Take a trip to Marmot Basin this winter and you鈥檒l likely run into Ruth Mathes. Mathes has been skiing the hill since 1974, and for more than a decade she鈥檚 been bringing tourists along for the ride.
Mathes is a volunteer ski host at Marmot. It鈥檚 her job to welcome newcomers and get them comfortable with the mountain, so every week she suits up and shows off the slopes to anyone looking for a tour.
The retiree lives in Edmonton, but every winter packs her bags and makes a beeline to Jasper to live close to the slopes for the ski season.
鈥淚t鈥檚 actually a pretty nice job; you get to ski with people from all over the world,鈥� Mathes said in an interview earlier this month.
Snow hosts have been a presence at Marmot for close to 20 years. Part tour guides, part ski instructors and part historians, the small group of volunteers act like ambassadors of the mountain.
This year, thanks to collaboration with Parks Canada, they will weave interpretive information and history into their repertoires, giving guests the scoop on local wildlife and some of Marmot鈥檚 most memorable figures.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a special job. And it鈥檚 a job that, believe it or not, although it鈥檚 a volunteer position, we are very fussy about,鈥� said Colin Borrow, Marmot鈥檚 director of snow services.
He said he looks for people who have been hitting the hill for years, because the best snow hosts are the ones who know the mountain up and down and can colour its history with their own experience.
鈥淚 can study skiing until I鈥檓 blue in the face and be the world鈥檚 greatest skier, but that only takes you so far if you don鈥檛 know a little bit of the history and a little bit of the trivia of the mountain. [That] is truly the most interesting stuff,鈥� he said.
For Mathes, a typical day of hosting involves bombing around the mountain with Marmot newbies, taking them on her favourite runs and to the best photo spots, peppering in Marmot history along the way.
But more than simply dragging guests along behind her, Mathes said it鈥檚 important for a snow host to be aware of what they are looking for. The seasoned skier has an eye for technique, she said, bragging that she can pinpoint a skier鈥檚 skill level almost instantly.
鈥淚 can tell within one run where they want to ski,鈥� she said.
Mathes said she loves the job because it keeps her on the hill and gives her a captive set of ears to brag to about Jasper skiing鈥攚hich she thinks is the best there is.
鈥淚鈥檝e been east and west and across the pond and this is as good as it gets,鈥� Mathes said.
Trevor Nichols
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