The snow guns were blazing this morning, taking advantage of the continued cold temps that have been resident for the past week. The Cat Crew did another great job of preparing the dance floor for smooth cruising, and with the added sections of Gun Powder the turns felt fast and fun. Light turnout made for wide open turning and you could dial in the long throws of silk below the guns that called for a more deliberate approach to extract as much of the elegant feel that was blasted over the run. It took a while for the Sun to rise up over the ridge line, and the rays felt delightful coming out of the shade. Here is a shot of one of the big fans pumping out the goods on Regulator Narrows as they get ready to open up the upper section in the next few days. The patrol and mountain crew is working hard to get the runs set up for the public. I got no firm timeline, so we’ll just have to wait and see. Tomorrow, look for more great training runs from top to bottom. Look for those sweet deposits of Gun Powder to add some goodness to the run and dig deep into the silken surface. I will be dressing for cold again in the AM, and I was glad I dressed up for the morning. After all those years of fighting the Dark Matter Wars, my body is not accustomed to the cold. See you there for the fast and fun morning session. Stay Frosty!!

The morning was quite cool again, which made for some excellent man made conditions on the hill. Very low traffic for the early hours kept the hill wide open and the Groomed lines were sweet, and covered with some amazing deposits of Gun Powder. On some sections I was taken back to a few back country tours where a very similar condition existed. Perfect is perfect where you find it, and I just had to dial it back and dial in some deep turns to extract the goodness out of each brush with the Freshness. Here is a great shot of the Morning Crew who were getting the most out of the fresh corduroy. I have known all these folks for 40 years now and we have as much fun as we did when we all started our ski journey. I dressed for the cold and I was glad that I did, however, as the Sun came up the temps. moderated quite a bit and you could have gone with much lighter gear. Lots of folks were showing up later to get the Sun and avoid that early morning flat light. The flat light did not matter much as the dance floor was perfectly smooth and predictable. If you weren’t looking around you could have been on 100” of mid Winter goodness. The Snow Making Crew and Cat Crew have done a great job of putting together a treat for these training days. Tomorrow, look for another great day of training runs, with more smooth corduroy and fresh Gun Powder to start out the day. Be sure to dial in as much out of those long threads of silk when you get under the guns. There will be no strangeness in the consistency, so you can dial it in and get the goods. See you there for those early laps. See the Line, BE the Line!!

Temps. were quite chilly this morning and the Sun took a while get up over the peaks as the days get shorter. I dressed for the occasion, and was comfortable. The Cat Crew did a great job reworking the mat, combining the Fresh Essence with the continuous Man Made efforts. While the soft snow feel of yesterday was absent, delightful corduroy of mid Winter quality was on tap. With the low turn out, the hill was very wide open and real turns could be dialed in with unmitigated audacity. Still, it was wise to keep the roll constrained to the prevailing conditions, but it was fun to let out a bit more fetch to each turn. A real treat of the early laps was the accumulation of Gun Powder below the guns, which was silky smooth and a few inches deep. Each turn in these pockets felt delightful, with a solid yet soft traction that felt like perfect wind buffed. The cold temps. really facilitated excellent man made efforts. The mat held up very well to the light traffic, and no appreciable static developed over the morning. Walk on chairs were in full effect, letting you get as much as you could desire. Tomorrow, look for more excellent industrial smoothing to have been prepared for the Faithful. I expect a similar mid Winter feel to the carpet, making for well defined and accurate turns top to bottom. Dress for another brisk morning and enjoy the fresh carpet. Syrup Won’t Stop ‘EM!!

A fresh new installment of Essence was delivered by the front that moved through yesterday. 15 to 16” of medium density product added a whole new feel to the dance floor. I was finally able to dial in actual turns in the soft forgiving surface instead of the turns on the man made base. I did not feel the bottom at all, and full traction was easy to carry all the way through the turn. Despite the new snow, the crowd was fairly light and there was little to no waiting for chair. Snow making was in full effect top to bottom, including the top of the mountain. Here is a shot looking up at the Narrows with the gun kicking out the Gun Powder. It felt really good to engage the entire turn and feel that full power throughout the turn. A short window of Sun opened up to reveal some nice tracks up on the Narrows. Tomorrow, look for another nice day of early season training runs. Grooming, combined with overnight snow making efforts, will provide a very nice carpet to dial in those turns. There still should be a soft feel to the mat, and traffic should be light again. Improving weather should see the Sun making an appearance, which will make the visibility much better. See you there for the early runs on the fresh corduroy. Stay Frosty!!

The Trailer was rockin’ as a stout South wind was blowing out ahead of a cold front that is bringing much anticipated precipitation to the Front. The Sun was out for most of the morning after some clouds were hanging on the peaks for the start of the day. Temps were balmy, but would drop quickly with the passage of the Front. I did not venture up to the hill today to give myself some time to get the Trailer fully set up for the Winter. We can expect some lake effect snow in the AM, with some fresh cover to start out the day. I will be dressing for storm riding, and will finally have to put on Goggles. I have so been enjoying sliding with the shades on. We will have to see how much traffic shows up for the new snow, but I think it is going to be fairly mellow. It will be very nice to feel some real product under foot. See you there for the early runs. Stay Frosty!!

The temps. were brisk this morning as The Bird opened again for the season, and with the approaching weather, I think it is safe to assume it will remain open for the duration of the Season. I dressed for how I wanted it to be, but the brisk air caught me a bit off guard. I was trying hard to avoid wearing a hat, but had to break it out. I love sliding with the top down. Up on the hill, the Snow Making Team and Cat Crew did a great job getting the hill covered top to bottom with a solid firm carpet that had plenty of traction to keep the turns clean and green in the narrow margins. The Patrol was in full attendance top to bottom, keeping the lid on any wildness. For the most part the Faithful were polite and keeping the dial well in the slow zone. I did not see any rocks at all on any part of the run and the quality had a Winter feel. The crowd was moderate and the line was not long at all during the time I spent on the hill. I made 3 runs to get a look at things and visit with folks who were stoked to be back on the hill. I was not able to get a suitable shot for today’s post due to the low Sun angle, so I offer this piece of the Art I have been doing. I like getting high contrast vibrant colors to flow together in amazing ways. My hand never touches these pieces and are fully Universe Driven. I am just the facilitator of whatever energies are present at the time. Tomorrow, look for more good turns to be had to get your juices flowing and your legs feeling the rhythm. Coverage will still be very good with fresh corduroy to enjoy, especially for the early risers. A fair bit of weather is on the way, which will be a huge improvement for the conditions. IBBY!!