20/21 ski/snowboard thread

[chedder]

Originally Posted by dirk diggler

i am looking at the webcams for Kimberly and it looks pretty much deserted, am i missing something here. I know its never as busy as Louise or Sunshine but this is crazy.

Kimberley is a small hill. It doesn't have snow right now compared to everywhere else. It's far. Doesn't have many chairs. It's a nice little family hill but it isn't a skier's mountain. The draw is the atmosphere and the town itself. And like mentioned, when it's busy, it's predominantly Albertans, which isn't happening right now.

[dirk diggler]

Originally Posted by chedder

Kimberley is a small hill. It doesn't have snow right now compared to everywhere else. It's far. Doesn't have many chairs. It's a nice little family hill but it isn't a skier's mountain. The draw is the atmosphere and the town itself. And like mentioned, when it's busy, it's predominantly Albertans, which isn't happening right now.

ok thanks. I havent been there for a few years but always did like the hill.

[MacDaddy77]

Blew out binding and ski today. Test ran head kore 105 afternoon at lake Louise. Shopping for skis, what’s your current all mountain set up? No touring

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by MacDaddy77

Blew out binding and ski today. Test ran head kore 105 afternoon at lake Louise. Shopping for skis, what’s your current all mountain set up? No touring

Elan Ripstick 106.

Had the 96 last year. I actually think I preferred it. But both are amazing.

[Flames0910]

I would look for something with a little more heft than a Kore. They’re impressive skis but anything that light is going to deflect when it runs into things. For all mountain you’d likely want something with better ability to charge through crud.

Maybe a Nordica Enforcer, K2 Mindbender or Volkl Mantra M5 depending on your skiing style and with preference? Could also look at Blizzard Bonafide, Fischer Ranger or the Ripsticks DownhillGoat mentioned.

Honestly there are a lot of really good skis in this category so it’s just about honing in on the smaller details that suit you best. Generally speaking you’d be looking at dialling up/down stiffness depending on your ability / speed preference, tip/tail shape for forgiveness or agility and width for general float and maneuverability (oh and budget if you want to consider something like Stokli, DPS or Black Crows).

[Weitz]

Do you have a quiver or just a single pair of skis? Do you look for only powder days? Or will go any day? Do you want to enjoy powder days when you go?

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Why anyone buys anything but ON3P skis is a mystery to me. If you were buying a superlight touring ski, maybe go elsewhere. Every other ski, yeah... ON3P.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by chedder

Kimberley is a small hill. It doesn't have snow right now compared to everywhere else. It's far. Doesn't have many chairs. It's a nice little family hill but it isn't a skier's mountain. The draw is the atmosphere and the town itself. And like mentioned, when it's busy, it's predominantly Albertans, which isn't happening right now.

I disagree that it is a small family hill. Not a giant, but I like it.

https://skikimberley.com/

NORTH AMERICA'S LARGEST
GLADED TERRAIN

Kimberley receives an average snow fall of 13 feet of snow in a season, and attracts a wide range of skiers and riders from around the globe.

Kimberley Alpine Resort! Our resort proudly boasts the best combination of sun and light Purcell powder of any other resort in Canada! With over 1,800 acres of terrain, 80 named runs and glades, and a variety of TRUE ski-in/ski-out accommodations, there's plenty to discover at Kimberley Alpine Resort.

Comparing ski areas by acerage:

https://www.zrankings.com/ski-resorts/canada

[Zarley]

Got out to Louise for the first time on Saturday. I'm really impressed with the COVID protocols they've implemented, I don't think I was within 6' of another person all day. It's insane to me that ski hills in Ontario are shut down right now.

Question regarding west bowl - is the terrain suitable for an intermediate skier? Trying to gauge whether I should venture there with my girlfriend. She's a capable skier but would like to avoid excessive bushwhacking and overly steep pitches.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by Zarley

Got out to Louise for the first time on Saturday. I'm really impressed with the COVID protocols they've implemented, I don't think I was within 6' of another person all day. It's insane to me that ski hills in Ontario are shut down right now.

Question regarding west bowl - is the terrain suitable for an intermediate skier? Trying to gauge whether I should venture there with my girlfriend. She's a capable skier but would like to avoid excessive bushwhacking and overly steep pitches.

I think she'd be fine in West Bowl. There is definitely no bushwhacking as it's wide open. So beautiful over there, too. I don't think it's too steep, either, but wait for a second opinion on that.

Yeah, it feels so safe at Louise. My kids' snowboard club starts there this weekend and the club protocols are super safe, too. They don't even lunch with their group - we'll eat in the car. Obviously sucks on one hand, but on the other hand it's a relief that it is as safe as can be.

[Flames0910]

Originally Posted by Zarley

Question regarding west bowl - is the terrain suitable for an intermediate skier? Trying to gauge whether I should venture there with my girlfriend. She's a capable skier but would like to avoid excessive bushwhacking and overly steep pitches.

Don't go too far west over Pipestone Ridge. I did a line there that ended in a bushwack that would have been brutal in the backcountry let alone at a ski resort.

Also the entry is pretty gnarly (icey scraped over volkswagen moguls with rocks sticking out followed by a busy sidehill traverse). According to the New Year's post on their Facebook, they're planning to build a new entrance with stairs in late January, so you might consider waiting until it's built.

The terrain is sort of akin to a mini Golden or Revy, so if your GF can venture around those mountains comfortably she should be OK in West Bowl.

[delayedreflex]

Originally Posted by Zarley

Got out to Louise for the first time on Saturday. I'm really impressed with the COVID protocols they've implemented, I don't think I was within 6' of another person all day. It's insane to me that ski hills in Ontario are shut down right now.

Question regarding west bowl - is the terrain suitable for an intermediate skier? Trying to gauge whether I should venture there with my girlfriend. She's a capable skier but would like to avoid excessive bushwhacking and overly steep pitches.

Is she comfortable doing the Ptarmigan trees? If so, I think it should be alright - I've only done a few runs in the west bowl so far but I feel like it's similar level of difficulty to the Ptarmigan trees with respect to steepness (though all the runs I did ended up in the Instructor's Gully or West Bowl Gully, so not sure what it's like outside of that). It definitely looks like there are a few areas with denser trees but you should be able to avoid them easily enough.

Also chiming in to say I'm impressed with Louise's COVID protocols - they are impressively vigilant about reminding people to have their faces covered (including noses) in the lift lines without being dicks about it, and it's nice that they are allowing people to only share lifts with only their own cohort.

[Flames0910]

Also chiming in to say I'm impressed with Louise's COVID protocols - they are impressively vigilant about reminding people to have their faces covered (including noses) in the lift lines without being dicks about it, and it's nice that they are allowing people to only share lifts with only their own cohort.

Agreed, they're doing a great (and largely thankless) job. It's frustrating and disappointing that they have to be so vigilant to get people to comply.

My one remaining wish is that they would target mask types a bit better. I see lots of people with nose and mouth holes (seriously?), neck warmers that are constantly falling down except for when the staff are looking, and those super thin lightweight buffs Louise was giving out with passes a few years back.

Also, there are many "cohorts" that are clearly made up of multiple households but not much Louise can do about that.

I haven't been to Sunshine this year and probably won't, but am curious if they're also being vigilant at getting people to keep their masks on in line? I know they're loading gondolas separately now, but only because the government forced them to with the latest round of restrictions.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by Flames0910

Agreed, they're doing a great (and largely thankless) job. It's frustrating and disappointing that they have to be so vigilant to get people to comply.

My one remaining wish is that they would target mask types a bit better. I see lots of people with nose and mouth holes (seriously?), neck warmers that are constantly falling down except for when the staff are looking, and those super thin lightweight buffs Louise was giving out with passes a few years back.

Also, there are many "cohorts" that are clearly made up of multiple households but not much Louise can do about that.

I haven't been to Sunshine this year and probably won't, but am curious if they're also being vigilant at getting people to keep their masks on in line? I know they're loading gondolas separately now, but only because the government forced them to with the latest round of restrictions.

I wear an airhole face thing (covers my nose, but a hole at my mouth for my breath to go out) and then a buff over top. When I'm going down the run I pull the buff down and just breath through the hole. As I approach the lift, I put the buff back up. I do this system so my goggles don't fog up and I've thought it was pretty responsible up until your post.

What mask are you using and how does it affect your goggles? Perfectly happy to change what I'm doing to something safer for everyone.

[Flames0910]

Originally Posted by Sliver

I wear an airhole face thing (covers my nose, but a hole at my mouth for my breath to go out) and then a buff over top. When I'm going down the run I pull the buff down and just breath through the hole. As I approach the lift, I put the buff back up. I do this system so my goggles don't fog up and I've thought it was pretty responsible up until your post.

What mask are you using and how does it affect your goggles? Perfectly happy to change what I'm doing to something safer for everyone.

I'm not an infectious disease expert, but I'm OK with that! It might not be perfect but my comments are more directed at the folks who just have a normal airhole face thing without having made any attempt to seal it up. I don't really want to be seeing anyone's nose or mouth while in line. I don't know how anyone could wear just one of those airholes masks and think it's OK. They might as well be wearing nothing at all.

My situation is pretty similar to yours. I wear a folded up Buff underneath a basic fleece balaclava because of the earlier articles about fleece and buff's on their own not being thick enough. The fleece does not have an airhole, so it does fog a bit with the extra layer (I just keep my goggles up in line).

My partner has a mesh thing that attaches to the bottom of her goggles with magnets, but it has vent holes so she takes it off and replaces it with a N99 "vogmask" while in line (the magnets make it pretty quick for her to switch out). It has one of those breathing valves so we've taped over it on the inside and tested that no air comes from the valve when in use.

I am considering purchasing one of these Buff masks, which include a replaceable filter insert... but I haven't pulled the trigger just yet: https://www.buff.com/ca/buff-filter-...black-m-l.html

[Sliver]

That buff mask looks great.

[blender]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

Why anyone buys anything but ON3P skis is a mystery to me. If you were buying a superlight touring ski, maybe go elsewhere. Every other ski, yeah... ON3P.

Well, there could be many reasons, but the main one would be cost.

ON3P makes an awesome product, no doubt, but there are plenty of quality skis available that perform comparably that are available on discount. A lot of people will be happy to keep a couple hundred bucks in their jeans.

Also, the ON3P skis I've skied are pretty burly ski. I'm not sure of they have models more suited to smaller or less powerful skiers, but I could see them being too much ski for the majority of skiers.

What model are you riding?

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Originally Posted by blender

Well, there could be many reasons, but the main one would be cost. ON3P makes an awesome product, no doubt, but there are plenty of quality skis available that perform comparably that are available on discount. A lot of people will be happy to keep a couple hundred bucks in their jeans.

That's a reason in their favour, not a reason not to buy them. They're freaking handmade, hand finished skis, made in the PNW by the guy who owns the company and his small group of employees. And they retail for more or less the same amount as skis made by big companies in factories in China or eastern Europe by people who have probably never skiied in their lives. So at full price, they already might as well be on discount... and they do actually go on discount at the end of the season, for whatever's left in stock. But it's a case of getting more than what you pay for.

And incidentally, they save money on repairs... I mean, I love Armada skis, I've owned a few pairs of them. But over the past two days, I've probably hit at least 20 rocks and half a dozen partially buried branches. If I were on my old JJs they'd be a mess. Instead, my bases have two scrapes in them and no core shots. I don't understand why they're so damned durable, but they are. I have broken an ON3P - I skiied full speed into a buried stump that I thought was a pillow and snapped the ski in front of my toepiece. That's the kind of thing it takes. And those skis had 50+ days on them at the time and had no other noticeable damage. And I still skiied the rest of the day on them.

Also, the ON3P skis I've skied are pretty burly ski. I'm not sure of they have models more suited to smaller or less powerful skiers, but I could see them being too much ski for the majority of skiers.

What model are you riding?

This is fair, I'm mostly talking about what I would buy, so most of what they make is for stronger skiers. But there are tons of better skiers than me on the hill every day, it's not like they're difficult to ski if you're reasonably good.

My rock skis are old Jeffreys, my daily drivers are Billy Goats, my pow skis are Cease and Desists and I'm thinking about getting some Woodsman 108s as well.

[blender]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

That's a reason in their favour, not a reason not to buy them. They're freaking handmade, hand finished skis, made in the PNW by the guy who owns the company and his small group of employees. And they retail for more or less the same amount as skis made by big companies in factories in China or eastern Europe by people who have probably never skiied in their lives. So at full price, they already might as well be on discount... and they do actually go on discount at the end of the season, for whatever's left in stock. But it's a case of getting more than what you pay for.

And incidentally, they save money on repairs... I mean, I love Armada skis, I've owned a few pairs of them. But over the past two days, I've probably hit at least 20 rocks and half a dozen partially buried branches. If I were on my old JJs they'd be a mess. Instead, my bases have two scrapes in them and no core shots. I don't understand why they're so damned durable, but they are. I have broken an ON3P - I skiied full speed into a buried stump that I thought was a pillow and snapped the ski in front of my toepiece. That's the kind of thing it takes. And those skis had 50+ days on them at the time and had no other noticeable damage. And I still skiied the rest of the day on them.

This is fair, I'm mostly talking about what I would buy, so most of what they make is for stronger skiers. But there are tons of better skiers than me on the hill every day, it's not like they're difficult to ski if you're reasonably good.

My rock skis are old Jeffreys, my daily drivers are Billy Goats, my pow skis are Cease and Desists and I'm thinking about getting some Woodsman 108s as well.

Thats a sick quiver of skis. Obviously you have some budget dedicated to skiing, lol. I get what you are saying about the skis. I'm very familiar with them and agree with all your comments. I've skied the BG's, C&D's and Vicik. But even at the end of season discount sales I'm not seeing then for less than 500 US.

If I wasn't able to find other skis for significantly less, or felt like I had the disposable income I would not hesitate to buy ON3P. I guess I was ultimately just responding to the comment that they were the only ski worth owning. Seemed a little over the top. Right now I am on a pair of Atomic Automatics that were from a heli-ski fleet. I paid 150 bucks for them and the kill everything. Not saying they are a better ski or anything but they are bombproof, I throw them in my truck, don't care if they get stolen and I love to ski them.

Hope the rest of your season goes great!

[Weitz]

I've got a heliski trip coming up in a few weeks (pending COVID), and I am wondering if I should take them up on the free rentals they provide.

My Powder skis are about 7-8 year old Rocker 2's. Which are fine. But I'm starting to wonder if they will have something better to rent.. and whether or not I would enjoy them more.