The arrival of spring brings the end of the lift-serviced skiing: so what’s stopping you from going unlift-serviced skiing?!? Probably the absence of a backpack capable of hauling your gear and the day’s necessities up the hill under your own power. Try the Gregory Zulu Pack to address your needs and you’ll be able to extend your season.
Archive for the ‘Spring Corn’ Category
The snow conditions in Australia are largely dictated by the fact the air temperature rarely gets colder than 5 degrees C (say 20 degrees F). With the addition of that warm Aussie sun, these factors tends to keep the snow surface from freezing fully into frozen granular and generally keeps skiing Downunder softer and quieter.
For our folks in the Southern Hemisphere, busy whiling away their days skiing and riding, here are a few thoughts on skiing in soft(er) snow:
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Cheers and hello to fellow Sugarloafers Jano and Crusher who are vacationing out in British Columbia. These two hard-corps free-heelers are driving cross-country in their camper for an extended vacation now that the snow’s leaving us here in the Northeast. Here’s a telemark tip for all of us, with them in mind: Read the rest of this entry »
It’s the Prime Time! It took awhile to get here, but finally winter is shaking itself off the Northeast and leaving us in sunny skies and warm temps. We’ve been out skiing and riding, every day, and finally took a short break to leave this post; when Spring skiing, take your time!
Spring snow conditions change rapidly through the course of a day and can present a challenge in making good tactical decisions on where to ski/ride. Unlike mid-winter conditions, the variables of freeze to thaw to freeze cycles in Spring can create some unique situations. Here are some general thoughts for interpreting Spring snow conditions:
Conditions change by the hour when skiing and riding in the Spring; the mix of changing air temperatures, underlying snow temperature, sunshine, and warm air winds can create a broad range of conditions in the course of a day. Based on a general timeline, here are some tips on terrain selection for spring skiing.
In earlier post, fishing gloves were mentioned as an excellent choice for skiing in the rain. In response to a comment, the recommended gloves are specifically the Altas 490 GLOVE, PVC BLUE INSULATED and here’s a link to buy those gloves on-line.
Let’s face it, no one wakes up in the morning hoping for the opportunity to go out skiing and riding in the rain. Rain can actually create pretty good snow conditions, however, as it levels and softens the snow surface. The question is usually how long you can hang outside in the rain before becoming miserably wet. Solution? Don’t get miserably wet!
Winter always seems reluctant to release its grip , but when it finally does, its enthusiastic replacement is Spring’s awesome blue skies, sunshine, and soft snow. These conditions last for an all-too-brief time, so let’s focus on getting out and enjoying them. Here are 10 tips on skiing and riding in spring conditions:
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It’s the chicken or the egg question of skiing: do the hands time your turns or do your turns time the hands? In terrain and conditions such as moguls, steeps, trees, powder, and Spring snow, it really doesn’t matter which answer is right. Either way, a series of relatively short linked turns are best made by keeping the hands and legs working in concert. Key to those movements is the commitment to the turn that a good pole swing adds to your skiing.