Ira Riklis continues his interview about skiing and life:
“Mike eventually left working for the Vail/Lionshead ski school. It was inevitable. Unless you want to move into management, the pay scales really only work for young enthusiasts who are enjoying a few carefree years before they start their adult lives.
“Mike and I continued skiing together whenever I was in Vail; but now that Mike was no longer an instructor, we could no longer cut through the lines on ski lifts. We developed a method of avoiding lift lines, but more about that later.
“Mike worked as a concierge and other jobs around Vail before deciding that he wanted to operate a ski shop. While that shop is today a part of the Charter Sports chain, I was not Mike’s original partner. In a confused situation worthy of the Three Stooges, Mike didn’t realize that I had sent the money for the purchase of the shop and went into partnership with another. I eventually got my money back and Mike had his first shop which he called Tech Sports in the Lion Square Lodge in Lionshead.”
Ira Riklis will continue with this interview — complete with photos — soon.