Moving to the Mountains?

Megan Burnett

So you’re thinking about spending the season in a resort town? When I was 18 and fresh out of high school I moved to Mammoth Lakes, Ca. I had no idea what I was in for, and to be honest it would have been very beneficial to me if someone had sat me down and told me the good and the bad, what to do and what to stay the hell away from. Luckily I was smart enough to avoid a lot of pitfalls on my own, but trust me I learned from the mistakes of many others along the way (thanks a lot to Jane & John Doe’s everywhere for letting me learn from your mistakes - you all know who you are!). Regardless, I can say that it was one of the best experiences in my life, and for anyone who is interested in moving to the mountains to be closer to the slopes, I know it will be amazing for you too, but first, some advice.

FRESH MEAT
You are the new girl in town. No matter what your age, you have just become the new fresh meat. To be honest first impressions do count and if you look and act like a whore, then there is a good chance that’s the way you might be treated. Guy to Girl ratio’s in mountain towns are usually 2 girls to every 5 guys, or in some places 1 girl to every 5 guys.

One of my guy friends said, “Ahaha, up here you don’t lose your girlfriend, you just lose your turn.” Okay, personally that grosses me out, but obviously that phrase came from somewhere. It may be very tempting to start locking lips with the locals a few beers in, and possibly find yourself waking up in foreign beds, but do yourself a huge favor; if you want to make good friends and be respected on and off the mountain, then respect yourself first.

PARTY or BAR?
Bars are great when you are over 21 and no longer have to worry about getting kicked out, but there’s something to say for a good party where the beer is cheap and there’s no cover charge. Local parties can be a great way to meet people. Go! Have a great time, just remember to show up with something: a six pack or whatever, because no one likes a mooch.

SNEAKING INTO BARS
I’m 25 now, so this has not been a concern in quite a while. For all the under-agers I’ll admit I used the “lick it & stick it” hand stamp move many a time in Mammoth. When you are a girl, this kind of thing is much easier (totally saw Danny Kass get booted from Dublins Fever in Mammoth when he was only 20, due to his “lick it & stick” failing). Bouncers for some reason keep a better eye on the guys coming in then the girls sometimes so if you feel like you want to chance it, it’s up to you.

KEGGERS IN THE WOODS
Although summer is pretty much over, I would have to say that one of the best things to partake in when living in the mountains in the summer is outdoor bonfires and keggers in the woods. We used to have 50 to a 100 people all meet up in these remote locations in the middle of nowhere and have the best parties. A local DJ would always come out too and they would bring the generator and string up Christmas lights all around the site. So much fun, and if any of you decide to stay through next summer, you’ll have a blast!

DON’T DO METH BETH
There are lots of drugs in the mountains… well I guess there’s lots of drugs where ever you are, but in the mountains the drug usage among riders and locals is high. Regardless of what you do, stay away from the hard shit. Don’t do meth Beth, or for that matter anything that has a good chance of laying some holes in that brain of yours. Personally I’m straight edge in that sense, but I’ve seen a lot of good riders who moved to the mountains with dreams of Pro careers wash it all away with drugs. So sad, especially when they really had natural riding talent.

Working for the mountain? Remember that if you are working at any resorts they will pull a pee test on you.  If you get hurt or screw anything up, that is pretty much their first action. When I lived up in Mammoth I worked at Mammoth Hospital and I would see Mammoth Employees come in on almost a daily basis to take their pee test; and to be honest, most of them failed. When you fail, you lose your job, and no job equals no pass.

Also, note to everyone reading this- if you are hung over and out of it every day then there was really no point in relocating yourself to the mountains. The reason you moved to the mountains was to get in more riding time, and if you throw that away due to chronic partying, you’ve pretty much just shot yourself in the foot.

STD’S
Think about this for a second, okay? You move to the mountains and the population of where you are living is small, probably between 2,000 to 20,000 occupants at the peak of winter. If you sleep with John Doe and he has slept with 5 people in that town before you, well then he’s had the possibility to catch anything that those previous girls he’s slept with has caught… and their lists could go on and on.

When I worked at Mammoth Hospital, I signed a piece of paper that let me know that it is illegal for me to divulge patient information. I can tell you this though; Mammoth Lakes is crawling with STD’s. Gross, right? I can guarantee you that most mountain towns out there have this factor in common with Mammoth Lakes. One more important detail: a lot of people living in the mountains don’t have health insurance; so most of them are not getting checked regularly. Just be aware of these things, unless a goal of yours has always been to catch the clap.

YOU MADE OUT WITH THIS GUY, BUT NOW YOU WANT TO DATE THIS NEW GUY?
Guess what!? There is a very good chance they are friends! If you are new to town, you don’t know anyone yet. Chances are the guy you start dating or locking lips with has been there a while, and since the populations aren’t that large there’s a good chance he has a lot of friends. My best recommendation is to just be single for a while. You shouldn’t be jumping into relationships with strangers anyway, and that way you can get to know the lay of the land before you dive in. Remember, if you ignore my advice there’s a good chance you could be outcast from a few social groups within a short time, or even worse gain a slutty reputation that you can’t ditch.

I SHIT AND EVERYONE KNEW ABOUT IT
Come on, I’m not really talking about going to the bathroom. I’m just trying to get you all to realize that people talk. Small towns can equal lots of gossip, so there’s a good chance that in the end your business may not end up staying just your business.

AUSI’S ARE BACK (BUT ONLY FOR 3 MO’S)
Beware of foreigners. They can be smooth talkers and the accents are very sexy, and oh so seductive. Remember that most likely they are on a 3 month visa from (fill in the blank), so don’t fall in love unless you plan on being their ticket to a green card.

DON’T BAG YOUR SEASON BECAUSE YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD HIT IT
Tara Dakides didn’t become famous in a few weeks. Her riding skills progressed on a level to level basis and so will yours. If you want to be a better rider, remember to build yourself a good base and take the steps to get there. Take it from me, two weeks into my first season in Mammoth I broke my leg in Main Park; tibia spiral fracture: broken in four different places. It sucked and I had to live in a wheel chair for 3 months! I was attempting to ride beyond my level at that time and I paid a gnarly price for it. Learn from my mistake and take your time developing your riding level: if you screw up and get hurt, you could be out for the rest of the season.

HEALTH INSURANCE
Get some!!! If you work for the mountain resorts they usually have something they can offer you, but it might not be free, and could cost you a pretty penny. If you are going to ride, you should really try to get some health insurance first, because a bad injury is expensive and can ruin your credit. My credit is still recovering from a dent a hospital bill put in it 7 years ago.

Living in the moment is great, but with things like health insurance you really shouldn’t lax. One day, you might eventually get sick of sleeping on your friends couches and want to buy a house or condo. So use your head now, so you won’t have a big headache later.

A cheap tip: if you can’t afford full coverage, companies are starting to offer sports insurance.  It only covers injuries, so the monthly fee is way lower.  Check out http://www.xsi-now.com/

NO CAR? NO DUI’S
You want to move to the mountains but you don’t have a car, or you want to get rid of the one you have? No problem! In the summer you can invest in a skateboard or a bike, and once winter hits, most mountain towns have a pretty good public transportation system. Also if you are walking everywhere you won’t have to worry about making the decision not to drive if you have had a few. DUI’s are BAD! Never had one, and never want one.

ROOMATES
I met mine from a newspaper ad and had never met her until the day we moved into together. Yeah, that was a mistake! If you are pretty easy going you will probably have a lot of success in the roommate thing, but anyone can get annoying after a while.  Do yourself a HUGE favor; don’t pick someone out of desperation, hold on until it’s someone you know you are compatible with.

I’ll be up in Tahoe writing articles, riding the pow pow, and drinking good beer for a month between December and January this season, so I’ve been reminding myself of all the things I’m warning you all about.  I know I’ll have the time of my life, and if any of you get the opportunity to move to the mountains, do yourself a favor and take it! Have a great season and don’t forget to invest in some good tires, make sure yours chains are ready to go, and leave your windshield wipers up when you park if it’s snowing!

Posted by Megan Burnett on 11/06