Sun Peaks Feb 20-24; Banff Feb 27-Mar 6

[bartron]

Hey folks,

I've finally gotten around to booking my snowboarding trips -- it's a long story. This week I'll be at Sun Peaks, riding Wed-Fri., staying at the hostel...unless my reservation doesn't go through. :)

Next week I'll be in Banff from Feb 27-Mar 6. I might not ride Saturday, just to avoid the crowds. I'll see.

Give me a shout if any of you are going to be there.

I can't wait. I didn't ride at all last year. I've had my WCR for about 1.5 years, and I still haven't ridden it.

BTW, I'll be bringing both my hardboot setup and my softboot setup.

I'll be really easy to spot: white jacket with bright orange sleeves.

'later...

[Allee]

I'm in the hostel at Sun Peaks as I type this. It's dumping snow here.

This is a fun, fun hill for a carving rig. I've had three great days going all over the hill. And the hostel is a hoot.

I can't make it out during the week at Banff, but if you want to meet up on a Sat or Sun let me know, and we'll see if there's anyone else around as well.

[bartron]

!@#*$ holiday !! By the skin of my teeth, I have managed to get accommodations.

I had no idea it was president's week. I wanted to go last week, but I was sick.

Oh well, such is life. I did manage to get a place at the Horie, the Japanese lodge.

Should be fun.

'later...

[bartron]

I'm in the hostel at Sun Peaks as I type this. It's dumping snow here.

This is a fun, fun hill for a carving rig. I've had three great days going all over the hill. And the hostel is a hoot.

Super ! Glad to hear you're having a great time. I can't wait for my turn. I'll be arriving at the resort tomorrow at around 14:00.

I tried booking with the hostel, but they could only give me Wednesday and Friday. :(

I can't make it out during the week at Banff, but if you want to meet up on a Sat or Sun let me know, and we'll see if there's anyone else around as well.

Sure do. My Banff arrangements are all done. I'll be at the HI hostel for all 7 nights. I won't be bringing a laptop, so we'll have to do the arrangements by phone. I'll mail you my number.

'later...

[bartron]

I just got back from Sun Peaks early this morning. I had a great time. The accommodations were great, the shuttle service was excellent and the conditions were good. Believe it or not, there was still some untracked and barely-tracked snow Friday !!

I wasn't sure what to expect since I had never been riding out west. In fact, it was my first time riding in 2 years ! Plus, I haven't been keeping in shape like I used to. So, being an idiot, I decided to start my first riding day going all out with my alpine setup. That didn't last too long. :) I switched to my softboot setup after about 2 hours to save my legs and get my coordination back (riding low angles is very intuitive for me whereas riding with high angles isn't). But I still went all out, and paid the price the next day. For the first time since the first year I started riding, my legs were really sore from riding. I felt so ashamed. :)

It's amazing how easy it is to "forget" how to ride even though you talk about riding technique. Especially when you're in a new environment. It took me about 4 hours to realize that I was using my quads waaay too much and barely using my hips.

Then I discovered Mount Morrisey. It still had quite a bit of untracked and barely-tracked snow. So I spent Thursday and Friday in the trees. It was great !

I was surprised by how icy the slopes could get. It wasn't as bad as here in the east, but it was pretty hardpacked.

Finally, many thumbs up for the Horie Lodge. It was excellent. Great room, great equipment room (with a wall of boot drying pipes) and great location (at the end of the Cruiser run). And it's run by a little old Japanese carver.

Next week, Banff.

'later...