Day 45 - Wednesday Mar. 14 - Practice Makes Better Than Before

I met Jer and Cody (new guy) at 7:00 this morning - although we didn't leave until some time after that because Jer thought he would take his sweet time. We went up to the site of the Powderkeg while listening to Ringside - Ringside on the drive. The three of us are planning on competing in the annual Powderkeg race this Saturday so we thought now would be a good chance for us to get out and practice. I put together my race setup last night and I was ready. I will be racing on Stacy's skis (Atomic Femme Fatale - 150 cm) with my Switchbacks on them. It is so light! All I can feel below my feet are the bindings - and that's not much! We were not sure where the bootpack begins so we just kind of guessed. I need to practice over the next couple of days attaching my skis to my pack without taking the pack off, so as to decrease down time. I feel like the majority of my time lost in last year's race was not in the racing itself, but in the transitions. I made a few comments about Cody taking the easy way out and skiing AT, but I don't think he thought it was very funny. I found only a few spots of difficulty using those little skis. I have to say that I was rather pleasantly surprised. We skinned across the PM ridge (all the while waiting for Jer) then skied down into Grizzly. I was most nervous about the ski down on these skis. I did not think that I was going to be able to make a good turn. Much to my surprise my turns were great as long as we were in the soft stuff. The skis were more difficult to handle on the hard pack, but that was to be expected. I think this race will be fun to do on these skis. Cody made some very boring turns as an AT skier, and Jer made some nice smooth turns, but with the occasional double pole plant. We took a look at the rest of the course and decided it wasn't worth trying to do it all today, because the snow would totally suck on the more Southerly aspects. We did not want to have to do that more than just on Saturday, so we made another lap up Patsy and made a few more turns then made our way back to the car. All morning I had been getting derogatory comments about my race skis from both Jer and Cody. As we were putting our gear into the car we began talking to a gentleman in the car next to us that was also racing in the Powderkeg. You guessed it. He, too, will be skiing on his girlfriend's skis. It is just the way to go. We listened to Madeleine Peyroux - Careless Love for the drive home. It was a nice warm day. We got in some exercise. We got in some practice. We skied with someone new (even if he does ski AT). All in all it was a good morning and I feel like I am just a little more ready for the race this weekend.

Day 44 - Saturday Mar. 10 - The Adventures of Jer and Dust

Several other people were planning on joining us this morning, but many changed those plans. I met Jer at his house at 7:30. We listened to Beck - Odelay as I drove (not to say that we don't care about the environment - we do - it's just that Jer can't drive every time - give him a break - where do you think he gets his money? - Charbucks?) up to Guardman's Pass. We decided to ski this area today because Dan and Ray had already gone up there a little earlier this morning and we though we might be able to catch a lap or two with them. I have now come to the conclusion that this area sucks. Yes, you heard me. It sucks. It is overpopulated with 'bilers (that is short for snowmobilers for those of you who are not keen on the lingo), the approach is long and crappy, and the snow gets windblown and sunexposed. Why would anyone want to ski here? I ended up asking myself that same question. By the time we got to the ridge Dan and Ray were on their way out. They stopped by to say hello, but they followed that with a quick goodbye. We were planning on getting some good exercise in today and making a few laps. We approached the ridge only to get cold and unpleasant due to the wind. While Jer was deskinning he broke his Black Diamond Carbon Fiber Adjustable Probe Pole in half! What kind of product are they making over there at BD? I am sure glad I work at Voile where we make a product I can trust. We put our heads together and using our trusty Voile straps (note who it is that saves the day) we connected his two inferior and shorter poles together to make one long one to be used similar to a paddle/oar you would use in a kayak. There was one little area of decent snow, but not enough for a second lap. Jer's turns look nice. Check out this video of him using his new pole system. Doesn't he just look so cute? Here is a little video of me skiing (but I had my regular pole system). We made our way out and I fell over on my Voile pole bending it a little. I came to the conclusion that the snowpack may have had something to do with our pole issues, but poor workmanship has reared its ugly head and proven what gear will break under pressure and what will merely bend, but continue to fight the fight. I think you all understand what I mean. It was an educational morning. We vowed never to go back to Guardman's. It is just not an area for guys like us. We did have a good time and we got some exercise. There is no complaining about that.

Day 43 - Friday Mar. 9 - An Actual Tour For Class?

For several varied reasons, we have not had field day class for what seems like some time now. Today we got back in the swing of things. I met Matt and Paige at the mouth and we carpooled up. It was my turn to drive so they were blessed to listen to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. I am not totally sure they were into it. We were split up into three groups. My group consisted of five students and the class professor, Ralph Patterson. It was my first real day in the field with him. It was nice to be able to get out there and have him point out different things that he had been trying to explain in the classroom all semester. We just skinned up the Grizzly Gulch cat track and observed/reviewed as we went. I felt kind of cool saying I was the one who had made all those tracks in that first open area we came across. They, too, were surprised to hear that it was good snow. We continued on our way up close to the Twin Lakes Pass area. Ralph stopped here because he wanted to keep another group in sight as he didn't feel comfortable with where they were digging a pit. A few of us in the group continued up and skied down the super mellow areas in Grizzly. We came to the conclusion that this was not enough and we skinned up and skied the very same area I skied this morning. It was not quite as good (the snow had warmed up during the day and was a little heavier), but still enjoyable nonetheless. It is always nice to ski with people I don't normally get out with. I dropped Matt and Paige off at the Goldminer's Daughter for refreshments, but I just headed home since it was already 5:30. I figured my wife had things for me to do - and she did. Peace out.

Day 42 - Friday Mar. 9 - A Few Laps Up the PM Ridge

I met CJ, Arlo, and Jer at Jer's house this morning at 5:30 (CJ called me at 5:29 to see if I was coming - as if he has reason to doubt me). We all piled into Jer's VW knowing that this would be our most carbon neutral means of transportation. For those of you who are unaware, Jer is on BioDiesel (only 20% during the cold months). We listened to Weezer - Weezer on the drive up in order to get pumped. We were hoping we would become equally as pumped as that guy on the VCast phone commercials where he listens to the new Fall Out Boy song, but I have come to understand he was just acting and he was paid to do so - I no longer know what to believe if I can't believe TV. After the decision was made not to head up Suicide Chute we made the rest of our way up to the Grizzly Gulch parking lot. It was here that we gathered our necessary goods and began our true ascent up the ridge. CJ was in front and he just began bootpacking it (it was rather hard packed snow at this point). I made the following humorous comment: "So I was reading the other day on TelemarkTips that they have this new invention called climbing skins. I don't exactly know how they work, but they somehow allow you to climb up the mountain with your skis on! Doesn't that sound like a novel idea?" At least I thought it was a humorous comment. We decided to ski the first open bowl area up the Patsy Marley ridge. After instructing Arlo on the art of skin removal whilst keeping the skis attached to your feet, I checked out the snow for myself. It was, surprisingly enough, really good skiing. The snow was soft and the turns were good. I was feeling particularly well today and my turns were really on. We quickly reskinned and began our ascent for a second lap. We saw a few people out at this point, but not too many. The second lap was equally as enjoyable as the first. Can we just talk about the Insane - Switchback combo? It is sooooo sweet! Because of the agreeable conditions, we all came to the conclusion that it would be worth another lap. At the point where we took our skins off we were met by two men out for a morning tour. We began chatting and they happened to mention my sweet ski and binding setup. I told them I work at Voile and we figured out that we had been in contact for the past two weeks via email. They are the local distributors of Clif Bar, Gu Energy Gel, and several other similar products. The final turns were nice and we all headed down to the car. It was an enjoyable morning and was well capped off with the sounds of Sufjan Stevens - Illinois. Goodbye for now, but not for long.

Day 41 - Saturday Mar. 3 - Powder on Porter Fork Road

Yes, I know it doesn't mean much when it is on a low angle road, but hey, I just wanted to keep this pattern of powder days up. Stacy went to yogalaties this morning, but still wanted to join Bowie and I for a tour up Porter Fork. I washed my car while she was gone, then we made our way up. We listened to Movin' 100.7 for the drive and really got pumped for the tour. We were out for the exercise today. It was nice. We got to get out as a family and so some skiing. We need to go somewhere else next time, though, because I am bored of this road and we need to get some actual skiing in. Yes, I enjoy it, but I want Stacy to be able to improve her skiing and I want Bowie to get to really have a good time on a slope of some sort. On our way down the hill we ran into a couple that were out hiking with their dog - a female version of Bowie. They looked exactly alike. Bowie was bigger (not to mention better looking), but they had the exact same coloring and body type. This was cool, because we had never seen a dog like Bowie. Unfortunately, they did not know what kind of dog their's was either so we did not learn anything new. They also got their dog from the shelter. We had a good time today, but like I said, I am ready for a change.

Day 40 - Friday Mar. 2 - Powder at Snowbird?

I thought it was just a myth. After I made my way down from Big Cottonwood with CJ I went to my parents' house to meet Cole. We waited for Little Cottonwood to open then made our way up to Snowbird. We listened to The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots on the way up. We were able to park in the lower lot and get skiing quickly. We immediately began finding some sweet snow. Run after run we were hitting sweet powder shots all over the mountain. We skied the chutes underneath GadZoom. We skied the Cirque. We skied all over all day. We just couldn't go wrong. As the day progressed we decided we would just make a few large laps all the way around to the Cirque (and since we don't have Tram passes this takes a while). On our last lap all the way around they opened Road to Provo for the first time in a couple of days. We decided to ski that instead and we got the best run of the day. We came all the way around and got fresh tracks. Fresh tracks? Yeah, fresh tracks. At Snowbird! They do exist. This was almost like seeing BigFoot, but even more rare. Cole was tearing it up today. He has improved so much this year. He has improved so much this week. He is really becoming a good skier. Next step, freeing his heel. We had a great time today. We just couldn't get enough. We didn't have time to eat. We ran into a dude I work with, Mike, at the Aerie. He took a few runs with us, but we were difficult to keep up with, so he didn't last long. What a day - killer tour this morning and the best resort day I have had all year this afternoon. We listened to the Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not on the way down.

Day 39 - Friday Mar. 2 - Deepest Day Ever

It has just been dumping outside lately so we just had to get out. One of the few places we were comfortable with the avalanche danger was Circle All peak. CJ and I met at 5:15 at the Big Cottonwood park-n-ride. We listened to the same mix CJ had in the car last time he drove and I continued to not recognize any of it (and to tell you the truth, I didn't have the desire to get to know it). We were surprised to see a couple other cars already at the Butler Fork trail head, but we were happy to see a skin track. There was so much snow that I am sure it took a lot of work. We made our way all the way up Circle All. It was super windy on top with very low temps. We tested the snow stability by trying to set off some cornices and stuff, but could get nothing to go. So we went for it. It was strong. We began our way down only to find that the snow was so ridiculously deep it made it difficult to ski at times. I was on the Insanes so I was able to stay on top more than I would have with any other ski I own, but with this much powder it would have taken a surfboard to really stay on top. Check out the sweet photo of me!! I love that shot. We may have moved slowly down the hill because of the deep deep snow, but it was a blast. This was the deepest snow I had ever been in. As you can see from the pictures, there were times when the snow came up to our armpits. It was nuts! I wouldn't want every day to be like this, because it wasn't the easiest to ski, but it certainly was fun this once. Peace.