Cheese Run

One of the worst things about back country travel is small road signs. It’s easy to miss good places and interesting things. For example, take the arrow pointing left off Vermont Route 103 that marks the turn to the Crowley Cheese factory. Hard to spot… worth the effort.

Now where does cheese get its start? Cows!

And what is more Vermont than cows? Nothing!

And where did cheese making start in Vermont? At the Crowley Cheese factory in Healdville, just a couple of twisty turny miles off Route 103, five miles north of Ludlow. The sign is easy to miss.

The oldest continuously operating cheese factory in the United States dates back to 1824. All the cheeses are hand-made; cut, dipped, and packaged in the same barn building which is now designated a National Historic Place.

Not all cheese is the same. There is mild, medium sharp, sharp, and extra sharp which are either a Colby, if you buy the government classification, or a Cheddar according to Crowley. Cheese politics, it seems! There is also smoked cheese, a hot pepper, a garlic chive and a Muffaletta along with a sage cheese prepared just for Christmas. You can visit the factory weekdays from 8 am to 4 pm and choose your favorite. We didn’t walk away empty handed.

If you go, there won’t be a lot between you and the cheese makers. There are only three. ( although Crowley staffs up to five people around the holidays to handle all the mail orders.) Crowley cheese maintains a mailing list of some 35,000 names ands ships as many as 4000 packages a year. It will soon be available again in specialty shops too.

The e-mail contact is http://www.crowleycheese.com

A lot of good things can happen when you pay attention to road signs, even small ones.

Phil Johnson

Fish and Chips at the Hungry Trout

Spring can be a tough time. I’ll want to head out and play some golf. But I know the fishing reports will be too good to pass up at that time. Like the Lovin Spoonful once sang: “… you have say yes to one and let the other one ride.”

Well, maybe not! I’ve found a plan that should help me and the rest of you decision-impaired souls when it comes time to choose. It is called “Fish and Chips” and it’s offered by the well regarded Hungry Trout Resort in Wilmington NY, near Lake Placid

While the scheduling is flexible, most who sign up head out to one of the nearby golf courses in the morning then come back to the Resort where its off to spend the late afternoon, early evening flogging the nearby AuSable River or one of the other productive waters in the area.

And the Hungry Trout has a pretty fine restaurant too where you can wrap up the day with good food and your choice of stories; golf, or fishing. Or both.

The Hungry Trout will rent you a room, schedule a tee time, fix you up with a fishing guide and cook you dinner. Check out Fish and Chips at http://www.hungrytrout.com. A gift certificate is looking like a pretty good stocking stuffer to me right now.

–Phil Johnson

Burton’s Olympic Snowboard Uniforms

Burton has just released photos of the US Snowboarding Team uniform for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

And I like it; sorta!

The jacket is a red, white and blue plaid ( yes, Beach Boys/ Preppy Guide plaid! ) affair. Now if you go out on the hill these days, the average snowboard outerwear you see looks more like your mom’s old table cloth… only bigger and baggier… much bigger and much baggier. But no fire hydrant look this time. The uniform jacket that US team members will be wearing in Vancouver, at least the picture of it released by Burton, looks fashion fitted.

The pants on the other hand seem to be asking “Why?” Now we all know pants can’t talk so I guess we’ll never know why design graffiti had to be added to a neat denim look Gore-Tek fabric. The crisp weather beating fabric has been mucked up by faux rips and tears that make it look just a little too trashy for my taste.

Now I am a long time admirer of Jake Burton Carpenter for the innovation and business acumen he has brought to snowsports over the past quarter century. We’ll know if his designers scored a hit with this one when we see what’s being worn on the slopes next season. Kids and grandkids? … maybe. Grays? No!

Early on-line comments were mixed. Here’s a sample:

… “… the US is poor now… we may as well look the part.”

“…sweet, going to look really different from all the other jock dork conventional uniforms”

And finally from someone who’ll never be pleased:

“…uniforms defeat the purpose of snowboarding. What has the world become? Are you kidding me…?”

Phil Johnson

Olympic Dreams

I won’t be in Vancouver this February for the Winter Olympics. Too bad, because I’ve been a great fan of the games since I worked at Lake Placid in 1980. Like every games since, I’m sure I’ll be glued to the TV for the full two weeks of competition (even though, I confess, Ice Dancing is snack time for me).

A major reason I like the games so much is the chance to see athletes in sports that get little attention most of the time get their day in the sun. Take Steve Holcomb for instance.

Steve looks to me like the perfect guy to have over for a backyard barbeque. At 5’10”, 235 pounds, he looks like he’d be right at home, flipping brats and burgers and turning the chicken while watching the games on the big screen. You just know he’ll be back for seconds when the cooking’s done.

But unfortunately Steve won’t be available to watch the tube at my house. He’ll be on the tube instead.

This 29 year old from Park City UT is the reigning world champion in the four man bobsled and one of the favorites to medal at the games. He is certainly a fan favorite in Lake Placid where last year, after becoming the first American to win a bobsled world championship since 1949, he went back up on the hill with no fanfare and gave rides to some of the spectators.

Think there are many other world class athletes who would do that?

Holcomb was his usual good spirited self recently when he won the World Cup four man bobsled race at Lake Placid and took the silver medal in the two man event. I don’t know about you, but I am more impressed with a successful athlete who remains friendly with the fans than someone who looks great in spandex but indifferent to the public.

He is he kind of guy I want to see do well in the Olympics. And the grill at my house will always be open if Steve wants to stop by.

 

–Phil Johnson