Shribman: Welcome to fall, the time for skier fantasy

Being well-equipped can make the difference this fall. (Getty Images)

It was F. Scott Fitzgerald—not, like Ernest Hemingway, known for skiing prowess—who spoke for all of us when he said, “Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.”

Though ours is a winter sport, we actually can ski in the fall; the Killington Cup race, after all, is scheduled for Nov. 25-26, and that’s almost a full month before the Winter Solstice. This will be the 10th consecutive November that Jay Peak will open; back in 2017, the resort began turning its lifts on Nov. 17. Up in Quebec, Mont Tremblant is planning a Nov. 23 opening. 

But Fitzgerald had it right; the life we skiers pursue starts all over again when the leaves fall, when the days grow short, when the temperatures drop—and when it doesn’t seem absolutely nutty to start thinking seriously about skiing. 

If summer is for using the mountains to climb the ski trails we like to barrel down in the winter, then the autumn is for using the cooler days to do what pilots do when they are girding to take off: going through the checklist. And so here is a checklist for those whose life is measured by the chairlift:

—Is this the proper time to buy new skis?

Probably not. The better buys come at the end of the season, way back in March or April. That’s when the skis that are technically “this year’s models” take on the price tags of “last year’s models.” You can still find “this year’s/last year’s” skis (and boots, too) at snowsports stores around New England, but I dare you to walk into your usual shop without running your fingers along the smooth surfaces of the new editions. Investment counselors know that once someone starts thinking about selling stock options, the sale itself is right around the corner. The ski analogue is just as clear: The moment you lay your hand on a new model is the moment you abandon the notion of buying last year’s version.

—Is this the best time to buy lift tickets?

Not by a longshot. The best time was way back in April, when the big chains and even the little hills had gonzo sales. But the corollary is that this is a better time to buy ski tickets than it will be next month, or when there actually is snow on the ground, or the morning you decide you feel like taking a few runs. (Only novices pay full price. Poor things.) The principle that I have expressed with astonishing frequency on this page for years—that early is best when it comes to getting on the lift and making your way down the mountain—applies here. Early is better. Or best.

—Is this the best time to have your skis tuned?

Probably. And don’t scrimp on that tune-up. Get it done right, and get it done well before Thanksgiving. The duffers on the back nine are still playing, and thinking, golf. Around Thanksgiving they’ll realize they need to get their boards spiffed up. The result: delays. The one thing you don’t want in a lift line or at the ski shop is a delay. Early is better. (How many times do I have to tell you this?)

—Is this the best part of the ski season?

No, of course not. The best part is in January before the thaw, maybe that first week after New Year’s, when the amateurs are taking a week off after their holiday festivities and no one is on the slopes. (Even so, get there early. First runs are best runs. But I repeat myself.)

But, in a way, this—autumn!—is a beautiful part of the ski season.

In love as in skiing, it is anticipation that holds the magic. What is about to be done is often better than what has been done. That is what holds the romance, the appeal, the magic. That’s what fall is for.

The autumn is the time for skier fantasy. Planning the outings. Wondering about conditions not yet provided by nature. Imagining the feel of the descent. Thumbing through ski magazines (like this one—a survivor when other publications have abandoned the effort, the functional equivalent of packing up your skis at 11:30 in the morning. There’s so much more to be done.) 

Because: The best is yet to come. And it is coming quickly.

They call this season “fall.” It is for falling in line, and for falling in love. The snows will fall. And there you’ll be, atop a hill glistening in early morning snow, the sun beginning its ascent, the shadows hours away, the exhilaration that defies description only a turn away. Life for us is starting all over again, now that it’s getting crisp in the fall.