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CONTENTS:
3—From the President
4—Your Guide to Snow Week
6—Trips Menu
9—Racing Trips
10—A Connoisseur’s Guide to Alpine Watering Holes
14—Stay Off the Goat and Ski Past Beaver Just Outside the Rope and You
Will Find a Magical Place Free of Joeys and a Plethora of Balls Deep Pow
16—Fashion on the Slopes
OffOffOffOff----Piste: Volume 2, 2014Piste: Volume 2, 2014Piste: Volume 2, 2014Piste: Volume 2, 2014
Cover photo by: Henriette Anton
From the President:From the President:From the President:From the President:
Well then that went quickly didn’t it?
The semester flew by, and boy wasn’t it successful? We started off the semester on a strong
point signing up around 300 new MUSKI members in the first week, an awesome result. Oh-
weekend was a blast, and we’ve got keen freshers coming out of our ears. Big thanks to Tom
Lynch for being a champ in organising the weekend. Like last year we also decided to run
snow cruise in collaboration with our friends from MUST, which was so popular we had to
upgrade to a bigger vessel, and we still sold out. All in all, a great social calendar so far. But
now, we’re down to business. It’s Snow Week! The week all MUSKI has been looking forward
to since the start of the year, as it signifies the changing of the seasons, the darkening of the
days, and the anticipation of the first snowfalls. Oh yeah, it’s that time. It’s time to start skiing.
MUSKI has a huge week lined up for you all, full of social events, from trivia to film festivals,
but biggest day is Friday, when we sell our tickets, and will be hosting a rail jam in north
court, to get everyone hyped for the upcoming snow. MUSKI has a trip for everyone; Be sure
to get your spot on Friday, MUSKI trips are the most fun you can have at Uni.
SKI. PARTY. LOVE.
Kron out.
Snow Week is the best time of the university year for you snow lovers, because
we have an entire week’s worth of fun, ski club- and snow-related activities and
events, and, most importantly, it means that it’s time to buy your tickets to our
much sought-after trips. Here’s the down-low on what’s coming up this week.
Monday 12th: Trivia
Get down to Corkman’s at 7pm for some trivia and a beer (or some beer and a
trivia), get ready to compete against MUSKIs for ultimate glory!
Tuesday 13th: BBQ and Pub Night
Get down to South Lawn at 1pm for some tasty sausages, veggie burgers and a
catch up with your MUSKI mates. We’ll kick off a pub night at The Queensbury later
that evening (from 6pm) with the usual Tuesday MUSKI specials and shenanigans.
Come hang with the cook kids you’ll soon be skiing with.
Wednesday 14th: Movie Night
This year MUSKI has teamed up with The Winter Wildlands Alliance to present to
you, The Backcountry Film Festival. Get down and let’s get excited for the 2014 sea-
son!
Your Guide to Snow WeekYour Guide to Snow WeekYour Guide to Snow WeekYour Guide to Snow Week
Thursday 15th: Last Minute Signups
We’ll have a table out on South Lawn from 11am—2pm for last minute sign ups
and some cheeky banter. If you want to get yourself on a MUSKI trip this year you
need to be a member of the club. You WILL NOT be able to sign up for member-
ship on the day of trip sales. Make sure all your buds have got theirs too and get
them involved!
Friday 16th: MUSKI TRIP SALES
That’s right, the trips will be going on sale! Get down to North Court with your
piggy bank (aka trip deposit), trip sales will open at 12pm! There will be a cham-
pagne breakfast BBQ in the morning, and a lunch BBQ for members, yes we like to
BBQ. Check the Trips Menu for details and get excited!
Trips MenuTrips MenuTrips MenuTrips Menu All the important details about the upcoming trips: remember, tickets will go on sale on
Thursday during Snow Week. Get excited! All trips go on sale 12pm Friday 16 May in
North Court. Don’t be late!
Buller Week
Sunday 13th July – Friday 18th July
Price: $630
Includes: 5 day lift pass, 5 nights accommodation and social program
Warning: this trip is not for the faint-hearted! Spots won't last long for MUSKI’s biggest an-
nual trip. We stay at the MUSKI Buller Lodge, so you are guaranteed a 20m-walk to/
stumble home from the famous Kooroora Hotel, where we’ll be partying the night away! A
week jam-packed with boogie-ing, skiing and general fun times with some of MUSKI’s fin-
est, what more can you ask for? Ski all day, party all night, stay up for Amore and repeat.
Hotham Week
Sunday 20th July – Friday 25th July
Price: $840
Includes: 5 day lift pass, 5 lessons, 5 nights accommodation, and social program
Is there anything greater than hitting up one of Victoria’s best ski resorts for a week of fun?
With some amazing skiing and even greater partying, this trip is not one to miss. Following
the success of last year’s inaugural Hotham Week, the number of available spots has in-
creased to make it even better. Get in quick! Five 2-hour lessons are included in the package
and you’ll be skiing on fantastic quality snow, Hotham week is the best way to improve your
skills this season. You'll be shredding the double black runs in no time!
Buller Weekend
Friday 8th August – Sunday 10th August
Price: $375
Includes: 2 day lift pass, 2 nights accommodation and social program
The skiing doesn’t have to stop because the semester has started again! With two days of
skiing at the prime of the Buller season, it's an absolute steal at $375, and is always an awe-
some weekend. All the shenanigans of a weeklong trip, jam packed into a weekend!
Hotham Half-Week
Thursday 21st August – Sunday 24th August
Price: $515
Includes: 3 day lift pass, 2 lessons, 3 nights accommodation, and social program
Extended an extra day this year to give you a bit of extra value, Hotham Half-Week is a fan-
tastic few days of skiing and socializing. Make a whole bunch of new friends for the latter
part of the year!
Falls Creek Half-Week
Thursday 28th August – Sunday 31st August
Price: $490
Includes: 3 day lift pass, 2 lessons, 3 nights accommodation, and social program
Some of the best snow in Victoria; need I say anymore? An absolute blast of a half-week trip,
Falls Creek Half-Week is the last of MUSKI's winter trips, and your last chance to get up to
the snow and party with the raddest ski club going round. Great value for 3 days of skiing
the best snow of the season.
If you have any queries about the above trips email [email protected]
RacingRacingRacingRacing For those of you with a more competitive streak, don’t worry, there are some awesome
racing trips for you too! They are still super social and heaps of fun, and for these we mix
with the snowboard team, who are a pretty cool bunch as well.
VIC IVs
Wednesday 23rd July - Sunday 27th July
At Victorian Intervarsity Snow Sports Championships you can compete for The University of
Melbourne on and off snow. This includes testing your many and varied abilities in making it
down the hill in an exuberant fashion and then into the bar for some drinks with all the other
universities and then being able to get out of bed in the morning to do it all over again. This
event is open to anyone that can make it down a blue run. This is your time to shine! Whether
you are in it to win it or you are just there to look pretty, party and get points for the uni, we
want you.
Cost: $654 ($435 with a season pass)
Want more info about this rollercoaster of a trip? Email [email protected]
AUCs
Australian University Championships is another trip to look out for—this is more competi-
tive than Vics, but still a good party! If you have a pet event, let us know! More details on
this trip will be released soon, but it’s generally held during the university semester.
A Connoisseur’s Guide to Alpine A Connoisseur’s Guide to Alpine A Connoisseur’s Guide to Alpine A Connoisseur’s Guide to Alpine
Watering HolesWatering HolesWatering HolesWatering Holes
The Whitt
♦ Location: Mt. Buller
♦ The Lowdown: Entering the unassuming lobby of The Whitt, one might be fooled into
believing it is merely accommodation for the Ski Club of Victoria. But pass the bounc-
ers and climb the stairs to the second floor, and one finds an enormous dance floor,
with an extensive bar. There are couches if you want to relax, and occasional live
musicians, who take song requests if you're keen for a boogie. All in all, guaranteed
to be a fun time.
♦ Specialty Drinks: Good value in the form of a Pot & Shot special.
♦ Do: Request Nickelback
♦ Don't: Unplug the lead guitarist's amp when he refuses to listen to your repeated re-
quests that he play Nickelback.
Rating: 8/10 – Fairly standard, but has everything you could want.
By An Intrepid and Thirsty Adventurer
ABOM
♦ Location: Mt. Buller
♦ The Lowdown: The Buller website refers to this pub as “the famous ABOM.” Yet
somehow, most of MUSKI cannot even remember going there, and this particular
explorer is largely unconvinced that it genuinely exists. There might be a projec-
tor on the wall?
♦ Specialty Drinks: ???
♦ Do: ???
♦ Don't: Go there after several other pubs if hoping to write about it in future.
Rating: 7/10 – I suppose it must've been a good night.
The Kooroora Hotel
♦ Location: Mt. Buller
♦ The Lowdown: This is it. The big one. The gold standard by which all other alpine
pubs are measured. Should you find yourself at Buller this year, The Kooroora is
the place to be; indeed, one cannot truly call themself a MUSKI member until they
have somehow disgraced themself in this pub. With DJs spinning the decks all
night, and an array of pool tables, there's plenty to keep you occupied until close at
3am, when “That's Amore” wraps your night up. A true highlight of any Buller trip.
♦ Specialty Drinks: The Marky Mark; a delicious and lurid blue concoction, the exact
contents of which are shrouded in mystery. All I know is, it's about 5 dollars
cheaper if you say the magic words “without Red Bull.”
♦ Do: Stay until close! It's a short walk from the lodge, so have a midnight pitstop if
you must, but make it to Amore!
♦ Don't: Try and pay for drinks with fake money; spend an hour drunkenly chatting
with the bouncer and then get upset when he doesn't let you in even though you're
“buddies”; claim you're going to make it to Amore and then go to bed at 11pm.
Rating: 10/10 – Perfection in a pub.
The General
♦ Location: Mt. Hotham
♦ The Lowdown: The premier nightlife venue of Mt. Hotham, The General is the go-to
venue for any MUSKI Hotham trip. With DJ Eddy pumping out some classic tunes
most nights, and a thriving crowd of younger skiers in attendance, you're likely to feel
right at home. The Genny is particularly notable in that it has actually good DJs, which
can be a bit of a rarity. And at the end of the night, a bus comes round to take every-
one home. What's not to like?
♦ Specialty Drinks: Not Agwa bombs. Don't be taken in by the wiles of the blonde DJ.
♦ Do: Meet an attractive and eligible skiier of similar age.
♦ Don't: Crossdress as a German beer maid and let a burly man mistake you for a
woman and start grinding on you.
Rating: 9/10 – The epitome of Hotham nightlife.
The Man
♦ Location: Falls Creek
♦ The Lowdown: A pub described by a trustworthy source as 'the best' with a 'sick d
floor', the Man will undoubtedly quench your thirst for Falls nightlife admirably. Ru-
mours abound of dart competitions happening with a human stomach as the board
(maybe) if you're feeling adventurous, but otherwise, feel free to enjoy a couple of
quiet drinks and a chat with the colourful characters of the Falls Creek resort.
♦ Specialty Drinks: Beerz
♦ Do: Show the folks at Falls your sick moves
♦ Don't: Agree to play darts with anyone. But only maybe.
Rating: 8/10 – It's a bit of a trek to Falls, but The Man will welcome you with open arms.
This bloke’s sitting in the middle of the trail right after a bend in the trail. I come around
with a decent amount of speed (not crowded, middle of the week) but well within my lim-
its. He's right there and is somewhat startled by me coming to a quick stop to avoid him
(it's pretty narrow at this point in the trail). I say something along the lines of "hey man,
you should probably move because people can't see you when they come around that
bend".
At this point he flips, asks me if I'm the snow police, and what difference does it make to
you. I shouldn't have said anything, but I said "well I'm just someone who doesn't want to
get injured this earlier in the season". Him: well f*** you. I decide that he's not worth my
time and proceed down. Right as I'm starting off he puts his goggles down and starts chas-
ing me.
Mind you, I had a race earlier that day and I'm still on freshly waxed race skis with ultra
high floro and super sharp edges. He's probably on rentals. He thought he could catch me
(btw I still only have my speed suit on for pants with a pretty snug jacket on the top half).
I see that he's coming and decide that I'm going to have some fun with this. This is my
home mountain and I know every nook and cranny. I considered the woods, but there was
still powder that I would be revealing, not to mention I'm on race skis.
Stay Off the Goat and Ski Past
Beaver Just Outside the Rope
and You Will Find a Magical
Place Free of Joeys and a Pleth-
ora of Balls Deep Pow
A story stolen by Tom Lynch
There's a trail that they groomed too early after snowmaking, so the water didn't drain
out, and it was really icy. I'm barely holding an edge and he's skidding out and sliding
down on his butt. I get to the bottom easily and watch him struggle. He sees me waiting
and becomes really determined. I'm laughing my ass off by now. He finally gets to the bot-
tom (not to the base yet). I gun it and he yells something. I get way ahead of him and pull
of to the side. He skis by without seeing me and I sneak up behind him and overtake him
and say hi. I'm carving turns with some sweet angles and he doesn't have a chance to
catch me.
I know I'm coming up on a lift that starts about halfway up. I decide that no line means I
get on, but pass it if there is a line (I don't want a lift line confrontation). Since it's a week-
day and it's a long slow lift, there's no line. I hop on and start going up. I'm on the chair
and I spot him. I yell "up here" and he looks up. He sees me and keeps his eye on me in-
stead of the trail. He skis into a side hit (on accident, I presume) and gets some insane air,
but his ski comes off on the landing. I'm cracking up and he gives me the bird. I didn't see
him after that.
Fashion on the SlopesFashion on the SlopesFashion on the SlopesFashion on the Slopes
By Angus Whittle
As we all know, that what really matters when you’re up on the hill isn’t how you ski, its how
good you look while you slide down the face of a hill either on your face or on your bum. Ski
fashion or as I like to call it ski fAARshon is relatively simple once you know what categories
there are and then deciding which one you shall be loyal to.
There are six defined categories they are: RACER, PARK RAT, WEEKEND WARRIOR, LOCAL
(sometimes known as PRO TOWN), NEWBIE and one I like to call ALL GEAR & NO IDEA.
RACER: Now a racer has a couple tell tale
signs, first of all they always wear a helmet,
this is to keep them safe when they catch an
edge and find themselves flying face first to-
wards either a race gate, snowmaker or an
unsuspecting skier or snowboarder. Other
well-known signs are relatively tight outer-
wear; in most cases these include slim black
pants/shorts and their home mountain jacket/windbreaker. In a more commonly recognized
situation they can be seen competing in their skintight lycra race suits, which leaves little to
the imagination.
PARK RAT: The park rat, known for literally living in the terrain park comes in two different
styles the XXXL thug and the skinny pants trendsetter. Both rock the newest kit from brands
like Saga, Virtika, Lethal Descent, Causwell, Jiberish and Armada. Most brands now cater to
both the XXXL thug and the skinny pants trendsetter. Twin tips are a must as well as rela-
tively short poles. The type of weather also changes the skiers attire. When its snowing parks
are often found empty as park rats aren’t known for their foul-weather-skiing. During the
colder days they can be seen quite rugged up wearing jackets, beanies, goggles and bala-
clavas. Then during the warmer days when the suns out, flat brim caps and sunnies replace
the beanies and goggles. Jackets are shed for either hoodies or flannels, in their respective
sizes of course.
WEEKEND WARRIOR: The Weekend Warrior is out of town, works hard all week and skis
hard all weekend. Their kit consists of more technical oriented gear, brands ranging from:
The North Face, Spyder, Salomon, Oakley, Billabong, Quicksilver and Orage. The choice of fit
is determined by the skiers height not how thug or trendy they are. These skiers are out no
mater what the condition because they have paid for their ski pass and intend to be out
from first lift to last call. These guys wish they were a LOCAL but are stuck in their 9-5 jobs,
wearing suits they hate, laughing at their bosses unfunny jokes.
LOCAL: the local or sometimes known as
PRO TOWN, seen around in the best gear
because they often work at a ski shop or
know someone who does, so they can get
the discounted gear everyone is after.
Seen in gear that lasts, tested and proven
from the likes of: Arc'teryx, Black Dia-
mond, Mammut, Outdoor Research,
Patagonia and Trew Gear. These guys
shred but are rarely seen as they try to
ski away from everyone else on the hill
and because they know all the best spots
and secret powder stashes.
NEWBIE: The newbie or sometimes called a gaper
(a term I don’t like LOL JKS use it all the time).
These guys are what’s holding the whole resort up.
Without the money they spend on buying gear they
may not use again or renting the really smelling
gear that's hardly water proof, they are seen having
arguably the most fun. Often seen trying to clip in to
their bindings either in the up position or with the
ski back to front (this baffles me). Large gaps be-
tween their goggles and beanie/helmets can be
seen often indicating a KEEP CLEAR sign for all
other skiers and riders. Seen in jeans and other non
-waterproof gear.
ALL GEAR & NO IDEA: These skiers are the ones with all the money to buy all the
best gear they will never need or know how to use. Seen with every new contrap-
tion, normally regarding avalanche equipment such as: Avalungs/Airbags, probes,
shovels, the best touring gear all to ski on the side hill of their local mountain.
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