MUSIC
Ein Prosit , Stefan , and the Stratton Mountain Boys
STORY BY MYRA FOSTER PHOTOGRAPHY HUBERT SCHRIEBL COURTESY OF STRATTON MOUNTAIN RESORT
When we think of Octoberfest traditions , like lederhosen , alphorns , the Holzjackertanz ( wood chopper dance ) ... it ’ s the Stratton Mountain Boys who come to mind . While the merry band — all Stratton ski instructors by day — has officially retired , the musicians play on . As do the memories shared by generations of Stratton families fondly recalling the apres-ski revelry and Tyrolean Evenings each Saturday in the old Bears Den , where even the youngest kids would join the fun , sometimes in their PJs .
After nearly 60 years in Vermont , longtime bandleader Stefan Schernthaner has moved to the home his father built in the village of Maria Alm , described in travelogues as “ one of the most beautiful places in the world .” It ’ s a picture-perfect chalet surrounded by gardens , where over morning coffee you hear the church bell ringing from the tallest steeple in Salzburg , where he is steps from the High King Mountain gondola and only two miles from his two daughters and four grandchildren .
“ We are with our family and enjoy it very much ,” Stefan shares in a recent message as he gets ready to pay his Stratton friends a visit in October . “ Daughter Gabi has much work at her farm , with more than 50 sheep , 15 cows , three alpaca , three horses , and two pigs . She also sings with the town band where I play two times a week . Singing saw , alphorn , trumpet . And my two grandsons are schuhplattler .” That ’ s the shoe slapping dance we remember .
As Stefan and Norma , who met at Stratton and married more than 50 years ago , were preparing to pack up their Vermont home , I was fortunate to sit down with him for a look back at how it all began . He had coached the Austrian woman who held the World Cup record until Lindsey Vonn broke it in 2015 ( and then Mikaela Shiffrin in 2023 ), and was soon to be
16 STRATTON MAGAZINE | STRATTONMAGAZINE . COM