Legends of the Thaw...

Well it's January here in Vermont and at times it can get warm, wet and windy! While the Ol' Ski Hill out back can get kind of.....well, lets just say it was beautiful..

Never let yourself second-guess getting out, no matter the conditions. In the end you'll always be glad you did.

Good thing I had the fat skis?! Where are my E99's when I need them most?

Good thing I brought some cold beer.

T.

Our local hill finds the snow rolling; literally.

Odin doesn't like being left out of a good run. 

 A couple of weeks ago we found ourselves in the midst of some wonderfully unique weather out our backyard.  As the blue sky clashed with dramatic and intense clouds, the heavy wet snow and gusty winds created some beautiful skiing. This is what we found:

Snow rollers were something we had not seen before.  With the wet snow and heavy winds the snow is pushed and rolled into what looked almost like delicious snow pastry, ranging in size from a softball to a large exercise ball. A unique day, to say the least.

With today's fresh snow in the mountains (we needed it), I hope you'll find your way outside today - I know I will, even if for a quick lap out the back.


T.

Back at it again.

I'm very excited to be guest blogging again for S and T and getting the chance to share my outdoor experiences with you guys.

I recently started a new career that has me working strange hours with days off at random intervals. There was a wonderful period when I would get the opportunity to join these guys on the majority of their outdoor adventures. Unfortunately, it’s been a while since I’ve gotten out at all, plus the lack of snow in the northeast hasn’t helped.

One of the nice things about working midnights for the last couple months is watching the snow come down, providing me with a handful of beautiful sunrises over freshly fallen powder. I've been too beat post shift to find the motivation to get out without good snow beckoning to me, and it's finally arrived.

Last Friday morning, after a pretty significant nighttime snowfall, I found myself dropping my fiancée off at work. On my way back out of town, I happened to look up and see gleaming trails intertwined among the trees on some of the hillsides above me. I recalled that I had my Karhu 10^th Mountains in the back of my Subaru and was suddenly struck with the desire to get out on the newly fallen snow. Despite having been up all night, I wheeled up an access road to the base of the mountain, strapped in and started climbing.


I had a great time up there, even though the conditions could always be better. I was just so glad to be out, enjoying myself once again in the cold.

I’d hardly been on skis all season so just getting out on the snow, especially after a long overnight shift, was a great way to start (or end) my day. I’m glad I took advantage of the opportunity to get in some turns and am pretty motivated to get out as much as I can the rest of the season. Moving off of midnights in a couple weeks should help…

So, I shared my experience on these trails with my hosts on this blog and, of course, we had to make a special trip back out there together this Monday. Again, I was just getting off shift and might have preferred to go to bed, but my excitement from getting out before, plus having my best friends with me, made it easy for me to forgo my bed.

This time, we all brought heavy gear instead of touring. I was on an AT setup, with S & T dropping a knee (telemark) as usual. We slapped our skins on and began the trek up with my friends' Chocolate Lab, Odin, urging us on. The trails had been tracked out a bit, but it was another beautiful day to be on a mountainside, so we didn't mind.

As we reached the top, we were teased by some skin tracks that seemed to continue up even further, but decided to head back down. We peeled our skins and armored up for the descent with outer layers and helmets. I clicked in the heels of my Fritsche Freeride AT bindings and waited impatiently for T to tighten up his tele bindings.

We'd noticed a pretty nice chute off to one side of the trail we were climbing and decided to take it on the way down. It was relatively open but steep, and was well covered by snow. We could see only a handful of tracks making their way down the mountain, so there was plenty of fresh snow to be had.

I won't do a play by play of our descent, but we all agreed that it was some of the best downhill we've done all season and would have lapped it a couple times if we'd had time.

Unfortunately, later that same day, as well as the next, we received 50 degree temps and rain. I'm hoping not to lose my motivation with the influx of crappy weather. There are whispers of colder temps and more snow later this week. Should be enough to keep the fire burning about getting out.

Thanks again to my hosts for letting me share. Looking forward to the next time and the next line...

Our good friend Mike lives in Montpelier with his lady love Sofia and shares and enjoys the finer things in life like skiing, mountain biking, good food, and good friends.  Here he shares one of his many adventures with us.

Through Snow, Sleet or Rain?....Sure!

When we set out Tuesday morning, the new fallen snow to say the least was: amazing. However
half way into our ski tour out our backyard, which was an indeterminable distance, it was well: a bit soggy.

If there's one thing I've learned and profited from a little, it's this: It pays to carry F4 in your XC or BC pack when on any ski-tour-slash-BC-ski-adventure. F4 comes in many different applications but any and all will do.  They make wet, soft snow stop from sticking on the bottom of your ski and give you back that glide.

F4, if you've never heard of it, is universal glide wax.  Most days you never need F4.  Unless that is you're a glide junky who just can't seem to get enough glide out of his waxless skis the way he used to get it from those trusty wax-able skis. Now a little F4 never hurts, even before your ski tour; but on a day like this Tuesday, this is where F4 truly shines. You just never know when an hour into your day off, when that tele turn can do no wrong, and when 30 seconds in your friend says  "Hey is it raining?" - all of a sudden that snow that could "do no wrong" turns on you.  When you have a 20lb cinder block attached to the bottom of your wax less BC ski and your kick and glide has about as much oomph as a late night rerun of Chips.....  This is when someone in your ski party has to eventually say "Uh I think it's time to drop the skis and give em a little F4?..."   That of course is only if someone happens to have some.....awkward pause..   This is where I let everyone squirm a little and manage to procure that beautiful bottle of blue gold; F4.

Now back in the day I used to have my F4 handy quicker than folks could ask for it and proudly have skis back up and running quicker than you could say mashed potatoes.  But of late I like to make my friends squirm a little.  I do in fact work in a ski shop and on occasion could be made to look bad by being ill prepared in a BC ski situation.  But after three years, I know better and I like the fact that I can make the likes of cinder blocks turn into grease lighting in a matter of 30 seconds or less, and that just feels pretty darn good. 

So next time that ski shop employee suggests a little F4 when buying that brand new BC ski setup, think of it as a worthy and life changing experience.  Try not to think that poor guy is just trying to get another $15.00 out of you. You might, on the other hand, just be that guy on a long BC ski tour that manages to make those cinder blocks turn into skis again, and have his beer tab all settled up even before you get to the bar.

Now go and get it and I mean powder snow; not rain. 

But hey what ever floats your boat.

T.