Yeah but it's much better cardio exercise than downhill, though I have more fun downhilling. New Years Day I ski for the first time in 2 1/2 weeks, first time on my new skis. i'm going to be chomping at the bit to get out there.
And here I am, stuck in New Jersey for the break, where the only accessible slopes are the crappy little places in PA. Actually, this is the first year in a while that my family won't be spending most of winter break at Okemo. I kind of needed a break from the place anyway - I was starting to tire of Okemo after skiing it exclusively for about four consecutive years, and I wasn't sure about the other places in the area. Bromley looks like it isn't worth anyone's time, and I've heard mixed things about Stratton. It's times like these I envy my best friend. Bastard is a student at UVM and goes to Stowe three times a week.
Well unfortunately this didn't happen. My "Crap To Do" list spilled over into today thus ruining my plans. Ugh. Oh well. I am looking at getting out on xmas day...either hit Bogus Basin to snowboard or hit a Park N Ski area to do some snowshoeing.
Well after all that waiting I finally got to do some XC skiing at Bogus today. Unfortunately I had to cut my day short cuz I got two wicked heel blisters . This is the first time it's ever happened to me. I have had my Salomon boots for several years now and this was a first. ARGH!!! Anyhoo I managed to get in a wimpy 12 kilometers . Oh well it was better than nothing. WE NEED SNOW DAMNIT!!!! It was pretty thin up there. On Sunday I plan on either snowshoeing or snowboarding.
Was it your socks? I've gotten blisters before because they crumpled up a bit in my boots, or if I had never worn the socks before.
Yeah that is my guess. I always, always wear a liner and then one of my hiking socks...usually Thorlos or Smartwools. But yesterday I used my REI wool socks for some unknown reason. Next time I am sticking with my Thorlos and Smartwools. My blisters ain't bad this morning. If I do go up on Sunday I will play it safe and apply moleskin to both heels. I don't want another day ruined by blisters.
I'm currently in the process of planning a trip to Jackson Hole for february 13-17. I never been there before and I was wondering if anybody has any advice or recomendations- It looks like I should be able to get a package for four nights and three days of passes for two people at about $700. Obviously, I'm not looking at the nicest hotel rooms, but that's not why I'm going there. Right now I'm leaning towards staying at snowking and doing their package where we can go to snowking, jackson hole, or turghee. Actually on that note, am I going to want the variety or should snowking or jackson hole alone be able to keep us engaged for three days of action? My girl only skis, but I ski and snowboard.
I planning on being out there suring the same time. If your only going to be there for three days just go to Jackson Hole. It's a huge mountain that will wear you out. If your there longer I would consider Grand Targhee. Yellowstone isn't too far away for an off day trip.
Dude, while it gets crowded and icy, even by NE standards, Stowe rocks!!!! Night life: just after skiing, The Matterhorn, it's a little bar on the right (when leaving the Mtn on VT 108), about two-three miles from the mountain. Small, but plenty on tap and there are often good bands. More night life: at night you MUST go to the Rusty Nail. This is about 6 miles from the mountain, you can't miss the sign. This is a combo dance club / honky tonk bar / rock club. Two decks of seating, always racuous atmosphere, not overpriced beer.
Why am I posting on Big Soccer at 7:15 on NYE? Because 12 hours from now I'll be headed up I-70 to use my new skis for the first time! Likely Keystone or Breck, depending on what gets dumped on overnight. Not only am I broke but there ain't no way I'm ripping it up on 2 hours of drunken sleep.
You got another new set of skis Jeff? NICE! Today I cranked out 10 kilometers on snowshoes up at Bogus. Took me a total of three hours . I wanted to trek up to the Shaeffer Butte picnic area but they had it blocked off and did not groom it. Bogus has gotten a ton of snow this past week. Powder EVERYWHERE!!! It was a blast! The entire resort was packed to the gills with folks. As I was leaving I was amazed at how many people were there. One bad thing to note though....I am lactose intolerant and this morning on the drive in I had a 16 oz white chocolate mocha. That was a HORRIBLE idea cuz my stomach was killing me about 4 kilometers in. Ugh.
Only one new pair. Already have a good mark on them, went to far over a powder clump/mogul and hit something. Happy to know Bogus has gotten dumped on. I'll post more about Beaver Creek today sometime tomorrow when I'm not so tired.
Okay, Beaver Creek reported 9 new inches of snow as of 5 am 1/1, so that's where my crew decided to go. They got 2-3 inches during the day when I was there too. I was psyched to try out my new skis like you wouldn't believe. The verdict, excellent! Skiing's more enjoyable on new skis, especially with good edges. Makes turning and gliding easier. However, only me could possibly get a nice nickmark on my skis on a fantastic day like yesterday. I think I went too far past a powder clump/mogul. My legs killed yesterday too, I do not have powder ski legs yet that's for sure. It's as fun as hell to ski in though!
I had a crappy snowboard day. ------------ Can't decide what I want to do tomorrow. Do I go to a Park N Ski or head back up to Bogus to get a TON of XC skiing in? Decisions, decisions....
Taking it easy today. A bit tired from yesterday. Hit A-Basin in the afternoon, Keystone at night for a few runs. I'll tell ya, night skiing at Keystone, at least last night, was A LOT better than a lot of people tell me. What was not cool was the traffic jam on I-70. Between Silver Plume and Georgetown, CO, it took 45 minutes to go 2 miles, at 8 PM! Usually 2 hours or so after the bad trafiic snarls dissipate, but not tonight. I have no idea exactly what caused it, but three big semitrucks were stuck on the exit ramp to Georgetown, and the first building/parking lot had two cop cars and another big rig in it. It looked like someone was being busted for something in the parking lot, but I don't know for sure. Maybe there will be something in today's Denver Post about it, I haven't read the whole paper yet.
Thank goodness I only intended for ski for about 4 hours today. Otherwise, I'd be stuck in worse than usual snarl due to several acccidents on I-70 Eastbound. This even made it on to a silent news alert during the playoff game at 4:15, just when I'd be on I-70 if I skied a full day.
I've seen Metzger on TV (Summer X Games) do his flips on bikes, the guy is ************ing insane! I can't fathom how he pulls his jumps off, but he does. Mt. Rose is supposed to be a funky area in the Tahoe Region too. If I ever go out there, I want to try Heavenly and Kirkwood as well.
Mt. Rose as less of a resort area like the rest of Tahoe. It is kind of Reno's ski area. It makes for a good place to go for a day.
i skied both of those mountains last year. i enjoyed both very much, but i would choose kirkwood over heavenly. on the whole, tahoe is awesome and i am seriously thinking about buying a condo out there. my shoulder is feeling a lot better and i may head out this weekend.
I got back from Stowe today and I wasn't all that impressed with Stowe. Granted it was very cold. But for the price of the ticket they charge I expected more. The Gondola they have was barely working since it had a gear box problem they could't fix. Stowe had the longest lifelines I can remember in a while. They need to add another HS Quad. It also has the smallest base lodge I think I have ever seen. The terrain itself is pretty good. I like Goat and Starr which are legitimate double blacks. In conclusion if you get a chance to go to Stowe go, but make it a weekday. By the way the Rusty Nail was fun. Didn't get a chance to go to the Matador but heard it was nice.
You hit the nail on the head. I should have said the town rocks, the skiing's good, but has its downpoints, which you mentioned. They also let too many people on the mountain at one time, especially for an area that really isn't that big. Glad you enjoyed the Nail though. That place kicks ass and then some.
A rundown of my week, last week. Monday: Attitash/Bear - Sunny, cold. No crowds as usual, and good skiing. Tuesday: Sunday River - Sunny, a bit colder. Not too much of a crowd, and really good skiing. Wednesday: Attitash/Bear - Sunny, getting even colder. No crowd as usual, and excellent skiing. Thursday: Bretton Woods - Sunny, bitter damned effing cold, not enough of a crowd to worry about, and I really like the skiing here. Friday: Attitash/Bear - Sunny, still cold, just the hint of the MLK Day crowd to come, and good skiing (even with the hardpack starting to show). As you can guess, I was staying at Attitash (right across the street, actually). It's not a huge place (nor terribly small, with 70-some trails), and even if I've skiied the bejesus out of it already, I like it because there's no liftlines at all when I'm there, and barely anyone on the trails (I get outta Dodge before MLK Day). Plus my multiday pass there also works at Sunday River, a place I've only taken day trips to and want to stay at sometime. The revelation of this trip was Bretton Woods - just the right kind of mountain for a 4th straight day of skiing, when my legs were starting to get weary. Lots of good long cruisers, a little bit of challenge (nothing much, though) and plenty of glades, most of which I didn't mind going in without a friend or a helmet. Don't know whether I'm going to make a bunch of Vermont day trips the rest of the season, or save up for a late season trip to Tremblant.