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You don't need a huge hill to create slope-style thrills in your own backyard. With some skillful snowblowing and an inventive reuse of materials, Williston's Paul Bialowoz turns his family's yard into a snowsport destination for his three kids and their neighborhood friends.
Bialowoz recently transformed his slightly downhill plot by adding two rails, a sizable jump and a landscaped curve for high-speed cornering.
He blows most of the snow from the front yard onto a skateboard quarter-pipe ramp to form a drop-in, which creates vertical distance and speed. He blows the rest of the available snow onto a main sliding surface featuring fun additions, such as an arched homemade rail that's perfect for grinding — even on a sled.
And it's cheaper than a season pass. "Almost everything here is either made from pieces of scrap or purchased real cheap off Craigslist," he says. "Anyone can do it."
- Two 55-gallon rain barrels covered in snow form the base of the jump.
- Plywood covered with a strip of plastic pickup-truck-bed liner makes a homemade grinding rail.
- Skinny wooden pallets make handy access ladders for the drop-in.
- Rails and sharp corners are surrounded by smooth snow walls for safety.
- A mix of sleds, ski bikes, snowdecks, snowboards and snow scooters — thriftily collected and sometimes homemade — add variety.
Parents: Alia and Paul Bialowoz
Kids: Will, 11; Jake, 9; Rachel, 5
This article was originally published in Seven Days' monthly parenting magazine, Kids VT.
More By This Author
About The Author
Becky Tharp
Bio:
Becky Tharp is the Kids VT calendar writer. She lives with her husband and their two boys in Williston.
Becky Tharp is the Kids VT calendar writer. She lives with her husband and their two boys in Williston.
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