Skiing is what I'd rather be doing most of the time. Any kind of sliding around on snow with longish boards is good by me.

I used to teach skiing, first at Big Boulder in Pennsylvania, then at Willard Mountain in New York and finally at Loon Mountain in New Hampshire. I haven't done so in many years but I still keep my level III PSIA Eastern certification up.

I used to say, "Short skis suck, long ski truck!" But now I'm on a pair of 185 Volant Supers and am happy with them. I still have the old K2 KVCs, Dynastar Course Geants and Omeglass IIs around but they don't get out much. The price on the Volants was real nice, free!. My dad couldn't make them bend. The 25 years difference in age and 15 pounds difference in weight is what I think does it.

I finally got new boots in the fall of 2002, Lange Banshee 90s. They are quite a bit softer than my last boots. Previously, I had these nice old Lange Tii boots. They're still comfortable and still seem to work. The only hard part was getting them off on a cold day. Once upon a time I skied in DaleBoots. These were excellent for all-around skiing but they were the pits for teaching. If you didn't keep moving they were colder than going barefoot.

The Volants are mounted up with Tyrolia bindings with a lifter. These are OK and they were on the skis when I got them (see above about good prices). I'd really rather be using Markers like I have on the rest of my skis. The MRR is still the best binding that I've ever used.

Several years ago I put my daughter into a Boeri helmet. I quickly decided, as I had done with bicycle helmets, that I should set a good example and do the same. I've never regretted it. It's more comfortable than a hat, except on the warmest spring skiing days. It has protected me when I've whacked into trees and when I learned to snowboard. Anyone who thinks that a helmet isn't cool should visit a facility where they care for people with brain injuries.