Leisure: A for Adaptable

From Squaw Valley to Sugarloaf Mountain, the ski areas of the U.S. are studded with what look like oversized turkey coops. They are A-frame huts, which have become so popular as weekend ski lodges that manufacturers can scarcely keep up with the demand. All roof from the ground up, the A-frame's blizzardproof construction and snow-shedding silhouette make it ideal for ski country. Prefabricated A-frames can cost as little as $900 for a basic, small shell; another $900 equips them with heat and plumbing.

The A-frame is not a new idea; the first man who leaned two poles together and threw a skin over them had a rudimentary version of it. The real test of an A-frame is living in it. Its sloping walls make the interior resemble a giant attic. The sleeping loft, fitted with mattresses or cots, is tucked under the roof and is reached by a ladder. But for the adaptable family or unfettered weekend group, a well-planned, well-finished A-frame can be a marvel of fun and utility.

One Eastern A-frame prefabber, Bart M. Jacob, of West Dover, Vt., turns out his Alpine Village models at a starting price of about $3,000. Admitting that the "Alpine" title is a misnomer, Jacob says: "I went to Switzerland and I didn't see any A-frames ; then I went to Norway and Denmark and saw lots of them. When I asked where they got the idea, they told me 'from the U.S.' " Unabashed, Jacob continues to push his Swiss model, with chalet-type gingerbread on the yodeling porch (a tiny balcony that forms the crossbar of the A), as well as the Con temporary, with all-glass end walls. Says he: "A lot depends on the banks. If they're as good to us as they were to the boat builders, we'll be launching A-frames like cabin cruisers."