Maple Ski Ridge part of the fiber of families throughout the Capital Region

Close-knit communityof skiers, snowboarders, and instructors spans generations By Alyssa Seidman

(Ad) Nate Holt was just 16 years old when he first felt at home at Maple Ski Ridge. Although a novice ski instructor at the time, he was able to help a little girl face her fears and ride the handle tow lift.

“I grabbed a stuffed animal from the equipment shed and asked her to protect it on the handle tow. By the end of the day she was skiing from the top of the bunny hill,” Holt recalled. “The owners, Marilyn and Carolyn, took the time to personally tell me what a good job I did. That was the moment I felt this was a place I could stay for a long time.” Holt’s story is just one of hundreds from staff and clients alike. It’s reflective of the environment the Mulyca family sought to offer the local skiers of the Capital Region. Today, third-generation owners and sisters Marilyn and Carolyn continue the legacy their family set forth when they founded Maple Ski Ridge in 1963.

“A lot of other ski resorts are almost intimidating, but Maple is meant for families,” said Marketing & Communications Director Kirsten Ford, who brings her own children to Maple multiples times a week. “This place is like their second home. Sharing our love of skiing together has brought us closer as a family.”

Pete Natale is a “legacy” member of the Maple community, Ford said. He first started skiing in the early ’70s, and soon after joined the staff as a junior ski instructor. Years later he got his daughter Dana a pair of plastic skis for Christmas. Today she serves as the director of Maple’s ski school.

Natale, who has taught skiing and snowboarding for over 40 years, is still passionate about sharing his love of snowsports with others.

“I like helping people have fun,” he said. “I like to think I’ve changed people’s attitudes about winter and how they can have fun and get out in the fresh air.”

Much like the Natales, the Holts have more than one ski instructor in the family tree. Holt’s father and younger brother have since joined the fun, and his youngest two siblings have plans to join the staff when they turn 14. “It really is a close-knit community,” Holt said. “I’ve made lifelong connections here with people that are always going to be in my life.”

Dave Swits knows this concept all too well. He grew up with the Mulyca sisters and learned to ski from the late Freddie Anderson, the legendary founder of Maple’s ski school. He became a race coach at Gore Mountain — New York’s largest ski resort — after working alongside Anderson, but each generation in his family learned to ski at Maple. “I’ve been bringing my two-and-a-half-yearold grandson out, getting him going on skis, but I have to bribe him with Airheads,” Swits said. “It’s been a long time but it’s good to come back — it feels a little like coming home.”

Maple Ski Ridge is located at 2725 Mariaville Road in Schenectady. For more information, visit www.mapleskiridge.com.