Author Archive: Rick

The SKI CLUB PICNIC  was very successful with 90 participants.  Weather was beautiful and food (especially the home-made ice cream with loads of toppings) and games were played and enjoyed by all..

• Joe called the meeting to order with seventeen people attending.
• Ron Sarver reported $4713.94 in the treasury.
• Dot Easter and Terry Barr agreed to plan a kayaking trip at North Park in September. Watch for details.
• The Annual Picnic will be held on August 25. Be sure to send your reservation to Mary Ann Sarver.
• Mary Ann reported there is one cabin left on the Croatia trip in September due to a cancellation.
• Dot Easter will not be planning a trip to Holiday Valley this coming ski season.
• Judy Neyer reported that WPSC did not meet this month. Details of their activities can be found on their website wpaskicouncil.com.  They have ski trips planned for Mt. Snow, VT on 1/26-1/31/2020; Whitefish, Montana, 3/7-3/14/2020.  Their trip to Cortina, Italy in February is sold out.  Erie Ski Club has two trips posted on the WPSC website.

There were only ten members at the meeting, but we enjoyed dinner together and a chance to complain about the endless rain.

The Annual Picnic is set for August 25 at the Grubbs Pavilion in Hampton Park.  Mary Ann will be sending the RSVP form sometime this week.

The trip to Snowmass is filling with 30 seats already booked.  Mary Ann has a hold on 42 air seats out of Pittsburgh.  She mentioned that it’s beneficial to buy trip insurance when you register for the trip because then pre existing conditions are covered if you need to cancel.

Keep Judy Neyer in your prayers as she underwent surgery in the past week.

Ron Sarver’s Treasurer’s Report showed $4164.98 in the budget with no money owed to us or due from us.

The Christmas party was discussed and Mary Ann will try to book the party for a Sunday evening in December.  More information will be coming later.

Bill King is planning a biking/hiking trip to Niagara on the Lake for August 14-15.  If interested, contact Bill.

Mary Ann is planning a trip to France in September, 2020 and already has 28 people signed up.  Let her know if you would like information on the trip.

Would anyone like to run the kayaking get together for our members this summer – probably in late August/early September?  Let Joe know.

This trip began to unravel once we arrived at the Reno Airport.  Actually, we had very turbulent flights and were just happy to land at the Reno Airport.  Several suit cases did not make the flight so we spent some time sorting that out.  You will not believe it – the luggage beat us to the hotel in Mammoth.

It all began once our charter bus company picked us up.  Her first words were “I have a bad back and cannot lift anything.”  She then proceeded to sit in the coach while we threw bags in the lower compartment.  Soon we realized that it wasn’t going so well – bags came on and off at a ferocious rate.  Needless to say, some things were put in the coach as well.  Fifteen minutes later, we arrived at Walmart for our 45 minute grocery stop.  Now the challenge was – where do we put the many bags of stuff including bottles of beer and wine, etc.?  The bags ended up in the overhead bins and under seats or even on your lap.  We had a 3 ½ hour bus ride to look forward to.  Once settled in our seats and ready to head to Mammoth, the driver announced a detour because of extreme winds that would add an additional two hours to the journey.  Then she said that we may not be able to get to our destination –“what do you want me to do?”  As trip director, I had to make the decision.  Great!  Find a place in Reno and take our chances on next day travel or move on and hope the road is opened over the next three hours.  Since we just purchased hundreds of perishables, I decided to hope for the best as the driver said usually the winds die down in the evenings.  So off we went!  Bishop, 30 miles from our destination became our home for the night.  Lodging 43 people was a bit of a challenge.  After several stops with not many vacancies, we were told of a Red Roof Inn and Travel Lodge directly across from each other that are used to boarding bus loads. We could fit our group between both places for the night.  At this point, everyone was tired so we booked and stayed.  Morning came and news was no better.  With the possibility of another night in Bishop, we began the search for Uber, shuttles, small vans and locals to take us to our destination (The roads were open for smaller vehicles just not large buses or tractor trailers).  Some people managed to hire locals and departed.  Just then, the roads were opened and we could depart.  We scrambled as fast as possible to move on.  Just a note, we did not remove the larger bags from the bus so we slept in our clothes and the hotels provided tooth brushes.  The thought of removing and replacing all the bags was just too difficult (although some luggage was needed for medicines and had to be removed).  Nothing is ever easy!

Several people who booked airfares into Mammoth separately from the group to avoid the long bus ride never made the trip.  They were told that it would be three days before they could get a flight, so they opted to go home.  That was the worst thing that could have happened, and I am sorry they had to miss this very eventful experience.

Our journey from there was fine and we found ourselves at a nice, convenient location in time for some to ski the afternoon.  Good new powder was found, but we had missed our scheduled mountain tour that was postponed until Sunday morning as Saturday is super busy in Mammoth.  The winds and snow began at a ferocious rate.  The roads and roofs were already at capacity so we watched in amazement as the snow movers blew snow to heights never before seen.  Travel around the resort was a challenge for those wanting to see the area or find activities to fill their time.  Sixty mile an hour winds with snow blowing weren’t the best for the outdoor pool and hot tubs.  We are a hearty group and some managed to trek to the only hot tub with hot water after an adventurous day on the slopes.  Congratulations to those brave souls.  Never in my many years of ski group trips have I ever seen so much snow and felt so much wind before.  You would think that no one would venture out.   But as I said, we are a hearty group and since lift tickets were nonrefundable, there was no choice but to go.  There were many adventures to be had and stories to be told and remembered forever.

Needless to say, we had a group “happy hour” scheduled.  Once we arrived at the designated place, I found they had booked another group in our place.  Well, since we did not prepay and the other group did, we were shown the door.  Everyone managed to find a good place to eat so all was well.

Monday was a beautiful “bluebird” day and everyone that could ski took to the slopes and had a fantastic day.  Thank God!  We thought the worst was over.  Unfortunately, another storm came though and the winds picked up again to 60 or more miles per hour and snow came down in feet, not inches.  Our die hard skiers loved the new, fresh powder on every run even if they could not see two feet ahead of themselves.

Since I wasn’t skiing, Marge and I tried our best to amuse ourselves.  There is a beautiful area known as Tamarack a short shuttle ride away; but due to breakdowns and unreliable shuttles, we tried unsuccessfully for two days in a row to get there to snowshoe.  Our beautiful bluebird day was lost to one of those breakdowns and we never had another chance as the weather did not cooperate for the rest of the trip.

So after the farewell party held in my condo, we went to bed with the howling wind and heavy snow accumulation predicted.  We had only our prayers for an earlier departure to work in our favor.  Snow was coming at an even faster pace and we were becoming more doubtful that there would be a departure at all.   Some folks didn’t trust that we would be able to get out so they found a shuttle and left a day early.  As it turned out, the storm ended and we were looking at another beautiful “bluebird day.”  But then the driver called to say we would be delayed for avalanche control.   Oh well—what could we do?

It was a short delay and after another interesting luggage loading experience, we were on our way.  Things were looking up as the scenery was outstanding and delighted us all.  Believe it or not, our luck was changing.  We stopped at another Walmart (I think they are taking over the world as I speak.) and found they were promoting their new on-line grocery service. They offered us delicious grilled cheese sandwiches and vegetables and snacks for free.  They didn’t seem to mind that we were just travelling through.  I guess since Walmarts are everywhere on this planet, they figured they would get that lunch back in the near future.

Well, what a week to remember!  Guess what, our flights went well with few bumps and great views of the mountains.  Happy days! After all that, I believe, that everyone had a good time regardless of problems and weather conditions.  Ski people are real people and find the best in all conditions.

THERE IS ANOTHER TOPIC OF IMPORTANCE TO THE CLUB

I have made the difficult decision to pass along the job of Ski Trip Coordinator.  I have found someone who I think will benefit the club by taking my place.  She has attended our ski club meetings and has the desire to handle ski trips.  Below is a little bio about her.

Her name is Patty Ann McLaughlin, a young 59 years of age, with great credentials.  First of all, she loves the sport of skiing.  Her background includes ski patroller at Hidden Valley for over 20 years.  I met Patty Ann though my son, Dan, who also was a ski patroller at Hidden Valley where he met Patty Ann and became the best of friends.  She has done groups in the past and is willing to add to that experience.

Fate brought her to us when she moved to Aspinwall from Somerset about the same time that Dan moved in with us as his cancer was progressing.  She made it a point to stop everyday on her way home from work to see Dan.  He looked forward to her company and she became a welcomed visitor and is now a family member.  She gave him something to look forward to everyday and soon we all looked forward to her visits.  She knows I am not the best cook (Ron thinks that I am a good cook though), but she still endures meals and holidays at our place often.  We love her and hope that the club will as well.

I know that she is extremely capable and will be an asset to the club.  Hopefully, she can bring new blood and vitality to our group.  She is charming and helpful, as I was able to observe on our trip to Mammoth.  She was a great help with all our problems and jumped in with both feet to make phone calls, load and unload luggage and help anyone that needed a hand.  Plus she was a great hostess at our farewell party.  I don’t think I could have handled all our troubles without her help.  She is eager to lead groups.  I told her I would get her started and introduce her to the right people so that she can begin to lead groups to new exciting destinations. She may offer some hiking and biking trips as well.  She is an accomplished athlete so you never know what might come next in new ideas and adventures to explore.

I am certainly not leaving or stopping other trips, as travel is in my blood; but it is time to move along and let someone else handle the ski destinations.

Please welcome her and give her your cooperation as she begins to build some terrific trips for you all to experience.   You can send her an email with your ideas or support to pamclaughlin323@gmail.com.

As a side note, Patty Ann is also a real estate agent.  She has worked in Somerset and after moving to Pittsburgh sold patio homes and single family homes for Traditions of America.  She is now beginning to work for Berkshire Hathaway as an independent agent again.  Anyone looking for an agent to buy or sell their property would be in good hands with Patty.

Thank you one and all for allowing me the privilege of leading so many wonderful trips to glorious mountain regions.   I will always be grateful for those experiences and the wonderful friendships along the way.  You won’t be rid of me so this ‘no way’ is a goodbye.  It just frees me up to do other things and places to explore.

Sincerely,

Mary Ann Sarver, Director of Activities for Der Sitzmark Ski Club

COUNT HOW MANY TRIPS YOU WERE ON.

84 TRIPS ARE LISTED.

(There were other trips to Holiday Valley, New York and Snowshoe, West Virginia and other trips that I have no dates or records)

February,  1989 – First Ski Trip to Smugglers Notch with 8 participants

March 4-11, 1990 – Park City – (Park City, Canyons, Deer Valley) – 22

February 16, 1991 – Blue Knob – Bus One Day Trip – 41

March 9-16, 1991 – Sun Valley, Idaho 30

June 21-23, 1991 – Annapolis Maryland – Sailing Trip

1992 – Can anyone remember?  I think it was Winter Park, Co.

March 21-28, 1993 – Whistler/Blackcomb Canada – (Sightseeing plane & Tantalus Icefall) – 45

November 7-14, 1993 – Dolphin Cruise – Eastern Car – S.S. Seabreeze. – (Nassau, San Juan, St John & St Thomas) – 40

March 6-13, 1994 – Ski Lake Tahoe, Nevada  – (Heavenly, Squaw Valley, Kirkwood,  Alpine Meadows  &  Northstar) – 50

April 30-May 1, 1994 – Toronto – Phantom of the Opera-Crazy for You – 44

October 5-16, 1994 – Ireland and London & Wales Tour – 19 Ladies

March 11-18, 1995 – Sun Valley, Idaho – 58

May 6-7, 1995 – Toronto – Miss Saigon – 42

August 26-27, 1995 – Seven Springs Tennis Weekend  – 13

November  5-12, 1995 – Cruise – Seawind – Southern Car (Aruba, Grenada, Barbados & St. Luica) – 13

March 1-8, 1996 – Banff and Lake Louise – Chateau Lake Louise 3 nts and Caribou Lodge in Banff 4 nts.– (Banff, Lake Louise and Norquey)  – 60

November 2-9, 1996 Cancun – Charter – All Inclusive Blue Bay Resort – 26

March 7-14, 1997 – Breckenridge, Colorado – (Breckenridge, Arapahoe basin, Vail and Keystone)  – 70

May 21-31, 1997 – Germany – (Private Charter Bus – Cities – Frankfort, Rudeshein, Heidelburg, Rothenburg and Munich)  Biked in Heidelburg.- 27

August 26, 1997 – 12 nights – Alaska Cruise and Tour on Regal Princess – (Anchorage,  Glacier Tour, Denali Park, Fairbanks, Dawson City, Whitehorse, Narrow Gauge Rail Trip to Scagway, Cruise Glacier Bay, Sitka & visited Vancouver) – 36

March 8-15, 1998 – Whistler/Blackcomb. Canada – Tantalus Lodge – (1 nt at Hotel Vancauver) – 83

October 9-10, 1998 – Wellsboro, PA  – Bike Trip – Wellsboro Historic Hotel

October 25-Nov. 1, 1998 – Aruba  – Holiday Inn  – 26

January 17-22, 1999 – Mt Sutton, Canada Ski Trip La Paimpolaiose – (Mt. Sutton, Owls Head,  Jay Peak)  – 35

March 8-15, 1999 – Big Sky, Montana – 66

May 20 – 31, 1999 – Italy Tour –  (Milan, Venice, Florence, Siena, and Rome)- 41

February 13-22, 2000 – Innsbruck Ski Trip Hotel Grauer Bar)–(1 nt. Munich at Platzl Hotel)  – Stubai Glacier, St. Anton, Kitzbuhel, Axamer, Seefeld) – 77

April 24 – May 1 – 2000 – Punta Cana-  Iberostar  – 15

March 6-13, 2000 – Steamboat Springs – The Ranch Condos – 48

2001 Eastern Townships Canada Estrimont Hotel -(Mt. Sutton, Owls Head & Orford)  40

February 24-March 3, 2001 – Park City, Utah – (Park City, Canyons and Snowbird) – 44

March 12-19, 2001 – Lake Tahoe – 40 Lakeland Village Condos  (Hornblower boat to Squaw Valley – Skied Squaw, Heavenly, Kirkwood and Virginia City Tour) – 40

October 14-19, 2001 – Las Vegas – New York, New York Hotel – 17

January 20-25, 2002 – Mt Sutton, Canada – The Inn (Mt Sutton, Owls Head and Orford) – 45

February 14-21, 2002 – Telluride, Colorado – Telluride Lodge Ski In/Ski Out – 44

March 5-12, 2002 – Banff – Jasper Lodge 3 nts and Banff Springs Hotel 4 nts – (Marmot Basin, Lake Louise, Norquey and Sunshine and Icewalk)  – 71

Oct 19-26, 2002 – NCL Cruise – Western Car. –(Gr. Cayman, Roatin, Belieze and Cozemel) – 16

January 26-31, 2003 – Mont Tremblant, Canada – Lodge – 28

February 27-March 10, 2003 – Cortina Italy Hotel Corona – (Side trip Venice and Rome)-52

March 31-April 7, 2003 – Vail Colorado – Vail and Beaver Creek – 38

November  6-13, 2003 – Moon Palace Golf and Spa Resort – Cancun, Mexico – 20

February 13-23, 2004 – Interlaken, Switz.- 2 night Zurich –2 (Day trip Zermatt) – 52

March 9-16, 2004 – Big Sky, Mt., Big Horn Condos. –  (Yellowstone Snowmobile Tour)-42

April 30-May 9, 2004 – Holland Barge (Lisa Marleen) & Bike with one night Gent – 28

January 31-Feb 7- 2005 – Sun Valley, Idaho – 40

February 27 – March 6, 2005 – Aspen, Colorado – (Aspen, Aspen Highlands, Snowmass and Buttermilk) – 51

March 12-19, 2005 – Jackson Hole, Wy – 22

Feb 5 – 22, 2005 – St. Thomas – Wyndham Hotel – Grand Beach – 16

June 14-15, 2005 – New York Bus Trip – Wellington Hotel – Pirates vs. Yankee – 28

February 5-12, 2006 – Crested Butte, Co – The Plaza Condos  – 50

February 27-March 6, 2006 – Copper Mt., Co – 80 – Cooper Mt and Keystone, Co

May 13 – 20, 2006 – Moon Palace Golf and Spa Resort, Cancun, Mexico – 20

January 29-Feb 6, 2007 – Steamboat, Co – 29

February 27 – March 5, 2007 – Big Mountain, Mt. Grouse Mt. Lodge – 75

April 24 – May 6, 2007 – Greece – Athens  3nt, Myconos 3nt, 4 nt cruise – 82

February 4-12, 2008–Park City, Utah – Park Peaks Hotel–Park City, Canyons, Deer Valley -69

February 26 – March 4, 2008 – Aspen – The Gant – (Aspen, Snowmass, Highlands and Buttermilk) – 48

October 30 – Nov., 6, 2008 – Cancun Palace, Cancun, Mexico – 18

January 26, 2009 – 10 days – Costa Rica – Caravan Tours – 7

February 7 – 14, 2009 – Sun Valley – Sun Valley Village Condos – 18

February 26 – March 5, 2009 – Beaver Creek, Co. – Ridgepoint Condos – Beaver Creek and Vail – 85

April, 2009 – Princess Cruise to Panama Canal – 14

November 2 – 9, 2009 – Palace Golf and Spa Resort – Punta Cana – 26

February  6-13, 2010 – Telluride Trip – Bear Creek Lodge – 24

February  20-28, 2010 – Crested Butte, Co – Emmons Suites in Grand Lodge – 51

October  21, 2110 – 7 nights at Grand Moon Palace Resort – Rivera Maya, Mexico – 26

January 29- Feb 5, 2011 – Park City – Park Peaks Hotel – 14

February  23-30, 2011 – Tahoe – Harrah Hotel –  Heavenly, Kirkwood, Alpine Meadows, Squaw Valley. – 50

May 11, 2011 – Princess Cruise – Copenhagen and Baltic Sea – 55

February 29, 2012 – Steamboat, Co – 60

September 15-22, 2012 – Train – Colorado – Mayflower Tours – 34

October 18-25, 2012 – Beach Palace, Cancun, Mexico – 20

February 10-18, 2013 – Telluride, Co. Mountain Lodge – 28

February  20-27, 2013 – Winter Park, Co – Zepher Mt Lodge – 28

August 6-12, 2013 – Alaska 3nt cruise and 11 nt land – (Anchorage, Fairbanks, Wittier Flords boat trip, Denali Park, Dawson City – 36

November 14 – 21, 2013 – Hard Rock – Punta Cana – 18

February 25- March 4, 2014 – Jackson Hole, Wy – Lexington – 65

Oct.  22 – Nov 2, 2014 – Portugal River Cruise – Mayflower Tours – 3 nts Lisbon –  36

November 17-24, 2014 – Cancun, Mexico – Playacar Palace – 36

February 25-March 4, 2015 – Snowmass, CO – Villa at Snowmass Club Condos – (Aspen, Highlands, Snowmass and Buttermilk) –  65

October  8 – Nov 2, 2015 – Australia/New Zealand/ Fiji – 28 days – 16

November 16-23, 2015 – Palace Spa Resort – Jamaica – 43

February 24 – March 2, 2016 – Crested Butte – The Lodge – 78

October 27 – Nov 3, 2016 – Cancun, Mex – Moon Place Golf and Spa Resort – 36

February  23 – March 2, 2017 – Steamboat, Co – Chateau Chamonix – 60