A fresh installment of Essence was delivered to get things started after a long period of training days. Nearly a foot of freshness covered the top of the hill with fully 8″ building up on the bottom as the impulse began to lose energy as clearing began. The Regulator face had plenty of cover with a medium density that was welcome, however, the old layer was fully in play, which caused some major variability from turn to turn. I was running on memory and inner sense to remain upright with tough visibility and that wonky variability. A soft opening of the Peruvian Gulch happened without fan fare, which offered the first access to that side of the hill.

All this snow coming at us and just in time to have the hill ready for the holiday season. This installment will go a long way to covering a lot of the features that needed extra cushion, and with two more installments lined up, which promise larger accumulation, the conditions wall to wall will come alive and begin free up a lot more terrain. Tomorrow, look for solid pressure for the goods, and expect openings as they may occur with mitigation efforts completed. What a difference a day makes. Don’t forget to SIZZLE!!

Brisk South winds were blowing on the peak this morning, with a thin high cloud deck that filtered the Sun. A fresh till on Regulator offered good traction, however, the flat light made the definition very difficult to discern. Slowing down before the break over was key in dealing with the slick sections on that steep face that required a solid glide technique, or, if you were so inclined, a straight line approach and deal with the speed lower on the outrun. I was sticking with a much more conservative training approach. When the Sun broke the ridge line, the visibility improved, but that cloud deck did obscure much of the light when going into the shaded areas.

Tomorrow, look for some fresh accumulation as a fast moving impulse moves through the front. Visibility will be difficult, though you can trust the grooming efforts , and the right side of the prepared lines is favored. There is still plenty of loose snow to keep the traction going. The Lower Bassackwards section going by Gad2 opened today, but I did not take that line, though it did get good reviews. Keep things real in the morning with the variable visibility and new snow. Expect variations. Watch your Six!!

The snow guns are still blazing top to bottom and the guns in the Peruvian Gulch are pumping it out wholesale as well in a push to get more terrain open. A lot of work has been done in that regard, so I am hopeful for a opening in the near future. The soft velvet feel has passed with some of the slopes being buffeted by wind, however, the Grooming Crews have done a fine job keeping the pack consistent, with plenty of traction to keep the speed quotient real. There were some very high thin clouds moving over, making the light go flat in the shaded areas, but the Sun did punch through in the exposed sections. Still, it was wise to keep your roll mellow so as to deal with sudden variations that crop up in flat light.

Tomorrow, look for more great training runs, and expect continued firm lines top to bottom. There will be plenty of traction to practice your glide, shwag, slarve etc. techniques that will come in handy later in the season. Traffic will remain light and fast laps are easy to make. See the line, BE the line!!!

The morning dawned cold and very clear, with 100% visibility wall to wall. As anticipated, the new accumulation has been tilled into the mat, and with the cold temps, the snow guns were really kickin’ it out wholesale. Regulator was totally changed, with dry chalky man made product wafting hundreds of feet down hill, offering wonderful velvety quality that made me feel like I was making real turns. What a treat. With the high gun output, some large accumulations have built up, so keeping your speed down in some of those areas is advised.

Traffic was light, however an enthusiastic crew was on deck for the fresh, smooth lines of the morning. The new man made went a long way in covering some of the static that had cropped up, and it also allowed a much more fluid approach to the turns.

Tomorrow, look for more smooth training runs top to bottom. With the continued cold temps, I expect the Gun Powder to be prime for the morning turns on the hill. I just love that smooth velvet feel of that frosty treat. See you there for the early morning lines and silky feel. IBBY!!!

The clouds hung low over the peaks and there was brisk snow falling at the higher elevations, with just a trace in the parking lot. The new product was welcome, but the visibility was very difficult, which added a whole other level to the difficulty factor. The firmness was still fully in play, and knowing the grooming job was going to be very consistent helped dialing in a solid cadence.

The 3 or 4″ of fresh snow really added to the consistency of flow, which felt really good under foot. With the cold temps, the snow guns were blazing top to bottom, adding to the cover and offering some nice gun powder stashes downwind of the guns. Nice touch. Tomorrow, look for the new product to have been worked into the existing mat, and it should offer much improved feel for the early laps. Visibility should be much improved as well, so that will offer a chance to dial up the gain a bit. Dress for cold again and watch for frosty bite. I saw some signs today.

Keep it tight!!

A fast moving dry cold front moved across the front early this morning, stirring up the haze in the valley and bringing some clouds that hung on the tops of the peaks. Though the clouds hung on, there were windows of clearing letting some Sun shine on the dance floor. Conditions remain quite firm and the weekend traffic has begun to degrade the pack a bit, so keep an eye out for some variations.

Tomorrow, look for increased overcast with some light flurries falling overnight and into the day. Expect continued firm conditions with visibility issues to go with the change in the weather pattern. I’ll be in the “taking as I find it mode” and will continue the training sessions so that I can dial it up when the dialing is good to go. Gettin’ after it!!!

High pressure persists, but the inversion seemed a bit more stirred up this morning, letting more light to shine in the Valley. Up on the hill, the training runs are still in play, offering the good coverage on the prepared lines. There are some indications that there is a change in the weather coming, so we’ll have to keep the visualizations going to bring the manifestation we prefer.

Tomorrow, look for continued smooth firm lines to work on your float, shwagg, shwing, shlarve, or, if you have wicked edges, carve. I am working mostly on my glide and float for incidental moments when it will be needed in rare instances. Got to have all to tools in the toolbelt. Straight Ahead!!!

The first few laps offered very flat light, with very little detail to work with. I was counting on the Grooming Crew to bring the smooth, and they pulled yet another consistent line on Regulator and the lower mountain. It is great to be able to get that bit of bite to keep it real when it all gets steep. Later in the day the Sun really warmed up the ambient temps, and with the bright Sun, the turns became much more dialable. Sunshine was a good thing.

Traffic was light form the morning session, but increased as the day progressed, still there was plenty of room to move and the prepared lines held up well to the traffic.

Tomorrow, look for more training lines top to bottom. Flat light will prevail for the morning laps, but you can count on the fresh till for traction. Looking forward to a change in the pattern. Keep the visualizations outside the box. Let’s get this party started!!

The hill had a country club feel today, with super light traffic, easy to make back to back Trams, warm sunshine, and good cover, which made for a very relaxed day. The Grooming Crew did a very nice job tilling the existing prepared surfaces, and even though those early laps offered some extra primo flat light, the later laps with Sun shining was a real treat.

These early days of the season is the perfect time to slide into the energy of the hill with a tranquil approach. There will be plenty of time for high amp lock and loaded turns later, but with these firm conditions, there is no need to get ahead of the game.

Tomorrow, look for more low pressure early Trams with plenty of room to dance. Expect continued firm lines, and excellent training conditions to get you dialed into the fall line for further explorations.

See you there dark and early for another great day with all your friends as we ease our way into the Season. Visualize Deepness!!!

The inversion is building, filling the Valley with shmegma that looks kind of spooky. Excellent prepared lines were smooth and consistent, which comes in mighty handy in the very dark and flat light of the early morning laps. It is great to know that your next turn will not be twarted by an unseen variation of texture. Some snow making efforts have been tried, but the temp profile was very short lived, though those sections of Gun Dust was delightful indeed.

Tomorrow, look for more fun training runs that challenge your sense of the NOW moment, which will become important later in the season, when the goods get good. Straight Ahead!!!