Eastern Ski Writers Association

Photo by RR Butler

Eastern Ski Writers Association Board of Directors

President: Chris Dehnel
First Vice President: Martin Griff
Second Vice President: Daniel E. Cassidy
Executive Secretary: Jim Gregory
Board Member: Bill Clapper
Board Member: Mike Roth
Board Member: Roger Leo
Board Member: Bob Williams
Board Member: Iseult Devlin
Board Member: Robert Foulke
Board Member: Tom Patterson
Board Member: Janet Essman Franz

ESWA President's message

It all started with a simple e-mail. I was putting the final headline on the final business story that day - I think it had to do with the latest Pratt & Whitney engine order for the F-22 fighter plane. The little flag went up indicating a new message. It was from Bonnie MacPherson.

"You have to see this," was all it said. I clicked on the attachment and gazed at my screen in amazement. A guy was skiing down a trail at Okemo in a one-piece brown bear suit. Maybe it was Bigfoot. Anyway, it was the coolest thing ever.

I grabbed for the phone. "What is that?" "Look at the logo on the back." "Oh, Spyder ..."

A staffer knew the guy wearing it and had to take the photo, Bonnie explained. After a few laughs, I said I had to hang up. I rang up the Spyder Web site and obtained the address for the publicist. I explained I'll do just about anything for a good column, and therefore needed the bear suit.

It was last year's model and was no longer available, I was told. This year's novelty item was a reversible jacket - an Elmer Fudd-inspired hunting design on one side and pink Yeti fur on the other.

Pink Yeti fur? Yup.

OK, I had to have it. Spyder sent it. It arrived at my doorstep about two weeks later. I took it out of the box and put it on. The only audience was my 2-year-old daughter, Grace. She called it the "bear suit," and insisted I chase her around the house in it. Her mother came home from work and wasted no time in calling it "the most ridiculous thing I have ever seen."

When I was on vacation, my 17-year-old neighbor just had to go to the house "to make sure everything was OK." She later admitted she wanted her mom to see the jacket.

The formal unveiling came during the minutes just before sunrise Saturday, January 5th at Mount Sunapee. Dick Butler just shook his head. He knows to just go with the flow because it's pointless to ask me questions about such things. I think he's finally used to me after all these years.

Bill Jones said it was something Paris Hilton would wear, but he couldn't stop taking pictures. He now wants a caption written for SnowEast. He wishes he had the nerve to wear it.

Martin Griff, just said "eek," but the jacket photo showed up on his blog the next day.

Bruce McCloy asked me if I lost a bet.

Vicki Bancroft said it was indeed a fashion statement.

Tim Mueller was waiting to address the membership at breakfast. He saw me coming toward him, did a double-take and asked, "What the ...?" as I sat at the table next to him. He said he was relieved to hear it was a demo.

After breakfast, Jerry, Dan Cassidy's guest, grabbed the jacket off my chair. At about 5-foot-6, it came down well below his knees. He snuck up behind Dan and scared the crap out of him.

The female liftie at the main quad wanted the jacket. It matched her bandanna. The male liftie on the other side of the mountain proclaimed loudly, "Ah, the reversible Spyder jacket..." He seemed to know way too much.

A group of teenagers almost fell over when I whizzed past. The four of them then were yelling "Hey, did you see that? How cool ..."

Several people screamed "What was that?" When I skied under the lifts.

I just received a phone call from Pink, the singer. She wants me in her next video.

OK, I am kidding on that one, but all of you are still jealous. Just wait until the Camelback weekend.

Then again, wait until the NASJA meeting. I can see the look on Bob Cox's face when I plop down next to him on a lift at Bretton Woods.

And does it count as a jacket in the dining room?

Chris Dehnel
ESWA President

ESWA March newsletter
Name change

What's In a Name?
Name Change Sparks Discussion

By Iseult Devlin

At the Mt. Sunapee Meeting, I asked a few members to speak about the idea of a name change for the organization. Members presented the pros and cons of a name change.

Dave Barrell, who said he has been involved in the industry for a long time, said the name has served the organization well, while Dave Mongillo pointed out many groups have kept the word "ski" in their names - Ski Utah, Colorado Ski Country, etc.

Lauren Traub Teton, creator of snowboardsecrets.com, said she'd like to see a name that is more inclusive and welcoming to non-skiers, while Gerald Pallor said there's a whole new generation of media producers who don't associate themselves as writers. Mary McKhann, editor of The Snow Industry Letter, said the name stereotypes the organization and, therefore is restricting.

Corporate members also had plenty to say on the subject. Killington's Tom Horrocks said he'd like to see the word media used instead of writers, to attract the many media people visiting mountains to do videostreams, etc.

Bruce McCloy, Mt. Sunapee marketing director, said he thinks there should be a name change, perhaps changing the word ski to snow sports. "Unless the name is changed and something is done to revitalize the group, this organization will probably not be around in 30 years," he predicted.

Steve Cohen, a former Ski Magazine editor, also said he thought a name change might help to attract a younger crowd. "When Jeff Blumenfeld and I joined this organization (15-plus years ago) we were among the youngest members. The sad thing is, we are still among the younger members," he said.

Indeed, the press membership has very few members under the age of 35, with the majority of members over the age of 40. But, will a name change alone make the organization a more thriving one, with younger members flocking to join?

Name change aside, many members feel more has to be done to attract new members. "No one is out there trying to drum up membership. That is a big assignment in a primarily volunteer organization but the function needs to be assigned and taken seriously," says former ESWA and NASJA president Phil Johnson.

Organizations in the industry have done many things to broaden appeal and promote business. Bernie Weichsel once changed his company's name to SnowSports Expos but now uses the separate words ski and snowboard.

Many of the equipment companies - Atomic and Giro, for instance - use snow instead of ski or snowboard since both businesses are big ones for the brands. SIA (Snowsports Industries America) changed its name many years ago from ski to snow sports. Many ski resorts now use names like mountain resorts or just resort to have a more encompassing name. In fact, Camelback changed its name this season to Camelback Mountain Resort. The area also created a new, modern logo.

To attract students to apply for its annual internship, ESWA has advertised "snow sports journalism."

But, several organizations in the industry feel the word "ski" is like an umbrella term used to describe all winter sports done on the slopes. Recently, a person who does not recreate on snow at all said, "Why don't the snowboarders just call themselves skiers?" Of course, a snowboarder probably would not agree!

In the end, though, writing about the sport of skiing is a very narrow focus for us all. Indeed, writing about winter sports restricts a person's appeal. Anything we can do to broaden our appeal could help strengthen us as a group and perhaps boost our earnings in the future. As a freelance journalist, using words like outdoor, travel and adventure all help to broaden the scope to editors and a wider audience. The more narrow we are, the fewer stories we'll get and the harder it will be to be successful financially.

The industry we write about does not pay much so if we are to make it as journalists, anything we can do to broaden our appeal could make us more marketable and maybe we'll make more money and get to stick with this fun profession to make a living-or at least contribute to it!

Name serves Organization well

I am writing you regarding my concern about another name change for our association. I have been a active press member of ESWA since 1967. Our name is very unique, has brought pride and respect for all members that cover the world of winter, not just skiing but all related winter sports. I reflect on our name and all the members that have been happy to join under the present name. It seems to me that if the issue is of name recognition for the job that we perform, then a new name would compound problems. ESWA has a long history in the winter sports world, and the name is easily recognized by professionals in the winter sports. I think that a name change would create more confusion than clarity.

I have been a professional photographer since I joined ESWA in 1967, and have won the Harold Hirsch Award for ski photography twice. I have covered all sorts of snow sports and winter Olympic Games, and I have never had to explain the ESWA name in my profession. In fact, I have been asked if I was a ESWA member by people who respect our association.

This name change seems to be a constant issue, and I really think our association needs to work on more productive issues than fighting about a name change, a name that has covered the eastern ski world since 1963!
Fred McKinney

Time to experiment with a midweek meeting

By Karen Lorentz

Many professional organizations have meetings and conferences midweek while some, like the Eastern Ski Writers Association, conduct meetings on weekends.

The social aspects of ESWA meetings might suffer with midweek meetings, but one meeting a year should be tried as many people would be able to take two days off to attend a professional journalist meeting.

Spouses or family members (kids, working spouses/partners) may not be able to attend, but they don't always attend professional meetings in the non-ski world either.

A midweek meeting might be impossible for a few employees, but I have noticed many of our members seem to get away for extra days at our weekend meetings and retired and freelance members would not have a problem anyway.

So why not at least try a Sunday to Tuesday meeting with lots of seminars and a professional improvement focus. The slopes are not crowded on Mondays and Tuesdays, which means more skiing time and more fun and resorts can give ESWA better rates because as they are not as full as they are on weekends.

A midweek meeting could be billed as more for professional development with social aspects secondary to the skiing and seminars.

I am not the only member who would like to hear Martin Griff address"How to Shoot Great Ski Photos" or Jeff Blumenfeld give seminars on"Marketing Your Work and Expanding Your Markets," There are plenty of topics that our own members could address and discuss with us so we wouldn't lack for seminars.

I am sure resorts would be happy to do some on-snow demos or activities like groomer rides, give tours, offer lessons, or show off their competition programs or newest lift. It's much easier for them to deal with us midweek than when at their peak guest loads during weekends.

We can still have brief business meetings but board meetings might have to be advisory in nature if there are not enough board members able to make the meeting but there are still the other meetings so this need not be the end of the world.

It's something to try and work around.

So please give some serious consideration to input from the corporate members, so eloquently presented by Killington's Tom Horrocks at the Sunapee meeting, and urge the ESWA board to try something new.

You might also mention that we aren't getting a variety in the areas able to host us. That's another reason to at least try this option once a season.

No one is suggesting replacing all weekend meetings. Just throw in a midweeker once a winter.

March might be a good time since NASJA is usually held at the end of the month. Or throw a midweeker in as an extra meeting and don't hold business or board meetings just offer two or three seminars.

A midweek meeting is worth exploring. Please let the board know if you agree with exploring this option.

Connie Lawn has anniversary

Virginia based Press Member Connie Lawn just celebrated her 40th anniversary covering the White House and other world wide events. She was recently congratulated by spokeswoman Dana Perino, and received nice notes from listeners around the world. Connie says she now spends the majority of her working time skiing and writing about skiing and other snowsports. Her major area of interest is wounded warriors, adaptive skiing and boarding, and working with cancer children, through "Special Love" and NIH.

She is assisted by her husband Charles Sneiderman, who takes the photos, does the driving, technical, and medical work.

Connie hopes the next President and staff members will spend more time on the slopes.

Connie's work can be read in dcski.com, SnowEast Magazine, and other outlets.

Tommy Hine reflects on 43-Year Career At The Courant

By TOMMY HINE
Courant Staff Writer
April 6 2008

Tommy Hine retired March 29, and leaves us with these memories of a 43-year career that took him to all parts of the state, country and world.

The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.courant.com/sports/other/hc-hine0406.artapr06,0,3136624.story
Visit Courant.com at http://www.courant.com

NASJA-East Calendar of Events