Another beautiful morning above the inversion greeted the morning crew.  The Mornings keep getting darker and darker as we get to the shortest day of the year, but the Sun finally breaks over ridge shedding light of the Grooming efforts.  Extensive tenderizing had been done, giving tooth to the mat, and providing a race ready canvas to work with.  I have been watching the World Cup racing, and pretend the course is prepped just for me.  Of course, good edges helps immensely when it comes to laying it down on the Extra Primo firmness, so I just pretend I have them.  The Brisk morning temps. enabled the snow guns to turn out some very nice Gun Powder.  There is snow in the forecast, which will move the bad air from the valley, and bring us some well deserved soft snow.  If you are there tomorrow, keep an eye out for the hazards that are now visible, which will become covered by any amount of accumulation. It is best to have that info in the back of the mind as you drop off trail.  Tomorrow, look for the grooming efforts to continue to deliver the morning goodness, before it starts getting scraped off, and then look for the dust to accumulate on the sides for traction.  There may be some flat light ahead of the precipitation, so stay with the smooth and trusted lines.  Soon there will be good to go lines wall to wall.  You know it’s coming!!!   Don’t forget to SIZZLE!!!   Ciao!

There was a light dusting on the trailer this morning, with a light precipitation falling.  The conditions finally broke at Tanner’s Flat, where there was blue bird sunshine above the inversion.   It was quite a bit colder this morning, so the gun powder was very  silky and smooth.  The Regulator side of the hill is decidedly firmer, so I was working the Peruvian side for the most part.  Off trail  has some lines that are being worked, with the associated interference pattern development.  The Skier, formally known as HIPPY G, said that the Rat’s Nest entrance into Great Scott made him ” the most frightened” he’s ever been getting into it.  I will take his assessment seriously and continue to work the fundamentals in preparation for the deep.  Who Done It is open now, though it required a conservative approach.  On the lower section, there are rocks and willow stumps to deal with.  Use caution there.  Tomorrow, look for grooming and tenderizing efforts to provide the velvet smoothness on both sides, though the Peruvian side seems to be a bit dryer and chalkier.  Back to back Trams, and a great vibe make these inversion days fun!!  See you in the AM.   IBBY!!   P. S.  Here is a shot of a visitor, who was darned glad to be here, and who could blame him?

Cool Hat

It was 35 Degrees on the peak this morning, with very nice velvet Grooming to greet the morning crew.  The left side of the Regulator grooming area held this dry chalky quality well past Noon.  I was working one side of the hill then the next, and I just put as many turns as was comfortable on the Regulator side to take advantage of this living room shag quality line.  I was pretending I was working the NW face of Red Baldy, which mimics the pitch and length of Regulator in many respects.  If I climbed all the way up there and found this kind of dry wind slab, I would be ecstatic. That keeps things

Beautiful Lake Boneville

fresh and interesting despite the limited terrain.  It really is all down hill from there anyway.  The off trail is developing increasingly abrupt interference patterns as they get more traffic.  Upper Silver fox is looking particularly scraped off on the steep section, leaving very sketch lines through the rocks.   Macaroni is passable, though the exposure to the fins just below is intimidating and a roll of the dice.  Again, I am steering clear until we get more cover.  Tomorrow, look for very light traffic, with continued velvet lines to be the feature of the early morning session.  If you do sojourn off trail, be sure  to take your time and stay on the game, as there is little margin for error there.  See you in the AM. for fun and continued Sizzling!!!   Ciao!!

I spent the day in the inversion layer, well below the beautiful Sunshine that was pouring over the hill.  The Black Ice was really on in the Canyons after the mist settled on the road during the early morning hours.  A pick up went off up in Little Cottonwood, ending up down the embankment.  That will harsh your joy after day of skiing, or, on the way up, become like a bad dream where you never get to the hill no matter how hard you try.  Really watch that little bit of rastiness.  The hill is still holding up the smooth, as the snow pack continues to solidify, which makes the runs consistent, eliminating the harbor chop build up that can slow the entire process down.  Tomorrow, look for a bit better traffic pattern, with the early Trams offering the best running of the day as usual.  Off trail is still getting a fair bit of traffic, with folks working upper Silverfox and entering Rat’s Nest. The cover on the Cirque is still thin, however, the constant traffic has mitigated the surprise factor, so go there with eyes wide open.   The folks making turns in those areas seemed to be getting some nice lines.  I am still staying clear while I wait for the next installment.  Many of the areas will be immediately helped by some significant fresh, so I will bide my time.  Conditions are fun, so I will see you there in the AM for the Rock and Roll festivities.   IBBY!!   P. S.  I have some new photos, but I miss placed my camera, which I now have a line on, so I will have some fresh views to share.

It was murky in the Valley this morning as I drove up  the hill, but the clouds broke open as I gained altitude and I was able to spend the day above the dense air.   While the air is bad, it is not even close to the level that we saw in the 70s when there was a distinct rust color to the clouds.  None the less, today we were treated to bright Sunshine, warm temps. and beautiful vistas.  The Grooming  job had really made the morning  great.  I felt like I was able to set my edge with confidence, as the feel of the snow was just right  to Lock and Load the edge.  There is little to no chatter developing as the traffic works the open areas, though the glaze reappears later in the day.   Look for the sides of the runs to hold the dust later in the day.   The Lower Men’s Down hill Chute is still smooth, but the glaze makes the bottom half very difficult to grab an edge.  Be careful there at the bottom where the Cat Track converges with folks coming from the right.  The snow making continues, and the gun powder was very smooth, cold, and predictable.  I love good man made, as I used to make it back in the day before I moved to Utah.  Tomorrow, look for the morning Trams to offer the best of the day, and be aware that the traffic on the hill is going to be substantially increased, so keep your up hill awareness dialed.  I will see you up there Sunday. IBBY!!!

Team Early Morning was treated to some ultra smooth and velvety Corduroy, which even in the early morning flat light was Good to Go.  The snow today has become more consistent each day after the new snow fell a few days ago.  The Valley was shrouded in fog, making the day in the Sun a treat.  Some of the off trail lines seem to have been well established, so venturing down them will be much more realistic, though great care should still be taken.  Tomorrow, look for continued fun on the Groomers, with light traffic and very consistent conditions.  It is so nice to have the casual pace that is a feature of this pattern in the weather.  The laps will pay off when to goods get here.  Now is a good time to scope out your favorite lines from a distance to get an eye ball on the under lying rock a tree features that will be in play when they get covered up by the next storm.  Just  something to keep in the back of your mind.  See you there for the early morning rock and roll fest.  Peace Out!!!

As anticipated, the Grooming Crew had worked the hill over beautifully, after which a light gesture of angel dust covered the dance floor for the first Tram crew.  The visibility was fair with clouds moving through, that intermittently let some rays of the Sun through.  Having softness to work with helped the stoke factor immensely after such a long stretch of firm conditions.  The snow making is still going full force, providing some nice turns through the Gun Powder.  I am a bit Gun shy still, but I have not encountered any weirdness since my altercation, however, I still take a great deal of care going through the curtains.   The new soft feeling snow has invited the fast movers to up the game, charging the limited lines with unmitigated audacity, at the same time I have been slowing down a bit to work on some subtleties of turn motion, so I have to really be watching over my shoulder.  Off trail is still marginal, with snags and rocks to negotiate.  I am still steering clear of those areas until we get more snow.  Tomorrow, look for continued improvement on the Groomers, as the tenderizing efforts seem to have a cumulative effect, making each consecutive day a bit more consistent.   There are still some isolated spots of wild glaze poking through here and there, so expect them.  I am still aiming for the piles of fluff, while avoiding the glaze, that seems to look a bit grey by comparison, so watch the subtle shades of white  for reference.  Traffic is still light, making the back to back boogie an easy pace.   See you there dark and early.   IBBY!!!  P. S.  Watch the canyon top to bottom, as there were numerous indications of slide offs all the way down.  BLACK ICE!!!!

There was a light dusting on the Trailer this morning, so I figured there would be a half inch on the hill, but there was fully 2” in the parking lot and 4″ up on the hill.  The fresh Essence was medium density, feeling luxurious when it was un tracked.  The apron under the Middle Cirque, though not steep, was phenomenally smooth and creamy.  Like Butter.  The crowd was quite light for fresh snow, and the chop did not really build up.  There was the tiles and piles period, where you had to dial in the piles, and float the tiles.  However,  as the snow continued, it began to adhere to the old surface,  becoming more consistent as the day developed. Still, a long deliberate turn dealt with the variations.   Off trail is still problematic, with the new snow covering some of the features, and a number of folks found these little  gems the hard way.  Be careful.  After my recent chastisement, I have been  giving the Mountain an extra measure of respect. Tomorrow, look for the Cat Crew to have worked the new snow into the mat, providing some of the most velvety corduroy imaginable.  Perfect is perfect, no mater the kind, and there are many different kinds of perfect to sample.  Perhaps there might be some additional surprise accumulation to add to the softness.  With the new snow,  you will not be able to hear the approach of the fast movers coming from behind, which makes it doubly important to keep and eye uphill.  I have been slowing down to smooth out the ride, and mitigate the threat of instant explosion due to the variations, making my own awareness of my pace relative to the traffic around me imperative. Perhaps we might see some Sun tomorrow to shed some light on the situation.   See you in the AM.   Ciao!!

There was a high cloud deck obscuring the Sun today.  As the Sun rose up in the sky it began to burn off improving the visibility quickly.  The Cat Crew had done some tenderizing for the morning crew, providing a very consistent morning, with the scratchiness holding off until after Noon.  There was some very nice Gun Powder around the guns that felt very luxurious and velvety.  Good man made is a treasure as well.  Granted, natural precipitation is superior, but those smooth carving turns are a real treat during this low snow beginning.  There is a change in the weather in the offing, that may improve the conditions.  Even a half inch can be significant.   Also, expect some variable lighting and continued smoothness on the Groomers, but keep in mind the very well defined terrain variations that can throw you a curve quite quickly.  Not much has changed, so I will keep this short.   See you there early!   Peace Out!

This morning was beautiful, being not to cold, not to busy, and both sides open.  I struggled my way back to the hill to keep moving and not seize up as the severe bruising begins to blossom.  It was a hard hit I took, but I am just bruised not broken.  If I had not slowed down going into that gun curtain it would have been another story.  The snow pack has really solidified since Friday, becoming seriously bullet proof, requiring a cautious approach to both sides of the hill.  There was a South wind blowing all the loose snow off Regulator, leaving it extremely greasy with precious little fuzz to grab an edge on.  With no edges, I just was keeping it real, just letting the skis slide graciously through the turns.  I could tune them up, but that extra purchase sends vibrations up to my knees, so I am just giving my knees a break by not getting serious about  trying to dig in.  Tomorrow, look for the early morning runs to provide some tenderising efforts by the Cat Crew, along with  minimal traffic pressure.  Off trail is getting very well traveled, revealing the rocks and stumps, but also sustaining the development of the medium frequency, medium amplitude interference patterns.  There was a big ring around the Sun today, indicating a change in the weather a few days down the road, so keep your

Seed Pods

eyes on the forecast for an official change.  Of course, it will come when it comes, and I am going to enjoy every day for what it is, even if it might be a tad slick.  When the time comes to let loose, all the elements will be ready to hold up the performance level.  Be careful under the guns, which by and large, are turning out great gun powder, but  the temperature variations from top to bottom can create some inconsistency.   See you in the AM.   IBBY!!