Title: Ski Carrying Test

General Information about Item:

• Customary lore, ritual
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: Anonymous 
• Date Collected: 11-05-19

Informant Data:

• The informant would like to remain anonymous, but has shared that she is 21 years old and is from California. She attends Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH.  She is currently a senior who applied for Ski Patrol her Freshmen year. She remembers the application process vividly, although she did not end up making the team. Skiing is a big part of her life and while not on ski patrol, she is a ski instructor at the Dartmouth Skiway. She is a pre-health student. Her love for skiing inspired her to apply for Ski Patrol at Dartmouth College.

Contextual Data:

• The application process for Dartmouth Ski Patrol occurs from Fall until Spring term every year.  While the process has recently changed, it always involves two rounds of cuts. The first round of cuts is at the end of the fall term, and the second round of cuts is at the end of the winter term.  In the very beginning stages of the process, those who are interested in applying for ski patrol had to fill out a written application with their skiing history, why they are interested in applying, their name, etc. and then there were also questions that were just random fun facts that they could use later if the applicant moved on in the process.  Then they sent applicants an email saying that they had gotten in. After morning pickups, the next stage of the process was to assess whether or not applicants could handle gear. The gear handling test happens within the first month of the fall term every fall on Dartmouth’s campus.

Item:

• During the beginning stages of the ski patrol application process, applicants must partake in a ski carrying test.  They are required to pick up a pair of skis, put them together, and carry them across a room using proper form.  This is one of the first tests to make sure that applicants know how to handle ski equipment.

Transcript:

• “ We went into different stations so you are alone in a room with someone from Ski Patrol and there were a pair of skis on the ground and they told you to pick them up and carry them across the room.  You had to pick them up, put them together, lock the bindings, hoist them over your shoulder, and walk them 10 feet. They marked that you knew how to handle the gear, and it was like ‘Ok! You are good!’” I don’t remember what the other stations were. That one just stood out to me because I figured if you were applying for ski patrol, you knew how to ski.”

Informant’s Comments:

• “I guess they just wanted to make sure you knew how to handle gear like you said you could in the application.  Anyone who knows how to ski will know how to put a pair of skis together and carry them. They are looking for the best skiers on campus to join Ski Patrol, so at the most basic level, any good skier should know how to do this.” 

Collector’s Comments:

• I agree with the informant that this ritual is likely meant to gauge at the most basic level if the applicant is an experienced skier.  This stage of the application process is an easy way for them to cut people out who are visibly not experienced enough to join the Patrol.  While there are many factors that determine whether or not a student is accepted onto Ski Patrol, at the heart of this decision making is skill level.  Any skilled skier could put together and carry a pair of skis with ease.   
• There are many ways in which this seemingly simple ritual can be interpreted through the lens of Arnold van Gennep’s rites of passage.  Carrying a pair of skis across a room can be symbolic of going from one state to another – from a non-member to a member of Ski Patrol. Picking the skis up from the floor, and hoisting them over a shoulder in preparation to relocate the skis can be seen as separation.  Just as the skis are separated from the ground, the applicant is separated from their status as a non-patroller. The applicant is taking the necessary steps to prepare to move the skis, which is symbolic of them preparing to enter this journey to join the patrol. Carrying the skis across the room represents transition.  The skis are in transit just like the applicants are in the middle of the initiation process, not quite members yet. This physical journey across the room represents the lengthy journey applicants must go through to join the patrol. Successfully dropping the skis off on the other side of the room represents incorporation.  The skis have reached their final destination, just as the application has reached their final “destination” as they are successfully incorporated into the patrol.

Collector’s Name: Rachel Mashal

Tags/Keywords:

• Customary lore
• Ritual
• Skiing
• Ski Patrol
• Application process