E.C. expats, reveal yourselves

I was amazed reading the 'worst winter ever' thread how many East Coast expats there are here. Being one myself (been here a little less than 3 years), I was wondering just how many there are on this board, so out yourselves, even if you will be now looked down on as a non-native.  ;D<br>By way of introduction (I met Charles once on Muir, but I think that's it for TAYers I've knowingly met), I was born in R.I., grew up in Mass., college in Vt. (no, not UVM), moved here from Maine (Freeport) because, in short, it's the most beautiful place I've ever seen where you can also get a real job. And the skiing is amazing, even this year. Oh, and my last name is Winstanley, far too long to type in every time I want to log in.<br><br>Edit to add more skiing-related background<br>Was hooked on skiing at about age 11 after a trip to Wa-Wa-Wachusett. Due to distance/expense, never went more than about 5 times a year, usually Waterville Valley, Loon, Killington, etc., until college. School was about 45 min. from Killington, which explains my GPA. Was just starting to tentative steps into the B.C. (Hillman's Highway a handful of times, Sherburne many times) when I moved here. Since, I've acquired an AT rig and never looked back, skiing mostly at MRNP.

Since I already outed myself, I'll sign the list. Like you, Andy, I moved here because it was the nicest place I could find where I could also get a job I liked. I grew up in MA and moved here 11 years ago, just as I was managing to put together some halfway usable telemark skills, combining my love of XC and downhill skiing. As much as I loved places like the birch glades of northern VT and Tucks and all that, the long winter/spring/summer ski season here was (and still is) a revelation to me. And you gotta love the many LONG descents we can do here, especially in spring/summer. But perhaps most important of all, being an hour from skiable mountains (until this season) has really upped the importance of skiing in my life (that and the need to do something to counter the effects of the cold dark rainy season). <br><br>I enjoy cruising effortlessly down icy slopes (aka "frozen granular") while western  (as well as some Calgary and Edmonton folks) counterparts struggle (I realize many westerners do know how to ski ice rather well, but clearly ALL eastern skiers have mastered the technique).   Of course I'll choose powder over ice...

Born and raised in a Philadelphia suburb. Went to college at Penn State then jumped ship for grad school a few years ago (where I still am). My mother loves to ski and started my younger brother and I at Jack Front in the Poconos as soon as he could walk (he was 2, I was 4). Well, he now is ski buming in Bozeman, and I can't imagine my mom will be much farther behind after she retires this year.

<br>Like many others, I grew up in RI, skiing on ice, occasionally at that, in NH and VT. Moved to CO, skied for real, then went to grad school in SoCal, hated every minute of it, and finally got a job here in the PNW, ahhh, mtns!! My plans were to ski as much as possible this season, but alas, only 25-30 days out, and the good ones were in Bozeman!<br>cheers<br>Drew

Spent most years in RI, CT and MA. We vacationed out here the year before we moved out and skied Baker (Easton) and down in Oregon. Complete luck meant that my wife and I landed jobs in Seattle. Left once in 2000 but missed the area enough to move back in 2002. I only learned to ski when I started graduate school and came up from nordic, to backcountry and then spent years learning telemark on the variable snows of NE. (Lots of hematomas on the hips for learning on the leather boots and very skinny double camber skis of the day).<br><br>I had learned the ice skiing techniques to a point, more like coping actually, but since I moved out here in '93, I have completely lost the skills. I am glad for that. I laugh when I hear people here (especially at the lift served areas) complain about icy conditions. In NE ice means stuff you can see through! Not hard snow, which is what we can get here. There is absolutely no edge setting in NE ice.<br><br>While skiing in NE, even when traveling to Tucks or the like, I always dreamed of real alpine. The sort that Tuck's or Katahdin only hint at (at least from the perspective of large settings). Don't get me wrong, NE can offer ski challenges that meet what we have here, but it does so as a subset of what is available here. In any case you can't ski it all at once so NE can offer anyone a lifetime of skiing enjoyment.<br><br>This year is my first year skiing fixed heal, and I really like it. Will try to get out to take advantage of our spring skiing over the next few weeks.<br><br>Alan