OhD

That seems to have worked out pretty well. I took off the heel and used a bent piece of 1/4" steel rod as a forming tool. I made a sharp bend about 1/2" from the end then a gradual bend the other way and then a recurve so the two ends were about colinear. I stuck the short end into the cable hole in the sole and manipulated the other end to lever the curved part against the side of the shell right above the hole. 5 minutes of moderate heat gun (giving the heat time to flow through the shell rather than just charring the surface quickly) and it was soft enough to form. The resulting chanel isn't as distinct as I was hoping for, but it seems to be deep enough to house the cable and with stiff foam padding stuck on both sides of the cable to fill the channel it looks like it's going to work pretty well. 5 days of riding next week should be a good verification test.

Flo Dead yeast? Did it rise at all, and how many times did you let it rise? What flours? Any GF baking I do these days is with mixes, and even the best of them are pretty delicate since they have no gluten to make rubbery bubbles. Bob's Red Mill (http://www.bobsredmill.com/) makes a bread flour mix that works well for cookies (with baking soda to leaven it) and a great (!) cornbread mix (rises well and even bakes well at altitude - a quadruple batch at 4500' last weekend came out perfect). Does anyone distribute the brand in Scotland? As I remember, the WW/rye/cocoa bread was pretty sturdy stuff, but that just gave one more time to appreciate the flavor. I don't know why a slow cooker wouldn't work. Two possibilities come to mind: 1) It might not have enough power to bring the dough temperature up fast enough. Even if preheated, the dough will drag the temperature down quite a bit and the small heating element just won't have the poop to do the job (in the US they are used on 15A, 120V receptacles, 1800W max power, versus up to 7000W in a 30" range oven). The moisture in the bread dough has a high specific heat (heat required to raise the temperature to the vapor point) and high latent heat (heat to evaporate it to steam) compared to anything else (the steel, ceramics, etc used in either the cooker or the oven, and the flour in the bread) so it absorbs a lot of energy getting up to 350F. Low power (W) = slow temperature rise. 2) The heating element is probably in the bottom, so nearly all the heat energy that gets into the bread has to go clear through the bread from the bottom, and bread, once baked and dry, is not a good conductor of heat. In fact, if your loaf is truly inedible it might make a good trivet and conversation piece.

You'd think someone standing a few feet from the end of a runout, protected by one layer of light fencing from whatever makes it across the pond, would at least face the action.. I suppose most riders who make it across are competent enough to stop before taking out the kid or the guy in the gray jacket along with the fence, but I still wouldn't stand there. We used to do the pond skimming thing on a natural tarn next to the Austin Pass ropetow at Mt. Baker, usually starting in mid-to-late June. It's amazing what lousy waterskis cambered K2 Comps are, and it's equally amazing how sticky and slow spring snow can get as you approach the water table! Lots of fun, but I have established to my absolute satisfaction that skiing in cutoffs and no shirt when one's natural skin pigmentation is still hibernating is not wise. The Washington State Patrol eventually decided that letting small hordes of young, inexperienced but entheusiastic and tired drinkers get toasted in several senses then drive down a switchbacked mountain highway (even with 10' snowbanks) was not all that wise either, and shut down the Slush Cup.

You might have to kneecap someone to get them to part with their AM. Just sayin...

It was a great weekend, although the groomed powder was kind of soft for the practice course we set up. Made for good rut-handling practice, although I tended to chicken out and take such a high, early line that it was probably costing time. Saw all the usual carving suspects on the hill, and got a lot of interested questions on the lifts. The snowboard race team coach has finally got some hardboots to use on a board I picked up at a swap to loan the team, and having ridden it once he's pretty stoked to learn more. The resort came up with funds for him to buy a set of snowboard gates just recently, so things are starting to look kind of encouraging. The race team has so far focused almost entirely on BX, although there are a couple of kids who've been on the Inland NW USASA circuit hitting the Alpine races and doing well enough to spark some interest. The coach, Anson Morgan, took a crew to the USASA Nats at Copper last year, entered BX for his first race outside the NW and took home 4th in his division. This year Anson and assistant coach Donny Harvey are taking 8 competitors to Copper.

Has anyone tried punching out the outboard side of the heels on 700's to create a trough for a step-in heel cable? I've been getting along fine with padding around the cable for a couple of years, but just recently it has started to really bother the side of my heel (back foot - which gets more abuse when kicking the tail around for hockey stops and such). The painful spot is at the hard bump about 3/4" above the sole, straight down from the main ankle bone projection (whatever it's called), too close to the shell footbed to really route the cable away from it without too sharp a bend. The shell looks pretty thin in the area, judging from light transmission and considerably thicker further aft. I'm thinking of making a paddle shaped to form the recess that I can pre-position inside the boot with some preload against the shell, and apply an insulation mask (maybe aluminum foil/ceramic plumber's soldering fireshield) to the exterior leaving a gap where I want the recess, opposite the paddle former. Then, carefully apply heat with a heat gun, watch for the deformation to occur, and quench it quickly with a wet rag to keep any degradation of the plastic as localized as possible. I'd appreciate any guidance from anyone with some experience with these boots. My other recourse would be to abandon the step-ins, but converting two sets of TD3s to standard would cost at least $272 and I may have overlooked a few parts. Plus, I'd have to start eating lighter meals...

I'm almost certainly going up this weekend, staying over Saturday night. Hoping to drag the Inland NW USASA crew up for a weekend of practice before the Nationals - maybe even set some gates. Give me a shout if you can make it up for a day or two.

In addition to tree wells and tree trunks, there's another, less obvious hazard out there: http://www.scottishlakes.com/ “On Saturday, March 2 the hiking community lost one of its stalwart ambassadors. Don Hanson, owner and proprietor of Scottish Lakes High Camp, died when a tree dropped a giant load of snow on him while he was working outside the lodge. Don is described by those who knew him as a "force of nature." At 65, he had more energy than most people half his age. Don was always generous and gracious, becoming lifelong friends with many of his guests.</SPAN>”</SPAN> Don had reportedly just nailed a trail marker to a tree and was starting to ski away when the accident occurred. XC skiers and anyone who rides in the woods and glades are advised to be aware of the snow load on trees, especially in warm or transient conditions when the snow may be dense and consolidated or frozen.</SPAN>

The quiver for Big Sky, including a brand-new (delivered there) Nirvana 182. Ages in years (l to r): 1,0,6,5,1. Love 'em all. Had to leave the alpine skis and a couple of Arbors home. The Nirvana had a tough week, but it's all better now. Fabulous board when I'm feelin' my oats.

Leashes or brakes have been the rule almost everywhere I've skied or boarded for 45 years. Same as seatbelts in my cars. If you don't use one, you would be well-advised to carry a hefty no-fault liability policy (useless for carrying your board or securing it to a rack so some moron doesn't knock it over and launch it down the liftline run from the mid-mountain lodge). If both bindings fail and your board hurts someone, you might avoid damages if you can prove that the fault is entirely that of the manufacturer. If you screw up and drop your board off the lift or lose it while trying to get mounted (especially if you installed and set up the bindings) without a leash, well best of undeserved luck to you. It is a matter of personal responsibility to take reasonable precautions to protect others from the consequences of your errors and failure of your property. That's one reason lawyers eat so well - idiots who fail to exercise personal responsibility (especially where they have been specifically advised to do so in writing) are easy prey. If you could get everybody on the hill to sign a release waiving all rights to sue you for any damages regardless of your fault, you might not have to worry about personal responsibility and the many behaviors that flow from it. Good luck with that, too. The propensity to worry may be an evolutionally-cultivated trait characteristic of species which have survived to evolve. Could be that we no longer need it, having big brains and highly-refined technologies. Wanna bet?

Did the little twerp make much of a crater?

Big Sky's been great. We (3.5 couples- old friends from Seattle & Bellingham) rented a ski in/out house for the week and have four days on the boards at BS. I've been two days on a brand new Coiler Nirvana 182 (fabulous board) one on my Venture Zephyr and one on freeheel skis. We've had a foot or so of fresh pow, temps mostly in the 0 - 20F range and not much of a crowd (a swarm of Palm Beach skiers in costumes being a colorful exception). BS is not big on groomers, but given the size of the resort there are still Lots of nice blue cords and the quality is quite good. Big ungroomed powder bowls and steeps above and below treeline are the resort's trademarks, and boy do they deliver! Huge blue and black bowls and glades, many of them moderately bumpy but tempered with enough powder that the light traffic can't begin to pack it out. Big arcs or zipper lines- it's all good. Tight slots in the woods abound (not the best terrain for a 182 on hardboots) and there are is a lot of wind transport above treeline so base damage is pretty much a given. The base village is compact and pretty comprehensive and there's another village 7 miles down at the golf course. Not much in the way of huts (or toilets) on the mountain, but good and fairly reasonable food. It's pretty easy to get around apart from a flat area on top of Andesite (step-ins are worth the weight and cost just for the smug factor as you sail past the softies). There are a good network of cat tracks to commute on and enough uphill capacity that apart from the summit tram we've not seen more than a minute or two lift line anywhere, even on Sunday. Put this place on your bucket list, and bring a rock board or two unless you come late in a good year. Photo: 09:30, Wednesday, Lobo Meadows.

Having two days with a brand new Nirvana 182 on the empty slopes of Big Sky, the only disappointing fact is that it isn't rockproof. The good news is that after I get the edge repaired I'll have an incredible rock board. Frankly, the board is so solid-feeling and high-fidelity in it's responses that a couple inches of edge pounded in wasn't even noticeable on firm groom. The Nirvana will keep up with you, and I wouldn't recommend it to a beginner unless you are a pretty competent softboot carver. It is a terrific board for big mountain riding (bumpy powder in Liberty Bowl and Marx Bowl was one of the high points of my 20 years of riding), really stable and calm, but nimble and manageable in bumps as long as your legs hold up. I'd suggest you get the Nirvana with a nice portrait of your wife on the topsheet, or put it on your 2-year budget.

Check out White Pass, especially the expansion area.

Galen I usually ride out in the expansion, but if it gets crowded I'll go back to the frontside, which has the big steep face runs above the lodge. Grooming has been excellent last spring and most of this season. A good base followed by a bit of a drought gives the guys all the advantages.

Galen I'm up there often on weekends, but will be away for most of the remainder of this season. Christian and Tammy ride there a lot, and their friend Geb from Germany (working in WA) was there recently. Jerry the trumpet guru (Slider) was there the same weekend with a new exotic board , looking fabulous. There was another guy that weekend, carving like a racer and carrying his kid's ski poles, passing them hand-to-hand each turn, and I saw another guy awhile back riding with poles like Troy (Boardski) but I'm pretty sure it wasn't him. There are some really good softboot carvers riding there as well. Anson Morgan and Sam Gaitlin - both witht the Learning Center - come to mind. I usually wear a blue jacket (retired instructor there) black helmet and pants, Deeluxe Tracs (white/red). Sometimes I ride a green Venture in softies, but mostly either HB or freeheel skis. Name's Dennis if you want to yell at me. Hope to see you.

I think one of the skiers dropped something. Quite a wreck! Looks to me like his tail sketched into one of those damn trenches but his nose didn't, changing his carve into a skid-bite. Glad he rode away!

As I understand it (based entirely on at least thirdhand information) ".. each to their own" would more likely be ".. each to someone else's." The event organizers could probably explain it a little more succinctly than I could, at least on this forum:freak3:. "..each to their own" is a little ambiguous - I guess it depends on how possesive your politics allow you to feel about your partner... but somehow I have a hard time imagining anyone bothering to organize a big party for onanists.

So how'd the voting at the banquet turn out?

Have a good day Brian. Anybody planning on riding MHM ot T'line tomorrow? I'm going to Hoodoo today and to a Hood area yomorrow. Dennis

I inspected the Fintec cable housing on my front boot the other day and found it had broken clear through, but the cable itself was undamaged. I removed the handle and chopped off the swaged cable end, pulled the housing out clear of the cable and trimmed it off neatly with a Dremel cutoff wheel. I swaged on a new ferrule (larger than ideal, but I had it in my bike kit) then bent the cable into a loop and fixed it with a Nicopress fitting. It would have been better to put in a thimble but I didn't have one, and didn't have enough tail on the cable anyway. I tied a loop of parachute cord through the eye to serve as a handle. It's probably going to be a little fumbly to grab, but on the front foot that shouldn't be too annoying, and it won't flex the remaining cable or housing nearly as much as the handle did. As a design enhancement, it would be nice to have a smaller handle with some sort of cable lock that wouldn't require a swaged-on cable end fitting, so the cable or housing could be replaced without disturbing the other part. The socket on the present handle that fits onto the end of the housing is nice for keeping the handle handy and protecting the core from flexing, until the housing fails. The housing might be better if more flexible - it doesn't really need any axial stiffness in this application. A spiral-reinforced one or even a plain spring-type might suffice with a smaller handle. Some way to keep the handle from flapping about and flexing things would help, too. Lots of trade-offs in the design of even such a simple gadget! The repair gave me an opportunity to inspect and re-pack the heels. I put nearly a whole tub of Bomber Butter into the pair, hoping to exclude water and keep me from having to get into them again for a very long while. No mechanical problems or noticeable wear, apart from exterior wear and tear from walking on bad surfaces and kicking snow off on the binding heels (I try to use my stomp pad) and missing the mark on flying step-ins. I sure love the step-ins when riding with skiers! I rode with a softbooter buddy last weekend and about went mad waiting for him to get mounted and ready while our skier friends were disappearing.

Uh - that's not exactly how I understand swingers do it...

NASTAR does give snowboarders a -10 handicap adjustment to compensate for the gates. I'd rather see them just use snowboard gates for everyone and give us a handicap based on some statistical testing based on data from their pacesetter meets. They'd have to recruit some snowboard pacesetters, at least for those meets. I bet a lot of casual skiers would prefer snowboard gates, too. I don't see many folks wearing guards and slamming the NASTAR gates.

You never see all their turns - only those they make at the stage of their learning curve at which you happen to be watching.