14/?? The OFFICIAL Tahoe Thread

[WestCoastPDR]

is that Relay !

Yes. North side. I thought it was a little risky too with all the loading and the cornice's along the ridge. Decided to ski off the ridge to the East. Tons of sled necks high marking. It's nice that they stayed away from the rocks / small chutes. Greats snow and still skied great at 12:30 on my last lap. Didn't see anything moving, cracking or hear any whomping. Was very warm and I could see some wet slides happen tomorrow or Thursday with the daytime warming.

[powdork]

we did get a few unfettered turns in though

[alTAos]

Tons of sled necks high marking.

Counted 48 sled trailers or trucks on my way back from rose today going through the meadow. Insanity!! They were parked almost up to the summit.

Damn was the snow good though!

[unpossible]

Bad news for AM skiers--they are trying to install an ATT cell signal booster. There goes the no reception excuse when the boss or the spouse tries to reach you.

As someone who is frequently attempting to "Work from Chairlift", much like the past two days... bout fucking time.

Upper Beav and Idiots opened at around Noon today. Got 2 laps in before things got heavy. The rest of the mountain stayed surprisingly chalky all day, winds were definitely keeping the temps down.

thefrush, I think we were on opposite cycles the entire day, either saw you heading up or heading down, and I was having too much to wait, sorry. :P Also saw Wobby in his technicolor dream coat.

[The Dad]

What's the deal with 'the hikes' at Alpine? They close the hike-to inbounds terrain? Why do they typically close/open?

Well, why would you think they would close inbounds terrain?

[Tahoe Bromide]

I hit upper Beaver shortly after it opened, good stuff. I'm probably in that picture, the guy bent over about to puke. I don't have Tahoe lungs at the moment.
Agreed that the chalky-ness lasted pretty much all day and everywhere we went skied surprisingly well, save for semi-sketchy traverse to High(?) Yellow.

[MrSmith]

I think they close terrain because they don't want people to ski on it.

[BGnight]

Good thing they opened it at fucking noon after things warmed up!!!. It would have been dangerous anytime before that :sarcasm: I had a group of buddies that took the morning off to ride AM with hopes it would be open. Whoever runs mountain operations at AM has large amounts of sand in their vag. They need someone with some balls making the decisions around there.

[unpossible]

Good thing they opened it at fucking noon after things warmed up!!!. It would have been dangerous anytime before that :sarcasm: I had a group of buddies that took the morning off to ride AM with hopes it would be open. Whoever runs mountain operations at AM has large amounts of sand in their vag. They need someone with some balls making the decisions around there.

Rode up with Patrol in the morning and asked if it and/or Estelle would open. They said the winds/rain had made the backside a sheet of glass and they had to wait a bit to cut a road in, otherwise people could slide off the back. He wasn't sure if they were gonna get it open that day, so I appreciate the effort even if it was later than we would have liked.

When I was traversing over around noon, there was a female snowboarder who had fell and was literally being held by another snowboarder, while patrol used a shovel to chop up the snow around them. So I think there concerns were definitely valid.

They also said Estelle wasn't gonna open as the bottom is burnt and they can't get a toboggan down.

save for semi-sketchy traverse to High(?) Yellow.

Yeah that was pretty damn sketchy (similar to parts of the High Beav traverse). Someone apparently took a slide for life over there and hit a tree. Got choppered out around 3pm.

[Baaahb]

Good call on hitting the slopes above Red Lake. Up higher most of RT is covered with an ice layer...and then firm windpack on top of that. There is decent skiing around the ice patches (pebbly clear ice) but I think even where there is a nice layer of 2-8 (or more) inches of windpack, there is an ice layer underneath...not a crust...ice. What will happen to that as the slopes transition to corn conditions? Disturbing.

[~mikey b]

Good thing they opened it at fucking noon after things warmed up!!!. It would have been dangerous anytime before that :sarcasm: I had a group of buddies that took the morning off to ride AM with hopes it would be open. Whoever runs mountain operations at AM has large amounts of sand in their vag. They need someone with some balls making the decisions around there.

I love when people like you who know nothing about snow safety and running a mountain spew about what patrol should do. Maybe you should get some balls and ask a patroller what's up. Go unto the office and complain. Maybe you'll learn something. Sorry but it's not just about you and your bros.

[dvlr]

I was over high yellow to get to Our Father. It turned out to be easier, safer, to hike up on the ridge, but even there it was icy booting. In places that gator back ice was so difficult to edge, you just had to calculate how much vert you were going to lose, and aim for some chalk somewhere below you. I once lost my edge and just tried to sideslip on a fall line that had no trees or rocks below. You can start in a walled chute with chalk and powder, and ski to the second half which is gator back ice. good to scope it first, when that's possible.

snip


They also said Estelle wasn't gonna open as the bottom is burnt and they can't get a toboggan down.



Yeah that was pretty damn sketchy (similar to parts of the High Beav traverse). Someone apparently took a slide for life over there and hit a tree. Got choppered out around 3pm.

[TahoeJ]

Squaw held up throughout the day. It's probably still decent out there this morning. This was the funnel after 2pm... still in good shape.

IMO it sounds like patrol at Alpine went above and beyond what could be expected.

[Baaahb]

Whoever runs mountain operations at AM has large amounts of sand in their vag. They need someone with some balls making the decisions around there.

No, what they need is a legislature with balls that exempts ski areas from liability when people choose to ski on high risk days.

[thefrush]

thefrush, I think we were on opposite cycles the entire day, either saw you heading up or heading down, and I was having too much to wait, sorry. :P

No apologies necessary, I was having so much fun I forgot to even look for people. Hell, I went barreling into the race course on Kangaroo after my first lap down Beaver cuz I was so ravenous to get another. That was a bit embarrassing. Candide Thovex I am not.

[dvlr]

Squaw has had some injuries and deaths from sliding falls on ice. never heard the legal ramifications. Is it possible that the skiers involved chose not to sue? how is the law worded differently in Europe?

No, what they need is a legislature with balls that exempts ski areas from liability when people choose to ski on high risk days.

[Baaahb]

The situation in Europe gives much greater importance to personal responsibility and decision making, but I cannot give you a legal analysis.Here, there are a lot of skier/snowboarder/snowmobiler injuries that are settled or are sued but do not get reported in the press.

[Frank Naets]

Well, why would you think they would close inbounds terrain?

I guess my more exact question was:
- is it more likely closed due to bad coverage, because that probably won't improve over the next days
or
- is it close due to avy danger/no patrolling done yet because that will change over the course of the week.

My apologies for the initial dumb question...

[old goat]

Good thing they opened it at fucking noon after things warmed up!!!. It would have been dangerous anytime before that :sarcasm: I had a group of buddies that took the morning off to ride AM with hopes it would be open. Whoever runs mountain operations at AM has large amounts of sand in their vag. They need someone with some balls making the decisions around there.

Let me join the chorus of people who think you are an idiot. Patrol shoveled a track through the boiler plate to make the traverse reasonably safe. I hope if you saw a patroller you thanked them for the effort but somehow I doubt you did. High Beaver traverse is where a snowboarder slid to her death trying to retrieve the board she dropped. In the last half dozen years or so two patrollers have died trying to make the slopes safe for the likes of you, which strikes me as a huge waste.

I guess my more exact question was:
- is it more likely closed due to bad coverage, because that probably won't improve over the next days
or
- is it close due to avy danger/no patrolling done yet because that will change over the course of the week.

My apologies for the initial dumb question...

A run may close because of bad coverage, avy danger, hasn't been controlled yet, too icy, running a free ride event, the only lift out of there is broken or too windy to run it, poor visibility, trying to keep the corn in good shape (high T at AM, smoothie at SV in the spring). I could probably think of a few more if I tried. Which is more common? this year definitely not avy danger. IME and IMO patrollers are avid skiers--they damn well better be for the shit they get paid-- and they like to open the good stuff whenever they can. Rumor has it that they once tried to open Tram Face but closed it after spending the morning doing technical rescues.

[BGnight]

Ur all pussies. Go to Chamonix once in your lives.

[TahoeJ]

But on a serious note, the Summit Chair isn't the fucking Midi, so what's your point?

[BGnight]

I hope if you saw a patroller you thanked them for the effort but somehow I doubt you did.

Nope. I was too busy walking the ridge where it was smooth as an ice rink. Snowboarders don't use the traverse. And wow, a patroller used a shovel. A real american hero. Your average lift op isn't impressed. Patrollers have a hard job but no one forces them to do it and some outfits are heads and shoulders above others. i.e. Squaw vs AM ski patrol. I see a lot of older dudes with beer bellies at AM.

My point is they don't shut down the mountain because a gaper might lose their footing.

[mcski]

High Beaver traverse is where a snowboarder slid to her death trying to retrieve the board she dropped. .

I thought that girl got lost trying to get to Estelle during a storm and was found hunkered down in a tree well. Not a slide for life, but maybe a different incident?

[thefrush]

I thought that girl got lost trying to get to Estelle during a storm and was found hunkered down in a tree well. Not a slide for life, but maybe a different incident?

Separate incidents I believe.

[~mikey b]

Yes