Heard in the lift line - 09-10 Edition

[BadBrad]

Not in the lift line, but my 13 year old nephew said that I ride an "old man's board". I'm nearly 4 times his age, so maybe that's true.

We old-timers can remember back when alpine was more popular, and we could find alpine equipment at our local ski shops. Now the local ski shops have no clue what an alpine board is.

[anke]

One of the workers at Kirkwood asked me if that is a "mono ski".

Then right before boarding the lift, a gal from behind yelled over "sick board!"

It was only my fifth day on hardboots, but the comments so far make me excited about what else I'll get

[koldo]

Last week one of my friends who has never seen an alpine board: ´Sexi monoski´

Then I went to warm up on a nice green slope, we met up after a couple runs later. She was standing at a lift line, with my brother, who explained her how to ride the ´mono ski´. She came to me, mouth wide open, asking the question: ´Will you marry me?´

[BlueB]

She came to me, mouth wide open, asking the question: ´Will you marry me?´

You must have been getting laid...err...laying it over!

[bigdyno]

A young kid (8ish) got on the lift with me and said "cool slant ski" and then had a nonstop conversation with his buddy about girls being gross because they like to hug. Poor kid, I'm sure he'll learn someday.

[Steve Prokopiw]

Not in the lift line, but my 13 year old nephew said that I ride an "old man's board". I'm nearly 4 times his age, so maybe that's true.

We old-timers can remember back when alpine was more popular, and we could find alpine equipment at our local ski shops. Now the local ski shops have no clue what an alpine board is.

Right next to the cassette tapes and used tools...

[Corey]

I rode Xmas eve, boxing day, and the 27th at a local hill. The average skill level of skiers and snowboarders here is quite poor. Carving is very rare except for the top 2% of skiers and 0.5% of snowboarders. Those numbers may be kind...

1. The most common question was "Is that hard?" After it got repetitive, I started having fun with my replies:

"No, I just started this morning/yesterday/last week!" I always laughed and gave them a serious answer immediately after.

2. One guy asked me why I was on an old-fashioned board. (I was on a Coiler Monster 182 with TD3s) I replied that it was made in November of this year. He then asked why I would get a new board that was made like the old boards were. I cut my losses, smiled, and suggested he watch racing at the olympics.

3. "How can you get that low and stand up again?"

4. "If I try to follow your tracks I take about twice as long to get to the bottom as you do. WTF?" - Beginner/intermediate skier on carving skis. We had a good chat on the lift ride up.

5. "Does that hurt?"

6. The steepest run (would be a shallow black in mtns) is under a chair that you need to ride to transition over to the blue runs with the terrain park, so it's often filled with park rats that don't ever ride this sort of terrain. I heard all kinds of things that equate to "Wow!" but in language that would be changed to **** here. ;)

Way more cheers than jeers. That's cool!

[anke]

Last time in Kirkwood while waiting for my ride, I had 2 boards leaning against a wall of snow, the base of the boards facing the street.

Then I hear a young man yelling from across the street: "Hey, you! What width are your skis???!"

I yell back: "Those are snowboards!"

He looked puzzled and a bit embarrassed too

[Sultan Guy]

4. "If I try to follow your tracks I take about twice as long to get to the bottom as you do. WTF?" - Beginner/intermediate skier on carving skis. We had a good chat on the lift ride up.

:lol: That is funny!

[Neil Gendzwill]

Had a kid ask me "is that fun?" on the chair. I hear that so often, I have a standard reply - "nope, my Mom makes me do it".

[Loc]

Lifty: "Gosh I love watching you carve! You're so graceful, it's like ballet"

I've never considered myself a ballerina, but I guess I'll take it as a compliment :lol:

[Steve Prokopiw]

Lifty: "Gosh I love watching you carve! You're so graceful, it's like ballet"

I've never considered myself a ballerina, but I guess I'll take it as a compliment :lol:

I get this a lot,which has led to my getting in touch with my feminine side and looking on ebay for a pink one piece suit with a faux fur collar.

The real dagger to my masculinity is when someone decribes it as 'pretty'.

Actually, I do find myself trying at times to look just a little reckless to avoid the ballet comparisons.To complete that theme I thought a leather Nascar jacket and blue jeans oughta do it.

[kinpa]

I get this a lot,which has led to my getting in touch with my feminine side and looking on ebay for a pink one piece suit with a faux fur collar.

Do it Steve!!!! Do it! Do it! Do it! Are you still riding in your 70s jacket??? and the bright shiny helmet on top of it!

[powdahbonz]

Wife went in to warm toes and I went to warm the legs and I get off the lift at Cranmore (..easy now...young children in ski/snowboard school...family event) and as I'm buckling in the Schtubby, I can see a couple checking out the board and what I'm doing as I make final adjustments. Finally after a few up and down looks, he says "alright...what the hell is that...are you snowboarding?" I explained that the half-pipe and other free-riding olympians representing the US were not the first snowboarders in the olympics. (Cue the vacant "I don't get it" look) They were behind me on the way down and smiled giving a thumbs up and a woohoo. I was the only one at Cranmore on Wednesday and Thursday

[crucible]

Had a kid ask me "is that fun?" on the chair. I hear that so often, I have a standard reply - "nope, my Mom makes me do it".

That's CLASSIC! I'm gonna borrow and use that as a standard reply from now on....

[KingCrimson]

"Give me my wallet back, punk!"

Actually, this year the ratio of clueless to knowledgeable is impressive, it's about 1:1 at this point.

[b0ardski]

I get this a lot,which has led to my getting in touch with my feminine side and looking on ebay for a pink one piece suit with a faux fur collar.

The real dagger to my masculinity is when someone decribes it as 'pretty'.

Actually, I do find myself trying at times to look just a little reckless to avoid the ballet comparisons.To complete that theme I thought a leather Nascar jacket and blue jeans oughta do it.

I've gotten "it looks like your dancing" many times, especially when I'm spinning & buttering through the bumps. I always say "I am dancing, I dance with the mountain; a cold mistress that commands certain moves and punishes me when I don't pull them off:1luvu:

[Sinecure]

Today a lifty asked me "is that scary with angles like that?" I said, "not as scary as riding duck is to me."

[bjvircks]

looking for a pink one piece suit with a faux fur collar

Hey Steve, is that you with the pink tu-tu?

[Steve Prokopiw]

Do it Steve!!!! Do it! Do it! Do it! Are you still riding in your 70s jacket??? and the bright shiny helmet on top of it!

A shiny like new,royal blue Couloir one piece that had to have been 600.00 or more for 29.00 on ebay.I could see cat skiing in this awesome spacesuit.I might wear it at Schweitzer tommorrow.I might not.

This still relates to this thread btw;imagine what might be heard when I wear the suit:0

[CaRtharsis]

I was on the top of the hill with my Dad waiting for the hill to clear. I asked the older gentleman on skis if he would like to go. He said no I love watching you guys carve the hill go ahead! The same day a skier asked me if my snowboard was broken. I replied no I bought it this way. Perhaps it was the stubby nose. The day before we were riding with Bruce V. My Dad has a new VSR with a snake skin topsheet. Bruce loudly complemented my Dad on his huge snake!! Lots of funny looks in the lift line!!!

Sorry to move off topic, but is his VSR the custom 180 Bruce built? He's building me a 177 medium but I was debating going longer.

[Puddy Tat]

Came carving down a run in full sight of the liftline and had this conversation with a twelve year old kid on a softboot set-up after I had arrived in the liftline.

Kid - "Is ski-boarding fun?"

Me - "Actually it's a snowboard"

Kid -<Blink> "But those are ski boots"

Me - "Actually they're snowboard boots"

Kid - <Blink> <Blink> "But those are ski boots"

Me - "..."

At this point he stopped talking to me. I'm actually kind of happy about this because it was beginning to feel like one of those "but this one goes to eleven" conversations.

Dave

[pebu]

So I was pulling into the Buck chair line and some teenage girl sees it.

Teen Girl to her boyfriend: Hey, why is his board so much cooler than yours?

Boyfriend: Hey!?!?

The conversation continued between several people in the viscinity when she couldn't quite come up with the shape.

Teen Girl: Cause its kinda... Square or somethin.

Someone else: Well, it's more rectangle than anything.

Yet another person: Where did you learn your shapes?

blah blah blah.

Anyway, it made my day (I mean, on top of sleeping in, playing video games, taking a nap with the girlfriend, playing some more video games and carving hero snow) to hear that to a teenage girl my board is cooler than some jibbers board.

[Wolf]

I got on the lift with a 20-ish guy who commented that he had been watching me carve and that it looked so good. Then he went on to say that he expected the guy riding like that to be maybe 20 something years old. Sort of a compliment because seeing me up close he could now see that I'm actually 50 something. I do get a lot of questions and positive comments, maybe five or six a day. I just ordered some cards from Fin - didn't know he gives those out by mail.

Note 1: I'm not that good - it's easy stand out as one of only four carvers I know of on a little hill in Ohio.

Note 2: The comments about riding old stuff would be valid for me. I was riding a Heavy Tools Lizard with SnowPros that day.

[www.oldsnowboards.com]

In addition to the more common comments we get being alpine snowboarders. Add to that that Tinkler and I are often both riding TNT models. Twice today we had folks say "Hey, those are the boards that split in half to climb up" "How do you like them".

Typically you are on the run or getting ready to take off, I just say "I like them allot" Not exactly back country equipment, however, it is an understandable mistake.