Archive for February, 2023

IN COMING

2-08-23

It was a gray morning, with very flat light, high winds, and amazing prepared lines that were perfectly carvelicious and buffed. Mineral Basin was offering great lines as well, with some wind transported dust that really made the feel luxurious underfoot. The Tram shut down only after a couple of cars made the peak, but the lifts were wide open and laps were easy and quick to turn around. A new opening of The Exotic Trees was brought into the mix, with the first takers getting deep, consistent powder top to bottom on that area.

Lori Buchanon getting deep and smooth powder on Figure 8 Bowl. It is nice to be on deck for a rope drop with no one around.

Snow started falling around Noon and the visibility went further South, but the smooth prepared lines were trustworthy and let you keep the turns consistent and dialed. Tomorrow, look for some additional accumulation. The Grooming will be amazing on all sides of the hill, with the last installment delivering perfect material for machine work. The hill is in great shape, offering great lines all over the hill and adventure runs are always a treat. Never know what you will find. Stay Frosty!!!

FRESH LINES

2-07-23

It was a beautiful morning with crisp cold temps, but warmer than that last cold stretch. The Groomers had been prepared on all sides of the hill, which offered arcable lines that were soft, smooth, and predictable. With the Sun higher in the sky, Mineral Basin was the draw, with untracked lines that were fresh, fun and spreadably smooth. The Road to Provo opened as well, and it did not take long for it to get worked, however, with the cold temps, the quality really held up and blastable lines were easy and fast.

Professor Tom standing at the entrance to Zone 5, which has been a very rare opening.
Wispy clouds and big hills are stretched to the horizon looking West.

Tomorrow, look for more great conditions on the hill from the opening bell. Look for amazing quality on the Groomers to dial in your inner Ligety, still soft snow on most aspects, and moderate traffic. Visibility should be excellent and I expect the temps to be a big warmer. This is the sweet window of the season, where the quality stays good all day on all aspects. Syrup Won’t Stop ‘EM!!!

FRESH DELIVERY

2-06-23

A fresh delivery of Essence overnight was on tap for The Faithful who were waiting and ready for the Canyon opening. The forecast continuation of the Northerly flow added more snow all day long and added up fast. The hill was in great shape to take on the new product and there was blower conditions with the added feature of some late afternoon Sun that broke through to add a visual treat to the day.

Mikey M killing it and blowing up this deep line on Baldy
The Jazz Man getting all of it when he dropped this South Chute line.
Mark Herath taking advantage of the Sun break out and driving a smokin’ line on Baldy

Tomorrow, look for more great conditions as the Sun did not affect the product and there is more waiting in the wings. Expect a fair amount of traffic, moderate temps., and more blower Essence to dial in. So great to have all this new snow to freshen up the pack. The Groomers should be epic with full platform engagement with a fresh till. IBBY!!!

QUICK DUMP

2-05-23

The forecast front came through a bit earlier than forecast, delivering 6″ of fresh Essence in short order. The Faithful made a full court press early for the day and were on hand and ready for fun as the day began. Fairly high wind was blowing up high and making itself known lower on the hill, but The Tram ran on time for the expectant crowd. The Groomers were offering the smooth in the variable visibility and there were plenty of open lines to keep folks spread out on the hill

The Forklift tradition began early!! This shot from ’78 captures the Morning Crew gathered for the intel session.

Tomorrow, look for more accumulation as another impulse will be moving in for the morning hours to add to the goodness. The hill will have been reworked and the Groomers will be offering the smooth lines that will help navigation in the variable visibility. The Canyon will be closed overnight, so there will be delays in the AM. Straight Ahead.

MORE SUN

2-04-23

That late arriving cloud deck yesterday moved out and left another beautiful day with bright Sun and warming temps. Traffic was brisk and The Faithful were pulled into Mineral Basin’s fully illuminated bowls. The groomers had been prepared on all sides of the hill, which were offering smooth dry chalky lines, though they have been getting firmer by the day. There have been numerous new and exciting lines worked this past week, which have still been holding up the smooth even after a fair amount of traffic.

The Bronze of Dick Bass watches over The Faithful with a full blast of Essence leaving a trail behind him. Thank you Dick for manifesting your dream.

Tomorrow, look for the next storm to be moving in during the afternoon hours, with precursor conditions out ahead of it’s arrival. That may include some wind, flat light and some variable visibility. Look for the Groomers to still be offering the smooth lines. The off trail is still holding the cold dry chalk, however, the usual high traffic patterns are wide spread. I will be looking for some wind buffed lines if we get a increase in wind speed overnight. The hill is in great shape for this incoming storm. Keep it tight!!!

FIRMING UP

2-03-23

More great Sunny sliding, with warming temps, wide open Groomers, and dry chalky lines kept the stoke high today. White Pine and The Twins was open again today, and that was a great feature that I have rarely seen open this early. The Grooming efforts had been employed all over the hill, offering more great ground pounding lines where you can dial in your inner Ligety. However, the feel is firming up as the pack consolidates each day.

Mikey M and Doc on the East Twin ready to do an East Pass loop.
The Guardian of White Pine keeping an eye on the the traverse on the climb out.

Traffic built up as the day progressed and it was wise to keep your head on a swivel see what was going on around. High clouds moved in later in the day, making the light go flat. Tomorrow, look for increasing cloudiness as the next front begins to move in. Look for winds to be increasing and look for some transported snow to begin filling those low areas with some dust. There will be plenty of prepared lines on all sides of the hill for a consistent line in the variable light. Speed Safely!!!

VERT FEST

2-02-23

With light traffic, blue skies and unlimited visibility, it was a full on Vert Fest for The Faithful today. Amazing industrial smoothing efforts had been performed on all sides of the hill, which were off the charts buffed. Mineral Basin was offering the bright Sun, with White Diamonds and Lone Star offering that steep wide open big mountain feel. On the front of the hill, Anderson’s and Lower Primrose Path were dry, chalky, cold and perfect, which was perfect for the top to bottom laps that let you dial in those arcing turns.

Mark Malu looking wide open and silky in the afternoon Sun

With the inversion building with the High Pressure, the temps warmed up nicely, but still had that chill that kept the quality of the mat good to go all day on all aspects. The off trail is consolidating, with building interference patterns, rumble and static becoming wide spread, however, the surfaces are cold and dry with only just a hint of the high density product feeling slick.

Pipeline opened today, with a lot of interest and one of the earliest openings I’ve ever seen. Bonus!!

Tomorrow, look for more amazing carpets of AHHHHH to be on tap on all sides of the hill, pleasant temps that will keep the hill in good shape, and ground pounding fun wherever you choose to throw down. Enjoy these days of great visibility. Syrup Won’t Stop ‘EM!!

WARMIN’ UP

2-01-23

Another clear cold day began warmin’ up as the Sun got higher in the sky. Light traffic made today a vertical max out day. Amazing carpets of AHHHHH had been prepared all over the hill, with some very nice surprises that kept me moving around the hill to get as much of the untracked corduroy as I could. It was ground pounding fun in the Sun, with White Diamonds and Lone Star featured in Mineral Basin and Lower Primrose path offering dry chalky buffed quality on the dark side. Out of area was open and a lot of folks were taking advantage of the access.

A great view down Canyon from a high point in white Pine. Big terrain.
Kyle Weston sent this shot of Hidden Peak with the Twins in the background taken from the top of Baldy.

With the light traffic, the carpets held up the smooth chalky feel all day long. All the aspects maintained their quality with the low angle Sun and still cold temps. The Sun came up after Noon and really warmed things up, which was a very pleasant change. The Grooming has been exceptional this season, and with all this snow, it has been a big job to keep it worked for us. It is so much fun to get these new lines. A big shout out to the Cat Crew for having those ground pounding lines ready each morning.

The Cat Crew having breakfast at the Forklift this morning. Great to have them with us!!

Tomorrow, look for more amazing ground pounding lines to be on tap on all sides of the hill. Take your choice on how to bag all the smooth vert and untracked nap that is up for grabs. I think it will be a touch warmer, so get it while it’s good. Straight Ahead.