| World of skiing opens to mature adults | |
| By Leonard J. Hansen | |
When I stepped away from the chairlift I asked myself why there had been an interval of 20 years since my last time on the ski slopes.The metallic clank-clank-clank sound of the turnaround wheel at the chairlift station faded away to the remarkable quiet above 8,000 feet and allowed for a breathtaking pause at this high point on the mountain, where the panorama of snow-covered mountains and white-dressed evergreens seemed to reach forever or at least into a rich tomorrow. So remote from the quaint Breckenridge, Colo., community to which I had traveled cross country, was out of sight thousands of feet below. Here, standing in powder snow the wide slopes seemed untouched even though I knew that perhaps hundreds of skiers paused here before opening their own paths down the mountains, only for the powdery stuff to re-settle, leaving no track or trace of those who passed here earlier this day. It was a return to skiing at 59. Career, travel, children and their school and soccer games, home tending and more somehow got in the way of the freedom and personal challenge and satisfaction of skiing. “A shame, a shame,” I would say several times to Bob Roses, a retired businessman who has taught 10 years on the Breckenridge ski faculty. As a mature adult, could I return to skiing? I was earlier a very good intermediate who first learned to ski in the unknowing way of most young people — the fastest route to schuss at breakneck speed. Roses assured me that, if my legs were in OK shape, he could re-teach me in a series of one-on-one lessons. And it worked. But unlike earlier boom-down-the-hill-days, skiing would now be a grand experience, away from others’ tracks in wide traverses of the slopes, using now graceful turns to the self-styled rhythm of weighting and unweighting skis, creating new paths, forgetting the clock, enjoying the freedom of direction and the personal challenge of achieving it. All the better to reward one’s accomplishment with a glass of wine at the end of the run before another ride up the mountain for another grand experience on the slope. Being a guy who can’t do a two step without counting out loud, the rhythm of skiing again became second nature. No longer was brawn important as when first learning, powering one’s way into turns as was the mandate to American mountain troops who distinguished themselves during World War II. Different, too, than the strength only skiing that preceded the 1960 Winter Olympics at Squaw Valley in California’s Tahoe/Reno area. We of today’s mature generation may have learned first about skiing in the heroic stories of the mountain troops or witnessed the sport from Squaw Valley because it was the televised event which brought skiing up close and personal to many Americans. As a member of the CBS television production crew covering those 1960 Olympics I learned from competitors not just of their speed and daring but of their great freedom of choice as they skied the mountains. For one, I was hooked. After 20 years away from the sport, I learned that, at my age, I was not an oddball, for all around me there were other skiers with hair sprinkled with white that wasn’t snow. International, national and local ski organizations, tour programs and clubs were already in existence and mature adults were finding and conquering mountains, sporting smiles of accomplishment more broad and real than I’ve ever seen on a much younger face. For example, membership in The Over-the-Hill Gang International rose from 1,500 in 1992 to more than 6,000. Its membership ranges from age 50 through 90, with 98 percent identifying themselves as very active skiers. The organization operates 40 ski trips a year and members request more. Membership cards valid for ski discounts and scores of resorts. Nine out of 10 ski resorts recognize the mature skiers with discounts. Some offer eligibility as early as 50 but, more predictably at 60, and most offer free skiing to persons age 70 and better. In resorts with $30 to $50 chair lift day rates the senior price may run as low as $10 to $15. With the increasing demand, countless tour operators offer packages which include accommodations, some meals and ski lift tickets, and often more, remarkably cost-effective prices. Per diem (the cost per person per day) may range as low as $75. Many international currencies are presently weak against the U.S. dollar; plus winter airline travel to Europe is at more than a seasonal low. New package bargains which include airfare abound. Skiing is unlike any other sport. Other than being able move only where there is snow, the sport lacks the limitations of other activities. Baseball and softball diamonds, tennis courts and even Olympic swimming pools are all the same size and play is mostly constrained within the lines. But, the skier can choose his or her direction at whim and timing careful not to bump into another skier or traverse too far off the edge of a cliff. No single resort is right for all mature adults. The variety ranges from high profile (and high cost) destinations like Aspen in Colorado (more $55 a day for a senior ticket) while an alternative, the family friendly Wolf Creek near Durango, Colo., costs $25. There are ski resorts in 32 of the 50 states. Mountains are typically taller in the Rockies and western mountains though the vertical drop may be similar to resorts in other areas. From the top of the chairlift at Breckenridge the personal freedom of skiing as part of travel came back in full reality. "Take the mountain as your own," Bob Roses had taught me. And so it was and the experience still is. From the top of the chairlift the view yet goes on forever. |
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