Alpine alum Gordy Megroz ‘94 is a contributing editor for
Outside Magazine based in Jackson, Wyoming. He also writes for
Men's Journal,
Men's Health,
Bloomberg Businessweek, and SKI.
What is a favorite SMS memory?
I have thousands of great memories from SMS. I think that, like a lot of other students, I loved early-morning training on fresh corduroy (except for when you'd get to the bottom of a run and your whole face was frostbitten), punch-drunk van rides, staying up too late cracking jokes in crappy motels the nights before races, racing (when it went well), and just hanging out in the dorm rooms in the old school, which were all filled with the pungent odor of stale ski boot liners. Even to this day, that smell doesn't gross me out; it evokes nostalgia. But I'd say my fondest memory is from my sophomore year. The senior class prank was to "steal the school." We gathered outside the lobby at 3 AM (as I recall), got in the cars of day students, and took off to a water park in Massachusetts, where we splashed around all day. When we all came back to the school with third-degree sunburns, the teachers and staff were waiting for us, trying to look stern but barely able to conceal their smiles. Note: If you're a current student, don't even think about trying this. Things were way different back then. I'm pretty sure that today somebody would get arrested.
What is a lesson you learned at SMS that you've carried with you?
This is cliche, but it's that hard work produces results. I wasn't the biggest guy at SMS, nor was I the most gifted skier among my peers, but I was easily one of the hardest workers. I busted my ass in the gym and on the hill, and by my senior year, I had some pretty respectable finishes. When I figured out what I wanted to do for a living, I applied the same principles. As an intern at Outside magazine, I always tried to take on more work than I was being given, and I was often the last person to leave the office, which sometimes didn't happen until midnight. I was rewarded with a full-time job and kept working hard, improving my craft, and climbing the ladder.
Who is your favorite teacher or coach at SMS or your favorite class, and why?
I loved all my teachers. Peggy DeSantis for improving my vocabulary. Larry Herrick for introducing me to different kinds of literature (even though I still think White Noise is a bad book, Larry). Len Bugel and Lee Petty for piquing my interest in science. TD McCormick and Bill Reed for breaking up lessons with absurdity. Jill Newton for putting up with the fact that I was (and still am) so, so bad at math. Elaine Pace, who taught me to think critically and allowed me to opine and debate, even though I now know that most of what came out of my mouth was just wrong. And Pavel Stastny, my coach. Pavel was firm and demanding, but he could offer the smallest advice and change my skiing for the better. And when you got a compliment from him, it was the best feeling in the world.