2011-12 Skiing Thread

[username]

Oh ya, I agree with basically everyone here - Revy is without a doubt the best mountain in Canada - possibly NA but I haven't done much down south.

The most exciting part about Revelstoke is knowing that they've only completed about 20% of their development.

[Vansmack]

Originally Posted by username

Was just the top open or could you make it all the way down to the base?

How was the tree skiing? Was there good coverage over in the ripper?

So jealous you got to go - I've been on the DL since August and haven't been able to ride or play hockey since then. My physio chick says I'lll be ready to go in 2 more weeks. Can't wait to hit Revy up for 5 days over new years.

You could ski down to mid station. Ripper had good coverage, we spent a good amount of time in the back 40 glades. On Sunday we hiked around greely and through beauty glades and it was still fairly untouched.

The visibility was kind of poor on Saturday so we spent a bunch of times in the trees. South bowl was incredible. Really deep powder turns up top and then a ton of snow in the trees down below.

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by username

Was just the top open or could you make it all the way down to the base?

How was the tree skiing? Was there good coverage over in the ripper?

So jealous you got to go - I've been on the DL since August and haven't been able to ride or play hockey since then. My physio chick says I'lll be ready to go in 2 more weeks. Can't wait to hit Revy up for 5 days over new years.

I'll be there over New Years as well, hopefully thrashing pow!

Best Mountain in Canada for sure!

[troutman]

SkiLouise Lake Louise Ski Area
11 more runs open today: Ptarmigan Chutes, Eagle Ridge 1 & 2, Saddleback Bowl (Wounded Knee, Kiddie’s Corner). Map: bit.ly/sENjSC

[troutman]

Vonn is awesome. Will also be single soon.

http://sports.yahoo.com/ski/news?slu...ysp_frm_woah=1

American Lindsey Vonn won her fourth Alpine Ski Women's World Cup race in a row on Wednesday, capturing a rescheduled Super-G event after sweeping three races last weekend in Canada.

US alpine speed queen Vonn has won all four races since announcing she is to divorce her husband and coach, Thomas Vonn, after four years of marriage.

[macker]

Originally Posted by troutman

Vonn is awesome. Will also be single soon.

http://sports.yahoo.com/ski/news?slu...ysp_frm_woah=1

American Lindsey Vonn won her fourth Alpine Ski Women's World Cup race in a row on Wednesday, capturing a rescheduled Super-G event after sweeping three races last weekend in Canada.

US alpine speed queen Vonn has won all four races since announcing she is to divorce her husband and coach, Thomas Vonn, after four years of marriage.

Her Dad will be happy....I guess he didn't go to the last Olympics because their relationship had gone "down hill" since her "new coach" took over from him. I don't think she is ever single though

[RatherDashing]

I'm thinking of heading out to Louise this weekend. Has anybody been recently? How are the conditions?

[Coys1882]

My wife and I are ditching the kids and hitting the slopes for the first time in 20 years and then spending the night at Sunshine Mountain Lodge - anyone been there before?

[OffsideSpecialist]

Zero snow here yet...not that our skiing is any good.

The plan is to save my pennies and go to visit my buddy in Kelowna for a week next year and go skiing.

[J epworth]

Hey finally driving back home from Saskatoon this weekend, I'm thinking of heading straight up to Canmore and getting some skiing in on Sunday; which mountain has been getting the best snow so far?

[freedogger]

I just can't relate to all the "Revy is the best ski hill" comments.

I skied Revy last year. I got bored of it. Every run is fall line, almost to a fault. The North Bowl was okay, but it really just gets started and then it is over. I was there a week after a good snow fall. Maybe that's the problem.

I admit that I'm being way to critical, it is an awesome experience. But the variety of terrain that places like Castle, Fernie, Kicking horse, Lake Louise, and Whistler have make them a little more appealing if I had to choose a permanent place to always go. '

Does anyone else feel this way or am I totally on crack cocaine?

[username]

Originally Posted by freedogger

Does anyone else feel this way or am I totally on crack cocaine?

No you're probably not on crack cocaine but I would suggest that you didn't do Revy right. I'm doubting that you hiked Greely? Did you hit the good tree runs? South bowl after a big dump? There are also tons of pillows that mostly season pass holders and locals know about. Trust me, it's better than the places you mentioned although I really like Kicking Horse after a big dump. The terrain at KH is right there with Revy, if not better. They just don't get the snow and that gondola shuts down any time wind starts blowing down valley.

My advice, try it again but chase a storm. You won't regret it.

[freedogger]

Originally Posted by username

No you're probably not on crack cocaine but I would suggest that you didn't do Revy right. I'm doubting that you hiked Greely? Did you hit the good tree runs? South bowl after a big dump? There are also tons of pillows that mostly season pass holders and locals know about. Trust me, it's better than the places you mentioned although I really like Kicking Horse after a big dump. The terrain at KH is right there with Revy, if not better. They just don't get the snow and that gondola shuts down any time wind starts blowing down valley.

My advice, try it again but chase a storm. You won't regret it.

Where is Greely? I will be getting back there at some point so there's no time like the present to figure out a better game plan.

Castle every few years has a couple of days of Nipple deep cold smoke powder. I don't know anywhere else that gets snow like that. Alta in Utah comes close but it is too light and you sink right through it most of the time.

[username]

Originally Posted by freedogger

Where is Greely? I will be getting back there at some point so there's no time like the present to figure out a better game plan.

Castle every few years has a couple of days of Nipple deep cold smoke powder. I don't know anywhere else that gets snow like that. Alta in Utah comes close but it is too light and you sink right through it most of the time.

Greely's on the west side of the North bowl. You probably have seen a lot of people hiking right off the chair heading in the direction of the N bowl. Well if you keep hiking all the way around you get there. The runs are a longer than the North Bowl and obviously less tracked out since it's a longer hike and you can't ski there.

[Tron_fdc]

Greely is a surprisingly easy hike for what you get. It won't take long before more and more people figure that out though, so get it while you can. You can access it by traversing off the chair, or taking the boot pack right in front of the stoke chair that takes you to the peak.

All the runs on the East side of the chair (Jalapeno, etc) are epic if you're in there first, but forget about it by the end of the day.

http://mappery.com/map-of/Revelstoke...Map-Front-side

[macker]

Anyone with kids in grade 4 or 5 take them along for free :
http://www.snowpass.ca/

List of Alberta Ski areas where this will work :
http://www.snowpass.ca/userfiles/fil...rtalink(1).pdf

[AR_Six]

Originally Posted by freedogger

But the variety of terrain that places like Castle, Fernie, Kicking horse, Lake Louise, and Whistler have make them a little more appealing if I had to choose a permanent place to always go. '

Does anyone else feel this way or am I totally on crack cocaine?

You are only sort of high. Louise and Castle are immediately disqualified by annual snowfall. They simply do not yield enough pow days.

There is a good argument to be made for KMHR, but I think it's a matter of personal preference between there and Revy. To be honest I don't even know what side of that argument I'd fall on.

Whistler... well first of all, Whistler kind of sucks imo, the lift layout is annoying in terms of getting in enough good ish in one day, though on bluebird its virtues shine. Blackcomb, however, is an awesome hill if you know where all the goods are. It will always be my home mountain, I have hundreds of days there. If you like coastal snow and don't mind flat light, it's great. But the crowds are brutal, the snow gets tracked out quickly and the village is essentially a black hole that swallows money faster than anywhere else I can think of outside of freaking Disneyland. On that basis, the interior hills have a lot on W/B. If you're counting anything other than terrain.

The other problem is related to the crowds - ever since we made the godawful, I-wish-we-could-take-it-back (though a lot of my friends have gotten well as a result so I don't really but just for skiing purposes) decision to make fat skis cool, everyone and their mom thinks they need to make the traverse out into lakeside and flute. It's ridiculous. Seven or eight years ago you could find something good and lap it with two or three other people and it'd be all good. Now, everything everywhere is tracked out by noon. I see people TAKING OFF THEIR GEAR and hiking backwards down sketchy traverses - if you can't ski well enough to GET there, then gtfo before I beat you to death with my ski pole and bury your corpse in booterville. Sparknotes version: gapers and tourists are a big problem at W/B, even more so than in Banff.

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by AR_Six

Sparknotes version: gapers and tourists are a big problem at W/B, even more so than in Banff.

That's the big reason why I like KHMV and Revy. Much less of those types.

[username]

Interesting development: Kicking Horse to be sold to RCR

http://www.calgaryherald.com/busines...009/story.html

[mrbanffgirl]

Originally Posted by username

Interesting development: Kicking Horse to be sold to RCR

http://www.calgaryherald.com/busines...009/story.html

NOOOO!!!! RCR is brutal, the only thing that will come of this is a heftier pass price and worse customer service! RCR has a proven track record of screwing up everything it touches!