Archive for April, 2019

SOLID FREEZE

4-30-19

Cold overnight temps. made for a solid freeze in the pack, and an overnight dusting put a bit of feather in each turn. It was kind of a misty morning, with residual clouds hanging out in Mineral Basin. Here is a shot of the East Twin with the still clouds in the back bowl.

High contrast morning with blue bird in the front and wispy clouds in Mineral Basin

Great lines of Industrial Smoothing had been prepared, with White Diamonds-Lower Silver Dipper offering sugar corn quality top to bottom, and Gheen Gully beautifully prepared in, yet , another rare offering that made me do hot laps to dial in as much of that Vintage Line as I could. The front side of the hill was bullet proof and needed a lot more time to soften and was just breaking at 11:30 AM, when a sorbet quality began to make those Peruvian lines sweet and tasty. Here is a shot of Gheen Gully looking smooth and steep. I still don’t know how to make a steep shot look as steep as it is, and this is steep.

Gheen Gully with the epic Industrial Smoothing that is as rare a treat as long history attests.

At 12:30 PM the front moved in with wind, stout precipitation, and a reduction in visibility top to bottom. The sorbet lines were holding up on the fronts side, with slick smooth conditions, however, the new snow began to make a sticky situation that began yanking on my ligaments, so I bailed for the day and changed out the snows on The Star Cruiser. Here is a shot of the Louisiana Snow Bunnies looking great in a couple of very fashion forward one pieces suits. Everything comes full circle.

The Louisiana Ski Bunnies getting their first taste of Snowbird.

Tomorrow, look for a bit of fresh accumulation, more great groomed lines, and unsettled skies. Dress for a much colder day, and dress for weather. The off trail will be quite difficult, so stick with the prepared lines for the best ride. The hill is still fully fat, with no signs of melt off yet. See you there for the fresh festivities. Straight Ahead!!

FLAT LIGHT

4-29-19

Visibility was good today, but the light was very flat and the details were very hard to discern. The high overcast kept the Sun from working the pack too fast, and with the fair overnight freeze, and a light dusting on the peak, the groomers were good to go for a much longer time. White Diamonds-Lower Silver Dipper was offering perfect corn sugar to start out the morning, but adding a lap back to the Tram let you get both the back side and the front side inside the half hour window the 15 minute schedule the Tram was running on. On the front side, Peruvian Gulch was just breaking, so those early morning lines were offering a fair bit of tooth, but there were a couple of aspects that needed a bit more time and a cautious approach in the flat light. Here is a great shot of good friends dialing in the spirit of Spring.

Pulling out all the stops on a super Spring morning.

The overcast made the quality last well past Noon, but the bottom elevations began to get a bit heavy, but still slick and free flowing. I bailed at 1 PM as the flat light was hard to deal with after such a rockin’ morning. Tomorrow, look for a weather mix day. I think we will get the morning session in before the weather moves in. Look for the groomers to be offering the best lines of the day and try out that back to front approach to squeeze the most vertical out of the Tram schedule. Dress for weather and expect precipitation at some point. We’ll see how it shakes out. As Joe Man the Snowman say’s, ” Don’t Skimp On The Groove Sauce!!!”

COLD FRONT

4-28-19

A cold front moved in during the morning hours, making the temps a bit cool, but there was still not much of a freeze in the pack. Mineral Basin was offering the best lines to start, with Sun shining, sorbet quality on the groomed lines, and very light traffic to kick off the day. I was doing a Mineral Lap followed by a front side attack to make the most of the 15 minute Tram timing. Here is a shot of the Cirque that has sustained some wet slide activity.

All that rain we had saturated the pack and sent the last accumulation down the hill.

By 11:00AM., Mineral Basin became too soft and the front side of the hill broke, but the quality kept getting better and better. The high cloud cover filtered the Sun and kept the pack from becoming too sticky. In fact, it was slick and fast letting you get full platform engagement with each turn top to bottom. The annual Bypass Road end of season party hosted by Jake and Sully was held today. Here is a shot of Sully manning the grill and working his magic.

Sully was cooking up a storm on the grill and Jake just had to photo bomb the shot. Great times, with great friends, and making more memories.

Tomorrow, look for a unsettled day as more weather is moving in for the next few days. Expect colder temps. and variable visibility. I don’t expect much of a break in the freeze, and even Mineral Basin may be a tad crispy to begin the day. The Grooming Crew have been employing tenderizing techniques to soften the pack. Expect some variations due to aspect as you move around the hill. The off trail is still very difficult and the groomed lines are best.

I can’t even tell you how much history is represented here in this shot. All of these folks share over 40 years of Bird time and are still kickin’ butt and taking names.

In closing, here is a long shot of the festivities on the bypass road today. I wonder if there will be a crew to carry on this tradition and look back on over 40 years of Bird Time.

Wynonna and Kim enjoying the festivities and living large. Got to love Wynonna’s shades!!

See the Line, BE the Line!!!

GOOD FREEZE

4-27-19

Those showers moved off and left cold overnight temps. that put a good freeze on the pack. The early start left the pack very crispy on all sides of the hill, but Mineral Basin was the place to find the first break of the day. All that rain helped put a shine on the corn and added a bit more slick to the ride as the break happened. The pack lasted a lot longer, with Regulator finally going off after Noon.

TEAM ELDER stoked to be getting the goods this late in the season.

Here is a shot of Team Elder, with Kurt, Joe, Natalie, Mags, and Jim Elder out West after a season at Killington and Mad River Glen. They were going off in full effect with some late season Powder. I have been trying to down load this shot so I could post it, but I took a different tack. Sorry this is so late to the posts guys. Great skiing with all of you. Tomorrow, look for another overnight freeze and a cold front moving in during the morning hours. There could be some overcast to go with the front, so we’ll have to see how it shakes out. Look for the Groomers to be offering the smooth lines, but expect a bit of crispiness for the early laps. The break may start early in Mineral Basin, but we’ll just have to check it out and see what is what. It will be a great day on the hill, with plenty of cover wall to wall. Straight Ahead!!

EARLY START

4-26-19

The festivities began with the first Tram at 8AM, but I rolled in at the usual time and got the 8:30AM Tram that was running on a 15 minute schedule. Traffic was very light for the opening hour, and here is a shot of the packed 3rd Tram.

There was plenty of room for for dancing on the Tram this morning.

Mineral Basin was offering some Sun and wide open groomers that were sorbet sweet and corn goodness fast. Lone Star was also given the industrial smoothing, which was as perfect as perfect gets. Here is a shot of the dark clouds gathering for a late morning round of showers that held off until 10:30 AM.

Great visibility was on tap, but these dark clouds were not long in bringing in the precipitation.

The Morning Crew met for the daily recon meeting, where the group decided to call it a day when the rain picked up, however, clearing moved in around Noon. Tomorrow, look for a much better day, with some overnight accumulation as it is dumping hard and making a cacophony on the skin of The Trailer. I think it will be snow up high. Look for the groomers to be offering the best lines on the hill. The off trail will still be quite difficult. I will be taking the day off, so get those smooth Spring time lines for me.

Team Hawaii sharing the stoke of perfect sorbet on the hill.

In closing, here is a shot of Team Hawaii, who were working the smooth sorbet lines with me this morning. We got all the goods the hill had to offer before the rain began. Shaka!!!

NO FREEZE

4-25-19

There was no freeze overnight and the pack in Mineral Basin was well into the sorbet zone to start the festivities. White Diamonds-Lower Silver Dipper were offering corn goodness and Lone Star had been given another treatment, but it was not going to last long. On the front of the hill there were a couple of crispy sections, but there was plenty of traction to keep the roll under control. Here is shot of the Morning Crew gathering at the peak after a Mineral lap.

The Morning Crew making a great showing for the Spring conditions.

With the soft conditions, most of the mountain closed with only Regulator offered off the top later in the day. It got too gloppy for my knees and I bailed to save up for tomorrow. Tomorrow, look for an inclement day, with showers and thunder storms in the forecast. Sticking to the groomers will offer the best ride and we will just have to see if we get a freeze. Off trail will be quite difficult on all aspects, so know that going in. The lifts will be opening at 8AM, so get an early start if you want first Tram. I will be arriving at the usual time and will work into the day after I have finished my coffee. Don’t Forget To SIZZLE!

SORBET SENSATION

4-24-19

Temps. were much warmer this morning and a sorbet sensation was on tap if you chased the Sun as fast as you could. White Diamonds-Lower Silver Dipper were buffed and perfect as the Morning Crew worked the sweet carpets with no one out front. Gheen Gully was also given a fresh treatment that was perfect as perfect gets. Thanks to the Grooming Crew for making these lines and carpets sooooo sweet. The front side of the hill began to break around 10 AM, with soft corn lines on the prepared sections that were back country excellent. Here is a shot that Neil sent of yesterday’s treatment of Old Ladies prepared top to bottom. This is a very rare site and there probably aren’t many like it ever.

One of the longest continuous lines on the hill, this rare shot of machine worked Old Ladies is one for the books.

The dreaded stickies cropped up around 1:30PM and I bailed to save my knees. Tomorrow, look for an early break, as I don’t think it is going to get very cold overnight with the clouds that have moved in this afternoon. The Groomed lines will be offering the best of the day and continued efforts to stay ahead of the break will be important. Traffic is light and there is plenty of time to work the hill as it comes alive. Here is a shot of my good friend Randall Rosenthal @randallrosenthal.com, who has not been back for 20 years at least. It was a mind boggling to see him standing there waiting for the Tram.

The return of one of the Masters. Be sure to check out his Art on his web site, it is incredible!!!

Spring has been an amazing time that has brought many folks to the Bird for the first time and it is so fun to share the stoke after getting the goods.

DEE VEE glowing after an amazing day on the hill.

This is a shot of DEE VEE, who had an epiphanistic experience on the hill today. She is from Deer Valley and was very impressed with everything, especially the Summit at Hidden Peak, where she had a great lunch and basked in the high energy field that exists there. Syrup Won’t Stop ‘EM!!

COOLER START

4-23-19

It was a bit cooler start this morning, but the Sun was working the pack with intent and it was a race to stay ahead of the break. Mineral Basin was offering some amazing lines that had been prepared. Lone Star and Gheen Gully had been given the treatment, making those lines the the ones to get before they got too worked over. Those pitches were soft serve sweet, with every turn a full on treat, with a steep smooth pitch that kept you dialed. On the Front of the hill, Old Ladies Slide area had also been given the treatment, which is the first time in many years, and then it was worked only rarely. What a treat is was to get such an amazing line, perfect, sweet and smooth. Thanks to the Grooming Crew for preparing those carpets of AHHHHH that made today such a bonus. Here is a shot of a butterfly that Jake picked up off the snow just off the main line.

A little butterfly had landed on the snow just where we were standing out in the middle of nowhere. Just lovin’ the warm temps.
Mary Ellen Gulch looking fat and smooth in the morning light.

The Morning Crew was hard at it, getting to the North facing aspects, where real corn goodness was on tap. Tomorrow, look for another race against the Sun, with great grooming on all sides of the hill, low traffic, and some sorbet goodness for you to dial in your inner Ligety!!

The Furious Destroyers getting ready to hit the steepest lines on the hill.

In closing, I offer this shot of The Furious Destroyers, who were looking for the steep lines that Michael had been scoping out from the Tram. They were going to get the goods and I know they got it all. Speed Safely!!

WEATHER WINDOW

4-22-19

With weather in the forecast, we were treated to a weather window that offered bright Sun, good visibility, and amazing carpets of AHHHHH to start out the day. Mineral Basin was offering White Diamonds and Lower Silver Dipper along with Lone Star groomed top to bottom. That pitch was smooth, velvety, and good to go top to bottom. With the Baldy Chair closed for the season, the Lewis and Clark option is out now, but we did a stop at the Landing. I got this great shot of the low clouds below the bowls.

Low hanging clouds framed the weather window.

It was a race against the Sun, as the rays were super intense, feeling hot and sharp and weirdly unusual. The front of the hill had been given the machine worked lines that were rare and worth rapid fire laps to extract as much of the juice as possible. The Lehi Cutoff had been buffed for one of the most rare treatments in long memory. The pack broke around 1 PM and the sticky factor kicked in, so I bailed when my knees screamed. Tomorrow, look for another clear day, with warm temps. I think that the overnight temps are going to bring a freeze to the pack, so start with Mineral Basin for the first break and stay ahead of the Sun for the best quality. The off trail is still quite difficult and does not get soft until it breaks, but then it is very gloppy, so you just can’t win. Tread carefully. See you there for the Spring madness, and get some of that morning sorbet. IBBY!!!

LIGHT WINDOWS

4-21-19

The weather was threatening, but there were light windows moving in and out to offer some visibility. The Morning Crew dropped into the Abyss of Mineral Basin, following the known groomed lines in the deep fog. Further down the pitch the fog cleared and there was fairly good visibility and frosting covered groomers that felt velvety underfoot. Here is a shot of one of the windows that let you see the peaks down toward Provo.

A window on the world when the clouds lifted and the visibility improved.

Traffic was very light, and walk on Trams were fast and easy. Here is a shot of Wynonna and Sue making the day festive.

Wynonna and Sue making the ballroom dancing Trams fun and festive.

After Noon, the pack became quite manky and the windows of visibility were going away just ahead of the arrival of the Front that was on the doorstep. I left after 1PM to avoid the sticky factor. Tomorrow, look for another unsettled day with precipitation in the forecast. The temps have been fairly warm, so you can dress a bit lighter, but do dress for precip. The Groomers have been really excellent, and the off trail is becoming a bit difficult though workable with a direct approach. See you there for the light traffic and wide open groomers. Keep it tight!!