Category: Snowboarding

6 for 6. Last night was my official final night for stacking out tables at Wachusett Mountain. GMan will be moving on to high school in the fall but a few teachers and other parents said he can’t leave so I can continue getting tables. 6 for 6 equals 6 years and 6 sessions per year. Hard to believe I did it 36 time. It was an odd feeling leaving the mountain without the table signs!

However, we promised to go back and visit in the coming winter seasons.

Conditions were great thanks to all the snow Mother Nature dropped on Thursday. As usual I took a few runs then JMan and I hit the bunny hill. No magic carpet today, it was right to the chair lift. JMans progression is impressive. He’s connecting turns and while still dropping a hand on occasion when making toe turns, overall he’s doing great.

JMan all by himself on Hitchcock. Go here for a quick video. 

JMan at the top of Ralph Run.

After his lesson we had a quick bite to eat and then he asked if we could do Ralphs Run. Absolutely I said and we headed for the chair. As this chair goes higher on the mountain he peppered me with all manner of questions. How high is it? Is the unloading ramp the same? Is the trail steeper? After I assured him he can handle it off we went. He had no issues on the first run and we immediately did another. 

Wachusett is a great family mountain that affords skiers and boarders an assortment of terrain where they can build skills and confidence. Like his big brother I couldn’t be more proud of him for making it off the bunny slope.  

Selfie on Ralph’s Run

JMan taking a rest.

All in all it was a great ski/boarding program with GMans school and a great run over the past 6 years. Like any mountain you meet some great people, both connected with the school and in the many chair life rides, I hope to continue doing so for many years. 

Conditions were great. Wachusett does a great job of making snow. In the past few weeks the base is really building up. As usual JMan got to the mountain nice and early. After stacking out our tables JMan settled into his iPod and I got in a few runs.

After that JMan and I hit the bunny hill them he was off to his group lesson. At this point he connecting his turns and looking like a regular knuckle dragger.

No boarding for me this week. I staked out our tables, got JMan suited up then settled in for an exciting afternoon of case work.

However, to celebrate not boarding I checked out the following when I got home….it’s got a great name….and a fairy good taste.

We have snow! Conditions are so much better than last week. However, it was a low bar to get over.

JMan sporting his new boarding jacket, pants and gloves (with built in wrist guards).

Selfie on the magic carpet. JMan is already starting to connect his turns. In a few weeks we’ll be on Ralph’s Run.

Good night was had by all.

Should you be worried if you see running, we are talking a stream of water in the middle of the run you are about to come down? 

This is where we welcome all non New England boarders and skiers to real New England conditions…..

This picture sums it up.

Poor is one word…and I have a few others, but I’ll keep them to myself. After all this is a family blog. 

Here’s another picture and I might add more appropriate attire for today’s/tonigh’s conditions.

JMans has the right idea and my boarding boot are coming off. Big bro GMan is off harassing the natives or some other teen age activities. I’m certain he’ll show up when he wants a ride home.

Now all we need is a good snow dance. Remember this one!

Last night was our first ski/boarding session for GMans school. This year as always I’m heading to Wachusett Mountain early to save some tables. However, as this is GMans last year I’m also bringing JMan.

It was magic carpet time for several runs but JMan moved up to the chairlift as the evening and his conference progressed. 

GMan on the other hand was off ripping black diamonds with his classmates. I think I saw him twice the whole evening. It’s a teenager thing…..being there, done that, have lots of tee shirts to prove it.

The iPod glow! Here’s JMan waiting for his group lesson. 

After his lesson we had dinner….well 1st dinner. About a hour and a half later JMan announced he wanted a second dinner! Then it was back out for a few more runs. I did make the top a few times thanks to the other school parents hanging out in the lodge.

JMan an I taking a little rest on Hitchcock. 

One thing I noticed……it’s really hard to snowboard slow! Like hiking, where all should walk as fast as the slowest hiker, I both wanted to hang with JMan so I could give him pointers ,encourage him and stay upright while moving at a glacial place, not to mention avoiding the novice skiers/boarders…….it’s more of a workout than going flat out!

However, like I did with his big brother, there’s are cherished moments and won’t be forgotten.

Have fun, board or ski safe and if your my age keep all flat surfaces attached to feet on the ground at all time. 

Thou shalt not let air between thine board and that white surface upon which you glide…..

My replacement boots worked out great on our Colorado trip. See Bretton Woods for more info on what happened. Today while dropping off GMan lease equipment Vinnie show me one of my old boots which he is using as an example of how well Flow Talons are build!

 

For all your boarding and ski needs visit Vinnie at Zimmermanns in Nashua NH and tell him the Irish guy sent you. 

 

  
The above sums up the entire trip very nicely. We had a blast, cruised some great powder, meet some wonderful people and  logged a bunch of miles on our boards…we’ll be back…for sure.

Here’s a few shots of us in action. First up is GMan catching some air heading toward #9.

  
The next one is me. I’ll admit the landing did go as well as I wanted, but what a wonderful ride.

  

We are very happy we visited Loveland. It’s a straight forward mountain that offers a lot.

Now a few words on our accomdations. We stayed at the Best Western Ptarmigan Lodge in Dillon (CO). It’s a cluster of buildings overlooking the reservoir. Overall it’s a little dated but clear and efficient. Price wise I went for the middle of the road and I’m happy with what we got. Breakfast is include and you have a few choices. There’s also some fruit which is handy for mid morning boarding snacks. There is also a hot tub and a great resturant/pub right in the parking lot. Check out the Arapahoe Cafe if you are in town.

I’m going to stop blogging about sleep. Let’s leave it at I can’t wait to get into my own bed. Today will be our last boarding day at Loveland….for this trip. However, neither of us are moving terribly fast this am. 

According to back home the east coast has more fresh snow than we have here. Pow pow day at Wachusett!

  
Here’s our forecast. It will Spring boarding today and it looks like we are getting out of Dodge before it turns into a giant slush fest…rain tomorrow.

  

The pass was closed due to Avalanche work, not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. In any event we got within a 1/2 mile of the tunnel and we hung out for 20 of so minutes. Once the road was reopened we were at Loveland 5 minutes later. We managed to get into the Basin lot and boothed up, headed for tickets and then # 2 to #4…as usual. 

Condition were good by east coast standards, but it was a bit chunky by mountain standards. We didn’t let that stop us from getting in a few good runs. The weather went from hot to cold very quickly and it was back to blowing ice cubes at the top in no time. Even with the parking lot full it felt like we had the whole place to ourselves. 

Here’s a pano shot of the upper half of #4.

  
This is the other side of the mountain. 

  
GMan sporting his new Loveland hat and bandana.

  
Rad boy!

  

After a few more runs we headed back to the hotel to clean up and start packing.

Check out the plate.

  
On 70 heading to Frisco for dinner we stopped at a scenic area. While we were hanging around enjoying the view a total stranger walked up and offer to take a photo. I’ve already said it, everyone we had an interaction with were very friendly.

  
Parkour boy.

  

I actually got a full nights sleep last night. Up, breakfast and headed to Copper Mountain. 

  
Compared to Loveland this place is 100% commercial. Lots of hotels, condos, shops and resturants…..and people. Think Disney crowds on snow. We opted for the top of line parking lot….all $25 worth, however it’s right off Center Village and right next to a lift. It was so worth it….

  
This is Center Village. I borrowed this image on line.

  
One of the good things about a big commercial mountain is most likely it will have a Starbucks!

We meet up with some friends from back east and hit the slopes. This place is east coast style all groomed trails…..at least the ones we were on. I felt quite at home listing to my board slide across a 1/4″ of dust while biting into the ice below. Like Loveland there’s lots of trails, but there is also lots of people. The lines are fairly long but they move well and are managed well, unlike the east coast free for all lines. The kids went into the park and the adults stayed on regular trails.

We did many runs but it’s not a very interesting mountain. Most trail are wide and not too steep, all are groomed and by noon the surface was all skied off. 

The kids seemed to enjoy the park and at some point we went in for lunch. This is an expensive mountain to eat at. $33 for a 1/2 sandwich, bowl of potato salad, cheese burger, 2 bags of chips an a soda. That’s sounds like a lot of food but it’s not, however, it was all very good. In fact the potato salad was great, so I guess we got what we paid for.

After lunch we followed the kids to the park and made a few vidoes. Go here for one of GMan hitting a few jumps. Here’s another video on a box jump.

GMan with our east coast friends

  

GMan and your truly

  
What could be better than a little ice cream after a hard day on the slopes.

  
Fire star

  
I’m not sure I’ll be back but I’m happy I came and checked it out.