Afton Log 2010-11

[Call me jack]

Sorry, it sold on Saturday. You gotta love Craigslist (and getting 2 feet of snow last weekend). Just for a point of reference, it was a 1993 with 76K, 4.0L, 5 speed, 1 owner (me) and all the choice options. It sold for $5,500. I miss it already, but five cars is too many for me to keep running and with a soon to be teen driver, the Jeep is the wrong vehicle for him.

The new owner didn't want to buy the Yakima board/ski and bike racks. If you get a Jeep, let me know.

for sure!

Just curious though; whats wrong with a jeep for a new teen driver? i would think that with 4wd, they'd always be getting to school, and what not?

but, yeah i now what you mean, our car to driver ratio, at our house is ridiculous

[bonzo]

for sure!

Just curious though; whats wrong with a jeep for a new teen driver? i would think that with 4wd, they'd always be getting to school, and what not?

but, yeah i now what you mean, our car to driver ratio, at our house is ridiculous

High Power + Short wheelbase + high center of gravity = easy to get the vehicle sideways and roll it

To easy to do in wranglers and the result can be fatal, especially for an inexperienced driver.

Don't drive it like you stole it unless the road is clear and straight. The easiest way to roll them is to get it sideways on ice and then hit clear pavement. Ugly scene will result at any speed over 25 mph.

Just like a board that's built to carve on groomers doesn't mean you take it out on a major power day. Know the limits of your equipment.

[Futahaguro]

awesome! i only had 2 hours to play this morning, but holy crap was it sweet. yes, the light was flat, but the snow was superb. i was only on inga's run the whole time. didn't even cross over to trudy's once. although nat was tearing it up.

the grooming was good, and there were some nice rollers to get some good (and some not-so-good) air transitions on. snow was nice and firm. you know the sound a zip line makes? that's what my gloves sounded like going across the courd.

if you can, get out and ride before it gets soft with all the new snow!

-trent

You were there? I was boarding by 10:30 but I never saw a carver! I took the day off and went with my brother-in-law but I didn't bring my alpine board because I knew there would be soft snow and I wanted to hit the jumps. Boy was I sad when I started boarding though! The cord was awesome!!! I could have really laid down some carves! Oh well, it was one of the best days I have had in Minnesota for a while. No people, wide open runs, great weather. Man that was fun. And all of that for $30!

My neck is sore from all of the jumps though:) Bobble-head I guess. I as ripping it pretty good on my Ice Rocket though! More than a few boot-outs on the heel side:)

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

[Scott.Creer]

Was out this morning and it was amazing. The light was a little flat but the grooming was the best so far. Hand was making a zip sound as it hit the snow. I was teaching a friend hardbooting for a few hours, then just started riding around. Touched base with Ben who was out for the first time this year. Pretty empty on the hill. See you all after the 3rd.

[trent]

You were there? I was boarding by 10:30 but I never saw a carver!

yep, but only until 11:15, and i was only on chair 2. next time, bring the carving gear too. you missed some awesome snow.

@scott.creer - that's my favorite sound riding!

-trent

[Call me jack]

Got out today. First time since last thursday. it was nice. really solid snow, and it honestly wasn't too crowed at all, on 7. 2 was kinda hit or miss... (nastar, and what not)

When i first got out there, they asked me to give chair 9 lunch breaks for an hour. while i was there, some strange guy with no teeth riding an alpine came through. i said hello, an told him i had hard boots in my car.... i don't think he believed me.

I feel like, since i'm hardly going out at all this year, my riding has become very... focused. I've been really satisfied with it this year.

[bonzo]

Yesterday was very nice in the AM. Nicely groomed and firm. With the heavy traffic, calls were above normal levels by noon. I spent a fair amount of time on the snowmobile.

I'm working again today. Hopefully it isn't to crazy. If we don't have too much to do to get ready for the day, I will try to get in a few turns on 2, 7, or 16 before it gets busy.

[JJFluff]

So, I missed the christmas eve at buck but... I am getting ready to head out for afton as I type. So if anyone is planning on being out keep an I out for a guy who looks like he doesn't know his way around. That will be me. Hopefully I can catch up with one of you.

[bonzo]

So, I missed the christmas eve at buck but... I am getting ready to head out for afton as I type. So if anyone is planning on being out keep an I out for a guy who looks like he doesn't know his way around. That will be me. Hopefully I can catch up with one of you.

It was nice to share a chairlift ride with you before I had to return to the patrol room. Busy day, only rode the snowmobile after lunch. Saw call me Jack working on 5. Looks like he had his hands full. Got in a few runs on 2 , 7, 12 and 16 before assisting in toboggan refresher evaluations.

[bonzo]

Yesterday was another fine day at Afton, at least in the morning. Soft snow and great groomers everywhere. Spent most my time on 2, 7, 16. Talked with call me jack working 13. Didn't see another carver. After lunch I was too busy to ride and the lines were long.

Will be working with candidates, probably on 7, tonight. I'm not stoked about the rain.

[Call me jack]

Bonzo, i'm looking more into getting a wrangler (I think a TJ would probably be the best) in your experience how do they do in the winter and snow? i keep hearing they're hella cold, but was it really that cold, with your hard top?

i also heard that the short wheel base make them simply hard to drive, which i remember what you comments are on that, but for an experienced driver, do you think it'd still be difficult?

[trent]

happy new year! all 1's today, fun to write/type.

slopes were empty! had the place pretty much to myself, but i didn't last long as it was cold. conditions were variable. 1 was super hard and fast, but carvable. they were grooming 2, so it was soft. like a snow cone. really got punished if you put a hand down. 7 was rock hard as well, but again carvable.

considering the weather yesterday, and all that rain, the snow is in amazing condition!

-trent

[bonzo]

Bonzo, i'm looking more into getting a wrangler (I think a TJ would probably be the best) in your experience how do they do in the winter and snow? i keep hearing they're hella cold, but was it really that cold, with your hard top?

i also heard that the short wheel base make them simply hard to drive, which i remember what you comments are on that, but for an experienced driver, do you think it'd still be difficult?

CMJ,

If you can't make it to Afton, then you can't ride, so this is on topic. All my experience is with the YJ's, I have heard that TJ's are an overall better experience. With my YJ, I never had any problem with getting stuck in the snow other than driving into a snow filled ditch that I thought was level ground. The old 4.0L inline 6 always fired up even on the coldest days.

The stuff that annoyed me was all the little things Chrysler did to save a few cents. I had to rewire the instrument panel because the flex circuit would lose contact with the wiring harness. All the little plastic pieces that would snap off in hard to access places such as the doors thereby disabling the interior door handle or lock. I was constantly chasing away corrosion, it starts with the exterior hinges, but it eventually spreads to the sheet metal followed by the frame. Once the frame starts to go, it's structural rebuild time.

If I were going to buy another Jeep Wrangler, I would make sure it had the right options: hard top with rear defroster and wiper (keeps out the wind, you do not want a soft top in the winter), ABS, manual transmission (keep the engine below 2K rpm to prevent spinning on ice), limited slip differential, power steering, and the big motor. My old Jeep had all that.

In 4WD, you'll get through anything short of 4 ft snow drifts. Drive it easy on wet, snow, or ice covered roads or loose surfaces. If you go off-road, go straight up or down hills, do not turn across a steep fall line.

They are fun vehicles but they are best for voyages of less than 2 hours. The suspension can be punishing on long drives. Just like any tool, they can do a lot of damage if you don't know how to use it. It will not corner like a sports car, it does not get the fuel economy of an Insight, but it will take places a typical car cannot. Just take your time. Do not even think about drifting with them.

[Call me jack]

first off

CMJ,

If you can't make it to Afton, then you can't ride, so this is on topic. All my experience is with the YJ's, I have heard that TJ's are an overall better experience. With my YJ, I never had any problem with getting stuck in the snow other than driving into a snow filled ditch that I thought was level ground. The old 4.0L inline 6 always fired up even on the coldest days.

The stuff that annoyed me was all the little things Chrysler did to save a few cents. I had to rewire the instrument panel because the flex circuit would lose contact with the wiring harness. All the little plastic pieces that would snap off in hard to access places such as the doors thereby disabling the interior door handle or lock. I was constantly chasing away corrosion, it starts with the exterior hinges, but it eventually spreads to the sheet metal followed by the frame. Once the frame starts to go, it's structural rebuild time.

If I were going to buy another Jeep Wrangler, I would make sure it had the right options: hard top with rear defroster and wiper (keeps out the wind, you do not want a soft top in the winter), ABS, manual transmission (keep the engine below 2K rpm to prevent spinning on ice), limited slip differential, power steering, and the big motor. My old Jeep had all that.

In 4WD, you'll get through anything short of 4 ft snow drifts. Drive it easy on wet, snow, or ice covered roads or loose surfaces. If you go off-road, go straight up or down hills, do not turn across a steep fall line.

They are fun vehicles but they are best for voyages of less than 2 hours. The suspension can be punishing on long drives. Just like any tool, they can do a lot of damage if you don't know how to use it. It will not corner like a sports car, it does not get the fuel economy of an Insight, but it will take places a typical car cannot. Just take your time. Do not even think about drifting with them.

Thanks a lot, man. You cleared up a lot of my concerns with the jeep. if i want gas milage or street performance, i got my bmw. :) I'm going to try to find one where the 4 wheel drive is broken, or something so i can get it cheap, and fix it. btw, can soft tops be fitted in the summer, on hard top jeeps?

Any way, i got out at about 330, in soft boots w/carving stance. the day pretty much complemented what trent said on the big 3 (we apparently both skipped 16?) how ever, being i soft booted those hills, in those conditions i was a little out of my league, so i hit smaller hills to get equal thrills. 14 was just about perfect, especially when the pitch increased half way through (i over heard the kids on the chair behind me marveling at trenches) 9 was good too, though i didn't stick around too much. what also worked well for me was between tube land and 7. On the hole today was pretty good, but i think i need to look into upgrading my soft boot carving gear; i've never felt so unplanted. i thought it was just me, but the girl i was with (giggity) even said that she could see my board wiggle around a lot. Not sketching out form poor technique, but just getting pushed around by every bump. I fell a bunch. stayed till close though.

Nice seein' ya, Trent!

[bonzo]

Conditions at Afton were quite nice this AM. The sun was shining and the runs were well groomed with firm snow that took and took the edge well. Didn't see a carver all day (though I did see Call Me Jack working 3 around 4PM). I got one run on 7 before moving to 9 for toboggan training. We then moved over to easy 12.

Moving from the Meadows to the Highlands I was able to get in a free run on easy 12. I was feeling pretty stoked, running at 11/10ths, laying out some big surf style carves on the GS Donek with Catek OS2's. Near the bottom on a huge toe side carve, I felt the board disappear under my feet and I was sliding on the snow face first. The board was about 50 feet away from me. I did a simultaneous double boot out. Everything was tight on the bindings. The boots fit the Cateks tight. The safety strap was toast. The only thing I can figure out is that at the extreme board angle, my toes dragged and popped both bails.

I was occupied until 2:30PM with either training or accidents. After 2:30PM I did some free carving until a little after 4PM when the light started to go away. After the double boot out, I didn't go harder than 8/10ths. I have booted out with Cateks before. It is always a scary experience. I've never had that problem with my Burton bindings. I may be selling one or both my pairs of Cateks so I can purchase a set or two of Ibex or Bomber bindings.

On a sad note, Paul Augustine, the founder of Afton Alps, died Saturday morning. The man was a visionary. He will be missed.

http://www.hastingsstargazette.com/event/article/id/17263/publisher_ID/20/

[bonzo]

I'm going to try to find one where the 4 wheel drive is broken, or something so i can get it cheap, and fix it. btw, can soft tops be fitted in the summer, on hard top jeeps?

Make sure the 4WD works on something like ice (bring an observer). On dry pavement, you will feel resistance in the steering (try turning sharply both ways).

Get the factory hard top and you can buy an aftermarket soft top for hard top doors. The aftermarket hard tops and doors are too expensive for what you get. If you got a place to hang a hard top winch, you can buy quick release parts for the hard top allowing one person to remove the top in about 2 minutes. Then you don't need a soft top. Unfortunately, you will get wet if it rains.

[trent]

carving goodness!!

i was only able to play for a short time this morning, but holy crap am i glad i went! it was spectacular! i was a little worried with the fog and snowmaking, but all worries were gone after the first couple of turns. i was only on chair 2 - had no reason to go anywhere else (nor did i have time). the cord was firm, smooth, and held very well. i felt no snowcone and no ice down below. there was a nice ridge down the middle of the run too. provided some planned, and some (more) unplanned, air transitions. all fun, even the crashed ones.

corduroy artisan was there ripping it up. i met paul too, who was also ripping. hopefully those 2 are still having a blast! i was bummed i had to leave. get out and ride if you have a chance!

-trent

[Futahaguro]

Nice to hear. I have been worried that our rain storm really F'ed things up but apparently not too much. I'm thinking of trying an evening this week or maybe just stick with a morning on the weekend.

[trent]

powell1.8 and i did a quick morning session. started on chair 2. snow was groomed fairly well, and hard. like yesterday, no grooming going at 9am! i hope they keep it that way. a few seams between passes that made for some jarring mid turn. i was riding the nsr, and wasn't able to control my speed as much as i would've liked. couldn't really dig into the snow today. but, there wasn't any ice, so i'm not complaining. plus, if you skidded the right way across the cord, it made a loud whirring noise.

we went over to 7 for a little bit too. it was in great shape. i was much happier over there as i wasn't going faster than my comfort level. at least not as much as on chair 2.

more snow guns running today than yesterday too. afton's never afraid to turn on the water, and leave it on.

-trent

[Scott.Creer]

nice! I a pumped to go this weekend. I will try to call nate tomorrow to see if we can get some stubbies set up this weekend. Weather in MA was awful for snowboarding, glad to be back in MN

[Futahaguro]

nice! I a pumped to go this weekend. I will try to call nate tomorrow to see if we can get some stubbies set up this weekend. Weather in MA was awful for snowboarding, glad to be back in MN

Just in case I miss the post please e-mail me if you plan to get something set up because I will be interested.

Thanks.

[Call me jack]

Any way, i got out at about 330, in soft boots w/carving stance. the day pretty much complemented what trent said on the big 3 (we apparently both skipped 16?) how ever, being i soft booted those hills, in those conditions i was a little out of my league, so i hit smaller hills to get equal thrills. 14 was just about perfect, especially when the pitch increased half way through (i over heard the kids on the chair behind me marveling at trenches) 9 was good too, though i didn't stick around too much. what also worked well for me was between tube land and 7. On the hole today was pretty good, but i think i need to look into upgrading my soft boot carving gear; i've never felt so unplanted. i thought it was just me, but the girl i was with (giggity) even said that she could see my board wiggle around a lot. Not sketching out form poor technique, but just getting pushed around by every bump. I fell a bunch. stayed till close though.

Nice seein' ya, Trent!

as good as conditions were, that night i think my sloppy unsupportive soft set up might have hurt me a little bit; since i was substituting mechanical support with muscular perseverance i think i inflamed some tendons in my front calf, a little bit, as they're touchy to walk on, at times. it kinda bums me out, 'cause i hurt the same leg, last year when i went over the handle bars, on a heel side, and that didn't completely heal until spring.

With that sob story out of the way, i think i'm going to get out tomorrow morning, in hard boots, and see how it feels. any one else going to be out there?

[Call me jack]

got out at about 11a. started on 7.... it was ok, but it felt really funny... i was defiantly struggling with something. Maybe it was the flat light...

Any way, i moved around to try finding simpler hill, to maybe warm up on... wasn't happening for me, at all. it was all so soft, from all of the snow being made. I really started getting frustrated, and started just making coleman slides, like was longboarding...

So finally i headed over to 2, which has never been one of my better hill unfortunately, but is was worth a try. As i got there, the sun came out... the sun came out. holly ****! my day turned around completely! i was making legit hard, fast turns all the way down 2, in between lift poles (the plain that best my ability atm), also unlike all the other hills, they only had one snow gun at the very top. for that hour that the sun was out, i was on my A game. best runs of the season thus far. i got to the bottom, and actually had to catch my breath briefly. I was making turns, where afterwords i thought to my self, "holly ****, i cant believe i actually was able to pull that off"

then the sun went away. i road okay, afterwards, but i really need the sun.. I left at 3. i would imagine that, had a wait and hour and a half longer, for them to turn the lights on, i couldn't got another hour of good riding in on 2 before the ski teams got out...

As far as my leg, goes, i can't really feel it when i got down the hill, only when i walk... i guess my boots are tight enough...

edit: Any body interested in trading your shorter slalomy carving board for my 186 f2 w/td1?

[Scott.Creer]

just got the call from nate. we will have 1 or 2 on sunday night after 4pm for some GS. we will only be doing stubbies this time, no panels.

[bonzo]

Spent the evening on 7. Conditions fair at best. There were some serious rut, gates must have been set up earlier in the day.

Yes, Afton is still making snow.