Mtn. Mechanics: Pump House & Face Hike

Sam Shamberger

      What I have really come to notice from being at Jay Peak and meeting many different people here is that all the people here are very well informed and truly a wealth of knowledge. Every person we have met has completely opened my eyes to the bigger picture of Jay Peak and the larger scale of the operations that must occur on a ski mountain. I find it really interesting to ride up the chairlift, look out at the west bowl and think of all the thought and planning that it took to oversee and create development plans for that area. I love meeting all the different people from the mountain here and just absorbing all their knowledge.

Maddie Conkling

            Today we started the day with a nice breakfast served and made by me. I made some mean eggs and some crispy bacon. We then all walked through a treacherous snow storm to get a tour of the pump house. We spoke to water park director Scott, about how many lifeguards it takes to run the pump house. It takes 14 lifeguards to run the park in one day. Soon we got a tour of the pumps and machines it takes to run the park. We learned that they make their own chlorine to save money. A few people in our group took on  wake surfing, some failed. To end the day we took on some powder that was untouched.

Egor Goz

            We spend our morning tour in the Pump House, an indoor waterpark. It was very interesting, because in this tour we were actually taken behind the scenes. We saw the necessary machinery to run the waterpark, such as filters, heaters, ph level indicators, etc. Scott, the manager of the pump house, told us how they keep the maintenance. He also showed us the unseeable logic behind the park's organization. For example, the lifeguard are located not only at the places that all of the water is within visibility, but also within distance each can cover in 20 seconds. I would have never thought they have specific numbers like that. He also showed us some small features of the park that people normally do not notice.

           

            Afterwards, I went straight to the lifts for some riding. It was incredibly windy, definitely the coldest day so far. Although, it should be freezing tomorrow. I quickly joined our group, and after some riding we all climbed almost to the very top of the mountain. I guess we just love to challenge ourselves. Some cool pictures, and we are bombing down the hill through trees, enjoying fresh powder, considering all the ice that's been on the trails. 

Mtn. Mechanics: Ski and Ride School, The Adventure Center, and Jay Chamber of Commerce

We started our third day at Jay Peak with some homemade crepes and then left for the Adventure Center. The Adventure Center is the main building for the ski and snowboard school. We met with the Manager of the center and he talked to us about the uniqueness of the ski school at Jay. For example, Jay Peak uses a technique called terrain based learning, where the snow is shaped to make it easier for beginners to learn how to turn. He also talked to us about the importance of work ethic and passion when it comes to success. We then went skiing and ate ramen for lunch down at the chairlift. Later, we met with the Chamber of Commerce who talked to us about the impact of the Ski Resort Jay Peak on the local community. They said that overall the mountain has only impacted their businesses positively and that they have found success through the help of the Resort. -Katschi

Katschi and I started today by teaching the others how much better "Pfannkuchen" (crêpes) are then American pancakes. So they already learned something in the first hour of this day. Then we met the Director of the Adventure Center and he talked to us about his team goals and his business. They are basically trying to create a circle of people. The kids should start learning to ski or snowboard at Jay Peak, go to their 8 week camps, join the ski team, become a junior instructor and a real ski instructor to teach the little children again. This is their way of keeping people at Jay. He also gave us some awesome advice for the future. Our success in life, family and especially jobs comes from our attitude. Always be polite, work hard, don't complain or cause any drama and you will be successful. -Nico 

Today we met with the Director of Ski and Adventure center. We learned how Jay Peak uses a different learning technique in how they shape their beginner trail. They use a pipe like terrain to make the young skiers more confident. The ski school also has about 50 international workers who come on J-1 visas only for one semester to work and teach skiing. Later that night we met with the chamber of commerce to learn how Jay influences their business. We learned that the new Jay is friendlier then the old Jay to the locals. Overall today was a good time.

-Maddie