One of the first things Kevin “Coop” Cooper told me when we met up yesterday to ski at Kirkwood is that it’s “just” Kirkwood, thanks very much. No clever tagline.
It doesn’t need one. Kirkwood is … well, Kirkwood. It’s that Northern California resort that gets all the snow, that stands for adventure, and that attracts a certain clientele. A clientele that’s all about the mountain.
When you see the Kirkwood bumperstickers on cars — and yes, they just say “Kirkwood” — you know what they stand for. Most resorts would kill for that kind of branding.
Coop knows it. He’s Kirkwood’s brand manager.
Well, it’s official. My kids are now better skiers than I am. The instructors here at Kirkwood have to be good, with all this advanced and expert terrain.
One of the highlights of my mountain tour was skiing with the Jets, a group of up-and-coming extreme skiers. It’s only a matter of time before my kids will be joining these young adventurers. (My heart skips a beat at the prospect.)
We’ll have more — lots more — on our family travel blog soon. In the meantime, I leave you with an image of one of my favorite signs that I refuse to follow. My kids have some trouble with that one, too.
This is the end of our five-resort tour of Colorado and California. See you back in Florida next week.
