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Maggot Beginnings
This is my story of this place, I've wanted to share it for a while especially with all you old fuckers that were around in those days. Also good for the youngsters to learn how this place came to be.
It was 1998 when I found the powmag forum. Back then my time on a computer was at the computer lab on campus. For you young ones there was no wifi and I didn’t own a laptop, shit I didn’t even have a cell phone at that point, still rocking a land line. You can make fun, I never was a tech guy, always late to the party. It was a crazy concept to me that I could get on the computer and enter the ski world surrounded by like minded individuals from all over the planet. It was groundbreaking shit at the time.
Fast forward to December 2001. I graduate with a degree in Finance, job market was fucked, September 11th just happened. The whole thing made me question my very existence, what’s important, what’s not. So I did the only thing that made sense to me. I decided to not get a “real job.” I started a thread in Tech Talk called “heating truck bed.” My plan was to live in my truck for ski season, traveling the mountain west, hitting every resort I’d never seen. Go to all those places that I read for years about in Powder. I was finally going to ski them and in the process figure out what I am supposed to do with my life.
So I skipped my graduation (my parents are still pissed about it), told the university to send my diploma to my parents, packed up and headed west. I kept a journal for this trip and what follows comes straight from it. For you newbs, you want to know how this place got to be this place, read on.
A few things you need to know about me. I believe in Karma, do good things and good things will come to you. Everything happens for a reason. Also quotes/sayings have a way of finding me right when I need them most, the kind of motivational sign you are on the right path. With that said let us begin with this one.
“After we die, we may be set to write an essay on our life story. Fifty years on an office will be found shriveled up to a dot, and a few days in the wilds will expand into the story.” Stephen Graham
I cut this quote from Outside magazine, the clipping is in the first page of my trip journal. It was all I needed to read to justify what I was about to do.
12-30-01
I graduated December 8th, I am unemployed, $3000 in the bank and nothing better to do than be a bum. I insulated the bed of the truck and beginning tomorrow it will be my home. I’ve decided to head to Montana because I’ve never seen it. I’m both nervous and excited as it will be the first time I don’t have friends or family close by. I have enough money to get by and if need be I can get a job. The goal is ski as much as possible. Being a midwest kid I got to ski one week a year at Boyne Highlands in Northern Michigan. From 8 to 18 this was the total of my ski days combined with one spring break where my parents took us to Breckenridge, I was 14 at the time. That was the first time I ever saw mountains and I knew instantly it was where I wanted to be. So here we are, tomorrow the adventure begins.
1-1-02
Spent new years eve in a truck stop off of I-90 in Minnesota, balmy 6 degrees with a windchill of -20. I survived the night but holy fuck it was cold. My 20 degree bag was no match for that shit. Slept with all my gear on and kept P-Tex close for extra heat. (PTex was my lovable, pain in the ass Alaskan Malamute/wolf mix). All my fears are put to rest, I now know I can survive winter in my truck. Who the fuck would want to live in Minnesota, no mountains, cold as F winters with nothing to do. No thanks. (I no longer feel this way Minnesota actually has a lot to do which I discovered later on another trip). Arrive in Sheridan Wyoming.
1-2–02
Met some locals at the bar last night, they tell me of a little ski area about an hour away called Antelope Butte. Small hill but lots of fun terrain, best part about the place is Fat Tire is on draft at the base. They needed help so I traded labor for skiing/beers. Owner was super chill dude. After talking turns out his wife is from MI and knows my parents. Small world.
1-6-02
Made it to Bozeman two days ago. Hit Red Lodge on the way, thank you Powder for the Little Areas that Rock, makes it easy to move through the west. Drove straight to Bridger as it was absolutely dumping, management said I can live in the lot, showed me where to park so I’m not in the way. Early to bed, pow day tomorrow. Woke up at 4:30am to heavy artillery, the whole truck was shaking. 18inches of fresh fell overnight. Sleep was out of the questions between bombing and plow trucks. Note to self maybe resort parking lots are not the best place to park. Waist deep pow, storm day, I have no idea where the fuck I’m going, can’t see shit. The snow was amazing!
1-8-02
FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK. My Tranny blew up on my truck! Truck died on the road to Big Sky. Given where I was I made the executive decision to hitchhike to Big Sky and ski, deal with the truck later. Get the truck towed back to Bozeman. Shop pulls apart my truck, need a new transmission, a used rebuilt one runs $2000. They need my truck for a few days, so I book a room at a dive motel for $45 a night, I am on foot, no truck, no skiing, living by the interstate. Going broke one week in was not part of the plan, though I am sure my parents would welcome me home, it would come with a giant fucking I told you so. I don’t know what to do.
1-12-02
Holy shit a lot has happened the last few days. I was ready to give up, ready to go home, I essentially I had enough money to make it back. A soul crushing moment. Then two things happened. First I bump into a girl I went to school with back in MI. She is a server at Applebees, I was able to bail on the motel, crash on her couch and use her boyfriends pass to ski while he was at work. The second is the powmag forum guys. They want to help, I’m not sure how at the moment but they are trying to figure it out. I have no phone, no mailing address etc. so I don’t really know what they can do but they are encouraging me to continue. I read somewhere once that the real fun begins once you run out of money. Well I’m out of money and it’s not very fun. Am I nuts? Taking the advice of internet strangers maybe not my best idea but it sounds better than living with my parents.
...........to be continued
This is my story of this place, I've wanted to share it for a while especially with all you old fuckers that were around in those days. Also good for the youngsters to learn how this place came to be.
It was 1998 when I found the powmag forum. Back then my time on a computer was at the computer lab on campus. For you young ones there was no wifi and I didn’t own a laptop, shit I didn’t even have a cell phone at that point, still rocking a land line. You can make fun, I never was a tech guy, always late to the party. It was a crazy concept to me that I could get on the computer and enter the ski world surrounded by like minded individuals from all over the planet. It was groundbreaking shit at the time.
Fast forward to December 2001. I graduate with a degree in Finance, job market was fucked, September 11th just happened. The whole thing made me question my very existence, what’s important, what’s not. So I did the only thing that made sense to me. I decided to not get a “real job.” I started a thread in Tech Talk called “heating truck bed.” My plan was to live in my truck for ski season, traveling the mountain west, hitting every resort I’d never seen. Go to all those places that I read for years about in Powder. I was finally going to ski them and in the process figure out what I am supposed to do with my life.
So I skipped my graduation (my parents are still pissed about it), told the university to send my diploma to my parents, packed up and headed west. I kept a journal for this trip and what follows comes straight from it. For you newbs, you want to know how this place got to be this place, read on.
A few things you need to know about me. I believe in Karma, do good things and good things will come to you. Everything happens for a reason. Also quotes/sayings have a way of finding me right when I need them most, the kind of motivational sign you are on the right path. With that said let us begin with this one.
“After we die, we may be set to write an essay on our life story. Fifty years on an office will be found shriveled up to a dot, and a few days in the wilds will expand into the story.” Stephen Graham
I cut this quote from Outside magazine, the clipping is in the first page of my trip journal. It was all I needed to read to justify what I was about to do.
12-30-01
I graduated December 8th, I am unemployed, $3000 in the bank and nothing better to do than be a bum. I insulated the bed of the truck and beginning tomorrow it will be my home. I’ve decided to head to Montana because I’ve never seen it. I’m both nervous and excited as it will be the first time I don’t have friends or family close by. I have enough money to get by and if need be I can get a job. The goal is ski as much as possible. Being a midwest kid I got to ski one week a year at Boyne Highlands in Northern Michigan. From 8 to 18 this was the total of my ski days combined with one spring break where my parents took us to Breckenridge, I was 14 at the time. That was the first time I ever saw mountains and I knew instantly it was where I wanted to be. So here we are, tomorrow the adventure begins.
1-1-02
Spent new years eve in a truck stop off of I-90 in Minnesota, balmy 6 degrees with a windchill of -20. I survived the night but holy fuck it was cold. My 20 degree bag was no match for that shit. Slept with all my gear on and kept P-Tex close for extra heat. (PTex was my lovable, pain in the ass Alaskan Malamute/wolf mix). All my fears are put to rest, I now know I can survive winter in my truck. Who the fuck would want to live in Minnesota, no mountains, cold as F winters with nothing to do. No thanks. (I no longer feel this way Minnesota actually has a lot to do which I discovered later on another trip). Arrive in Sheridan Wyoming.
1-2–02
Met some locals at the bar last night, they tell me of a little ski area about an hour away called Antelope Butte. Small hill but lots of fun terrain, best part about the place is Fat Tire is on draft at the base. They needed help so I traded labor for skiing/beers. Owner was super chill dude. After talking turns out his wife is from MI and knows my parents. Small world.
1-6-02
Made it to Bozeman two days ago. Hit Red Lodge on the way, thank you Powder for the Little Areas that Rock, makes it easy to move through the west. Drove straight to Bridger as it was absolutely dumping, management said I can live in the lot, showed me where to park so I’m not in the way. Early to bed, pow day tomorrow. Woke up at 4:30am to heavy artillery, the whole truck was shaking. 18inches of fresh fell overnight. Sleep was out of the questions between bombing and plow trucks. Note to self maybe resort parking lots are not the best place to park. Waist deep pow, storm day, I have no idea where the fuck I’m going, can’t see shit. The snow was amazing!
1-8-02
FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK. My Tranny blew up on my truck! Truck died on the road to Big Sky. Given where I was I made the executive decision to hitchhike to Big Sky and ski, deal with the truck later. Get the truck towed back to Bozeman. Shop pulls apart my truck, need a new transmission, a used rebuilt one runs $2000. They need my truck for a few days, so I book a room at a dive motel for $45 a night, I am on foot, no truck, no skiing, living by the interstate. Going broke one week in was not part of the plan, though I am sure my parents would welcome me home, it would come with a giant fucking I told you so. I don’t know what to do.
1-12-02
Holy shit a lot has happened the last few days. I was ready to give up, ready to go home, I essentially I had enough money to make it back. A soul crushing moment. Then two things happened. First I bump into a girl I went to school with back in MI. She is a server at Applebees, I was able to bail on the motel, crash on her couch and use her boyfriends pass to ski while he was at work. The second is the powmag forum guys. They want to help, I’m not sure how at the moment but they are trying to figure it out. I have no phone, no mailing address etc. so I don’t really know what they can do but they are encouraging me to continue. I read somewhere once that the real fun begins once you run out of money. Well I’m out of money and it’s not very fun. Am I nuts? Taking the advice of internet strangers maybe not my best idea but it sounds better than living with my parents.
...........to be continued
" ... I will do anything to go Skiing ... There Is no pride ... " (Miriam , 2005-2006 epic)
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