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Merger Article: Kellogg 2010 Ski Trip in Aspen

Hi everyone, it feels like it’s been weeks since my last post. That’s because we’re in the middle of recruiting season here at Kellogg.  That not only means that things are more stressful, but it also means that things are a bit more hectic. With only two weeks before interviews begin, Kellogg students are becoming busier and busier, and as you might expect, it’s becoming a lot harder to juggle everything at the same time.

Throughout the past few weeks, a number of interesting things have happened, including the annual Kellogg Ski Trip. I’ve got a few articles I’m currently writing to try to journal some of the experiences, but in the meantime, I thought I’d post a copy of the last article I wrote for the Merger, which talks a little about the overall Ski Trip experience.

Note that this is not the final version of the article I wrote. But it’s definitely enough to leave you with a few takeaways from the actual trip.

See below for the article:

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After a grueling first quarter at Kellogg, where we spent more than ten weeks with overbooked calendars, underbooked sleeping schedules, and the pressure to perform during 80s danceoffs at the Keg, there’s only one thing that could make life better. Ski Trip.

The week after final exams ended, I joined more than 750 of my closest friends and classmates and embarked on Kellogg’s 2010 Ski Trip. In retrospect, the experience may just turn out to be the best week of the year.  Some of the Kellogg crowd was pretty experienced when it came to hitting the slopes, but it didn’t take a veteran to know that the small ski town was beautiful and that conditions on the mountains were perfect for skiing. Many students who had never been on the mountains said they knew it’d be an amazing experience as soon as they got there.

The Aspen Snowmass resort was also top notch.  Big. Spacious. Armed with fireplaces, expensive tables and chandeliers, which were not only perfect for relaxing after a day on the slopes but also for late night after parties.  Some of the Kellogg units were located at the top of the mountain, while others perfectly located in the middle of the slopes, and the rest near the bottom.

Ski enthusiasts were happy because they could walk right out the back door of their condo and ski straight down the Snowmass Mountain. And after a day on the slopes they could ski back home, ski directly to the hot tubes, or better yet head straight to Après Ski with the landscape of the mountains on the background and landscapes of free food and drinks on the inside.

Kellogg enthusiasts were also happy because after a long day of skiing, they could get together with your friends and do whatever they wanted, free of assigned reading, 830am classes and cold calls in courses where the utility of the content is still being hotly debated.  Fortunately, getting around the ski resort was a lot easier than expected, particularly for those who programmed the Aspen Shuttle’s number into their phones early. And by the end of the night, most people came back together again dress up in costumes and head out to one of the Kellogg bashes for the evening.

One event where people celebrated was 80s party, which was the first large gathering we had on the trip.  Although we didn’t celebrate at everyone’s favorite local hangout spot, the Keg, we did still end up finding a venue that offered a pretty large open space to fit everyone and an open dance floor where everyone could bust a few moves to the Kellogg band playing 80s music and the actual band the flew into Aspen for the event.

But that was just the tip of the iceberg. The Wild Wild West party and the Shipwrecked party were also fun, just like the night we spent out in downtown Aspen. As usual, all these events had an open bar, lots of fun costumes, and just about 100% attendance, as students included myself has a small case of Ski Trip FOMO.  I also noticed a few “less than romantic” incidents on the dance floors. But I’ll keep the stories secret for now. And finally, most of these events also offered interesting after parties. In fact, the 80s band from LA even showed up to the 80s after party.

Overall, the trip to Aspen was a lot of fun. And whether you spent your time skiing,  hanging out, or both, the trip left all of us with at least a couple of memories we’ll never forget … even if we tried.  But hopefully this semester proves to be even better.  Easier classes. Lighter load. Later start times. More time spent at the Keg. GIM. And spring break.

Sure, I know what you’re thinking, “How can you top everything that we experienced last quarter?”  Well, one way to do that is by working hard to secure jobs and finally finishing recruiting. That way we’ll not only be ready to spend our future earnings at the keg but we’ll also be able to leverage our summer salaries to finance Ski Trip part two.