Dan

Hmm, I've been leashless forever, though I do usually carry one of the short Catek leashes just in case a patroller decides to be a stickler. Heck, that thing is probably a collector's item, maybe I should be trying to trade it for enough leashes to outfit the whole quiver ;-) Reading all these responses has made me rethink a bit though - maybe I should think about taking some precautions. Board falling from the chairlift in particular would be bad.

Who knows if they're really in stock here, but Google turns up this http://prospectsnowboards.com/product/bomber-power-plates/ They're not too far from you, maybe worth a call or a visit?

Is that a joint? A knee?

Well...Buster travels further in a season to ride with other BOL members than I have probably traveled to ride in my whole life on snow. What he lacks in post count, he makes up in stoke.

MORE DAYS ON SNOW!!!! I have felt badly shortchanged the last few seasons (didn't help that I spent 3 months working in Singapore 2 seasons ago, lol). Hoping to turn that around this season and make some trips - already have NICE and WTF lined up, and I'm trying to get my CA cousins to rally for a Tahoe or Bachelor trip. Maybe a trip to Mt. Bailey with my sister is in the cards too...

Don't take this as the final word, but I have heard unofficially that it will be held the week of January 15; I'm planning on heading to Schweitzer on those dates, taking the 22nd and 23rd as rest days, and then hitting WTF on 1/24 through 1/26. Great invitation to check out Revelstoke! I wouldn't be able to make it as part of this trip, but another time I would love to take you up on it!

Thanks Allee! I love the idea of hitting Kimberley or Fernie, but after some thought, and taking into account that I will be working with floppy noodle legs, I think I probably need to take some rest days after NICE. I'll work remote on 1/22 and 1/23, then hit WTF starting the 24th. Still not sure where I'll be on the 22nd and 23rd, maybe Whitefish or possibly Spokane -- I've been mulling over a move there for awhile and it would be nice to spend a little time there. Cuban, I'll be at WTF 1/24 - 1/26, just me this time, my wife's new job is not very generous with vacation days. Looking forward to riding with the WTF crew again! Tahoe is TBD because I may be doing a ski trip with my cousins in February, destination uncertain, but we'll see how things shake out.

I'm in! Would be nice if some of the old OES crew showed up...

Speaking of the used marketplace, I have been enjoying the hell out of the Monster you sold to me about...must be 5 or so years ago?

Guys, I love all the ideas I've been hearing, thanks for all the suggestions and advice. It is really fun to think about all the options. Sadly, this may be turning into a kind of hypothetical discussion at this point, or maybe "next year for sure", because I'm starting to get projects that will run into the winter/spring, that might make it hard to be remote. Still, it's always good to know what the options are...:-) I'm pretty set on the idea that I should get into Mountain Time. Europe is out for this because I really need to be online during West Coast business hours, otherwise I would love to spend extended time there. Same for Japan. Funnily enough, I've been looking at little old Brundage in Idaho primarily because lodging close to the slopes is really cheap, and when I'm looking at staying the full month, things add up. I haven't heard really anything about that mountain, has anyone ever ridden there? @Cuban, I'm hoping to drop in to WTF this season, though I wish you were starting about 2 days earlier so I could go from NICE direct to WTF. Sounds like you're doing something like what I had in mind, are you on vacation, or will you be on call when you're in Tahoe? Who knows, maybe I could drop down for a long weekend.

I'll be damned, I found the photo and it's the same graffiti that you posted. This is from October 2014.

I have a photo of that somewhere, taken in Portland Oregon. Where was that one? This is a meme I can get behind!

I applaud this careful decision :-) Looking forward to a ride report once we have a little more base.

Removing my comment to keep the focus on the Unofficial ATC.

I don't know, I would probably give it a shot if there were demos somewhere I was riding, but I think the lack of footrests is a drawback - makes it hard to execute a clean carved turn. I think it could be good for adaptive riders, but again, I think it would be better with footrests for that use.

Haha, I'm in the same "not so sure about my 15 year old avatar anymore" club. But now it's sentimental! Welcome back!

The price is right! How is Big White for carving?

I thought about it, but I've spent some time there and at Schweitzer and I like Schweitzer better (sorry Big Mountain crew!), so if I was going to that neck of the woods, I'd probably stick with Schweitzer.

Agreed, I could definitely see Mountain Time.

I just got back from your fantastic city! It's an option, for sure. I would probably want to pick one of the local hills (Cypress, Grouse, etc) and buy a pass. What are crowds like weekdays, and is there enough terrain to stay entertained for a month?

This is probably just wishful thinking, but if I wanted to spend a month somewhere in January or February, where should I go? Criteria: -good grooming / good carving terrain -slopeside lodging, or at least a short shuttle bus ride (less than 15 minutes) to the slopes -Can rent a furnished apartment/condo/studio/room for <$1,500 for a month You're probably wondering how I can get that much time off work. I can't! But I might be able to work remote for a month and get in about 2 hours of riding in the morning, then work 11-7 each day. Being close to the slopes is an absolute requirement; even 30 minutes makes this kind of a dealbreaker. Schweitzer came to mind, naturally (shoutout to NICE crew!), but what other options are there? I imagine that Sun Valley and Whitefish are out of budget, Bachelor doesn't have lodging close enough to the hill, and I have the impression that Big Sky doesn't have great grooming. What are the other options? A place that runs the chair at 8 a.m. Pacific time would be even better - then I could start my work day only about an hour behind. Any thoughts? Anything west of Denver is a possibility.

Sexy! Makes me wish I could longboard worth a damn

Hey Bryan, that sounds great, it has been too long since we've caught up. I'll shoot you an e-mail. Cars and bikes are definitely part of the challenge at our house; sometimes I just have to give up and drive around the block. Pruning our big rhododendron helped too :)

Update: I took another run at backing it up last weekend, taking the driving advice I got here, and it went pretty well - was able to get it over all the steepest sections to the point where I could just manually push it into the garage. I'm not declaring victory, but I see the light at the end of the tunnel. So maybe I'll skip the winch and spend that money on lift tickets :-)

Small tractor sounds great in theory, but a little impractical because the trailer comes in and out pretty often - 3 weeks in a row earlier this month. So, hiring you sounds like the way to go! You have to pay airfare, but I will drive you to Mt. Hood if you come out during the season ;-)