As usual, we’re taking two weeks off over the end-of-year holidays. We’ll be back in the Oak Room on Wednesday, January 7, 2026 at 9:00. In the meantime, I expect folks will gather at the yurt On Wednesdays around 9:30. The Facebook page is a great place to arrange a ski buddy.

January 7 also brings our next Après speaker: Erik Shonstrom, author of I Probably Should’ve Brought a Tent: Misadventures of a Wilderness Instructor. Should be a fun one. Gather at 1:00 in Bootleggers.

Last week’s speaker, the excellent Noah Dines, has stirred a lot of interest. Let me know if you would be interested in inviting him back to show his film. We will need a good crowd, and it would be by sold ticket.

Heidi Crossman’s hard work has paid off nicely—about 20 folks are signed up for the Winterlude trip to Ottawa.

Please keep an eye out for pratfalls, missed chances, and other plain embarrassments. The very best will be loudly celebrated with ski tips. Let me know!

I have been approached by one of the quietly gnarly Smuggs old guard about the idea of group lessons for club members. No details or pricing yet—just a thought. Likely small groups of people at similar levels who feel stuck on a plateau and want to kick it up a notch (yes, I really said that). Let me know if you’d be interested, and what you’d hope to work on.

You might also want to check the Smuggs Vertical Leaderboard in the Smuggs app. There are a couple of familiar names in there. Do I detect the faint whiff of competition?

Lastly, a few folks have asked about Mike Furst’s absence. Mike is dealing with some health issues and I’m sure he would appreciate a note or a call if you’re so inclined. If you need his contact info, reach out to me at President@smuggs55plus.com.