I’m sure everyone has heard by now that former President Gerald Ford died Tuesday at age 93.
Around here, President Ford is remembered as a great friend of the Colorado Ski industry and Vail in particular. In the 70s he helped bring attention to the Vail valley and he ultimately owned a home in Beaver Creek.
Although he was caricatured during his presidency for clumsiness, he was in fact an able sportsman who excelled at football during high school and college and later took up the sports of skiing and golf.
This morning as I walked to my car through our still-snow-covered parking lot, I spied a sad sight: my UltraPod portable tripod embedded in the icy surface like some kind of high-tech fossil. I had dropped it there the night before and it had been crushed by many car tires overnight. At first, it looked like it might have survived but when I picked it up, it fell apart.
It’s been with me on trips all over, from Tallinn to Crested Butte, and its simple, durable, temperature insensitive design has served particularly well on the slopes. Fortunately, this thing I love so much and have used so often can be replaced right now for under $7 at REI—which I did during my morning errands.
On Saturday, we skied at Keystone, and apart from being a pretty good day and finding some excellent powder stashes, I also managed to find some rocks and ice and gouged up my skies. This seemed like an excellent opportunity to try a repair, which I have never done before. A little searching gave me just what I needed to make the task easy. Here now, the results (with a hat tip to the Amateur Gourmet).
Today we hit Keystone. After the snow-related drama of the past week, one might have expected conditions to be superb, but it seems any new snow on the main mountain had been skied off. Nevertheless, I enjoyed a day of bumps, trees, and (some) powder with Shana, Annette, and John.
We arrived for first lift and got ourselves to the outback as quickly as possible. There we enjoyed bumps and trees and hiked to north bowl to check conditions there. Pretty disappointing.
By about noon, the runs were getting pretty crowded, so we decided to take a $5 Keystone Kat ride above north bowl to go powder hunting. After a long traverse, Shana and I suceeded, finding plenty of lovely powder among the nicely-spaced glades above north bowl.
Unfortunately, our friends on snowboards found the traverse too difficult and dropped in early.
On our last run off Outback—Oh Bob—we decided to ski through the trees and there I found a nasty rock outcropping and gouged my skies but good. I repaired them tonight and will be posting on that tomorrow.
So, word to the wise: there’s plenty of powder still to be found at Keystone, but look out for thin coverage in places—the bases still need work.
If your Christmas ski or snowboard vacation was ruined by the Denver blizzard either because your flight to Denver was cancelled, or because you’re now stranded in an airport, I couldn’t feel worse.* Having been stuck in O’Hare on many occasions, I know how dreadful it is to spend hours hoping for a flight with only the steady drone of airport announcements to keep you company.
Caring person that I am, I began wondering what I could do to palliate the suffering of all the poor, stranded Snow Huggers. Like the Magi, I asked myself: “What have I to offer? Frankincense? Too smelly. Gold? Too expensive. Myrrh? Who even knows what that is?” Then, like a bolt from the blue, the answer came to me: mindless computer entertainment.
Hang around either the ski or the bicycle industries, and eventually you’ll encounter some form of snowbike—a misbegotten contraption that neither skis nors bikes, looks dopey, and strands its rider at the bottom of the hill.
Enter Ktrak: a snow bike that looks like fun and uses the rider’s “legs” to drive a track and thereby create locomotion. The question are: can it go uphill and can it handle deep powder?
In fashion and design, snowboarding is perpetually ahead of skiing. Snowboarders get the coolest clothes, the coolest design, and the industry embraces personalization much more than the ski industry.
To wit, over at Revolution Snowboards, you can design your own snowboard with graphics custom developed by you.
Now, if only boarders would embrace not lying down in the middle of runs….
Some people learn new physical skills intuitively—they see what they need to do and almost immediately get their body to do it naturally. It’s as if the information enters through their eyes and goes straight to their muscles, bypassing their brains and immediately becoming a “natural” act.
Not me. I have to think about and analyze every new physical skill and then repeat it over and over and over before it can become part of my repertoire. So, I love written analyses of physical skills and over at eHow they have an excellent selection of skiing and snowboarding how-tos.
This is probably a great thing for Steamboat. I have often heard that as the top revenue generator in the American Skiing Company organization, Steamboat was in the position of subsidizing ASC’s other, much smaller operations. As a part of Intrawest, Steamboat will probably be required to get lean, become more focused, and plow funds into the base area—which Steamboat sorely needs. That attention seems to have been lacking under ASC. On the other hand, it will be very interesting to see how well the Steamboat and Intrawest cultures can get along.
If you’re still hunting for something for that favorite skier or boarder, look no further. Here are 20 gifts under $125 that will make any Snow Hugger happy. And, as much as we’d like to make our Amazon commission on these, they’re all available from REI, which means you still have a hope of finding and buying these before the big day.
Skier
$1.50: REI Boot Tote An old-fashioned but handy little tool for keeping your boots together and for litle schlepping.
$6.00: Swix REI Ski Straps Nice for keeping skis together on the roof rack or while in storage also make skis easier to handle.
$44.00: REI Evaporator Boot Bag Arguably the most important piece of ski equipment, boots need a home to stay clean. Remind your skier to buckle those boots up before they go in this durable bag.
But American ski resorts just scratch the surface—Wikipedia’s entry covers the whole world, listing over 1,000 ski areas from Serbia to Lebanon. Amazing.
It’s a question that’s plagued the ski fashion industry for years: What’s a psychopathic murderer to wear on the ski slopes? Clown wigs blow off, the makeup runs when wet, and let’s be honest: the big, floppy ski boots just don’t provide enough responsiveness.
Resorts want skiers and riders to respect their closures for many excellent economic and safety reasons and under Colorado Law, we’re obligated to do so. But it’s helpful to understand the relationship of the ski resorts to the public.
I have to admit: I know nothing about skiing in the east. The furthest east I’ve ever strapped on Alpine skis is Minnesota. Nevertheless, I don’t want to be Chauvinistic. Thus, here are a few cool-sounding events and deals I found waiting in my news queue today:
Pat’s Peak, NH: Ski and snowboard clinics are one of the most cost-effective ways to learn, and New Hampshire’s Pats Peak ski area is offering seven-week clinics following the New Year. The program is offered one day per week at 10 a.m., starting the week of January 8. The cost is $209 for a full seven-week program, lift, lessons and lunch. More info at Pat’s Peak.
Jiminy Peak, MA: Potter Brothers Demo Day, December 17 Potter Brothers invites you to come to Jiminy Peak to try new skis, snowboards, and helmets from top manufacturers. Reps from the companies will be on hand to answer your questions, too. When you try before you buy, you get the best gear for your style. Demos are available to all skiers and snowboarders with ID or credit card for deposit. More info at Jiminy Peak.
Pico Mountain, VT: The Pico $49 All-In Midweek ticket provides you with everything you need for a full day on the slopes including a full day lift ticket, performance equipment rental, morning group Perfect Turn lesson, even a $12 voucher for lunch—all for one price of $49. More info at Pico Mountain.
Waterville Valley, NH: Demo Day, December 16 Test all the latest ski and snowboard equipment. FREE with the purchase of a lift ticket. Must be 18 years or older and have a valid driver’s license or credit card. We are expecting the likes of Volkl, Atomic, K2, Rossignol and many others! Check back for a complete listing of companies. More info at Waterville Valley.
Not so long ago, Vail was known as the domain of ostentatious, fur-booted blue-bloods and nouveau riche. But when Vail Resorts introduced the Colorado Pass around 2000, it threw wide the gates to the ski bums and powder hounds. Vail is still a mecca for the Jet Set, but on a Saturday after a week-long snow drought, it’s also a mecca for powder seekers—if you just know where to look.
If you’ve been looking for something ridiculous to wear on the slopes, but have been disappointed by the utility of the standard issue dreadlock, spiky, and jester hats, then get ready to celebrate!
iSoundCap announces the all new Ski Cap: a knit cap that includes a built-in iPod holder. In the long-standing tradition of the Fly Hat and the
Beer Hat, the iSoundCap SkiCap combines the discomfort of keeping things on your head with the awkwardness of not being able to see what you’re doing.
On Monday, December 11, 2006, Monarch Mountain is offering free skiing to all. It’s a great oportunity to try out an excellent little resort.
Monarch is notable, particularly, for its backcountry skiing: Mirkwood Basin is 130 acres of steep, expert terrain accessible only by hiking. Monarch also runs much-vaunted snowcat tours of 900 acres of advanced/expert terrain. You’ll have to check whether either of these will be open for Monday—currently, Mirkwood is not open.
Complimentary lift tickets will be available at Monarch ticket windows at 8:30 a.m. Monday. Ski area personnel request donation of a non-perishable food item as part of the promotion, but a donation isn’t mandatory for a free ticket.
One day last season, my girl and I shared a lift with a couple of Texans at Beaver Creek. One of them expressed “interest” in our backpacks: why, he wanted to know, did we bring backpacks?
We explained that we ski with our backpacks to bring lunch, plenty of water, extra gear, spare layers, cameras, etc. Mr. Texas was perplexed—he’d been skiing for 30 years and had never found he needed water or food, or any extra supplies while on the slopes. In fact, he explained, he always skied the Talon Challenge on an empty stomach so as not to suffer cramps.
I did not say, as I was thinking, “if you’re not getting thirsty, you must not be skiing very hard.” Instead, as we exited the lift I just watched the Texas Torpedos make a b-line for the nearest groomer leaving us to hit the still-powdery steeps.
Outside online has a nice little rundown of three backpacks that they claim work for both front side and backcountry skiing.
“Thanks to the abundant recent snowstorms, Vail Mountain is accelerating the openings of China Bowl, Tea Cup Bowl and the remaining Back Bowls as well as Blue Sky Basin. Today the Colorado ski and snowboard resort will open China Bowl, Tea Cup Bowl and portions of Siberia Bowl served by Orient Express Lift (Chair 21) and Tea Cup Express Lift (Chair 36). The resort will offer 3,400 acres and 23 lifts. Two Elk Restaurant also opens for the season.
“This Friday, Golden Peak, the Riva Bahn Express (Chair 6) and the Golden Peak Grill will open along with Blue Sky Basin including lifts Skyline Express (Chair 37) and Pete’s Express (Chair 39). On Friday, the resort will have more than 4,000 acres serviced by 26 lifts. All lifts currently open at 9 a.m. and close at 3:30 p.m.”
Podski is a new company offering video ski lessons for the iPod video (and other portable video players). Cool idea if the lessons are good, especially for people like me who learn from repetition.
One of my personal goals this season is to start backcountry skiing. Although I’ve done a reasonable bit of guided backcountry skiing, I have never done it on my own and I’ve been looking for resources to get myself going.
I’m sure everyone has heard by now that former President Gerald Ford died Tuesday at age 93.
By about noon, the runs were getting pretty crowded, so we decided to take a $5 Keystone Kat ride above north bowl to go powder hunting. After a long traverse, Shana and I suceeded, finding plenty of lovely powder among the nicely-spaced glades above north bowl.
On Christmas Eve day, bring a non-perishable food item and dress up as Santa to ski for free at 
Enter Ktrak: a snow bike that looks like fun and uses the rider’s “legs” to drive a track and thereby create locomotion. The question are: can it go uphill and can it handle deep powder?
It’s a question that’s plagued the ski fashion industry for years: What’s a psychopathic murderer to wear on the ski slopes? Clown wigs blow off, the makeup runs when wet, and let’s be honest: the big, floppy ski boots just don’t provide enough responsiveness.
The news around the Colorado ski industry lately is an increase in the fines associated with the 
Not so long ago, 
If you’ve been looking for something ridiculous to wear on the slopes, but have been disappointed by the utility of the standard issue 
One day last season, my girl and I shared a lift with a couple of Texans at 
“Thanks to the abundant recent snowstorms, Vail Mountain is accelerating the openings of China Bowl, Tea Cup Bowl and the remaining Back Bowls as well as Blue Sky Basin. Today the Colorado ski and snowboard resort will open China Bowl, Tea Cup Bowl and portions of Siberia Bowl served by Orient Express Lift (Chair 21) and Tea Cup Express Lift (Chair 36). The resort will offer 3,400 acres and 23 lifts. Two Elk Restaurant also opens for the season.
