Jump to content
Note to New Members ×

Spirit Mountain 2014


khoward

Recommended Posts

Rode from 9:30-2. Groom is getting better, barely heard the ice base, very firm, 1" deep "trenches" left all over the hill. Ten people riding the express chair til about noon when 5-10 more showed up.  Need I say more? About 100 high school ski racers over on the other side where I didn't go. Started out about 10 below and warmed up to 10 above.

Rode "Da Monstah"=the original Coiler Monster, built 2008 for J.O. Kinda soft for the firm groom, but should be great in soft snow.

post-2809-0-61901100-1421191741_thumb.jp

post-2809-0-82544000-1421191775_thumb.jp

post-2809-0-78628400-1421191798_thumb.jp

Edited by bigwavedave
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9:45-2pm. Started out with light overcast with patchy sun turning to all sun before noon. Best snow conditions yet, the "surface groom" a little thicker today--Wow, "trenches" 1.5" deep, could hear the icy base underneath, but still great carving!

 

Saw Ryan out on his Freecarve for an hour or so,  looking very surfy relaxed. Not too busy until about 2pm, when the after-schoolers started showing up. Good day, tired...

 

My 10th consecutive year with a Spirit pass.  

Edited by bigwavedave
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Saturday, January 17.

Lousy visibility, but a thin layer of new snow over the groom made for good carving conditions. Hooked up with JOlson for the morning. Started getting a little busy around 11am, though not crazy busy like I expected for the MLK weekend. Jim and I planning to be out tomorrow morning as well.

BWD - BTW, you're the Butcher of Biwabik, not the Butcher of Biwabic.......

Russ

Edited by rwmaron
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sunday Jan 18th

 

8:30-2:45, first tracks down Scissorbill before blocked off for Nastar!   Rode with Russ, on his new/used 162 glass Donek SL, and Jim O. Overcast all day, although brighter later, so visibility not as bad. Forecast sun never appeared.  Ice-base layer seemed closer to the surface.  I think the drizzle on Saturday moved the conditions a step backwards. Later in the day, as it got busier, the top layer got scraped off exposing the ice on many runs. 

 

Russ and I are heading east to the U.P. and Indianhead Thurs-Fri in search of better snow and no ice.

 

Was tempted to pay the $10 for Nastar and just carve Scissorbill ignoring the gates!  Could be nice before the course got rutted up and you wouldn't have to worry about traffic, although likely to piss somebody off.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Was tempted to pay the $10 for Nastar and just carve Scissorbill ignoring the gates!  Could be nice before the course got rutted up and you wouldn't have to worry about traffic, although likely to piss somebody off.

 

I do this all the time.  It's a great way to get an empty slope with no speed limit.  If I DQ I just tell them at the top. :eplus2:  DO IT!!!   :eplus2:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

With lack of a good forecast for new snow after the frizzle and warm-up in the U.P. on Friday, I decided to head home. I drove by Spirit Mt about 7pm, temps were still above freezing and conditions looked like they might be soft and "surfy-spring-like". I took 2 runs down 4pipe and left. It was a sheet of really rough ice, covered with pushed around piles of granular snow--not fun, especially with all the Friday night straight-liners!

 

Hope we get enough snow from the coming storm to renew the slopes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Been out at Spirit for a few runs this week.  Ran into Jim from Fargo with his school group today.  The half pipe is cut and excellent.

Four pipe side was less crusty today with the warmer temps, but may be bulletproof tomorrow morning with temps dropping to 20F for first chair.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So if Dave rode at the Porkies on Friday and took a couple of runs at Spirit on his way home, that means that he rode at two resorts in non-adjacent states on the same day......is that some kind of record?

 

I stopped at Spirit on Friday afternoon on the way back from the U.P. to drop off my gear and decided to take a couple of runs and found the 'surfy' spring-like conditions that Dave was looking for (though the window of bright sun had already passed). I must have just missed Ken as a mutual acquaintance that I ran into mentioned that he had just seen him.

 

I was back out tonight for patrol duty and there was not a carve to be had - above freezing temps and a crowded Saturday combined to leave a finely polished, bullet - proof, surface. I suspect that tomorrow will be more of the same.

 

And yes, nearly the same crew will be out to Big Sky again this year - the tentative plan is to ride Big Sky/Moonlight Basin on 2/15 and 2/16, then Bridger Bowl for the rest of the week.

Russ 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So if Dave rode at the Porkies on Friday and took a couple of runs at Spirit on his way home, that means that he rode at two resorts in non-adjacent states on the same day......is that some kind of record?

 

Different time zones too, if I really tried, I could have ridden at the same time in two different places--chrono-synclastic infundibulum!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I rode for an hour tonight prior to a patrol social event; the couple of inches of snow we had Monday morning have improved the surface, though there are still plenty of hard spots to be found. Sissor Bill, Sky Hooker, Double Jaw and Juggler Joe were all quite carveable - the constant flow of traffic on Four Pipe left big patches pretty scraped off. I didn't have time to get over to the Gandy side.

Russ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Got on the hill about 9am, parking lot already full of FIS racers who took possession of Gandy, Cinder snapper and Blue Ruin. Did a few runs on Sky Hooker which wasn't as tracked up, then moved over to the empty express side, stole a pre-opening ride up and spotted Russ coming down the hill. Early flat light light gave way to bright sun til about noon.

 

 The snow was very good, a couple of inches of nice 'surface groom' over the ever present ice underlayment, which fortunately didn't become apparent until around noon on 4pipe where skidders had scraped off the surface layer.  Later, took a few runs through the big-air park and little half pipe to find virgin groom. No ice over there with all the snow they've been blowing around to build all that stuff!  No air for me, but found nice carves to be had down the steep faces of the big jumps and through the bottom of the pipe.

 

 Very satisfying carving session with conditions way better than last Friday! 

 

Plan to be back on Sunday, likely before opening again and get a few runs by riding Gandy chair with the racers til the express starts up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Started out with patchy flat light turning to bright sun with single digit temps. Russ and I practically had the place to ourselves, at least on the express lift side (over a hundred FIS ski racers over on the Gandy side). Same couple inches of very firm groom over icy base, as long as the groom held up carving was excellent.

post-2809-0-01608900-1422841913_thumb.jp Midway through our butchering of the hill...

 

 

 

post-2809-0-62090000-1422841873_thumb.jp

post-2809-0-92992800-1422841892_thumb.jp

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So, I should have left around noon when Russ did, but I was having fun and wanted a few more runs after our coffee break. Well, second run, I got clipped from the right and behind by a skier, who was old enough to know better, pre-super bowl full body contact, out of nowhere at the bottom of 4pipe. The guy laid there for 5 minutes, said he was okay, just had the wind knocked out him, I asked if he wanted a hand--no reply. I expected an apology, but instead had the feeling he was thinking "damn snowboarders",  as he made his way off the hill.  I'm a little stiff and sore...

post-2809-0-08709600-1422843061_thumb.jp ...but, my board!! Should be ok with a little epoxy and a clamp.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Glad to hear you're OK.....got to admit that I felt a twinge of regret about not staying longer when I was walking back to my car with the bright sun, good conditions, and thin crowd......I'm assuming that it's your shiny new Rev that got dinged up?

 

Damn, that was a good morning though - firm, fast groom and room to let it rip over and over and over......

Russ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OMG BWD......pretty sure the poorer angels of my soul would have gotten the better of me on  board damaged by skier hit.......would probably  have tried to straighten it on his helmet..while he was wearing it....... :AR15firin ..sorry to hear and hope your hip and board are back in the game ASAP.....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...