anyone take a year off after high school to be a ski bum?

Well it's been a while but here is what I can think of.

Money: Bring lots of it. Really, bring as much money as you can. Any housing that you find will require damage deposit as well as advanced payment (like first and last month rent) Plus you might be there for a month or more before you get a paycheck. Bring at least a few thousand and you won't need to worry about it.

Work: All you can really do is find out when they have the job fair and show up. Don't bother sending a resume because they won't even look at you unless you are there. Try to find a job that interests you, you will be much happier. But if you are going to work in retail or food and beverage, try to get a job at the base of the mountain. If you are working on the mountain, you only work during ski hours and that means no 1/2 days of skiing. Also don't be afraid to take a job and then continue looking for a better job.

Housing: Housing in whistler is harder to find than a job, but one advantage you have is that Staff Residence gives priority to first year employees. I stayed in staff res and it wasn't too bad. You get a tiny apartment that you share with a couple other guys with a kitchen. There's not really much room for living space though. Basically you just sleep and eat there. But it's really close to the village. If you don't want to stay in staff res, show up a week or two before the job fair and look for an apartment.

Basically just pick a date and go. When you get there stay at a hostel until you find permanent housing. Also, in the summer and fall, they allow non staff to stay at residence until after the job fair. Expect to spend $10-15 a night (mabye more). Bring with you dress clothes, resume, references, cell phone (so potential landlords and employers can reach you). Leave your ski crap at home and ask your parents to UPS it to you when you have a perm. address.

That all I can say except GO you won't regret it.

**********************

'Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms should be the name of a store, not a government agency.'
 
Seems like you might just want to go to Aspen, find a job as a pool boy, find yourself a nice sugar momma who loves younger men, and then have her pay for all your skiing, residency, and food....until she gets tired of you....THEN go to college.

 
im doing it.

im planning on *eventually* going to school in vancouver, so i think im gonna stay in colorado next year, maybe move to breck or steamboat. well see...

im so lucky, my dads totaly cool with it.

what about health insurance? do mountains provide for their employees? i broke my hand a couple weeks ago, and mom was so pissed about my 'flipping and unnecessary risks!!!' that she made me pay for the hospital bill. that s an experience i would not like to repeat...

 
thats my plan in 2 years

ECM productions presents... 'Last Man Standing' coming end of Jan.
 
Yea i go to college now but i plan on taking the spring semester off to travel around and ski all over. Never worked for any of my friends though. if you do end up going to school i suggest Montana State. its got some really sick snow and it's not crowded at all

 
as far as health insurance goes: it depends on where you work. some mountains offer it to their employees and some don't because they know what their employees are doing on their free time. I worked at Big Sky and they offer health insurance and have a staff doctor. however, don't expect to get work off or recieve compensation if you do receive an injury on the mountain.

So keep your head and tips up and do whatever the fuck you feel like.

 
yeah, i am doing right now! last year i skied vermont:killingon/stratton for my first year after highschool, this season, i moved to colorado to pursue my goal of being a pro ski-BUM! and i take this shit serious. life's great, i have no regrets, only plans to kick that rails ass tomarrow while my friends think about their upcoming semester, and student loans... lifes short ski hard, real hard!

peace!

i'm not canadian, duhuhuhuh i'm just a little slow.
 
I wanted to skibum it, but now i realize that going to college was a way better choice. I get to go skiing alot, especially during christmas break since my school's break is a little over a month long. I got a pass to the local mountain and rip it as much as i can.

Once you become a skibum, i doubt your parents are going to help you out much, money wise. If you have your own money, yer all set. But working a min wage job wont leave much extra cash.

And you are going to need a ton of loot. Save your hard earned money and spend it on a ski camp in the summer, which you wouldn't be able to do living the skibum life most likely.

Going to college will make your parents happy and they will be much more willing to give you money for skis and passes once they see your hard earned college grades.

All in all, there are many choices in life you could take. I am going to school full time and skiing full time, not much time for anything else. No job, no girl, but i got a pass to a sick mountain and some new skis ...im not worried about anything else.

##

Has anyone ski Bear Paw Ski Bowl? Fun place to ski lots of rocks and icy kickers
 
I would love to crash in Whistler for a while, I've been there and loved it, but 2 things Lie in the way

1) I don't have any $$$$$$$

2) I have been doing pretty good in school and on the ACT, SAT's etc. and can get into a good college, but I don't think they'll take me if i skip a year in between

nice onepiece
 
im pretty sure that a college wont care if you take a year off, i too got good grades and stuff through out highschool (if its not clear, im still in it, senior) but i wouldnt worry about college acceptance.

heres a question, how would it be to go to college relativly close to skiig, so you can ski all the time, and if that isnt enough, does it work to take off the spring semester (if you did you would have half of DEC and JAN,FEB,MAR,APRL, and then half of MAY to ski, thats tons) has anyone here done that?? if so how did it work out for you?

originally posted by chris_64_impala : why do u need a fat ski? huh fatty? yeah thats right u like the chocoalte
 
^ OH. I live near Montana state University, bozeman and i know a few people who have there classes on tue and thurs. They go skiing on Mon, Wed, FRi, sat & sun- pretty cool. i kinda am considering MSU, but it is too close to home

nice onepiece
 
look at it this way, if you stay close to home, your parents can give you more money, and you wont have to try and convince them over the phone. just go out to breakfast with them and be like 'mom... dad... i need a new pair of skis, i broke my old ones dropping a cliff in that powder dump last week' and they will be like 'OH! SURE THING!!, which ones do you want!!??' and then youll be like 'hell ya'

originally posted by chris_64_impala : why do u need a fat ski? huh fatty? yeah thats right u like the chocoalte
 
I'm living with my parents and they won't give me shit even now. I just had to buy new oakleys b/c I broke my old goggles. They didn't pay shit and they're not gonna start when I leave.

 
I got 2 years to go in school, grade 10 right now. I live on Vancouver Island, just west of whistler and all that. I ski at a Mountain called Mount Washington, its pretty rad, its where Mike Douglas grew up. In about 2 months im heading to germany for 3 months for an exchange. When im there im going to St. Moritz in Switzerland for 9 days, gonna be soo rad. But as soon as im done school im heading off for travelling. Theres one thing ive really been considering about where im gonna spend my time after high school. Its whether whistler is a good choice, i know the mountain is like super insane sick, but it is sooo busy. Im thinking of just givin-er at some interior mountain like fernie. Though after that i think im gonna head over seas to the Alps and spend a few seasons there. Ski bumming is the best type of life, im buddies with all the ski bums at my mountain, i ride with them lots. Next year im getting a beacon and shovel and all that and the locals are gonna teach me the back country.

Also another route is guiding, im serious this is got to be the best job you can ever get. I met this guy that was guiding in interior BC and was making 150 a day plus 50 bucks in tips from everyone there. Plus the dude hadnt skied a groomed run in 3 years and he didnt even have his whole guiding course. When he finishes it he will be getting paid 250 a day.

 
well still apply for college cuz if the BUMMIN thing falls through you need a back up. also look at what it will take to get a job in whistler and what not and try to plan it out so you don;t get screwwed and don't get to ski. I'm planning on Bummin a year after college and maybe take winter quarter off next year.

the magazine is called 'POWDER' cool! - my stupid non-skiing friend
 
yeah man thats exactly what im doing now in killington. I wish i went out west but for now this will do. Believe me its hella hard to go back to school, you'll tell yourself 'oh i'll just take a year off to ski and relax from school...' and then you end up staying at the mountain. It takes a lot of will power to go back to school. Oh well good luck.

**************

Rob aka 'Raab'

-4FRNT

 
The best way to go is to get into college, then defer a year. You are still into college and signed up to go in a year, but you can take it off. Most schools let you do that.

 
I think maybe I'll go to college, then be a bum for a while. Also I'm working on my pilots license, I'm thinkin i might wanna fly people BC and be a guide somewhere

nice onepiece
 
i was about 70/30 last year when i was deciding on where to go this year, the 70 saying move out to whistler or mammouth for a year and ski and work...but i decided that i probably wouldnt end up going back to college, so this year im at umass amherst having a hell of a good time drinking all the time and i plan on skiing mt snow basically every weekend cause its about 45-60 minutes away...i still plan on taking some time off before grad school to move out west for a bit

-Craig

the challenge is to be yourself in a world that is trying to make you like everyone else
 
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