Corey Posted February 17, 2008 Report Share Posted February 17, 2008 My wife and I got home last last night after a fantastic week at SES. I thought I'd write a little report for anyone that's thinking about going but is unsure. It was my first time to SES and only my 2nd time to ski hills with more than 500 vertical feet. I was a little nervous about the fact that I was relatively inexperienced, but everyone was extremely welcoming and helpful. The on-hill classes were a blast - it's amazing what a little push and some guidance can do to your riding and general approach to the hill. The demo tent was to die for - you can ride so many boards that it really can help to narrow down your search for the next toy. I wasn't excited by some boards I thought I would love, and fell in love with a few that I didn't expect. That alone pretty much paid for the package fees in my mind. The evening activities were also great, it's hard to tell who is who without helmets and goggles so you get to reintroduce yourself only to realize you've already had long discussions with that person earlier in the day. :lol: The banquet was a great cap to the week, I was laughing my butt off during the ICOC! (P.S. The national bird of Canada really IS the beaver! :D) Choosing between the 4 mountains was pretty cool too. I LOVED Buttermilk, beautiful wide groomers in whatever steepness you wanted. Highlands was great too, except for the 'funnel' at the bottom where everyone had to creep through. One bonus of that was the icy areas in that section were similar to our local hills so they were good board testing grounds. ;) I missed the other hills due to rest days, but I'll try them next time. If you're even thinking about going next year, I recommend trying it. You'll never get a chance to ride with so many fellow carvers anywhere else. I'll be going again next year, this is going to be my one big vacation per year for the foreseable future. I'm going to start training now so that I can hopefully do top to bottom runs by then. - Did anyone else pick up the SES cold? I heard a few were getting sick on Friday, it got me and my wife hard by Saturday morning. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulk Posted February 17, 2008 Report Share Posted February 17, 2008 What a GREAT week! A lot of old friends, and a couple of new ones. Thanks Fin, Michelle and Luke for all the hard work that goes into this. A big thank you to the sponsors who showed up to share their products and ideas with us. Long live the SES/WCS. +1 for the saturday flu..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big mario Posted February 17, 2008 Report Share Posted February 17, 2008 Good times... +2 for the flu, been runnin about 101.5 since I got home last night:( mario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmartshopper Posted February 17, 2008 Report Share Posted February 17, 2008 I wonder if Ron Baar got the flu from all the germs collecting in the trenches. http://www.bomberonline.com/VBulletin/showthread.php?t=19870 ________ VAPORIZER Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreac Posted February 17, 2008 Report Share Posted February 17, 2008 What a GREAT week!+1 for the saturday flu..... Good times...+2 for the flu, been runnin about 101.5 since I got home last night:( mario Maybe you two shouldn't have been kissing so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadBrad Posted February 18, 2008 Report Share Posted February 18, 2008 It was also my first SES, first time to Aspen, and was the best week I've ever had on the slopes. I arrived Saturday night, traveling from sea level (Baltimore). Had a bad headache that night and didn't sleep well. Drank several glasses of water and took an Aleve, but still felt bad. I had never suffered from altitude sickness before in my previous trips to Colorado. On Sunday morning I really felt bad, but after some vomiting felt somewhat better, so I hit the slopes. I had a slight headache and nausea the rest of the day, but it wasn't too bad. I took the clinic with Alex at Snowmass on Sunday, and really liked it. We had a small enough group that he could watch each person and give some individual pointers. I started on my 2008 Prior AWD, then later on switched to the 02/03 Madd 158 that I just bought used the week before. The Madd was really fun, snappy, and really held an edge, but it needs a lot of input and tired me out quickly. On Monday we were at Buttermilk. Had a great day. Did a clinic with Sean which was very good, but too many people for any individual instruction. Tuesday was the SES day off, so I went to Ajax with my ski club friends. I rode the lift with a skier who complained about the carvers getting in his way on Ruth's Run. Light was pretty flat all day, which hurt my confidence. Ajax was my least favorite of the mountains, but maybe that was because of the weather and flat light. Wednesday we were at Highlands. What an awesome day! Sunny skies, nice intermediate groomers, nearly empty slopes -- probably the best day I've ever had on the slopes. Finished off with the hardbooter kegger. On the bus ride back to Snowmass there were some grumpy nasty people, including the driver. I couldn't believe that anyone could be grumpy after such an awesome day. Thursday was the powder day. SES was at Snowmass and I was at Snowmass too, but spent most of the day following my skiing buddies around the mountain and didn't hook up with the carvers. I only saw a few carvers that day anyway -- I guess most people were on their powder boards. I was on the 4WD. This was really my first day in powder. I struggled on my first run, but then got the hang of it and was hooked by the end of my second run. By early afternoon the flat light and chopped up terrain and tired legs meant it was time to quit early. Friday was back at Buttermilk. I finally demoed a couple of boards that day. First was the 173 WCR metal, which was the longest board I've ever ridden (I tend to like short turny boards). I liked its light weight, but it felt kind of slow and dead to me. I guess I prefer snappy boards to damp ones. I then tried a Donek FCII 167 and really liked it. Then I went back to the Madd 158 and really liked it a lot too. If I didn't already have the Madd I would seriously consider getting that Donek. Friday was a fairly short day, due to the demos and needing to quit early to get ready and get to the banquet. I did drop into a clinic with Sean which was fun. Afterward I asked him if he watched any of my turns and had any suggestions. We talked for a couple of minutes and he suggested something which I tried on my last run, and it seemed to help a lot. Too bad that was my last run for the season, because I'd really like to work on that some more. And finally, the banquet was a blast and the food was great, and I even won a nice prize in the raffle. It was an awesome end to an awesome week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadBrad Posted February 18, 2008 Report Share Posted February 18, 2008 Some photos from Wednesday at Highlands. No good action shots, mostly just photos of the views. Highlands photos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEJ Posted February 18, 2008 Report Share Posted February 18, 2008 Also my first SES and trip to CO. Words cannot explain the experience. It was like hanging with the "Who's who" of the hardboot world. I learned so much just listening to the gurus talk. It was awesome to see ALL the ski racks at the gondola filled with NOTHING but square tails waiting for first tracks. What, fifty or sixty or so. Riding up the lifts and seeing the entire runs filled with carve marks instead of skid marks. Seeing twenty or thirty carvers ripping down the hill as you ride up. It was a feeling of belonging, not one of being the outcast. What amazed me most was that for all the talent at this gathering, I didn't see much ego. It didn't matter if you were one of the best in the world, or just starting to figure it out, everybody seemed friendly and helpful. My thanks to Fin, Michelle, and Luke. It was you're hard work that made this happen for everybody. What started out as a "Once in a lifetime experience" will now become a yearly pilgrimage for Gretchen and I. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carverchick Posted February 18, 2008 Report Share Posted February 18, 2008 It's great to see new people experience SES for the first time. We were like that last year and became instantly hooked. I hope we can continue to acquire more talented people such as those who belong to this site and sport. Let's start a revolution and move forward baby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarveItUp Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 I/We agree fully. Derek and I had considered going to Colorado for the event for several years but this year due to several factors we were able to do it. I think we'll be back again. Using points we were able to fly in Tuesday and home on Saturday. By Friday afternoon our east coast legs were trashed. I don't know how you did the whole week Corey, you must be in better shape than us. I found finding information about Aspen (like the bus routes, maps to the hills etc.) difficult to do before I got there but it made sense once we were on the ground. I was a bit nervous leaving here without a real idea of how to get to where we were staying from the airport but it worked out. The riding was amazing. One reason I wanted to go on this trip was that I was not feeling excited about snowboarding anymore - The time and money spent getting to Ontario hills from our town is not favourable. I'm completely in love again. Aspen works very well - getting to the various hills is easy and it seemed everyone could find something for their skill and desires at a given time. Aspen is also a neat place for people watching. Seeing the students getting ready for the slopestyle competition at Buttermilk on Friday or playing "Spot the Trophy Wife" all around the village made for lots of laughs. I've never seen so many ankle length fur coats and stilettos being worn at the same time in one place. Then there were the actual events - from modeling Derek's boots in playdoh to getting tips from Sean and chatting with people on the lifts and at the tent every moment was fun. To everyone there thanks for making us feel welcome. To Michelle and Fin - great organization! We have no evidence of a flu but we were there for only three of the days - perhaps it's the "I don't wanna leave" disease? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allee Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 Even after riding back to Denver with Ray, who was really sick ... I'm coming home to rest and detox. Way too many laps of the groomers and far too many margaritas. But what an awesome week!! To anyone thinking of going ... just do it. Favourite parts - riding in the trees for the first time - a foot of fresh at Snowmass - the demo Coiler metal 172AM (order on the way for next season) - margaritas in the sunshine at lunch - riding with the most amazing people : PaulK:1luvu:Helmut, Mellow Yellow, Ray, Jim, Steve, Quentin, Dan, Corey, and the crew from Calgary ripping it up - and props to Quentin and Greg, the two best roomies a girl can have!! Shout outs to the girls - doing some serious damage on the slopes - especially the beginners who were just ripping by weeks end! Now, how to pay for next year ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tex1230 Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 I think I just got approval to go next year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algunderfoot Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 Without a doubt the best concievable conglomeration of hardbooters and carving comradorie available in North America. With some of the worlds best riders, mentors, manufacturers, characters, and the rest of us who find this experience worthy of annual participation. We were already looking forward to 2009 while on the plane home in 2008. Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted February 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 I don't know how you did the whole week Corey, you must be in better shape than us. I only rode 4 days out of the 7. ;) That little bottle of Sport Legs certainly helped too! It killed me missing those 3 days, I hope to do all 7 next time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rik Fromdahl Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 just so i can have an idea about how much $ to start rat holing, can someone tell me what ses costs for the whole event? my needs are few, just a place to crash and bathe, something to eat, and a plentiful supply of jack daniel's.... :D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algunderfoot Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 Rik, This could vary considerably, based on your choices in lodging, airfare, rental car or no car, and quantities / qualities of imbibment..... But here is my example which was reasonable for Aspen: Airfare: Comped - Frequent Flyer points Lodging for 2 - $110 / Night Rental car - $ 205 / week + 57.00 in taxes & fees Gas - $ 35.00 Session - $ 545 Food / Booze - $ 30-60 / day (90 / day for Taka Sushi :)) Airport parking @ home - $ 11.00 / day It worked out to about $3500 for 2 sharing the bills.. Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadBrad Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 I was lucky that my local ski club went to Snowmass the same week as SES. I signed up for the trip with friends last summer and didn't even know about SES until a few months ago. It was $1300 for plane fare, lodging, and 6 days of lift tickets. So perhaps check around local ski clubs and see if they happen to be making a trip there at the right time, or maybe some local travel agency has a group going there. I actually rode 6 days straight (Sunday to Friday), and I'm very happy that I was able to do that. Usually I need a day off mid-week to recover, but this year I did a lot of spin classes, weight machines including leg presses, running hill repeats, and wall sits in preparation for this trip, so I was in pretty good shape even though I didn't lose any weight. My legs still got pretty burned out by early to mid-afternoon, but they held up much better than during past trips. I wanted to ride with my skiing friends on the SES off day and ride with the SES group on my ski club off day, so I didn't want to take any days off. I had a 5 day lift ticket, but bought an extra day for cheap. BB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted February 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 We flew into Denver and got a rental car for the week. Staying in Glenwood Springs saved a lot of money over lodging in Aspen, but it's inconvenient to drive 40 miles each day. We're still debating if it was worth the money saved; there seemed to be one car accident per day on that drive and any one can shut down the road. One surprise was that we could extend our multi-day lift tickets for one additional day at the fraction of the price. We found this out just after we bought one at full price for my wife. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 "We found this out just after we bought one at full price for my wife. :(" The Aspen Skiing Company is great about giving you credit in a situation like this. Not sure if it is too late, you might try giving them a call- should have all information in computers under your name. Try (970) 923-1220 and ask for one of the ticket supervisors.<!-- / message --> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GQuentin Posted February 19, 2008 Report Share Posted February 19, 2008 We flew into Denver and got a rental car for the week. Staying in Glenwood Springs saved a lot of money over lodging in Aspen, but it's inconvenient to drive 40 miles each day. We're still debating if it was worth the money saved; there seemed to be one car accident per day on that drive and any one can shut down the road.One surprise was that we could extend our multi-day lift tickets for one additional day at the fraction of the price. We found this out just after we bought one at full price for my wife. :( And don't forget... With the money you saved you were able to buy some beautiful new 700T boots I had such a great time at SES!!!! Look foward to seeing everyone next year, Quentin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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