After seeing the Blue Knob pictures and actually remembering posts from late last year it seems that there is a common sentiment of most DCSkier's to be willing to volunteer their time for various ski resorts to help make the resort better. Either through manual labor of cutting saplings for glades, removing rocks, seeding grass down, etc.

This got me to thinking today, what would be the chance that anyone on here would like to get together, form or be apart of a volunteer DCSki group? This would be a group that would at the request of a ski resort (or request permission to help a resort), show up with at least say 5 members, cut down saplings in glades. Or maybe help dig out and remove rocks from trails, or maybe even help grass/seed down trails that have erosion. Or maybe someone like RogerZ could volunteer his enviornmental abilities, to setup simple berms to control summer water flow off of trails to help prevent erosion etc.

The pictures of Blue Knob hit home hard in the amount of damage that exsists, and considering there hardly enough employee's at any resort to get out and handle that much labor along with other duties, I figured that would create an opportune time to form a volutneer group. One that would put such a group in a great position to work with ski resorts to offer thoughts on terrain parks, thoughts on glades, thoughts on whatever that could drastically increase value in any ski resort. I think it was Canaanman's idea of going in and putting glades in several spots at Timberline and Timberline could reap the rewards of advertising like 10+ new trails and boosting their apperance even more.

These are thoughts and I really think it would be a win win situation for both a group and ski resorts. Like above ski resorts could gain many ways, while a volunteer group could benefit from getting to know the resorts better, discounted lift tickets, meeting other DCSki'ers, etc.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Opinions?

I'm a young guy with a strong back would would love to help out with such a project. I've read about the group that does this at MRG, and think such an outing could be very cool. Let me know how this progresses.

This is something I'd love to see happen with resorts in this area from Whitetail all the way down to Bryce and back. I wonder how many of them would turn down free help?

I would participate in a volunteering group. It is defiantly a win win situation. Even if we didn't get compensated in any way we will still have the benefit of improving the mountains we ski. I don't know if I would be able to help out any of the Southern areas but if we do any work in PA I will be sure to make time to help out.

I'd be in for anything within a 2-3 hour drive from DC/Baltimore. My natural choice would be Ski Liberty as I live about 20 miles from it, but I think they take pretty darn good care of the land there. I don't think I could help out at BK every weekend, but I could definately spend one or two days helping. While I've yet to ski there, from what I've heard they need help.

I don't know if you'd be able to get much in compensation from the resorts; it would probably depend on how many people you got out (and thus how much help you really provided). If I were the organizer, I'd definately ask for drinks and lunch (BBQ, burgers, whatever), and I'd try for lift tickets. But you're going to want more than four people before you ask for anything.

You can count me in as well for Mass, Bryce, Whitetail, Wisp, CV, or Tline.

I'm in. Now let's hear from a ski resort that's lurking on the website.

Now all we need is someone to pickup the ball and take care of organizing, contacting resorts and so forth. I'd love to do that, but I have too many things going on between the legal fight to stop the dams up here (www.Savelostriver.org), running my business, and trying to get a few days off to ski each year.

I'd be interested in volunteering at T-line. I think trail maintenance would be more productive at T-line as I don't think the Snowtime resorts would let you ski the woods even if they were cleared of all the debris. I think the end result would be more beneficial to all if we cleared the woods at T-line rather than picking rocks off the slopes at WT, RT, & Liberty.

At T-line, I would start with the woods between The Drop & OTW. There seemed to be a lot more downed trees this year in upper portion of this area than in years past.

Are we talking Summer or fall trail maintenance day? Summer would work better for me.