Steamboat Springs

Year after year, for spring break, everyone in Florida always goes skiing. Up until this past week, I was not one of these people. My dad has skied a couple times in his life, but other than that, no one in my family has ever skied before. After some thorough research about the best beginner mountains, we booked a trip to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. For first time skiers, I highly recommend working with an instructor! We learned everything from pizza to french fries and I was confidently skiing blues by the end of the trip. I do not know if my entire family can say the same (they definitely preferred the greens). Skiing is all about letting the skis guide you on the snow, and this made me think about the actual science behind skis. Materials science truly exists everywhere and I will, without a doubt, return to the slopes again soon!

The Science of the Skis

Skiing is as much science as it is skill. Skiing wouldn’t be the same without materials science—it’s what makes skis lighter, faster, and more durable. Most skis have a core made of wood or composites, which affects how they flex and respond on the slopes. The outer layers use materials like carbon fiber and fiberglass to keep them strong and light, while metal layers add stability for high-speed turns. Even the base of the ski is designed with special polymers to reduce friction and help you glide smoothly. With new materials and tech constantly being developed, skis are getting stronger, more efficient, and way more fun to ride. Ski clothing is also way more high-tech than it looks. Jackets and pants use waterproof but breathable materials like Gore-Tex to keep you dry without making you overheat. For warmth, some use synthetic insulation like Thinsulate (which still works even if it gets wet), while others use super lightweight down. Some next-level gear even has special materials that adjust to your body temp, so you don’t get too hot or too cold. Thanks to all these innovations, ski clothes keep getting better—lighter, warmer, and way more comfortable—so you can focus on shredding instead of freezing. Every part of skiing—from gear to the slopes—relies on materials science to improve performance, safety, and comfort. While there are definitely insane skiers out there, the science is just as important as their skill.

Works Cited

“The Science behind Skiing: From Innovations in Equipment to Modern Training Methods – FasterSkier.” Fasterskier.com, 2024, fasterskier.com/2024/07/the-science-behind-skiing-from-innovations-in-equipment-to-modern-training-methods/. Accessed 29 Mar. 2025.

“The Science of Layering.” Flylow Gear, 5 Nov. 2021, flylowgear.com/blogs/news/the-science-of-layering-for-skiing?srsltid=AfmBOorSHQpxqIw_S18k4i-ktGl3jJki7c4ktArxS1zvdHhiEi5VN2EP. Accessed 29 Mar. 2025.

The Trip

We recently got back from another trip out west. We went all over the Canadian Rockies visiting places including Glacier National Park, Banff, Jasper, and Vancouver. The trip lasted about two weeks and the best part, by far, was definitely the white water rafting in Banff. We rafted on the Kicking Horse River in southeastern British Columbia along rapids ranging from class two to five. We, of course, hiked in all of the National Parks, and stayed in some pretty cool hotels and resorts. I highly recommend the Jasper Lake Lodge and the Coeur d’Alene Resort in Idaho. This lake in Idaho surprisingly ended up being one of my favorite places as well. It was the cutest little town with great shopping! Vancouver also had a great shopping district! These northern locations tend to stay pretty cold all year long and there are many glaciers in the mountains. The Columbia Icefield is a well known group of glaciers in Jasper, and the largest icefield in the Rockies. The Athabasca Glacier is one of the six that make up the icefield, and you can actually walk on it. They have special cars that take people on the ice and we had the privilege of walking on the glacier. There are only 23 of these vehicles in the world, and the Columbia Icefield Adventures own 21 of them. The other two are in Antarctica for polar exploration and testing. The Athabasca Glacier, though, is full of its own interesting polar features.

The Glacier

When we were riding up the mountain, through the ice, I wondered why it looked dirty. The ice looked so much bluer from afar, but browner the closer we got. This vehicle took us to a part of the glacier safe to walk, not too easy though. Throughout the trip the tour guide mentioned tons of facts about the Athabasca Glacier, including what made it dirty in color. It’s called cryoconite, and overall not very beneficial for the glaciers. It is a powdery dust made of minerals and other small rocks, soot, and microbes (Baccolo). The darker color of the surface attracts more light and causes the glacier to melt faster (Baccolo). The accumulation of cryoconite increases the melting rate of the ice and lowers albedo (Baccolo). “Albedo is the fraction of light that a surface reflects. If it is all reflected, the albedo is equal to 1. If 30% is reflected, the albedo is 0.3” (“What Is”). I thought this was a good example that visibly displayed how albedo affects a surface, therefore, how cryoconite affects a surface. While cryoconite may have some positive aspects, the glaciers would be better off without it, and even last longer. It even looks prettier without it!

Works Cited

Baccolo, Giovanni. “Did You Know… the Surface of Melting Glaciers Is One of the Most Radioactive Places on Earth?” Cryospheric Sciences, 29 May 2020, blogs.egu.eu/divisions/cr/2020/05/29/did-you-know-the-surface-of-melting-glaciers-is-one-of-the-most-radioactive-places-on-earth/#:~:text=Due%20to%20its%20colour%2C%20it. Accessed 7 July 2024.

“What Is Albedo?” My NASA Data, 10 Aug. 2020, mynasadata.larc.nasa.gov/mini-lessonactivity/what-albedo#:~:text=Albedo%20is%20the%20fraction%20of.

More of a New England Summer

As I mentioned in my previous post, we spent last summer in New England, and I cannot express how much I loved it! My favorite places were, by far, Boston and Nantucket. I love cities so much, and Boston is truly one of the most fascinating places in the United States. I also cannot survive too long without the beach, so I loved the coastal chic of the island of Nantucket. This beach town was so unique, with its own unique housing, as well. I can already envision myself in these beachside cottages, complete with shingles and all. Apparently, when building on the island, houses must have pitched roofs and unpainted shingles. This is how they keep the uniformity. Shingles or not, you will definitely see me there!

The Shingles of Nantucket

During the building process, the houses are covered in tan-colored shingles, not the well-known grey ones. After surviving the harsh weather conditions in Nantucket, the new houses’ tan shingles turn grey (Goldberger). Only after weathering do they get their well-known coloring. This material is either white pine, oak, or cedar. These hard woods are naturally resistant to rot and insects and hold up well to the salt air (“Shingle Siding New England”). In the end, these shingles are both great materials for the Nantucket environment and culture! See you there!

Works Cited

“Shingle Siding New England.” Buildings of New England, 8 Aug. 2021, buildingsofnewengland.com/tag/shingle-siding-new-england/#:~:text=The%20home%20is%20clad%20in,amazingly%20well%20to%20salt%20air. 

Goldberger, Paul. “A Rigid Building Code Preserves Nantucket.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 2 Aug. 1987, www.nytimes.com/1987/08/02/arts/architecture-view-a-rigid-building-code-preserves-nantucket.html#:~:text=You%20cannot%20build%20as%20you,survived%20their%20first%20Nantucket%20winter.