Dear Mr. Obermeyer

Gondola Spotting

Please do not make a gazillion of the same jacket–or any other article of clothing or accessory for that matter–ever again. About a year ago I was thrilled to pick up my first Obermeyer piece in a ski shop at Snowbird, Utah. It was on sale, so I threw it in with a couple of sweaters I had selected that were also nicely discounted. I hesitated because the jacket was white with a faux fur collar, quite different from the more sporty jackets I had been wearing since I moved to Colorado almost a decade and a half ago.

“Does it make me look like too much of a snow bunny?” I asked my boyfriend.

“No, I think you look cute in it, Hun.”

“Thanks. I think it will be versatile–it’s the kind of jacket that should look good both on the mountain and off.”

Me Feeling Stylin’Early On

So once December rolled around, I couldn’t wait to break it out. There’s nothing like a new ski jacket, your go-to item on and off the slopes in every mountain town. I felt good wearing it and although I discovered I needed to wash it frequently, the white made me feel fresh and crisp while the design made me feel totally stylin’.

Bunny Hill Spotting

Then Christmas hit and with that busy time of year came an influx of visitors. As a ski instructor for the Telluride Ski & Snowboard School, I was in my uniform every day but still, I wasn’t immune to the fact that I started to see “my jacket” all over the mountain. I began to count the sightings daily: first one to three, then in peak times four to six. By the time spring break hit, there were days that I’d spot as many as eight or ten on the mountain. Quel horreur!

In Line at the Bunny Hill

Indeed, I saw most of the ladies on the bunny slopes, often in line at the bunny hill lift or even worse, the Magic Carpet. Mon dieu! How could I have been so off my mark? I was once a super fashionable lady that conducted shopping tours to the big names in Paris. How could my guy, a very fashion forward man with Euro roots himself, have steered me wrong? How could Mr. Obermeyer, a man I always admired for his quality fashions and sense of originality (I always used to see Klaus skiing in Aspen hatless late in the season with his bronzed bald head bobbing about on the slopes with great allure), have allowed so many of the same jackets to be made?

Lady Wearing the Jacket Proudly

Lady Looking Good

Another

And Another

Bunny Form

As my sightings grew, I became increasingly self conscious whenever I would wear my bunny coat. Am I this shallow? I wouldn’t have thought so but suddenly it seemed that I am.

I would make a chairlift game of spotting “my jacket” or similar models from other brands with some of my clients, especially the teenage girls. “It wouldn’t matter to me,” one voiced.

“Really, it wouldn’t?” I asked.

“No, that shows that it’s the in thing,” she replied.

Whoa, Sighting Off the Bunny Slopes

Double the Fun

Hmmmm. I pondered that one for a while. I concluded that she said that to make me feel better. To me, seeing this jacket all over the mountain, or rather mostly on the bunny slopes donned by beginner skiers, day after day would be like showing up at a prom with the same dress as two other girls. No, actually it would be like seeing half a dozen other girls with the same dress. Not cool.

View from Behind

Another

And Another

So please Mr. Obermeyer, think twice before producing mass quantities of the same piece of clothing. I chatted with some of the ladies and found out that these jackets had been purchased all over the country from Atlanta to Sacramento at both full and sale prices. Most were bought by vacationers excited about going on their first ski trip to Colorado and, of course, there was me.

On a Hot Chocolate Break

More Hot Chocolate, More Obermeyer Jacket

Right now I have my jacket washed and put away for the season. Not sure I’ll break it out next year. In any event, I’m sure I’ll find more entertaining moments counting the number of sightings I come up with next season. One thing is for sure, I will think twice before I purchase my next Obermeyer fashion statement. What a bummer mais c’est la vie.

Tween Girl Twirling in Town in Her Black–and-White Obermeyer Jacket