Day 85 - Bridger Bowl

Out 9:00 to 12:00 with a coffee break; sunny with temps in the twenties and no wind; skied the Blizzard Brahma's; cool place; drove past Big Sky on the drive into Bozeman - can't wait to ski there.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 84 - Sun Valley

Out 9:00 to 1:00 with a quick coffee break; cloudy, thirties, little to no wind; skied the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; I'm so tired my skiing is devolving.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 83 - Sun Valley

Out 9:00 to 2:15 with a break for lunch; a little light snow starting when I left, but generally cloudy with temps in the upper twenties; 20 runs or so, 35,000 vert; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; more fall line groomers; looking forward to a day off on Sat to drive - I'm tired.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 82 - Sun Valley

Out 9:00 to 2:00 with a coffee break; thirty, sunny, no wind; 16 runs; 35,000 vertical; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; lots of steep, fall line groomers; toughest greens of any resort I've ever seen.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 81 - Mt. Bachelor

Out 9:00 to 11:30 no break; forty, sunny, no wind; 13 runs; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; the summit lift makes this mountain; travel day - Sun Valley tomorrow.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 80 - Mt. Bachelor

Out 9:00 to 2:30 with a long lunch; 20 runs; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; clear, cold, and windy; hopefully the wind will die down for tomorrow and they'll open the summit lift.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 79 - Mt. Bachelor

Relatively cold and windy; skied the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; they had some snow; out early, skied some groomers, had coffee, and left when I came back out and there was a line.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 78 - Sugar Bowl

Out 9:00 to 12:00 no break; a slight change in today's weather - sunny with temps in the forties, but today there was a little wind; 13 runs; 17,000 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahmas; no snow here either - 75% open; groomers chunked up right away with skier traffic; similar to Squaw - rocks, trees, cliffs repeat.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 77 - Boreal Mtn

Out 9:00 to 2:30 with a long lunch at the car; fifties, sunny, no wind - I'm almost out of sun screen; 30 runs; 15,000 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's; couldn't pass up another free lift ticket, besides with nobody else skiing here the soft snow doesn't get beat to death by the crowd.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 76 - Northstar

Out 10:30 to 2:30 with a quick candy bar break; little change in the weather - fifties and sunny with no wind; 16 runs; 27,000 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; no snow - too bad for me, I came to CA and skied quickly melting snowmaking, but these people are in a serious drought; I imagine that with some snow Outlook and Backside would be a killer mix of groomers, steeps, and big tree glades; much too long of a walk from the parking shuttle drop off to the snow; another beautiful day in the Tahoe National Forest.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 75 - Boreal Mtn

Out 9:30 to 2:00 with another 2 beer break; forties and sunny with no wind - again; 25+ runs; 12,500 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19 and 17's; soft snow everywhere - harvested the corn in the trees after the morning's groomers turned to slush; not much of a hill, but the Woodward/park thing they've got going is pretty cool; set in a beautiful pine forest; nicked the p-tex on the Head 19's pretty bad today; one of the most comfortable ski days I've enjoyed in a long time - the hill, the weather, the snow, my equipment, my body, my attitude were all perfectly comfy.



Donner Ski Ranch and Sugar Bowl from Boreal Ridge

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 74 - Mammoth Mtn

Out 8:30 to 2:00 with a 2 beer break around noon; sunny, temps in the forties, no wind; 22 runs; 27,500 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahmas; no snow here - parts of the mountain were not open; at least there was enough snow up high to ski; blew off Deer Valley on Fri and just drove to Las Vegas instead - then drove out and back to the Grand Canyon on Sat - then on Sun I drove all the way up Lee Canyon to the Las Vegas Ski Bowl and actually put one boot on before taking it as a sign to leave when I had to take my ski boot back off because I forgot to change socks.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 73 - Park City

NASTAR - 16.31 Gold

Out 9:30 to 12:30 just to do some NASTAR; more of the same weather wise - sunny, temps in the forties, no wind; 14 runs; 17,750 vertical; skied the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; tough set today even for a NASTAR course - 15-17m set with 15ft offset; it took a little while but I finally figured it out a little - my last four runs were my fastest.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 72 - Park City

NASTAR - 12.04 Platinum

Out 9:00 to 3:00 with a long lunch after NASTAR; temps in the forties with brilliant sunshine and no wind; 22 runs; 27,500 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19's, the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups, and the Blizzard Brahmas; spring conditions;





#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 71 - Park City

Out 9:15 to 3:00 with coffee and lunch breaks; last night's rain on the drive in was 3" wet snow up high this AM, otherwise cloudy with temps in the mid-thirties and no wind; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's and the Rossignol Experience 98's; 18 runs; 24,000 vertical; small change of plans: Fri - ski Deer Valley then drive to LV, Sat - Grand Canyon, then Sun - an early ski day at LV Ski Bowl then drive through Death Valley to Mammoth.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 70 - Copper Mtn

Out 9:00 to 12:30 with a coffee break; cool morning quickly gave way to comfortable temps around 40° - absolutely brilliant sunshine, not even a hint of a cloud or any haze; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; 14 runs; 26,500 vertical; out for some groomers before traveling this afternoon - last 2 runs were fresh 'noon groomers'.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 69 - Copper Mtn

Out 8:30 to 2:00 with a break for lunch; morning clouds gave way to brilliant sunshine; temps rising into the 40's; 24 runs; 30,000 vert; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's; soft morning groomers gave way to sun baked, afternoon corn way up high; have skied most everything here now except for Tucker Mtn - I'm not hiking; I really like this picture of Breckenridge and points SW I took today from Copper.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 68 - Copper Mtn

Out 8:30 to 1:30 with a real quick coffee break; 40°+ and sunny with no wind - ; 18 runs; 22,500 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahma's; wrong wax; conditions are pretty good despite no recent snow - the groomers were divine, especially early, and the steeps were covered and still relatively soft to my feel; covered most of the mountain today - still need to explore Alpine, Snow King, and some of the bowls; I miss parking close to the lifts - today's pic shows how far away you are at Copper.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 67 - Snow Creek

NASTAR - 22 Gold

4 to 8, 25 runs, skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's, nice course - used the whole hill, 300 vert, sorry, this is so short - I'll post some pics of the last few day soon.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 66 - Snow Trails

Ski Trip Day 4. Out 10:00 to 3:30 with a lunch break in the bar; cloudy with temps steady in the upper twenties and little to no wind; 60 runs - no that's not a typo; 9,000 vertical - that works out 4 minutes and 150 vertical per run; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's, the snow was groomed out to perfection; very few other people on the hill; had a very nice day skiing with my cousins (Mark and Tam) and my sister.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 65 - Hidden Valley

Ski Trip Day 3. Out 10:00 to 1:30 with a quick lunch break; 35° and raining this morning at the hotel, but it started to snow on the drive to the hill - it continued to snow as the temperatures plummeted thru the twenties into the teens by the time I left; 20 runs; 8,000 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's; they groomed everything flat during last night's rain and it flash froze today this morning - still skiable, but barely; conditions improved as the snow started to accumulate; for a little hill it has some nice infrastructure - good lifts, nice lodge, and good grooming; I definitely go back.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 64 - Seven Springs

NASTAR - 18.01 Gold

Ski Trip Day 2. Out 9:00 to 1:45 without a break; light, wet snow accumulating to a couple of inches - temps steady around 30° 29 runs; 14,000 vertical; tried lots of skis today - the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's, the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's, and the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; late grooming left Gunner a little to mushy for my liking, but I did 8 quickies anyway; broke a pole at NASTAR today; got a retro Seven Springs NASTAR Gold Medal today; did not ski very well today.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 63 - Ski Roundtop

ASRA GS - 37.05 (18)    37.97 (23)    1:15:02 (19)

ASRA SL - 45.75 (10)    46.04 (12)    1:31.79 (10)

Ski Trip Day 1 - an ASRA 2-fer. Out 9:00 to 1:00 with a quick break between races; clear, cold, and windy - temps rising from some where around 10° to about 20°; 15 runs; 3,500 vertical; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's and the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; good snow on the hill; absolutely horrible skiing in the GS - not sure what's wrong; I felt much better in the SL despite a NASTAR handicap in the thirties; up early enough to miss all traffic this morning - made from my house to Roundtop in 3½ hours with a stop for coffee and a stop for gas; already off plan - today was supposed to be Tussey. #justgivemeagroomer    

Day 62 - Montage

BEER LEAGUE - 27.92 (7)    +2.29

Out 5:30 to 8:00 for the race and a few runs with Chris, Aaron, and CJ; 30° snowing and windy; 8 runs; 4,000 vertical; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; good snow on the hill and down in the hole; wish I would have brought something other than my race skis - I would have stayed out and skied a lot longer; pretty good result tonight - 11.81 NASTAR handicap.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 61 - Killington

Ski Bum - 28.04 (33)    +6.49

Just out for an hour to do Ski Bum; cold, windy, and overcast - temps in the single digits; 3 runs; 4,400 vertical; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; soft, packed powder conditions - Highline was so soft that slipping the course was even difficult; got home and found that one of my boots was broken - ugh, very bad timing!



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 60 - Killington

The snowpocalypse that wasn't. Out 1:30 to 4:00 with a break in KBL to warm up; light snow all morning accumulated to 4 inches and quit immediately when I went out; cold and windy, temps dropping thru the single digits; skied the Blizzard Brahma's; 9 runs; 10,250 vertical; did lots of stuff I hadn't got to all year - Tinman, Low Rider, Conclusion, and Ovation; as you'd expect I was able find a little untracked snow, but I was hoping for so much more; spent all morning doing skis - taking 7 pair on the upcoming trip.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 59 - West Mountain

ASRA SL - 1:03.19 (12)    1:03.55 (12)    2:06.74 (12)    +21.01

Out 9:00 to 12:00; sunny with temps in the upper twenties and light winds; 7 runs; 5,000 vertical; skied the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; skied a little better today - not fast, but no real mistakes;



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 58 - West Mountain

ASRA GS - 1:18.40 (23)    1:03.88 (15)    2:22.28 (19)    +26.66

Out 9:00 to 1:30 with a quick break between race runs; overcast with intermittent light snow and temps in the twenties; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; 12 runs; 9,000 vertical; skied poorly again; good snow on the race hill and one or tow other trails, but very little of the hill was open; big mistake at the bottom on run 1 - didn't stop, but came close.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 57 - Okemo

NASTAR - 15.42 Gold

Out 9:00 to 2:00 with a quick 2 beer and Reuben lunch in the bar; sunny and mild - temps in the twenties; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's and 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; 25 runs or so, but most all of them down low on the NASTAR course; surprised the SL skis seemed better running today's course; skied just OK.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 56 - Killington

Out 9:00 to 1:15 with a quick KBL coffee break and a quick shuttle ride home to switch skis; temps rising into the low twenties with increasing then decreasing clouds and a light breeze; skied the SkiLogic Customs and the Blizzard Brahmas; 23 runs; 23,000 vertical; mostly good snow conditions - groomers were very nice as you'd expect and Superstar was good under the guns despite limited visibility; the only thing that wasn't any good was Devil's Fiddle - very thin with tons of rocks poking through; despite their cool graphics, I'm still not enamored with the SkiLogic Customs; way behind on doing skis - have 5 pairs that need work.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 55 - Killington

Ski Bum - 26.91 (17)    +4.16

Out 9:00 to 1:15 with a lunch break down at Snowshed; clear and cool with no wind - temps climbing through the teens; 18 runs; 18,250 vertical; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; stayed mainly to Northridge and the Canyon with a few Highlines and a couple of Snowsheds for good measure; conditions were good - mostly soft pack, but starting to firm up up in the Canyon; skied a little better today in the Ski Bum Race - beat all but 2 of the women; GoPro was testing some of their new drones this morning on Upper East Fall - the drone carries the camera and has a dual controllers, one of which is a GPS transmitter that a skier can carry and the drone follows.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 54 - Killington

Pow day. Out early for the very first chair at 7:30 - didn't load until 8:45; 12"+ overnight - not near as heavy as I was expecting; overcast with temps in the mid-twenties; first tracks in Patsy's and The Throne were great; did Chop Chop in an attempt to find some more freshies, but it wasn't really ready - hit tons of stuff, including a stump that took my left ski off for a pretty good fall.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 53 - Killington

Out 8:00 to 12:30 with a KBL coffee break; 30°, overcast and windy in the Vale @ 8:00 - wet snow up top with 38° and rain in the Vale @ 12:30; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's; 20 runs; 23,100 vertical; did the first few with Susan and Jay; the Canyon was supreme - Downdraft was so good I did 10 - warming temps and recent snowmaking made smooth, chalky whales on Downdraft - Dip Dip was flatter, but way more variable; body position is key - 'vector the body' toward the next turn - forward, low, and inside, riding the inside edge of the outside ski - attack!

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 52 - Killington

Out 2:30 to 4:00 just to get the day; clear and very cold this morning, but 10° or so when I went out; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheaters; 6 runs; 5,000 vertical; lots of people; Superstar's lower headwall was scrapped clean; guns on Dip Dip!

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 51 - Okemo

NASTAR - 14.86 Platinum

Out 9:00 to 2:00 with just a 2 beer and Reuben lunch break; temps falling into the teens with a couple of very heavy snow squalls; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's and the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19's; 20 runs, but most down on the Bunny Hill to do NASTAR; their new Bubble Six-Pack lift is great - heated seats and everything; they removed the park from Nor'easter - I'm so happy I think I'll send them a Thank You Note; their pacesetter went from a 15.53 to a 23.76 this week at the Regional Pacesetter Time Trails, so if I would have run last week I would have had a 7.17.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 50 - Killington

A whale of a day. Out 9:00 to 12:15 with a quick KBL coffee break to warm up; clear, cold and still at first chair; high clouds, temps rising into the teens and a building SW wind when I quit; skied the Blizzrd Brahmas; stupid, big whales on Superstar, Outer Limits, Cascade, and Skyelark/Bittersweet; the new, Low-E guns on SS, OL, and Skye-Bitter made a much firmer snow than the older ground guns on Cascade, so I did Cascade 3 times despite having to ride the box.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 49 - Killington

Ski Bum - 28.18 (29)    +6.06

Out 9:30 to 1:30 with a 2 cup coffee break in the KSC building to watch some of the bums ski; clear and cold with little to no wind; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; 11 runs; 12,100 vertical; another poor result despite not skiing that badly; failed to beat any of the Class A women finishers; the Canyon Quad ran today, so I did Dip Dip 4 or 5 times; conditions are stellar - soft pack everywhere



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 48 - Montage

ASRA GS - 44.98 (27)    40.57 (25)    1:25.55 (27)    + 13.90

Sometimes you just suck. Out 9:00 to 2:30 with a quick 2 beer lunch to drown my sorrows between runs; clear, cold, and a little windy; 5° to 15°; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; stayed and skied with JJ after the race; White Lightning was real good - even in my GS skis; it took a while, 8 days, but I finally put a nick in the edge of my race skis - not to worry, it was just a small one.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 47 - Montage

BEER LEAGUE - 26.81 (9)    +2.49

Out 6:00 to 8:00; 10° or so with a light cross-wind; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; skied OK - finally beat all the girls; tonight's race was scored as a NASTAR race: 14.52 handicap - Platinum medal; failed to break down my equipment after Sunday's SL at Elk and wound up with wet goggles that immediately iced over in the cold weather - so I raced without any goggles.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 46 - Elk Mountain

ASRA SL - 1:04.93 (11)    1:07.40 (14)    2:12.33 (12)    +28.92

Not a rain day on the hill despite a steady rain overnight and a rainy drive home. Out 9:00 to 2:30 with a short break for race awards and another for lunch; foggy with temps constant in the low forties; 17 runs; 15,000 vertical; skied the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; good snow on the hill, but a little too soft for racing - some big holes and ruts despite just 28 racers today; very complicated course set today - 50+ gates, 3 hairpins, 2 flushes including a 4-gater, and a thru gate; absolutely nobody else on the hill - so I stayed and skied a little after the race.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 45 - Elk Mountain

ASRA GS - 44.01 (37)    45.39 (38)    1:29.40 (35)    +20.77

Out 8:30 to 1:30 with just a quick warm up in the lodge between race runs; overcast with temps in the mid to upper twenties - heavy snow developed between runs accumulating to 2" by the time I left; 10 runs or so; 8,000 vertical; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; needed to take a real late re-run in the powder after they missed the timing for Tomassetti's and my second runs - did the re-run with my coat and warm-ups on and my wax/tool bag stuffed in my jacket; slow again...



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 44 - Killington

Out 8:00 to 11:15 with a fairly long Peak Lodge coffee break with Susan and Jay; 13°, mostly cloudy with a strong NW wind; 12 runs; 14,750 vertical; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; very light crowd this morning; lots of firm snow underneath last night's grooming; Timberline was fun - I did 2; Caper was much tamer this morning; Cascade was really good - nice and firm with just a little loose snow and a few chunks in the middle - I did 6 in a row after coffee then went home; skiing a little better today - working hard not to let any rotary drift into the top of the turns, especially on the right footers.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 43 - Killington

Out 8:00 to 11:45 with a KBL coffee break; 9° and snowing for first chair - clearing skies and windy by 10:00 - 2" fluff overnight; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; 17 runs; 20,800 vertical; I had a very nice morning - Chute-Chute-Bunny, Great Northern-East Fall, and Double Dipper-Rim Run were velvety smooth first thing; Cascade was good, but a little chunky on the bottom; Superstar was good, but early traffic had scraped it clean by the time I got there; not sure many beginners had a nice morning - Caper was an abortion, crusty snowmaking over a horribly, chunky groom job and although Lower Great Eastern down to Skyeship Base was open it too was horrible; lots of people out, but I seemed to be able to avoid any lift lines today; skiing OK.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 42 - Killington

What a difference a day makes. Out 8:00 to 11:45 with an early KBL coffee break; clear and cold - 10° or so to start with a light breeze - seemed very cold anywhere in the shadows, like on the Canyon chair; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; 16 runs; 15,100 vertical; nice and firm - Cascade, East Fall, Rime, and Upper Bunny were all good; watched as they closed an ungroomed Dip Dip this morning after a father and his two kids got stuck half way down - it took 3 chair rides for Ski Patrol to get them down; not near as many people today - never stood in a lift line all morning; rode the Snowshed Double II on the way out today - just because; skiing felt pretty good today.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 41 - Killington

Holy mega-crowd Batman! Out 8:30 to 11:00 - quit immediately after a long KBL coffee break when I came back out and found huge lines at K-1, the Snowdon Triple, the Snowdon Quad, Ramshead, and Snowhed, so I just got on the shuttle and went home; some light snow up top with temps in the low twenties and a little bit of wind; 7 runs; 7,000 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; groomers were nice and firm - Cascade and East Fall were real good, Lower Downdraft had been groomed, so I did 3 even though is wasn't that good; the crowd at 11:00 was as big as I can remember in quite some time - maybe tomorrow will be better.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 40 - Killington

Out 12:45 to 2:30; temps falling through the thirties after a hard rain last night; 7 runs; 8,900 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; soft snow, slush, wet spots, and dirt spots - ugly; no lift lines, but lots of people; Upper Vertigo had been groomed and was pretty good - Dip Dip was doable, but something less than OK - Rimefall was very good and got ROTD honors; woke up at 6:30 with the intention of getting out early, but heavy rain put me right back in bed.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 39 - Killington

Merry Christmas. Out 8:45 to 2:15 with a KBL coffee break and lunch at the Peak Lodge; last night's heavy rain ended just in time for first chair - overcast and windy with intermittent light flurries and temps in the low thirties; 25 runs; 27,800 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahmas; no crowd to speak of, but a few people did show up around noon or so - never enough people to create any lift lines; the rain took its toll - Header, Snowshed, and Lower High Road look really bad - tons of 'sink holes' on Cruise, Skyeburst and elsewhere - anything they groomed got pretty heavy by 2:00; practicing 'up and over' - think long, glidey transitions with what feels like a little upper body rotation into the fall line to facilitate 'the over', i.e. the edge change - think of the body moving as an inverted pendulum above the new ski during crossover; lead with the body - keep on or in front of your toes.

Here's a nice Up and Over sequence pulled from Tuesday's video:



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 38 - Killington

Another rainy day. Out 9:00 to 2:00 with a KBL coffee break; rain with temps in the upper thirties; 21 runs; 24,250 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's; lots of soft snow - but some icing and closed lifts and trails; nobody else on the hill; stayed relatively dry given the weather.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 37 - Middlebury

SL Training. Out 9:00 to 2:30 with a long lunch break to watch the morning's video; 3" of new snow overnight - on and off light rain all day, temps in the low thirties; skied the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; 20 runs or so - 3 slip runs in both the morning and afternoon, all others full length SL runs; great coaching and video analysis by Middlebury coaches Stever Bartlett and Abby Copeland; too high a line is a problem too - if you come up under the gate too much, you cross the hill and reach the rise line for the next turn too far above the next gate and have to drift, ie. slide, until you're in the correct position to pressure and make that next turn; so today's lesson: straighter and faster keeping forward pressure in the transition; timed runs in the afternoon - about 10 seconds back of the fast guys in a 40 second course - still slow.

Full video of today's runs on YouTube - Click Here

The best sections of today's runs on YouTube - Click Here



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 36 - Killington

Out 9:00 to 1:15 with a burger and a beer at the Long Trail Pub in Snowshed; increasing overcast with intermittent light snow and temps in the twenties; 17 runs; 19,100 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahma's; pretty big crowd on hand after 10:30; lots of hard pack today; did lots of 'new' stuff today - Downdraft, Dip Dip, Skyeburst, Middle O, Old Superstar, and Lower Vertigo; did 2 non-stop Dip Dip's this morning - small to medium bumps, fairly soft snow; my skiing felt pretty good.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 35 - Killington

KSC Masters Training. Out 8:00 to 11:00 without a break; overcast with light snow and temps in the mid-twenties; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; 9 runs; 10,200 vertical; full length GS on Highline; skied OK; comfortable is not fast.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 34 - Killington

KSC Masters Training. Out 8:00 to 11:00 without a break; clear and calm with temps climbing thru the teens; skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; 9 runs; 10,200 vertical; full length GS on Highline; skied OK; don't drift into the turn - get the skis up on edge early.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 33 - Killington

Ski Bum - 23.64 (19)    +3.34

i.Speed GS Cheater 19's; 2 runs; 3,250 vertical.



#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 32 - Killington

Volume with Bud and Alex. Tom had to quit after falling. Brahmas. 20 runs. 24,000 vert.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 31 - Killington

Excellent day! Out 9:00 to 12:30 with a KBL coffee break; cloud and temperature inversion with temps in the mid-thirties up high and in the upper twenties down low - light snow at some times in the cloud inversion; 14 runs; 15,100 vertical; skied the brand new SkiLogic Custom's; conditions remain stellar; Needle's for the first time this year - the bumps on Needle's Eye were very good; surprised Twister was so good - I did 3; not sure about the new skis - a little too much tail on the groomers, but they did a little better in the variable conditions on Needle's and in the trees.





#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 30 - Killington

NEMS SL - 42.12 (50)    40.65 (33)    1:22.77 (39)    +19.67

Out 8:45 to 12:30 with a quick KSC coffee break between race runs; mostly sunny with temps steady in the upper twenties and a persistent K Cloud; 6 runs; 6,600 vertical; skied the 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; conditions remain stellar; skied way too cautiously - today was the first time in a long while where I got to the bottom and thought, "why didn't I just ski faster?"; a little better second run.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 29 - Killington

NEMS GS - 43.70 (59)    DNS    -

Ugh!

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 28 - Killington

ASRA GS - 44.02 (26)    47.11 (31)     1:31.13 (26)    +17.35

Out 9:00 to 12:30 without a break; overcast with temps in the mid-twenties; a couple more inches of new snow last night - storm totals in the mid-twenties :); skied the Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS's; 7 runs; 6,500 vertical; soft pack everywhere; another poor result, but the first run showed a little promise - decent time even with a mistake that had to cost me 1 or 2 seconds; surprised that they did not reset for the second run since the soft conditions made even the first run bumpy - the second run was a rodeo ride; took out the finish corral fence - embarrassed.

#justgivemeagroomer

Day 27 - Killington

Not quite a powder day :( - Out 9:00 to 12:00 without a break; 13" of wet, new snow overnight; 32° with low clouds and various kinds of frozen, non-frozen, or freezing precipitation this morning; snowing hard again now @ 4:00; 9 runs; 8,500 vertical; skied the Volkl Katanas; lots of groomed and ungroomed choices; initially the ungroomed trails were very difficult - 13" of untracked cement on Upper Rim Run made me feel like a beginner; once skied in, the ungroomed trails weren't too bad - my second time down East Fall and my only run down Cascade were OK; the groomed soft pack on Rime and Highline was very good; lifts were slow to open - only the Snowdon Quad and Northridge Triple were running at the opening bell, but later we unexpectedly got the Canyon Quad - I guess that was to compensate for no K-1 or Superstar; lots of people; taking tomorrow off in preparation for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday races.

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Day 26 - Killington

Prepping for the BIG storm! Out 9:00 to 12:00 with a quick KBL coffee break; a dusting of snow overnight, but 29° with freezing rain at 9:00 changing to snow by 11:00 - snowing hard now at 1:00, maybe a foot by morning :) ; skied the brand new Atomic D2 3.0 Race GS; 17 runs; 17,300 vertical; horrible visibility until the change over to snow - you couldn't go 100 yards without wiping the ice from your goggles; I like the new skis - grippy and damp, very little excess vibration; skiing OK, right knee a tad stiff to start.



They made a little snow at the top of Lower Supe



My new GS boards!

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Day 25 - Killington

KSC Masters Training. Out 11:30 to 3:00 without a break; yesterday's rain ended as 3" of snow; clear and cold today with temps dropping thru the low twenties into the upper teens; 10 runs; 5,300 vertical; skied my brand new 2015 Volkl RaceTiger SL World Cups; good training snow up on Bunny - firm and grippy; hard to tell about today's crowd - no line at Snowshed or the Snowdon Triple around noon when I started, but everything else we did was up on the Poma; slalom training - 2 short courses on Upper Bunny; when we pulled, I was surprised at how slick the snow looked - skiing the course it felt pretty grippy; a little bigger group today - we added Steve and another George; also added Bob S. as an additional coach; my skiing today wasn't horrible.



My new slalom boards!

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Day 24 - Killington

KSC Masters Training. Out 8:30 to 12:00 no breaks; a little snow overnight, but rain this morning - hard rain till 10:30 then it switched to wet snow; 8 runs; 8,250 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; soft snow everywhere - coverage still looks good; huge crowd today despite the rain; same small group as previous years - Gil, Mick, George, and me - new coaches Jim R. and Pete D.; drills all morning; stupid wide stance and forward - on or in front of the toes, never on the arch or heel; a little pain in the right knee today - one more afternoon session then a couple of days off - that should help; used the Pinnacle West shuttle today - very convenient.

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Day 23 - Killington

Killington Race Camp Day 5. Out 9:00 to 3:00 with an hour for lunch; clear and cool this morning with temps climbing thru the teens into the low twenties and increasing clouds as the day wore on; 21 runs; 17,500 vertical; lots of gates on Bunny in the AM; free skiing as a group in the PM; great snow this morning on Bunny - groomed smooth, but firm and grippy; horrible snow this morning on Superlark - groomed death cookies; Cascade and Highline opened this afternoon; Cascade under the guns was supreme - I did 3; Highline under the guns not so good - only did 1; relearned some things about holding on the ice in a race course - don't be in a hurry to find that 'good position' when you start the turn, any quick or hard movements tend to break the edge loose - light and easy, just like driving on ice; took my first fall of the season today on Bunny in the gates - just got compressed or my tails slide out or both.

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Day 22 - Killington

Race Day - 41.79 (9)    41.59 (10)    1:23.38 (10)    +5.96

Killington Race Camp Day 4. Out 9:00 to 3:00 with an hour lunch; mostly sunny with temps in the low twenties and passing snow squalls; 15 runs; 11,300 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19's; lots of firm snow - Northridge, East Fall, Upper Bunny; lots of snowmaking - Cascade, Highline, Mouse Run, Upper Chute, and Lower Superstar; frustratingly poor performance today... ... ...



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Day 21 - Killington

Killington Race Camp Day 3. Out 9:00 to 3:00 with an hour for lunch; 1" snow overnight with just enough freezing rain on top this morning to make it crunchy; upper thirties with low overcast and wind this AM, then it started to rain and the temps dropped into the low thirties by 3:00; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19's; 13 runs; 9,700 vertical; warm temps meant soft snow everywhere - OK, on Bunny, Rime, and East Fall anyway; gates in the morning; gates in the afternoon; skied well today - hopefully it will carry thru to tomorrow.

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Day 20 - Killington

Killington Race Camp Day 2. Out 9:00 to 3:00 with an hour for lunch; clear skies, temps in the upper teens, no wind; 16 runs; 11,000 vertical; light snowmaking overnight groomed in on Bunny; gates in the morning, gates in the afternoon - all on Upper Bunny; line - high and outside; don't spend all the pressure and angles all at once at the top of the turn, if you do you're locked in with nothing left to help finish the turn or increase edge grip if needed; conditions much better today than expected.

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Day 19 - Killington

Killington Race Camp Day 1. Out 9:00 to 3:00 with an hour for lunch; temps dropping from 45°, but totally fogged in all day; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's - back fresh from a great patch and grind at Peak - thanks Mike; 15 runs; 12,200 vertical; large turn out for camp this year - maybe 75 people; drills all morning; some easy gates on Upper Bunny this afternoon; Polly S. is in our group - Polly says, 'Don't try, do.'; get low - make angles!

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Day 18 - Killington

Sick as a dog, but hit the hill with Radvanyi and Company anyway. Out 8:00 to 12:00 with a Peak Lodge coffee break; overcast and warming into the mid-forties with significant wind; 12 runs; 13,000 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahma's; conditions were stellar; Northridge and the Canyon got a B+, smooth and firm but softening nicely; Superstar was easily an A, soft and softer without being heavy or sticky at all; pretty big crowd today - nobody seemed to be leaving early; still feeling on top of things skiing wise.

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Day 17 - Killington

Out 8:00 to 11:30 with a KBL coffee break; 20° and overcast with no wind; a light dusting of new snow overnight; 14 runs; 13,500 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19's with the soft boots; it was empty early on, but the crowd really started to build by the time I left; skied all over the mountain today hitting 9 different lifts; Snowshed had a fantastic opening day - great snow on the slope down there - so good I did 2; Ramshead - not so good; East Fall - much better today; I've decided that the new boots are just cold - at first I thought my toes were just getting wet, but today they were cold and dry;



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Day 16 - Killington

Happy Thanksgiving! Out 8:00 to 11:30 with a Peak Lodge coffee break; temps in the low twenties with a low, hanging overcast and little to no wind; 6" more new snow overnight - close to a foot total; 10 runs; 12,600 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahma's with the soft boots; typical Thanksgiving holiday crowd - tons of people for opening bell, but it emptied out quickly; skied most of the morning with Mike and Tracy - Mike even let me ski his new Volkl Mantras - they're really nice; Ramshead came on line today, but I never made it down there; Skylark-High Road-Lower Bittersweet skied very well today, as did Upper Bunny; on the other hand, Lower East Fall was a total abortion - scrapped or chunky with heavy piles of sugar and chunks everywhere; shuttle service to the East Mountain condo loop started today - based on the shuttle passing by the condo on both my exit and return, the shuttle might actually be a viable option.

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Day 15 - Killington

On this Thanksgiving holiday I'm happy to give thanks for the first real snowstorm of the season! Out 11:30 to 3:30 with a Peak Lodge coffee break; upper twenties with moderate to heavy snow accumulating to 4" by the time I left - up to a foot forecast by tomorrow morning; 18 runs; 16,000 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's with the soft boots; waited to hit the hill until the snow started; as the snow fell conditions changed from firm to grippy with loose snow and piles; resurfacing last night and today up in Northridge - those guns where getting turned off when I left - I couldn't tell where they're headed next; tons of people out today; the ski and boot combination worked well today - with the colder temps the soft boots didn't seem so soft; surprised that Lower East Fall remained closed today; claimed my old cubbie at the Ski Club today.



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Day 14 - Killington

Overnight grooming made things look a little better today. Out 9:30 to 12:30 with a KBL coffee break; 40° mostly cloudy and windy; 12 runs; 11,100 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's with the soft boots again today; firm, firm, firm with quite a few extremely shinny spots, quite a few extremely chunky spots, and quite a few extremely bare spots; I hope they choose to resurface the existing terrain before going for expansion, but with the holiday coming and snow in the forecast I'm afraid they'll try to let mother nature take care of the resurfacing effort; fairly large crowd out today; met David and Mel on the hill today - they were passing through on their way to NH for Thanksgiving.

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Day 13 - Killington

This morning's rain really took its toll - the mountain looks just horrible. Out 12:30 to 2:30; very warm and mild; 60° and overcast with surprisingly little wind; 10 runs; 10,800 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's with the soft boots again today; huge puddles of snirt on Upper Great Nothern; surprised to find mostly firm moonscape on Skye and up in Northridge, however Lower East Fall was soft and creamy so I did 3; as you'd expect very few people; these soft boots have their uses, but I think I'll end up continuing to use my original Dobi 150's quite a bit.

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Day 12 - Killington

Out sick last Thursday and Friday, so I braved a few weekend afternoon runs to make up one of the days. On the hill from 1:45 to 3:45; 45° mostly cloudy with a decreasing SW wind; 10 runs, 11,000 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's with the new soft boots (Nordica Doberman Pro 130 EPS's); no lift lines to speak of, but lots of people on the hill; skied East Fall, Skye-High-Sweet, and Skyelark all for the first time this year; the bottom of Lower Skyelark was all rocks in the troughs of the bumps - it should have been closed; all the warm weather and weekend traffic have left the hill looking pretty bad; with heavy rain and damaging winds forecast for tomorrow things don't look to improve soon; finally met the upstairs neighbors - Jill and Steve - although I did hear them move in Friday evening I never heard another peep the rest of the weekend.

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Day 11 - Killington

Out 9:00 to 1:00 with a Peak Lodge coffee break; consistent light snow all morning accumulating to 1"; 15°-23° with a light, variable breeze; 17 runs; 15,400 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; groomed smooth overnight, but today's traffic exposed quite a few firm spots; new snowmaking on Skye Peak; rumor is East Fall tomorrow; tippy toes drill - as tall and forward as possible without letting the tails wash out; don't think of changing edges by moving the knees across (perpendicular to) the direction of travel, rather move the knees diagonally or forward and across simultaneously - "lever the knees over and forward into the new turn".



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Day 10 - Killington

Out 9:00 to 1:45 with an extended KBL coffee break; 17° with broken clouds and a consistent 20 mph wind; 22 runs; 15,850 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19's; frozen and crunchy - hard groom after yesterday's rain and last night's freeze; K-1 closed till 10:30, so almost all fixed grip lifts today; skied hard - feel pretty good physically after all today's effort; I think I'm skiing OK - there's no such thing as too far forward; Lower East Fall, Bunny, and Caper under the guns today; skied with Bud, Tom, and Alex.

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Day 9 - Killington

Not quite the powder day I was hoping for. Out 9:00 to 11:15 without a break; 1" new snow overnight; 29° with freezing rain for first chair, 31° with a little heavier freezing rain when I left; skied the Blizzard Brahma's; 11 runs; 10,000 vertical; the snow was fantastic - Northridge was especially nice, it was buffed out with the new snow on top of last night grooming leaving a velvety soft, smooth surface; skied every open trail segment this morning; covered in ice and soaking wet when I finished; it was nice not having to walk the stairs; K needs to dig out some of the new low-e guns before tonight's hard freeze or they might have to remain in place till spring!

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Day 8 - Killington

On the hill from 9:00 until 10:30, hiked out when the lift line grew to about 5 minutes; 1" of new, dry snow overnight; mid-twenties today; the snowmaking and K clouds joined together and hung over Northridge, but otherwise a nice, mostly sunny day; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 19's; just 8 runs and 4,750 vertical; yesterday's snowmaking got groomed into a fairly consistent, firm base; snowmaking has moved on to Snowdon - Middle Great Northern, Mouse Run, Upper Bunny, Middle Chute, and Lower Bunny are all getting blasted; should have top to bottom tomorrow - the good news here is, I've probably walked the stairs for the last time this year; all the early departures this week have left my legs feeling pretty good; new boots are in and the new SkiLogic Customs are now mounted - pictures to follow later when this year's quiver is filled.



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Day 7 - Killington

Hard core resurfacing underway, guns literally everywhere. Out 9:00 to 11:00; 28° at KBL, 22° at the top, overcast with a steady NW wind; 11 runs; 6,500 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's; totally variable conditions; a little diesel must have gotten into the air line overnight, the smell today was not quite overpowering; rode the lift with CM today; no real lift line, but lots of people again.



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Day 6 - Killington

Perfect timing - the rain didn't start in earnest until I downloaded the gondola. On the hill from 9:00 until 12:00; 55° at KBL, but 38° at the top this morning; 20 runs; 12,000 vertical; skied the Rossignol Experience 98's; the snow on Rime was stellar - kinda cream cheesey; Upper Great Northern is very thin in a couple of spots; way fewer people out today - thank god; everything felt pretty good - from my boots, to my legs, to my technique; had big plans to ski this morning and then go to the gym this afternoon, but now I'm not so sure.



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Day 5 - Killington

Almost exact repeat of yesterday. On the hill from 9:00 until 10:30; 45° and sunny with a stiff breeze; 7 runs; 4,250 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; they groomed again overnight, but today we didn't get any chunks - it was soft and cutable, but a little wet and sticky; tons of people again - I left when the singles line grew to over 5 minutes.

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Day 4 - Killington

Holy Monday morning rush hour Batman! Out 9:15 to 10:30 - left when it started to get weekend type crowded; 40°, mostly cloudy, little to no wind; 7 runs; 4,250 vertical; skied the Head i.Speed GS Cheater 17's; heavy grooming overnight combined with all the people lead to some serious chucks; KMS out for the first time this year - that helped contribute to the crowd; off to buy new boots.

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Day 3 - Killington

Ready to go at 9:00, but K-1 didn't start loading until almost 9:30, walked back up the stairs at 11:30; the car was covered in a layer of slush this morning, but up top it was much colder so there were a couple inches of new snow; snow fell at a good clip all morning; 12 runs; 7,000 vertical; skied the Blizzard Brahma's; no grooming overnight, so the new snow got pushed into the remnants of yesterday's bumps pretty quickly; lots of people out today; for some reason today's variable conditions posed a problem for me with my boots buckled up tight - I ended up with the top two buckles open but still hooked and the Booster strap holding the top of the boot closed - this softened things up considerably and really helped my skiing - I think my new boots will definitely be a little softer than my current Dobi 150's; my legs feel a little tight after skiing today; snowmaking on Upper Great Northern and Upper East Fall when I left; it really felt like winter today!



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Day 2 - Killington

On the hill from 9:15 to 11:45; Brightening overcast with a light breeze; Temps in the lower 40's; Skied the Blizzard Brahma's; 15 runs; 8,800 vertical; Since they groomed lightly overnight we developed a few chunks, but as it softened up they got skied in pretty quickly; A lot more familiar faces today - Bob S, Barb M, Dave M, Mike C ... ... ; Felt a little better on my skis today - concentrated on staying low, angulated, and forward; Still feeling good physically; Forecast is for rain starting this afternoon, changing over to snow with potentially a few inches by morning.

#justgivemeagroomer    

Day 1 - Killington

On the hill from 11:45 to 1:15; Windy with gradual clearing after early AM rain showers with temps in the upper 40’s ; 11 runs; 6,500 vert; Skied the Blizzard Brahma’s; Had to walk up and down the stairs – first time walking down – it really sucks; Only Rime and Reason are open – only skied Rime; Good cover – cut into small to medium bumps – soft, but not wet; Bigger crowd than I expected – never more than 10 or 15 people in line, but always a few; Felt a little rusty, but it's good to get on the hill again; Legs feel good – right knee feels good – right shin is a little tender; Looking forward to tomorrow

#justgivemeagroomer