MIKE BATTISTI

By Alex Kochon

Residence: Jay
Age: 62
Family: Wife, Stephanie; Children, Melanie (39), Matthew (37), Andrew (32), Zachary (30); Five Grandchildren
Career: Mt. Van Hoevenberg Nordic Center, Department Head
Primary Sports: Nordic Skiing, Cycling, Paddling

Mike Battisti has always been about throwing on a pair of skis and getting down to business. As a dairy and maple syrup farmer in central New York, it was a way he used to check the sap lines. For the last 10 years it was one of his favorite parts of the job in Lake Placid, as department head of the Mt. Van Hoevenberg Cross Country Ski & Biathlon Center.

Mike, who’s originally from Medfield, Mass., and ran a family farm in Eaton (Madison County) for 30 years, now lives in Jay with his wife, Stephanie. He’s been in charge of everything on the ground, and the online trail condition reports, at the ski center for the last decade – from managing the upkeep of the 50-kilometer trail system to organizing races from start to finish.

During the peak of the winter season, he can be often found ripping around on the snowmobile groomer, checking in with skiers, and sporting a full white beard. Come spring, he shaves off the beard. “During the offseason, I can walk by people that I ski and chat with on the trails at Van Ho all the time, and they have no idea who I am,” he said with a big laugh.

During times of low snow, you might find him skiing on the trails with a shovel on his back, filling in thin spots or tossing snow into the tunnels to extend the ski season as long as possible. “He has a great work ethic, the best work ethic,” said Brian Delaney, a longtime friend and the owner of High Peaks Cyclery in Lake Placid. “Mike is a go-to guy to get things done. He’s on the ground, on the front line, making it happen.”

This month, Mike plans to retire from his year-round full-time position, where he often mowed grass and helped with mountain bike rentals in the summer, and transition to just full-time during the winter. During the peak of the season, he tends to rack up overtime, as he preps for, hosts, and cleans up after races.

It isn’t unusual for Mike to clock in at 6am and out around 5 or 6pm in the winter. Although it can be tiring, he explained the job also has several perks. “I think the most rewarding part of my job, other than jumping on a pair of skis and checking out your own grooming, is pulling off a race,” he said. “Everybody’s happy and commenting how nice the course was, and how friendly the volunteers are, and stuff like that. It’s really rewarding.”

Van Ho hosts everything from citizens/recreational races to scholastic and collegiate championships, with the World University Games and NCAA Skiing Championships slated for 2023. Mike is in charge of choosing the course, overseeing the grooming and occasionally checking on the snowmaking, marking the course, rounding up volunteers, and making sure all systems are in place at race time. He even preps the final course markings, which can’t be set until after the PistenBully groomer is finished, the night before so that he can ski them out onto the course on race day. “You really need to be organized; I always have a checklist of things that need to be done,” he said of his job, which includes checking on the trails, writing and posting the daily conditions report, as well as helping out with lessons, rentals, and even the ski patrol when needed. “It’s a big undertaking, but it’s got huge rewards.”

Last year, the venue saw major upgrades, including a new $60-million lodge, 4-kilometer of world-class trails with snowmaking, and a new biathlon range. Mike helped design the new and extremely challenging race course, with his supervisor, Nordic Program Manager Kris Cheney Seymour, and International Ski Federation Homologation Inspector Allan Serrano. Olympic biathletes Tim Burke and Lowell Bailey also contributed by walking the course and giving feedback. “There was a lot of input from a variety of people to make sure we got it right,” he explained. The Olympic Regional Development Authority ski center hopes to attract World Cup races with its state-of-the-art facility.

About 12 years ago, Mike took his first position with ORDA in the events department, assisting with competitions and events setup at other venues like Whiteface Mountain. “After a couple seasonal stints, I found a full-time cross country opening, and being a passionate Nordic skier, I didn’t waste any time in trying to get that job,” he said.

He traced his ski background back to his days on the farm, where he’d get on skis any time he could. Growing up just outside of Boston, he reflected on his happiest times visiting his mother’s family farm in Eaton. After a short stretch as an electrical engineering major, he decided to buy the farm from his aunt and uncle, and embark on his childhood dream of being a farmer. He attended SUNY Morrisville, where he met Stephanie, and studied animal husbandry (farm animal care and breeding).

Thirty years of life as a dairy farmer and as a sole proprietor was enough for Mike and Stephanie, so they resolved to move to their favorite vacation spot in the Adirondacks. A mutual friend of former Governor George Pataki heard they were looking to move north and shared this with Pataki and his wife, Libby, and the couple hired Mike to run their beef cattle and organic wheat farm in Essex. “They had me start a vineyard; they had a big garden and chickens,” Mike reflected about the Pataki farm. “They’re wonderful people to work for. Unfortunately, that was not my long-term goal to continue being a farmer.”

He left the job after a couple of years, bought a home in Jay, and in the summer of 2010, embarked on a cross country bicycle tour with Stephanie. “We jumped on our tandem bike fully-loaded and crossed the country solo, no support,” he said. They started in Virginia and followed the TransAmerica Trail, switching course in Missoula, Mont., to the Northern Tier Route, which they rode to Seattle. The entire trip took about 90 days. “That was probably, other than raising our four children, the greatest adventure of our lives,” Mike said.

He wrote and self-published a book about the journey, called “Tandem Tales”, which can be found online on amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. “There’s no better way to discover America. I just felt like I had to write this down,” he said. “If not to encourage other people, I just wanted to have the memories.”This spring, Mike will start the next chapter of his life, as a semi-retired, self-proclaimed bike nut and boat builder. “We ride everything from road bikes to mountain bikes to our tandem bike, and my wife has even started riding a recumbent bike occasionally,” he said with a laugh. “You should see my garage. I’m always picking up used bikes for bargain prices and either stripping them for parts or rebuilding them.” 

He’s currently working on his first retirement project: building a skin-on-frame, ultralight wooden kayak for his wife. If all goes well, he’ll build a second boat for himself. Mike also plans to work part-time for High Peaks Cyclery as a bike guide. “Once the ski season ends, I’m a bike nut,” he said. “I’m either wrenching on a bike, riding a bike or planning a bike trip, but I’m also building a kayak so I’ll probably start mixing it up a bit!”

Alex Kochon (alexkochon@gmail.com) is the executive director of the Common Roots Foundation in South Glens Falls, a freelance writer and editor, and outdoor-loving mom of two who enjoys adventuring in the Adirondacks.