Mad River Glen poached by snowboarders

[SueNJ]

Did anyone see/read about this? Someone at work mentioned it to me yesterday and I did a little research and found this photographer's web site with some photos: https://www.mikeriddellphotography.com/mrgburton/index.html

Apparently this is an ongoing quest for Jake Burton (as in Burton snowboards) and he's got a challenge, worth $5,000, for the person or persons who come up with the best video documentation of their escapades of "poaching" any ski areas that don't allow snowboarders. On the day of the ribbon cutting for the new single chair lift at MRG (in December), a group of about 40 boarders, dressed in head-to-toe white, hiked for almost 2 hours up the back of the mountain where the single chairlift is and snowboarded down the mountain into the crowd at the base, apparently amid cheers from the crowd. I have to admit, the photos of them coming down the mountain are pretty cool, almost eerie and ghost-like. It's also a visual testament to what a lousy idea it is to wear white clothing to go skiing or snowboarding!

Their theme was "Glad River Men--Poach It If You Can!" The MRG marketing director actually thanked Jake Burton, saying it was the best advertising MRG has had in a long time. Great stuff! :D

 

[ski diva]

I heard about this on NPR.

Someone they interviewed for the piece had an interesting perspective, though. They said that MRG is a cooperative; that is, it's owned not by an individual or a corporation, but by a group of skiers. They said that if Jake Burton is so concerned about MRG allowing snowboarders, he should put his money where his mouth is and buy some shares. As they said, "Show you care, buy a share."

Think he can afford it?

 

[SueNJ]

LOL, yeah, I'd say Jake can afford $2000 for a share!

The co-op needs a two-thirds majority to make any changes in the rules of the ski area, so ole Jake would have to round up some of his buddies to get a share in the co-op as well.

I was surprised at how reasonable a share is, but my SO pointed out that co-op members are also responsible for coughing up additional $$$ throughout the year for any capital improvements or expenditures made.

I've yet to ski The Glen--maybe this year...

 

[abc]

I was surprised at how reasonable a share is, but my SO pointed out that co-op members are also responsible for coughing up additional $$$ throughout the year for any capital improvements or expenditures made.

Kind of like owning your own house!

You're re-doing the kitchen one year. You're putting a new siding another. A new furnace here, a new dishwasher there. The money sinks into the house and you just got used to it. After all, the new kitchen look nice. And the new AC is "cool". You get to enjoy it. That's the main benefit.

You get to have a say in keeping MRG the way you like it, even if you don't always get what you want. Kind of like your husband putting his workshop in where the car used to park (aka garage). Still, you have a say and your partner(s) more or less share similar likes and dislikes. So the end product tend to be a lot closer to what you want than a random "developement" of a mega resort.

With a house, you THINK you'll get your money's worth one day. Though looking at the mortgage fiasco, I'm not so sure. With MRG shares, you don't have illusions. You just enjoy you own property.

 

[SnowHot]

This was the weekend we were at Stowe.
The people at MRG were hospitable about it and didn't make a huge stink of it which took a bit of wind out of the Burton Sails.

One thing Jake(Burton being his middle name, and the name of the company) is doing is encouraging rule breaking, which will only emphasize the renegade image of snowboarders, instead of elevating them to the place they deserve, which is a snow sports enthusiast
Who can't love a snowsports enthusiast?

 

[ski diva]

One thing Jake(Burton being his middle name, and the name of the company) is doing is encouraging rule breaking, which will only emphasize the renegade image of snowboarders, instead of elevating them to the place they deserve, which is a snow sports enthusiast
Who can't love a snowsports enthusiast?

I agree with this COMPLETELY!!!!

 

[SueNJ]

This was the weekend we were at Stowe.
The people at MRG were hospitable about it and didn't make a huge stink of it which took a bit of wind out of the Burton Sails.

One thing Jake(Burton being his middle name, and the name of the company) is doing is encouraging rule breaking, which will only emphasize the renegade image of snowboarders, instead of elevating them to the place they deserve, which is a snow sports enthusiast
Who can't love a snowsports enthusiast?

That's a good point. I was mainly looking at the photos and thinking about how the guys in white looked against the snow. My finishing comment in my original post, "great stuff" was regarding MRG's reaction to the whole thing. I was impressed with their attitude about the event. It was basically, they can ride down the mountain once, no big deal--they'll never go back up on a chairlift, though. Kind of like dealing with a child's temper tantrum.

Both of my SO's kids (17 and 20) are snowboarders, and both are great people, respectful and polite. Like any teenager, they can have momentary lapses of common sense, but once they're called on about it, they "get it." Renegade or not, I feel that the people in the Burton stunt are passionate about their sport, which is why they did the stunt. They just happen to be snowsport enthusiasts who don't mind breaking the rules to make a statement. Skiers and snowboarders who ski/board out-of-bounds at ski areas are breaking the rules as well, the only difference is that they're not seeking the publicity that the Burton guys wanted. The fact that Taos is now going to allow snowboarding as of later this season just adds fuel to their fire.

But I agree with your point--for many, this stunt just contributes to the negative perception about snowboarders.

 

[SnowHot]

But I agree with your point--for many, this stunt just contributes to the negative perception about snowboarders.

I agree with the entirety of your post, and am a touch angered by the negative twist Burton is putting on them instead of making some kind of real outreach to show the awesome side of snowboarding.

My nephew snowboards. Loves it!
Amazing young man tours to help young people commit to abstinence.
Currently on a gymnastics team that has a mission and profound goal. Now 20, I wonder if he'd ever skied past the age of 12 if it weren't for snowboards.

I owe Burton a debt of gratitude for this contraption. It offered me a lot of awesome years on snow with my nephew and his friends.

I won't tell you of some of the interesting chat about Burton at Stowe. Makes me wonder about the ethics of the company. But I'm not the morality police so I'll just stay in my little world.

 

[SueNJ]

I agree with the entirety of your post, and am a touch angered by the negative twist Burton is putting on them instead of making some kind of real outreach to show the awesome side of snowboarding.
...
I won't tell you of some of the interesting chat about Burton at Stowe. Makes me wonder about the ethics of the company. But I'm not the morality police so I'll just stay in my little world.

No doubt, Burton has his own agenda. But he's recruiting people who, in some ways, are unknowingly supporting his agenda.

I do know that, in the case of MRG, snowboarders were initially allowed on the mountain, but the single chair presented a loading/unloading hazard for boarders. Betsy Pratt initially banned boarders from using the single chair, but there was apparently a to-do about that, so she banned them from the place altogether. The cooperative has continued to uphold the ban. My feeling is that, as long as there's a single chair lift, there will be no snowboarders allowed.

 

[SueNJ]

My nephew snowboards. Loves it!
Amazing young man tours to help young people commit to abstinence.
Currently on a gymnastics team that has a mission and profound goal. Now 20, I wonder if he'd ever skied past the age of 12 if it weren't for snowboards.

Forgot to add, it's people like your nephew who will uphold and promote a positive image for snowboarders. I love hearing about people like that!

 

[Severine]

Interesting pictorial. (Though the white on white is problematic :D though at least they look unified.)

I've heard this isn't uncommon in that many a snowboarder has hiked the mountain and earned their turns - they're just not allowed on the lifts.

That said, the whole campaign reeks of teenage rebellion. Not the best way to get what they want. I agree that Jake Burton should just put his money where his mouth is. It's not like he can't afford to become a shareholder at MRG and make a legitimate case instead.

 

[SueNJ]

That said, the whole campaign reeks of teenage rebellion. Not the best way to get what they want. I agree that Jake Burton should just put his money where his mouth is. It's not like he can't afford to become a shareholder at MRG and make a legitimate case instead.

I suspect Jake is stuck in the teenage rebellion stage, even though he's what, 53 years old?

 

[MaineSkiLady]

Talked about this w/my son. He thinks the whole thing is just royally juvenile/bad press/free pr nonsense. Has little use for the man or the company anyway, even long before this tactic. Keep in mind there are a lot of riders out there who think it's bad press for them.

As mentioned earlier in another thread/discussion, there is bleed-through discrimination, however, whereby people may come to think that all snowboarders think this is cool fun. Not. He often reminds me of my youthful days, when anyone with long hair was considered a "communist hippie" (I had the hair, I was neither), when anyone wearing anything in blue denim was considered a radical (wore 'em, wasn't) - it really didn't much matter what our politics were, we were pigeon-holed by our ages and by not wearing polyester pant-suits with teased hair.

Not all snowboarders approve of this. He's actually pretty happy to have watched more and more resorts open up to riding over the course of the 90's. If 4 are hold-outs, so be it. Well, 3 after March.

 

[SueNJ]

He often reminds me of my youthful days, when anyone with long hair was considered a "communist hippie" (I had the hair, I was neither), when anyone wearing anything in blue denim was considered a radical (wore 'em, wasn't) - it really didn't much matter what our politics were, we were pigeon-holed by our ages and by not wearing polyester pant-suits with teased hair.

Funny you should mention this--I was thinking about this very thing this morning while driving to work. The teenagers of the 50s were considered rebellious and disrespectful because of the music they listened to and the way they dressed; the kids of the 60s were those commie hippies; and so forth. It seems that each generation has to do things more drastically in order to shock the old folks (that would be the adults), because each generation of old folks has gone through their rebellious stage and aren't as easy to shock as the prior generations. Is that evolution?

 

[abc]

Except Burton is no longer a teenager.

When you're a teenager, you're forgiven to some degree. When you behave like a teenager when you're not, it's childish.

 

[climber.girl1]

I heard about this poaching contest about a month or two ago, and I actually watched four videos on the Burton web site, one for each of the four resorts. What struck me the most was this:

At three resorts, the boarders had ridden down the hill in a skillful, in-control manner, albeit a little on the fast side. Sure, there were a few tricks, but on two of the resorts, they were on terrain that didn't even have anyone on it.

At the third resort, Deer Valley, the boarders screamed down the mountain doing everything, and I mean EVERYTHING (except sit in the middle of a run) that makes people dislike boarders. They flew past people in slow zones, they cut across people's tips and tails. They scared people. They endangered people. They acted like TOTAL a$$es. And get this. At least two of them were girls!

Watching this with my partner, who taught skiing for nine years, and now splits his time between skis and a board, we both agreed that it was that kind of behavior that kept boarders in a negative light. These are the people who should simple have their passes pulled at ANY resort. But I DO believe they are the minority.

I've seen young people on skis that were just as rude and misbehaved. I don't think it's what you're riding, it's who you are. But to publicize this sort of bad behavior in a "poaching" contest really makes me say "You think THIS will help your cause???":mad:

 

[num]

I agree with the general sentiment that it doesn't matter what equipment you're on: there are mindful skiers and there are reckless skiers just as there are mindful boarders and there are reckless boarders, but somehow the negative behavior is expected of the boarders, whereas with skiers many view the reckless/irresponsible/rude ones as the exception to the rule. Not so if you ask me.

The riders with the self centered attitudes and generally crummy behavior don't help dealing with the stereotype, but thankfully we've got people like SnowHot's nephew and Maine Ski Lady's son out there going above and beyond and being positive faces of boarding

I've seen young people on skis that were just as rude and misbehaved. I don't think it's what you're riding, it's who you are. But to publicize this sort of bad behavior in a "poaching" contest really makes me say "You think THIS will help your cause???":mad:

I totally agree with you, climber.girl. Unfortunately I think it's helping Jake Carpenter's cause of stirring the pot and attempting to further attach a "bad*ss rule breaker" kind of image to snowboarding to help sell his product to the ripe market of youth who would love to spend (potentially their parents') money on a product that they feel will give them cred.

Shame on him for encouraging the behavior that feeds the negative image snowboarding has in order to make a buck

 

[abc]

But to publicize this sort of bad behavior in a "poaching" contest really makes me say "You think THIS will help your cause???"

It's not the skier's perception the "mature boarders" need to work on. It's the juvinial attitude of the boarding industry. Until that changes, the negative image will remain.

After all, that's what the teenager boarders WANT, and what Jake Burton WANT, the rest of us to think of them. Who am I to disappoint?

 

[SueNJ]

Unfortunately I think it's helping Jake Carpenter's cause of stirring the pot and attempting to further attach a "bad*ss rule breaker" kind of image to snowboarding to help sell his product to the ripe market of youth who would love to spend (potentially their parents') money on a product that they feel will give them cred.

Shame on him for encouraging the behavior that feeds the negative image snowboarding has in order to make a buck

You put into words what I was trying to say as far as Burton/Carpenter's hidden agenda. And the people he's recruiting are the youth (who can be rebellious to begin with), who are just feeding his cause.

I think that the ratio of "civilized" poachers (the first 3 videos you watched) to complete a$$holes (the Taos event) is representative of snowboarders in general. I really believe that the vast majority of riders are respectful, considerate, and careful, but that it's the more visible renegades who create the negative image, even though they're in the minority. In life, you can replace the word "riders" in the previous sentence with just about any category of people, and it'll still be true.