This Crazy Life

Willamette Pass Resort
Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Got up at 6am again and checked the snow report.  The DOT reported 8" so it seemed prudent to go check it out, even if I'm feeling borderline irresponsible at this point.  What I do know is that if I don't ski now, it won't happen later.  Carpe Diem!

Lot's of snow on the drive up--very encouraging.  I arrived around 8:20 and bought a 3-hour ticket.  Willamette is the only place I've ever been that sells skiing by the hour.  A lot of people do 2-hour passes.  I knew I had to be back by 2 or so and three hours seemed sufficient for today.

Dashboard still life.

Oddly, it's the same crew as last Saturday...and all the other days.  I applaud the level of commitment. 

Got on third chair today.  The snow was easily 12" and very playful.  The first several runs (two on the runs and then into the trees) were amazing.  Continuing my policy of chatting people up on the lift, I skied a few runs with a guy named Jack.  I showed Jack a few cool places.  Turns out we have worked in similar circles - river conservation - and share some common acquaintances. 

The backside didn't open today, so I decided to explore some lines on SDN that I don't normally ski by myself due to their exposure.  The one below is off the saddle between Eagle Peak and Peak II.  You ski down to the saddle past the cliffs, and then take a hard left at the saddle.  There were some 4' deep spines that I had to work through.  I let Jack have the first crack in this slot.  The picture doesn't do any justice to how steep this is - it's easily 45 degrees.  Super fun!

II

At least 3' before hitting the consolidated base from three weeks ago.

The crowd was pretty sparse.

Got to work around 2pm. Campus was like being in a completely different universe--a parallel reality with no snow and lots of kids walking around.  I had some phone calls I had to attend to.  As always, work is getting in the way of life...or is life getting in the way of work.  Whatever, I'd rather be skiing.

We have our weekly Wednesday band session this evening.  We've been working on a new song Brent wrote called "Stain."  It's about the stain the current administration has left all over all of us.  I love it.

Work is definitely crazy.  Here's my calendar for tomorrow:

8:30 - arrive at work, check email
9:00 - call with City of Newberg on two housing studies we're doing for them.  Newberg, like every city in the state, is facing a housing affordable housing crisis.  They also have a deficit of land for housing which in Oregon is a big expensive problem.
10:00 - call with City of John Day on an economic development project we're doing.  They have an incredibly dynamic city manager who is doing some very innovative things - hydroponic greenhouses, tourism strategies, etc.
11:30 - call about a technical project we're doing for Pierce County Washington.  This is a continuation of work I've been doing on the state Growth Management Act.  We're doing technical analysis on redevelopment forecasting.
12:00 - catch up on everything
1:00 - call with Ski Oregon to pitch doing a new skier profile/economic impact study.  I started doing these studies in the late 80s when I first came to Oregon. I'm proposing a new twist this time--field work.  My big idea is to do field work at all the ski areas next winter.  Sounds like fun!
2:00 - call with McMinnville on housing and economic studies we're doing.
4:00 - drive to Keizer for meetings.
5:30 - project advisory committee for Keizer housing study
7:00 - public meeting for Keizer housing study
8:30 - drive back to Eugene
10:00 - collapse due to exhaustion

This is kind of what I've done for the past 30 years.  I'm looking forward to retiring from the University next year and contemplating a schedule that is a little (a lot?) less crazy.

And last, but not least, the hits just keep coming!  The forecast for the weekend looks promising.  I'm not sure I have the stamina to keep up with the weather this year.  It's kind of beating me up.  Oh, how I suffer!

Detailed Forecast

Today

Mostly sunny, with a high near 26. East northeast wind 5 to 8 mph.

Tonight

Partly cloudy, with a low around 8. Light and variable wind.

Friday

A 20 percent chance of snow after 10am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 28. Calm wind becoming west 5 to 8 mph in the morning.

Friday Night

Snow. Low around 22. West southwest wind 8 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 2 to 4 inches possible.

Saturday

Snow. High near 28. West southwest wind 11 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible.

Saturday Night

Snow. Low around 22. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 5 to 9 inches possible.

Sunday

Snow. High near 29. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 7 to 11 inches possible.