Crystal Mtn.

[pebu]

Crystal Mtn. opens in one hour.
Knoch, Clebner? Anybody else still out there?

I realize I kinda disappeared for a while there. New house, new job, new girlfriend.
I'll possibly be out there on saturday. My girlfriend, god bless her heart, is willing to try skiing and/or snowboarding for me, so I'm thinking about getting her some ski lessons. I don't trust the snowboard instructers anymore, so I'd be the one giving her snowboard lessons.
Anyway, I'm just seein if anybody is still around.

[clebner]

I'm loaded up and headed out the door for opening day. I'm almost layed off so I plan on doing most of my riding on weekday mornings to avoid the crowds. I also am a new father as of Dec 3 so I have no control of my actions anymore!
Seeya on the slopes.

[pebu]

Hey, congrats. Seems like all my friends are having kids. My cubicle neighbor's wife is due in about a week, my old roommates wife is preggo, same with another friend I met through him. Damn.

Anyway, if I go saturday it's looking like I'll be spending most of my day on the bunny hill teachin the girlfriend the basics.

I know people here are going to chastise me for it, but I'm teaching her the damn falling leaf. I want her to know how to stop before she learns how to go.

[knoch]

Hey, congrats. Seems like all my friends are having kids. My cubicle neighbor's wife is due in about a week, my old roommates wife is preggo, same with another friend I met through him. Damn.

Anyway, if I go saturday it's looking like I'll be spending most of my day on the bunny hill teachin the girlfriend the basics.

I know people here are going to chastise me for it, but I'm teaching her the damn falling leaf. I want her to know how to stop before she learns how to go.

Well if you are going to teach her how to stop, show her how to sit down. No matter how fast you get going you can pretty much always just sit down. I'll be out there soon, not sure if anyone saw my post earlier this year but I have a pass so I'm going to try to be up there a lot, sundays and mondays mostly. I won't be making it this weekend but hopefully next weekend I'll be there.

Pebu you need to start hanging out on the front this year, try ripping up something with a little more pitch to it.

[pebu]

Yeah, I keep telling her if she ever gets in trouble just find the ground. It may not feel good to fall down, but it's sure as hell better than a tree. I don't think she'll ever get into trouble like that though, we're going rather slow. Painfully slow, in fact. I got her going down the hill sideways on her heels. Maybe next weekend we'll get to toeside and the weekend after that maybe we'll even get to go up the chairlift!
But I'm crazy about her so I guess I don't really mind the slow going.

Knoch, are you still in school?

I'm still a little nervous going down steeps. I can do buck but I usually end up in the back seat still. I don't see that changing this year, what, with trying to spend time with the little lady and all.

[knoch]

No school right now, just work tuesday through saterday in ann arbor. So i will be up there most sundays and mondays. If you find me on the hill take the time to take a few laps on the lift with me. Thats what i've been doing with every hardbooter i run in to and the advice that has been shared with me on the hill has been the best advice i have recieved. It helps to be able to see the riding and talk about it right then and there

[pebu]

I might be out there sunday. And if I am out there, there is a chance that I'll be spending the whole day on the bunny slope teachin the girlfriend. I really need to get out there and ride before I head out west (day after Christmas). So far I have one run on Cheers under my belt. Granted it felt pretty good, possibly coming on a little strong, just about stuffing the nose on toeside, and a little week on heelside, but felt good.

[pebu]

I had a pretty great time there on sunday night. It reminded me why I love hardbooting. Just ran down cheers half a dozen times, but I was plowin through the skier-groom on my SL board, which normally springs me around quite a bit. Worked on getting my arms out ahead of me pointing to where I want to go. Sprang out of some turns so damn fast that I was already halfway through the next turn before I knew what the hell was happening. Sprang out of a heelside so hard that my hand was almost touching the snow before my board hit the snow. It excited me greatly. Anyway, I'm headed out west the day after Christmas, so I'll probably be out on the hill again the weekend after new years.

[knoch]

Hey I didn't make it up there this weekend. In fact I haven't even brought the boards out of storage yet. Plan on getting up there the 27th and 28th and then the 2nd, 3rd and 4th for the Teddy Knape film fest that Saturday and a few more days of riding.

Sounds like a good time Pebu. Carefull on cheers though, I got rocked by a b-liner there a couple years ago. It's so narrow with the nastar course and the terrain park now. Hopefully when I'm up there I will run into some hardbooters

[clebner]

The snow was perfect last sunday...lots of packed powder and no ice! My borthers are coming up this weekend and want to play on the hill so I'll likely be there either Saturday or Sunday. I might as well go today too since I'm not working.

[pebu]

I might as well go today too since I'm not working.

Yeah, you know what, why don't you take your 500 snowboards and shove them up...
WOOH SAAAAAA WOOH SAAAA

[knoch]

Yeah, you know what, why don't you take your 500 snowboards and shove them up...
WOOH SAAAAAA WOOH SAAAA

What happened pebu? You not able to get out there as much as you want to? The first days I will get to be on the hill will be the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. Hope the snow is good when I get up there.

[pebu]

So I went out to WY last week. Made it to steamboat. Managed to go there the day after a huge dump. I don't care what anybody says, powder beats all. A 350ft bump with wet and icy snow is just not the same as a mountain 10 times the size with hip-high champagne pow.

Looks like I'm going to Caberfae at some point this weekend, a couple friends from Muskegon are coming up. None of them are carvers. But I think I'll still make it to Crystal one day, and I definately want to get my XVas out, and possibly try to ace Buck on my SL board.

[pebu]

I forgot to say that I was there saturday and sunday. Saturday I got there at noon or so. Holy effin people. I made about 3 runs and decided it was way way way too busy for me. Which was a shame because the snow was hero and it was a gorgeous day out. I would have hid somewhere until the crowds thinned down, but I had to go to the drop-in hockey game at 7 so I just ditched it.
Sunday was great. I didn't get there until after 6, so I was a little worried that it'd be chopped up, but it really wasn't. The snow held up great despite the warm temperature. It was to that point that even if there were a few chops I could plow through them, even on my SL board. I was crankin some real tight turns. Skied with some friends, one of which is a highschool student on the ski team. We have the same style (despite his being a skier) so we like to follow each other down. Him on his 09' race tiger SL and me on my nitro sl... He didn't stand a chance at following my lines. He might be able to do it, but he'd need about a foot of risers to keep from booting out. Soft snow is partially the problem.
Anyway, a friend of theirs was trying to learn how to snowboard so I stopped by and gave a few pointers. All of a sudden it clicked for her and she was making it all the way down the hill without falling. Last run of the night she hurt her wrist. Anyway, can't wait to go again this weekend.

Also, I saw a softbooter carving up Buck. I thought, hey, that might be Knoch, but it couldn't have been him in soft boots. So, anybody know who it was?

[pebu]

I forgot to say that I was there saturday and sunday. Saturday I got there at noon or so. Holy effin people. I made about 3 runs and decided it was way way way too busy for me. Which was a shame because the snow was hero and it was a gorgeous day out. I would have hid somewhere until the crowds thinned down, but I had to go to the drop-in hockey game at 7 so I just ditched it.
Sunday was great. I didn't get there until after 6, so I was a little worried that it'd be chopped up, but it really wasn't. The snow held up great despite the warm temperature. It was to that point that even if there were a few chops I could plow through them, even on my SL board. I was crankin some real tight turns. Skied with some friends, one of which is a highschool student on the ski team. We have the same style (despite his being a skier) so we like to follow each other down. Him on his 09' race tiger SL and me on my nitro sl... He didn't stand a chance at following my lines. He might be able to do it, but he'd need about a foot of risers to keep from booting out. Soft snow is partially the problem.
Anyway, a friend of theirs was trying to learn how to snowboard so I stopped by and gave a few pointers. All of a sudden it clicked for her and she was making it all the way down the hill without falling. Last run of the night she hurt her wrist. Anyway, can't wait to go again this weekend.

Also, I saw a softbooter carving up Buck. I thought, hey, that might be Knoch, but it couldn't have been him in soft boots. So, anybody know who it was?

[knoch]

Also, I saw a softbooter carving up Buck. I thought, hey, that might be Knoch, but it couldn't have been him in soft boots. So, anybody know who it was?

You think I can't do it in soft boots??? Okay well maybe not any more, it's been a few years since I rode that set up. I wasn't up last weekend because I had work related things going on down here on my days off, but I will be up Sunday and Monday this week. Hopefully I run into a hardbooter on the hill instead of just seeing one leaving as I'm pulling in the parking lot this time.

[pebu]

I didn't mean to imply you couldn't do it in softboots, I just meant that despite a small amount of chop you'd still be in your hardboots. I'd imagine you'd find a large amount of chop easily tamed in hardboots, whereas I get my ass handed to me if I were to try.
I'm hoping I can make it sunday, but I might get roped into going to the girlfriends parents.

[clebner]

Hopefully I run into a hardbooter on the hill instead of just seeing one leaving as I'm pulling in the parking lot this time.

Sorry to disappoint you, I promise not to leave early this Sunday.
I am staying at Kinlochen Lodge Sunday night.

I received a 175 Donek in the mail Tuesday and took it out for a test drive today....My factory prime will no longer be the goto board!

I'll be out all day Sunday and Monday till mid afternoon.
Hopefully the forecast improves for this weekend!

[pebu]

Didn't you just have a kid? Shouldn't you be saving some $$$? Plus I don't think you should be engaging in high-risk sports, I'll have to take that donek off your hands..

[pebu]

Saturday I didn't get much boarding in. There was another hbooter out there. But there were so many people and the snow seemed to be falling apart. I went to get my GS board and thought, bah, it's not worth it. So I left. Then sunday I was all pumped about going... Until I let the dogs out in the morning. Not all about the rain here. I suppose everybody is otu there today. Get some jobs you hippies!

[knoch]

Hey guys, I made it for sunday and monday but man did those conditions suck. I spent more time going through all of my equipment and putting new edges on all of it and waxing everything than I did on the hill...Oh well not every weekend can be the best. Sorry I missed everyone out there.

[clebner]

I made it out Saturday Sunday and Monday and only saw 1 alpine setup on the hill the whole time. He was riding a blue flamed coiler, I saw him make 1 run down loki but I never did catch up with him.
On my first run Saturday I got launched out of a carve on buck, flew through the bamboo pole holding up the ropes and slid head first right up to tower 4. I did not hit the tower but was stuck head down in the tower well. The intec heels and strap inside my bibs were vital in my escape.
I rode from 11 to 4 on Saturday with a couple of hotdog breaks in the lot.
Sunday we showed up at 2 to discover our insider reservations were never made but we still got a 3 bedroom on the 3rd floor of Kinlochen for 149. The room was awesome with a deck overlooking buck, and the spa was pretty nice too. We got on the hill at 3 in the rain...my older brother, my niece, and my mom in the neon green one piece. It was raining and blowing hard on top so we gave up after a hour of that, went in and warmed up then I went back out at five cause it had stopped raining. I could see someone's carve on buck and loki, I'm guessing that was you knoch. I found a line down buck that wasn't quite as awful as the rest of the hill and stuck with it for almost an hour. I switched to my slalom board and found a soft spot below a snow gun tower that swallowed my board. That one hurt a little unlike the Saturday tower incident.

Monday morning I made it out at the crack of 10:30, let me just say the conditions sucked for carving. Got off the hill by 11:45 and checked out of room.

With this weeks forecast for snow every day I am sure the hill will recover quickly.

[pebu]

I sure hope it gets a little better. I don't really want to crank my bindings up to ~90 degrees just to keep from booting out. I just wish my soft board were stiffer, I'd take that out there with my hardboots on it. As it is I'll for sure fold it.

I'm at work and trying to waste some time, so that's why I ramble.

[pebu]

Any news? I haven't been out in weeks. Last weekend we had to take the girlfriends nephew to his hockey game in Mt. Pleasant, then of course there's valentines day and dinner at the girlfriends parents. Then the week before that. Well, I forget what happened. Then the week before that i think I may have gone for a short time on sunday. Either way, I GOTTA get out there this weekend! I've got a hockey game on Sunday at 9:15, so I can't stay too late. I was pretty seriously considering going after work one of these days.

[clebner]

My wife and I went out on Sunday for 5 hours. I saw 1 guy on and asym alp with td1's, John was riding his rossi, Darren from Crystals ski shop bought a pair of hardboots from me. Conditions were nice early and were a little lumpy in the afternoon.

Last Friday was an awesome bluebird day with a little fresh groomed in.
The first time I got on the lift a local asked me why I was taking it easy...um cause I haven't made a run yet! Then when I reach the top the local group of senoirs ask me why don't I have a day job then ask me nicely to just ride in the middle of buck cause they plan on skiing the edges....I respectfully declined.

[pebu]

Man, Sunday was epic! Fell in love with snowboarding again. Bought some bindings and they came with cant so I had to try it out. Um... Yeah, they helped my riding a bit. I had a hard time washing out my heelsides. Initiations were lightning quick it felt like. I was snapping out of my turns, even on my damp board.

Red Prior and TD1s, who was that?

[knoch]

Man, Sunday was epic! Fell in love with snowboarding again. Bought some bindings and they came with cant so I had to try it out. Um... Yeah, they helped my riding a bit. I had a hard time washing out my heelsides. Initiations were lightning quick it felt like. I was snapping out of my turns, even on my damp board.

Red Prior and TD1s, who was that?

Hey I saw you on the hill on Sunday. I never got a chance to run you down though. I spent a lot of the day on skis because I sprained my ankle a few weeks ago and it seemed to hurt less to ski than board. Hopefully I'll run into someone out there this year eventually...

[pebu]

I was thinking of going on a weekday after work some time. You go sunday and monday?

[knoch]

I was thinking of going on a weekday after work some time. You go sunday and monday?

Yep, sunday and monday are my days off down here so thats when i can hit the slopes up there...

[pebu]

I'll try to get out there after work on monday, maybe sunday morning also. We're pretty busy getting ready for this test I'm conducting in a couple weeks, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to get the whole day off, but I might look into that too.