Centrics: Snowcentric

Catching up with Liz Stephen, Off-Snow - Carrie Baker

Carrie Baker, one of our in-house Spokes at Muscles Not Motors, sat down with Olympian, cross-country skier and MNM Spoke Liz Stephen to talk about her rockin’ ski season that just ended in April. During Liz's short visit home to Vermont, they enjoyed some spicy Thai food on a sunny day – a nice contrast to Liz’s winter on snow. MNM: Liz, welcome home for a short break before you start up your season again! We followed you and the entire U.S. team this season and it seemed like a home run – can…

Breaking Trail for the Camel’s Hump Challenge - Tristan Von Duntz

Once a year, backcountry (or “BC”) skiers gather in Huntington, Vermont, to circumnavigate Camel’s Hump in the Camel’s Hump Challenge (CHC), and to see a different side of one of the state’s most iconic peaks. The CHC skiers get the chance to try their skills on the mountain and see some of Vermont’s most beautiful backcountry, but the CHC also has a greater purpose than simply skiing: Skiers raise money to support the Vermont chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association.

Four years ago I skiied the…

Getting Winter while Winter’s Good - Nathan Belz

The man with the fancy radar and color gradient maps says there is going to be snow. Suddenly, it’s hard to focus on anything but the barometer. Reading at 9 pm is 29.85” and falling fast.

Sometimes I feel like a crotchety old man when I complain about the winters not being what they used to, but they’re not. Regardless, snow is on its way and you best bet I’m going take advantage of it. I’m staring, for literally tens of minutes, at the wall on which I have all…

The Backcountry Came Alive Again: Finally, my Day in Big Jay - Tina Centofante

The winter season has been a bit whacky: Vermont had some great snow fall through the holidays, but then January came and brought some big warm-ups followed by deep freezes – which created some interesting skiing. I ski coach at Jay Peak on the weekends, and didn’t mind being on a resort mountain when conditions were less than favorable in the backcountry. Luckily, February and March shifted back to a more eventful season, and the skiing has been top-notch, especially in the northern Green Mountains. Through February the snow storms came frequently and with a vengeance; winter…

Excuses, No Excuses - Per Tonn

It was one of those snowy early mornings where I was sitting around with my one-year-old son Elliot. (Actually, he is crawling more than sitting these days.) It was cold outside, 10ºF at the most, yet relatively nice and almost sunny. Too much other stuff to do around the house? Tired legs? Feeling kind of cold already, even in here? Well, there are a million excuses not  to go outside in the winter, but admittedly the biggest reason for me so far has been ‘the lack of daylight.’ The problem with that was that it…