Last fall, after saving money from a construction career, Ken Jones moved from the flatland of Lincoln, Nebraska to Whitefish, where he was excited to strap into skis for the first time in 24 years.
“I wanted to get back to the mountains somehow. It’s been a dream for awhile,” said the 51-year-old who grew up skiing in Vermont.
“I heard about Whitefish and I moved out here and wanted to be a ski bum for a winter.”
Jones has certainly fulfilled his dream. With sharp, effortless turns and uncommon ambition, he is in the midst of a legendary winter.
In his first season as a pass holder at Whitefish Mountain Resort — and his first on skis in two decades — Jones had tallied an incredible 6 million vertical feet with nearly a month remaining. Jones has skied over 1,130 miles on Big Mountain, the equivalent of traveling from Kalispell to Minneapolis.
Jones has skied all but six days this winter and averages 30 runs per day, mostly enjoying turns on the front side groomers that stretch 2,084 feet. On good days, he has averaged 70,000 vertical feet, and on days when night skiing was offered he would hit 115,000.
“This is incredible. It really is exciting to see someone enjoy the mountain so much,” Riley Polumbus, the resort’s spokesperson, said.
The resort established the program in the winter of 2003-04, tracking season pass holders’ vertical feet, or “vert,” throughout the season. Attendants at each chairlift scan skiers’ passes and the information is posted online in categories, such as senior, adult and teen. The program is intended to be a fun way for families and friends to track ski distance.
A few names, such as Fred Frost, Jay Foster and Tony Cooper, have become familiar ones tallying remarkable mileage on Big Mountain. Cooper set the single-season record in 2012-13, accruing 5.61 million vertical feet.
Jones already surpassed Cooper’s record with over 30 days to go. He has nearly twice as much vert as this season’s runner-up in the standings, Foster, who has 3.3 million.
“Ken has been amazing this year quietly and politely going about setting the record with unlimited determination,” Frost said.
Jones was wholly unaware of the vert program when he arrived in Whitefish and bought a pair of Dynastar skis at the local ski swap this fall. He purchased a season pass and began skiing regularly with the sole goal of enjoying and exploring the mountain.
“After I’d been skiing a couple weeks, a friend of mine said, ‘Dude, you’re No. 22 in the vert.’ I asked, ‘What is the vert?’” Jones recalled last week in between turns.
Jones learned about the program and thought it would be fun to see how much mileage he could pile up. Pretty soon, the longtime construction worker and former member of the Air Force was motivated by a grand ambition.
“I felt pretty good on skis again even though I hadn’t skied in 24 years. I thought I was skiing pretty well,” he said. “Once I committed, I just went full on.”
Jones has accomplished this herculean task by waking up early everyday and eating a big breakfast before boarding the SNOW Bus at 8 a.m. Arriving at the resort, he skis from first chair to last chair without stopping for lunch. Instead, he carries energy bars to snack on. He catches the bus home at 4:30 p.m. and he replenishes with a big dinner and nearly a gallon of water before doing it all over again the next day.
When night skiing was offered, he would ski from 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
His goal is to hit 7 million vertical feet, and now that he has a goal in mind, he does not plan on missing anymore days, rain or shine.
“To be honest, the days where I push myself to the end, it always gives me a sense of accomplishment. I always feel so good because of it,” he said. “It’s just become a routine for me.”
After the season ends, he plans on sticking around and returning to his construction career. Then he’ll be back back on skis next winter, although he doesn’t plan on chasing any vert records ever again.
“I’m never going to do the vert again. From now on I want to ski trees and moguls and everything off course,” he said. “This winter I just said, ‘Why not? I’m going to do it,’ so I’ve pushed it.”
With the season winding down, Jones is intent on reaching his ultimate goal of 7 million vertical feet. He hopes he stays healthy and that Mother Nature provides enough snow to let Whitefish Mountain Resort reach its planned closing date.
After all, April 10, closing day, is Jones’ birthday; a fitting day to celebrate quite a milestone.