snoskier

I was bummed about having to work tonight, but I guess that is now a moot point. So is Scranton experiencing some weather event i don't know about? It seems nice and cold here... Also did anyone else see the big shamrock on whistler yesterday?

Nice... Glad to hear you had a good trip. i used to ski bromley a lot growing up... good times...

Winter

Great trip to Blue today. I think everything has pretty much been covered. I got there about 830 and after one run met up with the PASR crew. It was a fun time... I'll forgo the lengthly post and just post some pictures... Lets get started... first chair up... The 9 am meeting... we were there ... the organizer ... was not.. SK downing an everclear cherry .. The group on the lift .. .sarah, melissa, mike, bob, doug Melissa tries SK's cherry hot ladies... Group pic from like the third break Melissa after a double ejection ... not the net photo, but still good... All in all --- great trip--- maybe see some of you all up at sno soon.

Gaper Day Eve.... I love it...

Congrats Good luck next year...

I missed Melissa

That's raising the bar for TR... sweet trip. You just added like 3 more resorts I need to hit...

1. Schifdawg (Mike) 2. Melissa (Melissa) 3. GrilledSteezeSandwich(Doug) 4. Sexkitten (Leslie) 5. Boblikescats (Bob) 6. snoskier (Jon) I'm not 100% sure yet, but I'm going to give it a gaperific shot... we'll see! I'm still trying to decide what beverages will fit well in the fanny pack.

Some of my best childhood memories are when my dad would "declare a snow day" and take me skiing after snow storms! Hats off to ski for being a cool dad. The snow looks really nice... wish I was heading up tonight...(stupid work ) ... but its for the best b/c I need to save my legs for my racing debut on thursday.

Looks like all the calls have paid off... I just called and they said you need to get the ticket at the group sales office which is at the summit lodge. You need to be wearing your retro outfit when you pick up the ticket. I said I was getting there at 8 and was told that wouldn't be a problem as long I complied with the above.

Nice report... sounds like a great day sunday.

ummm -- yeah not enough drag that you aren't still flying.... + standing up you are going to have a lot less control straight-lining it.... technically they started about 20' off from the edge, but they way the trail is cut you end about 5' from the woods... I'll say right now... straight-lining white is worth at least a couple rounds... If i see it & you live -- i'll buy.

73 P.S.

Great night out tonight. I really like w/ DST that it doesn't get dark early anymore. A definite plus for getting in a little "night" skiing. Met up w/ ski after my first run and lapped the NF with him. The snow was AWESOME. They had just made snow the night before and there was still cord to be had!!! The only two trouble spots were under the one gun where it was about 10 feet of ice and smoke. I think smoke was still icy from the race this weekend so it gets a pass. White and Boomer were both really nice. The one mystery for the night happened after ski took off (so I know it wasn't him) but I came up to the head wall on white and there were a pair of tracks going straight down off the head wall. When I got to the that head wall the tracks kept going straight down, no turns, about 5' from the woods, to the run out. I want to know who the hell tucked that trail and didn't even flinch in thier skis. Seriously, stand up and take a bow. I only probably skied 5-6 more runs after ski took off b/c I hit the bar for quesadillos -- yummy and got into some other assorted hi-jinks of which there may or may not be pictures.... BTW when I was leaving I saw snowmaking was heading up and about the mountain. So if any wants some sweet a.m. tracks they better get up there tomorrow a.m. I wish I lived 10 minutes away...

Any one else going up this afternoon/night? I'm shooting to get up around 4ish. Ski/dh you guys around?

I was looking for something official on Blue's website... anyone got more details?

Might have to sneak out of work early a few times this week then.... ... pumped to hear the guns were going... I'll be up tomorrow night to check it out first hand.

Woke up a little late this morning so I didn't hit the road until just before 8. I actually didn't have a specific plan where to go this morning so I let fate decide. When I got to the 476/80 intersection at white haven I flipped a coin. Heads - camelback; tails - blue and if it landed on the edge - JFBB. Since I'm posting in this forum you have a pretty good idea how the flip turned out. It was tails and I headed south for my first time at Blue Mtn. Through a series of unfortunate events, over which I did not necessarily have control, I actually didn't hit the slopes till about 10. I was pretty bummed not getting there early to try to find some PASRs, but I did keep my eyes open. Didn't end up seeing anyone b/c I figured they left around 10 or 11. Oh - well

I think the april $10 passes is a great idea. The NF holds snow pretty well so with a little creative grooming you could easily ski till may.

I

Anyone been up to the mountain since the monsoon? I'm not exactly trusting the website: Trails Open 26 Lifts Open 5 Surface Packed Powder Base 46" - 120" Snowmaking in Progress No New Snow Fall 0" so I'm hoping for an actual report....

Now if I can only get my hands on a certain moose costume....

Having been to both Whistler and Colorado it is like comparing apples and oranges on the acclimation issue. If you get altitude sickness at blue mtn then whistler is not for you. The base is only at about 2000 feet. The top is right under 8000. The top of Blackcomb is about equal to the base areas in Colorado. That said skiing from the top of Blackcomb you will be out of breath, not b/c of the altitude, but the 5K vertical. With a couple rest stops it can easily take 20+ min to get down. I didn't have any issues with acclimation and I am usually on my ass the first day/night in colorado.

As it were I'm also in the process of planning a 2009 trip. I have been fortunate enough to have taken a few trips out to whistler/Blackcomb and can, without a doubt say it is my favorite area. That said the mountains ski a lot different in different weather conditions. I'll try to explain later... but, they are a big enough that you can find somewhere ski no matter the conditions. 1. Getting there. I've always flown into Vancouver. It is a really nice city. The climate is temperate making it mild even in the winters so if you can forgo getting up to the mountain (which I admit will be hard to do) it is a fun city to explore. They have a nice waterfront area that you can walk around. If the weather is nice there will be street performers, artists, ect. out who are in some cases pretty talented. The city also has a lot of parks which you can visit. Last time I was there was during March I think and we cruised around checked the sites. People actually live "downtown" making it a fairly vibrant. I don't recall much difficulty getting around the town via car or public transport. As for getting up to the resort you whether you go via car or bus you need drive up during the day time. The views looking over the sound and the fjords are incredible. I really can't do it justice. When I was looking this year I found some car rental companies that do one way rentals from YVR to Whistler. (I think Avis). You can also catch a shuttle bus up. It will take about 1.5 hours (give or take) to reach the resort. Once you get to resort there you don't really need a car so renting one for the duration of your stay isn't really necessary. 2. Where to stay. There are really three types of places you can stay. 1. ski-on/off condo; 2. hotel in the village; and 3. shuttle accessible housing. I've done all three and unless you can't avoid it, I would try to stay away from #3. The layout of the area makes either 1 or 2 so nice that it gets old having to catch a shuttle every time you need to go somewhere. But, that isn't necessarily germane to W/BC and pretty much applies everywhere I suppose. WHISTLER VILLAGE. This is the heart of the action. The way the mountain is set up the base areas for both mountains converge. To the right you can hop the gondola to Blackcomb or to the left you can hop the gondola or chair to Whistler. I can't stress enough how convenient having this choice makes your trip. If the weather is stormy you probably want to steer toward Blackcomb because you will be skiing more in the trees. The big draw to whistler is the bowls/above the tree line skiing. When it is a whiteout you have no reference points above the trees. B/c some of the terrain is pretty hairy you can get in trouble pretty quick w/o depth perception. That said if its nasty, skiing off the creekside gondola probably isn