method9455

I'm with you on waiting for the new tech. Luckily there are alot of guys in the 24-33 range who are at $50,000 a year jobs just out of college and are single and have no idea what to do with all the money so they buy a lot of snowboarding gear every year, and they are gear heads, so dropping $300 for a fancy new pair of bindings isn't a big deal. We see it at work all the time, we sell every bit of the crazy new burton gear before christmas, often by thanksgiving. I bet it will be tough to get E.S.T. anything by christmas. Thats good, but definitely not for me when I'm scraping by at 10-14 an hour.

mmmm Mazda6 33mpg and better pickup than most cars

Woah woah did anyone ever know that 7 Springs is the closest place to Newark Delaware? I sure didn't. Bear creek is an hour and 45 away, but 7 springs is only an hour and 15? I had no idea I thought it was like 3 hours west of here, I guess because it is so far from me when I live at home north and east of the poconos it feels like it is out super west, but I guess not. I think I might take you up on those lessons, and a superpipe? Damn man. Damn. This is the best news I got all week.

I don't think a superpipe is worth it. Mountain Creek's was a deserted waste land, the difficulty of them prevents all but the best riders from using them. Not to mention you don't have a snowball chance in hell if you don't have the right equipment. I can air out a few feet on board every hit all the way down, get a spin here and there, but with my other board, can't even make it to the lip. The amount of snow it takes is unfathomable, I mean you could easily make 4-5 30 foot table top jumps WITH dirt under neith. In the end just make those nasty jump lines, you have so much more fun. The weather at Bear is just way too fickle for a super pipe. Just make a 13 foot pipe that is nice.

my girlfriend just got one but I've been failing what the hell. If we both get one, we're going.

Yea where can you come up with any of that other than the resorts not allowing the boarders in the future. Obviously they never will. MRG is owned by a private group of people and they all are against it - no market pressure will change that. Deer Valley and Alta are in the most competitive market in the country since they are all so damn close to each other, it separates the resorts. Deer Valley is inferior to the local competition so they groom it out like crazy, ban snowboarders, and sell it as the "family" resort for intermediate wealthy skiers - the vast majority of all skiers. Toas does it for the same reason, not many would go to Toas except for the lack of snowboarders - it is what puts them on the map. The only one that MAY ever is Alta. But everyone says Alta needs a lot of side hiking/skinning to get to the goods, so why bother when Snowbird, Brighton, Solitude, PCMR and the Canyons are RIGHT THERE. So oh well. Sure it is an image thing for Burton, but so what? Its not like Atomic is doing it, Burton is the most legit of all snowboard companies. So they are trying to get marketing out of it, are they bad for it? No more so than they are for sponsoring pro-snowboarders. At the end of the day, a bunch of people are going to get some for doing something fun while snowboarding, thats awesome. It isn't like they said "Burn down Alta and we'll give you 5,000). In the video they hiked up the night before to plant the snowboards. It is no different than people who poach now by hiking up, so they left 5 snowboard trails and snowed a few people, it is not like they hurt anything. And yea it costs a lot to fly from here to there to do it. But you can fly out there for a vacation, do it for 3 hours one morning and do the rest of your trip at other places. Not to mention all the locals. It is just FUNNY, and I love it.

Let me explain the difference in answers here cuz no one really gave a reason. AtomicSki and others are blasting down the mountain (on skis) and often on hard pack/ice, so they sharpen very very often. I don't know what he does specifically but the best edge is a machine edge polish (in my opinion, he probably knows more than I). The people saying never, or dull it, are generally park riding snowboarders. You don't want to catch an edge on a rail when you are going sideways, it leads to the hardest of all falls. The people who said tune it but dull between the feet - same thing, a rail is only like 1-12" wide so thats really all you need for basic board slides. Somewhere in between is the right answer. For you skiers who are not doing the park, you can never do it too much, the only limitation is the cost of sharpening, and hypothetically the thickness of the edge. You shave a little off every time it gets sharped, but in reality the bottom will get torn apart before you see the edge get sharped away. I would be suprised if there was anyone serious enough to tune there edges that often that didn't plan on buying near gear almost every year anyway. I've only seen one or two pairs of skis have it happen to them at work and the owners where usually along the lines of "oh well they are my 5th pair of skis anyway I wanted them as rock skis" For snowboarders free riding, almost the same thing but with a caveat. The guys at the shop will do an edge tune. If they are good they will detune (dull) the very end of the edge where it turns around for the nose. If it is still sharp, you will often catch that corner and fall. So I always detune the last 2-3 inches on boards. You don't need an edge polish for this yet because you won't be going fast enough to need it, a standard tune is all you need. If you decide to start going fast free riding opt for a stone grind and machine polish with hand waxing. If you go park don't get them sharpened at all and dull the middle a lot. I would still hand wax either way, but not really bother with a grind on the base either. As for how dull to make it, a few passes with a file is usually good. Some people go nuts with it. I think I'm going to bust out a 4" grinder and just round off the edges completely on my park board between the feet and keep the last 6" at the end of the edge sharp. I don't catch the corner anymore and I rarely slide on that section so it works for me.

See, everyone here with all the gear got it off pro-forms. It seems everyone who is new to the sport and/or doesn't know much about the products but sees the name alot, or is a brand whore, gets burton, but after you can get to the point where you can feel the difference between boards/bindings/boots you move away from them. Some people LOVE their bindings, good for them. Mine broke something really simple, it was a screw threaded into a little backing washer. So the bolt had 3 threads in there, and it just stripped and then I didn't have a strap. At the time I was standing on the middle of a mountain in Canada in about -10 degree weather and a long way to go to the bottom or the top, maybe 1500 feet down or 700 up. What the hell do you do? I ended up riding riding switch with my back (normally front) foot out. Try learning switch one foot for the first time on ice in bitter wind and you'll end up hating burton. The this is they DO dump a bunch of money into R&D, but on new technology (which helps the industry) but not refining the normal stuff. It costs a lot more to design the fusion binding and the manufactoring of it all than it does to put lock nuts instead of thin washers on the Mission binding, but thats where they put their money. And then me as a rider get a bad day on the mountain with their product - while I never got to benefit from the Fusion. It sucks, you want to like innovation but they need more refinement. Their soft goods, goggles, and helmets are all leading though. Regular burton shells like the system 3/2 and their pants are a GREAT deal for the money. An uninsulated shell with 10/10 waterproof and air proof or more will change the way you ride if you have thick insulated jackets or are trying to layer with crappy shells, suddenly you have 1/2 as many layers on and you have so much more mobility.

Nice guys. Very good work. A hell of a lot earlier than last year. I hope to God you guys step it up this year to make up for last year. If you guys put a good season I'll buy a pass again next year, but I just couldn't after the travesty that was last year before february. This is an excellent first step.

Ugh, I've never been out west and I'm dieing to go. I had some giant fat kid with rich parents come into work looking for new ski blades cuz his wouldn't get him through the powder at Snowbird with his parents. I was like BUY SKIS YOU STUPID FATASS WAY TO WASTE A FREE TRIP TO SNOWBIRD.

Yea I don't think I would do CMS lessons, it goes against my grain to go to Camelback for anything park. I could talk to them. I would also consider Blue or Mountain Creek, but Mountain Creek would need to have jumps before I went back to school in January - good luck with that. So basically it is going to be Blue, or Mount Snow.

Yea I felt like I had an affair or something. Snowboarding in November before Thanksgiving in PA, then back to the real world where I can't get back until December. But the real "first day" when I get out for 8 hours or so, my muscles will be in much better shape. Speaking of which ... maybe I should start hitting the gym here I'm such a lazy ass.

Does anyone else out there have a love hate relationship with Burton like I do? They dump more money into funding a great core riding team including up and comers and women than anyone else - they are even better than Forum of the late 90's Technical Difficulties/The Resistance years. They put a lot of money behind the olympic team and their training. They run great ads, and support a lot of videos and magazines. They are innovative with their cap strap (I know tech nine did it too), the fusion binding (good idea, didn't work out), the e.s.t binding (good idea, still hasn't quite worked out), their insert patterns (if only they hadn't patented it, it would be the industry standard), the SI bindings (again didn't work out), infinity ride (pre-decambering of boards at the factory) and the mainstreaming of aluminum honeycomb in boards. Those are just recent innovations. Plus their boots and bindings have a host more. Not to mention it is rider owned, from way back, and still independent. Who else can we say that about? Rome, Arbor, GNU/Lib (although isn't Mervin owned by someone), 32 & Grenade? Certainly not Atomic, K2, Ride, Salomon. We could say it about Forum until they went backrupt - and Burton bought them to save the brand. So yea it all sounds rosy right? I ride around on a Jeremey Jones with Missions, Anon goggles, a Red helmet with nasty speakers, and an AK jacket, I walk to class every day with an AK backpack (which is PIMP). I'm practically a Burton whore. But how did I end up with all that stuff? Jeremy Jones was $50 used 1 day, another guy at the shop got it for $120 on a pro-form and didn't like it. Missions where $50 on pro form, Figments where $25, helmet was $30, jacket was $200, backpack was $50. I bought every single piece of gear because Burton throws pro-forms around like they are candy on halloween, and either I got it directly off pro-form, or bought it used from someone who got it from originally from a Burton proform. If I had a choice I have a list of 5-10 boards I'd rather have before I even mention a Burton. Give me a Arbor Mystic, A Frame, a Rome Anthemn or Agent, another GNU Altered Genetics, or any Lib Tech with magne traction, or a Ride DH, or a K2 Willy Yillie or Zepplin. Then you get to Burton and I'd take the Malolo or Custom X or Jussi, but thats about it. As for bindings, I'll take Ride, Rome, Salomon or Flow before Burton. And for boots Salomon, 32, K2 and Ride are more comfortable, except for the Hail which is decent. I won't complain about the price premium, everyone knows you pay 20-30% more for the Burton stuff. But it is because they are throwing $5,000 to people poaching MGR and Alta, and sponsoring over 40 riders, and every video of the year. I appreciate that, and it thats why I buy a lot of accessories from them. If someone is going to make $5 off a T-shirt will it be Ride or Burton? Burton every time. If someone is going to make $30 off googles do I recommend Anon or Oakley? Oakley is showing up to the party with a name from sunglasses and not much that makes it worth the cash. Or helmets, recommend a ski brand or Burton? Burton every time. But boards, bindings, boots, I rarely recommend anything. People come in asking for it, but everyone who doesn't know, I will sell them everything but. I see Burton as the 2nd from the bottom at our store, only Ride boards are worse. And only k2 bindings are worse (but we dropped them, so now burton is), and boots, they are worst. Why can't burton match their quality to their image? I destroyed the Missions twice, never doing anything out of the order, just hardware stripping issues that should NEVER happen. Sure they replaced it, but it shouldn't have broke in the first place. The Jeremy Jones is fine, but it is just kind of heavy with not enough pop to be great in the park, but too much stiffness to really butter and press like my older park board, it is fun and for $50 it was great, but not for $499. I'm hoping to break it ASAP so I can have a reason to buy something else. It rides ok in the park and ok out but nothing like my arbor or gnu boards. Thats basically how everyone feels about their boards, they are fine all mountain but none of them excel anywhere else. The only people raving about burton boards are riding the T6 which is a very special beast. Anyone riding a vapor and says they love it strikes me as a bad snowboarder - even the Burton rep told us to sell that to the guy with a rolex, a porsche, and a small dick. Keir rocks it because he can get it for free, but you can't tell me you would drop $700 on a board as soft as the Air, when for that money you could get a t6, a custom x, a gnu altered genetics, or any other board on the wall. Wow, long rant, but seriously burton WHAT THE HELL. I want to love your gear but I can't, it is all crap.

Genius

It's cool I thought you meant you knew where rails where but didn't have a car or drop in box and wanted to borrow one. I wasn't going to be responsible for anyone getting hurt, its way too early for me to consider doing any of that. That a march, my season is almost over anyway type thing.

Do you have a pick up and a drop in ramp or do you want someone to show up with one?

Bullshit bullshit bullshit bullshit. I'm so sick of hearing this fan boy bullshit. Yea Boulder is smaller but that has NOTHING to do with getting open early. The other mountains don't open early because they DON'T WANT TO or CAN'T, not because they are bigger. Size has nothing to do with it AT ALL. Surely with being open 100% it does, but one trail is one trail, anyone can do it if they made the effort. If mountain creek had the weather that JFBB has they could blow snow on Sugar and open a run the size of freedom in a night too - but they don't get the weather, and if they did they don't have the guns on that. They are using air/water tripod guns spaced out at the same distance that Boulder has fan guns. That isn't going to do it. Laurel Glade is no bigger than Freedom park at Boulder, and it has a lift, but they don't have guns running on that. I went to Boulder the day that they started up the guns for every trail other than Freedom for the first time. At 2 in the afternoon they where running guns on about 80% of the trails, everything but Mittiweg, Freedom, and one other. I passed Camelback and they where blowing too - so the weather wasn't the issue. That was a week ago, why didn't camelback get Laurel glade open ,they had over 40 hours of snowmaking weather, in less time Boulder was able to get freedom open in early novemeber. Blue mountain could run the guns on tubing and get a mini-park open, but in reality they probably have the worst situation, they have no short lifts. Shawnee again only has the bunny hill lifts so not really a contender either. As for getting to 100% because they are shorter, but they have 6 top to bottom runs open. At 450 feet each that is 21000 vert added up - its like having challenge and razors open at Blue, or two trails at Camelback. But the important stat is ZERO trails open at those mountains, and MANY at Boulder. Don't trash it because it is small, everyone should have tried to get out for a $20 ticket to help JFBB out. The earlier they open the season, the harder everyone else will push. If people start changing their passes there, and spending money early/late there, other mountains will have to compete. That makes it better for everyone, so stop minimizing it - sitting on your ass and saying well if camelback did it then I would care is just saying to camelback that they don't need to do it. They aren't losing anything to JFBB if you don't get off your computer/high horse and ski at a competitor while they're sitting with their thumbs up their collective asses for the last few years. But camelback and mountain creek have possible runs (laurel glade and sugar) that they COULD open if they had the right snowmaking guns, will power, and budget. They just DON'T.

I usually don't like to criticize but landing 90 is the same as falling in my book, can't say I can do all the shit you guys are doing but if you don't get the whole rail or you land 90 its the same as a fall. Other than those shots, good video. I really want to try out the tires they look setup really well.

Ignore this post, I just want to be able to find this info next year Opening dates since Peak took over: Nov 10, 2007 at BB, as of 11/29 not open at JF Dec 5, 2006 at BB and Dec. 9, 2006, for JF

Thats still a decent opening date, it feels late since boulder is open, but Dec 7th is average to early. What date did they open last year? Answered my own question, they opened Dec 8th last year.

I agree with this two, it makes a lot more sense. On the crowding issue - you can have the trail OPEN, just don't have features on it. Then you can blow snow on it at any possible time, if you are free riding through it doesn't matter if the guns are going, and it doesn't matter if they build whales at night. If you have features out there they are getting buried and you have to dig them out and reset them and groom around them, just save the time and money of trying to maintain a few rails while you are building your base. Worse comes to worse at least then you have snow on the trail when warm weather hits - so you could always set them up later. Another option if you really want to fit more rails on the mountain is to set up a temporary park on another trail while blowing Cascade, but generally thats un necessary. Boulder opened with 8 rails and it kept hundreds of people busy for three weeks, and it didn't seem any worse than a normal after school at Mountain Creek just because they had enough space in between that people hiking didn't block the landing for the rail before.

I like the idea of a step up but Boulder Park is not the place, it is just too steep. What about the area at the bottom of Merry Widow where the battleship box/rail leading into the oil drum was in early january last year? You come down with plenty of speed but the ground is basically flat so if you are building up a step up, you need less snow. Hunter had one like this 2 years ago, but it was about 15 feet to the knuckle, 30 to the landing. It didn't take much more snow than a regular tabletop built on flat land. I'm not sure what a 75 footer would look like, but there is no run out for that. Maybe a 20/40 would be doable. The other place that would be possible is the bottom of One Park at JF, it too gets flat down where the flat boxes were situated, but has lots of steep ness coming in for the necessary speed. Overall I felt a lack of big tabletop jumps last year, but that is mostly how the terrain is not a design or snow issue.

I didn't see the comments on the video as any worse than normal. People go onto TWSnow to be dicks solely to be dicks. Find a video that doesn't have almost universal negative comments, it is probably a robot food clip from 4 years ago, I haven't seen anything in years that wasn't ripped apart by a bunch of 13 year old internet posers. They even joke about it in the magazine. But a LOT of people see it.

These pictures are from Friday at 2 in the afternoon - this is why they can open with such a good surface, look how many guns are going on boulder park - and look how much else they are blowing at the same time (the pictures don't even include the 10 guns running on tubing and around freedom park)

Getting the word out, too bad there where 10 videos that other people made that where better, but some exposure is better than none. Someone needs to keep a running list tying all the youtube and vimeo clips, by the end of the year there will be 50 i'm sure.