By Bruce Pratt

“What’s your racing experience?”

“I was born while Dad was stationed in Germany. Learned to ski and did some kid racing at Garmisch, and I’ve skied Brig and Val D’Isère. We were transferred to North Carolina when I was ten. We skied some weekends at Beech or Sugar Mountain, but their seasons are short. When Dad retired, we moved to Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where my mom’s from. I raced for Bousquet while I was in high school but was more interested in girls than slalom then, which is the only event you get good at in the Berkshires.”

“Works for me.” I hired him for course crew, which requires expert skiing without poles on all terrain and the ability to endure extended hours on the mountain in all weather. We shook, and I said, “Orientation’s Saturday. Have a place for the winter?”

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