An Open Letter to the Snow Sports Industry Employees

Hopefully this will be posted up to my USTSA Telemark Blog, as well as Facebook and Craigslist.

First and foremost, Thank You. Thank you to anyone working in the snow sports industry. I have been working in the industry for the last decade, and I want to say THANK YOU. Especially those of you behind the scenes. You know who you are.

I have been skiing longer than I’ve had memories, and I know I owe a lot to everyone whom I’ve crossed paths with in the last 30+ years on snow. You have helped shape my life into what it is now. And what it is now is pretty fantastic.

Last night I went up to watch the Deer Valley World Cup Freestyle and was reminded again of how many people it takes to make these kind of events happen, from every level. I ran into snowmakers I’ve worked with in the past, a cat driver who has built the moguls course since it’s had the venue, lifties who are in their first season but are working the extra hours early and late to make sure we have rides up and down, and the events crew who work VERY long hours to make sure we don’t notice how much work it takes.

Please, thank these people when you see them on your play day. Buy them a beer when you see them at the bar. They are who make the ski day possible for the rest of us! Most of them work behind the scenes doing weird jobs many of us would never expect.