hart waves the flag for Magic (top left). The Red Chair, a classic preserved, takes skiers to the summit (middle). In The

Bottom left and right, John Hatheweay; top and middle right, Angelo Lynn

Road to Ruin event, heats of skiers take off in a Chinese downhill race to the base (bottom.)

to work as the area’s marketing director from 2011 to 2014, a period during which Magic stood on shaky financial ground. Then, in 2016, after a season of terrible snow and an early season closing, Hatheway succeeded in rallying a group of 16 investors, a group he describes as “half local skiers who are in it for the passion, the other half, buddies from Dartmouth who look at this as a business.”

They formed Ski Magic LLC, bought the area and set up a five year plan.

“Magic would have not opened (for the 2016-17 season) if we hadn’t come along and bought it,” Hatheway told The Brattleboro Reformer at the time.

The new owners opened the tubing park that December and by February were drawing record crowds. On some weekends so many people showed up they had to close the ticket window. Since then, as Hatheway says, “If we fill up the parking lots we stop selling lift tickets. We don’t want this place to get too crowded.” “Too crowded” today means 2,000 skiers.

And the team has found plenty of creative ways to fill the parking lots.

With a “Throwback Card” ($139 up front) lift tickets on any day are just $29 and on Friendly Fridays, people who carpool can get up to four tickets per vehicle for a total of $149. Season passes at Magic cost $779 and include a Freedom Pass, which gives you three days of free skiing at 18 other “soulfilled” resorts including Bolton Valley, Vt. This season, Magic was also one of three Vermont resorts (along with Bolton Valley and Suicide Six) to join the Indy Pass, which offers two days of skiing at each of 44 small ski areas across the country for less than $200.

If you only want to ski holidays, the $270 White Out Pass can let you escape to Magic during Christmas week, Martin Luther King weekend and President’s Week. Magic, which is typically open Thursday through Sunday (with the occasional powder day opening), also rents the whole mountain for private parties, midweek. And uphill skiers get one free lift ride (except on powder days).

On the day the Mountain Man Extreme was held, there was a fiveminute line at the Red Chair, with strangers chatting as Louis Armstrong’s deep-throated “What a Wonderful World” echoed out from speakers.

After snaking through the singles line I found myself on the lift with Jon Blatchford, president at the time of J.K. Adams in Manchester. “This place on a powder day is hard to beat,” he said pointing out tight trees where the snowpack would deepen and hold on the steeper slopes. “And you can always ski the old trails over on Timber Ridge,” he noted, referring to the area that was connected to Magic on the backside of the mountain by a trail in the 1980s.The two areas operated in tandem for a few seasons.

Then, following some lean years, both mountains were shuttered in 1990 and Magic didn’t reopen until 1997.

Part of Hatheway’s five-year plan to pull Magic out of the hat has been to gradually upgrade the lifts, which are known by color. In the first year, the new LLC added a magic carpet lift for beginners and a midmountain station on the Green Chair, giving skiers a chance to ski the lower, intermediate slopes without riding all the way up to the steeper terrain. In fall of 2019, the Black Chair was replaced with a quad (which was moved over from Stratton) with 158 four-person chairs and a capacity of 2,000 skiers per hour, rising over a new black diamond trail.The chair it replaced, the Black Chair triple, carried 620 riders per hour. In June, 2019 Magic received Act 250 approval to double the size of its snowmaking pond,

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 33

As you approach Magic, you might think you had happened upon a Swiss village. Many of the homes and inns built by the Swiss ski instructors Hans Thorner brought to Vermont in the

bringing it up to 9 million gallons which will allow coverage of 60 percent of the terrain by next season. “We’re a skiers and riders mountain and we’re putting the money into skiing, not hotels and waterparks,” says Hatheway.

And other than a clean makeover of the base lodge, where barnboard wainscotting and wooden picnic tables give the space a sort of Instagramable chic, it’s hard to tell that it’s 2019.

RETRO REVISITED

Magic is not your grandfather’s ski hill, but it does have a strikingly backto-the-future feel, as if you can still hear the echoes of a yodel reverberating off the hillside. The influence of its founder, Swiss ski instructor Hans

34 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

Thorner is everywhere. Thorner arrived from the Alps in 1932 and built an inn in Franconia, N.H., Thorner House, that hosted the likes of Zsa Zsa Gabor and the Kennedys. He made ski films for Swiss Air and about the 1948 Winter Olympics and was, his granddaughter Allison Thorner remembers, a legendary storyteller. “He was The Magician. He could make anything sound so good you wanted to have a part of it.”

Thorner scouted all of New England for a place to create his own ski resort and came upon Glebe Mountain. He and his sons Peter and Arthur began cutting trails and putting up lifts and in 1962 opened Magic Mountain. Soon, Swiss-style chalets popped up around the base. Some, such as Blue Gentian and Snowdon Chalet still house guests and many of the newer buildings give a nod to Tyrolean architecture.

Thorner’s goal was to transform the slopes and land around Glebe Mountain into a something “more Swiss than a Swiss watch.” He invited Switzerland’s top ski instructors to come toVermont, and to teach at the area he named afterThomas Mann’s book, The Magic Mountain. “He named it that because the sanatorium in Mann’s book was a place of healing, a place where people could relax and enjoy themselves. But I think also because it was also always a little crazy,” recalls Thorner’s granddaughter, Allison.

“My grandfather hired the best looking Swiss ski instructors and made sure the best looking women, all dressed in authentic dirndls, served at the Abracadabra Lounge—now the Black Line Tavern. He told them to ‘cultivate’ their Swiss accents and that it ‘vaz good fer der bizzyness’ and in the evenings they would line up in formation for a perfect torchlight parade. A few of them played in a rock band,The Blackbirds, and there was always music and dancing in the Lounge.” She also remembers races not unlike the Mountain Man Extreme that would pit ski instructors against ski patrollers, with each racer having to both ski gates and pull a sled down the run. “And then there were these guys who would hang glide off the top and land in the parking lot in the spring and summer.”

Growing up, Magic was the Thorners’ family business. Allison’s father Arthur ran the lifts and operations and uncle Peter, the ski patrol and food and beverage. They blasted the trails and put in the lifts themselves. And they helped develop the small Swiss-style village at the base.

But Thorner stopped short of following the path Austrian Pepi Gramshammer was taking in Vail, Colo. As Thorner told The NewYork Times in 1973, “I’m not against expansion but try to pick my expansion. I’m partial to those seeking housing themselves rather than to those interested in creating and selling housing to others. We like to have skiers come in who are ready to show personal and sentimental involvement. They make good neighbors.”

“Today, many of those neighbors, both local Vermonters and some of the early families from Connecticut and New York are returning. Many of them still own houses at the base and they come up in the fall and volunteer to help cut glades and clear brush from the slopes, which at one time had sheep grazing on them,” Allison Thorner recalls. “When I hear about people moving back I think: Why wouldn’t you? Growing up there was, well, magical. Here we were on a dirt road, with a mountain to play on in the back yard. I think we even had a horse and sleigh. It was like living in a bubble. It wasn’t always easy or fun, but these days I think that bubble is not such a bad place to be,” she says.

Photos Angelo Lynn, top right, John Hatheway

1960s remain. Several, such as the Blue Gentian (bottom) and Snowdon Lodge stil take guests.

A ski patroller rides the iconic Red Chair through a frosted wonderland.

Bottom, the new magician-in-chief, Geoff Hatheway.

And that bubble still draws some of the best skiers in the East here as season pass holders, weekenders and racers alike come for events such as the Ski the East Freeride Tour or the Master of the Mountain Extreme.

EXTREME SKIING, SHOVEL RACES AND A FLAMINGO TOSS

At the top of the Mountain Man Extreme course, a crowd of two dozen racers gathered. One by one, racers headed down. It was icy. There were exposed rocks and moguls as hard as granite. Some skiers, like Clark Macomber, floated through conservatively and launched into the air every now and then. Others blazed down, borderline in control but going as fast as they could. John Hatheway (Jeff’s son) who serves as the staff photographer, guided a drone over the course capturing the action.

Then it came time for Wilkins, the defending champ, to compete. He skied the top part well, hit a bump, threw huge air, and spread his skis wide, poles and fists down. He sailed up, and up, until at least 14 feet of air was between him and the ground below and then landed.

There was another jump Wilkins had eyed down the slope and he hit that one too and blew up in a yard sale that had him hunting and pecking for gear. Not far behind, Hart replicated Wilkins’ run with a jump nearly as big. He landed with a thud and a grunt that was so loud it cracks up the judges who were watching, trailside.

In the end, the big prize went to Clark Macomber, a 22-year-old senior at St. Lawrence University. Macomber, a slalom and GS ski racer with FIS points seemed as comfortable in the air as he did in the gates.

“I didn’t even know the race was going on,” said Macomber after the race. “I came down to ski for the weekend with my buddy who lives in the area and just decided to enter last minute. I’m not really great as a freeskier but I know how to go fast and I loved this terrain.”

The race was done but that didn’t mean the fun stopped. At the Black Line Tavern one of the weekly bands set up, part of a music lineup that’s made Magic a go-to place for both skiers and non-skiers.

And though it was March, the season was far from over. Still coming up was the Shovel Race, which is, you guessed it, a chance to ride a

shovel down the slopes. And there was also the Flamingo Toss (riders of the Red Chair are handed pink flamingos to toss into a bucket, part way up) and then a final barbecue and beach bar up on Sunshine Corner halfway up the mountain, up near the ledge where Hans Thorner and his wife Florence’s ashes were scattered.

“That barbecue up on the mountain, it was a rite of spring, something we always loved,” said Allison Thorner, a bit wistfully. Her father Peter, in his ‘80s, still lives in the area.

“I talk to Peter about once a week,” Geoff Hatheway says. And in some ways, Hatheway seems to be channeling that original magician Hans Thorner, every day.

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ITTAKES A VILLAGE Head to one of Vermont’s remaining non-profit, community-run ski areas and you’ll find cheap

On moonlit nights the locals sometimes rev up the T-bar at Northeast Slopes for impromptu night skiing.

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lift tickets, few lines and the soul of skiing.

Photo by Brian Carroll

BY ABAGAEL GILES

At Northeast Slopes, set on the hardscrabble side of a hill farm in East Corinth, not much has changed since the ski area was founded by neighbors in 1937. A 1973 Dodge Dart still powers the rope tow, and like many ski areas of its size across the state, Northeast Slopes is a self-funded nonprofit organization run entirely by local volunteers.

Tickets are priced to make skiing on a whim feasible—a family of five can ski for the price of a one-day adult lift ticket at Okemo or Stowe. And, as a result, all the locals do ski. “There’s a vibrancy here that’s real,” says Wade Pierson, who leads Northeast Slopes.

“Skiing is who we are, all of us.”

At places like this around Vermont, you will hardly ever wait in line. Powder day mornings are devoid of competition—locals know there’s plenty to go around and besides, they’d rather share it. Flannel shirts and Carhartts abound and you never know when you might be watching a future Olympian cut their teeth. Take the Cochran family—their Richmond ski hill has produced 11 U.S. Ski Team members.

As legendary extreme skier Glen Plake said following his whirlwind Down Home tour of Vermont last January, “It’s places like Northeast Slopes that still have the soul of skiing in them.”

Over the years, Vermont has seen 119 ski areas come and go—no small feat for a little state with 251 towns. Like a town playground, many were owned by the nearby villages, run by volunteers and powered by a single rope tow or two.

Today, as resort after resort has fallen under corporate ownership (Sugarbush’s November sale to Alterra is the most recent example of this), just 10 of Vermont’s 20 ski areas remain independently owned and operated.

Six of them operate as community-run non-profits—think community-supported skiing, or a “CSS” instead of a CSA farm share. Some, like Ascutney, Hard’Ack and Mad River Glen are actually growing, adding or improving lifts and base lodges.

And while famous terrain like Stratton’s groomers, Killington’s bump runs and Stowe’s Front Four will always hold a certain magic, so do fresh tracks on these hills.

ASCUTNEY: A BACKCOUNTRY POWDER HEAVEN At 3,130 feet high, Mount Ascutney looms over the Connecticut River Valley. At its foot lie the remains of what was once a 469-acre ski resort with a base lodge, lifts, condos and groomed trails.

When the ski area closed in 2010, locals weren’t ready to give up on their home mountain without a fight. Though all of the lifts were subsequently sold and the original base lodge burned in 2015, the legendary trails cut into the monadnock—a geologic term for a stand-alone mountain—remained. In a storyline that parallels How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the people of Windsor County gathered and decided they wanted their ski hill back.

“We saw that this was something important, that it needed to be done and so we did it,” says Steve Crihfield, president and founding member of the nonprofit Ascutney Outdoors.

Over the last nine years, Ascutney Outdoors has rallied local volunteers to meticulously preserve the iconic, steep and winding trails

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trails (think a smaller version of Magic Mountain or Mad River Glen) and more than 50 acres of hardwood and spruce glades for backcountry touring. It’s a place where you can still find untracked lines on a Saturday afternoon.

In 2015, the non-profit also installed an 800-foot, lighted rope tow and tubing hill. And after the snow melts, 42 miles of mountain biking and hiking trails reveal themselves, zig-zagging over the slopes and through the surrounding forest—thanks to hard work by local Vermont Mountain Bike Association chapter Sports Trails of the Ascutney Basin.

Over nine years, locals raised $1.5 million to build, among other things, the Ascutney Outdoors Center in 2018.The lodge has since been home to some of the biggest trail events in the state, among them the Vermont 50, a 50-mile trail ultramarathon and mountain bike race, and the Point-to-Point centure ride.

This season, a Dopplemayer T-bar will restore lift service to ten trails on the lower mountain—offering skiers a serious boost to the upper mountain’s most challenging terrain.

Introductory to advanced backcountry touring. Stats: 469 skiable acres; one rope tow and one T-bar, 1,460 feet of vertical drop.

APRÈS SKI: Head to the Brownsville Butcher and Pantry or Harpoon Brewery. SIGNS OF SOUL: Thursday night citizen’s slalom racing under the lights of the rope tow, where about half the racers telemark. WILD & WACKY EVENTS: Jan. 18: Grand opening of the new T-bar, with a chili cook-off at the base lodge. DETAILS: Thurs.5:30-8:30 p.m.; Fri. 6-8 p.m.; Sat. & Sun. 12-4 p.m. Day tickets: $15, ascutneyoutdoors.org BEST FOR:

BRATTLEBORO SKI HILL: THE PLACE TO LEARN Hidden at the heart of one of southern Vermont’s busiest towns, the Brattleboro Ski Hill at Memorial Living Park is a great place to stop for night skiing on your way north on I-91.

With a 230-foot-wide slope, about three times as wide as the average New England ski trail, it is quite possibly “the best place to learn how to ski in the state,” says Spencer Crispe, a local lawyer who rose to fame as “That Guy” in Ski Vermont’s video series about skier etiquette a few years back. He and his siblings are the third generation of Crispes to learn to ski at Brattleboro. “The slope is so wide you can cruise across, making super wide arcs as you go and learning to engage your edges without the fear of falling,” he says.

At the base, a tiny wooden snack bar serves hot cocoa as instructors from Mount Snow offer free ski and ride lessons to local kids onThursday nights. Half of the slope is designated for sledding, and half for skiing.

Despite having just one trail, the grooming and snowmaking is topnotch, thanks to volunteer hours put in by the nonprofit that operates it, Living Memorial Park Snowsports, Inc. “I remember getting on the T-bar with a shovel and building these obscenely large jumps,” says Crispe. “Like you believed you were getting sent into the stratosphere after sending it off of one of these features. That spirit’s still alive and well.”

Community ski races at the Brattleboro Winter Carnival; March 7: March Madness, a themed costume party on the slopes with a bonfire and costume contest. DETAILS: Fri. 4-9 p.m.; Sat. 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sun. 12-4 p.m. Tickets: $ 5. vtsnowsports.org COCHRAN’S SKI AREA: AN OLYMPIC PIPELINE On any given day at Cochran’s Ski Area in Richmond, Marilyn Cochran Brown can be found helping tots of all ages dismount from the T-bar. At 69, the three-time Olympic ski racer is one of 11 Cochrans to have made the U.S. Ski Team since her parents Ginny and Mickey installed a rope Above and left, a volunteer looks down through the gates of the race course that draws locals out for Thursday night community ski races at Mt. Ascutney, at Brownsville. Below, an artist’s 1957 rendition of the Brattleboro Ski Hill at Living Memorial Park. Not much has changed.

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Photos by Felicity Knight; Living Memorial Park Snowsports, Inc.

BEST FOR: Learning to ski; grabbing some night turns on your Friday night drive north. STATS: 2 skiable acres; 204 feet vertical drop; one rope tow and one T-bar. APRÈS SKI: Go for a home brew at The Whetstone. SIGNS OF SOUL: People in brightly colored onesies sending it off of massive jumps. WILD & WACKY EVENTS: Feb. 17:

Photos by Pennie Rand

Above and left, Olympian Marilyn Cochran Brown helps grandson Charlie Brown and a friend onto the T-bar at Cochran’s Ski Area in Richmond. Every Friday, kids and adults can night ski for just $5.

tow in their backyard in 1961 and set up their tiny Richmond ski hill.

Today, Marilyn’s sister, Olympic gold medalist Barbara Ann Cochran, runs the nonprofit mountain’s famed Ski Tots program, where she teaches kids 3 to 5 how to ski “The Cochran Way” while dishing out coaching pointers for their parents. The ski area hosts local high school race teams and hundreds of kids learn to ski and ride there each season, fulfilling the slogan: “No child will be denied the opportunity to ski or ride.”

You might also see former University of Vermont ski team coach and U.S. National Team member Tim Cochran flash by, or his cousin Robby Kelley—two who helped form a renegade World Cup training team, The Redneck Racers.

And come spring, cousins, friends and extended family can be found boiling down the sap that flows from slopeside maples into Slopeside Maple Syrup—some of which is also used in another venture with partial Cochran ownership: UnTapped maple syrup energy packets.

At the adorable vintage base lodge, Olympian and general manager Jimmy Cochran may serve you one of the famous $5 grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch. Consider staying for the Friday night family-style meal and $5 night skiing. Dinner costs just $6 for kids and $12 for adults and the room is packed each week with kids and parents, all sitting at long tables, eating homemade spaghetti in front of the slope-facing windows.

Look up and you’ll see the walls lined with the Olympic jerseys of skiers who honed their craft on this same hill.

BEST FOR: Learning to ski gates with (and then getting served grilled cheese by) a three-time Olympic medalist. STATS: 8 trails; 350 feet of vertical drop; two rope tows and a T-bar. APRÈS SKI: Friday night familystyle dinner at long tables in the base lodge. SIGNS OF SOUL The U.S. Ski Team members who come home during the holidays to telemark in their jeans. In the spring, former U.S. Ski Team member Roger Brown and brother Doug can be found sugaring next to the slopes. WILD & WACKY EVENTS: March 13: Rope-a-thon a vertical challenge to race up and down the slope; April 5: Nordic Cross, a Nordic ski cross race involving downhill slalom gates, a pond skim and wild costumes plus a pancake breakfast with syrup made onsite. DETAILS: Tues.-Thurs 3-6 p.m.; Fri. 3-8 p.m.; Sat-Sun 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.Tickets: $19; $5 night skiing. cochranskiarea.com

HARD’ACK: THE URBAN PARK While skiing at Hard’Ack is a throwback to the days of town-run ski hills, the little hill is also looking to the future, thanks to the new Greg Brown Lodge that’s slated to open in early February. Located on Aldis Hill in downtown St. Albans, the ski area has offered night skiing as a community tradition for as long as recreation director Kelly Viens can remember.

What started as a renegade effort by locals to ski through the night with flashlights nearly 50 years ago has evolved into a well-lit community gathering each Friday through Sunday, with two trails open and about 700 vertical feet of lit skiing and snowmaking.

Thanks to donations from Jay Peak and Smugglers’ Notch, it’s also

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Above left, each November, the Lyndon Outing Club hosts a rail jam fundraiser and chilli dinner with the Northern Vermont University Outing Club on a makeshift park setup. To the right,

home to a terrain park that features a rotating cast of rails and boxes and jumps. “We get folks who come up from Burlington to play around because it’s such a unique setting,” says Viens. It’s a family-friendly scene with some serious shredders of all ages.

The ski area has been around since the 1950s but was recently bought by the City of St. Albans, making it Vermont’s only remaining town-owned (but all-volunteer-run) ski hill. With 4k of groomed Nordic ski trails, it also sits adjacent to about six miles of snowshoe trails which move through birch and maple glades on the back side of Aldis Hill.

“On snow days, I can remember taking the rope tow to the top and riding down the trails on the back side all the way down Congress street and into town,” says Viens.

Urban park skiing in a fun, low-key setting. STATS: 2 skiable acres; 100 feet vertical drop; one rope tow and one T-bar APRÈS SKI: A local draft at 14th Star Brewing Company in St. Albans. SIGNS OF SOUL Local kids who ride and ski hard at the tiny terrain park after school. WILD & WACKY EVENTS; Feb. 16: Winter Carnival and Duct Tape Derby, where contestants build sleds using only duct tape and cardboard boxes and race them down the face to live music. DETAILS: Fri. 5-8 p.m.; Sat. 12-7 p.m.; Sun. 12-5 p.m. School vacation 2-7 p.m.

Day tickets: Suggested $10 donation. stalbansvt.myrec.com BEST FOR:

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LYNDON OUTING CLUB: THE ORIGINAL VOLUNTEER OPERATION Head to the Northeast Kingdom’s Lyndon Outing Club on a Friday night in midwinter and you’ll be guaranteed to find just about everyone in the surrounding towns night skiing or huddled around a warm fire in the stone fireplace at the center of the original 1930s base lodge.

The Lyndon Outing Club has been entirely volunteer-operated since its founding in 1937. “Even the lodge was built by local volunteers,” says Sue Russell, who served as the 32-acre, self-funded, nonprofit ski area’s board president for ten years. She notes, too, that “We use the trees we clear off the trails for firewood.”

The ski area has surprisingly steep terrain for a place with nine trails and 433 feet of elevation and sits on 32 skiable acres at Shonya Hill Park. It’s all overseen by the Lyndon Outing Club—and, thanks to a $2,500 grant from Kingdom Trails, the club expects to break ground on new mountain bike trails this spring.

“It’s familial,” says Russell, whose grandchildren are the fifth generation to learn to ski at Lyndon. She doesn’t ski but mows the trails with her tractor each summer and fall. “You have that feeling here even when you come from far away. It’s the sort of place where you can drop your kids off and know that somebody is going to keep an eye on them.” Ski for the evening and be sure to check out “Zitz Mark,” a steep double black diamond with teeth.

Photos by Thomas Puccio; courtesy St. Albans Recreation

Hard’Ack offers a unique urban park scene in St. Albans. At Hard’ack’s annual duct tape derby, locals build cardboard sleds and race them down the ski slopes to win prizes for design and speed.

Night skiing; oldest continuously volunteer-run ski area in Vermont. STATS: 433 vertical feet; one T-bar and two rope tows; APRÈS SKI: The French fries and $3 hand-shaped burger in the base lodge, or whatever spontaneous meal has been dreamed up by the volunteer running the kitchen, often with local produce. SIGNS OF SOUL: The tradition of jumping through the “O” in the giant, plywood “L.O.C” letters wrapped in Christmas lights; the T-bar, which runs off of an old tractor motor. WILD & WACKY EVENTS: The End-of-Season Torchlight Parade, in which volunteers ski down with real torches—as opposed to lights. Nov. 9: 12th Annual Rail Jam and Chili Cook-Off DETAILS: Sat. 12-4 p.m. and 6-9 p.m.; Sun. 12-4 p.m.; Wed. and Fri. 6-9 p.m. Day tickets: $15; kids: $10. skilyndon.com

Photo by Matt Kiedaisch

BEST FOR:

MAD RIVER GLEN: THE CO-OP Set on 3,200-foot General Stark Mountain, above the Mad River Valley, Mad River Glen is where big mountain terrain meets small mountain community and spirit.

According to Ry Young, whose grandfather was an early member of the Amateur Ski Club of New York which helped launch Mad River in the 1950s, there are some clear reasons for that. First, the skiers literally own the mountain—it’s been a cooperative since 1995. Second, “Back in the day when our trails were built, the prevailing style was narrow and winding, with a surface and fall line that mirrors the underlying terrain,” says Young, whose daughter will soon be a fourth generation Mad River skier. “Trails were cut in a certain way, so that skiers could play with the natural gravity of the mountain.”

At Mad River Glen, there is no snowmaking above 2,300 feet. The most iconic lines remain on natural snow, and the only way to get to them is via the mountain’s legendary Single Chair. “Skiing here is still very much raw,” says Young. “When you get up there on top of the mountain, you’re essentially by yourself, thanks to our low uphill capacity, and that is something increasingly rare.” It’s truly a skiers’ mountain: Mad River remains one of the few mountains in America where snowboarders are not allowed on the lifts.

As the only cooperative-owned ski area in the United States, Mad River Glen was curating its more than 800 acres of sustainably cut ski glades before tree skiing was cool. “I hate the ski industry,” said Betsy Pratt, the legendary owner of 20 years who ultimately sold the resort back to skiers in 1995, in a 1989 article in The NewYork Times. “I’m not a member of the ski industry, I’m the steward of a mountain.”

According toYoung, that spirit is alive and well. “We manage for viability, not for profit.You feel that in the solidarity of the community here,” he says.

In 2007, skiers raised $1.8 million to replace the old single chair, which had run since the mountain was founded in 1948, with a new single lift. Coop shareholders never even considered putting in a high-speed quad.

Last year, as the ski area celebrated its 70th birthday, the General Stark Pub was named the seventh best après-ski bar in America in a USA Today Reader’s poll. Its walls are plastered with photos of people who have tagged Mad River Glen’s famous “Ski it ifYou Can” bumper stickers in outrageous locations (like the International Space Station) and the Pub’s burger is made from local grass-fed beef.

BEST FOR: Small mountain vibes with big mountain terrain and some of the most challenging trails and glade skiing in the nation. STATS:

53 trails; 115 acres of mapped terrain; 800 acres of tree skiing; five

Just hours after Sugarbush owner Win Smith announced plans to sell the resort to Alterra Mountain Company, Mad River Glen updated its iconic sign with this message.

chairlifts APRÈS SKI: The Cruncher, a grilled cheese sandwich with cheese on both sides, served at the mid-mountain café, the Birdcage.

SIGNS OF SOUL: The often-humorous sign board. Sean Lawson (the brewer behind Lawson’s Finest), still hosts moonlight snowshoe naturalist tours and there’s even a mid-mountain nature center. WILD & WACKY EVENTS: Jan. 28: Roll Back the Clock, with $3.50 lift tickets for MRG’s birthday; March 21: The Triple Crown, an all-out, threepart competition for best skier on the mountain that features a vertical challenge, a big mountain competition and a mogul race. DETAILS: Sat. & Sun. 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Day ticket: $74$92. madriverglen.com NORTHEAST SLOPES: KEEPING IT REAL SINCE 1936 Show up to Northeast Slopes on a Saturday powder day and you will feel like you’re part of something special.

“We basically have a Google spreadsheet that we all pass around to see who’s going to flip the burgers and run the rope tows or teach our kids to ski each week,” says Northeast Slopes Coordinator Wade Pierson of the tiny, volunteer-run ski area. One of those rope tows is still run off of the engine of a Dodge Dart, housed in a red barn that was salvaged from the set of the 1980s cult film Beetlejuice.

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Above, Northeast Slopes offers surprising steeps for a ski area of its size. Left, extreme skier Glen Plake called the ski area his favorite stop in Vermont after visiting for a powder day in early 2019.

Each winter, the ski area outfits, transports and instructs more than 50 local students at no cost with funds raised at NESfest, an annual music festival that draws upwards of 700 people each fall. The result?

Everybody—from farmers to teachers to auto mechanics—in the surrounding communities of Bradford, Waits River and Corinth skis.

And they help make it happen for their neighbors.

From spontaneous late-night, moonlit rope tows to annual traditions like the Box Race, where kids and adults build sleds and race

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BEST FOR: Home to the oldest continuously-operating rope tow in the U.S. (and, the ski area claims, the fastest). STATS: 12 trails; 35 skiable acres, 360 feet of vertical drop, one T-Bar and two rope tows.

APRÈS SKI: The Nor’easter Burger, grilled to order with grassfed beef raised in the Waits River Valley, caramelized onions and melted Cabot cheddar served on a freshly-baked roll from Colatina Bakery in Bradford. SIGNS OF SOUL: Spontaneous full moon night skiing under portable construction lights, announced as weather permits on the Facebook page. WILD & WACKY EVENTS: Winterfest and the Uphill Downhill Race (slalom downhill, ride the rope tow to the top, then downhill straight to the base: Feb. 15; Box Race: Feb. 23 Day Ticket: $10-$15 northeastslopes.org

Photo courtesy Glen Plake; by Ashley O’Donnell Photography

them down the Main Slope (a blue square) to the base lodge, Northeast Slop es is a place full of soul with some surprisingly good terrain.

Ski the face for steep turns or follow some middle schoolers into some beautiful glades. Best of all? “There is never a line. And when the manmade snow elsewhere gets rained on, our natural snow drains and re-grooms beautifully into something soft and always carveable,” says Pierson, who, at 56, swears that his day job managing school busing does not present a conflict of interest with his audible delight over orchestrating an unplanned opening on a midweek powder day.

00 September 2015 vtskiandride.com

Dream Home

l the elem l a s k c a p e gton hom n i l l i K w e This n 44 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

ents of a conventional ski house i nto a

The Lift House maximizes both privacy and views, with kids rooms and the ski-in boot room on the lowest level (far right), the garage and guest rooms on the entry level and master bedroom, living room and dining area on the top floor.

LIFT THE HOUSE

l package. By Lisa Lynn | Phot a n o i t n os by E nve o c n ri c a A u y l d decide llen

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Clad in tiles that echo the steel panels outside, the fireplace anchors the east end of the house and can be seen from the open kitchen and dining area. The color palette throughout the house is simple, picking up on the earth tones of the cedar ceilings, darkstained oak floors and corten panels.

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T

ake a hidden side trail through the woods at Killington and you might see it rising through the trees on Bear Mountain.

The chevron-shaped house seems to hover like a boomerang above the snowy hillside, a glass structure wrapped in glowing Western red cedar, anchored on a plinth of corten steel.

“We’ll be sitting outside in the hot tub sometimes and we’ll hear people yell, ‘Hey cool house’ as they ski by on Home Stretch below,” says J. the owner (who asked not to be identified). “It’s kind of fun,” she adds with a laugh.

Despite the storefront-sized glass that forms one wall of the upper living space, the home is intensely private. “From most of the rooms you can’t see another sign of civilization,” she says. “Though we have blinds that drop from the ceiling to the floor, we hardly ever use them.

In fact, one of the things I love the most is waking up early in the morning and seeing the dawn colors in the sky. I can lie in bed looking out through the treetops at the mountains.”

And that sense of privacy extends to the ground level, where simply finding the front door—or any entrance into the corten-clad base level— is like solving a Rubik’s cube. Coming upon the house you get a sense that you have stumbled up an impenetrable, secret fortress— or a giant Richard Serra sculpture with a cedar box placed on top.

This is “The Lift House,” as architect Brian Mac, FAIA of Birdseye, the award-winning Richmond, Vt., architecture and building firm, dubs it. “We spend a lot of time thinking of names for the houses we design,” he says. “The name ‘Lift House’ worked on several levels; it’s a ski house sited just above a lift you can ski down to (Bear Mountain) and it’s elevated off the ground.”

In other ways, it’s been a ‘lift’ for J. who, with her family, uses it to escape from New York on weekends.

“My parents didn’t ski but I started coming to Killington when I was about 14 with friends. So, when we had kids, it seemed like the right place to go. I love it because it’s not New York and it’s not chichi.

Unlike other ski areas—even in Vermont—Killington is not a place people go to show off their latest ski jacket. There’s not a planned village and on most of the upper mountain you can’t even see other homes: it’s just you and nature.”

After several years of renting ski houses at Killington, J. and her family went house hunting one week when it was too cold to ski. “After looking at a few places we saw this acre of land—there had been a structure on it before which burned—and we bought it on a whim.”

Then she began scouring the internet for architects.

“I knew I wanted something modern, with wood, steel and lots of glass: I wanted to feel as if the house was part of nature, with a really open look.” As a ski house, it also had to have an open floor plan so that her two kids and their friends (and their friends’ friends), could come for weekends. It had to be functional and easy to maintain and, says J. “And I wanted a really cool staircase—something that felt like a piece of art.”

She came across Birdseye, whose homes have been featured in The New York Times and House Beautiful. Working with lead architects Brian Mac and Jeff McBride she got all that.

“We’re always interested in designing ski houses as it gives us a chance to rethink what a ‘ski house’ is,” says Mac, the architect.

A former Mad River Glen teleskier (who has since decamped to Bolton Valley as his wife and kids all snowboard), Mac has seen his

The front door (above), clad in corten steel panels, is almost camouflaged, adding to the sense of security in the house. The corten is designed to weather with age and stand up to snow.

Two of the owner’s favorite features: waking up with the sun in the east-facing master bedroom suite (above) and the central steel staircase (below), which she calls “a work of art.”

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From the driveway it’s hard to tell that the facing wall of corten steel lifts to reveal a two-car garage. Landscaping, which features simple birch trees, was done by Wagner Hodgson, of Burlington.

“T H

IS IS

project Birdseye worked with builder Colby & Tobiason, out of Woodstock, Vt. The Lift House, which sits on oneacre plot tucked in the folds of the granite hillside, is a design unto itself.

Coming up the driveway, you are greeted by a paneled corten steel wall. There is no sign of an entrance. After following a cedar walkway, I come to the middle of the structure where floor-to-ceiling glass showcases an interior steel staircase– every inch the work of art that J. envisioned.

But there is no door or entry immediately visible: just glass walls and the weathered steel panels.

After muttering “Open Sesame!” several times to no avail, I spy a tiny doorbell. Two of the corten panels swing open revealing a foyer with a bench and hooks for coats. “We’ve had more than a few delivery people get really puzzled by the entry,” J. admits.

Mac, wearing jeans, a wool beanie and a classic flannel shirt, takes me on a tour of the house. The wing on the driveway side hides a massive two-car garage.

“That whole outside paneled wall hides the lifting garage door,” Mac explains.

On the other side of the house, down a half flight and separated by the steel staircase, is the kids’ wing. Sited on a hill, rooms in this wing look down the trail via a geometric pattern of windows.

On this trailside level, two bedrooms (one with bunk beds) and a den with pull-out couch and a breakfast bar area get filled with young bodies on weekends. “We’ve slept as many as 16 here on some weekends,” says J. At the back of the house, just off the trail, is a large boot and ski room. The back paneled wall of this room opens to reveal a row of boot warmers and a washer and dryer, hidden as seamlessly as the corten panels hide the outside doors. A second washer and dryer are located upstairs since with six bedrooms, getting everything washed and ready for the next weekend isn’t easy.

Just above the kids’ rooms, on the next level up, three guest bedrooms are just off the main entryway, with a door that leads to the back patio and hot tub embedded in the hillside. On the top floor, a giant master suite sits above the garage, with a half-bath opening into an open space with the dining room, open kitchen and living room.

Here, the cedar-beamed ceilings extend the width of the house and float seamlessly, it appears, past the triple-paned wall of glass, extending and slanting up to the sky. “This gives the feeling that this whole space is indoor/outdoor,” says J.

OU HO R FRE TO W ITS ENV A SKI SH TAK EO IRO HO N M NM E R ENT .” EL AT

share of 1970s chalets and Southwestern-themed ski houses. “This is our fresh take on how a ski home relates to its environment and reflects its clients,” he says.

Before launching Birdseye’s architecture arm (it was, originally, a building firm), Mac had worked as a carpenter, helping to complete projects such as The Pitcher Inn in Warren. Since then, Birdseye has gone on to create a variety of modern, often minimalist, homes that riff on a Vermont aesthetic. The Barn Bank in Woodstock takes a weathered barn shape and siding and sets it on a floor-to-ceiling glasswalled ground floor. Wood Shed and Two Shed take their shapes and siding (one uses recycled boards from a horse corral) from the classic wood shed. The firm’s workshop often does the building as well as the cabinetry, beds, tables and metalwork for their homes. But for this

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ES

The ski and boot room (top left), complete with its own boot heater closet and dedicated laundry center, is ski-in-ski out. The entrance is just off a trail that the hot tub (top right) looks down on. Below: Birdseye custom designed and built the dining table to fit into (and echo) the chevron shape of the top floor. The firm also found the long farmhouse sink and built the wood veneer panels behind it that hide the refrigerator as well as shelves for storage.

It also is highly functional: The slanted cedar roof provides shade and protection for the deck and the walkway below. The corten base can stand up to years of heavy snow. The house was also designed to be energy efficient with closed-cell insulation and the triple-paned glass walls have two layers of low-emission coating.

Birdseye also designed and built many of the interior features. What appear to be almost seamless wood panels that stretch across the back wall of the open kitchen all the way to the end of the living room hide storage cabinets, drawers and the double-door refrigerator.

The center island houses a cleanlooking extra-long custom-built farmhouse sink with two spigots.

The centerpiece of the house is a custom dining table, shaped from a giant split slab of cedar that echoes the chevron shape of the house. “I had a really hard time envisioning what it would look like, but now that the table is there, I love it: it’s where we all gather after skiing—the adults at the table having a glass of wine, or cooking in the kitchen, and the kids in the living room playing games by the fireplace. It’s such an easy house in terms of both keeping clean and flow,” says J. And that is the essence of a good ski house.

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 49

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[Holiday Gift Guide – Sponsored Content]

Gear FROM VERMONT, WITH LOVE From $6 stocking stuffers to $1500 jewels, this holiday buy local and share one of these uniquely-Vermont gifts.

W

e love to shop local and for this holiday season, we’ve curated a collection of some of our favorite new products put out by Vermont-based companies. From Orvis of Manchester’s new insulated vests and Vermont Flannel’s classic shirts to the super cool mountain bike and snowboard apparel produced by emerging brands such as Kaden Apparel and SDR Clothing; from allnatural skincare products from Waterbury’s Ursa Major to the elegant snowflake pendants crafted by Ferro Jewelers of Stowe and Woodstock, you’ll make someone happy with one of these—maybe even yourself.

POPIA HATS These colorful Merino blend knit hats from new company Popia are designed in Vermont and meticulously crafted in Italy. With Popia, longtime skiwear designer Poppy Gall has returned to her knitting roots to launch her upscale F’19 Popia collection. Her hats are fully-lined from top to bottom with a surprise contrasting design inside. They can be worn two ways; one with the brim rolled up to expose the patterned lining, or worn in a slouchy fashion. Popia hats ($60) are available in retail stores throughout Vermont and the U.S. popiadesign.com

DARN TOUGH ALPENGLOW SOCK

BEE’S WRAP FOOD WRAPS Eco-friendly Bee’s Wrap is a natural alternative to plastic wrap and sandwich baggies. Simply wrap, rinse and reuse Bee’s Wrap for food storage, lunches and snacks on the go. Made in Middlebury, Vt., with responsibly sourced materials, Bee’s Wrap has a whole range of food storage options, starting at just $6 at beeswrap.com.

Darn Tough socks have traveled the world racking up millions of vertical feet. All that time on the trails means constant refinement, and the Alpenglow over-the-calf ski and snowboard sock ($25) is the latest evolution.

Lightweight and versatile, it’s naturally easy breathing and odor-repellent thanks to the miracles of Merino wool. Darn Tough is a Vermont-based manufacturer of premium, all-weather outdoor and lifestyle socks backed up by the industry’s only lifetime guarantee. And all their socks are made here in Vemont. darntough.com

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 51

[Holiday Gift Guide – Sponsored Content]

RENOUN ATLAS SKIS New for this season, the Atlas represents the pinnacle of onpiste performance and all-around versatility in the 80mm category.

Renoun designed this impressive on-piste ski to handle the variable terrain in Vermont. Perfect for those who spend most of their time on the groomers, but still need a little off-trail on occasion—$1,299. Only available online. renoun.com TURTLE FUR COMFORT SHELL POM POM BEANIE Fully-lined with Sherpasoft™ Plush Fleece, the Comfort Shell Pom Pom Beanie provides all the attributes of our Comfort Shell™ products with a flash of style and added comfort.

Topped with a pom, this beanie from Turtle Fur of Morrisville, Vt., is breathable, quick-drying and anti-microbial. Perfect for a day skinning up the mountain or an afternoon spent on the cross-country ski trails. Available in five solid colors and three prints. turtlefur.com

BURTON RITUAL STEP ON BOOT & BINDING Snowboarding simplified for everyone: Pair the Ritual LTD Step On Boot with Step On bindings for unprecedented performance and simplicity. Three connection points—two by the toe and one at the heel—deliver unmatched security and board control. The whole bundle starts at $599.90, with men’s and women’s models. burton.com

52 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

URSA MAJOR ALL STAR TRAVEL KIT The All-Star Travel Kit ($30) from Ursa Major features clean face and body care essentials, wrapped and ready to give. The kit includes travel sizes of Fantastic Face Wash, Golden Hour Recovery Cream, Essential Face Wipes and Hoppin’ Fresh Deodorant— their most-loved products for your most-loved people. Based in Waterbury, Vt., Ursa Major makes low-maintenance, high-impact skincare essentials. The family-owned company obsesses over every little detail—from the quality and freshness of ingredients to the efficacy of formulations and sustainability of packaging—so that customers don’t have to. They strive to help millions of people switch to delightfully-effective, plant-powered skincare while raising the bar for what it means to be a sustainable company. ursamajorvt.com

MALOJA SESVENNA BASE LAYER

KADEN APPAREL V-NECK JERSEY

ORVIS PRO INSULATED VEST

The new Mountain Road Outfitters in Stowe is the first North American flagship store for German outdoor brand Maloja. Designed in Bavaria and “made for the mountains” Maloja features winter performance sport and lifestyle collections for men, women and kids that are well suited for the Green Mountains. Try the Sesvenna wool blend base layer, available in Mountain Lake (shown) and Alprose, men’s and women’s $109.00. mountainroadoutfitters.com

Designed in Vermont and made in the U.S., Kaden Apparel’s high-performance mountain bike clothing is for women who ride hard, sweat and get dirty. The raglan sleeve, v-neck jersey will undoubtedly become your new goto piece. Its incredibly soft poly-blend fabric feels like you’re wearing nothing at all. The featured underarm gusset is specifically designed to reduce underarm chafing caused by too many seams. This is the perfect jersey for any type of biking. One customer recently said, “It’s super light, breathable and fits like a dream. I feel like it was made for me.” At $89.99, you can be just as comfortable as she is. kadenapparel.com

This insulated vest comes from the new Orvis PRO Collection, the most technologically advanced outerwear Orvis has ever built. Orvis PRO apparel takes on the elements and provides protection in even the harshest environs. The PRO Insulated Vest uses body mapped insulation to provide optimal temperature control through a wide range of activity levels and environments. The 80g PrimaLoft® Gold Active insulation protects the core, with weightless, highly packable warmth ideal for active pursuits. Polartec® Alpha® (80g), designed for Special-Ops teams, regulates body heat and moisture through the side panels. The outer is Ultralight 20D stretch nylon ripstop with a special coating that provides tear, wind and water resistance.

Men’s and Women’s, $159. orvis.com

SDR CLOTHING DEEP WOODS JERSEY Because we’re born and bred on the East Coast and live and ride in Vermont. we all know some of the best days happen in the worst weather—especially in the early and late season. So SDR brings you the ultimate crap weather freeride/dh jersey. The super thick stretch fleece material makes this Deep Woods Long Sleeve Weatherproof Insulated MTB Jersey ($55) excellent as an outer layer or as a base layer on windy cold days, and the Nikwax weatherproofing keeps the rain out without trapping the sweat inside. Plus, the flatlock stitching on the seams makes this jersey as durable as it is comfy. A great choice for snowboarding, skiing or fatbiking. sdrclothing.com

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 53

[Holiday Gift Guide – Sponsored Content]

VERMONT FLANNEL CLASSIC SHIRT

UNTAPPED MAPLE SYRUP

With traditional style, the Men’s Classic Vermont Flannel Shirt ($63.80) delivers the endless comfort and superior quality you expect from Vermont Flannel. Two front chest pockets have button flaps. The tightly-woven flannel has minimal shrinkage—but wash it on cool and dry on low. The 100-percent flannel is doublebrushed for ultimate softness. Made with the finest European fabric that’s then hand cut and sewn in the USA! Original and USA Patchwork plaids are extra thick and cozy! Add $5 for 2X+ sizes. vermontflannel.com

Produced and packaged entirely in Vermont, UnTapped is made by skiers for skiers. Now featuring a complete lineup of sports nutrition, including drink mix, waffles and maplebased sports packets, see our sample pack ($25) for the perfect holiday gift. unTapped.com

DION SNOWSHOES Dion Snowshoes has been making snowshoes in Vermont for almost 20 years. They make the most competitive racing snowshoe available and the only modular snowshoe where bindings, cleats and frames can be chosen independently. Whether you are an experienced racer or just starting out, Bob Dion can help you choose what combination of components to use. Feel free to call 802-753-1174, or email Bob at bob@dionsnowshoes. com. Fully assembled, the most popular racing model, 120LT, is $275. Other models available for backcountry hiking. dionsnowshoes.com

SKIDA ALPINE NECKWARMER The Skida Alpine Neckwarmer ($26) keeps everything from your neck to your nose toasty and warm on frigid days. Our printed poly-blend outer fabric wicks away moisture, leaving the Polartec® micro-fleece lining dry and soft against your face. It is the perfect weapon for battling cold conditions. As always, made in Vermont. skida.com

54 Holiday 2019 vtskiandride.com

FERRO SNOWFLAKE PENDANT Ferro Jewelers, of Stowe and Woodstock has created custom-made replicas of jewelry in the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum’s collection. The first piece in this series is a highly detailed snowflake pendant with crossed skis and a pole, all hand-cast in gold and embellished with diamonds, $1,595. Or start off with a sterling silver variation for just $150. ferrojewelers.com

SPONSORED CONTENT

be gone ENVY SKI BOOT FRAME ELIMINATES THE NEED FOR UNCOMFORTABLE, HARD-SHELL SKI BOOTS LAUREN GLENDENNING

IN THE DUEL BETWEEN skiers and snowboarders over which sport is superior, there’s one advantage snowboarders have that leaves little room for debate: the boot.

There’s no question that a snowboarding boot is more comfortable than a hard-shell ski boot, says Chris Schroeder, the founder of Envy Snow Sports.

Schroeder, originally from Chicago, remembers childhood ski trips to Colorado and Utah with his family. A theme emerged each and every ski trip: the skiers in the group would have to stop at the lodge or quit the day early because their feet hurt so badly.

“Why can’t ski boots be comfortable?”Schroeder remembers thinking.

The Envy Ski Boot Frame was born, but it took a lot of patience and hard work to develop. Now, as Envy Snow Sports launches into its second winter of retail sales, we caught up with Schroeder to hear how his dream turned into a reality.

ENVY SNOW SPORTS

EXPLORE SUMMIT: Tell us about the inspiration for the Envy Ski Boot Frame?

CHRIS SCHROEDER: Our family, like most families, has been putting up with cold, uncomfortable ski boots our entire lives. My mom, sisters and uncles suffered from poor blood circulation in their hard, plastic ski boots.

When my Dad and I switched to snowboarding about 10 years ago, they were all jealous of our soft, warm boots and feet. We could stay out on the mountain for hours.

ES: When you looked for a product that could solve these woes, what did you find in the marketplace?

CS: We tried boot gloves, boot warmers, padding and other products to help, but none of them brought the warmth and comfort that snowboard boots offer.

They helped a little but not a true solution.

We thought that there had to be a better way to use current soft, comfortable snowboard boots to go skiing in. If we could create a frame that could accommodate most snowboard boots and clip into your current alpine ski binding, it might work. We knew this ski boot frame concept had to deliver the stiffness, support, flexibility and ski tip control necessary for skiing.

ES: How did you develop the design and how long did it take?

CS: We bought some old ski boots and snowboard bindings at Goodwill and started cutting them up in the garage a few years ago. We created about five different prototypes and took them onto the mountain to test. We called them our “Frankenboots.”

The first few were terrible and we almost gave up, but the last few worked pretty well. We then hired a few engineers to help us create the drawings, 3D models and more prototypes. It was hard to get the right balance between design and materials to create a product that provides the comfort and performance we wanted. We knew we were close when I put on my snowboard boots, stepped into the ski boot frame prototype type and enjoyed a full day of skiing at Vail one day.

ES: Tell us about the finished product – what is the Envy Ski Boot Frame, what’s it made out of and how does it work?

CS: The Envy Ski Boot Frame is made out of aircraft grade aluminum in the base and select types of plastic. This unique combination provides the stiffness, support, flexibility, durability and feel skiers need.

The adjustable straps accommodate a full range of snowboard boot types and sizes.

ES: Who’s doing the manufacturing? What’s the retail price?

CS: Our company, Envy Snow Sports based in Golden, Colorado, does all of our engineering and manufacturing. Currently we source our parts from overseas and complete our assembly and quality inspections here in the U.S. The full retail price is $279 per pair. A full refund is available if you do not love them.

ES: What has the reception been like from others within the skiing and snowboarding industry?

CS: Nearly everyone we talk with agrees that ski boots are cold, uncomfortable and hard to walk in. Industry analysts tell us many first-time skiers do not return to the sport because their feet hurt.

Shop owners are excited to see a breakthrough product now on the market. About 20 ski shops across the United States are now carrying the Envy Ski Boot Frame.

ES: What would you say to traditionalists out there who might be skeptical of the product?

CS: Today, with wider skis and better-quality snowboard boots we can step away from traditional products and try new ones.

The Ski Boot Frame’s unique construction provides the hard-plastic type support while the snowboard boot brings the warmth and comfort to your feet.

The stiffness of the aluminum base in combination with the plastic calf support mimics that of plastic boots. This also provides more advanced skiers the ski tip control and edge feel they are accustomed to.

ES: Who would benefit most from using your product/who’s your target market?

Skiers from beginners to experts who have cold, uncomfortable feet should try the Ski Boot Frame. If you have poor circulation, bunions, or prior foot injuries, the Ski Boot Frame might help you get back into skiing again. It can help you enjoy the sport for many more years.

ES: Of the couple hundred units you sold last year, what kind of feedback have you heard?

CS: People are naturally skeptical of new concepts — that is just human nature. Our first-time users are surprised by the ankle and foot support it provides. For most of them, they had no idea that snowboard boots are so comfortable.

They are no longer dreading the walk to and from the parking lot.

We’re hearing feedback that people are finally able to ski full days again for the first time in 15+ years, which is just awesome.

The Envy Ski Boot Frame is available to demo in 13 ski shops across New England. Visit EnvySnowSports.com for more details.

ENVY SNOW SPORTS

EnvySnowSports.com

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Discover Middlebury and you’ll come to love an authentic ski community right in the heart of Vermont that still has its original charm. With a ski racing heritage connected to Middlebury College and an active ski club, the Middlebury College Snow Bowl also has border-to-border tree skiing with fresh tracks on powder days with no lift lines!

Rikert Nordic Touring Center is just a mile down Rt. 125 offering 55Km of trails and dedicated snowmaking on a 5K raceloop. It’s a one-two punch that offers the best of Nordic and alpine skiing at a great value for families!

Brett Simison Photography

Check it out: rikertnordic.com/packages

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amily-friendly atmosphere includes FREE access to our Sunkid Wonder Carpet, a cozy lodge with wireless internet and great food. On-site ski shop open 7 days a week starting early November with lease packages, rentals, retail and full tuning. Middlebury Snow School has over 30 instructors who offer all levels of coaching in skiing, snowboarding and telemarking. Ask about the Middlebury Ski Club activities for kids, they’re phenomenal!

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RETRO VT THE CRAZIEST RACE The craziest and best-loved of bucket-list cross-country races, the Stowe Derby turns 75 this year. And anyone can compete—truly anyone. By Lisa Lynn

“Y

Photos by Benjamin Bloom/MMSC

ou should race The Derby, it will be fun,” Kim Brown said. This was two decades ago. Since then, I’ve learned that when Kim Brown (a grizzled ski bum who has penned a column in The Stowe Reporter) says anything will be “fun,” to be suddenly busy that day. If that doesn’t work, back out. If all else fails, bring Band-Aids.

Back then, I didn’t know how much I didn’t know. For instance, I didn’t know that you needed more than three days to learn to cross-country ski and way, way more time to become proficient on skate skis.

“You should do it on skate skis,” Brown added.

I didn’t know that the skate ski division of the Stowe Derby drew some of the top Nordic racers in the East— we’re talking collegiate champions, ex-Olympians and top Masters’ racers, some doing the race twice (once on Nordic and once on skate skis) in one day to vie for the title of Derby Meister. And I didn’t fully understand that much of the course was a screaming downhill.

But the picture Brown and others had painted of this historic race from near the top of the alpine trails at Stowe Mountain Resort, some 13 miles to the finish at the heart of Stowe village, was so compelling I signed up.

“No one takes it too seriously,” Brown promised. “People dress up in costumes. Some people bring picnics.There will be tons of spectators ringing cowbells to cheer you on.”

And, what clinched the deal: “It’s a bucket list race and there’s a great party after.”

THE BET More than anything, it’s the legend behind the race that makes it irresistible. In the early 1940s, Sepp Ruschp and Erling Strom began racing each other down Mt. Mansfield and into the village of Stowe, trying to settle an informal wager. If you take connecting trails, the distance from the top of the mountain to the center of town is about 20k and roughly onethird downhill, one-third flat and one-third rolling terrain.

Ruschp, an Austrian ski racer, was the founder of the Stowe ski school at Mt. Mansfield and private instructor to AIG insurance icon C.V. Starr. He would, along with Starr, end up running what is now Stowe Mountain Resort.

Norwegian Erling Strom was a Nordic skier who made the first ski ascent of Alaska’s Mt. McKinley (now called Denali) and competed as a ski jumper in Stockholm’s Nordic Winter Games, a precursor to the Winter Olympics. He had moved to Stowe in 1940 and operated an inn in the red brick building that has recently housed several Mexican restaurants (first The Cactus Café and now Over the Wall).

In 1945, Ruschp, Strom and two others made it an official race, open to men older than 30. The two started near the top of the Toll Road on Mt. Mansfield, Ruschp on alpine gear and Strom using mountaineering skis–more akin to today’s cross-country gear. Ruschp beat out Strom and the annual challenge was born, maintaining the rule you could do it on any type of skis, but you had to use the same pair for the whole race.

“In its heyday, the Derby drew 800 people or more and it was as much about having fun as competing,” local skier Cap Chenoweth remembers. It seemed that everyone in town, no matter their skill level, did it and folks drove from all over the East Coast to join in.

“People made a day of it. They dressed up. They set up picnic tables mid-course and served wine. College teams would compete but there were also a lot of families and friends who entered as teams,” Chenoweth recalls. “I mean how many other races can you say you competed on the same course as an Olympian?” he asks.

His favorite team called themselves the “Moose.” “They wore moose antlers and made sure that they had someone in each age group whose sole mission was to finish dead last

Since 1945, skiers have been racing from near the top of Stowe into town, usually on Nordic gear (though the freestyle division is open to any ski.)

vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 59

A benefit for the Mt. Mansfield Ski and Snowboard Club, the Derby is open to all ages and abilities and has added a short-course kids race (below) as well as a fat bike division. This year’s race is Feb. 23 . For more, see mmsca.org.

– which meant you were never dead last because there was always a Moose behind you,” Chenoweth says with a grin.

“It did get competitive for a while and that’s when they split the Nordic and the Freestyle, or skate skiing, divisions into two starts,” he notes (some still do it on alpine or randonee gear).The Derby also added a short course for kids and, in 2011 a fat bike division.

Chenoweth, who has raced in 34 Derbys, was one of the first to do both ski races in one day, a competition that became known as the Derby Meister. “At the time, we didn’t bus people back up the hill. Once you got into town, you had to figure out how to get back to the top of the mountain in time for your start.”

But, as with all things Derby, there were also plenty of amateurs for whom simply finishing with as few wipe-outs as possible was the goal.

When I ask Chenoweth what his favorite Derby was, he doesn’t hesitate: “It was one of my first: I was wearing blue jeans and I had a tube of klister wax explode in my pocket.

Then, crossing the West River on a narrow plank (on skinny skis), I fell in. But I loved it.You see, the thing about the Derby is you just want to finish. If you make it through the course, you’re a winner.”

That course has typically started just below Stowe’s Octagon, on the Toll Road, descended to the Stowe Cross Country Center, risen up through some of the trails of the Trapp Family Lodge before crossing the flat farm meadows then taking the rec path, which crosses multiple foot bridges. It is, if nothing else, a breathtakingly scenic route.

However, the course is snow dependent and has often been rerouted if conditions warrant. And from 2016 to 2018, Mother Nature conspired to throw everything she had at it: no snow, too much snow, ice storms, you name it.

Three years in a row, it was cancelled due to conditions.

Then it came back in 2019 and this year it is scheduled for Sunday, February. 23.

60 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

HOW TO WIN THE DERBY That first year racing the Derby I rode up on the double chair, praying that the skinny skis dangling from my rented boots wouldn’t fall off. At the top, many of the Freestyle division racers were milling around in speed suits. I was wearing a down jacket. The day before it had been 60 degrees and raining. That morning it was 10 degrees.

I lined up with my heat—five racers across—and when Chenoweth, the starter, set us off, adrenaline kicked in. Channeling my inner alpine racer, I tucked and went for the inside of the first turn. The surface felt as icy as a luge run. Though my mind said “turn, turn, turn” my skis went straight, I launched into the woods, taking out the four competitors on my outside.This happened three turns in a row.The crowds that had lined up trailside to watch the carnage loved it. The other racers? Some were laughing as hard as I was. Others, not so much.

But by the time we reached the open meadows I was starting to enjoy myself. There is a palpable sense of accomplishment when you can see both the mountain behind you and the steeple of the church in town ahead.

I finished bruised, scraped and in need of a Band-Aid, or five. I’d done it. And I was determined to do it again.

The next time I did the Derby, I did it right. I entered the classic ski division with a team of girlfriends. We carried backpacks. As friends stationed at one turn franticly rang cowbells for us, screaming “go faster, go faster!” we intentionally came to a dead stop, broke out a picnic blanket and settled in with wine and cheese. Skiers dressed in tutus, cow suits and lederhosen all passed us.

Still, we were not last.There was, of course, a Moose.

Photos by Benjamin Bloom/MMSC

RETRO VT

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THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR DECEMBER 1 | Never Summer Snowboard Demo, Jay Peak Head to Stateside for a free snowboard demo courtesy Never Summer Snowboards, with some of their newest products. jaypeakresort.com 4 | Michelob Ultra Ski Bum Registration Party, Killington Register for a season of friendly ski racing on the Highline ski trail every Wednesday at Mogul’s Sports Pub, with complimentary appetizers for racers. killington.com 5 | Backcountry Film Festival 2019, Burlington Outdoor Gear Exchange converts their store into a movie theater for this series of films about people, places, conservation and extreme sports, hosted by the Winter Wildlands Alliance and the Vermont Backcountry Alliance. gearx.com 5 | Mad River Valley Earn Your Turns Roundtable, Sugarbush Join land managers, ski area operators and uphill enthusiasts for a discussion at Rumble’s Kitchen about the future of Mad River Valley backcountry zones, etiquette, ski area uphill policies, conservation and more. mrvbc.org/roundtable 6-7 | Vermont Holiday Festival, Killington Meet Santa, sit for a story with Mrs. Claus, enjoy live music, or view the more than 100 beautifully decorated Christmas trees on display as you shop from vendors. killington.com 7 | 25th Annual BrewFest, Smuggler’s Notch Head to Smugglers’ Notch for a beer festival featuring local ciders, beers and more from breweries across the state. smuggs.com 7 | Demo Days at Craftsbury Outdoor Center, Craftsbury Outdoor Center Demo Nordic race equipment, including boots, skis and poles from various Nordic companies. craftsbury.com 7 | OMG! Live at the Snow Barn, Mount Snow Expect some catchy covers and a high-energy good time with this live musical performance. mountsnow.com

14 | Craftsbury Openers, Craftsbury Outdoor Center A fun weekend of Nordic ski racing, with freestyle sprints on Saturday and an Individual start for a classic race on Sunday. craftsbury.com 14 | SugarBash with the Funk Collection, Sugarbush Celebrate Sugarbush’s 61st birthday with live music from The Funk Collection, drinks, appetizers and dancing. sugarbush.com 14 | Free Demo Day, Mount Snow Try the season’s latest new skis for free. mountsnow.com 14 | First Run Demofest: K2 & Salomon, Stratton Test the latest skis from K2 and Salomon on the slopes. stratton.com 14-15 | Magic Mountain Rando Fest, Londonderry Workshops, gear demos and more for new and experienced randonee/alpine touring/ skimo enthusiasts. catamounttrail.org/events/magic-rando-fest/ 14 | Taste of Vermont, Stratton A delicious event featuring Vermont’s top professional and amateur chefs, caterers, bakers, delis and more. stratton.com 15 | Santa Sunday, Bolton Valley Dress head-to-toe in a full Santa Claus get-up and get a free lift ticket for the day.

Must be costumed head-to-toe. boltonvalley.com 19 | Sugarbush Holiday Community Party, Sugarbush The Mad River Valley Chamber of Commerce and Sugarbush team up to host a community holiday party at Rumble’s with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar, with a special presentation by owner Win Smith. sugarbush.com 19-22 | Domestic IBU Cup Biathlon Trials, Craftsbury Outdoor Center Three days of biathlon racing on the new 15-point range. craftsbury.com 21 | Carinthia Classic, Mount Snow A freestyle park competition with a plaza-style run filled with rails, boxes and features. Watch from the deck of the new base lodge. mountsnow.com

12 | Splitboard 101 with Weston Snowboards | Stowe Split-curious? Get the basics down with pros from Weston including the mechanics of skinning, managing transitions and the rest at Ranch Camp. ranchcampvt.com

21 | First Run Demofest: Rossignol & Head, Stratton Test the latest skis from Rossignol and Head. stratton.com

13 | Founders’ Day, Mount Snow Ski for just $12 until lift tickets sell out. Tickets must be purchased online in advance. mountsnow.com/tickets-passes

21 | Ugly Sweater Party, Sugarbush Sugarbush hosts a celebration of all things ugly sweater and snowy weather at the Castlerock Pub. May your sweaters by ugly and bright, with plenty of sequins, ribbons and fringe and prizes for tackiness. sugarbush.com

14 | Annual Jay Peak Season Pass Holder’s Party, Jay Peak Jay Peak throws down for passholders with a party, complimentary drinks, appetizers and live music from Beg, Steal or Borrow at the Bullwheel Bar. jaypeakresort.com

21 | Mt. Ellen Opening Day, Sugarbush Mt. Ellen opens for its 56th season of skiing for 2019-2020. sugarbush.com

14 | Early Season Telemark Primer, Bromley Refresh your technique and build up your strength and endurance slowly through a weekend of instruction in telemark technique, from hop tele turns to linking smooth turns to free heel parallel. bromley.com 14 | SugarBash with the Funk Collection, Sugarbush Sugarbush hosts a night of drinks, appetizers and dancing to celebrate its 61st birthday. sugarbush.com 14 | Mike Cusato Band at the Snow Barn, Mount Snow Big guitar sounds, 1990s throwback tunes and more with a smattering of classic rock anthems thrown in. You might even hear some James Brown. mountsnow.com

21 | Holiday Caroling with the Whiffenpoofs, Sugarbush Catch the Yale Whiffenpoofs, the oldest collegiate a capella group. sugarbush.com 21 | Winter Solstice Celebration, Smugglers’ Notch Resort Celebrate the start of winter at Smuggs’. Festivities start with the Jeh Kulu Dance and Drum Theater, followed by a dance party with Goodtime Charlie. smuggs.com 21 | Guided Snowshoe Hike to the Mt. Tom Cabin, Suicide Six Take a moderate hike and enjoy a soup lunch at the cabin. suicide6.com 21 | Carinthia Classic, Mount Snow Carinthia Parks’ acclaimed team of builders constructs a one-of-a-kind plaza-style setup loaded with boxes and rails, along with unique features made by the crew for this competition, open to skiers and riders. mountsnow.com

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THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR 21 | Blockhead with Arms and Sleepers at the Snow Barn, Mount Snow Head to the official afterparty of the Carinthia Classic, with an awesome show with danceable tunes at the Snow Barn. mountsnow.com

30 | Holiday Slalom, Cochran’s, Richmond Head to Cochran’s for the most festive holiday party out there, with a USSA event geared toward racers 16-years-old and up. cochranskiarea.com

21 | Winter Solstice Party, Suicide Six Suicide Six hosts an afternoon of fatbiking, local beer, great food, sledding and live music. suicide6.com

30 | Allyn’s Lodge Remote Fireside Dining, Sugarbush Skin or take a snowcat ride to mid-mountain Allyn’s Lodge for a candlelit dinner, fire and elegant five-course meal. Finish by skiing or snowboarding down to the base.

Repeats Jan. 17, Feb. 14, 20 & 18, March 13. sugarbush.com

22 | Craftsbury Holiday Biathlon Sprints, Craftsbury Common A set of sprint biathlon races for juniors, masters racers and seniors alike at Craftsbury Outdoor Center. skireg.com/biathlonholidaysprints 22 | Family Gingerbread House Building Workshop, Sugarbush Spend an evening decorating a gingerbread house with homemade materials, candy decorations and more at Sugarbush Resort. sugarbush.com 23 | Visit With Santa, Okemo Santa Claus makes a grand entrance to visit with kids at the Jackson Gore Inn from 4 to 7 p.m. okemo.com 23 | Twilight Guided Snowshoe Hike on Mt. Peg, Suicide Six Suicide Six hosts a guided hike with gear provided, followed by hot cocoa. Repeats Dec. 27 & 30. suicide6.com 24 | Christmas Eve at Smuggs, Smuggler’s Notch A torchlight parade and fireworks with caroling and an opportunity to meet Santa Claus. smuggs.com 24 | Okemo Holiday Celebration Concert, Okemo Catch Santa’s sleigh in the Jackson Gore Courtyard and warm up with cocoa and cookies and carols in the Roundhouse. okemo.com 27 | Grommet Jam #1, Mount Snow Catch the first of three rail jams for 12 & under skiers and riders, with coaching from Mount Snow’s instructors. Jam #2 is Jan. 20 and Jam #3 is Feb. 17. mountsnow.com 28 | Shake n’ Skate | Okemo Family-friendly skating and games with a live DJ. okemo.com

31 | New Year’s Eve at Sugarbush Catch a kids’ torchlight parade in the Welcome Mat kid zone, where kids match up with a coach to lead the parade. Then the professional version runs down Spring Fling, followed by a fireworks display. sugarbush.com 31 | TUCK IT! Fastest Skier & Rider in the East, Magic Mountain Skiers bomb the roughly 1,500-foot top to bottom of the ski area and are ranked by the speed at which they fly past the radar gun at the base. Last year’s winner clocked in at over 70 mph. There is a $1,000 cash prize. magicmtn.com 31 | The Roaring Twenties NYE Celebration at the Snow Barn, Mount Snow Come in costume and dance the night away into the New Year with music from the Conn.-based funk and soul band West End Blend. mountsnow.com 31 | Family New Year’s Eve Party, Okemo Celebrate early (at 9 p.m.) with skating, tubing, mountain coaster rides, wagon rides, games and a DJ dance party followed by pizza and fireworks. okemo.com 31 | New Year’s Eve Celebration, Stratton Crafts for kids, a torchlight parade, 21 jump salute and fireworks. stratton.com 31 | New Year’s Celebration, Smuggler’s Notch Catch the Friendly Pirate’s New Year’s Eve Party for kids early, followed by a bonfire, torchlight parade and firework, then adult karaoke at Bootleggers. smuggs.com 31 | 100 Years Roaring 2020 NYE Ball, Burke Ring in the new year dressed to impress and ready to dance 2019 away at the Hotel Ballroom, with a roaring 20s and Great Gatsby themed party. skiburke.com

JANUARY

28 | Faction: The Collective, Stratton Stratton Mountain School hosts this new ski film, which features SMS freeski alumns Olympian Caroline Claire ‘18 and World Champion Freeskier Mac Forehand ‘20. stratton.com

4 | First Run Demofest: Elan, Stratton Test the latest gear from Elan. stratton.com

28 | Blizzard Boogie, Sugarbush Catch a live DJ and fires with free s’mores in the courtyard at Sugarbush Resort. sugarbush.com

4 | Parlor Skis Demo Day, Mad River Glen Check out the latest skis for free from Parlor Skis, which are designed for New England skiing. madriverglen.com

28 | Holiday Vacation Week Apres Ski, Woodstock Sledding, local beers, great food, live music and a performance by Marko the Magician at Suicide Six. suicide6.com 28 | Base Lodge Sledding, Burke Sled at the base lodge after skiing. Sled rentals are available, or bring your own craft— except for metal sleds and tubes. Repeats Dec. 29, Jan. 4 & Jan. 18. skiburke.com 28 | Festivus Rail Jam, Suicide Six Suicide Six hosts an inaugural rail jam open to skiers and riders under lights with two courses of varying difficulty and cash prizes. Spectators welcome. suicide6.com 29 | Gathering of the Groms, Sugarbush An introductory day of freestyle skiing and snowboarding for kids 13 & under. Hang with the park crew and coaches. Repeats Jan. 4, Feb. 15 & 29, sugarbush.com

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STAY TO STAY WEEKENDS Curious about making Vermont your permanent home? The Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing is here to help. If you’re curious about employers, lifestyle, or Vermont’s mountain communities, check out one of these Stay to Stay Weekends. You’ll meet prospective employers, local leaders, realtors, neighbors and more importantly, see some of the best ski areas around the state. vermontvacation.com/stay-to-stay Northeast Kingdom, Jay Peak Resort: Dec. 13-16 | The Shires of Vermont, Bromley Mountain: Feb. 21-24 | Southeastern Vermont, Mount Snow: Feb. 21-24 | Rutland, Killington Grand Resort: March 13-15

Voted “Best Cross-Country Ski Area in Vermont” 2019 Seven Daysies Awards Season Passes Available 10/1

60 Miles of Scenic Mountain Trails Cross-Country Skiing & Snowshoeing Rentals Home to von Trapp Brewing & Bierhall Austrian-Inspired Rooms & Restaurants 700 Trapp Hill Road, Stowe, VT | www.TrappFamily.com | 800.826.7000

RELOAD & SAVE ! vtskiandride.com Holidays 2019 65

THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR 10 | Full Moon Snowshoe & Brew, Mad River Glen Join Mad River Glen naturalist staff and Lawson’s Finest Liquids for a one-hour full moon snowshoe ramble and beer tasting. madriverglen.com 10 | Learn to Ski + Ride Day, Stratton Stratton joins the ski industry to offer deals in hopes of seeing how many beginner lessons the resort can offer in a single day. stratton.com 11 | Uberwintern Fat Bike Festival, Stowe A full day of fatbike revelry on powder-packed singletrack trails. Expect group rides, demos, hearty brews and a warm fire on the Cady Hill trails with a backcountry, beer-equipped aid station. mtbvt.com 11 | Kat Wright plays The Snow Barn, Mount Snow Burlington’s queen of soul plays The Snow Barn with her horn band. mountsnow.com 11 | The Grift at Castlerock Pub, Waitsfield Catch live music from local favorites The Grift, known for their creative and rockin’ covers and awesome original music alike. sugarbush.com 11 | Mini Shred Madness, Killington Compete for prizes in a friendly, fun environment. Grom skiers 13 years and under get guidance and instruction in the park from Killington team riders. killington.com 11-12 | Mid-Winter Ramp Up Telemark Clinic, Bromley Get individualized coaching using video analysis. bromley.com 11-12 | NorAm Cup 3-EAST-Craftsbury Outdoor Center, Craftsbury Two days of sprint and individual races for all age classes in a U.S. Biathlon-approved format. craftsbury.com 11-12 | Green Mountain Club Member Appreciation Weekend, Mad River Glen GMC members ski half price with a membership card and ID. madriverglen.com 12 | Trapps Race to the Cabin, Stowe NENSA and Trapp Family Lodge and Outdoor Center host this 5K classic Nordic race, with an uphill course. trappfamily.com 120 | Family Ski Tournament, Mad River Glen Founder Roland Palmedo began what was then called the Father/Son Race at Stowe with colleagues in 1947. In 1952, he moved it to his new ski area, Mad River Glen.

Today it’s open to teams of parents, kids and whole families. madriverglen.com 20 | Grommet Jam #2, Mount Snow The second in a series of three rail jam competitions for skiers and riders under 12 at Carinthia Parks. mountsnow.com 22 | Winter Wild at Magic Mountain, Londonderry Run, skin or snowshoe up the slopes to the summit of Magic Mountain Ski Area, then descend for a three-mile route with 1,450 feet of vertical gain. teamampactive.org 24 | Winter WonderGrass presents The Ghost of Paul Revere, Stratton Head to Grizzly’s for a night of live music from The Ghost of Paul Revere and special guests Saints and Liars. stratton.com 24-26 | Craftsbury Super Tour & UVM Carnival & Eastern Cup, Craftsbury Common Enjoy a classic 10K mass start citizens’ race after the elite races. craftsbury.com 24-26 | Smuggs Ice Bash, Smuggler’s Notch Winter’s biggest climbing event happens at Smugglers’ Notch and at Petra Cliffs in Burlington. Sign up for free gear demos, clinics, slideshows, talks, competitions, an epic dry tooling comp, a party and prizes. smuggsicebash.com

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VERMONT SPECIALTY FOOD DAYS Each winter, Ski Vermont brings some of the state’s top food and drink makers to ski areas across Vermont. The tour highlights the unique products, people and ingredients that make food culture such a big part of skiing here. On these days, you can wander through a wonderland of samples of everything from hard cider to handcrafted chocolates and cheeses. skivermont.com/sfd-tour Jan. 24 | Jay Peak Resort Jan. 25 | Burke Mountain Jan. 28 | Mad River Glen Feb. 8 | Killington Resort Feb. 9 | Pico Mountain Feb. 15 | Middlebury Snow Bowl Feb. 18 | Smugglers’ Notch Resort Feb. 22 | Bromley Mountain Resort Feb. 22 | Okemo Mountain Resort Mar. 7 | Trapp Family Lodge Mar. 8 | Magic Mountain Mar. 14 | Stratton Mountain Resort Mar. 15 | Mount Snow Mar. 21 | Sugarbush Resort Mar. 22 | Bolton Valley Resort 24-26 | USASA Southern Vermont Series—Slopestyle, Mount Snow Mount Snow hosts an epic event that draws serious park competition from around the region in snowboarding and freeskiing. mountsnow.com 26 | Split & Surfest with the Catamount Trail Association, Bolton Valley Bolton Valley Resort hosts a day of exploration in the backcountry on splitboards, with free demos, clinics, games, tours, food and beer. boltonvalley.com 26 | Fire on the Mountain Chicken Wing Challenge, Bromley Support Ski for Heat, a local fundraiser to support families in Southern Vermont with heating assistance. Finish your basket of specially-cooked super-hot wings in three minutes and Bromley will donate $25 to the cause. bromley.com 26 | 83rd FISK Trophy Race, Suicide Six The longest running ski race in North America is a rite of passage for serious Eastern ski racers. Notable past winners include Chip Knight, Jimmy Cochran and other Olympians and US Ski Team members. suicide6.com 28 | Roll Back the Clock Day, Mad River Glen Celebrate Mad River Glen’s 71st anniversary with $3.50 lift tickets—the price they were on opening day in 1948. madriverglen.com 28-29 | Banff Mountain Film Festival, Lebanon, N.H. Rab, Banff and Lake Louise Tourism and Chestnut Mountain Productions present the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour. Different mountain adventure films screen each night with live music starting at 6:30 at the Lebanon Opera House. chestnutmtnproductions.com

FEBRUARY 1 | Road to Ruin, Magic Mountain A Mad Dash group downhill race from the summit to the base. “A throwback to the classic ‘80’s ski movie Hot Dog,” all on double black diamonds. No style points, no gates but a $1,000 prize purse. Great after-party. magicmtn.com 1 | Tour de Moon, Sugarbush A moonlit skin or snowshoe up Mt. Ellen to the Glen House for dinner, followed by a ski or ride back. Repeats Feb. 8, 29, March 7, 14 and 21. sugarbush.com 1 | 5th Annual Snowshoe “Face Race,” Suicide Six A 1.5-mile race up “The Face,” a black diamond, and back down Easy Mile with 600 feet of elevation gain and a post-race party at Perley’s Pourhouse. suicide6.com

THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR 1 | Intro to Trees and Bumps Telemark Clinic, Bromley Get comfortable skiing on ungroomed and uneven snow, charging moguls or ducking into the trees. bromley.com 1 | 3rd Annual Bromley Winter Games, Bromley Form a team of two and challenge your friends to determine who is the best cornhole duo on the mountain to win lift tickets. bromley.com 1 | 8th Annual Grafton Winter Carnival, Grafton Go tubing, skiing or snowshoeing with new demo equipment from Rossignol, Dion and Nevitrek snowshoes or take a sleigh ride at Grafton Outdoor Center. Grab food and beer at the Grafton Inn. graftoninnvermont.com/grafton-trails/ 1-2 | 2020 Marathon Ski Festival & National Masters Championships, Craftsbury The American National Masters Championships, along with the 39th Annual Craftsbury Marathon, with racing distances for Nordic skiers of 33k and 50k classic on Saturday, followed by 16k & 33k freestyle marathons on Sunday. craftsbury.com

SKIS | SNOWSHOES | BIKES

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7 | 17th Annual Mom’s Day Off, Bromley Show a picture of your kids at the ticket window and ski or ride Bromley all day for a $25 donation to the Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center. bromley.com 8 | Lawson’s Finest Beer Lover’s Dinner and Full Moon Snowshoe, Mad River Glen Join brewer and naturalist Sean Lawson for a full moon snowshoe followed by a buffet localvore dinner paired with a cash bar of Lawson’s Finest brews. Snowshoes are available for rent. madriverglen.com 8 | Weston Backcountry Demo Day, Sugarbush Try some of the highest end splitboards on the market at Mt. Ellen. sugarbush.com 9 | The SoPo Ranch Slopestyle Contest, Suicide Six A friendly jam-format contest for kids to celebrate the new SoPo Terrain Park. suicide6.com

presenting partners Rab and Banff & Lake Louise Tourism

14 | Cloud Nine Nuptials, Mount Snow Celebrate Valentine’s Day at Mount Snow by renewing your vows (or getting married) on the mountain at the top of Cloud Nine. mountsnow.com 14 | Valentine’s Day at Smugglers’ Notch Purchase one full-day adult lift ticket and receive a second free with a chocolate from Lake Champlain Chocolates. smuggs.com

LEBANON OPERA HOUSE, NH JAN. 28 & 29, 7 pm (6:30 live music ) DIFFERENT FILMS EACH EVENING Tickets at: LebanonOperaHouse.org Omer & Bob’s Sportshop

15 | President’s Weekend Torchlight Parade & Dance, Suicide Six Suicide Six employees participate in a torchlight parade down the mountain’s slopes followed by dancing in the lodge for kids and adults alike. suicide6.com 15 | Legacy Ski Club Race, Mad River Glen Mad River Glen’s historic ski clubs come together to compete toe to toe on the Practice Slope for bragging rights in this epic day of fun ski racing. madriverglen.com 15 | Vertical Challenge, Bolton Valley A day of family-friendly, recreational racing, prizes and giveaways. boltonvalley.com 22 | Ski Prom, Bolton Valley Dress up for prom and go wild for a fun-filled day of live music in the James Moore Tavern and a throwback prom party on the mountain, all day. boltonvalley.com

Other Banff Mountain Film Festivals Lake Placid, NY-Jan. 26 | Portland, ME - Feb.11-12 | Suffern, NY- Feb. 25 - 26 | New York , NY- Feb. 29-Mar. 3

Presented by ChestnutMtnProductions.com

22 | Rockefeller Challenge, Mad River Glen Tuck down the Practice Slope and up Rockefellers to see how far and how fast you can go. The trick? A combination of technique, aerodynamics, bulk, waxing and a lot of luck. madriverglen.com 22 | Parlor Ski Demo Day, Sugarbush Try the latest t high-end sticks for free for East Coast skiing. sugarbush.com

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22 | Mardi Gras, Mount Snow Catch live music from the funk band Krewe Les Gras on Cuzzins Deck Stage. There are $12,000 in giveaways in lift lines, lodges and parties all day. mountsnow.com 22 | Winterbike 2020, East Burke Demo fatbikes, participate in group rides, attend clinics and more at this epic celebration of all things fatbiking on the trails of Kingdom Trails. kingdomtrails.org 22-23 | 35th Annual Kare Andersen Telemark Festival, Bromley Rip it up with some of the best telemark skiers in the East, with a weekend of clinics and instruction, racing and more. bromley.com 23 | 75th Annual Stowe Derby, Stowe This historic classic returns, sending skiers on Nordic or skate skis on a course that often descends from the top of the Toll Road nearly 13 miles into the town of Stowe.

There’s also a fat bike division and prizes for the Derby Meister. mmsca.org a 28 | International Skiing History Association Day, Mad River Glen A presentation about the history of skiing in the Mad River Valley. madriverglen.com 28 | 3rd Annual Pico Hiko Splitfest, Pico Mountain From beginners to seasoned split veterans, check out demos, clinics, tours and more to get you into the backcountry and meeting other splitboarders. picomountain.com 29 | Parlor Skis Demo Day, Mad River Glen Test the latest Parlor Skis for free on serious East Coast terrain. madriverglen.com 29 | Abe-BERM-Ham’s Fat Bike Slalom, Suicide Six A fat bike banked slalom three-quarter-mile downhill race that is on a course that is mellow enough for groms but challenging enough for experienced riders. Celebrate afterward with an outdoor beer garden and food. suicide6.com 29 | Extreme Challenge, Smuggler’s Notch The Smugglers’ Notch Ski & Snowboard club hosts a freeskiing and freeriding competition on Lift Line. Open to adults and juniors. smuggs.com

MARCH 1 | Upper Valley Hawks Special Olympics, Suicide Six Supported by Vermont Special Olympics, this day of multiple races and events is great for spectators and athletes alike. suicide6.com 1 | Molly Rail Jam, Smuggler’s Notch A rail jam and fundraiser where you dress in pink and enjoy a potluck. smuggs.com 1 | Jack Jump World Championships, Mount Snow Dual slalom race for the best time. Speed, great racing, great crashes await those brave enough to race down the slopes on homemade sleds. mountsnow.com 1 | High Fives FAT Ski-a-Thon, Sugarbush Support athletes who have sustained life-altering injuries by completing as many runs as possible at Lincoln Peak on the Valley House Lift. sugarbush.com 1 | Hope on the Slopes, Jay Peak Partake in an all-day vertical challenge to raise awareness and proceeds for the American Cancer Society at Jay Peak. jaypeakresort.com 3 | Town Meeting Day Slalom, Cochran’s, Richmond A panel slalom for U10 boys and girls in the Northern Vermont Council. The race was started by Cochran’s co-founder Ginny Cochran in the 1980s. cochranskiarea.com 3 | John Kearns Memorial Town Meeting Day Slalom, Mad River Glen Vermont school kids ski for free all day at Mad River Glen. Catch the annual Mad River Ski Club alpine race. madriverglen.com

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THE GREEN MOUNTAIN CALENDAR W H E R E VE R M O N T E ATS P I Z Z A

5 | Lawson’s Finest Beer Dinner, Sugarbush Hosts Sean and Karen Lawson of Lawson’s Finest Liquids host a dinner with speciallypaired beers, even new releases. Ride the Lincoln Limo Cabin Cat or skin/hike up to Allyn’s lodge, then ski down in the moonlight. sugarbush.com 6-8 | 7th Annual Slash & Berm Banked Slalom, Killington A banked slalom just for snowboarders, this event is almost as fun to watch as it is to participate in. Friday race by invitation only. Saturday open to all. killington.com 7 | 2020-2021 Demo Day, Stratton Mountain Resort Test the latest ski and ride gear for 2020-2021. stratton.com 7 | Master of the Mountain Extreme Biathlon, Magic Mountain Skiers and riders get one extreme run down all of Black Line, with the first half of the course set up as an extreme ski competition and the second half a giant slalom. The fastest time wins, with time deducted for freeski scoring/points. magicmtn.com 7 | Vertical Challenge, Suicide Six One of a series of free casual ski and snowboard races held at ski resorts across the Northeast each winter. Skiers and snowboarders are divided by age to compete for medals in a festival-style day of racing. skiverticalchallenge.com

ORDER ONLINE 8 0 2 . 2 5 3 . 4 4 1 1 · P I E C A S S O. CO M · 1 8 9 9 M O U N TA I N R OA D

7 | Ryan Hawks Memorial IFSA National/FWQ2 Competition, Mad River Glen A two-day IFSA-sanctioned event. All ages can test their mettle as part of the Ski the East Freeride Tour. A benfit for the Flyin’ Ryan Foundation. madriverglen.com 8 | 2nd Annual Pro Dual Race, Cochran’s Richmond A non-traditional dual race with single poles, including hairpins and flushes. Race for prize money on a dual slalom course. cochranskiarea.com

LET THE ADVENTURE BEGIN WITH UMIAK OUTDOOR OUTFITTERS

13 | Rope-a-Thon, Cochran’s Richmond This annual fundraiser challenges each skier to ski as many individual runs as they can, with the collective goal of skiing 2,000,000 vertical feet in a day to rase over $75,000. Beer, catered dinner, live music at the lodge to follow. cochranskiarea.com 13-15 | The 8th Annual Vermont Open, Stratton A celebration of the beginning of snowboarding and its progress since, the Vermont Open invites snowboarders of all ages to ride, party and compete for a $20,000 prize purse. stratton.com 14 | 1st Annual Grafton Fatbike Bash, Grafton Trails & Outdoor Venter “Ride a Fatty for St. Paddy.” Check out youth activities, skill clinics in fatbiking, a fatbike rodeo and awesome bike demos. graftoninnvermont.com/grafton-trails/

ROXA 22 DESIGNS VOILE MADSHUS ROSSIGNOL DYNASTAR K2 G3 SCOTT SCARPA FISCHER OUTDOOR RESEARCH MAMMUT TUBBS

14 | An Evening With The Lil Smokies, Jay Peak Catch a charismatic, high-energy new age bluegrass band at Jay Peak. jaypeak.com 14 | 5th Annual Sidesurfers Banked Slalom, Sugarbush Sidesurfers and Sugarbush’s parks teams will create an exciting track with turns, berms, bumps and jumps and technical aspects. sugarbush.com 14-15 | Castlerock Extreme, Sugarbush Expert skiers and riders 15 and older are invited to charge the cliffs and drops of Sugarbush’s toughest terrain in the 23rd annual Castlerock Extreme. sugarbush.com 17 | St. Patrick’s Day, Mount Snow Ski for $17 all day. mountsnow.com 20-22 | Bud Light Reggaefest, Mount Snow Live reggae music at the Base Area and Snow Barn. mountsnow.com 21 | 3rd Annual Real to Steel, Jay Peak A freeride and freestyle competition open to both skiers and riders featuring a

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combination of upper mountain steeps and terrain park features. jaypeakresort.com 21 | Bud Light Sink or Swim Pond Skim, Mount Snow Can you make it across Mount Snow’s 100-foot, icy-cold pond? Grab your best costume and try for a chance to win a 2020/2021 season’s pass. mountsnow.com 21 | 8th Annual 24 Hours of Stratton, Stratton Stratton Mountain lights its trails for one night only so that skiers and riders can ski around the clock. There are also live music, fireworks and more. stratton.com 21-23 | Mad River Glen Triple Crown competition, Mad River Glen Compete for the title of Mad River Glen’s best skier in three events: the Unconventional Terrain Competition (a big mountain freeskiing competition), the Mogul Challenge and the Vertical Challenge—to see who can ski the most vertical feet under the Single Chair in a day. All three are in one weekend this year. madriverglen.com 22 | Duct Tape Derby, Mount Snow Build a craft of cardboard with nothing but duct tape, zip ties and paint, then race it down the slopes in front of a cheering crowd. mountsnow.com 28 | Thank God for Snow Making Race, Cochran’s. Richmond A slalom race to celebrate the new snowmaking system. cochransskiarea.com 28 | Vertical Challenge Finals, Jay Peak A fun alpine ski race for all Jay Peak followed by awards and a party. jaypeak.com 28 | Friendly Freeski Challenge, Smuggler’s Notch Skiers and riders compete by age to be judged to have taken the Most Memorable Run on Madonna/Lower Lift Line. Potluck and award ceremony after. smuggs.com

4 | Pond Skim at Lincoln Peak, Sugarbush Try to skim across a 120-foot pond at Sugarbush’s base area. Awards for best costume, style and splash. Keep an eye out for owner Win Smith. sugarbush.com 4 | Nor’Beaster Bud Light Bear Mountain Mogul Challenge, Killington Amateur bumpers take to the slopes of Outer Limits to battle for a place in the finals. This race is open to skiers only, and is followed by live music outside the lodge. killington.com 4 | 2nd Annual Pond Skimming Extravaganza, Mad River Glen Head to the Practice Slope and test yourself against the pond. Costumes are highly encouraged at this fun and surprisingly competetive, yet raucous event for skiers of all ages. madriverglen.com 5 | Nordic Cross, Richmond A festive and competitive citizen’s Nordic Ski Cross Race for all ages. Banked turns, gates and rolles, hilarious antics and lots of fun. Costumes are highly encouraged.

Free pancakes served with Cochran’s maple syrup. cochransskiarea.com 10-11 | WonderGrass Presents Sugar & Strings, Stratton Catch live music from more than 10 bands and a dozen local and regional craft breweries over two days of this family-friendly festival, with beer and cider tastings. stratton.com 11 | Nor’Beaster Bud Light Dazed & Defrosted, Killington Celebrate spring with soft bumps, cold brews, on-snow demos and great live music.

Bring out your finest old-school spring skiing attire. If you’re lucky, you may just meet the King of Spring. killington.com

28 | 25th Annual BrewFest Part 2, Smuggler’s Notch Sample local ciders, beers and more from breweries across the state. smuggs.com 28 | The First Annual Sidehit Seance, Sugarbush The Sugarbush Parks Team, Snowboy Productions and Rome Snowboards put on a wild snowboarding event at Mt. Ellen. sugarbush.com 28 | Winter Brewers’ Fest, Mount Snow Celebrate spring, live music and beer. After-party at Snow Barn with Four Sticks. mountsnow.com 28 | Blast from the Past, Smuggler’s Notch Skiers 21 & older bash gates and relive their glory days with a qualifying GS race course followed by a pro-style, dual slalom course for the top competitors.

Hamburgers, hotdogs and beverages are also included. smuggs.com 29 | The Bud Light Glade-iator Challenge, Mount Snow This epic mogul skiing contest takes competitors down Ripcord, one of the steepest trails in the East. Racers are judged based on time, form, line, aerial maneuvers off one of two jumps. Pop-up cash bar and barbecue for spectators. mountsnow.com

Presents

Monthly

Red Bench Speaker’s Series

APRIL 4 | 40th Annual George Syrovatka Ski Race, Jay Peak A dual slalom for both skiers and snowboarders with age categories, followed by awards and raffle to benefit the fight against leukemia. jaypeakresort.com 4 | 10th Annual Pond Skimming, Smuggler’s Notch Smugglers’ Notch hosts a wild event on the Sterling Mountain Practice Slope in the Zone Terrain Park. Prizes are awarded for best costume. smuggs.com

For More Info: www.vtssm.org/news-events 1 South Main St. Stowe, VT 05672

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DRINK VT

The Green Mountain State is home to some of the best breweries, wineries, cideries and distilleries in the world. And most invite you to stop by their pubs, restaurants and production houses for a tour and to sample their goods. For more information, links and maps to each location check out www.vtskiandride.com.

VERMONT BEER, WINE, CIDER + SPIRITS

133 North Main St, St. Albans, VT 802528-5988 | 14thstarbrewing.com Vermont craft brewery on a mission to brew world-class beer while enriching the communities we serve. Using the freshest local ingredients, we impart military precision Brewery Taproom (open Tues.-Sun.) Our beer is also available on tap and in cans statewide and Brewed With A Mission™ to give back to various charitable and veteran organizations.

316 Pine Street, Burlington, VT 802-497-1987 | citizencider.com Come visit our Cider Pub, where we bring together locally crafted cider and food. We work with local growers and makers to bring good food and cider to the people. A community of folks who believe that cider loves food. Try some cider or try a bite and celebrate local community at it’s best. Cider for the people, made by the people.

46 Log Yard Drive, Hardwick, VT 802-472-8000 | caledoniaspirits.com Open daily 12-5 for free tours and tastings at the distillery.

Caledonia Spirits is a craft distillery in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. Raw honey distinguishes our Barr Hill vodka, Barr Hill gin, and Tom Cat barrel aged gin by imparting a pure and soft botanical essence

FIND MAPS AND MORE AT

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deep connection to the land and Vermont’s agricultural heritage.

3597 VT-74, Shoreham, VT 802-897-2777 | champlainorchards.com Open daily 9-5. July-Nov.

Rt 100 Waterbury Center, VT 802-244-8771 | coldhollow.com Open seven days a week.

favorite craft retailer to try our award winning, orchard-made ciders. All our ciders are made onsite with our ecologically grown apples and our orchard is solar powered.

Taste real, modern day hard ciders…made from our own real sweet cider made in a real Vermont to the core.

610 Route 7, Middlebury, VT 802-989-7414 | dropinbrewing.com Drop-In Brewing is Middlebury’s small, independent, locally-owned brewery, and is home to The American Brewers Guild Brewing School. Our tap room is open 7 and selling cans and growlers to go. You can

1859 Mountain Rd, Stowe, VT 802-253-4765 | idletymebrewing.com

155 Carroll Rd, Waitsfield, VT 802-496-HOPS | lawsonsfinest.com

Our beer line-up represents a traditional take on classic European brewing with a healthy

across Vermont, and our cans in retailers

8814 Route 30, Rawsonville, VT Junction VT Rt 30N and VT Rt 100N 802-297-9333 | craftdraughts.com beers plus ciders, meads and two rotating southern Vermont.

IPA, we have a beer you’ll love! And it’s brewed right here at our pub and restaurant.

69 Pitman Rd. Barre, VT 802-424-4864 | oldroutetwo.com 17 Town Farm Lane, Stowe 802-253-2065 | stowecider.com most delicious cocktails you’ve ever tasted.

Learn about the local ingredients in our Joe’s Pond Gin and the uncommon woods that Barrelhead rums.

6308 Shelburne Rd, (Rte. 7)Shelburne, VT 802-985-8222 | shelburnevineyard.com Open daily, 11-5 Nov.-Ap.r; 11-6 May-Oct. Taste, tour, and enjoy our award-winning wines as we welcome you and share our adventure growing grapes and making wine in VT’s northern climate. Located Burlington.

1333 Luce Hill Rd., Stowe, VT 802-253-0900 | vontrappbrewing.com

1321 Exchange St, Middlebury, VT 802385-3656 | woodchuck.com As America’s original hard cider, we have

Von Trapp Brewing is dedicated to inspired lagers with a Vermont twist.

Vermont,” in every glass.

Come visit our new bierhall and restaurant at the brewery!

that ensures we always deliver a premium hard cider that is true to our roots. Enjoy the brand that started the American cider revolution.

VERMONT BEER, WINE, CIDER + SPIRITS

check out www.dropinbrewing.com, or call us at (802) 989-7414.

The Chairlift Q+A

THE MAN WHO SKIED EVERY MOUNTAIN Brattleboro skier Spencer Crispe skied every single peak over 3,000 feet inVermont. Here’s what he found. started this venture. To be clear—I learned that some Vermont peaks are just not meant to be skied. About half of the ones I climbed were trail-less. But there were places—like these amazing open beech glades off of Butterfield Mountain near Groton, or the deep powder on East Ethan Allen, or top-to-bottom skiing I found on Dorset Mountain— where the skiing was so good, I can’t even tell you what it was like.

What made you want to ski all 110 Vermont peaks above 3,000 feet?

I had already climbed all the Vermont 3,000-plus footers in the summer. I started thinking, what if I could be the first person to ski all 110 peaks? I suppose I’ve always been attracted to ludicrous ideas.

Where did you learn to ski?

I’m the third generation in my family to learn to ski at the Brattleboro Ski Hill, but Mount Snow is right out my back door. I’d hiked to ski there a million times, but never climbed to the true summit until I

74 Holidays 2019 vtskiandride.com

Have you skied at every ski area in Vermont?

I’ve skied every ski area in Vermont (including many of the defunct ones like Hogback) with the exception of Cochran’s, which is a travesty! I really feel I need to get there ASAP. For this challenge, I snowshoed up every single peak—even when there was a running lift or a road available. On some ski areas, I didn’t take the trail either. For example, on Bromley I ascended Mad Tom Notch and then skied down the front face where the ski area is.

What have you seen in your travels to Vermont ski areas?

Watching consolidation in the industry, I do think there’s a risk of losing that Vermont quaintness we all love. I like the small feel of places like Mad River Glen or Magic Mountain. I think that’s what drew me into the backcountry, away from parking lots and shuttle buses.

Any revelations from your expeditions?

People don’t realize that there are places in the Vermont backcountry where you can find more snow than you know what to do with.You don’t have to go west for that. You can find some incredible ski lines on peaks of all sizes here.

—Abagael Giles Hear more about Spencer Crispe’s journeys in theVermont backcountry at his talk at the Green Mountain Club’s Green MountainVisitor Center in Waterbury Center on Feb. 13, 2020.

Photo courtesy Spencer Crispe

I

n 2015, Spencer Crispe set out to do something that he’s pretty sure no one has ever done before: to climb and ski all 110 Vermont peaks above 3,000 feet in elevation. Each season, he gives himself a window to bag peaks, from Dec. 21 to March 21—the calendar winter. He’s on the cusp of skiing all 110 and plans to finish on Middle Jay Peak early this season.

The Brattleboro lawyer and Mount Snow skier has trudged through deep powder, thick branches and into some of the wildest pockets of the state. Crispe, 41, has also hiked the Long Trail and is one of fewer than 100 people to have skied the length of Vermont on the 300-milelong Catamount Trail. He’s working toward summiting all 770 of the highest peaks in the Northeast and has just 29 left.

Crispe says he still gets recognized from his starring role in Ski Vermont’s humorous “That Guy” series about skier etiquette. There, he played a clueless, out-of-state newbie. In real life, though, he’s a seventh generation Vermonter whose grandfather, Luke Crispe, helped found Stratton Mountain, and who has lived in this state his whole life.

What kind of skis and gear did you use?

I have never owned nor used skins in my life. For every single mountain, I strapped skis to my back and climbed with a gargantuan pair of Faber Mountain Quest 40-inch snowshoes. With the hellish obstacle course that is a lot of these mountains, skinning would have been virtually impossible and the snowshoes proved indispensable in the insanely deep snow.

I carry a pack with all the gear I need to spend a night out, including a military-grade satellite phone, GPS and other supplies.To save weight, I hike in my Arc’teryx Procline randonnee ski boots and I use short Voile Wasatch Speed Project skis to turn in tight brush. I’ve broken one pair and my snow pants look like a shag rug from all the krummholtz I’ve skied through.

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be here

It’s said that people come here because they want to be here. Maybe it’s the incredible snow or the legendary terrain or the pure majesty of our Mad River Valley setting.

All good reasons to call Sugarbush home, but in the end, it’s the camaraderie of our people that makes everyone feel so welcome here.

Come to Sugarbush. You belong here.

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