snow season at ALPENTAL

pleasant snow conditions that a proper pnw winter allows today, sunday, feb. 16, 2014.
foot o new was controlled masterfully allowing loading to occur ON TIME! the mountain skied swell but so did the humanity. not a shitshow crowd, mostly good folks out getting exercise, so the goods remained good further out.
soup was chili on fries but i think jt goat runs on home brew. no ski school=comfortable parking.
b

I don't think I had a bad run today. Breakover held up all day as usual. Couple blue ice patches on Nash after awhile but if you remembered where they were you could avoid them. Apparently, my memory isn't that good. Top of Adrenalin was a little scary with a sheet of scraped off ice but once past it was stellar. Lower entrance showed a little wear by the end of the day and I had to hop over the rock wall to get in. But from then on it was great. Last run Ingrid's to Strawberry. I'd do that again. Never made it to Shot 6 but heard good reports.

strawberry patches are much nicer when not so lumpy.
should be ripe once this next round of cream covers em.
b

No lumps this morning. Did you make it here?

This morning was quite enjoyable. Small enough crowd to keep the lines just long enough to recover from the previous lap, but enough of the regulars around to keep you on your toes and charging hard. Wind blew all day and the snow stacked over 2 inches deep before noon. Posted-up at the bottom of Armstrong behind flowing & co. ~8am for what turned into almost a 90 minute wait as patrol had to toss a second round of bombs in a few places that had filled back in. The redcoats warned us that Ch2 would be another 30 minutes or so, yet we waited only half that before embarking upon the padded seats to the top.

After the long wait, I was chomping at the bit and pointed it straight into Upper Nash as others took a more cautious approach. Fortunately, the debris in the upper bowl was soft and the ice well buried, despite the snow being significantly wind-affected (packed and scoured). "Middle" Nash (top of Felsen -> top of Sessel) delivered the best turns, as I more or less dolphined fat pow turns between two parallel fields of avy debris. There simply was no bottom, as was the case in Rollen, along Gunmount, down the Fan, and through Breakover trees. Caught the rope dropping on Snake Dance at the crack of 11 and had an incredible pair of laps through that zone before it was time to head down to town for work. Was bummed to see pairs of patrollers ski-cutting the terrain out E gate as I pulled out of the parking lot. But even that couldn't wipe the perma-grin from my face

elevator bowl fallline
b