People Watching

[liquidfeet]

I do a lot of people watching when I ski alone, which is often. When I'm on the lift with a stranger, I look at their skis, their boots, their bindings. If I notice new skis or boots, I'll ask them how they like their new gear. If their bindings are odd, I'll ask about that. If they are on old straight skis, I'll ask them about that, too.

When I'm taking a break in the lodge, I look at what people are wearing, who they are talking to, whether they are smiling or laughing or not, whether they loosen their boot buckles or take them off, what they are eating. I love to people watch. Many middle-aged and older adults who ski in groups smile and laugh a lot when they are in the lodge. The seem to be having a good time. Teenage and 20-something boys in groups show little emotion, but they are energetic. And they are fashion hounds. Where do they get those jackets??? 20-something males in groups wear less color and also seem to avoid smiling and laughing, but are still plenty energetic and alert to all that's going on around them as they talk quietly with each other. Kids with their parents or in school groups stare, flat-faced and emotionless. They are either just going along for the ride, exhausted, or just really bored. Women sitting at tables alone reading seem calm. At least that's what I see.

When I first started skiing, I didn't notice such stuff. There was too much to see and think about, and I was overwhelmed. But as I get more days on snow, I've become more aware of which skis are waaay long, which ones are brand new, now even which boots are new. And who's smiling.

Do you people watch? What do you notice and think about?

 

[Swamp Dog]

that is really funny that you should ask this question, righ tafter my first day of solo skiing.

I was waiting in the lift line Saturday at Loon and noticed the skis that the woman in front of me was holding. It was an older version of the Atomics that I still had sitting in the car. The graphics were pretty cool and I asked her how she liked them.

So we get to talking, ride up and down together a few times, turns out she's a real estate agent from the town in MA that I just moved from. So of course she knows my street and our house. Turns out we were practically neighbors. She also just started cycling this year and has been riding with the group that we rode with on Thursdays and Sundays.

After 2 runs I went to get my Atomics and never found her again. But what a small world huh? Funny that we meet in Lincoln NH of all places.

I can be gabby at times, so lift rides are usually fun. And you're right about the boys. Who knew they were such fashion hounds! Did you see that jump man? It's like so sick man! Oh man, that ride was so dope! Yeah....talk about feeling old!

 

[Kimmyt]

I like to watch the teenage girls and boys in the ski club flirt with each other.

 

[oragejuice]

And you're right about the boys. Who knew they were such fashion hounds! Did you see that jump man? It's like so sick man! Oh man, that ride was so dope!

Glack. Welcome to my life as a 20 year old female skiier. They're attractive sometimes, and quite a lot of fun to chase around mountains, but some of the stuff they wear, attempt to ski, and say... makes me wish I knew more girls my age who ski.

I heard two guys and a chick talking at the top of the Cone (cinder cone at Bachelor, typical pow day hike) yesterday about their clothing. Granted, they were on snowboards, so I was even more amused, but
Boy 1 -"Oh dude, your pants are sick? Are they Holden?"
Boy 2 - "Yeah, Holden is sick."
Girl - "Oh my god, Holden makes the dopest stuff. The best, all the time."
Boy 1 - "Yeah."
Boy 2 - "Aren't yours Holden?"
Boy 1 - "Yeah, but they arent mine.... Mine are a large, and they sag too much. And not that sagging isn't cool, sagging is rad. I just don't like them."

Haha. Now I'm going to have a semi-permanent aversion to Holden Outerwear, and for no good reason.

 

[liquidfeet]

Glack. Welcome to my life as a 20 year old female skiier. They're attractive sometimes, and quite a lot of fun to chase around mountains, but some of the stuff they wear, attempt to ski, and say... makes me wish I knew more girls my age who ski.

I heard two guys and a chick talking at the top of the Cone (cinder cone at Bachelor, typical pow day hike) yesterday about their clothing. Granted, they were on snowboards, so I was even more amused, but
Boy 1 -"Oh dude, your pants are sick? Are they Holden?"
Boy 2 - "Yeah, Holden is sick."
Girl - "Oh my god, Holden makes the dopest stuff. The best, all the time."
Boy 1 - "Yeah."
Boy 2 - "Aren't yours Holden?"
Boy 1 - "Yeah, but they arent mine.... Mine are a large, and they sag too much. And not that sagging isn't cool, sagging is rad. I just don't like them."

Haha. Now I'm going to have a semi-permanent aversion to Holden Outerwear, and for no good reason.

So where DO they get those clothes? Are they in shops that cater only to boarders? What strange patterns on the jackets and drooopy drawers they have.

 

[Swamp Dog]

Glack. Welcome to my life as a 20 year old female skiier. They're attractive sometimes, and quite a lot of fun to chase around mountains, but some of the stuff they wear, attempt to ski, and say... makes me wish I knew more girls my age who ski.

they can be quite attractive actually (in an "I'm old enough to be your mother" sort of way, not in a "cougar" kind of way). But how the heck could you tell with what they are wearing?

I'll never understand the whole droopy pants thing. Wouldn't it be easier to do EVERYTHING if they were up where they belonged?? I can't imagine riding and worrying about my pants falling down! LOL

 

[oragejuice]

Oooh. I could write a thesis on this. Can I get my masters in Snowsports Fashion??

Alot of the fashions are from boarding companies, yes. But no on the shops. Boarder specific shops will be more over the top, but my ski shop, here in Bend (that probably doesn't help my cause, it's a very hip town...) sells quite a bit of "obnoxious" clothing too.

I'm about to start brand name dropping, forgive me.
Brands like Holden Outerwear, Billabong, Burton, Special Blend, DC, Volcom, Analog, Grenade, Oakley, Spacecraft, Sessions all cater to the popular snow "fashion". It changes, yearly, like every good fashion trend does, but it's snowsport specific. Obviously.

You'll find alot of skiiers wearing this stuff, in an efford to be more of a gangster, hip type of skiier, vs. the North Face, Arcteryx, Patagonia type skiier mold. I think it depends on the area that you ski, but here? Holy moly, all the boys are wearing saggy pants, and BRIIIGHT jackets, along with their Salomon SPK park boots. And they're talking about how cool it is. (Another eavesdropped conversation, "Dude, we're like twins, same sick goggles, and SPK boots, niiiice.")

I think you will find that quite a few ski wear companies are trying to fit the mold as well. Orage has quite a bit of trendy looking stuff this year, and Patagonia, who never EVER has been into doing prints on their jackets, has launched a totally different looking lineup for Winter 2009. Bright colors and plaids galore, I'm not sure what to think. I'm impressed though

Sorry. Soapbox.

 

[ski diva]

Funny story, no lie. On Saturday, a young man came into the ski shop where I work, and his pants were so baggy they actually fell down!!!!

Yes, I sold him a pair of suspenders. :D

What I don't get are the cotton bandanas they HAVE to wear. I mean, I can understand wearing them out west where it's warmer, but here in Vermont, having a wet cotton cloth over your face with no wind resistance can't be fun. Makes me cold just to see it.

 

[MaryLou]

I was shopping TJ Maxx for ski pants for myself. Kept seeing Holden pants, had never heard of the brand. Saw a pair I really liked, kept returning back to them, was going to try them on, then noticed they had zippers inside the cuffs and figured they were for snowboarding. I actually liked most of them - great styling - not too over the top teeny bopper looking. The ones I wanted to try had thick material and a fine beige houndstooth print.

 

[RachelV]

What I don't get are the cotton bandanas they HAVE to wear. I mean, I can understand wearing them out west where it's warmer, but here in Vermont, having a wet cotton cloth over your face with no wind resistance can't be fun. Makes me cold just to see it.

Ha, I ate lunch next to a table of cool dudes at Mt. Snow yesterday and they were talking about the bandanas.

Dude A: "Oh man, my bandana is FROZEN."
Dude B: "Oh yeah? Mine's not."
A: "It must be, it's freezing out."
B: (checking his bandana) "DUDE, MY BANDANA IS FROZEN!"

 

[ski diva]

I rest my case. :D

 

[Robyn]

Funny story, no lie. On Saturday, a young man came into the ski shop where I work, and his pants were so baggy they actually fell down!!!!

Too bad you couldn't get a picture that, it would have been perfect for the Fail Blog! :ROTF:

 

[oragejuice]

What I don't get are the cotton bandanas they HAVE to wear. I mean, I can understand wearing them out west where it's warmer, but here in Vermont, having a wet cotton cloth over your face with no wind resistance can't be fun. Makes me cold just to see it.

I have to chime in on this one. I wear a bandana. 99% of the time. Yes, it freezes on storm days, and yes, I still wear it. Cotton kills, in most situations, but for me? A bandana is perfect. It's light enough that I can still breathe, and don't get hot (I get warm very easily, and I can't stand it.) and it blocks wind, even more so when frozen. And it's not hard to un-freeze. Our breath is usually pretty warm... ;)

Does that make me a gangster goofball?

 

[MaineSkiLady]

Going OT here for a second, for the defense:

FWIW, I don’t wear baggy pants (unless I’ve lost weight and they’re temporarily loose).
Bandanas are cheap. Like .83 at Wal Mart. They’re also frequently given away as free schwag at ski shows, etc., as advertising promos. Not everyone can afford a $22 Powderfish gaiter.
Prior to the inception of polar fleece - when polyester was relegated to disco and leisure suits - we wore cotton. We wore cotton t-necks, combination cotton-wool Duofold underwear, and - yes - cotton bandanas. Sometimes we got wet, sometimes we got cold.
Some things never change...

As to the baggy pants, freestyle, both in skiing and snowboarding is “The” thing. I suggest for those of you who like slim-fit in ski pants - try to do some trampoline training with those pants on. Or some yoga-aerobics (in the cold) - to see how well they move with you.

Back in the “mandatory uniform pants” days when my son was a freestyle instructor, one time, in front of a class of 4 or 5 14+- year old girls, he did a big ollie up to flat-down rail – and ripped those uniform pants from tailbone to privates, flannel boxers now in full view. From that day on (how totally humiliating and embarrassing!), he vowed that any ski school that wouldn’t allow him to wear more...”flexible” pants (in the "proper" color) wasn’t going to be on his list. (And he did have to PAY to replace the leased pants.)

Has the “too big” thing been taken steps too far? Sure. But let’s not forget its origins in greater freedom of movement for skiers and riders who are out there doing things that I could never in a million years even consider.

Defense rests.

 

[Swamp Dog]

As to the baggy pants, freestyle, both in skiing and snowboarding is “The” thing. I suggest for those of you who like slim-fit in ski pants - try to do some trampoline training with those pants on. Or some yoga-aerobics (in the cold) - to see how well they move with you.

there's a difference between baggy and Saggy though. I get the idea behind baggy. But saggy....no comprende. First of all, there's a reason pants have a WAIST. It goes on your WAIST, not around your BUTT. But if they insist on wearing the waist around their butts or even below, it should not be a surprise that the crotch is between the knees. That cannot possible aide movement, which the whole baggy style does. One wrong move and poof! They've lost their drawers. Saggy is more of an "I'm a bad ass" attitude rather than about function.

IMO anyhow.

True story. Last year I subbed for a gym teacher. This one kid, AJ, showed up wearing the usual duds. Squeaky clean white high top Nikes and jeans with the crotch between his knees. And they were playing basketball. Well AJ may be one heck of a player, but he spent the whole period holding on to his pants, either in the front or the back. Had this funny sort of duck like walk as he tried to keep them from falling completely down.

It humored me for the entire class period.

Sorry, what were we talking about??

 

[Robyn]

Has the “too big” thing been taken steps too far? Sure. But let’s not forget its origins in greater freedom of movement for skiers and riders who are out there doing things that I could never in a million years even consider.

Defense rests.

Okay, I think that people here are talking more about the baggy pants where the waistband is down around their legs anyhow which I can't imagine providing more movement at all. But, I understand the need for baggier pants than the typical skier pants for things like freestyle and snowboarding.

 

[pinto]

True story. Last year I subbed for a gym teacher. This one kid, AJ, showed up wearing the usual duds. Squeaky clean white high top Nikes and jeans with the crotch between his knees. And they were playing basketball. Well AJ may be one heck of a player, but he spent the whole period holding on to his pants, either in the front or the back. Had this funny sort of duck like walk as he tried to keep them from falling completely down.

It humored me for the entire class period.

Sorry, what were we talking about??

Tee hee ... one of my best guy buds in college almost got himself shot this way. They were out walking late at night, and the police stopped him and his friend (a burglary had been committed in the area). The whole "freeze, put your hands behind your head" bit, and it wasn't a huge deal, b/c my friend was innocent ... except his pants were falling down and he mindlessly reached down to grab his waistband and yank 'em back up.

Not a good idea to reach for your waistband with a police gun trained on you.

Anyway, all's well that ends well, but he was lucky.

 

[MaineSkiLady]

Sorry, what were we talking about??

People watching.
Hey, this all fits (interesting verb use, ha!).
All these "trends" can be quite humorous, anyway.
The latest one, according to my source, is the wearing of super-huge t-shirts, I mean like 6XL, that hang down to the knees.
My source indicates that it is simply ridiculous. Adds to the absurdity of the hanging pants.
(And how curious to hear a mid-20's person commenting on how "dumb" those "kids" look )

I just like to sit back and enjoy the "show!"

 

[cinnabon]

Funny story, no lie. On Saturday, a young man came into the ski shop where I work, and his pants were so baggy they actually fell down!!!!

Yes, I sold him a pair of suspenders. :D

What I don't get are the cotton bandanas they HAVE to wear. I mean, I can understand wearing them out west where it's warmer, but here in Vermont, having a wet cotton cloth over your face with no wind resistance can't be fun. Makes me cold just to see it.

so true!
I ski alone a lot, and I'm always noticing how little people are wearing and wondering how they are not freezing to death. I love the women who do not want to crush their hair so they just wear headbands, even when it's 5 degrees out.. or guys with a baseball cap that doesn't even cover their ears. I am always cold so I am totally bundled up, so it always amazes me, whether they do it for fashion reasons or just because they generate that much heat that they get hot.

 

[Gloria]

Oooh. I could write a thesis on this. Can I get my masters in Snowsports Fashion??
, and Patagonia, who never EVER has been into doing prints on their jackets, has launched a totally different looking lineup for Winter 2009. Bright colors and plaids galore, I'm not sure what to think. I'm impressed though

Sorry. Soapbox.

Isn't it funny, I was surprised by alot of that stuff too... I really liked a couple of the things though. I don't know if you noticed how "old school" alot of the hardshells were also.

As for people watching, it's funny, I really don't pay attention to what most people are wearing or their skis etc. Unless they give me a good reason to. If someone does something totally ridiculous I might look to see if they are on rentals. It's like a knee-jerk reaction, but not to be mean, I ussually try to help them if they are and need it. But we don't really have very long lift lines and they move pretty fast so if I were to stop and look at anothers stuff in line, I would likely get cursed by someone behind me for not paying attention or something.