Skida: Warm, Comfy and Charitable

It's midnight and I roll into the Jackson Gore Inn for Okemo's Media Weekend.

Tired and wanting to get sleep for the morning runs, I take the goodie bag and place it on the table in the suite.

I turn around but stop.

"Whoa, what's that?"

The light-fabric hat with the blue, black and white design was tucked into the bag and it stood out.

"This is cool."

It was the Skida Nordic hat, a lightweight, form-fitting lid that just caught the eye. An afternoon ride down the Timber Ripper mountain coaster proved it was warm, functional (it can also be worn as a helmet liner) and fashionable ("You have one of those?" the attendant said.).

Skida began in 2007, when Vermont skier Corinne Prevot picked up what she calls "some fun fabric" and started making hats for her Burke Mountain Academy teammates and some friends.

She says that the demand for the colorful hats grew, as did the variety of prints. New products (like bandanas) joined the line, she said.
   
She graduated from Burke in 2009, and is currently attending Middlebury College. She still owns and operates Skida from Vermont and "on the road."

The unlined Nordic hat retails for $30 and the lined Alpine hat goes for $36.

Ordering can also benefit cancer patients when ordering through the Skida - Plus One program. For every order placed with a special promotional code, Skida donates a hart to a selected cancer center.

By the way, I have received about seven compliments on the hat in two weeks.

It comes it a variety of patterns.