Skier's Lament

Skiers Lament

Twas three days before Christmas with slopes all green.

Not one single snowflake was to be seen.

A few slopes had a thin coat of snow.

And some hardy skiers were into the flow.

The snow makers were poised to go into action

But the temperature balmy was a distraction.

Hope upon hope that freezing weather will come,

Without the melting of noontime sun.

Forlorn groomers are parked by the wayside,

In hopes of huge snow mounds to ride.

Although skimobiles often navigate the hill,

Four wheelers are the favorite still.

Flags fly high on Welcome Center poles,

Displaying their representative roles.

Country, state and company on display.

Come see ski with us and stay.

Bringing good cheer to those in need

Is the goal of Saturdays Food drive indeed.

A can or two of food secures a ticket free

And warms the heart of you and me.

Come one come all and share in your wealth.

Contribute your largess to the community’s health.

Although I lament this seasons late start,

I wish you all the very best from the bottom of my heart.

Let's Make Snow

Welcome Center

Parked!

Me and My Shadow

    Another early season day on the ski slopes.   With no grooming and an overnight freeze the surface was very firm and rough.   After several runs my feet felt like they were vigorously massaged from the vibrations in travelling over undulations of the surface.   No matter how carefully I edged, I was not able to hold the skis in a comfortable traverse with limited side slip.   I guess the expert racers would have loved this very fast surface.   This kind of day calls for an occasional halt on each run and diversion of attention to other things.   (And a long coffee break to read the morning paper).
    In the last few months I have routinely carried my camera with me.  This has helped me to be more observant of my surroundings.    Perhaps I have a latent bent to look at things with the eye of an artist. I have become intrigued with shadows.   So today when I took one of my breaks on the hill I had a chance to commune with my own shadow as well as the sun and shade on the slope.   (It doesn't take much to amuse me).

Me and My Shadow

Shadows on the Slope

Laced Ski Boots

The Good Old Days?

   I continue to muse about evolution in technology.   One technology that seems to have stagnated is the means for closure of footwear.     Notice that the most common technique for fastening footwear to our feet is a lacing.    For thousands of years we have used shoe laces made from a multitude of materials.   There is evidence of the use of laces as early as 3500 BC.   In the ancient Middle East sandals were the most common footwear.  However in the temperate climates laced footwear was used with a more complete covering of the foot.   Although the material for the laces has improved from natural materials such as leather thongs or vegetable fibers to fabric laces with improved ends, the same basic use of laces prevails.    Apparently in 1790 the modern shoe lacing procedure was invented in England as a replacement for shoe buckles.  Native peoples, however, consistently used a moccasin shoe or laced foot coverings.   Even though we have invented Velcro closures, the ordinary shoe lace remains dominant for almost all of our footwear.
    The notable exception in sports equipment is the use of buckles for alpine ski boots.   However, it appears that laces still work well for snowboard boots.   I am certainly pleased that alpine ski boots have evolved from the leather laced boots I first used in the 1960's.   I vividly remember a spring ski day at Mad River Glen in the 60's when my leather laced boots were saturated with water and no amount of lace tightening would give me any reasonable control of my skis.   Fortunately that was my last day with laced leather ski boots.   New plastic boots with adjustable buckle enclosures became the normal boot for the future ski days.
    I wonder what other technologies have prevailed as long as shoe laces.    Does anyone have any suggestions?

Wimpy Start

     Today was the first day of the 2011-2012 ski season at Greek Peak.   The only way I could characterize it is, a wimpy beginning.   Most of the first two weeks of December has been warm with essentially no lasting snow.   Only in the past week have we had enough cold weather for snow making.   Enough snow making to open one slope from top to bottom.      Today's surface was mostly groomed frozen granular that skied fast.   Fortunately the crowd was small and conditions did not very quickly deteriorate.
    A noticeable improvement at the top of Elysian Fields was a new Ski Patrol building.  (See photo below).   I expect this will enable a patroller to be stationed at the top of the hill to respond quickly to an emergency.

 New Ski Patrol Building 

    If there was a roll call for Geezer Skiers I am happy to say there was a respectable representation.  The following would have been present for duty:  Andy, Pat, Bob(no poles), Harold,  and Gerry.   Also maybe three others whose names escape me at the moment.   We all played cautiously in view of the conditions.   Meanwhile we are looking forward to improvement of the conditions with new snow making and some natural snow.   Let us hope that the quality of the season improves as we move into the new year.
     Happy Holidays to all!

Honoring the 90+ Geezers

    I have the pleasure of playing tennis on almost a weekly basis with a group of geezers.  Some are near my age but at least three of our group are much older with a couple in the 90's.   I particularly admire the 90 year olds who still have the vigor, enthusiasm and competitive spirit for the game.   Our doubles play is mostly for the joy of the game but we all  like to do our best to win the set.   Our 90 year olds may not move as fast as they once did but they still have the strokes that have been honed over the decades they have been playing.   They continue to be my heroes and give me the hope to be out on the court  a decade or so from now.  My partners Carman, Alan and Paul for the past week are shown below (none of them are 90!).   Alan, who is still recovering from hip surgery was moving better this time and Carman continues to be my partner in taking on Paul and Alan.   And we hold our own.

Carman, Alan, and Paul -Second Set Score 4-4

    In reflection on living to be over 90 it is good to do so if the quality of life remains high.   This past week one of my former and long time colleagues at the university passed away at age 94.    Up until a few years ago he remained active enough to continue to square dance - a life long pleasure in his life.   Recent years were not so kind to him, but his loving wife along with additional caregivers gave him a good quality of care and comfort in a home setting.   A blessing to have expired in his own home.  

     As I age, I am surprised about how many of my acquaintances and colleagues at the university and in the community have reached or exceeded 90.  I enjoy their stories and wisdom and admire their continued contributions to the richness of our society.   Would it be that we all could age as gracefully as these folks.

Waiting for Snow

     Where's the snow?   It is past Thanksgiving and no sign of snow or even a cold spell to enable snow making.  So the waiting for ski season opening continues.  The skis are sharpened, coats are cleaned and the locker is ready.   The first snow flakes will be greeted with glee.   At least for those of us who are skiers.
     In my daily routine I go on line to check for snow in the Northern Hemisphere and discover even Utah has meager snow cover and only a small percentage of the trails in the open resorts are available. Fortunately I have a number of projects in progress and the tennis nets are still up at SUNY Cortland.   Nancy and I enjoyed singles tennis outside yesterday and doubles with our daughter and son-in-law the day before.  It is good to have an alternative exercise activity.
     I don't know how to interpret the global warming impact on our ski seasons.  Part of the global warming effect on weather is to increase the extremes of weather vis-a-vis climate.   That is we can have weather extremes around climate change in a particular direction.   For example we can have wide ranges in temperatures on a daily or even weekly basis but the overall average temperature can be increasing over a decade.  Who knows what this season will be like?   My records over the past 15 years show that I can get as many as 23 days of skiing before the first of  January.  The lowest number before January 1st has been 8 in 2001 and 2006 when the seasons started December 22 and December 10 respectively.   November season starts occurred four times and post mid December start occurred twice.   I am guessing that we will have a mid December start this year.

There's No Snow On Them There Hills!

     Good things happen for those who patiently wait.  Heres to a great season whenever it begins!
 

Ski Technology Evolves?

     I recently finished reading and summarizing a book titled The Nature of Technology - What It Is and How It Evolves by W. Brian Arthur.  From an  engineering perspective it stimulated reflection on the changes in technology I have observed over the 76 years of my life.   There is no doubt that society has not only seen an evolution in technology but has also seen revolutionary changes in technology.   The author goes to great lengths to define technology and then to examine the elements that contribute to technological development.    He speaks to the structure of technology, invention, modularity, recursiveness, phenomena, domains, combinations and evolution as elements of the fabric of technology.   This is the first time I have encountered such a comprehensive analysis of the broad concepts of technology.
    As a result of my new learning I am inspired to apply it to the evolution of technology in skiing.   If technology can be considered a means to fulfill and human purpose then we should be able to see how technology has evolved to enable us to downhill ski.    Not just to ski but to ski with more pleasure and skill as time goes on.    Most geezer skiers remember the days of leather boots, long wooden skis,  bear trap bindings, woolen clothes and rope tows.   Boots, skis, clothes and lifts have made enormous strides of technological improvement over the last 75 years.   Engineering a better product demands applying knowledge and new and improved technologies that evolve to provide a better solution for a given purpose.   When dealing with an engineering design problem, I would always advise my students to remember that solutions would depend on dealing with geometry, properties of materials and forces.    Within those elements of a solution an understanding of different phenomena was essential.   In the ski industry there have been great strides in incorporating new materials and geometries in the construction of skies, bindings and boots.    Analysis of forces generated in skiing both on the skis, boots and the person has reached new levels.  
    Will skiing technology continue to evolve?   The answer is yes.  However, the rate of change is likely to be both gradual and radical.   Past history demonstrates this.   The transition to shape skis was a radical transition that took the ski industry by storm.   Since that radical change, manufacturers have been tweaking the shaped ski for varying terrain, people and snow conditions.    Recently the adoption of rocker shape design has introduced a new variation of ski shape.   In my opinion, boot design has a lot to be desired.   Most geezer skiers have experienced  many different technological developments for boots.   However,  no single boot technology has evolved that guarantees a totally satisfactory functional and comfortable fit.

Rockers - The New Wave?

      As the new ski season approaches I will be observing the rate of adoption of the rocker skis by the general skiing public.   Will this evolved technology sweep the industry?  And what will be the next wave of skiing technology?  Maybe we will see another new way to descend the snowy hillsides.  Who would have thought snowboards would be a ubiquitous way to ride in snow?