I grew
up in the small Central MA town of Barre. Most of my early winters were
spent on the slopes of Small local ski areas in Barre or in the neighboring town of Oakham. Both of these ski areas
were special to me. Pine Acres closed in the mid to early 70's, but
the other area,
Pine Ridge,
is still open.
A
lot of great years were spent at both areas. I have worked at the
Barre area,
Pine Ridge,
for a number of years. I have been a ski instructor and am a member of
the ski patrol. From 1993 to 1999 I was the assistant patrol director
for the area.
I have been skiing
since the early 60's. My first ski experiences were on a rope tow
served hill. My equipment was old hand-me-down stuff from my older
siblings. I had
1999 photo at Pine Ridge
lace boots, which as I
remember weren't very warm or comfortable unless I wore three or four pairs
of socks in them. My skis were wooden and had about 6 layers of paint on
the top by the time I got them. They had bear trap bindings and a leather
safety strap with a hook that clipped on to the laces of my boots. I recall
going through many pair of leather gloves each year.
During these
years, my older brother worked at the ski area and would sometimes take us.
There were a lot of special deals at the little local areas, such as dollar
Sunday's and 2 for 1 nights, which allowed me to ski more frequently. Coming
from a larger family (5 kids) it wasn't always easy to find the money to go.
Barre Ski Center Lodge in the
early 60's
I
remember on Sundays we would pack up the car to go to Pine Acres. Everyone
would run around making sure that they had everything they would need for
the day. Mom would make a lunch and thermos' full of hot chocolate for us.
We would have a bag with several extra pair of leather gloves in it in
various sizes packed in the back of the family wagon. Being the youngest I
would usually get stuck sitting in the "way back" with all of the bags, skis
and ski poles, we did not have a ski rack.
My
Elementary principal, Roger Langley, was very much into skiing too and I
would frequently see him on the slopes with his grandchildren. I did
not know it then, but he was a big name in ski history in his days. He
had been president of the National Ski Association, Editor-in-Chief of the
American Ski Annual, had a hand in the founding of the National Ski Patrol
and was involved in many other aspects of making skiing what it is today.
I would frequently stop to say hi to him and they other patrollers on the
hill.
Pine Acres Tow in the 60's
My first
pair of buckle boots came when I was in Junior High. I had been given a pair of
skis by someone who worked with my mother and the old lace boots just would not
work in the binding on the skis. I remember going to the ski shop to get them.
They were bright orange. I think they were Alpina brand. The skis were a
pair of the Black Head skis, with someone else's name engraved in them. There
were no edges to speak of on them, but then again, none of my other skis had
ever had edges either.
In ninth
grade I bought my self a pair of used Rosignol Freestyle-J skis. I got a great
deal on them from an instructor. My orange Alpina boots leaked
terribly so I saved up money to buy myself another pair of boots.
After
several years of buying myself used equipment, when I was in College I bought
myself my first pair of new skis. They were the cheapest ones I could find, but
in the budget of a college student. I skied on them for four years and finally
discovered what edges were and what they were for.
It's been
many years since my first new pair of skis. I have been through many
equipment
changes and my skiing has improved significantly. The smaller areas I
frequented as a child have all closed now. What was once a treat, going to
Wachusett Mountain
, is no longer as it has become more of a regular area for me.
In 1992 I
became a member of the National Ski Patrol. I patrolled at Pine Ridge Ski
Area, why not, it seemed like the obvious choice. Shortly after joining I
began to take Patroller enhancement courses. In 1994 I was named patroller
of the year at my area. In 1994 I became an Outdoor Emergency Care(OEC)
Instructor and in 1995 I became a toboggan handling instructor. In 1993 I
also became the assistant patrol director at my area. I have also taken and passed the
Senior Level OEC.
After
Pine
Ridge closed in 2001, I did not renew my credentials (stupid, stupid, stupid).
They were closed for one full season and it didn't look like the place would
reopen as there was talk about developing it. I could have gone to
Wachusett or Ski Ward perhaps, but they wanted mid-week help and they wanted the
help there at 4, this was impossible for me.
This past
year (2005) I took the OEC course again, at the request of the new owners of
Pine Ridge and I have been appointed as the patrol director there. Now to
get the rest of my certifications back.....
Professionally, I am a teacher. I am currently employed by the
Ware Public
Schools in Ware, MA as a special needs teacher. My current assignment is with
grades 8 - 12, though previously I was assigned to the primary grades.
This position allows me to act as an advisor and chaperone for the High School Ski Club. I have enjoyed working with this group
for the past few years and look forward to working with them in the
future. In the past few years we have taken weekly trips
to Wachusett Mountain . We have also taken a couple day trips to Okemo and
Mt. Snow. In the 2005-2006 season we hope to take an overnight trip to
Sunday River.
For a few years, starting
in 1999, I was a frequent visitor and contributor to the
New England Lost Ski Area Project.
During this time I compiled research on various lost ski areas, explored them
and sent reports of my research to NELSAP. I also submitted articles to
Firsttracks On-line and
SnowJournal.com during the same time
period (Please visit these
sites) I now devote much of my research time to this site and have
significantly reduced my contributions to the other sites.
I've also created a special section on this site devoted
especially to
Pine Ridge Snow Park .
Thanks
for visiting!
