11 January, 2006 (Wednesday)

Been a while
To start with – yes, it has been a while, apologies for my absence. Unfortunately the last two weeks have escaped me, and not by my own choice. I have been waylaid by the peak season here at the resort, by snowfall (at least that’s meant good skiing… well, at times), by variable internet access and most recently by a killer flu.

But I’m back and trying to catch up… and some how amongst it all a new year has dawned. So, Happy New Year! Hoping that the new year has been kind to you thus far. I’m still trying to make heads and tails of mine…

Toiling under the chipmunk music
Here at Big White Ski Resort (tm) peak season runs from just before Christmas through to the week following New Years. The whole resort goes into overdrive as we reach bed capacity (approximately 15,000 heads), lift capacity and sleep deprivation capacity. It’s a tough run, even more so with department staffing that offers very little leeway for misadventure.

Our Big White ticketing department has been run ragged, with attrition (sickness and patience) stretching us thin. Long hours become the norm, with few (if any) rest days. Immune systems get run down. Bags accumulate under the eyes and grumbling reaches new heights.

During this period I averaged just over 50 hours a week, mainly in split (8am-11am then 4pm to close) and evening (1pm to close) shifts. This has made for some pretty long days, often not finishing up until close to 10pm. Split shifts have some compensation though. It usually means middle of the day skiing, which isn’t all bad.

Trying to rationalize my need to get out middle of the day, I think it’s almost as though I feel a need to maximize my on-snow time to compensate for the fact that I’m working two separate ends. I guess the thrifty side of me is just trying to get the most out of that season’s pass and the investment I’ve made in my new ski gear. Not that the snow conditions have been bad at all. Well, the first few weeks were painful visibility-wise, but things have since improved. Anyway, I’ve worked 10-days straight and basically run myself to the bone for my $6 after tax.

Among my achievements for this period were a 13-hours straight day, and working Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Years Eve and New Years, and selling lots of lift, tubing and skating tickets. Holiday season, sorry?

The last week things have unfortunately failed to ease, with two employees leaving right on New Years day. Jo just put her foot down and said she wasn’t here to work 40-hours a week, while Kasia found her way into the drunk tank in Kelowna on New Years and never surfaced again. Added to this is a killer flu which has left half the mountain staff with big hacking coughs (put me down as Exhibit A). Through all of this, January has arrived with some big big snow days.

Last Monday (2 January, 2006) was what we refer to here as a “mega powder day”, with 20cm of fresh snowfall overnight. The pines were cloaked in white, their long branches bending under the weight of the new snow. The ski runs looked soft under their fresh blanket, all rounded bumps and deceptive drops. Skiing through it was a challenge, easily getting bogged if you lacked momentum or timing. My thighs were sore halfway down the mountain with all the turning. Let’s not talk about the bit where I got my skis tangled flying down a cat trail, ending up limbs akimbo face down with my skis embedded half a metre in a powder drift. Poetry in powder.

A New Year
There is something about a new year that excites me. I think part of it is the whole idea of new beginnings and fresh starts. I’m fascinated by the idea that, with the turning of a new day, suddenly I can be free of all that old dross that I’ve been dragging along behind me for so long.

There’s an un-deniable attraction to the idea of a clean slate. To being able to wake with a few new resolutions and the feeling that you can do things differently, start afresh and just re-align. Perhaps it is an artificial imposition, but it’s one that works. All of that said, this year kind of crept up out of nowhere. The days are blending here and somewhere along the way a new year dawned and I had no resolutions let alone a slate handy that I could clean. Any suggestions for resolutions out there?


29 December, 2005 (Thursday)
Today felt like a Friday. Although with the whole Big White time warp that isn’t a big shock. Started shift at 8am at Happy Valley with Kasia (our favourite Victorian islander). The first quarter of an hour was relatively quiet, then the customers started coming. From 8:15am through to 3pm it was flat out, without an opportunity to eat or drink, let alone dodge out for a washroom break. Lines were winding out the door, with a few irate customers complaining that 28 minutes in line was a North American ski record. Wingers.

I honestly don’t know how many credit cards I put through, but it was steady to frantic for most of the shift. Somewhere around 3pm Steve (the glorious leader) gave me a call. I was stuck with customers so kept him waiting for 5 minutes, which didn’t please him at all. Aenne had called in sick – her boyfriend’s cousin had had a snowboarding accident and broken her back, so she was headed down to Kelowna to make sure that she was okay. Which mean that we were a person short in Happy Valley. Steve was just calling to see if I’d be willing to work back to 8pm, depending on demand. Sure, why not? The cough was back with a vengeance after such abuse, so what would a few more hours mean?

I ended up closing at 9:30pm. It was a pretty busy night on the rink. Midway through Sarah was called up to assist at the Village, which left just me and Kate. Thank goodness for Kate – she’s good company. All in all I managed to collect a modest $16,000+ in my 13.5 hours. $2,500 of that in cold hard cash.

Managed to persuade Tanya (who had spent the evening in the Tubing Cabin) out for a drink at Raakel’s (having sworn off Sam’s for a week). We ended up meeting up with her housemates and their newest addition, Kate (from Port Macquarie) who is visiting for a few weeks. Nice timing. The snow is just starting to fall. Walked Tanya home around midnight and then popped in to (the Inn at Big White) visit Josh. Thank goodness I’ve got tomorrow off.


30 December, 2005 (Friday)
Snow report: 5.5cm new snow overnight. Snow base of approximately 110cm.
Ski conditions: Fair to good. Decent coverage with a powdering of new snow.
Visibility: Moderate. Foggy at the top of the Ridge, with intermittent snow fall.

Slept in until 8am and was supposed to meet up with some of Tanya’s housemates to hit the slopes. Unfortunately they’d had a late night so I ended up skiing solo.

Ran down the Ridge Rocket a few times (2 stacks – Perfection was fantastic and Paradise was a bit ugly) in my new helmet, before deciding to try the newly opened Powder Chair – the first set of advanced skiing available on mountain. Powder Keg down into the powder valley was awesome. Steep slopes with wooded sides, fresh powder thick but not too bumpy. The easiest black I’ve done here at Big White.

Lift lines were about 10 minutes wait (although you move through a lot faster here as a single) and before I knew it I was limping down Corkscrew. My poor skis copped a battering with a few hidden rocks and lots of steep bumps. I crashed out a good half dozen times trying to find myself down. Josh called around 10 and we met up at the top of the Ridge. Skied down a good half dozen times, accidentally going off Goat’s Kick (a nasty nasty black with lots of bumps. I managed to do 2 big stacks, including a full contact belly flop losing skis). Tried a few blues, including Whitetail off the Ridge, which provided a picturesque ski through knee deep powder amongst the trees. A few steep gullies, but overall a very enjoyable ride. Packed it in after 3.5 hours, lunching with Josh at Raakel’s Pub. I really needed the Mountain Burger. It tasted so good.

A hot tub and a nap later, prepared a stir fry for dinner then visited some of Dave’s friends at Bumps Hostel (a dodgy joint if ever I saw one!). Half an hour at Sam’s then into bed by 11:30. An early start tomorrow. Gem Lake is supposed to open tomorrow, and I’ve been asked to start 2 hours early – a midday start for me going until 9:30pm. What a way to spend New Years! A few house parties after that. Just hope that I’m in good enough shape to survive it. The cough is back. Yesterday killed me, so now it’s really chesty. Just hope a bit of self-help will make the difference tonight. I’m sure the berocca will help.


31 December, 2005 (Saturday – New Years eve)
I worked the evening at the cabin (as seems to be the pattern of late), and met Sarah, Jo and Precious back at Happy Valley. Within five minutes of closing up the rink we were standing in front of the building, each with our own drink in hand. Security took their own sweet time turning up, so it wasn’t until past 9:30pm that I’d dropped off my float and till into the security box and started getting ready for the night ahead.

It took about 20 minutes to get comfortable and clean, and I didn’t hold back - all my plumage was out – from patterned dyed jeans (not as trendite as they sound), to black long-sleeved shirt and eye-wrenching lime green striped polo. Definitely more style than most of the ski slobs who stand with beer in hand, grunting at one another.

First stop was Kiwi Kate’s party at Powder Ridge, just a short walk from the Ptarmigan to where it quietly nestled away off the road. (Picture: Me, Kate, Lesley, Sarah) The party was already in full swing when I arrived, with a mixture of nationalities filling the house comfortably (at a guess somewhere between two and three dozen). I hung around for a bit, got a few happy snaps with some of the ticket-tarts, chatted to Kate and a few of the others floating around before heading off to the big party on the mountain – Moguls.

Moguls is set behind the Samesun backpackers, about 5 minutes walk up the hill. It’s a large apartment complex, about 10 stories high, with double door security and more class than a lot of the other digs on mountain. The party was being held at 606, a large multi-leveled apartment with high ceilings, open wooden rafters and a great view of the ski village beneath. I knew a few of the hosts – Mel and Ryan from Sydney and Bec and Anthea from friends of friends. Bec is always around Sam’s and when we’re out we always play this game where we stare at each other, then tell the other that we’re watching them. Okay, so I don’t get out that much...

The party was an open invitation affair, with a good 40 or 50 people partying it up when I arrived. People were in various states of disrepair. Dave was already well into it, dressed only in his red sleeveless and board shorts. He wasn’t the only one. Sturdy (better known in our apartment as ‘Wonderboy’ – see Jae’s blog for further clarification) was in his usual form, shirt off and three sheets to the wind. I guess that means that he was having a good night? Some things you just don’t ask questions about.

I wandered in and started the big round of greetings – Caleb (from downstairs. Sturdy's housemate) and Hills (with the Blue-Steel posed season pass photo from my first week at tickets), Liz (Hill’s best friend who Josh and Dave once dumped in the snow mid-hot tub) and Sarah (my skiing friend from retail), Kath (aka ‘Fluff’ from rentals) and Dave (Tanya’s housemate, the thinner twin), Chai (a mate of Dave’s) and Jeff (who runs rentals), Skye and a half dozen others.

Before I knew it, it was ten to midnight and there were fireworks to view in the Village Centre. The crowd was slow to move, so Skye and myself got tired of waiting and made our own way out. We were stumbling down the steps past Sam’s into the main village when it hit midnight.

The hands of the big Village Centre clock swung their way lazily across and suddenly there were fireworks in the air. The Village Centre itself was packed out with bodies, a sea of humanity spanning from the Kid’s Centre across to the Gondola. Clumps and clumps of people had gathered to bring in the New Year and watch the fireworks. We made our way into the middle of it all and watched the multi-hued explosions shouting green and red and blue across the night sky (no pun intended). The fireworks went for a goodly ten minutes. It was quite beautiful.

Afterwards we wandered the mass of people running into friends and acquaintances. The ticketing group were out in force, so I was able to welcome Gabs and Aenne and Kate into the New Year. Skye went and hugged the security guards. After half an hour we decided to make our way back to Moguls and see how the party was going.

When we arrived back in the Commissionaire’s and building security were breaking up the party. They were trying to empty the place of people, and were almost done by the time we arrived back upstairs. We sidled in on the pretence of a ‘missing toque’ and gathered in one of the upstairs bedrooms. Most people were a bit worse for wear, with a group babbling nonsense behind us. After about ten minutes of this we thought we’d try looking for Dave, so made our way next door to ‘Bumps’ (the old hostel). Hills, Liz, Chai and JC were still partying when we got there but no sign of Dave. It was getting on past 1 by this time, so we stayed for a bit then decided to call it a night.

I crashed out at home by 2am. It was a nice night and I’d just had enough. Dave on the other hand wandered in somewhere around quarter to 8 in the morning. He’d apparently found his way down in Trailside after the Gondola closed, and from there he and Jeff apparently joined another party and hit the hot tub. The story goes that they had a few more beers then decided to hike through hip deep snow uphill back to the apartment. I think Dave was a little worse for wear on New Years.

Into the New Year
I worked New Years night at the Cabin again. There were a few families about, and I was getting quite a bit of recognition from repeat visitors. They’d walk in with their brood and greet me by name. Almost as good as a Cheers bar, but without the alcohol and with more kids.

I had Monday off, which was terrific. A huge snow fall the night before and most of the mountain open. Josh and I explored the Gem Lake area with Chris, one of our neighbours. We popped in to visit Tanya in the Gem Lake warming hut and managed to get in some great skiing. Blue Sapphire was beautiful, a wide and steep run framed by trees that seems to just go forever. Powder Keg was thigh deep in fresh powder snow, a few easy turns then straight down the last slope. Kalina’s Rainbow had some great kicks and rises taking a good 20 minutes to half an hour to race down.


Being infected - losing a week
Somewhere along the way I managed to get the flu full-ball. It started with a new twist on the cough and just went into the chest from there. The rest of the week was spent at work or asleep. I went foetal with aches and a fever, off my food and just zombie-ing through my days. I’m not sure how I managed to get through without missing any time off work. Certainly I was processing at sub-optimum levels. The week was a struggle, and I was glad to finally get to Sunday and have a pure day of rest. Of course, by that time I’d slept most of it off.


8 January, 2006 (Monday)
For my second day off I took the liberty of sleeping in. I'm still getting over the flu, so sleep is coming easier lately. I just have to shut my eyes and I'm out like a light. Josh came in around 10am, so somehow I got myself up, did the breakfast essentials and found my way onto the snow.

It felt good to be back in the skis. The first few runs are always rough, with lots of jouncing, but then the knees start to work at absorbing it all. Visibility wasn't terrific, so after a few warming up runs we made our way down to the Black Forest.

Black Forest is the place to be when it's blowy, sleeting or just too foggy / cloud. The narrower treed runs on that side of the mountain tend to cut out the wind and fog / cloud, and the close set trees hold powder stashes that can be fun to ski through. Josh said that he was going to follow my tracks, so we played a game of ski-'follow the leader' where I set the pace, dodging into the trees and between different runs. After an hour we headed over to the Ridge where we met up with our neighbours Chris and Luke. Visibility started to suffer, but we still managed to be out until last runs (at 3:30pm).

Tanya called that afternoon, asking to meet up at the Gondola. When I found my way over she was all dressed up with camera in hand. Apparently the plan was to take some pics, in particular off the Gondola drop and the snowman family next to the main Village Centre. We took a few snaps and popped into work to check our shift times for the week ahead.

While we were there Steve (the glorious leader) said he had some good news for me. Apparently they run an Employee of the Month and for December I'd been nominated. I asked how they decided when everybody was working so hard, and Steve said that it had been a tough choice, but in the end I'd been drawn out of a hat. Good to know I was chosen on firm criteria. The prize was to be dinner, bowling and a few drinks in Kelowna later in the week with recipients from other departments.

Tanya and I popped into the White Crystal Inn for a drink at the Copper Kettle Grille. I hit up the single-malt scotch list again (Auchentoshen this time around - sweeter, almost like a bourbon, but with a mean bite), while Tan had a Pina Colada. We had a quiet chat then went out separate ways. Tan said she might pop around to the apartment later in the night, which she did with her housemate Emma (who is a masseusse - handy skill to have) and visiting friend Kate. Dave was camped out on the lounge watching TV, the Simpsons then the Family Guy. We chatted a bit and I cooked up some pancakes with Maple Syrup. Went down a treat.