Crystal Mountain WA Is Looking For Park Day Staff and Experience Park Groomer

I raked a lip a few times

Can confirm that the terrain outside the park is fantastic and that the park itself has been getting (a lot) better every year!!!

I rake lips in the afternoon because my parks crew is lazy or high as shit at all times. That pretty much means I work for spt right?

WoFlowzI rake lips in the afternoon because my parks crew is lazy or high as shit at all times. That pretty much means I work for spt right?

Pretty much right. Also will probably be hiring some day staff hand crew as well. But that will probably go up later in the summet when we figure out who's coming back.

I heard this is where evil takes its form

WoFlowzI rake lips in the afternoon because my parks crew is lazy or high as shit at all times. That pretty much means I work for spt right?

Send in an application to rake
Place has employee housing and some of the staff looked super young so it doesn’t hurt to try

Looks like there's a couple day staff spots still and I don't think we've locked downanother park groomer yet.

I think there should be a couple housing spots for day staff, def a housing spot for cat ops.

Mountain is pretty sick. Were building a few new things, getting some new beginner boxes, possibly building a few new rails. Park program is small but growing. I'll try and dig up some pics.

Great big mountain vibes for shredding outside the park as well.

that park looks awesome. all kinds of lines and trannies to find. and spines/hips are way too rare these days

I guess this is more of a general question, but how does someone become/gain experience as a cat driver? Is it just see if your local hill will take a chance training you then after a few years apply to groom at some like endgame resort? Kinda like how park crews at these famous parks all grew up raking lips for tiny hills? I follow someone on ig who was driving the winch cats on hood this summer. I think big machinery is sick and it definitely looks like a better after college job than raking when I’m 60

theabortionatorLooks like there's a couple day staff spots still and I don't think we've locked downanother park groomer yet.

I think there should be a couple housing spots for day staff, def a housing spot for cat ops.

Mountain is pretty sick. Were building a few new things, getting some new beginner boxes, possibly building a few new rails. Park program is small but growing. I'll try and dig up some pics.

Great big mountain vibes for shredding outside the park as well.

d5rI guess this is more of a general question, but how does someone become/gain experience as a cat driver? Is it just see if your local hill will take a chance training you then after a few years apply to groom at some like endgame resort? Kinda like how park crews at these famous parks all grew up raking lips for tiny hills? I follow someone on ig who was driving the winch cats on hood this summer. I think big machinery is sick and it definitely looks like a better after college job than raking when I’m 60

Yeah it can be tough. The first time I got in a cat was in NY when I was 18. Took me 8 more years to get back in a cat. Didn't start full time grooming till I was 28 I think.

I was working day staff since 17 in NY. Basically had that side of things locked and really worked to get back in a cat. Going out and riding with a friend on grave to get some stick time and then going straight into work days sometimes.

Big mtns like Vail etc hire rookies every season. Im sure they also get a lot of appa but those mtns can be a good way in. I actually had a job at Vail grooming trails but unfortunately are park manager job came up back east at a mtn I used to work at. I got sucked into that and got burned heavily lol.

I think the best way to get in a cat is to be open to moving. It can be a pretty hard job to get. There's always exceptions but in general it's tough. Apply to multiple places every year. More to increase chances but sometimes they remember you and if you want it and they see your name keep popping up they'll take a chance. I applied for day staff in Australia and didn't end up getting the job. A few years later after Id been grooming applied to groom there. Dude remembered talking to me the first time, saw that I really wanted to go down there and gave me a spot on the crew.

Snowmaking is one of the best ways to get in a cat at bigger mtns. A lot if snowmaking ends in January. Mtns are generally pretty good about finding you work in other departments if you want it. Snowmaking is a fun shitty fun hard job. It gets you into mtn ops a bit more and grooming departments are more down to pull somebody from there than a rando sometimes. While doing snowmaking you can talk to the grooming manager, try and get some ride alongs. Don't be annoying, but be persistent. Sometimes somebody will just hand you a chance, usually you have to work to get in a cat.

Once you get in a cat stay with that mtn for a couple of seasons if possible. It's a lot easier to get a job at another mtn with even 2 years grooming and both at the same resort than 1 season and dipping out.

If you like it, do a good job, and keep a solid relationship with the mtns you work at even if you leave. The industry is small and people talk to each other. If you burn bridges that can haunt you.

It's a great job, the hours suck, the pay sucks(crystal pays pretty well but doesn't really hire rookies).

It's a cool job to check out. If you like it stay with it and get into parks. If you don't send a couple of seasons and then get a real job or whatever.

I actually really liked day staff and building plazas, setting rails, building rails etc. But like you said, can't rake when I'm old. Thanks to covid and being unable to go to Australia again i did day staff at hood this season and realized how over day staff I am lol. Still like it but not 5 days a week.

As far as day staff at big resorts it's similar. Unfortunately it's not what you know it's who you know. We were building some really clean stuff at no name mountains but it's hard to get some places to care if you don't have any of the big well known parks on your resume.

I could have done a better job probably with my whole trajectory but I got to work a ton of cool places and have been my seasons in a cat. The hours suck but you can have a wayyyyy bigger impact on a park with a cat than a rake. A motivated dude with a rake and shovel can rebuild a few rail setups everyday, in a cat you can change the whole vibe of a park on a good night.


/long response

Sparknotes: Apply to a bunch of places, and or do snowmaking. Grooming is fun, snowcat go brrrr

theabortionatorHere's a pic of our flow park from last spring.

The flow park was sick last year! Any way to move the mini park somewhere you can actually get speed though? Its literally flat down there so you pretty much had to pick one feature and skate into it.

extravertThe flow park was sick last year! Any way to move the mini park somewhere you can actually get speed though? Its literally flat down there so you pretty much had to pick one feature and skate into it.

We have the problem that steeper mtns have about limited terrain for parks and ski school wanting the same runs. But aeeing what we can do. Also have some new beginner/intermediate features coming this year.