29

Thursday, December 30, 1999

Hey Tim, We Broke the Snowmobile

I was a busser in Snoasis today. We were really busy — like probably over $10,000, which is a lot of burgers and chili in four hours.

After work, I rode down to the base with Tim, who was on his way home for the night, and Andy, and they dropped me off at the mountain employees parking lot. I headed in to Fraser for a grocery run (translated beer for me and beer and cigarettes for my roommate downstairs). The old Safeway has been replaced with a giant new one across the street. Hard to believe that a town of 1,000 can support a mega-Safeway.

I got my same parking spot back and called Snoasis on my cell phone. Gabe came right down to pick up me and the groceries. He brought sled #4 which pulls the Snoasis trailer, so I also brought up my skis, boots, and ski clothes, which I've had to get out of the truck, then put them back every time I ski. The logistics of getting them up to Snoasis just didn’t work out until now.

We got within 200 yards of Snoasis and the snowmobile just died. Since there’s no battery, everything goes, including the lights. We sat there in the darkness. Finally Gabe said, “I know it has a full tank of gas.” I had noticed a burning smell coming up the trail.

Gabe stayed in the driver’s seat and I got off and yanked the starter. It made a rattling noise, so I figured something broke in the engine. Gabe walked up to Snoasis to get sled #8 and discovered that it was at the base. He came back to me waiting with sled #4 and said he would have to walk to the base. I figured it was a bit too cold to hang around a dead sled any longer so I grabbed the six pack of wheat beer, left all my stuff for later, and walked up to Snoasis. When I got Jessica’s beer to her, there were five bottles. I don’t know if one bottle is in the sled’s trailer, in the bed of my pickup, or got stolen from the bed of my truck at the Safeway. Oh, well.

The snowmobile is broken, all right. It’s probably the cam shaft. This morning Tim said there’s oil all over the head. He wasn’t mad. These things happen. Andy went down later to the dead sled with #8 and got the groceries and all my gear. All is well for now.

Snoasis Photos

Yellowstone Park Journal - July, August, September, 1999

Copyright ©1999 Ben Benton -- All Rights Reserved

Ben Benton

124 North San Francisco Street, Suite 100

Flagstaff, Arizona 86001-5250

(520) 779-5300

Facsimile (520) 213-8425

e-mail [email protected]

*Winter Park Journal*
	Hi. I’m Ben Benton from Flagstaff, Arizona. I believe that you will enjoy my daily journal from Winter Park, Colorado, Ski Resort during Christmas break 1999-2000. I left downtown Flagstaff Wednesday morning, December 22 with my skis, duffle, and laptop computer, and ended up at Snoasis, a lodge midway up the mountain in Winter Park. My journal will continue through the first week of January. You’ll read about Winter Park Ski Resort, Snoasis, Sunspot Lodge, the great people who work here, and anything else I can think of to write about. I’m the author of “National Park Employment Data,” a guide to working in national parks, which is available for purchase on my web site at www.gorp.com/nped/. I’ve been working in national parks and ski areas off and on for over twenty years. Because I want the data in my book to always be fresh, I continually test the concepts, employers, and tips that I provide. I first worked at Winter Park in the late 70s while I was a student at Arizona State University.	Official Mug Shot
Previous Journals 12/22 12/23 12/24 12/25 12/26 12/27 12/29	Thursday, December 30, 1999 Hey Tim, We Broke the Snowmobile I was a busser in Snoasis today. We were really busy — like probably over $10,000, which is a lot of burgers and chili in four hours. After work, I rode down to the base with Tim, who was on his way home for the night, and Andy, and they dropped me off at the mountain employees parking lot. I headed in to Fraser for a grocery run (translated beer for me and beer and cigarettes for my roommate downstairs). The old Safeway has been replaced with a giant new one across the street. Hard to believe that a town of 1,000 can support a mega-Safeway. I got my same parking spot back and called Snoasis on my cell phone. Gabe came right down to pick up me and the groceries. He brought sled #4 which pulls the Snoasis trailer, so I also brought up my skis, boots, and ski clothes, which I've had to get out of the truck, then put them back every time I ski. The logistics of getting them up to Snoasis just didn’t work out until now. We got within 200 yards of Snoasis and the snowmobile just died. Since there’s no battery, everything goes, including the lights. We sat there in the darkness. Finally Gabe said, “I know it has a full tank of gas.” I had noticed a burning smell coming up the trail. Gabe stayed in the driver’s seat and I got off and yanked the starter. It made a rattling noise, so I figured something broke in the engine. Gabe walked up to Snoasis to get sled #8 and discovered that it was at the base. He came back to me waiting with sled #4 and said he would have to walk to the base. I figured it was a bit too cold to hang around a dead sled any longer so I grabbed the six pack of wheat beer, left all my stuff for later, and walked up to Snoasis. When I got Jessica’s beer to her, there were five bottles. I don’t know if one bottle is in the sled’s trailer, in the bed of my pickup, or got stolen from the bed of my truck at the Safeway. Oh, well. The snowmobile is broken, all right. It’s probably the cam shaft. This morning Tim said there’s oil all over the head. He wasn’t mad. These things happen. Andy went down later to the dead sled with #8 and got the groceries and all my gear. All is well for now.	Snoasis Photos
	Yellowstone Park Journal - July, August, September, 1999
	Copyright ©1999 Ben Benton -- All Rights Reserved Ben Benton 124 North San Francisco Street, Suite 100 Flagstaff, Arizona 86001-5250 (520) 779-5300 Facsimile (520) 213-8425 e-mail [email protected]

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