N EW S | SKIMO GOES OLYMPIC

SKIMO GOES OLYMPIC

Long before alpine racing existed, there was ski mountaineering: skin up, ski down, repeat. In 1924, the first Winter Olympics included skimountaineering and the sport continued for three more Olympics. For years, the Mad River Valley Mountaineering race (shown at right) challenged skiers to skin up and down a course that took them, at one point, from Mad River Glen to Sugarbush. Jay Peak also hosted an uphill/downhill. In July, the International Olympic Committee approved skimo for inclusion in the 2026 Games. The Games will include 5 separate skimo events, including a relay, a sprint (uphill, a hiking section and a descent through gates) and a longer event with a mass start that will have racers ascend 4,300 to 6,200 vertical feet as they move through checkpoints. While the Mad River Valley and Jay Peak events have been retired, if you want to try your hand at skimo, the Northeast Rando Race Series is coming back to Vermont this season with races scheduled at Magic Mountain (Dec. 18), Burke (Jan. 19) Middlebury Snow Bowl (Feb. 5), Brandon Gap (Feb. 12), and Bromley (Mar. 5).

$7,500

That’s what Vermont will pay you to move here to work, whether it’s as a remote worker or for a job with a local business. The New Worker Grant Program and the Remote Worker Grant Program cover up to that amount in relocation expenses (see thinkvermont.com for details). According to the Vermont Futures Project, Vermont is nearly 11,000 people short of the number of new workers it needs every year to keep up with job openings and at 3%, the current unemployment rate in Vermont is one of the lowest in the country. It is similar to what it was pre-Covid but since the pandemic, resorts have had a harder time bringing in seasonal workers from abroad. Staffing has been an issue throughout the state and in many towns, restaurants and other businesses have had to cut back on hours. So please be patient if your burger arrives late, and tip well.

Tattoo These Skis

Vermonter Zoë Myers would earn our respect for any number of things. For starters, she’s a teleskier and former ski patroller at Mad River Glen. Then consider the fact that she built her own tiny house (pictured here) in Warren, has woven her own pack baskets out of an ash tree she harvested and turns wooden bowls. But Myers’ main work is as a tattoo artist with The Perch Folk in Waitsfield— emphasis on the word “artist.” Her designs are intricate, often inspired by nature: trees with flowing roots and branches, flowers, birds in flight. Recently, she combined her passions to create a custom graphic, “Arc of Petals,” that will appear on a limited edition set of Renoun’s Endurance skis as well as on cans of a new “Arc of Petals” release from Burlington’s Foam Brewers, a 6% IPA. Renoun will be raffling off a pair of the skis and co-hosting a release party with Foam Brewers in Burlington on Nov. 5, along with their “Vermonters Day” special.

A NEW KIND OF TOPO MAP

Alex Gemme, Nathaniel Klein and Jacob Freeman were Middlebury College students teaching skiing at the Middlebury Snow Bowl when they decided to make a 3-D model of the ski area from scrap wood.That started an idea for a business. Now, their Treeline Terrains produces 3-D woodcarved topographic models of ski areas, mountains, lakes and other landscapes. Their goal is to “create topography you can touch,” the three business partners say.

Treeline Terrains has made models of Sugarbush, Camel’s Hump, Mt. Mansfield, Lake Champlain and other landscapes, and makes custom models, examples of which can be found on their website, treelineterrains.com. Models start at $70.

The “maps” allow you to trace trails and rivers with your fingers and feel the rise and fall in elevation. It’s like reading the landscape with your hands. The trio is currently working to develop 3-D models of Sugarbush for Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, whose mission is to empower individuals with disabilities. Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports Director of Communications Kim Jackson notes, “They have the potential to really help our participants with visual impairments. With the help of these models, our athletes can understand where Mt. Ellen is at Sugarbush Resort They help prepare them for an outing with us. It’s a great, valuable project.” —Christopher Ross

D eep C uts, Steep Fines

It may be glading season, but before you pack an axe consider that the state of Vermont can impose a $50 fine for every bush or small tree that’s cut illegally on state land. And that goes up to $2,000 for every tree over 22 inches in diameter. On Green Mountain National Forest land, fines go as high as $5000 and/or six months in jail. Last March, the state attorney general T.J. Donovan filed a suit against Thomas Tremonte for cutting 839 shrubs and trees on land abutting his in Westfield, Vt. to make a backcountry ski zone. That land was part of Hazen’s Notch State Park. That said, if you want to cut a small Christmas tree (under 20 feet) on state or federal land, all you need is a $5 permit.

VAX UP, MASK UP

This winter, if you want to dine indoors at any cafeteria-style restaurant at a Vail-owned resort be prepared to make a reservation, put on a mask and show proof of vaccination. While Vermont has had one of the lowest rates of Covid-19 in the nation and has relaxed state-wide mask mandates, anyone over 12 who wants to dine at cafeterias at Mount Snow, Okemo and Stowe will have to follow Vail Resorts’ restrictions. The company has not yet released how it plans to check for vaccination status. Need a new mask? For every mask Burlington-based apparel company Ski The East sells (like the one at left, $16), it donates one to a school in need. To date, they have donated more than 36,000. skitheeast.com