tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28763424989286776662024-03-04T23:02:57.803-08:00The Big DefluorinatedMartin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.comBlogger114125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-3842134926688694852022-11-28T16:54:00.004-08:002022-11-28T16:57:25.164-08:00How Chris Benchetler Turns Skiing into Art<div class="separator"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZdP8Bb_nNbSC8kxmxlk5Buk5j4DOSqzXGaB8kI13MIJbEs0wYZk83oAuWx0ZM2pD7m9AinLnUdF7cecbUfT0NAs_Bt75Ea__FqT3D9yEg61VbD-s5d1qv1V8KtOFjr8B5TtnYhL0GHwOlUtlvjfCP8-SubrCeGGzNBN4oyPJ6Xc-xobxIunHUxo/s860/cs.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="860" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZdP8Bb_nNbSC8kxmxlk5Buk5j4DOSqzXGaB8kI13MIJbEs0wYZk83oAuWx0ZM2pD7m9AinLnUdF7cecbUfT0NAs_Bt75Ea__FqT3D9yEg61VbD-s5d1qv1V8KtOFjr8B5TtnYhL0GHwOlUtlvjfCP8-SubrCeGGzNBN4oyPJ6Xc-xobxIunHUxo/w495-h331/cs.jpeg" width="495" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">An artistic shot created by Chris Benchetler in his 2019 film, </span><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px;">Fire on the Mountain</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">. | Screengrab from </span><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px;">Fire on the Mountain</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p><strong>The dozens of canvases cluttered in Chris Benchetler's art studio at his Mammoth Lakes home give an impression as if you had just walked inside a small temple where the walls were melting, oozing every possible mixture of color imaginable.</strong> The canvases are all sorts of different shapes and sizes; some are hanging up on the wall, tilted or upside down, while others are stashed away in the corner between boxes of paint and art supplies. A cool September breeze gently sways the pine trees visible from the studio's window. Between balancing time raising two young boys, working on several original art commissions, serving as Creative Director for Atomic Skis, supporting a wife battling cancer, and still finding time to go outside to ski, bike, or climb daily, going to the studio to make art is no small task for Benchetler. Yet, he still manages to find the time and show up every day.</p><blockquote><p>"I view art—and skiing and rock climbing and all the things that I try to do on a daily basis—as a form of meditation. You're looking inward when your painting and you're really expressing yourself in that moment in that space and time."</p></blockquote><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmZrIMGXjK8uF8sDXAckL1CS96UNWGyYbp3K2hFqrrRq6zlQhcRYGpdvBMo2AE9XzXhlHU1jP6ZedIWMBIVjBCt50J2VUDxkH331KCY6ETAtKKDEN-nRdoH-sVrae1qv8ENt9JCOhtaNqRRkmSXIXhaPcdS5G39NxRA_BraaGwKDjGF35q175CrYI/s2048/stu.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmZrIMGXjK8uF8sDXAckL1CS96UNWGyYbp3K2hFqrrRq6zlQhcRYGpdvBMo2AE9XzXhlHU1jP6ZedIWMBIVjBCt50J2VUDxkH331KCY6ETAtKKDEN-nRdoH-sVrae1qv8ENt9JCOhtaNqRRkmSXIXhaPcdS5G39NxRA_BraaGwKDjGF35q175CrYI/w504-h378/stu.jpeg" width="504" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Chris Benchetler’s Mammoth Lakes art studio. | Photo courtesy of Chris Benchetler Twitter</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong>The inspiration behind Benchetler's art comes as the culmination of the 36 years he's spent on this planet, with a strong influence from nature, he told me. </strong>When I spoke with Benchetler on the phone one fresh autumn morning he was sitting in his backyard under a pine tree, taking a break from painting. The Mammoth Lakes, California, local is best known for his career as a professional skier and his line of <a href="https://www.atomic.com/en-us/shop/product/bent-chetler-120-aa0029430.html">Atomic Bent Chetler skis</a>, which he helped create and continues to produce the renowned psychedelic artwork for. He's a master of his craft, having practiced it since the early days of his childhood.</p><ul><li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/kimmy-fasani-cancer-free/" rel="bookmark">Pro-Snowboarder Kimmy Fasani Announces She is Cancer-Free Following a Year of Treatment</a></strong></em></li></ul><p><strong>Benchetler has been both a skier and an artist since before he could remember.</strong> He has a humble beginning on an alpine racing team as a young child and was always doodling and drawing on his school homework, he says. He entered local art competitions in elementary school, even recalling that once he won a stuffed animal as a prize at one of those contests. At 15, he was a professional skier who would soon appear at the X Games. By 22, he helped launch the first line of Atomic Bent Chetler skis, which have since become one of the most popular ski models on Earth. Now at 36, he's the director and star of several ski films and creator of a myriad of commissioned original works, from public murals to digital art. He's descended extremely technical big mountain lines in places like Alaska with an ease and style that's uniquely his own, often resembling something more of a big wave surfer than a freeride skier. He's also got a van that he once lived in, using it to travel around North America chasing powder. The side of it is painted with his own artwork.</p><p><strong>Working with Atomic Skis, Benchetler helped create and launch the Bent Chetler ski in 2008 as his first professional art commission.</strong> Every year since, he and Atomic have showcased a fresh layer of signature-style graphics on the latest model of Bent Chetlers, summoning the imagination drawn from a life spent playing in the mountains. Just like with his skiing, his artistic style is uniquely his and is easily recognizable at first glance by almost anyone who skis or snowboards. The flow of creativity never seems to cease, and year after year he keeps bringing to the table new, mind-captivating designs for the Bent Chetler ski and his own artwork.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivpqwHW9VYMx-HdrIzhpac0vyieXNZ1_JwawAIHbaV15wR6CEpwOSVaCp1uPt8W1bD88UWqyv-5kOGVLmwSCctQNDxlgq_ai0F3Jc_W00MrJ-xL6SQoUahsO0VwEc1awxJ-Ds2Rf6_puMcDGjopFgVIm7Vm5aOER2Rh54sYvl4U-95b88eUgnMlo4/s1269/sl.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1269" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivpqwHW9VYMx-HdrIzhpac0vyieXNZ1_JwawAIHbaV15wR6CEpwOSVaCp1uPt8W1bD88UWqyv-5kOGVLmwSCctQNDxlgq_ai0F3Jc_W00MrJ-xL6SQoUahsO0VwEc1awxJ-Ds2Rf6_puMcDGjopFgVIm7Vm5aOER2Rh54sYvl4U-95b88eUgnMlo4/w509-h270/sl.jpeg" width="509" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Chris Benchetler lays out a spin in the backcountry. | Photo courtesy of </span><a href="https://forecastski.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/chris_benchetler_chasing_advanture_header.jpg" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">forecastski.com</a></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><strong>When flowing down a mountain in fresh powder, pillars of white pouring over him as he maintains his speed, Benchetler says he feels a sense of connectedness.</strong> This is often where he gets the inspiration for his art, which gives viewers a perception of something flowing: something that is moving and breathing—that is alive. <span face="-apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif">"From the soil to the trees to the plants—everything on this planet is connected," Benchetler told me. "Spending as much time as I do in the mountains has really helped me experience that firsthand."</span></p><p><strong>Benchetler doesn't go out to ski a line because he thinks someone will like it.</strong> This same philosophy applies to his artwork. He does these things only to express himself as freely as possible—to push himself further, physically and mentally, without delegating any energy towards impressing an audience. This rids him of any self-imposed handicap, allowing him to express his vision purely.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwVm3LitYrDdk9QGBz0SooDLFd1rPn8dn0eKBXX96OmtHOgkjDA0yOecZjo4NbOh89ZJgMRG5t3wIbZELDMSayEaJ2oMBEbfInRLOw7J5ROKAu0kMCjh4CR0rzBB0g4d2-7OG-ykGL9gjciz5A_mhGjAo6eHBggXLTmFuvO3QmFbqldpsv6Cumvcg/s1208/wi.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1208" data-original-width="808" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwVm3LitYrDdk9QGBz0SooDLFd1rPn8dn0eKBXX96OmtHOgkjDA0yOecZjo4NbOh89ZJgMRG5t3wIbZELDMSayEaJ2oMBEbfInRLOw7J5ROKAu0kMCjh4CR0rzBB0g4d2-7OG-ykGL9gjciz5A_mhGjAo6eHBggXLTmFuvO3QmFbqldpsv6Cumvcg/w428-h640/wi.png" width="428" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Chris Benchetler creates his signature ‘Old Man Winter’. | Photo courtesy of Rolling Stone</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><strong>Skiing and art provide the same emotions, Benchetler says</strong>. When he flows on the mountain, he takes that feeling of flow—that feeling of creative freedom—and applies it to the way he mixes his colors, strokes his paintbrush, and crafts one of his works. That feeling inspired by nature is used to express what is inside of himself in a blend of dripping color. You can physically see this palpable state of flow by looking at any one of his pieces, like the ones incorporating Old Man Winter that show an aged mountain spirit fused together with mountain scenery or ocean waves, with no clear distinction between where one subject ends and the other begins. At the time of our talk, Benchetler was working on several different paint pieces in his studio. Having dabbled with a little bit of everything he says, acrylic is his go-to and he's a big fan of watercolors. "Oils are great, too, but time-consuming."</p><p><strong>As an artist, skier, human being—Benchetler believes it's important to never stop learning; to flow with the river of change rather than try and fight it.</strong> This mantra is exactly what led him to create his first ever <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/NFT">Non-Fungible Token (NFT)</a>, or digital artwork, which Benchetler says is just another extension of the art world we live in. "To think back to when the internet was first being developed and all the photographers I worked with that were completely against going to digital cameras and all the cinematographers that didn't want to stop shooting with 16 millimeter, and then technology just <em>happens</em>. There's so much of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web3">Web3</a> that I do not understand, but it would be naive for me to think that it would not be part of our future."</p><p><strong>Like the strong theme of community that surrounds the music of the Grateful Dead, which Benchetler has proclaimed his love for via his art and even a Grateful Dead-inspired ski film, <em><a href="https://snowbrains.com/video-fire-on-the-mountain-official-grateful-dead-chris-benchetler-full-film1/">Fire on the Mountain</a></em>, his works are there to inspire whoever looks at them. </strong>By illustrating his own mind's eye depiction of the beauty surrounding the natural world, Benchetler believes he can incite in someone else that same sense of wonder. His art is there to encourage and captivate but also motivate.</p><p><strong>On <a href="https://chrisbenchetler.com/">his website</a>, there is a line of text that stands out.</strong> "When you tap into your mind, the right line always reveals itself…on the mountain and on the canvas." In a world that more and more seems to promote disconnectedness from mind and spirit, there are still those like Benchetler that give a visual snapshot of what tapping into your mind looks like—on the mountain and on the canvas. But there's a secret to this powerful statement. Tapping into your mind and finding your flow, feeling true creativity—it's not only possible by seasoned professionals or the spiritually inclined like Benchetler. Anybody can do it. You just have to be open enough to access it.</p><p></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">New collab just dropped. I put a bunch of my <a href="https://twitter.com/GratefulDead?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GratefulDead</a> inspired work on some new <a href="https://twitter.com/Smartwool?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Smartwool</a> merch. Available for a limited time here 💀🌹<a href="https://t.co/mGbsJgqbuD">https://t.co/mGbsJgqbuD</a> <a href="https://t.co/SboW9hVHhl">pic.twitter.com/SboW9hVHhl</a></p>— Chris Benchetler (@ChrisBenchetler) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisBenchetler/status/1592245176231428096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 14, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-16822716364155314162022-09-07T17:07:00.008-07:002022-09-07T17:11:43.469-07:00Opinion: The Proposed Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT, Gondola System is a $500 Million Bandaid<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIEqmTIyunbAjgOiyxHM4E-WMHT02R7CIene0zc90kJ0mQVlgL7At8jKQy8N62RXQjX0WC8le7raP4NjWaiDMp6jXyTVCM4qt8eROn3-RwQNAwcfHisP7R9wqCQvmIj14MduFMpDs-Fd95J9Qt3Z6zWYLWuN9Ms7saiAvd_Avrflqt5ho9635yoNY/s1209/gon.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="776" data-original-width="1209" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIEqmTIyunbAjgOiyxHM4E-WMHT02R7CIene0zc90kJ0mQVlgL7At8jKQy8N62RXQjX0WC8le7raP4NjWaiDMp6jXyTVCM4qt8eROn3-RwQNAwcfHisP7R9wqCQvmIj14MduFMpDs-Fd95J9Qt3Z6zWYLWuN9Ms7saiAvd_Avrflqt5ho9635yoNY/w532-h340/gon.jpeg" width="532" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Illustration of the proposed gondola. Credit: gondolaworks.com</div></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong>A week ago, the Utah Department of Transportation declared the proposed Little Cottonwood Canyon gondola system as its favorite solution for the tedious traffic that gridlocks canyon travelers every winter.</strong> Most of these powder-hungry skiers and snowboarders are traveling to Snowbird and Alta, where the gondola will drop off passengers who board at the to-be-constructed La Caille Base Station at the mouth of the canyon. The project is a massive undertaking; once said and done, the half-a-billion-dollar investment will result in one of the world's longest, most advanced gondola systems, spanning over eight miles from the entrance of the canyon to world-class ski areas Snowbird and Alta. Once <a href="https://snowbrains.com/utah-dot-officially-recommends-gondola-to-fix-traffic-in-little-cottonwood-canyon/">the current 45-day public review period</a> ends, construction of the project can begin and will likely take several years. <a href="https://littlecottonwoodeis.udot.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/LCC_FEIS_Executive_Summary_FINAL_8-31-2022.pdf" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Click here for the Final EIS Summary Fact Sheet</a>.</p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><blockquote><p>"[The gondola] is the most reliable mode of public transit in variable weather conditions and best meets the reliability goal of the project's purpose, while taking into consideration environmental impacts, public input, and overall life-cycle cost in comparison to the other four alternatives." - <a href="https://littlecottonwoodeis.udot.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/LCC_FEIS_Executive_Summary_FINAL_8-31-2022.pdf">UDOT</a></p></blockquote><p style="text-align: left;"><strong>To get the gondola rolling, they'll need to build A.) a giant parking garage and tram loading facility at the base of the canyon, B.) a gondola system with giant lift towers running the length of the canyon, and C.) receiving ports at Alta and Snowbird.</strong> Once that happens people won't have to drive up the canyon to get to Alta and Snowbird. But what about those who still want to go up the canyon but not all the way to the resorts?</p><ul><li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/utah-dot-officially-recommends-gondola-to-fix-traffic-in-little-cottonwood-canyon/" rel="bookmark">Utah DOT Officially Recommends Gondola to Fix Traffic in Little Cottonwood Canyon</a></strong></em></li></ul><span style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><strong style="font-weight: bold;">The local backcountry skier is not served by the gondola unless they want to start touring out of the town of Alta.</strong> Even so, they'll still likely have to pay to use the gondola to get there. But isn't the point of going backcountry, at least for some, to avoid all the resort happenings <span face="-apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif">and get out into the mountains on your own accord—on your own dime? The White Pine Trailhead or any of LCC's classic backcountry trails that access its legendary, ski-to-the-highway terrain which consists of several thousand-foot runs of steep backcountry skiing all land before the gondola's two drop-off points. How is a gondola going to serve any backcountry user wanting to go to any one of those popular zones other than by giving them an eyesore when they're skiing down and see a giant metal lift tower poking out of the surrounding scenery? And how about the quiet of the canyon that actually makes it a 'canyon', and not another parcel of man's development?</span></div></span><p style="text-align: left;"><strong>Little Cottonwood Canyon is gorgeous in the summertime; it's a great spot to hike or sit around and reflect—a refuge from the hustle and bustle of a valley of over 1 million just a couple miles away from it.</strong> I frequent the canyon and its accompanying creek. I spend time there in the summer to get out of the city and be in nature, even though civilization still encompasses me on all sides. It's a nice spot that keeps a certain spirit of nature alive, even if I'm pretending Salt Lake City isn't only a few minutes' drive down the highway. But with gondola towers poking out of the earth and stabbing several hundred feet into the sky, there will be no more pretending.</p></div></td></tr></tbody></table>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet tw-align-center"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Utah Department of Transportation recommended a gondola as the most efficient option to decrease Little Cottonwood Canyon traffic. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SKI?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SKI</a> <a href="https://t.co/rjQdiT4gpG">https://t.co/rjQdiT4gpG</a></p>— SKI Magazine (@skimagonline) <a href="https://twitter.com/skimagonline/status/1565815742284513280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 2, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script><strong>And what of the climbing, hiking, and even backcountry skiing areas that will be permanently altered by man's intrusion to obtrusively float himself through the sky and mountains to the ski area, where he'll likely still be waiting in line on a powder day?</strong> Local climbing advocacy group <a href="https://www.saltlakeclimbers.org/lcc-udot-eis">Salt Lake Climbers</a> says that the gondola will "involve the destruction and/or removal of irreplaceable and historic world-class climbing resources," and that the machinery only serves some user groups and only in the wintertime. These climbers argue that the gondola would degrade the canyon's top-shelf climbing areas. I am a climber who often climbs in LCC and I can resonate with this sentiment. Also, some backcountry ski runs—no, <em>every</em> backcountry ski run that ends with a shot of the highway—will be changed forever. Where once a cool vibe and sound of a breeze could be heard there will be a noisy, tumultuous gondola system.<div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsurNG4plJjQ_XQC6U4e2IHiA6SrYkON8O88WZ0m3AmNTcqvzvZmX36TUHGdRARHM2YMpD2fwv__zJ9ChQvjo-ivMp6rX7JjDrJxw20tcXolYIKv3nSd39jbHKPTa0EPGv4WRvhBgeCJCx2l1VNWSbjohvAYGCRAaWhONXqf_YVKo33UWTqqfw5hU/s2500/bou.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1932" data-original-width="2500" height="405" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsurNG4plJjQ_XQC6U4e2IHiA6SrYkON8O88WZ0m3AmNTcqvzvZmX36TUHGdRARHM2YMpD2fwv__zJ9ChQvjo-ivMp6rX7JjDrJxw20tcXolYIKv3nSd39jbHKPTa0EPGv4WRvhBgeCJCx2l1VNWSbjohvAYGCRAaWhONXqf_YVKo33UWTqqfw5hU/w524-h405/bou.jpeg" width="524" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This map shows the bouldering impacts of the Little Cottonwood Canyon gondola alternative. | Photo courtesy of saltlakeclimbers.org<div style="text-align: left;"><p><strong>So, if the gondola decreases the time it takes to get to the mountain, then that means more skiing for everyone and less time waiting around, right?</strong> I'm not convinced. According to <a href="https://gondolaworks.com/">Gondola Works</a>, a group started by Snowbird that is in strong support of the gondola, it would take an estimated 30 minutes to get passengers from the proposed La Caille Base Station to Snowbird, and then a few minutes more to Alta. But did they mention the lines that will accumulate at the base station, and how much of a mess traffic will be <em>down there</em>, in the part of town where people actually live? Say it takes 30 minutes to wait in line to board the gondola, another 30 minutes to ride it, and then now with the extreme efficiency of people being able to get to the ski areas there are—oh!—more, even longer lines at the ski area's ticket offices and lifts. These are concerns I've yet to see UDOT publicly address. Also, I'm curious to see what portion of the project's funding the primary benefactors Alta and Snowbird will contribute, along with the taxpayer, because <a href="https://littlecottonwoodeis.udot.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/LCC_DEIS_GONDOLA_B_Boards_6-25-2021.pdf" style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif;">a 2021 estimate</a><span face="-apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif"> for the gondola forecasted the project would cost roughly $592 million, if not more. Where (who) will that cash be coming from?</span></p><ul><li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/utahs-gondola-solution-to-traffic-in-little-cottonwood-canyon-could-double-in-cost-to-over-1-billion/" rel="bookmark">Utah’s Gondola Solution to Traffic in Little Cottonwood Canyon Could Double in Cost to Over $1 Billion</a></strong></em></li></ul><p><strong>UDOT estimates <a href="https://snowbrains.com/utahs-gondola-solution-to-traffic-in-little-cottonwood-canyon-could-double-in-cost-to-over-1-billion/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">the total capital and maintenance cost estimates for each project through 2053</a> to be $724 million for the eight-mile-long gondola. </strong>However, many critics are skeptical of this estimation and insist that it could actually end up costing much more. This is because the estimate was made prior to the current rate of <a href="https://snowbrains.com/will-inflation-kill-your-next-ski-vacation/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">inflation</a> and didn’t factor in the rising cost of construction materials like steel and concrete. As history has shown, large, unique, and complex construction projects, like one in a tight canyon and pristine nature area such as Little Cottonwood, can easily run significantly over budget. When things like cost overruns, delays, inflation, or earthquake mitigation are factored in, the cost of either proposed option could run upwards of $1 billion or more—expenses that traditionally affect the state’s taxpayers directly. And, with an expensive project like this and resorts spending big money to create gondola car receiving ports, it wouldn't come as a shocker if daily lift tickets and season pass prices went up at Snowbird and Alta. I think I can speak on behalf of the local community as well as skiers and snowboarders everywhere that no one wants pass prices to increase.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD5fjyes4doGNi55RV2UkgzSlZfvMlCb3rOl2f1_ouPDgOgPKa5jxYiklG-w-vsSRRt1RQjTf2BIk68encS9HbZ6MrX0LZOdbwuYH4MTY6_74prV_CAVUjWxDIlwApvov2U9TPYTCqMkMepUUK6PoPr7KbWuNzICuHYZdiVqqcEAO_BzKsp7Hkuno/s1297/goo.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1297" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD5fjyes4doGNi55RV2UkgzSlZfvMlCb3rOl2f1_ouPDgOgPKa5jxYiklG-w-vsSRRt1RQjTf2BIk68encS9HbZ6MrX0LZOdbwuYH4MTY6_74prV_CAVUjWxDIlwApvov2U9TPYTCqMkMepUUK6PoPr7KbWuNzICuHYZdiVqqcEAO_BzKsp7Hkuno/w542-h283/goo.jpeg" width="542" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The proposed eight-mile route for the LCC gondola. | Photo courtesy of gondolaworks.com</td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong>Yet, all of that doesn't even mention the most important question of all, one that's even more important than the impact such a project would have on its environment and revenue gain—the one that asks how long would this project would last before the gondola itself becomes inefficient due to the rapidly growing population of the Salt Lake Valley</strong>. Just how long would it take for UDOT to get thrown back to the drawing board and have to spend another few hundred million? One can't help but wonder how long exactly this gondola would keep traffic at bay. 20 years? 15? 10? Is it worth spending a potential billion dollars to haphazardly patch up an issue that will eventually reopen as another problematic and costly wound in ‘x’ amount of years? Why isn’t UDOT thinking way ahead—I’m talking 50, 75, or 100 years down the line? Wouldn’t it be better to scrap the gondola that really only blesses two businesses—Snowbird and Alta—and look at the bigger picture instead?</p><p><strong>What if, say, all of the ski areas in the Wasatch were connected into one big resort as they do over in the Alps with their several mountain, 200+ lift ski areas, where you can park at one resort or town on one side of a mountain range, like Park City, and then take chairlifts or ski runs to another resort altogether, like Alta and Snowbird? </strong><a href="https://www.les3vallees.com/en">Tres Vallées</a> in France is a prime example<strong>. </strong>Even though lifts in the place of a gondola wouldn't look much better in terms of disrupting the mountain's natural landscape, at least you could actually ski everything it intrudes upon and have it be controlled for avalanches. Plus, how many new jobs would be created for ski patrol, lifties, lodge personnel, and so forth when creating a 'mega ski area'? This idea seems like it'd do better for the population as a whole because there is another canyon right across the ridge with the same sort of traffic issues as Little Cottonwood, after all. Big Cottonwood Canyon is no better on a powder day—what's being done <em>for it</em>?</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7Q3lmGrGa7LX2Dd3V-VQrpMaicddZUIPCMyze1IC0BMTKmZ5BZP_A5N5DeP9XAk-B_Zw57XbTuQ3Fyh8Oo8pWYmQnVFegynMqCQXds_utO-NMi6j5eR8zqXIKe5HGgcqF97Jfmq0Eg4/s1024/tres.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="483" data-original-width="1024" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7Q3lmGrGa7LX2Dd3V-VQrpMaicddZUIPCMyze1IC0BMTKmZ5BZP_A5N5DeP9XAk-B_Zw57XbTuQ3Fyh8Oo8pWYmQnVFegynMqCQXds_utO-NMi6j5eR8zqXIKe5HGgcqF97Jfmq0Eg4/w519-h245/tres.jpeg" width="519" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tres Vallees trail map. | Photo courtesy of alpineaction.co<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong>I'm no economist nor engineer—I write and I ski—and I love these canyons and these ski areas just as much as any of you do.</strong> These mountains are my home—my livelihood. They will probably be the home and livelihoods of my children and grandchildren. I want to see my lineage live and ski in a positive environment that actually supports them to do so—that is actually <em>sustainable</em> for them to do so, in the long term. So I ask you; Snowbird, Alta, UDOT, the average citizen who visits and skis in this canyon: are you really willing to fork up an unholy amount of capital and change the entire geo-scape of this canyon for a short-term benefit rather than refocus on a long term solution that would keep the canyon more suitable for longer?</p><p><strong>Opinion: the gondola is a band-aid and will look bad—physically, and on our part for not crafting something better that takes more into consideration the people that would ultimately be left to deal with this big, clunky thing. </strong></p><div class="mceTemp"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5y4vuMdGXYAL3xeYEQIyaEoLQMb0ebSp3mmx1kPeA7fGp0UXc7BCQ2UUeZruEQ8zdcWAuSbL-a6MuU97BJBrnDEwpJhAcURd8Q_JRKOO3d5m5DPoBtuQ4RcyMLau9SyX8bypnfj9EwaANvzfuktuoOA_E-g9d6FcbG2qcD8k_Htqdngkv8l3qv28/s562/winn.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="332" data-original-width="562" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5y4vuMdGXYAL3xeYEQIyaEoLQMb0ebSp3mmx1kPeA7fGp0UXc7BCQ2UUeZruEQ8zdcWAuSbL-a6MuU97BJBrnDEwpJhAcURd8Q_JRKOO3d5m5DPoBtuQ4RcyMLau9SyX8bypnfj9EwaANvzfuktuoOA_E-g9d6FcbG2qcD8k_Htqdngkv8l3qv28/w537-h317/winn.jpeg" width="537" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A common winter scene of cars and busses in gridlock in Little Cottonwood Canyon during the winter. | Photo courtesy of gondolaworks.com</td></tr></tbody></table></div><p><br /></p></div></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-34639782130461131092022-07-19T11:49:00.004-07:002022-09-07T16:56:05.211-07:00Sweat <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Passengers watched in horror as wildfires burned on both sides of a halted train in Zamora, Spain, amid the ongoing heat wave. <a href="https://t.co/A0Kc0rZghq">https://t.co/A0Kc0rZghq</a> <a href="https://t.co/RARgBPaxP5">pic.twitter.com/RARgBPaxP5</a></p>— AccuWeather (@accuweather) <a href="https://twitter.com/accuweather/status/1549141982940889088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 18, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script><p><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Slowly yet oddly suddenly, the train rolled to a stop.</strong> As it sped down, bright dancing flashes of orange and yellow filled the windows. Tension rose in the cabin and murmurs grew into fast-paced talking from all directions. An intercom crackled. The talking among the passengers was now a loud, tumultuous moaning. They were told they were going to have to sit this one out. They couldn’t go anywhere but they were stirring in their seats. They were just sitting. Watching. The wildfire outside burned on both sides. It burned painfully fast and slow—it burned long. You could hear it. Cackling. Burning. Wailing. The temperature outside was well over 100ºF as Spain and much of Europe endured the throws of the worst heatwave in God knows how long. It was getting hotter inside the train. My God, is the fire burning the train? Or are we all just sweating from fear? I can’t tell. The air was too stale. Too plastic. I was thirsty. The fire kept burning. We kept waiting. The children wouldn’t stop crying. Their mothers tried not to look out the window. Finally, the train started moving again and everybody cheered exhaustedly. We sailed through the smoke, the rusty glow of the blaze slowly fading through the thick gray smoke as we rolled further into darkness. </em></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlkVb3nhjAil2-Ue8Rlju48KDfqIrw7fWlFovHf8CzuONU_UL89-BPlFzd_WD42CAuf6H-aJ_-1mlA4nhYgna9fnGmMsqc6DZtf39mN4AEiqePQWX929YqCOeVhygL3EXnhhjIGE_RjX9EME-6B9ph-VXaMqqCZhElgcJV04F15DqSz4CsR3N3-SM/s2202/fi.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1098" data-original-width="2202" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlkVb3nhjAil2-Ue8Rlju48KDfqIrw7fWlFovHf8CzuONU_UL89-BPlFzd_WD42CAuf6H-aJ_-1mlA4nhYgna9fnGmMsqc6DZtf39mN4AEiqePQWX929YqCOeVhygL3EXnhhjIGE_RjX9EME-6B9ph-VXaMqqCZhElgcJV04F15DqSz4CsR3N3-SM/w527-h264/fi.jpeg" width="527" /></a></div><br /><em style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px;"><br /></em><p></p>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0852WMG3H+PM30.65435089999999 -101.4708097-48.580615388490678 117.90419029999998 90 39.154190299999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-70708284945919310522022-05-16T14:37:00.004-07:002022-05-16T14:39:40.548-07:00A wise, crazy owl flies off into the moon <p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3vXSgSk4jdbN8JbaPrQkhqehAifcVcGQH1PgAh5AMk6EcxZ8Hh6T_8klq8az8GUk5Z_3r3wvYJE2alwsdi7AO2F0KCL_tb4d_RSvUReAqBYuJ0MZwXUpjdoyLTtWl8yK5fEEFNFFdPdXV2vMTRWql0ey7PfPowTlkXbxPIbCbCrj_PtebVXDQSQc/s900/owl.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="675" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3vXSgSk4jdbN8JbaPrQkhqehAifcVcGQH1PgAh5AMk6EcxZ8Hh6T_8klq8az8GUk5Z_3r3wvYJE2alwsdi7AO2F0KCL_tb4d_RSvUReAqBYuJ0MZwXUpjdoyLTtWl8yK5fEEFNFFdPdXV2vMTRWql0ey7PfPowTlkXbxPIbCbCrj_PtebVXDQSQc/w480-h640/owl.jpeg" title="Image courtesy of Pixels.com" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy of Pixels.com</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>For Chris. </i></div><p></p><p><b>There once lived an owl</b>, too wise yet too crazy for his own good. Night by night, he soared the dark, wet air of the midnight forest, always keeping to himself. </p><p>The darkness was his ally—his friend. He flew alone. </p><p>On the night of the full moon, lightning flashed in the distance and a low-lying storm slithered in. </p><p>It slowly draped the moon in its evil warmth. </p><p>Every night, the owl scanned the ghostly forest from his secret perch. He watched and observed all. </p><p>On this night, as the full moon's light was slowly swallowed by the advancing storm, the owl made not a sound, barely moving as he waited on his perch in a mangled tree. </p><p>He was silent and sullen, even when he proceeded to drop from his branch and glide through the lull of the trees. </p><p>As he flew, his feathers radiated rays of silver and white from the dying moonlight. He sailed directly towards the moon, his big luminous eyes fixed on it as he drew nearer.</p><p>He flew closer and closer to the moon until he got so far away that you could only see a dark speck steadily creeping towards the hidden horizon in the flash of a lightning strike. </p><p>It wasn't before long until he flew right into the moon and could no longer be seen. He had made it, just as the storm clouds devoured the moon and they both departed into the night. </p><p><br /></p>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-14193802986618378902021-09-16T16:42:00.002-07:002021-09-17T13:49:33.300-07:00Where the Three Rivers Meet<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-5pE8UaPKXaQW2ri0fflH0RJscpWRlIkpxyiW2CFX48soRxYUaMmcijTrDY7fvrs4rpV19n3yIJGV79fsBDEzvmTISULRdP5Af7IknAVEXzgPYIPY_HFVcdYJyFxctPAzTR3ao6_Y_28/s2048/shed+.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="2048" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-5pE8UaPKXaQW2ri0fflH0RJscpWRlIkpxyiW2CFX48soRxYUaMmcijTrDY7fvrs4rpV19n3yIJGV79fsBDEzvmTISULRdP5Af7IknAVEXzgPYIPY_HFVcdYJyFxctPAzTR3ao6_Y_28/w553-h368/shed+.jpeg" width="553" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Alex with a set of elk sheds. </span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">It could have been</span> <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">an old truck’s exhaust</span> <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">backfiring, we didn’t know.</span> What it really sounded like was a gunshot, but we wouldn’t admit that. We only saw one other vehicle in the area on the way in. It was already dark when decided we’d spend the night at the rusty, abandoned windmill and cattle tank. We were on a piece of land we shouldn’t have been on and we knew it. There was something about this patch of earth that spooked us; perhaps it was its remoteness or its lawlessness. Maybe it was the ancient peoples who used to live here and their stories of angry spirits. Maybe it was the gunshot. Either way, we pretended to forget about it.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">We camped where the three rivers met—where barren desert kissed lush, emerald mountains. We got in late the night before a big shed hunt. Alex was an avid shed hunter, having hiked all over these mountains and this desert in search of antlers. On a good day, he’d come back with a heavy, cumbersome load strapped to his pack. A good shed hunt could yield dozens of antlers or more. In this area, brown elk and mule deer antlers or “brownies,” as Alex called them, suggested that the animal had only recently dropped them, as they do every spring.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Brownies were the real prize, especially from elk, as they looked the prettiest and sold for the most. But at this time of year in mid-July, the sun would have scorched almost every antler it’d come in contact with for a prolonged period of time, leaving most of them chalky and bone-dry. At the windmill we set up sleeping arrangements, drank some aged tequila, and fended off swarms of ardent moths—there was no campfire.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The next morning we woke up before dawn and this side of the mountains were still shaded from the rising sun behind them. A hasty breakfast and we started walking through sandy washes and desert shrubbery towards the mountains to our west. The flat earth gradually grew into rolling hills. The sun was soon on us and we could already feel its intensity early in the morning.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">As the hills swelled larger the closer we got to the mountains, small junipers started springing up one by one until they got bigger and bigger and we were suddenly immersed in a forest. The shade was comforting and we clung to it, stopping and glassing with Alex’s binoculars from cool vantage points for anything that stuck out amongst the greenish-brown vegetation. We trudged forward, going higher and higher in elevation in the direction of the mountains. At the top of one sunny plateau, with desert below in one direction and mountains above in the other, I spotted the first elk shed of the day.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">It was sitting in the shade between the trunks of two juniper trees. The moment my eyes scanned over an out-of-place tinge of white amongst the junipers was the moment my body came to a halt. I knew what it was.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtTwdclnaSrG8CwCQgenxdUoaILUV7uhsF90gAow-wQXNGud4rNSHbI3GD8bKH_6hMApV4iohZUsY5uhu_mRVXiDr_3czR7LKtskVxxjlCqkdolV5B5i1BvagkbIkAup5wNIsMuTpeEnI/s2048/shed+1.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="675" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtTwdclnaSrG8CwCQgenxdUoaILUV7uhsF90gAow-wQXNGud4rNSHbI3GD8bKH_6hMApV4iohZUsY5uhu_mRVXiDr_3czR7LKtskVxxjlCqkdolV5B5i1BvagkbIkAup5wNIsMuTpeEnI/w506-h675/shed+1.jpeg" width="506" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Once we got to the top of the plateau, our luck increased dramatically. <br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">I shouted back towards Alex,</span> who was zigzagging the hillside below the crest of the plateau. He hurried over and we were both elated—it was the first elk shed I had ever found. It was a small antler with about six tines; it was old and chalky with a coarse, dusty feel to it—not a brownie but a shed nonetheless. We shared smiles and high fives—the morning of grueling hiking had suddenly all become worth it. But we soon returned to mindfully sweeping the countryside for more of them, with no time to waste. Not more than five minutes had passed when I found another one.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">This antler was precariously positioned in the upper portion of a stubby juniper tree, which looked more like a bush. The shed was at shoulder level as I eagerly went over and plucked it from the branches. It was also old and chalky like the last one but bigger.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">A bull elk had been fiddling with the tree at some point, using the tree to rid itself of this annoying piece of bone that had outlived its purpose. The bull dislodged it in the tree branches and went elsewhere while the antler remained, frozen in time. Alex said he hadn’t found a shed stuck in a tree like that before and so we laughed. It was not long after that he had found a shed as well—a big, white eight-pointer that he immediately and quietly strapped to his pack. He carried on silently.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">By lunchtime, our packs were already strapped tight with sheds—ten or so between the two of us. We found a nice, shaded spot beneath some juniper trees with a view of the desert floor below. We enjoyed sandwiches and a timeout from the heat. The sun was high in the sky and the temperature was likely in the triple digits already. We decided to start the long trek back to the car because we were over the heat and were already satisfied with our finds from the morning—me especially because I had found more sheds than Alex. But that moment of silent gloating was short-lived.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMhlw2WQ1Za5q4sx4ATqlIlomLtJ6sL8uADQdxN6ONAjHMIcJDvdB432jkg8TJmONjL4o34zBAbgx-4-Qh7MmLrfOn0b1kP6UBh_Sm3sAOu6-aC_J0GjHZ8ZNiL-iIRhHp-hY2rZVBhoI/s2048/shed+2.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="589" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMhlw2WQ1Za5q4sx4ATqlIlomLtJ6sL8uADQdxN6ONAjHMIcJDvdB432jkg8TJmONjL4o34zBAbgx-4-Qh7MmLrfOn0b1kP6UBh_Sm3sAOu6-aC_J0GjHZ8ZNiL-iIRhHp-hY2rZVBhoI/w442-h589/shed+2.jpeg" width="442" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">By lunchtime, each of us had already found several elk and deer sheds. <br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">We aimed towards a dry creekbed at the base of the plateau</span> but quickly realized that we were up higher than we thought; the descent proved to be a steep, rocky mountainous mess that took much longer than expected. The rocks were small and loose and you had to be careful not to lose your balance and tumble down the steep decline. To make matters worse, Alex told me that this type of country is the type that black bears and mountain lions love and probably reside in, and that we should be on our toes.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">We were miles away from the nearest road with no cell signal and backpacks full of sheds. At one point on the way down to the creekbed, Alex and I became separated. I yelled for him but heard nothing. Powerful, piercing sun rays beamed on me in the desert heat but I still couldn’t help but get the chills.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Nearing the creekbed, I heard his booming voice coming from up and to the right of where I had just come. I was washed with a wave of relief. I went over to him, where he was sitting below a large, dead juniper tree next to a bull elk skull that still had its antlers attached.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">“Come look at this,” he said. The bull’s skull had a copper bullet lodged in its forehead. Someone had shot this elk but left its skull and antlers behind. “Probably a poacher,” Alex said, who had likely shot the animal and harvested its meat but not its horns so they wouldn’t have been spotted leaving the area with something as noticeable as a fresh set of elk antlers.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGLZ_evmn_PCXg625TPkSsRDJ5_dxVu5Ig8xMrUyct_Sgh2HhCQaOBHdGWJB9xaplUQgc9Hm7XXhFAWmXBU15v9bFB4M6TXhijWWuWxlZXNu0gC_zgVCst-8gVhXKXuEEP7KLIJ34iYIQ/s2048/shed+3.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="686" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGLZ_evmn_PCXg625TPkSsRDJ5_dxVu5Ig8xMrUyct_Sgh2HhCQaOBHdGWJB9xaplUQgc9Hm7XXhFAWmXBU15v9bFB4M6TXhijWWuWxlZXNu0gC_zgVCst-8gVhXKXuEEP7KLIJ34iYIQ/w515-h686/shed+3.jpeg" width="515" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Alex with the deadhead. <br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">We carried on,</span> <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">following the dry creek</span> as it snaked along the feet of towering plateaus, offering us much shade. It eventually dumped out into a flat basin where other creeks met it. Was this one of the three rivers that distinguish this area? I wondered.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">It was here that Alex started finding shed after shed like he was in an orchard harvesting low-hanging fruits. He’d walk along, stop, bend over, pick one up, put it on his pack, keep walking, and repeat a similar process a hundred yards later. It hadn’t been long since I took delight in the notion that I had found more sheds than Alex, whose pack was now clearly heavier than mine.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The closer we got to the vehicle, the flatter the ground got and the more sheds we started finding. We crossed sandy washes and flat bushy areas and they were everywhere, with Alex and I picking them up off the ground left and right. We recovered sheds all the way up until the car and were pleasantly surprised that we hadn’t found them in the morning when we first set off.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWVuzIiQmjSKrd5NTdqqIc5MBjdE9M_VVKKwTminy5Bh09OpTx98V5NN7DZ1RDN5Lh61Bb5Lg_XjhaMCIjsOF8spVMlKR-zUA4BBB4ByjpWdjsbjorK6kD08SySyyntRUDiiUlOjYhefE/s2048/shed+4.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWVuzIiQmjSKrd5NTdqqIc5MBjdE9M_VVKKwTminy5Bh09OpTx98V5NN7DZ1RDN5Lh61Bb5Lg_XjhaMCIjsOF8spVMlKR-zUA4BBB4ByjpWdjsbjorK6kD08SySyyntRUDiiUlOjYhefE/w450-h600/shed+4.jpeg" width="450" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">“Not bad for a morning of hiking around in a pretty spot.”<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">It was early afternoon</span> <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">when we got back to my car;</span> we were drenched in sweat, out of water, and thoroughly exhausted. But we were stoked with the day. Alex had found about eleven sheds and I had found nine, including a set, which is a pair of antlers from the same elk. Finding sets isn’t common as elk don’t usually shed their antlers at the same time, Alex told me, so we were both excited when I had found one. We snapped a couple of photos of our finds and enjoyed the desert scenery and far-off mountain views for a moment from the comfort of my car’s AC. “Not bad for a morning of hiking around in a pretty spot,” I told Alex. He agreed.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">In this inhospitable land we had scoured that day, we saw signs of life and death everywhere. Sheds and animals bones were scattered like puzzle pieces across the desert floor while raptors, lizards, and insects carried on, business as usual. We didn’t know it at the time, but in this world—in their world—we belonged to them.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">On the way out we passed by a petroglyph site. Ancient people had once lived in this seemingly uninhabitable land long ago and had left behind traces of their existence—stone inscriptions of their unique lives and culture for future onlookers like us to admire and ponder about later. Alex and I chatted about these things as we sailed back along the empty, dusty highway with weary grins on our faces and a trunk full of sheds.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYl9N10cxUG2LJrNLkrrlP8ss07jvt7M9q0ZGzbeAoyxHHc9JkgphvjRcoSzKiD26HCJgnpTvAV_Y7EjFOjopBsLgciN0IALLLZYWehGErhwVx1huPUhP82L9DorlOPmSOhmST3AvBQ4s/s2048/shed+5.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="352" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYl9N10cxUG2LJrNLkrrlP8ss07jvt7M9q0ZGzbeAoyxHHc9JkgphvjRcoSzKiD26HCJgnpTvAV_Y7EjFOjopBsLgciN0IALLLZYWehGErhwVx1huPUhP82L9DorlOPmSOhmST3AvBQ4s/w469-h352/shed+5.jpeg" width="469" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Alex strolling off into the eternal. </span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><br /></p>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-58888253018417519532021-08-11T12:07:00.001-07:002021-08-11T12:07:51.817-07:00Why is Avalanche Safety Gear So Expensive?<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgND2W6Zfdi7z6Nyp_5PZKLuCE5EvdQIUQuwsYmm5JWvda9V2kQs8MIBM9DQxjMoGfzfdiyo7_wZnWmaQe32RAZwf_kwgb0wpGRsn758tknLga7jdhj4IejCoC2bAqfjK3oHMG4P2EsC_0/s1700/bca.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1131" data-original-width="1700" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgND2W6Zfdi7z6Nyp_5PZKLuCE5EvdQIUQuwsYmm5JWvda9V2kQs8MIBM9DQxjMoGfzfdiyo7_wZnWmaQe32RAZwf_kwgb0wpGRsn758tknLga7jdhj4IejCoC2bAqfjK3oHMG4P2EsC_0/w521-h347/bca.jpeg" width="521" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">The BCA Tracker 4. | Photo courtesy of Backcountry Access<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">The gold standard of avalanche rescue gear</strong> is a beacon, a shovel, and a probe—three products you hope you never have to use outside of a <a href="https://utahavalanchecenter.org/education/beacon-practice" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">beacon park</a>. A standard-issue kit like this will almost always set you back at least a few hundred dollars—$333 is the cheapest one I found on <a href="https://www.snowinn.com/ski-store/bca-t3-rescue-package/137742625/p?utm_source=google_products&utm_medium=merchant&id_producte=11607999&country=us&gclid=CjwKCAjwxo6IBhBKEiwAXSYBs5YNOaQfsUcYkfQVLmF9loXu2QIFPLtv3R7PsfvFEMX4DHspdbsaFBoCMFMQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">snowinn.com</a>, and that’s a bargain. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avalanche_rescue#Avalanche_airbags" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Avalanche airbags</a> are quickly becoming a recommended part of the standard backcountry quiver, too—but good luck finding one for under 500 bucks.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">One Reddit user </strong>posted an interesting question about the pricing related to avalanche safety gear. In a Reddit forum titled “<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Backcountry/comments/mhf6cu/why_is_avalanche_equipment_so_goddamn_expensive/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Why is avalanche gear so goddamn expensive?</a>” they wrote:</p><blockquote style="background-color: white; border-left: 5px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 10px 20px;"><div data-en-clipboard="true" data-pm-slice="1 1 []" style="box-sizing: border-box;">“I’m not saying that I’m not ok with paying these prices, as I don’t want to make any compromises regarding anything that a person’s life could depend on, but still; are these prices justified? Or are manufacturers taking advantage of people not having a lot of options to pick from? It’s just that I’m having a hard time believing that a piece of aluminum with a hollow telescopic shaft is worth almost a hundred bucks.”</div></blockquote><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">This question led me to want to find out</strong> why avalanche safety gear is priced the way it is. I mean, if a beacon, shovel, and probe are absolutely necessary for anybody wanting to make some turns in a place where avalanches kill, shouldn’t these things be more affordable to eager and frugal ski bums everywhere? After talking with Craig Hatton over the phone, the Vice President and General Manager of <a href="https://backcountryaccess.com/en-ni/c/tools-accessories/snow-study-tools/?offset=100#clp-main" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Backcountry Access (BCA)</a>, I found out why these essential, life-saving pieces of gear are priced the way they are. It really only came down to two things.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Supply and demand. </strong>Hatton told me that all backcountry gear is made with custom parts that are only manufactured in relatively small numbers—tens of thousands as opposed to millions for some consumer products. He said that it is those small numbers that make an avalanche shovel cost much more than a shovel you would find at a hardware store.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Hatton went on to describe</strong> just how much goes into making a beacon, even if the idea behind them is simple: a carriable device with a ‘search’ and ‘send’ function that can withstand the deadly rollercoaster ride of an avalanche and emit a radio signal in <a href="https://avalanche.org/avalanche-encyclopedia/avalanche-transceiver-beacon/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">a specific pattern</a> that makes it easy for rescuers to find that buried person with their own beacons. At least, that’s avalanche beacons in a nutshell. The more sophisticated the beacon—more advanced beacons having features for more experienced users such as a flagging function for multiple burials—the higher the price.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">BCA has three key suppliers</strong> located all over the world for avalanche beacons. “The supply chains are really complicated,” Hatton told me. It starts with BCA supplying components to their factories around the world, with some factories sourcing components directly for BCA. These factories begin with a “bare board” (PCB) which is not yet functional because it does not have the required components in place. Once the factories obtain the PCBs, they then “populate” them into an “assembled bare board” (PCBA), which <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">is</em> functional. All electronics—from beacons to smartphones—have a PCBA. The factories populate the PCBs with components via high-tech machinery, turning them into functional PCBAs, before placing them into the back half of the beacon’s case. Once populated and assembled into half of the case, they are sent out for further assembly and “vigorous testing” in BCA’s headquarters in Boulder, Colorado, according to Hatton.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhifrHZqhk7cTk4QlzGLAnCmidwJv8Mt1Z3Nb9NSZGpRJBe_noxOvuBFZqUxUFcyff66Pn_nfSyLMjDANBkf0cfOeZOn2n-Nyl89CKSW-baegzP_ILscweF6z471qUursnOS4NpGr_3MyE/s2048/bca+1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="842" data-original-width="2048" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhifrHZqhk7cTk4QlzGLAnCmidwJv8Mt1Z3Nb9NSZGpRJBe_noxOvuBFZqUxUFcyff66Pn_nfSyLMjDANBkf0cfOeZOn2n-Nyl89CKSW-baegzP_ILscweF6z471qUursnOS4NpGr_3MyE/w546-h225/bca+1.png" width="546" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">A BCA Tracker 3 beacon, shovel, and probe kit for sale online. | Photo courtesy of snowinn.com<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">The testing BCA does in Boulder</strong> is an incredibly important part of the beacon-making process. People’s lives literally depend on it. So you can imagine it isn’t cheap, either. Types of tests include a “Hard Drop Test,” where a beacon is dropped from about four to five feet in the air onto a hard surface. The Hard Drop Test checks that a beacon would still emit a working signal in the event that a skier or rider is caught in a slide and taken through trees, rocks, or other potential terrain hazards that could damage the device. BCA also performs a “battery life” test, which makes sure the beacon can emit a working signal for at least 200 hours while it’s switched on and in ‘send’ mode, along with a series of other “<a href="https://www.etsi.org/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">ETSI standards</a>,” which are a complicated set of regulations put in place by ETSI and recognized internationally.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">In the United States,</strong> the radio signal that an avalanche beacon emits must also fall within FCC certification standards (Yes, the FCC actually gets involved with your beacon because it’s emitting a radio frequency). If a beacon passes all these tests and is used correctly without abuse, it can theoretically last an entire lifetime, according to Hatton. He said that analog beacons developed in the early 2000s are still in use today, even though he doesn’t recommend anyone continue to use a technology that is now considered “outdated.”</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Once they’re tested to make sure everything checks out,</strong> they go to the production floor for further validation. It is here that the other half of the case is closed, making the unit whole and ready for action. Every beacon is equipped with a harness and user manual before getting shipped out to BCA’s distribution center in Seattle. From there, they go to the dealers and then onto the bodies of living, skiing, souls.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">BCA has three main competitors:</strong> Pieps/Black Diamond, an Austrian company—Mammut, a Swiss company—and Ortovox, a French company. While these brands have a stronger grip on the European backcountry skiing markets, Hatton says that BCA is the market leader for avalanche rescue gear in North America and that the market is really a conjunction of two separate markets: the backcountry skiing and snowboarding market, and the sled market. BCA’s market is split 60/40 between skiing and sledding, with the latter being less sensitive to higher-price-point products.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Hatton said that</strong> pricing is really driven by the component costs (many components, like antennae, are custom parts), shipping and taxes, VATs depending on where the factory is, and the price points that the market sets. When it comes to avalanche shovels, tooling costs and the cost of high grade, 7075-series aluminum have a large impact on pricing. An entry-level avalanche shovel will run you about $50, with a basic telescopic shaft and typically plastic handle, while a more sophisticated shovel with lower-weight aluminum, a metal handle, and a “hoe mode”—which allows the digger to quickly rearrange the shovel blade in a way that allows for speedier burial victim recovery by pulling snow instead of digging it—can reach prices up to $100.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">He added that “price points are set by the market,”</strong> or what the market is willing to pay. The market is then handicapped by the price points that those brands set. For the last ten to fifteen years, avalanche beacon prices have stayed relatively static. They haven’t gone up very much and they certainly haven’t gone down. But now all of that may be changing due to massive supply chain constraints brought about by the pandemic.</p><blockquote style="background-color: white; border-left: 5px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 10px 20px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;">“Demand in the market is stronger than ever,” Hatton said. “The challenge that brands are having—including BCA—is supply chain constraints.”</p></blockquote><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Virtually every market right now</strong> is experiencing supply chain restraints due to the pandemic. To put it in perspective, <a href="https://www.industryweek.com/the-economy/competitiveness/article/21120718/big-three-automakers-idle-plants-in-preparation-for-a-slow-sales-year" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">three major automobile factories are completely idle</a> right now because they can’t get materials to build cars. Hatton said that BCA’s timelines for integrated circuit boards have gone from eighteen to twenty weeks, to now forty to fifty weeks, because of supply chain constraints and increasingly high demand due to the rapidly growing electric vehicle market.</p><blockquote style="background-color: white; border-left: 5px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 10px 20px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;">“Imagine a [relatively small] company like ours competing for electronic components with a company like Ford, Chevy, or Tesla. It’s extremely challenging,” Hatton said.</p></blockquote><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Currently, Hatton says there’s no end in sight</strong> for these current constraints and that they will likely run into 2023 before the supply chain stabilizes. BCA is holding its current pricing for this upcoming winter, but Hatton expects that gear prices will likely go up by the following winter for most brands. He said that BCA will evaluate what the supply chain does at the end of this season and then adjust pricing if necessary.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">As we wrapped up our talk</strong>, Hatton asked me to share in this article <a href="https://backcountryaccess.com/en-ni/learn-avalanche-safety/p/avalanche-courses" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">BCA’s intensive focus on education</a>. He said that BCA is known for its stance on education and that it is “very vocal and adamant” about pushing out the message to people—especially new backcountry users. BCA has hundreds of education and how-to videos on its <a href="https://backcountryaccess.com/en-ni/c/tools-accessories/snow-study-tools/?offset=100#clp-main" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">website</a> and YouTube, and hosts in-person avalanche safety classes across North America every winter. Because if you don’t know how to use your expensive new gear in the event of an avalanche burial, the person under that mountain of snow may as well already be dead. This is why BCA creates an easy-to-use, intuitive user interface that most people can understand the first time they use any BCA beacon. So, when planning on getting into the backcountry—when thinking about what shiny new avalanche beacon to get or replace—just remember what Hatton told me:</p><blockquote style="background-color: white; border-left: 5px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 10px 20px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;">“The best beacon on the market is the one you know how to use.”</p></blockquote><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CRPpil0rwH-/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CRPpil0rwH-/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); 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font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;"> View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; 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line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CRPpil0rwH-/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Backcountry Access (@backcountryaccess)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-75713755944542963392021-06-17T15:43:00.019-07:002021-08-11T12:08:53.224-07:00Mammoth Mountain, CA “Snow Farming:” A Dutiful Art on an Absolutely Massive Scale<div class="separator"><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjmo5BY20L_VMPE97iR-C7nmhCYfSFqFO6RHjd01hi9hrCXiVQ-Ra1RezerOj8JM9aS20y8m3a-VrI6OnjJJk52pjs8Tlus2qXJgnd0sKJPKqVKAowO_jnyI69QD5T02CJ34961XQyKpU/s866/cat+1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="866" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjmo5BY20L_VMPE97iR-C7nmhCYfSFqFO6RHjd01hi9hrCXiVQ-Ra1RezerOj8JM9aS20y8m3a-VrI6OnjJJk52pjs8Tlus2qXJgnd0sKJPKqVKAowO_jnyI69QD5T02CJ34961XQyKpU/w560-h319/cat+1.png" width="560" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333745; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">This image—captured from an aerial point of view—shows resort snowcats farming snow. | Photo courtesy of </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/pistenteam_andermatt/" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">pistenteam_andermatt</a></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Give Michaelangelo some marble and you’ll probably get a sculpture.</strong> Give him some late-Spring snow and a snowcat and he might just be Mammoth Mountain’s Director of Slope Maintenance and the Unbound Terrain Parks, Scott Cherry.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Cherry organizes the resort crews that keep Mammoth and its terrain parks open long after other ski areas have already shut down and transitioned towards summer activities.</strong> This is because Mammoth is not like other ski areas. Most ski areas don’t consistently build terrain parks and maintain ski trails until the end of May.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Mammoth officially stopped spinning its lifts this season on Memorial Day, 2021 (May 31.)</strong> From the end of April until that fervent closing day, resort crews were giving every nail, tooth, and tear they had left in an effort to keep the mountain open and the runs skiable. They did a damn good job. Snowcats would push, pull, extract, and chisel snow off some slopes and onto others in a process that Mammoth refers to as “snow farming.” It’s like sculpting but in accordance with nature and on a very large scale with very large machinery. Even airborne tools—strapped onto airplanes—get used in the mountain’s unique snow farming system.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></p><blockquote><span style="font-size: x-small;">“The one thing we have on our side that’s a game-changer is <a href="https://www.snowsat.com/usa/en.html" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">SNOWsat</a>, which is basically sonar with lidar mapping of our mountain,” Cherry said over the phone. “So they’ll fly a plane over our mountain, map it for us, and then upload it onto their system and create layers. Then they’ll upload that layering onto a tablet-sized screen inside the snowcats which will tell you within a half-an-inch of where your snow’s at. It’s like a fishfinder.”</span></blockquote><p></p><p></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBI0GwblI3dvRpiHFnIQUzcG2B5-k4G29KLnVEgPUh9Cid6D9rpaKyVLMBMX9Ww24eieRKtegr0sWWFlKSshv1WmLDh8uFdWIJw-mLXB4vuMX8VnCfCPqrQ7E6siBMky_Xnsbb5s3oQSo/s946/cat2.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="946" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBI0GwblI3dvRpiHFnIQUzcG2B5-k4G29KLnVEgPUh9Cid6D9rpaKyVLMBMX9Ww24eieRKtegr0sWWFlKSshv1WmLDh8uFdWIJw-mLXB4vuMX8VnCfCPqrQ7E6siBMky_Xnsbb5s3oQSo/w557-h285/cat2.png" width="557" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">A snowcat farms snow. | Photo courtesy of </span><a class="sqdOP yWX7d _8A5w5 ZIAjV" href="https://www.instagram.com/prinoth_pistenbully_pics/" rel="noopener" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" tabindex="0" target="_blank">prinoth_pistenbully_pics</a></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">The technology described by Cherry is not controlled by him and his team but rather by <a href="https://www.pistenbully.com/usa/en.html" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">PistenBully</a>, who is contracted with Mammoth.</strong> With the use of <a href="https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/lidar.html#:~:text=Lidar%2C%20which%20stands%20for%20Light,variable%20distances)%20to%20the%20Earth." rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">lidar</a>, cat drivers can see exactly where the snow is—and precisely how much of it is left—on a screen inside of the snowcat. Cherry, simultaneously, can look at another map on his computer screen that shows exactly where every cat has gone and moved snow, and what terrain features are still untouched.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="font-size: 17.5px;"></span></p><blockquote>“It’s an ongoing, developing technology. But it’s extremely accurate. It’s awesome,” Cherry said.</blockquote><p></p><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Six of Mammoth’s snowcats are equipped with this software.</strong> With digital maps uploaded to screens inside the cats, Cherry and his drivers work with that information in a way that mimics chess. They observe, contemplate, and strategize which slopes are still going to hold snow and for how long. Cherry and his team can forecast snow conditions weeks in advance so it becomes apparent which slopes aren’t going to make it. The slopes that are the next to go, Cherry and his team decide, are the ones that drivers will take snow from and redistribute towards those that will still provide decent Spring skiing. It’s challenging work, according to Cherry, and slopes with minimal snow get abandoned all the time—their organs getting transplanted to other, healthier parts of the mountain.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Which is when the magic happens.</strong> Snowcat operators will show up at 3 in the afternoon (when the snow is soft from the heat of the sun) and work until midnight before tapering mountain temperatures harden it into firm, fast skiing snow. They’ll follow the lidar maps on their screens and go to the exact pinpoint of snow that needs to get moved. They’ll farm that snow, push it out at night, and then groom it. But the way they farm it is where the process gets especially interesting.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGpSQWhngRypUzu6xPDmUTgD0tgTWyfDWmuKnJaZnhZ2bITC0gTCLnjFFkHim6T2KhNjiLrxccySTbiOIR63pkZ2eGAslA2kHN-xUhnLRjLh0oYUTCaGYaHaPVArvD0VVzr1XmulAkvRU/s828/cat+3.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="757" data-original-width="828" height="479" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGpSQWhngRypUzu6xPDmUTgD0tgTWyfDWmuKnJaZnhZ2bITC0gTCLnjFFkHim6T2KhNjiLrxccySTbiOIR63pkZ2eGAslA2kHN-xUhnLRjLh0oYUTCaGYaHaPVArvD0VVzr1XmulAkvRU/w525-h479/cat+3.jpeg" width="525" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333745; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">The cut-away section of mountain next to the red lines shows snow farming in action. Cat drivers slice snow off the slope from top to bottom and move it where they want it. In this case, the snow will be moved down the hill in order to house Mammoth’s giant airbag jump. | Photo courtesy of Scott Cherry</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Cherry describes the snow farming process as “typewriter-ing.”</strong> It starts with finding dirt. Snowcat operators grooming at night will relay to Cherry which slopes are hurting and which need more snow, and then Cherry will go out in a snowcat, typically the next morning, and farm snow for the drivers to shuffle around. He starts with a slope that has both moveable snow and dirt. This allows him to move the snow much more efficiently than if the snow was just sitting on more snow. Working from the top down, Cherry will go back in forth—like he’s driving his cat along the lines of a typewriter’s keyboard—gathering more snow and dirt as he descends each row. By the time he gets to the bottom, he may have a pile of farmed snow that’s 30-feet-high or higher.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="font-size: 17.5px;"></span></p><blockquote>“The better we are at farming the longer we’re able to hold onto our season,” Cherry said.</blockquote><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">This blend of science and art—which allows one to move around snow as their mind sees fit—also comes into play with Mammoth’s Unbound terrain parks.</strong> Cherry said that it’s rare to see terrain parks open at ski areas this late into the Spring—let alone ones of Mammoth’s caliber with giant jumps and complex jib features. And, only a handful of ski areas still showcase 60 or 70-foot jumps every season.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">With a background in building terrain parks, Cherry’s career eventually led him to Mammoth where he got to maximize his potential.</strong> When it comes to building a massive park or working with specifics for slopestyle events like <a href="https://www.redbull.com/us-en/events/red-bull-recharged-2021" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #ea2e49; outline: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Red Bull Recharged</a>, Cherry and his crew will sometimes have to farm snow for 14 days before they can begin sculpting certain features. It takes lasting commitment and astute attention to detail to build Mammoth’s competition-grade features and terrain parks—which may not necessarily be noticeable at first glance when watching these competitions on YouTube.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="font-size: 17.5px;"></span></p><blockquote>“When you see those guys enjoy the product that you’ve spent every waking moment trying to get right, that makes it all worth it,” Cherry said.</blockquote><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Scott Cherry loves his job and it shows.</strong> How else would Mammoth swindle Mother Nature into staying open for skiing and riding until Memorial Day?<span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></p><span style="font-size: 17.5px;"></span><p></p></div><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COvbklaL1lS/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); 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font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;"> View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; height: 0px; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg); width: 0px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="border-right: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); transform: translateY(16px); width: 0px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; transform: translateY(-4px); width: 16px;"></div> <div style="border-left: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); height: 0px; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px); width: 0px;"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COvbklaL1lS/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Mammoth Mountain (@mammothmountain)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-2020083853199585132020-11-20T12:15:00.003-08:002022-07-19T11:40:30.097-07:00Orthopedic Surgeon Outlines the Science Behind Shin Bang | Causes, Treatment, Prevention<p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1uduw3xGiJqP7JhHFalzB0m5ufn2qwi6piWvhKjRxBHfUQQmceEmYqi2nKQxMnGuroK-6Ulc1LKJm-5G088hSqw2zxu_6PosWdzeNu6tMFr8OXCzfIRcyxjSgyv3AF1X6iI3lluVWxM/s1608/shin+bang.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="932" data-original-width="1608" height="325" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1uduw3xGiJqP7JhHFalzB0m5ufn2qwi6piWvhKjRxBHfUQQmceEmYqi2nKQxMnGuroK-6Ulc1LKJm-5G088hSqw2zxu_6PosWdzeNu6tMFr8OXCzfIRcyxjSgyv3AF1X6iI3lluVWxM/w563-h325/shin+bang.png" width="563" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Shin bang is not sorcery, it’s science. | Photo courtesy </span><a href="https://www.skimag.com/gear/shin-bang-and-how-to-prevent-it" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Ski Mag</a><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: start;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">You know, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin-bang" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">shin bang</a>—that horrid, painful sensation on your shinbone that you get from your boot after skiing hard?</strong> Yes, you do.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: start;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Although die-hard ski racers in 1 million flex alpine race boots that they can barely walk in might tell you otherwise, shin bang is a real force to reckon with on (and off) the mountain every ski season.</strong> And there’s a science behind it.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: start;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">That’s why SnowBrains reached out to Orthopedic surgeon Dr. William H. Montgomery, III, MD with the Dignity Health Medical Foundation in San Francisco, Calif. to find out what the heck is going on in our ski boots that make our shins hurt so damn bad sometimes, especially after we get new boots.</strong></p><ul style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: start;"><li style="box-sizing: border-box;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/the-snowbrains-podcast-episode-3-why-do-skiers-tear-their-acls-so-frequently/" rel="bookmark noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">The SnowBrains Podcast | Episode #3 | “Everything You Need To Know About ACL Injury, Surgery, & Recovery”</a></strong></em></li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7G_O1qxE0K5u4beKkKj-JUqQs_zRlzyeL8gmZ2pI2n3T85ZvgmDK81Qw2ucmPZaIdFE53-GrtpxmJwbOBhUz-PBEVMW7Qons8T0HyagEK5nQz1Cx-9EhQYJk1vXZFpyRkQAyruYFhtds/s1027/shin.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1027" data-original-width="446" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7G_O1qxE0K5u4beKkKj-JUqQs_zRlzyeL8gmZ2pI2n3T85ZvgmDK81Qw2ucmPZaIdFE53-GrtpxmJwbOBhUz-PBEVMW7Qons8T0HyagEK5nQz1Cx-9EhQYJk1vXZFpyRkQAyruYFhtds/w174-h400/shin.jpg" width="174" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">This image shows the tibia and shin in relation to where shin bang can occur. | Photo courtesy Orthoinfo</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">So what exactly is shin bang, and what causes it? </strong></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">According to Dr. Montgomery (who is an avid skier and has had BAD shin bang before), shin bang is a type of contusion on your tibia’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Periosteum" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">periosteum</a>, which is “like saran wrap that wraps around your bone, and is really super sensitive,” he said in a phone interview.</strong> Most of the time, this contusion to your periosteum is caused by your shin consistently slamming against the top part of your ski boot due to the very small gap that often exists between your shin and your boot liner.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">And it freaking hurts. </strong></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">After sharing his personal experiences with shin bang and describing the medical language associated with it, Dr. Montgomery outlined potential treatments for shin bang</strong>. He said that</p><blockquote style="background-color: white; border-left: 5px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 10px 20px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;">“prevention is the cure but the treatment is different,”</p></blockquote><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">meaning that the best way to treat shin bang is to avoid it entirely by having the best possible fit for your ski boots. The solution? Going to an experienced boot fitter and purchasing <a href="https://snowbrains.com/custom-liners-can-make-the-difference/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">custom liners</a>.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">A good boot fitter will mold custom ski boot liners to the contour of your feet and shins, eliminating any potential gap between the liner and your shin that could cause shin bang.</strong> Dr. Montgomery also said that you should put a kind of gel or cork pad—or even a piece of a foam beer koozie—in between your liner and your leg to provide a soft cushion for your already miserable shin.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">If it’s too late and you are already experiencing full-on shin bang, even with a good fitting boot (which can still happen as a result of charging hard), then icing, ibuprofen, and rest are likely your best bets.</strong></p><blockquote style="background-color: white; border-left: 5px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 17.5px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 10px 20px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;">“There is absolutely nothing more miserable than having painful feet and legs when your skiing. It absolutely stinks,” Dr. Montgomery said. “You need a good boot fitter!”</p></blockquote><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Shin bang is not sorcery, it’s science. </strong>Keep your shins safe this season!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYcm2feu28JE7YExVr5IJSh2SURkdHxRk-9Ea9HBxOJnQa1UGjKQsuhxvlz6KenmIhFgDp004raQaodsmAAYz98dm1s8v6Bu6FjtOe05ENxXqKyqoGFGyHpc7GR08L68wuuQpGmbnWJ6s/s694/shin+bangg.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="694" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYcm2feu28JE7YExVr5IJSh2SURkdHxRk-9Ea9HBxOJnQa1UGjKQsuhxvlz6KenmIhFgDp004raQaodsmAAYz98dm1s8v6Bu6FjtOe05ENxXqKyqoGFGyHpc7GR08L68wuuQpGmbnWJ6s/w400-h230/shin+bangg.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Avoid shin bang at all costs this season! | Photo courtesy globosurfer.com<br /><br /></span></i></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /><br /></p>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-12414512651350799432020-11-19T20:31:00.003-08:002021-08-11T12:30:06.533-07:00A warrior dies and the forest cries <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN1a7PjDkqY7F2dNUfajT-zn13q2DRViK94ozqicJQgpiTYIGQe23L_iE91rOZDMDjolFRtg4YXQyWLbv8CGeRXZ71mukiqiOYQV2-eVnQYLWa2yzdYedrZengMIDcLMA8Zc1gLaQIW60/s6000/Cochise+warrior+.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN1a7PjDkqY7F2dNUfajT-zn13q2DRViK94ozqicJQgpiTYIGQe23L_iE91rOZDMDjolFRtg4YXQyWLbv8CGeRXZ71mukiqiOYQV2-eVnQYLWa2yzdYedrZengMIDcLMA8Zc1gLaQIW60/w575-h382/Cochise+warrior+.JPG" width="575" /></a></div><div><br /></div><b>I remember vividly</b> the night the <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/cochise" target="_blank">Cochise</a> warrior died.<div><br /></div><div>The elk bugled and the coyotes howled in the forest just beyond town. They cried like I've never heard before from the quiet deck at my father's house. </div><div><br /></div><div>Perhaps the sorrow in the region was so powerfully felt that night that it rose into the star-studded sky above like a palpable scent, drifting with the wind and through the trees. </div><div><br /></div><div>Maybe even the forest creatures could smell the pain that floated in the sharp mountain air.</div><div><br /></div><div>And in that same air, a sensation of beauty revealed itself—one that is always there but rarely seen outside of moments like these. </div>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-50496885064761238502020-10-01T14:51:00.012-07:002021-08-11T12:25:52.570-07:00Ruidoso, New Mexico's Best Skier Dies in Tragic Accident: Fundraiser Organized to Help Family<div class="separator"><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-178916" height="427" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/IMG_7100-scaled.jpg" width="569" /></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">The late and great Alex Robert Davis: December 25, 1999 — September 21, 2020. | Photo courtesy Martin Kuprianowicz<blockquote><p><b>It's never a good day when you've learned you just outlived your brother.</b></p><p><strong>But it was always a good day with Alex Davis. </strong></p><p><b>Because I think if life had a flavor it'd be bittersweet. </b></p><p><b>Bitter, when you're living in a world where you can't go skiing with your brother anymore or do all the things you loved doing with him. </b></p><p><b>But sweet when you think about all those incredible memories and good times you were lucky enough to have shared with him. </b></p><p><b>Sweet, when you see people come together in such a beautiful way in the face of such a great tragedy. </b></p><p><b>And even sweeter when you know the bond shared by Alex's brothers and yourself has only grown firmer and will continue to do so. </b></p><p><b>Because it's all up from here — that's the way you go to get to the top of the mountain. </b></p><p><b>Alex understood this better than anybody I've ever met. </b></p><p><b>And so we will all just have to meet him there, where he'll be waiting — eager and smiling. </b></p></blockquote><p><b>I wrote that poem an hour before I spoke at Alex's funeral. </b>Until last week, Alex had been Ruidoso, New Mexico's best skier. Everyone here knows this. He was killed tragically on September 21, 2020, in an accident. He was my best friend whom I call my brother and my favorite person to ski with in this bittersweet world.</p><img alt="" class="wp-image-178919" height="708" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/all-day.png" width="569" /> </div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">"All Day" Alex Davis doing what he does best in Apache Bowl at Ski Apache, New Mexico! | Photo courtesy Alex Davis<p><strong>I first met Alex Robert Davis over a basket of chicken strips at Ski Apache's cafe at the base of the mountain when I was about 12 years old.</strong> He couldn't have been more than about four feet tall at the time and had the same shit-eating-grin that stayed engraved on his face until his final days.</p><p><strong>More than a lifetime's worth of skiing with Alex and his beautiful brother Israel is what followed after meeting this incredible human over a decade ago. </strong>We skied together every winter as much as we could. We felt like we owned our humble, sometimes powder-charged home mountain of <a href="https://snowbrains.com/hometown-mountain-shoutout-ski-apache-new-mexico/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ski Apache</a>. The snow-induced friendships we made along the way quickly turned into brotherhoods that only solidify as time slips on by.</p><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-178923" height="751" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/IMG_8800-scaled.jpg" width="564" /></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> Alex putting in work at the boulder spot! | Photo courtesy Martin Kuprianowicz<p><strong>When I met that reggae-rockin', wild-haired kid he was still a snowboarder</strong>. Israel and I skied, and Alex was always right there with us on his board. He was several years younger than Izzy and me, but that never once was an issue after I saw how the kid rode. As days skiing with Alex turned into years, his legs got stronger and his stoke grew rowdier. At some point during my teenage years, Alex broke his board so I lent him a pair of skis. He had never skied a day in his life but after that fateful day, he was soon better than any of us. I think in about three days on skis he was already throwing spins and it wasn't long at all before he started stomping backflips in Ski Apache's icy, neglected terrain parks.</p><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B9UazX-pzYM/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B9UazX-pzYM/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0px;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0px auto 12px; width: 50px;"><svg height="50px" version="1.1" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="50px" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g fill-rule="evenodd" fill="none" stroke-width="1" stroke="none"><g fill="#000000" transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;"> View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; height: 0px; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg); width: 0px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="border-right: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); transform: translateY(16px); width: 0px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; transform: translateY(-4px); width: 16px;"></div> <div style="border-left: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); height: 0px; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px); width: 0px;"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B9UazX-pzYM/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Alex Davis (@alexdavis.__)</a></p></div></blockquote><p></p><p><b>Alex moved to Utah last season for a month after I had been nagging him on for a few seasons to get out of Ruidoso and come ski some 'real' mountains. </b>After one visit during an exceptionally snowy week in March of 2018, he was hooked on the idea and I offered to help him find a place to live in Salt Lake City.</p><p><strong>That month of skiing in Utah with Alex was one of the best of my life. </strong>I could barely walk upon a week of his arrival from how hard we were skiing, which mainly consisted of me chasing after his tails at Alta Ski Area and following him off big cliffs that he always hit first because he knew we were too scared to. Alex wanted to come back this winter for the whole shebang — not just a month. So he did what he often did and went back to Ruidoso to get to work and save money for winter. He always worked so hard.</p><img alt="" class="wp-image-178920" height="431" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/all-day-fliop.png" width="565" /> </div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">Alex always loved throwing terrifying backflips. | Photo courtesy Alex Davis<p><strong>I don't spend much time in Ruidoso anymore since I moved to Utah several years ago outside of holidays with the family, but this summer I got to spend a lot of time with Alex.</strong> I only realize how lucky I am to have done so now. Escaping the bustle of the city and impulsively coming home to spend more time with family after COVID-19 hit, Alex was my partner in crime when it came to doing anything worth doing this summer. After work, we'd both link up and go climb, hike, bike, fish, or whatever the hell would get us our fix for the day in the outdoors. I've always really related to Alex because we're the same in the fact that were both snow junkies and don't really feel right unless we've put in some sort of physical exercise outside in the mountains. I always pictured him skiing with me into our old age and I never once thought he'd be snatched from my life so suddenly.</p><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B9GN7bopTIA/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B9GN7bopTIA/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; 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font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;"> View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; height: 0px; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg); width: 0px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="border-right: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); transform: translateY(16px); width: 0px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; transform: translateY(-4px); width: 16px;"></div> <div style="border-left: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); height: 0px; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px); width: 0px;"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B9GN7bopTIA/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Alex Davis (@alexdavis.__)</a></p></div></blockquote><p></p><p><strong>He died on a sunny Monday morning.</strong> He was 20 years young. I got the call from our best friend and excellent human Gage Whipple, who said that something bad had happened to Alex at work. I was on the deck working on my computer, the same place where I had seen Alex last a little over a week ago. I didn't believe it — I refused to. There was no way that a freak of an athletic human such as Alex could die — he was way too tough, way too resilient! But it was confirmed a few moments later that there had been an accident and that he had left this plane of existence. And then all of our worlds turned upside down.</p><p><strong>"Alex was an angel in disguise," Kevin Hester said after the funeral, an old-time ski bum who often skied with Alex at Ski Apache.</strong> "Whether you shook his hand or he looked you in the eye, he was an angel in disguise. That's just what he was." Kevin had been texting Alex the day of his passing, and Alex wished him well as he enjoyed a vacation at Lake Powell in Utah. Alex would do this with <em>everybody</em> because that's just the type of man he was.</p><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-178922" height="728" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/IMG_4082.jpg" width="546" /> </div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">Alex and I seen before going on a hike in Lincoln National Forest in summer 2018. | Photo courtesy Martin Kuprianowicz<p><strong>Alex was a man who made you better just by being around you, whether it was with kindness, athletic prowess, or just listening to you and offering his opinion on something.</strong> He was wise beyond his years and truly got what it meant to love everyone and every moment to the utmost because he knew time here on earth is limited. Too limited.</p><p></p><p><strong>Alex is the glue that brought our friend group together (99% of the time while skiing) and kept it that way.</strong> He was a lot of people's favorite person, including my own, and damn sure the best skier I'd ever met. I always knew he was going all the way to the top, especially after watching his Freeride World Tour Qualifier video from Taos last season. But life had other plans.</p><p><strong>It's important now, I think, to recognize that Alex is not in pain.</strong> He has left this world but his energy remains, dispersed among the trees and the snow. He is eternally free and it is only us — his friends and his beautiful family — who suffer on.</p><p><strong>I just suppose these mountains got themselves a real snow god now. </strong></p><p><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-178917" height="291" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/alex-davis-gofundme.png" width="569" /></p><p><strong>Alex's family has organized a <a href="https://gf.me/u/y2k96h">Gofundme page </a>to help pay some of his bills, fix his Subaru, and help cover the costs of attorney fees.</strong> The page reads:</p><blockquote><p>"Alex was the guy who would dream something so big, and then wake up the next morning and fulfill it just so he could live in the moment. There isn't anything that anybody could say or do to help heal the hearts of many in our small community. However, Alex’s family is looking forward to keeping his spirit alive, and finishing a few things he had started before this year is over. We are asking donations to fix Alex’s Subaru WRX, pay off his new vehicle, and any extra for attorney fees. The family also has a donation account set up at Washington Federal Bank in Ruidoso, for those who would rather donate there. All checks and donations at the bank have to be made out to Michelle Elwell (Mother of Alex, and account holder) and in the memo, box be sure to write “For Alex Davis”. The family will also be accepting donations in person."</p></blockquote><p><strong>No monetary sum will ever bring Alex back or mend the wound that gapes in all of our hearts. </strong>But anything will help his family in this trying, transitional period — anything.</p><p><strong>To donate, please click <a href="https://gf.me/u/y2k96h" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>here</em></a> or go to the fundraiser webpage at <a href="https://gf.me/u/y2k96h" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://gf.me/u/y2k96h</a></strong></p><p><strong>If you decide to donate, thank you. </strong>Or if you don't and you just read this article, also thank you. But above all, <strong>THANK YOU ALEX</strong> for everything you've taught me and all that amazing powder we skied while we were both young. Love you and miss you always brother, I'll see you at the chair.</p><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-178918" height="408" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/IMG_7001-scaled.jpg" width="544" /> </div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">Alex took me on my first real shed hunt this summer in New Mexico. Rest in Powder brother! | Photo courtesy Martin Kuprianowicz</div></div><div><br /></div>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-541728006505619522020-08-10T14:59:00.009-07:002021-08-11T12:27:31.876-07:007 Amazing New Mexico Ski Areas You've Never Even Heard Of<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZopgMiBVJfBfURG3byIqyr_VgNZi7hg4G7jf7cge5AdMP_ku-vjpSnagEGe7m1jEUQlo1mpK2RhrTbhzEjWX0XxMQJJNFeCj4pydBO_6l34wquTDnUMV4m4Sc_3YCL5YQ40tUPaJmYbY/s1000/gondola+%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZopgMiBVJfBfURG3byIqyr_VgNZi7hg4G7jf7cge5AdMP_ku-vjpSnagEGe7m1jEUQlo1mpK2RhrTbhzEjWX0XxMQJJNFeCj4pydBO_6l34wquTDnUMV4m4Sc_3YCL5YQ40tUPaJmYbY/w494-h330/gondola+%25281%2529.jpg" width="494" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">A view of the gondola at Ski Apache, one of New Mexico’s premier yet still relatively unheard of ski areas. | Photo courtesy OnTheSnow.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p> <strong>They don't call New Mexico the Land of Enchantment for nothing</strong>. It's wild. It's ancient. It's culturally-inclined. It's serene. It's a place I could die in and one where <a href="https://snowbrains.com/how-the-day-i-almost-died-changed-the-way-i-ski3/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">I nearly have</a>.</p><p><strong>But most importantly, it's a place with some of the most amazing skiing in the Rockies, given that the snow gods are playing ball that year.</strong> Just take a look at their ski areas.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXI-gEmOQ7YkNE6JUKXDwvIm0dr4oov6ScTGEkHAwmT8vtOgOWQuz7itEP9o_qLdyl-n6kXFFTVR0yx5Aq67Opg_PaLlaSTy06PSVtInxB8dB0qSbbtURiTixXVJ-h2ptaQnCy93vdYuA/s602/nm+ski.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="602" data-original-width="538" height="499" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXI-gEmOQ7YkNE6JUKXDwvIm0dr4oov6ScTGEkHAwmT8vtOgOWQuz7itEP9o_qLdyl-n6kXFFTVR0yx5Aq67Opg_PaLlaSTy06PSVtInxB8dB0qSbbtURiTixXVJ-h2ptaQnCy93vdYuA/w445-h499/nm+ski.jpg" width="445" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">The locations of all of New Mexico’s lovely ski areas. | Photo courtesy New Mexico Tourism.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong>And I'm not just talking about Taos, which, you've probably heard of if you even give a fraction-of-a-damn about skiing anything steep.</strong> That place is like a far-off, lucrative, steep skiing paradise. World-famous, too. Or maybe I'm just biased(in love)?</p><ul><li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/hometown-mountain-shoutout-ski-apache-new-mexico/" rel="bookmark noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Hometown Mountain Shoutout: Ski Apache, New Mexico</a></strong></em></li></ul><p><strong>But Taos isn't all New Mexico is hiding from you.</strong> The primordial land's other ski areas — of which I can bet many of you have never even heard of — have so much to show for. Check out the list:</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3vf4aHF7qZIKtzlYQh6XL_z109IFCP_RNaGdOqIMY6G_AU9Dq_mSg2FOqYR0bOrApsUnqAa-v0X5lCmw-yfEqLXTtdnO-DPL9xjrDjSgoXZE2K0vkrzv_eWkuiNOofeluw0wB0NOoDE4/s1200/aft.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="887" data-original-width="1200" height="379" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3vf4aHF7qZIKtzlYQh6XL_z109IFCP_RNaGdOqIMY6G_AU9Dq_mSg2FOqYR0bOrApsUnqAa-v0X5lCmw-yfEqLXTtdnO-DPL9xjrDjSgoXZE2K0vkrzv_eWkuiNOofeluw0wB0NOoDE4/w512-h379/aft.jpg" width="512" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Angel Fire trail map. | Photo courtesy Ski Central.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><h3><span style="color: red;"><br />Angel Fire Resort </span></h3><p><strong><a href="https://www.angelfireresort.com/explore-angel-fire/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Angel Fire Resort</a> began in 1966, as a small ski destination in Northern New Mexico.</strong> They have since grown into a four-season resort offering a memorable Rocky Mountain experience for families, outdoor enthusiasts, and groups. The resort is located 8,600-feet above sea level in the Southern Rockies and has views of <a href="http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/carson/recreation/?cid=stelprdb5350403" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Wheeler Peak Wilderness">Wheeler Peak</a>, the highest point in New Mexico. Angel Fire also has <a href="https://www.angelfireresort.com/activities/summer-activities/bike-park/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">one of the best mountain bike parks in the United States</a> which operates every summer.</p><ul><li><strong>Location: </strong>Angel Fire, New Mexico</li><li><strong>Top elevation: </strong>10,677 feet</li><li><strong>Base elevation: </strong>8,600 feet</li><li><strong>Vertical drop: </strong>2,077 feet</li><li><strong>Skiable area: </strong>560 acres</li><li><strong>Runs: </strong>80 total — 21% beginner, 56% intermediate, 23% expert</li><li><strong>Longest run: </strong>3.2 miles</li><li><strong>Lifts: </strong>7</li><li><strong>Terrain parks: </strong>3</li><li><strong>Average annual snowfall: </strong>210 inches</li><li><strong>Snowmaking: </strong>Yes</li></ul><div><h3><strong><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGIU6ua-bK_JAojN7kLZbf6uRykD31pdx7TVTeKmAaa2n7n1cpC5YTXQ2adwlUrbOazVdbsZYDweDoMw9HeDNL-b3ak8aNDZSl0E1QgyHywKdnFM6iEJi0dZJHSWfbKBGpfWamTX2XA4Q/s1766/sss.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1332" data-original-width="1766" height="379" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGIU6ua-bK_JAojN7kLZbf6uRykD31pdx7TVTeKmAaa2n7n1cpC5YTXQ2adwlUrbOazVdbsZYDweDoMw9HeDNL-b3ak8aNDZSl0E1QgyHywKdnFM6iEJi0dZJHSWfbKBGpfWamTX2XA4Q/w502-h379/sss.jpg" width="502" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Ski Santa Fe trail map. | Photo courtesy SkiMap.org</span></td></tr></tbody></table></strong></h3><h3><strong><span style="color: red;">Ski Sante Fe</span></strong></h3><p><strong><a href="https://skisantafe.com/about/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ski Santa Fe</a> is located just 16 miles from the town of Santa Fe, one of the most popular destinations in the US.</strong> The ski area is tucked away high in the stunning Sangre de Cristo Mountains and it has a base area elevation of 10,350 feet, putting it among the highest ski areas in the continental United States. The Millennium Triple Chairlift takes skiers and riders to a height of 12,075 feet with some of the Southwest's finest skiing. The vistas atop Ski Santa Fe are unsurpassed and act as the gateway for thrills including steep mogul runs, powder-filled chutes, gladed tree-skiing, and more than plenty groomed trails.</p><ul><li><strong>Location: </strong>Santa Fe, New Mexico</li><li><strong>Top elevation: </strong>12,075 feet</li><li><strong>Base elevation: </strong>10,350 feet</li><li><strong>Vertical drop: </strong>1,725 feet</li><li><strong>Skiable area: </strong>660 acres</li><li><strong>Runs: </strong>86 total — 20% beginner, 40% intermediate, 40% expert</li><li><strong>Longest run: </strong>3 miles</li><li><strong>Lifts: </strong>7</li><li><strong>Terrain parks: </strong>1</li><li><strong>Average annual snowfall: </strong>225 inches</li><li><strong>Snowmaking: </strong>Yes</li></ul><div><h3><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx2tQme3ImxWlaSV3XdiYnVgj75kz0VHjT92RFvyf3WAs70wZITBcX-TZrfWuaody2YYG0tz-dO8_OG0YPS9b9k-3aV8aol5SHgLGvMC_HHqckmyhHuUrYu7PWhyphenhyphenFTr-jheDAAmUA8pJQ/s1200/pajr.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="735" data-original-width="1200" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx2tQme3ImxWlaSV3XdiYnVgj75kz0VHjT92RFvyf3WAs70wZITBcX-TZrfWuaody2YYG0tz-dO8_OG0YPS9b9k-3aV8aol5SHgLGvMC_HHqckmyhHuUrYu7PWhyphenhyphenFTr-jheDAAmUA8pJQ/w501-h307/pajr.jpg" width="501" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Pajarito Trail Map. | Photo courtesy Pajarito Mountain Ski Area.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></h3><h3><span style="color: red;">Pajarito Mountain Ski Area</span></h3><p><strong>Located on the eastern edge of the Jemez Mountains in north-central New Mexico, <a href="https://www.pajarito.ski/mountain-stats/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Pajarito Mountain Ski Area</a> is five miles west of Los Alamos.</strong> Its 750 acres of land are privately owned by Los Alamos Ski Club and were developed as a ski area in the late 1950s. The mountain has spectacular views east over the Rio Grande Valley towards the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and west over the Valle Grande from the peak.</p><p><strong>Pajarito Mountain boasts 300 acres of skiable terrain, not counting its renowned tree skiing, plus <a href="https://www.pajarito.ski/mountain-stats/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">some of the best bump skiing in the state</a>.</strong> It is rarely crowded, and guests seldom need wait in lift lines. It is open to the public, selling both day tickets and season passes. There is no on-mountain lodging, however, hotels and other lodging options are available in nearby <a href="http://www.visitlosalamos.org/plan-your-visit/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Los Alamos</a> and <a href="https://santafe.org/Visiting_Santa_Fe/Accommodations/index.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Santa Fe</a>.</p><ul><li><strong>Location: </strong>Los Alamos County, New Mexico</li><li><strong>Top elevation: </strong>10,440 feet</li><li><strong>Base elevation: </strong>9,000 feet</li><li><strong>Vertical drop: </strong>1,200 feet</li><li><strong>Skiable area: </strong>280 acres</li><li><strong>Runs: </strong>40 total — 20% beginner, 50% intermediate, 30% expert</li><li><strong>Longest run: </strong>0.6 miles</li><li><strong>Lifts: </strong>7</li><li><strong>Terrain parks: </strong>2</li><li><strong>Average annual snowfall: </strong>125 inches</li><li><strong>Snowmaking: </strong>Yes</li></ul><div><h3><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGC9eOkHt7fsXMPTgJv3JPfu4SvFFfBxe_XQS66TBdoNN7pOE5dVmciVkd8tEhX-i9NFF4Q1XcWRmxDeYa1UU_NUseQl9xuIw5eIYOBEyI1Yp-x0XqTcEnrKcTi1SHJntfFkSfEis0uAo/s1608/rr.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1608" data-original-width="1208" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGC9eOkHt7fsXMPTgJv3JPfu4SvFFfBxe_XQS66TBdoNN7pOE5dVmciVkd8tEhX-i9NFF4Q1XcWRmxDeYa1UU_NUseQl9xuIw5eIYOBEyI1Yp-x0XqTcEnrKcTi1SHJntfFkSfEis0uAo/w369-h490/rr.jpg" width="369" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Red River trail map. | Photo courtesy Snow-Online.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></h3><h3><span style="color: red;">Red River Ski Area</span></h3><p><strong>Located in the self-proclaimed "Ski Town of the Southwest," <a href="https://www.redriverskiarea.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Red River Ski Area</a> is a family-owned and operated mountain in the Sangre de Cristo mountains of the southern Rockies of New Mexico</strong>. The ski area is positioned along the famed Enchanted Circle near Texas, Albuquerque, Taos, and Santa Fe, and has a base elevation of 8,750 feet along with 209 skiable acres. The mountain is steeper than first meets the eye and has some epic tree skiing.</p><ul><li><strong>Location: </strong>Red River, New Mexico</li><li><strong>Top elevation: </strong>10,350 feet</li><li><strong>Base elevation: </strong>8,750 feet</li><li><strong>Vertical drop: </strong>1,600 feet</li><li><strong>Skiable area: </strong>209 acres</li><li><strong>Runs: </strong>64 total — 31% beginner, 31% intermediate, 38% expert</li><li><strong>Longest run: </strong>2.5 miles</li><li><strong>Lifts: </strong>7</li><li><strong>Terrain parks: </strong>3</li><li><strong>Average annual snowfall: </strong>214 inches</li><li><strong>Snowmaking: </strong>Yes</li><li><strong>Average days of sunshine: </strong>300+</li></ul><div><h3><strong><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJ3zx0fHC6GS-th4Erw6nJO83FdUhpHkLqrX6jaBh7YxCbencMUsCepL7Lu4zRp-1eNeMrUdYN1BQVlM7hh6Yb9Q5slxZt1_CSzJc6ZLTu9f3IYKAFdQNbKIG0ACWKpHLGDZzTyhRt90/s2048/spsa.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1489" height="714" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJ3zx0fHC6GS-th4Erw6nJO83FdUhpHkLqrX6jaBh7YxCbencMUsCepL7Lu4zRp-1eNeMrUdYN1BQVlM7hh6Yb9Q5slxZt1_CSzJc6ZLTu9f3IYKAFdQNbKIG0ACWKpHLGDZzTyhRt90/w519-h714/spsa.jpg" width="519" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Sandia Peak trail map. | Photo courtesy Skiresortinfo.com</span></td></tr></tbody></table></strong></h3><h3><strong><span style="color: red;">Sandia Peak Ski Area</span></strong></h3><p><strong><a href="https://sandiapeak.com/ski-faqs/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sandia Peak</a> is perched above Albuquerque in the Sandia Mountains and is arguably the nation's easiest accessible ski resort from a major city due to its 60 person aerial tram that rises more than 4,000 vertical feet in less than 20 minutes.</strong> It is <a href="https://www.abqjournal.com/320497/sandia-ski-area-up-and-running.html#:~:text=Sandia%20has%20been%20open%20annually,to%20more%20than%2050%20inches." rel="noopener" target="_blank">New Mexico's oldest ski area since 1937</a> and offers beginner and intermediate terrain. Weekends can get crowded and lifts are old, but a weekday powder dump is never something anybody living in or around Albuquerque can complain about.</p><ul><li><strong>Location: </strong>Albuquerque, New Mexico</li><li><strong>Top elevation: </strong>10,378 feet</li><li><strong>Base elevation: </strong>8,678 feet</li><li><strong>Vertical drop: </strong>1,700 feet</li><li><strong>Skiable area: </strong>200 acres</li><li><strong>Runs: </strong>39 total — 31% beginner, 46% intermediate, 23% expert</li><li><strong>Longest run: </strong>2 miles</li><li><strong>Lifts: </strong>5</li><li><strong>Terrain parks: </strong>1</li><li><strong>Average annual snowfall: </strong>100 inches</li><li><strong>Snowmaking: </strong>Yes</li></ul><div><h3><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6jtEDLyf5J33aHwq1d08EwZgomgizWI9ojW8oYc2UrMDkazLysz_79NU33BCaTpwbs6n3NV_ZNgvFdT8LioZGqdOg_jL1lwnVz-URUjBf5JHMdlVd2iGqMawyRglKr7O0U65eNrgOXVU/s2048/sip.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1152" height="770" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6jtEDLyf5J33aHwq1d08EwZgomgizWI9ojW8oYc2UrMDkazLysz_79NU33BCaTpwbs6n3NV_ZNgvFdT8LioZGqdOg_jL1lwnVz-URUjBf5JHMdlVd2iGqMawyRglKr7O0U65eNrgOXVU/w433-h770/sip.jpg" width="433" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Sipapu Ski Resort trail map. | Photo courtesy Sipapu Ski Resort.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></h3><h3><span style="color: red;">Sipapu Ski Resort</span></h3><p><strong><a href="https://www.sipapu.ski/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sipapu</a> is the definition of a "family-oriented mountain,"</strong> <strong>but one</strong><strong> with some actually GREAT skiing.</strong> Family owned and operated since 1952, everything at this ski area seems to have been designed to please families and protect their budgets, from lodging to terrain, according to OnTheSnow. There are 41 runs, a vertical drop of 1,055 feet, an average snowfall of 190 inches, and a snowmaking system that covers 70 percent of Sipapu's 200 acres. There's also plenty of diversity in its terrain. Here you'll find some of the best tree skiing in the state, a couple of terrain parks, some long cruising trails, and an abundance of novice and beginner terrain.</p><ul><li><strong>Location: </strong>Vadito, New Mexico</li><li><strong>Top elevation: </strong>9,255 feet</li><li><strong>Base elevation: </strong>8,200 feet</li><li><strong>Vertical drop: </strong>1,055 feet</li><li><strong>Skiable area: </strong>200 acres</li><li><strong>Runs: </strong>41 total — 20% beginner, 40% intermediate, 40% expert</li><li><strong>Longest run: </strong>0.5 miles</li><li><strong>Lifts: </strong>6</li><li><strong>Terrain parks: </strong>4</li><li><strong>Average annual snowfall: </strong>190 inches</li><li><strong>Snowmaking: </strong>Yes</li></ul><div><h3><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwJ9tTLkgTSXzdyHlfWEEsSJRFK8LY_BSEyuu0WBi1LmT5E184Lt4L4_5c1RzCQiOJ9TWXNvbn-nejeJ-DixmzjoJgoci-snFTaB1_rPmCeyY4EDBM6iTAS-7EPeltjZqvGR4rZvz0Elc/s1700/his.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1700" data-original-width="1275" height="533" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwJ9tTLkgTSXzdyHlfWEEsSJRFK8LY_BSEyuu0WBi1LmT5E184Lt4L4_5c1RzCQiOJ9TWXNvbn-nejeJ-DixmzjoJgoci-snFTaB1_rPmCeyY4EDBM6iTAS-7EPeltjZqvGR4rZvz0Elc/w400-h533/his.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">A photo from the historic 45″ powder day at Ski Apache, New Mexico in 2018. Photo: SnowBrains.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></h3><h3><span style="color: red;">Ski Apache</span></h3><p><strong>I saved the best for last.</strong> Well, not really. You can't say that this ski area is the best ski area on this list in terms of mountain stats. But <em>I</em> can, because I grew up skiing here and it will always be one of the best ski areas ever to me. <a href="https://snowbrains.com/hometown-mountain-shoutout-ski-apache-new-mexico/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ski Apache</a> has seven chairs, a high-speed gondola, wicked tree skiing, bowls and glades and mogul fields, and fun, flowy terrain that is exceptional on powder days. With 750 skiable acres and a 1,900-foot vertical drop, this mountain is seriously slept on. It doesn't get as many big dumps as it did in the good ol' days, but when it does — like when they got <a href="https://snowbrains.com/a-tale-of-ruidoso-new-mexicos-historic-storm-last-season/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a historic 45 inches in 24 hours</a> in December of 2018 — there's no other place I'd rather be skiing.</p><ul><li><strong>Location: </strong>Ruidoso, New Mexico</li><li><strong>Top elevation: </strong>11,500 feet</li><li><strong>Base elevation: </strong>9,600 feet</li><li><strong>Vertical drop: </strong>1,900 feet</li><li><strong>Skiable area: </strong>750 acres</li><li><strong>Runs: </strong>55 total — 20% beginner, 60% intermediate, 20% expert</li><li><strong>Longest run: </strong>2.5 miles</li><li><strong>Lifts: </strong>8 + 1 gondola</li><li><strong>Terrain parks: </strong>3</li><li><strong>Average annual snowfall: </strong>185 inches</li><li><strong>Snowmaking: </strong>Yes</li></ul><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvj5r-Whv2flbKv4oYdONPrZEo9TGcv2R8QUWZrtGHoyb_B5TcyV8futbJYPhZqXvTmhBv2YAKLcceVBDClUqy-T6vq3RGF5XzQJZ3myjqGjzYEcTJMZvfnRjcg-i_rExvtaYHM_RaMSA/s1024/siat.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="728" data-original-width="1024" height="343" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvj5r-Whv2flbKv4oYdONPrZEo9TGcv2R8QUWZrtGHoyb_B5TcyV8futbJYPhZqXvTmhBv2YAKLcceVBDClUqy-T6vq3RGF5XzQJZ3myjqGjzYEcTJMZvfnRjcg-i_rExvtaYHM_RaMSA/w483-h343/siat.jpg" width="483" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: Montserrat; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Ski Apache trail map.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-72773021874983090162020-08-02T21:07:00.002-07:002020-08-05T14:21:13.675-07:00A Photo Tour of State Street's Mexican Street Food District <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-67398137964312359822020-08-02T20:57:00.005-07:002020-11-19T20:43:24.263-08:00Joe's Valley, Utah in 3 Pictures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-45570352786046758962020-07-23T18:46:00.000-07:002020-07-23T18:47:17.102-07:00The Proposed British Columbia Mega-Resort That Would Be the Biggest Ski Area in North America<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5InMk3AWnGYrtk17kY1tbM8bZH8D-UzJGlbY3DD4UdZnP1AFB050_5s-ktCXfkoMHK0MK17Y-sxo5Lfd5opMKlQfuxwEYxgiLOAhcCrSSdUgFtdK31rj7eXCL-dYFtIg7AfdR5UgS3q8/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="700" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5InMk3AWnGYrtk17kY1tbM8bZH8D-UzJGlbY3DD4UdZnP1AFB050_5s-ktCXfkoMHK0MK17Y-sxo5Lfd5opMKlQfuxwEYxgiLOAhcCrSSdUgFtdK31rj7eXCL-dYFtIg7AfdR5UgS3q8/s400/1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">The proposed VGD Resort would be the biggest ski area in North America with the third largest vertical drop in the world | Photo courtesy Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">The area for the proposed Valemount Glacier Destination Resort, which is expected to be <em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red;">the largest year-round ski resort in North America with the third tallest vertical drop out of any ski area on earth</span></em>, could be described as a “mini AK.”</strong> Once completed, the resort will have up to 12,448 acres of skiable terrain and over 6,500 feet of vertical drop giving it the most vertical out of any ski resort in North America by far.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Excited yet?</strong></em></span></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEm9pa_S9b84js_aCw4jMOSBxyxRNqzoV4owYXM_W8Q3poLHNyN-a5c4gVTTOQ-Be-Zde3DatB2noqNIwB7hxw0h9N3OU9z2O63KKMz6IHqxaVl01HM4r25Qfq7GWW085RQVCIBI4Vzfs/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="956" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEm9pa_S9b84js_aCw4jMOSBxyxRNqzoV4owYXM_W8Q3poLHNyN-a5c4gVTTOQ-Be-Zde3DatB2noqNIwB7hxw0h9N3OU9z2O63KKMz6IHqxaVl01HM4r25Qfq7GWW085RQVCIBI4Vzfs/s400/1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">VGD Resort terrain and lifts digital rendering | Photo courtesy Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: montserrat; font-size: 14px;">The European alps-like ski Mecca would cover <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/valemount-resort-land-transfer-simpcw-first-nation-1.4567416" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">an area of nearly 31 square miles across a range of the Cariboo Mountains</a> in the interior of British Columbia. </strong><span style="color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 14px;">Plans have been proposed and the project has received the blessing of the Simpcw First Nation, an indigenous community </span><a href="https://www.simpcw.com/our-land.htm#:~:text=In%20total%2C%20Simpcw%20Territory%20covers,and%20enjoyed%20since%20time%20immemorial." rel="noopener noreferrer" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; font-family: montserrat; font-size: 14px; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">with over 12.3 million acres of unceded territory in BC</a><span style="color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 14px;">. The First Nation community has even gone as far as to contribute several hundred acres of land to the project, with revenue-sharing plans in mind.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Valemount?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Valemount</a>-area resort development sees Simpcw First Nation add land | STORY: <a href="https://t.co/3bmouf4Ik3">https://t.co/3bmouf4Ik3</a> <a href="https://t.co/UOL4HJpvuN">pic.twitter.com/UOL4HJpvuN</a></div>
— CFJC Today Kamloops (@CFJC_Today) <a href="https://twitter.com/CFJC_Today/status/971461946779222016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 7, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Approved in 2017, Valemount Glacier Destinations and its partners have already spent roughly $2.3 million on the first phase of the three-phase project, according to <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/valemount-resort-land-transfer-simpcw-first-nation-1.4567416" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">CBC Canada</a>.</strong> Yet, although plans have been proposed and an initial investment has been made, the actual construction phase of VGD Resort’s Master Plan still hasn’t to come to fruition as several building constraints and financial dealings still need to be sorted out.</div>
<strong style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: montserrat; font-size: 14px;">The behemoth resort is to be placed on <a href="https://valemountglaciers.com/master-plan/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Mt. Arthur Meighen </a></strong><strong style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #333745; font-family: montserrat; font-size: 14px;">near the humble Canadian village of Valemount that has a quiet population of about 1,000, a delicious pizza joint, a beautiful mountain bike park, and an award-winning brewery. </strong><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 14px;">The town is about a five-hour drive away from the nearest international airport in Edmonton, AB. Valemount has a small airport that is currently too small to support large commercial airlines from flying in ski tourists. But as the gears on this project begin to turn faster and faster, this may change.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">The village of Valemount | Photo courtesy Facebook.</span><br />
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; color: red;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Owen Torgerson, the village’s mayor since 2018, sat down with me for a socially-distanced, FaceTime interview about the current status of the resort project. He, like myself, was beyond eager to talk about how to get this beast of a ski hill out of the planning phase and into the building phase.</strong></span></div>
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<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">What are you most excited about with this project? </em></strong></div>
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“Well, having a couple of ski poles in my hand,” Torgerson chuckled. “[VGD Resort] will be North America’s first all-season resort. That means skiing year-round. Sight-seeing year-round. You name it. It’s the best combination of geography and climate and it will have the highest lift-accessed glacier skiing for year-round sight-seeing and snowsports."<span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 12.8px;"> </span></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1pLTmWqtMV0eqlAezO7QrIQpkKQLaTTj_uDSZc4CZULcfwkQ_2b41In9ZM4cfNgmtYhbHBBcWQ5gpVmUHW1V__j2vMnnc91w9hVmI6rbYR_22C7xEHw5gaWn9mKsVNOUtXvqVlQBvuho/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="948" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1pLTmWqtMV0eqlAezO7QrIQpkKQLaTTj_uDSZc4CZULcfwkQ_2b41In9ZM4cfNgmtYhbHBBcWQ5gpVmUHW1V__j2vMnnc91w9hVmI6rbYR_22C7xEHw5gaWn9mKsVNOUtXvqVlQBvuho/s400/1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Valemount, BC on a map | Photo courtesy Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd.</span></td></tr>
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<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Valemount has a population of about 1,000. How do you expect it to grow with the development of this ski area?</em></strong></div>
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“We have a lot of horizontal area but what we’re working on right now is densification. So, the sky’s the limit.”</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">The last observable news on <a href="https://valemountglaciers.com/project-approved/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">the project’s website</a> is from 2017. Can you tell me the latest news on this project coming out of Valemount? </strong></em></div>
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“We’re still seeking investment during these trying and certainly unprecedented times. But with the support that this project has from the Simpcw First Nation, we are confident this will boost investor confidence.”</div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">What can you tell me about the airport in Valemount? Can it handle commercial airliners? Are there plans to reconstruct it?</strong></em></div>
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“Valemount’s airport cannot handle, say, a 727 commercial airliner at this time. It’s a bit too short and the touch-down zones are a bit too thin. So, working with the resort throughout phase one and phase two, we’d be looking to expand that for sure. [The runway] is currently 3,900 feet long and we’d like to take that to 5,000+ and then widen it from 75 feet to about 150 feet wide. But it’s fully serviced right now with GPS landing, precision approach, fuel distribution, and a small terminal.”</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKOGr4ShaHGY2j2LbsIeO12TAfM9XhYrGBVo-9NdnBUUABAMIc52J_QDagH6MrU9CKxGqiMkrENPCQG83FwOQgROIchuIWcGEcoIMYrz-HQHvJ1OtHFtMdMYeh3TL_zwqgW6zOl0b5eKE/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="948" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKOGr4ShaHGY2j2LbsIeO12TAfM9XhYrGBVo-9NdnBUUABAMIc52J_QDagH6MrU9CKxGqiMkrENPCQG83FwOQgROIchuIWcGEcoIMYrz-HQHvJ1OtHFtMdMYeh3TL_zwqgW6zOl0b5eKE/s400/1.png" width="400" /></a><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">The proposed study area for the VGD Resort | Photo courtesy Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><br /></strong></em></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">VGD has the same developer as the controversial <a href="https://snowbrains.com/jumbo-will-be-forever-wild-resort-scrapped/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Jumbo Resort</a>, which was opposed and then barred from development. Do you see this as a problem at all?</strong></em></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">“No. Because the major difference between Jumbo and this project was consultation with the indigenous communities. With this project, I think they learned from Jumbo that you have to have consultation early and often and that’s exactly what they did with this project. The Simpcw First Nation have been in support of this project from the getgo, and the proponents [of this project] have been meeting their requirements, working toward archaeological overview assessments, cultural heritage assessments, and extensive environmental assessments.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">What are you working on right now with this ski resort project?</strong></em></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">“We’re working with the province for road design. The requirements are quite extensive and we’re trying to make it a bit more realistic for where we are right now. Having road construction to meet future specifications is key but we also need roads to be a bit more feasible, construction-wise, for what we’re doing right now.”</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfConkbzY06lu5tvK5ce141VDe3FYYGi4V3DBf0rNOD4PktP7-HDkoxDcJMHkKh6ghEBlkISylBmi8REWTAYXRFDijwK16EPlVsc-N0zTEeU9KngCdwrB4Q2n5VY-8HXBRLZiZSq3vDNo/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="928" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfConkbzY06lu5tvK5ce141VDe3FYYGi4V3DBf0rNOD4PktP7-HDkoxDcJMHkKh6ghEBlkISylBmi8REWTAYXRFDijwK16EPlVsc-N0zTEeU9KngCdwrB4Q2n5VY-8HXBRLZiZSq3vDNo/s400/1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">An artistic rendering of the proposed base village of VGD Resort | Photo courtesy Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">How has the pandemic set you guys back, project-wise?</strong></em></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">“Canada and British Columbia especially have been focused around the health aspects of COVID and we’re just now getting to the economic rebuild of the process. And I think this project can be a spark. If anything, COVID has positively had an impact on this project, because now this project’s economic potential is being realized. Once our provincional health officer lifts restrictions on international travel and if phase one is well underway by that time, people will be clawing to get up here.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">How do foresee this project — do you see the project taking off right away?</strong></em></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">“Yeah actually, I do. Again, just reiterating the support from indigenous communities, this isn’t just going to have economic activity locally. This is going to have an economic boom for the entire province of British Columbia.”</span></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbmZkKPuebh2_z2nm9jsNiKBfmt80bhmjCMQBo7UVK0dwqtydnMb2cMLU6jTd8OuLzrse5agW3LuMLW28U7n9k1YKNm7N8KYa2lx4Ye4PG7atbjgSB5CrN7m-u9CU0Wh_pccxJYMmnKRc/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="546" data-original-width="896" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbmZkKPuebh2_z2nm9jsNiKBfmt80bhmjCMQBo7UVK0dwqtydnMb2cMLU6jTd8OuLzrse5agW3LuMLW28U7n9k1YKNm7N8KYa2lx4Ye4PG7atbjgSB5CrN7m-u9CU0Wh_pccxJYMmnKRc/s400/1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Vertical drop comparison of the world’s tallest ski areas. VGD Resort would clock in at #3 | Photo courtesy Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><br /></strong></em></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Anything else you’d like to add about the VGD Resort project?</strong></em></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">“What we’re trying to achieve is the largest vertical rise and one of the most exhilarating mountain experiences in North America. We’ve got the climate. We’ve got the geography. We’ve got the support. It’s right next to a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We’ve got the groundwork ready for transportation and hotel partnerships. I can’t reiterate this enough: we’ve got clear and supportive agreements in place already with the First Nation which is imperative for business/investor confidence here in British Columbia and this is designed for the visitors of today and tomorrow, taking climate change into consideration. The design and development team have a very unique track record and we’re very excited to get this project underway.”</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRLPIb-YbTplDtoMJa7ZH7uQ5pHKPPwYkSunXpYYMj6gs_Lij-gFAsSQzVICiB9z195k-B07nWtJzkg_2eoS0pIYfjNQF7Pnu5VisW-7b0w7Y3fYYbNM94RyFYY_ATuG-MxCWgQbsLFo/s1600/1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="610" data-original-width="816" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRLPIb-YbTplDtoMJa7ZH7uQ5pHKPPwYkSunXpYYMj6gs_Lij-gFAsSQzVICiB9z195k-B07nWtJzkg_2eoS0pIYfjNQF7Pnu5VisW-7b0w7Y3fYYbNM94RyFYY_ATuG-MxCWgQbsLFo/s400/1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">Mt. Arthur (10,515′) is the proposed peak for the VGD Resort to be centered on near Valemount, BC | Photo courtesy Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd.</span></td></tr>
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<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">According to the Resort’s master plan, in total, the resort will have 18 lifts built over three phases.</strong> The planned inventory includes:</div>
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<span class="s1" style="box-sizing: border-box;">• </span>2 magic carpets;</div>
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<span class="s1" style="box-sizing: border-box;">• </span>4 gondolas;</div>
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<span class="s1" style="box-sizing: border-box;">• </span>6 detachable quad chairs;</div>
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<span class="s1" style="box-sizing: border-box;">• </span>2 Fixed grip quad chairs, and</div>
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<span class="s1" style="box-sizing: border-box;">• </span>4 glacier T-Bar lifts.</div>
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“There will be a total of 813 hectares (2,009 acres) of ski runs at build-out and the lift network and the ski area will have an Adjusted Comfortable Carrying Capacity of 9,500 at build-out. The Balanced Resort Capacity will be 11,086. Water will be supplied from wells, and the resort will have its own state-of-the-art tertiary treatment sewage plant.</div>
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The project proponent is Valemount Glacier Destinations Ltd., a single-purpose company based in Vancouver, BC with investors from British Columbia and Ontario.” — VGD Master Plan</div>
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<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">The project was drafted in 2017 on a five-year agreement with hopes to be completed by 2022.</strong> However, there is a chance, Mayor Torgerson said, that the project may go beyond the initial five-year agreement. But he, like myself, and the other million anxious skiers and snowboarders who are drooling over this proposed monster ski area, prefer that they just get going right away.</div>
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<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">To learn more about the VGD Resort project, download and read the master plan from the project’s website <a href="https://valemountglaciers.com/master-plan/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #36a4b8; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.25s ease 0s;" target="_blank">here</a>. </strong></div>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
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<br />A proposed <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Valemount?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Valemount</a> ski resort moving closer to construction <a href="http://t.co/0UBRFvj4K3">http://t.co/0UBRFvj4K3</a> <a href="http://t.co/pTC0I9s9Qb">pic.twitter.com/pTC0I9s9Qb</a></div>
— My Prince George Now (@mypgnow) <a href="https://twitter.com/mypgnow/status/624689249757990912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 24, 2015</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-52980428462503876582020-07-14T14:26:00.003-07:002020-08-02T21:14:35.690-07:00Quote of the day<div style="text-align: center;">
"Studious of ease, and fond of humble things,</div>
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Below the smiles, below the frowns of kings:</div>
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Thanks to my stars, I prize the sweets of life,</div>
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No sleepless nights I count, no days of strife.</div>
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I rest, I wake, I drink, I sometimes love,</div>
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I read, I write, I settle, or I rove;</div>
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Cotent to live, content to die unknown, </div>
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Lord of myself, accountable to none."</div>
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— Benjamin Franklin</div>
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<span class="Apple-converted-space" style="color: #454545; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 12px;"><br /></span>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-47017091581393564882020-07-07T22:32:00.003-07:002020-07-07T22:32:54.393-07:00West Texas Poetry <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Beautiful...</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the nasty storm paving way for still waters </span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the golden merger of the sunset and the lake</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the orange then red then purple clouds</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the easy drifting into the silent reeds</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the coyote family howling on a distant shore</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the peace from waiting </span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the flaring lightning in the distance </span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the starry canvas up above </span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the dancing water from the boat being towed</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the relief that we didn't have to swim back</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the rising moon</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">the humor shared afterward</span><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" /><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(38, 38, 38); color: #262626; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">beautiful.</span></div>
<br />Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-91372342497097205292020-07-06T13:11:00.000-07:002020-07-06T13:11:13.832-07:00Virtika Outerwear CEO David Lesh Turns New Leaf, Announces Priesthood and Path to Salvation To Right Wrongs and Save Damned<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CCTs6D-FFNO/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12" style="background: #fff; border-radius: 3px; border: 0; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.5) , 0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: 99.375%;">
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CCTs6D-FFNO/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">I’m taking my life in a new direction. It’s touching to receive life tips from professionals all over the world and I wouldn’t know how to hike, snowmobile, or run @virtika without them. The countless death threats, news stories, and hate mail from so many caring people made me realize I have been going off the rails for a long time. My goal has always been to please, so I hope they will continue to invest their valuable time in guiding me through the minutia of my daily life. May the Lord walk with you all. 🙏🏻</a></div>
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A post shared by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davidlesh/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" target="_blank"> David Lesh</a> (@davidlesh) on <time datetime="2020-07-06T16:46:14+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Jul 6, 2020 at 9:46am PDT</time></div>
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<script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>DENVER, CO — <a href="https://www.virtika.com/product-category/clothing/colorado-apparel/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Virtika Outerwear</a> CEO and Founder David Lesh, who has been the target of ridiculous amounts of social media-driven hate speech over the course of the past few months despite a global pandemic and nationwide, racial controversy which you thought would have had everyone mad enough already, has just vowed to make it all right.</strong><br />
<ul>
<li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/david-lesh-fined-500-snowmobiling-independence-pass/" rel="bookmark noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">David Lesh Fined $500 and 50-Hours Public Service For Snowmobiling on Independence Pass, Aspen, CO</a></strong></em></li>
</ul>
<strong>In the name of the Lord, David Atman Lesh announced today that he is taking a higher path towards salvation that will cancel out his previous wrongdoings and surely please the thousands of social media users who have sent him hate mail, death threats, and called he, his organization, and his mother an unmeasurable list of bad names.</strong> Because now, with God in his heart and in his pocket, the off-the-rails bad-boy is turning a new leaf, saving himself as well as everyone who hates him via divine love and a profound desire for eternal harmony with the unknown.<br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Lesh, readily on his way to sainthood, said today in an <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CCTs6D-FFNO/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Instagram post</a>: </strong><br />
<blockquote>
<span class="">"I’m taking my life in a new direction. It’s touching to receive life tips from professionals all over the world and I wouldn’t know how to hike, snowmobile, or run <a class="notranslate" href="https://www.instagram.com/virtika/" rel="noopener noreferrer" tabindex="0" target="_blank">@virtika</a> without them. The countless death threats, news stories, and hate mail from so many caring people made me realize I have been going off the rails for a long time. My goal has always been to please, so I hope they will continue to invest their valuable time in guiding me through the minutia of my daily life. May the Lord walk with you all. 🙏🏻"</span></blockquote>
Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-57957617492309358202020-06-24T14:27:00.001-07:002020-06-24T14:55:24.421-07:00Remembering Bronisław Czech: The Polish Olympic Skier Sent to a Nazi Death Camp 80 Years Ago<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Bronis%C5%82aw_Czech-scaled.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" class="size-full wp-image-169857" height="255" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Bronis%C5%82aw_Czech-scaled.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Polish Olympic skier Bronisław Czech. Photo courtesy Wikipedia.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<strong>What's special about June 14? </strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Well, it's essentially a day where hell became a real place on earth 80 years ago.</strong> That place was called Auschwitz.<br />
<br />
<strong>Because on June 14, 1940, the Germans brought 728 Polish political prisoners to the Auschwitz camp, which was still under construction at the time. </strong>Among them was a man named Bronisław Czech.<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronis%C5%82aw_Czech" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Bronisław Czech</a> is a Polish Olympic skier who was sent to <a href="http://auschwitz.org/en/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Auschwitz</a> 80 years ago.</strong> Earlier this month, Polish officials and athletes paid tribute to the legendary Olympic skier who was murdered alongside his Polish brethren in one of the evilest places mankind has ever constructed.<br />
<br />
<strong>On Sunday, June 14, Polish officials <a href="https://www.polskieradio.pl/395/7784/Artykul/2531513,Officials-mark-80-years-since-first-deportation-of-Poles-to-Auschwitz" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">attended</a> events to mark 80 years since the first deportation of Poles to the Nazi German death camp.</strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Polish cross-country skier <a href="http://archiwum.thenews.pl/1/5/Artykul/424789" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Maciej Staręga</a>, a three-time Olympian, said in a Facebook post ahead of the anniversary that Czech “was one of the greatest and most versatile Polish skiers.” </strong><br />
<br />
<strong>Staręga wrote:</strong><br />
<blockquote>
Awesome initiative!!! </blockquote>
<blockquote>
Memory of heroes and ordinary people that can now live in our independent homeland is an essential element of social responsibility. So it's worth supporting such initiatives and reminding the person Bronisław Czecha. A man who was one of the greatest and most versatile Polish skiers who was also strongly associated with the Polish Ski Association. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
The National Virtual Remembrance Relay of Prisoners of First Transport to KL Auschwitz has now come to me. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
What is this? </blockquote>
<blockquote>
June 14 is the 80th anniversary of the event that opened the history of perhaps the biggest hell on earth. The day of deportation of Polish prisoners from Tarnów prison to Auschwitz was announced by the Polish Parliament National Remembrance Day of the Victims of German concentration camps and Extermination Camps. However, it remains a holiday, which few people know about, which few people remember and few people care about. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
This year - let's not forget! </blockquote>
<blockquote>
One at a time, name by name, number by number, let's pay tribute to our countrymen - the first 728 prisoners of this German death factory, reminding that Poles, mostly young, members of the Resistance, will represent the elites of the Republic - the first heroes of the fight against totalitarianism. Because it was for Poles that Auschwitz was created and we were the main victims of German bullies for the next two years. Transports with Poles reached here and other German camps until the end of the war. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
I have the honor to represent in the Relay and pay tribute to prisoner number 349. It's Bronisław Czech. Hello to His Memory! Bronisław is m. in three times Olympic, taternik, mountain lifeguard and ski instructor. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
I encourage everyone to join the 14th June Memory Relay on this event website: <a class="profileLink" data-hovercard-prefer-more-content-show="1" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/event.php?id=887874535014762&extragetparams=%7B%22source%22%3A3%2C%22source_newsfeed_story_type%22%3A%22regular%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22%5B%7B%5C%22surface%5C%22%3A%5C%22newsfeed%5C%22%2C%5C%22mechanism%5C%22%3A%5C%22feed_story%5C%22%2C%5C%22extra_data%5C%22%3A%5B%5D%7D%5D%22%2C%22has_source%22%3Atrue%2C%22__tn__%22%3A%22%2CdK-R-R%22%2C%22eid%22%3A%22ARBpgLa16KUGsacqhbabRvUuBqCkre770MLeSUVbaehZImOIVU8Oyz5vu1Fm2WKbK2BvHlJZCVFHcFk0%22%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/events/887874535014762/?acontext=%7B%22source%22%3A3%2C%22source_newsfeed_story_type%22%3A%22regular%22%2C%22action_history%22%3A%22%5B%7B%5C%22surface%5C%22%3A%5C%22newsfeed%5C%22%2C%5C%22mechanism%5C%22%3A%5C%22feed_story%5C%22%2C%5C%22extra_data%5C%22%3A%5B%5D%7D%5D%22%2C%22has_source%22%3Atrue%7D&source=3&source_newsfeed_story_type=regular&action_history=%5B%7B%22surface%22%3A%22newsfeed%22%2C%22mechanism%22%3A%22feed_story%22%2C%22extra_data%22%3A%5B%5D%7D%5D&has_source=1&__tn__=K-R&eid=ARBpgLa16KUGsacqhbabRvUuBqCkre770MLeSUVbaehZImOIVU8Oyz5vu1Fm2WKbK2BvHlJZCVFHcFk0&__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARC5RP8ChAYMlPdz3w0zIu-zzxtPp8Rhftpb5HO50OQoxuLgCvJlUZ-Cmpm4iaV9biS2u8ZfJV9og78DYSgxsYiQ4-EpTVjqmmwVpGsIuzsE5df-Wy0yAb3SoOWR-XKRUZVBznf35CsuRJ1dgzleKa228XhZtBgiJscsVC2k1KVpc1VVYvJFCLKMzkBPue-o0sOnf9gioRciAVlDXQv0GFGn-1OSx-2UbHi-oOq28P-z_v5Ex3M18PNa-a9Bb1VoV-w_YkwLi0palKc1tsDWY9bHamNvc32dhPD5-nh-zNyLZ3mixSCfa9dxUBQioGpMAIaut4qohTgc6Bfeop5L7W7blA" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/events/887874535014762</a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"type":104,"tn":"*N"}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/14czerwca?__eep__=6&source=feed_text&epa=HASHTAG&__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARC5RP8ChAYMlPdz3w0zIu-zzxtPp8Rhftpb5HO50OQoxuLgCvJlUZ-Cmpm4iaV9biS2u8ZfJV9og78DYSgxsYiQ4-EpTVjqmmwVpGsIuzsE5df-Wy0yAb3SoOWR-XKRUZVBznf35CsuRJ1dgzleKa228XhZtBgiJscsVC2k1KVpc1VVYvJFCLKMzkBPue-o0sOnf9gioRciAVlDXQv0GFGn-1OSx-2UbHi-oOq28P-z_v5Ex3M18PNa-a9Bb1VoV-w_YkwLi0palKc1tsDWY9bHamNvc32dhPD5-nh-zNyLZ3mixSCfa9dxUBQioGpMAIaut4qohTgc6Bfeop5L7W7blA&__tn__=%2ANK-R" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><span class="_5afx"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz">#</span><span class="_58cm">14czerwca</span></span></a><br />
<a aria-describedby="u_r_1" aria-owns="" class="profileLink" data-hovercard-prefer-more-content-show="1" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/page.php?id=1701323146859244&extragetparams=%7B%22__tn__%22%3A%22%2CdK-R-R%22%2C%22eid%22%3A%22ARDCHAyqu6idbm8kxtTlkE-2Wm2UNUmHLpuJ8JwGgPZC-KBcp90n8rCq3ljKgZ1Hp53OYYXr3vnCpBNH%22%2C%22fref%22%3A%22tag%22%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/GrupaAzotySA/?__tn__=K-R&eid=ARDCHAyqu6idbm8kxtTlkE-2Wm2UNUmHLpuJ8JwGgPZC-KBcp90n8rCq3ljKgZ1Hp53OYYXr3vnCpBNH&fref=tag&__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARC5RP8ChAYMlPdz3w0zIu-zzxtPp8Rhftpb5HO50OQoxuLgCvJlUZ-Cmpm4iaV9biS2u8ZfJV9og78DYSgxsYiQ4-EpTVjqmmwVpGsIuzsE5df-Wy0yAb3SoOWR-XKRUZVBznf35CsuRJ1dgzleKa228XhZtBgiJscsVC2k1KVpc1VVYvJFCLKMzkBPue-o0sOnf9gioRciAVlDXQv0GFGn-1OSx-2UbHi-oOq28P-z_v5Ex3M18PNa-a9Bb1VoV-w_YkwLi0palKc1tsDWY9bHamNvc32dhPD5-nh-zNyLZ3mixSCfa9dxUBQioGpMAIaut4qohTgc6Bfeop5L7W7blA" id="js_y" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Grupa Azoty</a> </blockquote>
<blockquote>
PS. Read about this Relay and Bronk Czech, because he is a great format character and an incredible personality...</blockquote>
<strong>Before the start of the second world war, <a href="https://www.polskieradio.pl/395/7989/Artykul/2531684,Tribute-to-Polish-Olympic-skier-who-was-sent-to-Auschwitz-80-years-ago" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Czech represented Poland at three consecutive Winter Olympics</a> in various skiing events, including Alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, and ski jumping.</strong> He competed without medaling at St. Moritz in 1928, Lake Placid in 1932, and Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1936, <a href="https://www.polskieradio.pl/395/7989/Artykul/2531684,Tribute-to-Polish-Olympic-skier-who-was-sent-to-Auschwitz-80-years-ago" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Radio Poland reports</a>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/czech.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" class="size-full wp-image-169858" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/czech.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Czech. Photo courtesy Wikipedia.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<strong>When the Nazis brought war to Poland in 1939, Czech became a courier for the Polish underground from German-occupied Poland to the West.</strong> He was captured by the German secret police in 1940.<br />
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<strong>Bronisław Czech died in Auschwitz on June 5, 1944.</strong> He was 36 years old.<br />
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<strong>Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in a speech that Czech was not only an outstanding athlete but also a loving patriot who was part of a resistance movement organized at Auschwitz by Polish war hero <a href="http://thenews.pl/1/9/Artykul/365268,Polish-war-hero-Pilecki-embodied-fight-for-national-freedom-president" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Witold Pilecki</a>.</strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>He, like the other <a href="https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/auschwitz#:~:text=Auschwitz%20closed%20in%20January%201945,were%20sentenced%20to%20forced%20labor." rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">1.1 million souls murdered at Auschwitz</a>, will never be forgotten. </strong>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-6256081627778303752020-06-11T10:49:00.000-07:002020-06-16T10:58:22.519-07:00Hometown Mountain Shoutout: Ski Apache, New Mexico <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<strong>"Damn Texans!" shouts some menace in the mob of locals zooming past, jumping over the minefield of downed skiers on Lower Deep Freeze.</strong> The visitors can only watch in pure terror as the group of mad skiers and snowboarders charge past them at full-speed as they're attempting to recover their scattered skis and poles on one of Ski Apache's most notorious green trails that starts as a bottleneck behind Chair 4.<br />
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<strong><i>Ski patrol has been trying to apprehend this group of wintertime bandits all season long, and they'd probably snag all of their season passes if any of those weekend redcoats could actually ski. </i></strong><br />
<ul>
<li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/a-tale-of-ruidoso-new-mexicos-historic-storm-last-season/" rel="bookmark noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Tale of Ruidoso, New Mexico’s Historic Storm Last Season</a></strong></em></li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168342" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_3425-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
A view from the top of Ski Apache. Skier: Alex Davis. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>Lo and behold <a href="https://skiapache.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ski Apache</a>, situated in the bosom of the Sacramento mountain range in southern New Mexico near the sleepy town of <a href="https://snowbrains.com/a-tale-of-ruidoso-new-mexicos-historic-storm-last-season/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ruidoso</a>, where the lion's share of skiers ski in jeans, cowboy hats, and fur coats. </strong>Ski Apache — nicknamed 'the Patch,' because on low snow years that's all you get to ski — is a place where the term 'powder panic,' has an entirely different meaning. Because when the snow starts flying here, visitors panic and turn around because there's "too much snow." Keep in mind that it doesn't always dump at the Patch, but when it does, it DUMPS.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168359" height="252" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_1055.jpg" width="400" /><br />
Local skier Alex Davis rips down 'Incredible' at the Patch after a snowstorm. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>Ski Apache rests on <a href="https://mescaleroapachetribe.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mescalero-Apache reservation</a> and is owned and operated by the Tribe.</strong> On any given long weekend or spring break, it can seem like all of West Texas has relocated to Ruidoso — the place where I grew up skiing and where I call home. It is a place sacred to me, a place where my life has changed more times than I can count, and a place where my life was nearly ended when I was 17 (shoutout to Mike Luna and the other ski patrollers for saving my life in 2014, I was only kidding about the patrol-related remark earlier in this piece, c'mon guys).<br />
<ul>
<li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/how-the-day-i-almost-died-changed-the-way-i-ski3/" rel="bookmark noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">How The Day I Almost Died Changed The Way I Ski</a></strong></em></li>
</ul>
<strong> It is a place of happiness, a place of good times; where all the locals know each other — whose kids go to school with one another.</strong> It's a place of magic, for lack of a better word.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168329" height="284" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/sa-trail-map-.jpg" width="400" /><br />
Ski Apache trail map.<br />
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<strong>With eight chairlifts, including a relatively new high-speed gondola and an all-season <a href="https://www.technoalpin.com/us/news-archive/snowfactory-worldwide-and-truly-all-season.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Snowfactory</a>, Ski Apache is a fun, flowy mountain with some of the most captivating views in all of New Mexico.</strong> From the top of Apache Bowl, you can see white-capped, forested mountains on one side and then white, sand duned-desert on the other. The place doesn't really make sense, but hell, it's beautiful.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168363" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_2368-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
See White Sands out there in the distance? That's where the first atomic bomb was detonated at the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/whsa/learn/historyculture/trinity-site.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Trinity Site</a> in 1945... Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong> If you look closely, you can actually see the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/whsa/learn/historyculture/trinity-site.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">site</a> where the first-ever atomic bomb was detonated back in 1945.</strong> The whole mountain range is an oasis in a hostile land, where once invaders came and fought off the locals to settle the territory. Sure, they robbed them of this pristine area, home to rivers, lakes, mountains, and way too many damn elk for anybody's own good. But I just thank God that someone had the sense to put a ski area here back in the day, when the ski area officially opened on December 23, 1961, after <a href="https://www.ruidosonews.com/story/sports/2017/01/05/history-ski-apache/96194156/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a seven-and-a-half-foot snowstorm delayed the initial opening of the ski area by a week</a>.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168361" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_1200-scaled.jpg" width="300" /><br />
A view of Sierra Blanca from Apache Bowl at Ski Apache. Sierra Blanca is the region's' tallest peak resting at 12,003'. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>For as long as I can remember I've been skiing here.</strong> Momentous powder storms would stack snowbanks that towered over my head as a kid. My brain is also packed with memories of the too-perfect bluebird powder days that would <em>always</em> follow after those dumps. On one day, it'd be dumping so hard with wind speeds so high that you could swear the mountain gods were trying to kill you. On the next, you couldn't even feel a breeze or hear a sound other than your skis slashing through low-density powder in the snow-ghosted trees.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168344" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_3632-scaled.jpg" width="300" /><br />
Chair 1. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong> It's a spiritual place, especially for us locals who know all the good spots in the trees off of Chair 1.</strong> Chair 1 — that's the place to be on a powder day because that's where the Patch's hardest black diamond runs are, meaning that's where the least people will be skiing.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168347" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_6948-scaled.jpg" width="400" /> '<br />
Terrible' really ain't so bad... Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>On a true powder day here, you feel like you have the whole Chair 1-side to yourself.</strong> You'll be ripping freshies all day and probably the next day, too — and maybe even the one after that! When I went back home for Christmas and skied the Patch last season, we were blessed with about a two-and-a-half foot storm that made for some fine powder skiing down runs like 'Incredible,' 'Mescalero,' and 'Terrible.' When I got on the gondola with a long-time local this day, we were both on the same page as to what was ripping.<br />
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"I've been skiing at Ski Apache since I was four years old which would be about oh.. 45, 46 years... 'Terrible' is the run of the day today." — Tim Keaton</blockquote>
<strong>For three straight days around last Christmas, Tim and I skied fresh powder with my father and several other long-time ski bums.</strong> It was refreshing, especially after spending the start of ski season in Utah where you have to fight tooth-and-nail for your powder turns in Little Cottonwood Canyon. Here, it was all yours for the taking.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168341" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_2920-scaled.jpg" width="300" /><br />
'Roy's Run' at Ski Apache. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>The skiing at this time flooded me with tidal waves of nostalgia reminding me of epic storms from my past like the historic storm that gifted the Patch with <a href="https://snowbrains.com/a-tale-of-ruidoso-new-mexicos-historic-storm-last-season/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">45 inches of new snow in 24 hours in 2018.</a></strong> But as time goes by, these existential powder storms that have you questioning what you really want to be doing with your life (besides skiing powder) seem to be less and less frequent. And I personally think Little Bear was to blame.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168366" height="212" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_3342-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
Much of Ski Apache was burned by the Little Bear fire in 2012 and looks like this. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Bear_Fire" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Little Bear Fire</a> burned down 44,330 acres and 254 buildings in June 2012, making it the most destructive wildfire in New Mexico state history.</strong> Ski Apache was right at the epicenter, and the resort has never looked the same since. The once superbly green and densely-forested ski area is now more than 50% burnt with charred trees everywhere. It's hypothesized that the fire lowered oxygen levels in the mountain range severely enough to impact the region's annual snowfall, and I can tell you that I've seen this impact personally. It's heartbreaking. But it's not devastating.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168340" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_2088-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
The gondola at Ski Apache. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>As a result of the fire, we received a brand-spanking-new, high-speed gondola that seats eight and shuttles eager skiers and snowboarders to the top of the mountain in about 15 minutes.</strong> This is a major improvement from the old, cramped four-person gondola that was slower than Christmas.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168349" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_3164.jpg" width="319" /><br />
Brothers Alex and Israel Davis exploring 'new' lines in the burnt area at Ski Apache. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>We've also gotten much more access to a bunch of new lines in the trees that were once too thick to ski through, giving this mountain a whole new face.</strong> You just have to watch out for the lurking stumps that feed on the bottom of your skis, waiting to blow out those old skier's knees. There'd be even more new ski runs too — like the potential for an entire new bowl of skiing in the area located looker's left of the gondola below Apache Bowl and above Lower Deep Freeze — if the resort would just spend the time and money to clear the fallen trees that have laid inside resort boundaries for much too long.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168328" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/historic-storm-.jpg" width="300" /><br />
A photo from the historic 45" powder day at the Patch in 2018. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>It's no secret that Ski Apache faces challenges with the way it is run and operated.</strong> Resort closures due to lack of staffing are frequent, and more often than not chairs that need to be open on powder days are not open because of management-related issues. Also, not to mention that the ski area's jump in pass prices in over $50 from one season to the next has had visitors and locals alike infuriated because an apparent improvement that was supposed to be associated with this pricing increase has yet to be noticed. But I'm not here to dog on Ski Apache — I love this place. It just hurts to see a place with as much potential as the Patch failing to capitalize on it year after year.<br />
<ul>
<li><em><strong>Related: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/ski-apache-resort-nm-closures-causing-huge-loss-to-local-business/" rel="bookmark noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ski Apache Resort, NM, Closures Causing Huge Loss To Local Business</a></strong></em></li>
</ul>
<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168335" height="224" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_0994-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
The crew and I aboard the gondola at the Patch. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>So, how would we improve this resort, from the eyes of the local community?</strong> Well, upping the managerial aspects and making sure it is open every day it is <em>supposed</em> to be open would be a fine start.<br />
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<strong> I haven't seen Chair 8 open in years, which it certainly could have been last season if an effort was put in to do so.</strong> Then, you could clear the fallen trees in the middle of the resort to pave the way for more ski runs. Throw in a high-speed quad to replace the painfully slow Chair 1 and some more snowmaking from the top of the mountain — not just Chair 4 and the bunny slopes — and we'd really be talking. But hey, like many of the other locals here who only want to see this place continually improve, I'm a dreamer.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168356" height="184" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_1101.png" width="400" /><br />
Finding the goods at Ski Apache circa Christmas 2019. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>Regardless of the challenges and headaches the ski area has to deal with winter after winter, there will never be a place like Ski Apache.</strong> There will never be another place where you can rip the powder-filled 'Fingers' of Apache Bowl with a panoramic backdrop of the desert mountains and the ever-powerful Sierra Blanca peak looming at the resort's side. There will never be a place to me like the Patch where you can have more fun shredding the seemingly locals-only tree runs with your squad that stay good for days on end.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168331" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/sa-road.jpg" width="300" /><br />
The 12-mile long windy road up to Ski Apache is no joke. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong>Because when the winds whip and <em>the tempests that bring in the occasional 24-hour snow total of 45 inches</em> wreak havoc on this savage land, some may turn around.</strong> They'll turn around in their big pickup trucks to try and beat the treacherous road conditions that suddenly appear on the windy 12-mile road leading up to the top of the mountain, so that they can ski another day, safely.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168330" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/sierra-blanca.jpg" width="400" /><br />
Sierra Blanca. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<strong> But for us who grew up here, who consider themselves as locals, we don't know any better.</strong> We charge forward and wait in line for the gondola that should have already been opened an hour ago, beyond eager to get our powder fix for the day. Because this is our home, and where else would we want to be skiing?<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168367" height="353" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/land-of-enchantment-.png" width="400" /><br />
New Mexico: the Land of Enchantment. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: red;">Resort Stats </span></h2>
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<table class="infobox vcard" style="background-color: #f8f9fa; border-spacing: 3px; border: 1px solid rgb(162, 169, 177); clear: right; color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12.32px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0.5em 0px 0.5em 1em; padding: 0.2em; width: 22em;"><tbody>
<tr><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Location</th><td class="label" style="vertical-align: top;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln_County,_New_Mexico" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Lincoln County, New Mexico">Lincoln County, New Mexico</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="United States">USA</a></td></tr>
<tr><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Nearest major city</th><td style="vertical-align: top;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruidoso,_New_Mexico" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Ruidoso, New Mexico">Ruidoso</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="New Mexico">New Mexico</a></td></tr>
<tr><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Vertical</th><td style="vertical-align: top;">1,900 ft (579 m)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-1" style="font-size: 9.856px; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ski_Apache#cite_note-1" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;">[1]</a></sup></td></tr>
<tr class="note"><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Top elevation</th><td style="vertical-align: top;">11,500 ft (3,500 m)</td></tr>
<tr class="note"><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Base elevation</th><td style="vertical-align: top;">9,600 ft (2,900 m)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-2" style="font-size: 9.856px; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ski_Apache#cite_note-2" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;">[2]</a></sup></td></tr>
<tr class="note"><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Skiable area</th><td style="vertical-align: top;">750 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acre" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Acre">acres</a></td></tr>
<tr><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Runs</th><td style="vertical-align: top;">55 total<br />20% beginner<br />60% intermediate<br />20% advanced</td></tr>
<tr class="note"><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Longest run</th><td style="vertical-align: top;">"Sierra Blanca Trail" ~ 2.5 miles</td></tr>
<tr class="note"><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ski_lift" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Ski lift">Lift system</a></th><td style="vertical-align: top;">8 total (1 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gondola_lift" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Gondola lift">gondola</a>, 3 quad chairs, 4 triple chairs</td></tr>
<tr><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;"><a class="mw-redirect" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrain_parks" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Terrain parks">Terrain parks</a></th><td style="vertical-align: top;">2</td></tr>
<tr><th scope="row" style="text-align: left; vertical-align: top;">Website</th><td style="vertical-align: top;"><span class="url"><span class="url"><a class="external text" href="https://skiapache.com/" rel="nofollow" style="background: linear-gradient(transparent, transparent) right center no-repeat, url("/w/skins/Vector/resources/skins.vector.styles/images/external-link-ltr-icon.svg?b4b84"); color: #663366; padding-right: 13px; text-decoration-line: none;">skiapache.com</a></span></span></td></tr>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
PHOTOS</h2>
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<span style="color: red;"><br /></span></div>
<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168369" height="233" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_1100.jpg" width="400" /><br />
The old man gettin' it at the Patch. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168346" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_4337-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
The old man gettin' it part two. Photo: SnowBrains<br />
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.<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168357" height="400" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_5879-scaled.jpg" width="300" /><br />
Ski Apache's base area. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168354" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_0369-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
Views from the Patch after a storm. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_1049-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" class="size-full wp-image-168370" height="262" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_1049-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Snowboarder and badass firefighter Gage Whipple slashing hard down 'Incredible.' Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168345" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_4316-scaled.jpg" width="400" /><br />
Squad! Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-168348" height="300" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/IMG_7099-scaled.jpg" style="text-align: center;" width="400" /></div>
Chair 1. Photo: SnowBrains.<br />
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<br />Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-14051861630335997992020-06-04T14:09:00.000-07:002020-06-04T14:10:36.777-07:00Radioactive waste could start being dumped near Bears Ears — public comments requested<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-167907" height="264" src="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/uranium-mine.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">A uranium mill in southeast Utah has recently applied to the state to accept radioactive waste from Eastern Europe which they would then process for uranium. Locals are concerned. Photo by PBS.</span></td></tr>
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<strong>Members of the Ute Tribe’s White Mesa reservation are concerned about a new plan proposed by a uranium mill near <a href="https://snowbrains.com/plans-finalized-to-open-up-bears-ears-and-grand-staircase-escalante-to-drilling-mining-and-cattle-grazing/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Bears Ears National Monument</a> in southeastern Utah.</strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>Why? </strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<em><strong>Because this mill has recently applied to the state of Utah to accept radioactive waste from Eastern Europe which it would then process for uranium.</strong></em><br />
<em><strong><br /></strong></em>
<strong>According to the <a href="https://www.adventure-journal.com/2020/06/radioactive-waste-may-be-dumped-near-bears-ears-public-comments-requested/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Adventure Journal,</a> there is a metals plant in the Eastern European nation of Estonia that generates a surplus of uranium-laced waste, as much as 660 tons per year</strong>. The White Mesa uranium mill wants to process that waste to scrap any remaining uranium it may contain and store it on-site. The facility is located 5 miles away from the Mountain Ute Tribe’s White Mesa reservation.<br />
<br />
<strong><a href="https://www.adventure-journal.com/2020/06/radioactive-waste-may-be-dumped-near-bears-ears-public-comments-requested/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">According to the tribe</a>, groundwater accessed by the reservation has been contained for years and they worry that it's because of the uranium mill.</strong> Meanwhile, the state argues it has nothing to do with it.<br />
<blockquote>
“I think it would be the tribe’s preference that the facility shut down,” Scott Clow, the environmental programs director for the tribe, <a href="https://the-journal.com/articles/143825" rel="noopener" target="_blank">told The Journal</a>. “But that’s a big ask there. The mill has been there for 38 years now, and that’s a pretty short window of time compared to how long the tribe was there before and how long the tribe is going to be there after the mill, and all of that contamination." </blockquote>
<blockquote>
“The mill has already become the cheapest alternative for disposal of low-level radioactive waste in North America. Now, it appears that it may become a destination for the materials from around the globe. That is disconcerting and dangerous,” <a href="https://the-journal.com/articles/143825" rel="noopener" target="_blank">he said</a>.</blockquote>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy2p8XtNave6Wo1-oVussOqvGbeHRT8d7lrzd64nd54eENETbKDewLbFIpmWvctcwPYFTbcIIX1vJlI9Q-SAQRDKps4-3mMUzPswcOBqdNcaMD64yUHpv_zH2QifqJxBa2FqEsxjlTMyM/s1600/mine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="815" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy2p8XtNave6Wo1-oVussOqvGbeHRT8d7lrzd64nd54eENETbKDewLbFIpmWvctcwPYFTbcIIX1vJlI9Q-SAQRDKps4-3mMUzPswcOBqdNcaMD64yUHpv_zH2QifqJxBa2FqEsxjlTMyM/s400/mine.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">The Daneros uranium mine is located near Bears Ears National Park. Photo by </span><a href="https://www.grandcanyontrust.org/blog/daneros-uranium-mine-bears-ears-appeal" rel="noopener" style="font-size: medium; text-align: start;" target="_blank">Grand Canyon Trust</a><span style="font-size: small;">.</span></td></tr>
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<strong><a href="https://www.adventure-journal.com/2020/06/radioactive-waste-may-be-dumped-near-bears-ears-public-comments-requested/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Justin Housman with the Adventure Journal</a> reports that "Estonia limits how much of the radioactive material the metals processing plant can store, out of safety concerns, which is why the plant is looking for a place to ship the waste tailings. The White Mesa Mill is the only mill in the country capable of extracting the uranium from the Estonian tailings."</strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>The Utah Department of Environmental Quality has asked for public comment before final approval of the shipments can proceed.</strong> The deadline for comment was originally June 5, but it has <a href="https://documents.deq.utah.gov/waste-management-and-radiation-control/facilities/energy-fuels-white-mesa/DRC-2020-010622.pdf" rel="noopener" target="_blank">recently been extended </a>until July 10, The Adventure Journal reports.<br />
<br />
<strong>You can email your comment to this address: dwmrcpublic@utah.gov. </strong>Instructions for commenting can be found <a href="https://documents.deq.utah.gov/waste-management-and-radiation-control/facilities/energy-fuels-white-mesa/DRC-2020-007015.pdf" rel="noopener" target="_blank">here</a>, in the public notice about the project.Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-83267371576160975132020-06-02T17:41:00.000-07:002020-06-03T12:41:05.411-07:00What I learned from triggering an avalanche in the backcountry last season<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hNkdNKxhYFA/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hNkdNKxhYFA?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>You think you're slick until you're not. </strong>On April 16, 2020, I unintentionally triggered a small (but terrifying) <a href="https://avalanche.org/avalanche-encyclopedia/soft-slab-avalanche/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">soft-slab avalanche</a> while skiing '<a href="https://snowbrains.com/alta-ut-report-little-chute-chargin1/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Little Chute</a>' on Mount Baldy at Alta Ski Area in Utah. This happened in the heart of a pandemic. It was my first real encounter with an avalanche and, needless to say, I learned several valuable lessons that I'll carry with me in the mountains for the rest of my life.<br />
<br />
<strong>The objective of this piece of writing is to show just how and where I messed up today — on more occasions than once — so that I, and hopefully you, can learn from it and travel in avalanche terrain more safely.</strong> So let's start right from the very beginning, shall we?<br />
<br />
<strong>I went to bed the night before this fateful morning late and didn't sleep well.</strong> When I woke up, I was tired and groggy. I didn't put much cognition into reading the avalanche forecast thoroughly and checking weather conditions for the town of Alta. As a matter of fact, I just glanced at the avy forecast and didn't check the National Weather Service forecast whatsoever, which I always do before getting on the skin track. I was rushed.<br />
<br />
<strong>The avalanche danger this day was ranked as 'moderate' and there were moderate, westerly winds. </strong><br />
<strong><br /></strong>
<strong>To make matter worse, when I arrived at the parking lot at Alta and met up with my touring partner for the day, I almost forgot to switch my beacon on when we started the tour.</strong> And these two previous points I just mentioned aren't even the real 'red flags' I'm going to discuss, even though they could and should be regarded as such. The obvious red flags I'm going to focus on are below.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOWquZFQNDp2P8DZMTk9urNIAeRHoLsHG2XFAcv7Uki9SS7Us_PpPNGnlqYyGxbe2lAjvKVJyrOFl29GNnc3QJngx1Z8ir0ku8bvOiL4iS1qcyIlXPgOFadS8M2FH42Z8gycDfVJlHkh4/s1600/alta+avy+.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="1143" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOWquZFQNDp2P8DZMTk9urNIAeRHoLsHG2XFAcv7Uki9SS7Us_PpPNGnlqYyGxbe2lAjvKVJyrOFl29GNnc3QJngx1Z8ir0ku8bvOiL4iS1qcyIlXPgOFadS8M2FH42Z8gycDfVJlHkh4/s400/alta+avy+.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">A shot of the April 16, Little Chute slide path captured by a webcam at Alta Ski Area. Photo by Alta Ski Area.</span></td></tr>
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red;">Red Flags</span></h2>
<strong><span style="color: red;">1.)</span></strong> <strong>I didn't confront my misgivings about the terrain my touring partner and I had decided to ski this day.</strong> When I got to the parking lot, I thought that skiing the Baldy Chutes would be a bad idea because it had just dumped fairly heavily and there was an observed, ice-crust layer situated directly below the new snow. The Baldy Chutes are steep and very avalanche-prone. I should have voiced this concern to my touring partner, but I didn't.<br />
<br />
<strong>So when my touring partner suggested that we ski <a href="https://snowbrains.com/alta-ut-backcountry-report-spicy-main-chute-perfect-groomers/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Main Chute</a>, I was hesitant but submissively agreed to ski it without voicing my thoughts/concerns on the decision <span style="text-decoration-line: underline;">at all</span>.</strong> This was the first major mistake of the day, primarily by me for not saying anything but also by my touring partner for not addressing my obvious uncertainty about our terrain choice. We both should have communicated more.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;"><strong>2.) <span style="color: black;">We broke the cardinal rule of skiing the backcountry with a partner by <span style="text-decoration-line: underline;">splitting up from that partner.</span> </span></strong><span style="color: black;">I am still wondering why we did this. You could probably use terms like "powder fever," or "expert halo," since my touring partner had a lot more experience in avalanche terrain than I had, but it also could have just been plain ignorance. Who knows.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"><strong>When we got to the top of Mount Baldy I went over to look at Little Chute while my partner stayed behind and looked at Main Chute.</strong> It should also be noted that during the length of our nearly two-hour tour through Alta up the Mount Baldy shoulder, not much conversation was going back and forth between my partner and I. In fact, we were both pretty spaced out from one another and hardly said anything at all. I thought I heard distant rumblings resembling the sounds of avalanches, but I wasn't sure and I didn't say anything. This was another red flag in itself, and I should have brought it up in a conversation with my partner. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span>
<strong>My ski partner eventually walked over from Main Chute to where I was positioned above Little Chute and suggested that we could both ski each one of the neighboring chutes if we wanted to, doing so solo.</strong> Without putting much thought into it, I said I'd ski Little Chute and he agreed to ski Main. This was the last time I had visual contact with my partner.<br />
<br />
<strong><span style="color: red;">3.) <span style="color: black;">In order to get to where I wanted to drop into the couloir, I exposed myself to dangerous, high-consequence terrain. </span></span></strong><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">I walked all over a very big cornice that could have easily broken off onto the wind-loaded slope below me given the day's conditions. Then, to add to my great decision-making track record this day, I skied a section of the "Taint" located directly between the two couloirs in order to get to my drop-in point on Little Chute. This slope was steep enough to slide and had very high-consequence, cliffed terrain below it. This was an overly aggressive move and exposed me to yet another potential slide path. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span>
<strong><span style="color: red;">4.) <span style="color: black;">I chose a poor — very poor — spot to drop into the chute. </span></span></strong><span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;">I was originally thinking about dropping in on the skier's right side of the chute which was steeper, rockier, and seemingly scarier but also less impacted by the wind. I did not take this that last point into proper consideration when I walked over the cornice to the taint on the skier's left side of Little Chute, so I'll repeat it in italics.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span>
<em>I was originally thinking about dropping in on the skier's right side of the chute which was steeper, rockier, and seemingly scarier but also less impacted by the wind.</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
<strong> As a result, I ended up dropping in on <span style="text-decoration-line: underline;">the most wind-loaded part of the line</span>. </strong><br />
<strong>The morning's westerly winds were rapidly loading this slope already, and this portion of the chute I dropped into was by far the most dangerous.</strong> I dropped in like I was doing a half-assed <a href="http://straightchuter.com/ski-cutting/" target="_blank">ski cut</a> (which, looking back, might have actually saved my ass), and the slope propagated in line with my skis across the length of the chute, about 30 feet. That slab popped out so damn fast it was like it was already traveling at full speed (something like 70 mph!) before I even realized what was happening.<br />
<br />
<strong>I screamed "AVALANCHE!" at the top of my lungs as I watched the entire chute get stripped down to the ice-crust layer beneath by this high-speed slab.</strong> The avalanche left behind a 16-inch-or-so crown. After nearly shitting myself, I hung out on the rocky outcropping adjacent to the chute for a minute and got ahold of my ski partner via cell phone, letting him know what had just went down (quite literally). I recomposed myself and skied the bed surface of the slide down to a safe spot below.<br />
<br />
<strong>The avalanche ended up traveling almost 1,000 feet all the way to the groomed run below Mount Baldy. </strong>When I was at the bottom of Little Chute and out of harm's way, I re-convened with my partner and talked about what I just experienced. Some skiers traveling on the groomer below saw the slide erupt down the mountain and asked us about it. They were not happy, nor was I.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-52sQk8LbDZjSIiQUAdy3SeMSyCrv9a8fCGDPMJK35FTI1p6M1HlzEJ2CigitYO11r_EO9_20LkawqmtwaL8FNswFYhuKob8fO4sf16smuU_tvCxB0diQSzxhmaA5R1NRB5zE0XJ-PsE/s1600/avy+fi.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="937" data-original-width="1022" height="366" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-52sQk8LbDZjSIiQUAdy3SeMSyCrv9a8fCGDPMJK35FTI1p6M1HlzEJ2CigitYO11r_EO9_20LkawqmtwaL8FNswFYhuKob8fO4sf16smuU_tvCxB0diQSzxhmaA5R1NRB5zE0XJ-PsE/s400/avy+fi.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333745; font-family: "montserrat"; font-size: 11.9px; font-style: italic;">The crown of the avalanche I triggered. It was approximately 16 inches deep. </span></td></tr>
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="color: red;">Reflection</span></strong></h2>
<strong>The skiing-related decisions I made this day were aggressive — too aggressive for a day with as high of avalanche danger as this one</strong>. My terrain selection and travel technique were poor. The lack of communication between my partner and I was acute.<br />
<br />
<strong>Looking back, this avalanche may not have actually been deep enough to bury a person — but that's not the point.</strong> If it were a bigger, hard-slab avalanche that broke above me and carried me through the narrow, rocky chute — with no one watching me go — it could have been worlds worse. I am thankful that it was not worse.<br />
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<strong>My goal now is to use this experience to learn from it in as many ways as humanly possible, addressing all the red flags present this day and promising to be more consciously aware of them the next time they appear.</strong> I'm only 23-years-old and the 2019/20 winter season was my first true season navigating avalanche terrain. And if one thing is for certain, it's this: If I don't learn from this day — if I don't learn from these mistakes — then I will surely not last long doing this inherently dangerous yet rewarding activity that I love. And neither will you.Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-55163181678505303662020-05-01T19:29:00.002-07:002020-05-01T19:30:11.200-07:00Man Becomes First Ever to Snowboard All 90 Couloirs in the Legendary ‘Chuting Gallery’ Guidebook for Northern Utah’s Steepest Lines<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKeOZjjxC5_omE7XHtQf0cvtMg43EcmJWIp3ptKXecREKu5XPqIyN1LKueZ76Zfuahba4KxTFcjWmKHjWvew068zdJpozl8Kc4tSYWRSJnk-gYr6F8_mPgZq5yZHdmJStIuauMyqt35U/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKeOZjjxC5_omE7XHtQf0cvtMg43EcmJWIp3ptKXecREKu5XPqIyN1LKueZ76Zfuahba4KxTFcjWmKHjWvew068zdJpozl8Kc4tSYWRSJnk-gYr6F8_mPgZq5yZHdmJStIuauMyqt35U/s400/1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">'Snapdragon' — #32.</span></td></tr>
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<em><strong>Photos by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/michaelaasheimphotography/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@michaelaasheimohotography</a></strong></em><br />
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<strong>On April 28, 2020,<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B_jJK9Tg715/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Mike Meru</a> became the first person ever to snowboard all 90 Northern Utah couloirs in the famous <a href="http://straightchuter.com/chuting-gallery/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Chuting Gallery</em></a> guidebook when he successfully completed the final descent of his project on the NE Couloir of the <a href="https://www.summitpost.org/pfeifferhorn/151177" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Pfeifferhorn</a>.</strong><br />
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<strong>The two-year-long mission took him through ups and downs and valleys and mountains — quite literally.</strong><br />
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<strong>But his story as to why he began this project is much deeper and meaningful than you might think.</strong> It's not all just about powder turns and shredding sick lines.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVvZVmC5THc4b6P6l3JwGWLPSNZ-uROubEDCS7rbZ5oX6W0am_BdQvm7m7eR0NiVEk_5TUfiKxjRMq2lSU9MKNemyLURk3JvF-Z02KwCuVfZqApG6b925FmNjXQSn-IBKnHFNKhMNARLM/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVvZVmC5THc4b6P6l3JwGWLPSNZ-uROubEDCS7rbZ5oX6W0am_BdQvm7m7eR0NiVEk_5TUfiKxjRMq2lSU9MKNemyLURk3JvF-Z02KwCuVfZqApG6b925FmNjXQSn-IBKnHFNKhMNARLM/s400/2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">'Grunge' Couloir.</span></td></tr>
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<strong>SnowBrains reached out to Mike via email to ask him some questions about his recent triumph and he was more than happy to chat about his journey of determination and growth with us.</strong> Here's what we asked him and what Mike had to say:<br />
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<em><b>SnowBrains: Can you give a little bit of a backstory as to what got you interested in this project?</b></em><br />
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;"><strong>Mike:</strong> As I've sat and reflected about finishing the gallery and all of the experiences over the past 13 seasons in the Wasatch, the biggest takeaway is that there is no way I could have done this alone. My main ski partners Michael Aasheim (most talented big mountain photographer in UT), Justin Morgan, Eduoard Saget, and so many others have been there each step of the way. We rely on each other and I literally trust my life with them. There are countless other great individuals I ride with and am grateful for, but two others are would be remiss if I didn't mention. A great friend and absolute all sport slayer Taylor Palmer who led the Ribbon, and Don Hatch who was a huge support and inspiration for me right after I broke my back.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">In the end, there are so many absolutely inspiring splitboarders in the Wasatch who rip harder than I do. I just feel honored to be listed amongst the names of the guys and gals who get after it here.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjLPEXUX410T2MDHHFr9RY2gJnTWic8ay1hkqBw_8dVt_P9aqsrhGgXf_wKsR0ggSUz81t20ZdaXPmemIHH96KmT-DMvYAYd4r9aH50z5GPtzCEM6LrP_dRXcXG5QO2cZQ2-KZSVKDCFE/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1338" data-original-width="1004" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjLPEXUX410T2MDHHFr9RY2gJnTWic8ay1hkqBw_8dVt_P9aqsrhGgXf_wKsR0ggSUz81t20ZdaXPmemIHH96KmT-DMvYAYd4r9aH50z5GPtzCEM6LrP_dRXcXG5QO2cZQ2-KZSVKDCFE/s400/1.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Mike on the 'Ribbon.' Photo taken by Taylor Palmer.</span></td></tr>
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<em><b>C</b></em><em><b>an you tell us a little bit about yourself, where you’re from, and how long you been skiing the Wasatch?</b></em><br />
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">My name's Michael Meru. I'm from Thousand Oaks, CA and I've had two stints in the Wasatch totaling 13 years. Most recently, I've been here full time since 2012.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">'HOD' — #15</span></td></tr>
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<em><b>What initially inspired you to embark upon this quest?</b></em><br />
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">I first moved to the Wasatch right after high school in 1999 to shred pow, build jumps, and hike in the backcountry. I remember hearing about this couloir book that had just come out. I took a look but didn't give it much thought at the time as my focus was elsewhere. Fast forward 8 years and my passions had turned to splitboarding, so I grabbed a copy, stuck it in the bathroom, and would peruse the lines every so often. I wasn't focused on getting them all at the time, but I looked to it for inspiration and new ideas of lines to ride. Fast forward another decade or so to the beginning of last winter and a few of us were talking about how many of the lines we had already ridden. I hadn't counted them until that day and when I did I realized I was already about halfway there. It was then I decided I wanted to finish and from there it was on.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">A bit more backstory. In March of 2013, I broke my back freeriding. I jumped off a cliff, landed on my feet but hit something hard underneath, blacked out, and when I woke up I was paralyzed from the waist down. For an hour and 15 minutes, I had zero feeling in my legs as I lay in the snow with my friends holding my head. I thought my life was over, but after about that 1:15, I started to be able to feel my toes again. We got to the hospital and I had to have emergency surgery to place a cage in my back and fuse T11-L3 together. My neurosurgeon told me I may never walk properly again, let alone snowboard. It was during the lengthy recovery that I told myself I would never let this end my life and I pushed hard to accomplish a lot of things many thought I couldn't. Snowboard off the summit of Denali, do huge days in the backcountry, and shred lines that pushed my limits, not ones chosen by them. So a couple of years ago when I looked at the book again and how many I had left, I wanted to prove to myself that I could still do it despite the injury and years of recovery it took. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">As for the time it took, the short answer is It took about 18 years of not thinking about it, and another two seasons of focus to finish.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifkVdIJdxC7sxG24mWJkU0NcH_9RL8u-xUYw_zWUjXfk-onndzFL1DGlclNPA7CfsJ749cz6XFIpg6ih5A-3HKuARCsTwCzjeL33bMsGs69zCUrZpthL-E5lu9QOKblw-rYgEgoq7C4X8/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifkVdIJdxC7sxG24mWJkU0NcH_9RL8u-xUYw_zWUjXfk-onndzFL1DGlclNPA7CfsJ749cz6XFIpg6ih5A-3HKuARCsTwCzjeL33bMsGs69zCUrZpthL-E5lu9QOKblw-rYgEgoq7C4X8/s400/1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">'White Pine Couloir' — #29.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">"We got to the hospital and I had to have emergency surgery to place a cage in my back and fuse T11-L3 together. My neurosurgeon told me I may never walk properly again, let alone snowboard. It was during the lengthy recovery that I told myself I would never let this end my life and I pushed hard to accomplish a lot of things many thought I couldn't."</span></blockquote>
<em><b>What were some high and low moments during this project?</b></em><br />
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">Oh man, I'd say that most of the lines were high moments. The Wasatch and specifically the Central Wasatch is this tiny little compact range with so many absolutely incredible lines in it that I honestly enjoyed most of them. I think the main challenge for me was trying to get back into shape both physically and mentally after breaking my back. </span><span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">Another moment that was pretty wild was when Taylor Palmer was leading the Ribbon on Devils Castle with Justin Morgan and I behind. Taylor was at the crux where literally half of your board is hanging off an 800' cliff when a 4'x3' chunk of the wall came off and hit him. His board creased, his binding high back snapped, and he came unstrapped. Such a scary moment. He held his composure, strapped back in, and took a selfie haha. That's Tay. All while Jamo and I were about to drop a load in our pants haha. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC8ssNNIo9iwqTXlS5ALEDmOv9dwAu7ChfWN78T5qVXxoQGsGt4090BNr9YeTUHQE40-jUUSZ1o-joRRaV30jlUSaAD_9OPhOWRooVOhP00wPP5fF8dXtpva8vdQxLRRA3fCCC-sLZnn0/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC8ssNNIo9iwqTXlS5ALEDmOv9dwAu7ChfWN78T5qVXxoQGsGt4090BNr9YeTUHQE40-jUUSZ1o-joRRaV30jlUSaAD_9OPhOWRooVOhP00wPP5fF8dXtpva8vdQxLRRA3fCCC-sLZnn0/s400/1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">'Montgomery's' — #14</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">"Taylor was at the crux where literally half of your board is hanging off an 800' cliff when a 4'x3' chunk of the wall came off and hit him. His board creased, his binding high back snapped, and he came unstrapped. Such a scary moment. He held his composure, strapped back in, and took a selfie haha. That's Tay. All while Jamo and I were about to drop a load in our pants haha."</span></blockquote>
<em><b>How does it feel to accomplish something of this magnitude?</b></em><br />
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<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">This one meant a lot to me personally, simply because I was able to prove to myself that I could still shred and ride big lines after the broken back. And whether it was me, or one of the slew of other absolute crushers splitboarding in Wasatch, I think it's great to show that snowboarders are also pushing the limits of big mountain riding, and that despite having only one edge, we can get into technical and consequential terrain safely as well. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_EJZwKIGGqRX1ZKcTOb1B9kv66dCamKgAP4SKCsV9yksy9lmrqYYmaJJClVZ61MQ1xs3FEf3XIBRF0bpTNb5QDUrZ1tvg1p96MSg8RuFJiRSeyhBE5wYC2Iwc0NA0fuiwIaoiKVmSu0/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_EJZwKIGGqRX1ZKcTOb1B9kv66dCamKgAP4SKCsV9yksy9lmrqYYmaJJClVZ61MQ1xs3FEf3XIBRF0bpTNb5QDUrZ1tvg1p96MSg8RuFJiRSeyhBE5wYC2Iwc0NA0fuiwIaoiKVmSu0/s400/1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Salt Lake Twins with Mike Meru and Tanner. 'Crow' — #8</span></td></tr>
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<em><strong><br />What's next?</strong></em><br />
<em><strong><br /></strong></em>
<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">Well in the immediate future: get out and start canyoneering in the desert with the three ladies in my life (my wife Melissa and daughters Elle & Emme). But as far as snowboarding goes, the overarching goal of finding solace in remote and beautiful places remains. My drive in snowboarding is visiting remote ranges in search of striking couloirs. My main ski partners, Mike Aasheim, Justin Morgan, and Eduoard Sage have a very similar mindset, so I'd love to get out with them next season in search of big lines! </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">'Snapdragon' #29.</td></tr>
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Oh man, that's a tough one! I'd have to say the best line in the Gallery in my eyes is the <a href="https://www.mountainproject.com/route/108930054/grunge-couloir" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Grunge Couloir</a> on Timp. It's one I go back to at least once a year. When you get it in pow it's hard to beat! A few others that are high on the list for me are Montgomery, Lone Peak's NE Couloir, and Lisa Falls. And for the worst... I know I'm going to offend someone with this, but I'd have to say for me it's the Hallway. It's just my personal opinion, but I don't love it. Still better than a ski resort though haha.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMcWET76eh64-ZiCr3HtNIR9RRMfIYvTitGfoCbe6eAOLTsqSx1ikVfr6mcxKhZdbRrGlaq4ms0MqyltlvfmOsGA8jNnPWjuiIRlpH9LB0_JRgvNF0rLoywT6OOVhpdosjZy9VmLXl8g/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1344" data-original-width="1168" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMcWET76eh64-ZiCr3HtNIR9RRMfIYvTitGfoCbe6eAOLTsqSx1ikVfr6mcxKhZdbRrGlaq4ms0MqyltlvfmOsGA8jNnPWjuiIRlpH9LB0_JRgvNF0rLoywT6OOVhpdosjZy9VmLXl8g/s400/1.jpg" width="347" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Mike walking towards 'The Grunge' couloir on Mt. Timpanogos.</span></td></tr>
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<em><b><br />Do you have any advice you’d give for people who want to do what you did and ski all the lines in the Chuting Gallery?</b></em><br />
<a href="https://snowbrains.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Pfiefferhorn-with-Mike-and-Kirsten-4-5880-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><em><b><br /></b></em>
<span style="font-family: , "blinkmacsystemfont" , "segoe ui" , "roboto" , , "ubuntu" , "cantarell" , "helvetica neue" , sans-serif;">Get the education, find partners you trust, be patient, and make it happen! </span><br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="color: red;">PHOTOS</span></strong></h2>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn9QZgPoIlRfjB0lLM-No0a2jD_Sen1NtN7mGWTsWh8iFGObouvzu-ABy4LvRRR3P9xJ-4q5CK5xzGHuwEkkLT1Kaosk10bBynwqqR-kOQqNdZIlz-SnGIEF0KqD6ozPWfLnCpW4fNKDg/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1344" data-original-width="897" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn9QZgPoIlRfjB0lLM-No0a2jD_Sen1NtN7mGWTsWh8iFGObouvzu-ABy4LvRRR3P9xJ-4q5CK5xzGHuwEkkLT1Kaosk10bBynwqqR-kOQqNdZIlz-SnGIEF0KqD6ozPWfLnCpW4fNKDg/s400/1.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Pfiefferhorn with Mike and Kirsten — #4</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">'Little Pine' — #8.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">'Tuscarora' — #10</span></td></tr>
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<br />Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-19215755012078595442020-04-23T17:05:00.000-07:002020-04-24T06:30:16.745-07:00Utah’s ski community roars on in a now quiet world <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alta Ski Area had to shut down mountain operations over a month sooner than planned due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Alta Ski Area</td></tr>
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When ski area employees across North America went to bed one night in mid-March, they still had a job. By the morning, thousands were out of one.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span><br />
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<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCov/index.html" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">COVID-19</a> hit the world economy hard, but it hit the ski industry especially hard. The ski community in Utah was not exempt. Some seasonal Little and Big Cottonwood Canyon workers were given severance pay when they got laid-off or furloughed, while others weren’t. But almost all were told to go home, or at least, elsewhere, as ski areas were shutting down and no longer had means or a reason to house them. But <a href="https://www.alta.com/" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Alta Ski Area</a>, doing what it had to do by closing down a month earlier than anticipated, made their employees their primary concern. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Alta marketing director Brandon Ott said over the phone that shutting Alta down on Saturday, March 14 was “absolutely the right thing to do,” and coronavirus concerns had been on the skier-only mountain’s radar since March 1. He said that it may have seemed dramatic at the time to close down so suddenly, but then clarified that it wasn’t. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“You’d think ski areas are safe, with skiers wearing face masks and goggles but that’s not the case,” Ott said. “Really, you’re sharing chair and gondola rides, waiting in lines, and touching things.” <o:p></o:p></div>
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Alta Ski Area typically operates for 151 days during the winter season but, due to an invisible foe, lost 25 percent of their season. But while many ski area employees around the world were kicked to the curb when their employers starting shutting things down, Alta approached the situation a little differently.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The ski area offered seasonal workers a few extra weeks of pay even though they were not working. And — to Alta’s luck — they didn’t have to lay-off or furlough any single one of their full-time staff, according to Ott. Instead, they kept them onboard by adapting their work routines to new precautions aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19. <o:p></o:p></div>
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According to Ott, they’re “taking care of the Alta family” by limiting the number of people working in offices, spreading out schedules, and vigorously disinfecting surfaces. Because of the way the ski area is managed and operated, Alta was in a good position to handle this sudden pandemic. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“It pays to be a little smaller — to be a ski area and not a resort,” Ott said.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Because Alta doesn’t have a large-scale summer operations program, and because it doesn’t actually own any of the lodges around the mountain, they were in a manageable position to shut down a month early. Many other ski areas rely on the profits driven from their summer operations, which at this time are uncertain as to whether they will still happen. In the meantime, while snow continues to fall from the sky, Alta is allowing the public to earn their turns at their ski area. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Uphill travel is allowed at Alta at this time, and snow-cats are grooming a select few trails every morning. According to Ott, this is a major key to prevent bottlenecks at popular backcountry trailheads in Little Cottonwood Canyon — by letting the public rip the wide-open ski area. Employees are also cleaning ski area bathrooms daily and Utah Department of Transportation crews are still plowing the roads when they need plowing. <o:p></o:p></div>
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It should also be noted that Alta has seen a solid amount of snowfall this season, despite closing early, with 540 inches of snowfall at the time of this writing. To put that into perspective, Alta’s 40-year season average is 548 inches. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Yet, no one really knows what all is going to come of this pandemic, and what next season is going to look like in the Little Cottonwood Canyon. What will pass sales be like for the 2020/21 ski season? When asked about the uncertain future, Ott said:<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Really, we’re taking care of our employees first. We’re in no rush to talk about pass pricing just yet.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A time-lapse photo of the town of Alta tucked away at the end of Little Cottonwood Canyon. Photo by Alta Ski Area. </td></tr>
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With that in mind, Alta is doing what it can for the many skiers that call this mountain home. Across the Wasatch traveling north, <a href="https://www.powdermountain.com/" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Powder Mountain</a>, too, is doing what they can for their family of full-time and seasonal employees. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Powder Mountain had an original closing date of April 12, 2020, but like Alta, the virus shut them down a month early. The ski resort responded initially by adapting operational measures while keeping their mountain open. They closed down lodges, spaced out lift-lines, and discontinued ski school. But, by remaining open with strictly enforced social-distancing measures, they ran into a new problem that they’ve never faced before: More people than ever were coming to ski Pow Mow because it was the only ski resort open for hundreds of miles in every direction. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“We had a really good plan,” Powder Mountain’s marketing manager JP Goulet said. “But the issue with all the other ski resorts closing was that people were now coming from all over the U.S. and Canada to come ski Powder Mountain because we were one of the last bigger ski resorts open. Which is the last thing you want, you know, people traveling to other places in a time like this.” <o:p></o:p></div>
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The final nail in the coffin for Powder Mountain’s season abruptly came when Utah Gov. Gary Herbert proceeded to issue the <a href="https://coronavirus.utah.gov/stay-at-home/" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">stay safe, stay home directive</a> on March 27. That’s when Powder Mountain made the swift decision to cut their losses and shut resort operations down. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Conveniently enough, most of the resort’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J-1_visa" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">J-1 employees</a> had already left the week prior and Powder Mountain was actually looking to hire new employees before ultimately deciding to shut down, according to Goulet. So, although some of Powder Mountain’s employees were laid-off, the resort didn’t have to let go near as many employees had they been forced to shut down a week or two sooner. Like Alta, too, Powder Mountain doesn’t have an extensive summer operations program. They have cross-country bike trails, which are open to the public, and should remain open this summer, according to Goulet. <o:p></o:p></div>
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With the mountain closed, resort employees have a lot of time to think. Everything is still up in the air about how the ski industry is going to be affected long-term by the coronavirus, and a lot of uncertainty lingers. But Goulet is confident about next season. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“We’re in a really good position to open [next season] because we never put that many people together anyway,” Goulet said. “We average three acres per skier.” <o:p></o:p></div>
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Three acres of skiable terrain is more than enough for one skier, providing adequate space for social-distancing. The best Powder Mountain can do at this time is remain hopeful and play on their strengths, like their limited pass sales and very-spacious ski resort that boasts <a href="https://www.powdermountain.com/resort/the-mountain/mountain-statistics" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">the most skiable acreage in the United States</a>. But ski areas aren’t the only ones playing their part to help the ski community at large in the midst of a global pandemic. Several Salt Lake City non-profit organizations have taken matters into their own hands. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Y6_O5enDAwVZvCKb3F5dAcUJtJxVeGSuRTBTVvxw6vMTWNGHVe0ojED8PJIu8Jv2jcPVi7YGfwxfZUqRuLKmx7L18tHQG7_mRBa67bRirBpOUkA-sGWs8klEW88M-2NiFop6btGBYB8/s1600/powder+mtn+.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1006" data-original-width="826" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Y6_O5enDAwVZvCKb3F5dAcUJtJxVeGSuRTBTVvxw6vMTWNGHVe0ojED8PJIu8Jv2jcPVi7YGfwxfZUqRuLKmx7L18tHQG7_mRBa67bRirBpOUkA-sGWs8klEW88M-2NiFop6btGBYB8/s400/powder+mtn+.png" width="327" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A snow-cat at Powder Mountain. Photo by Powder Mountain.</td></tr>
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Becca Fenander has been with the Alta ski patrol for 26 ski seasons and is the current president of <a href="https://www.amazingskiandsnowpeople.org/" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Amazing Ski and Snow People</a>, a non-profit organization that’s mission is to “support the physical, social, and mental health, education, and infrastructure needs of the ski patrol community.” Her organization helps the Little Cottonwood Canyon ski community with an emphasis on Alta ski patrollers.<o:p></o:p></div>
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When the going got tough with the pandemic and canyon employees were suddenly out of a job, Fenander and her organization stepped up to the plate. They started what’s called the “<a href="https://www.amazingskiandsnowpeople.org/little-cottonwood-canyon-coronavirus-relief-fund" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Little Cottonwood Canyon Coronavirus Relief Fund</a>,” which is a fundraiser designated towards enhancing the wellbeing of the community by swiftly responding to the emergent needs of canyon employees who have lost wages and housing because of the mandatory shut-downs.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Fenander said that the easiest way to help the LCC community is simply by donating to the fund. “Anything helps,” she said. The relief fund has a proposed goal of $20,000, and, so far, Fenander is only $3,450 away from hitting that goal. <o:p></o:p>To donate, click <a href="https://www.amazingskiandsnowpeople.org/little-cottonwood-canyon-coronavirus-relief-fund" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">HERE</a>.</div>
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“It’s about more than just money,” Fenander said. “It’s about an upwards spiral of wellbeing.” <o:p></o:p></div>
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Fenander said that any surplus donations will be split 50-50 with <a href="https://www.altaarts.org/" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Alta Community Enrichment</a> (ACE) and <a href="https://getusppe.org/" target="_blank">Get Us PPE</a> which are other non-profits. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Amazing Ski and Snow People is adapting their organization as best they can, like everyone else during these strange times. ACE is too, and they’ve seen much recent success with the way they’ve been handling the situation. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“We intend to create a community even when we can’t be near each other,” Sara Gibbs said, the executive director of ACE. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Alta Community Enrichment is a non-profit organization that has the vision of creating a strong community by bringing people who live, work, and play in Little Cottonwood Canyon together to share the arts, culture, and education. According to Gibbs, ACE has four clear goals that help the community take interest and become involved. They are:</div>
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<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Supporting local arts and artists.</span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Bringing opportunities in the arts, culture, and education to the community.</span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Increasing awareness of the variety of activities that take place in our community. </span></li>
<li style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> Having a strong, high-functioning Board of Trustees. </span></li>
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Gibbs said that ACE was actually the very first entity in Alta to shut down because of the coronavirus before the rest of the town followed suit. As she put it over the phone, the early shutdown of canyon ski areas was “absolutely crushing,” not only to her but to everyone affected. That includes ski area employees, lodge workers, cooks, bartenders, maintenance crews — the list goes on.<o:p></o:p></div>
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“The average worker in Alta makes about $150 a week. That’s barely enough to live,” Gibbs said.<o:p></o:p></div>
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That’s why ACE gives back as much as they can to the community because without that community, the non-profit wouldn’t survive, according to Gibbs. Like Fenander with Amazing Ski and Snow People, Gibbs also had to step up to the plate and make drastic changes to the way ACE does things when the entire world changed overnight. <o:p></o:p></div>
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ACE had 34 events planned before Alta Ski Area hurriedly closed. They were all painfully canceled. Yet, instead of giving in to change, ACE embraced it. They’ve moved many of their scheduled events to virtual outings online via social media platforms like <a href="https://www.instagram.com/alta_community_enrichment/" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Instagram</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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For example, the <a href="https://www.altaarts.org/events/altagala2020" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Alta Gala</a> is a staple for end-of-the-ski-season events and is basically one big party of rowdy skiers dressed in costumes, dancing and drinking, with the event's proceeds going towards philanthropic purposes in the Alta community. ACE reoriented it as a virtual event this year. Instead of meeting up at the event, party-goers logged into their Zoom accounts and partied on from home. And that’s not the only instance where ACE has shown resilience in the face of adversity. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Gibbs said that ACE has already created 16 virtual events since the pandemic began, and plans to create more. Of these virtual activities are <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B-pwJXdDHp6/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link" style="color: #954f72; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">a downloadable coloring book</a>, free for all, and ACE-sponsored yoga sessions taking place via Instagram Live every day with Alta yoga instructor, Marie “Sunshine” Heywood. </div>
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“ACE doesn’t pause for the community,” Gibbs said. <o:p></o:p></div>
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So, even when the global economy pauses, when the ski industry comes to a standstill, and when the world seemingly stops spinning for a moment, there remain those who continue to push back against the creeping tides of change. And luckily for us, those people are skiers. </div>
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</style>Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-83760763336495024482020-04-14T20:05:00.000-07:002020-04-15T15:03:04.781-07:00Hope for the Ski Industry: 3 Nations Still Have Open Ski Resorts — More May Open Theirs Soon<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcnOHNocvn-WuIA7cseGpCfg5UXHZlW7J5C7W-W06gl4nOykZHBVAqqsXHxJbGFFSYKQizd9keTSjQL6McIGxoJmfwCuQrC2FPZ1LOqcNgdPmNfXD1RjGORCipabmhgPF_HcuFYbwnvSI/s1600/1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="540" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcnOHNocvn-WuIA7cseGpCfg5UXHZlW7J5C7W-W06gl4nOykZHBVAqqsXHxJbGFFSYKQizd9keTSjQL6McIGxoJmfwCuQrC2FPZ1LOqcNgdPmNfXD1RjGORCipabmhgPF_HcuFYbwnvSI/s400/1.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After two months of tight lockdowns, China reopens two of its indoor ski areas. Photo by inthesnow.com</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<strong>As the world stands still, ski lifts everywhere have stopped spinning.</strong> All North American ski resorts are now closed, <a href="https://www.snowsbest.com/australia-covid-snow-season/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">there are rumors that ski areas in New Zealand and Australia may not open for their winter season</a>, and a tremendous amount of uncertainty is present about how the next ski season is going to look due to the possibility that <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30845-X/fulltext" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">further waves COVID-19 infections can still impact the general population</a>. But two nations — Sweden and Japan — are still hanging in there by keeping a select few of their ski areas open. And, according to the <a href="https://www.fis-ski.com/en/international-ski-federation/news-multimedia/news/chinese-ski-areas-begin-re-opening" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FIS</a>, China has recently reopened two of its ski areas but they are currently operating with a restricted number of guests and other anti-virus-spread initiatives.<br />
<br />
<strong>In the far north of Sweden, there are still two ski resorts that remain open: <a data-radium="true" href="https://www.onthesnow.com/norrbottens-lan/bjoerkliden/ski-resort.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Björkliden">Björkliden</a> and <a data-radium="true" href="https://www.onthesnow.com/norrbottens-lan/riksgransen/ski-resort.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Riksgränsen">Riksgränsen</a></strong><br />
<br />
<strong>Both of these Swedish ski areas are owned by <a href="https://laplandresorts.se/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lapland Resorts</a> and are located well above the arctic circle.</strong> They are known for their beautiful scenery, variety of skiing, and excellent snow conditions. Even though Lapland Resorts is keeping its resorts opening during the COVID-19 pandemic, they have addressed the situation and mentioned the possibility that they may begin limiting pass sales. They wrote in a <a href="https://bjorkliden.com/en/information-on-covid-19/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">statement</a> on April 6, 2020:<br />
<blockquote>
<h3>
UPDATE ON 06/04/20 - 16:30</h3>
Kara Guests, </blockquote>
<blockquote>
<strong>Additional information about Ski Pass</strong> </blockquote>
<blockquote>
We get some questions regarding our announcement on April 2; " <em>Sales of external ski passes may be limited to a maximum number."</em> </blockquote>
<blockquote>
Season ticket holders and residents at Lapland Resorts always have access to the ski systems and transfer bus for lifts / bus rolls. Since we cannot know in advance exactly how many people appear on the slopes, we must reserve the right to be able to stop new sales of Skidpass if congestion begins to occur. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
On April 2, we announced that new bookings for Lapland Resorts have been stopped. The number of already booked accommodation guests is currently only about one third compared to "normal" Easter week and there will be no more, but perhaps fewer. The border from Norway is in practice closed. Thus, it seems likely that no great pressure from ski stoves will arise for our ski systems. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
If all guests in our ski system are careful to <strong>keep their distance and take into account</strong>, our <strong>assessment is </strong> that we will not have to stop new ski pass sales.<br />
<strong>Information about Lifts</strong> </blockquote>
<blockquote>
In Björkliden, Lappbergsliften closes at 15.00 for the rest of the season. The pot lift rolls as usual until April 13, then closed the rest of the season. Other lifts go as usual.<br />
In the national border, the Nordalsliften will be closed for the rest of the season. Katterjåkklift's open holding is expanded and it rolls from 09:00 to 16:00 until now (today, however, 10:00 - 16:00). Other lifts go as usual. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
We look forward to a quiet, safe and respectful Easter weekend. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
Warm Greetings from Lapland Resorts</blockquote>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcfDdMtey-kNb5doG6xb8Hg6njVvuu0jrROursZCECI_jfHmSKmy0HEQZe_wtdP8rOogKv1O-ZO32d-n5TXJ_gC3VPCDaDfZLGOuT0tp-yiuo8uf7sFWBSYw7IB0aJmsgDqarjwRw0Qx0/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="866" height="353" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcfDdMtey-kNb5doG6xb8Hg6njVvuu0jrROursZCECI_jfHmSKmy0HEQZe_wtdP8rOogKv1O-ZO32d-n5TXJ_gC3VPCDaDfZLGOuT0tp-yiuo8uf7sFWBSYw7IB0aJmsgDqarjwRw0Qx0/s400/2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Northern Sweden has no shortage of snow this season. Riksgränsen ski patrol work to get the lifts running again on Feb. 21. Photo by Riksgränsen/Facebook.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<strong>Björkliden has a planned closing date of May 3, 2020, and Riksgränsen expects to close on May 17. </strong><br />
<br />
<strong>It should be noted as well that Sweden is handling the COVID-19 crisis a little differently than other nations</strong>. And by a little, I mean a lot. Sweden is charting a different course, according to <a href="https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/xgqjyd/sweden-thinks-herd-immunity-is-the-answer-to-coronavirus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Vice News</a>: "It’s keeping schools and businesses open, with the idea that resistance to a disease comes when enough people in the general population have survived it — aka "<a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/herd-immunity" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">herd immunity</a>.”<br />
<br />
<strong>Meanwhile, in Japan, six ski resorts remain open.</strong> They include:<br />
<ul>
<li><a class="h3" href="https://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/shigakogen-mountain-resort/snow-report/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Shigakogen Mountain Resort</a></li>
<li><a class="h3" href="https://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/niseko-united-annupurigrand-hirafuhanazononiseko-village/snow-report/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Niseko United – Annupuri/Grand Hirafu/Hanazono/Niseko Village</a></li>
<li><a class="h3" href="https://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/nozawa-onsen/snow-report/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nozawa Onsen</a></li>
<li><a class="h3" href="https://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/furano/snow-report/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Furano</a></li>
<li><a class="h3" href="https://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/gassan-nishikawa/snow-report/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Gassan – Nishikawa</a></li>
<li><a class="h3" href="https://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/zao-onsen/snow-report/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Zao Onsen</a> </li>
</ul>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Niseko United in Japan is still open. Photo by Niseko United.</td></tr>
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<strong><a href="https://www.niseko.ne.jp/en/news/yes-niseko-united-is-still-open/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Niseko United</a> addressed the COVID-19 crisis and its decision to remain open in a statement below.</strong><br />
<blockquote>
Due to the recent outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) around the world, many people have been asking us, “Is Niseko United still open?”. The answer is yes! Niseko United is still spinning <a href="https://www.niseko.ne.jp/en/niseko-lift-status/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>lifts</strong></a> for the public to enjoy our slopes. However, the operation of the resort is subject to change given the snow conditions as well as the development of the coronavirus pandemic. Here are the scheduled closing dates for each resort of <a href="https://www.niseko.ne.jp/en/niseko/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Niseko United</strong></a>: </blockquote>
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<a href="https://annupuri.info/winter/english/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Annupuri</strong></a> – May 6th, 2020 </blockquote>
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<a href="https://niseko-village.com/en/white/index.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Niseko Village</strong></a> – Closed April 12th, 2020 </blockquote>
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<a href="https://www.grand-hirafu.jp/winter/en/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Grand Hirafu</strong></a> – May 6th, 2020 </blockquote>
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<a href="https://hanazononiseko.com/en/winter" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Hanazono</strong></a> – Closed March 29th, 2020 </blockquote>
<blockquote>
March gave Niseko several storms of fresh snow, so there is currently enough of a snow base to keep operating. This means fun spring skiing conditions in Niseko! Come up to the slopes early to carve the corduroy while it is cold and fast, or wait for the snow to warm up and enjoy slashing around in the sun and the slush. The famous Hirafu Spring Park will once again be available for advanced park riders who want to enjoy larger freestyle features. </blockquote>
<blockquote>
The entire Niseko community is responding and taking all precautions possible to ensure a safe environment due to the coronavirus outbreak. Ski resort facilities, restaurants, and public spaces have added hand sanitizer dispensers all around for the public to use. Signs and instructions for everyday preventative measures can be found all around to encourage washing hands thoroughly with soap and water, as well as covering your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing. In Japan, wearing facemasks is a widely accepted way to protect yourself as well as preventing the spread of any disease to others. As facemasks are already commonplace in Niseko’s culture, this adds another level of preventative safety in the area. Niseko is an international community and we understand the importance of working together and preventing the spread of the coronavirus into the area.</blockquote>
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Once again, lift operation and closing dates for each resort are subject to change. If you have any direct questions regarding lift operation details for the 2020 spring skiing season, please reach out to each resort individually. Also, please check our live <a href="https://www.niseko.ne.jp/en/niseko-lift-status/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Niseko United lift status page</strong></a> for real-time updates of the chairlifts.</blockquote>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A snowcat grooms the slopes of Niseko in the morning sun. Photo by Niseko United.</td></tr>
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<strong>In China, Guangzhou and Kunming indoor ski areas are among those that have re-opened after months of being closed due to state-imposed lockdowns. </strong>The ski areas are now operating with a restricted number of guests and other anti-virus-spread initiatives<strong>.</strong> <a href="https://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/heilongjiang/harbin/ice-and-snow-world.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Harbin Snow World 24</a>, the world’s largest indoor ski area, located in the north-eastern province of Heilongjiang, is reported to reopen soon as well, <a href="https://www.fis-ski.com/en/international-ski-federation/news-multimedia/news/chinese-ski-areas-begin-re-opening" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the FIS reports</a>.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chinese ski areas are beginning to reopen after months of being closed due to COVID-19 related lockdowns.</td></tr>
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<strong>And then more good news: there's hope for <em>even more</em> ski areas to potentially open soon as well.</strong> <a href="https://aalski.no/?fbclid=IwAR1jZxPai_6CYIDY2S9wuAnMj8QCe8wBd6_toguLJ4krgKzO5aNJvNIg6a8" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ål Skisenter</a> in Norway is hoping to reopen shortly and will be announcing whether or not they will any day now. The ski resort said on their <a href="https://aalski.no/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">website</a>:<br />
<blockquote>
We have, like everyone else, closed due to Korona. But as of April 14, we may be open if we adhere to guidelines from the Institute of Public Health. — <a href="https://aalski.no/?fbclid=IwAR1jZxPai_6CYIDY2S9wuAnMj8QCe8wBd6_toguLJ4krgKzO5aNJvNIg6a8" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ål Skisenter</a></blockquote>
<strong>In the United States, <a href="https://beartoothbasin.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Beartooth Basin</a>, a summer-only ski area located on the scenic <a href="https://snowbrains.com/video-beartooth-highway-americas-most-beautiful-roadway/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Beartooth Highway</a> that runs between Wyoming and Montana, has announced that they still plan to open on May 30, 2020, for the summer ski season.</strong> This, of course, is still subject to change due to the global pandemic that is unfolding by the day, but the ski resort — as well as skiers and snowboarders — are hopeful that they will still be able to make some turns this year.<br />
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<li><em><strong>RELATED: <a href="https://snowbrains.com/beartooth-basin-wy-shooting-to-open-on-may-30-could-be-only-ski-area-open-in-north-america/" rel="bookmark noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Beartooth Basin, WY Shooting to Open on May 30: Could Be Only Ski Area Open in North America</a></strong></em></li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting buttery at Beartooth Basin in June 2019. Photo by Martin Kuprianowicz.</td></tr>
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Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2876342498928677666.post-41403043959300406702020-04-07T18:30:00.000-07:002020-04-07T18:36:20.607-07:00Sun Valley, ID Has one of the Highest COVID-19 Infection Rates in the Nation: Is Skiing to Blame?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Sun Valley Resort in Idaho has one of the highest COVID-19 infection rates in the U.S. Photo by Sun Valley/Facebook.</span></td></tr>
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<strong>It appears as though ski resorts in both Europe and North America have served as the initial transmission centers for COVID-19 once the fatal disease escaped China's borders</strong>. Ketchum, Idaho — home to world-class ski area Sun Valley — <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/why-an-idaho-ski-destination-has-one-of-the-highest-covid-19-rates-in-the-nation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">has one of the highest infection rates for COVID-19 in the entire U.S.</a> Another popular ski destination in Austria — Ischgl — has been linked to the spread of over 2,500 cases and is <a href="https://snowbrains.com/criminal-investigation-underway-at-austrian-ski-resort-linked-to-thousands-of-coronavirus-cases/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">currently the subject of an associated criminal investigation.</a><br />
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<strong> But why ski areas? </strong>Why skiers? In order to understand how this disease spread as rapidly as it has, you have to take a look at the weeks leading up to this crisis.<br />
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<strong>In an <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/why-an-idaho-ski-destination-has-one-of-the-highest-covid-19-rates-in-the-nation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">article written by Michael Ames in The New Yorker</a>, a large gathering of over 700 skiers and snowboarders who traveled from all over the U.S. and parts of Europe is described taking place at <a href="https://www.sunvalley.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sun Valley Resort</a> in early March.</strong> The occasion? They were celebrating the annual Black Summit of the National Brotherhood of Skiers (N.B.S.) which is the largest African-American ski and snowboard association in the world. The event took place on March 6 and featured a performance by DJ Jazzy Jeff, an American record producer, DJ, actor, and comedian who is best known for his friendship and collaboration with Will Smith as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DJ_Jazzy_Jeff" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince.</a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">A packed party scene in the Austrian ski village of Ischgl in March 2020.</span></td></tr>
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<strong>Brotherhood members skied, mingled, partied, stayed in hotels, enjoyed large, group dinners, and apparently had blast.</strong> But their good times were short-lived. Hundreds of Brotherhood members came down with ghastly symptoms resembling COVID-19 in the week after returning home from their vacation. Many were hospitalized and several have since died. Michael Ames with The New Yorker writes:<br />
<blockquote>
By the following week, upward of a hundred and twenty-six members of the Brotherhood had come down with symptoms of the <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/tag/coronavirus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">coronavirus</a>. Twenty tested positive for COVID-19, and eight were hospitalized, including three in intensive-care units. On March 30th, DJ Jazzy Jeff <a class="external-link" data-event-click="{"element":"ExternalLink","outgoingURL":"https://www.phillyvoice.com/dj-jazzy-jeff-covid-19-pneumonia-coronavirus-will-smith-fresh-prince/"}" href="https://www.phillyvoice.com/dj-jazzy-jeff-covid-19-pneumonia-coronavirus-will-smith-fresh-prince/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">announced</a> that he was suffering from pneumonia and associated coronavirus symptoms. In the days since, two longtime N.B.S. members, Nathaniel Jackson, of Pasadena, and Charles Jackson, of Los Angeles, who shared a room while in Sun Valley, have died of the illness.</blockquote>
<strong>This was in mid-March.</strong> The disease has now spread to all 50 states and can be found in <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/01/countries-confirmed-cases-coronavirus-200125070959786.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">at least 184 countries</a>. And the root of it all could be skiing — or at least skiers, specifically those who travel. You would think that ski gear like gloves and cloth face masks paired with wide-open spaces of fresh mountain air could be potential blockers towards spreading the coronavirus — but that isn't necessarily the case.<br />
<blockquote>
“It started as an epidemic of skiers,” German Professor Hans-Georg Krausslich, the head of virology at University Hospital in Heidelberg, <a href="https://braveskimom.com/covid-19-how-skiers-became-villains" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">said</a>.</blockquote>
<strong>Just think about it.</strong> When you're skiing at a resort, you're constantly sharing chair lifts and gondola rides with strangers. Who knows how many people they've come in contact with in the past 24 hours alone? You're also touching things like lift-safety bars and lodge door handles, or maybe even wiping your cold, runny nose on your ski mittens from time to time. Those microorganisms live on whatever you touch and <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/04/you-may-be-able-spread-coronavirus-just-breathing-new-report-finds#" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">can even spread in the air you breathe out</a>, only to be absorbed by the next person that comes within close proximity of you.<br />
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<strong><a aria-label="in Denmark where the first identified infection came from a Danish skier returning from an Italian ski holiday. (opens in a new tab)" class="aioseop-link" href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-denmark-case/denmark-confirms-first-coronavirus-case-in-man-returning-from-holiday-in-italy-idUSKCN20L0IB" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">In Denmark, the first identified infection came from a Danish skier returning from an Italian ski holiday.</a> </strong>In Mexico, the chairman of the Mexican Stock Exchange tested positive after returning from a ski trip to Colorado’s Vail resort, along with several other Mexican nationals who went with him, according to <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/why-an-idaho-ski-destination-has-one-of-the-highest-covid-19-rates-in-the-nation">the New Yorker</a>. They are possibly the first individuals who brought the virus to Mexico. Meanwhile, in California, <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/why-an-idaho-ski-destination-has-one-of-the-highest-covid-19-rates-in-the-nation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mammoth Mountain Ski Area has the highest per-capita rate of COVID-19 in the state</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;"> A photo of a chairlift at Mammoth Mountain, California, which had to close early due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by The New York Times.</span></td></tr>
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<strong>Sun Valley, along with all other Vail resorts — and now <em>all </em>North American ski resorts — has closed for the 2019/20 ski season, months ahead of the originally intended closing date. </strong>Social distancing protocols are being put in place nationwide and states are being locked down. Densely- populated regions like New York City are seeing shocking numbers of people dying from the coronavirus every day.</div>
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<strong>Yet, people are still flocking to small mountain or vacation towns.</strong> Local authorities — like those in Mono County, home to Mammoth Mountain — <a href="https://snowbrains.com/mono-county-ca-short-term-rentals-restricted-under-stay-at-home-order-more-places-following-suit/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">are pleading on news and social media outlets to keep people from visiting or staying in their short-term rental properties</a>. This is because the medical system in Mono County and other remote, mountain-areas is already extremely limited and will not be able to handle the stress of the potential tidal wave of COVID-19 cases that is currently crashing down.<br />
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<strong>So is skiing to blame?</strong> Yes, partly. It's to blame as much as any other travel-related activity and industry. It's as much to blame as any organization or individual that was not adequately informed about the dangers of the coronavirus. But we are beyond the blame game now. Now, it is up to us to determine how we will collectively move forward in response to this ongoing, global crisis, with tactics such as social distancing, quarantine, economic shutdown, and the long list of other frightening words that fill up your news feed 24 hours of the day. Yet, a glimmer of hope remains: for hard times make strong people. And even in an absence of doing the things we love for the time being — like skiing a resort — we will only cherish them more once we do finally get to return to them again.<br />
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<span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Healthcare workers rush a critical patient with symptoms of COVID-19 to emergency care. Photo by aljazeera.com.</span></td></tr>
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Martin Kuprianowiczhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12709963665337078074noreply@blogger.com0