Portrait of The Original Blue Hills Beast.
Christie Mt. Ski Hill
Tales from the Mountain - Doc Snow to the Rescue!
An Ode To Spring - "On Christie Mt."
The Legend of the Blue Hills Beast.
Why THIS Beast now uses his FULL name.
The Phenomenon of the Snow
The Beast and Loreena McKennitt
The "Beasterbunny" Incident.
The Blue Hills Dragon Beast "POEM"
Contact the owners at christie@brucetel.net

Doc Snow To The Rescue!

Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1997 15:52:42 -0600 (CST) X-Sender: christie@bucky.win.bright.net
Mime-Version: 1.0 To: blbeast@bucky.win.bright.net
From: Jim and Laura Landreth  Subject: web page

Hi Greg,

Well it was an exciting weekend to be sure. Friday night was great weather and we had
 a good crowd plus 125 kids from the Chippewa Falls Middle School.
Saturday morning I had to change a couple of lights on the hill and repair some fences.
 Then Mom and I were scheduled to ski together, but she had to run to town for
 groceries. I was going to go out as the Beast but Mom said to wait as she was gone 
and something might happen. And something did ! 
I was in the house and a call came over the radio from the patrol that someone was 
hanging down, caught on a chair going downhill past the Beast. It was so unbelieveable
 to me that I at first almost took it as a joke. Then they used the words patrol
 emergency and I figured it was real. I put a coat on and ran for the PUG and a ladder as
 they had asked. It seemed the PUG was extra slow but I got there with the patroler 
that came for a rope. There was a 8 or 9 year old boy hanging by his sweatshirt from 
the bottom of a chair. I worked with another patroler to get the ladder there and stood
 up leaning against the chair that the youngster was suspended from. The all of a
 sudden I was going up the ladder myself, with no idea what I would do at the top. I
 grabbed the sweatshirt and was about to try to get his skis off when the shirt came
 loose and I had him dangling down from my grip. Of course this meant his weight was
 no longer on the chair and was now on the ladder with me, so the chair swang away
 from me and the ladder began to fall with both of us on it. I let him go hoping to keep
 him from under me. Fortunately there was a lot of brush there which slowed the
 ladder. Also the snow there was deep and soft. As we fell I knew that it was going to
 be alright and it turned out to be. I was just off to the side of him and he started
 yelling...that he was alright..."I'm OK, I'm OK"..."Thank you, Thank you". I was never so
 glad.
The patrolers took over from there. Actually I never should have gotten in their way, 
but thought was not involved, except that I had street boots and was accustomed to 
ladders. Later, Art the patroler took the kid back out to ski and up the chair again. The
 boy was very careful to not have any clothes between the slats on the chair this time. 
I went back inside and put on the Beast garb and headed out with the button bag. Art
 brought the youngster over and I shook his hand and gave him a button and a Beast pin.

Hope all is well on the ranch.
Jim and Laura Landreth
High atop Christie Mtn.
Back to Top

ON CHRISTIE MT.

Winters gone, the snow has fled, The Blue Hills Beast has gone to bed. In his lair, on Christie Mt. No more crowds. No more thrills. No more skiers upon the hills. No one there, on Christie Mt. Not dangerous slopes, nor deadly cold, but springtimes sun defeats the bold. It's so spare, on Christie Mt. Snow into water, reverses the spell, of the snow-makers toil that covered the hill. It's so fair, on Christie Mt. Skiers do it, in the snow, now there's no place left to go. It's real bare, on Christie Mt. Do skiers melt with the snow? In springs heat, where do they go? They disappear, on Christie Mt. Round an' round, the chairlift went, now it's energy has all been spent. There's no fare, on Christie Mt. Those who ski, to find escape, thru the summer must go ape. Is that a hare? on Christie Mt.? To our good friends, Laura and Jim, health and happiness 'til time grows dim. There, "On Christie Mt." By: Greg "The Original Christie Mt. Blue Hills Beast" Meier
Back to Top

The Story of Why
The Beast now uses his FULL name.

It all began with an innocent message alerting my friend Jim Landreth (Owner of Christie Mt ski hill and discoverer of the beast) to the fact that I had an article published in the Duluth-News Tribune Online under the headline, "An Opinion From The Original Blue Hills Beast".

My original message....

Date: Sun, 17 Nov 1996

To: Jim and Laura Landreth

From: blbeast@bucky.win.bright.net (Greg Meier)

Subject: I'm Famous!

Jim!
Please check out the front page of the Duluth-News Tribune Online.

Look for "An opinion from The Original Blue Hills Beast".

the url is      http://www.duluthnews.com/

Neat huh?
 Greg

His reply....

Date: Wed, 20 Nov 1996 
To: blbeast@bucky.win.bright.net (Greg Meier)
From: Jim and Laura Landreth 
Subject: Re: I'm Famous!

Hi Gregor The Famous,
        I need more details as the url you sent does not come up for me.
Please send whatever asap. 
                                      Curiously yours, Jim

My reply....

Date: Thur, 21 Nov 1996
To: Jim and Laura Landreth
From: blbeast@bucky.win.bright.net (Greg Meier)

Subject: Re: I'm Famous!

Hello James the Curiously Confused!

That's Strange!  This IS the correct url.

http://www.duluthnews.com/

I will send you the article if I must, but it's more fun to see it "live" 

on a web page. :-) Look under the " opinion" section about Bayfront Park 

Land Usage.It is still there as of today, but their url link is wrong! 

They doubled up on the file name the last I saw it. 

When you click on.....  An opinion from "The Original Blue Hills Beast" 

I got a "file not found" Message but if you copy that url and delete 

blank/blank mistake you can access the correct file.

 or..... I've put it on my web page already so check it out there in the
 "Personal Experiences" section. 
The famous (for 5 minutes) Greg

His reply....

Date: Sat, 23 Nov 1996 
To: blbeast@bucky.win.bright.net
From: Jim and Laura Landreth 
Subject: Re: I'm Famous! 
Hail O' Famous One:     
        The Tribune of the North doth surely proclaim thy wisdom.
Now we become one with the believers.
        By the way, what was that you said about the meaning of life ?
                                                        ;~>
        My only criticism is that next time you go getting all famous again,
could you put in a small plug for Christie Mtn. ? I mean the correct title
is "The Original Christie Mountain Blue Hills Beast" . 
Jim and Laura Landreth
High atop Christie Mtn.

My EXCESSIVE reply.....

Date: Mon, 25 Nov 1996
To: Jim and Laura Landreth

From: blbeast@bucky.win.bright.net (Greg Meier)

Subject: Re: I'm Famous! (Or... Sarcasm For Fun And Profit!)

But Verily, Thy Words Doth Have The Ring Of Truth To Them, 

O' Gratuitous One!
O' Leader Of The Flatuent Forces!

Creator Of The Shining Mountain!

Dispenser Of The Slippery Slabs!

Employer Of The Frozen Few!

Thy Wisdom Shall Be Known Thru The Ages!

The Truth Of Thy Words Shall Pierce The Hearts Of The Deceitful!

All Who Relish Eschewing Obfuscation,

Shall Prostrate Themselves At Thy Lower Terminal Extremities!

Let It Be Known That, Herewith And Henceforth 

"The Original Christie Mountain Blue Hills Beast" Shall Be My Nomen!

Signed This Twenty-Fifth Day Of November, 

In The Year Of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundred And Ninety-Six.

Greg "The Original Christie Mountain Blue Hills Beast" Meier

P.S. Surely Thou Couldst Have Tempered Thy Criticism 

With A Well Placed Smiley?  :-)

Beware That Thou Doust Not Raise The Ire Of The Beast Again, 

Or Thou Shall Be Subjected To Yet More Feats Of Legerdemain!

Date: Mon, 25 Nov 1996 

To: blbeast@bucky.win.bright.net (Greg Meier)

From: Jim and Laura Landreth 

Subject: Re: famous (Or... Sarcasm For Fun And Profit!)

:-0
      :-)

            :~>

                      ;~}

                   
                                  Jim


                                                :-)3<     and Laura


                 sincerely think you are a neat guy.

            ( Your proclamation IS a tough act to follow )

Jim and Laura Landreth
High atop Christie Mtn.

So ends the saga of how the Beast came to accept his full name.

This is a posting I made to The Old Ways mailing list.
It represents a connection between two important parts of my life.

Loreena McKennitt
Meets
The Blue Hills Beast
If you read Loreena's introduction to "The Mask and Mirror" and the notes she shares about each song, you realize she is searching for deeper meanings, she is not content to just entertain, but has a need to inspire her listeners. Inspired by *her* example, I search my own life for meanings beyond the obvious. I would like to share a personal experience that at face value might look frivolous, but seems to me quite enlightening. A few years ago I wore a "mask", (literally), that caused subtle but substantial effects on my emotional/spiritual development. It happened when, for a few... brief... shining moments (years, actually), I became "The Blue Hills Beast".Let me explain briefly. My best friend bought a ski hill, in the nearby Blue Hills. I had been skiing there for years and told him he should do something different, something fun, that he should have a "gimmick". I'm not sure what happened next, but I found myself dressed up in a bright blue, fuzzy costume, (or full body "MASK" if you prefer ). }:-}
As the "Blue Hills Beast" I mingled with the crowds, I greeted them at the door or at the chair lift, growling, lurking around the unsuspecting, passing out Blue Hills Beast buttons, helping fallen skiers (I *think* they were glad to see me ;-) entertaining with a few tricks (doing 360's, and 720's, and 3600's. Skiing backwards, sideways and my favorite; flying my colorful delta kite with wind sock tail as I skied ).
One year with late snow and an early Easter, the BEAST was for one day transformed into "THE BEASTERBUNNY" with long floppy ears and a basket of plastic eggs filled with goodies to hide on the slopes for the skiers to find .It was a great advertising gimmick and gave people a unique experience to remember.
My point is this; wearing my "mask", I created a new image of myself that people reacted totally different to than my normal, shy, quiet and introverted personality. The Beast drew attention just by appearing. He got a lot of hugs.
Some little ones were scared, but I know they will remember,
*The Blue Hills Beast*. Lots of kids followed me around, and they got to ride the chair lift with (Wow!),THE BEAST!
"THE BEAST" frequently got to ride the chair with cute "Snow bunnies", who were very talkative, and interested. (Except for the embarrassed ones ;-) This, of course, was all totally different from my normal life. The "Mask" of the BHB allowed me to act differently. The "Mask"of the BHB created something not there before. The "Mask" of the BHB was what everyone saw. When I looked out of MY mask (literally, a ski mask), what I saw *MIRRORED* in faces, was the reflection of what I had created, THE BLUE HILLS BEAST. In the "MIRROR" of their eyes and faces, were reflected back to me the emotions released by their reaction to the one know as, "The Blue Hills Beast". When I skied as The Beast I received much attention. When I skied as myself, I was ignored. I became somewhat jealous of what I had created. As I looked into the "mirror" of peoples faces, the differences in their attitude was shocking and sobering. Without my "Mask" I was a nobody, almost invisible, just another skier. I now wonder how our own self-images are created or affected by the reactions we perceive as we watch others react to our appearances and actions.
Greg Meier-"The Original Blue Hills Beast" Back to Top

This is a posting I made to The Old Ways mailing list.
It represents a connection between two important parts of my life.
Loreena McKennitt Meets The Blue Hills Beast If you read Loreena's introduction to "The Mask and Mirror" and the notes she shares about each song, you realize she is searching for deeper meanings, she is not content to just entertain, but has a need to inspire her listeners. Inspired by her example, I search my own life for meanings beyond the obvious. I would like to share a personal experience that at face value might look frivolous, but seems to me quite enlightening. A few years ago I wore a "mask", (literally), that caused subtle but substantial effects on my emotional/spiritual development. It happened when, for a few... brief... shining moments (years, actually), I became "The Blue Hills Beast".Let me explain briefly. My best friend bought a ski hill, in the nearby Blue Hills. I had been skiing there for years and told him he should do something different, something fun, that he should have a "gimmick". I'm not sure what happened next, but I found myself dressed up in a bright blue, fuzzy costume, (or full body "MASK" if you prefer ). }:-} As the "Blue Hills Beast" I mingled with the crowds, I greeted them at the door or at the chair lift, growling, lurking around the unsuspecting, passing out Blue Hills Beast buttons, helping fallen skiers (I think they were glad to see me ;-) entertaining with a few tricks (doing 360's, and 720's, and 3600's. Skiing backwards, sideways and my favorite; flying my colorful delta kite with wind sock tail as I skied ). One year with late snow and an early Easter, the BEAST was for one day transformed into "THE BEASTERBUNNY" with long floppy ears and a basket of plastic eggs filled with goodies to hide on the slopes for the skiers to find .It was a great advertising gimmick and gave people a unique experience to remember. My point is this; wearing my "mask", I created a new image of myself that people reacted totally different to than my normal, shy, quiet and introverted personality. The Beast drew attention just by appearing. He got a lot of hugs. Some little ones were scared, but I know they will remember, The Blue Hills Beast. Lots of kids followed me around, and they got to ride the chair lift with (Wow!),THE BEAST! "THE BEAST" frequently got to ride the chair with cute "Snow bunnies", who were very talkative, and interested. (Except for the embarrassed ones ;-) This, of course, was all totally different from my normal life. The "Mask" of the BHB allowed me to act differently. The "Mask"of the BHB created something not there before. The "Mask" of the BHB was what everyone saw. When I looked out of MY mask (literally, a ski mask), what I saw MIRRORED in faces, was the reflection of what I had created, THE BLUE HILLS BEAST. In the "MIRROR" of their eyes and faces, were reflected back to me the emotions released by their reaction to the one know as, "The Blue Hills Beast". When I skied as The Beast I received much attention. When I skied as myself, I was ignored. I became somewhat jealous of what I had created. As I looked into the "mirror" of peoples faces, the differences in their attitude was shocking and sobering. Without my "Mask" I was a nobody, almost invisible, just another skier. I now wonder how our own self-images are created or affected by the reactions we perceive as we watch others react to our appearances and actions. Greg Meier-"The Original Blue Hills Beast" Back to Top

The Phenomenon Of The Snow
The Beast chose wisely when he came to the Blue Hills regional snow belt to ski. By a strange and wonderful meeting of topography and weather, Christie Mountain enjoys a consistently bigger helping of natural snow. And when you consider that Christie also has one of the most awesome snow making systems per acre in the Upper Midwest- you understand why the Beast, and other happy Christie skiers, will go nowhere else.
Back to Top

The Legend of the Christie Mt.
Blue Hills Beast

Long ago, when time was new, there was the Beast. Although related to such famous beasts as Big Foot and the Abominable Snowman, this one was not well known. But the Beast didn't care. He had more fun than all the others combined, because he had learned to ski.
Through the ages, the Beast labored to build a perfect ski area, which is now known as the Blue (Beast) Hills, deep in the Wisconsin northwoods. Then,as mysteriously as the disappearance of the dinosaurs, he grew weary. The Beast fell asleep in one of the caves in the very mountains he had created. Forgotten and alone, the Beast slept.
Eons of time passed. Then, wonderously, a new spirit came to fill the Blue Hills. There was laughter and excitement in the air. The Beast awoke!
Families had discovered his secret. A special ski area to enjoy, free of cares, full of fun. Exciting runs to make blue blood roar, long cruising runs for mellow times and gentle places to build confidence. Spring water snow (for that special bounce) made in such abundance that a "funtastic" snow cave appears annually near the chalet.
Back to Top

The Tale Of the Christie Mt. "BeasterBunny"

"One year, when the skiing season ran into the Easter season, the Blue Hills Beast turned into a rabbit, growing long, floppy ears and a fluffy white tail! Here are two notices that were posted in the chalet, warning skiers of the odd creature they might encounter."

Attention Skiers!

A strange but wonderful condition has afflicted our Blue Hills Beast, who has caught a rare virus called B-Easter-Itis. This virus was triggered by warm weather and the occurance of Easter during ski season.
The symptoms of B-Easter-Itis include:
1). The sudden appearance of long bunny-like ears
2). A fluffy tail
3). The urge to hide eggs
4). Delusions of being an imaginary creature called a - "Beasterbunny."
To help the "Beast" overcome this (hopefully) temporary condition, we urge everyone to humor him until he returns to normal.
Thank You,
The Management

Beware the Beasterbunny!
The Christie Mt. Blue Hills Beast has been transformed overnight into that wonderful creature called -
"The Beasterbunny!"
"If you never thought Easter was funny, then you haven't seen the Beasterbunny!" said Jim Landreth, Friend of the Beast.
How to recognize "The Beasterbunny"
1). Long blue ears
2). Fuzzy white tail
3). Carries basket of "Beaster-eggs"
4). Uses greeting "Happy Beaster!"
5). Subscribes to "Egg of the Month Club."
Note: The Beasterbunny may be seen skiing today with his beasterbasket and will be hiding colored plastic beastereggs with prize certificates within, on the hill, in the snow, this afternoon. Turn your prize certificates in at the chalet for instant redemption.
Thank You,
Have a Happy Beaster!
The Management

Back to Top

The Blue Hills Dragon Beast

NOTE: Created in a moment of goofiness, imagine this silly little ditty combined with a drawing of the beast with scales, fangs, bloodshot eyes, and holding a fork in one hand and a knife in the other.

BlueHillsDragonBeast

BEWARE! the Blue Hills DragonBeast BEWARE his scaley hide when you SMELL his beastiness LOCK yourselves inside if he gets AHOLD of you you'll wish you would've DIED.
i didn't want to TELL you this but it's KNOWN far and wide that Scaley things are ONEROUS and taste FISHY if their fried but if youse really NEEDS a snack they TASTES GOOD smoked and dried!
By: Greg
"The Original Christie Mt. Blue Hills Beast"
Meier March 1, 1995
Back to Top

Doc Snow To The Rescue!

ON CHRISTIE MT.

The Story of Why The Beast now uses his FULL name.

It all began with an innocent message alerting my friend Jim Landreth (Owner of Christie Mt ski hill and discoverer of the beast) to the fact that I had an article published in the Duluth-News Tribune Online under the headline, "An Opinion From The Original Blue Hills Beast".

So ends the saga of how the Beast came to accept his full name.

This is a posting I made to The Old Ways mailing list. It represents a connection between two important parts of my life.

Loreena McKennitt Meets The Blue Hills Beast

The Phenomenon Of The Snow

The Legend of the Christie Mt. Blue Hills Beast

Long ago, when time was new, there was the Beast. Although related to such famous beasts as Big Foot and the Abominable Snowman, this one was not well known. But the Beast didn't care. He had more fun than all the others combined, because he had learned to ski.

Eons of time passed. Then, wonderously, a new spirit came to fill the Blue Hills. There was laughter and excitement in the air. The Beast awoke!

The Tale Of the Christie Mt. "BeasterBunny"

"One year, when the skiing season ran into the Easter season, the Blue Hills Beast turned into a rabbit, growing long, floppy ears and a fluffy white tail! Here are two notices that were posted in the chalet, warning skiers of the odd creature they might encounter."

Attention Skiers!

Beware the Beasterbunny!

"The Beasterbunny!"

The Blue Hills Dragon Beast

NOTE: Created in a moment of goofiness, imagine this silly little ditty combined with a drawing of the beast with scales, fangs, bloodshot eyes, and holding a fork in one hand and a knife in the other.

By: Greg "The Original Christie Mt. Blue Hills Beast" Meier March 1, 1995

Back to homepage

The Story of Why
The Beast now uses his FULL name.

This is a posting I made to The Old Ways mailing list.
It represents a connection between two important parts of my life.

Loreena McKennitt
Meets
The Blue Hills Beast

The Legend of the Christie Mt.
Blue Hills Beast

By: Greg
"The Original Christie Mt. Blue Hills Beast"
Meier March 1, 1995