chadx

Big Sky is a 2.5 hour drive from Helena and is the only place we ski and board. That's not only because of the terrain and lack of crowds, but because we have a place to stay in Big Sky and we get season passes there so any days spent at other ski areas cuts into our 'daily average cost' by not using our paid-for season passes. Unfortunately I've not been to any of the other ski areas that Kinpa noted (which is bad, since we lived in Bozeman for a while and now live in Helena), but I can comment on the one aspect of Great Divide here in Helena since I hear lots of people talking about it. The best advice for there is "bring your rock board". The base is still advertised as 40" deep, but most people tell me you have to watch for rocks, etc. year round, much less that late in the spring. We do get some snow storms through, but we also have a lot of 50 - 60 degree days by then (just had 4 days of 50+ temps and high winds that melted all the snow piles in town, but the mountains still have quite a bit of snow in them). That time of year, it will really be a timing issue. If a storm just came through, you'll be pretty good. If it's been in the 50s for a week, maybe not so much. I wish I could comment on if Great Divide has fun carving terrain, but since I've not been there (and couldn't explain what type of terrain we want to most softbooters or skiers), I can't help there. So, I guess my response if full of no useful information at all, really. :rolleyes: Sorry.

Meeester Darren, As (un)luck would have it, I won't make it to Big Sky this weekend. We were up last weekend and will be up next week starting Friday...which of course does nothing to get us on the slopes at the same time (unless you'll be there until Friday). I'm bummed the timing didn't work out after all that communication. Sometimes that's just the way it goes. Hopefully we'll get to do some runs together sometime. Chad

Hey, that's pretty cool. I especially like the part where I clicked the run button and watched it send the skier icon along your route with the times and everything.

Heya Flashby, Sounds good on the trip. We'll play it buy ear and hopefully be able to meet up. No smartphone, but you can call or text my cell. And just so you know, there is pretty good reception in Big Sky for voice and even better for text. (I think I sent you my number, right?)

Thanks for the update. It will be hit or miss if our schedules sync up, but just shoot me an email or give me a call a couple days before you head to Big Sky and we'll see if it works out. In any case, have a fun trip. Snow should be good out this way. Big Sky had the deepest base Thanksgiving weekend since 1996, so a good head start. The mountain (and the coverage) is skiing like it normally does in Jan. We were up Thanksgiving weekend and we are heading up again Dec. 18. We normally don't go up and ski until after Christmas. Good stuff.

Rynox34, Email sent through Bomberonline. Thanks.

Off to the bay if no takers? The bay linky here

slopetool, I'm up here right now. Getting ready to head out this morning. Will be out there both today and tomorrow. I'll keep an eye out for you. I have brown pants, burnt orange jacket, and black fullface helmet. Chad

Kinpa, I'll have to check my schedule. Is there a session up there then? I haven't been on here much so am out of touch with the upcoming events. yyz and flash, I emailed both of you further contact info for myself. It is dumping like crazy in Montana. Mrs. Chadx and I are heading up to Big Sky this weekend. Not sure if we'll ski and board, but have a few errands and home owners association meetings to attend and will be nice to get away for a long Thanksgiving weekend.

I've not been, but for anyone else that stumbles on this thread and is curious here is there website: redlodgemountain

Email sent with my contact info...

Yes, I would ship to Canada, although it can be somewhat expensive. I checked for one person and it was over $30. PM me a shipping address and I can stop and get a shipping quote/estimate if you are seriously interested. We might be able to work something out on the shipping.

Great. Hopefully we'll make it up over that time line and be able to ride together. If anyone is interested, we rent our 2BR/2BA condo up there, but there are lots of other rentals up there, too. We usually end up staying with some friends up there that we only get to see during the ski season, so end up doing seasonal rentals on our unit. http://www.vrbo.com/109035

For Sale: Giro Remedy S Carbon Fiber Fullface helmet - Size Medium. Brand new in box. Flat black with gray and blue pinstripes. Similar to the regular Remedy S except this helmet is made out of Carbon Fiber so is lighter. 907 grams (32oz) compared to 1050 grams (37 ounces) for the non-carbon fiber. 143 gram (5 ounce) reduction is about 13.6% weight reduction by going with the carbon fiber. Noticeably lighter. Size medium. The box says 21.75 - 23 inches (55.5 - 59cm). I am 23.75" so ended up getting a size large instead, but I have an oblong head so usually end up wearing one size larger. I've been wearing my Large and love it. Visibility is still as wide as my open face and the weight isn't noticable. I thought it would feel like more weight, but really it doesn't. Very happy with it. MSRP is $270. Asking $195 plus shipping. This is a brand new helmet. Never been worn. I live in Helena, MT but am in Bozeman and Big Sky often so can coordinate meeting in either of those places or routes in between.

Email reply sent. Would be good to ride with you and anyone else heading to Big Sky for the '10/'11 season. I'll be up there, for a 3 day weekend about every two weeks.

Wish my schedule would have allowed heading up to Whitefish, but not this year. I'll be up in Big Sky over president's weekend (Feb. 13,14 and 15).

I have recently started wearing a Giro Remedy S carbon fiber and love it. It doesn't feel too heavy (that's why I got the carbon fiber version). The mouth guard is surprisingly low (in photos, you can see some of my mouth) so it doesn't block my voice and doesn't block my vision except extremely low. I was a bit surprised that it retained as much side-to-side and upward visibility. I thought the visor would be more useable in blocking the sun, like on my motocross helemets, but the top front of the helmet actually comes into view before the visor, so the visor seems to just be for looks. The visibility is more open and wider than any of my motorcycle helmets and, again, is the same side to side as my open face helmet. I bought both a medium and large and decided on the large, so I have a medium for sale here: (I might be able to exchange it for a large if someone needs that size). This is a new in the box Giro Remedy S carbon fiber. http://www.bomberonline.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=27995

Hiya. Sorry you're not going to make it out to Big Sky this year. You could always schedule an extra trip this season! Ha. Glad we hooked up for some runs and Robert could demo you that board. It seemed like it worked well for you. Did it trigger any new gear purchases since then? They moved up north so don't see them. Too bad. I could usually count on them being on the hill when I showed up. I have to catch up on the bomber threads and see where all the 'fests are this year and when. Unlikely I'll get to attend any, but you never know. Would be fun and I'm sure it would be a learning event.

Well say hi to them, from me, when next you bump into them. Yeah, I think that was before we to Montana and was the first year I carved. Heck, the first year I snowboarded for that matter. I've improved a bit since then. Ha. I did only get 11 days on the mountain last year before my big crash (one knee and both ankles) so I was out the rest of last season. Good to go now, though.

Thought I'd post up. I'm in Big Sky / Moonlight Basin most weekends. Well, maybe every other this year. Post up if you are going to be around. Better yet, send me an email through Bomber. I often don't receive auto-emails when subscribed to a thread and sometimes don't log in for days and weeks at a time to check.

Well what with all this white stuff on the ground, I'm actually ready to transition from my motorcycle bulletin boards to the snowsport bulletin boards. Just a little late to the tea party on this one. Better late than never...so "Hiya everyone". ...and happy new year. My first day on the mountain wasn't until December 12 and the conditions were horrible. Man-made snow (man-made ice is more like it). Ran for 3 hours on the rock board then called it a day (plenty of rocks, still, and even did a core shot that almost ripped out my edge). Conditions were bad enough to make an injury from last year flare up. Scared me that this year would be a problem. Well, I'm happy to report that is not the case as I just spent the New Years weekend carving 3 long hard days with no issues. I'm in Big Sky every other weekend or so. I'll have to do better watching the regional section. Mid year, one or two hardbooters are easily spotted throughout the day. Some don't even act like they want to say hi or discuss it. Some you end up carving with for 3 days. kram, glad to hear you hit it right and had great conditions! I think R & L are no longer there. He said they were planning on moving and I haven't bumped into them or seen there vehicles at the place they managed and lived.

Sorry to post here, but my post in the "WTB" area has only received 30 views and I need to appeal to a wider audience. Michelle says these $5 cuff cant assemblies, for Suzuka/Indy, are currently on backorder. Mine is broken, though still holding on by the skin of it's teeth. Anyone have a spare I can buy until Deeluxe fills the backorders? I'm afraid it is going to completely break while I'm up on the mountain. I rode on it all last weekend. The upper shell seems to stay reasonably in place with forward/backward lean, but the occasional side to side movement makes the upper shell want to pop outward and potentially off of the remaining piece of the cant assembly. Might not be a safety issue, but if it does break, I might be unable to board for weeks waiting for the part (and losing days to make my season pass worthwhile). Anyone have a stash of them with which you are willing to part? Or can point me to someone that might have them in hand? Part Z in this image It's this part on the bomber site... http://www.bomberonline.com/store/bo..._cuff_cant.cfm Thanks, Chad

Part Z in this image from the bomber site. In the below image, it is the large flat piece that is broken. With that broken, it's threatening to allow the second piece from the left pull through the upper boot flap. Not too much of a threat with forward/backward boot flex, but side to side the upper shell starts to lift. I'm sure something could be rigged from a hardware store, but I'd rather find the correct $5 part than spend $10 to rig it. When wearing the boots, it's the inside cuff cant on my right boot. I'm told by Michelle that this is one of the few parts that they've seen break on the Suzuka and Indy. I wish I would have known before so I could have stocked up and not risked any down time. Needless to say I have two of them on order and not just one.

Michelle says these $5 cuff cant assemblies, for Suzuka/Indy, are currently on backorder. Mine is broken, though still holding on by the skin of it's teeth. Anyone have a spare I can buy until Deeluxe fills the backorders? I'm afraid it is going to completely break while I'm up on the mountain. Probably not really a safety issue, but if it does break, I might be unable to board for weeks waiting for the part. Anyone have a stash of them with which you are willing to part? It's this part... http://www.bomberonline.com/store/boots/parts_af_cuff_cant.cfm Also, any leads to another source would be great! Thanks, Chad

+1 on the retractable Dakine. If someone is cutting or otherwise reaming on it, hopefully someone will call them on it or I'll be back in time to deal with it appropriately. I usually use a stand that I can see out the window and take short breaks/lunches if at all. Stealers are lazy and though there are probably instances where one bothered to defeat a lock, I've never heard of it. They'll grab whatever won't make a scene.