trackbiker

No problem, dude. Enjoy your posts. Keep posting on alpinezone.com But you won't see anymore here from me. Peace.

Just wait 'till they have their "Grand Opening" of the 22' Super-Pipe this weekend! It will be ski and three other pass holders standing there next to Dennis Carlson and clapping for the big ribbon cutting! Everyone else, me included, will be at Elk enjoying GREAT conditions!

Don't be too hard on him, Papa. You know those guys little guys with really small dicks, who were beaten as children, have to compensate in other ways. It's usually acted out by "bullying", and being an E-Bully is even easier than the real thing. We both know he'll erase all of this. So have fun while you can! Bully's are really pussies who act out when they have no other intelligent response.

It's a shame you can only make a personal attack as opposed to an intelligent arguement or comment! When people have no response other than personal attacks, they have no arguement or counterpoint! No wonder you "were" a reporter! Hey, I heard FOX news is looking for a few more washed-up, no talent, losers, to spew some more B.S. and suck cock for a job! Maybe Dennis Carlson likes it like this Hey ski, get help dude, you're the one who over reacts without any intelligent response. Do you do the road rage thing too?

ZERO REPLY's?! Wonder why? Just keep copying and posting the same trip report for 2/22, 2/23, 2/24.......7/17!

Another personal attack? Were you beaten as a child, ski? Go see a phsychiatrist, dude! By the way when Dennis Carlson was saying, "Yes, Yes, Yes! He wasn't listening to anything you said, he was just commenting on the BJ you were giving him!

"Miller Lite! 1/3 Less Calories than regular beer!" One the best marketing campaigns of all time. Most people interpret it as "1/3 OF the calories of regular beer." I'd rather have 2 good beers than 3 bad ones if I was counting calories. GSS pointed out a few good ones. Back to the topic; Lighting, lighting, lighting! I don't spend much time in the lodge, don't care about the park (other than I take a jump now and then, and enjoy watching others doing tricks from the lift.) Other than if I met up with some other pasr's, I do my apres ski on the way home at a place with better food, beer, and prices. When I'm at the mountain, I'm skiing.

The whole point of that diatribe was; If anyone has any opinion about Sno that wouldn't make it into an hour long infomercial, you bash the messenger and call them "whiners." It would make for a much better discussion to point out where their arguement may be wrong, make a counterpoint, or point out areas where they have made improvements as opposed to "bashing" the messenger. Whether you realize it or not, there are many people who won't say anything "bad" about Sno because they don't want to be bashed for it. When all that they hear is,"Yeah, yeah, EVERYTHING is GREAT!", Sno mountain management becomes the "Emperor With No Clothes." (Not that I think they are listening anyway.) I know several regulars on other ski sites who don't even look at paskiandride anymore. Comments range from "There's just a bunch of kids on there", to "The threads aren't civil", to "Don't tell them anything they don't want to hear". Comments like that from a demograpic with money to spend, and the reduced "hits" from people who see no objectivity, can't be helping with the ad revenue and the corresponding value of this site; monetarily or ski/riding info wise.

ski?

Most ski area realestate resorts also have golf courses to make them year round resorts. Method had a lot of good points and information on pipe building in his report. I actually learned something! More than I can say about your reports. They sound like a broken record...."Sno is great!!! etc, etc, etc...." Sno Mountain, LLC said in their public meeting that they had no interest in realestate. For some strange reason I thought a Forum ( def.: A public meeting or presentation involving a discussion usually among experts and often including audience participation. ) was place where people could express their opinions and everyone could maybe learn something. Yeah, some people are like 80 yr. men sitting at Dunkin Donuts whining about everything....and some people are like whiny little kids when anyone says anything they interpret as "bad" about their favorite little toy or ski area and bash anyone who doesn't like EVERYTHING about their toy. How many other ski areas have you skied this year by the way? -Been to BB to see their park since Peak took over? (It's getting rave reviews by the way. Opened in Nov! When did Sno's open?) -Ridden the 6-Pack at Blue yet? ( I did today with a friend from NYC who couldn't believe how many runs we got in an hour! Sure beats any of the creaky 25 year old SLOW lifts at Sno! ) -Ridden the TWO HIGH SPEED LIFTS to check out the parks at CB this year to see any improvements they've made? -Have you seen the lodge, hotel, and park at BC? (Sno is going to have add a lot more than a deck to beat that Lodge/Hotel complex!) -Been to Elk to see why the latest Elk thread has rave reviews on their conditions? No?! You haven't?! You just keep comparing Sno to Montage?! And think the competition is standing still? And everything the management is doing at Sno is the absolute best thing any owner's could ever do for a ski area? You sound more like a Sno "groupie" than anyone with any kind of objective opinion! Sno!... If you haven't been to any of the other areas, how could you possibly have an objective opinion to compare them to Sno? How could you possibly compare Sno to anywhere else if you haven't been anywhere else? I've been to all of them except for BB this year. And they all blow Sno away in EVERY area except for weekend snow conditions! And that's only because NO ONE'S at Sno! Sorry, I thought this was a forum where we could express our opinions and observations. Maybe we can just let it degrade into the BC thread where the park rats just keep posting 836 b.s. reply's on the park conditions! Or just change it to the Sno LOVE thread . Or just change the name of the mountain to Camelot Mountain.... "Where it never rains, only snows! The conditions are always the bestest!!! (And every other ski area in PA SUCKS!) The mountain with owner's who have no previous experience running a ski area but are doing EVERYTHING just right! The only mountain in the mid-atlantic region who can maintain a 22' half-pipe in good enough condition for "Olympic Training" while all the other pipes go to hell because of the thaw freeze cycle in this part of the country. Nobody here is "bashing" Sno. Just expressing opinions, comparisons, and personal preferences. From everything I've seen, EVERYONE wants Sno to succeed! Yes, everyone loves their home mountain, and there is mostly good natured "joshing" between the pass holders. GSS writes a report everyday he is at Blue (which is everyday he is not at Jackson Hole or Stowe!) Yes, we know his reports are somewhat "slanted" towards Blue, but he also tells us what he thinks can be improved, and tells us when it sucks. We don't get "Camelot Mountain". Tell us ski, what do you think Sno could do better? Where do you think the money could be better spent? Did you like Switch (the race trail!) being CLOSED because they blew a ton of snow for a 22' half-pipe you will never use? What would you like to see? Even identical twins don't agree on everything!

Method, all good points. I learned a lot from your post. I knew about the air pockets being a problem, but I bet most people don't know what "kneading" is. (It's tilling the snow piles to get rid of air pockets.) It's great to see an area spending money. My only concern is what they are spending it on. They could have the best park and lighting system in PA for what they are spending on that pipe. They still have to eventually show a profit. Goes back to the same old question, "How do you end up with $1million in the ski industry? ... Start with $10million!" Bear Creek has a different business plan. After a terrible season last year, they expanded their snowmaking pond, and still added a big addition to their hotel. Obviously, because there is a demand for more rooms. They are booked year-round with weddings and banquets. They primarily market the ski & stay packages to the Baltimore - D.C. area. The mountain is nothing compared to Sno's terrain, but I bet they have more skier visits than Sno. It's always crowded when I'm there. I never thought it would work for "Doe Mtn.", but I was wrong about that. But I've learned what they saw and I didn't. At the time of the sale, Sno said they were not interested in realestate. Don't know if they were/are just biding their time for building permits later, but the money in the ski business is in the hotels and realestate, not the skiing and riding! Just look at all the big players in the ski business. They've been making money in the villages and condos. IMHO, BC has the better business plan. Sno will need to build a hotel to attract the average "few-times-a-year-families-with-money-to-spend" to their water-park and for skiing. Those people don't care about 22' half-pipes. They want long blue cruisers, good grooming, a good ski school for the kids, and apres ski amenities.

Good One! Best laugh I had all day! I think most people on this board didn't get it!

How many of you have seen a real super pipe? I mean an X-Games type super pipe? And I mean not on TV. The ones I've seen have been on black diamond steep slopes. You really can't see how steep they really are on TV. A 22' half pipe on the upper mountain at Sno is a waste of time and snowmaking. You won't even be able to make it to the top of the pipe, never mind get any air out of it. Put up all the "hater" emoticons you want. That's just physics. It would have to be on the North Face to get any air out that thing. When it's done, put up some videos of people getting 10' of air out it and I'll be the first person to say I was wrong. Bottom line; the new ownership is trying hard, and spending a lot of money. But I'll bet a season pass that there is new ownership by 2014. Any takers?

Good analysis. I was at Camelback Fri. from 1:00 to 7:15. Planned to stay 'till 8:00 or 9:00, but the conditions did not hold up. Most trails turned to boiler plate in the center with up to a foot of frozen granular piles on the sides after sunset. The steeps at CB have been a sheet of ice everytime I have ever been there going back to the '70's. Granted, I've never been there for first turns, and I'm sure the r@!n earlier this week did not help. They were not too bad early on because NO ONE was on them and you could pick your turns. Some were better than others. Best trail was Dromedary because most people either miss the turn off of Big Pocono Run, or slide on by it on the ice! Early on, Nile Mile had more traffic on it than I80 on my way up. 80% of the people getting off the Stevenson Quad take Nile Mile. When I went back to it later, it was scaped in the center with piles of frozen granular up to a foot deep on the sides. In other words, yardsale city for the noobes. The top of Cliff Hanger was OK early on if you stayed to the right. The bottom 2/3 was great all day. But you had to traverse the ice on the top 1/3 to get to the bottom 2/3. Pharoah; they should just close that trail. Or rename it Ice Chute/Yardsale. The noobe's, after skiing Nile Mile, see the Blue Squares and take the trail. After the first U-turn, they are on an Ice Chute for about 150 yds. then do a Yardsale at the next turn! A nice trail from the second turn on down. Most people should take it from the Raceway Triple on down. All in all, a good day. But CB needs to improve their grooming and grind up all of that boiler plate on the steeps.

I saw the same thing last weekend. Sno should definetely keep Lower Runaway and Cannonball rated as Black Diamonds! In VT they would be rated as Blue Squares. But for the noobee's sake and ours, having them do a "yardsale" then walking down the middle of the slope, isn't better for them or us. It's a "Lose-Lose". Keep those trails rated as Black Diamonds and do us ALL a favor!

ski, thanks for the report. I'll give it to Sno for conditions. I went there over Blue Sat. night, even though it is 40 miles and a half hour farther. Plus $3.00 more for a ticket and $7.50 in tolls, plus the extra gas. I haven't skied as much as planned this year, so I go when I can and conditions are the priority. I would still put lighting over the 22' Zaug. I didn't see anyone in their 13' half pipe. Switch was one of only 2 trails closed because they used the snowmaking for the mounds on Spike. Was it open for NASTAR today? I would make it a priority over the park. But that's my opinion. I pack my own lunch. It's better than waiting in line for over priced greasy burgers. Apres ski is not important unless I'm in NE or out west, so it's all about conditions for me in PA.

Skied Sno Sat. night. Conditions were fast packed powder with about an inch of fresh natural on top. Only a few spots in the center scaped off on the head walls near the bottom, but all edgable. About 7:15 it started snowing HUGE wet flakes mixed with rain at the bottom, all snow at the top. Dumped about 1" - 1.5" in 20 min. Totally got covered in wet snow on the Long Haul. Conditions changed to slow wet snow in one run. Later it got skied in with the drier stuff and the North Face was better on the last run than my first. No lines. Only problem was people waiting for friends right in front of the loading zone. Lots of nubes snowplowing down to the bottom. They need to change those trails back to black diamonds on the map. They're still marked black on the trails. The $3.00 locker system wasn't working, but there's always bags all over the place because I don't think anyone uses them anyway.

The kids don't even eat the damn pizza! They take two bites, then run around like wild indians, yelling and screaming. Chuck E Cheese is for parents who usually use the TV as a babysitter and don't have a CLUE as to how to relate to their kids or have a relationship with them. Just look around at a Chuck E Cheese, the kids are all off going nuts and their fat, out of shape parents are all sitting at the tables talking bullshit. Turn off the TV on Fri. nights and play cards, scrabble, chess, checkers, Life, Trivial Pursuit, or freeking Chutes and Ladders with your kids! Or take them skiing, biking, boating or whatever... Kids won't remember the SUV and McMansion you don't need. They'll remember the time you spent with them! On a good day, it is worth getting up for first tracks; but I wish that wrist band system had worked at Sno, so I could ski from 2:00pm 'till 10:00pm on good conditions instead of getting there at 8:00 am! Hey, I used to start the weekend early and party 'till 3:00 on Thurs. nights and be at my desk at 8:00am on Fri. mornings. Not any more. After a few weeks of that, you start saying "goodbye" around 10:00!

I wouldn't care if the visibility was ZERO, I'd turn on the flashers and go 90 just to get the he!! away from Chuck E Cheese as fast as possible!!!! Closing during a rain storm is not a bad thing. It keeps the snow from being compressed into boiler plate and lets the rain drain through the snow. It can then be groomed back out to much better conditions than if they stayed open for a handful of people.

sexkitten, great post! Can you post a link to it or let us know where it is from?

That's a lot better than 11:30 to 12:00 last year. Thanks for the report. The pics are great! Now if you can only give GSS some photography lessons!

So we're still talking 11.5 to 12 min. to the top. I don't think any lift at Elk takes that long. But I'll let you know. I'll be at Elk on Sun. Elk had everything open today except for Lehigh which has no snowmaking, Seneca under the double chairs (which only really gets blow-over snowmaking from Susquehanna), and Tioga Spur which is really a connector trail. I'd say Elk won the snowmaking and most terrain open contest this year regardless of Sno's new super snowmaking system. I'm sure ski will have a response, but I would say that experience counts.

Well said. 90% of the people who would carry a pack would be OK. It's the 10% of the goobers who have all kinds of sh!t hanging off it and loose straps, etc. who would cause a problem an get hung up on the lift. Hey, if you are looking for "glade skiing" in PA, go to Jack Frost! If you call that call that one trail "glade skiing"!

IIRC, I estimated the Long Haul lift was running approximately 400 ft/min. last year. Most fixed grip lifts have a design speed of 500 ft/min. Doesn't seem like much but that's 25% faster. I remember snoemployee saying they had all the drives for the lifts overhauled in the off season. I thought the Phoebe was running faster and quieter this year. That lift was slower than Long Haul last year.

Didn't you know? Whistler is the "Ski by Braille" Trail at Sno! If you don't have white ski poles with red tips and a German Shepherd on a leash barking directions, you shouldn't be on that trail!