Papasteeze

The announcer called my 10 yr old the Wild Moose for some reason yet explained.. Yep the announcers hype it up.. they give you stats and standings, where your from, how old, etc. etc. Montage and CB are good for their longer courses. BC is cool for the short fast sprint, crowds-NADA, cost-reasonable, access-close. Cool park for the brother, a skier cross for the both of them and a lounge for Dad!

Hey Sleepless - If you see my boy Sunday at JF ask to see his boots.. A really conciencious boot fitter in Tahoe took the time to listen to him and modify his boots. He had quite a bit of shin bang --- remove/cut all of the plastic to the top of the buckle and then install an elastic BOOSTER strap - he said it made a huge difference.

OK.... Post or email me after the weekend and I will do the same.. I may have a change in plans for this weekend -- Ridge is pumped to run some more Nastar - since he got his first Speedsuit.. So Steven will be at BB & JF with his mom - I probably will take Ridge to CB or Shawnee..... Where is my teletransporter!!!

Welcome!! I also recently joined here for the great information related to skiing in Eastern PA - Tell everyone about it and watch this board grow!! Wow What a glowing testimonial! - you should try to sell that one to Elk.. If your story were read by everyone - the secret would be out!! Did you see the parking lot to your right when you come in? Get there early early and park there so that you can ski to your car during and after you are done for the day.. You can use your car for your ski in - ski out personal locker. I really would like to see all resorts clamp down on stowed stuff or at least build facilities that handle all of the gear.. It would seem to me, that they could sell more overpriced food (if you want to call it that) if they freed up the tables. Sad but true... I have had many a confrontation about sitting in an empty seat.. I matter of factly tell them if they don't like where I am sitting then go get someone from the resort and have them sort it out.. They always grab their stuff and move - always into someone elses "claimed" spot. My boys and I have a standing rule we eat by eleven, ski when everyone else is having lunch and stop for snack around 2 or 3.. Congrats on the black diamonds - Your kids will never forget their first black - What a great report.. That one should stay at the top of the Elk Mountian category.

OOPS I stand corrected 20.55 - on that short course 1/10th of a second means one handicap point.

Second that... or it is all about what everybody else is skiing on.. Yellow is fast, red is even faster!!

Be prepared for slow uncomfortable lifts.. The trails make up for it.. If you get there early take the first parking lot to your right and you will almost be able to ski to your car at the end of the day..

Weather looks good for Monday, Snow today!!! I would do the Elk, you will enjoy it!

Wish I had known you guys were going.. We would have switched nights.. Any thoughts of doing it again next week?

far skiers left (opposite the park side) banked turn to start - rollers in the middle decent step and typical at the end.. Guys help me out with the feature names.. I can't keep them straight.. Any how for what it is worth I had to pull up several times it scared the crap out of me.. You have to visualize gates.. But the conditions were really nice and forgiving Tuesday night..

I totally forgot the skiercross run - I call it chinese downhill.. They took down the sign that used to say "this run can casue death"" http://www.nastar.com/index.jsp?pagename=r...p&compid=416893 Or is that sign at Montage?

Ridge nailed a 20.11 on tuesday night... he going to catch all of you!!

Count my boys in.. They love that stuff! and they are good at it.. Have you tried the one at BC?

No vert at BC that is true.. but when you have a speed demon and a park rat.. there is no better place.. And that lodge OMG is it nice or what!!?

My boys are staying in Lake Harmony, I was told they can see the slopes form the unit.. Which slope can they see?? Ridge has a season pass - Steven might want to leave BB cause thats the park he seems to like best -- yet I know where he pulled his first clean 540 and that was at JF so go figure.. Any way he is pumped to know that there are others waiting for him to ski with.. I am going to tell him BB on Saturday - ticket booth at 9am on Sunday..

Steven, my freestyler will be there and so will Ridge, my racer. - I am not sure they will have the patience to wait at a crowded ticket booth. But look for them.. Hopefully the stickers will be here in time .. Look for matching red and silver Giro helmets.. Sign in and let me know who will be there so I can tell them to be on the look out for ya!

We will continue to try and be there every Tuesday night as long as there is snow - look for a fast 10 year old and his Dad hanging around...

Ski999 - I feel your pain man. the resentment, the ... whatever you call it.. As an experienced father of expert 10 & 11 year old boys, I feel the need to offer this insight. be it right or wrong in your eyes.. I am not sure that Ridge WILL be in PARA... That is his choice.. Please read on.. Ridge (10yr old) was excited about getting medals when started racing with Nastar at the very end of last season and at the beginning of this season. Now, with 9 race days under his belt, he ignores the whole medal thing and concetrates on bettering his handicap scores.. He collects the medals from the different places. I have watched him give them back if has already won one of that color from that resort.. It is now just a colorful collection.. I guess, fortuanately for him/us, we have not been in the situation that you are - I am sure we would feel the same. I am sure that he would feel there was something wrong if on a particular day he could not score the same handicaps that he had the week before (the scores went higher). I can tell you this about the Nastar program, he has continued to show consistent improvement with his handicap in his first season of participation. He is so pumped, psyched and motivated to continue to do better.. I have warned him to no end, that the day will end soon when he doesn't shave a point or 2. He is learning a lot, when we started the season it was on last years skis. then we got them waxed he got a beeter handicap score. Then we had them sharpened, handicap went down a few more points. Then a each day at a different resort his handicap - alittle lower!! A 2 hour private lesson with a former lady racer. guess what? another point lower! How about the new skis, handicap went lower again.. Now we start returning to the resorts that he had skied in the beginning of the season - You need not guess.. It went lower and lower.. LAST NIGHT at Bear Creek with his new speed suit - his best scores yet!! He has gone from a 36 handicap to a score of 20 last night.. I am biting the bullet, gotta get him the poles, the gloves - I got to get an edgin kit, waxin iron.. ... My point and speculation is... That with out Nastar he would not be seeing these type of improvements - while I am sure that he might sense it - he wouldn't really have a guage - he wouldn't really have any thing tangible to prove it. If he had joined a ski racing team - competing intra-club and then Inter-resort. He would only know if he won against that person(s).. He wouldn't really know if he was improving he may have lost interest if he couldn't didn't win.. I agree there may come a time when Nastar is not challenging to him and that he wants to race others, but that is his choice. I will bet that next season he will want to continue to do the same thing next year until his improvement levels off.. My suggestion, share the time with your 4 year old, savvy as she might be.. show her, her results - at a tender 4 years old SHE WILL improve a fast rate and she will be able to see that through the use of Nastar. She will get excited over that and confused about the Handicap system. (IDK.. I think Ridge now understands) I truly believe you will have the same results.. Trust me when I say that winning of the medals looses it's excitement at Nastar - Being able to say and proove that "you" are doing better will mean more to her (and others) if she likes to go fast!! Did I mention that my 11 yr old, Ridge and I have skied avidly for 8 years now. Steven (11) has no interest in racing and Ridge has no real interest in freestyling.. While there is some resentment between them.. I chalk it up to a sibling rivalry, a little bit of jealousy...It is all about skiing for the 3 of us. It is something that we all share together.. SKIING!! I hope that I get the chance to meet you this season.. Talk to you.. Talk to my son. This has been probably the most memorable season for us- we have Nastar to thank for that!! Rob, Steven and Ridge

BEAR CREEK has the best overall park - there are some nice unique features at some of the others but there about 30+ different features and lots of cool stuff not seen anywhere else..

No he has a silver and red Giro -- by the way , from the mouth of freestyling expert who has sampled 5 parks in 10 days... BEAR CREEK has it way over everyone else.. Go and check it out.....

My mistake sorry...

No he was at Blue

I agree with everything you have said... I just still think that she earned that medal fair and square on that day.. No one should take it away nor should you consider it worthless.. I am sure that she gave it all she had and if I had any say in it she won the gold!!! On the other hand - I only recently realized that if Ridge truly wants to race competitively (and earn medals) then we have to join The USSA PARA PASR NASTAR ISSA ASRA ACB 123 ABC otherwise, he can just have fun, with the challenge of running the gates at the Nastar courses and hear his times improve (or not) during 10 or so races one afternoon.. He mentioned to me that it was boring waiting in line for so long for dual slalom at CB on Sunday - he also said that he had more fun in the afternoon as he got to know the other members better... I do not agree with changing the pacesetter times after the race has begun.. I also know that everyone can't be pleased all the time and that there are going to be Bluebird days and others when you can't get past bronze.. I suggested to Nastar that they might consider a more stringent averaging in the Expert category only.. Since the expert category is where the more serious competitors are.. The other divisions should be for fun.. Once the rules - pace are set they should be set.. I agree.. Now relax!!! Take your kid skiing!!! I had my kids skiing at that age and now I am really appreciating the time and money spent... Hang in there hope to see you out there again soon! Rob

Consider Ridge included with the CB team!! I changed his Nastar profile to reflect that . - I will see what I can do to persuade others to join... I wonder what would prevent a Pocono Resort Team from being created.. Face it.. all of our mountains combined don't equal the size of some of the resorts in the West.. Hmmmmm got an idea

My boys said they had free run of the place -- so much for Presidents day.. the locals stayed home and us tourists tore up the place! The boys like the crud and empty slopes... They get air everywhere!