Hill Names: Duck Soup

Did you know that a pintail is a type of duck? Pintail Peak at Nub's Nob was named after a boat owned by Walter Fisher. When the land was acquired a lot of names were bandied about. Pintail Peak had a really nice ring to it. When naming the hills, the resort tried to stick to the wildlife theme: Goosebumps, Whitefish, etc. What did they decide upon for the long, flat hill leading back to the area? Duck Soup of course! No one seems to be sure where the saying "easy as duck soup" comes from, but for this hill, it fits!

Back to Nature: Panda Land

This year Nub's Nob has a new hill: Panda Land! It is a green circle hill just off of Pleasantview after the orange chair. Panda Land is named after our Winter Sports School children's program, but you won't find pandas. Instead, there are five life-size statues of Michigan wildlife: a moose, a cougar, an eagle, a deer, and my favorite, a bear! The hill was the idea of our resident Papa Panda, Bob Mogford. It is a fun detour and now part of my teaching repertoire. It is a great way to practice turning and learn about nature.

Hill Names: Twilight Zone

Obviously the black diamond mogul run on the front of Nub's Nob is named for the old TV show. What a lot of people don't know is management didn't name it. Years ago there was a space between Chute and the trees that didn't get groomed. As snow built up, it would become slanted and had a shadowy feel. Skiers (mostly kids) would go there looking for fresh snow and the moguls built up over each winter. The kids named it Twilight Zone. After a few years, the suggestion was made to turn it into an official hill. The space was widened and signs were made. Now it stands as a Northern Michigan right of passage.

ChairTalk: Pintail Peak Warming Hut

In 1995 Nub's Nob swapped land with the State of Michigan and in 1997 Pintail Peak opened. It wasn't until the warming hut was built in 2003 that I started taking lessons out there. I never wanted to risk a lesson out there in case they got cold or had to use the restroom. With the warming hut, it is now the perfect place for intermediate lessons. Most of the slopes are wide blue hills serviced by quick chairlifts that usually have shorter lines. The warming hut has a fireplace, restrooms, a view of Little Traverse Bay, and a cafeteria that serves soup and sandwiches. On weekends and holiday the vintage Sno-Cat above brings up the food and supplies. The building's official name is The Pintail Peak Warming House, but I like to call it The Outback Jack Shack! By the way, that makes the wooden item to the left the Outback Jack Shack Rack!

Hill Names: Revelry and Birch Run

My computer dictionary says Revelry means:

lively and noisy festivities, esp. when these involve drinking a large amount of alcohol

Until I looked it up, I thought it had something to do with bugle calls in the military, but that is spelled differently. Years ago, Revelry used to be the Nastar racing hill. When night skiing came along, it became home to the league races, and didn't the name certainly fit? At that time, Birch Run was a closed and fenced black diamond run between Revelry and Smooth Sailing. In 1993 the blue "Dories Bowl" chair was replaced with the current 4-person red chair. Dories Bowl and Revelry were reworked and the trees between Revelry and Birch Run were removed. The racing hill was re-christened Birch Run, and is now a wide, rolling, beautiful blue square run. The talking point is, Revelry still appears on the signs and maps! I really can't tell for sure where it is on the hill, but when you find it, let's take a run together!

Hill Names: Cat Track

This student asked me why this hill is called Cat Track. I thought it would make a good post. Cat Track is a shortcut that leads to Pleasantview and Sno Pro. It is easy to access from the Orange, Green and Red chairlifts. It is about the width of a groomer, or snowcat, hence the name Cat Track. One of my favorite memories of Cat Track is skiing it at night back before there were lights on the back hills. We would have wax races in the half light. I know this is crazy, but at one point I thought the trail was called Cat Walk. Does anyone else remember that?

Hill Names: Easy Mile

Easy Mile: don't be fooled by the name. It is not easy, and it is not a mile. Easy Mile is the hardest "Green Circle" hill at Nub's Nob. Also, it is not a mile long. Ramblewood is our longest hill at about 9/10 of a mile. Why then is it called Easy Mile? Back when Nubby and Dorie Sarns had the hill cut, it became the easiest slope after the beginner rope tow area that was in front of the lodge. It was also the longest hill by the time you followed the trail back down to the lodge. Hence the name, Easy Mile.

Hill Names: Dorie's Bowl

Thanksgiving day is a great day to talk about Dorie's Bowl. It is one of my favorite hills, and usually the first hill I ski when not teaching. The top is a wide bowl shape that tapers to a flat chute that spreads out again and leads to the Red Chair. I love to ski it with wide carves through the changing fall lines and into the old half pipe on the skier's right. The hill is named after Dorie Sarns who founded Nub's Nob with her husband Nubby back in 1958. Later when they divorced, Dorie took over Nub's Nob and ran it for many years. When ready to sell, Dorie was very choosy. Many hills in the area were changing hands at the time and changing for the worse or not having to shut down. Dorie wouldn't have that. She carefully screened potential buyers and sold the area to the Fisher family, who have done great things with it and made it what it is today. So on this Thanksgiving day, I am thankful for Dorie, her bowl, and the choices she made!

Hill Names: Sno Pro

Sometimes skiers wonder why the "w" was left off of the name Sno Pro. It wasn't because it looked good, it was a tribute to former Nub's Nob general manager Jim Dilworth.

In 1977 the Fisher family purchased Nubs from Dorie Sarns and wisely brought in Dilworth to run the hill. Not only was Dilworth a great manager, he was a genius at making snow. Before Dilworth, snowmaking basically consisted of a hose mounted on a tripod. He developed and patented the first snow gun with a fan. His prowess was so well known, that he was brought in as a snowmaking consultant for the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. Three days into the Olympics, the region was hit with a blizzard and Dilworth got to hang out and go to events for the rest of the time. Unfortunately Dilworth passed away a few years later. In 1987 Northwest Passage and Mr. Charlie were reworked and combined into one hill. Dilworth's second in command and successor Jim Bartlett and his crew named the new slope Sno Pro after Dilworth's license plate.

Hill Names: Outback Jack

One thing that people always find interesting is where the names of hills come from. I have a few stories for the different hills, but the one I know best is the one named after my dad: Outback Jack.

When the Orange Chair and surrounding hills first opened back in 1979 that area became known officially as Nub's Nob South, but referred to as "The Back." In 1995 Nub's Nob purchased adjoining state land and started planning additional hills. "The Outback" would have been a great name for the new cluster of hills, but Keystone already had a mountain with that name. Eventually management decided to name the new area Pintail Peak, but that is another story.

Around the same time, my dad Jack Frank was chosen to receive a certificate of merit from the Northwest Michigan Council for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, "In recognition of twenty years of dedication to Northern Michigan Families – instilling a lifelong sense of responsibility, commitment, and the joy of sportsmanship in the minds and hearts of our children." Dad had helped found and run the Northern Michigan Ski Academy, the Nub's Nob Ski Academy, the Petoskey Middle School Ski Team, and the middle school Little Brown Jug Race. The Council asked Nub's Nob General Manager Jim Bartlett to say a few words at the ceremony. There he announced that the furthest hill over on Pintail Peak would be named Outback Jack in Dad's honor!

At 71, Dad still helps out with the middle school ski team by driving their bus and assisting with practices and meets. This upcoming season will be the first season since 1977 that he won't be involved in the Winter Sports School. Instead, to give his legs a rest, he will be driving the Nub's Nob Shuttle Bus on weekends and holidays. He will still be "tearing 'em up" on weekdays, and you can probably find him on his favorite hill, Outback Jack!