Wild Ideas Worth Living · Tuesday, October 27, 2026
Before internet radars and modern weather forecasting tools, Powder Chaser Steve relied on a black book of phone numbers to call local entities like Colorado Department of Transportation snowsheds, hotels, and bakeries in the early morning hours to track snow accumulation.
“I had a black book, actually. I call it my small black book. And I compiled phone numbers of... CDOT, which is the Department of Transportation in Colorado, snowsheds.”
“And I would call them at 4.30 or 5 a.m. from Grand Junction. You know, hotel auditors, because if a hotel auditor told me, hey, it's dumping up here at Steamboat, I would buy him a six-pack.”