I started skiing when I was nine years old. For the first three years, I skied at one place only–Schweitzer Basin in Sandpoint, Idaho. With a mother working for Northwest Airlines and an uncle who lived in Spokane, Washington, it was a great way to be introduced to the sport. Midwest “hills” just don’t compare to western mountains.

Schweitzer became a spring skiing tradition that continues for me today. Here are some of the other areas I’ve visited over the years:

• Mt. Spokane, Washington
• Breckenridge, Colorado
• Copper Mountain, Colorado
• Keystone Resort, Colorado
• Dartmouth Skiway, New Hamshire
• Lutsen Mountain, Minnesota
• Wild Mountain, Minnesota
• Trollhaugen, Wisconsin
• Welch Village, Minnesota
• Buck Hill, Minnesota
• Afton Alps, Minnesota
• Powder Ridge, Minnesota
• Spirit Mountain, Minnesota
• Winter Park, Colorado
• Big Sky, Montana

I raced slalom in high school at an area in Wisconsin called Birch Park, which is now a golf course and housing development. We also raced at Trollhaugen and Welch Village, if I recall correctly.

My favorites runs used to be steep and bumpy, but as I’ve grown older, I now prefer the steeper groomed cruisers. I’m very old school when it comes to skiing–no snowboards and no shaped skis for me. I have two pairs of long, traditional Rossignols that I’ll ski until they break.

A few places I’d like to get to eventually: Jackson Hole, Aspen, Vail, Beaver Creek, Whistler and the Swiss Alps…DK