Working for One of America’s Most Hated Ski Corporations
Why would you ever!
Well, I’ll tell you why, so while I cannot specifically name the corporation I work for, I will tell you there are two people in this life, those that bitch about it, and those that do something about it. While being a lifty is a part-time gig for me, I know the days of being a lifty at the local hill are few and far between, 3 mountains less than hour from me, and yes they are all owned by one ski company, however my home mountain strives to keep it local, you’ll be hard pressed to find out of state plates, or that cliche resort feel, no water parks, no big hotel, no fancy bars, just locals and parking lot apres. That’s one of the reasons, another is I always wanted to work for a mountain, the pay was never there to quit my day job in IT or finance, but part-time? I could do that, my goal was one thing, see how things worked, how the decisions were being made, and be part of the experience we all know and love, and if you think one person can’t make a difference, you most certainly can, be a leader, don’t just be a worker, learn the job and do it well, if your humble and love the sport of skiing and riding and the atmosphere, this job is for you, if your a know it all dick, cocky, “better than everyone else” then this job is not for you. Sorry not Sorry, if you can’t approach with new ideas and open mind, then do your own thing.
The Hiring Process
While back in the day you could be hired just for a great attitude and joint rolling skills, it’s very different today, I was actually shocked, there were 3 levels of background checks, Your normal criminal check, FBI Background Check, and a deeper one to check if you ever hurt a child, your own or somebody else’s. I was like sheesh at first, am I applying for the CIA🤷♂️, but makes sense, no company wants to be known for hiring the person that harms a guest, let alone possibly injure them on purpose. After that just bumping chairs right? How hard could it be? Well you have to learn about the workings of lifts, emergency controls, opening and closing checks, crowd control, Emergency Response, and keeping guests safe. Your ability to recognize and react to situations quickly can prevent a serious injury to yourself or a guest, our fixed grips weigh over 600lbs, there is very little room for error.
The Training Process
So bump a chair, hit start and stop, we pass the test right? The training was intense, first was computer training and online tests, then live training where you will demonstrate your lift knowledge, also a written test will be administered, and a hands-on test. The test also consist of ramp maintenance, crowd control, snow maintenance, controls, and emergency response. Beyond that tough real talks with lift maintenance, lift mechanics, your main supervisor, team leads, and ski patrol. The attitude was put very simply “if you screw around on the job, or are on your phone, you are off our mountain”. In Pa for instance, if you pencil whip the lift check paperwork, and something goes wrong, not only is the resort liable, the lifty themselves can also be held liable in civil and criminal court. So yea, the training was way more intense and informative than I ever thought it would be.
The Working Environment
The atmosphere was charged, just like skiing and riding, the excitement of just being at the resort at night and early weekends I must say the stoke is high. Your supervisors enjoy talking skiing, boarding, and park just as much as you do, and your peers and guests do too, the early morning uphill crew stoked and greets you as you arrive to the mountain, once you get to lift ops, grab your tool bag, check in, get your expected crowd counts that way you can build a Maze for loading. Upon building the maze, you have to prepare the ramps, de-ice lifts, clear out ice and snow, and your supervisors will check in 45 mins before opening, ski patrol will clear after they ride your lift and check your ramps. Somedays especially after storm recovery is hard, clearing lifts, low clearance areas, just a number of things make it especially challenging. Very few people will understand the rush and effort and work it takes to prepare the resort for opening, this is on top of the the tasks you already have for checking the lift components and controls, you got two hours to do it most days, the race is on!
Ok Mr F’n Social Butterfly, All Was Good Right?
Well, not exactly, resort conflicts do arise, such as rivalries with ski school, ski patrol, peers, even groomers, get into it with it groomer and good luck digging out your lifty shack in the morning. Ski School peeps some are cool, some just think lifty’s are lazy weed smoking peeps, that do not take skiing and riding safety seriously, some ski patrol think the same thing, but honestly, all in all, Have the conversations, share the stoke, enjoy the time on snow, just like any job, you won’t always agree with your peers or leadership. But I can’t say that there was ever an issue with my voice being heard reasonably.
In Closing
What I can say is that the benefits are good, I watched people get promoted to their dream jobs up north and out west, I really felt like part of the team, I also thought the emphasis on safety was top notch. The GM of the resort was very hands on, not the case everywhere, Nor will what I experienced be the case everywhere. But i’m happy working there, I think over the years they have listened to their customers, listened to their staff, and started executing that plan, still not perfect, but then again what ever is…..I will be returning this season for sure, and thank your mountain staff for all they do, they all play an integral part just so we can enjoy our time on snow.
Skiing With No Filter 