Crystal - 12/29

Check check?

Maybe lucky? Pretty nice day, cold, nice new layer, great grooming on FQex (my be nice morning), crowd really not to bad – if Crystal operations had worked normally. Start time on CHex was delayed by the slow start on the Gondy – whole mountain on standby till that first bucket gets far enough up hill (what tower is that?). Other problem was the big power outage around 11am….big slow recovery – even slower on FQex, which blew a fuse. Base area during the noon hour was a huge disaster with Campbell Basin not available. Goodness today, PB skied great, as did SunnySide and Exterminator for my last run was a very nice ski.

Other – Pay lot almost full, B not completely full, C D and E all full. Soup at the base was the infamous Kale Meatball thing that kinda looks like Chicken Noodle, heard it really was pretty tasty. Lookin forward to the Holiday week getting over.

First day out with Mrs.B, got there a little late , but what the hey, it was going to be a great day, I had to duck in to Guest services to reactivate and hope to get the Mrs. a day pass(GO CARD) as the line for the ticket windows were way long and the great lady behind the counter made that happen fast, remember it was going to be a great day.   We had a bunch of sweets to drop off at the FQ Auk house for the red jackets to munch on and grabbed a Downhiller to RN and up REX, the Snow was smooth and quite as we made our way to REX, we were having a great day, Nice to run into a legend of a Red Jacket in BIG JOHN with a newbee on his wing, Green Valley was fun and packed powder chop everywhere was just the type of fun skiing the Mrs likes, having a great day. A few laps here and there and the Mrs . had to pee and we were at the bottom of 3 that now was not running and dropping trow in the lift line was not an option, still having a great, no worries we will Lucky out to Rex and use the FACILITIES at MT Top, Lucky skied well, but as we went under Rex, it was not running, we waited and by now the Pee Dance had started, Drop trow????????Not an option, still having a great day?????????, OK, let's zip over to FQ and stop into BIG MID MT bathroom, OK?????Still having a great day...as we hit the cattle crossing we could see that the FQ was still, Boss MAN Volley Dale was at the bottom saying it was down and they might be calling it, OK honey can you hold it till we get to base, or do you want to drop trow here? BASE!, the great day had just turned into a good day, as we got to base, working our way to the bathrooms was what the bottom of the Mayflower must of looked like, the masses of humanity, relieved and still smiling we headed to the Elk, now we were having a great day again as we clinked our glasses. As we were grabbing our skis we had chance to talk with the BEAST PATROL MAN Rich S, always a great day in the hills, the Mrs was happy and that makes for a great day.......they need snow to fill it all in. but any day your skis are not making noise, is a great day!

We had a similar experience with the lifts (triple redundant power???); not needing the bathroom but a place to eat. So we ended up at the Elk for the first time in many years to start my quest to sample all the craft brews this season. Oh, and there was skiing to report as well and it was good, it was very good. But do watch out for wind drifts. Ask me how I know! First PB center chute and (lazy) E for the year were in the very nice category. Lower E was brushy but passable with a little ski edge trimming. Good day with some good friends. The only thing missing was expected the bluebird sky conditions.