Vice President JD Vance and his family took a ski trip to Sugarbush Resort in Warren, VT, in the beginning of March. This trip followed his explosive February 28th Oval Office argument with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday, where Vance scolded Zelensky that he should be “thanking the President.” Vance was met with protests during his time in Vermont, ranging from stickers and signs, to a heart-felt, politically aimed snow report Saturday morning.
Anonymously leaked on Reddit, news of Vance’s visit immediately sparked an upset within the Warren and Sugarbush community. “I wasn’t excited for them [the Vance family] to come, many of our family friends were already planning to attend protests, I knew that it would cause a big upset,” recalled Henry Davidson, a ski instructor at the resort. In preparation for the visit, Sugarbush re-taught their employees’ high-profile guest protocols and behaviors. For the people of Warren, preparing for the visit meant creating signs and preparing for political unrest.
Throughout the weekend, protestors stood roadside carrying Ukrainian flags, LGBTQ+ flags, and homemade signs protesting against the moves of the current Trump administration. On the mountain, chairlift conversations were consumed by opinions on the current political climate, and shouts like “JD skis in jeans!,” making fun of the vice president for being an inexperienced skier, were heard throughout the mountain.
One of the most high-profile forms of protest came as Saturday’s snow report. The daily snow report is published every morning before the mountain opens, providing skiers and snowboarders with information regarding snowpack, weather, and conditions. However, on March 1, Lucy Welch, the resort’s snow reporter, shared more than just the weather.
Welch wrote about the current administration’s attacks on National Parks, immigration, and climate policy. Using this unorthodox platform, she wrote about how the efforts of the current administration could lead to increased global temperature, reducing snowfall and subsequently jobs in Vermont and throughout the Northeast. She also spoke for the diverse community of veterans, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ+ community at Sugarbush, saying that “ALL of these groups are being targeted, undervalued, and disrespected by the current Administration.” She finished by recognizing that this report put her job in jeopardy but expressing that it was necessary to create change, and that she couldn’t sit idly by and “be a sheep.”
Within an hour of the report being published, the resort took down the post, and rewrote it, sharing the typical report consisting of weather information and ski conditions. This didn’t stop the Sugarbush community. The original report was reposted throughout social media, sparking increased controversy around the Vance visit. Lucy Welch is still employed at Sugarbush.
Image Source: WTKR