Another Sunday

Sunday, February 26

Just another Sunday at The Pass. It reminds me of the movie "On Any Sunday," a 1970s movie that documented the crazy stuff bikers do on their weekends...specifically Sunday. My recollection was that it was a nice peek at biker culture--from motocross to touring. What it was really about was the biker community. If you are a biker, no matter the flavor, you are part of that community of people that are very passionate about their hobby.

Skiing is much the same. If you meet a stranger that is a skier (posers need not apply), there is an instant connection of experience regardless of age or where you've skied in the past. That experience binds skiers in a common understanding of the sport and why we do it. You just know. You know that across the planet that others who share your obsession are out there seeking that experience of being in the mountains in the winter...and hurling yourself down a mountain on two sticks.

It's kind of ridiculous when you break it down. What would make anyone obsess over riding to the top of an ice cold mountain in the middle of winter at high elevations in horrible conditions to throw yourself off the edge? That's exactly the point, however. I guess it's kind of a Zen thing. Here's a few exhibits on why we do what we do.

Exhibit A: Diamond Peak

Exhibit B: The Dragon's Back

The Dragon's Back is a gnarly rock feature on the back side between Where's Waldo and June's Run. Underneath the cliff (see photo above) there is a scree field that is about eight turns long. The snow tends to accumulate at the base which makes it fun. The downside is that it is a bit difficult to get to in deep snow. It requires a 1000 foot traverse from June's to get up to the entrance which is to the left in the photo.

Exhibit C: Shredding the Dragon's Back

It snowed a little more last night, but nothing near the 7" that the DOT reported. It was pretty windy and a lot of the snow got blown someplace else. Nonetheless, that snowpack is starting to accumulate.

Exhibit D: The Stick

We got to shred SDN again today. It was bulletproof ice on a 45 degree slope for the first 200' then got nice and deep.

Exhibit E: Dylan hucks a back flip off the rock at the bottom of SDN

We picked up a stray this morning. Steve is a graduate student in our program at the UO. Steve comes from Alaska so he was happy to have us show him around.

Exhibit F: Steve at the bottom of SDN

So, just another Sunday working on our Zen at The Pass. We'll be back for more meditation next weekend.

Winter's Back!

7:02 am
Snowing in Eugene

It has definitely been an usual winter. If that's what we still call it. A nice pre-Thanksgiving snowstorm...six weeks of high pressure delaying opening day until the first weekend in January. Spring conditions in February and a few light dustings here and there. Conditions still ski like early season.

So...when the forecast calls for a cold front moving in from the north, we pay attention. When the temperature drops below 45 F and it rains all night, we get up early. When we get up early and it's snowing in town (our house is about 750'), you load your gear.

How could we not be stoked? Today could be the best conditions of the year. We're off!

The drive was grueling. The snow was sticking by about 1500'--just outside of Oakridge. People don't know how to deal with it.

Under the railroad bridge at the base of the The Pass.

And up to The Pass.

8:50 am.

We got there with 10 minutes to spare, only to find the ski rack completely frozen shut. A few whacks with a wrench...some broken plastic, and into the line for first chair. Well, close to first chair.

Pure blizzard conditions.

Is this thing on?

I wore the chest harness with the GoPro for some viddy action in the woods.

Two runs in, we meet ski buddy Mark and head down Timburr. I got about 50' down and piledrived a hugh drift. The GoPro captured the carnage. First time I went down this year...and first time I've come out of the Rossi's since I got them last year. I guess the bindings do work. That's good to know, I suppose.

Well, clean up that mess and move on.

To the backside and into the woods.

Fun!

Dylan leaps the whale's tail.

Snowplosion!

Everyone is having fun. Dylan, Mark, and Mark's friend Ted.

We ventured down SDN. It was ice bullets for the first 100' or so. Very nasty. Then it got nice.

Mark tears up the trees on Eagle's Flight.

I.

II.

By 1pm we were pretty shot. Dylan and I took one last run down SDN. It was very much Alaska Spine conditions. Bulletproof ice with deep spines of powder in between. Gobs of fun. We got to the bottom and some kids had built a kicker off a rock and were doing backflips. Dylan one-upped them and threw a rodeo.

Show off.

We were both freezing. It was probably on 20 degrees Fahrenheit, but it's a cold 20 degrees in Oregon. Besides we were both feeling a little broken.

Back down the road and into the ongoing blizzard.

It didn't snow/rain all the way down, but it was still going off pretty good. The forecast is calling for continued cold and snow. We'll be back tomorrow!

Photo Op

18 February 2012

Looking out onto a fairytale world of snow and mountains and fun...

We got 6" of snow last night, which was enough to get me excited, given the overall shape of this season. It wasn't that great; not dust on crust, but...well, 6" on hardpack or more accurately frozen rain.

Dylan was stoked, they put out some park features and started to build a jump. But that was not the theme of the day. The theme was Photo Op, as in Photo Operation. Since conditions were just ok, we took a lot of pictures. Let's move on to the gallery.

I. Tearing down High Lead

II. Snaking through the root wads

III. Leaping small bumps

IV. Leaping bigger bumps

V. Playing in the woods

VI. Log ride!

We took a break around noon and went and had lunch (a kind of rare occurrence for us). We were hungry and I figured the resort could use a small cash infusion.

Would you buy insurance from this man?

Me either. Good thing this man doesn't sell insurance.

We're all on Dylan's team.

More of the same after lunch.

I. Airplane turn

II. Threading the needle

IV. Smooth as jazz

V. Stylin'

VI.

Dylan took another shot at the log ride this afternoon. What could possibly go wrong?
I.

II.

III.

IV.

V.

VI.

VII.

Wow, nearly pulled that one off!

Well, our photo op was more or less successful. I'll leave you with a little clip of Dylan hucking a front flip. He's pretty much locked this one down.

Eagle's Flight

Saturday, February 11, 2012
Eagle Peak, Oregon

Kodi enjoys her chewy stick...

She's not super stoked to get left home every weekend. But taking her up is an even worse option. Kodi doesn't like sitting the the car very much.

Another sunny day at The Pass. We've had a lot...so many that I'm only up to day 10 on the season--and that includes three days in Colorado. Definitely an unusual snow year. I suppose it is payback for the several good seasons we've had in the past five years. That doesn't mean we have to like it.

Today a pair of bald eagles were circling above Eagle Peak. Unfortunately, I was in the wrong place at the right time and did not get a picture any closer than the one below (see the little dot in the lower middle).

Despite my bad luck on the photography task, it was very cool watching them float the thermals at the top of the mountain. The lifty at the top said they were there for the past two days.

Conditions were sunny and spring-like. The snow turned to a nice consistency of corn on the Front Side.

Diane gets ready to tackle Eagle's Flight.

At the top of Eagle Peak looking east. That's Odell Lake in the background.

Check out the coat. Stylin'

Riding the Twilight lift with my sweetie.

I don't think we'll have any night skiing on Twilight this year. Not a huge loss--we probably wouldn't night ski anyway. There's no park features and the snow firms up to a nice bumpy consistency at night.

The weather report suggest we might get some precipitation this week. Unfortunately, it is calling for temperatures that will be above freezing at pass level during the day. Meh.

Boots

February 4, 2012

Diamond Peak on a sunny Saturday.

I got a new pair of boots this year as a birthday gift from my parents. I got my last pair of Salomon's in...I think...2002? I loved the Salomon's--they were super comfortable, sufficiently stiff, and generally worked well. Except after nearly a decade of skiing they were pretty packed out.

Gear has changed a lot in the past 10 years. Skis got more sidecut...then they got shorter...then wider...then rocker. The innovations in equipment are awesome. They make skiing so much easier and fun. Especially in powder.

Boots evolved too. They got stiffer and more upright to reflect the stance needed to work new skis. The technique required for new skis is not the aggressive forward stance needed for the old gear. You now stand and turn with both skis and take a more neutral stance.

At any rate, after trying on lots of different boots, I found that the Rossignol's fit my fat feet the best. Here they are.

I got the boots back in August and didn't ski on them until we went to Colorado in December. The first three days were pretty painful. I loved the way the boots rode, but it was agonizing getting in and out of them. Plus lots of pressure on the side of my fat foot and on my bony ankles. So, we went back to the Outpost where we got them. The bootfitter basically said that I was pronating and that it was forcing the outside of my foot...further outside. I did not completely buy the explanation, especially since the purported solution was a $150 pair of custom footbeds.

To say the least I was a little pissed off by the expectation that I would throw down an additional $150 on top the $500 the boots cost just to make them fit. There wasn't much I could do at that point--it was either suck it up and deal with the pain of spending $150 on footbeds, or suffer through the pain of wearing the boots as they were. I got the footbeds.

I didn't get to use them until I got back to Oregon. They were still a little painful in places, but significantly better. Five ski days later and they are starting to feel a lot better--they are easier to get in and out of and my feet don't go numb any more (bonus!). I'm confident that I'll get along with these boots just fine.

Diane strides across the parking lot.

Diane tears it up.

A fun day of skiing capped off with a gig at the Axe & Fiddle in beautiful downtown Cottage Grove, Oregon. It was a fun place to play even if the place was dead. We made $32...my take was $8 which ended up to be $2 after paying for dinner. We usually get pay significantly more, but it was fun nonetheless.

I.

II.