Bitter Rivalry Takes Over Bristol Mountain

Will Brophy
Sports Editor

Bristol Mountain’s serene, powdery slopes provide a haven for kids and adults alike. There is trouble in paradise, however, in that a deep seeded rivalry infects the mountain. An epic struggle between skiers and snowboarders soils the gleeful spirit of the peak.

Snowboards are a new development, as modern snowboards were not invented until the mid eighties and snowboarding did not become a part of the winter X-games, the Mecca of winter sporting events, until 1998.

Although snowboards are a relatively new innovation, their popularity has sky-rocketed and as SnowSports Industries America, the industry's largest trade group reports, snowboarding has increased in abundance by three percent since 1988. Skiers are less than ecstatic about this progress. Skiing has dropped like an avalanche in numbers as a result. SnowSports Industries America says that since 1988, skiing has declined almost fifty percent.

Newness and popularity aside, skiers have not received snowboarders well. Most snowboarders and skiers have no squalls, but at the local mountain, Bristol, there is bad blood. As local snowboarder and Academy Sophomore Evan Helming said, “We get into daily fights.” While not all take their frustrations this far, the animosity still exists, for an array of reasons.

The conflict comes for a variety of motives. As local Skier and Academy Senior Heather Savage says, “The snowboarders piss the skiers off. They make it icy for the skiers.” Besides removing the powder, there is a constant battle over territory. Academy Junior and Alpine Ski Team member Emily Macri complained that snowboarders “take up the hill.” Helming counters that there is a mutual problem here, as he lists “territory” is a major cause of problems amongst the two groups. Local snowboarder and Academy Junior Carter Matson gripes that skiers “spray snow in our face.”

Although the conflicts have not elevated to the level of Frasier and Ali, problems still exist. Bitterness fills the mountain for many, and while not all are involved in the vinegary contention, the presence is felt on the mountain.