Today's 6am report said 4" and snowing.  That's what we call a "sleeper" report.... that's a good thing. 

sleep·er
noun /ˈslēpər/
9. A movie, book, play, etc., that achieves sudden unexpected success after initially attracting little attention, typically one that proves popular without much promotion or expenditure.

In addition to that, it keeps those lazy sleepers in bed, and leaves the rest of us with all their leftovers.  Needless to say, I took 5 runs down Pony before Craig caught up with me (delayed due to work) and there was still plenty of snow to be had at 10am.  I have officially skied myself into shape when I can ski 3 hours of - yes, A FOOT - of powder and not complain to my dance instructor that afternoon.  Booya! You can't build that shit in the gym.

So you heard me right, it was a foot of fresh today.  And it was GLORIOUS. 4 inches my ass.

I was about 20th car on the Gondola and 15th chair on Four Points, with unbelievably tasty lines down Twister - imagine about 10" over a fresh groomer and then go change your knickers.

My five runs in the 'Ridge were solitary, and I had a fresh-Zamboni feeling the first run down Longhorn- not a single track in front of me, and light, knee-deep powder over soft cord.  Seriously priceless.  I managed to stop myself and get a clip of those who trailed me; Jonathan, "this buds for you."  Great turns.



Following that I chewed that land up and spat it out - bombing down Middle Rib, Diamond Hitch, Nash Junction, Cabin Fever, Perry Park, and WJW, coming out with a stellar run down Vortex and hitting the bottom of the Storm Peak Lift Line with hollers from above as I bounced over the powder pillows.  Thanks Pony lifties, I'm sure you got sick of seeing my backside this morning.

Craig caught up with me at Storm and we headed east, finding the deep stuff on Sunset, in Moonlight Trees (video), Sundial and Ramrod as usual.  But for the first time - in perhaps ever - we meandered off Sideburn into Closets - for Craig, those tight trees and unfamiliar lines aren't good, but that part of the Closet is pretty wide open. We came back out onto Sunset again so we took the Moonlight Trees twice. Yum.


And it's not snowing now, but that storm is a big'un, and dropped a foot in Park City last night so we're hoping there's some left in those clouds for us. Timing is everything, and we sure love those Sleeper Days when the best snow falls after that 5am report.

-See you In The Deep!

Posted by Andy Kennedy Thursday, March 1, 2012 2 comments

It's one of those days that locals call "weird." That can mean a million different things, but today it meant unpredictable, uneven, ravined, and flatly lit.  There were many different reports from the locals I talked to today, from "great groomers" to "chunked up," but either way I had a great morning hunting for the good stuff.

There was no doubt, while the high wind caked the trees beautifully, it turned yesterday's 7" into 5 of crème brûlée.  Some call that "set up."  But if you stayed in the trees, it was buttery without that burnt-cream top layer; more like behind the trees actually- in the trees didn't quite cut it.  If the wind could whip through it, it had been crèmed.  Even the big aspen groves, such as our favorite 1230 was a perfect example, "set up."  From there I high tailed it for Sundial and found the love.  Still not quite 7" but surfy just the same- the kind your boards can glide over like water just off the beach. 

The tricky stuff was the 1-2' ravines- not quite a chasm, but maybe a coulee?  Those wind drifts that catch you off guard because you simply can't see them in the flat light. The staggered 3 rollers I found in Mustache tossed me, and the one that's always there in front of the 1230 secret entrance was like a canyon.

All in all, I found that good buttery stuff on Ramrod and in the Broadway trees, but the best run of the day was my first run of the year down Mother Nature and it was like velvet covered tiny hills.

And the good news is that snow is on the forecast for the next 2 days. Bring it!

See you In the Deep!


   

Posted by Andy Kennedy Wednesday, February 29, 2012 0 comments

There are obvious rewards for patience. For those who have said all year, "it will come, it always does," with that deep inner peace of knowing that winter was just around the corner; for those who read the Farmer's Almanac and said, "it's always right, just believe;" for those who enjoyed every blue bird groomer day anyway thankfully, this week is your week.  Your patience has paid off.

Twenty seven whopping inches yesterday broke the Steamboat record for deepest day.  And it was probably 35" by the time I came down after 10, perhaps 38 or 40 by the end of the day?   Yeah, that's three feet!

Today the ski area reported another 9" at 6am, definitely more like 12-15" in Pioneer Ridge by 9am, and it's  snowing sideways with those big fat pancake flakes that stick to your jacket and goggles and pile up fast and furious.  We're looking at another two feet today...

But it doesn't stop there. Tonight we're in the middle of a Winter Storm Warning (I love these, but it seems redundant to warn people of an eminent danger when we can look outside our window and see it's already here).  They're calling for another two feet.  I can add, that's 5-6 feet in 3 days.  Has there been a week like this since the epic 1996 January that held the record of 26" in 24 hours that we broke yesterday? 

I saw this in a Pirate Theater once... I think it's time to bring "24 in 24" back this year boys!

Today I did laps down Pony with the girls, Cabin Fever, Diamond Hitch, Royal Flush, Ambush, Longhorn, Flying Z, Drop Out, and every where we went it was the same story- bottomless leftovers from yesterday with a fresh coat of Champagne frosting. Especially in the trees. Can't beat that.

My last thoughts: Thank you Mardi Gras Gods.  It always dumps the motherload on Fat Tuesday!

I didn't take out the camera today because it was intensely blowing, and my sit-skiing powderhound was at work... so today's video is brought to you by the best at Steamboat:


©Steamboat2012


Keep it coming, Mama, thank you for this week's love In the Deep!

Posted by Andy Kennedy Tuesday, February 21, 2012 1 comments

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