GUESTBOOK

Eliza Phillips skis the Junior Glade at Blandford Ski Area.

A hidden ski jewel celebrates 75 years.

When my daughter was four, I was already sick of the big mountain experience of driving from New York City to Vermont and sticking her in an overcrowded class with a day care feel. There never seemed to be enough instructors and the ones who were there did not seem to care if we were there or not.

I decided to google the closest ski area to Springfield, Massachusetts, where my parents lived, to see what I might find. Blandford. I had never heard of it, but decided to check it out.

Now six years later, I cannot imagine a better place to learn to ski.

My daughter, Eliza, has been through Ski With Me, Development Team, and now the Interclub Race Team at a magical place. We have been welcomed into a wonderful family.

At 465 vertical feet, it is a small mountain set at the far eastern end of the Berkshire Mountains. Owned and operated by the Springfield Ski Club, Blandford is celebrating its 75th anniversary this season as the oldest club-owned ski area in North America. Located off the Massachusetts turnpike, Blandford is a 3-hour drive from my house in Brooklyn.

Incorporated in 1936, the Springfield Ski Club was the brainchild of Ken Cuddaback and Charlie Parker. Cuddaback had just returned to Springfield in 1933 after graduating from Dartmouth, where he had become an avid skier. The two men planted the seeds of the organization with a newspaper ad that asked fellow skiers to join them. One of those first members, Connie Southworth, recommended the Blandford area as a close location that had the correct terrain for a ski area. The group leased a cornfield and cow pasture from a local farmer and spent 1935 clearing trails. In 1936, the first towrope was completed and installed. That first season, dues were set at $2.00 per individual and $3.00 for a family. When the club opened its slopes in 1936, a rescue squad/ski patrol was formed by several members to assist injured skiers, developing a rescue toboggan and disposable cardboard splints, used nationwide for many years. When the National Ski Patrol was founded in 1938, Blandford’s group was among the first to join the national organization.

A Junior Mountain Ranger at Blandford Ski Area.

In the years that followed, more terrain was added, chairlifts were built, and now the mountain has 98% snowmaking. With lighted slopes, a day at Blandford can last from 8:30 am to 9 pm on any given Saturday. And every weekend is a party in the old lodge. Music, food and camaraderie are always in great supply.

The main objective of the Springfield Ski Club has always been teaching people to ski and snowboard. Ken Cuddaback is documented not only as one of the founders, but as one of the first two instructors at Blandford. Over the years, the commitment to teaching has not changed. And as a “family” run organization, the number of husband and wife teams involved in coaching and management, provides an incredibly nurturing feeling for the youth involved.

Blandford’s Ski With Me program is overseen by Lisa Masciadrelli, whose husband Greg, is Ski School director. Eliza adores them both, and even now that she has “graduated” from this level, always returns to Ski With Me each weekend to volunteer to work with Lisa and her young charges, during her breaks from the race program. Many of the instructors are teens who grew up at the mountain, going through all the programs and now instructing them. We have met many third and fourth generation members of the club. “It is cool to instruct at your home.” “There is something very unique and kindrid about it.” Starting at the age of three, Blandford believes in a nurturing, low

The total teaching environment for Eliza included the Development Program, a 9-week program for ages 5 to 10 as an introduction to alpine sports, taught as fun. Run by Coach Andy (Lussier), many of the children go on to Blandford’s acclaimed racing programs.

With an all-volunteer coaching staff, led by Bill Scherpa, the level of skiing coming from Blandford’s Racing Program is incredible. With both Interclub (7 mountains within Massachusetts) and Tri-State (Connecticut, Massachusetts [Eastern and Western] and Rhode Island) competitions, Blandford racers always place in every age group.

The mountain will always be a part of our life. We feel honored to be a part of a special ski area that has been a fixture in western Massachusetts. The 75th Anniversary Jubilee Weekend in February will feature a dinner on Feb. 20, 2010, with a torch light parade, bands, DJs, and promised surprises. We can’t wait.

Visit SkiBlandford.org or visit our full Photo Gallery of Blandford