Based in the Basebox

Words by Nathan Allen l STE Contributor

You see many of them every day you are on the hill. They are the workers who take your orders, sell you overpriced coffee, pour your beers and bustle around frenetic dining rooms. There are still others, behind the scenes, who are washing dishes, plating salads, grilling, sautéing, cursing and sweating. Many amongst the visible and invisible ski area workers are diehard skiers just trying to make a living.  In this recurring post, I seek out employees who are passionate about their mountain. 

My first visit is to Mad River Glen. I find my visits to this mountain therapeutic, even cleansing. It is a mountain where many of the employees are also owners, they are often shareholders. Here, I met Patrick Haigh who is classified as a rover inside the basebox lodge. A rover stocks the refrigerators, checks in produce orders, takes out the trash and washes dishes. Patrick just completed his master’s degree in education at Goddard College and did his undergraduate work at the University of Vermont. “I would venture to say that I am probably the most educated dishwasher in the Mad River Valley”, he said. 

To take a job as a dishwasher (or rover) when you have a master’s degree indicates something unusual. It is not a position that most would associate with a great deal of money or prestige. This is Patrick’s third season at the Glen and he explained what keeps him coming back. “It quickly became a second family. I work with some amazing people. Everybody who works here does it because they love this mountain and love to ski. Our work schedule allows us to ski during the day.”
 MRG has succeeded in representing itself as it chooses. There is no pretension or delusion of grandeur. People know what they are getting. MRG eschews the corporate resort vibe and are dedicated to preserving the traditional soul of skiing. This attitude attracts principled employees like Patrick who care deeply for the mountain. Keeping things simple seems to make for a pleasant work environment.

In addition to getting skiing time scheduled into his work day, Patrick finds a philosophy that is worth adhering too.  As he sees it: “The place can keep itself solvent by not putting itself out there. They don’t spend a bunch of advance capital on stuff that may or may not ever pay off. There is a lot less stress because it is easier to stay the same. The fact that the mountain is a skier owned cooperative means that pressure is off to squeeze every last dollar out of the guest.”

Having an experienced skier and employee like Patrick guide you around MRG made it one of my best days ever skiing there. He showed me a few stashes and told me the names of a few glades you won’t find on the trail map. While were catching our breath on Fall Line Patrick told me that he learned a lot about the terrain here by working on the mowing crew one summer. “This trail is mown by hand”, he tells me. “It’s much too steep for any kind of tractor”.  I was imagining push mowers and gas powered weedwackers but Patrick clarifies, “You know, with a scythe.”  After I learned this I had a better appreciation for MRG’s commitment to old school trail clearing and their business model in general.

This skier owned area is lucky to have dedicated employees like Patrick who support the traditional, unique character of the mountain. Whether he is pruning trails with a tool invented over 2000 years ago or washing dishes between runs on a powder day, Patrick is living the dream at MRG. Patrick sums it up: “There is a dynamic to this place, there is something about it. It is a special, special place. There is a great deal of pride here. The mountain is a classic and remains largely unchanged.”