HELP! To those who SKI BUM/beach bum/adventure/travel: How? Tell your story.

re-reading that, i hate all-caps.

OK I'll give you my story.

FIrst off I tried and FAILED to be a ski bum age 23 back in 08.  Got jobs in reno (sub teaching/coaching), apartment and still fucked up and ran out of money and went back to the east coast before winter. It was a sick as winter I missed too most powder tahoe ever got and I had paid my ski pass and everything.  LIfe sucks when you don't have wealthy parents.  But it also means that if you ever want to be successul you better fucking try and fail 5x before you succed. 

Trying and failing is the only way people make it in this world if they aren't trust fund babies or total squares who'd spend 10 hrs a night on homework or play those games in the workplace of showing others up.


Anyways I worked shit jobs (moved on to working with retarded people from sub teaching which is probably a good ski bum job fyi its second shift) for a couple years and ended up getting laid off.  When I was collecting unemployment back in 2011 before the first Bruins Stanley Cup win I decided I'd start selling tickets for money and added on a bunch of seasons I couldn't afford with hopes we made the finals and that paid for them.  Well...we did and it sort of worked out.  I haven't looked back.  BUt I still have no fucking money never had more than 10k to my name even though I sell 6 figures a year.

Its really hard to sell 100k worth of tickets a year on stubhub when you started with FUCKIN ZERO but somehow I managed it.  As I said my parents fucking despise me and want me to conform and get an office job with my college degree and they've even stolen a 50k inheritance from my Grandma and won't let me use it for my business.  My mom has gone out of her way to fuck me out of the car this year so I have to walk to the store and stuff my cars rotting back in Boston for no good reason.  And yeah it was tough I had to sell all my earthly possessions at a flea market to come up with the first 10% payment on those tickets so I've started from nothing, I have fucking nothing, Im a joke who probably won't last the winter here, im 28 and a vagabond but thats my story.  I'm lucky and count my blessings most have it worse.

So yeah this will be the third winter skiing and living in casinos in Tahoe, I sell shit on Stubhub, my bank accounts always empty because I have to put every single cent I have into more tickets or else the show will be over.  And yeah, I had a vision, I was right, I'm sick at what I do, it somewhat worked out, and I would not recommend people quit their job to do this unless you have 100k to invest and know what you are doing.  Tough grind had to 100% dedicate my life to it.  And if they dollars don't add up (which they don't I had more money to my name last year) I might just have to go back to my rents basement and save up for my tickets.


I fucked up last spring and spent 6 weeks in Europe skiing Chamonix and Verbier and traveling around England, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Spain.  Almost wiped me out was dumb to not spend that money on tickets but it was fucking a sick ass time.

Tried it last year, got a whole 2 runs in. https://www.newschoolers.com/ns/forums/readthread/thread_id/725880/

I ski instruct in Japan and Chile, then go travelling in between the seasons. Getting into it I was strapped for cash, but now I get paid pretty well. I used to have to work other jobs in between seasons, but for the last 5 years I haven't had a job outside of skiing. I might start kite surf instructing when I am not skiing as I would like to save a bit more cash, rather than just spending it all.

I wouldn't really call myself a bum any more... but in spirit I am.

Additional question, Has anyone here ski bummed for a set amount of time then successfully gotten/returned to a "real job"?

Not really a long term bum, but over the summer me and a buddy packed up my tiny shitty mustang and drove from IN to Denver and then lived out of my car for 3 and 1/2 weeks and went from Denver to Tetons, to Yellowstone, and all the way up to Bozeman. It was one hell of a trip. Lots of hiking and fly fishing and not so much showering, cooked all our food with wood fire or MSR stove. It was one hell of a trip and I could only imagine doing to during winter.

Graduated high school in 2009, Dropped out of college in 2010. Moved to Colorado in the summer of 2011, working April- October making decent money. I save as much as i can so that In the winter I can ski 100 plus days and only have to pick up a shitty SUPER part time job to help pay the bills. I bought my own car, pay rent, smoke weed ,yadda yadda. Money has been tight before buy I always make it and I know I always will.

im not a lawyer but im pretty sure taking an inheritance that is specified for someone else is illegal.

Well I'm not exactly a ski bum by any means but... After high school I worked for a few years then moved into my families vacation home in co for 2 years and just lived the life. Skiied and mountain biked almost everyday. Now I'm back on the east coast finishing college and it sucks. But what life comes down to is do what makes you happy. You don't wanna wind up 40-50 years old and wondering where your life went cause you were too busy grinding. Every snow day there is fucking skip work. If you get fired you can get another job, but that powder day will never be there again. Take every opportunity life presents to you

the most sustainable way to ski bum is to go to college and get an office job in IT/marketing/accounting/human resources at a mountain.

3 years(going on 4)/300 days skiing get at me

This for sure.

I plan on it. Honestly I think bumming it and doing all the things young people dream of doing is necessary to get out of your system. I just graduated college, and took a resort job in Tahoe to see how that life style is. And so far I think its going to be more struggles than fun. They claim its full time, but it's so hard to get 40 hours a week, and the pay is low.

ehhh..

my dad's friend lived in a tent for multiple summers at mount hood, then decided to get a real job- started some sort of interior detailing business and is now fucking loaded. i stayed at his house in salt lake, UT which is super nice, also has a condo at canyons

This is a good thread.

After high school I did a year in a state college and did pretty well. I had no clue what I wanted to do for a major or career, so I didn't go back for my second year. I moved back into my parents basement and got two jobs. 6 months later I moved to New Zealand for a year on the Working Holiday Visa.

I lived in Wellington the whole time working in a bar, but while I was in NZ I went to Australia and Thailand as well. I got fifteen days of skiing in NZ as well so that was sick. I applied for a visa to stay for another year but it didn't get approved so I moved back home.

Pretty much same story, parents basement, two jobs. Three months later I moved to England. I stayed there for five months and traveled around the England/Ireland loads. I was living rent free in 8'x8' shed and worked as a gardener to get by. Had a great time. I saved enough to do a quick trip around Europe, and I had a few free places to stay, so I got a bus to Paris, Hitchiked to Prague, got a bus to brussels, then hitchhiked to Amsterdam. I busked (street juggling for money) every day to get extra cash for drinks etc.

Flew home on October 12, stayed with my parents for three weeks, then moved up to Keystone. I work on the mountain at Breck and then a night job over here in Keystone. I can ski every day I want, but I have three roommates in a one bedroom condo as well.

We'll see what I do after this season but I'm planning on making my way back over to Europe/England for the summer and finding a way to just go to music festivals.

My parents have definitely supported me loads and that definitely helps. I know that I always have somewhere to go and if I'm ever in an emergency I have someone to call.

In the Summer of 2012, I told myself my 2 years are up. Since I did not get any further in skiing and mountain biking, I ended my lease, put everything I owned in storage, packed the car with camping gear, 2 bike and my ski outwear. I had to fact it, my life in Quebec sucks; my roomate was an asshole, I was tired of the same damn routine so I decided to look at my apartment in Quebec city one more time.

It was in the planning for 2 years now, I had money from working my ass off and 2 months of free time to travel across the country and move to somewhere I always wanted to be. The catch is that I had no idea where I wanted to go... I decided to do a bike bum tour. So I left with I could fit in my car and a dream to recreate that tv series "Drop in".

I drove across the prairies in 2 days and spent 3 days in each location while trying to find the sickest trails, good people and a place to live. It was only one month in I came into Nelson and fell in love with the town. Once I moved in, I finished the trip in kelowna.

All I can say about that trip was nothing. People have no idea what it is like not having an address. My life consisted of eating, riding and meeting people. Dirt bagging to BC was an ultimate experience that I cant wait to complete. Ever since I moved, my life has been better in nearly every possible way.

Now that you've settled down what are you doing as far as work goes? Just curious.

I think there are two ways to do it- either you have a great seasonal job or you are just super poor. for the last few years i have been fishing commercially in alaska. this summer i made about 50 grand in 4 months of seriously hard work, then i went to southeast asia and indonesia for three months, now i'm starting ski season. i've done this the past few years- work super hard all summer, spend fall in a tropical place, then chase snow until spring. i've been doing this straight out of high school, and i'm now three years out. honestly i think it's the most satisfying way to live if you remember to stay motivated and have goals. if you forget that and start just lazing and bumming around you will become unsatisfied pretty quickly. the real trick is finding a way to do it for your entire life, i'm currently trying to buy a boat for my summers and build a ceramics studio for winters. do it, college is the easy answer for what to do with your life. walking your own path can be far more satisfying.

Thats sick.


There's other options to have a similar life to yours too there are jobs on pipelines where you can stack that kind of paper short term or you can drive a truck hardcore for 6 months and chill the other 6.  Multiple ways to skin a cat.  But I respect this approach it must be very satisfying and after a few months of doing each you are probably ready to move onto the next thing.

cool as hell!!

im halfway finished with school and decided i wanted a break. at the end of the semester last spring, moved back home with my dad and worked my ass off at 2 jobs for four months. ive been able to spend the last 3 months in mexico. spent some time in mexico city which is about the craziest place you could imagine taking language classes and the last month and a half ive been traveling around the pacific coast. it takes hard work but if you decide you wanna do it, drop whats not important and start doing what is and you can make it possible

yeah man, I have no problem with making spending cuts. It's just that we're blasted with all the "economy is horrible" shit, making the whole dream seem impossible even at that...

well...i am currently a junior in college. my parents do not help me financially, which is fine with me. so i pay my own rent, utilities, food, alcohol, weed, gas, ski shit, etc....in order to pay for all this shit, i work 40 hours a week at a convenience store. i take about 19 credits a semester (sometimes in the summer as well) so i can graduate early next year to follow my dream out to SLC.

Part of me wants to tell you that if you can't figure it out yourself then you don't really want it enough... But I haven't had any coffee yet today either, so here goes.

I did last year. And once I had made up my mind I trimmed out a lot of expenses--that meant scaling way back on bars/drinks/spur of the moment trips/new purchases. Anything that is a luxury like that, just cut it the fuck out. It's not a question, get rid of it. Because if you can't dump it before you go it'll plague you while you're out there. My rule was that anything I needed had to fit in my car (Subaru Outback) and stay below the windows so I could see everywhere. I also got rid of stuff: extra jackets, pants, gear, wakeboards,WHATEVER you have that you don't need or use that much, sell it.

I was a manager at a landscaping firm so I had the seasonal transition ready, but that also meant I went out on a limb and did a fair amount of side work. Usually I have no problem saying no to someone who wants me to just clear out and renovate a little garden bed, but I said yes to everything. This also led to me taking on a contract job involving lots of labor and no pay: a woman wanted to sell a large chunk of land (~50 acres) but it wasn't moving, a lot of brush, rotting trees, limited access, etc. So I logged parts of it, made some trails, etc. Right before I left, the land sold and I got my windfall profit. Fortunately this meant I could get some new gear for myself. I was very fortunate, but the lesson here is take some risks and don't say no to anything. I did gardening, worked my job, worked in a cabinet shop, and took on anything. A lot of my friends back east are in trades so helping them out was pretty easy way to build some money. This also led into a lot of bartering... I will help you re-sheetrock part of your house for a pile of weed to take with me. Or, I'll be your DD for the weekend, just pay me $50. Essentially, try to start seeing an opportunity in everything. And, if you can double down on your employment.

With enough money, gear paired down, and essentials with me I hit the road. Try and skip hotels because they'll gouge you or give you scabies. Walmart parking lots are great. Rig your car up with a way to sleep in it, buy a couple yards of fabric if you want a little screen, etc.

Skiing wise I had friends scattered around the west so that part made it quite easy. But earn your keep when you stay with someone. Don't be useless. Do the dishes, walk the dogs, buy beer, bring in firewood, keep the wood stove going, get some groceries, dig their car out after a storm, cook, be kind and gracious but not overbearing. This attitude allowed me live in a house rent free (except for utilities) the whole winter. Try to be an asset to those that take care of you in any way you can.

Food. Ah food. Make friends who work at restaurants. But buy in bulk! You don't want to be going to the grocery store and dropping coin on overpriced essentials. Learn to make bread! You'll save tons. Buy a dutch oven. You can cook anything from bread, to chilli, to soup, to breakfast in it. Buy a big bag of rice, quinoa, black beans, gatorade powder, get your coupon on and slay Cosco/BJs/local food coop. A small camp stove can be your best friend when you don't have an oven. And I think the bottom line is really just be gracious to everyone you meet and TALK to people, get to know people, buy them a beer, offer them a hand, this can pan out in amazing ways and it takes very little to do. You gotta put yourself out there.

Lift tickets can be a real bear. Liftopia, vouchers, and even offering J's to ticket checkers can work. The best way is to figure out the lift system and beat it. For instance, Vail checks at the base lifts only and once you're up-mountain you're good. You can skin or bootpack up Simba and be on your way. You may get in trouble. There are risks, respect them. If you're into the back country, even better, you can skin everywhere and it doesn't cost anything. Well it does, but you get my point.

As for work, if you want to stay mobile this can be hard, but find ways to help people. Help out in a cafe, in a ski shop, wherever, just meet people and offer your assistance. You'll get a ski tune, a meal, advice, who knows--don't expect anything, but offer yourself up to people.

That seems sort of wandering... like I said, no coffee haha, but I hope that helps you.

It was an amazing experience, best winter of my life, and I don't regret it for a second.