Out of the Box

Year in and year out, there is an established rhythm to the publishing season at SKI Magazine. In the big fall issues, SKI delivers the detailed, highly researched “service” you need to gear up for winter and to plan your perfect getaways. That information comes first in the form of the September Buyer’s Guide and next as the October Top 60 Resort Guide. Come November, December and January, we continue to offer advice on the best resorts to visit, as well as special features on the best bargains in ski country, European hot spots and the finest places to stay while on a ski vacation. In those issues, we also throttle up our instruction features to get you thinking about all the ways to improve your technique.

Then, as we plunge deep into winter and emerge in the spring, it’s time to explore new topics and interesting people, to break outside the box. In this issue, that means a profile of the passionate Mike Wiegele, who turned his love of the mountains and skiing into a successful heliskiing empire. We also report on how skiing takes you close to nature¿even if you can’t see it. And, in another departure from the norm, SKI investigates the future of clean snowmobile technology in light of the planned ban on noisy, noxious sleds in national parks.

At the same time, SKI’s editors are careful not to veer too far afield: We know you still have the best part of the ski season ahead¿and you want to make the most of it. In December 2000, we published an instruction feature on how shaped skis have changed technique (“Out With The Old, In With The New”). In this issue, we take another look at the old versus the new in part II of this series. New equipment has allowed skiers to simplify and streamline their skiing. In many ways the new technique is stronger, cleaner, faster and more athletic. Yet there are still times when the 21st century skier needs to rely on old tricks, whether in the bumps or tight spaces, and often the most talented skiers will smartly mix the old and the new. In the end, all that really matters is that you do it with a wide smile on your face.

The 2001-02 season has been a challenging one. Perhaps you haven’t enjoyed the amount of skiing you’d like because of the weather, the economy, 9/11¿or a combination of all three. Spring is the season to make up for lost time, to enjoy our sport at its finest, when the sun is high and the prices are low. To start the process, read The Sweetest Season, where you’ll find 25 sweet spring deals at resorts from California to Maine. Book that spring trip now¿we guarantee you won’t regret it.