Jim Meyers

Editor’s note: The Steamboat Pilot & Today asked readers to tell us about their favorite seniors over the age of 75 and then we asked these Super Seniors to share their secrets to living a long and healthy life. 

Jim Meyers

Age: 85

Super powers: Jim Meyers, a resident of Stagecoach, can often be seen riding his bike or walking two miles to pick up the Steamboat Pilot & Today. Jim also skis, rides motorcycles, fixes and tunes bikes, works in the yard, cuts firewood and makes things out of recycled items. He worked for many years at Ski Haus in the ski and bike departments.

What are your secrets for living a long and healthy life?

“First of all, I had good genes. My mom was a wonderful cook, and my dad got us outside. I grew up in California, and we had a cabin up in the woods and we’d hike, bike around the lake, and that’s where I learned to ski. I also did a lot of body surfing and surfing, I belonged to yacht club, and I played tennis with my wife, who was a very good tennis player. At the time, I was working for a civil engineering company, and I would bicycle 16 miles to work in the morning. I bicycled through strawberry fields and orange groves, and it was very delightful — you could smell the earth. I live right on the edge of the Stagecoach ski area with 1,000 acres of open space, and I take hikes there. I mountain bike around Stagecoach Lake two times a week. I raced bicycles for years and now have a Honda motorcycle with 92,000 miles on it. In the winter, I hike up to Hahns Peak and Walton Peak and look for untracked powder. That’s good exercise. It’s peaceful and beautiful, and skiing powder is easier on the knees than skiing hard-packed bumps. I have a pretty good diet with a weakness for sweets. I eat a lot of whole grains, and I love fruit. Sometimes I get chocolate chip cookies but I burn those off. I still cut my own firewood. I tell my younger friends, if you don’t change your wicked ways, you’ll never make it to my age.”