Backcountry at Crystal - Ski Patrol Authority

You may also eventually find that Joe is one of the nicest and most giving people that you would ever want to meet.

Ron, ahhem..... I think you forgot to mention that I and PNWbrit are really nice as well. An oversight maybe?

Ron's right, Joe's a sweetheart............... unless you reveal one of his secret stashes and then he makes you burn your skis.

This exhausted CookieMonster participated in unsanctioned Powder Eights on the Silver Basin headwall today ( JoeDaBaker took his run and then a few minutes later I finished the figure eights without his knowledge or permission. ) This was followed by another game of Powder Eights down the backside into Crystal Lakes Basin.

SkiSeattle, if there is another powder day this season, would you like to come play? We can even play Powder Eights in the "true backcountry" on the other side of the ridge. I will bring the cookies.

Ron's post (his rather constricted views on panties aside) offers a nice, balanced perspective which I'll paraphrase as follows:

Each side is being offered an opportunity to learn from the other. It's your choice, Joe, whether you want to take away a better understanding of how such situations might come to be despite the best efforts of all concerned. It's your choice as well to think about the various ways in which your undeniably heartfelt responses might be rendered with more understanding of alternate points of view, therefore more effectively. I put it this way because my own experiences tell me that it's often not enough to be "right;" it's far more satisfying to be both "right" and effective in communicating my point of view. I don't know you, but I somewhat suspect you're already aware of this.

Likewise, SkiSeattle has a perfect opportunity to take note of how decisions which seemed quite rational at the time might have been improved for safety's sake....as well as certain ways in which his/her initial communication didn't quite come across as was apparently hoped. Now that the original incident is an accomplished fact--along with some very public reactions--what's available for refinement is future action. What will you try to do differently next time?

This perspective brought to you courtesy of a rainy morning in Buenos Aires combined with a surplus of idle time in the absence of any topographical features or other points of interest.

milquetoastedly yours,

Mark

Ron, ahhem..... I think you forgot to mention that I and PNWbrit are really nice as well. An oversight maybe?

Most assuredly.

Sorry I didn't get in on this sooner, but it was just brought to my attention. (Thanks D.) It's nice if more people understand the world within which ski areas operate, so they can recognize the importance of the 'safety' message and help spread the word. Thanks everybody for helping with that!!

In terms of Seattleski's original question, one has to realize that many many laws have a degree of "grey area" and discretion built into them on purpose. For instance, think in terms of open container (alcohol consumption) laws. State/county laws don't change because you're camping, but if you're sitting at a remote campsite drinking a beer with your dinner, a sherrif's deputy who wanders by (?) isn't under obligation to arrest you. Make sense?

Crystal Mountain (the company, not the terrrain feature) is a Forest
Service Special Use Permitee. Alta Crystal Resort, the charming little inn down the road from Crystal is one too. So are logging companies. You can probably imagine that they are 'authorized" to restrict access to the general public at times, in the interest of conducting their business, and not just because of safety concerns. There may be no written law that restricts campers from setting up their tents in the playfield where Alta Crystal is holding one of it's summer evening campfires, but similar to what many TAY posters have suggested here, insisting on interrupting them is socially a little wierd. When one insists on being too socially wierd for the community standard, other laws come in to play.

Virtually ALL ski areas on FS property close parts of their terrain at times for events, be it the pro mogul tour, the X-games, the Olympics, or Crystals little powder 8's thing. If you want more info look me up at Crystal, I'm on the patrol. OH--MOST IMPORTANTLY--my apologies for times that I and my co-workers act rude. We try to be nice but sometimes the crowds and weather put unexpected stresses on us, and we get cranky! Please don't take it personally!