What's stopping you?

Our family is doing everything we want to right now. School, sports, skiing, hiking, community involvement, home ownership, stable job---for us, we're in a happy place.

10 years ago the challenge was how to get out of NJ and closer to the mountains. It was a "what's stopping you" question back then. Fortunately I got a job in my field right at the edge of the ADKs and it opened up possibilities for everything we have going now. In my field, there just are not jobs near where there are mountains....I got lucky.

The "what's stopping you" now is more career-related. For me to move up in the organization, I have to move back to NJ and I'm just not willing to do that. It's a tradeoff I've already made in my head...but haven't told my boss about yet!

JTG4eva! wrote

All’s he’s saying is that the only job he can envision being good enough to limit himself to 8 days a year skiing is one in which he gets paid to receive bjs and drink beer.

I wish that was the case. It's more the 6 hour round trip and that is if the lake effect machine isn't going, if it is make that trip closer to 8 hours round trip

Mi Skier wrote

MidwestTeleMan wrote

Mi Skier wrote

What stops me is work,and the fact that it is a three hour drive one way to hill I ski at. I live in Metro Detroit and we have some 250'-300 hills 45min-1hr away but the place I go to is close to 500' which still isn't big but it's close to double the size of the closer hills and they have a $99 weekend season pass which is hard to pass up.I did get out 8 times last year, but would have loved to go more.'

 Hey I used to live in Michigan myself, I live in Wisconsin now and hit Bohemia quite a bit myself, let me know when you go next time!

I have never been to Bohemia. It's on the bucket list. wouldn't be able to happen until 2019/2020. There are personal reasons behind it. I ski mainly at Caberfae Peaks in Cadillac

Caberfae is definitely some fun on occasion, but you need to make a trip to Boho, it's the best thing ever.

Check out the Mt Bohemia thread in the woodstove too ;) it's a pretty recent one

JasonWx wrote

it will boil down to health car costs..

Those things can be expensive...

Well played Harv

sig wrote

i live in the albany area so can get to gore,mnt snow or platty in under 2hrs. i used to ski 30-40 times a year before full time job and kids. kids are grown so i can ski whenever i want.  conditions are really what is holding me back. after 40 years of skiing i just find cursing the groomers boring as hell. i bank 5 vacations days a year to chase midweek powder.
i  also bought a tele setup for the cruiser days i would not normally not alpine.this got me out 4 times last year. working for ny  state keeps me locked into ny until i can retire at 55. once retired i would love to check out Colorado or arizona for a winter. arizona might be a good balance for my wife who is losing her interest in skiing.

I hear ya on the skiing groomers Sig. I can do that for an hour or two for maybe one day a week but here the payout riding your bike in Sedona is a whole lot more imo. Shoot, I can get more exercise doing 12 ounce curls at the bar all day long than I can skiing groomers. That kind of skiing makes me sleepy!

why does it have to be one or the other.  

Yeah, groomers used to be my least favorite, and still are.  However, ever since I took a lesson a handful of years ago for yucks, and really got into proper carved turns, groomers have taken on new life, and laying down a perfect set of rails can be a satisfying thing!  

JTG4eva! wrote

Yeah, groomers used to be my least favorite, and still are.  However, ever since I took a lesson a handful of years ago for yucks, and really got into proper carved turns, groomers have taken on new life, and laying down a perfect set of rails can be a satisfying thing!

I do need a pair of good slalom race skis, that would probably make a big difference but I’m still most likely going to prefer the bike over groomers.

raisingarizona wrote

I do need a pair of good slalom race skis, that would probably make a big difference

There's something to this RA. I admit that one of my guilty pleasures is cranking up the speed teenager-style on fresh corduroy. Last year I pulled out a pair of old 80s era GS skis and they definately upped the fun factor to 11.  

raisingarizona wrote

JTG4eva! wrote

Yeah, groomers used to be my least favorite, and still are.  However, ever since I took a lesson a handful of years ago for yucks, and really got into proper carved turns, groomers have taken on new life, and laying down a perfect set of rails can be a satisfying thing!

I do need a pair of good slalom race skis, that would probably make a big difference but I’m still most likely going to prefer the bike over groomers.

The SLs can be twitchey - try a beer league GS. I found a Nordica Doberman GS with a 27m radius/186 length and it is huge fun.

Amen. GS is definately the way to go. Trust me.

I use these.
https://youtu.be/iYbXvN55iIg

Sounds rad. Now I just need to finish school so I can join in on conversations about ski quivers and retirement plans!

These are mine. $35 at a garage sale in Bozeman. I just happened to be walking by on my way to some day-drinking back in 96 (I'm pretty sure). I did have to put some new-to-me bindings on them a few years later but I think that only cost me about 100 more. My quiver consists of my skis, my old skis and my old-old skis (these)

You know, it makes me wonder if those era skis would fit the way I skied back then. Almost like they feel right now because that's what was out when I was learning to ski back then. I doubt I'm making sense...

JasonWx wrote

This is simple..My wife said no...

something about friends and kids..

If you are outdoor enthusiast, hands down the west is better...better skiing , mtb , weather, hunting , etc...

This is actually pretty important. The friends and kids part.

I "retired" a few years ago, and, as some may know, spent a few months each season since living and skiing each winter, so, I've had my taste of "living out west". I don't live there permanently, and, don't want to. My first reason for that is simply money. I don't know about any of you guys, but, I cannot afford 90% of western ski town housing. It's really expensive. Easterners are a little spoiled. Hell, there's nice condos in great shape at Killington going for a relative song. "Affordable housing", or public/private partnered homes restricted for people who work in Summit County, Co. start in the 400s and up. I didn't get on the gravy train of real estate ownership after my divorce, so I don't have something I can "trade" for a home out west that's fully paid for. We're talking about at least a half million, probably close to a million, for something nice close to skiing in a place where most people still have most of their teeth. And, no way am I going to be a renter in such a crazy market at a late age. Imagine being a 70 year old and having your landlord inform you that, sorry, going AirB&B next month, pack it up and get out, old man. Nope, not me. Living in Denver isn't attractive, considering the commute to skiing, and Denver is pretty bland, and SLC just creeps me out with the Mormon thing, and is pretty ugly and a harsh place. I call it Jersey by the Great Salt Lake.

I found one town that's affordable, and that's Driggs. I could live there. Love Targhee. But, I road bike for my summer activity, and road biking there sucks, as it does in most of the west. We live in one of the best road biking regions in the country, and, let's face it, road biking season is much longer than ski season.

I also like green. It's brown out west. Just, brown, all the time. It rains here, and it's green. Sounds simplistic, but, living in dirt can be tiring after a while.

But, back to the friends and relatives thing. That's important. You've built a life here, and that social network is very important for your well being in old age. Studies have been done. I know the grass is greener elsewhere (haha, not literally, but, you know what I mean), but consider uprooting your life just to go somewhere to ski all the time, and, you know, it won't be all the time. Ski season isn't all year. How do you meet new people in a super transient, youth oriented town? The only way I can see it happening is getting a job dealing with the public, but then, you ain't retired anymore. You're working, not skiing.

No, value what you have here. Your social network is important, the most important thing you have. A lot of people move back from Florida after they realize that paradise isn't what they expected, because the kids are back north, along with some old friends. Loneliness is a bitch.

And, on a closely related matter, think about this. Do you, at, ahem, a certain age, want to uproot your life to go to a place where skiing is the primary activity, and then get injured? You know, you ain't going to live forever, and getting old is a bitch, as many of us know. Just imagine blowing out a knee or hip and being, essentially, disabled in a western ski town at, oh, age 70. Not only would you be bored and isolated, but, geriatric medical care is maybe hundreds of miles away. Hell, most medical care is tens time better and more available in populated eastern regions than ski towns out west. Sorry, but, this is something you have to plan for. Life is going to suck without a support network and hospitals nearby. Just sayin'. You're not some indestructible 25 year old anymore. Besides, then, you always had Mom and Dad you run home too, even though you thought you were the independent stud you were. At least you heal a lot quicker at that age than at 70. Some things never heal.

  This World is always about time and money  never enough time ,never enough money  Just graduated two children from College ,there goes the money Younger children involved in School sports there goes the time.
  Like Harvey I love NY like no other place, I  plan to live out my old age somewhere around the south end the ADKs to be with striking distance of a lot of ski areas
   If the money was there I would spend my time between the  beaches of Delaware and slopes of Gore ,Killington ,and the rest of NY and VT.
   Got ruined for PA (Poconos Elk) skiing when I branched out to NY  VT and Quebec  ,so I am staying in the East.

Brownski wrote

These are mine. $35 at a garage sale in Bozeman. I just happened to be walking by on my way to some day-drinking back in 96 (I'm pretty sure).

i think you overpaid for those babies.

Benny hope it's ok I added some "air space" in your post to make it easier (for me :) to read.

Your post is a bit dark, but also realistic IMO.  Agree with much of it.  Plus I've never been very good at getting out of my comfort zone.

I feel like North Creek is a bit of a hybrid, it's a ski and tourist town, but it's also just a town.  Locals are real.