csmontana

Bozeman Conversation on Water Conservation

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 17:25:19 GMT

Ways to Save Water and Dollars at Your Apartment

Back Then

A bunch of years ago, I flew from Bozeman to rural Connecticut for the annual family get-together. One memory from that summer visit was talking with one of my nephews about water conservation.

The teenager had just finished another interminable shower. This one had exhausted the hot water tank and drawn way down on flow from the 250’ well.

I suggested that his might be the last generation who could count on an endless supply of fresh water. He thought the idea was pretty hilarious because “We’ll always have water!”

And Today

30 years later, here in Montana and much of the West, that ominous prediction sure seems to have hit the nail on the head.

The Bozeman area is climate-categorized as semi-arid, low-precipitation, and drought-prone. You might translate that into: “We have some water now, let’s treasure it for the future!”

The City website notes that “Bozeman relies on snowpack for its water supply, with 80% coming from snowmelt in the Gallatin Range, which feeds Bozeman Creek and Hyalite Creek. The other 20% comes from a developed spring at the headwaters of Lyman Creek in the Bridger Range.”

Bozeman's Water Supply

80% from Snowmelt in the Gallatin Range

20% Developed Spring near Lyman Creek in the Bridger Range

In other words, we’re vulnerable to mild, dry winters.

We all know that Bozeman’s population is booming. One of the implications is that more people are going to need water. At current growth rate, it’s estimated that by 2033, demand will outstrip supply. We can’t buy more water, and climate change is expected to exacerbate availability problems, so… what can we do to ensure an adequate water supply longer-term?

Bozeman’s very effective Water Conservation Program is helping residents use water more efficiently. In fact, water conservation is our most cost-effective, expedient, environmentally responsible approach to securing additional water supplies. As evidence of what we can do, a decade ago, per capita water use was 119 gallons/person/day (43,435 gallons annually) – now, daily use is 104 gallons/person/day.

Tips

While Golden Gate and Flanders Mill tenants don’t pay for water via a utility bill, that cost is included in your monthly rent. Here are some ways to reduce water consumption, help stabilize rent, and be environmentally responsible:

Efficient showerheads use <1.5 gallons per minute, so a 5-minute shower can use 6 gallons.; the average bath consumes 30 gallons. (The City offers free 5-minute shower timers as well as free high-efficiency showerheads – retrofitting can save a family 40 gallons/day.)
You can direct shower water into a receptacle while it’s heating, then use it for watering plans or for your pet.
Traditional faucet aerators use 3+ GPM; the City provides free aerators using 1 GPM so you can cut handwashing water by over 60%.
Turn off your tap when possible while brushing teeth.
Toilet flushing: “If it’s yellow, let if mellow” conserves an average of 1.6 gallons per flush.
Toilet flappers need to be replaced about every 5 years (can leak up to 200 gallons/day, or $554/year – especially useful to know if you move into your own house).
Compost food rather than flushing it through the garbage disposal.
If washing dishes by hand, plug up both basins and soak in soapy water before rinsing. While waiting for water to heat up, catch the cool water in a pitcher and save in the fridge for drinking. Dishwashers generally use less water than hand washing.
Run your dishwasher and clothes washer only when they’re full, using low/short setting when possible.

It’s worth noting that many Golden Gate tenants have eventually bought their own homes in the Gallatin Valley; the same can be expected at Flanders Mill. The water/dollar savings measures noted above, as well as many others (such as retrofitting old appliances and fixing leaks), are astoundingly useful to homeowners as well as renters.

Check out Bozeman’s residential and commercial rebates and incentives to save both water and dollars.

You can also pick up free products at the Water Conservation Division office on 7 Beall St., Suite 100.

Written with special thanks to Anna Mack, Bozeman Water Conservation Technician

Cross Country Ski Instruction

Thu, 02 Mar 2023 21:05:09 GMT

“Lessons are the best way to out-think your feet!”

In the early 1970s, in a visionary but totally wrong-headed move, the fledgling Nordic ski industry declared that, “If you can walk, you can cross country ski.”

Retrospectively, it would have been a lot more helpful and realistic to say, “If you can walk, you can learn to cross country ski. And it takes only a single lesson from a professional to learn how to glide.”

Those were times when an alpine resort manager pigeonholed skinny skiers as, “Guys who head into the woods Friday night, and come out Sunday without having changed either their underwear or their $5 bill.” We were on the defensive – and dang, it’s tough to fight clever stereotypes!

Those were also the days that New Englander John Frado, who designed a lot of the best trails in North America, coined the hilarious phrase that’s the subtitle of this article. And boy, was he right, because you’re going to become a better skier, use less energy, go further faster, and have more fun sooner if you start the sport with instruction. (And by that, I mean ideally not just one lesson, but one, followed by practice, then another. And so on. Believe me, this approach works!)

Cross-country can be filled with grace – not just the dynamism, incredible self-discipline, and athleticism you see at the Olympics, but true beauty. Or it can be an awkward downer.

So here are half-a-dozen tips to make skiing euphoric, quickly.

First, please do something the Nordic business has never been able to and come up with more endearing descriptions than “lesson,” “instruction,” “teaching,” and “ski school.” Who wants to go back to studies when you’re out to have winter fun?

Next, don’t even think of learning from a loved one – instead, learn from a ski professional. There’s always an uncomfortable level of stress and self-consciousness if your instructor is also a relative, or your sweetie. Too distracting; and incidentally, your kids or grandkids are likely to absorb everything depressingly faster than a lot of adults. But once you can glide, that’s the moment you discover that cross-country becomes incredibly social, skiing side by side with friends and family.

Third, learn to ski at a cross-country area or club with machine-groomed trails, where the compressed tracks will guide your skis. (More on this in a future article—promise!) Two outstanding resources on places to go are https://www.xcski.org and https://www.xcskiresorts.com/, which introduce you to marvelous places in both the U.S. and Canada . (And yes, the Bozeman/Yellowstone region would be in those “best of…” lists).

Fourth, your ski pro needs to explain, early-on, how and why to hold your poles properly (my very own cliché: reach for the sky up along the shaft, then shake hands through the grip). Grabbing the poles tightly and ignoring the straps means you’ll be upright, stiff, walking rather than gliding, and a lot more fall prone. Oh yeah, and wear gloves to avoid cold and abrasion.

Fifth, if you’re renting equipment, check to see if your instructor uses the same skis you do. It kinda levels the playing field.

And finally, think about a second lesson – or a private lesson – that concentrates on the whole range of descent techniques on these narrow skis that don’t have metal edges or heels held down, while you’re using footwear akin to sneakers. Wedge turns, step and skate turns, parallels, telemarking, traversing with kick turns, side stepping… – they’ll all get you down that hill.

And as I found even in my prideful youth, sometimes you just need to take your skis off and walk down. It’s all legit!

Photo credit-Jackson-Hole-Nordic

Where To XC Ski Next Fall

Thu, 02 Mar 2023 20:46:24 GMT

Planning Your Ski Vacation

Let’s say you’ve decided to take a cross country ski vacation. That’s a great idea because it’s a wonderful way to escape city and suburban stress.

But there are a lot of other good reasons. You can ski your brains out or veg out, get a tan, see new country, ski but avoid midwinter cold, eat incredible meals, enjoy a romantic interlude, or savor a family vacation.

If you're looking to combine sport with comfort, there are hundreds of places to choose from in North America: inns, lodges, guest ranches, wonderful old hotels, B&Bs, downhill ski resorts, National Parks, and more. The variety is almost a little intimidating. So here’s how to get a handle on choosing your vacation destination.

Resources

The most sweeping source on XC areas in the U.S. and Canada is https://xcski.org/ . Another option is https://www.xcskiresorts.com/ .

You can also consult books to find out about trails and tours in several states and provinces; order winter guides from tourism agencies; and read https://thenordicapproach.com/ as well as Cross Country Skier magazine.

Systems

Any way you go about it, there’s the problem of selecting from this excess of riches. Here’s a method that helps establish priorities; then you can comb through those resources to choose when and where to go.

The three primary categories are budget; amount of time available; and ambiance. Should you plan on spending $100 a day, or $250? Is a January week (can be cold, perhaps more times indoors) less desirable than a long weekend in February (may be crowded)? Are you looking for a family atmosphere, a second-honeymoon spot, or a place where you’re comfortable as a single person?

Other considerations may include the practical (altitude) and aesthetics (mountain or forest setting, Spartan or luxurious accommodations, fine or simple dining, an intimate experience or one shared with several dozen people...).

Range of activities is another factor. A lot of vacationers are cross country devotees; others enjoy the sport but want some daily relief. You might be intrigued by downhill skiing conveniently nearby; guided snowshoe tours; dog sledding, sleigh rides, riding horseback through the snow, overnighting in a yurt, ballooning, ice climbing, even fly fishing and snowmobiling! Then there are the on-site amenities like hot tubs, saunas, live entertainment, and massage.

To provide an example of the screening process, let’s assume you’re an adventurous type who wants to stay for five days at a classy establishment with outstanding food and excellent skiing, all for a reasonable price – so look to lodges in the upper Midwest, or inns in northern New England. If you’re a downhill skier, think about winter ranches in the Rockies, where you have tracks outside your cabin door, then can hit the slopes at world-famous resorts like Steamboat Springs and Big Sky.

Tips

If you want to hone technique, consider places where instruction is part of a lodging/meal package.
If you’re staying at one location, you may want to try a couple of new routes every day. As a rule of thumb, multiply 10 kilometers per day (at a minimum, double that if you’re an experienced, vigorous skier) by the number of days you have free to figure how large the trail system should be. You may also want to check by phone to see how much of a trail network is suited to your ability and ambition.
In general, the further north you head or the higher the elevation, the longer the season and the more powdery the snow. Less predictably, I believe that the Midwest has the finest terrain for any level of skier; the Northeast often has the most skiing history; and the Sierras’ and Rockies’s altitude may give you a headache. The Cascades of Oregon and Washington have some grand XC areas without altitude concern. (I’ve lived in Montana, Colorado, and Wyoming, so clearly the skiing is worth the pain!)

Photo Credit Peter Potterfield

Yellowstone Expeditions:

Fri, 09 Dec 2022 22:56:32 GMT

Exploring Yellowstone’s Backcountry

When skiers talk about great backcountry, they often cite the Tenth Mountain and Braun systems in Colorado; Sierra Club huts in California; Skoki Lodge, Assiniboine and Shadow Lake in the Canadian Rockies. I’d like to add a new destination, near Canyon in Yellowstone National Park. (Check an atlas, find Yellowstone in the northwest corner of Wyoming; Canyon is in the north central part of the Park.)

Actually, I lie about “new.” Yellowstone Expeditions is in its 40 ^th season. And to be honest, they use yurts and tent cabins, not log huts or lodges. But “great” is perfectly appropriate, whether it’s skiing or snowshoeing, staff, dining, or the amazing landscape of the world’s first national park (1872).

Yellowstone isn’t exactly a winter secret, but skiers visit the Canyon area only when they’re passing by in enclosed heated snowcoaches or on snowmobiles, mainly because there’s no lodging within 35 miles

The company was founded by Arden Bailey, who in summer works as a geologist who once specialized in radioactive waste disposal. (There’s a theory Arden is such a bright guy that no one in his vicinity needs a headlamp.)

The high point of my winter used to be running winter trips in the U.S. and Canadian Rockies, so it was a joyous thing to be a guidee around Canyon. Most of the time I skied with Erica Hutchings, a Renaissance woman who’s been office manager, snowcoach driver, PSIA-certified instructor, and super-guide. Come summer, she’s been a river ranger in Grand Teton National Park.

Who are those guys?

All the guides are a hoot. They’re also naturalists, dishwashers, and talented cooks, working crazy hours with all kinds of clients, and carrying it off with humor and panache and quick wits. What a work ethic!

Arden’s talents include amazing stories and still more unbelievable jokes. This sense of humor seems to inspire guests, who tend to be crazy-diverse in their professions and interests anyway. Our group on one visit included a doctor from New Mexico, a writer from New York, and the owner of a trucking firm in Texas. I learned something about publishing fiction, summer weather around Houston (sounds awful!), anatomy, movies, Superfund sites, national politics, and succession tree species after the Yellowstone fires of 1988.

A typical four-, five- or eight-day trip begins with a snowvan ride from West Yellowstone to Canyon, with skiing near the rim of the Yellowstone toward the end of the day. We enjoyed a novel experience along the Gibbon River – a herd of maybe 200 slow-moving bison. We couldn’t pass them for almost two hours. It was a photographer’s dream, including the chance to take pictures of fuming snowmobilers who revved engines but still didn’t intimidate the beasties.

And there’s skiing

You can visit the park for its beauty, for wildlife, for geysers. I did it that time for long tours, powder, and downhills. It’d been a long time since I’d really skied hard in the backcountry. It’s easy to forget how few miles a small group can REALLY go in eight hours when you’re breaking trail through two feet of fresh snow.

The Yurt Camp is based at 8,000’, so it gets and holds 200-250 inches of snow, usually the light stuff Montanans call “cold smoke.” It’s in a spectacular area, minutes from the deep canyon of the Yellowstone. Terrain runs from long-open-steep to wooded-gentle.

I’ve always been a so-so unenthusiastic telemarker, never quite found that ideal combination of grace, strength, and technique. Since that trip, I’m a certified Wannabe.

It stood to reason that 205 cm light touring gear would do the trick for touring, even for low-angle telemarking. This might have worked if the heels of my boots hadn’t kept jamming with snow. It’s demoralizing to start a turn, come round just far enough that skis are pointed down the fall line (appropriate terminology!), and find the only part of the boot/binding system meeting its obligations is the toe.

Humility is a great teacher.

Yeah yeah, I know, “It’s the equipment.” But the next day I used mid-length general touring gear with a 3/4 metal edge with backcountry boots and bindings. Spectacular improvement! Even carrying a full pack, those skied floated and came around on request.

Actually, we could have skipped hills almost entirely. There’s a huge variety of trails – groomed, ski-set, or just marked – taking off right from camp, including gentle tours to places like Inspiration Point and Cascade Lake.

Wilderness luxury

Guests stay in warm, comfortable hut tents, a moment’s walk from the kitchen and dining yurts. Here’s the thing you sweat for and dream of on skis or snowshoes: getting home at twilight and trying the cedar sauna before dinner. Or better yet, a backwoods (indoor) shower – rapture!

Among my favorite moments were the intermittent thunder of the Yellowstone’s Lower Falls (much higher than Niagara); walking around Washburn Hot Springs (it’s a map-and-compass trip in); watching a park ranger skate at dusk beside the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, just after a grooming machine came through; learning the differences between fisher and coyote tracks; digging a snow pit for evaluating avalanche potential; and the pleasure of a heated outhouse.

Now, that’s livin’!

More Detail

Packages include delish meals, lodging, snowcoach, sleeping bags and sheets, and guiding. The season runs December 22-March 9th. 4-day/3 night visits run about $2,000 per person, double occupancy. Check out the dynamite web site at https://yellowstoneexpeditions.com/html/ or call 800-728-9333.

Image Credit: Yellowstone Expeditions

Winter Lunar Landscape

Fri, 09 Dec 2022 01:15:08 GMT

Craters of the Moon Come Snow

“[It is an] area of about 60 miles in diameter, where nothing meets the eye but a desolate and awful waste, where no grass grows nor water runs, and where nothing is to be seen but lava.”

(Washington Irving, The Adventures of Captain Bonneville, 1868 – clearly not a skier)

Some things leave a lasting impression. I flunked geology my freshman year of college – just couldn’t figure out technical things like how to measure a geosyncline or why it matters – and consequently rejected the whole science for years. And then I found that in the right context, absorbing geology can be amazing fun. Aside from Yellowstone National Park, the place that’s had the most volcanic effect on my geologic viewpoint is Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve ( https://www.nps.gov/crmo/index.htm ) in south-central Idaho.

I used to pass the entrance a couple of times a year, driving between Bozeman and Sun Valley, at 5,900 feet in the middle of high-desert seeming-nothingness. Hummocks, ridges, cones, lava and cinders don’t create an inviting landscape; in fact, formations are so moon-like that the Apollo astronauts studied geology there prior to their lunar landing.

Craters isn’t exactly a winter destination. There’s not a whole lot of temptation to stop because there’s not much sign of human activity; there’s no on-site lodging; and the nearest restaurants, motels, and gas stations are some miles away.

Man doesn’t seem to have had much impact on the Craters locale. Oh, there’s more air pollution drifting through than a few decades ago, so you’re not as likely to see the high mountain ranges along the Snake River Plain; and larger animals like grizzlies and big-horn sheep disappeared a century ago – but overall, there’s not a lot of visible change.

The region began erupting around 15,000 years ago and stopped around 2,000 years ago. There’s a school of thought that another eruption is due in the next few centuries; but it’s expected to again be flowing lava rather than an explosion like Mount St. Helens in 1980.

There are no streams and few water holes, but the ecosystem is home to 2,000 species of insect, almost 200 bird species, 59 species of mammals, plus reptiles, amphibians, and a remarkably diverse plant population. Of course, you don’t see a whole lot of any of them in winter – primarily shrubs and limber pine.

It’s a unique land of tremendous extremes that an early visitor called “the strangest 75 square miles on the North American continent.” My first visit was in mid-summer with a geologist-friend who was ecstatic to see both aa lava (a Hawaiian name that’s spelled at least three different ways, meaning a jagged surface best avoided) and pahoehoe lava (smooth and ropey-looking). The heat was stifling – air temperatures may only reach the 90s in July, but surface temperature on that black rock can reach 170 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s more than hot enough to fry an egg – if you can find a flat surface.

I remember the physical shock of following a trail into a lava tube that’s perpetually chilly. We lost perhaps a dozen feet in elevation, started to shiver, and came across ice.

Snow can bring a gentler face to Craters, or as one guide told me, a “Sahara arctic flavor.” He added, “It’s an entirely different experience from what you can have in any other area because of the brilliant white snow and the black basalt rock. It kind of looks like cookies and cream ice cream out there.”

Winter conditions can see -30 degrees Fahrenheit at night, with the wind rising to 30 miles per hour and not much tree-cover. It’s a great time to have the right clothing and good judgment on how far to venture from your car. There’s usually about a four-month season for skiing and snowshoeing.

The Park Service grooms up to seven miles of two-way trail along a summertime scenic loop drive. When I visited it was double-tracked, with a skate lane shared by snowshoers plus a separate snowshoe trail. There’s no fee, no dogs, no bikes, no snowmobiles. It’s easier to ski clockwise if you’re a beginner in order to avoid a downhill on the southwest edge of Inferno Cone.

In some ways, snowshoeing around the Monument is more fun than skiing because you get more flotation so can do more off-track exploring. But if you enjoy downhills, it’s a blast to make some turns on the open-sloped cinder cones, which can give you 400-500 feet of vertical drop.

You can climb to the summit of Mt. Paisley for grand views before heading back to the Visitor Center. As a guide once noted to me, “How many places can people say, ‘Ya know, I went out Saturday and snowshoed to the top of a volcano.’”

Image Credit: NPS (National Park Service.)

Yellowstone Magic:

Fri, 09 Dec 2022 01:03:36 GMT

Our First National Park in Winter

In 1991, while guiding a small group in Yellowstone National Park, I tried to describe walking outside as the sun rose one February morning near Old Faithful:

“Morning light pours over the hills, reflecting off the frost in a blinding cloud of diamonds. Elk and bison shake snow off their backs, stirring after a long night’s chill. Duck and geese stretch and preen. Billows of geyser steam hover and settle, creating dense, lacy patterns on bowed pine branches. Yellowstone tastes of winter magic.”

Summer and Winter

To me, Yellowstone isn’t a great treat in summer. Yes, the combination of animal and geothermal activity is unique – but there were about 4.86 million visitors in all of 2021, while last winter there were about 100,000 visitors. That was too many vehicles and frowning faces jammed along narrow roads.

Winter is totally different. First, there’s almost no traffic (no bears generally either, although they may peep out of their dens in January) – winter over-snow services open December 16 ^th and close March 15 ^th .

The only road that’s kept plowed runs east from Mammoth in the northwest to Cooke City, where it dead ends. All the other roads are snow-covered and accessible by snowmobile, snowcoach (enclosed and heated tracked vehicles), or by skis or snowshoes.

Yellowstone’s winter is created for superlatives. No other place in the world has such an inspiring combination of wildlife and wild geology. It’s rich in history; has spectacular mountain scenery; and the park’s 2.2 million acres are yours without crowds or pollution.

Getting There

My geography is sketchy at best, so maybe it’ll help to set the scene. Yellowstone is located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with little extensions north into Montana and west into Idaho.

To enter the park, you can travel north from Jackson Hole; west from Cody, Wyoming; or east from West Yellowstone, Montana. My favorite (fourth) route is east from Bozeman to Livingston; south through the Paradise Valley; pass through the sleepy town of Gardiner; and drive up to Mammoth Hot Springs, where usually you can overnight at the venerable Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel (they’re closed for renovations this winter, with elk grazing outside the ground floor windows.

Using Mammoth (or Gardner) as a base, you can drive toward Cooke City, with a lot of photo stops for wildlife in the Lamar Valley, and then backtrack.

Heading South

From Mammoth you can get to Old Faithful by snowcoach or snowmobile, sight-seeing, skiing, and snowshoeing along the way. Norris Geyser Basin and the jaw-dropping Canyon of the Yellowstone River, with ice-laden and thunderous falls, are natural stops.

The center of the park is a volcanic crater, 40 miles across, with the world’s greatest concentration of geothermal features: geysers and fumaroles, mud pots and hot pools. One of my favorite Yellowstone memories is a morning ski on a snow-covered wooden boardwalk, watching a bull bison standing above a steam vent, basking in the warm air billowing around his belly.

Snowpack around Mammoth can be thin, but Old Faithful has reliable conditions and all kinds of good trails. You’re guaranteed to see lots of elk and bison, maybe coyotes, possibly wolves.

In winter, bison are relatively indifferent to humans, since they’re intent on scarce forage and surviving sometimes bitter cold, but it’s not something to count on. I’ve skied within feet of a bison, on a narrow trail with a cliff to one side and sheer drop on the other. We came around a corner and there they were. We carefully didn’t make eye contact with the cows and calves that plodded toward us, and I could hear muttered prayers from the other skiers (my teeth were chattering too hard to enunciate).

Of all the times I’ve visited Old Faithful, the most indelible and endearing memory isn’t that glorious streamside tour, two feet of light fresh snow, or being mock-charged by a bull elk. It’s the smiles on three kids’ faces as one cold morning they dropped tablets of food coloring in glasses of hot water, ran outside the Snow Lodge, and threw them in the air! It was a cold morning, and the droplets turned into rainbows of frozen mist – blue, red, green – that slowly drifted in the breeze and disappeared. So a half-dozen of us adults did the same thing.

Now, that’s magic!

Resources

The Mammoth Hotel and the Old Faithful Snow Lodge provide Yellowstone’s only winter accommodations and dining other than yurt village/guide service Yellowstone Expeditions ( https://yellowstoneexpeditions.com/ ). They typically open for the season mid-December through early March.

You can book accommodations by contacting Yellowstone National Park Lodges ( https://www.yellowstonenationalparklodges.com/ ). For a snowcoach tour, I’d recommend Yellowstone Expeditions or Yellowstone Alpen Guides in West Yellowstone ( https://seeyellowstone.com/ ), especially if you want skiing or snowshoeing.

Image Credit: Yellowstone Alpen Guides

Snowshoes: From Wood to Metal to… Foam?

Sun, 27 Nov 2022 20:13:58 GMT

Changes to Keep Snowshoeing Fun

As a long-time, single-minded Nordic fanatic, snowshoeing used to seem pretty tame – kind of a melding of on-snow recreational and utilitarian, with not much maneuverability and no glide.

Aging knees and mature perspective (or some approximation!) have changed this some, along with vast improvements in snowshoe materials and design, from wood-and-animal hide to aluminum-and-synthetics. Newer products aren’t as beautiful as the natural materials, but they’re tougher, lighter, longer lasting, have easily adjustable bindings, and come with metal crampons that can grip in crust and up (as well as down) hills. Also, rodents don’t chow down on them in summertime.

It’s always interesting to see how technology evolves. In the Nordic world, we’ve seen the introduction of groomed trails, synthetics in skis, skate skis, manmade clothing (lycra!), waxless bases, boot/binding systems… All that’s led to more fun, faster skiing, better support, easier turns, warmer toes and tushies – virtually a different world.

And in snowshoeing, we may be seeing an equivalent revolution with the introduction of foam snowshoes: the Evas. (Thus far, the only foam manufacturer is Crescent Moon Snowshoes of Englewood, Colorado )

Got to be kidding, right? Foam? It’s gonna fall apart in the cold, crack in the sun, crumble into small pieces under your weight.

Nope.

I’m a 190 pound guy who’s waded around wearing Evas in a foot of fresh Montana powder as well as heavier crud; managed a 180 degree jump (no good reason, I was just curious); even backed up for a couple of yards without damaging self, ego, or equipment.

Among the things I like about these ‘shoes is the weight (3.5 pounds per pair); ease of movement (you can walk, you can run… and they feel like an elongated extension of your foot due partly to a “rocker” design, plus they’re only 24 inches long); simple, self-explanatory bindings; flotation (the entire base is in snow contact); good insulation from the snow below; sidestepping is easy; and a lot more.

I’m also delighted by the Crescent Moon sense of humor, which describes the Evas as looking like “the love child of a running shoe and a burly snow tire.”

Longevity will depend on amount of use and abuse, I suppose, but figure several years. The one weakness I found after experimentation is that the first-generation plastic cleats and lugs didn’t grab as well as metal on crusty sidehill. (On the other hand, I’ve slid sideways downhill on the old wood ‘shoes, and slipped on crust with modern snowshoes too.) Happily, the company now produces insertable metal cleats for better grip.

I haven’t used the Evas in more than about 14 inches of fresh snow, but Crescent Moon suggests using them on trails rather than in deep snow. My guess is that it’s not good for the foam ‘shoes to use them on abrasive surfaces like sidewalks or road crossings (yep, done that with my other aluminum snowshoes – not smart then either). You can find the Evas at Bozeman’s REI store, 2220 Tschache Ln.

Spotlight on Local Businesses: Jelt Belt

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 17:20:55 GMT

Keeping Your Ski and other Pants On

I kind of collect belts, from a 50-year-old hand-made inches-wide leather style with ornate Mexican silver buckle; to a contemporary pseudo-leather critter with multiple off-set holes; to a futuristic version (my favorite!) that grips, flatters, goes through airport security without setting off alarms, comes in colors – and keeps my pants up in all circumstances thus-far encountered. Now, that’s versatile!

Back in July 2017, after moving back to Montana (still gotta get the dog, battered pickup, and rifle rack to look like a native again), I started exercising and leafing through local magazines, simultaneously. The exercise dropped my shorts a size; the editorial introduced me to the Jelt Belt ( https://jeltbelt.com/ ), an ingenious Bozeman product that’s both fun and environmentally responsible, yet totally practical – so many positive qualities that it gives renewed faith in the entrepreneurial mindset. And it fits my new almost-size-34s as well as the previous 36s.

I’ve always liked leather belts. They’re handsome, can slide reasonably easily through loops, even smell kinda good when they’re new – and you can commission designer buckles. But it can be tough to punch extra holes as time goes by and waistlines expand or contract; and if you don’t have belt loops, they’re slick enough to slide up and down, with consequent droopy pants.

With a lot of fabric belts, you can pierce the material with the buckle prong, but again they’re often on the thick and wide side. Like leather, they generally have metal buckles, so you may need to remove the belt (and put it on again) while going through airport security – not fun if you’re literally running to make a flight.

Enter the all-synthetic Jelt Belt: tough, adjustable, stretchy, with a grippy inner-surface gel. Endearing from an environmental perspective, all models are made of yarn from recycled plastic water bottles, while part of sales goes to organizations supporting veterans wounded in combat, environmental causes, and kids. Belts are manufactured in Bozeman.

Jelt Belts are slender rather than thick or wide, but they hold very snugly. (You can order for jean sizes 22-40.) They come in different colors (I’m partial to the River Turquoise and Denim Navy blue; kids get fun shades too).

Maybe more important than aesthetics, buckles in two configurations are quick-release. I’ve even learned to release and re-buckle one-handed (let your imagination run wild, but so far, they’ve been very mundane uses). Buckles are low profile – flat, actually – so there’s no bulge under your shirt or sweater. Skiing, golf, running, walking, socializing, they seem right for every occasion.

Okay, you want to know about the name. The belt was founded by Jennifer Perry, thus it’s Jen’s Belt, which evolved into “Jelt Belt.”

Why a belt for skiing? Whether you take a fall or are skiing in a storm, the Jelt Belt keeps snow out of your pants.

And the price? Figure around $34 for most adult belts, a little less for kids. You can find them at a half-dozen stores around Bozeman and on Jelt Belt's website .

Prepping Your Car for Winter

Tue, 11 Oct 2022 21:58:11 GMT

Some of you have been driving in snow since you got your licenses; or since this is Montana, even earlier! If so, these tips may be things you do naturally. But some of us are new to cold, snowy winters – and substantial snow in Bozeman can fall any time from September into May. (In August 1992, we got about a half foot.)
Next month we’ll have driving tips; this time, it’s more on getting your car ready for the season.

Some things are self-evident, like having good tires. Studded tires are permitted in Montana from October 1 - May 31, chains the same dates; snow tires can be on your car year-round. Front wheel or 4 wheel drive vehicles with good tires give you pretty good control in most conditions; rear-wheel drive will prove very slippery. Other predictable things: Check that your battery is healthy; check your car owner’s manual for recommendations on tire pressure and cold weather oil weight; make sure you have enough antifreeze in your radiator and that it stays topped off; and always wear your seat belt.

You’ll want windshield wipers in good condition. Clearing ice off your windshield before you start the car will help keep them in good shape; a windshield snow cover can be useful. For sure, use cold weather washer fluid so it doesn’t freeze on the windshield.
Check your brakes before winter.
Keep your gas tank close to full to prevent condensation mixing with your fuel and blocking fuel lines.
Make sure all your lights are working (headlights, brake lights, taillights, interior light) and clean.
Turn off cruise control when roads are wet, snowy, or icy. If your tires lose traction, cruise control may continue accelerating, sending your car into a spin.
Make sure your spare tire is inflated.
You might install a block heater to make starting easier.
Create an emergency kit: Food, water (don’t let it freeze), blanket, flashlight with good batteries, ice scraper, tarpaulin, battery booster cables, collapsible shovel, gloves, and hand wipes. Other possibilities are a tow strap and fire extinguisher. Some compact commercial winter emergency kits are available online consumer reports winter car kit review .
As to warming up your car, Consumer Reports says for modern cars: “By the time you get in, start the car, put on your seatbelt, and get situated, the engine might not be fully warm, but it’s completely lubricated and you’re okay to drive at this point.” Figure maybe a minute to get the engine lubricated; more idling time increases air pollution from the exhaust.
Having a four wheel drive vehicle doesn’t mean it will keep you in control in all weather conditions! Every long-time winter driver will have stories…

P.S. A tip for parking at Golden Gate: If your car picks up warmth from the rising morning sun rather than sitting in shadow, the windshield may melt faster, and your engine start easier.

csmontana

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Spotlight on Local Businesses: Jelt Belt

Keeping Your Ski and other Pants On ﻿

Prepping Your Car for Winter

Keeping Your Ski and other Pants On