Patrollers might be seen as a “clique” who consume a large table at the Elk on payday Friday but the truth is we’re just a very tight group. We work together, spend our days off skiing together, count on each other in risky situations, rely on one another for safety during avalanche routes, and some patrollers even end up engaged and married to… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Skier/Snowboarder Stories
Subscribe to Skier/Snowboarder Stories RSS FeedNew Clutch
Posted in Events and Activities, News, PersonalWhen my old Subaru stopped accelerating because it would take a mile for the clutch to engage I would wait to enter any main road til I couldn’t see any oncoming cars before easing my way out and waiting for engagement for a few minutes. When I got a new clutch I felt like I was driving a sport’s car… Continue Reading
Photo of the Week: When legends wear helmets
Posted in Conditions, Skier/Snowboarder StoriesI caught up with Crystal legends Gary Morrison and Ross Gregg this week trying out their shiny new helmets. Looking good guys!
Leaving Your Skis in Line Before the Lifts Open
Posted in Events and Activities, Skier/Snowboarder StoriesOkay. I’m just going to throw this question out there, because sometimes when I see a bee’s nest, I just have to poke a stick into it to see what happens. I’m like that. Is it okay to let your skis save your place in line before the lifts open? A few weeks ago I… Continue Reading
New Summit House Art Work
Posted in News, PersonalA little tooting of our own horn here; one of our outstanding patrollers is also an artist. You may have seen his work on the Crystal Mountain Facebook page, or hanging in the Summit House, or adorning the walls of Double Mountain Brewery in Hood River but you should defiantly check it out here; chrismorinphotography.com All… Continue Reading
Photo of the Week
Posted in Conditions, Skier/Snowboarder Stories, WeatherUp here at Crystal, it’s been a best-of-times/worst-of-times scenario, in which one day it’s bluebird powder and the next is, well, rain. With the launch of the Photo of the Week post, I’m focusing on the best of times from this past week. While retail stores enjoyed Black Friday, we pegged the awesome-o-meter with a… Continue Reading
Patrollers aren’t just pretty faces
Posted in Personal, Skier/Snowboarder StoriesIf you’ve skied at Crystal you know we have sick terrain; if you’ve skied at Crystal with kids you know we have dog cards. You give us a safety rule and we give you a color photo of your favorite Canine in their red and white attire ready to save the day. The dog cards… Continue Reading
What Anna Did on Her Summer Vacation
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesSeasonal Work I often get asked, “what do ski patrollers do in the off-season?” I respond with the usual answers. We patrollers fill our summers with other seasonal work. Some patrollers guide clients up mountains or down rivers, others fight wildland fires or build trails, still others put their EMT skills to work on a… Continue Reading
Never, Ever, Ever Eat Yellow Snow: Reprint Back By Popular Demand
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesYesterday I hiked the King and at risk of sounding incredibly pet peevish, I’ll just go ahead and say it. There were no less than ten patches of yellow snow. I mean come on people. Perhaps it is some kind of Kilgore Was Here mentality that comes over these guys when standing atop a spendid peak with a pristine view of Mt. Rainier (and yes I suspect that most of the culprits are, in fact, men).
Rock Climbing Shutterbug
Posted in Place Names, Skier/Snowboarder StoriesClimbing Rabbit Ears to get a good photo.
Hello, I’m a Crystal Mountain Traverser
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesMy name is Christina and sometimes I like to traverse. I start cursing when I’m skiing a waist deep line off the Throne in flat light and double eject onto a traverse track put in by people just skiing the lower field. But on the other hand, I thank our traversers, when I’m jonesing to… Continue Reading
Skiers vs Snowboarders: An Invitation
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesI’ve gotten a few questions and comments from people about the best ways to maneuver long traverse/ascent trails like we have going to Southback, up into Bullion Basin–even coming back into the area on the I-5 trail returning from Northway. Got any great ideas? Been to other places where they have unwritten norms for this kind of situation?
Gentlemen Ski Bums
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesThought I’d take a moment after my recent rant to give a shout out to all the gentlemen waiting at Northway Gate 2 last week.
Ross Gregg on Fat Skis
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesI just had to post this one. Here’s a guy that always skis skinny. But I caught Ross on some fat boards (he even asked about my width underfoot). Granted it was an awesome powder day on Monday, made even awesomer (if that’s even a word) with fat skis, and somebody that’s been around Crystal… Continue Reading
INTRODUCING RANGER MONICA
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder Stories… allow me the pleasure of formally introducing Park Ranger Monica Morin to the community of Crystal skiers & boarders. Monica is what’s called a seasonal winter Wilderness Ranger, stationed out of the east side of Mount Rainier National Park…
Statement From Avalanche Survivor
Posted in Avalanche Hazard, Skier/Snowboarder StoriesRead what avalanche survivor Mark Callaghan had to say about his experience getting caught just outside Crystal’s boundary last week. The news story video clip is here.
Never, Ever, Ever Eat Yellow Snow and Other Good Ideas
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesRecently, while standing at the bottom of T-Bowl on Speed Control, a yound girl dressed in a one piece pink snowsuit stopped to ask if I had any dog cards. "Sure," I said. "But first you have to tell me one of the skier responsibility codes." She looked at me blankly. "You know," I continued. … Continue Reading
Backside Search
Posted in Place Names, Skier/Snowboarder StoriesLast Saturday, January 30th, 3 skiers got lost in the fog right as we patrollers were conducting end-of-day upper mountain sweep about 3:45pm. They were finally found and returned to the ski area around 1am—over 9 hours later! I figure others might benefit from knowing a bit more of how that sort of thing can… Continue Reading
Find Yourself!
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder Stories…Unfortunately, lack-of-planning could send us out on a false-alarm ‘wild goose chase’ that leaves us out-of-position to respond when a REAL life-threatening crises arises. Here are some things you can do to be self-sufficient when you’re simply separated…
Warren Miller
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesThanks to all that have posted on this topic. I love to see the passion here at Crystal about skiing powder. Yet I am chagrined to see some of the vitriole (here as well as towards others on the hill). Let me tell you a story. Several decades ago, Warren Miller came to Boyne Mountain,… Continue Reading
Kkz Ski Blog (an avid Crystal skier)
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder Storieshttp://web.me.com/snowind/Site/Kkz_Ski_Blog/Kkz_Ski_Blog.html
thank god it wasn’t us!
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesWe got a funny call tonight. It was about 5:15pm and most everyone had gone home. The phone rang, and it was a distraught Mom calling to report that her husband and daughter had been sitting on the "Clipper" chairlift for over an hour. I envisioned having to call Lift Maintenance people at home to… Continue Reading
Be of good cheer!
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesThe weather is finally changing and it looks like we’re getting our ski area back from the gods of warmth and dryness. (Bad gods, BAD!) As much as I’ve liked basking in the sun (it’s been sunny at Crystal while it’s been foggy in town) it’s great to see some snow returning. I thought this was as good a… Continue Reading
Jumps and jump-building
Posted in Skier/Snowboarder StoriesAndy wrote in with this comment: Part of the mini-golf freeride trend involves building jumps in the backcountry. If Crystal is unwilling to cater to the younger generation by building a park, can we at least be able to build jumps in the BC? If Crystal is actually aiming to be a "serious riders’" mountain,… Continue Reading
2011-12 Avalanche Dog T-Shirts for Sale
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