bigwavedave

Rain started around 10 this morning. Went from sleet to snow by 2pm when it started blowing and they shut the lifts down. I went up to see what conditions were like around 4 this afternoon. I decided to hike up and make a few turns in the new snow. There was 2-4" of fresh wind blown piles interspersed with the exposed underlying frozen groom. I was able to find a line of fresh down one side. It was nearly complete whiteout. Gusting over 40kts. I wonder if they will open at all tomorrow? Let's hope some of this snow sticks on the slopes and doesn't all end up in the woods.

Hey @Algunderfoot, hope you're hunkered down in Bessemer with your PC!

If you haven't already, get a therapist (massage, etc) to work on your legs. There's a reason top athletes not only train but get body work done. Regarding leg presses and squats and such. Personally, I prefer leg extensions with ankle weights at home (or machines at the HC). It's less wear & tear on the cartilage in the knees and actually therapeutic. I save the weight bearing compressive squat abuse for actual riding.

Thanks for the comment guys. I've always been intrigued by those classic split-tails, WinterStick, AlpinePunk, Pogo, Powstick, and even Fawcett's split-tail burner. Never rode one. Last summer I placed an order for a 181 PC split-tail after Mark assured me I would like it for carving as well as surfing powder. We were working on a topsheet design when he sent me a picture of this smaller version he was making for himself. While awaiting building supplies he decided to use some wood scraps and make a "MARKetry" topsheet design. He sent me pics of the finished board and I couldn't stop thinking about it and then I heard he had to sell it. I resisted for awhile and well... So, it was just one run, but after the first tentative turns getting a feel for the board, I locked into a turn and took off linking smooth, effortless turns to the bottom. Reminiscent of the rush I felt with my first ride on a Superconductor. I believe the PC design was instigated by @Algunderfoot , a split-tail connoisseur who rides scary things like this...

Holy Solstice!! We had 3+ inches of moist snow overnight and today. Spirit Mt is closed M & T, so it's an opportunity to make some fresh tracks if you're willing to work for it (plus there's nobody there ). It was also an opportunity for me to try the new Thirst swallowtail, and...it works! Sure, I could have ridden any carving board, cause it wasn't that deep, but, my oh my, some of the best turns of the season so far! It was leftover ungroomed snow underneath. It just floated over and sliced through any underlying crud making sweet, smooth turns. Plus it doesn't hurt to have a diagram of how to make nice tracks inlayed into the topsheet. Thanks Mark, I think I'm keeping it, but you can ride it if you make it out here this winter. The really pornographic shots of the PCjv are here...

Hiked up today. 2-3" of moist snow overnight on top of ungroomed leftover from yesterday. Still coming down lightly. Made 2 runs. Might go back for one more after lunch and try the swallowtail.

Cough, cough, uh, I don't feel so good, but I made enough to pay for a new board...so, worth it? Seriously, I was just trying to think of something to say that might make the guy question his thinking. If he had asked, and I said $100/hr, would that be believable? I'm thinking he would probably not hesitate to wear a mask for that job. So, I rode 1st and last chair today, with a long break in between. I'm liking living so close to the hill. Check the webcam and if it's not busy, I can be up there in a few minutes and grab a few runs. Lately, the crowds seem to diminish during the last 30-60 minutes before they close. Tried my Boiler plate on a different board tonight. My last 2 runs were on a completely empty hill...kind of like the 1st run this morning.

There's a bunch goofy foot riders in my area. What weight were these built for Shred? Is that correct, minimum stance is 52cm (20.5 inches)?

Out for an hour this morning. 4pipe (the only new run added today) was an open expanse of frozen groom with death cookies and flat light. Bindle Stiff had better groom, but still sprinkled with ice chunks. We need a few skiing and grooming cycles to break up the ice chunks. They've put down a 2-3 ft base that should last til spring. Some natural snow on top of this would be nice. They are enforcing mask policy wherever people are in close proximity. I'm okay with riding up the quad with one other person. I rode up with a guy who told me he had been riding at Mount du Lac lately (Mt du Lac is just over the state line in WI). He said "it's a whole different world, the chalet is open, the restaurant and bar, bus loads of kids, no masks required, just like normal". Then he complained about how things were here at Spirit, and that he personally hadn't seen any evidence of this corona virus. I told him if he was interested in making some easy money that I'd been making good money helping load bagged bodies into the freezer trucks at the hospital and they were looking for more help . Then I coughed. He didn't seem interested.

Riding the 8rw on the last days before the shutdown last season. In co-vivid color.

I see Indianhead and Blackjack are open daily now with limited terrain. And it finally looks like conditions are aligning for a good blast of lake effect snow next week. Fingers crossed!

It's a men's slalom race board. I don't know the wt range, but I would say if you're under 170# you'd need to be a fairly strong rider. I'm 185#, had a 2011 model and it was great fun, but I had to drive it a bit to get the most out of it.

Biked up to check on the snowmaking progress. They have been blasting snow 24hrs/day since Sunday. Guns are now on BlueRuin. Looks like they gave up on the BigAir Park for now (grass is still visible at the bottom). They're grooming out 4pipe today with guns on DoubleJaw. So, for certain, 4pipe should be open this weekend and possibly Blue Ruin and DoubleJaw, and everything in between. The river has frozen over and I've been seeing coyotes crossing on the ice.

That's one of the things I really love about the super smooth Thirst carve. Yes, you can ride them aggressively, pushing into a turn with board on edge and accelerate through the turn. But, they don't have to be driven hard. When conditions are right (smooth mellow terrain soft enough to get an edge), I love making lazy, relaxed upright turns, just a slight bend in the knees and ankles, shoulders and hips facing the same direction as my feet for stability and balance (a relaxed stance), hands at my side, and just lean into a turn (no angulation), shifting weight from toes to heels with little or no body movement. The carve is so smooth and quiet and predictable that you can just...relax...a magic carpet ride.

Found this interesting history of Spirit Mt from its inception by George Hovland to present. Can't seem to attach a link to the pdf file. Google "Spirit Mountain: The first forty years" by Stephen Welsh

Beautiful! I was beginning to worry.

Another flat light day with a firmer groom and still sprinkled with ice chunks. Took one run this morning then out for a few runs this evening under the lights with new snow coming down (1" so far). I took one run last night, but there were too many crazy straight-lining kids. Tonight was quieter, there were fewer and fewer people each run. It was late day lumpy, bumpy crud and Scissor Bill had been scraped down to ice, but the top and bottom were nice enough to get my carve on. Felt good! Made-made snow was drifting over onto ScissorBill and is much better quality than the stuff they were making when it was warmer. Big piles of dry, fluffy snow on 4pipe and several guns blowing over in the big air park. Wonder where the best snow will be next weekend when regular season hours start?

Out for a few runs this morning in flat light. Same 3 runs are open. They are blowing snow all over 4pipe this afternoon and they should be able to keep making snow nonstop for the next several days. Hopefully they'll get better quality snow with the lower temps. Much of the snow on the hill today was nicely groomed crushed ice with chunks. We made 2-3" deep trenches. Ran into another hardbooter who races with the UMD Alpine SNOWBOARD team. He just got a new Donek 163 FC, his first real carving board...and they just cancelled the races for the season. I might go out for a couple more runs this evening if the crowds diminish. Tweaking bindings for the sweet spot on the new board, plus I tried new liners that are too stiff, so it's back to the old ones for a while.

Tried the Grand Prix (without sidewinder) and, for me, they stiffen the forward flex of my boots (MountainSlope.951) too much. Great heel hold and most comfortable fit ever. Lateral stiffness is fine, but I would like to see easier forward flex, as that is fine tuned by changing springs on the shell.

I was just watching a bunch of these "Yearning for turning" Korua vids last night. They're really fun, awesome riding. I love the way they play off all the terrain. Better music than most. Then I noticed it features the same rider, Nicholas Wolken, as a vid I posted a few days ago with splitboarding. More of a "PBS" version with exceptional cinematography, nice powder carving using AT boots and leaving behind some nice tracks. If you want to skip the walking & talking part after the opening sequence, skip to 11:09 for more turns.

Mark made this for himself, but his wife said he couldn't keep it. So, at great personal sacrifice I offered to take it off his hands...you know, to save a marriage. It's a Thirst PCjv (the baby powder carver), 169 length, 22.5cm waist with a powder nose. The topsheet is Sapele with Maple & Teak inlay and I think that's Walnut in the tail. Hand flexing it feels softer than my carving sticks, which is good. It's supposed to be a good carver on the groomers too. I've never ridden a split tail before, but they sure look sexy. Oh, and if Mario's wife asks, I'm just holding it for a friend.

Not surprised. There's always a number of racers on them at the NorAm races at Buck. At least in the past few years. Almost exclusively women, so I'm guessing a softer flex compared to other similarly priced stock (off-the-shelf) race boards like SG. Hope you have fun tomorrow! Looks like a classic nor'easter.

Snow making all last night on 4pipe and somewhere over on the Gandy side (maybe the big air park?). 12°F at dawn and shot up to 30° by the time left after a few runs. My secret top-of-the-hill parking spot is no longer a secret. There were several cars and some folks setting up a warming tent when I left. There was soft fresh groomed snow at the top (adjacent to the rope tow park) and at the bottom of 4pipe. Everywhere else was likely groomed last night and had set up pretty hard. It didn't take long for it to get too crowded for me. I split after ½ hour. 1st tracks on the 162 SF...

A short teaser for an upcoming short film release. Some nice big round turns on undulating terrain...

Snow making stopped Wed morning when temps neared freezing. They haven't made snow since then, even though it's been cold at night (20° this morning). So, they'll only be adding SkyHooker & ScissorBill for this weekend. Guns are set up on 4pipe from top to bottom and they're pushing a lot of snow around at the bottom of the hill from all the snow they made on the nordic loop. Lots of activity in the new retail/residential development on the river side of Grand Ave at the bottom of the hill. Rumor has it that Ski Hut plans to open a store in there (the West Duluth shop is closed). The river is frozen, but not safe for skate sailing yet. I've gone full studded tires (fr & rear) on the fat bike for the icy trails. I plan to go up 1st thing in the morning on Sat & Sun. Hope to get a few runs in before it gets busy.