Corey Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 A few friends and I are making a trip to Calgary and then to Sunshine or Lake Louise on March 3rd and 4th (Sat-Sun). We're having a hard time deciding which resort to spend both days at, which would you recommend? Background: -I'm going primarily for the carving, having the option to go play in powder after my legs are burnt out might be nice but is a low priority. -I'm an intermediate carver (very rarely skid) after about 3 years of riding hardboots, and have about 15 years of softboots before that. -Steep blacks make me slow down a bit, about 1/2 of the blue runs out there are too shallow for me. -I most enjoy wide slopes where you can test how many G's you can develop without fear of going into the trees if you lose the edge. Boards I'll be taking: -178 Oxygen Proton GS, primary choice for bombing around and carving fast -168 Volkl Renntiger GS, secondary choice when I feel like slowing down or there are crowds What do you think? Sunshine or Lake Louise? Which particular runs would you recommend? I've got to make the final decision today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Gendzwill Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 Louise, absolutely. On the frontside, look for the Ladies Downhill and Meadowlark amongst others. On the backside, most of the stuff off Larch chair will suit you fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 Agreed. You'll find Sunshine a bit short on nice groomers, most of it tends to be pretty soft and chopped up. Louise would be much better, or if you're really after groomers, why not take a day trip to Nakiska? Excellent groomers there ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gtanner Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 Norquay is crazy steep - but fun if you have an extra day. I say take the 168 out and see the whole mountain (especially Louise). It has soo much terrain to experience! Don't limit yourself with the 178...IMHO Have fun! -Gord Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
korc Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 I'll be at Louis on the 3rd. Havn't decided if I want to take my hard set-up or soft tho. Would like to take both if there was room in my car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Gendzwill Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 Actually the newer part of Norquay, all the lifts/runs to the right as you are looking up the hill, is pretty much intermediate carver city. It's the old double chair up the main hill that's the killer. It was once the steepest lift-served terrain in North America, and although I don't think it is anymore, it is still quite steep and consistently steep for a long time. Also, never groomed AFAIK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 get a Prior 4WD and some BTS for your bootsies :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted February 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 We're going to try Lake Louise. Thanks for the advice! I have no doubt that I'll wish for more of an all-mountain board at some point. If the powder is epic, I'll rent a soft board setup. I say take the 168 out and see the whole mountain (especially Louise). It has soo much terrain to experience! Don't limit yourself with the 178...IMHO I'm curious about this comment. What's the reasoning behind it? Is it related to length or board design? I've found the 178 to be a more versatile tool. The 168 doesn't like higher speeds and I really only dig it out when there are so many people that I can't easily pick a line through them without freaking them (or myself ;)) out. I won't be buying any new gear for this trip. It will be my first ride with my new BTS kit though! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gtanner Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 I was refering to the ability to hit the trees and bumps. There are some fun chutes and bowls to check out and the 178 may just be too long to see the whole mountain...nothing to do with the board make or design. -Gord Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted February 24, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 Ahh, I see. Gotcha! I don't get along well with bumps on any board. :D I have an older 173 Renntiger that's beat to hell, maybe I'll take that instead of the 168 for powder. It's more of a rockboard than the other two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Gendzwill Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 Don't need a rockboard at Louise this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Stevens Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 Neil: You don't have a problem with that "178 being too long to see the whole mountain" comment? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Gendzwill Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 Not when it's a Proton GS - I think people might find that sucker a little stiff and narrow for all-mountain. But last week I had my 172 AM all over the place (Whitehorn 2, Exhibition, Comedy Bowl) and had no trouble. I'm thinking my Tanker would have been a stretch in some of those places, although it would have been a gas on Whitehorn if the light had been better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShortcutToMoncton Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 Yeah, Sunshine has some great all-mountain riding, but I've always found Louise to be a far better carving hill (and better overall as well...the parking situation at Sunshine always annoyed me, you generally have to walk a mile unless you get there before everyone else). I'll be there tomorrow and probably next Sunday (the 4th) as well, so if you see a blue-yellow-and-white dude getting his ass kicked by a big red Prior, holla. I might even know how to stop. :o greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted February 24, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 Cool! Thanks so much for the info gang. Greg: I'll be in an army green jacket/black pants/full-face helmet. I'll likely be resting at the side of the run as the longest runs I get to play on locally have 350' vertical. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted February 25, 2007 Report Share Posted February 25, 2007 if you see a blue-yellow-and-white dude getting his ass kicked by a big red Prior, holla. I might even know how to stop. :ogreg :) I know that feeling well. And as for Sunshine, you'll just have to get out of bed earlier. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted February 27, 2007 Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 Greg and Corey: Bartron and I have a hot date at the Glacier Chair at Louise on Sunday at 10am. We'd love to meet up with you guys if you're around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted February 27, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2007 Greg and Corey: Bartron and I have a hot date at the Glacier Chair at Louise on Sunday at 10am. We'd love to meet up with you guys if you're around. Sweet! I'll be there. It's sad, I've never even seen another hardbooter before. I might shed a tear... ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riceball Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 If you are looking for super groomers and great fall-lines, check out Nakiska, in my opinion it is way better for wide open carving than Sunshine or the Lake. It is also only 60mins from Calgary. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 I absolutely agree with you about Nakiska. The groomers there are spectacular, and I'm really looking forward to taking my newly acquired Coiler PR there and getting my butt kicked. It might be way too boring for Neil but it works for me! However, if I was on my first trip to Banff I think I'd want to hit Sunshine or Louise as well. Lake Louise is a flagship resort, and your friends will ooh and aah when you tell them you went there. Plus there's so much varied terrain - I know Corey said he's after groomers, but who can resist just tipping off the trail and shortcutting that powder bowl ... and they're having a spectacular year. Sometimes conditions there are less than stellar, but while they're as good as they are right now, they should be taken advantage of! Just one word of warning, guys ... if you're planning on riding at 10am, you might need to be in the ticket line by about 9.15. Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted March 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2007 Just one word of warning, guys ... if you're planning on riding at 10am, you might need to be in the ticket line by about 9.15. Seriously. Wowza! I didn't expect that, thanks for the tip! We were planning to be there early so we could get on the lift at 9, but we'll have to bump the schedule up a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted March 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2007 Yuck, it sounds like it's going to be a slushy couple of days: http://www.weather.ca/weather/cities/can/Pages/CAAB0016.htm +5C - I'm going to have to look for a lighter jacket than I usually use. Most of my riding is done at -15 to -20C. Still looking forward to it though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted March 2, 2007 Report Share Posted March 2, 2007 The forecast for Louise is a bit cooler- high of 0C and low of -3C - it's a bit down the road from Banff :) . Might still be softening up pretty fast though, should make for some good carving on some of the packed stuff. I'm looking forward to this as well, I haven't been to Louise yet this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartron Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 Here at the HI Hostel in Banff, it's windy but surprisingly quite warm. It hasn't been that cold on the mountains. It's really only cold on the lifts. I've been wearing my spring gloves since I forgot my winter gloves at home :( (I packed my spring gloves as a backup, just in case. Damn glad I did) and I've actaully been doing OK with them. My hands are only cold when riding the lifts. I rode Sunshine Wed&Thu and Louise on Fri. I would agree that Louise is better for carving simply because, as Allee said, Sunshine gets very choppy quickly due to the softer conditions. Otherwise, Sunshine's runs have much more room for big wide carves. Louise has some pretty hard conditions, similar to what we find in Quebec City area on a good day in the middle of the season. I did find a run or two with some gravel on it. I have no idea where the heck that stuff came from. Louise is also pretty windy, so don't judge the weather by temp alone. The Larch side isn't as windy. Plus, getting to the Larch side is just about the coolest fun you can have not to mention one of the coolest views. Oh, and Louise has a race course set up. It's just a slalom, but should be fun anyways. What's suprised me alot here at both Sunshine and Louise, is the amount of flats and loooooooooong straight-across the mountain traverses. Real calf burners. Frustrating as hell, but you quickly learn how to avoid them. The moguls here are actually kind of fun. Probably because they have actual snow on them and aren't icy. I managed to dammage the base on my freeride board at Sunshine. I discovered (the hard way) that the base can be so thick that the snow sometimes covers frozen trees whose frozen branches are hard like rock and can dammage the base accordingly. Good thing it's old board. I've only been riding my softies for the past 3 days -- I always explore a new resort on softies. Sunday's riding will be only my 2nd time hardbooting in 2 years (the last time was last week at SunPeaks, and I was only on them for about 2 hours), which means I won't be showing anyone up. :) But it should be fun. OK, my 'Net time is almost up. See y'all Sunday. Oh, I'll be wearing a white jacket with bright orange sleeves and black Sims pants. 'later... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philw Posted March 3, 2007 Report Share Posted March 3, 2007 I managed to dammage the base on my freeride board at Sunshine. I discovered (the hard way) that the base can be so thick that the snow sometimes covers frozen trees whose frozen branches are hard like rock and can dammage the base accordingly. Years ago I broke the nose off a board at Lake Louise, hitting a buried tree in way-deep powder. The base is the least of your worries ;- On the original question... I'd ask people who just rode in each place what the snow is like, then catch the bus either way. It's a snow issue, not a lift system/ terrain issue. They're close, but one is generally clearly better than the other: that's where I would be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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