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Living Legends
With a history that dates back over five decades, Mammoth Mountain is a living exhibit of American ski culture, with the personalities to go with it. One such individual is Herb Wells, whose spring trip last week marked 50 years of skiing Mammoth. After I recommended the Mammoth Ski Museum to him our conversation led me to believe that this adventurous 90-year-old a ski museum in his own righ.
Herb remembers $5 tickets for access to one chair and two rope tows in 1957. "I liked hiking even when I didn't have to," he says. He'd put skins on the bottom of his skis, walk up to McCoy Station and earn his turns. He was part of a boys' club of about 10 bachelors who liked to ski fast, headed by Clifford "Scotty" Scott (who, sadly, lost his life in a 1960s avalanche on the run we now call Scotty's).
By re-telling memories, Herb introduced me to a generation who paid for lessons with a 1/2 bottle of beer and actually got to know other people on 10-minute chairlift rides. But some things about skiing will never change: stories about following girls down the mountain, super-size winter storms, and risky ski mountaineering sound like anything you might hear over a latte at the Looney Bean. Now, after teaching the Wells grandkids to ski at Mammoth, Herb is an avid cross country skier. He's turni ng 90 in October - pictured here, racing 30 years ago at Mammoth.
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It's the vibe at Mammoth right now. From one person who lives and breathes the outdoors to another, this is fresh content written for you, bringing the mountain to life when you can't get away or you're on your way.(
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