I worked at the Alta Peruvian Lodge that season and it was a magical experience. Last week I went back and found a powder stash that was over the knees deep. Long live Alta! Thanks for sharing.
I watch this when I'm feeling down and remember that I'm thousands of miles from Alta, and it reminds me that ski seasons right around the corner, and I'll be back out to the place I love in a few months!!!!!!!!!!! love this video!!!
Aaah, the jet turn. I had the "Jet Stix". The seventies were truely the finest times for me, skiing that is. Thanks for sharing your memories, it brings back many of my own! Bob
This is classic stuff. As an east coast guy going to school in VT in the late 70's, this is exactly how I remember it (except we never had nonstop bluebird skies or 40" fresh pow, but we could sneak a keg up a lift for a friday afternoon frollick in the bumps). Turned my son onto skiing at age 3. He also went to school in VT, though he decided to stay and works in Stowe today. Smart kid! Stowe opened on Nov 22, with 18" of freshies. It's gonna be a great season!
Nice! I was but a wee young man (5yrs old) in 1974! It looks like it's the middle of the day and it isn't tracked out at all! I ski Alta about 20-30 days a year and it's tracked out by noon, EASILY! Plus, those boards are TWIGS! Makes me feel a little silly skiing pow on my 130mm Salomons! Had to be WAY harder back then! Great video!
going back to SLC next month for first time since March '74. I skied 210 K2 Comps, Look Nevada GP and Lange Std with the blue, oozing bubblegum liner. Nice! Happy to report I have new gear now. Great video! Love the Hanson's and pants!
I went out to Winter Park the year they opened up that Mary Jane side. I was going to head up to Boyne Mountain yesterday but couldn't get the energy up to drive up there after watching your clip. Been there done that to often at Boyne. Although, Michigan did have a banner year for snowfall. Its all snowboarders now at the Michigan bumps; scraping away the snow and giving the skiers hardpan to ski.
This is really interesting. I was a ski bum in Utah in the winter of 1973-1974. I lived in Salt Lake City and skied all five areas alternately, but most at Snowbird, which in those days was cheap and empty. I never did find any of the great powder shown in the film. Probably got up too late or didn't know where to look. Also I notice the sun was shining. That's unusual for January at Alta. It must have been a great day. Thanks for the memories.
I've watched this video so many times. I lived in Utah for 10 years from 98-08 and those spots looked the same the year I was born (73) as they did when I left. This is what makes Alta the real deal !!
This is great. I love the red ski pants with stars? on them? And back in the day, they were skiing long, straight skis. Impressive stuff and really fun to watch.
Yes, I remember the wars over ski length. I think I had 198 K2's on during this film (I'm in the red Gerry down jacket). I don't think I ever tried anything less than 180's for bumps because I had control problems at higher speeds. Those Hanson boots felt great, but limited the motion of the lower leg.
to me, this video doesn't express the actual action of skiing, it defines the culture of skiing. the music, and footage expresses the attitude that all real skiiers radiate. after actually skiing Alta, this opinion just becomes more real every time i watch this video. Alta is for skiiers.
Awesome video. Brought me back to thinking about Rosemount boots, cable bindings and a $3 lift ticket at a little bump in Minnesota called Buffalo Valley! Great song too!!!
I patrolled Caberafe for 3 years, more or less to get some free skiing for my son at a young age and to wear the "duds". That came to a halt when my son took up hockey. Caberfae has been improved upon considerably. Looks like I may be actually headed out to Alta in the next few weeks. My brother-in-law has a place out there and I haven't been out to see him since they bought the place. He and I were skii budddies like you and Rock in the 70's.
Amazing how so many of the trails are still exactly the same - but you can see when they pan to Mineral, that it looks like that whole side wasn't even touched yet. LOVE the 'Bird!!!!
Thanks, I've never skied the East, but Rock did ski at Mount Snow sometime during 1971. He said it was below zero (F) and the wind gauge at the top was pegged to it's 40 MPH limit! Take care, and watch that frost bite.
man that was great to see. i'll be spending a few weeks working out there this winter, can't wait to see some snow like that. won't be skiing it on 200 cm sticks like you guys did though
Great! Stein Eriksen forever! A few years back I saw a German made short about him from the 70s. They just followed him down the slope filming his style. Yellow ski suit.
Excellent, I never had a bad day at Alta from '82 thru '97. How I miss the "freshies" there, but I've switched mainly to snowboarding now, and haven't been there since leaving Utah in '98. An irony is Alta allowed snowboards in the early '80s, before other resorts, only to ban it and remain a skiers-only holdout long after most resorts allowed all forms. Thanks for the vid, shot on 8mm I guess? Must be some good stories from those 100 days?
I grew up at the mouth of Little Cottonwood and learned to ski in 1969 at the age of 5. I've skied all the resorts in Utah and several in various parts of the country, but Alta will always be my 1st choice. In fact, I won't ski anywhere else nowadays. My kids board, but they understand that there is nothing like riding Supreme and enjoying the mountain on a pair of skis.
I skied on 195 K2s, but had moved down from 203s a couple of years earlier. We had a 25 yr reunion in 1999, and skied together for a week. I live in So. Cal and they live near Chicago. Before youtube, probably 20 people in total had seen the film (it pre-dates video). Had we known it would be seen by so many, we probably would have worked on our form!
Mary Jane had some good bumps. I never skied Boyne but I remember it was the banner resort in lower Michigan. I did ski Caberfae in 1965 while in 8th grade and had a great time.
Skiers DID rush to powder then, but it was just after the Christmas crowd left, so we had some time to get untracked snow. We didn't spend time setting up shots. This film is unedited (no frame removed) and covers about a 30 minute period of skiing. It's great that you're now in SLC. Mark
We skied about 100 days (exclusively at Alta) that year on a $135 pass. It had snowed for a couple of days and the canyon had been closed the day before this film was taken. The Christmas vacation crowd had left, and we woke up to find this beautiful clear day. I didn't want to take my camera up the hill, but in retrospect, it was worth it. I did ski Snowbird quite a bit in the late 70's and early 80's (the pic next to my name is from my 77-78 pass). Those are great memories.
I ski the east and tend to go out west every other year and was out there about 25 years ago. I gotta get back there. Got a good laugh with the pants. I was probably out there with something similarly as loud, but just can't admit to it right now. LOL But you know what I'm taling about. Bright orange pullover with lime green shoulders and collar. Red pants. You gotta laugh!!!!
Ya, I went from Hansons to yellow Langs and am still skiing them today. I went back up in length after the Hart freestyles and ended up with 190's but now am skiing the shorter shaped skiis. I love the unweighting action in the vid; classic. Had the white then the dark blue Hansons and evied the red ones (red was a cool ski color back in the 70's). Sprayed silicone into my Hanson's just to get in them.
The song is Shambala by Three Dog Night, and we were listening to it during that ski season (1973-74). The song reached #3 in the Charts during 1973 (I bought this digital version from iTunes).
It was a small, relatively light, super 8 mm "film" camera (Argus/Cosina model 708) that I bought in 1971 to replace my old regular 8 mm. We didn't have video cameras in those days. But your right about the weight of the early video cameras. You had to carry a heavy camera AND the entire tape player. Have fun ski-camping, it sounds fun.
Mark,Thanks for sharing this video. I went to BYU 81-85 and was on the Mens Gymnastics team. We skied Alta every chance we got! I wish we would of thought of having a great memory like this. Well everytime I play this video it reminds me of the Day! We go back every year with the kids and they love it. I just showed them the video and they are ready to go, only two months from tomorrow. Thanks again. P.S small world we live in Barrington IL.
The were great until the wax broke down! Nice high backs to aid sitting back for those jet turns too! I've never skied Alta.. it rained the day we were to go so we went night skiing at Solitude. Got epic pow at Snowbird though and didn't know what to do in it!
You should definitely convert it. I've got some footage of Vail from 1971, but I never filmed there on a day like this one. Of course we were ski bums at Alta that year (1973-74) so we were bound (with ~450 inches/yr) to have some great days.
Thanks for posting this video. The seventies were my heydays of skiing. I'm guessing you guys must be around/near 60. I'm 64 now and getting ready to get way back into skiing.
I actually have an Astraltune in storage; the one I was wearing when I fell and twisted my knee at Snowbird and wrecked my cartilege.
Some folks can't walk and chew gum. At the time I apparently couldn't ski and listen to music.
Again, I love the video and the choice of 3DG tune. It really seems to sync up.
Thanks. You might be surprised that absolutely no one commented on those pants back then. In those "Tie-dye" days, those pants were not considered unusual!
Now I"M jealous! One nice thing about the Westward Ho run is that it's so steep, you can see the road and lodges below....and you can figure out exactly where this filmed 34 years ago!
I went out and bought the Hart Freestyle skiis after watching Wayne Wong do his thing with the "outrigger" and "jet turns" off moguls. Dang, those were the days!
Winter Park is where I wasn't allowed to ski Drunked Frenchman and some other mogul runs on the Mary Jane side with my Hart Freestyles. Your ski buddy; thought he was Robert Redford for a second. ;-)
Yes, Stein had a unique, fluid style that was never replicated by anyone else. Although my nickname was Stein, you can see from this 8 mm film (I'm the one in the red down jacket) that I was no Stein Eriksen.
Those jet turns were fun. I bought some "jet sticks" in the late 60's that fit into my leather boots to "rocket" out the turns. I think Jean Claude Killy perfected it in the racing world, and Wayne Wong perfected it in the bumps. I almost forgot about the "Wong banger".
From Rock: "They replaced the original Collins, and extended it so that it replaced the former Germania lift. The orginal Germ loading area is now a turning station and mid-mountain loading for the Collins. Watson shelter was also replaced and put in a new location to make it more skier friendly with the Collins mid station. We had to walk uphill to get from the top of the old Collins to Watson shelter, but nobody cared because we had to walk up the ramps at each chair loading station.
Yes, Corky was one of the originals. His tricks were smooth and in control. The Hot doggers brought in a more reckless style. Dick Barrymore films cataloged much of this history, and some of it is in the DVD "The Golden Years of Ski films". As for our film, we filmed it on a little super 8 movie camera.
This is fantastic! Shambala is now on my Powder day II ipod play list. For more video of musically inspired powder day skiing, (non metal, cluff hucking inspired) search "ski back bowls of Vail" and have a good chuckle.
The footage from 1:39 - 1:51 ... good stuff. Ya, I bought Corky's "how-to" book with pictures to try and learn some of the easier stuff (forget the aerials). He had them all down pat. Well, I'm hoping to maybe get out to Utah around April 18 for a long weekend with my wife (celebrate my 57th). I see Alta plans to reopen that weekend; some are closing shop the weekend before.
Any chance you knew Ramon (Ray) Winegar? He was a photographer making a promo film for Alta in the seventies. He was there everyday, too. He would carry HUGE cameras and tripods, and could keep up with any of the "Ski Bums". He carried all the equipment up and down the Baldy Chutes many a time. He absolutely LOVED his job. Paid to ski every single day? Good times... I should upload the film he made.
No, I can't say that I remember him, but from your description he had a 16 mm camera and a stabilizing tripod so his films would be professional quality. I would love to see the one that you have.
I will upload it and let you know. He used whoever was skiing that day in the movie, so I thought it could have been you. Yes, it was 16mm. You're good!
Thanks, I appreciate it. Unfortunately, as of Oct 2008, TH-cam began blocking it in many countries by request of UMG, who own the rights to the music. Since they put a link for buying the song, I don't really understand why it's banned in many countries. Take care, Mark
Thanks. Your right. The film isn't about us, but the SNOW and the FUN we had in it. The entire film is unedited & covers just two runs down (we couldn't wait to get rid of the camera). We didn't know how deep it would be, and that first segment was our first introduction (I was in the red jacket). We sucked up quite a bit of snow and joked about getting a snorkel. There were bumps deep under the powder, and they caused some of the "air"-time and back-seat driving.
You did a superb photography job in Super 8 ... it captures the feeling! I don’t see better skiing today with all the equipment improvements! Very sweet of you to share with us!
Back in those days we called our skis boards, and that is all they were, long as well, 205 or 210, it took skill back then to turns those guys…I still like the long skis.
That's funny. I'll let Rock know. I did have another friend that got a ride with the real Redford from the bottom of the canyon that year. We used to hitch-hike every day, and were suprised that Redford would pull over and pick someone up.
Actually, our skis weren't considered long for the day. I think the K2s I skied on were only 195s, short for powder but good for bumps. None of the film is edited, so the 1st half of the film taken west of the Wildcat lift is just one run down. The run we took on the sugarloaf side wasn't steep enough to pull us through some of the deeper powder, as is evident at the very end.
That's interesting. I know that TH-cam converted many videos into mpeg4 for apple TV and the iphone. I wonder if the end url string alters it from Flash to mpeg4.
Ironically, I threw that book out (on how to do hot-dog tricks) 2 months ago to make room during a move (I live in California now). Rock (the guy in the red pants) spent his 57th birthday (Jan 5, 2008) in Utah. He was going to show this video at Goldminers Daughter (34 yrs from the day it was shot), but couldn't get up the canyon due to heavy snow. By the way, I have some film of Winter Park from the early 70's as well, where Billy Kid acted as the pied piper and led people down.
Yes, I still have that red Gerry down jacket and a Roffe jacket just like the one Rock was wearing. Unfortunately, Rock no longer has the red and white starred warm-ups!
You're right, it took quite a while for the main runs to get tracked out, but Christmas vacation was over, and the canyon had been closed the day before. I balked at bringing my movie camera and wasting valuable ski time. But Wes (in conservative brown) volunteered to buy the film and do the first filming, so it was all systems go. By the time we filmed on the Sugarloaf side, the snow was pretty well tracked, but the nooks and crannies were still good.
Hanson boots! Ha. I had a pair. Also, Hart Freestyle Skiis (160's) for the moguls. Remember the resorts out West banning the use of those skiis from certain runs because they help setup uneven moguls compared to the big rounded ones the skiiers with 210 cm skiis skiied over.
dude this is so classic... no comparison to The Caning. plus you can actually tell that the guys in this video are having fun... seems like a bunch of powder skiing zombies in caning
The lines had been heavy the week before this video (during christmas break). But after all of the "tourists" left, there was no wait during the week. By the way, Rock no longer has the pants. But he bought a look-alike pair before vacationing at Alta last week!
I think Germania unloaded near the top of where Collins now goes. If you look at 1:52 on the vid you'll see Germania behind me as I hike up the hill to go to the Sugarloaf side. With the Collins lift, you don't have to hike over this "Pass". Either Collins goes higher, or they shaved down the Pass.
I worked at the Alta Peruvian Lodge that season and it was a magical experience. Last week I went back and found a powder stash that was over the knees deep. Long live Alta! Thanks for sharing.
Mark, that movie made my day! And now I've been posting your link everywhere...reminds me of skiing in the 70's even 80s! Outstanding!
I watch this when I'm feeling down and remember that I'm thousands of miles from Alta, and it reminds me that ski seasons right around the corner, and I'll be back out to the place I love in a few months!!!!!!!!!!! love this video!!!
Aaah, the jet turn. I had the "Jet Stix". The seventies were truely the finest times for me, skiing that is. Thanks for sharing your memories, it brings back many of my own!
Bob
This is classic stuff. As an east coast guy going to school in VT in the late 70's, this is exactly how I remember it (except we never had nonstop bluebird skies or 40" fresh pow, but we could sneak a keg up a lift for a friday afternoon frollick in the bumps). Turned my son onto skiing at age 3. He also went to school in VT, though he decided to stay and works in Stowe today. Smart kid! Stowe opened on Nov 22, with 18" of freshies. It's gonna be a great season!
Hey Mark, it was great chatting with you on the Sunshine viewing deck the other day. Loved the videos. ❤ David.
Nice! I was but a wee young man (5yrs old) in 1974! It looks like it's the middle of the day and it isn't tracked out at all! I ski Alta about 20-30 days a year and it's tracked out by noon, EASILY! Plus, those boards are TWIGS! Makes me feel a little silly skiing pow on my 130mm Salomons! Had to be WAY harder back then! Great video!
going back to SLC next month for first time since March '74. I skied 210 K2 Comps, Look Nevada GP and Lange Std with the blue, oozing bubblegum liner. Nice! Happy to report I have new gear now. Great video! Love the Hanson's and pants!
My hair stood on end from sheer excitement after seeing that video. Thanks for that.
I went out to Winter Park the year they opened up that Mary Jane side. I was going to head up to Boyne Mountain yesterday but couldn't get the energy up to drive up there after watching your clip. Been there done that to often at Boyne. Although, Michigan did have a banner year for snowfall. Its all snowboarders now at the Michigan bumps; scraping away the snow and giving the skiers hardpan to ski.
This is what TH-cam should be brilliant piece..Homemade and with classic pairing of period Three Dog Night soundtrack. Thanks for sharing.
Honestly one of the best things I have seen on TH-cam. Soulful! soo killer- nice work-
This is really interesting. I was a ski bum in Utah in the winter of 1973-1974. I lived in Salt Lake City and skied all five areas alternately, but most at Snowbird, which in those days was cheap and empty. I never did find any of the great powder shown in the film. Probably got up too late or didn't know where to look. Also I notice the sun was shining. That's unusual for January at Alta. It must have been a great day. Thanks for the memories.
I've watched this video so many times. I lived in Utah for 10 years from 98-08 and those spots looked the same the year I was born (73) as they did when I left. This is what makes Alta the real deal !!
This is great. I love the red ski pants with stars? on them? And back in the day, they were skiing long, straight skis. Impressive stuff and really fun to watch.
Yes, I remember the wars over ski length. I think I had 198 K2's on during this film (I'm in the red Gerry down jacket). I don't think I ever tried anything less than 180's for bumps because I had control problems at higher speeds. Those Hanson boots felt great, but limited the motion of the lower leg.
to me, this video doesn't express the actual action of skiing, it defines the culture of skiing. the music, and footage expresses the attitude that all real skiiers radiate. after actually skiing Alta, this opinion just becomes more real every time i watch this video. Alta is for skiiers.
Awesome video. Brought me back to thinking about
Rosemount boots, cable bindings and a $3 lift ticket
at a little bump in Minnesota called Buffalo Valley! Great song
too!!!
I patrolled Caberafe for 3 years, more or less to get some free skiing for my son at a young age and to wear the "duds". That came to a halt when my son took up hockey. Caberfae has been improved upon considerably. Looks like I may be actually headed out to Alta in the next few weeks. My brother-in-law has a place out there and I haven't been out to see him since they bought the place. He and I were skii budddies like you and Rock in the 70's.
Amazing how so many of the trails are still exactly the same - but you can see when they pan to Mineral, that it looks like that whole side wasn't even touched yet. LOVE the 'Bird!!!!
Thanks, I've never skied the East, but Rock did ski at Mount Snow sometime during 1971. He said it was below zero (F) and the wind gauge at the top was pegged to it's 40 MPH limit! Take care, and watch that frost bite.
Wow! Rosemount boots are a real blast from the past. They became quite a hit in 1969 and for a few years following.
Thanks. I'm glad the storms are still dumping deep powder 34 years later!
man that was great to see. i'll be spending a few weeks working out there this winter, can't wait to see some snow like that. won't be skiing it on 200 cm sticks like you guys did though
It's great when you can be a ski bum for a winter. Good luck on your retro ski movie section. There must be a ton of old videos out there.
Great! Stein Eriksen forever! A few years back I saw a German made short about him from the 70s. They just followed him down the slope filming his style. Yellow ski suit.
Excellent, I never had a bad day at Alta from '82 thru '97. How I miss the "freshies" there, but I've switched mainly to snowboarding now, and haven't been there since leaving Utah in '98. An irony is Alta allowed snowboards in the early '80s, before other resorts, only to ban it and remain a skiers-only holdout long after most resorts allowed all forms.
Thanks for the vid, shot on 8mm I guess? Must be some good stories from those 100 days?
Corky Fowler was another of my ski idols from the 70's. Remember the "Hidden Skier"?
I grew up at the mouth of Little Cottonwood and learned to ski in 1969 at the age of 5. I've skied all the resorts in Utah and several in various parts of the country, but Alta will always be my 1st choice. In fact, I won't ski anywhere else nowadays. My kids board, but they understand that there is nothing like riding Supreme and enjoying the mountain on a pair of skis.
I skied on 195 K2s, but had moved down from 203s a couple of years earlier. We had a 25 yr reunion in 1999, and skied together for a week. I live in So. Cal and they live near Chicago. Before youtube, probably 20 people in total had seen the film (it pre-dates video). Had we known it would be seen by so many, we probably would have worked on our form!
trippy... I was 5 then. Started skiing 2 years later. wish it was at alta!
Mary Jane had some good bumps. I never skied Boyne but I remember it was the banner resort in lower Michigan. I did ski Caberfae in 1965 while in 8th grade and had a great time.
Skiers DID rush to powder then, but it was just after the Christmas crowd left, so we had some time to get untracked snow. We didn't spend time setting up shots. This film is unedited (no frame removed) and covers about a 30 minute period of skiing. It's great that you're now in SLC.
Mark
We skied about 100 days (exclusively at Alta) that year on a $135 pass. It had snowed for a couple of days and the canyon had been closed the day before this film was taken. The Christmas vacation crowd had left, and we woke up to find this beautiful clear day. I didn't want to take my camera up the hill, but in retrospect, it was worth it. I did ski Snowbird quite a bit in the late 70's and early 80's (the pic next to my name is from my 77-78 pass). Those are great memories.
I skied Alta and Snowbird at Thanksgiving in '73, just a few months before this video was shot!
that made my day, sweet sounds and classic views of POW even before i was born. bet there was not a border in sight ;)
I ski the east and tend to go out west every other year and was out there about 25 years ago. I gotta get back there. Got a good laugh with the pants. I was probably out there with something similarly as loud, but just can't admit to it right now. LOL But you know what I'm taling about. Bright orange pullover with lime green shoulders and collar. Red pants. You gotta laugh!!!!
Ya, I went from Hansons to yellow Langs and am still skiing them today. I went back up in length after the Hart freestyles and ended up with 190's but now am skiing the shorter shaped skiis. I love the unweighting action in the vid; classic. Had the white then the dark blue Hansons and evied the red ones (red was a cool ski color back in the 70's). Sprayed silicone into my Hanson's just to get in them.
The song is Shambala by Three Dog Night, and we were listening to it during that ski season (1973-74). The song reached #3 in the Charts during 1973 (I bought this digital version from iTunes).
It was a small, relatively light, super 8 mm "film" camera (Argus/Cosina model 708) that I bought in 1971 to replace my old regular 8 mm. We didn't have video cameras in those days. But your right about the weight of the early video cameras. You had to carry a heavy camera AND the entire tape player. Have fun ski-camping, it sounds fun.
Mark,Thanks for sharing this video. I went to BYU 81-85 and was on the Mens Gymnastics team. We skied Alta every chance we got! I wish we would of thought of having a great memory like this. Well everytime I play this video it reminds me of the Day! We go back every year with the kids and they love it. I just showed them the video and they are ready to go, only two months from tomorrow. Thanks again. P.S small world we live in Barrington IL.
Now thats what i call "PROPER OLD SKOOL" !! love it !
The were great until the wax broke down! Nice high backs to aid sitting back for those jet turns too! I've never skied Alta.. it rained the day we were to go so we went night skiing at Solitude. Got epic pow at Snowbird though and didn't know what to do in it!
I hope that didn't come out all wrong. I was just really stoked. You guys can ski well
also, its cool we're talking ski vids on here... it'd be good to see alot more quality ski vids going up on youtube. usually gotta dig for the gold
You should definitely convert it. I've got some footage of Vail from 1971, but I never filmed there on a day like this one. Of course we were ski bums at Alta that year (1973-74) so we were bound (with ~450 inches/yr) to have some great days.
Thanks for posting this video. The seventies were my heydays of skiing. I'm guessing you guys must be around/near 60. I'm 64 now and getting ready to get way back into skiing.
I actually have an Astraltune in storage; the one I was wearing when I fell and twisted my knee at Snowbird and wrecked my cartilege.
Some folks can't walk and chew gum. At the time I apparently couldn't ski and listen to music.
Again, I love the video and the choice of 3DG tune. It really seems to sync up.
This epitomizes what makes TH-cam great. Fucking awesome. And a killer song, too.
Thanks. You might be surprised that absolutely no one commented on those pants back then. In those "Tie-dye" days, those pants were not considered unusual!
Now I"M jealous! One nice thing about the Westward Ho run is that it's so steep, you can see the road and lodges below....and you can figure out exactly where this filmed 34 years ago!
I went out and bought the Hart Freestyle skiis after watching Wayne Wong do his thing with the "outrigger" and "jet turns" off moguls. Dang, those were the days!
Winter Park is where I wasn't allowed to ski Drunked Frenchman and some other mogul runs on the Mary Jane side with my Hart Freestyles. Your ski buddy; thought he was Robert Redford for a second. ;-)
Yes, Stein had a unique, fluid style that was never replicated by anyone else. Although my nickname was Stein, you can see from this 8 mm film (I'm the one in the red down jacket) that I was no Stein Eriksen.
Wow that must really take some effort!
Thank YOU for the comments. Skiing has progressed over the years, but the adrenaline rush from deep powder was the same then as it is now!
Yes, two of us had Hansen boots. They were a little stiff but were great for the "jet turns". Mark
Those jet turns were fun. I bought some "jet sticks" in the late 60's that fit into my leather boots to "rocket" out the turns. I think Jean Claude Killy perfected it in the racing world, and Wayne Wong perfected it in the bumps. I almost forgot about the "Wong banger".
From Rock: "They replaced the original Collins, and extended it so that it replaced the former Germania lift. The orginal Germ loading area is now a turning station and mid-mountain loading for the Collins. Watson shelter was also replaced and put in a new location to make it more skier friendly with the Collins mid station. We had to walk uphill to get from the top of the old Collins to Watson shelter, but nobody cared because we had to walk up the ramps at each chair loading station.
Yes, Corky was one of the originals. His tricks were smooth and in control. The Hot doggers brought in a more reckless style. Dick Barrymore films cataloged much of this history, and some of it is in the DVD "The Golden Years of Ski films". As for our film, we filmed it on a little super 8 movie camera.
This is fantastic! Shambala is now on my Powder day II ipod play list.
For more video of musically inspired powder day skiing, (non metal, cluff hucking inspired) search "ski back bowls of Vail" and have a good chuckle.
The footage from 1:39 - 1:51 ... good stuff.
Ya, I bought Corky's "how-to" book with pictures to try and learn some of the easier stuff (forget the aerials). He had them all down pat. Well, I'm hoping to maybe get out to Utah around April 18 for a long weekend with my wife (celebrate my 57th). I see Alta plans to reopen that weekend; some are closing shop the weekend before.
Wow! you recognized those "futuristic" Hanson's. We loved those boots, but they were a little stiff weren't they?
Any chance you knew Ramon (Ray) Winegar? He was a photographer making a promo film for Alta in the seventies. He was there everyday, too. He would carry HUGE cameras and tripods, and could keep up with any of the "Ski Bums". He carried all the equipment up and down the Baldy Chutes many a time. He absolutely LOVED his job. Paid to ski every single day? Good times...
I should upload the film he made.
No, I can't say that I remember him, but from your description he had a 16 mm camera and a stabilizing tripod so his films would be professional quality. I would love to see the one that you have.
I will upload it and let you know. He used whoever was skiing that day in the movie, so I thought it could have been you. Yes, it was 16mm. You're good!
god i envy these people!! I wish alta was still as good as that, not saying that alta isnt one of the best ski areas in the world!
greatt video i cant wait to go there in febuary!
Awesome song and video
Thanks, I appreciate it. Unfortunately, as of Oct 2008, TH-cam began blocking it in many countries by request of UMG, who own the rights to the music. Since they put a link for buying the song, I don't really understand why it's banned in many countries. Take care, Mark
Shambala by Three Dog Night; It was one of the top songs of 1973. Mark
thats sick, killing it before i was born
Thanks. Your right. The film isn't about us, but the SNOW and the FUN we had in it. The entire film is unedited & covers just two runs down (we couldn't wait to get rid of the camera). We didn't know how deep it would be, and that first segment was our first introduction (I was in the red jacket). We sucked up quite a bit of snow and joked about getting a snorkel. There were bumps deep under the powder, and they caused some of the "air"-time and back-seat driving.
Great!... apparently it has been snowing hard there, hope he is doing a remake!
You did a superb photography job in Super 8 ... it captures the feeling! I don’t see better skiing today with all the equipment improvements! Very sweet of you to share with us!
Back in those days we called our skis boards, and that is all they were, long as well, 205 or 210, it took skill back then to turns those guys…I still like the long skis.
Sounds like you (and throngs of others our age) had similar experiences during the early days of the ski revolution.
That's funny. I'll let Rock know. I did have another friend that got a ride with the real Redford from the bottom of the canyon that year. We used to hitch-hike every day, and were suprised that Redford would pull over and pick someone up.
i wish we still got that much snow
Perfect song to go with it !!
Awesome video.
Actually, our skis weren't considered long for the day. I think the K2s I skied on were only 195s, short for powder but good for bumps. None of the film is edited, so the 1st half of the film taken west of the Wildcat lift is just one run down. The run we took on the sugarloaf side wasn't steep enough to pull us through some of the deeper powder, as is evident at the very end.
That's interesting. I know that TH-cam converted many videos into mpeg4 for apple TV and the iphone. I wonder if the end url string alters it from Flash to mpeg4.
Ironically, I threw that book out (on how to do hot-dog tricks) 2 months ago to make room during a move (I live in California now). Rock (the guy in the red pants) spent his 57th birthday (Jan 5, 2008) in Utah. He was going to show this video at Goldminers Daughter (34 yrs from the day it was shot), but couldn't get up the canyon due to heavy snow. By the way, I have some film of Winter Park from the early 70's as well, where Billy Kid acted as the pied piper and led people down.
Yes, I still have that red Gerry down jacket and a Roffe jacket just like the one Rock was wearing. Unfortunately, Rock no longer has the red and white starred warm-ups!
You're right, it took quite a while for the main runs to get tracked out, but Christmas vacation was over, and the canyon had been closed the day before. I balked at bringing my movie camera and wasting valuable ski time. But Wes (in conservative brown) volunteered to buy the film and do the first filming, so it was all systems go. By the time we filmed on the Sugarloaf side, the snow was pretty well tracked, but the nooks and crannies were still good.
No, the guy in the wild pants is Lowell (nickname, "Rock") Nelson. He lives in Park Ridge, Illinois, and has one daughter and no sons.
You'll have a great time! Mark
sweet tune
i want those pink trousers
That's funny! Thanks, Mark
Hanson boots! Ha. I had a pair. Also, Hart Freestyle Skiis (160's) for the moguls. Remember the resorts out West banning the use of those skiis from certain runs because they help setup uneven moguls compared to the big rounded ones the skiiers with 210 cm skiis skiied over.
a mythical kingdom hidden somewhere !
Pre Astraltune skiing at it's finest. Had to listen to Shambala in your own head.
dude this is so classic... no comparison to The Caning. plus you can actually tell that the guys in this video are having fun... seems like a bunch of powder skiing zombies in caning
Still crazy after all these years?
Righteous. Fantastic stoke.
great video
I can't say I remember him, but he's got a great job (tricky though). Mark
That's what created those excessively long lift lines in those days. ;-)
Great video, that's classic. Did I spy some Hansen boots?
The lines had been heavy the week before this video (during christmas break). But after all of the "tourists" left, there was no wait during the week. By the way, Rock no longer has the pants. But he bought a look-alike pair before vacationing at Alta last week!
The name doesn't ring a bell, but there were many regulars that year that I knew by face, but not by name. Mark
I think Germania unloaded near the top of where Collins now goes. If you look at 1:52 on the vid you'll see Germania behind me as I hike up the hill to go to the Sugarloaf side. With the Collins lift, you don't have to hike over this "Pass". Either Collins goes higher, or they shaved down the Pass.
We used a little super 8 movie camera. It was long before home video cameras were available. Mark
Now That IS BACK IN THE DAY!:>)