Livelyhood vs. Powder

[JD]

The big choice we all make at least once is where to put the roots down. Which way did you go, or are you going to go? Live in vacation land and struggle on a meger, localized, fluctuating economy? Or get a real job in an area with good schools, get health and retirement thru work, and commute to vacation land?

me. I need to be close. I have a strong connection to the natural world that I have to endulge regularly to be the person I am. (good or bad) Couldn't take watching snow in the Mtns. come and go w/o getting some fresh prints of my own. We struggle with luxuries, but seem to have what we need.
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VTBC

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Due to the nature of my job..I have to live here in PA...I lived in Montana for a year and a half and I got buy off of some savings and $8 an hour type jobs..but the trade-off was living with roommates and having to watch my budget very closely. Now I can spend money pretty freely and go on lots of cool ski trips but I'm stuck here in PA..Ideally I'd like to spend 8 months out of the year working..April to November..and December-March living in a cheap motel in Jackson Hole and skiing everyday..it will be at least a few more years until this will happen..

 

[Vortex]

I have done both. I prefer to be close enough to get away for the weekend, but not day trip at this stage in my life.

. When I was living and working near a resort I found it hard to seperate work and play.

When I'm older I probably will change that again and stay up north full time.

I guess my answer was living in a resort community pre marriage and kids was good, with family I prefer finacial stability. When the kids move out I'll probably move north full time again. Its all about the money.

 

[snoseek]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
does pretty damn good for a career guy. like around 70 days right?


anyways i prefer to not buy a bunch of crap, and live frugally. this way no job ever owns me and i can make decisions based on what i want to do vs what i have to do. i'm all set with living poor though, working hard and making money is part of the balance (i just get it done in the warm months).

 

[eastcoastpowderhound]

I want both...so I've managed to make a career of the ski industry. Still comes with its share of sacrifices...not as much $$ as the "real world" but I get paid to play on snow several times a year. I've given up the waist deep pow dream of living out west for being closer to family...my daughter's grandparents really like that. Work is still work...surprising how much of a nightmare your dream job can actually be...but if I had to deal with the same stuff in any other industry I'd have bailed a long time ago...too hard to get out of bed and go spend 8-10 hrs doing something I'm not passionate about. Along the way I've traded midweek days off for weekend warrior status...full time seasonal with no bennies for full time year round, healthcare, 401K, and paid vacation. I've got a quiver of skis that's worth more than both my wife's and my car combined...the newest car is a 97...but I've had 2 pair 2008 skis since Feb...a pair of boots, helmets, goggles...more new gear to "test" than I can use in a week. Yup, I'm happy with the trade-offs...and there's still a few rungs left on the industry ladder in front of me...who knows, the next great career move could take us out west "comfortably".

 

[riverc0il]

I found out too close doesn't work for me. Not for the career (although I wasn't making what I could have been, that is for sure) because you can make anything work if you want it and are good enough at what you do. But there is more to life than skiing and outdoor recreation. People, community, social networks, friends, family, etc. Location is a tough decision as there are pluses and minuses on both ends. I flow charted out my move to Vermont for years. I saw the trade offs before they happened and knew going more towards one end of the scale meant compromises on the other.

In the end, we decided on a happy medium. Close enough to both extremes so that we are close enough to cities, friends, family, etc. for an easy day trip and also right in the heart of four season recreation and the mountains. Not the ideal location for VT skiing but whatever, there is more to life than being within an hour of all your favorite mountains.

Then again, it was killing me living in the Boston Metro area due to being so far away, so that extreme did not work as well. Once the club scene dried up in Boston, there wasn't much to keep me in the area except friends and family. Sacrifices were made but we all try to keep in touch and visit when we can. We think we found our home now but who knows what will happen five years down the road. You couldn't pay me a big enough salary to move back to a Metro area. They say everyone has a price but my price for going back would be ten times what I am currently making and not many folks are making that much money!

 

[kingdom-tele]

Fortunately we didn't have to make a huge sacrifice to live and work here, careers in the health field can do that. Would certainly make more elsewhere and in a different scenario but being in place that makes you smile and appreciate your time alive is well worth the dollar signs. We are fortunate and consider ourselves so to be able to live close to family, the mountains and have a rewarding job, I think the key is knowing what makes you happy and having the courage to get out of a situation that is driving you bonkers.

 

[campgottagopee]

I'm kinda w/ Bob R on this one. I worked at a resort right out of college and had a blast. Wouldn't trade that experience for ANYTHING!!!! BUT, I will say this, I was 21 yrs old, had zero bills and nothing but time on my hands. Every night was a friday night and every day was a saturday. I mean I was getting paid to ski!!!!! After 4 years of that I realized that lifestyle was to fast paced and financially was a huge struggle.
Now being 40 something, and for the most part financially stable, this is what I had in mind for myself and my wife. Where we live in central NY I can hunt, fish right out my back door, skiing is less than a mile from my house, and my golf club is 3 miles from my house. If I want "real" skiing Whitface is only 2 hours away. I've found this combo works best for me.

 

[JD]

My wife and I have found careers in industries we can work in up here. Took a good few years to figure out a way to start getting ahead, but it's been totally worth it now that we are. We wanted small town life in a beautiful setting. Stowe isn't exactly where we will buy. more like the surrounding areas, but hopefully in the heart of the snow belt near some great BC terrain.

 

[deadheadskier]

If I could, I would live right in thick of it all and I tried for many years, but the struggle in the off seasons was too much. I actually thought I was getting into the right field in college to live by the slopes (resort management), but the reality is that unless you're at a VP level, the wages pretty much suck for resort jobs, which makes it extremely difficult considering how high the cost of living is near resorts. The biggest aspect that was a turn off for me was the amount of hours required professionally out of me working at a ski area. The old adage couldn't be more true. If you want to ski a lot, don't work as a manager at a ski area.

So, I'm much more comfortable now living in a small city with a decent wage that enables me to ski often enough and enjoy other outdoor pursuits as I have more free time. I will also be in much better shape financially when a point comes in my life that I'd like to raise children.

I still miss it though. If I had the opportunity to do it all over again, I would choose a field like healthcare in some capacity that would enable me to have the financial comfort I desire and be in the thick of the on snow action.

 

[wintersyndrome]

Let me begin by saying how I enjoy snowboarding, and everything it has been able to give to me.
Some of the best friendships are those from ski trips and the kindred spirits that come along with vacationing and recreating on the slopes. However that being said, Life is what you make of it. I live on LI and while its a good trip up to decent skiing/riding. I don't want to move. I'll deal with the taxes, traffic gremlins, and your basic idiots (LI has more than it's fair share) because during the summer months this Island becomes a vacation land. From the boating and beach opportunities that abound I think it's hard to beat honestly. plus There is nothing like New York City for a night out.

So I chose to live near a major metro area for the wages and I look forward to setting myself up for the future, when I can have a home in a winter vacation spot, as well as the home on LI.

 

[Vortex]

Intersting responses. I thought I would be the outcast here. Seems like age and money together are almost equal factors.

As you get older you get more vacation time usually and find a way to get the major holidays off, or if you in the industry you find a way to get control of your time and a resoanable wage as Eastcoastpowderhound has done.

I was making decent money in the ski industry, but got a pink slip come summer one year and that was the end of it. Never wanted to face potential seasonal un-employent with a family again..

Snow seek is still my hero with counting days not on the mountain as opposed to day turns were made. I push days out as much as possible. Come winter I'm happy.

 

[kingslug]

I just don't know anymore. We are going to sell the house as can't keep up with the tax increases. 13K a year is just insane. But where to go? We are going to check out Northern California, Tahoe area. Big casinos need HVAC engineers and bar tenders, so who knows.

 

[tjf67]

I planned my move for years. Dont work in the ski industry or hospitality.

My income was not effected yet. Could be down the road but for now life is pretty good.

There is nothing in the city I did that I can not do up here. There is lots more up here to do that I could not do in the city.

 

[snoseek]

I just don't know anymore. We are going to sell the house as can't keep up with the tax increases. 13K a year is just insane. But where to go? We are going to check out Northern California, Tahoe area. Big casinos need HVAC engineers and bar tenders, so who knows.

I'm pretty sure you will save money in many ways if you live on the nevada side.

 

[kcyanks1]

I've chosen where I live for schools, job, and being near family and friends. I'd love to be closer to good skiing, and some time way down the line I'll do that, but for the time being I don't see myself moving away from NYC or the NY-metro area. At the same time, I don't see myself moving any further away from skiing. Drive-time-wise, it's still very doable to do a weekend trip to the good ski areas in VT, even though it's longer than it ideally could be.

 

[FridayHiker]

Live in vacation land and struggle on a meger, localized, fluctuating economy? Or get a real job in an area with good schools, get health and retirement thru work, and commute to vacation land?

I live in vacation land because this is where I wanted to raise kids, and every time we visit friends who are raising their kids in the thick of things, I thank my lucky stars that I landed here. We don't have a Wii or a Play Station, or iPods, etc., but the kids have built their own tree house, and love to hike and ski and explore the woods.

For the record, though, we have health and retirement through work, and the schools up here are terrific, thank-you-very-much. We earn less than we would earn down south, but it's more than made up for in quality of life, in our experience.

 

[bvibert]

We'll likely be staying down here in CT for now, mostly for the benefits of my kid's grandparents and other family. I wish I could say that I was staying for the money, but someone else must be getting my share of the extra money you get for working in more populated areas...