old guys setting PRs for ski days

[Hawk]

I like to chop wood. You can get it dumped for free around here. Overdid it a bit this past year. Was rushing too much to get it off the front lawn and it bothered my achilleas area a bit. No issue skiing though. I think being in a boot actually helped it heal. Felt better after the Oregon trip.

I don't really count days, but a was over 100 back in college. All were in VT while I was in school in NJ. Crammed everything into the middle of the week and worked on campus.

Yikes! That's gotta be 4 or 5 chords worth. Tell me you have a splitter and don't do all that by hand. I have a Jotul wood stove and a brother in law that can not drive by free wood. Where we live is ruralish and there are a decent amout of woods and power easements that the power company cuts and leaves wood. Every spring I end up with about half of what you have there. We rent a splitter from HD and split the cost. Even with a splitter it is a lot of work to cut rounds, move to the splitter, Split and stack the woood for the year. With Me and My wife it takes 2 days.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

A lot of great posts in this thread. Very encouraging. I love it when I read posts from folks that are older than me and still very active!!

seriously. good for all you older dudes to get out as hard and as much as you do and to do the work to make it all possible and not fall apart. i aspire to your numbers in 20 years and beyond

 

[flakeydog]

If you ski both days every weekend from mid Nov to late April, you will get ~50 days. Add some bonus days around Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and Feb break and you can get to 60. Beyond that you have to get creative or use some vacation time. We usually get 40-50 even being gone for Christmas week, though we are back for new years and there were a couple of February breaks we got the full 9 days (at the insistence of the kids). They would ramp up their days with ski practice at night and they often were on snow 5-6 days every week during race season.

If the early season is really good, we tend to get more days, if it is not, we usually find other stuff we have to do and either skip a day or the whole weekend. Ditto on late season. There have been years where a lot of yardwork got put off when the mountain was still fully open in late april. Priorities!

 

[drjeff]

If you ski both days every weekend from mid Nov to late April, you will get ~50 days. Add some bonus days around Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and Feb break and you can get to 60. Beyond that you have to get creative or use some vacation time. We usually get 40-50 even being gone for Christmas week, though we are back for new years and there were a couple of February breaks we got the full 9 days (at the insistence of the kids). They would ramp up their days with ski practice at night and they often were on snow 5-6 days every week during race season.

If the early season is really good, we tend to get more days, if it is not, we usually find other stuff we have to do and either skip a day or the whole weekend. Ditto on late season. There have been years where a lot of yardwork got put off when the mountain was still fully open in late april. Priorities!

Yup.

Making my 19th week in a row drive up to Mount Snow tomorrow evening. Add in the extra mid week days for ski race coaching, and without (yet) taking a vacation week this year, over 50 already and well on my way to 60 with having Easter week off coming up and plans to jump around what's still open in VT that week with my wife for a few days

 

[deadheadskier]

You are a total exception to the rule. Plus there are big nuances and perception swings to this conversation. Keep in mind I have no idea what you do for work. A sales guy or a person with estabished customers that does mostly talking with some paperwork, I understand the flexibility. Also what constitutes a ski day. I draw the line at 3 to 4 hours. The reason I say this is I have a close friend that is a regional sales guy that talkes calls and orders on the phone all day. Takes notes and then gets off the hill to do his paperwork at 3 before the 5:00 close of business. That is not a common full time job. I discussed what I do with 50 to 60 ski days a year. So the characterization of Wholly untrue should be more like partially untrue.

Yeah, I work for a company that 75% of our US work force is remote. I can bag off early around 3 to night ski without issue pretty often, but trying to run my business from a ski lift ain't happening even if I am blowing out my sales quota. I'd get fired. That would be true of any of the workers at competing companies too.

It is "partially untrue" like you said. If it was "wholely untrue", ski areas wouldn't be dead midweek like they are and would be packed with remote workers. There's an extremely limited percentage of the working population that can do what Bigo does.

 

[teleo]

In summary, stay active, nearly every day year round. 59 yrs old. Used to get 45-55 days when I worked. Every weekend, holidays and a week of vaca. Now not working, PRd at 68 last year, will be close to 75 this year. Next year our daughter goes to college so I'll be aiming for 100. You gotta have goals! Unlike many here, I'm in my best shape at the end of ski season. I exclusively tele, keep up with my alpine buddies and kids skiing the whole mountain, so I get a good workout skiing. Add in occasional cross country, snowshoeing and skating. Summer is mtn biking, road biking, kayakiing, hiking, some tennis. I'm active pretty much every day except an occasional rainy day. An off day often includes a 2 mile walk with my wife. Hardest time is late fall when it's cold for biking but not ski season yet. Hate gyms, but still use my covid setup at home which includes nordic trac, weights, and bands.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

If you ski both days every weekend from mid Nov to late April, you will get ~50 days. Add some bonus days around Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and Feb break and you can get to 60. Beyond that you have to get creative or use some vacation time. We usually get 40-50 even being gone for Christmas week, though we are back for new years and there were a couple of February breaks we got the full 9 days (at the insistence of the kids). They would ramp up their days with ski practice at night and they often were on snow 5-6 days every week during race season.

If the early season is really good, we tend to get more days, if it is not, we usually find other stuff we have to do and either skip a day or the whole weekend. Ditto on late season. There have been years where a lot of yardwork got put off when the mountain was still fully open in late april. Priorities!

this is the way and is basically exactly what i do. every weekend, starting before thanksgiving, thru the end of april. skip a weekend if conditions are truly ghastly. get up once maybe twice in may for the superstar thing. 5 days between xmas and nye (this used to be 10 days, damn my goyish girlfriend with a dec 21 birthday), 3 day weekend over mlk, 10-14 day vacation in feb, 3 days over easter. i am pacing for 51 this year.

 

[Hawk]

If you ski both days every weekend from mid Nov to late April, you will get ~50 days. Add some bonus days around Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and Feb break and you can get to 60. Beyond that you have to get creative or use some vacation time. We usually get 40-50 even being gone for Christmas week, though we are back for new years and there were a couple of February breaks we got the full 9 days (at the insistence of the kids). They would ramp up their days with ski practice at night and they often were on snow 5-6 days every week during race season.

If the early season is really good, we tend to get more days, if it is not, we usually find other stuff we have to do and either skip a day or the whole weekend. Ditto on late season. There have been years where a lot of yardwork got put off when the mountain was still fully open in late april. Priorities!

Yup exactly this. In the old days when I skied Sunday River in the hay day, it was October to May so the tally could be up to 70 days with Vacation and Holiday. I was just looking back at my old photo albums(LOL what is that) and there are multiple years in a row were we has Halloween ski partiies at the ski house after a rippin day of moguls. Also there are many Snowliege pics from early to mid October. Hardly see that anymore.

 

[Kingslug20]

Spent many years driving every weekend..first to the catskills then to vermont...could rack up 40 to 50 days...but the drive does wipe you out after a while..
This morning took a while to get the legs working..the powder was very slow...guess the super cold temps did that....
You can get worn out doing this day after day..won't mind resting this weekend..

 

[thebigo]

You are a total exception to the rule. Plus there are big nuances and perception swings to this conversation. Keep in mind I have no idea what you do for work. A sales guy or a person with estabished customers that does mostly talking with some paperwork, I understand the flexibility. Also what constitutes a ski day. I draw the line at 3 to 4 hours. The reason I say this is I have a close friend that is a regional sales guy that talkes calls and orders on the phone all day. Takes notes and then gets off the hill to do his paperwork at 3 before the 5:00 close of business. That is not a common full time job. I discussed what I do with 50 to 60 ski days a year. So the characterization of Wholly untrue should be more like partially untrue.

Got hired nearly 20 years ago to field service end users. Noticed a glaring need for automation, spent many years developing a piece of software to address need. Currently have eight heavy users spread across the globe. Daily requirement is answering questions and discussing upgrades; also still support some end users. Time difference with Europe and Australia helps the ski day. Push a handful of updates a year but do all the heavy lifting in the summer. Not sure if this will take me to retirement but haven't run out of money yet.

Personally, parenting cuts into ski time more than work: Dads taxi service, race days, sick kids, doctor appts, etc.

 

[jaytrem]

Yikes! That's gotta be 4 or 5 chords worth. Tell me you have a splitter and don't do all that by hand. I have a Jotul wood stove and a brother in law that can not drive by free wood. Where we live is ruralish and there are a decent amout of woods and power easements that the power company cuts and leaves wood. Every spring I end up with about half of what you have there. We rent a splitter from HD and split the cost. Even with a splitter it is a lot of work to cut rounds, move to the splitter, Split and stack the woood for the year. With Me and My wife it takes 2 days.

Yup, split it all by hand. Probably 6 or 7 chords there. You can't see some of the big ones that are hiding. I can hold 10 total and ran out of space. My father-in-law is going to haul a wood splitter up from Virginia for me. So I'll be doing less by hand in future years. Probably less abuse on the body but still a good workout.

 

[flakeydog]

Yup, split it all by hand. Probably 6 or 7 chords there. You can't see some of the big ones that are hiding. I can hold 10 total and ran out of space. My father-in-law is going to haul a wood splitter up from Virginia for me. So I'll be doing less by hand in future years. Probably less abuse on the body but still a good workout.

I grew up in a house where we heated exclusively with wood, and yada yada yada, i don't have a woodstove in my house. I am pretty good with a chainsaw though...

 

[mister moose]

There's several ways to rack up lots of ski days, here's a list:

Work a job that you can do four 10 hour days and do the 3 day weekend
Work from home job at least some of the days, flex time it, ski a half day
2nd or 3rd shift and live nearby
Ski at an area with a long season
Your vacation days are all during ski season

When I was doing a half share ski house from Nov 15 to May 1, that's every other weekend, 12 weekends, plus some weekdays, I'd do 35 days.
Then started doing full shares, drive almost every weekend, and would ski 60-70 days.
Now I'm able to push that to skiing to June and 80-90 days. And still get the lawn mowed.

As for getting older, I see lots of 70 year olds and a number of 80 year olds.

I know lots of guys that get 150 days, and a handful that get close to 200.

 

[Smellytele]

There's several ways to rack up lots of ski days, here's a list:

Work a job that you can do four 10 hour days and do the 3 day weekend
Work from home job at least some of the days, flex time it, ski a half day
2nd or 3rd shift and live nearby
Ski at an area with a long season
Your vacation days are all during ski season

When I was doing a half share ski house from Nov 15 to May 1, that's every other weekend, 12 weekends, plus some weekdays, I'd do 35 days.
Then started doing full shares, drive almost every weekend, and would ski 60-70 days.
Now I'm able to push that to skiing to June and 80-90 days. And still get the lawn mowed.

As for getting older, I see lots of 70 year olds and a number of 80 year olds.

I know lots of guys that get 150 days, and a handful that get close to 200.

To get 150-200 days you have to ski a lot of fucking shitty days. At that point it is about skiing 150 -200 not about actually having fun doing it.

 

[Andrew B.]

If you ski both days every weekend from mid Nov to late April, you will get ~50 days. Add some bonus days around Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and Feb break and you can get to 60. Beyond that you have to get creative or use some vacation time. We usually get 40-50 even being gone for Christmas week, though we are back for new years and there were a couple of February breaks we got the full 9 days (at the insistence of the kids). They would ramp up their days with ski practice at night and they often were on snow 5-6 days every week during race season.

If the early season is really good, we tend to get more days, if it is not, we usually find other stuff we have to do and either skip a day or the whole weekend. Ditto on late season. There have been years where a lot of yardwork got put off when the mountain was still fully open in late april. Priorities!

Basically this is my program

My PR 81 was in 07-08 when SR opened the chondola and ran it for night skiing til 9PM on Fridays we would get up around 6 and get a few good hours in followed by dinner/beer at the Google.

 

[VTSkiBike]

To get 150-200 days you have to ski a lot of fucking shitty days. At that point it is about skiing 150 -200 not about actually having fun doing it.

Yep. I'm lucky enough to live very close to good skiing and I "only" ski 50ish days a year. I don't even bother when it's too crowded, too icy or just shitty conditions. I did the math and could get 100 days a year if I skied every day possible but I go for quality ski days over the quantity of ski days.

 

[deadheadskier]

I had a few 100 day seasons as a ski bum in Stowe in my early 20s. 5 days a week x 20 weeks. I skied a lot of crappy conditions. I don't really have an interest in that anymore. Most I'd probably do now if I had unlimited time would be 80, but I don't even bother to count my days really anymore. I just know the ballpark amount.

 

[snoseek]

I've taken entire winter's off by choice and lived on the side of a big ass mtn and had a hard time getting 100. On the good years maybe but even then your body gets weird pains after a bit and it gets straight boring. I did 134 one year.

 

[Kingslug20]

Ski shitty conditions...get better at dealing with them...because they can pop up anywhere on the mt. It's like moguls...only way to get better at them is to ski them...
Total sheet ice though...nah...

 

[hovercraft]

There are two types of snow. Snow that is good or snow that is good for you.