This is the place to be to catch my latest. Whether writing about my most recent trip to the slopes, anecdotes of turns made in the past or just some general light reading for your fifteen minute break.
Share your tales from on the slopes
March 27, 2005
Hamming it up...
Saturday there was not a cloud to be seen from Jay Peak, VT. Temps were in the 40’s, direct sun - probably 50’s. No wind. Perfect spring skiing. This season Jay Peak has recorded 326” of snow. That’s more than 27 feet, which is actually pretty standard for the East’s powder headquarters. All of it was on exhibit this Easter weekend.
Top of the Flyer Quad
Posted by Ethan Binns at 12:21 AM
March 2, 2005
Sugarbush, VT
March First, 2005: POWDER DAY! The flakes started much later than anticipated up in the Mad River Valley, due to the storm slowing down a tad. So, there was no rush to get to the slopes. Conditions would only improve as the morning crept towards afternoon and accumulations increased.
Snowflakes
Posted by Ethan Binns at 10:58 AM
February 27, 2005
Banging In Sick
10 Steps: You’ve been hearing the whispers. You read the reports from ski bums on tenterhooks all last week. Then you got confirmation form the boob tube and radio this weekend. All of a sudden everyone is gibbering about the snowstorm. Oh….it is coming alright, still Monday night into late Wednesday for the mountains. Two to Three feet of fresh, some spots more…Focus now.
The Spread Eagle World Championships, Attitash, from RSN.com
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:49 PM
February 21, 2005
The Perfect Run
Cannon, NH – Presidents Day. Heavy snow falling, poor visibility and brisk steady winds thrashing from skier’s right to left across the slope. Temps with wind chill were horrifically wintry, a stark reminder that we are still a month away from spring. An environment rational folks may consider inhospitable, if not sadistic.
Cannon parking lot, noonish - Preidents Day
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:58 PM
February 8, 2005
Stowe, VT
If Killington is the Capital of Eastern Skiing, then Stowe is the Cathedral. Also sometimes referred to as the Cradle of Eastern Skiing, the resort is rich with ski heritage. In 1940 Stowe installed its first chairlifts (a single, 200 skiers per hour) that serviced what at the time was considered the most difficult terrain in the country, the Front Four. Mount Mansfield (the resorts home) is the tallest peak in Vermont standing at 4,395 feet. The town that rests below the resort and shares the same namesake only adds to the pull Stowe has on skiers and provides more than enough to do once you get the boots off.
The Chin
Posted by Ethan Binns at 10:44 AM
January 27, 2005
Ready, Set, Rat Race...
That’s right, we are staring down the best weekend so far this season. Every resort in New England is stocked with snow and ready to go… Here’s the math: last weekends storm + snow most of this week + subzero temps = Stellar Weekend. I mention the very cold weather all week because that keeps most of the locals off the hill, leaving more pow untracked until warmer temps arrive. Trust me, when you live in a ski town you tend to become persnickety.
Jay Peak 1/27
Posted by Ethan Binns at 07:44 PM
December 29, 2004
The Final Countdown
TAHOE, CA will be festooned with snow for First Night. Undoubtedly the best place to be for skiing in 2005. Since 12/28 and through next week Dr. Weather is predicting 5 to 10 FEET out there.
12/28/04: DON CHEEPO'S! 3349 Lake Tahoe Blvd S. Lake Tahoe, CA 96150 (530)544-0356
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:12 PM
December 21, 2004
Pico Mountain - Opening the Summit 12/23
Got an All for One ASC pass? Then pay attention to this bit of news…The Pico Summit is tentatively scheduled to open on Thursday; 12/23/04 which is not a blackout date for all you Silver and Bronze pass holders. Once the summit opens, there should be excellent skiing and riding up top and probably some fresh snow stashed away! The upper mountain trails at Pico are exceptional expert and intermediate terrain, with some great lines in the woods if you know your way around or are able to follow someone that does.
Posted by Ethan Binns at 06:17 PM
December 5, 2004
Day One: First Tracks
Friday night around 6:00 PM, it was cold and I had to put the ride into 4-H on route 100 in VT. The roads were glaring and greasy, it was snowing a bit. All good news, my only concern was that I had not opened my boot bag since April and the rust on the edges of my skis was visible.
Upon arriving at Mount Snow all I could hear was the sound of their enormous snowmaking system in full throttle. The operation was uninterrupted until I awoke on Sunday morning, to warm outside. A quick check of the RSN mountain cams across the East will show that Mount Snow was not the only area taking advantage of the window Mother Nature provided.
I hit the slopes Saturday morning, early 7:30 AM. Bluebird skies and the moon was visible. The resort opened the Grand Summit Express Quad (formerly the Yankee Clipper) before its normal time for people in the conference I was attending. The lift towers and chairs had a fresh coat of Battleship Gray paint.
The conditions were pleasing, honestly, much better than I expected. There was top to bottom on the main mountain and a slope on the North Face. During the morning they were also opening more terrain, including a park. I was fortunate to be out there during the witching hour, when the centers of the trails have yet to be skied off and the edges are starting to develop entertaining lines. Good skiing and riding. The group I was with hit Freefall pretty much as soon as they shut the guns off, approximatley 10ish. The trail was a lot of fun, that manmade kind of carveable Styrofoam with undulations and bumps that kept your eyes down the hill.
The mountain did start to get crowded around 11:00, by then I was done. I'd guess we had around ten runs in the book; I'm not one who keeps counts. The trails were also starting to show the signs and sounds of the heavier traffic.
It was my first day of the season, and I had a blast.
A Ski Guru recommendation...if you like deals (inexpensive/free lift tickets) it is in your best interest to head to Mount Snow this coming weekend for the beginning of their 50th birthday celebration. Click here for all the info...Mont Snow turns 50!
Picture from morning of 12/4 courtesy of Mount Snow.
Posted by Ethan Binns at 08:42 PM
December 2, 2004
Cannon, NH
Per the Snow Phone, recorded Wednesday 12/1 @ 4:30.
OPENING DAY PUSHED BACK....moved from Friday to Saturday. They plan on making more snow starting Thursday morning.
Tickets on Saturday 12/4 will be $25 adult, $15 junior/senior.
S.G.
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:41 AM
Steamboat
Picture of a friends pad is attached below, taken on Sunday 11/28. In town they picked up 17" of snow with such a low density it is in the Champaign category. It has also be bitter cold there for the past few days, highs in the single digits. The mountain and surrounding back yard terrain really need a few more significant storms before they catch up to their brethren in south of CO.
S.G.
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:39 AM
November 29, 2004
Stratton & Killington - Thanksgiving Weekend Reports:
I received an email from a friend today (11/29) who was there on Saturday, 11/27. It reads (with some minor editing)...
Stratton was open! There was a fair amount of ice, but some very good fun near the edges of most trails. In one persons opinion, Polar Bear and Grisly Bear were the best, but as a companion put it “you have to like either ice or moguls,” apt description. North American was ‘bullet proof’ and one customer we rode the lift with (probably not as strong a skier/rider) was certainly not as happy, “it (insert bad words) and was mostly ice.” We probably took 20 runs, mostly on Polar and Grisly, a fun day.
Also, I noticed a discussion in a forum on the Snow Journal site today that I thought was worth passing along. It was about Killington over the holiday weekend, crowds and conditions. There were a few pictures posted form those that were there along with comments. Check it out. http://www.snowjournal.com/page.php?cid=topic5693
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:28 PM
November 26, 2004
Mother Nature waits for Old Man Winter
Back on Monday evening (11/22/04) while I was putting together Thanksgiving Day and weekend deals and events I took an inventory on www.boston.snocountry.com of all the open areas/resorts in the North East, there were twelve. To boot, I also took note of those that planned to open over the weekend, most on Friday (11/26/04), an additional thirteen. Well, today is Black Friday and only a half dozen of those thirteen that planned on opening were able to get the chairlifts turning.
Read the rest of 'Mother Nature waits for Old Man Winter'...Posted by Ethan Binns at 02:54 PM
November 23, 2004
Tday weather
Big rain event later Wed into Thanksgiving over much of New England into New York with .50-1.50" rain --not too nice for traveling. Snow making operations to resume by next Friday and Saturday with several inches of natural snow northern mountains by the 28th or 29th. - Roemer www.bestskiweather.com
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:25 AM
Unique holiday gift idea
Check out this website, the motto, “You play in Style, Rest in Style.” www.skichair.com These handmade Adirondack chairs come complete with an ottoman. They can be customized with your own old equipment and will be shipped directly to your home. Good for indoor or outdoor use. The ski chairs arms are extra long to accommodate two drinks apiece.
Posted by Ethan Binns at 09:23 AM
November 12, 2004
The Gears: Some sage advice
The snow sports season is a long one and you want to be in the game to enjoy those sun soaked Spring afternoons hanging out on your favorite resorts deck with friends. Take it slow out of the gate; the last thing anyone wants is to fall to a season ending injury early in the year. It is easy to get very excited your first day in the slopes and push it a little to hard. For that matter, it will probably take several days out there before most of us get back up to full speed. Your skiing/riding muscles have been dormant for months. Think of it as working your way through the gears of a manual transmission. Always be a safe and courteous skier/rider.
Posted by Ethan Binns at 05:09 PM
Learning from others mistakes
The 99/00 season I was part of a ski house in Killington, VT. It was located on a street off of the access road. Amongst its many amenities the house had an enormous fireplace, two full baths, laundry, a deck and slept 10 in beds. There were weekends when we had over twenty guests. It was a great spot. My friends and I secured the house in late June, bought our season passes early and waited impatiently for the flakes to start flying. Anticipation was at an all time high
Posted by Ethan Binns at 05:07 PM
Ethan on the slopes
Check back soon for the latest slope stories.
Posted by Ethan Binns at 03:35 PM
