IN THE DEEP

"It's just easier on me if we go fast, I can let the ski do what it wants to do," adaptive instructor Derrick Charpentier tells me after we've caught up with him, in the STARS office that is. Because keeping up with him and Amanda on the mountain, was, well virtually impossible.  And I don't ride slow myself.

We rolled out this afternoon for a few runs after a morning of work for me and a morning off (IE on the couch) for Craig - much deserved of course.  We met up with Keith, who I am very excited to see back - after a hip replacement at a too-young-43 - on his 195 Doughboy (things like a freaking Liquid Shredder, I don't remember it being that long), and we had to stop into the STARS HQ to pick up Craig's rig.  It's never just a brief stop into the office - of course that applies to everyone - but especially for Craig. Questions, scheduling, chatting, clients, ski donations, you name it, even at 1pm, when all the lessons are out on the slopes on a slow day, that office is a beehive.

But luckily we did stop in, because Amanda and Derrick were just coming back from lunch; it was her first day on the hill.  Amanda, in for the umpteenth year with her family from Florida, is someone we always look forward to skiing with. Her ear-to-ear grin is contagious, and she has one mission when she hits the slopes: GO FAST.  So she requests Derrick, and that's what he gives her.  Amanda skis on a bi-ski because she has CP, but her disability sure doesn't limit the way she enjoys the hill, and this, my friends, is exactly why Craig and I got into this business ten years ago. What a blast!

Straight out haulin' down Rainbow

And then down into the mini pipe.

YEAH!  I hear more snow is on the way... do your dance, we can always use more.

Farmer's Almanac is calling for snow starting Valentines Day... I'm not holding my breath, but I'm sure praying they're right.  We're overdue.

-See you In The Deep one of these years...

It was a chilly 12° when I looked at the gauge this morning, but by the time we got to the mountain, the sun was warming things up nicely for a balmy Bluebird Sunday on the slopes with friends, both visiting and local. 

We started out making a few long runs -sans turns- with the Krauthamers, from MD, who have been coming to Steamboat a couple times a winter for two decades and who expressed great appreciation for our local adaptive program STARS and how far it's come in just its two short official years on the slopes, and how different it is from 20 years ago...  STARS put 60 clients on the snow yetserday, but today was a pretty quiet day around there so Jeffrey got the golden treatment with instructors and volunteers setting him up in a Bi-Unique sit-ski for the first time.  His usual rig of choice was the Mountain Man sit-ski, but adaptive king George Hurley urged Jeff to test it out for its maneuverability and better size-fit for JK, and it sure seems they all made the right choice.  Jeffrey's turns today were better than we'd ever seen. 

We took the first big run down Tomahawk, and a second lap down Flintlock, both in grrrreat shape.  



After it was time for JK to head down, Craig and I took a run down Buddys to Cyclone, found some ice on Tornado Lane, and headed back to the top where we ran into pals, all deciding to head back over to "Wally World" where the snow was just softer.  Another lap down Flintlock, then Sunshine Liftline, then 1 O'Clock, and a top-to-bottom with "Candyland" Kim from Fuzziwigs (visitors if you haven't tasted their sweets, you're missing out! Corner of 9th and Lincoln!), another summer hiking buddy of mine "Pinky" Liz, and Craiger's old buddy "CoolBreeze" Matty - poor guy's a Patriots fan but we skied with him anyway.  

There's nothing that makes Bluebird Steamboat days better than taking turns with friends.  Love you guys!



-See you in the Deep (one of these days, in big years, this statue is usually buried!)

Unquestionably, undeniably, our first full-on powder day of the year, today's foot of fresh brought the hoots, hollers, and yip-yips from locals that Winter's smile is all about.  But don't be fooled, it wore us out. And froze me out. It's a chilly-will up there today, with a -16 report on the 5am.

It snowed all day yesterday, starting while it was still warm, and bringing about 2-3" of heavy stuff, a perfect buffer layer over that unmentionable stuff beneath that we've been grimacingly skiing on for weeks now.  Then came the buttery layer; I wouldn't call it the Steamboat Champagne™ - it was heavy enough made turning not an option.  Today was brought to us by the letter P for point and go, and stick to the steeper stuff.  Unless someone broke trail for you, but since we were first, there was none of that!

We rode first car on the Gondy, got to Four Points 2nd in line behind a die-hard skinner (where all those behind us were chompin' about how great Rudy's was!) and bombed our way (hooting) down the knee deep glory on Sunset to the western gully of Moonlight trees.  A ride up Sundown gave the view of what First Tracks had chewed up, and we opted for Keith's Ridge to Sunshine LL's left side to 12:30, but never made it there.  The cut through the trees from Sunshine to High Noon was formidable, and I had to opt for the connector lane (found a frozen mouse-icle on the cat track, indicating the sub-zero temps) while Craig burned his guns out on a High Noon traverse to 1:00.  I found him at the bottom there - catching the lovely thigh-deep pow at the bottom of 12:30 mind you - and snapped this:



We did another run down 3:00 to 2:00 to Daybreak and were puffing for a top-to-bottom by then. It's time to ski yourselves in shape peeps.  We took Elkhead to Norther (omg HERO soft bumps for some more hooting), to Storm Peak for a SP-Face to Mustache Meadow (BEST run of the day without fail) to Rainbow and out.

While the snow fell early enough yesterday to fall prey to the night crew grooming schedule, even those groomers were nice again - with the only-occasional growl underneath.

I told her yesterday, "Winter, please stick around," and it looks like she will; snow is yet again on the forecast.  Check the Almanac, uncanny prediction for Winter's commencement on January 16 in the Western Rockies.  HOW do they do that??


-See you in the Deep once again-