Good Week

12/22 - MJ with David.
David's second day up in four days. Snow was softer then friday, but not fresh. Panoramic was good, but still rocky. David struggled with the powder.

Verts 18,660 STD 87,765
Google Map

12/24 Xmas Eve ass whooping
David passed on the runs, and I went alone. Did 7 runs, but all but the Mj warmup were black and filled with trees. The powder in the trees off of phantom, derailleur and cannonball was outstanding. Thigh deep in many places, just awesome. Not my best verts, but I kicked my butt.

Verts 12,971 STD 100,736
Google Map

12/29 Echo - Night Ice
It was a good night, pretty warm. Took 13 laps, best time 6:01, would have beat that but I hit a patch of ice and wrecked hard.

Verts 8,571 STD 109,307
Google Map

Skiing with Jack and David 12/19/2008

MJ had a great week, at least a couple of inches every night.

There was lots more open.
Spent lots of time with Jack and David on Jane Trail and Sunny Side. stuck mostly to bluses with them.

Did get a chance to get some good stuff and speed in. Did Arapaho at 48 MPH, and the Pine Cliffs were full of powder. Cannonball was still pretty rocky.

Pepperonis was OPEN! and I swear Beer and Pizza tastes better after a full day of skiing.

Good: Nice Powder, David, Peps, 48.3 MPH top speed.
Bad: Rocks, Wind, HardPack
Ugly: Fell teacup over kettle a couple of times on Pine Cliffs.

(18,730 Verts, STD 60,034)
Google Map

Did Echo on Saturday, still just one run. Averaged just over 6 mins per run.
Good, 6 min laps. Hot Lift Chicks
Bad, still one run
Ugly, lifts opened nearly 1/2 hour late.

(9,071 Verts, STD 69,105)
Google Map

Mowin' the Lawn

Hello to all.

I have missed posting my last trips due to a technical difficulty. I am unable to upload the gps tracks to the trail map.

I will update asap.

12/5 - Winter Park. THERE IS NO SNOW. ven with the 50' this month Winter Park was 4-5 runs before 10, and then Zephyr opened and we had 8 to ski. Cranmer was ICE and just miserable.
Good: I went
Bad: The new cabroliet thingy from Vintage to the end of the village (the complety closed village) and hte hike to the lifts
Ugly: March Hare was looking good compared to everything else
9,601 total verts.

12/12 - MJ! This was more like mowing then skiing, as there are tons of tree tops littering the few runs open. Frenchman was good at the top, but got miserable once the tree tops showed up.
MJ trail was fine, but also littered with tree tops.
Rainbow and Arapahoe were the best, small crowds and they even had some groomed 4patches.
Good: MJ OPEN, First Chair, no crowd, speed
Bad: Tree tops all over
Ugly: only a few runs open
Google Maps Plot of Trip
23,645 verts (STD: 33,246)

12/13 - Echo. OK I know, but it is 30 mins from the house and the pass was a steal. This is a small ski area with only one lift, and due to the snow only one run. I look at it as an outdoor gym, and they are open until 9:00 pm most nights. I did 12 runs (in an hour and a half)
Good: Close
Bad: Small
Ugly: the other runs are still all rocks (no snow)
8,058 verts (STD 41,304)
Google Map

OK the STD (Season to Date) Stuff. I have set a personal goal of 450,000 vertical feet (nearly 10% there). with the Echo pass, and some focus I think I can make it.

St Pats, Lots O' White and Green

St. Pats, rather then drinking I Skied.

20k Verts today, with what was advertised at 4" but must have been measured by a man.

Lots of Spring Breakers, top o' Eagle Wind had a warning, Watch Out for Spring Breakers!

Basically jst bad manners, stopping in the middle of a run cutting off a ramp with a SnowBoard, refusing to ski with a single. At least they all asked before they hit me in the head with the sissy bar.

Vasquez Cirque, off of Eagle Wind, was very nice. did five runs there before I started to get sloppy.

My favorite trees at the top of Pony Express were as inviting a usual.

It was sunny and perfect in the morning, and the new front (3-6" tonight) was rolling in as I was leaving.

No Pepps as they are closed on Mondays. I will miss them until next season.

Nice day all in all, would have been better with friends.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	3:52:30	7:14 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	3:41:54	6:54 pace
Distance (mi )	32.11
Moving Speed (mph)	8.7 avg.	41.6 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+20,385 / -19,099

In AZ watching baseball and eating nachos next two weeks, I will update in April.

3-14-08 E P I C D A Y

S I X T E E N I N C H E S
16"
XVI Inches
1'4"

Today was an EPIC day, the forecast called for 6-9", but Irish Eyes were smiling on us and we got SIXTEEN. WOW.

8:30 Am; the usually sparse Challenger lot (Utah Junction) was packed already, we were lucky to get a spot large enough for the big red truck and a little space for the chairs and other campsite stuff.

Today was also the annual Magnolia Hotels Ski Day, so most of the crew came up from the office.
Jedd, and Eric both made the trek as did Leigh, Chris, Keri, Rebecca, Will, Ken, Tom, Becky, Tarah, Kelly, Ginger and Pete. Leigh also wrangled a couple of guests from Omaha.

We had the primo base out post. Fireplace going, tunes cranked, plenty of chairs, Irish beers, mimosas and ski-in/ski-out luxury.

We cooked brats on the grill, boiled in Guinness of course, and my famous corned beef and coleslaw sandwiches.

A good time was had by all.

Back to the sneaux, Jedd, Eric and I were early enough to make some fresh tracks. We started with the trees above Pony express, the snow was tickling our testes. Really soft, almost powdered sugar consistency. On the steeps it felt more like floating while falling. the trees were a perfect starting point, as you could cruise just fast enough to make it fun, but not dangerous.

Second run was Phantom Bridge, and I have never seen the bridge this nice. the bumps were very forgiving. I was cruising along at the top no problems, chortling along the way, and then the steeps. First few bumps went Ok, then was the somersault: kettle over tea cups, planting both tails firmly in the powder in front of me. Then I was coming down and lost a ski, in SIXTEEN inches of powder, and had to climb back up to un-bury it, I was lucky that a skier came down and helped me find it.

The next run I took with Rebecca, Will, Tarah and Tom down Mary Jane trail. Rebecca got blown up by a boarder on the traverse over, and had troubles with her bindings and the powder the rest of the way down. She was really beat when she got to the bottom. Luckily, she brought mimosas and she was better once she made it back to the truck. The conditions were unforgiving for anyone not ready for the rapidly changing conditions.

Took a few more turns in the trees and then cooked up some lunch for the crew. It started snowing again, so we put up the insta-shade and everyone was a-ok.

Took two more runs on Brakeman, about the last vestige of powder left after the busy day on the Pow-Pow. Lucky, there was still some fluffiness left over there.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	6:24:36	16:22 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	2:57:16	7:32 pace
Distance (mi )	23.49
Moving Speed (mph)	8.0 avg.	30.2 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+15,036 / -14,882

3-13-08 Pampered on Ski Train

Today we (Chris Scheer and I) got to go up on the Ski Train, in the private cars.

Posh is the word, huge state rooms, great lounging in the caboose, free food, free beer. The view up and down to Winter Park was simply breath-taking. The ride is about 2.5 hrs, so we got on Zepher (Park Side) at around 10.

Great way the start the St. Patrick's Day weekend.

Big Day, 13 runs!
About 4" of powder, the trees were very fresh. Spring Break Lines for a Thursday, but the Jane was short.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	5:50:04	9:31 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	3:35:46	5:52 pace
Distance (mi )	36.74
Moving Speed (mph)	10.2 avg.	40.8 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+21,456 / -21,503

Winds at the top of Panorama were brutal. But Eagle Wind runs were pristine.

Chris is a phenomenal skier, certainly is at comfort with all conditions. Pulled a Scot and spent too much time on the phone, but he is a ton of fun to ski with.

Had great lunch at SunSpot, the Lemon Cheesecake was to die for.

Great Day, but tomorrow is FRIDAY!

3-7-08 Lift Down, Lift Down

Today opened with the Super Gauge being out of commission at 9:00, darn I was third in the singles line. Had climb up to the Goose and take Challenger.

Started with Phantom Bridge, what a warmup, there was about 2" of fresh with the curves having a little more.

Was fourth chair on the Panorama, and the snow in the trees was tasty. did three runs off the lift and skied on the chair each time. Had time for one run off of the Eagle wind, much more snow over there as usual. Very nice! Did have a run in with a branch just under the snow, and took a too sharp turn into a tree. Not the way to ski trees, fortunately just a banged up knee, no major damage. Good thing I wear a helmet!

Eric and I met up with his friend David. Took a handful of runs on MJ trail and then headed to Pep's. The beer and Za was tasty as ever. Big Bad Bill is only about 20 mugs from 1000, so help him out and go get one. Tell him Jeff (196) sent you, could pay dividends later for me.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	3:10:16	6:53 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	2:40:55	5:49 pace
Distance (mi )	27.61
Moving Speed (mph)	10.3 avg.	40.9 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+16,156 / -16,260
Temperature (°F)	10.2°F avg.	12.2°F high
Wind Speed ( mph)	WNW 4.6 avg.	WNW 9.2 max.

Leap Day - Conference Calls

The extra day of February beckons spring.

Eric makes two straight weeks (wowsers!) but all that is left on MJ is corduroy and wind blown remains of the early-week storm.

I had a couple of conference calls today, so we did not get as many runs as we could have. However, a conference call at altitude in pre-spring conditions beats one in the office.

Very warm, had to shed some layers. Mountain was very crowded today, and you could tell the early spring-breakers were there as the lift stopped once or twice each time up, and i got whacked in the head a few times as some RUDE people on the chair pulled the sissy bar down without warning. I know we need the SBers to make the pass prices work, but come on, stay on the WP side and leave the Jane to people who know how to get on and off the chair.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	3:31:10	7:15 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	2:32:04	5:13 pace
Distance (mi )	29.06
Moving Speed (mph)	11.5 avg.	44.7 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+17,815 / -17,847
Temperature (°F)	26.8°F avg.	30.2°F high

Torqued my ankle at David's base ball practice, so did not do as much of Eagle Wind as I had hoped. Did get Phantom Bridge and some front side trees in. Panorama was NUTS from the start, but that left the rest of MJ pretty open.

2-22-08 Dueces Wild

Another warm Friday. Overcast but nice.
Eric and I did TEN runs, but the verts were not what we had hoped. Great day over all. Eric had never skied MJ's Back Side or played in the new stuff off of panorama. About 1" of fresh, but there was a little more in the trees. Sun conditions all-in-all.

Jedd had (well Vicky did) a baby this week. Drake Allen. Welcome!

Panorama opened early (9:15) so we were able to get some good stuff in right away. Not too much wind.

Getting addicted to Eagle Wind, it is practically empty and lots of trees and powder, our own private stash...

Spent too much time traversing in the trees, and not enough completing runs, Eric was constantly waiting.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	3:03:39	6:46 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	2:48:05	6:12 pace
Distance (mi )	27.10
Moving Speed (mph)	9.7 avg.	38.2 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+15,397 / -15,421
Temperature (°F)	16.2°F avg.	17.6°F high
Wind Speed ( mph)	SW 7.5 avg.	SW 14.9 max.

2-15-08 Double Blacks with Jedd

What a great Day!

Spring is coming early to The Jane. Today was just gorgeous.
jedd adn I really pushed ourselves. Lots of blackies off the Eagle Wind. Really great snow in there. It was like a private powder-day.

Jedd and I got a little cocky and took the hike into Vasquez Cirque, Wow! the hike seemed like a mile, or more. We were dead tired once we reached the drop-in point. I could not see the slope from the edge.

A little intimidating at first, but once I traversed in, it was 2'+ of powder and a great ride.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	5:11:36	4:31 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	4:30:47	3:56 pace
Distance (mi )	68.81
Moving Speed (mph)	15.2 avg.	56.0 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+16,699 / -16,677

2-9-08 ADay after the Blizzard

Today I made it up a Saturday. I was continually reminded why I ski on Fridays. Long lines, Really Loooong. We spent time off the Pony, Sunny Side, and the panorama (not open until 12:30PM). Only 11 runs, with the lines, but a nice soft day to ski.

Day was gorgeous, Sun out and warm, a spring day. the 12" of powder was all but skied off on the big runs. I was able to find some great yummieness in the trees. The Blacks on Jane looked great, but I was skiing with a new friend (Cory) and he was not ready to hit the big stuff yet. Did mostly Blue cruizers all day hunting down powder on the edges.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	5:39:01	11:53 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	2:44:16	5:45 pace
Distance (mi )	28.50
Moving Speed (mph)	10.4 avg.	40.9 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+16,970 / -16,975
Temperature (°F)	15.1°F avg.	19.4°F high
Wind Speed ( mph)	WNW 12.1 avg.	WNW 29.9 max.

Carving Groomers 1-31-08

Today was interesting, first Thursday up in forever.
Eric missed his bus and Jedd had to get some year end stuff completed. So it was just me.
no traffic, great parking and I was FIRST CHAIR!

Big day statistically, 13 runs! It was cold, but sunny. The 3" promised on the WP home page was not to be found.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	3:49:41	6:12 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	3:33:48	5:46 pace
Distance (mi )	37.05
Moving Speed (mph)	10.4 avg.	46.1 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+23,335 / -23,351
Temperature (°F)	-4.5°F avg.	1.4°F high
Wind Speed ( mph)	WSW 8.7 avg.	WSW 13.8 max.

The only freshies were in the trees, and up above timberline. Panorama opened at noon, so I only did one run there. Trees on top of Rainbow were great, and the ones at the top of scraper were nice as well. Derailer was skied off, until the end. Phantom Bridge was yummy and Rainbow and Arrowhead were both great.

Groomed on the Jane Trail, so I have an new top speed. The mountain was mine for most of the early morning, so, I just pointed the tips down an cruised.

Good day all-in-all.

Mary Jane has Big Bumps

Eric joins up today...
First time this year. Today was the first day of the MJ Birthday Weekend. 32.

Good day, warm +10. With the sun out it felt much warmer. About 2" of fresh snow. Eric, Jedd and I skied the Black Side of MJ after taking a warm-up on the trail.

Bumps were soft and lots of fun, we really kicked our butts today. Phantom Bridge, Rail Bender, Derailer, Long Haul/Short Haul, Needles Eye, Boiler and finally Trestle. All were very nice except Trestle, which was skied off. Boot deep powder in the trees. Did not hit the speed goal, but we did get a ton of verts.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	2:50:05	6:26 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	2:35:18	5:53 pace
Distance (mi )	26.38
Moving Speed (mph)	10.2 avg.	36.6 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+16,416 / -16,348

Powder expected tonight and tomorrow, should be a great weekend.

Brrrrr 1-18-08 Eight Runs and Frozen Toes

Day Seven on MJ brings more cold.
-5.8f. The sun was out and the winds were low so it was a beautiful day to ski, frigid cold aside.

Bruce Melvin joined me today, for likely his last Friday up for awhile. Bruce got a real job.

Chair seven up the lift today, first day all year in the top ten first chairs. we did our typical warm up on MJ trail, but this time (and the second time) we had the entire run to our selves. Just pointed the tips down and cruised.

After a romp on Phantom we headed up to Panorama. It looked just yummy from the lift. The parts above timberline were hard packed and wind blown. Really sticky and treacherous. Once we hit tree line we found about 2" of freshies. We were able to cut tracks in the great white expanse.

Garmin 205 performed like a champ, even in the bitter cold.

Summary Data
Total Time (h:m:s)	2:07:58	5:42 pace
Moving Time (h:m:s)	1:58:02	5:16 pace
Distance (mi )	22.41
Moving Speed (mph)	11.4 avg.	39.9 max.
Elevation Gain (ft)	+13,288 / -13,300
Temperature (°F)	-3.1°F avg.	-0.4°F high
Wind Speed ( mph)	E 1.5 avg.	E 5.8 max.

Two more runs at Panorama were tree runs, again mostly untracked lots of tight turns and tree wells. You cannot beat a clear day at MJ for overwhelming beauty.

Last full run was top of golden spike, into rainbow cut. Not as stellar as last week, but still very nice.

Eight runs in 2 hrs, at home by 1:00PM tough day to beat.

MJ Day Six - New Toys

Jedd joins the party again and my new Christmas gift makes its first debut.

Seven Inches of fresh pow-pow. Just stellar conditions. Gusts of wind at top were miserable. No Eagle or Panorama for the day.

Knee deep at Phantom Bridge, and all fresh.
Trees on top of Golden Spike/Rainbow were just sick. Tons of powder and that awesome sound of complete silence as my skis cut through tons of plushness.

Did eight runs, but earned it.

New Garmin 205 GPS used.
Great device, tracked perfectly.
Skied 2:39:05
Top Speed - 33.8 MPH
14,898 Vertical Feet Skied
Temp 9.7 Avg/10.4 High
12.71 MI skied

Great Maps. Had to take GPS plot (there is a cloud over MJ on Google Earth) and fit over WP provided Trail Map. It is a little skewed at the bottom, but still gives an impression of the day.

Beers never tasted sweeter then after this day, just stellar.

MJ Day Five - David and Daddio

Last ski opportunity of Winter Break for David.

Good snow (packed powder)

Took about nine runs, lines were long for a Friday.

David and I finished at Pepperoni's as usual. Billy was not there but the Za' was a perfect end to the day.

David is getting to be a great skier.

MJ Day Four - Bitter Cold (No Really)

Hard Pack and cold. (Ok, Fricken Cold)

-12 at base and just nippely at top.

Kids take two runs and scamper for lodge.

I get two more, phone freezes, boot warmers freeze, time to go in.

Thank gosh for the pass!

MJ Day Three - Kids and the Boss

Friday before Christmas
Kids were out of school, so Bruce and I brought up David (11), Jenna(9?) and Hayden (12). All are very good skiers.

We had extra-super-primo conditions about 4" of fresh, and about 1" per hour (1.5 hr) of new.

First time up on the panoramic lift. A W E S O M E! Lots of new terrain and the powder was perfecto.

Extra Bonus, Leigh and Chris from the office joined us.

Had an awesome day, great Za' and good beer with great friends. Made the holiday weekend perfect.

MJ Day Two - SNOW!

Bruce and I had an excellent day, great conditions.

Phantom Bridge was untracked, we even were able to ski it three times cutting freshies each time.
Not too windy, and the pony was open.

Rainbow was primo!

As always Pepperoni's was perfect conclusion to the day.

Day One (third day up, first at MJ)

Conditions were tricky, about 4" of snow on several days of above average temps.
Good day, skied well.
Panoramic Lift not open yet. Cannot wait to try it out.
Bruce and I tore it up on MJ trail, Arrowhead, Phantom Bridge and Scraper.

Pepperoni's was open, had my Mary Jane ale in my own mug (196) for the first taste of the season.
I promise pics soon.
-Jeff