Johnny Style

Don't waste your time guys. I live two minutes from this "shop." It's not a "real" ski shop. It is a combination baseball card shop/ski shop. Yup, on one side of the space is trading cards and on the other side is a collection of rentals. He just rents snow blades and some beginner skis. He doesn't even sell new stuff. If you want, send me the skis. I live in the same town and can give you a "World Cup" tune for the same money. To quote Jeff Spicoli, "Relax, my Dad is a T.V. repairman. He has the ultimate set of tools, I can fix it."

As I have told you to your face mbike-ski, thank you so much for motivating me to do this. Even though I was sick last night and couldn't make it to last night's practice it was still worth the money to me. Assuming the stars align again next year I'll be back again.

Oh boy this could get dangerous. Thanks A-jeff, I've got the page up now and am ready for the deals to begin.

I hope he doesn't get too down on himself either. He is my favorite ski racer. Those courses at the Worlds were brutal though. Did you see that Super G course where you couldn't tuck and had to skid many of the turns? I know Bode was pretty critical of Didier Cuche's winning run. I don't know if you caught the slalom on Sunday or not, but half of the competition didn't finish that course. Like you said, he is still fast, he just has those few mistakes that take him out of the course. I agree that a break can often times recharge one's batteries so I hope he makes the most of it and comes back and finishes a few races. He is still close in the Downhill standings so hopefully he can still nap the globe. spoken in Little Huey's (the big guy who pumps up the USST racers in the start haus) voice, "Come on Bode, get back in the game, get it Bode!"

Great photos and TR. Just like your Son, when I was his age, I loved glade skiing. I used to get lost in the woods at Greek Peak all the time.

Interesting... The Olympics are next year and I figured he might want a shot at payback from 2006. Of course, Bode doesn't even care about stuff like that. I know he has an injury this year that is bothering him, and perhaps that is a motivating factor. Is he still talking about starting up an alternative racing league? Perhaps that is where his interest is these days. Either way, it will be a loss not to have him on the World Cup Circuit. I'll miss Little Huey shouting from the Start Haus, "Come on Bode, this is your course, come on Bode!"

Oh my, there must have been so much carnage on Monday night. That course must have been brutal.

I am thinking about you even though I will not be able to be there tonight. I am in Aspen and they are calling for six inches of new snow today, yet all I can think of is a cold night waiting around the Start Haus at Blue for two runs down the course. I think I have a problem. Have fun all, be fast, and hopefully I will catch up with you next year.

Just to supplement the list, I noticed that Killington didn't have a listing although they are running a "secret" deal. They are offering $50/day tickets this weekend. From their email: "A big storm is rolling through the Killington region right now and has already hit us with 10 inches of fresh snow and The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning with up to 20 inches of snow possible. This weekend is shaping up to be super with great snow conditions and our Killington 50th Birthday 2-day ticket deal. January 31-February 1, 2009 2-day lift ticket for only $100 per person* You can only purchase by calling 800.621.MTNS until 7pm on Thursday, January 29. Only 1958 lift tickets are available this weekend, so get your tickets before they are all gone! Discount 50th Birthday Lodging Packages are also available!" I skied Killington on SuperBowl weekend a few years ago and they gave everyone that skied on Sunday a free skiing voucher. I never went back but ended up selling mine on ebay for some nice side cash. Thank you Killington. Of course you have to call by seven o'clock tonight to reserve the deal.

I fell on the first run; took out skier number 66 who was racing next to me; and somehow got back in the course and finished. I think they were being generous by granting me a second run. They gave bib 66 a rerun.

Wow, I just saw the crash. The still photo on Universal Sports shows his skis literally exploding. Such a brutal crash. Here is the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac7l2Y2OogM

I was so disappointed. It's cool to recognize the locations at Killington but the movie is really bad. And this review is coming from a fan of all the actors. I'm thinking, "Hey it's got Samwise Gamgee, Mike Hammer, and Ash from "The Evil Dead, plus it has skiing, how can this be bad?" Well I found out that putting a bunch of my guilty pleasures into a movie does not guarantee a winner. Well, Bruce Campbell was good as always. If you saw Sean Astin in "Toy Soldiers" it is essentially the same plot but at Killington rather than a prep school.

Well, you never know when something like this could happen. "At the the Killington ski resort something has gone awry. Evil terrorists led by the sinister Greig (Bruce Campbell) have taken the resort hostage with a stolen nuclear device. It's up to Ski Patrol bum Matt Foster (Sean Astin) to save the day...and his fiance." P.S. Yes this is a real movie and it is available on Netflix although I can't really recommend it.

For those playing along at home, Bob, Brian and Stacey are all top level racers who consistently rank in the top five times of the evening. If it weren't for some of us old timers bringing up the times, they would be the top team. So, was Chris Nattress top dog last night? That guy is good.

I entered exit three on the Blue route this morning around 6:30 and it was 19 degrees. It was -5 F. in the Blue Mountain parking lot at 7:45! I think the top of the mountain heated up to an even zero and they announced -10 F. wind chillls. I skied the bumps every run except for two, after which I couldn't feel my fingers. Bumps were the only way for me to keep warm. They were really nice too. The snow was that grippy/styrofoam stuff which is great for the bumps. I was heating myself in the car by 10:45. Thankfully nobody knocked out my window to steal anything.

Don't worry, nobody knows me, I'm a total stranger to this group. I said all of five word to mbike-ski last Thursday so I at least know what his ski outfit looks like. In a perfect world I would be there at 5:45 but I have an hour and a half drive from Philadelphia this afternoon. Be patient, I'm on my way. mbike-ski I am sending you a pm with my cell phone number in case I need to find you on the hill and not the bar.

Sorry Mike but for some reason I was kind of out of it last night and didn't wait for you after my first run. (I was too embarrassed by my time to stick around) I was skiing down to the double doubles. I don't like the Vista lift because it looks like it is going to break down at any moment. Well, yup, you guessed it, I got stuck on the double from 8:10 until 8:45. I had nothing better to do than scream at the top of my lungs how much Blue Mountain sucked for 35 minutes. The worst was when they started putting people on the other lift and they were making fun of us being stuck on our side as they were going up. Anyway, back to Nastar. 20 years of racing rust + icy conditions + NO course inspection = slow times for Johnny. Mike I hope I didn't let you down for the team as I was only pulling Silvers last night. I was late on every gate. The good news is that I will only get better and I plan to see you at the adult race class on Tuesday. I totally forgot to give you the $30 when I saw you. I don't know if I will be up on Saturday but I will definitely be up for Sunday's Dawn Patrol. Perhaps we can meet up then? Otherwise, see you on Monday.

I'm coming up. I need to practice before Monday so I don't let you guys down. You wear orange don't you mbike-ski? If I see you I'll say hello so I'm not a total stranger on Monday.

I want to do this. I have "kicked the tires" for the past three years with this program and I think the stars have finally aligned to the point where I am going to do this. Since I am going to do the Beer league racing this year and Thursday night Naster, I figured I might as well get some instruction and go "all in/hit the trifecta" with racing. mbike-ski: you have already signed up? The information on Blue's website is vague at best. No phone numbers, no meet-up locations. I was just going to show up next Tuesday with a bunch of cash in my pocket and start asking questions on how to join up. Is there a more formal procedure?

I'm in. I have a pass, I can send you $30, however you like.

I doubt there will be enough interest to ever field a seven man team on a given week. You can race the other five weeks. I know I'll be in CO during one of the races.

I am very interested in this and have race experience. I'll sign up if you start it.

What, no Treichlers cafe?

1 degree base and 3 degree side, keeps me secured to the ice at Blue Mt.

Nice TR, looks like visibility was bad.