Warren Miller Films Say “Work Less, Enjoy More” [PHOTOS, INTERVIEW]

When I was a senior in college, my roommate and I made a December trip from Penn State to Crested Butte, CO. The mountain was allowing people to ride the lift for free. During the early season, many people don't make the longer trip into the more remote mountains when they can access the resorts that line I-70 more easily, so the Butte offered free access to the mountain so people would come out and spend time and money at the hotels, restaurants and other tourism businesses.

We had friends living in Gunnison, so for two broke college hippies, this was an heavenly opportunity. We arrived in Colorado to a snowstorm. The next day, as bald eagles surveyed our drive up CO 135, we talked about what it would be like to actually live in Colorado. "It snows all the time! No more skiing on an inclined

ice rink!" The whole idea was almost too good to imagine.

Loading the lift, we saw a pile of light, fluffy snow on picnic tables nearby. It looked like there was two feet of snow! The best part about Colorado Skiing is that there is always less snow on the bottom than at the top.

After a few epic days of powder skiing and a Leftover Salmon show at a Crested Butte bar, I had made up my mind. I was going to move to Colorado after my SuperSenior year (yes, I had 2 senior years...I don't regret it).

When I was getting ready to graduate and was inundated with 'the question'...'So, where are you going to work after you graduate?', my answer 'I don't know, but it will be somewhere in the mountains of Colorado' didn't seem to be as satisfying to my parents and sisters as it was to me.

The truth is, I am so proud of myself for becoming a ski bum. To this day, I wouldn't change a thing about it. If anything, I am still working to figure out how to work less and ski more. That is what the Warren Miller films are all about. Miller was one of the first to popularize the idea of making a recreational sport an integral part of adult life. The film, after some 60 years, still celebrates the ideals that we should NOT take ourselves too seriously. Show me someone who says 'I wish I would have...worked more!' on their deathbed, and I'll show someone from whom I won't take advice.

Randy Morgan of Outpost Sunsport has been bringing the Warren Miller film to Northern Colorado since 1983. We talked about Warren, snow-bummery and the upcoming film.

I think we're the oldest promoter in the United States for the Warren Miller shows. For us, it's always been a great experience, a great kick off to the ski and riding season.