Jackson Hole Skier Mag... Infiltration By a Snowboarder!

Sarah Baca, Jackson Hole Tram Operator

So one day I got an email from the marketing guys at JHMR saying that the writers for Jackson Hole Skier Magazine wanted to do an interview with me about ski town jobs in the valley.  Of course I was stoked, so when Wade Mckoy sent me the questions, I was a little worried because maybe he didn't know that I rode on one plank instead of two.  When I got to the question about "How many pairs of ski's do you own?"  I had to reply proudly, "Well one pair of ski's and eight snowboards."  Luckily they didn't discriminate!  Here's the whole article, hope you enjoy it!

Jackson Hole Skier Magazine page 42

Back to Front Country

The season in the West is just ramping up, with fresh snow flurries the valley rushes into the mountains. The people who inhabit the Hole, that is Jackson, are not your usual breed of human being. The majority of us choose to live our lives in the wilderness that is our backyard and dwell in the grandeur that no multi million dollar home could provide. Yes there are those that come in private jets, stay in their perfectly furnished mountain home and have a personal chef to grill up the most delectable buffalo steaks this side of anywhere; but the majority of us here live to get out of the walls that confine us.

As beautiful as the summers are here in Jackson Hole, the town buzzes with a certain excitement as fall draws to a close and winter fast approaches. People start wearing their boots, bundling up against the cold and fine tuning their equipment in preparation for the coming of Old Man Winter.

We began this season by venturing out into the open to get fresh tracks as well as fresh air on Teton pass. We see all the usual suspects that have reconvened for another Jackson winter. Each one hiking, skinning and trekking to the fresh lines that await us for the year. Those of us that have congregated in the mountains know and appreciate the magnificence found here.

As you hike up you feel your lungs and legs burn as you ascend Glory... and it is... glorious I mean. The beauty of this valley still takes my breath away and I am left contemplating how one could ever go back to a life that most consider "normal." At this point, I wouldn't want to consider anything less than what I do as "normal." I will watch the sunrise from 10,450 ft. as I drink my coffee and start my day of work. I will behold the beauty of the wilderness as part of my daily life. And I will never take for granted what an amazing place this valley truly is.

A New Year

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The Close of the New Year's first day is painted with lavender of the sunset and hue's of blue as the depth increases to the valley. The Snake now slithers across the frozen valley in negative temperatures.

The Grand, she is cloaked in clouds and a white dress of snow... steadfast, magnificent and strong. Pushed by forces beneath the surface that force her growth and keep her young.


Cody in the background of the Tetons is shadowed in orange with the sunlight illuminating the north westerly wind blowing in at 30 MPH. Straight off the nose and then swirling into the bowl. Recycled lines from the south side fill in Pucker Face.

The sun is nearly set and yet I don't want to go into the cabin. When surrounded in such a wilderness unlimited possibilities abound. The New Year has buffed out the old, just as the wind does to the bowl. It's going to be a good one, I can feel it. The world is there for our taking and we can take any line we choose.

Gaper Fools Day

Gaper Fool's Day is one of the holiday's here in Jackson Hole has become a cult classic. Every April 1st Jackson Hole Mountain Resort goes from being a place for hard core's to celebrity's, to being a place filled with gapers and fools.

This year all of the Jackson locals did not disappoint! Everyone in town came out of the woodwork in full costume. There were lumber jacks, hockey players, Mormon Polygamists, big business executives, Prom dresses and more colorful one-pieces than you have ever seen in your life. And luckily for us, there was even fresh snow!

It was a blistery day on the mountain, but well worth the festivities. Our clan went as a group of Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saints, with one husband and five wives. We dressed Pat Spaniger up and his harem followed him around the mountain. We started with a Tram run to the top and all dispersed throughout the hill. A few of us made it to the party at the top of Thunder Bumps where we participated in the "Noon Moon," where about 20 people mooned the 12 o'clock tram. After that it was on! We all flowed down the mountain, with our skirts trailing in the wind; they would spin when we would spin and they would fly up when we hit jumps, and Spaniger's hat flew off a cliff near Tower 3.

The snow was incredible on Gaper Day and we rode until the mountain closed, being as it was one of the best powder day's of the season. However by the end of it, my skirt was frozen to a bell shape and it was time to change. The harem then relocated to Nick Wilson's where the festivities commenced. We met up with our other "Sister Wives" and our "Husband" Pat where we rocked bouffant hairstyles and conservative dresses. The costumes were so convincing that people honestly thought we were religious people who just happened to show up for the Gaper debauchery.

The fun lasted well into the evening and it was a great farewell for my best friend Kara Hawker. She was leaving us in The Hole to move onto a bigger and brighter future in Texas. Our times in Jackson were incredible and there is no one I would have rather shared them with. Enjoy your journey Sis! And we will be waiting for your return in Jackson.