3/28/09

Day 40

Conditions: 32 degrees and corn snow
Location: Boyne Mountain, MI

Another weekend of punching the clock on our way to fifty days. We woke up at 5 am and made the drive to Boyne Mountain. Boyne lost a lot of snow in the past weeks, and Superbowl was closed for a snowmobile motor-cross type race. As a result, there was not much a rideable base left. To our absolute amazement, Boyne actually discounted lift tickets to just $30 each – with our punch cards that made it only $15 a person to ride. It was one of the cheapest weekends yet.

After a weekend of Nubs Nob and Boyne Highlands, Boyne Mountain fit like an old pair of jeans. The runs seemed longer and the chairs smoother. Duane was as chipper as ever, and we even ran into our old lift buddie John. I never thought I would say it, but it was good to be back.

Even though it was freezing, the Spring conditions had created dry, corn snow that broke up early in the morning. It was nice to avoid the incessant scraping of the past few weeks.

We hit everything on the mountain – well, everything that was open. We spent most of the time working on our switch riding, and doing lame little wheelies and ground spins.


Highlights:

- The price – Dirk calculated that it actually cost less to ride than it did to drive up and back.
- Busting through the boarder-cross course on soft snow

Lowlights:

- It was a short day, and we haven’t had a good, long day since Tahoe. We are ready for something epic. And, from the 10-day Colorado forecast, it looks like we might be in for just that.

Après Ski:

We ate lunch at Pearson’s. Even though it was just Saturday, we still drove home. We both had a lot of things to get done Sunday in preparation for a short week and then a drive out to Colorado.

Days to go: 10

3/22/09

Day 39

Conditions: 40 degrees and hard as a rock
Location: Boyne Highlands, MI

We woke up to a harsh reality: it was cold last night and things would not be softening up any time soon. To top it off, we were heading to the flattest place this side of Nebraska: Boyne Highlands. But this was no time to be picky; we need every lame day to get to 50 at this point, and we’re not about to slack in the fourth quarter.

We trudged up to the window with the echoing scrapes of insane people trying to ride on the frozen ice rebounding through the various lodges. We exchanged glances pregnant with the desire to quit, but neither of us wanted to be the one to initiate that conversation.

When we got to the window, the ticket guy informed us it would be $51 each. Dirk immediately turned to me and started lamenting. “$51-$15 from our cards…that’s $36 each for a day like today,” he said in a tone loud enough for anyone to hear. At that point the attendant piped in to inform us that today, of all days, was one of the four days when punch card holders get to ride for free. We were thrilled. Never in my life have I received anything for free at Boyne Mountain - except for maybe a generous pour on a rum and coke at Pearson’s.

We rode for three hours as if it was the best three hours of our lives. We hit almost every chair as we toured the cold, hard terrain as if it were a powder day at Whistler.

Highlights:

- Racing Dirk through the boarder-cross course. I won, of course. He claimed he was trying to take it east to avoid injury.

Lowlights:

- It was Boyne Highlands. Even if it was free, it was hardly epic.

Après Ski:

We drove back to Williamston and got ready for the week.

Days to go: 11

3/21/09

Day 38

Conditions: 40 degrees with a chance of crazy
Location: Nubs Nob, MI

The sun wasn’t out. It wasn’t warm. The conditions weren’t anything that resembled fun. But, apparently when Nubs Nob declares that it’s Mardi Gras day people feel compelled to act as if they are college students on Spring Break.

We ventured to Nubs to break up the Boyne Mountain monotony. Little did we know that it was some kind of party weekend, complete with 12-piece, steel-drum band. A few things in the parking lot should have tipped ups off: a 50 year old woman with her hair spray-painted blue, an assortment of bead necklaces, and a teenager in a full-sized Winnie the Pooh costume. Things only got worse from there.

The craziest things was that the conditions were not very good. There were two inches of very sticky, new snow on top of ice that wouldn’t melt because it wasn’t warm. We did our best to have fun, but we longed for Boyne. I guess Lonnie’s theory was true: we would only appreciate Boyne if we went to other resorts once in a while.

We rode for two hours and just couldn’t get into it. Then came the real fun.

Highlights:

- People watching. And leaving for the day.

Lowlights:

- Nubs doesn’t have a high-speed chair, and all their chairs swing violently for the first half of the ride. At one point, Dirk compared it to a county fair ride, which was pretty accurate.

Après Ski:

The previous night, Dirk decided to book a hotel in Petoskey via Hotels.com. I am very picky when it comes to hotels. In general, I hate them. The only ones I can stand are Marriotts or other hotels where they change the comforters every day (the kind with washable, white duvets instead of crusty pillow shams.

Despite my apprehension, Dirk booked a Days Inn that got good reviews and cost less than $70 per night. Since we finished early, we had the whole day to spend in the room. I planned to watch basketball and Dirk was going to study for the GRE. When we keyed into the room, I started to tear up. Warning sign one was that the hotel had no hallways – it was the kind where we drove right up to our room and keyed in. The room looked like something out of a mob movie where the bosses take people to beat them up and leave them for dead. Yes, it did seem clean…for a place with one of those paisley, grimy comforters. There was no way I was going to spend 18 hours in that room.

We discussed several options that included just driving home. But, we wanted to board the next day, so I paid for a room at a nicer hotel. We spent the day watching HD TV in our wonderful room. We also had a great dinner at the City Park Grille.

Days to go: 12

3/15/09

Day 37

Conditions: Rock hard at open, then gradually softer. High of 45 degrees.
Location: Mount Bohemia, MI

It was over 40 degrees yesterday, and very cold at night, so when we woke up, we knew that things would be rock hard at open. Unfortunately, we only had a few hours to ride before it was time to head down state. So, we headed out at 9:30 like good little soldiers.

At first, things were as we expected. Turning was dangerous. We did more heel-side sliding than actual riding. Our attempt at Shivering Timbers was particularly straining on our hamstrings.

We took it slow, giving us time to come up with a great idea: rename The Bear Den with a “where” theme. Run names would include the following: Somewhere, Nowhere, Elsewhere, Anywhere, Everywhere, and (drum roll…) Underwear. Get it? Yes, we are hilarious. Unfortunately, Lindsey didn’t seem to think it was a million-dollar idea.

She did, however, get out and ride with us as things started to soften up. We hit the bear den…many times… and a few others. In no time, it was after noon and time to pack it up.

Highlights:

- That moment when things were suddenly soft enough to ride fast through the moguls.
- Getting in a few runs with Lindsey
- On the way home, we saw a video crew (the same one that filmed Steep) on the side of the road, creating a monster jump. They looked hot and tired. It looked like the jump would take several more hours. For once, I was glad I was just a tourist, and didn’t make snowboard videos for a living.

Lowlights:

- No snow was predicted in the forecast for the next week, and we plan to come back next weekend. So, we’re keeping our fingers crossed for a freak winter storm.

Après Ski: We loaded into the Tribeca and drove 9 hours home.

Days to go: 13

3/14/09

Day 36

Conditions: Like the Madonna song: sticky and sweet
Location: Mount Bohemia, MI

Everyone in lower Michigan seems utterly convinced that winter is over. I was asked several times on Friday what I was going to do now that I couldn’t snowboard on the weekends. Apparently some people think that when there is no snow in Lansing, there is no snow anywhere. Luckily for us, this very thinking keeps crowds down during March and April.

Our last weekend at Boyne stunk, so we decided to make the long drive to Mount Bohemia, even if it was just for two days. The further North we drove, the more snow we saw.

We got in late and ended up sleeping in until around 10:00. By the time we made it to the mountain, it was getting warm. Conditions were okay – certainly not the best we have had this year at Bohemia, but not bad. The Bear Den was nice in the morning; Claim Jumper was nice in the afternoon.


Someone built a snow fort outside of Cabin 8.

Things really softened up after lunch. The Spring conditions were great, but by late afternoon things got a little too soft. It became sticky and slow, so there was a constant battle between gravity and the snow that was slowing our boards down.

Highlights:

- There was a St. Patrick’s Day contest at the mountain, so we saw a few interesting outfits. Unfortunately, it looked like a few kids would win the contest because they were handing out free, green M&Ms from a beer mug. Later, we found out that the only adult in the contest won, something I considered a victory for rational people everywhere.

Lowlights:

- None, it was a good day.

Après Ski: I finished Breaking Dawn while Dirk studied for the GMAT; then we made dinner and watched Invasion.

Days to go: 14

3/7/09

Day 35

Conditions: Slush on ice.
Location: Boyne Mountain, MI

If our last day at Boyne was a 1/10, then today was a 2/10. It’s hard to believe just two weeks ago we were floating through knee-deep Sierra powder under a blue, California sky.

When Dirk woke me up this morning, I thought it was a school day. When I remembered we were driving up to Boyne, I thought one thing: we should just skip it. I lay in bed thinking of all the sleep I was giving up, and wondering why we do this to ourselves every weekend. For some reason, I dragged myself out of bed and got ready. “It will be better than you think,” I told myself, “just get up and get there.”

We expected spring conditions today, with maybe a little rain. Spring conditions can be fun. Unfortunately, it didn’t warm up enough to turn the icy base into slush. The conditions were awful, and dangerous.

We rode for two hours; that was all we could take.

Highlights:

- We logged a day, and then it ended.

Lowlights:

- Well, you know.

Après Ski: We were done by noon, so we hung out at the condo and watched a horror movie marathon on the SciFi channel. Then, we went to the good old Red Mesa for dinner.

Days to go: 15

2/20/09

Day 34

Conditions: 45 degrees; packed powder
Location: Heavenly, CA/NV

For the seventh day in a row, we went to work on the slopes. Heavenly was in desperate need of snow – the temperature was warm and things were melting in front of our eyes. We took a few groomers and a run through Killebrew Canyon, then we went to the Fire Break gate.

It was a mellow day, and we were done by 2 in the afternoon.

Highlights:

- Seven days in a row is an accomplishment. It was a great trip, with some of the best snow we have seen…ever.

Lowlights:

- I’ve eaten baby back ribs in the past that were so tough, they produced a ripping sound as I tore the flesh from the bone. I heard that same sound today when I ate it hard off the chairlift. I literally felt my shoulder pop out of the socket and then back in. I’m sure I’ll know just how severe it is tomorrow. Despite the disturbing sound, it doesn’t hurt that much.
- The lacing system on my right boot suffered an equipment failure and has to be sent back to Burton. Thank goodness it happened on the last day of the trip instead of the first.

Après Ski:

We packed and got ready for an early flight tomorrow.

Days to go: 16

2/19/09

Day 33

Conditions: 40 degrees; packed powder
Location: Heavenly, CA/NV

Tuesday and Wednesday were hard to top; we didn’t expect today to come close, and it didn’t. With no new snow and some sore bodies for two long days, we allowed ourselves to sleep twelve sweet hours, from nine to nine. We finally rolled out to the slopes at 10 in the morning.

The snow was okay; it certainly made us appreciate the past two days. We took another run through the Fire Break gate, where we had our crazy run on Saturday. Since we knew where we were going today, it didn’t seem so extreme.


Fire Break Gate: Round 2

We spent the afternoon playing the in trees and doing bumps. We were sore and tired, but we stayed out until four in the afternoon like good little Spartans.

Highlights:

- The out of bounds gate had some nice turns
- Lunch at Wolfgang Puck’s Express was only $20; normally we have to dish out twice that on the mountain.

Lowlights:

- We were sore and spoiled from the past two days, so things felt a little ho-hum.

Après Ski:

We ate an early dinner and watched the film Smart People.


Days to go: 17

2/18/09

Day 32

Conditions: 14 inches overnight; 3 feet in the past 36 hours
Location: Kirkwood, CA

We never dreamed we would have 2 epic powder days in a row.

When we woke up this morning, a guy from Kirkwood Resort on the television saying the following: “I want all you hardcore skiers and riders to get out a pen and paper. On it, write February 18, 2009. In a decade or so, when someone asks you what your best day of riding was, you can pull out that piece of paper and tell them about this day.” We got goose bumps.

The drive to Kirkwood was an hour long, and the mountain delivered all it promised. We weren’t getting local seconds today; we were out there waiting for first chair and following the pack from front to back as different sections opened.


In line in time to see the first chair go up.

Every run was filled with waist-deep pillows of the softest powder I have every felt splash in my face. Things were so great, we didn’t stop for lunch – we just ate a few protein bars and kept riding.


Yummy turns.

Near the end of the day, we decided to hike Thimble peak, where we found some steep and deep turns. We made it a long day, and we didn’t take one turn that wasn’t full of fresh powder the entire time.


The hike to Thimble Peak

Highlights:

- We were part of a chaotic, dodgem race when parole pulled the rope for the back side of the mountain. Everyone was racing to get to the chair that would take us to the really crazy stuff. As soon as parole opened the area, fifty of us raced down, boarder-cross style. It was dangerous, and almost like war (as Dirk described it). The mood was truly every man for himself in search of powder. We saw a guy moaning in a rock crag that he accidently raced into, and his buddy was saying “This guy needs help!” We didn’t stop. No friends, or hurt strangers, on a powder day. It was scary and surreal, but it was something to remember.


The pack lines up and waits for patrole to pull the rope. We watched from the chair, then had to join them.

Lowlights:

- On our hike to Thimble Peak, we set up the money shot of the season. I went down and gave Dirk detailed instructions of where to come down to get the perfect shot. He came down looking great. When I went to hit record to stop the shot, I realized that I never hit record in the first place. I missed the whole shot. And, this was a 25 minute hike, so it wasn’t like we could just go up and do it again. It is possibly the biggest regret of my life.

Après Ski:

Since we didn’t eat lunch, we got a few appetizers at Kirkwood before driving home. Then, we ate dinner again at Freshies and watched American Idol.

Days to go: 18

2/17/09

Day 31

Conditions: 10+ inches overnight; 3 feet in the past 2 days
Location: Squaw Valley, CA

There is a scene in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory where all the kids bust through a metal door to find a magical candy world, Gene Wilder starts singing a song about imagination, and everyone is inexplicably happy. Well, substitute snow for the candy and that was us today.

We work up at 6 a.m. and turned on the television to find out how much snow the epic storm dumped on Heavenly. The weatherman reported that we received…(wait for it)…nothing! (I don’t use exclamation points often, but this one is warranted.) Meanwhile, less than 20 miles North, Squaw Valley had almost a foot overnight, and three feet in the past two days. Forget Heavenly; we piled into the car and made the hour and a half drive to Squaw Valley, despite the fact that the most direct roads were all closed.

Our effort was rewarded. Truth be told, the day started off rough. We took the wrong chair and ended up in an area full of killer-groomers. By the time we got to the KT-22 chair, most of the locals were on their fourth lap. Missing fresh snow hurts. Luckily, there was plenty of snow to go around. We had run after run after run of waist-deep – no exaggeration – powder.


Finding afternoon freshies in the trees.

The only bummer was the weather. It was snowy and windy, making visibility only a few feet at times. We didn’t get many pictures or video shots…but who has time for that junk on a powder day anyway?


Got snow?

Highlights:

- The deepest snow either of us have ever ridden (by far).
- Face-shots, white rooms, and a constant, floating sensation. Yes, we are referring to snowboarding, not those other things you are thinking of.

Lowlights:

- The locals had been waiting all year for a day like this, and they all went into work late so they could get in a few runs in the hill. Competing with locals for fresh tracks is tough because they know exactly where to go. We got their leftovers, but these sloppy seconds were oh so tasty. The upside? We got to see hotshots drop off some of the famous Squawllywood cliffs during the chair rides.

Après Ski:

We were so hungry from our full day that we stopped for pizza on the long drive home. We arrived back at the condo at 6 p.m. and were pretty whipped. We did have time to see MSU lose to Purdue.

Days to go: 19