Snow Sports and/or Surfing

Interesting about the bumps at Copper (I've never ridden there). That was my observation about Vail, and to a lesser extent Beaver Creek. Figured it was Vail Resorts MO, but maybe just the CO way.

Glad to hear people are getting out. Here I sit on 3/11 with 0 days used on my IKON pass, and no injury or pandemic to blame for it. Working weekends has made it hard to connect the dots on family trips, and with the wife being on kid detail on weekends I haven't had the heart to skip town on my weekdays off and leave her with more to do. We may be going up as a family in a couple weeks, and my wife and I are going up sans child for a few midweek days in mid April. Given all of this I can't foresee enough of a change happening for next year to re-up on IKON. Can't tell if I'm being pragmatic, or simply conceding. Maybe I'll see you guys in Wrightwood next season.
 
We had an awesome day today. Left Taylor's house in Laguna at 6:20 and parked up front at Mt. High at 7:38. Taylor and Ruby talked roller coasters all the way up the hill.

Went to season pass office to see if they would defer my daughter's season pass to next year, since she didn't get to use it yet this year, due to my surgery. They did. Incredible customer service. Casual breakfast burrito while suiting up and booting up in the lodge before the lifts opened.

Ruby and I took 4 runs on the lower lift to warm up (she hasn't skied in a year). Discovered her goggles were too small, so into the shop we went. Yup - nice pair of Dragons for $70.

Then two more on lower lift, this time including the jumps on Creekside and Cruiser. Ruby loves the jumps, even though she doesn't actually catch air - or very little. Still - I love that she loves it. Then we caught up with Taylor and hit the main lift for a run on Chisholm. She did great. In for lunch, then out for three more on the main lift (one on skis for me, then I switched to snowboard). Two more on the main lift on snowboard. 10 runs total (8 on skis and 2 snowboard for me).

The snow was fantastic on the main runs after about 11:00 am, but getting slushy on the lower, sunnier runs. Still - excellent.

Oh - and a Saturday in SoCal means big crowds and long lift lines right? Nope. Never more than three minutes in a lift line. The whole day felt like cheating. Obligatory stop at the Village Grind in Wrightwood for some caffeine for the drive home. Home by 3:00.

Equally obligatory chairlift selfie...
Ruby and Dad Mt. High 3-12-22.jpg
 
Last edited:
herzalot said:
We had an awesome day today. Left Taylor's house in Laguna at 6:20 and parked up front at Mt. High at 7:38. Taylor and Ruby talked roller coasters all the way up the hill.

Went to season pass office to see if they would defer my daughter's season pass to next year, since she didn't get to use it yet this year, due to my surgery. They did. Incredible customer service. Casual breakfast burrito while suiting up and booting up in the lodge before the lifts opened.

Ruby and I took 4 runs on the lower lift to warm up (she hasn't skied in a year). Discovered her goggles were too small, so into the shop we went. Yup - nice pair of Dragons for $70.

Then two more on lower lift, this time including the jumps on Creekside and Cruiser. Ruby loves the jumps, even though she doesn't actually catch air - or very little. Still - I love that she loves it. Then we caught up with Taylor and hit the main lift for a run on Chisholm. She did great. In for lunch, then out for two more on the main lift (one on skis for me, then I switched to snowboard). Two more on the main lift on snowboard. 10 runs total (8 on skis and 2 snowboard for me).

The snow was fantastic on the main runs after about 11:00 am, but getting slushy on the lower, sunnier runs. Still - excellent.

Oh - and a Saturday in SoCal means big crowds and long lift lines right? Nope. Never more than three minutes in a lift line. The whole day felt like cheating. Obligatory stop at the Village Grind in Wrightwood for some caffeine for the drive home. Home by 3:00.

Equally obligatory chairlift selfie...
View attachment 81081
Click to expand...
Wait, your kiddo and Taylor are fellow coaster heads!?!
 
herzalot said:
We had an awesome day today. Left Taylor's house in Laguna at 6:20 and parked up front at Mt. High at 7:38. Taylor and Ruby talked roller coasters all the way up the hill.

Went to season pass office to see if they would defer my daughter's season pass to next year, since she didn't get to use it yet this year, due to my surgery. They did. Incredible customer service. Casual breakfast burrito while suiting up and booting up in the lodge before the lifts opened.

Ruby and I took 4 runs on the lower lift to warm up (she hasn't skied in a year). Discovered her goggles were too small, so into the shop we went. Yup - nice pair of Dragons for $70.

Then two more on lower lift, this time including the jumps on Creekside and Cruiser. Ruby loves the jumps, even though she doesn't actually catch air - or very little. Still - I love that she loves it. Then we caught up with Taylor and hit the main lift for a run on Chisholm. She did great. In for lunch, then out for three more on the main lift (one on skis for me, then I switched to snowboard). Two more on the main lift on snowboard. 10 runs total (8 on skis and 2 snowboard for me).

The snow was fantastic on the main runs after about 11:00 am, but getting slushy on the lower, sunnier runs. Still - excellent.

Oh - and a Saturday in SoCal means big crowds and long lift lines right? Nope. Never more than three minutes in a lift line. The whole day felt like cheating. Obligatory stop at the Village Grind in Wrightwood for some caffeine for the drive home. Home by 3:00.

Equally obligatory chairlift selfie...
View attachment 81081
Click to expand...
Big bear is sending me texts that basically remind me that they’re still open…apparently they aren’t as busy as they were in January.
 
We’re watching this week’s biathlon World Cup from Estonia, Deedra Irwin finished 13th in the sprint, which sounded great until we remembered that the Russian & Belorussian racers are at home.

The Ukrainian women are racing, but the men got called up for duty. The Vermont National Guard has not mobilized Irwin or the other US racers.

Just some sobering perspective.:gotnothing:
 
tick said:
We’re watching this week’s biathlon World Cup from Estonia, Deedra Irwin finished 13th in the sprint, which sounded great until we remembered that the Russian & Belorussian racers are at home.

The Ukrainian women are racing, but the men got called up for duty. The Vermont National Guard has not mobilized Irwin or the other US racers.

Just some sobering perspective.:gotnothing:
Click to expand...

I got into biathlon a couple of years ago. The IBU World Cups are usually on cable.
I've never cross country skiied, but I want to give it a try.
Maybe next year in Mammoth or Donner?
 
Rumpled said:
I got into biathlon a couple of years ago. The IBU World Cups are usually on cable.
I've never cross country skiied, but I want to give it a try.
Maybe next year in Mammoth or Donner?
Click to expand...
Classic XC is easy to learn, hard to master. Skating is hard to learn. Just when you get two or three good strides strung together, you find yourself piled up in the deep snow on the side of the trail. Watching the locals glide by making it look effortless kind of makes you mad. :Roflmao

The XC center at Mammoth is pretty much perfect for learning, other than the fact that it’s so windy so often. Skiing off trail is fine too but the groomed tracks and skating lanes allow for some progression.

Locally, I used to hit up Green Valley XC center before they shut down. If you own your gear that’s still a good place to go. Like Mammoth, you’re skiing around on top of paved roads in a closed campground. Rim Nordic is almost never open, when they took over Green Valley’s business I was surprised they shut GV rather than their current property.

Gear is hard to find due to Covid, but it’s relatively cheap. You ought to be out the door with a serviceable setup for ~$500.
 
Last edited:
herzalot said:
Mt. High again tomorrow. Probably last time this year. That will make 5. One more than breaking even on my season pass. Made each day $80 instead of $119. Good enough!
I will break even on parking pass.
Click to expand...
Should be good tomorrow. Went to Bear yesterday. Geronimo was in fine form. Left home at 6:30, parked 50 yards from the lift at 8:15 and had plenty of time to get ready. 13,000+ feet by 11:15. Such a good day that I renewed the pass. Having alternate fridays off makes a difference. Just have to remember to skip those soul-smashing early season weekends.

12 days on the pass so far, that gets me below $60/day. Plan on one more day at Bear, then maybe a spring day or two at mammoth to round it out. Thinking Solitude for next winter’s road trip.

In no time Skyline will be dried out.
 
I hadn't been on the snowboard in 6 seasons. Mostly due to MTB'ing and sunny destination vacations but also due to the insane lift ticket prices. Well, my daughter really wanted to get out and snowboard before trying for child #2 so we all agreed to meet up in Park City last week where we have a timeshare. The kicker was actually being able to get a season pass for $550. I figured if I even got 3 days in, I'd be ahead of the game in vs the obnoxious single days pricing. While Park City has had a terrible snow year, we got lucky and it snowed 5 of the 8 days we were there, including over a foot one day. We rode 4 days at Park City/The Canyons (all one resort now) and then bonus day at Snowbasin. 3 of the days were glorious, 1 was very nice and 1 was a lil' out of control due to fresh snow on weekend day which brought out the "locals" from far & wide.

Since breaking my femur in 2009, I've become a "snow snob" so the powder days were a God-send but the highlight was riding with my daughter again... even if she is almost 30. We also put our 3 year old granddaughter on skis for the 1st time. She absolutely loved it.....until she didn't. It was a lil' too cold for a 0% body fat 3 year old to endure so two hours was enough anyway.

E47C7C46-EA69-42BA-9123-389E15300321.jpeg
 
tick said:
...Went to Bear yesterday... Left home at 6:30, parked 50 yards from the lift at 8:15 and had plenty of time to get ready. 13,000+ feet by 11:15. Such a good day that I renewed the pass. Having alternate fridays off makes a difference. Just have to remember to skip those soul-smashing early season weekends.

12 days on the pass so far, that gets me below $60/day. Plan on one more day at Bear, then maybe a spring day or two at mammoth to round it out. Thinking Solitude for next winter’s road trip.
Click to expand...
That's the way to do it! :thumbsup:
 
What a fun day at Mt. High today with my daughter and Taylor (formerly @tbarnesarc).

It started out cloudy and cool with a few snowflakes falling and ended up sunny and 40° - perfect. Left Laguna at 7:10, parked at 8:25.

Ruby made great progress today as her skiing is becoming more dynamic. She is learning to disconnect her lower body from the upper body. Not literally - that would be messy. Taylor also made great strides as he made some critical adjustments to his stance width and heel/toe overhang on his board. Ten runs - 2 on the little chair and 8 on the Blue Ridge Express. Here are a couple of screen captures from videos that we shot.

Ruby added the pole plant to her repertoire and she has moved away from the wedge turns.
Ruby Mt. High 3-20-22.jpg


And I took 7 runs on skis before I took 3 on this contraption:
Snowboarding Mt. High 3-20-22.jpg


Home by 4:00 after obligatory stop at Village Grind in Wrightwood.

The whole thing still feels like cheating.
 
herzalot said:
The whole thing still feels like cheating.
Click to expand...
Have you not seen home prices around here? Nobody’s cheating.

What felt like cheating to me was doing the trip in the EV. I did decide to buy chains for good luck, but I will have them paid for next trip. I won’t be driving up there on snowy days in the Bolt though.
 
Last edited:
Well let's see - post back surgery I have now skied 3 times, albeit only on groomed intermediate runs. Snowboarded 5 runs total on two of those days (also groomed intermediates), rode my bike through Whiting up to and down the Luge last Saturday... hmmm, what's left to try....

How about surfing? OK. Conditions looked favorable for a cautious return to the water today. Water temp hovering just under 60° (which is my threshold), 1-2' plus. Low tide. Calm wind. Let's give it a try! Grabbed the Stewart 949 (7'8" short longboard), wetsuit and booties and headed for the Bluffs. Last time I surfed, the water was 78° and I was on a 10' board.

Brrrrrr... but tolerable as dressed. Arms felt fine paddling out, but very weak compared to where I left off in December. More importantly, the back didn't feel anything! Actually felt better than my Hawaii sessions in December. :thumbsup: When I sat up on my board, I struggled to maintain balance while seated. :oops: Dang core muscles and dynamic muscle memory!

I let a few waves go by to see where they were breaking. Then a few half-hearted paddles to maybe see if I accidentally catch a couple. Man - arms weren't interested in going more than about four strokes. :facepalm:

Eventually got in the way of a couple of waves. Popped to my feet just fine. That was enough for today. 1 hour. 2 actual rides. But a huge smile because I am not in pain and I was able to do it. Like I said above, looking at my spine in the MRI, I know I am on borrowed time. I will try to enjoy every minute of it!
 
Last edited:
I have to laugh and shake my head.

Mt. High is still planning to open for skiing and snowboarding tomorrow. They have about a 20' wide swath of "snow" left on two runs. Should be epic!

:facepalm: :facepalm: :confused: o_O

Although, this photo was allegedly from today. Looks like Chisholm.

Mt High 4-8-22 Web Photo.jpg
 
Last edited:
herzalot said:
I have to laugh and shake my head.

Mt. High is still planning to open for skiing and snowboarding tomorrow. They have about a 20' wide swath of "snow" left on two runs. Should be epic!

:facepalm: :facepalm: :confused: o_O

Although, this photo was allegedly from today. Looks like Chisholm.

View attachment 81707
Click to expand...
I was entertaining the idea of heading up tomorrow. Last year I enjoyed watching the runs get narrower with each trip down. But it looks like I might pull the plug on the season with a lucky 13 days on the pass. The bikes are getting lonely.
 
Danmtchl said:
Wow!! A Sims snowboard, that is so very cool. A Sims was the first snowboard I ever saw at a surf shop in Palos Verdes.
Click to expand...
herzalot said:
Could it be what? That you are going up to snowboard finally? If so, where's your Never Summer?
Click to expand...
Indeed, an actual plan to ride a snowboard (next week) with accommodations booked and everything. And this is a Sims pressed by Never Summer. When Sims relaunched 5/6 years ago NS made the boards for 3 or so years. At the time it was the only way to get a traditional camber board with NS construction. This is the Tom Sims Pro, and is my favorite board I've owned.
 
buggravy said:
Indeed, an actual plan to ride a snowboard (next week) with accommodations booked and everything. And this is a Sims pressed by Never Summer. When Sims relaunched 5/6 years ago NS made the boards for 3 or so years. At the time it was the only way to get a traditional camber board with NS construction. This is the Tom Sims Pro, and is my favorite board I've owned.
Click to expand...

I didn’t know they remade the snowboards, if I was a snowboarder that’s something I’d be interested in.
 
Last edited:
Skis and snowboard are packed away for the summer. Surfboard is back in the water. This is the earliest in the year I have surfed in - like maybe ever. I usually don't get enticed until June. 4 surfs in the last three days. 3 at my usual spot and one with the daughter at Doheny last night. The water temp was surprisingly pleasant.

Trail 1 4-15-22.jpg


Not quite picking up where I left off in terms of surf fitness, wave selection, wave catching and getting to my feet - but waaaay ahead of the curve from the last few years. I hope to get out on my shortboards this year instead of being relegated to old man equipment.

Of the four sports I have tried since my back surgery, surfing puts the most stress on it. I am happy to report it feels great. If I had skied to my ability on difficult terrain, I am sure my back would have failed, but I kept it to groomed intermediate runs (same for snowboarding).

I have also been on my mt. bike four times since my back surgery. I hope to get in a ride tomorrow, but the Easter Bunny may have other plans.

Gravity sports are fun!!!!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top