Team Newsletter 6.24.25
Table of Contents
MHM Summer Trail Challenge
From June 27th – September 1st
Participants will join our Group Challenge on the Strava fitness tracking app and hike at Meadows for chances to earn and win prizes, unlock local discounts, and enjoy the beauty of the mountain! Join the challenge via Strava here: Mount Hood Parkdale, Oregon Club | Mt. Hood Meadows Summer Challenge on Strava
Our competition categories are:
- Fastest time up Wizard Way
- Most Elevation Gain (Active employees are not eligible for this competition category given their inherent advantage)
- Most Days Hiked (Active employees are not eligible for this competition category given their inherent advantage)
There will also be a general raffle component, in which you earn 1 entry into the raffle for each day you log a hike in the challenge. There will be an additional raffle exclusively for for active Summer employees who participate in the Strava challenge.
The day you hike on the mountain will unlock a passport of local discounts throughout Gorge businesses when you show them proof of your hike via the Strava app. More details about prizes and participating businesses to come!
June Stoke Winners
Congratulations Celia Cloinger!
Celia has done an amazing job since stepping up into her manager role. Three words I would use to describe her leadership style: Professional, consistent and caring.
During her less than two years in the role Celia has improved relationships with Hood River County and Forest Service law enforcement, identified and corrected training gaps, updated all departmental SOPs, pushed for consistency with enforcement and consequences, vastly improved incident investigation and documentation, and assembled a great team. I have been very impressed with her efforts to de-escalate situations while preserving (as best as possible) privacy of those involved.
Celia, it’s a pleasure to work with you, congratulations!
~Mel
Congratulations Ben Leland!
We are so excited to recognize Ben Leland (IT Manager) for his efforts improving our company-wide IT infrastructure and his leadership. Ben’s enthusiasm, ambition, positive attitude, and determination to accomplish many company-wide IT challenges this season were the primary factors for his “Stoke” recognition.
~Derek
Music on the Deck
Join us for live music on the deck this summer from 2:30 – 5:30 PM (unless noted below)!
Grab a snack, pour a drink, and sit back and relax while listening to some live music on the deck with the best views around!
Watch for more artists being added to the list!
JUNE 2025
Saturday, June 28: Marley Hale playing from 1 – 4 PM
JULY 2025
Saturday, July 5: YOTES
Saturday, July 12: Colette Jones
Saturday, July 19: Jess Clemons
Saturday, July 26: Kerry Williams
AUGUST 2025
Saturday, August 2: Jake Daumen
Saturday, August 16: Robert Meade
Saturday, August 23: TBD
Sunday, August 24 – Brew Fest: TBD
Saturday, August 30: Kerry Williams
Summer Happenings at Meadows
Mountain Cleanup: July 13th
Dark Sky Camping – July: July 24th
Hood Hundred: July 26th & 27th
Inaugural Mt. Hood Wildflower Festival: July 31st – August 3rd
Wy’east Trail Fest: August 9th & 10th
Mushroom Hunt W/Jason: August 17th, 24th & 31st
Dark Sky Camping – August: August 22nd
Summer Brew Fest: August 24th
Where in the Woods?
Since we had such a good time incorporating (and finding!) the song lyrics hidden in the Team Newsletters all season, I wanted to do something similar for the summer months. However, my lyric bank is currently exhausted, and since we’re fortunate enough to work in such a beautiful place, I thought taking it outside would make the most sense.
Each Newsletter will contain a photo of a feature on our mountain (waterfall, rock outcropping, view, trail section etc.) with a clue or two to narrow it down.
Find the spot, take a picture from the same location (or close) and be one of the first to send it/show it to HR to win a prize!
**If you have a shot or spot you think would be fitting, feel free to share with this basement dweller!**
I tumble and glisten, when not covered in white,
Fed by the thaw and hidden from sight.
Just past the lift, that’s battered and blue
I shimmer in the woods known to only a few.
Meadows in The Wild
We will be at the following events over the summer. Look for the Meadows Pop-Up and stop in!
Summer Safety Message
A review of accidents from the summer months of years past follows what we would expect: Lift Maintenance, Facilities, and the Vehicle Shop incur most injuries this time of year. We’ve talked about being careful doing unusual tasks, let’s also take care to protect the body parts at greatest risk of harm this time of year: Shoulders and Eyes.
The shoulder joint has the greatest range of motion of any, and overhead work on towers and tree limbs can lead to injury more readily than other types of activity. Suggestions to prevent shoulder injury:
- Warm-up before activity. THIS WEBSITE has a great collection of shoulder warmups.
- Ensure good form – your torso should be stable and upright before working overhead. Weird or awkward angles greatly increase risk of injury.
- Strengthen your supporting shoulder muscles. THIS SITE has both warmup and strengthening exercises.
- Allow adequate rest – try to alternate days of overhead work with different activities whenever possible. Damage to the joint is less likely if it can heal fully between work sessions.
Our eyes miraculously convert incoming photons to neural signals read by our brains to form our visual world of experience. Scratches or cuts to the cornea are painful and usually preventable. Please recheck your work areas for eyewash bottles that are fresh, unused, and easy to reach. Eye protection must be worn whenever using powered equipment and hand tools that may emit sparks or flying bits. Also remember eye protection when doing overhead work – if you’re looking up and working on something, put PPE between your eyes and potential falling debris – especially when working under vehicles or other “dirty” machinery.
An Ode to Blue
Blue carried riders through the years,
A faithful lift that calmed their fears.
Since ’68, it climbed the hill,
With steady grace and iron will.
Once the heart of Meadows’ flow,
Helping skiers rise and go.
Now replaced by faster ways,
Blue retires after golden days.
Though silence falls where chairs did swing,
Its story in our hearts will always ring.
A gentle end, a proud goodbye
The legacy of Blue will never die.