*** Official Snow Surfing Thread ***

[bruhdakine]

Just got home from a 3 week trip to Colorado and Utah for a variety of shred comps with one of my kids (unfortunately the other one broke his arm a week before we left so he didn't get to go). Not really any pow days to speak of outside of one super fun 2' pow day at Brighton but rode almost every day and watched the boy go nuts all over the mountains as usual. Fun times. Glad to be home now and hoping for a few more pow days after missing one of the better 3 week stretches that tour local resort has had in a while.

 

[SeaFoamGreen]

Looked like you were covering some ground.... 2' pow day at Brighton sounds sick! Been quiet for about a week now, warm and lots of rain here, but looked like your mtns summit day was a day later and much better than ours last week. Was a let down here with mostly broken up crust from blasting and wind, but a late March early April run for the books no doubt. Was hoping our last full week of ops would deliver one more pow day, but no dice. Rain froze and laid a gnarly hard pack ice layer on the base but looked like a sneaky Summit day at Batch today. Last April was to good to be true. Looks like some classic spring corn setting up for Fri-Sun then maybe some snow again early week. Spring sarf continues to be absolute dog shite. Goin snowboardin!

 

[$kully]

Anyone ever do any AK heli trips? Season is just getting going. Been looking around at the different outfits and ranges. Think I might sink some dough I'd typically spend on a 10 day surf trip into 3 days of heli laps with maybe a day or 2 of resort riding or fishing up there. Been on the bucket list for days now and last few surf trips have been pretty crowded with just OK waves. Seems like weather permitting you're gonna score in a bird. I also have a friend I can post up with up there and wait for primo conditions.

I have a friend that was on a trip boarding at Alyeska which is a sick mountain and he had no heli reservation but scored as a walk-on with his buddy after a cancellation. Said it was the best runs of his life. Total leg burners and 5 runs was more than enough. The good and the bad is that weather can ground a heli. They don't mess around if it's too windy, or storming. You can fly up there and if the weather isn't working in your favor you might not get a turn in. But when things go your way, it's supposedly as good as it gets. While I'd love to check it off my bucket list I'm more interested in doing a cat trip to Baldface or one of these other cat outfitters in BC. They're a safer gamble when it's storming. Odds of it being a bust are much slimmer.

I think Q-Surf scored some alaskan heli turns at some point, maybe documented early in this thread when he still posted here?

 

[SeaFoamGreen]

Rad. Yeah logistics are a little tricky. One plan would be to post up at Alyeska or Thompson for a week, ride the resort or pass and get in a bird when conditions were right. Been looking into that possibility and last minute booking. If not seems like there are refund options if your window falls through. I have some old coworkers in Anchorage that would put me up for few days as well. I am only a 3.5 hr. flight away. In fact, almost went up there to ride Alyeska for this current storm cycle. They've had a couple feet last few days. I got 20 day legs under me right now and feeling solid and healthy, so kinda frothing for a change of scenery and more deep snow. I think it's pretty much over her for that now. BC Cat trip would be sick too, but have had AK on my mind since the 90s. Buddies are talking Valhalla in BC next season. I do remember Q posting about an AK trip. Looked epic. Homie went from erbb hero to zero. Sure he's been ripping hs zones. Been a pretty epic season round here.

 

[Chocki]

I typically don't snowboard if surf is going to be good, which it really hasn't been for months. Snows been on the pump!

I've always wanted to check out Taos. Looks like a mtn you want to ride during a storm cycle with a good amount of fresh and deep pow. I heard Gustavo "Gus" Fring is the mayor and rules it.

You have to go bro. Taos is dank, especially all the chill people. Everyone was wicked nice.

Id go chasing a storm or the sun/soft snow in the spring.

I can’t wait to get back, so much legit terrain. Kinda bummed that I didn’t get around to riding this chute.


FATMAP rules


Sad winter is over but also over it and next winter is gonna be epic. Taos has made me really want to train hard this summer and I’m wicked stocked to play with the ice axe some more/push myself in steeper terrain

I was trying to figure out besides safety/utility what made riding with one so dank? Then it hit me. When things get steep (>= 35? deg) I’d find myself losing my edge on toe side turns bc I was leaning too close to the hill. With the axe in my back hand it made me stand further away from the slope, increasing toe edge pressure bc physics. This is the hand position/grip I used the majority of the run, but at one point while riding (not navigating/ traversing) I switched hands without even thinking about it. Bottom line is it totally made life easier and was wicked fun to ride with

 

[SeaFoamGreen]

Looks like my type of zone!

 

[Chocki]

Looks like my type of zone!

There‘s a lot of hairball sh!t in play there bro. I think it’s def a be careful what you wish for/following tracks when you don’t know where you’re going place lol = Fatmap while riding = money

Just to the right of that chute


Just to the left

 

[Iceman]

I'm jealous of everybody's snow adventures in this record breaking year. I myself have a total of 2 days on the slopes this year, mainly due to poor timing with my work schedule and storms making access difficult when I was actually off. Hopefully getting some fun spring days. Might splurge for the Ikon just to get to Mammoth this spring/summer and next spring. I did just get back from a two week surf trip in which I scored basically twice a day for the entire trip, so there's that.

 

[SeaFoamGreen]

That's a good excuse in my book and hopefully uncrowded too. Seems like it was to much of a good thing in the Sierras and you had to be a loc to score a lot of those bananas storm cycles in Tahoe and Mammoth or have the flexibility, time, and a spot to post up before and after storms. Its was a slow start here and was jelly in Dec and Jan of down there, but our turn came with a manageable yet epicly consistent amount of snow. What really made it was the colder than average temps that locked in for weeks on end thanks to La Nina I assume. One storm just spun over the Columbia sucking all the cold continental air in though the Gorge. Snow was champagne pow and best I've seen on Hood. I'll take that one to the grave. Last 2 winters have been solid, but will be interesting to see what next season holds as the climate drivers change shifting more to El Nino. Wet and warm perhaps with a lot of Cascade Crete/Sierra Cement days?

 

[hammies]

I cancelled a Mammoth trip due to the early January blizzard cycle.

 

[Pico]

I cancelled a Mammoth trip due to the early January blizzard cycle.

It’s a big wet bucket right now. We went sledding and the machine was sinking in the rear. Changed our mind on that. Hot as. Might snow a little next week though. I hope not.

 

[r32]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1646178857387712518

Near Mammoth

 

[Kento]

So fun at Kirkwood this last Friday/Saturday. Drove up and arrived mid-day Friday, stayed in S. Lake overnight, rode all day Saturday, and then bailed back. Good way to save on hotel prices, one night instead of two. It's the one biggest cost factor right now with going to the mountains. Need to figure out a better way next season to cut that cost down... Picked up next season's Epic Pass for family today too so all set and stocked.

Good times. Little crusty in the morning, ideal softness around 11 - 1, and then mashed potatoes after 2:30 or so. But still very fun. Whole family and I had a blast. My son is loving all the side hits, finds some good ones too. He had a couple good crashes, licked his wounds for a bit, and then kept going.

Left them with my wife for lunch, went over to Wall chair, hardpack as it gets, a blind person would know just from the screeching sound. Watched this one snowboarder lose his edge and skitter several hundred feet down luckily shooting the gap between the only two trees and lift tower. Ouch. Guess the sun just hadn't been on it enough even at noon; at least there were some small moguls that you could have some leverage on, turning through the skitter. Wasn't too bad but didn't return for a 2nd run there. A short and fat (this year) hourglass chute leading into the Drain from there (very right of photo below), sun had been shining on that enough, combo of slight crust and slush, fun run. Good sh!t was the bobsled course carved out up near the top. It was fast and there were all sorts of still-frozen speed check scars leading into turns which made it an adventure. Hope it's still there in a couple of weeks because that was fun as hell.




They also had the pond skim yesterday. I checked it out between runs as wanted to maximize riding time but this guy:



He poached it, did a huge speed check halfway down (poor decision), made it about halfway and then sank. Couldn't climb out of side, slowly waded a ways, needed assistance, the whole time being heckled by the announcer. Funny as sh!t, although I did see him getting accosted by the yellowjackets. Hopefully they just gave him a stern talking to and a slap because getting his pass pulled for that would be excessive - his humiliation was punishment enough.

Definitely want to get another day or two in before season is up.

 

[tenover]

Pond skim at Mammoth just finished up. My wife and I watched it from the roof of Canyon Lodge and hightailed it out of there well before it was over.

 

[92122]

First season as a father, so came in with low expectations of how much riding I would get in. 7 days total and couldn't be happier with how most of them turned out. Will probably call it now, but might do another Mammoth trip.

Was beyond stoked to take my buddy I've been riding with the last 15 seasons to Baldy for his first time ever last Thursday. I hadn't been in at least a decade, but it's never far from mind, and I check the conditions all the time, it just hasn't aligned for us in too long. A bit of weather pushing through brought the temps down into the 40's which is perfect for the old snow. Light rain all the way through OC/LA worried me but we broke through the clouds up top and had mostly good visibility and no rain up high.

Started on the volatile Chair-4 and got a view of Thunder Mtn. before it became mostly socked in later.




I love how this could pass for Colorado, but it's LA. Up on the wave along the side of the main Chair-4 run with my buddy below.




The money zone.





Did about 8 runs and left. Snow was good in spots but a bit rough and heavy in others. Still, I'll take that over bad weather and crowds any day. And all runs open in mid-April is amazing.

 

[Kento]

I was just thinking how much I miss Baldy. Lot of great days over the years and that is one hell of a lot of snow still there!

Raw as it is, the Turkey Chute quarterpipe is always fun.

 

[hammies]

Interesting take on corporate skiing. Also somewhat applicable to surf towns. Disclaimer: I have an IKON pass, so I am part of the problem.

 

[Kento]

Great video. And yep, I am part of that problem and it feels bad but yet my hand has also been forced.

My timelines may be off but around mid-90s when IntraWest bought Mammoth and The Village popped up shortly thereafter(?), that was a bad, bad sign. Before, you still had 30K people coming up every weekend but everything seemed more sustainable, lodging didn't break the bank. Place was quiet and chill, Wardo's appearances at Whiskey Creek notwithstanding. Not the same.

The Disneyland comparison is very apt. All of these places have lost whatever funk they might have had and all look prefab designed to fit a particular look. Zero soul. And it's the people that make a mountain, especially if it's a place you visit frequently and you see them year in year out.

Vail is this evil towards their visitors and non-Vail owned local business: Last March, was staying at mountain and all restaurants were undergoing renovations so nowhere to eat at night except South Lake Tahoe, Meyers, or wherever if you listened to Vail. But no, 7800 Bar and Grill was open and running just fine which is where we went. But it really irked me that Vail would rather have their visitors drive 30 miles than frequent a non-Vail owned local business. Man, throw others a bone now and then!

It's not so much the corporatization of America but that attitude of fuck-everyone-and-everything-for-more-profits that really needs its ass hauled out of the country. Perhaps corporations that get too large need to be shattered to fragments, leaving back in the hands of smaller businesses and maybe a little more personal touch to the world.

 

[rooster12000]

6" + today in the Wasatch, it does not stop. Alta passed 900" this week, the highest ever total recorded. We usually get at least one big storm in May which could push it towards 1000". Snowbird will be open until at least July 4.

So the skiing and riding will be good through June when it's time to head to Oaxaca for a couple months and then to Bariloche for more snow! YEW

 

[ShiverMeTimbers]

Everyone gets everything he wants. I wanted a mission, and for my sins, they gave me one. Brought it up to me like room service and it’s looking like a real choice mission:

Objectives: stop at the main patrol shack to buy a tshirt on the way back to ride Hunziker bowl again only this time with the addition of Hunziker main bc danger is my business and I’m dying to try out riding with an ice axe Chamonix style
View attachment 152078

What is the online guidance bullshit? Flyover? Navigate? Does it pick your mogul line for you?

next it’ll just ski for you like a Disney ride.

weeeeeeeeeee!!!