Author: Steve

2009-2010 Season, November, Sunday River

Still More Patch Skiing at Sunday River

I give Sunday River a lot of credit for continuing to blow snow during questionable windows and continuing to offer skiers and riders a chance to determine for themselves if thin coverage is excessive or not. Patch skiing resumes at Sunday River will many small sections of Lower Sunday Punch blown out making top to bottom skiing all but impossible. Well, unless you have questionable ski base quality standards such as mine.

After waking up to a dreary and wet morning following a tropical storm breaking apart the previous night, I putz around the house for a while awaiting some hint of the sunshine that was forecasted for the afternoon. Soon enough, I was en route to Sunday River for Canned Good day. Always good to help support the local food banks while simultaneously supporting my habit on the cheap.

Due to Lower Sunday Punch being blown out in places which had most skiers and riders hiking parts of Lower Sunday Punch, the mid-stations line was more than my stomach could handle so I opted for top to bottom skiing with exception of one late day mid-station run. Frequent lift slow downs and stops to accommodate down loading skiers made riding the Locke Mountain Triple a tedious experience.

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Articles, Big Jay Coverage

Vermont Life Weighs in On Trail Cutting

A Response to the Vermont Life Magazine Article on Trail Cutting

The Big Jay trail cutting incident continues to create discussion about so called “illegal backcountry trail cutting.” Vermont Life Winter 2009 edition presents an article that fails to fully flesh out the issue and generally focuses on only one side of the “problem” and “solution”. So lets delve into this subject in detail using the Vermont Life article as a launching pad for a more in depth discussion.

Is Cutting a “Backcountry” Problem?

First, I would like to address this common concept of blaming “backcountry skiers” for illegal cutting and thinning. I propose that the majority of illegal cutting occurs at established ski areas within or adjacent to ski area boundaries. While there are those that cut and thin lines that are strictly accessible by earning turns, most thinned areas are lift service accessible or at least slackcountry accessible from a lift with a short hike. This is not strictly a “backcountry” problem and I would suggest that the problem is actually significantly bigger at and around ski areas. The Vermont Life article (or at least those quoted within it) confuses ski area gladed terrain with backcountry terrain (or at least is written in such a way that suggests confusion).

Second, all skiers and riders currently recreating in illegally thinned out tree lines are culpable and have provided defacto approval and endorsement of the activity. This likely even includes many if not most of the persons quoted in the Vermont Life article that suggest “skiing without a saw”. Perhaps prior to the Big Jay cut, there could be no guilty mind despite the guilty act because cutting and thinning of lines seemed very acceptable and the way things are done. But since the Big Jay cut, any one that skis a line that has been thinned illegally is providing their tacit endorsement of the activity. This likely includes many skiers and riders who have decried cutting and thinning the loudest.

Perhaps many do so without even knowing that the line was thinned illegally. However, I think it is a safe assumption that unless a ski area actively promotes boundary to boundary (or perhaps even beyond the boundary) tree skiing, most tree skiing not on a trail map is likely the result of illegal or unauthorized cutting. Essentially, most tree skiing off the map is likely maintained without the approval of the adjacent ski area.

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2009-2010 Season, Earned Turns, Jay Peak, November

Survival Skiing on Man Made at Jay

One route at Sunday River for $39, three routes at Killington for $49, or two routes earned for free at Jay. Gee wiz, I think I will see what is behind door number three, please!

Unfortunately, not much. This is a tough weekend for the desperate unless you want to buy over priced lift tickets for extremely limited products at Sunday River or Killington.

The price at Sunday River increased by over 50% without any increase in product. Needless to say, the law of supply and demand is in full effect. And who can blame them for doing so? When lift lines are backing up into double digit wait times and beyond, they obviously have enough demand to justify increasing the prices to increase profitability and put out a better product.

As for Killington, suffice to say I would not pay $50 for half of their trails open let alone two runs off the North Ridge Triple and Bunny Buster. Bretton Woods also opened one bunny trail for a $10 donation to charity. The options were not looking very promising for lift serviced.

So I turned my attention towards Jay.

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Articles, Gear

Boot Fitting with Jeff Bokum of Profile Orthotic Center

Here is my boot fitting experience with Jeff Bokum (C-PED) at Profile Orthotic Center in Concord, NH.

After exchanging a few emails, Jeff Bokum was able to setup an appointment for me on extremely short notice (two hours). When I entered the Profile Orthotic Center, I had no doubt that despite handling orthotics for a variety of athletes and sports, skiing is definitely Jeff’s specialty. From the ski boot holster for a heat gun to a signed posted of Glen Plake along with plenty of random ski boots kicking around, his shop oozes ski culture.

Jeff affectionately refers to his work space as a theater for skiers. Customers take their seats on one of two giant steps facing each other that lift the skier high up over the stage that Jeff plies his trade upon. The benches place the skier’s foot at working level. Skiers in this theater are not meant to be spectators but rather Jeff draws heavily upon audience participation.

Having been fitted once before at a different shop, I knew the drill and expected the expert to run the show. But Jeff was not having any of that and ensured this was a team effort. Jeff guided me through the process with his detailed knowledge and provided ample physiological descriptions regarding the what, why, and how of the fitting process.

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Articles, Gear

Ski Boot Fitting and Custom Foot Beds

When it comes to ski gear, most experts and even many lay skiers agree that boots are the most important equipment selection. While the wrong ski for the job will prevent you from having maximum enjoyment, normally it will not necessarily hurt you in the quite literal way that an ill-fit boot can. While I believe that every piece of the gear jigsaw puzzle needs equal attention and consideration, I can attest to the fact that a poorly fit boot can effect your enjoyment while skiing and perhaps even your number of ski days.

Boot fit issues plagued my days spent earning turns these past few years. My first Alpine Touring boot was a Garmont G-Ride that always felt too tight and had three major pressure points. My flat foot rebelled without a supported heel. But I got the boots on the cheap and damned if I was going to spend more than half of what I paid for the boots on a custom fitting. Wrong decision. While touring, I suffered through poor fit and opted for lift serviced in my alpine boots more often than I had planned. One look at my G-Rides sitting next to my alpine boots was usually all it took. The AT boots got left behind more often than not.

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