# This Side Up



## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm a pretty new snowboarder, and a late starter at 51. I started snowboarding in Feb/2009 after going up to Seymour with my daughter's class as a volunteer parent. I'd never seen snowboarders up close (hadn't been invented yet when I used to ski) and they looked like they were having a lot of fun.

So, I rented the equipment the next time out and gave it a try. I'm pretty sure I provided great entertainment that first day on the bunny slope. But hey, it was a lot of fun, so I kept at it. As it happens, I had just finished a contract, and because of the financial crisis I didn't get any work for the entire season. As a result I had a lot of time to practice. I probably got a full season's worth of riding in between Feb and the end of April. It was a great (half) season.

Last year, on the other hand, was crap. El Nino year. Bleah. It snowed heavily in November and in March, but very little in between. Mostly we shredded on re-ground ice that season. This year looks like it's going to be a good one. On Oct 26 (yesterday) it snowed on Grouse and Seymour. Not much, and it won't stick, but it's a start.

I spent my first season on a Morrow Lithium with Flow Five bindings. My second season was shared with that rig and a K2 Brigade with Cinch bindings. Never really fell in love with the K2, for all that it's better quality than the Morrow. This year, I have a Ride Havoc with Burton Mission bindings and (drum roll please) a Never Summer Heritage with Flow NXT-ATs. Damn, this is gonna be good. Or, I'm gonna bite it big time. Either or.

Let the games begin...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, here's what I want to accomplish for this season:

- Ride Switch at will 
- Ride moguls at something more than a crawl 
- swap in and out of switch at speed 
- Do some basic 180s 
- be able to handle at least small ramps 
- be able to go off-piste without cratering 
- 50/50 a box -- even a small one. 

In addition, there's this video Side hits on Vimeo that I've mentioned before. I'd love to be able to do at least some of that stuff by the end of the season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

My wife and I went up Seymour today with Petey the insane mutt. It was cold, which is probably why we didn't get eaten alive by bugs. In fact, it was snowing lightly once we were above the parking lot. And there was snow a couple of inches deep at the first flat spot on the Manning Run (where Joel's Flight ends and Velvet Gully starts). Petey ran around insanely (no surprise) doing donuts and spinouts. And he's got four-wheel drive!

Anyway, it's nice to see the white stuff on the mountain, even if only a little bit. I've been getting a little nervous. We're only 2 weeks away from mid-November, which is when I've been betting myself that they'd be opening up.

We're going to try to go up every Sunday for an hour or so, just to see how it's going.

Meanwhile, I waxed both my boards yesterday. The Ride really needed some work. Whoever had been waxing it before hadn't been doing a very good scraping job. There were thick accumulated patches and a couple of rough spots where crud had been waxed over and then not scraped away.

The Havoc has a fair amount of camber. It's a pretty traditional shaped board. The Heritage, of course, has the Vario-whatzit shape that NS has patented. But the important thing is that in the middle it's distinctly rocker. So I'm going to get a good chance to try out both styles of board this season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, it's Nov 8th, and still no snow-like activity on Seymour -- although the forecast for this week is looking hopeful. It's been suggested to me that last year's mid-November opening was an exceptional situation and that I shouldn't expect it every year. Screw that. I know how entitlements work. If I got it one year, I'm entitled to it every year! This is unacceptable. Who do I complain to?

Meanwhile, I've got my boards ready. The Morrow has been sold -- kind of an end of an era.

View attachment 5


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's snowing on Grouse and Seymour today! I can see The Cut from the street, and it's WHITE! My wife looked at Seymour from home and it's WHITE! Finally, some progress.

I bought the Snowboard Addiction videos the other day. The download set includes buttering, jibbing, and jumping series, as well as a couple of bonus vids. I really like the buttering vids and I think they form the basis for what I'm going to be working on this season. I'll likely take on some of the simpler jumping exercises as well -- mostly side hits and such. I don't think I'm ready for a ramp jump yet, unless I get access to a small one like they have on Manning and Grouse. Hey, maybe if there's enough of the white stuff, Seymour will build up the Mushroom Bowl park into something useful.

I am *really* stoked about trying the NS Heritage. Between the Heritage and the Havoc, I have a rocker board and a traditional camber board. I'll really get a good opportunity to test the differences. And with the NXT-ATs and the Mission bindings, I'll be able to see if upscaling the bindings makes a noticeable difference.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Things look to be finally gearing up. There's 8 cm at the parking lot on Seymour. There was a news segment on Global last night where they showed people hiking up Manning run from the parking lot, and it was all snow.

Meanwhile, Grouse has put up their winter web page, with accumulated snow fall and run statuses. That freezing level bump around Sunday to 3000+ meters keeps fluctuating, but the level drops to 900 a day or two after, so I'm going to write it off as an aberration.

I think the lesson here is that things cool off quickly after October. I hope.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up the mountain today to see what's what. And woohoo, there's snow! About 3-4 inches at parking lot level, 6 inches or so by Northlands Park level. It was snowing while I was there, as well. There's snow all the way down Chuck's Place, although not much of course. Looking good!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I bought new boots this weekend. Comor was having a clearance sale on last year's stock, plus lesser sales on new items. I ended up getting Ride Jackson Boas again -- this time a half-size smaller and in black.

I adjusted all my bindings this weekend. Made sure the boots are centered on the board, made sure the bindings are adjusted properly. Good thing, too. The Burton Mission bindings on my Ride Havoc were way off. Had to adjust the highbacks, and one of the toe straps was in a different detent on one binding, making it difficult to close that strap.

All good now, though.

The mountain continues to cool off. The 6-day forecast is looking good. Freezing level down to zero meters by mid-week. I'm no expert, but seems to me that means possibility of snow in the back yard! Hot damn!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's snowing on the mountains. It snowed a bit in Coquitlam today. Up to about 20 cm on Grouse. Who knows how much on Seymour? They _really_ have to up their game with their web page...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

55 cm of new snow on Seymour in the last 24 hours. Grouse is opening today, at least with the bunny slope.

I went out to the street and looked up at the mountains. When I can see them, they're white all the way down.

It is good.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The wife and I went up to Seymour today to check out the situation. And the situation is good. The snow is already better (and possibly deeper) than it was for most of last season. We snowshoed around Chucks Place, Mushroom, and halfway up Mystery. There were tons of skiers and boarders, and twice as many snowshoers. The grooming equipment was going gangbusters trying to fill in the creeks and dips. It's still pretty rough, but there's supposed to be some big dumps this week, so here's hoping...

The Seymour website says they'll announce opening date on Monday. I'm figuring next weekend at the latest.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today, Seymour announced their opening day as Thursday, Nov 25th. Hours will be 9:30 - 4pm weekdays, and 8:30 - 4:00 weekends. At the moment they are indicating that all Mystery Chair runs and the Goldie Tow Rope runs will be open.

This is all subject to snow levels, of course. And at the moment, the forecasts are predicting major snow dumps starting Wednesday night, continuing for at least 4 days. So if we get enough snow, the Lodge Chair runs will be opened up and night skiing hours will be instituted. Here's hoping.

I've booked Monday off. We'll probably go up Sunday for a while, although we're expecting insanity so we'll bring the snowshoes as well. Monday should be considerably better.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today is opening day at Seymour. After 200+ days of countdown on my whiteboard at work, it's finally hit the big goose-egg. The whiteboard now says "This space for rent"  . As mentioned previously, Seymour is open daytime only at the moment, so no evening visits just yet.

It's been snowing pretty regularly the last week or two, and especially yesterday and today. I'm a little concerned though about the 6-day predictions from snowfix.com and snow-forecast.com . They're both forecasting the freezing level going well above 1000m around mid-next-week, and even going so far as to predict RAIN on the mountain. I don't have enough history yet to know if this is normal early-season behaviour or if we're looking at a repeat of last year, with an early dump then crap for 3 months. But, I guess that's the point of keeping a blog...


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## zacm (Nov 4, 2009)

was not here for the beginning of the season last year but in feb and march at lest once a week the freezing level would rise and the rain would roll in for a day or so...la nina will bring in some good snow for us this year hopefully cold and snowy is what i am hoping for.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

A few updates...

First, the rain predictions have evaporated. Although snow-forecast.com is showing the freezing level rising above 1000m on Monday, it's on just above and they're still predicting snow. So the takeaway is not to get too freaked out about those predictions.

Second, and far less good, it doesn't look like we're going up the mountain today. Scheduling issues are keeping us around home for the whole afternoon. I'd be fairly irate if we weren't planning on going up tomorrow anyway. And let's face it -- a full day on a weekday is better than a half-day on a weekend. 

It's supposed to be snowing tomorrow as well. Actually, the predictors are predicting snow off into the immediate future. Looking good!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was my first day of snowboarding on Seymour. It was great! Going during the week is definitely recommended. I don't think I had to wait for more than two chairs the whole day.

And the snow! It never stopped snowing, from opening until closing. And this isn't crushed and re-crushed frozen rain, or barely frozen snow-cones. Real, actual snow. I discussed snow-depth with one of the lifties, and we agreed that there was actually more snow base last year at this time. But from the end of November on, last year, it was crap. Rain, freeze, thaw, crush for 3 months. This year promises to be an actual snow year.

Not all runs were open, of course. There's not enough snow depth yet. Brockton chair is closed completely, Unicorn is closed, Pete's Run is closed, and everything off the Lodge chair except Chuck's Place is closed. But it's enough, for now at least.

This was also my first chance to use my new boards. I've posted a review on the Heritage here. I didn't ride the Ride much -- there are only so many hours in the day and I wanted to spend them with the Heritage.

I practiced spinning, and buttering in a straight line. Made some progress. Also managed to do some pretty reasonable 180s while on the fall line, using unweighting and counter-rotation. For next time, I think I want to practice ollies and nollies, and possibly some buttered spins.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm sitting in the living room, thinking about snowboarding. I think this is going to be pretty common over the next several months.

Looking back at my last post, it was kind of sparse. But then, I was pretty tired. And sore. But, interestingly, not as bad as last year. And I seem to have more stamina. I guess the pre-season conditioning in the gym has made a difference. Cool.

So anyway, for my first day up the mountain, I managed to do a quite satisfactory job with ground spins. I've got them merged so they look like one spin and not two consecutive 180's. Still getting dizzy, mostly because I think I'm still looking at my board while I'm doing it. I'll have to try to break that habit.

I also managed to do reasonable butters in a straight line, although they were starting to curve towards the end there. I think I was getting tired and starting to lean.

Lastly, I think I'm starting to get the flatland shuffle. Just a bit.

For next time:
1) Start practicing ollies and nollies in place.
2) more work with flatland shuffle.
3) Start on buttered spins.
4) WAY more work on riding switch.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This post is for two days of boarding – Sunday 12/5 and Monday 12/6. I booked Monday off again, for another 3-day weekend. On Sunday I went up using transit, with the family joining me later. Transit takes about 2.5 hours total, including walking to the bus stop. So it’s not very efficient. Or cheap. It’s $8 each way to go between Lonsdale Quay and Seymour. I have a monthly transit pass so that part is effectively free.

Sunday was a beautiful blue-sky day. It would have been perfect if the snow had been better. Unfortunately it hadn’t snowed in a few days so the snow was hard-packed. Despite this, Seymour was incredibly crowded. I ended up spending a lot of time on the bunny slope, working on spins and butters and riding switch. I’ve got the ground spins basically locked. The riding switch is coming along nicely. The butters are more or less working, but I have a lot of trouble holding a straight line. I’m probably leaning and just not detecting it. I’ll try to do some work on buttered spins if I can find a really shallow slope to work on. I’m also doing much better on the flatland shuffle. I still have trouble on an uphill slope, but on the level I can make pretty good time.

My real frustration though is that I seem to have lost the ability to switch stance at speed. I can still use a nollied 180, but unweighted 180’s just aren’t working. It may be because I’m fairly tired by the time I start working on this stuff.

On that subject, by the end of the day my thighs are just burning! I’m in better condition this year, because I notice I’m not getting out of breath. But I think maybe I should be working on conditioning for endurance. Maybe start doing horse stance again…

I need to spend more time doing ollies and nollies. First, just standing in place, then while riding. The snowboard addiction vids are right – these take a fair bit of practice to get.

On Sunday, something I’d never seen before on the tow rope was that the rope track had been allowed to develop ruts over the course of the day, and I guess no-one thought to fix them. As a result, by mid-afternoon there was a deep serpentine gouge dug under both tow-ropes. The carnage was horrible. Most of the people who tried to use the tow were falling. I fell several times. Many of the users weren’t even bothering any more, just walking up.

On Monday, the temperature was above zero and the snow was melting. According to snow-forecast.com , this is a) expected and b) temporary. In a few days, the temps will drop and we’ll be back to snow. Well, let’s hope. But on the plus side, it’s dead up there on Mondays. That’s the time to go.

They’ve opened runs like Gun Barrel and Pete’s Run as of Monday. I rode both, and was surprised to find that both runs are laid out differently than last year. And harder. I’m still a little tentative, so I had to do a lot of braking. That’ll change in a few more sessions. I also rode Unicorn once. The steep part is still a problem for me. I need to get some guidance on that.

I was having some problems with my bindings on Sunday – the new NXT-ATs. It became extremely difficult to get my back foot into the binding. On Monday, with some playing around with straps, I determined that I had the tension wrong on the toe straps. Once I evened out the tension, the boot started going in easily. And, get this – I can now dependably take my foot out or put it in while moving. I literally no longer need to stop. Ever. Except for lift lines.

On the subject of stomp pads… I had some trouble on Sunday with my back foot sliding around. Turns out I wasn’t pressing the boot solidly against the back binding. Once I do that, the sliding issue goes away. And because I don’t have the stomp pad, I can move my foot around easily to alter pressure on the board edges. I think the takeaway for stomp pads is: put a stomp pad on your first board, but not on your second one.

I started to work on side hits again on Monday. Nothing impressive – I’m certainly not doing spins or jumps. But I’m starting to do small tail block stalls, which was very gratifying. I’m also getting much steadier.

I discovered a small jump coming off of Mushroom park onto upper Chuck’s Place. It’s just a roller, but it’s still more than good enough to give me an opportunity to get used to jumping.

So, in summary, a great boarding weekend.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Wow! Both Seymour and Grouse have been closed yesterday and today due to extreme weather conditions! Rain and wind. Washing away the snow. Hello, last year...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, the weather predictions on snow-forecast.com and snowfix.com were certainly on the money. I went up Seymour this morning, and left after about an hour and a half. Fuck, it was bad! Pouring rain -- the aggressive kind of rain that goes at you like you're in a cage match -- and fog, with 6 degree temps. It doesn't matter how good your clothing is, after a certain point you feel like you just climbed out of a swimming pool with all your clothes on. And of course this was resulting in "sponge snow" -- you know, the kind of snow where you pick up a handfull and squeeze it and water comes out. Stuff was hard, too! I did a small jump on Mushroom bowl and when I landed it felt like I'd landed on concrete. Of course, there was probably only a couple of inches of snow over hard ground by this point 

Interestingly, although the temp was 6 degrees (celcius) as mentioned above, I was still cold without my jacket liner because the water pouring off you is very efficient at sucking body heat.

I changed my goggle lens to the light yellow one which is supposed to be good for foggy conditions. Didn't help, though. I needed a lens with a windshield wiper built in for this mess.

I found a box in the beginner park that wan't horrible. No lead-up jump, very little slope to it, nice and wide. But because of the meltage, the drop-off at the end was a little drastic. I'll remember that box for Tuesday though. With a little less drop at the end and a little more fluffy stuff to protect my ass, I think I'll be ready to hit that one.

I did spend a little time on Chuck's Place trying to practice riding switch. Didn't do well, though. Between the rain, fog, crappy ungroomed snow surface, I just couldn't get anything going.

All in all, a lousy day for boarding.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Wow. From the hell on earth that was Sunday, to heaven on Tuesday. Well, that's weather soup in Vancouver.

I was at the mountain just after 9:30, and it was looking a little sparse. The torrential rains of the previous several days hadn't left much to work with. There were bare roots, rocks, grass patches... Not encouraging. However just after 10:30 or so, it started snowing, and it didn't stop all day. For at least half the day it was thick enough to seriously hamper visibilitiy! By early afternoon, I had to start worrying about not burying the tip of my board with some of the off-piste activity. Wonderful stuff.

I didn't get too adventurous yesterday. There's still plenty of ice just under the new stuff, not to mention the rocks and such aren't buried that deeply yet. I hit Unicorn, Pete's Run a couple of times, and Brockton a time or two. I think Brockton chair will be worth exploring more once the snow is thicker, but right now it's very little more than a straight chase from the top to the bottom.

I did spend a fair bit of time on side hits. I climbed the sides of Manning and Velvet Gully whenever possible. I even launched a couple of times and didn't bite it! I seriously think that going off the groomed area is one of the most productive things you can do for upping your game. Learning to handle the board when it's not nice and smooth is very valuable, and going off the sides is an easily accessible way to do that.

I did crater quite a lot yesterday, mostly because I was aggressively attacking things that were slightly outside my comfort zone. Fortunately the new snow provided more than enough padding against the ice base. I've started trying to master a quarter pipe move where you go straight up a slope then ollie into a 180 and come back down regular. I'm sure there's a name for that... Anyway, I'm close, but I haven't quite mastered the part where you're still upright at the end of it 

I also tried buttered spins yesterday. Sucked at it. I think I'm not spinning fast enough, plus I don't have the butter position nailed yet. I was crouching and leaning back too far rather than standing taller and pulling up. Oh well, no one said it'd be easy.

I finally left around 4:30 or so. Thighs were burning so much I couldn't do much any more anyway. All in all, that was a damned fine day. More, please!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm probably going to have to work a little harder on the titles of my posts. It's looking more and more like a good season this year. I went to Seymour today and it was almost a replay of Tuesday.

I got there at 8:30 am, just at opening time, and it immediately started snowing. Not as hard as last time, but any snow is good. The snow stopped for a while around lunch, but came back with a vengeance in the afternoon. I'd bet that night skiing tonight would be pretty good.

Anyway, today was an excellent day. I hit Pete's Run, Velvet Gully, and Unicorn as well as the usual stuff. I had some trouble on the path from Joel's Flight to Velvet Gully. it's a real bitch of a run -- lots of abrupt bumps and changeups. I finally mastered it on the third attempt by just slowing down. But I definitely am lacking in my ability to handle rougher terrain.

Which I spent a significant part of the day working on! Not only all the side hits going down Manning, but I've discovered that all the rough stuff on the side of Chuck's Place is _really_ challenging.

The big news today though was that the little roller between Mushroom park and Chuck's Place had been re-groomed into a proper jump. Still nice and small, the perfect size for a slightly nervous beginner. Well, I discovered the jump around noon, and that was it for me for the rest of the day. When the lineups at the bottom started getting too long, I'd just stop after the jump and walk back up. I figure I hit it at least 20 times.

I windmilled the first few times, until I started feeling the balance. I also started rotating forward for a couple of jumps, actually being in danger of burying my tip on landing. That was from overcompensating and leaning too far forward. Once I got all the leaning and edging and such down, it was the sweetest feeling when the tail of the board would gently touch down followed by the rest of the board, like a perfect airplane landing.

No technique practice today. Simply no time. But being able to hit a proper jump is a _big_ payoff for a day. Happiness is.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, the wife & I went to Seymour tonight to get in a couple of hours of boarding/skiing. I stayed with her to help her get over her fear of the chair lift. I hit the new jump on every run, then went into the rough's at the side of Chuck's. I've been trying to do a little quarter-pipe stuff off the side of Chuck's down near the bottom, and I think on the last run, it kinda started to come together.
The jump was getting slidier as the evening wore on, and I swear towards the end there I was almost completely overjumping the landing. Eek! Still felt good, though.
But man, it was snowing! And so windy that the snow was blowing UP Chuck's Place to the parking lot.
Short night, not much accomplished, but satisfying.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just had a great couple of days on the mountain! Yesterday (Monday), I took transit to Seymour first thing in the morning, with my family planning to come up later in the afternoon. It was foggy and snowing when I got there. The fog lifted later in the day, but the snow never stopped all day.

I started the day doing runs off Mystery chair. I couldn't really get too adventurous though because of the fog. It's very difficult to go full gonzo when you can't see what's coming up. I went down Friendly Nut House once, but found myself dodging stuff at the last second, so once was enough. Didn't even consider Velvet Gully via Joel's Flight.

About 11:00, the mountain started to get really busy. By 12:30 or so, it was nuts. The lineup for Mystery chair was so huge that I decided to go to the Lodge chair. Got there and guess what, it was nuts too. So I gave up on that and went for the bunny slope to practice techniques. WTF? 15-minute lineups for the tow-rope???!? The problem, it turns out, was ski classes. Ski classes _everywhere_. So I ended up doing jumps and walking back up.

Besides the jump, I also practiced off-piste riding on the roughs again. That's beginning to come together. I no longer feel like I'm one shake away from a crack-up, and I'm much more able to handle unexpected bumps.

Later in the day, once the crowds started to clear up, I spent considerable time riding switch on the Lodge chair. I'm now able to go top to bottom in switch, although not aggressively -- and I'm sure I look awkward. I also finally successfully pulled off that quarter-pipe trick I've been trying where I do a quick 180 at the top. Still not dependable, but it's a start.

All in all, I boarded for just under 11 hours. What a day!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up to Seymour again early this morning. After yesterday, I was kind of stiff, but I'm certainly not going to skip a chance to get in some boarding. It was snowing and foggy and really cold first thing, but all that cleared up within an hour or two. I finally managed to go down to Velvet Gully from Joel's Flight without cratering. Did it several times. I also went down Wonger and Earl's, both of which were ungroomed with deep snow. I really seem to be improving on that type of rough unpredictable stuff. I also did Gun Barrel and Unicorn, with great success. Gun Barrel in particular was relatively untouched powder, which was a lot of fun.

And today, for the first time, (drum roll please) I did a box. Just a small one, but it's a start.

What I have *not* been able to make any headway on is butter 360's. I've tried several times and I can't get past 180. I'm not discouraged or concerned though. It's obvious that I just need to pick a spot and spend some concentrated time at it. I'll get around to it.

When I started playing in the park, I switched to my Ride board. Uh oh. Looks like I've been spoiled by the NS. Had nothing but trouble with the Ride. I'm going to have to either make a point of spending some quality time with the Ride, or give up on it except as an emergency backup. I also have to accept once and for all that the Mission bindings are too small. I need the large size. Maybe I can find some used ones cheap.

Towards mid-day, I really started to feel the results of all that boarding, plus all the trudging up the hill for jumps. My thighs started to burn on just about any exertion, and I found myself doing a pratfall off any kind of trick. That was it. Went home.

It's been a great couple of days, though. There's nothing like just spending time at it if you want to improve your game.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Wow, what a crap day! Got up the mountain early, and got almost an hour and a half of good boarding in before the crowds started to get nuts. I also managed to pull a muscle in my lower back while avoiding a skier at the bottom of Lodge chair. Two days later and I'm still a little sore. I actually passed on going up yesterday (1/3), preferring to let it heal.

The snow was really cruddy -- several days with no snow and repeated grooming results in something like soft cement -- and I've noticed that when it gets like that, I stop trying stuff. I'm ready to try 180's off jumps, 180's off pyramids, etc, but not until there's something reasonably fluffy to land in. I sure hope January on turns out to be the high season for Seymour.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Another cruddy day. Now, first I have to admit that the sky was blue, the temperature was perfect. But the snow was slippery cement again. As I said in my previous post, on these days I don't get adventurous with my boarding. And it was BUSY again. By 9:30am, Mystery was almost too busy to be worth going up. It never quite got to the peaks we saw during the holidays, but it was _all day!_

I _did_ have one good milestone - I finally hit a box that required a ramp/ollie up. The first time wasn't good, though. The box turned out to have more drag than I expected and I pitched forward as I came off it (I think I was standing too tall as well). I'm not sure exactly how the fall went; I think I must have gotten my board onto the ground first at least a little bit, because otherwise it's a 5-6 foot fall onto my shoulder. Nothing broke, but my body 'rang' for a second. Anyway, I got right back on the horse, circled around and tried it again immediately. Went much better the next time. I did about a dozen all told. Failed again about 3 times or so, but only minor dumps.

The idiots at Seymour have gotten rid of the jump out of Mushroom onto Lodge and replaced it with 2 rollers. And they've placed the rollers so close together that you don't dare hit the feature with any speed. I'm going to write them an email about that.

And, oh yeah, the Lodge chair failed again today, only this time I was already at the bottom. After waiting a while, myself and a bunch of others started walking up. The chair got going a bit later, but by then we were so far upslope it wasn't worth turning around and going down - especially with the lineup that would have accumulated by then. Anyway, wasn't as bad as I might have expected.

I spent a little time practicing ollies, switch riding, and switching lead foot. I also tried butters again, and tried practicing flat 360's. Couldn't even do the 360's dependably, let alone the butters. I think it was the snow composition. Or my reaction to it.

I also did a couple of semi-spectacular craters just riding around, which fortunately didn't result in injury.

I guess any snowboarding is better than no snowboarding, but on days like this, only just barely.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I was really looking forward to my day on Seymour. Snow-forecast.com was predicting significant snow today, and it had snowed 6 inches overnight. And weekdays are never busy at Seymour. All in all, a great setup for a great day.

Pffft. As if. What I found when I got there was fog so thick you couldn't see trees or lift towers until you were right on top of them. In addition, it'd been raining all morning, so all that wonderful new snow had been turned into sponge cake.

I went down Chuck's Place and Manning once each. Absolutely not fun. The continual light rain ensured that what little visibility I had was further cut down by misted goggles. And Mushroom Bowl hadn't been groomed or anything, so it was roped off. I don't know what was done with the jump between Mushroom and Chucks (you know, the one that was turned into a couple of rollers) because I couldn't see it from the take-off hill.

Anyway, this was pretty much setting up to be a total crap day. I decided to go to the bunny hill and practice some techniques, and see if I could work up some enthusiasm for something. I practiced some ollies while moving, tried butter spins again, and practiced switching lead foot. The ollies are coming, but slowly; the switching is coming along nicely; but butters still bite. I can't seem to get the rotation going. I'll have to take another look at the SA vids.

Eventually I decided to build a small ramp on the side of the bunny hill. Turned out to be a great idea. I got a lot of practice jumping. And needed it. I found that when I hit the jump with any speed, I'd almost always end up sliding off my heelside on landing and sitting down. I finally figured out that I'm doing two things wrong: I'm not bending my knees enough on launch, and I'm too far back onto my heelside for a straight jump. As soon as I corrected these, the jumps started to click.

But the big news -- I hit my first 180's today! And cab 180's! Hot damn! Of course, one thing I learned from this is that I _really_ have to work on my switch riding. Well, now I have motivation.

For the first part of the day, I was riding right up to the tow-rope and latching on without taking a foot out. This saved a lot of time, as I never really stopped moving. Come off the tow, straight down to the jump, ride down to the tow, latch on, repeat. Unfortunately, I guess I wore out the tow rope, because it stopped for a couple of hours and they had to call the maintenance critters to come hit it with a rock. I'm really beginning to wonder about Seymour. That's two breakdowns of the Lodge chair and now this. Are they not doing maintenance? I wonder if the equipment is reaching end-of-life. Sure hope they have allowed for replacement...

So, a crappy weather day, but a great new-skill day. It'll do.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This was an odd day. I've booked 6 workdays off starting today. I took transit to Seymour, and got there about 8:45. Then I discovered that the mountain doesn't open until 9:30 weekdays. D'oh! So I went to the bunny slope and built a jump and did some practicing.
The morning started off cold but with a light rain falling. There was about 8" of new snow from the day before, and it was absorbing the water, resulting in that heavy sponge-cake stuff. But about 10am, the rain tuned to snow, and for a couple of hours it was great! The snow was not only cooling the sponge cake off, it was covering it with real stuff.That was great riding, and as usual with a covering of snow I was able to get aggressive with trying stuff.
Unfortunately around noon, the snow turned back to rain, and not light rain either. By 1pm or so, the snow surface was grabbing at the board, resulting in that abrupt and unpredictable braking you get when the snow is mush. I went to Mushroom park, but what was left on the ground didn't look like it would supply much padding, so other than boxes, I gave it a pass.
This was also a very frustrating day for people getting in the way. Seemed like no matter what I was trying to do, someone would ski or ride out of nowhere to right in front of me. I had to abort both the flat box and the kinked flat-down box in one single run because some gaper would just come over and get in the way.
In the end, I was just _soaked_ and I had had enough. I did something I've never done before -- I quit early and went and sat in the caf until the bus came.
As far as progression is concerned, I did some 180's today, and I wanted to try a backside 180 off the hip jump on Manning, but the snow was just too slow. I did get my straight airs locked to the point where I'm not sitting down at the end so much. I guess that's something.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We went up to Manning yesterday. Although it's a weekend, Manning was running weekday rates because the Blue chair is closed indefinitely (and therefore their terrain park is closed too). It was magnificently sunny for most of the day, although a light fog blew in late in the day. The snow was kind of hard-packed, although not as bad as Seymour when it hasn't snowed in a while.

I did a half-dozen runs or so off the Orange chair, including the Gully, which for the first time I was able to do without cratering. I'm starting to be able to do those fast direction changes on steeps. I also was able to climb the sides of the green run that comes off the chair eastward without falling.

I rode up the lift with a guy who is a friend of the person who maintains the Manning web page, so I bent his ear a little about the shortcomings of the page. He appeared to be quite interested and said he'd pass on the comments. Apparently his friend really wants to get good exposure for Manning. Good on him if he manages it.

I spent most of the day though on the bunny slope with my family. It was a very good technique day. First, I practiced riding switch a lot. I got so comfortable with it that at one point in the afternoon, while I was riding down the run, I had to do a mental check to figure out if I was in switch or regular. That felt good.

The big thing though, is that I finally got butter spins working. Turns out what I was doing wrong is that I was waiting too long to transfer edges. I'd wait until I hit the 180-degree point, and at that point the spin would stall. By transferring edge pressure a little earlier, I was able to continue the spin. I got a couple of good ones going to the point where I was getting dizzy. Nose presses next.

I think I can swap lead leg at speed now on any moderate slope, but only using a frontside 180. I'm pretty sure I could do a backside 180 off a nollie last year, but this time it wouldn't come together for me. Oh, well, more practice.

All in all, a good day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

My daughter is sick today, so I'm staying home instead of going up the mountain. Wife will be home about 4, so I'll go up then hopefully. Just have to play up the guilt a little. 

So, looking at my goals for the year, I'm _way_ ahead of schedule. The only item that I have yet to work on is moguls. Unfortunately the only mogul run on Seymour is Joel's Flight, which is pretty steep for learning something like that. Oh, well, still almost 3 months of season left.

Things I will be trying to nail for the next 30 days or so:
- All kinds of 180's off hip jumps and small jumps
- Possibly a 360 if I can find an appropriate small jump
- Alley-oops
- Jump turns on steeps
- The rest of the butter spins (I've got frontside tail nailed)
- Ollies while riding
- Ollie in and out of switch

That's not a bad list. Nothing unattainable.

On another subject, I bought some spray waterproofer for my riding clothing. That stuff works great! I came out of the day at Manning totally dry inside.

One other thing I want to do is use the Ride Havoc more. I know I love the Heritage, but I really should spend some time with a normal camber board. I bet I'd find it better on the downhill bombing.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did manage to get to Seymour last night. It was a cruddy night, with a constant light rain. I did one run down Mystery and that was enough of that. Went to the bunny slope to do techniques.

Frontside tailpress butter spins are coming along, although as Nev says in the vid, don't expect to be the king at it overnight. I tried a backside spin once, but it didn't go well. No biggie, just need to spend time at it.

Also continued to work on ollies while moving. It's interesting that they're so much harder as soon as you're sliding down a slope instead of standing there. Must be psychological. I did manage to hit a couple that felt right, so I'm just about at that cusp where it suddenly comes together. I tried ollying up onto a side hit a couple of times, as that's a technique you really need in the park. It didn't go as bad as I expected it to, but I ended up turning up the side instead of landing parallel to the run, so I need to work on that a bit.

My big advance for the evening was tail press to frontside 180. That's a lot of name for essentially a very simple move. It's more of a trick than a practical move when done that way though, because you end up landing in switch tailpress, which isn't really a stable way to ride.  What I'm really trying for is _ollie_ to 180, but my ollies simply aren't there yet. Close though.

I think that as long as I feel like I advance in some way, a session isn't a complete waste of time and doesn't get the unhappy face.

Couple of other miscellaneous items...

I started the evening riding the Ride. It's a nice board, but I don't think I can really use it until I replace the bindings. The Missions are just too small. Need the next size up.

I tried going into the park, but between the darkness (it's not that well lit) and the constant drizzle fogging up my goggles, I couldn't see well enough to set anything up with any confidence. I did find that jump at the bottom of Mushroom Bowl, which is a kind of a step-up (the landing is higher than the jump) so I think it's a good jump to play on. Next time.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

What a weird day.

First, I decided to try getting to Seymour using Skytrain and the 028 bus. Of couse, skytrain died as soon as I got on board. The downage lasted just long enough to guarantee that I would miss my connections. So, I went the seabus route and took the Seymour shuttle from Lonsdale. Got there about 10:30, which wasn't too bad. It was pretty empty all day. I think I might have waited 2 minutes on the Lodge chair at one point, but that was the worst.

It was a nice day weatherwise, but the snow was basically snocones. I guess that's better than slippery cement. I went all over the mountain. I do find that I'm able to handle the steeps on Unicorn better. That may be coming around. I also continued to practice ollies. I did two perfect ollies while moving. I still can't duplicate it at will, but I'm getting closer.

The big thing for me was doing the flat-down box. Finally. I did it successfully two out of three times. The third time I reverse-tacoed on it. I also did a very short up-flat-down thingy in the Pit a couple of times. It's not a box, as it's too wide.

Unfortunately, towards mid-afternoon I began to feel crummy, so I packed it in a little early. By the time I got home I realized I was sick, and Friday was likely to be a no-go. As I type this, I'm sitting on my couch suffering from a stomach flu. Argh!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went snowboarding on Sunday. Decided to take it easy because of the recent stomach flu, so I had no intention of trying anything new or particularly challenging.

The first surprise I got was when i arrived, at 8:20. The parking lot was packed! Turns out the Nancy Greene ski competition was on that day, as well as "Family Day" on Seymour. Oy! The only upside is that most of the occupants of those cars were not skiers or boarders, and most of the rest were competing on the Lodge runs. So Mystery wasn't bad.

It was a sunny day, but cold. The snow started out hard packed, and I mean HARD, but got better through the day as sunshine and grinding softened it up. I really did not do anything new in terms of techniques. But I did try bombing a couple of runs. Nervous-making, but exciting. Didn't bite it either.

There's a new jump in the Northlands park that looks interesting. It's a step-up jump, just below the two big ones. When the snow is softer, I think I'll give that a try.

One thing I'm quite pleased about is my steeps handling on Unicorn. As I get less dependent on full turns to slow myself down, I'm able to stay more in control. I'm also starting to do quicker turns to avoid bumps.

So all in all, a good day if not a memorable one.


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## Tachypsychia (Feb 1, 2011)

I'm glad you update your blog a good bit. It seems like youre just about where I am in regards to ground techniques. I'm working on my ollies and presses right now too. I'm a little disappointed that I can't flex my board too much, but feel pretty comfortable to do FS rotations. I"m up to 270 right now.

Keep updating! I'd like to follow your progress


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This was a great day, but also a very odd day. To start with, I took transit again to get to the mountain. This time I made it all the way to Parkgate before things tanked. The mountain shuttle was supposed to pick us up at 8:35. By 8:55, I phoned customer service to find out wtf. Turns out they'd rerouted the bus to Lonsdale to pick up employees early, probably because of the competitions.

And this weekend is a busy one for competitions. Two days of downhill _and_ freestyle. Interestingly, I think people stayed away because of it. It was actually quite non-busy on the mountain. And not because of the weather -- it was pretty nice, except for the snow.

Weird stuff this day. First, some snowboarder lost his footing and slid down the slope from Northlands to Velvet gully. Bounced off a tree, lost his snowboard, grabbed another tree and held on. Staff had to lower a rope to him to get him down the rest of the way. Bet he buys a helmet after that one!

And some kid tried to ollie the rope fence between Northlands park and Manning run. He was 50% successful, which is not good enough. He ended up taking the fence, with 4 poles, with him. Luckily there was a ski patrol right there. Made the twerp rebuild the fence. Hah!

Lastly, a snowboarder died in the backcountry on Seymour. Apparently he went down a cliff or embankment. They had to bring his body out using snowmobile. I actually remember the commotion at the time, but didn't know what it was all about. When the park people run their snowmobiles at full speed across the runs, something's up!

In personal progress news, it was a great day and definitely earns the grinning smiley! I actually finally hit the top jump on Northlands park. That's about a 20-footer, which is more than twice as big as the little guy they had on Mushroom for such a brief time. I noticed while on the chair that the jump had melted down to the point where it was fairly mellow, especially the knuckle part. So after a couple of false starts, I actually hit it. And after several attempts, I cleared the knuckle and landed one of those sweet feather-soft landings that make it all worthwhile. I hope I can get comfortable with the jump before they build it back up. It's going to be learning all over again once it's back to full size.

I can consider my tail presses locked now. I was doing them at will on the home stretch of the mystery run, including direction control. Next, nose presses.

In closing, I'm a little concerned about the snow level. It's melting down to the point where it's looking like last year. And that ain't good! There's snow predicted for this week, though. Hope it happens!


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## Tachypsychia (Feb 1, 2011)

Your slopes sound epic. I wish App Ski Mountain had more to offer but for the price I pay for boarding and how close it is to the house I cant complain. before the seasons over though I'm headed over to Beech mountain. They have a half pipe and a ton of terrain parks and freestyle areas to practice butters in ect. Sucks that a guy died over there. Sounds crazy. The worst thing thats happened here was a collision where a kid got his arm sliced open by a sharp edge on a board. You know how blood spreads in water? Well it does it in snow. Looked like a serial killer was trying to tye die a shirt outside!

I hit a few jumps last night and stuck the landings solid. Nothing liek a 20 footer you're talking about. Is that height or the distance traveled to the landing area anyway? I spend most of the night watching the big air event, and when I wasn't my bindings were coming off so I didn't do much riding regardless. Taking tonight to rest and watch the game, but tomorrow right back in it *thumbs up*


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up Seymour on Monday. It was essentially a repeat of Saturday. Same blue sky (although clouds rolled in occasionally and it did try to snow), same snowcrete base, although maybe even harder than on Saturday. Except being a Monday, it was not busy. That’s always good.

I spent pretty much the whole day working on the jump at the top of Northlands. I also hit the roller in the transition from Manning to Northlands, which turns out to be a pretty nice little practice jump for trying pops. I’m finding that any attempt to add pop to my jumps throws me off, and I bit a couple of big fails on the Northlands jump. On the plus side, it doesn’t really hurt so unless I land on my head or something I think I can relax a little.

On one of my fails, I hit the jump too fast and _way_ overshot. I felt the launch when I hit the lip – it felt like I’d been slingshotted into the air. I think I actually could have landed it except I panicked and turned frontside. Shoot. For the most part I’m undershooting, which could be fixed with just a little bit of pop. I’ll need to work on that on rollers and such.

I spent considerable effort on my ollies on Monday. Made a point of trying to ollie several times on each run. There’s definitely some psychology involved because the faster I’m going the uglier my attempts. I also tend to go heelside rather than straight up, so I have to correct my form. However, they’re coming along. I’m actually able to pull of a reasonable ollie about 50% of the time at moderate speeds.

I also spent some time working on my switch riding on Chuck’s Place. I mostly do ok, but once in a while I get onto my back foot and I can’t get off. End up crashing like a noob. I need to make the turns more fluid as well. I’m not really linking them right now. Maybe some more time on the bunny slope.

There was a posting on the forum by Snowolf that explains the deep S pattern on steeps much better than I’d previously seen. Next time on Unicorn I’m going to have to try that. Essentially I have to try to bleed off most of my speed on the top half of the S, not the bottom half. Just requires a more aggressive turn downhill combined with more slip than I’m allowing right now.

I’ve been having so much fun lately with the jumps, though, that I’ve been ignoring my small techniques. Buttering, lead-switching, and such are all suffering. I’ll have to spend some more time and energy on those.

Lastly, after all my ranting about the crappy weather, it looks like we might finally be getting some good snow by the end of this week. We’ll see…


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Getting ready to go up tomorrow. It's snowing on the local mountains even as I speak, uh, type. They've got 17 cm on Seymour, with probably double that due overnight. Whoo-hoo, finally!

On a side note, I found the web page on the Seymour site that describes the current park features. Turns out my 20-footer is actually a 25-footer. Hm. I'll have to remember to be more scared tomorrow :laugh:

May end up meeting some ppl from the forums tomorrow. Hope it's not too humbling.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This was a very disappointing day. It should have been fantastic! We're finally getting snow again after a long drought. It was snowing this morning when I got to the mountain, and it was snowing all morning. How can you go wrong? Yet somehow when the snow landed it turned into what I'm going to call "snowpoxy". Kind of like riding over patches of velcro. Little bumps that you'd normally barely notice would bring you to a complete stop. I've never before in my life had to pull out my back foot and skate DOWNHILL!!!! Sure as hell I wasn't going to try the jump today. No question of clearing the knuckle -- I wouldn't be able to _reach_ the knuckle.

The only bright spot (and it's a dim one) is that side hits had a lot of snow covering the ice. Whoop-de-doo.

Ended up leaving early. No point.

Couple of side notes...

I'd made some loose arrangements with grafta to meet up sometime during the day. Unfortunately with the fog, that was not likely to happen. Strangely, we ended up getting on the 1:30 shuttle together. I guess he'd had enough too.

And I had absolutely the worst lunch at the restaurant I've ever had. Just to round out the day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm going up the mountain tomorrow with the wife, but I'm sitting here today thinking about snowboarding. Some random thoughts, in no particular order...

The inuit were said to have some huge number of words for snow. Don't know if there's any basis for that claim, but I can see the usefulness. Here's my coinages for types of snow that I've been experiencing:

- Pow: That's pretty standard. New, dry snow. Lousy for making snowballs but great for boarding in. Saw it once at Manning.
- Poo: The closest we get to pow on the wet coast. New but wet. Makes great snowballs.
- Snowcrete: The really really hard stuff you get when the run has been re-groomed one too many times.
- Snowpoxy: The wet stuff that grabs your board and makes you slow down.
- Spongecake: As much water as snow. New snow that's been rained on.
- Snowcones: Re-ground ice.

I think my short-term goals for the next couple of sessions should be:

- ollies
- butter spins
- bs 180's off a side hit
- pops on jumps
- lead-switching

I figured out why I could lead-switch using bs last year but not this year. When I was bs nollying last year to switch lead foot, I was only doing it while going toeside across the slope. I've been trying to practice lead-switching on the fall-line this year. Very different animal.

I removed the Mission bindings from my Ride and put the Flow Fives on. I'd have preferred to have some standard bucklers on the Ride, but until I can get some that are the right size, at least I can _use_ the Flows.

I've been looking around for some impact shorts, given my increasingly aggressive riding. I found some Red impact shorts in XL at Sports Experts, but they're just one size too big. Of course, Sports Experts has no stock... Everyone sells the low-end Pro-Tec stuff, but that's all useless crap. Dunno what I'm gonna do. I may have to bite the bullet and order online.

I just realized that without really noticing, I've become quite comfortable with that side jump on Manning just above Pete's Run. I hit it every run and it's been a long while since I've had any trouble with it. I'm even varying my entry angle and height, and doing fine. Cool!

While I wouldn't say I'm exactly casual about the flat box and flat-down box on Mushroom, I _am_ hitting them pretty much at will now, albeit slowly. I think I'm probably about ready to try the down box that requires an ollie-on. Pray for me...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up the mountain today, arriving about 10:30 to a blizzard! Apparently it had been rain earlier, but had turned to snow just shortly before I got there. Because of the earlier rain, I think a lot of people must have left, because it was deserted even for a Monday. 

First, the day gets a  because I nailed a new technique -- always an automatic Big Grin. Today, I finally got the flatland shuffle right. I've been doing it more or less up until now, but it was kind of a flat shuffle -- no pop. Today I figured out the pop and was able to do it the way I think it's supposed to be done.

But even if I didn't have the technique to grin about, it was a great day for snow. I hit Earl's early on and discovered that absolutely no-one had visited it today. Totally virgin snow. So I went down that several times until I'd trashed it completely. I also discovered untracked snow on Wonger. And because that's more like a mountain goat trail than an actual run, it was quite an experience. But I hit that run without slowing down and it felt so good I let out a whoop!

By midday though, the fog was getting so bad that I couldn't get any perspective on the snow. I went over a five-foot drop that was right in front of me that I couldn't even see, and fell on Manning because of a totally invisible dip in the run. So, time to pack it in.

It was a short day, but a good one. The snow base built up and continues to build up. Snow forecast is for snow until Thursday, then a couple of days of clear, then more snow. Go, weather!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So I've been trying to get the family up to Seymour all week, given the epic snowfall. As of yesterday, more than two meters of new snow in the last seven days! Unfortunately, stuff keeps happening and we keep bailing. So last night, I went alone. Unfortunately, I think I've decided that I just don't care for night riding. Now it's still true that any riding is better than no riding, but unless the family is going up with me, I'm just not motivated enough to pack, drive, park, etc for a night session. Part of it is that the snow is totally tracked out by night; part of it is that between all the new stuff being scraped off and the lowering temps, the snow is almost always snowcrete by that point. So I did one run on Mystery, one run on Lodge, then went to the bunny slope for the evening to practice techniques.

Anyway, despite all my whining, the day er night still gets a smiley because I did well on my techniques. I can now get enough spin on butters (at least FS tail spins) to do a proper buttered spin. I actually tried the backside tail spin once. Didn't go well, but didn't totally bite either. So that's just the next item to practice.

I also have my ollies to the point where I can use them in real situations. They still feel clunky and I'm sure I don't look fluid when ollying, but that'll come with use.

Switching lead foot also just needs practice. I have the technique down, I'm just not confident enough with it yet.

And lastly, riding switch, same comment. Just more practice needed.

I think I can consider these three techniques achieved. If I wait until I have it completely totally locked, I'll spend a whole season obsessing about a few items. So, get it good enough to use, then use it.

I've been planning on hitting the down-box that requires an ollie-on, but just like the runs, it was totally trashed. I'll save that for early day (maybe Sunday) just after the park is opened. I'm really stoked about trying and nailing that feature.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up night skiing with the wife last night. The snow was really good -- powder really, just not deep enough to earn the title. It was cold, but the dry kind of cold that doesn't bother you that much.

Because I was riding with my spousal unit, I didn't really plan on working on anything new. However despite myself, I did earn the grinning smiley anyway. At one point I went down Unicorn and had the opportunity to try Snowolf's Deep S carving, where you're supposed to bleed off the speed at the top of the curve rather than the bottom. And it works! The only difficulty I ran into is that if you get out of rhythm and start braking at the bottom of the S, it's very difficult to get it back.

Another thing that I finally got right is alley-oops. I think a REAL alley-oop requires a 360, but my version just involves going up a slope, hopping a 180, and riding out. Still, it's a new skill under the belt.

And I spent most of the evening climbing the side of the runs. I did a couple of great climbs, including my favorite at the bottom of Mystery (near where the snowshoers disappear). I went so far up that slope that I think I hit vertical and went ballistic for a second. Whoo!

I also did a little practice with all the usual suspects. At this point, it's just a matter of getting more comfortable with them and being able to perform at will.

I'm starting to be able to ollie into a 180, just a bit, but only when not moving.

On the subject of park features, the stuff in Mushroom was just too hacked up for me to take a chance on, escpecially since I'd forgotten to put on my knee/shin pads. I did notice though that there's a snow-level rail in there now -- no ollie-on required. Definitely for trying asap.

In summary, a short night but a fun night.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Wow, did it ever snow on the mountain today! Mind you, it snowed at home too. When I left home this morning, there was about 5" of snow on the driveway. By the time I got to the Seymour Parkway, it was snowing almost at municipal level. It snowed all the way up to the parking lot. And then it snowed all day. Good snow, too.

I made this a downhill day, given the conditions. Wasn't able to hit the jumps because the deep pow slowed things just a little too much. And the parks weren't being maintained today. I think the park guys just gave up. But there was plenty to do on the hills.

It took a few runs to get used to riding in pow. But once I got it, it was a lot of fun (but very hard on the back leg). I found several places where I was leaving fresh tracks.

So, milestones for today. The biggest item is that I did a drop today, on Unicorn. Did it a couple of times just to make sure I had it right. The feeling is pretty unique -- "Oh shit I'm going to die!" ... "I didn't DIE!" I also mastered a couple of steeps, including the drop that links Earls to Manning just under the lifts.

I also did things like hit the slope between Northlands and Friendly Nut House, avoiding the connector; went through a couple of tree trails; and hit Unicorn with great success, handling the bumps with increasing ease.

Had a bit of a bad time at the end of the day, accidentally locked my keys in my car. Fortunately BCAA is always there :thumbsup:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I wish I hadn't already used the "best of times, worst of times" title, because today would have been a natural for it. 

First, Mystery chair was broken today, so everyone was on Chucks or the bunny slope. Only good thing about that is there weren't too many people overall, it being a weekday. Don't know how long the chair will be down. If it's still bust by the weekend, you can forget the mountain.

Somehow this doesn't surprise me though. I've commented in a previous post that Seymour doesn't seem to be keeping up with their maintenance. _All_ the lifts have died once or twice already this year.

The other really Bad Thing that happened is my rack lock seized up when I was getting my board to catch the bus, and I had to take my board apart to get it off the rack. Still managed to make the bus, but jeez!

On the plus side, I had a fantastic day snowboarding. First, I finally tried Cabin Trail (off past Seymour 16s) and discovered that it is a _very_ interesting run. The lower part of it looks like a blasted ruin of a landscape, with major bumps and hummocks, and MOGULS! Just enough moguls for me to try out my short turns, and guess what -- I got game! I handled them just fine. We're supposed to be going up to Grouse with some friends this Friday, and I'm really jazzed about trying the Peak now.

Second, I built a jump on the bunny slope and spent the day hitting it and practicing 180s. I've pretty much got the frontside 180 locked. Cab 180 is dependable but not locked. Today, I did my first backside 180's. More or less. My nail/fail ratio is still less than 50% and I have trouble getting the toeside edge planted and getting the rotation, but that's just practice. Another thing worth mentioning is that I had to switch back to regular foot after each switching jump, and after a while it became quite routine. So I can now consider that a lock as well.

What was the most fun, though, was at the bottom of the bunny slope. Just near the entrance to the tow rope, there's an embankment. It was initially all untouched snow, but I created a jump on it (sort of a hip jump) that I would hit every time I came down the bunny slope. And I was getting some damned good air on that thing. And even better, I was putting a lot of deliberate pop into it, and getting it right.

What occured to me later is that when I was in my first season and still using the bunny slope for basics, I would watch more experienced snowboarders doing just what I was doing today on that embankment. And I was jealous as hell. So now I'm doing it. That was great.

So anyway, between the bad stuff that happened today, and the good stuff on the slope, how do I rate this day? I guess snowboarding-wise it was a good day with a new technique learned. The other crap is just life.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, here's what I wrote for short-term goals back on Feb 13 (Mygod, more than TWO WEEKS ago!):

- ollies
- butter spins
- bs 180's off a side hit
- pops on jumps
- lead-switching

Got the last 3 now. Almost have the first two. I guess I'm gonna need a bigger list 

Reviewing my progress the last month or two, I think the biggest single thing that I did this year was doing side-hits and off-piste and riding the rough patches on the sides of the run. The stability on the board that I learned from that has contributed to pretty much everything else. I have more confidence, I'm able to go faster and hit harder runs, I can handle rougher snow and recover from bumps and tosses.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just a couple of updates...

Mystery was fixed yesterday (Wednesday), but we had a windstorm in the lower mainland so the entire mountain was shut down. If it isn't one thing, it's six things 

And it doesn't look like we're going up Grouse this Friday. Wife is swamped with obligations and had to cancel. Oh, well.

It continues to snow, basically every. freakin'. day. Unless we get a heat wave, I think the season will be extended this year. Oh please, oh please.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up for a night session of boarding last night. Brought up my daughter and her friend. It was snowing like stink the whole time, which is just great of course. It wasn't a great night for learning stuff, although I had a couple of highlights. First, a couple of times I just spontaneously went into a butter spin, and didn't bite it. I can still only do frontside tailspins, but I think it's time to start practicing backside at minimum.

Second thing is that I started doing 180s on random side hits. It's pretty hit and miss (ba BOOM boom) but I'm getting it. And my frontside 180 is pretty routine on a properly set up jump.

What _wasn't_ going well was my switch riding. I just couldn't get it. I think I need to spend some concentrated time on that. I'm just not good enough for it to be useful yet, and I want this to be more than just an item to tick off of a list.

Anyway, a couple of hours of riding is never a waste of time.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yesterday (Sunday) was one of my longest days on the mountain. I took the bus in the morning, so I got there a little bit after 8:30 opening. My family came up in the late afternoon for some evening skiing, and we left about 7:30. So an 11-hour day. Pretty tired.

It was an odd day weather-wise. It was sunny and clear first thing in the morning, but started snowing like crazy around 10am. It then cleared up again about noon, then started snowing again in the afternoon -- but this time while continuing to be sunny.

The snow was certainly welcome and necessary. The snow base was snowcrete where runs had been groomed, and ice otherwise. I tried Cabin Trail twice. Bad idea. It was still a blasted ruin of a landscape, but the whole thing, including ski and snowboard tracks, had been frozen into place. All but impossible to turn, and all but impossible to stop. The board would just skid out. I'm remembering Cabin Trail for better days, but without fresh snow it's a no-go.

My ollies are getting much better. I read a bit of advice on the forum that I've been missing -- that you should start by going _forward_ on your board before going back and pulling up the nose. Also start lower into a crouch. I'll try both of those next time.

For some reason, I couldn't do a shuffle to save my life yesterday. Seem to have lost the technique. Or maybe I was just tired. Needs practice.

I continue to have problems with my switch riding when it gets a little steep or bumpy. I'm fine on gentle greens. Still, need to be able to be in control at all times.

I got backside 360 butters working. Not well, and I did quite a few pratfalls in the process (impact shorts help a little, but I'm still pretty sore), but I'm able to get the spin way better than I could when I was starting frontsides. So I'm pretty happy about that. And I was able to pull some ad-lib frontside spins in a couple of random places as well, like near the bottom of unicorn where it flattens out just before joining up with Chuck's. That felt pretty good. I've got to work on the 270 out still.

The big news for the day though was that the park crew built a new jump on Mushroom. It's right at the bottom of the park, just before the drop-off. And it's a proper ramp-and-knuckle step-down. I'd say maybe 10-15 feet. In addition, there's a 5-10 foot step-up jump at the bottom of the drop-off, just where it goes up the other side of the alley. I spent most of the day hitting those two features. The nice thing about the first jump is that you have to get full speed up in order to clear the knuckle, so I wasn't able to do my usual chicken-out speed-checking. And the landing is steeper than the Northlands jumps -- actually on par with the Nike jumps, which are pretty brutal. Good practice for getting desensitized to the speed and steepness. The step-up at the bottom is nice and mellow and you don't get a lot of loft, so it's perfect for practicing 180's.

I played with the idea of hucking a 360, but just never got up to it. I also never got around to hitting the down-box. It was right there, but it was always so busy. Actually, the whole mountain was damned busy all day. Line-ups on Mystery started about 10am and didn't abate until after 3pm. So I didn't get a lot of opportunity to hit the upper runs. However when I did, I discovered that Boomerang is an excellent option.

They've rebuilt the jumps on Northlands, with two different sized jumps on the upper roller. The smaller one is right up my alley, but the run-up is amazingly deep, with a steep approach up the ramp. Maybe a little too much so. I saw several people speed-check a little too much and barely make it to the lip.

Anyway, all in all a pretty good day. But I definitely need to get out on a weekday to really make the day worthwhile.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

What a crap day. This is one of only a couple of days this season where I've just given up and gone home.

I got to the mountain at the usual time, and it was snowing which is always a good sign. Unfortunately it was all downhill from there, and not in a good way. For starters, a pea-soup fog that was pretty much everywhere. Second, the snow was really ice pellets -- basically soft small hail. And third, Seymour park crew have been setting up for yet another stupid Monster Park competition and have been giving little or no attention to the runs and park features that us normal mortals use. So I couldn't see where I was going, and even if I could it was in crap shape. Yeesh.

I tried Manning, I tried Northlands, I tried Unicorn, I tried Chucks. All crap. The few views I was able to get of the jumps on Northland and Chucks showed them ungrooomed and unfixed. Most of the features had been yanked from Mushroom for the aforementioned stupid competition, and hadn't been set up yet so I couldn't even go find them on Northlands and use them. And oh yeah, the nice new jump on Mushroom that I gushed about last week? Gone. Of course.

Finally, I decided to go to my old standby -- build a small hit on Goldie and just practice small jumps all day. No luck. Some park nazi intercepted me and shut me down. The only upside to it was that I had a fairly lengthy (and civilized) conversation with a ski patrol guy about the shortcomings of Seymour's support for beginner/intermediate jumps. He said he'd talk to management about it and he might actually do so.

But that was pretty much it. They yanked my last resort. Gone home.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm posting this entry just to get the image of my board's serial number on here. The recent report of a stolen board by one of the other members has me a little freaked.

View attachment 7


Overreaction? Probably. Don't care.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up last evening for a bit of night riding. Was originally supposed to be the family coming up, but that's just not working out this year. It was snowing down to parking-lot level, then turning to rain below that. Because of this, Mushroom and Chuck's were basically unusable. Too bad, because they'd rebuilt the jump at the bottom of Mushroom, but the snow was snowpoxy so there's no way I could get enough speed for a good jump.

Instead, I spent the evening on the Mystery Chair. Did a couple of fun things. First, the steep dip from Northlands down to the top of Friendly Nut House finally has enough snow to be groomed into a proper run. I went down that twice. The first time, I plowed part of it. The second time I completely went for it, and actually got some air coming up onto the hilltop.

The other thing I did was hit the top Northlands jump a number of times. The first time, I decided I was going to stop chickening out and hit it at speed so I could clear the knuckle. Well, I may have overdone that a bit. I felt like I went into orbit, and I was certain I was going to miss the landing area entirely. Looking at it from the chair afterwards, I made it barely a third of the way down the landing slope, but it was pretty tense for a few seconds! The important thing though, is that I landed it (not well), didn't hurt myself, and could easily do it again. Unfortunately the snow quality rapidly went to hell from that point, and soon I couldn't get enough speed by any method.

They've moved the down box from Mushroom to the Pit, which is nice because it's also at a more shallow angle now. If I can get to it in daylight, this would be the ideal setup for trying it out.

Anyway, it was a short session (hour and a half tops), but fun. Doesn't get the grin, but does get the happy.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Sunday was one of the best days this season. Totally unexpected, since this weekend starts spring break, and I expected it to be a madhouse. I guess everyone else did too and stayed away, because it was actually fairly dead for a weekend.

Anyway, it was a blue sky day, totally excellent visibility, warm (just above freezing), new snow from the day before that had been groomed but was still soft, lots of ungroomed snow still on the sides. And the park crew had finally finished their revamping of Friendly Nut House and the parks. I have to admit, they did a fantastic job. There was so much new stuff, I spent half the day just exploring. And as well as putting the jump back in on Mushroom, they created a new one at the top of Friendly. Ironically I never got to try it because I was having too much fun on the Northlands jump.

I've finally started to be able to dial in my approach on the Northlands jump. It's pretty obvious to me now that being able to estimate your approach speed is a learned skill, and there's only one way to learn it.  So I'm now able to clear the knuckle most of the time. I'm probably a day or two worth of practice before trying the bigger Northlands jump. Woohoo! Then there's all the other ones.

I finally tried Towerline run, which runs right under the Mystery lift just below the Northlands jumps. I'd gotten enough speed after hitting the jump to almost get all the way up to the top of that run, and it was just a short walk to complete it. I'm gonna do that again when there's new snow. It's a hoot!

The flat-down box has been moved to the 'new' terrain park that links the Northlands park with the Pit. I hit that a couple of times after coming off the jump. Starting to get fairly comfortable with it. I also hit the elevated box that's on Mushroom -- the one on top of a pyramid. _That_ was an experience. But I survived.

I also decided today that I was going to crack the switch riding problem. So I went to Chuck's and told myself that I was going to keep riding it switch until I got it. Well, it took about 5 runs, but by the end of that I was doing dynamic carving, at least on the easier parts. I'm still far better in my regular stance of course, but I've at least got it now to the point where I'm not one hiccup away from a crash when I go switch. Next, I have to start hitting some larger jumps in switch to be able to handle some of the odd jump spins.

I did Cabin Trail a couple of times today. Snow was good, so it was a workable trail. And they obviously _never_ groom that thing, so it's always a bumpy challenge. I'm no speed demon on moguls, but I'm pretty comfortable that I can handle them now.

I had one interestingly bad moment on Unicorn. Unicorn is a fairly aggressive run, with a mountain one one side and a valley on the other. I've always wondered what would happen if you lost it and skidded off the run into the valley. Well, basically you drop off the side and end up up to HERE in fresh snow. Oops. Anyway, no injury except to my pride, but I had to hike back up to the run.

I could easily have stayed until closing. This was one damned fine day. I was sad to have to leave at 3:30, but obligations awaited.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I don't know what happened really. We went to Manning Park on Sunday. Actually left early enough to get there at opening. It was a beautiful day, nice blue sky, warm air. Hardly anyone there, so no lineups. Should have been great. But it hadn't snowed in quite a few days and the snow was snowcrete. The terrain park was closed for most of the day, and anyway it's jumps only (no hardware).

And for whatever reason, I just couldn't get motivated. Nothing seemed to capture my interest. Didn't try anything new, didn't push the boundaries. Just cruised runs for most of the day, then went home.

Meh.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today on Seymour, the theme was _fog_. Not the worst day ever, but bad enough. Having been through this a few times, I didn't even _try_ to get creative with the upper runs. I tried the jump on Northlands once, just to remind myself how much I don't like jumping when I can't see the landing.

So, the rest of the day was spent on Chucks, practicing switch riding. And I spent a lot of time practicing switching direction as well. I've started practicing the technique from the vimeo vid where you swap lead foot on each half of an S carve. A little tentative, and no style at all, but it's a start.

It's obvious that the season is winding down though. The park features have been totally taken out of Mushroom, and about half of them have been taken out of Northlands/the Pit. So the rest of the month is probably going to be spent fine-tuning what I've learned this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

"Season's winding down". Hah! Yesterday I said that, and today we got over a half-meter of snow on Seymour. Took everyone by surprise, too. The weather web pages were predicting a couple of cm over the course of the day. Uh huh.

One bit of bad news. Seymour has set their "end of season" hours, and they aren't great. Weekdays are 11am-8pm. Bleah. Weekends are 9am-5pm. Not much better.

Anyway, great day on the mountain. I buried my tip a number of times and did some (I'm sure) very impressive cartwheels, but of course it doesn't hurt at all. Just a "fwoomp" sound. I saw a _lot_ of people today doing faceplants, cartwheels, and walking out of deep snow and flats. Just the downside of fresh pow. :laugh:

I didn't really do anything particularly new today. Wasn't on the mountain that long (less than 4 hours) and I was just having too much fun with the pow. And it was real powder, too -- not poo. And in some areas, it was thigh-deep.

At one point, I scooted off onto Boomerang, which is always an interesting little connector run. But today, it doesn't provide enough slope to get you through with the deep powder. So I ended up hiking out of there.

I also hit that drop on Unicorn, did a short tree run, and hit the side-slope at the bottom of Manning better than I have ever before.

In summary, not a learning day, but a great fun day!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, if today wasn't the best day of the season, it's certainly in the medals. Went up the mountain early, and I was there when they opened the Mystery chair. I was also _the only person there_ when they opened it. I actually got first tracks _and_ third or fourth tracks on Northlands. For the whole friggin' day, I think I had to wait once to get on the lift, and that was for 1 chair. It snowed for most of the day, and this plus the 31 cm overnight on top of the 54 cm yesterday. It was DEEP!

I spent the day going off-piste as much as possible. I hit compressor several times, I did the tree line to the right of Friendly Nut House several times, and did the drop back into the main run (cratered it, but so what!), and I _finally_ got up the nerve to take the steep between Compressor and Velvet Gully. I went through trees on Unicorn, and got smacked by a tree on that side hit at the bottom of Manning (still can't get quite enough speed to get around that top tree, dammit). 

I'm getting quite good at the quick turns and top-of-turn braking when hitting moguls and steeps. Got a lot of practice today.

Anyway, I had to leave at 4:30 instead of my intended 6:45 because my legs had gone to jelly. Riding powder really is a lot more work than riding the regular groomed runs. But wow. What a day!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I arrived at the mountain at opening time, as usual (With the April hours, that's 9am-5pm btw). Like last Monday and Tuesday, it was snowing like stink, there was a layer of fresh powder, and there was no-one on the mountain. Dang. What a hell.

I basically just ran all over the mountain. Did Nutcracker and Compressor again, with better control this time. Had a great time. Other than some switch practice in the afternoon, not much technique work. They continue to "retire" features from the park, and have mowed down the smaller jumps on Northlands. There's really very little left that I can do in terms of new park stuff, unless I want to take a radical leap (and probably break some bones). I'll wait until next season, I think.

The family came up around 2pm. Unfortunately, the weather went to crap about 1:30pm, so it wasn't particularly enjoyable. I went through 3 pairs of gloves and 2 jackets. Totally soaked. At the end there, we had snowpoxy and that's when we packed it in.

I did have one mildly funny event. Coming down the left branch of Friendly Nut House, with the typical low-contrast conditions when it gets a little foggy, I discovered that they'd built a step-up jump there too. The hard way. I wasn't going fast enough to unexpectedly launch, just fast enough to fall off the top end of the jump. D'OH!

One thing I really noticed today is that I'm much more steady on my board. I can hit unexpected bumps and drops without being thrown. I'm starting to hit every side hit and drop in sight on Unicorn, and it's getting really lively. I'm also taking on more side trails. Just short ones, for now.

But a really good day. Just hope the tail end of the season goes out this way.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This is the second-to-last weekend of the season, and I've decided to go up both days this weekend. And because next weekend is the Easter weekend, I'll be going up Friday through Sunday.

Apparently a lot of people have just moved on to summer pastimes already, because the mountain was pretty dead. Not that I mind. There are no more group classes, although individual lessons are still happening. There was only a trace of new snow, so it was "hardpack". That's better than ice, but not great.

I spent some time on Lodge, practicing switch. I also tried several times to do butters, but couldn't get it going. I know it's late in the season and I'll be basically starting over next season, but I'd like to lock down switch riding, butters, and ollies before I go. With that in mind, I'm trying to do each one at least once on each run.

In the category of successes, a couple of things. First, I finally managed to get up and over the trees on that side slope at the bottom of Manning. I guess hardpack gives you the little extra bit of speed. Second, on the side hit at the bottom of Lodge, I finally managed to do the alley-oop on the left side.

I had some pretty funny fails, too. I was really aggressively climbing the sides of runs all day, and in several cases I had arguments with saplings about personal space. The saplings always won. Turns out doing a boardslide on a live evergreen sapling doesn't work well, what with all the branches sticking out. :laugh: I actually ended up doing one ass-over-teakettle tumble down the side of Manning run after an encounter with a sapling.

Met grafta in the lift line at one point, with his gf. Didn't have time to talk more than a few seconds, as I was next up. And since I _hate_ it when other people let a chair go by, I'm not about to do it.

On Sunday (today, as I write this), I think I'll try Brockton a few times. Probably won't care for it -- Brockton runs are especially unappetizing when it's hardpack.

I built a small jump on Mushroom first thing in the morning, and hit it a few times through the day, but it wasn't in an ideal location. The landing zone should be more of a downhill slope, and I just didn't have that option.

So, that's about it. A good but not great day. Getting kind of sad about the season ending.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went to the mountain with the family today. Which means we got there an hour after opening. Not that it made a lot of difference. The Seymour website said "hardpack machine groomed" and they meant it, especially the "hardpack" part. In addition, because of the overnight freeze/thaw, the sides of the runs were also frozen, with the ruts still in from the day before. Made for a very un-fun attempt to climb the walls. And as usual, when the snow's that hard, I don't get adventurous.

It was clear at least, and it tried to sun a few times, but all in all it wasn't an inspiring day. Ended up leaving about 2pm with the family.

One thing that happened that was a little scary -- I discovered mid-morning that my rear binding was loose, and of course I hadn't pocketed my screwdriver. Had a slow, careful ride down to the parking lot and fixed it. The bolts were most of the way out, and had been stopped by the cover plate on the NXT-AT bindings from coming out the rest of the way. Guess I'll pay more attention to preventative maintenance in the future.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This is the final weekend for Seymour. After Sunday, it's seven months of purgatory. I'm going to try to get up there three times this weekend so I can make forty days this season.

It was a great day on the mountain. Kind of surprising, as it wasn't looking very promising at first. Bit cold, kind of cloudy, and _very_ hard-pack, bordering on icy. After a couple of runs off the Mystery chair, I decided to go down to the Lodge chair where the snow would hopefully soften up sooner. By about 10am, things had softened up, and the sun had come out. I texted the wife and she drove up for an afternoon of skiing.

It turned out to be a great day all around. After the two runs first thing in the morning off Mystery, I spent the entire rest of the day on Lodge. I practiced riding switch, doing swaps, butters, and ollies. I'm riding switch all the way down Lodge now. I'm going to try riding switch all the way down Mystery at least once this weekend. I'll consider that a good milestone. 

As for swaps, I'm now doing that technique from the vimeo vid where you carve down the hill and swap on the outside of each C curve. Don't know if there's a name for that, but anyway it was one of my goals for this season, so woo-hoo! 

I got butters back yesterday. Part of my problem lately has been the hardpack -- I need a little bit of loose snow on the ground to make butters work. The other part of the problem was technique. I needed to put more upper body spin into the beginning of the move. Once I got that going, everything came together. I think I'll try backsides again this weekend, just for the halibut.

As for ollies, the problem turned out (not surprisingly) to be technique as well. My ollies have been hit-and-miss and I've not been able to figure out why. Turns out I was missing the back-foot hop at the end of the move. So that's just down to practice now. The problem I have with that is if I don't feel completely stable I tend to abort the hop. That's why I can do ollies dependably when I'm not moving -- no stability issues.

Had fun with the side hit at the bottom of Chuck's. I'm now going over the top of it regularly. I also did a nollie 180 off it once or twice, which was kind of neat. Not dependable yet though.

Anyway, it was a great day -- better than it had a right to be.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First part of today was spent snowshoeing with the wife. The snowshoe trails around Seymour are quite extensive, since there's both the resort trails (paid) and the provincial park trails (free). Wife likes snowshoeing because it's good exercise and very quiet and zen. I enjoy it once in a while, but it gets boring after a couple of hours.

In the afternoon, I went for a little bit of boarding. Didn't do much of anything new or difficult, just had fun today. It was shirt-sleeve weather again, and I was just wearing a t-shirt. Anyway, it counts towards my 40.

I've noticed that there's been a fundamental shift in my attitude the last month or so. I no longer think in terms of things I can and can't do. Now it's things I've done or haven't done yet. Even the jumps in the Nike park beside Chuck's don't look out of reach. Just need to practice up to them. Next year is going to be a blast. I think I'll progress even more than I did this year. And that's saying a lot.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

That's it. Season's over.

Took the car up this morning. It was totally dead first thing. Started to get slightly busy about 11:30, but never anything that would cause impatience in the line. The snow was hardpack at opening but softened up pretty fast.

I did some butters, some ollies and nollies, and some side hits. Nothing ambitious. Just trying to enjoy the last day.

Funny thing about the ollies. I made a concerted effort to do a few on each run today, and they came along nicely. I think my problem with tricks is that I'll try them a few times once in a while, and they work or they don't. I need to actually practice the damthings.

Anyway, nothing spectacular happened today. It started raining about 12:30 so I went home.



END OF SEASON 2010/2011


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, the season is over. It’s been a damned good one. I’ve improved more in this season than in both previous seasons combined. Of course, it was a good season weather-wise, and I already knew that when the snow is crap, I don’t get ambitious with trying new things or aggressive riding. It was a long season, too: Nov 25th to Apr 24th. I also did 40 days this season, which is pretty good.

I’ve noticed that when I’m able to go boarding for several days in a row, I get more results than from two disconnected days of boarding. There’s a synergy involved in having consecutive days to reinforce learning. I’ve also found that I have a tendency to be impatient – I’ll try a trick two or three times and if it doesn’t click right away, I’ll move on. On the few occasions where I’ve concentrated on something for most of a day, I’ve nailed it. So when I make my list of things to accomplish next year, I’m going to have to really concentrate on those things.

So anyway, time to check in. Here’s my list of goals from the beginning of the season:


Ride Switch at will 
Ride moguls at something more than a crawl 
swap in and out of switch at speed 
Do some basic 180s 
be able to handle at least small ramps 
be able to go off-piste without cratering 
50/50 a box -- even a small one.
Tricks from the 'Side hits on vimeo' vid

And here’s my results:

*Ride Switch*
Accomplished, at least for green runs. I still have to come down a blue and black run in switch, and I have to be able to launch a jump in switch or land a jump in switch. I am able to do the latter two items off a small hit, but next I have to try it on the Northland jumps

*Moguls*
All I’ve had to work with on Seymour is Cabin Trail, so I can’t really say that I’d be able to handle, say, the Peak on Grouse. But I’ve made a pretty good start, pending a visit to another mountain. Or maybe Seymour will have some interesting runs next year with moguls. Joel’s Flight comes to mind…

*Swap in and out of switch*
Yep. Nailed.

*Basic 180’s.*
I’ve done them off small jumps, but they’re by no means routine yet. Next year I need to spend some quality time with some good small jumps to practice these, and maybe move to 360’s.

*Small ramps*
Nailed. Also some medium size ones, although again more practice needed next year.

*Go off-piste.*
Yep. Nailed. I’ve not only been off-piste, I’ve also been through trees, on side-hits, jumps, drops, and all manner of rough terrain.

*50/50 a box*
Done that, all though that’s all I’ve done for park features.

*Vimeo vid*
The first part of the vid, where the guy is doing S carves and swapping at the outside of each carve – doing that, although I’m not very stylish yet.

In addition to hitting these milestones, I’ve also done:

20-footer jumps
Learned butters (only frontside tail spins so far)
Tail presses
Flat spins
Drops
Trees and trails
Powder riding

I’ve mentioned it before in other posts, but it’s worth repeating that the biggest accomplishment this season was the stability that I’ve achieved from going off-piste and getting used to bumps and dips. Between that and learning to bend my knees more, I find that I’m able to take on most types of terrain.

I also bought the Snowboard Addiction vids at the beginning of this season, and they've helped enormously, even if only helping me to visualize what I needed to be able to do. I highly recommend them, especially for the piddly price they charge for the downloads.

Stuff that I’d like to have done or have done better this year:

Ollie’d on to a box from the side
Done a down-box
Done Joel’s Flight a couple of times. 
Done the Northlands jumps more often, at least to the point of being comfortable with them.

And my goals for next year:

More park – down-boxes, maybe a rail or two
360’s
The Northland jumps, comfortably and dependably
Be able to handle any run on Seymour
More ground tricks.

I’d also like to try a couple of different mountains next season – at minimum Cypress and Hemlock, and maybe Whistler. I’ll also want to get out for more night sessions. Weekends only just doesn’t cut it.

As for the ground tricks mentioned in my goals, I'll go through the Snowboard Addiction vids and some of the vids posted on this forum and make a list. One thing I definitely need to work on is being able to pop or ollie up onto things. This is necessary in order to hit a box or rail that isn't at ground level.

To that end, I'm going to take some advice from the SA vids and set up a small balance beam from a 4x4. I'll use it to practice in the back yard. Maybe I'll even be able to build a small ramp and jump.

Well, that’s it for the season. Had a lot of fun. Time to start the countdown to next year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Time to start organizing myself for next year. What, I'm not OCD or anything :laugh:

First cut at goals for next year:

- Alley-oops - proper ones, with a nollie and 180 or 360 out.
- Be able to adlib tricks off side hits.
- Learn as many tricks as possible from the Youtube "29 ground tricks" vid.
- Be able to ollie and nollie at will
- All the butter variations
- pretzels
- Be able to ride switch on pretty much anything
- Be able to ride pretty much any terrain
- Take Steeps at speed
- If I get an opportunity, improve my mogul handling
- Do some real tree-dodging
- spins off jumps. 180s, 360s minimum.
- Become comfortable with Northlands jumps
- Become comfortable with boxes
- Try a boardslide
- Hit a rail

That doesn't sound like much -- it's a bunch of relatively little things instead of a few big things. But it's a _lot_ of little things, and it's stuff that will round off my snowboarding abilities.

I'm also going to set up the balance beam (hopefully this weekend) and start practicing with my old board.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

snowboarding.com is getting deader and deader, so I've decided to copy my old blog posts from there before the site shuts down completely.

Oct 11, 2010
*New stuff! *
Got some new stuff for the new season (well, new to me anyway). I bought a slightly used Ride Havoc and some not-used NXT-ATs. The board came with Burton Mission bindings, which I've removed and boxed. Guess I'm going to have to get rid of the Salomon CForce bindings. 4 sets of bindings for 2 boards is a bit much.
Down to 51 days, by the way. Snowfix.com says it might be snowing on Seymour today. Certainly the freezing level is down to where it was last winter for most of the season.

Oct 1 2010
*New season coming up*
Well, here we are, counting down the days to the beginning of the season. 61 as of today, if you're interested.
I sold my K2 Brigade board with the K2 Cinch bindings this fall. I just never really fell in love with the board. For all that the Morrow Lithium is a bottom-end board, it really had more control than the K2. I've got the money in the bank, and saving more -- gonna get a good board this time -- No extruded-base stuff for me!

Apr 10, 2010
*Grouse Mountain Day*
A friend of mine gave me a free pass to Grouse Mountain, so I took Friday off and went up to see what's what. I haven't been up Grouse (except in the summer) for over 30 years, and back then there was only skiing. The place has changed a lot. They've not only replaced the old two-seaters with high-speed quads, they've also changed the location of the lifts. The old Blueberry chair is gone, and there's a chair going right up to the Peak. They've opened a lot of new runs down from the Peak to Blueberry bowl, pretty much all black diamonds.
So, how was it? Well, pretty crappy actually. The snow was like concrete. Not ice, not what you get when it melts and refreezes. More like what you get when you run a compacter over it a few times. How they managed that with 2-3 feet of new snow having fallen in the last couple of days is beyond me.
And the runs were frankly boring. The only run that had any kind of interesting topography was the paper trail, which used to be a trail through the trees, but has been widened into something like Pete's Run on Seymour. If the snow had been good, that would have been a fun run. All the other runs were just wide and featureless.
Having this reaction, I had to ask myself if I was just being a creature of habit and trashing Grouse because it's not what I'm used to. But I didn't have this reaction with Manning. That is a great place and I'd go back any time. But they have good snow.
So, it's back to Seymour for me, for now. Next season I'll try out some other mountains.

Mar 31 2010
*Manning was great (mostly) *
Just got back from 4 days up at Manning Park. We stayed at a cabin at Manning Resort. Two bedroom, full kitchen. There's a free shuttle to and from the mountain that runs every half hour. Lift passes half price if you have a season's pass from another mountain that has a reciprocal agreement -- and Seymour qualifies.
On Monday we had whiteout conditions and the orange chair was closed due to wind, but other than that it was a great 4 days. On Monday and Tuesday I discovered that 16 inches of new snow requires a whole different set of skilz to navigate. Hoooooly crap! And not once in those four days did I have to wait for more than about 30 seconds on the lift line.
I brought my Garmin to track a couple of runs. I'm not particularly good or very daring, but I still managed to hit almost 40 mph on several spots on the runs. I thought it just *felt* fast.

Mar 23 2010
*There will be fun! *
Going up to Manning this weekend for 4 days of straight boarding. I am stoked! It's effectively the last hurrah at the end of the season, but a nice way to finish.

Mar 7 2010
*Got new bindings*
I bought some K2 Cinch bindings today for real cheap (End of season sales -- whoo-hoo!). I've put them on my new board. And since the weather gods apparently heard my plea (read: tantrum) and are busily dumping new snow on the local mountains, I may actually get to try out the setup tomorrow night.
In principle, the Cinch should be better than the Flow, with the same quick-entry convenience. The problem I keep running into with the Flow bindings is that the straps constantly need to be readjusted. The Cinch straps are more like a regular buckler, except that once the straps are set you don't have to move them. We'll see.

Mar 6 2010
*Manning again*
Went to Manning today, for the second weekend in a row. Before doing so, I swapped my bindings on my boards. So I'm going up the chair, and I look down and realize I not only set up my bindings goofy, but I set the board up tail-first. Hm, that's not gonna work so well. Fortunately, I have one of those pocket screwdrivers on hand.
Some girl hurt her leg pretty bad coming off the chair. I think she fell and pinwheeled with only one foot in the binding. I was two chairs back from her, and ended up sitting on the chair close to 10 minutes while the operator decided what to do. On that subject (well, not really) there was a brief discussion a while back about whether stomp pads are worth getting. Having spent half of today (and all last weekend) without one before finally breaking down, I have to say I really appreciate them. Makes it so much easier to control your board with only one foot in.
Interesting thing I noticed today. Somewhere between 2/3 and 3/4 of people at Manning are skiers. This is almost completely opposite to what I see on Seymour. Weird.
Anyway, I spent most of the day on runs that were outside my comfort level. As a result, I fell a lot today. I'm pretty sore right now. On the other hand, it felt really good to be trying some of that sh*t.
I think we're going again next week. The local weather forecast is for snow this week, but we'll have to see how much.

Mar 1 2010
*Manning! *
Went to Manning Park yesterday for a day of boarding. I can understand why Manning is in receivership -- their signage is terrible. How are you supposed to make money if people can't find the place, and once finding it, can't find the freakin' ticket booth? And once finding that, can't find a map of the runs?
I gotta admit though, once I got done frothing at the mouth and hopping from one foot to the other, the boarding was pretty damned good. It's a far more challenging mountain than Seymour, and the runs are nice and long. Makes you appreciate the chair ride. Oh, and did I mention they have actual snow?
We got a 50% discount on lift tickets because we have season's passes at Seymour (nice deal). I'll definitely go again, now that I know where the stuff is. If you're living anywhere in the lower mainland or area, Manning is definitely a good alternative to Whistler, and way cheaper. And with the Canada/USA gold medal final on TV, the place was deserted.
There were signs up everywhere telling the public to NOT tell the staff the score in the hockey game. Several signs said "You tell us the score, we take your pass". I think they were DVRing the game. (Psssst. We won!) [insert bad dancing here]
I got a chance to try out my new K2 board. I had transferred my Flow bindings to the new board, and put my old strap-ins on the Morrow. The Lithium is pure downhill board, very assymetrical, with a significant setback on the mounting holes. The K2 Brigade is more of a combination board, with only a 1" setback and almost symmetrical. And, it seems, with detuned edges. And I'm a downhiller, not a park rat. So by the end of the day, I decided I like the Morrow better. Hey, I gave the K2 a full day, I was well and truly used to the new board, but I'm sorry -- I like the Morrow's significantly superior ability to carve. The K2 tends to chatter, especially on hard heel-side turns. The Morrow so far has taken the hardest turns I've thrown at it. Kind of ironic, since the K2 is a more expensive board, but I guess the point is to have a board that matches up to your riding style. I'll use the K2 at Seymour where thre are more features and little trails to bash through, but for the big wide steep runs, the Morrow is my choice.
Since I'd brought both boards, I also got a chance to try the old Salomon bucklers side by side with the Flows (so to speak). If there's a difference, it's swamped by the differences between the boards. As far as I'm concerned, the reputed mushiness of the Flow 5's is just myth. And I can't count the number of times I've come off the chair, glided up beside a group of boarders buckling in, kicked in my back foot without even coming to a full stop, and glided off to muttered curses behind me. Warms the heart, it does.
Anyway, temper tantrums aside, it was a great day.

Feb 21 2010
*End of season sales are starting! *
Like the title says. Now mind you, if you live out east the season's probably just getting interesting, but here on the wet coast we're well into spring skiing and boarding, and not much left of that! Local shops are trying to move out their winter merchandise before the snow disappears entirely.
I just picked up a brand new K2 Brigade for half price today. So if you've got any kind of a budget, get out there and stock up for next season!

Feb 21 2010
*Learning to wax and repair my board*
Considering the conditions on the mountain this year (heinous), you need to wax just about every time you're going up. So, I bought the wax, a used iron (Value Village, $6), read a few blog posts, and went for it. That worked, so today I went and bought some p-tex sticks and fixed the Grand Canyon of hacks on my base. Not so hard, actually...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Nov 30 2009
*I didn’t know they made fog that thick…*
Went up the mountain Sunday morning. The fog was so thick (HOW THICK WAS IT??) that I couldn't see the ground from the chair. But I could hear the occasional skier or boarder down there saying "Where's the f***ing ski run?"

Eventually, the fog started to lift, but then it started to rain for real. Yee-freakin'-haw. Oh, well. Even a bad day of snowboarding is better than nothing.

Nov 21 2009
*Vancouver got snow*
Well, we've got snow in the lower mainland, and all the mountains are open more or less. There was some concern that it might be a crappy snow-year for the olympics here, but it doesn't look like that's going to be a problem. Going up to Seymour tomorrow. The season has arrived!

Nov 16 2009
*Grrrrr! *
Stupid rain.

Nov 13 2009
*Yeeeeeeeeeeee-haaaahhhhhhH!!!!!!!! *
Seymour is opening Nov 20th! Grouse is opening the bunny hill today. Snowboarding season is finally here.

Sep 3 2009
*early bird discount is now open at Mt Seymour*
Just bought my season pass for Seymour. It's now official. Snowboard season is coming


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Unbelievable. Grouse announced this morning that they will be open _at least_ until July 1st. They're not ruling out being open even later. Granted this has been an incredible season for snow (in the late season anyway), I have to wonder how often this is going to happen. If I can get an extra month or two of riding, should I consider Grouse instead of Seymour? Of course there's the problem of the wife...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Like the title says. Finally put together a balance beam, from an 8' 4x4 and a couple of 2x4 cross-braces. I'll have to sand the top of the 4x4 and round the corners a little. Probably won't get around to trying it until next weekend. But this thing's been preying on my mind. At least it'll give me an excuse to put the boots and board on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I finally tried out the balance beam yesterday. I put the old Fives back on the Ride, set everything up, and gave it a try. I was pretty tentative the first few times -- I think I have this image of trying it and breaking both shins or something. Anyway, it went pretty well. I mastered jumping on and off the beam in a few minutes, was doing 180s on the beam within 10, and hopping back and forth between nose and tail presses in a few more. Took a little more time to start 180'ing on and off. Not surprisingly, I really hate going onto the bar backside, so that's something I'll have to practice a lot.

I pulled my back a little from doing too much on the first day, but that'll be ok by the weekend. This was a LOT of fun, and I felt like I'd gotten my snowboarding fix. Most importantly, even in the half-hour or so that I was doing this, I improved hugely on my balance and skill level. This is going to make a LOT of difference in the park when the season gets here.

As an aside, I spent a little time working on flats practice as well, ollies, etc. I pulled off ollies to 180, well enough that I don't think I'll have any problems doing that on the snow. Also hopping 180's.

One last thing -- this is a huge level of exercise. I think it must be core exercises, at least partly. But after a half hour of this I was done. Hopefully my stamina will increase over the summer, because I have every intention of working this every weekend.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

so yeah, I got over the pulled muscle (ice is our friend) only to come down with possibly the worst cold I've ever had. Unbe-fucking-lievable. These are the times when I feel like Daffy Hood.

Hopefully next weekend I'll feel well enough to get back on the horse.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, I finally got onto the balance beam this weekend. Twice. That's definitely hard work. I'm falling a lot, but fortunately it's not hurting. The great thing is that this is showing me that falling down doesn't mean immediate hospitalization. Hopefully I'll be desensitized to the fear by the time the season hits.

I'm doing 180's on and off, frontside and backside, but only succeeding about 50%. Also, my boardslide and lipslide positions tend to not be very balanced. I even slid out off my heelside once on a boardslide position. You wouldn't think that could happen when you're not actually moving, but I guess if you're klutzy enough you'll find a way  .

Did I mention this is _way_ good exercise?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Did the balance beam twice this weekend. I'm getting better endurance (just a bit). I no longer feel like I'm about to cough up a lung after 5 minutes.

I haven't reached the point yet of being comfortable with any of the moves, though. I still have the newbie hesitation with anything more complicated than a straight hop on or off. And I absolutely can't 180 from a boardslide to lipslide or vise-versa yet. I think that just needs more work to get my balance better.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Bought a skateboard. Damn, I'm a pathetic addicted SOB. Hopefully this will give me my fix until the season starts. The balance beam is helping my balance and all, and well worth doing, but it's not inspiring.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Started today. I found my snowboarding helmet and removed the snowboarding-related stuff like the ear covers and the goggle-strap hook on the back. I should get a proper summer helmet when I get a chance. Also some gloves and maybe knee pads.

Anyway, first time on the board was in my garage. The floor's nice and flat, controlled environment, and no audience  . The first thing I ran into is my skating has to be different. I skate by pushing on my heel edge in snowboarding, but that just feels wrong on a skateboard. But toe-edge pushing feels _weird_. Mind you, I need to be able to do that when snowboarding, so I think this is going to be some valid cross-training.

I just went back and forth in the garage for a while. Nothing fancy, very little turning. Tightened the trucks a few times. Then I tried the most tentative bit of braking using the tail. Almost lost it. So instead I tried practicing just lifting the nose a bit, then lifting the nose and turning a bit. Finally got confident enough to try a braking maneuvre. It ain't pretty, but I didn't dump it.

Takeaway from the first session is that you don't just hop on the board and go cruising around, unless you've got some experience from something else that transfers (snowboarding doesn't). The skateboard is way less willing to stay under you. So an hour or two of just short glides and light turns on the flat is a good idea.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

As of today, it's 79 days until snowboarding season. Figure I should check in with a status report.

*Skateboarding*
It's coming along, and I'm having fun. As I said to slyder though, slow and steady keeps donutz in one piece. I've been practicing doing stationary kick-turns, trying to get dependable 180's. I can do them sometimes. It's just a balance thing. More practice required. I'm also pushing myself around reasonably well. My biggest issue there is that I sometimes move my weight too far forward on my lead foot, and end up falling forward off the board.

*Balance Beam*
Haven't been doing as much of this since I took up skateboarding. Balance beam is definitely a worthwhile exercise, but that's just what it is -- exercise. Not really fun. I think that once I start getting into park this winter, I'll be a lot more motivated to practice on the beam. Also, just practicing ollies and such on the grass has been good for the skilz level. I can do an ollie 180 now, which I just couldn't get right last season.

*Other Stuff*
Went to the Boardroom last weekend and got myself and my daughter new ski/snowboard jackets. Special Blend for both. Mine's goretex. Looks like beginning to mid September is when the winter stuff starts to come out. I have to make a point of phoning around for body armour. Stocks don't last long, based on my experience last year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We went up Seymour yesterday - myself, wife, and Lucy the black tornado. Or as I'm starting to think of her, Basement Dog.

It was foggy and wet, and surprisingly cold. Lucy was all over the place, essentially swimming through the bushes -- and came out wet enough to give that metaphor teeth. We had mostly gone up to see the new magic carpet on Goldie, but we were disappointed to find that the Seymour announcement was in advance of reality. Which is a polite way of saying they aren't finished and there's no magic carpet yet. They're kind of committed though -- the rope tow end-points have been disassembled, so it's carpet or nothing.

I wore my new Special Blend jacket to test out the waterproofing in case it was to start raining. And it did! We got dumped on, on the way down Mystery at the end of our hike. The jacket did fine -- the water beaded up nicely and stayed on the outside.

I was pleasantly surprised at the air temp. It was colder than I expected it to be, considering the weather we're having at home level. I'm becoming more confident of the idea that winter will come early to the mountain this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We went up Seymour last weekend, and we're hoping to go up again tomorrow. Basement dog had her first exposure to a lake (Mystery). Jumped right in and started swimming around.

It was a beautiful blue-sky day, not too warm, not many bugs. Didn't really generate a lot of hope for an early snowfall, though  . On the other hand, the forecast right now on Snow-forecast.com shows the freezing level dropping consistently below 2000m. I'm going to keep a close watch on things this year.

I've pretty much stopped using the balance beam, and I'm not skateboarding a lot. Sorry, but they just aren't snowboarding. To be fair, I'm busier than shit right now with building a fence in the back yard, all the maintenance that's outstanding, _and_ the required software work. Having said that, I have to admit the skateboarding _is_ helping me with my technique for 180's. I have a much more fluid and less jerky rotation now. That should translate well onto the slopes.

Anyway, 61 days until snowboarding season as of today. Still waiting for the stores to put out the body armour.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, the predicted snow last weekend fizzled. The temperature was "brisk", but nowhere near freezing. There was a huge bump up to 4000m at the beginning of the week, and it's now starting to gradually drop. By this weekend coming, freezing level is supposed to drop below Seymour peak, and they're predicting snow.

This weekend is also seasons pass pictures weekend. It's out in Langley this year, at the new Coastal Riders store on 201st St.

44 days left as of today. Sigh. Not getting any easier.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I posted this list earlier in the year:

- Alley-oops - proper ones, with a nollie and 180 or 360 out.
- Be able to adlib tricks off side hits.
- Learn as many tricks as possible from the Youtube "29 ground tricks" vid.
- Be able to ollie and nollie at will
- All the butter variations
- pretzels
- Be able to ride switch on pretty much anything
- Be able to ride pretty much any terrain
- Take Steeps at speed
- If I get an opportunity, improve my mogul handling
- Do some real tree-dodging
- spins off jumps. 180s, 360s minimum.
- Become comfortable with Northlands jumps
- Become comfortable with boxes
- Try a boardslide
- Hit a rail

This is a pretty good list, and doable I think. I really feel good about this upcoming season. Last season went so well (especially the last month or two) that I feel like I can handle anything I aim at.

The big, hard thing that I'm going to have to learn this year, I think, is estimating approach speed for jumps. I've thought about it every which way, and I don't see how I can get past this except either by getting experience the hard way, or by sitting around watching the more experienced riders to see how they approach. The former seems more painful, but the latter involves long stretches of not riding. bleah.

The other thing I want to do this year, which isn't really a 'skill', is to hit more different mountains. At minimum have to hit Baker, Hemlock, Grouse, and Cypress. Whistler would be nice too, but that'll have to be a 2-night stay to make it worthwhile.

I'm having a lot of trouble finding any protective gear in the lower mainland. I just do not want to go the mail-order route. Mail-ordering protective gear feels about as desireable as mail-ordering boots. Too much potential for grief. The guy at Sportschek today sounded hopeful about next week's shipment. We'll see.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Bought a Contour Roam today. It's the bottom-end contour, but for the price I couldn't walk away. Future shop had one on the shelf for $229, but Launch Helmetcams in North Van was selling them for $199 including an 8GB memcard. Future shop matched. Plus I had a $60 gift certificate that I'd never used, so $160 net after taxes.

We'll see if I use it a lot of if it turns out to be a novelty item that I get tired of. If the former, I'll maybe look at a Contour GPS for the next round.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It finally snowed on Seymour! And interestingly, on the same date as last year -- October 26. As I went to work this morning (on the 27th), the mountains were all white about halfway down. It was gone by this afternoon of course, but that's to be expected for the first fall. Snow-forecast.com is looking pretty good -- freezing level is bouncing around but staying below 2000m.

So, the sweet spot is the last week of October.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went to the Vancouver Snow Show tonight. Bought a pair of Rome 390's for cheap.

It's still snowing on the mountain, mixed with rain. Waiting for it to start sticking.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Bunch of items...

Got our seasons passes yesterday at Second Wave. I also got my shuttle pass.

We went up the mountain today. The situation is a little better than I was thinking. There's snow everywhere, although the rocks still show. Some guy was even boarding down Manning. Sure hope he was using a beater board, because there's a good chance he's going to have at least one core shot.

Anway, we hiked up to Mystery Lake, which is completely frozen over. Basement dog ran around on the ice, trying to find the water. She was just swimming there a month ago!

So snow-forecast.com is showing snow most of this week. Hope they're right. I'd like to see it getting on with it.

Also, the magic carpet seems to be complete. The belt has been installed. Just add snow.

Lastly, I installed the Rome 390's on my Heritage. I'm not sure I'm going to keep things that way -- I really like the NXT-ATs -- but I know that if I put the Romes on my Ride I'll never get a chance to try them.

The Romes were a real PITA to install. I don't know WTF everyone is complaining about the adjustment finickiness of the Flows for -- The 390's were way worse.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We went up the mountain today for some snowshoeing. Finally, the snow is falling. More than a foot of snow on the top of Mystery. Funny how the pattern is following last year's pattern almost to the day. First snow around 26 Oct, then some warm weather with occasional snow. Then the snow really starts to come around the second week of Nov. OK, I can remember that from year to year.

Anyway, there were a couple of skiers and boarders on the mountain today, but I think it was still too rough unless you're using a board you don't care about. By next week though, it should be great. I may just hike up and ride down.

Also, it snowed at home level today. It melted in a few hours, but if the snow-forecast.com forecast is right, temps should continue to drop.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Reading last year's entries and comparing them to what's happening this year, it's really kind of spooky how close it's tracking. We had snow on Wednesday at home level -- There are still piles where it was plowed off the streets. The mountain's a little behind, I think. Last year by this time they'd had a 55cm dump. Last night's dump of 18cm was the best so far. But still, Seymour has apparently announced a Nov 25 opening. I say "apparently" because they haven't put it on their web site. Was just announced on the morning news. I think they may be hedging their bets in case the snow base doesn't appear.

Whistler, Cypress, and Grouse have already opened, although only partial openings. Cypress and Grouse are making heavy use of their snowmaking equipment since the temps are cold enough. That puts Seymour at a disadvantage.

Having said that, we're going up tomorrow afternoon and I'm bringing my board. We'll hike to the top and I'll ride down. Wife will come down with dog.

7 days until snowboarding season...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've been getting a little nervous the last week or so because Seymour has been conspicuously _not_ open and _not_ saying when they will be. The last straw was when Global TV started playing the Snow Report and all the mountains are showing snowfall except Seymour, which just says "opening soon". So I finally contacted them and asked straight out why they hadn't announced a date. They told me they didn't feel they had quite enough snow, but were expecting to get it this week. Well, that was this morning and this afternoon the website has an opening date announcement! Huh. Go figger. Maybe I scared them a bit? A snowboarder in need of a fix can do that :laugh:

Anyway, it's just Mystery chair for now. So what. It's a slope. I may go with my Ride the first couple of times rather than risk the Heritage with possible rock-shot. If so, I'd better figure out what to do about bindings -- 390's on the Ride would be ideal, and put the NXT-ATs back on the Heritage.

Still need to get out to Sports Junkies and get my daughter some new equipment. Just one damned thing after another! Well at least we've got new snows on the car. That much is out of the way.

I should probably work through my bucket list for this season again, make sure I have enough specifics to work with. Next post...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just an after-the-fact comment here -- Seymour replaced the tow rope for this season. I guess they knew it was destined for the junk heap and weren't going to put a lot of money into it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've thought about that flu since then, and I think I actually had food poisoning from the subway sandwich I brought up for lunch. I haven't had a subway since, and I used to love the things.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This year, when I get good pow/poo days like this, I'm going to work on doing every other run switch to save the back leg.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, "days until snowboarding season" is now a negative number. Seymour opened yesterday, with the Mystery chair only. Today a pineapple express is blowing in and raining all over everything. Life sucks.

OK, possibly that's a _teeny_ bit melodramatic, but it isn't the most auspicious opening weekend ever. I'm going up tomorrow (Sunday), but not early. It's supposed to start the day raining and I don't want that to be my first experience of the season. I'll go up maybe 10-11 am and see what's what. I'm intending to spend some time in the park if they put in some reasonably mellow features, so I'd better bring both boards.

Aaaaaaaaanyway, more to come tomorrow. As Bob says, I have a bad feeling about this.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did this back in May, but now that the season is starting it's time to come up with a focused list.

In general, by the end of the year I want to be able to:

- Hit moderate jumps (20-30 feet) at will.
- Do 180's and 360's of jumps
- Do some ground tricks, such as 180's, pretzels, butters, maybe even an mfm butter.
- Finish off stuff from last year, such as switch riding, and ollies and nollies
- work a lot more with moguls and rough terrain.
- Be able to handle any run on Seymour.
- Be able to do basic park features. Even if I only ever do 50/50's, that'd be fine.

That's a fairly modest set of goals, and should make me into a well-rounded rider. I also want to learn some specific tricks, but I'll pick those up from vids as I go. I also want to make sure that I do one "Discover" group lesson and at least one private lesson this season.

Lastly, I want to hit at least two of: Whistler, Hemlock, Cypress, Baker, this season. A little variety would be a good thing.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First runs of the season today. Only Manning, Northlands, and Goldie were open so it wasn't the most inspiring day. On the other hand the snow wasn't hard. There were bare patches everywhere, and you can tell the rocks aren't too far below the surface.

I brought both of my boards up. The Heritage has the 390s on, and the Havoc has the Flows. I started the day riding the Havoc, which was very interesting. There's a definite difference between a camber board and a rocker. I felt like the carving was a bit better on the Havoc, but the maneuverability of the Heritage makes up for that.

I think I'm going to move the 390s to the Havoc, and put the NXTs back on the Heritage. Standard bindings make more sense for park, and I'll be using the Havoc in the park. But I missed the NXTs even for the short time I was up there today.

Speaking of park, they didn't put any beginnner features in the Pit so there was none o'that for me.

Lastly, I tried the Magic Carpet. It's a bit jerky, which can throw you off initially, but easy enough once you get used to it. HUGE improvement over the tow rope.

Anyway, the snow situation is looking scarier and scarier. Not only do we have this limp-ass initial snowfall that's the worst I've ever seen, but snow-forecast.com is showing a HUGE bump up to 3500m next week. Jeez! I'm cancelling my December vacation week. Pretty sure it's going to be pointless.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up Seymour for what was supposed to be a full day of boarding. I took the car, so I was able to bring up both boards. I had swapped around my bindings the night before, so I have the NXTs on the NS and the Romes on the Ride.

Anyway, there's not a lot of snow, so there aren't a lot of runs open. And even the ones that are open have roped-off sections everywhere. There were virtually no side-hits worthy of the name.

The parks are actually looking quite interesting. If I had another day or two under my belt I'd have gone for it, but I'm still kind of tentative for some reason. Maybe next time. Don't know why, but I was doing things like falling getting off the lift and falling during heelside turns. Oh well. Early season stuff.

The magic carpet is _way_ better than the rope tow. Definitely needed that change.

I tried out the Contour Roam today for the first time. It was not an auspicious start. For starters, all my vids have the left side of my goggles in frame. Because there's no way to review the vids (unless you have a laptop in the car), I didn't realize this until I got home. Worse though, is that the goggle-strap mount only really works well when the goggles are up on the helmet rather than down over my eyes. When the goggles are down, the Roam sits too low on the side of the helmet and is actually over the ear pads instead of being against helmet. So it bounces around a lot. I'm going to try the glue-on mount, although I'll have to make sure I position it right so I don't include my goggles in frame. Maybe on top? Might look funny, but it would work.

I tried butters, ollies, and switch riding today. Although all were a little shakey, I haven't really lost ground from end of last season. That's good news. Now if only we could get some snow... One thing for sure, though -- when the dumpage finally arrives, I'm taking two weeks off!

Anyway, I ended up leaving around 1pm. Between the line-ups (VERY busy), the lack of options due to the lack of snow, and frankly being a little out of shape, I'd kind of had it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I was up Seymour yesterday for my third session this season. This one felt like the first real session, though. My first time up on Nov 26 was just for a couple of hours because I was getting over the flu. My second time up, last week, was pretty tame because I was just getting my sea legs back. Yesterday, I finally started pushing again.

Unfortunately with the crappy snow situation, there's not a ton of stuff to do. Side hits are non-existant, most of the runs are either closed completely or half roped-off, and where the runs _are_ open, they've been groomed down to snowcrete. In addition, turns out the magic carpet is indeed a bottleneck for the beginner's slopes. The park crew has disassembled Mushroom Park and will be moving all the beginner features into the Pit. According to the liftie, the park rats were making life difficult for the beginners -- basically acting like a biker gang coming into town in those bad 60's movies. Way to screw it for the rest of us, guys.

The biggest downside to the snow conditions right now though is what it's doing to the bottom of my board. I went _all last season_ without doing as much damage as I did yesterday. There are actually a couple of scratches that are deep enough to need p-tex. Grrrrrr.

I spent the first part of the day going down Manning and Northlands, but there really wasn't much to do except a straight run to the bottom. They've put a smallish 20-foot jump in Northlands, but I wasn't feeling solid enough yet to try it out. I spent most of the day on Chuck's Place, practicing switch riding. I alternated each run between switch and improving my carving in regular stance. I also made a point of ollying once or twice on each run. Still not there, but coming along. I also tried doing some butters on Goldie. Mostly succeeded, but I caught my heel edge several times. Damn that hurts when you butt plant like that.

I have to admit, I was pretty bummed with the conditions at the beginning of the day. I was actually considering leaving early around 10:30 or so, but stuck with it. Good thing too, because it did get better.

Anyway, I'm glad I cancelled my week off because this would be a crappy week to use up that time off. There's supposed to be some snow this week, so it might be better by next weekend. But until La Nina actually kicks in, this isn't going to be much of a season. Having said that, if January onwards turns into what we had in March last year, it'll be more than worth it.

On a side note, I found some RED crash pants at Sportmart that have a reasonable tail-bone protector, so I'm ready to try some park features if the Seymour park crew ever get it together.


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## NWBoarder (Jan 10, 2010)

I like your list. I may have to borrow some of it for myslef.  And if you're going to learn any specific trick before the rest, pick the Method. It's timeless, and super stylish to boot.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, it's boxing day. It's finally snowing on the mountain today, and this might even stick around for a few days. Wow, it's been bad. I didn't even go boarding last weekend (tore my rec room apart instead), and I didn't go this weekend (mostly because it's xmas). But frankly the scratches I got on my board two weeks ago from all the crap sticking up through the 2.5 mm of snow coverage have just turned me off of the idea of going up until there's something to ride on.

This has been the worst season starter in all my many (3) years of snowboarding. La Nina. pffft. On the other hand they do say that La Nina's always kick in late in the season. That's certainly what happened last year, and I believe it was also considered a La Nina year. I guess that would be ok, but I'd rather have a more moderate year with wider coverage.

Anyway, we'll be going up the mountain today for some snowshoeing -- partly to try out my brand new MSR Lightning Ascents (  ) and partly to wear out Basement Dog, who's been getting a little wound up from lack of activity. There will be a further report forthcoming after I'm back. And tomorrow I'm going snowboarding, don't care _what_ the wife attempts to plan.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First, an update on yesterday. We went snowshoeing around the Seymour trails with Basement Dog. It snowed basically the whole time. Very nice. I was really wishing I'd decided to go boarding instead, but too late at that point. We did manage to wear out Lucy -- apparently she slept in this morning for an extra hour or two.

Anyway, today was snow/rain/snow/rain/rain/rain all day. Throw in fog and you've got the kind of day that makes you reconsider your choice of sport. Seriously, within the first hour of being on Seymour I was considering going home. I was also pondering the idea of mailing my season's pass to Seymour customer service with some suggestions for an appropriate orifice for storage. OK, I'm just whining now, but really this is just getting old.

I set up the Contour on my helmet this morning and took a number of vids of my runs. Unfortunately I failed to clear the lens of the thing, and it turns out all my vids are blurred from rain & snow on the lens. One more thing to remember for next time -- clear the lens before every run.

Now as far as actual snowboarding... They've opened Pete's Run, which made me very happy. Snow coverage is a bit sparse, but it's usable. I was a little tentative at first, but got better as the day went on.

I've also just about got my dynamic carving back. Interesting thing -- on one of my early runs, I followed a good skier down Elevator Shaft, and it was very much like when I followed Craig down the run at Manning Park. I felt very much in control and had an excellent run. Obviously I need to follow more experienced riders more often, to get a feel for the pacing and path selection.

Another thing I was surprised and pleased about. At one point today I had to do some quick maneuvering coming off the Mystery chair -- a couple of boarders ahead of my chair fell together and left me with an obstacle course. I did a quick right/left/right and came to a halt and realized that my skating is hugely improved.

I finally had to leave about 2pm. I was soaked through (except for my jacket-- that Special Blend is _good_ ), cold, and tired. I'm going to need to do some conditioning at the gym, I think.

When I get a chance, I'm going to buy some new gloves -- and not Dakines this time. I'm really beginning to think they're crap.

Anyway in summary, this was the longest boarding day this year (and probably the best one, god help me). Better get some snow soon...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Seymour is closed today (so is Grouse) with torrential rain & high winds. Same thing happened last year in December. Looking back, this season is really just like last year only a little more so. A little more rain, a little less snow, a little later season... At least I hope that's going to be the case, because last season was great once it got started.

I went up the mountain with the family on Monday the 2nd. It was ok -- there was some new snow so it wasn't snowcrete. They've opened a few more things, like Pete's Run, Slingshot, Seymour 16s, and Brockton. But not Unicorn, not yet. And they still haven't built the big jumps in Northlands Park.

As I say, it was ok. But I'm not pushing myself, I'm not trying anything new. Just cruising, just going through the motions. I've been slow about getting my boarding legs back, but I think I'm about there. I might try pushing a little over the next short while, just out of boredom.

Anyway, snowboarding's in a holding pattern right now.

I tried the Roam again. Got the angle on the helmet right now, remembered to clear the lens this time. But I've discovered that I tend to lean forward when riding (gorilla stance) because the images are tilted. That may be at least partly because my stance is (I think) too narrow -- I'm crouching instead of squatting because my knees are in front of me. I'll adjust the board before the next outing, see if that helps. I _do_ like the vids though. I'll like them better once I start doing things.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up the mountain with the family for a couple of hours of night riding on Friday night. I wasn't expecting much, because I don't generally care much for going up in the evening, but it was definitely better than expected. First, wife and daughter are both really stoked by the magic carpet. Wife has stated that she's prepared to go up every Friday night. Well, ok then!

I didn't really do a lot in terms of pushing myself. However, over the course of the evening I did one absolutely perfect butter and one absolutely perfect ollie. Both were the kind where I'd be happy to be able to do it like that forever. Of course all other attempts bit, but whaddya gonna do?

Anyway, there was some new snow so it wasn't a total ice-fest.

Going up for the day today (Sunday). It snowed yesterday (24 cm last I looked) but it's supposed to rain later today, so I guess I'm getting pot luck. More to come.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up the mountain Sunday morning. Took one look, went home. shit.

I'm writing this on Wednesday, and snow-forecast is actually starting to show something good coming up. Maybe we'll get winter soon?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, there's been a lot to write about since last Sunday! First, I'm now on 2 weeks vacation. About last Monday or so, the snow forecasts started to look very very hopeful. I decided to take a chance and book my 2 weeks in order to take advantage of it if the snow materialized. And last night Ullr started to deliver! We went to Seymour for our regular Friday Night session. About halfway through the evening, it started to snow. There were a couple of false starts, but once it got going, it was great! Heavy but fluffy snow, no meltie shit even at the bottom of Lodge. And it snowed at ground level too. This morning as I look out my window, I see about 6 inches of new snow, and it's not going slushy. And it's still snowing! There's a predicted bump up by next Thursday with some rain, but I'm going to wait and see rather than panic. Anyway if we get enough snow, a day or two of rain won't wash it all away.

Anyway, on to last night...

I finally got my act together and moved my bindings to widen my stance a little. The Heritage has a 1.5" setback, so I moved the front binding about 1/2" to 3/4" forward. It's a small move but made a significant difference, allowing me to get down into a proper horse stance. Whether it's the change in stance or just finally getting enough hours in, I finally started to feel my riding coming together.

I practiced butters for a while. Had one bad butt-spill (I always catch my heel-edge, never my toe-edge) but by the end of the evening I was feeling pretty good about it. I also discovered a BIG problem with my ollies -- I've been looking at my board when doing them! This seems to be a general problem with me, looking at my board when doing stuff instead of keeping my eye on the environment. Anyway, once I started looking ahead instead of down, ollies started going much better. I've also realized that I have to practice just straight pops as well.

I got the penguin shuffle back. Still inconsistent, but working again. I practiced lead-foot-switching and switch riding a lot. Really coming along.

The big thing is that the Seymour park crew has a set of beginner features in Mushroom. The line dumps out onto Chuck's instead of feeding back to the Goldie magic carpet, so they've avoided reigniting the park-rat issue. Good work! Anyway, I hit the first feature a number of times. Not ready to do a series yet, but I'll be starting to practice that next time up.

Anyway, I think I may be finally ready to start giving smileys/thumbs-up to sessions again. woo hoo!

:thumbsup:


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## NWBoarder (Jan 10, 2010)

Woot for Powder! You guys are getting it a little before us, but we're still getting some and I'm STOKED!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I was up on the mountain at 9am sharp this morning, and quite surprised to find myself parking well back from my usual spot. Unfortunately Seymour was hosting a slopestyle competition today, and everyone on the planet seemingly was there. By 10am the lineups were worse than they normally are at 11:30, and it never let up. Even Lodge chair had lineups that actually went up the slope.

BUT Mushroom had 3 boxes - a wide box, a flat box, and a flat-down box -- and all ride-ons. Additionally, they had a small more-or-less step-up jump at the bottom of Mushroom. So I spent half the day hoofing it up and hitting the park. I was only doing two out of the three boxes because once I hit the third I'd be pretty much committed to Chuck's Place. Tomorrow I'll do all three because Mondays aren't busy of course.

I spent some time on the jump at the bottom of Mushroom, but that wasn't quite as gratifying. It had a pretty sharp transition to a steep takeoff, and the landing had been rutted to the point where every landing felt like hitting the knuckle. I was having some problems with rotations, both rotating to face the jump direction, and forward-cartwheel and backward-cartwheel tendencies. Just needs more practice, but maybe when the landing is less trashed.

Anyway, today really felt like a good day, which it was by comparison with the rest of the season thus far. This whole week is showing snowfall, so it should improve over the next several days.

I've got 2 weeks off so I'm going to make the best of it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was pretty great. First though, they opened at 9:30 and not a 9:00. I think I did that once before. Oh well, stand around for 20 minutes. But I was first on the lift and got first tracks on Mystery.

The day was snowing, sunny, foggy (briefly), sunny, and snowy again by the time I left at 2pm. There had been a couple of inches of snow overnight, so we had some good stuff to start with. And today, I hit everything. I've really finally got all my skillz back, and more importantly my confidence. I hit the Mushroom park features a couple of times, but I was too busy concentrating on the downhills today. No real new skills, just working on having fun today.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I decided to go to Cypress today. I've got the time, it's midweek (the best time to go anywhere), so why not?

Got there just a bit after 9am opening. It was pretty empty. I guess the midweek thing works for Cypress too. I wonder if it works for Whistler?  Anyway, it was damned cold. One of the ski patrollers told me I should protect my face. Fortunately I had a mask in my pocket so I just whipped it out and put it on.

So, Cypress? Meh. It's bigger, all right. A little bigger than Manning overall. But the runs are very Grouse-like. Wide, flat (side-to-side), not a lot of side features. I'll give them this, they've rated their runs well. Manning and Seymour both seem to take some liberties with what they consider blues and blacks. But I agreed with all the ratings on Cypress. I guess they have enough runs that they don't have to tweak things.

The snow wasn't great. There was some new, and there was some man-made stuff, but not really a lot of either. It may be a lot better when they've got some deep new stuff.

The other thing that bugged me about Cypress a bit is that every run ends with a steep section. Just when you're at your most tired, you have to suddenly fight gravity. Argh! OK, I guess that's not something they could really do anything about, and I supposed I'd get used to it if I went there a lot.

The chairs take a little less time, and the runs are a little longer, so all things being equal you'd get more riding time in a day, but if you throw in 45 minute lineups on weekends that certainly wouldn't be true.

All in all, it's an OK mountain. I think I'd go there before Manning, but only just. Seymour is still my fave, and Grouse is still dead last.

So, on to the actual riding. First, I got the alley-oops nailed (180 version) in both directions. I still crater sometimes when I under-rotate, but that's just practice. I'm actually a little surprised that I managed to get that much into this trick -- there are _not_ a lot of suitable side hits, and most are to the right.

Second, I actually took the time to swap boards and spent some time on my Ride today. I think I need to do that more often. Sometime in the last 12 months, without realizing it, I became good enough that I can do ok without the reverse-camber advantage. As I've mentioned before, on the Ride I "feel" the bumps more, but the Ride definitely carves better, especially on steeps. And the new Rome 390's are _sweet!_ Easy in, easy out, and great control.

All in all it was an ok day, but I'm not feeling any urge to go back.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Seymour day today. I started the day (and spent the first few hours) riding my Ride board with the 390's. It was pretty icy, and the Ride handles ice a little better. I tried doing the lead-leg switch with the Ride and discovered that yes, you _can_ do that with a full-camber board. Once things warmed up enough, I switched to the Heritage.

I practiced alley-oops, hit the jump at the bottom of Mushroom, and hit the features coming out of Mushroom. I'm doing great with the features, able to hit all 3 most of the time now. I dump off the flat-down about half the time, though. On the other hand, when I dump off I'm still in control so I actually feel pretty good about that.

With the jump, I'm a little peeved. I'm back to having that heelside butt-plant problem on landing. I _know_ what the issue is, because I dealt with it last year. I just have to stop turning frontside on the jump. Grrrrr. Finally got a couple of reasonable ones at the end of the day, but I can't call it nailed yet.

I went and tried the half-pipe today. It's closed, but there's a legitimate trail leading to it about halfway down. It was in pretty bad shape, though. Hacked up, low, and icy. Needs more snow.

By the end of the day today, my knees really hurt. I hope that's just conditioning and not age.

Oh, yeah, and I broke a tooth. Not snowboarding, not doing some great trick attempt. No, I broke a tooth eating a granola bar. Yeesh.

Still all in all, it was a good day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I took Friday and Saturday off. Friday I went to the dentist, so I took care of some other stuff. Saturday is chores day, and anyway it rained on the mountain for at least part of the day, so no loss.

Today was far better. It had snowed overnight, and continued to snow for the whole day. It was also, however, _very_ windy today. There was a wind warning up for the lower mainland, and it certainly affected the mountain.

I had a lot of fun today, just hitting all different runs. Didn't really do anything new today, though. About midmorning I hit a patch of ice getting off Mystery chair and did a most thorough butt-plant. Tail bone is still sore now.

One minor bit of humour, though. I wanted to do the tree run along Friendly Nut House, and I tried several times to get there. But every time, something would go wrong. Finally gave up. Not meant to be, today.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was an unbelievably epic day! I've been kind of disappointed with the last couple of days -- it always seemed to be foggy or raining or windy or poor snow, or some combination that added up to crappy. Today was the opposite. 48 cm of new pow (not poo!), sunny skies (at least in the morning), no fog, and not particularly busy.

They had pulled the features out of Mushroom park earlier in the week and I was rolling my eyes and saying "it figures!". But today they put them back in a different configuration and a slightly different location. They also put 3 rollers in Mushroom park that are actually quite fun.

I spent the first part of the morning trying to hit all the runs of Mystery before they were all tracked out. I hit Joels twice! And handled it quite well. Another new high today, I dropped off Northlands early (before the cat track) going into Friendly. That means dropping down that very steep pitch on the side of Northlands. It didn't go as well as it could have. I was too cautious and tried to brake too much, and lost my edge. A minor issue though. It was fun, and I'll do it again when the snow conditions permit.

I also did all the usual stuff, Manning, Unicorn, Velvet, etc. Spending more time hitting side hits and handling drops and such. I went down Slingshot once, but that was a bad idea. Too much new snow, and of course I got stranded.

But today was a great day for new highs. I hit my first street-style box. not much of a ramp, it was practically a ride-on from the side, but the important thing is to get the feel of it. I also did my first really ad-libbed 180 off a side hit, and I hit my first picnic table.

This was a totally great day, and very reminiscent of the last weeks of last season.

On other subjects:

I've learned one lesson, which is to spend the time to get the bindings mounted right. I didn't have the stance quite right before, but I took the time last night to measure it and get it right. Makes a difference.

I'm not so impressed with the Rome 390s any more. I had them on the Heritage yesterday, and had a lot of trouble tightening them and keeping them tight. At one point on Unicorn, my ankle strap actually just completely came undone. Fuck! I'm told that this is a problem with Romes because the spring is kind of light duty. Too bad, because they're such a nice binding in so many ways, but this is a show-stopper IMO. I guess that's one of the things you learn from experience when selecting bindings.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

OK, Friday wasn't quite as sunny as Thursday, it didn't have quite as much snow, there was a little bit of fog, and so on. Still, it was a damned fine day. Continued to work on the Mushroom park features, continued to work on my 180s off that side hit on Chuck's, and continued to work the rollers in Mushroom. I still can't quite get 180s off the rollers, but that's just me being reluctant to commit. I've started the smallest bit of shifties on the flat box, and I'm probably just about ready to go into a boardslide.

The smaller jump on Northlands is mellowing to the point where I'm seriously eyeing it now. The street-style box was rebuilt by the park crew to be just a little too big for me. I'll either wait until they rebuild it smaller, or I'll do some adjustments myself.

I slid out on Unicorn early in the day and banged my tailbone again. Fuck that hurt! I think I'm going to be avoiding steeps until that heals.

I did a whole day worth of useless recordings on the Roam. Lens was blocked by snow. The weird thing is I'm sure I was reaching up and wiping it off during the day. I may have to take off the helmet to check it occasionally.

We went to Metrotown for a while last night, and I checked out goggles at the Oakley store. The Airbrake series looks _awesome!_ The release mechanism for the lenses looks easy and quick. I've made broad birthday-present hints. And at Atmosphere, I found what I think is the perfect face cover. It's a balaclava with enough stretch in the lower face part so that it can be comfortably pulled down below the chin.

So, session tonight with the family then a full day tomorrow, then back to work.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Family night riding last night (Saturday night). It was raining, and the forecast wasn't any better for today. Not interested in riding in those conditions, especially on a weekend when it's crowded as hell, so I'm staying home today to ice my butt and my knee and relax. Tomorrow, back to work. 

So, last night I was doing some tail manuals down Goldie and started to realize that I've been lifting the nose nowhere near what I could be. OK, so more practice. Just a matter of more lean and less squat, I think.

I mostly spent the evening working 180's. I'd start by hitting the rollers on Mushroom, then going down Chuck's and hitting that side hit near the bottom. Towards the end I was getting reasonably good, although I'm nowhere near done. A couple of times I was able to throw a FS 180 on the first roller and a cab FS 180 on the second. I also made a point of lifting off on the last roller whenever I could in order to desensitize myself to rollerphobia.

Not a bad night. Last one of my vacation. Kind of sad.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up yesterday (Sunday) on my own, as wife is still feeling like crap. The freezing level was obviously right at resort level as the precip kept shifting between rain and snow. Oh, and fog like pea soup too. I was very alarmed though to see how badly the recent warm temps and rain had eroded the snow base. There were bare patches on Chuck's, the Towerline saplings were all almost completely bare, and rocks showing through the bowl at the bottom of Velvet Gully. To make matters worse, the crew had run the cat over everything, basically squishing snowcone snow into a big flat iceball. First couple of runs were pretty sketchy, especially Pete's Run because A) the snowcat always leaves that rut down the middle, and B) the cat gouged instead of flattening the snow in a couple of places, resulting in some unexpected death cookies. 

I went down Unicorn once. It wasn't as bad as I expected -- they hadn't groomed it so it was basically loose snowcone snow. Had some trouble with the first part of Unicorn (more on that later) and there wasn't enough coverage to brave a lot of the side hits that I normally like, so that was it for Unicorn.

On Saturday I'd finally gotten around to building a pole-cam. $10 for a cheap-ass hockey stick, $1 for some nuts & bolts, et voila! I took a fair number of vids, and learned some stuff from them, so it's already paid off. Unfortunately the pole is about 6" short, I think. Couldn't frame myself from head to board.

What I learned from the pole cam is this -- I don't use my edges worth shit. I think it's like speed on jumps and boxes -- you have to do it more than you think you do. So I'm going to adjust my highbacks to give myself a little more lean, and I'm going to make a point of really digging those bastards in.

I also realized yesterday that I have the same old stance problem, going into the back seat all the time and standing up too straight. When I started to make a point of correcting that, things went much better. That, it turns out, is why Unicorn is giving me more problems than it should. So, stance and edges. That's the mantra for the rest of the season.

I spent most of the day on Mushroom and Lodge, doing the roller/boxes/sidehit route. First and best news: I've got the 180s nailed on the rollers. By the end of the day I was hitting them properly every time. 180, cab 180, jump. The jump wasn't so great because the snow was getting kind of slow, but it still helps me to desensitize. Doing well on the boxes, and I actually shiftied a couple of times. Still hesitant about trying a boardslide though because of my tailbone. I had sat down innocently enough early in the day and got a stab of pain for my trouble, so it's obvious I'm not completely healed. Wow. I did one really impressive fail on the flat-down box too. Came off heelside and tried to push off the lip before I was really _on_ the lip. Did a full splat! Fortunately the snow was nice soft slush by that point.

I also pretty much have the 180s off the side hit down Chuck's. Again, one spectacular fail early in the day. I still don't know exactly what happened, but I remember that I knew even before I launched that it was going to end badly 

Biggest problem with the day though, was gapers. (I've decided that a gaper is anyone who moves obliviously without realizing they're getting in other people's way). And holy shit did I have a problem with that! A major part of that was ski/board schools of course, but even above that there are a lot of people who must really think they're the only people on the slopes. Anyway, no damage, so no biggie, but I sounded like my wife there with the cursing for a while.

One very nice thing is that it was not busy at all for the whole day. I guess people took one look at the weather (raining downside) and said fukit. And the fog cleared after a while, and it started snowing.

All in all, this was a much more satisfying day than I really expected it to be. I'm now firmly in new territory for this season, with half of the season (hopefully the good half) still ahead of me.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up twice today. Once in the morning with wife for a couple of hours. That was OK, it was snowing above the parking lot and there was a lot of new that had been groomed down. I didn't have a lot of time to roam the mountain. I did manage to fall off the flat-down box once. Hit the box, it was dry and I was standing too tall, the board dragged and I dumped. But it doesn't hurt! That's what I keep coming out with -- the bails aren't the season-enders that I seem to imagine they will be. God I'm a putz.

I discovered part way through the day that the park crews had come through again. The Pit now has a table and a 10-foot step-over jump. They've also buried the van to the point where I could possibly hit it. I only hit the jumps once, but I noted them for the evening session.

I also started riding by the street-style box at the bottom of the Northland jumps, just to see if I'm getting the height. Pretty sure I'm not, so any attempt to land on the box would have me doing a header. I think I just need to dial in the speed and technique, so I'm going to keep doing drive-bys until I get it right.

For the evening run, my daughter came up too. Wife and daughter stayed on Goldie while I did Mystery all evening, hitting the new jumps in the Pit every time. By the end of the evening I was starting to eye them for 180's. Feeling pretty good. 

It continued to snow all day and all evening, and the forecast has it snowing all night. I'm going up tomorrow and it should be epic!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It hadn't stopped snowing since the last report, so by Saturday morning there was more than a foot of new, and still pounding down. This turned out to have a dark side, as A) they closed the Pit because they couldn't keep up with the grooming, and B) once the runs got tracked out they were _really_ bumpy.

I had a real problem with my goggles because of the constant snow. The yellow lens really has finally given out. I met grafta at the top of Mystery and did a run with him -- more or less. I actually cratered twice because I hit roughs that I didn't even see. After that I went to the Seymour shop hoping they might have a light or clear lens on a cheapo set of goggles. Well, they did. Looks like they've expanded their stock. There was actually a fairly good range of choices. Anyway, even with the el cheapos, I could see much better.

Anyway, I really can't think of anything that I did new yesterday. Had a lot of fun, but once the runs were trashed, and without the park as an option, I was kind of stuck.

Frankly, I'm ready for a private lesson. Next good-snow day, I'm gonna get me an instructor. Got to get some ideas for new things to try.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, the snow's been coming down for the last week or two, and there's no longer any danger of bare spots -- although Chuck's still isn't completely covered at the bottom! You'd think this would be the best of the best times. Unfortunately the Seymour Park Crew curse has struck again. Sure enough, they took out the table-top and the kicker from the Pit. They replaced it with 3 rollers, and not very good ones. I discovered today that it _is_ quite possible to overshoot the landing on a roller. My teeth are still rattling from that one. And there's no sign of the down-box in the Pit being buried to the point where I can try the ollie-on again. On the other hand, the 25ft jump in Northlands is looking approachable now. I'd have hit it today if I could have gotten onto the Mystery chair at all. Speaking of which...

The big problem today though was the crowds. I guess everybody decided they needed to get in some skiing or boarding with all the new snow. The lifts started getting crowded before 10am, and never stopped being crowded even at 3pm when I left. And I mean _all_ the lifts. There was just no getting around the crowds today. I even tried hoofing it up on the beginner park stuff, and it was rush hour for that too. Good Grief.

On park, I started doing some shifties on the down box, and they felt ok. The pit crew changed up the wide box a little -- it's a ramp now. I hit it a couple of times and handled it well. I also hit it too slowly once and wiped out huge. The lesson is not to take features like that too slowly.

Was having some trouble with my 180's today, partly because the rollers are worn down. I think it's just a matter of practice. I had that thing again at the bottom of Chuck's where I knew before I even launched that I was about to bite it. And of course I did.

I did find my carving much improved today. Combination of using more edge and putting more weight forward.

Anyway, I should have had more fun and been happier with the day. It's just too bad about the crowds.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, weatherwise, today sucked. Fog all day, rain most of the day. The snow was slush, but at least there was a good covering of it. Gotta say, I love the goretex Special Blend jacket. I wasn't wet even at the end of the day.

What I'm not so impressed by is the dinky little lanyard under the hem that is supposed to hold your pass. Damthing broke today, and I didn't even know it until I got a text from my wife telling me that Seymour had phoned home to tell us they had my pass at the Customer Service desk. Good grief.

I spent some time today on Mystery runs, but the fog was thicker higher up on the mountain so I ended up spending most of the day on Chuck's. Not that it was a waste of time. I spent time throwing the 180s on the rollers in Mushroom and hitting the boxes below Mushroom. I've almost got boardslides nailed! I won't consider them proper boardslides until I "hop" onto the box in a boardslide position. Right now I'm shiftying into position, which is cheating IMO. I did slide out on my heelside edge the first time I went more than 45 degrees into the slide. D'oh! But, again, didn't hurt.

I was having a lot of problems dropping off the sides of the flat-down box, usually heelside. Finally figured out that I was looking at the beginning of the box instead of the end. Once I started looking farther ahead, things went better.

I was doing alley-oops again today -- now that my tailbone isn't so sore -- and I'm pretty happy with progress. I've found that jumping slightly before I reach zenith makes a difference.

The Seymour park curse continues. The two jumps at the top of Northlands are now one jump. They got rid of the smaller one, yes the one that I was intending to hit. On the other hand, they created a new step-up at the bottom of Northlands, so it's now a 3-jump run. Unfortunately today it was so foggy that hitting any jumps was out of the question anyway. If I saw a half-dozen people hit the jumps all day, I'd be surprised.

What I'm _not_ happy about is that I'm not working on some of the other stuff that I want to get done. Like backside 180s, 360s, butters, ollies, etc. Well, still lots of season left, I guess.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It was a beautiful blue-sky sunny day. Cold, so no snow-melt to worry about. Lots of recent snowfall.

Unfortunately, with the teacher's strike it was as busy as a weekend. And with the rain the previous couple of days, the hardpack was very hard (although not icy, fortunately).

And for some reason, I was just _off_ today. Stuff that I normally can pull off, I just couldn't do. I wiped out today on the flat box, on the rollers, on Pete's Run, on Alley-Oops, not to mention that I was getting all crossed up just trying to maneuver in the line-ups. WTF? It did not make for an overly fun day. In fact I ended up leaving a little earlier than I strictly had to.

One small sort-of bright spot though -- I finally got up the nerve to hit the step-up at the bottom of Northlands. I knuckled and crashed, of course -- just one more insult for the day. But it made the point that I just have to dial the speed right, and the crash didn't hurt. Unfortunately I literally couldn't get close to the jump again with the crowds. I'd have liked to have just hit that one again and again until I got it right. Once I have that one, the step-over at the top of Northlands would be within reach.

Also, I have the 180 alley-oops dialed now. Despite my problems today, I'm feeling the flow now when I do one, and it doesn't feel like I'm muscling through it. The secret was to do the hop _before_ I stall at zenith. Now I just have to work on stability in the landing.

This season really is turning into a bit of a bummer overall. The conditions have just not been good enough consistently enough for long enough for me to get it together. I've managed to refine some of my skills from last season, but in terms of advancing my game it hasn't been good. I'm hoping the Whistler trip will allow me to play catch-up.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I started the day feeling kind of frustrated. I've been feeling a little stale the last couple of outings, like I'm just doing the same stuff over and over. I think I've been a little tentative with my riding because of my (admittedly minor) recent injuries. 

So on the drive up, I tried to think if there was something I could try that's new. Well, one option is to do some basic technique work; so while I was waiting for the lifts to open, I spent some time at the top of Goldie, working on penguin walk and jumping 180s. Neither went well at first, and as usual I started to get frustrated early. But since my other option was to just stand around, I kept at it, and after a bit things started to come together. I think that if I could practice each of those techniques for 10-15 minutes every session, I'd have them in no time.

Anyway, then the lifts opened, and I got on the Mystery lift. Or tried to. Just like my first time last week, when I tried to glide into position I drifted right off the platform to heelside. WTF, I thought to myself, am I actually getting _worse_ at this? No, turns out. Seems this year's lifties just arent' doing a very good job of maintaining the lift areas, either loading or unloading. I've been wondering if it's just me, but this day I saw two Ski Patrol guys wipe out as well -- one at the top of Mystery, and one at the bottom of Lodge. So when it seems like the platforms are forcing me in a direction, it's because they _are_. And if the unloading ramps seem to be hammocked, it's because they _are_.

Anyway, enough of the complaint-fest. I got a very pleasant surprise on the way up the Mystery lift. Seems with all the new snow, the park crew has decided to build the Compressor trail again! So I did a first-tracks down Manning and Pete's per tradition, then on my second run I hit Compressor and the Friendly tree line. Was a bit tentative, so I ended up stranding myself and had to skate a bit to get out. The second time, though, was much better. And the snow was mostly untouched, so it was pretty good.

The next big surprise was after my first Unicorn run. Coming up the Lodge chair I realized that the park crew had been working on the beginner park. They'd taken out the wide box (no loss, IMO) and put in a street-style rail (no gain, IMO) AND a 16-foot flat box to replace the 8-foot down-box, AND a 10-15 foot kicker! Yep, that was it for me. Spent pretty much the whole day hitting that jump. The first couple of times, I knuckled of course, since I tend to be chicken-shit about overshooting. But once I got it (you pretty much can't speed check at all) I was getting some pretty good landings. More importantly, by the end of the day I was starting to get desensitized to the whole jumping thing. I think I could hit the step-up at the bottom of Northlands with very little worry now. Might even be able to hit the top jump on a good snow day.

I didn't get much chance to hit the 16-foot box, because most of the day it was inundated with classes. When you've got 8-10 kids each waiting for their turn, and the instructor taking his time with each one, chances of getting in there are pretty slim.

And now, the bad news. About mid-day, the highback cable on my back binding broke off right at the insert. I phoned the Boardroom, and they had one pair of NXT-ATs left in stock, and they were on sale. SOLD! Left the mountain, went right to the Boardroom, and picked them up. Talk about an easy sale! :laugh:

One other thing -- I tried out the "King of the Slopes" app on my smartphone. It's ok, but it really sucks battery. And I don't find the stats all that compelling. I'll probably try it again next weekend, but if it doesn't start to impress me, it's gone.

So it was a short day because of the binding. Which is unfortunate, because it was a nice weather day and not all that busy. But, priorities...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

To be more specific, the day before our Whistler trip. I seemed to have timed it well -- there's been snow like crazy for the last couple of weeks, and it looks like more of same for at least the next week.

We'll be going up tomorrow early as possible after dropping off basement dog at the kennel. Staying 5 nights, which means 4 full days of snowboarding! Woot!

I'll try to post something at the end of every day. More to come.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

After a frantic morning of running around, dropping the dog off at the kennel, packing, panicking, we finally left home around 11:45 -- more than an hour sooner than I expected! We got to Whistler about 2:30 (took time for lunch). The Marquise Hotel, where we're staying, is just off the Wizard Express lift as near as I can tell. It' definitely ski-in ski-out though, so stopping for lunch won't be a problem. Suite is a bit small but certainly nice enough, especially for the ridiculously low price we're paying.

Picked up the Edge Cards, which was really no trouble. We had to show ID to prove we're BC residents, then they printed the passes right there.

After that, we did some shopping. My daughter needed some new gloves and I wanted to look for some upper-body protection. And woo hoo I finally found some. It's a Pro-Tec spine protector, and quite a nice one. A little surprising, since I don't care so much for a lot of Pro-Tec's stuff, but like my knee/shin pads this one seems to be from their high-end line or something. Anyway, $65 got me the XL size, because everything else was too small. I'm not _that_ big -- what're they sizing for, tweens?

Sooooooo, ready for tomorrow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Morning Update:

Got to the line-up on Wizard Express about 8:15 and they were already loading. None of this "wait until the exact second before opening" shit like some mountains (+1). Took maybe 2 minutes to get on (+1) which is the longest wait so far today (+1). They have a singles queue which people actually seem to use properly, i.e. I didn't see any small groups pretending to be singles. 'Course probably not worth it with the small lines. The only thing that bugged me a bit is that people seem to go out of their way to try to prevent you from joining their group, including edge squeezing and spreading 3 people as wide as possible. I just played dumb and stepped on their equipment if they got too pushy.

I toured the "Easy Out" green run for the wife. Very easy run, but _long_ if you go up to the top of the run (which requires taking the Solar Coaster lift as well). My calves were burning by the end of the first run. Got a little better as the morning wore on, but I anticipate pain tonight.

Lots of nice snow on the mountain, but lots of icy patches too. I hit a patch while on a heelside and did a hard landing on my butt. Ow.

I also found the jump line in the Big Easy terrain park. Perfect size jumps, but _way_ kickey (at least on the left side of the line). One rainbox box which I haven't hit yet, and a couple of flat-wide boxes that I have. I think after lunch I'll go looking for the other beginner park on Whistler.

Afternoon Update:
I eventually found my way to the Whistler Village gondola loading area. Had to take a hard left near the bottom of Easy Out (missed it a couple of times, too). The first time, I loaded onto the Blackcomb Excalibur Gondola by mistake, and ended up at the top of Easy Out again (well, at least we're out of the tree :laugh: ). The second time, I figured out how to get onto the actual Whistler Gondola. And that's when things really got good. The Habitat Terrain Park at the top of the gondola has 3 lines: S, M, and L/XL. The jumps are a little bit larger than the Big Easy jumps, and this park has things like a flat-down and such. No small street-style stuff though. Still not sure how I'm going to intro myself to that. May have to just bite the bullet on a full-size one.

Anyway, there are a number of ways to come down from the top of the gondola, and I still haven't figured out which is which. The Olympic run though, is dead easy. Even easier than Easy Out IMO. And the snow is _way_ better up there.

Late afternoon the fog rolled in and it got kind of hard to see, especially since I had the sunny-day lens in my goggles. Didn't matter though since by that point my legs were _screaming_ for mercy. Haven't even done a full day on Seymour this year, and Whistler is way more work.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Morning Update:

Whistler got some new snow overnight -- about 8" at the top of the Whistler gondola. Lot of wind, too. They actually had stuff on and off standby, and weren't allowing singles on any lifts. Not that one person on a lift was very likely - _way_ more crowded today. Probably some combination of everyone coming out to enjoy the new snow, and people not being allowed onto the glacier.

I had an eye-opening experience first thing off the gondola. Decided to go left instead of right, just to see what was there. What's there, it turns out, is a double-black run called Jersey Cream Bowl. To my fear-addled mind, the slope on that sucker was about 89 degrees. But truthfully it probably wasn't more than about 75 or so :laugh: . Honestly, any run where I can write my name on the snow in front of me while traversing -- that's friggin' steep.

I did one run in the Big Easy park and one run in the Habitat park. NEW HIGH: hit my first rainbow box this morning. Nothing to it. I also managed to stop knuckling in Habitat. One problem in Habitat though, is the landing areas are all chopped up. Made things a little sketchy landing the jump.

I spent a lot more time on blues this morning - hit Jersey Cream and Ross Gold among others. I have to say, so far I'm impressed at how consistent the Whistler/Blackcomb ratings are.

I did my first real tree run today as well, near the bottom of the Jersey Cream Express lift. Made sure I followed another group in -- I wouldn't do that completely alone, especially my first time. I have a history of getting lost, among other reasons. 

By mid-morning the runs had been pretty chopped up and had a lot of new moguls, so I did some mogul practice. Doing ok at it, although more practice would always be good.

Afternoon Update:
The weather was pretty changeable this afternoon. Sun, snow, wind, temps varying all over the place.

I spent some time with the family, getting wife and daughter comfortable on the bunny run. Once they were ok, I went back up Whistler Gondola and did a couple more runs from there. By the end of the day, my legs were just _burning_. Did one run too many. It ended up being the kind of run where your legs are so noodly you can't really do anything. So that was that.

So I'm pretty much desensitized to smaller jumps and kicky jumps, and I can do a rainbow box. I did find the one rail. Unfortunately although it's supposed to be a ride-on, the "ride-on" was totally trashed. Maybe I can get there first thing tomorrow morning. I'd like to maybe hike that section and do the rail, practice boardslides on the flat box, stuff like that.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

No new snow today, unfortunately. Everything's still tracked from yesterday. The wind has died down, so the glacier's open, so a lot of people are back up there, and that's good. However, I'm feeling two hard days of riding in my legs, and that's bad. I took today to do some riding with the family. As anyone who's married knows, that's a total production. Thinking back on it, I really didn't do much of anything significant today. Did warmups in the morning, came back to the unit and waited decades for everyone to get ready (despite getting agreement that they would be _ready_ for fuck sake), eventually got them up to the family zone, they did ONE RUN and called it a day.

I did several park runs and thoroughly tired out my legs. On my last park run, I hit the first jump and my legs just went sideways and I landed on my butt. Because I haven't hammered my tailbone enough this season. Anyway, that was it. We went back down the gondola and went 'home'.

Tomorrow, back to working on snowboarding.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The day started out less than glorious. There hasn't been any snow to speak of in a couple of days, and the grooming cats turned everything into corduroy overnight. HARD friggin' corduroy. No kidding, if I scarved across the corduroy, my board made the sound you get when you ride a corrugated pipe. The snow is colder on Whistler, so you can't just smoosh the corduroy by riding over it once.

I went up 7th Heaven, which has a spectacular view (worth going up there just for that). If the snow had been better, it would have totally lived up to its name. With this shit-hard corduroy it was more like the 6th circle of hell. I got to the bottom of the lift eventually, but I didn't enjoy it. I took Sunset Boulevard to get back to the rest of the mountain. That is one freaky run. It's long, it's all cat track, it runs along a cliff for a long bit, and it slopes towards the cliff. Yeesh. And of course you have to spend the whole time toeside so your calves are just _burning_ by the end.

I also tried Big Easy terrain park, but didn't feel good about trying jumps with this snow quality. So, rode down and went back to the unit for lunch.

After lunch, wife and I went up to the top of the Whistler Gondola and took Pony Trail/Expressway down. It was snowing by this point and the crowds had worn down the corduroy, so the snow quality was _way_ better. Wife is a slowplow er snowplow skier, so it took about an hour to come down. I would wait for her then zip down and hit something or pull a trick. The sides of Pony Trail are quite high in some places. At one point I rode up about 30 feet up the side, sat down and waited for her. She came by, did a double take then laughed.

Learned Sameway's on the way down, did a lot of switch practice, and alley oops (which I didn't biff on even once). At the bottom, we took the Blackcomb gondola, wife got off at midstation, and I continued on up. Did Jersey Cream a couple of times, did the tree run again (less successfully this time), then went back up and headed for Big Easy.

So I get to Big Easy, approach the first jump per normal, hit it, and _WAY_ overshoot the landing. I guess I hadn't allowed for the faster snow. I was so freaked out I knuckled all the remaining jumps. Wow I hate that.

Anyway, it was a nice ending to 4 days at Whistler. As usual my legs were burning so much on the last run down that I was concerned about making it to the bottom in one piece.

I wrote this song over thecourse of my vacation, sung to th tune of "Rawhide":

Waiting, waiting, waiting,
Though the light's abating,
Keep the hubby waiting,
my bride!

Through makeup, prep and dressing,
with my mind she's messing,
Wishing that she would move her ass.
All the things I'm missing,
To be up there I'm wishing,
Instead, I'm waiting for my bride.

Move your ass, get it done,
Put it on, leave it here,
You look fine, check the time,
my bride,
It's ok, you're not fat,
That'll do, just wear that,
Let's go now, get some pow,
my bride.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First day back on Seymour after 4 days on Whistler. It was a beautiful warm day, no fresh snow but lots and lots of groomed accumulation. And when I say warm, I mean that by mid-morning I was riding in my under-armour with the jacket stuffed into the locker. That has a downside of course. By just before noon we were getting snowpoxy everywhere. I went up to Brockton for most of the afternoon where there was little or no sticky snow problem.

The time on Whistler has made a huge difference. First, I was on Seymour for 11 hours, and still going strong when we packed it in. My wife had joined me in late afternoon for a couple of hours. Wife hit Manning run a half-dozen times -- something that she's been wanting to do, but didn't feel up to before. She was mega-stoked at the end of it.

I started the day hitting the Lodge park jump, and kept that up until snowpoxy made it impossible to clear. At that point I went up to Brockton and hit everything for most of the afternoon. I spent most of my time on Stearns Stairway, practicing moguls. I also hit Cliff House once, which is as steep as Jersey Cream Bowl on Whistler, but much shorter of course. I also hit Nutcracker finally (the steep between Northlands and Friendly). No problem. I hit several random jumps, including one on the left branch of Friendly that is a very kicky launcher with a tilted landing. That was a bit sketchy, but I pulled it off.

All in all, it was one of the best feeling days this season, simply because I felt confident that I'm up for anything Seymour can throw at me. I'm going to try to hit the few remaining runs that I haven't tried before the end of the season. About the only things I haven't done yet that I'd like to are: backside 180s, at least try to throw a 360, and hit the 3rd jump on Northlands a few more times.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Getting kind of sad as I realize that the season is winding down. Not including this weekend, there are only 2 or 3 weekends left, depending on whether Seymour extends the season again. It's possible -- the amount of snow we've been getting has really built up the base. It pisses me off no end though that Dec through to partway through March, the base was marginal to mediocre. I can _feel_ the difference on days like Sunday, when you feel like you can do a jump or a bombing run and not destroy yourself if you biff. All in all, I think this was even a poorer season that the Olympics year, because we started getting good snow _right_ after the Olympics. Anyway, unless I pull off some spectacular advances in the next couple of weeks, it's going to be a disappointing year for progression.

So, whining aside, what about Sunday? We'd gotten about 6-8" of new overnight, and the temps stayed low enough that it didn't melt. The bus driver said it was snowing like crazy so I had some hope that it would continue, but when we got to the top it had all but stopped. There was fog for an hour or two, but then that cleared and we ended up with a sunny/clouds day. Beautiful. Plus it didn't get warm enough to start producing snowpoxy. PLUS plus the crowds stayed away. No real lineup problem the whole day.

I was all over the mountain -- did Joels, the Joels trail, Nutcracker, Earls, Velvet Gully, Slingshot. The only trail I still have to try on Seymour is Devil's Drop, and honest to god I was actually eyeing it yesterday. No real jumping -- the park crew has plowed under the jump on Lodge _of course!_ Frankly after Whistler I'm really feeling disatisfied with Seymour. Not the size of the mountain, because they can't really do anything about that, but the setup. As someone said in the forum, the park crew really seems to set up stuff for their own level and they couldn't care less about beginner/intermediate.

I did spend some time hitting the hip partway down Manning, and I've really got that nailed now. About to the point of starting to do spins off it. In fact, next weekend I believe I will do just that. If I can even get BS 180s nailed before the end of the season I'll be at least moderately satisfied. I also realized yesterday that I have done absolutely no work on ollies this season. I _need_ those for so many things.

I'm coming to realize that my biggest problem is fear and failure to commit. There's no reason why I shouldn't be hitting the jumps on Northlands by now, but I always hesitate. And yesterday the snow was soft enough that I could have tried. Grrrrr. Well, hopefully next week. If I break something, at least I won't have lost a lot of season. 

Couple of small victories, though. First, on the side hill near the bottom of Manning, I was actually reaching the point where it goes vertical yesterday, and did a couple of alley oops off it. That felt good. Also, I hit that small side hit near the bottom of Lodge and did an impromptu 180 and it felt totally natural. I think I could just throw those anywhere now.

Anyway, not much season left. maybe time to get a few new highs in, then it's time for skateboarding.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First, some news. Seymour announced this week that they will be putting a high-speed quad in to replace the Mystery chair. That is cool, and has sparked some questions as to whether it'll be in the same track as the old one. I don't think they have time to lay new ground, so they'll just re-use the existing pylon locations. Anyway, wife and I will be going up to Seymour as often as possible this off-season to watch and take pictures. If we don't come back, the bugs got us.  Seymour has also announced that next weekend will be the final weekend of the season. No extension this year. I think that's because their schedule requires them to start work on the new lift right away.

Now, to current events. I went snowboarding all day yesterday, and for a couple of hours this morning. As usual lately, I started out the day feeling kind of, well, indifferent. I think I've become bored with Seymour and with the stagnation in my progress this year. And as usual, once I've done a run or two the old excitement comes back.

Yesterday I spent a considerable amount of time on Chuck's. There's a very small hit just down the hill from the lift, a small jump just below the beginner park, and the usual side hit just above where Unicorn merges. I hit all three time after time. I was doing 180s on the first two, and I think I've just about got them to the point where I can do 180s on demand. On the third hit, which is kind of a small hip, I started trying to do frontside 360s. For the record, I did actually manage one, although I suppose it was fluke as much as anything. I also caught an edge while trying one and did a total faceplant. Scraped my face up just a bit. I think the problem with that last hit is there just wasn't enough loft to give me time to get all the way around.

So this morning, I spent some time on the side hit on Manning, practicing backside 180s. Again, I hit one successfully, but more work required. I think those hip-style side hits are the way to go when learning spins, both because you can get loft at low speed and because you don't need to get a full rotation to complete the jump. Once I've got the confidence, I can hit regular jumps.

I've got all day tomorrow, and either one or two days next weekend to hit these two items on my bucket list.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Wife and I registered for private lessons today. With discounts and coupons and other stuff, we both got lessons for total $118 including taxes. Amazing!

On my lesson, we worked mainly on handling steeps. I learned a lot just by following the instructor the first time. Turns out my C turns are too open and too long. He also pointed out to me that A) I'm slightly open at the shoulders on my toeside turns, and B) I haven't been using flexion and extension. Once I started doing those things, the C turns _immediately_ felt far more controlled. After the lesson I did a couple of runs down Sterns just to cement the muscle memory. On the last, I was so stoked I popped a bs 180 off a side hit just because, and _stomped it!_ So bs 180s are now checked off on the bucket list.

The instructor also introduced me to Sunshine Ridge, which I didn't even know existed. It's a pretty steep run, but because there's a hike to get to it, it's not heavily used. I'm going to remember that for next year.

The other thing is that the instructor said that my form in every other respect is good. So no more fixing my self-taught errors!

Needless to say, a very good day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

... to a crappy season, frankly. I know March is supposed to have had a record amount of snowfall, but it wasn't enough to make up for the previous 3 months. The bottom of Lodge never filled up to the point where they could take down the ropes. Even _last_ season it eventually filled up.

I went up this morning at 9am for the final day, and ended up leaving at 11am. It was ice crust where the cats hadn't run, and crushed ice where they had. Add fog and occasional rain, and you've got the kind of day where you stay home.

The season did have some highlights. There was the Whistler trip, and the private lesson last week. Whistler is going to be an annual tradition. Hard to believe it's cheaper than staying at Manning. Bye bye, Manning. And as for the lesson, it's very very gratifying to have the instructor tell you that he can't think of anything to teach you. And the C-turn instruction that we did get to, takes care of a gaping deficiency in my skillset.

Whistler taught me a couple of things. First, I have to get out of my rut once in a while. Second, I have to be less nervous about trying things. OK, lessons for next season.

So, here's my bucket list from the beginning of the year, and the results.

*Alley-oops - proper ones, with a nollie and 180 or 360 out.*
Only 180 out, but done.

*Be able to adlib tricks off side hits.*
A bit. Not so I'd call this a success.

*Learn as many tricks as possible from the Youtube "29 ground tricks" vid.*
Nada

*Be able to ollie and nollie at will*
I can ollie somewhat, but that's about it.

*All the butter variations*
Nope.

*pretzels*
I did a sameway once, that's about it.

*Be able to ride switch on pretty much anything*
Nope, although my switch riding _is_ much improved.

*Be able to ride pretty much any terrain*
I don't know about "any", but getting there. I'm happy with this one.

*Take Steeps at speed*
Still needs work, but improved.

*If I get an opportunity, improve my mogul handling*
Some improvement.

*Do some real tree-dodging*
Done.

*spins off jumps. 180s, 360s minimum.*
A bit. fs 180's dependably, off small jumps.

*Become comfortable with Northlands jumps*
Nope. I can handle smaller ones, but I didn't do Northlands this year.

*Become comfortable with boxes*
Done

*Try a boardslide*
Done, but only shifty-style. Haven't done a hop-on boardslide.

*Hit a rail*
Nope, but I was building to it.

I suffered from three problems this season. First, I like a nice soft landing when I'm trying something new, which means I don't try stuff when it's snowcrete or when the base is down to mere inches. Had both of those this year for most of the season. Second, I had that tailbone injury in January which dogged me the rest of the season. Made me very reluctant to try anything that could involve a butt-plant. And third, I'm just a bit of a whuss. For some reason I imagine dire and near-fatal consequences from any fail, whereas whenever I've actually biffed it's generally been no biggie. So next season I'm just going to go for it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

OK, I've had a few days to get over my snit about the end of a lousy season. Been doing some thinking, and now it's time to get my thoughts for next season down on, uh, paper.

First, as I mentioned in a previous post, I have to just go for it a lot more. Can't continue to be overcautious about trying things. So, with that in mind, here's what I want to accomplish next season.

1) Spend more time exploring and less time bombing. This especially applies to finding those side hits and such. If I am going to learn spins next season, I'm going to have to start by doing the small natural jumps.

2) Be less timid about stretching myself. Runs like Nutcracker and Sunshine Ridge are within my reach, but I have to go for it. And I have to keep remembering that every time I've tried something new that scared me, it's turned out to be not as bad as expected. (Except for that double black on Whistler. That was _way_ worse! :laugh: )

3) Spend more time practicing techniques. The season before last, I spent significant time on the bunny slope working on basics, and it paid off. This last season I didn't do that so much, and it hurt not only my techniques but also my basic boarding.

OK, that's the general attitudinal goals. Now, specifics.

1) Improve my park. Hit street-style boxes. Hit rails. Do jump-on boardslides.

2) Spins on jumps. 180s, 360s.

3) Ground techniques. Too many to list, but I know what I want.

I've started conditioning in the gym, and I'm going to continue that all year. I'm going to spend time skateboarding, and may get a longboard. I'm going to start using the balance beam again, and I'll make a point of gradually raising it to help my hopping.

Time to get serious.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Timmytard posted an item about a regular get-together in Coquitlam by longboarders. Every Saturday around 11am in Town Centre park. I missed it this weekend, but I'll check it out next weekend. Might end up with a longboard after all.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've been to the longboarder get-togethers and I've tried a longboard, and I definitely like it. If I had to come up with a metaphor about the difference between longboarding and skateboarding, it'd be like the difference between park/pipe and freeriding. You don't do tricks on a longboard -- it's more about flat/downhill. And it does feel a lot like snowboarding. One of the club members has offered to sell me a pretty good longboard for good $. Weather's been pretty crappy this Juneuary so I haven't seem him in a couple of weeks, but maybe next weekend we'll get it done.

Anyway, on to snowboarding. Haven't been doing much of that  but as usual I'm still thinking about it. I made the comment in an earlier post, but more ruminating on this last season just confirms what I said -- the best thing I can do for myself this upcoming season is be less cautious and start going for things. For one I'm going to have to hit the Northlands jumps when they first go up. If necessary I'll work up to it by hitting the rollers on either side, gradually increasing my starting-point height. In order to get to the point of being comfortable going for this, I have to get my snowboarding legs back quickly. And _that_ means hitting the bunny slope early on and doing techniques. I can't wait a month to get back up to par.

The last thing is that I have to pay more attention to the little techniques that I want to work on, like ollies, nollies, 180s, etc. I've got to stop bombing every single run and start taking time to do small side hits and practice the techniques on the way down.

Lot of stuff to think about for next season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's Sept 30th -- 62 days or so until the season starts. Time to start reviewing my goals, prepping the equipment, and watching vids.

The freezing level is still up at around 3000-4000 meters, but I think that's normal. I'll try to post at least weekly updates about progress in that area.

I've noticed that my attitude this year is less like a kid waiting for Christmas and more like someone getting ready to start a new project. I feel like I've got a lot more businesslike attitude about "getting it done" this season. Hope I can deliver on that attitude.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yippee ki-yay, etc! Snow predicted on Seymour! Freezing level down almost to the bottom lift on the 20th. This actually seems to be a little ahead of last year's schedule. Not that I'm putting too much emotional investment into that. Last year looked pretty good at this stage and turned out to suck brutally.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So the predictions were right! Snowed yesterday (20th) on Seymour. Someone posted a pic of the Mystery loading station (the new one!) covered in a thin film of snow. And this morning the Grouse website reports -3 and lightly snowing. The snow-forecast.com website is showing the freezing level staying around 1000m for the next 6 days. Despite my attempts at cynicism, I'm feeling some emotional investment. Please, please don't break my heart!

We went to North Shore Ski & Board yesterday to get our passes printed. This store is about 10 blocks up Lonsdale from the one that did the passes last year. For whatever reason, when we got there there was no line-up to speak of so it went pretty quickly. That turns out to be unfortunate, because it gave the wimmin lots of time to shop. Yep. $1300 it cost me to get out of that place. You'd think I'd have learned by now...

Anyway, to be fair that $1300 includes a Volcom jacket for me. That's a damn fine jacket -- 15000mm rating, good pockets (including an ipod pouch) and a _built-in face mask!_. Cool!

We're hoping to go up to Seymour today with basement dog. I'll post a comment with results.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

8" of snow on Seymour. Pix here: http://www.snowboardingforum.com/western-canada/48803-vancouver-12-13-season.html#post529278

Also, the Mystery chair is complete, as near as i can tell.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

After a couple of epic days of snowfall, the freezing level bumped itself up to 2000m and has been hanging there for days. Add torrential rain the last 24 hours and i doubt there's anything left.

I think something very similar happened the previous two years as well. I guess the first snowfall of the year is really meaningless except maybe psychologically.

In other news, the Mystery chair is _officially_ complete, which is good news.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's time to "officially" identify my goals for this season. They are:

- Stop being so cautious
- learn to hit the northlands jumps properly and dependably, without knuckling every other time.
- Do street-style boxes
- do rails
- Get 180's-at-will nailed
- Learn 360s on small jumps
- Do Devil's Drop, and all other runs on Seymour comfortably
- Ground tricks.
- Become completely comfortable with switch.
- Perfect ollies and nollies and penguin walk.
- A Tame Dog would be nice

This is pretty straightfoward stuff, except for "ground tricks" which is pretty wide open. Frankly just about anything would be good.

The biggest single item though is the first item. Be less cautious. So let's see what I have to say for myself at the end of the season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

For the last week or so, it's been nothing but pounding, driving rain and warm temps. Freezing level consistently between 2000-3000 meters. There's no chance that there's any snow left on any of the locals at this point! Snow-forecast is showing a faint hint of the freezing level _maybe_ dropping to something sane by end of next week, but it's still only a hint. Certainly this has got to be a worst-case scenario. If we can recover from this and have a good opening on Seymour before Dec 1st, I'll just finally have to accept that what happens around this time is irrelevant.

30 days left.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Snow-forecast is now showing some snow on the 7th and the freezing level continues downwards. Hope, hope, hope...


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## 61ragtop (Aug 7, 2012)

I feel the same on most of those. sounds like we may be around the same level, hit me up if you wanna ride some time!!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

And as of the 9th, freezing level is pretty much down to street level. May even get some snow at home.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First, still nothing in the snow category. The freezing level has been hovering between 1000 & 1500 for the last several days and continues that way for the next week or so. There's occasional snow predicted - a cm here and a cm there - but nothing like the dumps we need. As Beetlejuice says, I'm feeling a little anxious here.

On a slightly more optimistic subject, Seymour has been awarded 3rd best parks in Western Canada. Sounds like faint praise, but when you consider that 1st and 2nd were Whistler and the Canada Olympic Park, that's actually some pretty good company to be in.

Also got a newsletter from Seymour where the park manager talks about some of the stuff they'll be doing this year. Based on that, this really looks like my year to become a park rat. Well, a bit anyway.

This is really hard. I'm hovering between incredible stoke that the season is coming up, and incredible panic that the season may be late and/or crappy.

I also read somewhere (can't remember where right now) that the backcountry at Seymour is some kind of amazing. That's probably the hike up that you can see from the top of Mystery. I may actually consider trying that this year. Woot!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

There's snow predicted from the 12th to the 15th, then a dump of rain on the 16th, then the freezing level dips for more snow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Cypress has announced opening day is Wednesday the 14th. Of course Grouse immediately announced Tuesday the 13th. Seymour as usual is silent.

The snow predictions are looking better over the next week, but it'd better produce some snow damned quick or there's gonna be trouble.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The situation seems to be improving. It looks like after Wednesday it's going to dump continuously for the next several days. Plus the freezing level is coming down to 1000 or below. If this pans out, this weekend could be the time that the wife and I hike up for some early runs. Sweet!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just some observations and comments, while hopping from foot to foot waiting for the season and the snow.

1. Snow
The snow-forecast predictions are looking good. The predicted snow dump moved from Wednesday to Friday, but it's predicting snow right off the end of the 6-day forecast. There's a period of rain or two, but that keeps fading in and out. This is really going down to the wire though.

2. Last season
So I've been bitching and moaning about the poor season last year and how I didn't get anything done. But last night I reviewed all my Contour vids (as part of my hopping-from-foot-to-foot protocol) and it turns out I actually did advance quite a bit last year. My park abilities improved hugely (from zero :laugh: ), my carving, balance, and control improved, and my aggresiveness improved -- although mostly in the last month. So no more whining, eh.

3. Based on this, couple of additions to my goals for the season:

a) Get over myself.
b) Be more concerned about having fun.

4. On a slightly different subject, I've found a local gymnastics club that will give private trampoline lessons. Have to arrange schedule with the wife, but I'm going to go for it. Can't hurt, unless I fall on my head.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Despite the optimism of my previous post, it has NOT been snowing. Every day the snow-forecast website shows snow starting tomorrow. And every tomorrow, nothing happens. But finally, the Seymour website is showing 18cm of new and still snowing. And the snow-forecast website shows this continuing into the indefinite future with only a small bump up in 2 days.

But this is the 21st of November, and last year they OPENED on the 25th. Granted this doesn't necessarily say anything about how the season is going to go, but logic isn't helping right now. I want to punch something.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Didn't happen. As of the 21st, we're just finally starting to get something.


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## herzogone (Oct 19, 2010)

Ugh. I can sympathize (actually, I'm jealous). My home hill about a week ago announced their intentions to open on November 23, but it warmed up just enough that they just announced today they are now aiming for December 1. Our only natural snow melted weeks ago, and now it's too warm to make it. It's been worse since I've usually started my season by now with a trip or two to Killington, but money has been tight so I'm dying for my local place to open. 

On a positive note, you inspire me. I didn't discover snowboarding until age 33, and most of the others who started as "late" as me don't ride park, so the fact that you're older than me and hitting the park gives me hope. I hope that didn't come across as implying you're old, it just seems that around here people have the attitude that the park is for people in their teens and twenties, or old vets who have been shredding for decades.

Thanks for getting the blog text fixed, it actually caused me to read your blog, and I might use the feature myself now. Stay stoked, hopefully, this season will be better than last!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Had my first trampoline training session today. I guess I had some kind of fantasy that I'd be doing inverts first day. :laugh: Yeah, reality sux. Today I learned to bounce up and down without leaving the trampoline entirely. I learned to land without locking my knees (bad. Very bad.) I also learned a few _useful_ things, like how to do a 360 without throwing my shoulder downwards and going off-axis. And I learned how to "throw" a 360 with far less effort than I've been putting into it -- just a matter of practice, as it turns out. Who knew?

Anyway, I think it's well worth the effort. Between desensitization to height, improving my balance and ability to recover, and just getting a general feel for the timing, I think I'm going to get good value out of this. And it was fun.

I think I took the instructor by surprise. He didn't really seem to expect me to really know snowboarding. And he seemed to be really working to come up with snowboarding-related exercises. He says he'll study up for next week. I personally don't really mind. I'm capable of taking the tramp training and applying it myself.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's Nov 30th. 1 day to snowboarding season, according to my whiteboard. Yeah, mmm, not happening. There's _less_ snow on the mountain right now than there was at the end of October. I'll admit, if the season turns into a really great one like my very first season, I'll be ok with this crappy start. In fact, I'd be happy to start Dec 15th if it meant a really great snow season instead of a mediocre one. Unfortunately the way reality works, you get the worst of both. Sigh.

Now mind you, snow-forecast.com is showing constant snow for the next week. But I've mentioned before how well those predictions seem to be working out.

Yeah, I'm kind of down right now. I'm anticipating my personal best season ever, but this is not an auspicious start.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

NONE of these predictions really panned out. There've been a few small snowfalls, but as of Nov 30th, Seymour is all but bare.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went to my second trampoline training session today, and we finally did some inverts. OK, don't get excited, it was just front flips into the foam pit. But wow, I'm kind of amazed at how hard it was to do the first couple. But I can see how the progression goes. You start out just kind of falling into a flip, then gradually start jumping more and more into a larger flip. I expect we'll probably be doing backflips next session.

We also worked on 360's without the trampoline, on an inclined pad. That's kind of the opposite of a trampoline, because not only is there no bounce, but the pad absorbs some of the energy of the jump and makes it harder.

I got frontside 540s going on the trampoline. Took a bit of work. I had trouble getting past 360, so the instructor got me to jump 450s a few times, then graduate another quarter turn. Worked out quite well. Try doing THAT on a real jump. 

So I can sure tell where my issues are, and I'm happy to be working them out in the gym instead of on the slopes getting creamed on the jumps. :laugh:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went snowshoeing on Seymour today with basement dog. The website reported a dump of about 18cm, so I brought snowshoes just in case. Good thing, too. There was a fresh blanket of real snow -- the good kind, just packable enough for light snowballs but not mushy at all. I went up Manning to the point where the Brockton exit merges. They've reshaped that whole area to make it less of a bottleneck and to allow people coming out Brockton to hopefully make it all the way out without having to "get out and push".

Anyway, the important thing is that there's snow, and more is coming. I think with a foot or two more, the cats would be able to spread it out enough to open. Could we actually be looking at opening this weekend?

Please?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

And finally. We had about a foot of new snow in the last 24 hrs. I had said before that that's about all we'd need, and I was right. Seymour has announced opening day tomorrow, Dec 7th. :eusa_clap: Only a week late. And it's not going to be much of a base, so I think I'll be using the old Ride the first couple of times up.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went up today -- second day of the season for Seymour, and the first day for me. The website said they'd be opening at 9:30, but I got there just after 9 and they were already loading people up.

The new Mystery chair is great. Just like the Whistler chairs, it slows right down at the bottom and the top, and just zooms along in the middle. It wasn't actually running twice as fast as the old one, but someone assured me that yesterday it had been running faster. The chair doesn't have ski rests, which is a relatively minor nit, but I did hear several people commenting on that. If the mountain gets enough feedback on that, they might just add them later.

The new lift setup includes singles lines, which I think is a great improvement. Despite the place being crazy busy for half the day, I never had to wait more than 10 minutes. However, the 4-into-1 layout of the lines means that they have to have full-time staff shepherding (and sometimes refereeing) the merging.

The snow is great. Somehow the snow that fell this week managed to be the good kind, soft and fluffy and not mushy. And it hasn't been compressed to snowcrete. Probably just as well today.

I said I was going to be more aggressive this year, and so far I'm living up to it. I started attacking side hits right away, went after runs like Earls and Friendly, and wiped out a whole bunch of times. :laugh: Earls and Friendly are basically moon landscapes right now, and I don't really have my snowboarding legs back. Among my more spectacular wipe-outs, I had one total ragdoll coming down into Friendly and one yard sale on Manning where I wiped out so hard that I knocked the camera mount right off my helmet :dizzy: .

I also had some trouble with the side jump on Manning. Wiped out at least half the times I hit it. To my defense, it's more of a drop than a jump right now, and has exposed rocks that I have to avoid.

The Mushroom park had a couple of basic boxes. I hit one of them once just for the hellovit. They have these big wide pipes set up in several places, and a roller-type jump in Northlands. I'm hitting that regularly to try to get desensitized early.

And lastly, the contouring that they've done at the top of Mystery is great. You don't have to go uphill to get to the Northlands run, and there's lots of room (and a gentle slope) coming off the lift. Of course people haven't quite clued in to that yet, and they're still congregating quite close to the lift. The other place that's been contoured is the bottleneck where Manning, the Brockton exit, and Noel's Flight come together. That's been well done, and thankfully it leaves the side hill intact.

I hit the slopes constantly from 9am until 1:30 or so, then had some thought of going to the bunny slope and practicing techniques. Unfortunately by that point my legs were burning (out of shape -- shit!) and I just couldn't get it together. After a couple of embarrasing attempts (wiping out on the bunny slope ferchrissake), I gave it up and went home.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First, an update since last post. It's been snowing on the mountain pretty much every day for the last 2 weeks, and the freezing level has stayed down so nothing is melting and there's no rain. More on this when I get to today on the mountain, but let me just say: wow!

So anyway, last week was really hard on the old bod. I was sore for days, including some very sore stomach muscles from having to dig myself out of several slams into deep snow. By this weekend I was feeling ok, so I went to my tramp lesson as usual. Unfortunately doing flips into the foam pit kind of re-stressed my abdominal muscles. I had to cut the flips short and work on grabs instead. Now I have to get a bounce board for sure -- grabbing my instep just doesn't cut it. One good thing -- I'm finding that I can now consciously see the whole rotation on a 360. Previously it was just a blur.

So, on to today's session on the mountain. First, I have already apologized to Ullr on the forum for my snit over previous weeks, and I'll take this opportunity to apologize again. The snow was INCREDIBLE! This is the cold, dry, crumbly stuff that flies up when you slash through it, that doesn't stick to you and get you wet. And the levels are about the same as mid-January last year. If we get another foot or two, we'll be better off than any time last season.

The abdominal strain was still kind of bugging me, so I couldn't go full gonzo on anything that involves popping or ollies. Nevertheless, I hit Petes Run at full speed several times, climbed the sides of the runs constantly, and worked on my steeps handling on Unicorn. I have a tendency to wash out heelside in the early season, and I did that several times today. But I'm well ahead of where I was last year at this point, even though I have 2 weeks less season so far.

The new Mystery Chair continues to impress. I'm finding that I'm able to get about twice as many runs in any given hour. And with less resting time between runs.... oh, wait. That's why my legs were killing me by 1pm. D'oh! Looks like I'm going to have to get back to the gym on a regular basis. 

They have built a small jump on Northlands that's just barely not a tabletop. That's the big disappointment of the day -- I just couldn't risk it with the abdominal issue. I hope it's there next week in the same configuration. It's _perfect_ for starting on jumps.

On other fronts, I did Earls (successfully) several times and Boomerang (unsuccessfully) once. Boomerang just doesn't have the slope to get you through that much new snow. Oh well. And I even started working on my switch riding today.

All in all, this was a great day, even with the injury limiting my options. We're hoping to go again Wednesday evening, and planning on going Friday evening. Should be a great week.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just a short update... As of right now, Seymour has received 411 cm of snow this season. I think the average for an entire season is about 1000 cm. So mid-December we're almost halfway there, and the forecast for the rest of this week is for more dumpage. I need to sacrifice something to Ullr! Maybe my neighbour's dog... 

Seriously, I hope I'm not jinxing this with all the gloating and capering about, but this could end up being a fantastic season!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just an update -- that actually is the way it's shaping up. The snow level (and quality) is fantastic, and I'm more than happy with the tradeoff.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Update: As of Friday afternoon, 501 cm total. We've hit half our full-season average. Holy shit.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I might be jinxing things with the title, but right now it's really looking like a great season shaping up.

As of this morning, Seymour is at 541 cm and there's still more snow coming. I think they'll be well over 600 by the end of December. Woo-hah! I had a short discussion with a liftie at the bottom of Lodge Chair about that. Everyone seems to be excited about the snowpack. (No shit, Sherlock)

The tramp lessons are on hiatus until Jan 12th, so Saturdays are free for the moment. So I went up for the day yesterday (Saturday). It was overcast but clear visibility first thing. Started snowing about 10am and never let up. That was great, new snow was being laid down as fast as we could track out the old stuff.

And what a lot of old stuff! :laugh: Chucks is almost completely open now. There's one small section still roped off near the bottom, but that's mostly because a fairly big creek runs right there. I think they're just being cautious. All the runs are open except Mystery Lake, which is no loss IMO. Why they ever created that abortion of a run is beyond me.

My abdominal pull is no longer bothering me, so I didn't have any concerns about what I could or couldn't do -- except the obvious concern about staying alive.  Unfortunately the Seymour park crews did exactly what I expected them to, and mowed down the nice tabletop jump in Northlands in favour of a couple of ridiculously large monsters. I think I saw half a dozen people hit those things all day. I'm going to write an email to the park manager. Maybe I can get something done. Right now there are just two insipid flat boxes in Mushroom for beginners. Bleah! On that subject, I hit those a couple of times but I'm not challenged by them any more. How times change! :laugh:

So I'm now doing runs like Pete's and Boomerang at full speed now with no problems, climbing the sides on Manning and Unicorn, and hitting the side jump on Manning with increasing confidence. Granted it's a bit more mellow and the rocks are covered over now, but I'm getting my jumping balance back at least on small stuff. Kind of important as that's one area I don't want to get ahead of myself on.

I'm concentrating more on steeps right now. I hit Earls and Noels multiple times. Noels is a bit scary because it's steep, narrow, and very mogully. Earls is steep and narrow but until it gets tracked out it's pretty smooth. I made a point of working on the technical aspects of my C turns based on the lesson I took end of last season, and towards midday I did one absolutely perfect descent. Felt so good I actually yelled out loud! I'm sure I'l club on it some more, but now I know I _can_ do it and I know _what_ I need to do. Nailed.

Compressor is almost built up enough to be usable. There were some tracks of people who'd tried it, but there were also a fair number of craters from those attempts, so I think maybe not yet... 

I still haven't gone down Friendly, or Sunshine Ridge, or the steep connecting Northlands and Velvet. Next time maybe.

I need to rave about the new Mystery chair again. On a couple of occasions, I arrived at the bottom, rode through the singles line, and got put directly onto a chair. Sombitch, no wonder my legs are burning by midday!

Anyway, bottom line, I think I'm done the warmup. There's enough snow, and it's soft enough, and I'm on my game enough. I'm going to put a list on my phone for things to do next time up. Time to get going! I'm also going to put in for a week's vacation ASAP. Can't waste this opportunity.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I put together that list. This is a short term to-do list rather than a seasonal goals list.

- Boardslides on the flat boxes
- Ollies and nollies
- Butters
- Pretzels
- 180s off side hits
- Ally oops
- Hit compressor & steeps
- Hit Sunshine Ridge
- Check out the Pit features
- Do Noel's a LOT.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

More:

I emailed the mountain, attn park manager, and actually got an answer back the next day. I'm just blown away that he even answered, but he also promised to address my concerns. Probably not in time for Wednesday (Boxing Day), but in time for the weekend. Super stoked now!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We went to Seymour Wednesday afternoon for an afternoon/evening session. I had originally intended to take the bus up first thing in the morning, then meet the family when they came up later. Should have stuck with that. There was some new snow early in the day, but by the time we got there at 4pm it was snowcrete. Plus there was a constant light drizzle, the kind that keeps your goggles just fogged up enough so that you can't see where you're going. I am truly amazed at how much difference that makes, too. I was crashing in situations that I should be totally comfortable with by now. Got so frustrated that when the family started calling for a dinner break, I was all for it.

By the time we got out of the restaurant, the drizzle had turned to a light but constant snow. MUCH better. Suddenly my riding was much improved. I started looking for side hits, doing switch riding, even practicing ollies. It looked to be turning into a pretty good evening. Finally we'd had enough and we called last run. And there's the lesson: *NEVER CALL LAST RUN!!!!!!* At the top of the Lodge chair, some idiot fell getting off and just lay there. Then my wife fell while trying to avoid him and hurt her ribs. We ended up having to go to emergency to get her x-rays (just bruised ribs in the end). So now my wife is spitting nails because she'll be out of it for a couple of weeks. The real problem though is that the liftie didn't shut down the lift when he should have. My daughter and her friend came off the lift behind us and they just ran right over the guy, who was still sitting there being Mr Stunned.

Anyway, I think I'm just going to have to accept that I don't do well on snowcrete or in rain. It may be partly psychological, but there's a fair bit of physical component there. So when we get those conditions, I'm just going to have to adjust my riding expectations.

And as a BTW, the Seymour park crew hasn't changed anything yet. Hopefully there's some joy by the weekend.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went to Seymour this morning with all the stoke in the world, impatient to see what the park crew had set up in Mushroom -- and anything else new that they've thrown in. Wow, what a total letdown. They pulled the two flat boxes from Mushroom, put them on the transition to Lodge, and replaced them with -- get this -- two rollers. Yep, that's Mushroom, the beginner park. Two rollers. Whoopedy-fucking-do. Oh, they added a ride-on rail at the end of the two flat-boxes, except what they did was put in a 4-foot-high rail and build a ramp onto it. For someone who has never been on a rail, this is still potentially a pelvis-busting setup. These guys REALLY DO NOT understand what "beginner features" are. Fuck. Well, maybe sometime this season they'll do something interesting just out of boredom. Or maybe I'll just go to Grouse.

Anyway, the disappointment with the park stuff really soured the day for me. I could have gotten over it if it was a great day otherwise, but no such luck. Little or no new snow, heavy fog, and large crowds of people packing down what was already there. The Mystery chair really keeps up with the crowds, but it also means you can get a lot more time on the snow, turning it into snowcrete.

The fog did start to break about mid-day up on Brockton, and I got in a couple of fun runs before it socked back in. Finally left about 2pm.

One thing I found interesting. During one of those runs on Brockton, I started behind a group of snowboarders. They eventually left me behind, but for the few minutes that I was more-or-less keeping up with them, I had a blast AND I learned a new trick on side hits. I obviously need to ride with other people more often.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

New years day today, and I managed to get up the mountain for opening time. Surprisingly uncrowded, and I was able to get my favorite parking spot. It was totally blue sky this morning, and cold. The snow was pretty crisp, and I wouldn't want to pratfall on it, but it wasn't snowcrete.

I got a very pleasant surprise on Lodge. The park crew added a couple of jumps in the Young Guns area, just the right size for beginners. Actually just slightly larger than what I'd consider comfortable, which is ideal really. To my uneducated eye, they look like a 20' and a 25', both relatively mellow. I wasn't quite up to hitting the bigger one today, but I hit the first one a number of times.

They haven't done anything with Mushroom or with the box/rail line, but at least today they were groomed properly. I wore most of my protective gear today, and was actually considering trying the rail. Maybe on the weekend.

I spent some time today trying to follow other people or groups on runs. Most of the time I ended up behinds groups that were slower than me and/or didn't do much interesting. But one guy I followed down Unicorn was worth the trip. His technique wasn't great, i.e. he didn't look steezy at all, but he went down the run faster than I'm comfortable with. But I followed and survived.

My other big improvement today was on C turns on steeps. I took Snowolf's advice and tried shifting my weight back on heelside turns and it made a significant difference.

Anyway, just under 5 hours boarding with no lunch break and my legs were ok. Guess I'm getting in shape.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just a comment on the jumps: the 20' is a step-over and the 25' is a step-down. A step-down is actually easier to clear, but for some reason I find them more intimidating. I think because I can "see" the drop.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I got up to Seymour today before opening. It wasn't an auspicious start. The fog was as thick as I've ever seen it. And by which I mean I actually could hardly make out the snow under my feet, let alone anything that was coming at me. In addition, there was a thin layer of new snow over top of refrozen lunar landscape. However, it was snowing, and it kept snowing, and by 11am the fog lifted. Made for a much better time.

I discovered (or confirmed) a couple of issues with my snowboarding style. In a couple of cases where I stalked er followed another snowboarder who was better than me, they inevitably took a more direct line down the mountain. And when I followed their line, it was much easier. So I started trying to be less tentative when picking my own line. I tend to go across the fall line more than I really need to in order to scrub speed. 

I also noticed very distinctly today that my biggest problem with my heelsides on steeps is that I turn much farther -- in some case to slightly uphill. Definitely need to fix that. Another issue I have is with turns to toeside. On _real_ steep or narrow terrain, I have a failure to commit my upper body which results in a failure to easily initiate the turn.

Today was a busy day on the mountain. Interestingly, that's only a problem on Lodge. Mystery is easily able to keep up with the crowds, but the Lodge chair was backed up something ridiculous. Oh, and those two really nice jumps they put up in Young Guns? Gone. Of course. On the other hand, the first jump on Northlands had been trimmed down to something fairly mellow. And honestly, if I'd had to keep using the Lodge chair to get my jumping fix, I'd have gone insane. So a net win, I guess.

The biggest win of the day though, was the Pete's Run tree run. While I was stalking er following another snowboarder, he went off the Pete's Run path and into the trees. I followed him and discovered Nirvana. This tree run branches in quite a few places, so there's variety available. And it's technically challenging, not just _narrow_. I tried it a half-dozen times, finally making it thorugh without crashing on the last couple of attempts. The best part though, was on the last try I really mastered tail-braking. It's the same feeling you get the first time you hit a jump or a feature or some new trick.

I left about 2pm, legs sore as usual, but not in agony. Excellent day.

Tree run:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was a beautiful blue-sky day. Unfortunately it was a COLD day, with no recent snow. This meant that the snow was hard as rock. Definitely not the day for trying anything, and I mean ANYTHING. Even trying the tree run through Pete's almost got me killed.

After a couple of runs I started to wonder if part of my problem might be dull edges. After all, I've _never_ had the Heritage sharpened. So I took it to the Seymour shop, and $20 and 15 minutes later I had new edges. I wouldn't say the difference was dramatic, but I certainly noticed. It also gave me yet more to think about with my heelside turns. I _think_ that when I do a heelside it's less of a turn and more of a braking maneuvre. Again, I'm trying to concentrate on making the shape of my heelside the same as the shape of my toeside.

Since I was paying attention to these things today, I decided to fool around with my highback angles as well. Turns out my trailing leg had more lean than my lead leg. Adjusted things, and felt the difference there too.

Couple of interesting changes to Seymour -- they've added a small side path to Unicorn just above the Goldie intersection. They've also added a new side path to part of Pete's. With the snow today, I wasn't really motivated to try either one as they'd likely require full-bore bombing to get through.

On Chuck's, they've finally opened the bottom area completely. They've also put a pyramid jump in the beginner park area (near the boxes and rail). Again, something I'd like to try when the snow's a little less, um, concrete-like.

Snow-forecast.com is showing a massive bump up to over 3000m on Monday. This would be horrible news if there was precip in the forecast, but they're predicting sunshine. So it's basically going to be spring conditions for a few days.

For today, though, bleah. Ended up leaving at noon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I woke up this morning to SNOW in my back yard, with more coming down. This was totally unexpected, as even as late as yesterday there was no mention of this. Alas, when I got to the mountain I discovered that we were getting far more snow in the city than on the mountain. Argh! On the plus side, the temps have come up since the other day to the point where the snow is snow again (at least the first inch or two) instead of concrete. Not saying it was _great_, just an improvement.

Nevertheless, it was too hard for all-out charging around and it was foggy again, so I was in the process of getting kind of bummed. Instead I decided to work on techniques and switch riding. That actually ended up working out quite well. By the time I left today I was making real progress.

I started by making a point of doing an ollie or two on every run. I would start each run on Mushroom, either doing spins or hitting the rollers. I eventually graduated from the spins to a frontside tail butter. When hitting rollers, I started doing 180s on the first one, but I wasn't quite ready to do the second 180. I even managed a couple of bad sameways. I also hit the first box fairly regularly. I noticed today that I have the same tendency come off the box heavily heelside as with landing jumps.

Once through the park I tried to do the rest of Chucks riding switch as much as possible.

Anyway, all techiques showed significant improvement in just the one session, so with 2 weeks vacation I should be able to really get this aced. Maybe even get the other butter variations, linked 180s, and pretzels.

All in all, ended up being a pretty good day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was like yesterday, only less so. Less fog, less cold, less hard. All good news 

Today's menu consisted of more of the same. Spent almost the entire day on Chuck's and Mushroom, practicing. Gotta say, practice is a great invention.

Butters: frontside tail butters, nailed. Actually doing them better than I was last year. Time to start the backsides.

180s: pretty much where I was last year. Cab 180s, not quite yet. Still pretty shakey. I'm aiming for being able to do 180, cab180 on the rollers in Mushroom, but the steep slope after the second roller is still freaking me a little.

Sameways: I can kind of do them, but I keep reverting. Just needs more practice. I'm not pre-winding the jump enough.

Ollies: I've just about got the mechanics. About half of my attempts feel like a real spring. Little more practice, then I have to start trying to ollie over things, like maybe small death cookies at first.

Switch riding: Doing very well. Better than last year, in fact. I can link turns and I'm starting to get aggressive. Still green run level, though. I'll have to try it on Manning and Northlands.

I did the boxes a couple of times, but I also watched a couple of bad wipeouts in the beginner park today, which kind of took the shine off the idea for me. I also watched a guy overshoot the landing on the jump in Young Guns. I actually heard him yell in fear (or something) as he came in to land. I'm not really surprised, though. That jump has a very steep and short landing area, coupled with a very horizontal launch. So it's really not hard to shoot out past the landing slope.

Anyway, short day today. But it was very satisfying. I'll be doing more of the same until the snow softens up in general, then maybe start hitting the Northlands jumps.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

That butt-plant turned into a lingering tail-bone injury that continued to bother me for a couple of months, and affected the rest of my season. Jeez, it's amazing how one second of inattention can do you in.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The inversion is theoretically settled in over us now. Temps were up a little today, but it's not like armageddon. The only real difference is that it was sunny for most of the day on Mystery, while foggy on Lodge. The snow was somewhat softer, although the tree run through Pete's was still pretty heinous.

Because of the fog issue, I spent most of today on the top half. This was fine though, as I took the opportunity to try some of the different paths through Friendly Nut House. Didn't really do a lot special today; just continued to work on some of the techniques. I actually pulled of a couple of semi-good sameways, ad-libbed butters a couple of times, and I'm getting pretty good at ollies.

One interesting item is the side slope at the bottom of Manning. They pushed up the snow using a snow cat so it's a proper hit now. I went right to vertical a couple of times and actually pulled off a couple of good ally-oops.

Taking tomorrow off to get some stuff done. Vacation resumes on Friday.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I stayed home during the day yesterday to get stuff done, picked up my daughter, then headed up to Seymour for some night riding. It was basically the same conditions as the last couple of days -- around freezing, hardpack with a thin covering of softer stuff. No fog this time around, which was nice.

I did a couple of runs off Mystery, including one on Pete's before they closed it for the evening. But let's face it, when the snow's like that it's just basic downhilling. Not very engaging. So once again, I headed for Lodge to work on small techniques. Switch riding, ollies, 180s, butters, sameways and pretzels.

The switch riding is just basically something I need to keep practicing now. Move gradually from greens to blues. I did a couple of switch runs down Manning and was fine with it.

Ollies, 180s, just keep practicing. Still shaky, but progressing. Sameways, some progress. Pretzels turn out to be a lot harder than sameways, I think because of the way you prewind and release. Weird, didn't expect that. But I thoroughly suck at pretzels.

I'm very happy with progress on butters though. The frontsides are at the point where I can adlib them anywhere (within reason), and I actually started on the backsides. Only managed 360 before I had to bail, but it's a good start.

On one of the times I was going up the Mystery chair, I saw a guy overshoot the third jump in Northlands. He wasn't going that fast, really. But the third jump and the remaining small jump in Young Guns have the same problem -- a horizontal launch combined with a very steep landing area means you can launch yourself right past the landing. I really am starting to wonder about the park crew.

I'm going to be going to Cypress next Wednesday, and I'll make a point of visiting their setups. That'll maybe give me a bit of perspective. But both Grouse and Whistler pay more attention to beginner stuff than Seymour does.

Left after a couple of hours, satisfied with the evening.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I think today was the first day that the temp inversion really kicked in for Seymour. As I went up the Mystery chair for my first run of the day, I could swear that the air was getting _warmer_ as we went up!

The snow started out a bit scritchy, but by midmorning it was getting that soft spring-snow feel, with a 4-6" thick layer of ground-up snow on top. Some areas, like Pete's tree run, never softened up, but most of the mountain turned out real fine.

Anyway, since it's a weekend, the mountain was very busy. Actually, it felt christmas-holidays busy. I think a lot of people decided to come out today to enjoy the warm weather and sunny skies. The problem, of course, is that Lodge chair just gets packed when it's that busy. And there's nothing about Lodge that justifies a 20-minute wait. So other than a couple of runs down Unicorn, I stayed on the top half today.

I continue to work on some of my techniques, but they really didn't get much of a workout today -- except butters, which I'm starting to throw just about anywhere. The next thing I'm going to start on (from the 29 ground tricks vid) is "Nollie to tailpress + 180 out". Tried the nollie today and I suck, but you have to start somewhere.

I did a lot of runs today. Worked on the ally-oops on the side hit at the bottom of Manning. I'm now doing frontside 180s out, which I wasn't able to manage before (go figure). I also hit the side jump halfway down, and I'm not off-balance on that any more. So, time to start hitting the 20-footers I think.

The big win today though was C-turns on Unicorn. I know I've called my C-turns nailed, but I still have had a problem turning to toe-side (like most people). Today I made a point of leaning downhill to initiate the turn, and I have to say the turn _immediately_ felt better and more fluid. In fact _all_ my turns felt better today.

Another kind of smaller win today happened on Manning where I'm always hitting the big side hill. I had to dodge some slackers that were sitting in all the wrong places and I ended up in the dreaded heelside spiral. This is where I'm going heelside and basically falling over and I can't stop myself because I can't seem to get a turn going. But today for some reason I figured it out and I managed to save the heelside and stay up. Doesn't sound like much in print, but it felt like a big thing today.

So, going to be going every day this week. And hopefully we'll get some new snow starting Tuesday or Wednesday. Sure as hell need it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was more of the same. This time I brought my hoodie and I wore that for the entire day. WAY too warm for a snowboard jacket, even with every zipper open.

The big difference between today and yesterday is the crowds. That's a good news/bad news thing though. The good news is I didn't have to wait for lifts today. The bad news is that without all those people grinding away at the hardpack, we didn't get the several-inches-deep crush -- which isn't as good as real snow, but is a damned sight better than straight hardpack. So the runs weren't as much fun. Plus hardpack increases the chances of edge catches, as I found out today. At least I'm advanced enough to be able to recover from those now.

I still spent most of my time on the top half though. Today I did my practice techniques on the flatter parts of Manning, either at the top or 1/3 way down or 2/3 way down.

In an earlier post I mentioned that when I catch an edge while buttering, it's always heel edge for a butt-plant. Well, today I caught toe-edge for a scorpion. I prefer the heel-edge, I think. Scorpions _hurt!_ I was having a little trouble with them for a bit this morning until I realized I wasn't pre-winding my upper body. Makes a _huge_ difference.

Anyway, butters (at least tail butters) are now in the "continued practice" category. I also started doing the nollie to tailpress today. Took me a few tries to get the nollie going, but it turned out to be really easy. Can't get the 180 from tailpress yet, but I just need to try that a few times on a flat to get the feel.

Anyway, I left earlier than I really had to. I've about had it with the current conditions. That snow the next couple of days had better materialize.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Probably overusing that title, but I may have to retire it now. I went up to Cypress today with poutanen, timmytard, and kung-pow. It was wet snow verging on rain at the beginning of the day, but changed to proper snow and stayed like that (and kept snowing) all day. Just the same, by the end of the day I was soaked through and through -- gloves, jacket, pants, even the inside of my helmet. :laugh:

TT knows Cypress quite well, so right away I was getting a better experience than my day on Cypress last year. We did some tree runs, some regular runs, and we discovered (almost by accident) the beginner park.

The open runs were good, but runs are runs. The tree runs though were a fair bit steeper than I've ever done before, so I spent a lot of time butt-planting. I really have to get that heelside washout under control. I'm pretty sure it's a fear thing, although the ice under the new snow certainly wasn't helping  . We also at one point ended up skirting along the top of a VERY steep cliff-like section. Eek!

The best time of all though was the beginner park. We were all enthusiastic about it. Poutanen was saying that he has exactly the same problem with his local hills as I do with Seymour -- not nearly enough attention paid to beginner park features. Anyway, the park had a couple of nice jumps, a hip jump, some ride-on boxes (including an up-flat-down), a rainbox box, and a ride-on rail. So I've FINALLY done a rail. Wasn't bad. I could probably try the one on Seymour now, especially if the new snow builds up and provides a softer landing. We hit the park several times, and if there'd been time we'd have done that some more.

Riding with others who are better than me was definitely a learning experience. I was forced to point a little more directly downhill than I'm used to, and go down runs that I might have otherwise bypassed. 

The only thing that pissed me off about the day (other than having to leave before closing) was that most of my helmet videos simply didn't turn out. The weather was just junky enough to coat the lens every time, even when I cleaned it.

One last thing, and I was a little surprised by this. When you're coordinating four people on runs, there's inevitably some sit-and-wait. As a result, I didn't get nearly as tired as I would on a similar day at Seymour. So, maybe I should just take some sit-time at Seymour on every other run, in order to last longer.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went to Seymour today. It's nice to have new snow, finally. We also had fog first thing in the morning, so thick that I couldn't see the lift chair ahead of me. Fortunately it cleared up mid-morning. Also snowed all morning, so hopefully it'll build up for tomorrow.

I didn't have a long or hard day today, just cruised around and tried different things. I did the steep off compressor a couple of times -- you know the snow's good when you can do that one without just sliding all the way down on your butt. I also did Pete's Tree run, and it worked reasonably well. I also did Seymour 16s, which was pretty close to untouched.

I had a couple more heelside washouts. I think I'm going to try leaning the highbacks in a little more, see how that does.

Vacation's almost over, getting a little sad.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was Seymour day with poutanen. Sure could have picked a better snow day -- it snowed the last couple of days, but the temps have been fluctuating and today we had a thin crust over really wet heavy poo. Made for some weird riding. My normal riding technique would just bury the nose edge-in all the time. Poutanen told me to go more tail-heavy, but I just couldn't! Too much indoctrination. :laugh:

Anyway, we hit most of the runs on the mountain at least once, then concentrated on a few that had stuff we liked. Poutanen developed an unhealthy obsession with the bottom end of Towerline, and I developed an illicit relationship with a side kicker on Gun Barrel.

But riding with someone who is better than me pushed me out of my comfort zone. I rode areas that I have been avoiding, like the steep from Northlands to Velvel Gully, and Cliff House. Crashed some, too.

Meanwhile in other news, I'd sent an email to the Mt Seymour park manager this morning, hoping to get some new features suitable for beginners. Got a response today and sent a riposte. Maybe we'll get somewhere this round.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today is the last day of vacation. It's been a pretty good two weeks, but I've noticed that I'm a bit sore in places. Discovered a real beauty of a bruise on my right tricep, and I still don't know how I managed that. My piriformis was acting up a bit this morning, and my knees are letting me know they're there. Hmmph. Crybabies. Snowboarding time.

Anyway, it was foggy and lightly snowing this morning when I got to the mountain. Over the course of the day the fog got lighter and the snow got heavier. Excellent. And relatively light crowds for a weekend. Seems that people don't like to come to the mountain unless it's sunny. Oh, well, their loss is my extra laps.

The day didn't start out great. I went up the Mystery chair, came down Northlands intending to go down Unicorn and check out the 411 on Lodge, and discovered that Unicorn is still closed from the competition yesterday. Argh! So I went to hit the little kicker on Gun Barrel and discovered that it'd been tracked and compressed to death. Unusable. So by this point I'm working up to a real foul mood and actually considering just saying fukit and leaving. Fortunately I decided to just hit Lodge a few times and maybe check out the small Young Guns jump. Good plan! The jump had mellowed to the point where even a knuckle landing wasn't that bad. I think I hit the jump 20-30 times over the course of the day. For the first part of the day I couldn't clear the knuckle though. Even when I stopped speed-checking entirely (which is hard for me, being such a wuss) and tried popping, I couldn't manage it. Finally I remembered some advice from the forum to compress at the tranny and extend smoothly from there to the lip. Tried it, and it was like magic! Never knuckled again. I've still got a lot of work to do with jumps, but I think I'm over the basic fear. I could even do the top Northlands jump regularly now, I think.

On one ride up the lift, I was seated with one of the Park staff -- admin or management, I think -- and we got to talking about the beginner park. I pointed out that people were bypassing the rail, and opined that it's because it's too tall. He thanked me for the feedback and said he'd pass it on. So maybe between my emails and my random nagging, something will get done. I could have just about done the rail anyway today, but was too busy on the jump. Well, maybe next time. At least I'm not feeling bored with Seymour any more.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, that's right. That's what I'm saying! I got up to Seymour this morning and after the standard two runs down from Mystery, I decided to check if there's anything new to be seen. I did a run first through Mushroom, and discovered that they've build up the rollers and added a hip jump. OK, but not riveting. They've built up the rollers in the beginner park line as well, and cleaned up the table-top/hip-jump track. No change on the two boxes and the rail, though.

On my second run, I went to check out the small jump that I was hitting last weekend. It's still there, but I discovered below it a whole new line of jumps. Awesome. There's a roller, then a couple of small (10-15 ft) jumps, then a table-top. It took a few tries to get through the whole line at one time, but I eventually got it, also adding the quarter-pipe wall after the first jump.

On that subject, I tried the advice that I got from Snowolf on the quarter pipe, and abracadabra, turns out it works there too. First time I tried it I did an almost completely effortless ally-oop. Of course I cratered a whole bunch of attempts after that, but that's pretty typical.

Anyway, important thing is the jump line. Undoubtedly the park crew will change it up a few times (they seem kind of easily bored that way) so it's going to be a major part of my snowboarding day for the next while.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's the "Family Day" weekend, and Seymour has announced that they'll be giving 25% off lift tickets and some lessons on Monday. Based on that, I figured Sunday was the day to go. I don't know yet how bad Monday (today) will be, but Sunday was great. It was certainly busy, being a long weekend and good weather, but not _quite_ as bad as it could have been. It was generally sunny, although fog kept rolling in and out all day. Snow was pretty good, groomed but still soft.

So the park crew has, as usual, been busy, but this time for a wonder they _didn't_ plow under anything that I liked. They've replaced the rail in Mushroom with an oval box, but since I'm more likely to hit the box that's really a plus. Especially since they didn't seem inclined to lower the rail. I did in fact hit the box a couple of times, but since I wasn't wearing most of my armour today I was reluctant to really get into it.

The jump line had been somewhat re-engineered. For starters, the first roller was turned into a jump. Good move, IMO, I really don't see the point of rollers in a jump line. But they made the jumps REALLY kicky. The third one down I swear was almost vertical at takeoff. I spent quite a bit of time on the jump line. I'm just starting to get over my tendency to undershoot. Actually overshot one or two times. With this line, it's not fatal. 

I'm getting way better with the ally-oops on the quarter pipe, _and_ it's translating to the side hit at the bottom of Manning. It's not nearly so much effort any more. I'm also getting a lot better with my C turns and steeps handling (as long as moguls aren't involved). Feeling pretty good.

The big thing today though -- I decided to book a Next Step lesson. They only run the level 5 Next Step at 3pm, so it was a long day for me. As I suspected might happen, I was the only person in the group. And since I had used my 50% off coupon, I effectively had a private lesson for $30. The instructor was an import -- possibly Kiwi -- which meant I understood about one word in three :huh: but that's pretty inevitable. The big things we worked on were moguls, drops, and tree runs.

We worked on moguls on Noel's. They were fairly deep and heavily cut, so it was definitely a test. I survived all the runs, and Harry gave me some good pointers, but it's going to take practice. For some reason I have this weird unconscious belief that mastering a skill is just a matter of learning some secret technique. Unfortunately reality is that it still requires practice. So over the next couple of sessions I'm going to be hitting Noel's a lot more -- as long as it's not snowcrete of course. :dizzy:

For the drops, we headed towards Earl's then did a hard right just before the first tree well. This brought us to what looked to me like a cliff leading back down to Elevator Shaft. Harry pointed straight down and asked me if I wanted to try this. I smiled and said "sure!" while my brain screamed "ARE YOU FUCKING INSANE????". Harry went first just to prove that it wasn't a practical joke. The first time, I did some falling leaf to reduce the potential plummet. We did the same run a couple more times though, and by the third time I actually straight-lined it all the way. So that's another example of things that I would never try on my own but need to be pushed into.

The third item was tree runs. Harry showed me a tree run off Unicorn that doesn't even have an official name. It's a fair bit steeper than the stuff through Pete's, so it is _definitely_ challenging. I did a lot of falling leaf  and also cratered a few times. That run, like Noels, is going to take a lot of practice to master. I'm a little concerned about taking the tree run alone, though. It's _not_ a well-known run. You could lie there all day without getting discovered...

The only really scary moment the whole day happened when we were bombing the stretch of Unicorn just before the Goldy intersection. As we came over the big (blind) hill, there was a skier hiking up the hill to one side and another skier lying in pool of equipment to the other side. Some quick dodging and loud invective and everyone lived, but Harry was some pissed!

When it came time for the last run of the lesson, I suggested to Harry that we go down Unicorn. Told him to "make it difficult" and I'd follow him. Well, I was _mostly_ able to keep up, but had to cut some corners. I took mental notes of where he went though, and that's _another_ set of things to try in the future.

So all in all this was one of those days that I'm going to remember as an exceptionally good and fun day. I'm also pretty happy with my stamina. No leg burn, full eight-hour day, and could have gone longer. Again, though, next year I have to be a little better prepared for the beginning of the season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Found out the reason for the bruise on the tricep, because I did the same thing again. If I get off the Lodge chair late (usually to avoid someone who is drifting into my landing zone) the left edge of the chair is just the right height when it comes around to smack the back of my arm.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, today had all the cards stacked against it. There's been virtually no snow for the last week; there was a competition scheduled for today in Young Guns; I was "under orders" to keep the day short due to home commitments; and I'm sore from moving a ton of navvy jack yesterday.

But, snowboarding is snowboarding. So up I went. I managed to get 2-3 runs in on the jump line. They've changed it a bit again, gotten rid of the bottom jump to put in some street-style rails for the competition. The competitors were constantly using the jump line as well for warmup and such, so it was difficult to get a line in.

I did a side-by-side comparison with the Drift and Contour cameras. I fully admit the Drift is the favorite -- it would have to totally screw the pooch to lose this eval. And that didn't happen, so now I have to gather my Contour parts and sell the Roam.

I had a small revelation today, and I really don't know why it took me so long to make the connection. I've commented on many occasions that when the snow is crap I don't do as well or try as much. Well, it's been commented on the forum as well that when conditions are shit, you dial it back. So it's not just me, it's just common sense. Duh! OK, I won't whine so much about it.

Anyway, not much happened today. Left around noon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's been snowing pretty regularly for the last couple of days, and now the floodgates have opened. 63 cm so far today, with no signs of slowing. Heavy snow predicted right through the 6-day forecast. I'm going on Monday this "weekend" because of house prep. That hopefully means lots of new snow and no one to compete with!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We've gotten more than a meter of snow in the last 48 hours, and Seymour was closed yesterday due to a power transformer needing emergency repairs (something about a car hitting it). So barring rain, today was destined to be epic.

Apparently everyone else thought so too. I got to the mountain a little before opening to discover a lineup for the Mystery chair that would put a weekend start to shame. Talking to people on the chair, it turns out a lot of people took the day off or developed the 24 hour flu. Cough cough. 

I wasn't first chair, but somehow I managed to get first tracks on Unicorn. Damn, that was great. I actually found a lot of untracked snow over the course of the day, as well as a number of new lines. Among other things, I started hitting the trees between Chucks and 16s. Smacked my face with some branches at one point, but other than that no damage. I also hit Noels a couple of times, and I'm getting better with handling that. I did several cartwheels over the course of the day as well. Snow that deep really takes getting used to.

My high point for the day was my dynamic riding and c turns. I think I've really nailed the techniques, especially the heelside component. No more chatter!

The downside of the day was something I should have expected from experience. When Seymour gets this kind of dumpage, the park crew just throw their hands in the air and give up. The jumps were buried, the features were buried, and they were only just starting to dig out the featurs in the afternoon. That was a little disappointing, but I kept busy enough anyway.

I had to leave by 2pm. On my last run, I fell a couple of times and I was pretty wobbly. Realized I was beat, and that's the time you get injured. So I called it and went home.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We've had a warm front come in and dump buckets of rain starting late yesterday afternoon. Seymour is closed for the day due to weather. Not surprising considering the predicted rainfall. Fortunately I think we've gotten enough snow in the last 10 days or so that the rain will just pack it down and make a more solid base.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up Seymour on Sunday. Not really worth it. Everything was all melty from the torrential downpour a few days previously, and the overnight freeze had left an icy crust over everything. Nothing had been rebuilt. No jumps, no park (except a couple of boxes), no usable offpiste ... Meh. I tried for 3 hours to get something going. Finally left about noon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I had taken today off because my wife was supposed to be going skiing with her school (grade 7 ski lessons). Unfortunately wife has had the flu so couldn't go, but I still had the day off...

Well, the first disappointment is that the Seymour park crew _still_ hasn't rebuilt the beginner jump line. Just 3 pathetic rollers. They had plenty of time of course to rebuild the Young Guns jumps for yet another competition.

So that's it. I'm done with Seymour. They obviously don't give a crap about beginners, so fuck'em. Unfortunately, as my wife has pointed out, Cypress is a zoo on weekends. Also, as I found out checking the website, the seasons pass for the 3 of us would be $1700+ if we bought it before April 15th and $2300+ if we bought it later. I think what I need to do is go on a weekend and see what it's really like. Or just post a question on the forum, I guess.

Anyway, rant done. Now about the day. There was some new snow -- not a lot, but enough to make turning feel somewhat controlled. I actually hit some new highs. I started riding down the steep sections to the right on upper Northlands. I've always eyed them from the chair, but they always looked just a bit too steep. So today, I finally hit that. Especially the part that dumps down into lower Friendly, which was completely untouched -- until I touched it.

I also spent several runs going into the Pete's Run trees. Finally figured out how to go heel/toe/heel/toe dependably in tight quarters. I think that's a skill that's going to pay off in several areas.

I did Noel's a couple of times, but didn't do well. Kept washing out heelside. I think I should try to watch a couple of people handle Noel's properly, then try to duplicate it.

All in all, not a bad day considering. But I'm pretty pissed right now with Seymour.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

For spring break we rented a condo in Snowater for 3 nights. Snowater is the closest accomodation to Baker, and it's still a half-hour drive up to the mountain. The good news is that the drive to Baker from home is overall shorter than Whistler, and Baker is cheaper. The bad news is that cell phone reception is sucky to non-existant.

*Day 1*
Went up with the family. Baker closes chairs 1 & 2 during the week, which reduces the number of greens available. However, Expresso is more than big enough to keep my wife and daughter entertained. Truthfully, they could handle the blues on chair 8 as long as they stuck to the groomed path, so there was never any danger of boredom.

The first surprise was that none of the chairs have safety bars. This was mildly annoying to me as I have a bit of acrophobia. It was of considerably more concern to my wife who is already having chairlift issues since her injury. But we got on and got some good runs in.

*Day 2*
My wife and daughter decided to go to Bellingham for shopping, and I met up with Wrathfuldeity and NWBoarder for a tour of the mountain. First thing I discovered is that these guys are better than me and they like the blacks. And blacks on Baker deserve the name. Very steep and covered with moguls and ruts. It was an eye-opening experience in several ways. First, that I went on these runs and survived. Second, that they _can_ be navigated with the right techniquie. Not that I have that technique yet, but I was able to figure out what it _should_ be.

There was one funny/scary moment early in the day. I fell in a patch of deep new stuff. NWBoarder came up behind me, fell in the same place, and slid into me with his board up. Smacked me right in the forehead. Unfortunately my Drift did not get the video. It looks like one of the batteries that I got with the camera has no life left. Lost almost all the videos from the day.

*Day 3*
On my own for the day. Wife and daughter decided to stay at the condo and enjoy the amenities. Well, vacation doesn't mean the same to everyone  . Yesterday I realized that although I have C turns locked on moderate and un-mogully slopes, when things get gnarly I lose the technique. There appear to be two reasons: 1) fear of committing, and 2) going too slow. My other problem is heelside washouts. So I spent the day on chair 8 (which is almost all blues) working the steeper and more mogully sections. The first thing I determined is that my heelside issues happen because on steeper slopes I do more of a heelside _brake_ than a heelside _turn_. I spent some time working on opening up the turn and making it more gradual. Not sure why, but speeding up on heelside turns freaks me out more than on toesides. I'll have to keep working on it to really get it out of my system, but it's identified and in progress.

Regarding the C turns, my problem there seems to be that when I'm on a slope that freaks me out, I stand up straight. Of course that makes the upweighting and weight-shifting impossible, so the turn goes to crap. Or, in many cases, I actually can't get the turn initiated. So I made a point of finding more moderate, smooth slopes and working the technique. Then I brought the game to the steeper sections and made sure I was doing it right. Made a huge difference. I wouldn't call this "nailed" -- I still am not ready to tackle the big blacks under control -- but I know what to work on, and I can spend some time on Noels and Friendly and Unicorn working the techniques. I also have to work on getting over my fear of speed and losing control. I'd have a better time on steeps if I was willing to make each turn bigger and allow myself to build up more speed. 

*Impressions of Baker*
Baker isn't as big as Whistler/Blackcomb, but it's still a damned big mountain. It's bigger than Cypress and Grouse for sure. It also has very much a wild unfinished feel that's kind of reminiscent of Seymour. Wild areas seem to outnumber groomed areas, and the runs for the most part aren't sculpted. There are a lot of flats that you can stall on, so you have to get to know the mountain. And with the number of chairs and runs, getting to know the mountain is a long-term thing.

It's too bad Baker doesn't do much in the way of park. But other than that, this is a mountain that you wouldn't get bored with any time soon. I think next year we'll likely head out there a couple of times over the course of the season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

:laugh: Dynamic riding and C turns. Nailed? Not so much, on REAL blacks! Baker has taught me that.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went to Seymour today, it being Good Friday. You'd have expected it to be really busy, but it was like a regular weekday. I think this may be like last year, where once the weather goes springlike people just forget about skiing and boarding. Fine by me.

Anyway, it was sunny, warm, spring slush (but not too wet yet), and semi-deserted. In addition, the park crew had rebuilt the beginner jump line off Young Guns -- which honestly I wasn't expecting. All in all, made for a perfect day. And with next to no lift lines on Chucks, it was UP and DOWN, UP and DOWN, with virtually no rest. One of the lifties even commented that he was seeing me about every 5-10 minutes :laugh: . Well, ya know, you have to hit the jumps _fast_, right?

I did 3 or 4 runs on Mystery just so I could say I did. But the lifties seem to have given up as well -- the girl that (I think) was supposed to be refereeing the lineup was just sitting in a lawn chair getting sun. Hm. On the one hand, grrrr, on the other hand I understand  .

So I spent most of the day doing the jump line. Was getting fairly good at it, and actually starting to hit the jumps faster towards the end of the day. As I've mentioned before, I'm terrified of overshooting so I tend to go in too slow. Gradual desensitization seems to be helping. On one lap, I hit the first jump so fast that I went WAY up, and whooped!

I think I may also have gotten some good vids with the Drift. I'll download them and take a look later.

Meanwhile, I think I've settled on getting the new Proto next year for my primary board. Haven't decided about the bindings yet. Might even just stick with the Romes.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up to Seymour again on Easter Monday. Again it was dead. However, temps have gotten to the point where the slush was really really slow. Basically no point in doing the jump line as I couldn't get enough speed to do anything.

I had bought some new pants (Ride), boots (Thirty-Two Focus Boa) and bindings (Rome Targa) on the weekend. I'm holding the bindings until I get my new Proto, but tried out the new pants and boots. I've posted a review thread in the forum, but the bottom line is it was a good purchase and I like my new boots. They're stiffer than the Jacksons and it makes a difference to board control.

Anyway, spent the afternoon on the mountain with my wife. Looks like she's over her lift fears, thank goodness.

Not much of a day for getting anything done, but glad I went.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Even though Seymour is open until the 28th, I'd have to say the season is effectively over. I went up the mountain yesterday, mostly because they had actually predicted snow. Well, it was snowing when I got there, but it soon started turning to rain. On top of that the snow was _so_ slow that on one occasion I actually couldn't get to the bottom of the lift on Mystery. I actually stalled on the last shallow section of the run. On a couple of occasions I almost went over the handlebars in zero inches of new snow!!

Anyway, the rain over the last couple of days has really melted off the snowpack. I honestly don't know if they'll make it to the 28th. One more good rain and it'll be all bushes and grass.

My wife has been talking about going up once or twice more, and I'll go with her if she does, but for me the season is done. Too bad. I hate it when it goes out with a whimper like that.

I'll do a season recap in a separate post after I think about it a little, but I'm pretty sure it's not going to be pretty.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, this year sucked. OK, I'll admit, snowboarding is like sex -- even when it's disappointing it's still pretty damned good. But still -- this year sucked. We had the late start. Then we had a _fantastic_ December which made it look like the rest of the season would be a great one. Unfortunately, most of the snowfall for the entire season happened in December. Our usual major March dumps just never materialized. I never thought I'd actually live to say this, but I think the 09/10 season was better! And in any case, all the crap involved with the house sale and purchase took a lot of time and energy away, and even caused me to miss a couple of weekends entirely.

There were a couple of good things this year -- the meet-ups at Cypress and Baker being the tops of the list. Nothing like riding with better riders to put me in my place  , although it also gave me some direction on what to work on. I have a lot better perspective on what advanced snowboarding probably is now.

This was the year of the new Mystery high-speed quad chair. Now *that* was all good news. Lived up to all the hype, and somehow managed to not increase the traffic on the mountain. Woot! I guess a small downside of it was that with the decreased rest time on the lift, I kept running out of gas. So on the list of goals for next year -- be in better condition going into the season.

Having my wife miss a month and a half of the season with her shoulder/rib injury didn't help matters at all either. With her pushing for Friday evening sessions the previous season, I got a lot more total mountain days in.

So, time to review my list for the year.

*Stop being so cautious*
I'd have to call this one a failure, except maybe a little towards the end. That tailbone injury last year really haunted me, as well as my abdominal pull at the beginning of this season. And having hardpack to deal with most of the season didn't help. I'm pretty sure I'm over it now, and should be able to attack it right off the bat next season.

*Learn to hit the northlands jumps properly and dependably, without knuckling every other time.*
Never did hit the Northlands jumps. Part of that is because the Seymour park crew supplied a really great beginner line off Young Guns. Another reason is my overly cautious attitude this season. Next year I have to start hitting everything that's available as soon as it's available. Accept that the Seymour park crew is going to build stuff then mow it down within a week or two. Use it while it's there.

*Do street-style boxes*
I don't remember seeing a single street-style box on Seymour all year. I'm sure I'm wrong on that, but nothing specific comes to mind. Instead they had those big green pipes. Honestly, I probably could have tried one of those pipes. Should have.

*Do rails*
Yes and no. Did a beginner rail on Cypress, but never did one on Seymour. Does that count?

*Get 180's-at-will nailed*
Nope. I worked on 180s, but I wouldn't call them at-will yet.

*Learn 360s on small jumps*
Nope.

*Do Devil's Drop, and all other runs on Seymour comfortably*
Everything except Devil's Drop, and not really comfortable on some of the blacks.

*Ground tricks.*
Worked on a couple of minor items, but I'd have to call this one a miss as well.

*Become completely comfortable with switch.*
I did pretty good with this one. It'll always need more work of course, but I feel pretty good about it.

*Perfect ollies and nollies and penguin walk.*
Incremental improvements. This will come with time.

*A Tame Dog would be nice*
Pffft. Not even close.

So, in summary, I really screwed the pooch this year as far as the list is concerned. Nevertheless, I feel like I made progress in a lot of areas -- just not on the items on the list. Instead I improved my steeps handling, my ability to handle straightlining at speed, my tree-run handling, and my stability with drops and jumps and such.

For next year, I'm planning on buying a new Proto HD, which is much more of a freestyle board and if nothing else will be way better for ollies and butters. Gotta say, the Heritage is a _lot_ of work in those areas. I've also got a new set of boots (Thirty Two Focus double boas) that are a lot stiffer than my Jacksons. And I've bought a new set of Rome Targas for the Proto. And I'll likely go for a 157 so I'll get a little more maneuverability.

In the interim, I'm going to work on my conditioning, and I'm going to go back to trampoline lessons. If I can find a bounce board, I'll work on the trampoline on that as well. I'm going to get that balance board that they have at the gym at work and make a point of working on that. And if I can arrange it, I'm going to work with my snowboard on the grass (and possibly on a balance beam).

If I'm going to have fun next year, I have to take this seriously!!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, several years later, I've at least accomplished THIS list - including most of the moves on the video. Not nearly as stylish though.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This weekend marks the actual end of the season on Seymour. Not that there was a lot of snow left the last month or so, but there are always the diehards who will ride on one inch of snow. I haven't gone up at all in April since the 1st. The house sale and prepping for moving is taking too much attention, and anyway the conditions haven't been condusive to anything much.

I've been thinking about goals for next year, but I keep coming back to my central issue, which is that I've been too conservative this last season to really progress very much. So my goals list for next season is going to be very short:


Get new armoured shorts
Be more aggressive on the mountain
Spend more days at other mountains

The current pair of shorts are falling apart, so item 1 is a bit of a no-brainer. 

For item 2, I've just got to start hitting things early on instead of saying "later, when I've gotten more practice".

For item 3, I've got to spend some days on Cypress where they've got an actual beginner park. I also want to go to Hemlock and Baker a couple of times, and we're planning on spending spring break in Whistler again next year. It'll be nice to get some variety. Seymour's getting stale, I'm afraid.

Anyway, much different set of goals for this time around.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, not really "mid". I think there's about 170 days left as of today, but we're approaching the longest day of the year which is kind of a symbolic milestone.

We've finished the move to the new digs (phew!) although we're nowhere near done unpacking. I hadn't realized how much shit we had in the crawlspace until I had to hump it out to the moving truck. Now it's all stacked in the garage while the car sits parked on the street. Yeesh!

I'm certainly going to get more exercise at the new home. Having three floors instead of a split level -- I really feel the extra stairs! And being situated on a slope, there's really no direction that I can walk or run that doesn't involve an incline. I've been starting to run on the Crunch (the power line right-of-way) and that definitely hurts. If I can just get the garage cleared and get the exercise stuff set up, I really have a good chance of getting myself well conditioned for next season. I also want to lose 10-15 lbs.

I phoned the Boardroom this weekend -- they had told me to check with them around this time about new boards. But now I get a "what, are you nuts?" vibe. Assholes. Make up your teeny minds. Minor nit anyway. They're still my number one go-to for snowboarding stuff. I'll keep checking with them.

I actually got the longboard out yesterday, and did some cautious lines in the parking lot. I need to get some new shoes for it though -- the old ones finally went to shoe heaven. With all the well-publicized longboarding accidents in the area lately, I expect some flack from my wife, though.

I've decided to keep the old Ride Havoc, to use as a practice and rock board. It's in crappy shape, but that's what rock boards are, right? I'll use it for balance beam exercises this summer - as soon as I make a new one. The old one went to the dump.

Anyway, looking forward to next season. We'll be making a point of getting lessons for my wife and daughter early on so that they are able to enjoy more of the mountain for more of the season. And, as I've mentioned before, I'll be making a point of attacking things and taking chances right from the beginning of the season.

Should be a good one this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We hit the 100-day point on Thursday -- 100 days until snowboarding season, based on Dec 1st opening. That's always a milestone for me, even more than summer solstice. From here on, my whiteboard counter at work only has 2 digits. :yahoo:

It's also getting close to the time that the Boardroom will start stocking the 2013-14 gear. I'm going to be in there as early as possible, picking up the new Proto HD. I haven't _quite_ decided whether or not I'll buy some new bindings for it. I have a brand-new set of 2012 Targas at home, and the Heritage currently has a set of 2011 Flow NXT-SEs. But I _really_ want a set of the new Flows, and this year they will hopefully have worked out the bugs with the new design. Well, we'll see what they have when I'm there.

On another subject, Timmytard is pushing the Cypress passes again this year. However I've decided that the silver individual pass actually makes sense for me, since I intend to hit Cypress a fair bit this year. It's the only way I'm going to get past rank-beginner status in park. Sure as hell Seymour has proven that they aren't interested in supporting noobs in that area.  And it's not like the limitations on the Silver pass are going to matter -- no damn way I'd be going near Cypress at those times anyway.

We're also seriously talking about a small SUV with 4wd or awd for this season -- the Versa is surprisingly good in the snow, but in the end it's a flatlander vehicle and has diddly in the way of cargo space. We'll be looking for something with a built-in roof rack as well.

And last item, I have to start getting serious about getting in shape now. Time's a-wasting.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I bought a corporate seasons pass (Silver) for Cypress through Timmytard (or one of his friends -- I'm not sure who actually set it up). Cost was $315, which is way reasonable. The silver has some limitations -- blacked out xmas vacation and weekends in Jan and Feb. But let's face it, those are exactly the times you _don't_ want to be there. The place is a zoo!! I've bought the pass for times when I take a TO day during the week. I only need to go 6 times to be ahead of the game, and I fully intend to go _at least_ that much.

In addition, I've discovered that the "very expensive" prices quoted for the Cypress shuttle are Round Trip prices. Derp. Not so much of a difference suddenly between Cypress and Seymour.

Things are starting to fall into place. 92 days left as of today.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

And snowboarding.com is now dead. No surprise.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The season after I wrote this, I went to Cypress again but this time with a couple of guys from the forum. Made a huge difference having someone who knows the mountain show you around. I discovered their beginner park, some tree runs, some lesser-known blues, some off-piste...

Yeah, definitely better the second time around.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's interesting re-reading old entries. Don't realize how much I've progressed until I see some of the stuff I used to have problems with. Neat!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

That injury ended up sidelining my wife for 6 weeks. I explained to her about the cutoff rod at the top and she's decided that the next time someone falls in front of the lift she's just going to stay on the lift and kick the cutoff.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm starting to get antsy. It's 74 days as of today, and it's starting to feel real. So time for a recap and some navel-gazing.

First, I want to take the opportunity to complain about last season again. Such a good start to the season with a crapton of snow in December, followed by next to nothing the rest of the season. Admittedly there was a good dump in March, more than a meter of new, but it was immediately followed by torrential rain that actually shut the mountain down. There were some good times -- December was great as mentioned, and March had some fun times because of the beginner jump line that they built in Young Guns.

Last season was tainted by injuries though -- I had the tailbone injury the previous season that for some reason made me more aware of my mortality or something. Anyway, made me kind of tentative about things that might make me go biff. Probably negative conditioning.  Then there was the abdomen pull near the beginning of the season that really slowed me down for almost a month. Add to that my wife's injury on Boxing Day which put her out for six weeks -- which meant six weeks during which she wasn't pushing for Friday night skiing. 

Some of the high points of last season: The high-speed quad on Seymour, and the forum-member meet-ups on Cypress and Baker. Also just getting a chance to see mountains like Cypress and Baker, which TBH have made me even more dissatisfied with Seymour. And I already mentioned the jump-line on Young Guns. I think that might have broken me past "nervous beginner" status on jumps, finally. Plus the beginner park on Cypress which actually lives up to the name. That was fun and I'm going to hit Cypress again this year just for that. I've even bought a season pass for Cypress so I can go during weekdays off.

Although I didn't get very far on park-type and flatland tricks and features, I _did_ make good progress on freeride stuff -- specifically C turns and steeps. I'm feeling like I'll be ready to hit all the blacks early this season.

So, preparation. Unfortunately I'm kind of out of shape this year. Between the house move and all the craziness at work, I've had very little time to work out or run this year, at least with any consistency. I'm hoping to start in on the workouts again this month. I've already decided that I'm going to be buying a 2014 Proto HD as soon as the Boardroom brings the new NS boards in. Paired with my new Targas and my new Focus Boa boots, I'm ready for anything! I would have liked to do some balance beam work this off-season, but again with the move there wasn't time or opportunity. Plus I tossed the old balance beam, so I have to buy or build a new one. Doh!

There's some buzz on the forum about things cooling off early this year. People are seeing snow on some mountains already! I had a look at the Seymour weather site today and it shows freezing level coming down to almost the Mystery chair as of next Monday. For mid-September I'm pretty sure that's unusual. Of course I have to remind myself that last year was all over the place and any attempt to predict the end-game from the early signs would have been a hilarious fail. Still, it's all about hope. 

For this year, I'm keeping my goals simple. No list of tricks or skills. Just one item: be less tentative and less conservative. Don't put off trying stuff. Don't keep saying "not ready for that". Stop doing the same old same old, and try different paths. Time to go for it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Temps are dropping to freezing at the top of Seymour this weekend. Snow-forecast is actually showing a bit of snow on Friday and Monday. Hot damn!

Well it _has_ been a cold wet September. Maybe things will continue to cool off faster than usual?
:yahoo: ccasion14:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Got a call from the Boardroom yesterday (right in the middle of my course) that my board is in. WOOO HOOO!!!!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yep. Picked it up this morning, took some pix, put the bindings on tonight. Let me just say again that the complexity of Flow installation and setup is _nothing_ compared to Romes. The whole L/XL resizing, canting options, highback angles, yadda yadda, etc, is just a total pain.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaanyway, got it all together. It's too late in the evening for a good finished picture, but I want to post my serial number (like I did with the Heritage).


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's now the beginning of October and freezing levels are hovering around 1800m for the whole week. Starting to get seriously hopeful.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, I've bought the Proto and I've set up the Targas on it. Initial impression is that it's a lot more flexible and lively than the Heritage -- which is what I was hoping.

On the conditioning subject, I didn't go back to tramp lessons _or_ set up a new balance beam, and I'm only just starting to run and work out again. Bad year for that, I'm afraid.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Sombitch. I checked my blog from previous years and there's nothing like this. Up around 4km right up to the 18th. Can it drop down low enough within 2 weeks to still get snow in October?

I know, I know. Stuff that happens in October is no predictor of how the season is going to go. But this is the part of the pre-season where I go all OCD, so might as well roll with it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Actually, seems I _can't_ remember that from year to year :laugh: . Every October I get all bent out of shape about the slow pace of approaching winter. Just happened to be re-reading old blog posts and realized that this year is following the pattern in 2010. :icon_scratch:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

As of today (19th) the forecast is staying just under 4000m right out to the 24th. The whole province is under some kind of inversion which among other things is causing some incredible fog. People are calling this "Fogtober". Sure hope it breaks soon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I do. 

I went to the snow show today. Big disappointment. There were fewer exhibitors than previous years, they had less on display, fewer big discounts, and a smaller swap meet.

Couple of good things, though. Manning Park had a booth. I talked to them, and they told me they're not only fully open, but they have a couple of new groomer cats and are going to have an actual terrain park.

Also, I talked to someone at the Cypress Mountain booth, and it turns out the Shuttle Bus has more routes and more options than I thought. For instance, they have a monthly shuttle pass that would be paid off and then some in 4 uses. So if I get a week off (or better yet, 2 weeks) I could go to Cypress every day.

Anyway, one of the reasons I went to the show was to look for protective gear. Since there was nada, I went out to West Coast Sports on W4th. Got a Demon Snow padded jacket and some Red impact shorts. Kind of surprised it was Red, but they had the only hardtail shorts. Anyway, I'm now completely ready for the season. Bring on the snow.... please?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

As of today (24th), the freezing level is dropping on the 26th. Not to lift level yet, but a lot closer. Could finally be breaking.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, it looks like we're finally going to get some snow. Forecast is showing the freezing level coming way down as of Nov 2nd, and steady snow. Hm. We'll see...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's Nov 2nd. The forecast website still shows a lot of snow coming up, but the Grouse Mtn website says it's three degrees and raining. This year is certainly the acid test for pre-season behavior. If we end up with anything like a normal season startup after this shitfest, then I will simply stop worrying about it in the future.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's Nov 8th and all the snow predictions have turned into vapor. It's been raining on the mountains, we've got another storm coming in which looks to be dumping more rain on the mountains right through the 14th or so. Cypress is trying to use their snow guns, but it has to be below freezing -- and stay below freezing. FML. This had better turn around soon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Friggin' hell! The forecast on snow-forecast.com is changing almost hourly. Damifino what's going on, and it kind of looks like no-one else does either. Right now, we're seeing snow for several days (starting today) followed by a day or so of torrential rain. But yesterday we were showing freezing level dropping to street level, and now _that's_ gone. !?!?!?!?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I re-read my blog entries from last year, and it seems I was still whining about the lack of snow on _*Nov 30th!!*_ And last year we ended up opening on the 7th and had a gorgeous December. Rest of the season sucked, but that's another subject .

Anyway, it looks like winter storms are lining up to hit BC one after the other. There's bumps in freezing level between each storm with accompanying rain, but as long as the snow level keeps increasing I can live with that.

Whistler is opening EARLY this year -- this weekend, with only 5 chairs running, but if you're shaking with the snowboarding DTs, that's good enough. Haven't heard about Cypress opening yet. Timmytard is having a fit waiting for them to make a move :laugh:.

So, I guess I'll relax a little (no I won't, not really) and just wait for December. Meanwhile, to re-re-reiterate, my goals for this year...

First and foremost, stop being so overly cautious. Have to take some chances, have to attack some stuff instead of putting it off.

Second, take advantage of the new Proto. With the flex and pop that thing is supposed to have, I no longer have an excuse for not being able to do proper ollies and butters and such. So work on it.

Third, stop bombing the runs every single time. Spend more time exploring the side hits and such.

And fourth, given the amount of time I spent on the beginner jump line last year, I should be able to conquer Northlands this season.

Come _on_, season!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's December 1st, and there is NO SNOW AT ALL at the Seymour parking lot. All those winter storms I mentioned in my previous post have evaporated. It's been POURING RAIN for the last 48 hours or so. This is definitely going to be the worst season start ever. Well, next year we'll be using one of Timmytard's corporate deals and buying Cypress passes. Cypress isn't _great_ right now, but with the snowmakers they at least have _some_ runs open.

On an unrelated subject, I spent yesterday cleaning up the garage and digging out all the winter sports equipment, and I found my Burton Mission bindings! Can't believe I saved those things. :laugh: OK, so they're going to go on the Ride Havoc. Will make a perfectly adequate beater board.

Next step -- waxing and edge maintenance.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's Dec 7th, and all snow predictions have faded into the distance like a mirage. However, the predictors starting Monday the 9th evening are showing significant snow off through the rest of the week. Maybe, maybe...

It's really infuriating -- it's been COLD for almost 2 weeks now, and I mean close to record-setting for this time of year. But all blue skies -- no chance of precip at all. In the lower mainland we seem to have the choice of _cold_ or _wet_ but not both at the same time. :icon_scratch:

Anyway, it's giving me a little extra time to try to get into shape. I have totally failed with my preseason fitness prep this year. I'm a good 10-15 lbs over where I'd want to be. It's an artifact of the kind of year it's been (yeah sure...) but I'm posting this as a reminder to myself next year to get serious early and get it done.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's the 9th. It started snowing this morning and it's been lightly snowing all day. Not much accumulation, but on the other hand it's still going and not warming up. Snow prediction is looking good for the rest of the week.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Seymour announced the last couple of days that they are opening Goldie as of today the 14th. 

Woohoo....

Predictions continue to be iffy. No rainstorms, but it bounces up and down in and out of freezing level. I think December is a writeoff. Wow.

Couple of the guys who are Cypress regulars were talking about the damage done to their boards because of the thin cover. Glad I didn't decide to do that, although I suppose I would have used the Ride anyway.

Still waiting.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It started snowing overnight. It's been snowing all day at ground level _and_ on the mountain, although there's still less than a foot of accumulation even up there. Maybe this is it. This storm _does_ keep going for days, although the freezing level gets sketchy at points. I want to do my Praise Ullr dance, but I've been hurt too many times...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, it's Jan 1st, 2014. How's the season, you ask? What season, sez I. The last week or so, we've started to see public lamentations on the news about the crappy season. They've even admitted to That Which Must Not Be Said, that _Whistler_ is having a bad one! Gasp! (Yeah, I'm not bitter).

Snow-forecast.com has predicted a lot of snow coming up in the next few days for close to a month now, but when the day rolls up, there's nada. Always in the future. And still, either wet or cold but not both. OK, I _am_ bitter.

There's not really much else to say. Unless we get some dumps, there simply won't be a season this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's been snowing the last couple of days (although staying very close to rain/snow level) and Seymour has now opened the Mystery chair. We'll be going up this weekend, I think.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today Seymour opened up Lodge Chair! I went up to get my season's pass made -- I 've given up on trying to herd the various cats that make up our family to all get up there at once. As of now, everyone's on their own. :cheeky4: I've signed the waivers so the girls can get them any time, but I'm not going to try to kick them into play any more.

Anyway, Lodge Chair was open, it was snowing furiously, and it was PACKED! The parking lot was full, except for the one spot that I managed to find. :yahoo:

So we (or maybe just I) will be going up next Sunday for the first session of this season.

:yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Finally, finally, finally. Up the mountain for snowboarding today. My season is now underway. It's a month and a half to two months late, depending on how I count it, so I think this season will probably replace last season as the one I whine about constantly. Oh well. Even bad snowboarding is better than no snowboarding.

The day started off a little rushed. I hadn't had time to do any prep last night, so I had to do all the running around and gathering stuff this morning before leaving. Just did a basic setup - no camera or special equipment, no packed lunch, no snax...

I left at 8, was up to the top of Seymour by just before 9. I was amazed at the number of cars parked along the side of the road (those are the back-country and snowshoers who don't pay for a ticket so can't park in the parking lot).

Anyway, snow coverage was sketchy -- lots and lots of bushes, twigs, rocks, and roped-off areas. And what snow we have was frozen crust, at least at the beginning of the day. A little cloud at the beginning of the day, which cleared up to give us blue skies and warm temps. I ended up changing into my lighter garb halfway through the morning as I was cooking in the standard wear.

All the lifts are open on Seymour, but nowhere near all the runs. Even the runs that _are_ open have huge roped-off areas. Hope this improves, but right now snow-forecast.com doesn't look hopeful.

From a snowboarding point of view, it was an excellent day. I normally am a bit tentative and shaky my first time or two in a season, but in line with my new policy of being more aggressive I decided to just attack it. My dynamic riding came back pretty fast. I decided to continue working on rounding out my heelside turns as well -- something I decided late last season was an ongoing issue with my form. Besides trying to open up the heelside turn more, I realized today that I keep my weight too far forward on the heelside turn. On toeside I start shifted forward then quickly move my weight back to engage the whole edge, but on heelside I'm not doing it. So I worked on it a bit, and I'm making some progress. Needs more work before it becomes automatic.

For a wonder, Seymour has actually done a reasonable job of opening the Mushroom Bowl beginner park. They've got two ride-on boxes and a very low street-style rail, which I might even try in another trip or two. They also have a dance floor and a small (10-ft) jump. I spent considerable time hitting the jump and I was very happy to find that I got my form back right away. In previous seasons I've had some difficulty getting back into it the first time out.

All in all, very happy with the day. A good start to a bad season.

*Some Equipment Notes*

The new 32 Focus Boa boots are exactly as tight and hard to get into as I remember from last year. I guess I'd better get used to that, because once they're on they are a perfect boot. Absolutely no pressure points or rubbing spots or anything. I just hope they don't pack out and go to crap or something.

I didn't bring the new Proto HD today. I just KNEW the snow would be crud, and the last thing I want to do is ruin a new board the first time out.

I tried out the new North Face gloves today. It was way too hot for the liners, so I took those out. The glove still feels substantial without them, and I expect I'll probably only need the liners on the coldest days.

I wore my older green Special Blend jacket today. I've decided I'm going to cut out the wrist gators. They really are more of a PITA than they're worth.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was a Cypress day. I kind of decided last minute that I would go to Cypress today instead of Seymour, mainly because the snowmaking has given Cypress a better base. I also thought it would be a good opportunity to get the February shuttle bus pass so I can get to Cypress during my two weeks off. A monthly shuttle pass costs $67 with taxes, after the discount for having a season's pass. That's basically three and a bit rides to break even, and I'm planning on trying for 9 or 10 days during my vaca. That will also pay off the seasons pass which requires 5 times up to break even.

Anyway, the day started out kind of cursed, and I was half thinking I was going to end up breaking my back or something equally negatively karmic. For starters, getting ready in the morning just turned into a total shit-fest trying to find everything (I _really_ have to get the snow-sports bins organized). Then when I left, I realized about a block away that I had forgotten my phone. So, back and get it. Then I got on the freeway going the wrong way (they've been doing a lot of new construction, the signs are all changed, and it's a mess). Trouble is, that put me over the Port Mann bridge (toll) then I had to turn around in Surrey and come back (toll). So that's $12 and I haven't even got to the goddam mountain yet! At this point I told myself that if _just one more thing_ goes wrong I'm going home and hiding under the bed :laugh: .

Fortunately the gods seemed to have gotten their giggles for the day and nothing else untoward happened. I actually got to Cypress in pretty good time overall (allowing for recent events). I think on an early weekend morning I could depend on a 40 minute drive. That's acceptable.

Cypress was _not_ busy the whole morning. I don't think I ever had to wait more than 3-4 chairs to get on a lift, and I had a chair to myself about half the time. Conditions were pretty sketchy. A lot of crust and barely-covered crust. I butt-planted several times when my board just simply lost grip on a heelside, and on one blue run I simply slid a couple hundred yards because there was just nothing to grip onto. On the other hand, where the snow had been properly scraped and crushed down to snowcones it was only moderately crappy.

I was hoping to get an opportunity to try out the beginner park (Stomping Ground), and was visualizing what they had last year when I was there with Timmytard and the crew. Unfortunately the park crew have had to improvise a little with the lack of snow, and the beginner park ended up being down by the bottom of the lifts, and not very inspiring. I did a couple of boxes just because, but there was nothing like a jump. On the other hand , the park up near the top of Eagle Express (Skate Park) had a couple of nice mid-sized jumps. Unfortunately the park crew was working on them the whole morning (trying to scrape some of the ice to produce ersatz snow, I think). Noted however for vaca time.

I checked out the two green beginner runs, Collins and Runway, with an eye for how they'd do for the family. Pretty sure wife and daughter will be thrilled with them.

Anyway, I did some basic downhill stuff and actually spent some time working on switch. I'm going to try to get good with that as early as possible this year (which is not very :icon_scratch: ). A little bit after lunch my legs started to give out. I'm afraid I'm not in very good condition this year, but then I knew that. Plus the short lineups and quick lifts meant not a lot of time to rest.

So I guess we're going to start the slow process of moving our home mountain from Seymour to Cypress.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Now that you are warmed up...come down and we will blaze the groomers. Wrath


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Meaning the snow, of course. Seymour had about 14cm of new snow late this week, and the only real result that I could see is that the sticks and stones are buried a bit better. Sure as hell there wasn't anything you could carve in.

I took up both boards today -- the Heritage and the new Proto. I wanted to have the Heritage there in case things went bad with the Proto, and to be honest I almost did the swap early on. It really wasn't an auspicious start, but I eventually realized that my problems stem from the bindings, not from the board. I'll be posting reviews of the bindings, board, and gloves, and an update on my boot review later. I'll then add the links to this post.

I'm not very impressed with the Targas. They're generally a nice binding but they have some design issues that made me want to bite them off the board. I think when I get the chance, I'm going to buy some new Flow NXT-ATs. I'm definitely spoiled by Flow bindings.

Anyway, on to the day. I did a run down Mystery and a run down Lodge first thing, and found them to be basically icy crust with a thin coat of crushed crust. The Proto holds an edge pretty well, although IMO not _quite_ as good as the Heritage. I was finding that my heelside carve attempts really sucked badly though, and it took me a few minutes to realize that the factory highback lean setting is too mellow for my liking. Took the board off to adjust the highback and oh look, adjustment requires a screwdriver. Strike one.

So given that freeride isn't going to be great balls of fun in these conditions, I decided to check out Mushroom. Yes, thank goodness, the jump is still there. So I did a jump run, got to the bottom of Goldie, rode the Magic Carpet up, got to the top, and realized I was missing one of my ankle straps. Fuck! Well there was really only one place it could be, so I one-footed it down Goldie to the bottom of the Carpet where the liftie handed me my strap with a grin.

The problem turns out to be the design of the "retractors". Don't know what else to call them. Targas have a rubber strap that connects to the non-buckle end of the ankle and toe straps and pulls them back out of the way as soon as you unbuckle. Nice idea, and very convenient, but they attach to the size-adjustment buckle (the one you normally never touch) in such a way that they are actually applying a force that would tend to OPEN that buckle. And that's exactly what happened, the retractor strap pulled the adjustment buckle open and the ankle strap went walkies. Strike Two.

When you are doing up the ankle strap on the Targa, the ladder strap goes into a sort of "Belt loop" on the top of the ankle strap that keeps it tucked away neatly. In theory. In practice, sometimes it goes into the loop, sometimes it misses the loop, and sometimes it jams up against the loop. In that case, the strap is torqued in such a way that the release lever DOESN'T RELEASE IT!!! Five minutes of swearing and cursing, along with actually ripping the loop to get the ladder strap loose, and I finally had my foot back. Strike 3.

None of this of course had anything to do with the board, but I was cursing the bindings, the board, stray birds, Glee Club, and anything else that came to mind by this point.

Soooooooo, crappy day, right? Well not really. In between cursing my equipment, I had a great time with the jump in Mushroom. First, I'm finally starting to hit it with the speed that it deserves. Second, I'm starting to pop properly on takeoff, and third, I'm starting to suck up the board properly in the air instead of standing up straight through the whole jump. I actually _almost_ managed a grab on a couple of occasions. What stopped me is that when I tuck too much I start to rotate forward. But still, very good day from that point of view.

Bindings review: http://www.snowboardingforum.com/bindings/124377-review-2012-targas.html#post1494377


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went to Cypress again today. With the weather being so cold generally, Cypress has been running their snowguns for a couple of days. And it is making a difference! There was actual ersatz snow on the runs instead of ersatz crushed ice scrapings. MUCH more better! :laugh: Seriously, man-made isn't as good as the natural stuff, but it's way better than the alternatives we've been stuck with for most of this season.

So I spent most of the morning going down the greens and blues, practicing my scarving (which is getting closer to carving) and my cross-over and cross-under turns. I also did a little bit of switch riding, although for some reason today it felt very awkward. I think that's actually because I'm using the Proto, which is definitely a different feeling board from the Heritage. On that subject -- I brought both boards today, and about halfway through the morning I decided to switch to the Heritage just to see if I could feel a difference. Uh oh. Did one run with the Heritage and switched back. The Heritage just felt clumsy. Part of that might be that the Proto is new and sharp, which the Heritage hasn't had an edge sharpening since mid-last-season. But part also has to be that it's simply a bigger heavier board. Looks like the Proto might be my new general-use board. That's kind of a good thing though, because it means I'll be able to put the Heritage bindings back to proper setback and use it when we have a good dump of fresh (meaning: never again in this lifetime  ).

On the other hand, this is the second (or third?) day using the Targas and I can now state with no hesitation that I hate the things. So much so that when I was done for the day, I stopped at The Board Shop on the way home and bought some NX2-ATs. I've put them on the Proto, and I look forward to being back to Flows. And with the new NX2 design I should get a tighter fit when snapped in.

Tomorrow I intend to be there at opening, so should be able to get something like a good day of riding.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went to Cypress again today. I had installed the new Flow NX2-ATs on the Proto, so I was looking forward to trying out the new setup.

For some reason today, most of the snow guns were idle. Damn, it's not like they'd made so much snow that they could just sit back. But it occurred to me later that with the predicted upcoming snowfall, they might not feel the need to keep making it. Oh, did I forget to mention? Yeah, most of next week predicting heavy snow. Actually, it was snowing lightly on Cypress today. Not so you'd get accumulation, but still wonderful to see.

Anyway, had a little trouble dialing in the Flows in properly. They're a bit different than I'm used to with the old designs. Got it eventually though. But interestingly, the board felt less responsive, or maybe just more squirrely. I don't know if that was the changing snow conditions or that I've gotten used to the Targas. I'm going to have to put the Targas on the Heritage, I think, and compare them next week. If it turns out that I _can_ feel the difference between Flows and non-Flows, then I guess I have a decision to make :icon_scratch: .

Big takeaway for today was speed. I finally realized that if I do crossovers all the way down a hill, I can keep the speed reasonable and feel more in control. And because I felt more in control, I was able to tolerate higher speeds before starting to chicken out. I still have trouble with steep slopes with little or no snow cover, but I have a feeling that may just be common sense. 

It was more crowded on Cypress today, and a larger percentage are skiers. I'm really becoming convinced that skiers really are a scourge from hell. Dodging them all day. Never had a problem with an unpredictable rider.

I only spent a couple of hours on the hill, as I'm still sore from earlier in the week. On the weekend I'll be going to Seymour. Hopefully the snow will have started by then.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I got up sometime in the middle of the night last night and checked outside. Sure enough, snow on the ground! It had turned to rain and melted the snow by morning, but really I don't give a crap whether we get snow at city level. The important thing is that the mountains are getting snow.

I drove up to Seymour today. I guess I could have technically gone to Cypress as this isn't a weekend, but I wanted to see what they'd done with Mushroom. Answer: not a bunch. They put a second jump just before the drop-off, which was really great, but there wasn't any more hardware anywhere in there. Still, I'll take the second jump!

I started the day doing a couple of runs off the Mystery chair, getting a shot at that nice fresh stuff before the madding crowds come in and mess it up. Managed 4-5 runs before things started to get crowded with ski schools and such, then retired to the park.

I'm definitely getting the jumping thing, especially with tucks. Haven't quite managed a grab yet, but I'm close. I'm also doing the extension from transition properly now, so getting good air, and not speed-checking as much so knuckling isn't an issue. Granted this is on small jumps, but maybe the bigger ones on Cypress will be available this week.

In other news, my board/bindings issues continue. I'm having a lot of trouble getting and keeping my new NX2's adjusted. Not happy at all with them so far. I'm _actually seriously_ thinking of putting the Targas back on the Proto. Yeesh. As for the Proto, I'm generally quite happy with it, but I have to admit the Heritage is better in chopped-up conditions. With the flexibility and lightness of the Proto, it will bounce over the bumps, while the Heritage just cuts right through them. I like bringing both boards, but I think I've settled on the Proto as my default board.

My new gloves continue to delight. The snow today turned to sleet partway through the morning, so it was a very wet Donutz by the end of today's session -- except for my hands, which were still dry and warm. Woot!

Boots definitely are easier to deal with since I discovered that pull-tab on the inner laces.

And lastly, I discovered a really good reason for replaceable lenses on the Airbrakes. Not just for changing light conditions, you can also change your lens when it gets too wet -- as long as you have a similarly appropriate one for the conditions. Meanwhile the first one dries out in the car.

So nothing spectacular or memorable really happened today. Just a nice thank-god-we-finally-have-some-snow day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went Seymour today. I wanted another chance at the Mushroom jumps, and the mountain didn't disappoint. There was some new snow, albeit pretty mushy stuff. But hey, a soft landing is a soft landing -- and very handy as it turned out :dizzy:. I took the time to scope out the entire park, and today there was a ride-on rail. Not sure if I just missed it last time or if it's been added since. Either way, it was exactly what I'd been asking for last season. Ride-on, low to the snow, not too steep. So yeah, hit my first real rail today!! Woohoo!! Once I saw that, I went back to the car, gathered all my protective gear, and went and put it on. Felt like a knight walking around with all that stuff on, but it sure helps with the confidence.

I hit the rail about a dozen times, but only a few times were good. The problem is that the flow in Mushroom is kind of wonky. I guess they're trying to fit a lot of features into a relatively small space, but the problem is that there isn't one really good line for multiple features. I kept hitting the uphill boxes then trying to muscle my way over to the rail, and that just didn't work. Really should have just headed straight for the rail. Oh well, there's tomorrow! Yes, I'm going back tomorrow. This park setup is worth it.

Anyway, Mushroom right now has two boxes near the top, the rail partway down, and a dance floor and a down-tube farther down. Off to the side, there's the two jumps. They aren't big, maybe 10 feet, but they're step-downs with enough of a gap to the knuckle so that you can't get lazy. This is good for a wimp like me who will brake for any excuse. On this line, can't do it. Have to go full throttle _and_ pop to clear the knuckles, but if you get it right, it's sweet...

I tried several times to get a grab in, but I still have the rotation problem when I tuck too aggressively. Just practice I guess.

I did the dance floor a couple of times. Then on the third attempt I caught an edge and did a total face-plant off the end of the thing. Very thankful for the soft snow! I was curious as to whether the zero-degree bevel of the NS board was to blame, but on examination it turns out to be a problem with the feature. The top sheets on the dance floor are put on so that the seams form a short wide sideways H. If you aren't going straight across the feature you can snag your edge on the middle bar of the H, because the sheets don't meet up level. I may mention it in an email to the park manager.

On another subject, my beef with my new NX2-ATs is getting better. First, I discovered this morning that my lead binding wasn't assembled (by me) quite correctly. One of the cables was outside the strap instead of inside. This resulted in either the strap being squeezed (resulting in a tighter fit than expected) or the cable catching below the hinge and refusing to go up at all (resulting in my head exploding). Fixed that, took like 30 seconds, much better. The second thing was I figured out why my rear binding kept randomly tightening between runs. Board-slapping, it turns out, tightens the ratchets a click or so every time you do it. Derp. OK, that's a habit to undo. :huh:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

There's been some new snow over the last 24 hours, so things were a little softer today. Also less wet, which is even better. I did one run down Mystery but the fog was so thick I simply couldn't see where I was going. So other than a couple of runs down Chucks, I spent the entire day in Mushroom. I decided to alternate my runs, so I was doing a jump run, a rail run, and a switch-practice run, then repeat. Kept it more interesting, and allowed me to spread out the wear and tear on different muscles.

I was having a little trouble with the jumps first thing in the morning. I think maybe whoever rebuilt them overnight made them a little too kicky for my liking. Once they mellowed out a bit, things went much better. And I came thiiiiiiiiiiis close to a legitimate grab today. I _actually_ felt my fingers brush the edge of the board. Just couldn't complete. But I'm tucking much better now.

On the rail run, I was hitting the top box, then the rail, then the dance floor. Today I decided to hit the rail with more speed and what a difference! I completed virtually every attempt. I also made sure that my shots at the dance floor didn't cross the middle at an angle, so I didn't have an issue with the uneven seam.

For the switch runs, I was a little tentative at first, but by midmorning I was actually carving switch. And embarrassingly enough, my carving lines are finer riding switch than they are riding regular. Dafuq?

Lastly, I threw a 180 on the jump. It was successful, but I didn't feel confident on the ride-out. Probably would have been better later in the morning after I'd done all that switch practice. Oh well. There's always tomorrow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It was a coin flip, but I decided to go up to Seymour again today. I've been having so much fun with Mushroom, I figured why not once more. Temps were above freezing, so it's not like Cypress was going to be running the guns or anything.

It had snowed a fair bit in the last 24 hours, but given the temps, it should be no surprise that the stuff was very wet and very slow. Made the jumps difficult as I just couldn't get the speed. Forcing the jump by trying to pop huge just results in off-kilter jumps, and I had a few of those. Also biffed on the dance floor a couple of times because I tried to go up on an edge. That just never works  .

I didn't really do anything new in the park -- this was more of a practice session, I guess. However I also tried butters again -- something I didn't really do at all last year because of the tailbone injury. And they are _way_ easier on the Proto. I was killing it at a level that I _never_ had with the Heritage. Well, that's the flex I guess. My switch riding is now to the point where I'm going to have to get out of Goldie and start going down Chuck's.

The snowfall is making things a bit better on the mountain overall. Unicorn is now open, and Pete's Run is now open although it's teeth-rattling at speed. I did a Unicorn run early enough that I was one of the first, and it was joyous. I actually did a small drop purely by mistake. Thought I was on trail, went over the hump, and oh, not so much. Could have been bad, but it was good.

Good day, all in all. Next week should be even better with all the predicted snowfall.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This is the last day of my vacation, so I guess it's inevitable that it's going to be a big stinking pile of crap. :RantExplode:

First, as usual the snow predictions have evaporated. Snow-forecast.com was showing heavy snow last night and this morning. When I got there though I discovered an inch of new over top of icy crust. Woop dee doo. Managed to get first chair though, so I decided to head straight down Unicorn. Well, not only was I fighting the icy crust all the way down (scritch scritch scritch) but on Unicorn I ran into a basketball-sized death cookie. I thought at first I'd broken my board, but fortunately I hit the thing underneath my rear foot (instead of in the middle of the board) so I just buggered my knee instead :icon_scratch:. Not really bad, truthfully. Just a little soreness that I could feel on landings throughout the morning.

Not that I got many of those. Everyone else on the planet apparently saw the same snow predictions and showed up on the mountain. I found that I really couldn't get much of anything going. There was _always_ someone cutting in front of me or sitting on a feature. And at the bottom, there'd be 2 or 3 classes all lined up for the carpet.

Had a couple of upside things. I did my first (and second) boardslide today. First one went better than the second one. I also started trying to do backside tail butters today. Didn't go well, but that's what practice is for.

I did some practice pops off the lip at the top of the down-tube to get a feel for it. I'm definitely not going to overshoot, that's for sure. I think next time there's some new snow I'll give that a try. I'm ready.

Eventually around noon I gave up and packed it in to go home. Which is right when it started snowing like stink. But then, I'd predicted that at 9:30 so I just rolled my eyes.

Oh, well. Even bad snowboarding is better than no snowboarding. Maybe next week.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Oh, and just to give the dagger a little TWIST, the next 48 hours brought close to a meter of snow to _all_ the lower mainland mountains.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

As noted in my last entry, it started snowing the moment my vacation was over. And it's been snowing most of the week. They've gotten about a meter of snow this week. I'm pissed about missing it by a week, but I'm happy that there's snow now.

So I woke up this morning early to get ready for the mountain, looked outside, and it was _snowing!_ In fact as I write this, it's still snowing, and it's accumulating in the back yard.

Anyway, I headed up early because of the snow this week, and because there's a comp scheduled on Seymour. Feeling a little bit pessimistic about the day because Seymour had announced on their website that they're rebuilding Mushroom and it'll be reopening next week. What I discovered there is that they've mowed everything down in Mushroom, leaving the default two rollers (bleah!) and they've moved the dance floor and a couple of boxes to the transition to Lodge. First, boring! (It blows me away that I can say that about park features now :laugh and second, hitting the features means you're committed to Chuck's and the Lodge chair; which means on a weekend you're looking at 20 minutes to get to the top of a 2-minute run. Bleah again.

I spent some time on Goldie, working on butters. I can do the frontsides but for some reason I absolutely could not get the backsides. Sigh. Well, I've got all season. I worked on 180s and cabs, and did a truly impressive scorpion while failing on one of the cabs. Ouch!

With the new snow, Seymour has opened almost all the runs, and they've built some jumps in Northlands. I hit the 20-footer with no difficulty and no trepidation (huge milestone) but my back knee still twinges so I thought maybe I'd just leave that one for today. Far too busy anyway. There's also a pyramid jump on Northlands, which I also hit. I'm going to make a point of icing my knee so next week I won't have that to worry about.

The biggest fun I had today was the tree run through Pete's. There's enough snow now for that to be viable, and I went through there a couple of times. The first time was pretty shaky, but I guess I had to expect that. The second time through though, I did a 15 to 20-foot drop without killing myself, and did pretty good time through the run in general. I think this is where the Proto really shines.

I wore the Demon Shield upper today for the first time. It wasn't as warm as I was worried it might be. Quite tolerable actually. 

So I'm back to one day a week now, I guess. Hoping by next weekend there'll be even more snow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yesterday (Saturday), I went to Cypress. For a birthday present, I'm being "allowed" to go boarding both Saturday and Sunday this weekend. OK, well, am I going to argue? I was actually going to Seymour but decided halfway there to go to Cypress. Couple of good reasons.. 1, there's some kind of snowball-fight contest on Seymour on Saturday. May or may not affect the lift lines, but it'll certainly affect parking and traffic. 2, since it's now March, my Cypress silver pass is now valid on weekends. I figured it would be a good opportunity to see what Cypress is like on weekends. So, how is it? Well I talked to a liftie and she said that the attendance yesterday might be a _little_ light, but not so you'd be amazed. Given that, it really wasn't bad. There are a lot of people there, but it's a big mountain. Most of the crowding was on the beginner runs, where it was a virtual obstacle course of slow-moving pylons, each marked "oblivious noob". Of course if you're one of them, the pace is just fine  . And the lift lines actually moved a bit faster than Mystery on Seymour. Lodge of course isn't even in the running. So I guess I don't feel so concerned about switching to Cypress next year, barring cost differentials.

One thing that I found surprising though -- the lifties don't make any attempt at all to referee the line merging. It's basically thunderdome. Mostly it's pretty peaceful, but I noticed a surprising number of chairs go up with only 2 or 3 people, even during busy times. In fact there was one instance where a guy from the single line just jumped out between 2 groups of 4 and ended up going up _by himself_ on the lift. At Seymour, he would have been sent to the back of the line.

I saw several hard-booted euro-carvers riding what looked like Virus boards while going up the lift. No telemarkers though. The snow-blowers were going like crazy all day, resulting in several inches of man-made. The stuff isn't as good as real snow, but it does still give you that "riding on butter" feeling and is way better than scritchy snowcrete.

Went down Maelle Richer (the run! the run! Jeez...) to the park at the top there. They still have those 2 jumps, and I'm still planning on hitting them some time. They also had a gap to flat-box at the top with what may be the worst on-ramp I've ever seen. If you don't pop really good, you are going to end up summersaulting down the mountain with a shattered tip. No thanks. There was also a C box and a really big pipe a little farther down. I was actually tempted by the pipe, but I'm still not quite ready for gap-to features yet.

The big news though was Stomping Ground. It's a 4-jump jump-line with a Rainbox box at the top. On the downside, the lead-up to each jump is such that if you don't do some braking you'll end up landing way the hell past the landing. Of course I tended to over-brake. Wooss. Nevertheless, I hit that line all day. I'm still not doing anything but straight airs, but lots of fun. There was also a pyramid jump at the top, but the sides were so icy you had to be very careful about your line and landing.

I did a short tree run about halfway down Collins at one point. However there was a slick spot and I lost control and slammed sideways into a tree. Damned good thing I have crash pants. The thigh pad took the brunt, and I just have a bruise and a bit of soreness. Yeesh.

I also went down one of the black runs. I'm getting my C turns back under control, although not getting a lot of practice this year -- without adequate snow I tend to avoid steeps. Handled it though.

And I have to charge up and start bringing my Ghost. It's getting interesting enough now to make it worthwhile to get some videos.

Today I'll be going up Seymour. It'll be interesting to see what if anything they've actually done with Mushroom.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Seymour today. After Cypress yesterday, it was a good chance to compare the two "close up".

This was my first opportunity to get a look at the "new improved" Mushroom park. Frankly, I liked the old one better. They've basically just left the two rollers in "old" Mushroom, and put all the features in the transition from Goldie to Lodge. So of course any use of the park requires taking the Lodge chair up, with all the lineups and slowness and constant stoppages. So I'm calling that a fail. 

The new park did have one small very peaky jump. The first time I hit it in the morning I was a taken a bit by surprise by the loft and I went over heelside. I could actually see the crater that I left looking down from the lift. :laugh:

Anyway, Seymour was ok until about 10:30 when everyone on the planet descended on the mountain for lessons. On Manning at one point it was every bit as bad as yesterday on Runway at Cypress. Just a bunch of slow-moving traffic blockages.

So it's final. I'm done with Seymour. Next year we get Cypress passes and that's it.

On a slightly different subject, today I swapped out the Proto for the Heritage about mid-morning, when the snow was getting so chopped up that the Proto was starting to throw me around too much. The Heritage still has my old NXT-ATs on it. After using the Targas and the new NX2-ATs for a while, I just couldn't go back to the old set. There really is a difference. I think I'm going to put the Targas onto one of my boards and the NX2s on the other. I'll probably give away the NXTs on the website at work. At least they'll get some use.

There's no question the Heritage handles chop better than the Proto. There's also no question the Proto turns quicker in tight situations. And I'm happy that I've progressed to the point where I can feel the difference.

I did quite a bit of crashing today, of one kind or another. At one point I was actually wondering if the universe was trying to send me a message. Sure was glad about all that armor I'm wearing these days.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went to Cypress yesterday (Saturday). I did so with mixed feelings, given the weather report on snow-forecast.com . Still, I was hoping it wouldn't be bad, and/or it would improve. 

Wowzers, could I be more wrong? It was cage-match rain combined with high winds (wouldn't be surprised if they closed some chairs at some point). The black runs off the Raven Ridge chair were all closed, and the bottom jump in Stomping Ground was closed. I did a single jump run and gave it up. The landing areas were all mashed up, and likely to get worse. The problem is that there is such a small snow-pack this year. In a good year, the snow would be able to absorb a rainstorm with only the top inch or two being affected. But with the crap snowfall this year, the rain is able to saturate the entire pack all the way down. Makes for really crappy snow, with bare patches showing up everywhere, and brown snow where the stuff has been chewed up and not renewed.

I'm beginning to think February was the entire season. Anyway, left after 45 minutes.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Cypress day yesterday. They had announced on the website that they were rebuilding Stomping Ground, so I was looking forward to something new. The reality wasn't up to last year's setup, but then last year they had actual snowfall. So I guess I can cut them a break. 

Still, there were some nice improvements. They put a tabletop/pyramid hybrid thingy at the top of the park. That wasn't actually a terrific idea as you had to start _outside_ the park in order to get up enough speed. So a lot of trouble with people trying to rocket through the gate while other people were trying to just ride through to get to the park. After the pyramid, they had a ride-on rail and a ride-on wide box in parallel, just above the old pyramid. Below that, they added a flat-down rail, and the crew were working on something beside that all day (although I never figured out what it was going to be). And of course the 3-jump line, which was all repaired and good. They also put a roller just above the first jump which turned out to be the setup point.

I spent the entire day doing Collins and Stomping Ground. I think I literally only did 3 runs elsewhere. I spent the first run or two, as usual, wimping out and knuckling. But I soon got used to it and was getting proper loft for most of the day. Also overshot once and almost landed on the flat. That was a bit scary.

I hit the flat-down rail several times, which is a new high for me. I'm pretty comfortable with rails and boxes now, but I still need to get into street-style and gap-to features. Just waiting for them to build one mellow enough to be a starter. I'm also getting comfortable enough with the jumps that I was actually starting to consider throwing a 180. I'm now tucking almost every time. I still can't quite get the grab, but I think there may be fitness issues there...

It was snowing when I got to the mountain, and it snowed all day. Not a lot of accumulation, but anything is better than nothing. Strangely, it wasn't crowded. Even around lunch the line-ups never got to anything like a typical day on Mystery Chair at Seymour. In fact I had chairs to myself for most of the morning.

All the blacks and blues off Raven Ridge chair are still closed. That's just the kind of season it's been. Horizon is open now, and I did a run on it. I guess I was kind of hoping it was relatively untouched, but no such luck. Scritch, scritch. I did however finally nail my C turns on steeps on that run. I've always had trouble with my toesides and heelsides being asymmetrical, and a lot of washing out on heelsides. But I figured out yesterday what was missing. On my heelside turns, I start out by leaning noseward and downhill, which brings me around quickly. But haven't been doing that on toesides, which is why I have trouble initiating them. On Heelsides, I fail to shift my weight tailward through the bottom of the turn which is why I get washouts. Yesterday I finally got all components working on all sides, and voila! Nailed it...

I had changed my bindings around last weekend. Put the new Flows on the Heritage, and put the Targas back on the Proto. When I started the day yesterday, the Targas felt funny, like they were too far to toeside. Close inspection said differently, so I have to assume that I'd had the Flows a little too far back. Or I've had a stroke . Anyway, I got pretty good at buckling them up over the course of the day. Still not as convenient as Flows, but not bad. I think I may be shifting to bucklers... who'd a thought? There is definitely a difference in responsiveness. I never noticed this with the Heritage (when I had the Romes on it), so I think it may be more of a case of the Proto being an otherwise quick board. However, I still think the Targas suck design-wise. Maybe I'll pick up some other bindings in the post-season sales. Union or something.

I finally broke out the Drift Ghost for this session. Up until now, I just haven't bothered, given the crap season. Kind of rushed it, since it was a last-minute decision. That resulted in a couple of problems: 1) I didn't read the manual, so I had some problems with the remote, and 2) I neglected to rotate the lens, so everything I took for the whole day came out sideways . Oh well. At least I know it works. Love the remote, too.

So this is one of the few times this season that I've put in close to a full day on the mountain, and wow was I feeling it. By the afternoon my legs were burning on just about any effort. No question that it started to affect my control, too. Most of my fails on the jumps happened after lunch. I knew going into this season that I wasn't in terrific shape -- in fact I've mentioned it in the blog several times. And I certainly haven't put in the days that I'd need to _get_ in shape. But this is affecting my sessions, and that's just not acceptable. So this is a call to arms to myself to work on it this off-season, so that next season I'll be more prepared for Cypress.

All in all, this was probably the best day this season. Hoping I can get in at least one more like this before the season dies.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, it's unofficially the end. The snow forecast for the locals was kind of iffy for today -- right on the edge where it could be rain or an epic snowstorm. Of course it was rain. I did one run through Stomping Ground, and the snow was actually turning transparent because of the saturation with water. There's not much cover left, the downpour is melting what's still there, and unless a miracle happens there aren't going to be any more snow days -- even manmade.

So I took off after the one run, came home, and packed it all up. I'm now on summer time. Monday morning my "Days Until Snowboarding Season" sign goes up at work.

As usual, I'll take a day to think about it, then do a season redux. Later, dude. (oh crap I'm punchy right now).


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The season is over -- maybe not officially, but there's really nothing left. There wasn't much snow to begin with, and the temps and rain have been taking care of what's still around. So yesterday I packed up all my snowboarding gear to make room for the summer stuff.

This will certainly go into my record books as the worst season ever, weatherwise. I read somewhere that we had a similar season in 1990, and I vaguely remember some moaning by the local resorts back around that time. Well, here's hoping this is just a cyclical thing and not a trend. Seymour didn't even _open_ until the second week of January. And if you consider the season over at the end of March, that's less than 3 months. 

I had bought a Cypress Silver pass at the beginning of the season, based on the idea that I'd go to Cypress for my entire winter vacation. I did that, but I also started going to Cypress on weekends after that so I've definitely gotten my money's worth. The Seymour family pass, not so much. Because of the crappy weather, and exacerbated by my wife's shoulder problems, neither my wife nor my daughter even got their passes printed this year, let alone used them. 

This season was an interesting one personally, though. I had my new Proto HD to try out. I also had some new Targa bindings, and a new set of NX2-ATs. I like the board, although it's a little finicky in some ways. I found it less forgiving than the Heritage when doing low-speed maneuvers. Not quite sure why -- might just be that I've gotten used to the Heritage over 3-4 seasons. The big surprise to me was finding out that (at least on the Proto) I like traditional bucklers better than Flows. I think because it's such a quick board, the slightly poorer responsiveness of Flows becomes a significant issue. So I've put the Flows on the Heritage and the Targas on the Proto, and that's the way I'm going to leave it. I'm definitely going to keep bringing the Heritage though -- for high speed and rough stuff, the Heritage is hands-down better. And now that I've set up the bindings with the proper setback, the Heritage will be my go-to pow board (if I ever see any of the stuff).

This was a good year for me for personal development -- kind of surprising considering the short season. I figured out my C turns for real this time  ), the asymmetry of my turns in general, I got cross-overs and -unders nailed, figured out how to use them on steeps to keep speed down (although I still don't like speed much), and made great progression in park. In that area, I've finally made small jumps fairly routine, am able to run jump lines, and am finally getting past the knuckle. I also did rails for the first time, and started doing boardslides (shifties really) on boxes. If I had had a regular season, I think I'd be starting on at least 180s, if not 360s by now.

I think that my determination this season to not be timid made a lot of difference. Instead of waiting until I was really sure I was ready for something, I started taking chances. I also had a couple of good scares because of that, so have to remember I'm not invulnerable!

For next year, my new season resolution will be to get in better shape before the season starts. I went into this season 10-20 lbs overweight and _way_ below my usual fitness level. With Cypress and the longer, steeper runs, you really can't be out of shape. I had to cut several days short because my legs were jelly while there was still daylight left. Ungood. So next year I need to have the extra weight off, I have to have the extra fitness from running, weight-lifting and isometrics, and I need to do a lot of stretching so that I can actually make those grabs on jumps.

Also, this year we didn't visit any other resorts. Not really a surprise since anything in the area would be having a crappy season as well. Next year we have to visit _at least_ Hemlock, Manning, and Baker. Would be nice to visit an interior mountain as well, but there are only so many weekends in a season.

Anyway, it was a short short season, which I will whine about for years, but a good season personally. No regrets, unlike last year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The season ended officially last weekend, not that it made any difference other than theoretical. I've long since started thinking forward to next season. I've got the "days until snowboarding season" sign up at work, stuff's all put away, summer clothes are out, and I'm making summer plans.

I've started losing weight, per my off-season goals. I'm sure my impact shorts and snow-pants would already fit better. By the time next season starts I want to have a minimum of 15 lbs off of my end-of-season weight (205). Ideally I'd like to hit 175, which I've always thought of as my ideal fighting weight. That'll take some work, as I like my food a bit too much. 

I've also started asking around about tramp training. Even the small amount of training I got at Quantum was well worth the effort. If I could get going at someplace like Aviva with some proper equipment, that'd be even better. What I'm really looking for is some place that has the suspension straps for practicing flips. It'd also be cool to be able to use a Bounce Board.

I'm going to try to get another balance beam. I need to be comfortable with jumping on and off a rail. Like the last one, a 4x4 is good enough. I remember that using the balance beam was a ridiculous amount of exercise. Kind of like doing wind-sprints.

I want to get my videos organized on my ipod. Not just the Snowboard Addiction stuff, but also some of the youtube videos that have turned out to be interesting. I'll review them during the offseason and decide what I'm going to work on for next season.

On that subject...


 Continue to be aggressive with trying things. That worked well this last season, and in fact was the only thing that saved an otherwise truly heinous season.
 Perfect penguin walk. I can do it more or less, but I still don't think it's right.
 There are a number of ground tricks that I've figured out but that I'd like to perfect, like butters, pretzels, ollie and nollie to 180, stuff like that.
 Graduate to at least medium jumps.
 Get good (not just adequate) with moguls, steeps, and speed.
 Get out to the hill every chance I get. Once a week just doesn't cut it. Hopefully wife will be in better health this year and will push for Friday night sessions.

And that should about do it. If it turns out to be even an average season, I'll have a great time learning all the ins and outs of Cypress Mountain.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

On the subject of jumps -- a season and a half later, with a lot more practice on jumps, I'd have no problems at all with those two. It really is about desensitization.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've since been to Cypress on weekends, and it's not that bad. Certainly nothing like Grouse! And with the corporate purchases that Timmytard sets up every year, (plus the fact that my daughter will be an adult this year so no more family pass) Cypress actually isn't going to be that much more expensive.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The longest day of the year came and went the other day. As I've mentioned previously, this is kind of a psychological milestone for me -- I think of it as the farthest point from snowboarding season, although simple math will tell you that's not really true.

I'm a little surprised (but not _too_ surprised) to find that I'm not nearly as obsessive about snowboarding in the off-season this year. I'm pretty sure that's because of the crappy season that just finished. What I'm concerned about though, is a news article the other day saying that this was the warmest May _ever!_ They showed a graph of average planetary temps planet-wide for May over the last 150 years or so. It's not a random walk, it's a definite curve, and it's going UP. Shit.

Well, hopefully being a Cypress customer will afford me some better sessions anyway. I've done my "goals for next season". I'm not going to beat that into the ground. I'm just going to relax, wait for the season to get here, then we'll see.


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## supertramp (Jul 8, 2014)

Dude I like what you write. What is cypress though.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's now September, which I informally think of as the beginning of the run-up to snowboarding season. So I guess now would be a good time to get in some pre-pre-season kvetching.

First, to summarize last season: bleah! Worst. Season. Ever. For snow, anyway. Skillz-wise, I'm actually moderately happy with it. Also, got my new Proto last season, which was pretty neat.

So, what's in store for this season?

1) I'm going to be getting a full Gold season's pass at Cypress. My wife suggested that I _not_ buy passes for her or our daughter. Unfortunately she's still not positive that her shoulder will be in good enough condition, and $1000+ for passes that might not get used is a bit hard to take. If, on the other hand, things turn out well, we'll either buy them at full retail, or just buy day passes for the two of them. I haven't quite decided whether I'll get a season pass for the shuttle. I'll have to talk to wife about whether it's likely to be necessary.

2) I'm going to be wearing body armour all season. I found last season that it made a difference, both psychologically and physically -- and I wiped out enough times to test that statement! If I'd been wearing the crash-pants the season before last, I wouldn't have had that tailbone injury that affected the rest of that season. Lesson learned.

3) I'm going to be in better shape. As of today, I'm ramping up my gym visits, and getting serious about losing the rest of the weight that I promised myself I would. Too many reasons to do it, and none at all not to (except laziness).

4) I'm going to be aggressive with my riding all season. That worked _great_ last season, so another lesson learned.

5) I'm going to try to do meet-ups with some of the other Cypress regulars. Even if only for an hour or two of riding. Riding with other people pushes me out of my comfort zone.

6) Although I'm not going to set myself specific goals on a pass/fail basis, I _do_ want to work on some techniques that I should have nailed by now, but haven't. They are:

- Switch riding
- butters
- ollies
- penguin walk
- steeps
- moguls
- direction-swapping at speed

7) I'm going to keep working on park. I'd like to:

- graduate to medium jumps
- get grabs working
- get 180's working
- graduate to gap-to and street-style features, even if only small ones.

8) I'm going to get some new bindings -- maybe Unions. I've decided that the Targas are crap, but for the Proto I definitely want traditional bucklers.

9) Above all, have fun.

For some reason, it felt like I turned a corner last season, although I can't put my finger on exactly why. If we get anything like good snowfall, I think this could end up being the best season ever.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I bought my season's pass yesterday. Cypress. I feel strangely dirty, as if I'm cheating on Seymour. But that's silly, we've been separated for a while now. :moon:

Seriously, it is kind of an end of an era for me. Same kind of feeling as when I got rid of my first snowboard. But with the pass purchase (G8 full pass, $540+GST using TT's corporate discount), I'm now on serious pre-season stoke. Now comes the constant obsessive checking of the freezing level and weather forecast on snow-forecast.com . :wavetowel2:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

... And speaking of obsessive checking, the freezing level is staying up around 4000m. It dips occasionally, but always returns. Of course, this is still mid-September, and this is the earliest I think I've ever started obsessing.

I've bought my Cypress pass, as mentioned. I went and got my pic done this weekend. That's _so_ much easier than Seymour -- the Cypress office is open 7 days a week starting in September, and you just go in with your receipt and _done_.

My workouts are now in full swing -- I'm alternating weights, treadmill, and stretching regimens. Haven't seen any actual weight loss yet, but my pants are starting to fit a bit looser. 
I've booked two separate blocks of vacation time -- one around xmas, one in February. Sure hope those don't turn out to be a waste of time. But then, Cypress _did_ open mid-November last year, and with the snow guns they only need below-freezing temps. And speaking of which, there's been a definite trend in BC towards cooler-than normal temps. Record-setting, in some cases. Hope that holds up.

And I've been reviewing my equipment situation. I'd still like to get something to replace the Targas, but that's more of a _want_ than a _need_. If I can get to the Ski & Snowboard Show, I'll see what's available in a non-Rome buckler.

Next thing to do is charge up both batteries for my Ghost, and start practicing with the remote. Last year was a bit of a gong-show, with trying to learn on the fly. This year I want to be able to use the pole-cam as well so I can get some non-POV shots.

My whiteboard says 61 days today. That's Cypress time, of course. It was kind of nice chopping that extra 15 days off the countdown. :yahoo:

And finally, the forum started getting a bit busier once September rolled around. The stoke is starting to spread. Season coming up!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've been watching the snow-forecast website lately -- part of my early-fall obsessing, I guess. The freezing level was pretty consistently high in Aug and early Sept, but the last week or so it's started to swing up and down between about 2K and 4K. I wonder if that's a normal thing when the weather starts to change.

At street level, it's not all that much different. A little cooler, and we've had some rainstorms, but it's not like it's time to put away the air conditioner yet.

There's been some talk by the weather forecasters that this would be a warm, dry autumn. But we've also broken some cold records in BC, and there's been early snow in a couple of places. I'd like to think that the forecasters have it ass-backwards. That'd be nice.

Oh well. 50 days to go as of today (for Cypress). Keep on obsessing... :wavetowel2:

:computer3: :computer2:  :crazy2:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The oscillations came and went, there was even a several-days-in-a-row bump back up to 4K. But as of the 15th, it's showing a drop to 1500m and holding steady. It looks like mid-October is when you can expect things to start cooling off properly.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today, for the first time this year, snow-forecast.com is showing snow on the chart. It's barely there, just 1 cm and mixed with rain, but there you go. It's on Sunday the 26th. More or less on schedule.

It's been a very wet couple of weeks, so we can hope that this isn't going to be just like last year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First snow today at the top of Cypress. Pix posted on their web page.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just a quick update. There has been almost constant rain since the little bit of snow on the 23rd. There is a series of tropical storms blowing in, one after the other, bringing 2K and 3K freezing levels. If the amount of rain we've been getting was falling as snow, we'd be buried. But no such luck. 

Nov 3rd, mountains still all green. No indication of snow through the 8th at least. A Nov 15th opening is looking kinda unlikely...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The weather forecast "flipped" some time in the last 24 hours. Now suddenly the freezing level has plummeted to the 700m range. However, surprise surprise, no precip whatsoever. Just like last year. Either cold or wet, but not both at the same time. Starting to get angry...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

From the Cypress web page:

Cypress Mountain is very excited to announce we will be opening for the 2014/15 Season this Saturday morning! 


WOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!! 

Further states that they're only opening some upper runs, for intermediate and advanced skiers/riders only.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's been nine days since opening -- two weekends -- and so far, I am zero days on mountain. There's been some more snowmaking effort, but no natural stuff at all. Instead, we're alternating cold & dry with warm & torrential. Not kidding, the next three days this week are solid "Heavy Rain". This is followed by a dip in the freezing level to street level, accompanied by clear skies and NO precip whatsoever. Hello, last year.

Actually, this is worse than last year. By this point last year, there was at least mediocre boarding on Cypress.

Wow.
:cloud2: :cloud2: :donkeyballs:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It snowed last night. Just a couple of cm at street level, but Cypress is reporting 10 cm. The weather continues cold for several more days, so the snowmakers can do a job. It's possible that next weekend might just have enough snow for a session.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's Dec 15th, and I'm still waiting for my first day on the mountain. We've just finished yet another series of rainstorms that have washed the snow away -- what snow there was...

I looked up on Saturday at the Cut on Grouse, and it was brown, brown, brown. Cypress has been closed as often as they've been open.

On the slightly not-as-negative side, there's a forecast of snow later this week. For whatever that's worth.

Sigh. Two weeks vacation coming up. I may end up having to spend it at home with my family.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First snowboarding of the season today. woo hoo. :cloud: What a stinking, smoking pile of crap. I did one run and left. Basically, you have the following choices:

1. Corduroy.

That is all.

They didn't even open Lions chair, despite saying they were going to.

I don't know if I'm getting old, or impatient, or both, but I've got better things to do with my day than put up with crap conditions. I'll go back once they get some real snowfall.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I figure I should post something just so the four people who are following my blog don't think I died. 

Cypress continues to suck. Not that it's Cypress' fault, they're all sucking. They've now stopped opening the Lions chair, so other than the bunny slope, they're down to one mountain. They haven't even been able to _make_ snow lately, as the freezing level has been above the peak.

The forecast is hinting at the possibility of snow by about Thursday of this week, continuing possibly for several days. Well, I'll believe it when I see it, but at least _in principle_ I could be doing some riding this weekend.

In a backhanded way, the crappy season has had some good fallout. At least I had plenty of time to get my book finished and published. Probably saved me a couple of weeks to a month.

Sigh. I think I'd rather be snowboarding. :angry1:


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## herzogone (Oct 19, 2010)

Bummer, sorry to hear. I was hoping the lack of updates was because you were neck deep in powder and had no time to be near a keyboard. We've had much less snow than usual out here also, but fortunately my home hill has 100% snowmaking so at least they've managed to blast some manmade stuff in the low temps (December here was ridiculously warm). The main terrain park still isn't fully open though. I guess I shouldn't complain, I've been getting some days in at least, even if the conditions are sub-par. Good luck with your book! If you don't mind my asking, what kind of book? Hope your season improves soon!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Science fiction. Outland.


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## herzogone (Oct 19, 2010)

Very cool, I'll definitely give that a read! I have to confess, I haven't read much sci-fi (or much anything recreational) in recent years, but I used to love it. Thanks!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, that's it. Cypress has come out and admitted on their web page that the season is done. Previously, they were still doing the "it can still happen" thing. Pfft. As if.

Anyway, they've published their incentive for customers to re-up, and surprisingly, it's a good offer. For existing passholders, you can buy the same pass for next year at 80% off. Yeah, you heard me. That works out to $119 for a new GOLD pass for me for next year. I know I've been saying I wasn't going to buy a pass until the snow was on the ground, but a deal like that is literally too good to pass up. So I'll be buying a pass for next year. Hope I'm not jinxing it by doing so.

So this season (and I use the term ironically) was a great big, heaping, smelly pile of poo. I went up one time, and it was so bad, I left immediately. People in Whistler apparently had a better time, but that's too much drive and too much $$ for me.

On the plus side, the lack of season meant that I was able to get a lot of writing done. I have one novel published, two novels about half-done, and an app ready to be uploaded to codeproject. Wouldn't have been able to do that if I'd been on the mountain every spare day.

Sigh. I'll even accept the last two years of crap, if it means next year can be a good one. Where's my Ullr altar? Time to sacrifice a virgin. If I can find one...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yes, we're coming up on the longest day of the year. I've said before that I consider it the unofficial "mid-point" of the off-season. If I had to pick a word to describe my feelings about that, it would be "ennui." Great word, that. I've never had a reason to use it before.

I look up at the North Shore mountains and there is not one lick, not one speck of white on any of them, anywhere. Not even on the Lions. Yeesh.

So this'll be the make-or-break year. I wouldn't go so far as to say I'll never snowboard again, but I certainly won't be buying any more season passes if this year doesn't pan out. In any case, once I hit retirement, I'll be moving closer to a good mountain. Probably not Whistler, because it looks like it's going the same way as the locals, just slower. Something in the interior.

Well, that's my whining and kvetching for the summer, I guess. Getting lots of writing done, so I guess that's one upside. :dry:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Someone just told me that Whistler got a dusting of snow at peak. I went and checked snow-forecast.com, and they were predicting 1 cm on Cypress at peak as well. I doubt it actually happened, but the fact that it's within the realm of possibility is just _huge!_

Maybe we'll have a season? People are touting the Farmer's Almanac as predicting a snowy winter. I've never set much stock by that publication, but I'm prepared to become a fan.

I've given up on finding a virgin to sacrifice to Ullr, so I'm going to lower the bar and get a unicorn. :hairy:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Right now, the freezing level on Cypress (according to snow-forecast.com) is sitting just a smidge under 5000 m. That's actually higher than it was for most of the summer, and it was a _hot_ summer.

But even more interestingly, by next Monday the 14th, the freezing level drops to the point where the website is predicting SNOW at the top of Cypress. Yeah, that's right, I said it. The 'S' word. In September.

Now, disclaimer, disclaimer, it's just a prediction, even if it happens it won't stick, it's no indication of future trends, etc etc etc. Yeahsowhat. It's the most promising lead-in we've had in several years. I'm going to enjoy the enthusiasm and anticipation as long as it lasts.

:snowplow::snowing:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just an addendum to this... the snow prediction has disappeared, but the low freezing level (2000 +/- ) continues for several days. It's actually at the same level as most of last winter. Weird.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

And now this upcoming Tuesday the 22nd is also getting a snow prediction on Cypress. The usual disclaimers apply, but it's interesting that we're getting this much potential activity in September. Of course, now there's all the hoopla about the double El Nino, but this September activity just doesn't line up with that prediction.

Like it or not, I'm going to have to let some hope out of the bottle.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Right now, the forecast is a steady line, at 4000 - 4500 m. In fact, it's predicting higher temps at the top of the mountain than at the bottom. Temperature Inversion, I guess. Hopefully this isn't something that's going to settle in for the long term, like the ozone hole.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Interestingly, at this point, the freezing level is looking fairly typical compared to years past. If it's a little warmer, it's only a _little_ warmer. One swing in weather patterns could take it either way. We'll see in a couple of weeks if we end up getting any October snowfall.
k: :snowboard4:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

There have been flashes of snow predictions on snow-forecast this week. They come and go as the freezing level prediction fluctuates. Still, a good sign.

But this morning, it's showing a definite snow prediction for the top of Cypress as of the 31st and 1st. And it looks, so far, like the freezing level keeps dropping.

One can only hope.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The Grouse Mountain webcam shows a beautiful, blue-sky, warm spring day. Sadly, it isn't spring, it's the lead-up to snowboarding season, and well into a stretch where snow-forecast has been showing continuous snow predictions.

On the plus side, there _was_ snow around the first of the month. On the minus side, torrential rains have since washed that away. On the plus side, that happens every year at least once. On the minus side, It's supposed to have been snowing since Saturday mid-day or so, and it's supposed to be snowing for the next several days.

No such luck. And the future predictions are starting to do that "eternally retreating" thing, as well.

We may be fucked again for this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Mm, yep. Opening day on Cypress, today.

Of course, that "opening" is 10am - 3:30pm, one run, and if there's six-inch depth I'd be amazed. But the important thing is 

IT'S OPENING DAY!!!!!!

Their website says they've gotten more snow than we had any point last year. I believe it. And the forecast is showing some more snow coming. We may actually have a semi-normal season this year.

But this isn't an emotional roller-coaster or anything. :happy:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We've had some good snow on the locals, and they've been open most days (except Seymour, of course). The last couple of days have seen some heavy rain, which is washing things away. But starting tonight, we have a week of freezing temps and snow-- at least according to snow-forecast.com . This is better than last year, although not quite as good as my first couple of years. I _do_ remember December being iffy, though.

I haven't gone yet-- frankly, snowboarding in a drizzle doesn't thrill me. Nor does snowboarding on a couple of inches of snow, with bare rocks and dirt on the sides of the run.

Still, it's better than last year. I have hopes. And I have two weeks off at the end of December. Maybe I'll get in some laps.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yes, six straight days of snow coming up, with the freezing level comfortably below the peak the whole way. This is on top of the several days of snow and cold temps we've already had.

I am off in two days, and the boarding will be epic. :laugh2:


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## Seppuccu (Dec 4, 2012)

Enjoy! I envy you.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Season is now officially on, at least for me. I went up a little late, because it's a weekday and I didn't feel like fighting rush hour. That resulted in my having to park way out in the boonies. I've never had to park in the outer lots before. They should have shuttles to bring people in. :grin:
Almost everything is open-- I think one or two double-diamonds are still bare cliffs instead of snow-covered cliffs. Boo hoo. I split my day between Collins and Stomping Ground. The park had some flat boxes and a rail out, as well as a couple of dinky jumps. They were okay, since I was going to be conservative on my first day up, anyway. But if this was midseason, I would be appropriately derisive.
Collins was good. The snow is still soft enough and new enough for a good snowboarding experience. I did a couple of side hits, although again, conservative.
Legs started giving out about mid-day. I kind of expected that, though. I've done absolutely no conditioning leading up to the season, and I've even been slacking off on my maintenance exercise. I guess I have some catching up to do.
Finally left when I couldn't handle Collins any more. That's when injuries happen.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm finally ready to hope that we may have an actual season. Went up today, day 2. I had to park in the _outer_ outer parking lot, but no real biggie.

I did Panorama a couple of times, but I found out early on that Stomping Ground was closed, so lost interest. The Skate Park was open, but only had one jump and a bunch of medium features.

I spent most of my day on Strachan, doing Collins and Horizon. I worked on my steeps handling, and I was happy to discover that I still remember how. It took some practice, and I still tend to chatter on heelside if I start to get sloppy, but it all came back. I think I'm going to concentrate on my blues and blacks handling this year, since it seems there will actually be open blues and blacks.

I made a point of checking out the bunny hill for the family. They'll probably be coming up next week. Runway is definitely a nice bunny slope. Wide, consistent, not too steep, and not bumpy. The chair is slowwwwwwww. No, I mean _really_ slow. It's not a detachable, so the speed at which it picks you up is the speed at which it takes you to the top. :sleep2: I wanted to get out and kick it to make it speed up. But that'll be fine for the family.

My legs felt considerably better today than on Monday. What eventually drove me away was not exhaustion, but a thick fog that drifted in mid-afternoon. Busy and foggy is a bad combination.

Anyway, great day, and hopefully the start of a great season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Day 3. O.M.F.G.

I have never seen anything even vaguely like the line-up to get up to Cypress today. Traffic stopped dead just after the last switchback, and it took 40 min to get to a parking spot. Saw 3 vehicles overheat and die on the way. Yeah, that's right, snow all around, sub-freezing temps, vehicles are overheating. I guess 40 minutes of idling can be a problem...

Anyway, as soon as the outer outer outer lot became visible I said fukit and pulled in. I still got to the lift lines before the people who stayed in their cars until they got to the front.

Oh, and then there's the line-ups for lift tickets. The whole ski-rack area was packed with line-ups, because the line-up out into the parking lot extended out to the road. It was fucking nuts.

And just so we're really sure we're having fun, Lions Express died midday. After a half-hour or so of standing in the line-up, people went to Eagle, which of course resulted in double-epic line-ups there. 

At that point, I left. And discovered, on the way down, that the line-up for parking was still there! And vehicles were still dying.

Holy crap on a cracker, I knew Cypress could get crazy on a stat, but I think this was some kind of perfect storm (pardon the expression). I'm going up again tomorrow, but I'm heading up EARLY.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Day 4. No new snow, so lots of corduroy and 'firm' snow. Starting to get scritching sounds on some runs. That's never a good sign.

Yet again, the jumps in Stomping Ground weren't ready until mid-day. Not that they're anything to get excited about. They're kind of lofty this year, anyway.

I made a point of leaving early for the mountain, and a good thing, too. I still got stuck in the slow line-up, but only at the point where the cross-country parking lot splits off the roadway. But by mid-morning, it was getting crowded. By noon, it was so bad, I left.

I dunno. I just don't get the warm and fuzzies about Cypress. Yeah, it's a bigger mountain, yeah, it's got more runs. But I had more fun at Seymour. I'm going to be going there a time or two with the family. We'll see if my memory is realistic or idealized.

In any case, here's a lesson for next year: Don't go to Cypress during the xmas holidays. At all. Just don't. I won't even be trying to go this weekend.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Maybe not the _best_ day ever, but certainly way up there. It was wet-snowing when I left home, which is always a good sign. It was full-on snowing by a quarter of the way up the mountain, and it never stopped. It was still snowing when I drove down the mountain, and Grouse's webcam still shows snow (forget using Cypress' webcam. It shows nothing useful.)

I left at 7am this morning, hoping to beat the usual lineup. And it worked! I drove all the way up, got there just after 8, parked in the chalet parking lot, second row. I had so much time before they opened that I decided to get a wax and edge sharpening. Nice.

I also decided, on a whim, to book into a group lesson. And, as usual, I was the only person in the group. So $40 private lesson. Woohoo!

After watching me, the instructor said he didn't have a lot of advice for me, which was fine. I asked him to lead on a couple of blues, and I tried to learn from the lines he was taking. Well, I learned, all right. I learned I'm out of shape. By the end of the lesson, my legs were screaming for mercy. I think it's time to get started on my conditioning. :embarrased1:

Oh, and they actually had the Stomping Ground jumps groomed and ready at opening. I didn't hit them too many times, but had fun when I did.

All in all, an excellent day. I'm seriously considering calling in an emergency T.O. day tomorrow, especially if it looks like the snow is going to keep coming.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The weather has not been thrilling the last couple of weeks. Lots of rain, not lots of snow. I almost went up to Cypress yesterday-- was up at 6am and everything-- but the website wasn't encouraging. There was some new snow, but there were also high winds, and Sky Chair was expected to be closed.

After thinking about it for a while, I decided to wait for today. Not sure that was the best idea I've ever had. Yesterday, there was at least _some_ fresh. Today it was all scritch. On the other hand, it was as deserted as a weekday. For the couple of hours that I was there, I never had to wait for the lift, and in fact only had to share a chair once. Needless to say, I got in a lot of runs in a short time.

Which brings up conditioning, again. As in, I ain't got none. Actually, I also have a nagging knee problem right now. So between the back leg getting tired and the front knee getting sore, I'd had it before lunch. That's going to have to be corrected.

On the plus side, I hit the Stomping Ground jumps a lot, and was starting to get some good loft towards the end. Also, that weird construction about halfway down Stomping Pad finally came into focus (or maybe finally got finished). It's a half-assed half-pipe. Not terrible, really. If I was able to go every weekend, and spent most of my time in Stomping Ground, I think I could eventually get quite comfortable with air. Not sure it's going to happen this year, though.

I'm a little bothered by my lack of stability on my board, too. Granted, I haven't gotten a lot of days in, but I wonder if the Proto isn't giving me grief. Next time I go up, I'm going to bring both NS boards. I'll start with the Heritage and see if it makes a difference. I have a feeling that I'm going to find the Heritage is naturally a more stable board. We'll see.

Anyway, not a terrific day, but I'm glad I went. It's too easy to get into the habit of making excuses every weekend about the weather or snow conditions. Sometimes you just have to get off your ass and do it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The snow-forecast website looked hopeful for today, so I went up to Cypress early. It was, in fact, snowing right down to parking lot level. They started letting people in a bit early, so that was a bonus.

It was deserted again, so I had every chair to myself. And no waiting-- I rode right up through the lift-line every time, yanked my straps, and pushed right onto the lift. Got a lot of runs in, in an hour and a half. Why? Because just before 10:30, the snowfall turned to rain, and the nice new snow turned to suction snow. When I almost fell forward while lining up for a jump, I decided I was done.

But before things went to shit, I had a pretty good morning. Getting good loft on my jumps, starting to tuck properly again; I'm hitting the features in sequence and not having to skip past stuff because I can't setup in time; and I got my cross-under turns working today. So I'm finally starting to get my snowboarding legs back. End of February. Jeez.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The forecast is showing nothing but snow, followed by snow, and more snow, for at least the next six days. Even better, I've booked next week off.

Omigod, omigod, omigod, omigod, omigod, omigod, omigod, omigod.

Of course, I've probably just jinxed it. :embarrased1:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Seriously. On Thursday, I popped my knee running across the street. Jeez. I had visions of this entire week off being wasted. Fortunately, I got myself a compression sleeve, which is helping a lot. Knee is still sore, but within the tolerable range.

Of course, I jinxed the snowfall as well. The anticipated snow has not been showing up. At least not before today. Right now it's "heavy snow" on Cypress. I'm giving my knee the extra day off, and let's face it, the mountain will be packed with weekend warriors today. I'll go up tomorrow and probably have the whole place to myself. I hope.


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## snowangel99 (Mar 11, 2016)

Do you roll? No seriously! I had sore knees in the past but turns out I just had a tight IT band. Now I roll out my IT band almost daily and never have knee pain or problems.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Holy crap! I have a blog! :happy:

I'd almost forgotten about this thing, as evinced by the fact that I haven't posted in six months. Eep!

So, my last post was about my buggered knee. Fortunately, praise Ullr, the knee is now better. I'm back to running, although not running as often as I'd like or I should. I'm really not sure what all went bad with the joint, although a tight IT band certainly played into it. Well, as long as it doesn't start acting up again, I'm good.

I have had a busy, busy spring and summer. Not snowboarding related, so if that's what you're looking for, stop right here. In January, I got my second novel picked up by Audible.com . The next eight months were about getting it prepared for publication. Editing, correspondence with the narrator (Ray Porter is excellent, BTW), stressing about whether I'd get picked up by a print publisher (I didn't). But, come Sept 20th, _We Are Legion (We Are Bob)_ hit the shelves. Figuratively speaking.

And it's doing well. Better than I expected, in fact. So now, I have to split my time between snowboarding, writing, and *grumble* work. But you know, there's a time for everything. Snowboarding gets the winter, writing gets spring, summer and fall, and work gets the rest. :laugh2:

This year, we are going back to Seymour. I've had several years at Cypress, and I wasn't impressed enough to stay. Oh, some of that might be the absolutely heinous last few seasons we've had; but even so, I enjoyed riding Seymour better. Strange, since I left there in a huff, vowing never to go back.

Got seasons passes for myself, wife, and daughter. 61ragtop did a group deal, so it was only $312 each. Next year, I'll be eligible for the Seymour Senior Discount :blush:, so $99 for a season pass. Not _entirely_ sure how I feel about that.  But the price is right!

I hope to be able to get in a good season, this year. Got my own car, with snow tires, so no issues with scheduling the ride. Got two working knees. Still got all equipment. Got seasons pass. What can go wrong?

:facepalm3:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We're in October, now--the time of year when I start checking the snow-forecast website several times a day. At the moment, it looks not bad, which is defined as reasonably close to the freezing point. Unfortunately, two years ago, the freezing line hovered just above the mountain peak for the entire season, except for periods where the sky was clear and there was no precip.

Well, we'll see. I think I've become sufficiently cynical (or maybe fatalistic) that I won't be checking hourly. Of course, I'm always ready to be pleasantly surprised.

Let the nail biting begin!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Nope. No snow. Well, no snow on Seymour anyway. Or any of the locals. Whistler is getting pounded, though.

Still, the freezing level is looking encouraging. It's hovering just over or around the peak. Snow-forecast keeps forecasting periods of snow, which evaporate as the predicted date arrives. That also is normal.

It remains to be seen what this season will be like, but over the longer term, I still believe the locals are going to be in trouble. Even Whistler, the last couple of years, has seen the snow line climbing the mountain, even in mid-season. It creates a small dilemma for me. Sometime in the next five years, I'm going to retire, and my wife and I have already agreed that we'll move out of the lower mainland. Whistler is the first choice, but if the winters continue to deteriorate, we may have to look for an alternative. Interior mountains? Banff? Who knows. I guess it'll depend on how the weather patterns change.

Damn, I picked a bad time to take up winter sports.


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## Seppuccu (Dec 4, 2012)

Dude, stop complaining - we have 11° C over here. 

Recognise that feeling: picking up winter sports at the wrong time. :dry:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It started snowing on Seymour on Monday (two days ago)-- just light dustings, initially, but still a positive sign. As of this morning, it's white. The snow-forecast site predicts snow for the rest of the week. :wavetowel2::woohoo:

I know this because Seymour has a webcam, now. It's pointed at the loading station for Mystery chair, which IMO is actually a good setup. It tells us what the situation is at parking-lot level, which is the best indicator of overall conditions.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This last weekend was reminiscent of Early 2010, where we got a HUGE dump out of nowhere. I just hope we don't get the same dry spell through to March as last time.

There was so much snow Sunday morning that Seymour essentially closed the mountain until they could plow the parking lot and road. And all day, they were doing traffic control to keep the number of cars down. Now, this morning, more snow. And no real end in sight. Good God, could this be an actual good year?

Unfortunately, I couldn't go up. First, I wasn't ready--I think I've just been unconsciously assuming the season would suck--and second, see above paragraph. Definitely going next weekend, though, even if just for a few hours.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I finally went up Seymour today for my first laps of the season. Wow! Another 45cm of snow last night, on top of a ton of other dumps. This wasn't the brown crap, mixed with rocks and dirt, with twigs sticking up. This was the pure white, fluffy stuff, covering everything.

I got up early enough to get the first chair on Lodge. I did Chucks, Cabin Trail, Mystery, and Pete's Run over the course of the morning. Only had one spill, when I found some untouched, ungroomed stuff. I buried my tip and did an unscheduled tamedog. And not the good kind, where you ride away. :grin:

Anyway, things got very, very busy about 10:30, and my rear leg was starting to burn, so I packed it in. Good enough for a first time. And we're going to try to get the the gym this afternoon. Apparently I'm out of shape!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up first thing in the morning on New Year's day. The theory was that most people would be nursing hangovers and/or otherwise be unwilling to get up early for snowboarding, breakfast, or the trump of doom. (Small joke. Sorry.) Anyway, the theory turned out to be correct. It was _dead_ for the first two hours, and not really insane after that.

I've brought up only my Heritage with the Flows, so far this season. Partly (well, mostly) because I don't have the ski rack up on the car, and putting them in the trunk is a pain. But it's become increasingly clear to me that the Heritage is less work to ride on than the Proto. The Proto is definitely more maneuverable, but on the other hand, I get a lot of feedback from the terrain. The result is that I have to put more effort into maintaining a line or a curve. The Heritage just bulls right through.

This is my first real long-term experience with two different boards, and I'm amazed at the difference. Or maybe it's just that I've reached the point where I can notice those things. I will say that despite having done little or nothing for two seasons (and I use the word loosely), I was able to get my form back really quickly. In particular, I went down Unicorn yesterday, kind of late in the morning. Anyone who has been on Seymour knows that Unicorn gets hacked up pretty bad, especially the first, really steep part. But I handled it. Tight C turns, good anticipation, bumps absorbed well--I was pretty happy with my performance.

I also went down Pete's Run a couple of times. Great snow, untouched lines... Lots of fun. The third time, though, I got behind a group of skiers. And not the skilled kind, either. They seemed to be pulling some kind of tag-team thing where one or the other would always be in the way, or simply sprawled in the middle of the trail. I try to remind myself that it's all snow-sports, but jeez, I'm only human. 0

I really had only one problem with the day--conditioning. I am in _shit_ shape right now. I never really got back on the horse, metaphorically speaking, after that knee issue last winter. I've gained weight, I've lost tone, and let's face it, I'm older than the Rockies. So by 11am or so, I had about had it. Thighs were just burning, and my legs actually shook just standing there.

So I'm going on a conditioning program as of now. I have two weeks off in February, and I need to be able to handle full days, day after day, every day. Gotta get this done!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went snowboarding last Sunday. Did two runs. Went home.

Man, the word 'snowcrete' just doesn't do it justice. So far, this season is beginning to look like 2009/2010. We had a huge dump of snow at the beginning of the season, followed by sweet diddley until the week after the Olympics, then constant dumps until end of season.

Kind of looking that way, right now. There hasn't been any appreciable snowfall in a couple of weeks now, and the Seymour crew has just been running over the same snow night after night. What's left is getting the consistency of snow that isn't cleared off a sidewalk and just keeps getting walked on. Even doing park is contraindicated, given that any kind of bail will result in a landing that will jar your teeth out of your sockets.

Anyway, rant over. I have two weeks vaca coming up in Feb, so I can just go up the mountain later in the day during the week, once it softens up. And meanwhile, I have a writing deadline coming up for delivering book 3. So I guess it all kind of works out.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today should have been the best snowboarding day this season. It's been snowing for days, and the snow hasn't been getting washed away. It snowed about 2 feet overnight. It's a weekday, with the light crowds. I had the day off. Paradise.

Yeah, right.

Oh, look. Seymour crew can't get Mystery chair working. Qu'elle surprize. Everyone's gone to Lodge chair. Who'da thought? Fifteen minutes to get on the lift, for a two-minute run. Whoopey.

On the plus side, Mushroom has a couple of jumps set up. On the minus side, they're too small. And I find it interesting that I'm able to think of jumps as being "too small" now. If I wasn't so thoroughly pissed at the moment, that would make me happy.

Next year... well, let's be honest, next year I don't know what's going to happen. We could be living in Whistler by next year, the way things are going. But assuming that doesn't happen quite yet, I'm going back to Cypress. I might buy a Seymour pass if wife and daughter insist on Seymour--with the senior's discount, a season pass will cost me $100. :grin:

But in terms of my 'main mountain', I'm done with Seymour.

And here's the thing--as of this June, I'm retired. So next season, I can go EVERY FUCKING DAY if I want. Maybe I'll buy passes to all the locals and just pick randomly. :laugh2:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, the season is effectively over for me. I know there's a couple of weeks left, technically, and the snow still appears to be pretty good on the mountains. But I'm done. I got some snowboarding in this season, so it wasn't a total waste, but only compared to the previous two seasons--which were total wastes.

I can't be too upset, though. The main reason for my lack of mountain days has been my burgeoning career as a writer. Every weekend I faced the question of 'write or ride'. Since 'write' will help pay for an early retirement, 'write' won this round.

And my retirement is now fixed at June 30th. Yes, this year k:. So next winter, I will be playing catch-up. I'll likely avoid the weekends most of the time--why would you go on weekends if you can go during the week? But I anticipate 3-5 days of snowboarding every week. I'll be buying a Seymour pass and a Cypress pass, since the Seymour pass will cost me diddley. Wife and daughter will likely still get Seymour passes, as they like it better there. But I'll be on my own, most of the time.

Whistler is the big unknown. We want to spend at least a couple of weeks there this winter, to get the lay of the land. It is entirely possible that we could be buying something up there within a year or two. Or sooner, if a big contract comes in. Wow. Am I ready for full-time riding at Whistler?

Oh, hellz yes.

But then there's the proposed Disney ski resort in Squamish--no, sadly, that was an April Fool's joke. Bet the Whistler management was shitting themselves, though. 

Anyway, things are so different from a year ago. Looking forward to next winter.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Okay, so a couple of things have happened. First, I've finally retired from my day-job. June 30th (which I thought would never get here) was my last day. I am now either unemployed or a full-time writer, depending on how you want to look at it.

Second, the summer solstice has come and gone. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I unofficially think of that as the half-way point between successive snowboarding seasons. Even though mathematically it isn't really, it still feels like a turning point. From here on, days will be getting shorter.

Anyway, I have started running again, and I'll be going to the gym regularly. I have to take off a minimum of 20 lbs before next season--and 30 would be preferred. And I'm going to be loading up on some new clothing and equipment this year, so the sooner I can lose the pounds, the better.

Ah, going to be a good season. Assuming we get snow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today, we got snow on the mountains. I know, technically we got a few cm a week or two ago, but that was scut that was gone almost before it landed. The stuff today hit all the locals, and so far at least is sticking. And because we have a cold front coming in, there could be more over the next few days. Whistler, of course, is getting more, and even Mt. Washington is looking white. Good times.

I was so encouraged that I went to the Boardroom today and stocked up on some new hardware (pics at bottom). It was a little disconcerting at first, because I realized that I haven't been keeping track of hardware for a few years. In particular, when I looked at the Never Summer boards, I didn't recognize some of the models and had to read the specs to figure out which ones matched my riding.

Anyway, I ended up buying the following:

Volcom Goretex bib pants
Smith IO7 goggles
Ride Lasso Boa boots
2017 Never Summer West 159
Ride LTD bindings

I love the pants, as I no longer have to worry about snow down the pants and up the wazoo when I nail one of my patented Bill D. Cat landings. I tried several goggles, and the IO7s had the best field of view. That was, I admit, a bit of an impulse purchase, but so what?

The boots are cool -- they're sort of a dual boa and sort of not. They have two ratchets, but rather that tightening the upper and lower boot as the Focus 32s do, the Rides tighten the boot using the front ratchet, and the other one tightens the heel and mid-foot of the insert. There's also a drawstring for the upper part of the insert. Anyway, I tried them on and they fit even better than the 32s, which is saying a lot.

The NS was a no-brainer, although I find it funny that after several years of eyeing symmetrical boards, I'm now back to a board with an aggressive offset. I think I've finally come to understand the role of a battleship downhill board, especially on the more difficult slopes. The Proto really never handled steeps well.

So, as mentioned earlier, I'm going to be snowboarding during the week this year. I've got the senior's pass at Seymour (shaddap you) and the Silver pass at Cypress. The Silver made a lot of sense, since it only locks me out of weekends (which I will be avoiding anyway) and the Christmas holidays (which I will be avoiding twice as hard). I'll probably only use the Seymour pass when going up with the family, since they've come down on the side of Seymour as the preferred family destination.

I'm not going to make my 20-lb weight-loss goal, although I'm heading in the right direction. But the new bib pants will make that a little less painful. :laugh2: Still, I've also lost a lot of flexibility, so I'll have to start working on that. Like, today.

All in all, I'm starting to feel the old fire of enthusiasm. I sure hope this turns into a good season, snow-wise, because this is the year that I can make it count.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was my second time up the mountain. The first time, two days ago, was great, mostly. I went to Cypress of course, Seymour not being open yet. Cypress had the two main lifts going, and the main green and blue runs. More or less, since there were a LOT of sticks up, marking potholes and hazards. I didn't push my luck, but I did find myself getting up to speed quickly. Very happy with that. On the downside, my new boots were not comfortable, with pressure points and rubbing on my heels. Still, I did a couple of hours and still had gas left at the end.

Today should have been a better day, as there was more snow. No so, unfortunately. People have apparently finally clued in that ski season is upon us. While Wednesday was reasonably empty, today was packed. And with the limited number of runs open, that meant everyone was on the same 3-4 runs. In addition, they'd groomed the runs overnight and basically turned the snow to concrete. So already, things were not looking good.

To add to that, my boots still bother me, despite getting them heat molded yesterday. That's very worrying. I'm going to pick up my 32's from storage over the weekend, and use them next time up. If they work well for me, I'm afraid the Insanos will have to go.

One other little bit of stupidity on my part. After Wednesday's session, I put my new goggles back in the goggle box without letting them dry. When I tried to use them this morning, they were thoroughly fogged up, even between the lenses. I went and swap the lens and it was much better. But it's one more thing to remember--always dry off the goggles.

Anyway, Seymour opens today, so I'll be going there at least once next week. One way or the other, I'm going to get my laps in this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It’s been a while since I’ve done an update, so I've got a backlog of things to write about. That doesn’t mean I haven’t been snowboarding, although I’m not particularly happy with my days count this season. I mean, crying out loud, I’m retired. I should be able to go up every day. Or even every weekday, if I want to avoid weekends.

Maybe if the weather had been better, I’d have done that. But this week is the first time we’ve really had some concentrated snowfall that wasn’t immediately followed by torrential rain. But, that’s life in Vancouver.

I really do feel like I’ve outgrown the local mountains. Not as in “able to handle every run”, but as in “still having fun.” As it is, I’ve long since given up on Grouse, and I think I’m now done with Cypress. Only Seymour is still giving me some joy, mostly because the runs aren’t groomed and manicured into homogeneity. In fact, I started the day on Cypress today. Got up there shortly after 9am, and hit an easy run to warm up. It was crap. How can you, after receiving almost a meter of snow, within an hour of opening, have a run so completely trashed? Well, they did it.

So I left, and drove up to Seymour, where I had a ball for most of the day. Untouched snow all over the place. I had Seymour 16s and Cabin Trail pretty much all to myself for half the day.

THAT’s snowboarding.

Anyway, we’re going to try to get a place at Whistler for next season, so that’ll be my go-to for the 2018/19 season. Assuming I can get back into shape, anyway. The Whistler runs are long enough and technical enough to create some really intense thigh-burn. Last time up, I had to stop about 4-5 times per run to sit down and let my legs recover.

Now, on the subject of equipment…

I’ve turned into a bit of a gear-whore this year—actually, I’ve always been a gear-whore, but this year I’ve been able to indulge myself. At the moment, I have four complete setups:

-	NS Heritage with NX2-ATs
-	NS Proto HD with Rome Targas
-	NS West with Ride LTDs
-	NS Chairman with Union Contact Pros

Anyone notice a pattern? Yeah, I’m a Never Summer fanboy. Sue me.

For boots, I have:

-	32 Focus
-	Ride Lasso

Both are double-boa setups, although the Rides have a slightly different tech—the side dial doesn’t tighten the lower boot, it tightens the ankle area. I’m not sure how effective it is. I have a bigger problem with the Lassos, which is that they’re a little too soft for my taste. At the moment, I’ve gone back to the 32s.

I had the Heritage and the West with me at Seymour today. Unfortunately, I can’t handle the Flows right now, because of some weird pain in my hip that’s preventing me from reaching the highback to snap in. At least not without discomfort. I think that’s just a conditioning thing, though.

The Chairman is supposed to be a replacement for the Heritage, but I don’t think it quite pulls it off. It’s a pretty bulletproof board, and doesn’t chatter in the roughs, but it doesn’t have the same battleship ability to cut through the crud as the Heritage. That’s unfortunate. If NS doesn’t fill that void, I might have to go off-brand to find my next hard charger.

The West is more or less a Proto HD replacement, and I think it pulls that off much better. The West is less chatter-prone and has a more predictable carving response. I always found the Proto’s line a little unpredictable when pushing it.

On the bindings subject, I’m finding I like the Ride LTD the best. It’s an aluminum frame, which means less flex, but more important to me, the ankle and toe straps are easier to handle and more dependable. The Unions have partially released on me a couple of times, somewhat reminiscent of my old Rome 390s. For reference, those ended up in the garbage.

I still like the Targas, and I may swap them with the Unions. But then juggling your bindings and boards is half the fun, right?

Getting back to the subject of actual snowboarding (this is a blog about snowboarding, after all), I’m starting to get my mojo back. I was really kicking ass on the runs today, although I admit that part of my success was due to the Seymour runs not being all chewed up. Still, when conditions are this good, you can push yourself and improve more quickly.

I still need to get my switch riding back into shape, and I have to start working the park again. Sadly, when there’s a lot of new snow, the park crews don’t seem inclined to groom up the features with any kind of alacrity, so there was very little available today.

And that brings up the next thing—protective gear. I need to replace all my old stuff, but for some reason no one in Vancouver is inclined to stock much equipment. I may end up having to go through Amazon, with the attendant sizing risks.

Last item for today: I downloaded the Slopes app to my phone the other day, then promptly forgot about it (oops). I remembered the thing just in time to record the last two runs of the day. It actually looks very interesting. I’ll try the free version for a full session next time around, and honestly, I might end up paying for the premium features. It really does look like a useful app. Then maybe a review.

And that’s it from the land of ice and snow. And rain.


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## Seppuccu (Dec 4, 2012)

I recognise that thing with snow followed by torrential rain; difference being over here we rarely get more than a few cm of snow. Oh, and we don't have hills.

So ... Retired Man Moving To Fernie anytime soon?  I've heard it's drier over there.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's time for a confession: I've taken up skiing. Yes, that's right. The sport that must not be named.The dark side of sliding on snow. Evil. EVIL!

Perhaps I exaggerate slightly. Actually, what happened is that my wife and daughter agreed to take up skiing again after a several-years hiatus, but only if I would ski with them. Since we were buying them all new equipment anyway, I just added a few items to the pile. So now, in addition to five snowboards (Six if you count the old Ride Havoc), I have a set of Rossignols.

I feel so dirty.

Okay, not really. It's been an interesting couple of weeks. I used to ski way back in the day. Way, way back. Way, way, way, way... Yeah, alright enough. Forty-plus years ago, okay? Now get off my back. Anyway (takes deep breath), I enjoyed skiing, and it sure beat the alternative which was, um, nothing, since snowboarding hadn't been invented yet. So when I strapped on the skis a couple of weeks ago, I expected to be able to pick up where I left off after maybe a few minutes of fumbling.

Yeah, not so much. Forty years is enough to erase any trace of muscle memory. I was starting from scratch, just like any noob. On the other hand, I already understood snow and fall lines and such, and wasn't intimidated by the slope. So there are some synergies in going from one sport to another.

On the third hand, I really didn't like being a beginner again, and I think that's probably what sewers most people's attempts to crossover when they're already good at one or the other. In my case, though, it made me stubborn. It took about a week for me to be able to hit any slope on skis that I can hit on a snowboard. Maybe not with the same style and ablomb, but without a yard sale, at least. I'll take it.

Today, I went to Cypress with a friend who's been a skier for decades. One of the things I _have_ learned from snowboarding is that the best way to advance quickly is to ride with someone who is better than you. Works with skiing as well. By the end of the day I was going down a black, and doing so without the aforementioned yard sale. Not quite keeping up with Mike, but not making him wait at the bottom, either.

So, does this mean I'm ahead with skiing now? Well, no, I never said I was _only_ skiing the last couple of weeks. Yesterday, on Cypress, I did a half-and-half day. Couple of hours on the skis, then a couple of hours on the board. And interestingly, there seems to have been crossover training. By the end of the day I had figured out what has been eluding me on steeps all this time, and was able to take them without washing out on heelside or wimping out when I went too fast.

I'm not going to go so far as to recommend that everyone take up skiing (I'd be drummed out of the forum), but I would say that moving yourself out of your comfort zone if you're in a rut is definitely a good thing.

Meanwhile, I've become a little less of a Cypress hater. The mountain definitely doesn't have as good quality snow as Seymour, but if you pick your runs based on the day's conditions, you can still do okay. And now that they've (finally!) opened the Raven chair, there are a few more options. Also, I discovered the other day that they've put a couple of jumps between Collins and Runway. I'm still pissed that they didn't bother to develop Stomping Ground this year, but I am now slightly mollified.

I'm going to buy another Cypress pass for next year, I think, as well as the Seymour pass. I think next year will be a much better season, assuming we get snow. Having said that, there's still more than a month left in this season, so let's not get all teary-eyed just yet.

On another note, I've bought a new board since my last post--A Yes Pick Your Line. It's a full camber board, somewhat directional but not a total downhill plank. It gives me the same carving joy that I really haven't been feeling since the Heritage. My only complaint about it is that the topsheet is so delicate it can be scratched by an unfriendly glare. Yeah, sure, that's just cosmetic. Still...

Last item -- we'll be going to Vancouver Island this month to visit friends, and I'll be hitting Mount Washington while I'm there. Should be fun.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, I have taken the ski rack off the car, and I've made an appointment at Kal Tire to swap out the snows. Snow clothing is packed up and stored.

I haz a sad. :crying:

Officially the season isn't over, of course. But we have about four days of heavy rain predicted for the locals. And of course, although snow predictions are often optimistic, rain predictions are always conservative. So by the time this storm blows through, there will be nothing left.

That makes this the end-of-season wrapup.

On the plus side, this season was better than the last two years for snow. Having said that, it's a pretty low bar. The snow pattern was similar to what we got in 2010: a huge initial dump of snow, followed by mostly diddly squat until the second half of February. Except this year, the end-of-season snow kept alternating with end-of-season rain, so even that wasn't great.

I had an additional problem in that I never did get into proper shape. I'm about 20-25 lbs over my ideal weight, left over from when my knee went bad. I never did get serious about it in the fall, and it hurt my snowboarding big-time. So I'm going to get serious starting now. By the time next season rolls around, I want to be at my ideal weight. And dammit, I have time now, don't I?

But anyway, positives for this season...

Thanks to my new career, I have A) lots of time to go snowboarding if I want, and B) enough money to buy any equipment I want. Although I didn't take enough advantage of (A) with the various deadlines I had, I certainly did (B). I now have five good boards, and a set of skis. Yes, I took up skiing this year. Mostly it's so I can ski with the family, but I've also found it makes a good change on days when I'm feeling a bit stale on the board.

Anyway, goals for next year...


Next season I'm going to be more aggressive about hitting the slopes during the week, even when conditions are a bit sketchy. This year I was too picky, with the result that I didn't get nearly enough days.
We're hoping to buy property in Whistler this year, but even if that doesn't happen, I want to rent a place for an extended Whistler vacation.
I want to hit other mountains. Not just Hemlock, either--I want to hit some interior mountains.
Given that I'm going to be getting lots of mountain time, I want to get back up to my skill level from four years ago, plus some.

Yeah. That's a good list. That's doable.


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## Seppuccu (Dec 4, 2012)

Maybe you should take up skinning? Will help keeping those extra pounds in check.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I just spent three days in Whistler with my wife. We had multiple goals for the holiday, not all related to snowboarding.

First, and most important, we got ourselves a couple of Unlimited season's passes. To a certain extent, this is a case of forcing my hand. I don't tend to do the 'day trip' thing to Whistler, given the two-hour drive. Which is odd, since I was happy to do the three-hour drive to Manning a couple of years ago. Maybe because Manning isn't terribly busy when you get there, whereas Whistler is a madhouse. Anyway, I only need to go ten times in a season to break even, so it's a pretty low bar.

However, we may be helped considerably based on our second goal -- real estate. We looked at a couple of properties in the Marquise while we were there. And we'll continue to look at properties. It is my intention to have some kind of property in Whistler by the end of the summer. Right now it looks like that might be a one-bedroom condo, but a lot depends on how the Singularity Trap release goes. If that takes off like gangbusters, I could be looking at having a lot more money available. That'd be good, because those one-bedroom apartments are _TINY!_

We wanted to get a feel for the different areas in Whistler--what's nice, what's run down, what's too far to drive, etc. With that in mind, I rented a bike and rode around the Whistler trail. Ended up doing about 35 km, and covered Whistler from Trudy's Landing to Alpha Lake. After all that, we've concluded that we really want to be close to the village and the slopes. But not too close. Walk-in-walk-out, but not ski-in-ski-out, if you get my drift. Places that are right on the slopes tend to be party central, according to our agent. Not for me. Something a ten-minute walk away will be quieter, less busy, but still close enough to count.

Anyway, pretty excited. All indications are that Whistler is going to be my main mountain next season. Woot!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, it has happened. We now have a place in Whistler. And, as mentioned before, we have season's passes. "Woo hoo" doesn't even begin to cover it.

It's just a small one-br, but it's walk-in/walk-out, so parking etc is not an issue. Of course, I'm going to have to learn all the ins and outs, like how early you have to get there to beat the insane lineups. Or where to stay up the mountain to avoid ending up back at the bottom, in the insane lineups. Which runs are less likely to get tracked out, which lifts will be less busy, etc etc etc. It'll probably be a shitshow for me the first couple of times. But I've got all the time I need.

Meanwhile, it's summer, and it's hot. But it's hot at home and in Whistler, so no escape. We've brought up a portable air conditioner that has enough jam to cover the entire square footage of the apartment, so I'm good there. I've been doing the inevitable moving, replacing, and repairing stuff that happens whenever you take over someone else's real estate. I put up a new TV in the bedroom last visit, and this visit I get to replace the mounting bracket for the living room TV. Wheee!!!

I've discovered that Whistler has downhill biking instruction, and a bunch of downhill courses with a good range of difficulties. So, lessons. As with snowboarding, I'll never be up at the advanced level, but I'm happy to do some intermediate stuff. And, as ever, I'm a great believer in body armor.

Of course, part of the justification for the Whistler place was to be a writing retreat, where I could go and get some concentrated creative time. Ahem, that may or may not go according to plan. 

Oh well, so what. First world problem.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Nothing particularly dramatic to report. We just spent a few days up in Whistler. It's getting cold there, down to 5 degrees at night. Still no concerted snowfall, although there's been a little bit on the peak. Right now, the freezing level is hovering around 3500 meters, mostly because of sunny skies. But that'll come down, I'm sure.

The new Blackcomb gondola is still being worked on, surprisingly. I remember when Seymour replaced the Mystery chair, they had it finished well before now.

On the other hand, maybe Whistler has to be more concerned about maintenance windows. I've noticed that a lot of work is being done in the village right now. Some businesses have closed outright while they do renos or whatever work is required. But then Whistler really has two busy seasons. Or possibly even three. I can see spring going straight from ski season to biking season with no lag at all. That just leaves October and early November to get everything done, from lift replacements right down to fixing the bricks in the village walk.

Anyway, we're in full planning mode now. Trying to figure out when and how often we can go up, and how long we can stay. I've got passes for Whistler, Cypress, and Seymour this year, so I'm covered no matter what. But it'd be great to get a lot of days in at Whistler.

On a slightly different subject, the stores don't have all their winter stock yet, but they are moving on it. I bought a set of Anon M4s at McCoo's the other day. I hadn't realized Anon was coming out with different models like that, and these were a pleasant surprise. They still look mostly like the M2s that I already own, but now there are four finger pads around the lens so that you don't have to dig your fingers into the frame to get the lens out. Much more convenient. The mask is the same configuration, so I can use my M2 mask on the M4 goggles, but the new mask has a flap of cloth over the breathing hole. I think the idea is to protect it from freezing up, or maybe from precip coming right through, but I have a concern about whether it'll block air flow too much. Well, if necessary, I can punch some holes or something.

I still have to get some new bindings to replace my Rides. It's too bad, but the Ride design for the strap mountings just sucks too much. In the short term I can swap out something else, I suppose, but I'd really like to try one of the brands I've never owned, like Flux or something. But I'll be paying attention to the attachment design.

And lastly, as usual I'll be looking for protective gear. No real idea what I want at this point. I'll know it when I see it.

And sadly, I still haven't made much progress on losing that weight. I'll be going into this season with too much around the middle, I'm afraid. On a positive note, though, I've been stretching regularly, so I'll have a lot of my flexibility back.

That's it for today. Season's a-coming!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Whistler!

First runs of the season, today on Whistler! It snowed last night—not a lot, but enough to cover the ice that had accumulated over the last couple of days. I was one of the first gondolas up, and got some good runs in before people started scraping off the nice new fresh stuff.

I’d been worried about line-ups and such, but they never really materialized. The bus from the condo to the Village base had a few people on it, there were four people ahead of me in the gondola line-up, and I never had to wait to get onto the Emerald Express. The trouble is that all of that is true for all the other sliders as well. Laps were quick and the runs were tracked out in no time. By 10am, I was on my way back down. I’m not so desperate for laps that I’m going to try to ride on an icy hill. As someone said, it’s a long season, and there’s no point in getting injured in the first week.

I got some new bindings a week ago for the Yes PYL. Got rid of the Ride LTDs and replaced them with some Union Force bindings. Ever since I had the multiple Ride binding failures, I’ve been very sensitive to the problem of ankle strap pivots and thread stripping. All the Rides that I’ve looked at potentially have this problem. A few other brands appear to be prone as well, at least to look at them, which is a show-stopper.

To summarize: any binding where rotating the ankle strap or the highback also rotates either the retaining bolt or nut, has the potential to end up with stripped threads. Rides are particularly bad for this, and I’ve found myself stranded at the top of a run twice with Ride bindings when a bolt or nut finally decided to pack it in. Never again.
My Unions don’t have this design issue, nor do my Romes or my Flows. I have one set of Rides left to replace, a pair of El Hefes. So my Chairman is essentially shelved until I get something new. I was in the shops today, looking at various bindings, and I think I might try a Burton of some kind, just for variety.

Now with two snowboarding locales, I’m trying to figure out how to split my equipment and accessories so that I can have stuff in the lower mainland and stuff up at Whistler. It’s too much trouble to transport things back and forth every time we go up, and there’s too much potential for forgetting something. Fortunately I’ve always been a gear whore, so I have lots of stuff to work with.

Now, back to my first runs. I think I realized late last season that my problem with the last couple of years has been stance. I’ve been standing too high and too stiff, which is really a reversion to beginner state. Not really surprising considering how little actual snowboarding I’ve been getting the last couple of years. But today, I concentrated on doing all the things that I’ve learned over the years—stance low but not gorilla, weight balanced, good edging, legs loose and responsive. And yeah, by the second run, I was killing it.

So this year, I will get back all the mojo that I’ve learned and lost over the years. I’ve got the time, I’ve got the access, and I’ve got no excuse.

Bring on the snow!

Hm. Actually, that could be a problem. “Weak El Nino” is the official diagnosis. That means warmer and dryer than normal. And so far, we have: diddly on Seymour (although there’s snow at parking lot level as I write this), diddly on Cypress (unusual for Cypress to be worse off than Seymour), and snow only on the top half of Whistler (although I’ve seen that before at the beginning of the season).

Honest to God, if I can’t get some good boarding this year with three mountains to choose from, I’m gonna move to the interior for next year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We are in the middle of a several-days-long snow dump up at Whistler. I was up there again this morning first thing--family bowl again, since it's nice and easy to get to. The good news is that there was a lot of new snow. The bad news is that they haven't really been grooming the runs, so it's gotten a bad case of the moguls. I think I crashed a half-dozen times on my first run. I eventually figured out that the trouble was my toe-side turns. I have a tendency to lean back on them, which makes it harder to turn without ruddering, which makes the turn slower and sloppier, which is a Very Bad Thing when trying to navigate moguls. Anyway, I started to get it by the third run or so, and was able to handle them somewhat better.

I had one very bad ten-minute-long moment when I made a wrong turn and ended up sort-of-but-not-quite off-piste. It was really rough, with lots of plants still showing, but mostly it was really, really fucking deep, untouched snow. Unfortunately the Yes PYL doesn't really float well in deep pow, so I buried it. And by 'buried', I mean thigh-height. It took about ten minutes to get out, and I had to unstrap and hike to where I could re-strap and get some momentum going.

I'm definitely out of practice and out of shape. I had to stop to rest quite a bit, and I really seemed to be having to work hard just to get down the hill. But then, as I've mentioned before, I think it's been four years since I had a real season.

I bought the Slopes app last night, and tried it out today. It is definitely uber-cool and worth the money. One of the things it does, if you have an Apple Watch, is monitor your pulse and sync it with the run history. Which means I can see my pulse rate through the course of my run. A little worrying, actually. I think at my age, my maximum recommended heart rate is 160, and the app showed me hitting as high as 200 at some points. Eep!

The app allows you to share out your run history. I'll be trying that next.

I'm going up again tomorrow morning, for a few runs. We have to leave mid-day, so this time I have a deadline. Still better than nothing.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It’s been a while. I think I only went up to Seymour a few times last year. But everything’s still in the same place, and it’s all familiar.

I was going through all my old blog posts last night—partly nostalgia, partly early-season stoke, and partly to try and get a handle on what’s been happening the last couple of seasons. This is what I came up with:

2013	Bad year. Seymour didn’t open until mid-January.
2014	Worse year. Almost non-existent. This was the year that Cypress offered an 80% discount to passholders for 2015.
2015	An okay season, but that was the year I had that knee problem, which severely limited my boarding.
2016	A poor season, but not unreasonably so.
2017	Average kind of year, but I was too busy to go as often as I’d have liked.

Based on this, if I score 2016 and 2017 as 75%, 2014 and 2015 as 25%, and 2013 as 50%, it means I’ve gotten in about 2.5 seasons in the last five years, or about half of what I should have. Most of them were out of my control, but 2017 is all on me. I was retired, for fuck sake. But the lure of money was too strong…

Anyway, going over my old blog posts, I’ve noticed a recurring love/hate relationship with Seymour. I’ve threatened to leave almost every year. Actually did in 2015, then came back. It’s kind of unhealthy, really. ? But let’s face it, I like Seymour for as many reasons as I hate it, so I’ll keep going back. Especially since a seasons pass is only $100 for me.

So I was up there today, mostly because the snow forecast predicted gonzo dumpage overnight and early day. And for once, the predictions were right. It had obviously been snowing for hours, and continued to snow the whole time I was there. If there had been more runs open and fewer people, it would have been a really really good day. Oh, and if my equipment hadn’t kept shitting on me. But that’s for later.

I left early to make sure I could get up the mountain before the inevitable crowds descended (ascended?) upon them. This being 1) a weekend, and 2) the first real dump of the season and 3) the beginning of Christmas holidays, I guess you'd have to expect crowds.

I stopped at the Parkgate A&W for some brekkie and a coffee, because I’m apparently a glutton for punishment. I’ve stopped at this particular A&W a number of times, and about half the time they’re still closed, well after their posted opening time of 8am. But unfortunately they’re also extremely convenient to the mountain, otherwise I’d never darken their doors. Today, the staff showed up at 7:57 (I was already there, waiting), then opened the door at 8:15 to inform us all that they had a grill fire and would be another 10-15 minutes. Fuckit, I don’t need breakfast that bad.

I got to the top of the mountain and got a pretty good parking spot, then started to assemble my gear. I should probably mention that my gear-whoring has gotten somewhat out of control, so I had a lot of new stuff to try out today (and some old stuff). I started with a pair of 32 Binary Boa boots that I bought recently. Things did not go well the first time I wore them, but I couldn’t decide if it was the boots or me. But this time, I brought up my 32 Focus boots and my Ride Lasso boots as well.

So I went up with the Binaries, and got the same foot pain as before. Switched to the Lassos, and the pain went away. So that’s that. The Binaries are going back. I’ve called the shop (Boardroom) and they’re bringing in a new pair of Focus for me to try. I’ve had nothing but good luck with the Focus boots, so I feel good about that.

Another new item for me is the Anon M4 goggles. I already own M2s, which I absolutely love, but the M4s are even better. The mask that comes with them, maybe not so much, but I’ll be doing a separate review on that. The problem today was that I ordered a spare mask from Burton (because I don’t like the mask that comes with the M4) and I used it today for the first time. Only to discover that it wouldn’t link up with the goggles.

For those who don’t know, the Anons use powerful ceramic magnets to hold the goggle lenses to the frame, and also to attach the mask to the bottom of the goggles. This is a great system—I can’t say enough about it. But this mask would not cooperate. Eventually I gave up and just used it as a neck warmer. But when I got home, I discovered through experimentation that the manufacturer put the magnets in backwards on the mask. It was actively repelling the goggles. Fuck sake. I swapped the plastic gizmo that holds the magnets with another mask, so I’m good to go now, but I’ve emailed Burton to try to get a new plastic gizmo for my other mask.

I brought up, as I said, three pairs of boots today. I also brought up two boards: My NS West with Rome DOD bindings, and my old NS Heritage with Flow NX2-AT bindings. I started the day with the West, and ran into a problem immediately—the 32 boots have a very bulky profile for their size. I literally couldn’t get the ankle strap around the boot. Fortunately the Rome bindings have a very easy adjustment mechanism, but I had the thing on the very last detent.

Rome bindings come in two sizes: S/M and L/XL. Basically you can partially disassemble the binding and reassemble it in a different size. Mine are set to L, which should be okay given my average-sized feet, but with the bulky form-factor of the 32s, maybe not so much. I’m not really sure what to do about this, since the Lassos have a much more realistic form factor, and once I swapped boots I had no problem at all doing up the straps.

The first couple of runs on Seymour were sweet, until the crowds chopped everything up. See, in addition to the holiday-level crowds, Seymour also doesn’t have Lodge chair open yet. So everyone was on Manning and Northlands runs. And Unicorn is closed, so you don’t even have that partial outlet.

Once things got really choppy, I found myself getting tossed around a lot on the West. At this point, I decided to switch to my old Heritage, to see if it really is the battleship I remember it to be.

Yep.

There is a significant difference between the two boards in terms of handling chop. The Heritage just bashes through most things. I also did a little experimenting once I no longer feared for my life, and realized that if I keep the board up on an edge even when not turning, it tends to cut through the chop even better. At this point it was too late to try that with the West, but it’s certainly a datum to keep in mind for the future. This may be a _technique_.

Oh, and I was very pleased to find that I was able to operate the Flow bindings. My piriformis is no longer bothering me and I can comfortably reach the highback to snap in. Plus I’ve been doing stretching. On the downside, I think the bindings are set up a little too far toeside, so there may be some tinkering in my immediate future.

Now, about my actual day.

I did Northlands a couple of times and Manning a couple of times, and Pete’s Run once. Pete’s is really trashed, and doesn’t really have enough snow yet for comfort, so I was pretty conservative. But that’s okay. Early season stuff. What was of more concern was that the Mystery chair broke down mid-morning and they had to wait twenty minutes for someone to come along and hit it with a hammer or something. I sure hope that isn’t going to be a regular thing.

As mentioned earlier, the snow was really chopped up. And I’m still tentative with my lines. I hope by mid-season I’ll have gotten back into my former mindset. A lot of skill rebuilding is going to be required this year. But, as I also said, I’m fucking retired now and there is no. Fucking. Excuse.

We’re going up to Whistler around the 27th-28th or so, but I have a bad feeling that any kind of mountain activity during Christmas break comes under the heading of wishful thinking. Certainly there’s little hope of it at Seymour or Cypress.

Speaking of Cypress, I bought the silver pass this year, which means it’s not valid during Christmas break or on weekends during January and February. I’m not sure if that’s going to be a problem or not. After all, those are exactly the times that I really shouldn’t go anywhere near the mountain anyway.

So that’s it. My first Seymour day. I left about 11:30, not because I was tired but because the crowds were getting, if it were possible, even worse. At some point, you’re spending most of your time standing in a lineup.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I was up on Seymour for the second time this year, yesterday. Yeah, it’s Christmas break, so yes, it was crowded as hell. That wasn’t really unexpected. What was a bit of a surprise was the number of classes. I think maybe they were playing catch-up or something. I’ve never, in all the years I’ve been going to Seymour, seen the ski class line-up for the Mystery chair being just as long as the regular line-ups.

I used my Slopes app this time (forgot to turn it on last time). It works just as well for Seymour as for Whistler. But it exposed a serious issue, one that maybe isn’t a total surprise, but that I never realized was so bad.

The app gives you stats for time spent on a run, time spent on the lift, and time spent in line-ups (basically standing around). This last stat might include lunch-time, but you can pause the app if you stop for lunch. I was actively trying to get in runs the whole time, so it wasn’t an issue for me.

Anyway, The stats that I’ve accumulated look like this:

Location, Riding, On the lift, Waiting in line
Whistler, 38, 53, 22
Whistler, 28, 44, 8
Whistler, 66, 54, 15
Seymour, 29, 92, 98

Those times are in minutes. Let’s look at what they mean. For Whistler, percent times spent actually riding are 34%, 35%, 49%.

For Seymour? 13%

Yeah. At Seymour yesterday, I spent 29 minutes actually riding downhill, and 3 hrs 10 minus trying to get back up the hill. That is complete and utter bullshit.

Now, this was an exceptionally busy day. The Mystery chair did break down once, for about 20 minutes. And the Lodge chair was stopping 4-5 times on every ride up, because of ski class members. So, okay, it’s probably not normally that bad. Still, it shines a light on a huge potential problem. It also explains why I normally last a lot longer on Seymour before I run out of gas. It simply takes more day before I rack up the required number of minutes to get tired.

I’ll be splitting my time between Seymour and Cypress when I’m home, so I’ll be able to get some normal weekday stats over the next couple of months. And of course when I’m in Whistler, it’ll be weekdays as well. It’ll be interesting to see how the locals compare to Whistler. It may turn out that, despite Whistler’s high prices, you’re still getting more value there.

Anyway, on to the actual day.

I got literally first chair, and managed to snag the right-hand seat, so I had the inside track to the top of Northlands. I was also using my Heritage with the Flow bindings. All of which meant I got first tracks down Northlands and Unicorn. Absolutely virgin, untouched snow, all the way down. It was sweet.

Things got fairly trashed eventually, of course, but there were some good runs before it became typical tracked-out ski slope. Pete’s Run was much better, or maybe I was much better, but whatever—I hit Pete’s several times and had good times.

I was also handling straightlining considerably better, which had some interesting consequences on Manning. There’s that first steep part on Manning, before you bottom out at the intersection of Velvet Gully, Manning, and the Brockton exit. At that point, there’s a side slope that I and many others hit regularly. On this particular day, I got higher up that slope that I ever have before. Partly that’s from straightlining, partly that’s from the snow, which was relatively dry for Seymour poo. Almost legitimate pow, in fact.

At one point, while going up on the Lodge chair, I saw a couple of people hiking up in the Mushroom park. That was surprising, since the website indicated only Rockstar was open, but I decided to check it out. Well, it was nothing but a very small rainbow box and a small ride-on flat-box. But there were actually a fair number of people there, just learning their first features, I guess. I waited for a break, hit both features, and rode off, obscurely pleased with myself.

They still haven’t built any jumps anywhere, but I’m sure that’s coming. I hope this year I’ll be able to spend some time on them.

As mentioned above, I started the day on my old 2010 Heritage. Finished the day on it, too. I brought the West, but never felt the need to switch boards. The Flows gave me a few problems—they’re not really centered, but I’ve got them as far heelside as I can manage. I think perhaps I’ll need XLs for the 32 boots. On a slight tangent, I’ve mentioned that the new Flows have a ‘lock-down’ on the ratchets so that they won’t tighten on you. Well, turns out my older Flows also have that feature—I just never realized it. DOH!

Never Summer has put the Heritage back on their line-up for 2018/19, and I’ve placed one on order with the Boardroom. Damn, I sure hope it’s the same board as they used to make. There is no question, especially after yesterday, that the Heritage is my best board. I’m more comfortable on it, it chatters less, and it cuts through chop better than any of my other boards. Possibly the PYL carves better, but it’s a close thing.

I finally left Seymour at 12:45. Still had gas in my tank, but I didn’t want to overdo it. A great day, despite the disturbing stats mentioned earlier. I've got four days recorded on Slopes, and I've forgotten to use the app for one each of Seymour and Whistler, so I have six days so far. I think I'll put it up on my home whiteboard.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I may have had "gas in my tank" when I left the mountain, but by mid-afternoon at home, I was stiff and sore beyond belief. Advil is your friend in cases like this, BTW.

But I was reasonably okay the next day, so no biggie.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We’re up in Whistler right now, and I’m finally getting a chance to get in some concentrated snowboarding. I was up yesterday, first thing in the morning. I bought the maximum number of discounted First Trax tickets you can get with a season pass – 24 – and now I’m using them to get up there early. The breakfast is filling if not imaginative—I’ve been up on First Trax 4 times now, and so far it’s always exactly the same buffet items. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though. I’d hate to hand over the ticket one morning only to discover that they’d decided to serve fermented yak cakes that day.

I spent yesterday morning at the Family Bowl, just as I have the previous two times I’ve been up. I did go down Franz’s once, but it was an ice sheet, and I didn’t need that shit.

I continued to have problems with my snowboarding, especially in more ‘tense’ situations, such as bumpy, steep, or icy areas, or when my speed was getting up there. Part of that is, of course, my natural aversion to death in its many forms. But part of it (a larger part, I hope) is my being so out of practice. Happily, towards the end of the session I was just beginning to feel like a few things were coming together. And I was starting to notice some of the bad habits or bad form that are causing me problems.

I didn’t stay up long, but I was gratified to note that I didn’t have to quit because of exhaustion. I rode the Pony Trail down to the village, which wasn’t supremely enjoyable because it was both icy and foggy in patches.

I ended the day by dropping my board (The Chairman with Targas) off for a minor tune-up.

Today I went up the mountain with the YES PYL with Unions. Again, with the First Trax ticket, and again, spent most of the day in the family bowl. I did go on one unintended detour when I took the Marmot run, which I hadn’t realized emptied out at the base of the Harmony lift. I also didn’t realize that there was a cat-track leading from there back to the bottom of the Emerald Express lift. Derp.

So I ended up at the top of Harmony. Harmony looks like a really interesting area for some aggressive and challenging riding. But I’m not there yet. I’m at least a week or two, I think, from getting even close to my former riding level. I tried to take the green run back down, but missed the turn and ended up on the blues anyway. Derp and le sigh. I eventually made it to the bottom of the lift without losing more than three or four body parts, and discovered the aforementioned cat-track. So yeah, I said things. Bad things.

However.

As mentioned above, I had the first inklings of progress yesterday. Today, about mid-morning, they started to come together. My sweeping carves started to work, I learned how to stop chattering on heelsides (or maybe re-learned), and I even made some progress on handling moguls.

My two biggest problems on my turns are:

On heelsides, I try to go cross-hill too quickly, resulting in more of a braking maneuver than a turn, and I don’t pressure the back foot (don’t shift my weight back).

On toesides, I don’t put as much edge pressure on with my lead foot as my trailing foot.

These are bad habits, and it’ll take work to break them, but when I concentrated on them, my riding improved immediately

On moguls, my heelside turns were mostly okay, except that today I figured out how to bleed off speed on the turn as well, which helps a bunch. My toeside turns suck—in fact, I did a head-over-heels ragdoll down a mogul field today because of a botched toeside. But the reason is because I get nervous and go backseat. Today I started to lean into the toesides, and they immediately started getting better. I’m going to continue to work on moguls every time I go up. They’re hard, and they’re intimidating, and if I can make them my bitch, I’ll really have done something.

So, on to the subject of equipment. Somehow I managed to come up to Whistler without a single one of my Anon facemasks. I said things, then went and bought a cheapie at the store. Unfortunately it tends to fog up the goggles, so I don’t see that as a long-term solution.

Today, my feet got cold. Yesterday, using the same boots, they did not. The difference? Socks. So I went to the shop and bought a good pair of Ice-Breaker Merinos. No more cold. The old socks, a set of Volcoms, went into the garbage. I’m also going to check my sock drawer for any more Volcoms, and toss them as well. Don’t need that shit.

At the end of the session, I once again rode down Pony Trail to the village. However, I had a lot easier time of it today. I’m not sure if the snow was better or if I was just that much better. Probably some of both. Plus, no fog today.

I took the PYL into the shop for a tune-up and got the Chairman out. So that’ll be my board for tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow, there’s supposed to be a massive dump of new snow overnight, so tomorrow should be epic. Unfortunately we’re getting some appliances delivered tomorrow, and they haven’t told us yet if it’ll be in the morning or afternoon. So I may or may not be able to get up there first thing. If not, all is still not lost. I talked to a liftie, and it seems that after about 11am on a weekday, you can just walk right onto the Whistler Gondola. So I could still get a couple of hours in after lunch.

One last observation: I need to get a few things, and I walked through the village yesterday. Couldn’t find them. It looks like everyone has been cleaned out on their winter stock. Not surprising, I guess, right after Christmas, but I sure hope they’re going to re-stock. Otherwise I have to drive out to West 4th again.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I KILLED IT! I mean, I just absolutely killed it today. All those things that I was saying were starting to come together, all seemed to crystallize today. I did moguls. I did bumpy terrain. I did hard carving. I did straight-line bombing. And it all worked.

I did the usual thing with First Trax, except that I got up earlier and took the first bus of the morning. There were a lot of people waiting—in fact, I ended up a little farther back in the line-up than I was yesterday. I guess it wasn’t really surprising, though. When there’s major snow in the forecast, people get a lot of the 24-hour flu.

Today, I was using the freshly-tuned Chairman with the Targas, paired with my Ride Lasso boots. I find both items growing on me, interestingly. The Chairman definitely doesn’t chatter like the West, and although the Lassos are softer than the 32s, they don’t seem to impact my riding in any negative way. If anything, I might possibly have had more control. It can be hard to separate improvements due to practice from improvements due to different gear. Of course, a lot of members will say that Rider > Equipment, and I guess that’s true.

Anyway, I ran the mogul fields maybe a half-dozen times, and although I did have a couple of crashes, I was in control most of the time. Good turning, good speed control… it was fantastic. Now, mind you, these were nice, soft, fluffy moguls, not the ice-encrusted ice-hills that you get after a few weeks of no new snow. I may change my tune the first time I run into them. But at the moment, I think I could probably hit Noels’ Flight on Seymour, assuming Seymour ever gets something besides rain.

Lift lines really only started to get noticeable after about 10am or so, and even then, I was in the singles line. I think I might have waited 3 minutes at the worst. The upshot, of course, was that I had very little down-time. Ride down the hill, get in the line, get on the lift, ride up, repeat. And the upshot to that is that by 11am, I was done. I decided to ride down to the village on Pony Trail and Olympic, and at one point while going into a heelside turn, I just fell over. The legs just said, “No way, Jose.” So 5 minutes of enforced rest, and I was able to more or less limp my way down the rest of the way.

Couple of side notes, as usual…

First, the Slopes app acted up a bit today. Not sure why, but about half an hour or more of my morning just kind of disappeared from the map and got counted as “Lift lines / other”. And one of my runs didn’t seem to get displayed as a run, more like my location just moving down the hill. Odd. But I’m not in a competition, so it’s more academic curiosity than anything. Although if this becomes habitual, I might try a different app next season.

Second, I found that I had to adjust the Targas to fit the Lasso boots. I knew, in principle, that the 32s have a larger footprint, but this really brought it home. I may end up having to match my boards to my boots, or adjust them regularly. Or settle on one boot.

And last item… that issue I was having with my rear foot with the Binarys is starting to become noticeable with my other boots, although not nearly as bad. So although there’s something about the Binary boot that aggravates it, the base problem is in my foot. I may go and have an x-ray at some point. It’s obviously not anything big, or I’d be limping around all the time, but it’s definitely something.

So another great day in Whistler, and spectacular progress on getting my mojo back. Today actually felt like late spring riding in previous seasons, when I’d gotten enough hours in to be really ripping. But it’s still the first half of January. Hot damn!


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## Seppuccu (Dec 4, 2012)

Come to the Trace Snow app, there are a lot of us on it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This blog entry is for two days, yesterday and today.

Yesterday was a great day--almost a continuation of Wednesday. I was using the Chairman and the Targas again, the snow was still good if a lot more chopped up, and I continued to make progress on my skills. I hit the mogul fields again, and had another learning moment: start the turn a little early. Essentially, by the time my snowboard was turning, I was past the lane I wanted and starting to slide over top of the mogul. So adjusting my timing made a lot of difference.

Another great day, and thighs and calves burning like crazy on the way down.

Today, not so much. First, I brought the PYL with the Union bindings. Second, the weather was crap (rain and snow mix) and the runs were all scritchy where they weren't outright icy. It felt like I couldn't get anything right. Mogul running sucked, couldn't carve, did one jump and landed well past the landing. Fortunately it was a small jump or I'd be taking the ride of shame down the hill. And I thought I'd I'd slowed to chicken-shit level on the approach. I can't imagine where I'd have landed if I'd gone in aggressively. Blackcomb side, maybe?

I wasn't having a lot of joy with the PYL, either. I wonder if the Ride Lassos are too soft for the board and bindings. I will use the board again, but with the Focus boots, just to see if it makes a significant difference.

I did have one minor positive--on the run down to the village, I had (sadly) plenty of time to practice on ice and scritch. Short continuous turning (shallow S turns) keeps speed down. Longer turns allow too much speed buildup, resulting in too much braking, resulting in too much risk of a washout. Okay, I'll take that.

So that's it for me until Monday. I'm not enough of a masochist to even consider trying to get onto Whistler on a weekend. We'll be snowshoeing, far from the madding crowd (small literary reference. Sorry.) By Monday, I should have my new Heritage board, and that should be a great day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Picked up the Heritage today. I've put the Targas on it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I haven't gone up the mountain since the last posting, but I need to post a few updates.

First, the problems I noted with the Slopes app turn out not to be problems. The "run not showing as a run" thing went away when I restarted the app, so it was a transient glitch. The missing half-hour or so turned to be my fault. I had forgotten to un-pause the app after a break, so my whole side-trip up Harmony didn't get recorded. There is one problem that I'm still having with the app, which is that it seems to be missing part of my heart-rate info on runs. However, that might be the watch not recording the data properly. Little things like having the strap too tight or too loose can affect data recording.

Second, I picked up my new Heritage from the Boardroom yesterday. Unfortunately, there are no high-end Flows to be found in town, so I've ordered some from the Source. That will take a week or more to arrive, so meanwhile I've transferred my Targas from the Chairman to the Heritage.

Third, I've ordered a Rylo 360 camera. I'm really looking forward to that, as it seems like a quick, easy, and dependable way to get a good look at my form. Between the stabilization (which is by all accounts incredible on the Rylo) and the 360 capability which allows you to focus on any part of the scene, I should be able to learn a lot.

And last, I really need to make a point of continuing to aggressively accumulate mountain days. Last year's poor showing had a lot to do with waiting for 'perfect days', which just don't happen very often around here. I will continue to avoid rainy days, because who needs that shit, but other than that, I want to set a goal of at least two sessions per week.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, that sounds a little dramatic, but I really mean the last time before we head home. We'll be back at Whistler in a week.

Anyway, it was Monday morning (two days ago as I write this). I did the usual early rise / First Trax thing. There was very little in the way of a line-up, which I attribute to the lack of recent snow. I took my new Heritage, on which I had mounted the Targas.

The snow was as hard as I expected. However, it didn't have the icy-everywhere consistency that you get on the locals after some bad weather. The groomed, corduroy sections were stiff, and the trashed, non-groomed sections were trashed and packed. The Heritage did a fairly good job, but not as significantly better as I'd hoped. I can think of several possible reasons:


I'm an idiot
In hard-packed conditions, no board will shine
I was using the Lassos, and they aren't the most suitable
As I get better, the board makes less of a difference

Of course, #1 is always possible, and isn't actually mutually exclusive with any of the others. I'm going to test #3 next time by wearing the 32s, but I'm kind of leaning towards #4 . The reason is that I felt a significant difference from the PYL, using the same boots. I'm hoping to go up to a local on Friday, and I'll bring two boards and two sets of boots, in order to do a proper test.

Meanwhile, I had my first opportunity to ride on some hard mogul fields. Didn't do all that good, but that's entirely from being freaked out. I actually didn't do too badly, certainly far better than any previous year. But I'm totally scared to turn toeside quickly. I have to break that.

I took the Peak-to-Peak gondola midmorning, and rode down on the Blackcomb side. It seemed to be considerably busier, with a higher skier proportion. That might be subjective, though. It's my first time on Blackcomb this season, and I don't remember anything from previous years, so I was somewhat tentative. Well, that'll come as I gain confidence on the mountains.

I've gone a little crazy with the Visa over the last couple of days. I ordered the Rylo camera, some accessories, then I had to get a mounting kit and a bigger memory card from Amazon. I bought the Heritage, then had to order some Flows. I ordered some masks and a lens from Burton. And that's just the mail-order stuff. I also loaded up fairly heavily around the village. I think the salespeople are starting to recognize us. When we hit a first-names basis, it's time to leave, I think. :embarrased1:

I bought an Evo backpack this summer for biking, and the backpack comes with back protection. I don't know why it didn't occur to me before, but this works for snowboarding as well, especially if I'm going to be wearing a backpack anyway. Which I am, because I intend to use the Rylo a _lot_ once I get it. My preferred method (assuming this works) will be to use the monopod on the backpack, so I get a 'drone' POV.

Also, I discovered the entire park run in Family Bowl. I hadn't even realized there was an entire second half to it.  So from now on, I'm going to take at least a couple of runs at it whenever I'm up there. I have the Snowboard Addiction vids, and they're pretty specific and pretty good, on subjects like hitting hips and such.

So, onward!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Another Whistler day today. Fresh Tracks breakfast and on the slope at 8:15. I was using the new Heritage. The Flows had shown up a few days ago, so the Targas came off and the NX2-CXs went on.

I have to say, I missed using Flows, and the new ones live up to the tradition. Me and one other snowboarder were among the first through the rope this morning when they opened, and he had Flows as well. It was a race for first tracks, but he had to do a bit of ratcheting and I won. And just reaching down and snapping in all morning was just sweet. I’m not able to snap in while moving yet, but I’ll get that back pretty soon.

There was new snow today, maybe 6 inches or so, on top of a lot of hardpack and ice. It made for a tricky ride—things would feel great until you dug in for a hard turn, then scriiiiiiiiiiiitch! And there was a continuous light rain or sleet component that would freeze on your goggles, front of your jacket, and top of your helmet. It was a significant PITA to keep cleaning off my lens.

I was a little tentative first thing in the morning, still not entirely comfortable with things. But it just took practice. By an hour in, I was significantly over my fear of speed, and beginning to charge hard in places.

The Heritage took a little more getting used to than I expected. It isn’t exactly the same configuration as the older Heritage, like my 2010 Limited Edition. For one thing, it doesn’t bash through chop quite as well. Don’t get me wrong, it’s destroyer-class; but the 2010 is a full-on battleship.

For another, I had a couple of instances of edge-catch, which I don’t think I’ve ever had with the old board. Scared the crap out of me, but fortunately no spills.

But like I said, relatively minor. I notice the differences only because I still have and use the old Heritage.

On the other hand, the new Heritage seems livelier. Turning is effortless, and I was able to get my cross-unders really dialled in. I think I started to feel some of that with the Chairman the last time I took it out. I guess as I get my snowboarding skills back, I’m riding the boards more than they’re riding me.

Today I found a small blue run named “Cougar.” It’s just a connection between two other runs, but it has a steep mogul section. The first time was a surprise. But after that, I hit it multiple times, working on my quick turns. By the end, I was going through the moguls without stopping or crashing.

I also tried out Enchanted Forest, which is kind of like Pete’s Run on Seymour or Paper Trail on Grouse. Narrow, lots of side hits and tree trails. And I handled it with no problem.

Finally at 10:30, I decided to pack it in. Not because I was tired—I could have gone for another hour or two—but because the crowds were getting bad, and the Emerald Express was stopping far too often. I don’t know if it was always because of a noob, but that certainly was at least part of the cause.

So I went down in the general direction of the Big Red Express. I’m not as up on names of runs as I’d like to be, but I think I ended up on either Little Red Run or Old Man. It’s essentially a small canyon, like a natural half-pipe. Definitely fun, and I’ll be visiting that one again.

Anyway, I set a really good pace all the way down to the bus loop. Feeling really good about my riding today.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I don’t know if it’s old age, being out of shape, or just going two days in a row. Probably a combination of all three. But whatever, by the end of the session today, my legs were two lumps of screaming, quivering pain. I honestly wasn’t sure if I’d make it to the bottom on my last run down the mountain.

It’s been two days in a row of Whistler. Two days in a row of lots of fresh snow. And while freshies are great fun, they’re also more work than groomers, especially if you’re looking for interesting bits. Everyone’s probably felt the rear-leg burn from riding in deep stuff, but I’ve discovered that I can alternate rear-leg-focused riding with more front-leg-focused stuff. You’d think that would mean spreading out the pain, right? Nope. Doubles the pain.

Anyway, as I said, two days of significant snowfall. Six inches yesterday, nine today. So of course, every single person ON THE PLANET decided to hit the hill today. I got to the Village at my usual time, to discover that the line-up stretched from the Gondola all the way across the square to the alley beside the Showcase. After I joined the line-up, it kept growing, until it was down the alley and around the corner on the street. I almost turned around and went home, but I decided to treat this as a learning experience. Hang around, wait, see how long it takes, etc. Turned out that I made it in for Fresh Tracks, which completely amazed me. Although I overheard one of the lifties say something to the effect of “This must be just about all of the them,” as I was being loaded.

And the mountain itself was crowded. I actually had to wait significant amounts of time at the Emerald Express—maybe the first time this season. But strangely, about 10:30 or so, the crowds just evaporated, and I was back to just riding practically right onto the chair. Weird.

This was my second day of using the new Heritage with the Flows, and I have to say I’m glad to be back to using Flow bindings. I’ve given bucklers a fair try, but I just don’t notice enough of a difference in performance or anything to justify the extra trouble strapping in.
The Heritage didn’t give me any trouble with edge catches today. I think maybe I’m just getting used to it. It is definitely a lively, responsive board, and very damp. It’s a bit lighter than the old Heritage, I think, and maybe a little more squirrely on polished snow. But that might be me.

Today was about incremental improvements rather than dramatic advancements. I didn’t have the initial fumbling period first thing in the morning, though, so I’m finally absorbing some of this into muscle memory.

I hit some moguls—I continue to progress, but still lots of room for improvement. I also hit the small park once, although I didn’t really feel ‘into’ it. I hit a couple of jumps without massively overshooting this time, and I tried out the SA advice on hips. I was pretty tentative, but it feels right.

I also found that half-pipe/canyon thing again, which turns out to be Old Man. That is a fun run, and I’ll definitely be hitting that on an ongoing basis.

So, back home this afternoon. I’m thinking of going up to Seymour tomorrow, more to practice some small techniques than anything. It always feels like a waste of time on Whistler when there’s all those huge runs waiting. But I want to spend some time on ollies, penguin walk, various kinds of buttering, and maybe some jumps if they have any small ones set up.


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## Seppuccu (Dec 4, 2012)

Ahhh, sounds like a classic case of the good ol' Powder Mania.

So...the old man likes the Old Man? *drum fill*

On a more serious note: I've been thinking about trying Flows for a long time but never pulled the trigger. Do you prefer the classic ones or the hybrids?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Definitely the classic. I haven't tried the hybrid on the slopes, just in the store. But it's hard to see how the hybrid could improve things, so I don't see the point.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up to Seymour this morning. I didn't have a lot of expectations; I mostly wanted to try out a few pieces of equipment without committing a full riding day. Just as well, too. I've been up to Seymour in far worse conditions, in terms of weather and snow in general. But for some reason, whoever drove the cat last night did an amazingly terrible job of grooming the runs. Ruts, gouges, death cookies everywhere. WTF? Did someone let their idiot cousin drive or something?

Anyway, I was mostly there to try out my Binary Boas after they've been heat-molded. And success! It wasn't a super long day, but long enough that I would have been in agony. Today, nothing. So I can keep the boots, and that means I have spare boots at home.

I also tried out the new Rylo camera. I had a couple of things I wanted to check out:

1. The camera itself.
2. The camera on a selfie stick.
3. The camera on a stick mounted in my backpack.


So, #1 and #2 are great. The camera allows me to take videos without worrying about where it's pointing. I'll edit some video segments and put them up later. #3 , not so much. It's not that it's a bad idea; it's that you have to get the right backpack and stick. I think I could mount some straps on a backpack that would hold it at a good angle and such, but even so, the video is very close to my head. I think the selfie stick works better.

I still want to test the camera on top of a helmet, but I don't really have high hopes for that. The biggest problem with the camera, at least on first blush, is the lack of a remote control. The camera doesn't really give a lot of feedback to indicate if it's recording, so in the case of a helmet mount, you'd pretty much have to take off the helmet (or unclip the camera) to turn it on and off.

Lastly, I brought the West and the old Heritage with me. I started with the West, and honestly did not like it. It made me scared to ride aggressively. I will pick another day, and I'll bring up several boards to compare, but right now I don't see myself keeping the West. And possibly not the Proto.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I haven't posted in a couple of weeks, but not for lack of snowboarding. I've been up to one mountain or another 6 times since the last posting on the 24th. Mostly not much has happened. I've been playing with the Rylo camera, and I've had some trials and tribulations. Those are discussed in forum threads, but basically come down to a common problem with cameras -- a tendency for the batteries to give out in the cold. Fortunately I seem to have come up with a solution, which is to bag the camera together with a hand-warmer on every ride up the chairlift.

I'm feeling frustrated with my progress (or lack of it) this season, but honestly I don't think I'm doing too bad compared to other years. The problem is that I _should_ be able to get a lot more days in than I'm managing. Although to tell the truth, up until the last week or so, the weather has been so-so.

I took my old Heritage and the Chairman up to Seymour today, and spent some time on each. I had them both waxed and sharpened last time, so they were both playing from the same starting point. And I have to say, I think the old Heritage has reached its expiry date. I'm not sure exactly what the problem is, but it doesn't hold a carve, has absolutely no jam on hardpack, and feels more squirrely than I remember. When I switched to the Chairman today, I was absolutely blown away by the difference in control. The Chairman still doesn't feel as smoothly dependable as the _new_ Heritage, but that's up in Whistler, so no help there. I think, as of now, the Chairman is my new main locals board. At least until next season, when Ima get next year's Heritage.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We got a dump of snow yesterday, plus some overnight, so all the locals this morning had a nice, fluffy new layer of snow. It also snowed all day, so despite best efforts, the massive throngs that invaded the mountain today were unable to track it out.

And throngs there were. Of course, it's the Friday before a long weekend in BC, so a certain amount of vacation days were going to be claimed. But given the insane puking of snow this week, a whole lot of 24-hour flu was inevitable as well. And add to that, a lot of schools were closed today. All of which made for a Friday more reminiscent of a weekend day.

I went up with my friend Mike, who is a skier but otherwise okay. He likes slightly more challenging hills than me, so that's a huge plus. Nothing ups your skillz like being pushed. And as I've mentioned in other posts, I've been trying to master moguls. So what better way than to follow a skier?

It worked, too. I started out mostly almost keeping up, but by the last run, I was staying with Mike with confidence. I think the final couple of details of how to snowboard moguls finally clicked with me. I'm still not _fast_ as such; I won't be joining any competitions any time soon, for instance. But I no longer have to quake with fear if I come upon a mogul field. I even managed the section to the left of Raven chair as you come off the lift, which is a black section and very bumpy. Again, not fast, but at least mostly in control. And no yard sales.

There were a couple of downsides to the day. For starters, because we got there mid-morning, we were forced to park in the next postal code. They really need a shuttle for people parking that far out. Then, partway through the day, my goggles got so fogged up I had to go into the bathroom and use the hand dryer on them. Usually I pack a spare lens for these situations. Actually, I did pack a spare lens, today. In my backpack. Which I left at home. 

I used the Chairman today. As mentioned last post, the Heritage seems to have packed it in. The Chairman lived up to expectations, so now I'm going to transfer the Flows over from the Heritage. I'll keep the board, though. The top-sheet art on the 2010 Limited Edition Heritage was pretty cool, so the board will probably end up on the wall at Whistler.

So now I have to decide if I want to brave the mountain again this weekend, when it'll actually _be_ the weekend.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've gone snowboarding on Cypress 3 days in a row this week, Wed, Thur, and today. I also went to Seymour last Sunday, so it's been a pretty good week. The snow on Wed and Thur was okay--with the current consistent low temps we're not getting the usual freeze/thaw cycle. But grooming the runs produces really hard corduroy.

I've been having binding issues lately. Last Sunday at Seymour, I was finding my old Heritage kind of wonky and undependable. I just didn't feel dialed in when using it. So I decided maybe it had had it--the board is ten years old, after all. So I swapped the Flows onto the Chairman, which has been a nice, dependable board. But when I took it up on Wednesday, it felt mushy. I swapped out the Flows for the Thursday session, going back to the Targas, and found the Chairman to be once again a quick, nimble board. Conclusion: my Flows suck.

Now, I'm not saying Flows suck in general. I've been using them for years, and I really like them. In fact, I have a new pair of Flows on my new Heritage up at Whistler, and the combi rocks. But those are new, and the pair here have been around for 3-4 years. Do Flow bindings go mushy? Maybe so. I haven't seen any obvious damage, but I will take a close look. Maybe there's a crack or something that's destroying responsiveness.

Anyway, I've been reacquainting myself with the other boards in my quiver this week. Besides the Chairman, I've started using the Proto again. The Proto HD is slightly more squirrelly than the Chairman, but lighter and more nimble. And this brings up something that's been a bit of a revelation this week: my complaints about my various boards have been all about my riding form (or lack thereof). Somehow in the last couple of years, probably due to lack of consistent practice, I've developed some bad habits. By concentrating on correcting them, I'm getting all my mojo back, and discovering that these boards are pretty good overall.

In fact, as of today, I think I've set a new high for skill level. So I'm as good as I've ever been, and a little better. _That_ feels good.

We had a significant snowfall prediction for overnight and today, and it totally delivered. I was at the mountain just after 8am, and was one of the first people on the slopes. And there weren't a lot of people, at least for the first couple of hours. I think the predictions of traffic Armageddon scared people off from trying to get there early. So meanwhile, I basically almost had the mountain to myself. I started with the usual runs on Collins and Horizon, then moved over to the other side and started hitting Crazy Raven. On previous days, Crazy Raven was groomed, but not today. Fresh snow over trashed run equals moguls. Blue run level, mind you. I'm not ready for black diamond moguls yet. But I had a blast on the run, hitting it again and again. And that's my new skill high--moguls and trashed terrain. I can haz it now.

As an aside, the Cypress crew has set up a small park run near the bottom of Collins, right beside the beginner slope. It's pretty good, actually. A little bigger jumps than what Seymour provides on Mushroom, and with a better landing area. I've been hitting that quite a bit this week.

And the last item is my fear of speed. I wouldn't say I'm exactly _over_ it (I'll probably never be entirely over it) but I'm significantly desensitized. I'm blasting down runs a lot more often, and I'm able to take the bumps. And because I've corrected my form, I'm not getting rear-leg burn any more.

So pretty good week, all in all.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up to Cypress yesterday to celebrate my 62nd b'day. There was supposed to be a moderate dump of new snow overnight. Well, there was _some_ new snow, but not anything like what the predictions were saying. Still, it was enough to cover the ice and give the board something to dig into.

I took my Chairman and West to the mountain. Got the West waxed and edged first thing in the morning while I rode around on the Chairman, then switched boards when the West was ready. I've now ridden all my boards this season in very similar conditions. More importantly, I've done it when my skill level is back up.

First, I have to say that a lot of the complaints I've had about my equipment are misplaced. I've had to un-learn some bad habits that I've picked up over the last couple of years. And that's made more of a difference than anything else. I've also finally taken the time to compare boots and compare bindings. These are my conclusions:

Flow bindings are somewhat less responsive than standard bucklers. The difference isn't huge, and depending on your snowboarding style and location, may not be significant. But if you swap bindings using the same board, same boots, same location, the difference is perceptible, at least until you get used to it. I think you adapt to the Flows quickly though, and stop noticing it.

With standard bucklers, the brand makes a difference. A lot of it is probably personal preference, but I've now used several models of Ride, Union, and Rome, and I definitely prefer Rome in general. Again, though, the differences are minor and you adapt quickly.

Now, as to boards:

I found the Yes PYL to be the most forgiving when I was just starting out this season. That's odd because it's my only full-camber board, so you'd expect it to toss me on my head. I think the difference is that the improved edging masked my bad form. The Heritage is my favorite all-mountain board. It's the best combination of responsive and battleship. The Chairman is like a mini-Heritage. It doesn't handle straight downhill as well, especially in teeth-rattling conditions, but it does turn a little more easily. The Proto is really quick and maneuverable, and is surprisingly stable at speed. For mogul fields, it's my fave. The West is my least favorite board, although I have to stress that the differences aren't huge. This is a comparison of very, very similar boards, both in level of quality and in characteristics.

I probably will get rid of the West, simply because I need the room. I also will be buying the new Heritage this fall. I've seen the pix in the Preview thread, and I like it! I will also probably be getting some new Rome bindings for the new Heritage in Whistler. My flip-flopping has flipped again, and I think I've back to preferring bucklers. Once I have the new Heritage, I'll probably get rid of the Chairman. My quiver in Vancouver will be A 2019 Heritage and 2015 (?) Proto HD. My quiver in Whistler will be a 2018 Heritage and a Yes PYL. Of course, being the gear-whore that I am, I'll probably immediately add to that.

So anyway, back to yesterday on Cypress.

My current 'project' is to get good at handling moguls. Why? Because. I will state up front that icy moguls are a non-starter. I don't like icy or hard conditions to begin with, and I'm certainly not going to toss myself into the crushy-choppy things in those conditions. At the moment, I feel like I can handle blue-run-level moguls pretty well, albeit slowly. I need to get to the point where I can ride through them in a smooth, continuous track, like a skier. That's just practice. Black-run-level moguls, not quite there yet. I spent considerable time on First Sun on Cypress yesterday. For those who don't know, that's basically a black diamond run that's nothing but moguls from top to bottom. I found myself improving with every run, but I still fell a lot.

I know what the basic technique should be in order to handle moguls. My problem is executing it dependably. The problem with moguls, especially on steeps, is that they're scary as shit. And what do I do when I get scared? I go back foot and straight leg. Both of those are Very Bad Things when trying to ride moguls (or any challenging terrain). What I need to do, and I'm relating this as a note to myself as much as anything else, is A) keep weight on front foot, B) keep knees bent, C) unweight the board on the turn, D) bleed off speed on every turn by slashing the tail. That's really it. Do all that and I should be able to handle any mogul field. And it's just practice.

I've also started hitting the jumps off Collins regularly. They're better jumps that are available on Seymour, being slightly bigger than the Mushroom jumps and better contoured for a smooth landing. The trouble is that the only way to get to them is either use the beginner lift, which is slower than a glacier, or come down Collins, which is basically kind of boring.

At Whistler, I've started doing the entire small park run, which includes a couple of boxes, some hips, and several jumps. The problem there is that when it gets crowded (which is usually), you can spend a lot of time waiting for your turn to drop while cursing the assholes who just come along and snake the line. And you'd be surprised how often said assholes consist of parents and their small children. Way to not teach your kids basic courtesy, bozos.

And this is looking to be my best season ever. Not that that should be a surprise. But I might even hit fifty days this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We got up to Whistler on Sunday, and I've gone snowboarding Monday, Tuesday, and today. I've made a point of trying different hardware each day: I rode the 2018 Heritage on Tuesday, the Proto HD on Wednesday, and the Yes PYL today. I also used my new Ride Lassos one day and my K2 Maysis the other two. I'm beginning to get a sense of proportion about how much difference the hardware makes.

Now, keep in mind that the conditions still change a little from day to day, plus I'm getting lots of practice and getting better. But here's the breakdown:

Monday: Heritage, Flow NX2-CX bindings, Maysis boots.

The Flow bindings are definitely a lot more solid than my other set back home (see earlier post). At this point, there's no question in my mind that something failed on the other bindings. Having said that, I think there is a slight difference in responsiveness between Flows and bucklers. It's not a lot, and a good boarder won't be bothered by it. But it's there. On the other hand, the convenience of Flows is hard to beat.

I still love the Heritage and probably always will. Comparing it in retrospect, the Heritage is a bit more of a downhill board. It's not inclined to be particularly squirrelly on polished straights, but it also isn't as nimble as the Proto.

The Maysis boots are, at the moment, my definite fave. They lock my heel down even better than the Lassos, which is surprising considering the Lasso mechanism and the lanyard on the liners. Plus they are comfy from start to finish.

Tuesday: Proto HD, Union Force, Lasso boots.

The Proto is definitely a lively board. My Proto is a 157, which is 3 cm shorter than my Heritage, but I think it's more about the board profile than the length. The Proto also feels a little more squirrelly on polished straights, and has a slightly higher tendency to lose an edge when I'm really pushing it on steeps. I'm still not a huge fan of the bindings, but I don't grumble about them. If buying new bindings, i think I'd go for Romes instead, but it's a game of inches.

Today: Yes PYL, Union Contact Pro, Maysis boots.

It's been a while since I used the PYL, so I'd forgotten just what a rockin' board this is. It really, really carves just so much better than any of the crc boards. And interestingly, it's still very maneuverable--probably about the same level as the Heritage.

I spent most of my snowboarding time today either on the park run or on moguls. There's a mogul field right beside the Enchanted Forest tree run that isn't too bad. Every time I went down one of the Family Bowl runs I tried to go through the mogul field. The first couple of times I was pretty tentative, but I got faster and more confident with each run, until I was just zipping through. Well, a slow zip, anyway.

I then transferred to the Big Red Express area and started hitting Old Man on each run. That went even better. Next step is to find some real blue-run moguls and practice on them, then graduate to the blacks.

As mentioned, I was also doing the small park all morning. I have basic jumps nailed, I think. At least I'm not windmilling, and I can tuck. I'll have to work on my flexibility (and belly) a little more before I can execute a grab, but I'm close. I also finally figured out the rainbow box that they've put at the top of a roller, and I'm getting fairly confident with hips. The last jump on the small run is a step-up, and very launchy. I still freak a little on that one, but I'll keep at it.

Last item on the blog post is a small rant, entitled "how stupid do you have to be?" Yesterday I ended up on the chair with some kid on skis at one point. Just two of us on a six-person lift. Lots of room, right? So we get to the top, raise the bar, push ourselves off the chair, and the little bastard turns right into me as if I wasn't even there. I mean seriously, this wasn't him losing control or anything. He just simply assumed I would stay out of his way. I didn't, of course, so he just. ran. into. me. Mind you, I'm probably more than twice his weight, so he ended up in a yard sale on the ramp and I just skated off. But I'm still obscurely offended. How stupid, etc.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

On Thursday, I took a full-day private lesson. I'd booked it a week in advance based on the snow forecast, and I nailed it. Not that there was a ton of fresh, but there was enough to coat the hardpack anyway.

My instructor, Marius, was pretty good, and practiced what he preached (always a good thing). I've learned a few things about my form that I think will help immensely. First, on aggressive heelsides, I need to squat more while bending my knees more. I thought I was practically on the snow, but apparently not. On Toesides, I need to push out my hips more to get more edge. Last and maybe most important, my upper body needs to be more dependably aligned with the board. I'm not habitually counterrotated or anything like that, but I do have a tendency to get misaligned sometimes, and it throws me off. In particular, I get the invisible girlfriend randomly (especially on moguls), and I sometimes have my lead arm across the front of my body. So that's all about forcing my upper body to lead my intended turn in order to ensure it's aligned properly, until it becomes automatic.

On the plus side, my form is generally good, and I'm pretty good on moguls.

Marius took me around the mountain, blues and blacks, and basically forced me to play outside my comfort zone. Which is exactly what I asked for, so +++. In particular, there's a tree run off the Crystal Ridge chair called Arthur's Choice that is an absolute blast. It's trees plus moguls plus ruts and I had to do it twice. And off Harmony Ridge, we did either Low Roll or Kaleidoscope -- it's hard to tell. Either way, though, steep and bumpy. We went to the top of the Glacier Express once, but it was foggy as fuck, and that was enough of that. Watching for bumps, other skiers and boarders, and the sides of the run while trying to keep the instructor in sight in that pea soup was just a little too much excitement.

I'm in a lot better shape than I was at the beginning of the season, but I was still pretty winded by the end of the session (9-3 with time off for lunch). Next year I'll be better prepared. Yeah, I know, I say that every fucking year, but I think this time I really mean it. It wasn't theoretical this time around--it's negatively affecting my laps.

When I get back to Seymour and Cypress, I think I'll be trying some of the runs I've been scared of up until now. Should be fun.

Honestly, I have to recommend a private lesson once a season to anyone who is less than expert level. There's always something you can improve on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It looks like we're coming up on the end of another season. Early again, too. The temps in the area took an abrupt and dramatic swing upwards right around mid-March, and the effect on the snow base has been apocalyptic. We're still getting some up and down, but the 'down' isn't including snowfall, so not really a lot of help. I'd say the locals are done--the webcam on Seymour at the top of Lodge was showing bare earth, just before they replaced it with a webcam of the top of Mystery. Total coincidence, of course. :dry:

The sad part is that even Whistler is looking pretty bedraggled. Bare patches, not just at the bottom but partway up runs; alternating moonscapes and slushbowls as the temps swing up and down around freezing; and the steady roping off of formerly open runs. I did a couple of sessions this week, Monday and yesterday. Yesterday I basically gave up after a couple of runs. I'm sure the mountain will be open for a while yet, but when the snow gets to this point it's really not enjoyable.

So, for the moment I'm keeping my equipment out and ready, but I don't really have much hope of any more good sessions. There _is_ a prediction of snow coming in over the next couple of days, but it keeps retreating. Originally it was supposed to start two days ago, then it was supposed to start tomorrow, and right now it's into the beginning of next week. So I'll believe it when I see it.

So what happened this season?

The season started slow for me, partly because the snow didn't come right away, and partly because I've developed a negative attitude based on the last several seasons. But finally, in January, everything came together enough for me to get moving. From that point on, it was pretty good--not a fantastic season, but I'd say above average. I bought a shit-ton of new equipment and soft goods, including two new boards. Sadly I've also had to retire my old Heritage.

I spent most of the season getting my mojo back, which is disappointing. However, I also made significant progress on some other things, like mogul riding, park, and steeps handling. So there's some upside.

My biggest problem seems to be lack of physical conditioning. I'm getting older, I've let my weight get a little out of control, my flexibility has decreased, and I haven't been exercising enough so both my endurance and strength are down. This, at least, is something I can get a handle on. I'll be much more active this summer, between hiking and biking and running. And next winter, I'll be more aggressive about getting out to the hill more often.

Having the Whistler option is great. It's a big mountain. In fact, I didn't even come close to visiting every part of it this year. Next year I'll be a little more adventurous. I won't avoid blacks, and I won't avoid the upper lifts.

Time to start dreaming about next season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The locals are closed as of April 14. No kind of a surprise, really. The total snowpack just wasn't deep enough to resist the sudden warming in mid-March. Interestingly, although we had some good snow dumps and some good, consistent cold temps (up until mid-March), the total snowfall for this season was well below average.

At the other end of things, Blackcomb will close April 22 and Whistler will close May 27. I'll be interested to see how the available runs contract as the melt continues. And I _will_ be continuing to snowboard, at least until it reaches the beater-board-only point.

I went up Whistler yesterday, because they'd had a few cm of snow over the last day or so. I wasn't expecting much, and I was actually pleasantly surprised. It seems like even a few inches of new snow is enough to ameliorate the icy hardpack conditions, at least enough to make for a reasonably good day.

I took the Flight Attendant with me, just to give it a good try, and I was pleased with the results. There's no question the FA is heavier than any of my other boards. But it's quite a stable board and cuts through chop well. It's also not terrible for moguls, although I do have more trouble with toeside turns on it. I figured out the proper technique partway through the day though, so next time I'll make a point of practicing.

I also did some park lines, and some steep stuff including Saddle. The problem with Saddle wasn't the steepness, though--it was flat light and no contrast. The steep part was mildly mogulled up, and I simply couldn't see the bumps until I was on top of them. Made for a tooth-jarring ride, but I made it down. I think I'm probably mostly over my fear of steeps as such. Steep + deep moguls is still a problem, but that's just a matter of practicing the short turns.

Already starting to think about next year. The good news is that I won't need to spend much on new equipment. The bad news is that I'll probably spend some money anyway.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

By the end of the season, I've realized that my problem with form on my toe-side turns is far more of an issue than I realized, especially on steeps and such. It is in fact the number one issue that I need to fix in order to improve my riding overall.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The Anon mask issue turns out to be a design oversight, and EVERY SINGLE M4 mask and M2 mask are incompatible with the other goggle. And they obviously never realized it because they were advertising the masks as being compatible with M2, M3, and M4 goggles. Then they took them off the website for a couple of weeks, and when they came back on they were only compatible with M2.

Fuck-ups.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've figured out the problem with the Slopes app. It takes friggin' forever to download the data from the watch to the phone, and while it's doing so, you get a "partial" snapshot of the day which may be missing segments.
If I activated the app from the phone, I wouldn't have this problem, but then I wouldn't have my heart-rate data either.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

As I've finally come to realize by season's end, icy days suck the hairy root in every way, and adversely affect my riding. I may in fact give up on snowboarding on icy days and ski instead, maybe practice on the beginner's slope.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's "Old Man", and I've been hitting that run at least once every session. It's a blast.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This may or may not be an end-of-season post. As mentioned elsewhere, Blackcomb is closing today and Whistler is closing May 27th. However, the weather forecasts aren't looking optimistic, and that date could creep. Even if it doesn't, it could be rock-board-only conditions for most of May. I don't have any experience with what the top side of Whistler is like in late season, so this will be a learning experience for me.

What's pissing me off is that I've finally found my full-on snowboarding stoke, when it's almost too late. And why did this happen? I think because at this point I've realized that there is a realistic path for improvement in my snowboarding.

By that I do not mean that I think I'm already an expert. Far from it. I see snowboarders that are way better than me on every run. What I mean is that I no longer feel like I've plateaued on my progression. I have the moguls to work on; I have proper form for turns and carving; I have the beginnings of eurocarving; I have a real reason to work on riding switch; and I have a real progression of jumps available so I can move up from the beginner jumps.

I also feel like I can start trying out some more ambitious park features. I've started doing hips--properly. I've done enough ride-on boxes that they've become routine. I think there's a ride-on tank in one of the family bowl park lines, so I'm about ready to try that. And I may even be ready to try a street-style feature, if I can find a mellow one or a good soft snow day.

I doubt I'll ever do boardslides on rails, though. That has just too much downside if I screw it up. I also will probably never move beyond a 20-30 foot jump. Same comment applies.

But the big thing, the big mental shift, what really makes me happy is that I'm now eyeing black diamond runs. I've done several, a couple without even realizing it (Doh!). Marius took me on some blacks during my day lesson, and although it was scary, it wasn't insurmountable.

And I've started watching snowboarding videos again, something that I stopped doing for the last couple of years. I watch the videos and say "I could do that!" and I look forward to next session when I can try it out. And _that_, ladies and germs, is _stoke_.

So, yeah, I'm going to try to get up the mountain as much as possible over the next month. And then I'm going to do the usual summer/fall antsy foot-hopping thing, waiting for next season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, I think it's done. I went up the other day, and came back down right away. It was solid ice in the family bowl, then turned to slush almost the moment I went below the Emerald Express loading area. It also turned to thick fog, so I guess there was a thermocline right about there. Others will point out, and I will agree, that there's still good snowboarding to be found if you know where to go and when. But I don't, and at this point I'm not willing to invest the effort. Maybe next year when I know the mountain better.

For now, mountain biking calls to me. The snow disappears fast at village level once you get to this point in the season, and I think they'll be starting to prep the downhill trails Real Soon Now. Already they're downloading people from the Olympic station, although I notice people still showing up at village level from the Franz's direction. I don't think that'll last too much longer. The brown and green is spreading.

So I guess it's time to do my post-season analysis and navel-gazing.

According to my Slopes app, I've actually done 44 days this season, which is a record for me. Unfortunately, they've almost all been very short sessions, compared to my previous good seasons. Mind you, as I reported in an earlier post, Seymour sessions generally consist of far more waiting at the bottom than sliding down the slope, so I'm not sure that I was getting much more actual sliding time back in the day. In addition, there's no question that I was overweight and out of shape this year. Plus the frustration of having to re-learn stuff that I had nailed in previous years.

This all sounds very whiny, but I think it's actually a good objective analysis of what went on this season. The good news is that I did get back most of my downhill skills. About the only thing I still came up short on is switch riding, and since I practiced virtually never, I guess that's not a surprise. I also have lost small techniques like switch-swapping, penguin walk, butters, ollies and nollies, and stuff like that. But again, simple lack of practice. I had a lot of stuff to go over this seaons and I had to pick my battles.

On the plus side, my park-line and mogul-run skills are way, way up. There's no question I've hit a new high on those items and that feels pretty good.

As mentioned above, my sessions have been mostly pretty short on Whistler, and I think that's a major issue and probably the primary reason why I didn't finish this season even more improved. I've noticed that, when I haven't been up in a few days, I do tend to improve over the course of a session. I start out tentative, for instance, but get desensitized to speed over the course of the day. When my session is short, I never get to that point. So for next year, I need to be in better shape to start with, and then I need to have a strategy to make sure that I spend sufficient time on the mountain to get past that cusp.

One of the things I need to do to accomplish that is decide what time to go up the mountain. On days when there's been no snow for a while, a lot of the runs get really polished. Certainly the family bowl and other green runs are not ideal targets in those conditions. It may be that other areas like Harmony or Crystal are better. I'll have to test those theories a couple of times.

So, in summary, my strategies for next year will be:

- Start off the season in better shape.
- Make an intelligent decision about whether to go up early or late, depending on day of week and snow status. And where to go.
- Make each session at least 4 hours. Rest if necessary if I'm getting leg burn, but don't just quit.
- Vary my location. Don't get stale by riding the same area all the time.
- Spend some time working on small techniques. Maybe on really bad snow days, I can just go to the beginner slope.
- Do side hits, trees, and general off-the-piste stuff. I've mentioned in earlier seasons that this helps hugely with learning control.

And my goals will be:

- Desensitize to speed as quickly as possible.
- Practice switch riding. A lot.
- Practice small techniques: ollies, nollies, penguin walk, switch-swapping, buttering.
- Practice moguls. Try to move to black diamond moguls.
- Practice park. Try to find a mellow street-style box to start with. Look in the medium park for a ride-on tank or pipe.
- Try to move up to medium jumps.
- See more of the mountain.
- Practice advanced riding techniques. Watch videos.

None of these items are insurmountable. They just require some commitment. After several years of stagnation, I want to progress again. This will mean committing to going up the mountain more often, and being less of a baby about the conditions. That's true both in Whistler and in the Lower Mainland hills.

I can do this.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yes, it is "off-season." There is snowboarding season, and there is everything else. Although that might change...

I'm going to try downhill biking this year. I'll be the first to admit that it isn't snowboarding, but it might just be something that can get me through the off-season.

I've watched a few videos on youtube. The green runs don't look bad, really. TBH, I've ridden terrain like that before, although maybe not for that long of a continuous slope. The blues and blacks... mmm, maybe not. One of the recurring themes in downhill biking appears to be injury. Injuries hurt, of course, and can cut into your downhill biking season, but the really scary scenario would be where I get injured while biking and it affects _snowboarding season!_ That's just not on.

Anyway, I'm hoping that some combination of mountain biking and downhill biking will scratch the itch, at least a little bit. Plus, bonus result, maybe get me in better shape for next winter.

Bike park opened yesterday on Whistler, so next week I should be able to get a lesson. Let's see what happens.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

Good on ya for getting out there! 

But yeah! injuries are a real possibility even on mellow terrain. It all depends on your level of involvement and commitment. 

If you discover you really like dh and want to get into it more & more,.. I suppose it will be a lot like snowboarding. In so far as you will probably find more risk an acceptable factor for the degree of adrenaline stoke you're looking for. 

I love snowboarding! But I've come to accept that I will never be doing double blacks or bc pow runs down 45° slopes. 

Same with my bike. A couple years back, I did a full on superman over the bars @ 20-25 mph on a mellow run just cuz my pedal hooked a sapling stump. (bike stopped dead... I _didn't!!_)
:blink: :facepalm3: 

Due to injuries and health issues, I've had to go even mellower of late on both bike & board. :shrug:

Just Find the level you're comfortable with & just Enjoy yourself.


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## Seppuccu (Dec 4, 2012)

Or you could try downhill longboarding.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I have decided against getting into downhill biking this summer. It's not that I disliked it, or that I thought it was too dangerous. The green trails are actually not much different than what I ride around home on my mountain bike, except for the part where you always start at the top. It was fun, no question. However, it wasn't gripping, not in the way that snowboarding took hold on my very first day.

There's a lot of $ involved in getting started on downhilling--even a basic used downhill demo is $1600 (I priced the rental unit), plus the season pass is $700, plus accessories of course. Easily $3K by the time you're done. Not that I'm hurting for cash, but I think I'd like to rent once or twice just to be sure that I won't just shrug and quit in a month.

Meanwhile, I've been on Trailforks, examining all the mountain bike trails in the Whistler area, and I think I can probably fill the summer just with those. All without spending a penny, and a lot more excercise.

We're coming up on summer solstice, my unofficial halfway point between snowboarding seasons. I'm not as anxious about it as I have been on previous years, though. Not that I'm less excited, just that I'm happier with the off-season. Maybe not having a day job has something to do with that. k: I've got the Snowboard Addiction sub again, I've been watching youtube videos, I've got Slopes and I'll be looking at Strava--all the usual obsessing strategies. But no chewing of nails and moaning in despair this time around.

Well, we'll see how I feel by late summer.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

There seems to be two kinds of mountain biking. One is the kind where you bike around, peddling up ascents and coasting down descents. The other is basically a slightly tamer version of downhill biking. I've looked at some of the videos of bikers on the Seymour trails, and I've examined some of the trails listed on Trailforks. And the consensus seems to be that, even if you have to pedal up the road to get to the top of the trail, the whole point is to coast down the trail while hitting features.

Now, that's not a criticism. I'm just identifying some possible sources of confusion. It's like the difference between park riders and groomer riders. Both are fun, both are snowboarding, but they're different and involve different skillsets.

I am the first kind of mountain biker. I start at home, and I end at home, so ascent = descent. I have a favorite trail that I ride through the Bert Flynn park area. Takes about half an hour, and it gives me the minimum amount of daily exercise that I think I need in order to get and stay fit. I also have a longer set of routes down by the Coquitlam River. That alternative is a couple of hours of riding, so I can't do it every day.

What became clear to me today, after doing the Bert Flynn trail, is that my fitness is improving. I'm doing the route faster every time, and I'm able to do it using first gear less often. That means stand-up-pedalling more of the course as well. And yeah, you shouldn't be stand-up-pedalling on a MTB with a rear shock--it's inefficient as hell, as you lose part of each stroke to the shock. But this is about conditioning, not efficiency, so I don't mind.

The next thing I'm going to have to do is hit some blue trails, but I think I'll first have to get a proper full-face helmet. The street-bike helmet is just not enough if I spill in the bush. I have knee pads, but I'm not entirely sure I like them. Might try to replace. And no elbow pads, yet. I do have a couple of backpacks with built-in back protection, though. That's handy.

The adventure continues.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Summer solstice has come and gone, and as I mention every year, I consider this the half-way point to next season. And as I mention every year, I know that's mathematically incorrect. It's a psychological half-way point. From here on, days get shorter.

I've got more stoke going this year than I have the last couple of years, which is making me happy. And impatient, but whaddaya gonna do? I've got mountain biking to keep me happy this summer, and incidentally to get me in better shape. As mentioned last post, I'm feeling the first stirrings of increased fitness, and maybe a small weight loss. But we're coming up on a couple weeks vacation in Whistler, and I'll be cycling hopefully every day. And hopefully writing every day, since that's where the money comes from, but that's another story (haha).

I wonder if I should resurrect my countdown app?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did my first real mountain-biking session on Tuesday. I say 'real' because, although I've cycled around Whistler several times in the past, it's always been valley trails, which includes the gravel roads around Lost Lake. Admittedly I did a trail or two, but not in a concerted way. This time, I made a point of staying on MB trails, including a couple of short blues. I did a total of 90 minutes or so, without really leaving the Lost Lake area. Eventually I'll go farther afield, but right now there's enough to explore in the immediate area.

My right knee gives me problems, though. Not major, just basic soreness. It makes me reluctant to stand-up pedal, and I absolutely have to ice afterwards. I hope it doesn't get worse, otherwise it could actively impact my riding. I will admit that I don't have to stand-up pedal as much as I do--I'm kind of forcing it for conditioning purposes. I will say that my impression so far is that cycling really provides conditioning that will be relevant to snowboarding, especially if I spend as much time as possible standing instead of sitting.

In any case, I'm having a blast, I don't regret at all not getting the downhill pass, and I think I'll be able to fill my summer with this.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've gone mountain biking the last 4 days in a row around the Lost Lake area. Still mostly sticking to the greens, although I've hit a couple of blues here and there. I've bought myself some knee and shin pads, but if I'm going to start doing blues regularly, I think I'll need to get a full-face helmet as well.

I remember from my downhill lesson that trails come in two types: technical and flow. The flow trails that are designated as blue seem to be all about steepness and rockiness. They're generally pretty wide, in many cases full-on road width. Although you wouldn't want to drive them on anything less than hummer-level, I think. The technical trails are almost all single-track, and have ruts, rocks, roots, dips, drops, and sometimes features like narrow boardwalks. I've done a couple, like I say, but I've also turned around and headed back on a couple. In particular, going _up_ a blue can be a harrowing experience.

My biggest shortcoming right now is the inability to bunny hop. It's funny, if you listen to the description and watch the mechanics of a bunny hop, it's basically an ollie. Even the motion to get one going is the same. Drop your weight, shift to the back, then stand up quickly. And the reasons for doing one are pretty much identical. I think, in fact, that getting a bunny hop under my belt on a bike will help a lot with perfecting ollies on snow.

The other item of interest is that my pants are fitting looser. Yeah, four days. But it's about 90 minutes a day of pretty intense exercise, and that seems to be the decisive factor. Although the fact that I'm not snacking much is probably helping. It's raining today, and probably will be for a few days, so unfortunately I won't be able to keep the string going, but as soon as things dry up I'll be back on it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Did my first dirt-nap yesterday on a mountain bike. Or should that be _off_ a mountain bike? :chin: Not a real biggie--I handled the transition from a roller to a berm poorly, the bike stopped faster than me, and I did a superman over the bars. Got some nice scrapes, but nothing broken. However, I'm now prepared to take protective gear a little more seriously. I went out in the afternoon and bought a full-face helmet, and I'll be wearing my armored gloves next time. I also continue to scrutinize upper-body armor. If I find something with back _and_ shoulder/elbow protection, I think I'll grab it.

But the place I bit it was the bike park between Fitzsimmons creek and the RV parking lot. Interesting place. I think I'll be visiting that a lot, although I'll probably be less cocky in the future.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I have a nice mellow blue called "Black Dog" that I regularly ride through Bert Flinn park. Yesterday, about halfway along the path, I came around a big stump and came face to face with a mother bear and two cubs. Okay, "face to face" may be a bit of an exaggeration. They were about thirty to forty yards away. But the mama was sitting up, looking right back at me.

There's a thing you can do with a mountain bike where you grab the seat with one hand, the handlebar stem with the other, lift, and swivel 180 degrees. I did that. Left at a nice leisurely "nothing to see here" pace. The weird thing is that, when i was going into Black Dog, a family of three on mountain bikes was coming out. I don't know if they didn't see the bears, or if the bears had moved in after the family went by. But they didn't seem freaked or anything.

Anyway, other than this one cardiac-inducing episode, I'm having a lot of fun with mountain biking. I'm getting used to blue runs, to the point where I wouldn't feel too terrified about riding them. I don't do most of the features yet, but that'll come. The important thing for me is still the conditioning. On that subject, I rode down the hill to the gym today, then rode up the hill back home. Now _that's_ a workout! If I can do that a couple of times a week, I'll be happy.

I'm working on bunny hops, the bike equivalent of ollies. I think I'm just starting to get them, at least the first half of the move. It seems I wasn't going low enough on the initial down-weighting. Practice continues.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Okay, I'll start by admitting that a lot of my motivation for taking up mountain biking has been for conditioning. My fitness level last snowboarding season sucked, and while I could get away with that on the locals, on Whistler you really, really feel it. I run and I go to the gym, but I don't tend to do either one _enough_ because they're about as much fun as doing the dishes.

So I took up mountain biking on the assumption that there'd be a little more variety and therefore ongoing motivation.

I was right. Turns out, though, it's not just the variety (trails, scenery, etc) but also something that attracts me to snowboarding as well--there's a lot to learn. Every time I go out, I'm working on some particular skill or technique. Right now, bunny hops are busting my ass. Bunny hops are the mountain biking equivalent of ollies. You pull back on the bike, stand up, and push the handlebars forward to bring the rear wheel off the ground. The sequence, timing, and movement of mass are so similar as to be forehead-slapping. Oh, and one other similarity: I can't do either one worth shit.

But with the MTB, I'm keeping at it, which is something I haven't really done on a snowboard. So I do actually expect to have the technique nailed by the time MTB season is over. I also think this, along with a lot of other skillz, will seriously inform my snowboarding.

And it's not just bunny hops. Turning, handling roughs, transitioning, features (yes, MTB has park features), all of these things translate surprisingly well between the two sports. Oh, and fear. That's the big one. I'm old, no longer invulnerable, and excessively concerned about my skeletal integrity, so I tend to be cautious when snowboarding. And also when MTBing, no surprise. But I'm improving rapidly, and I'm constantly pushing my limits in terms of handling drops and such. I think it's going to positively affect my attitude when I get back on a board and face those same fears, but with a nice, cushy blanket of snow to land on instead of gravel.

And since I actually have done a dirt nap or two, I now have an altered perspective on danger levels. Granted, you can die just as thoroughly on a forty-foot jump on a board, but that's really not where I am. Or will ever be. And on the fifteens and twenties, where I want to live, I'd pretty much have to land on my head to really bugger myself up, I think.

Anyway, I write this because yesterday I had one of the best MTB sessions of the year. I tried a couple of new blue trails, and although I had to walk a couple of patches, for the most part I did really well. Oh, and no bears this time :scared2:. The blue that I've been doing regularly, Black Dog, is now much less of a challenge. In fact, I'm hitting it faster and with more confidence than I used to hit the green Bert Flinn trail.

And, as a bonus, my fitness is way up. I have to stop and rest less often on uphills, and I've reached the point where I can get my breath back by just pedalling more slowly. So, all good.

And the best part of this? Summer is now no longer just that frustrating interval between snowboard seasons.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've booked a one-day training camp at the Trek Dirt Series Mountain Bike Camp. Yeah, that's right. MTB lessons. Who'da thought?

I've also identified some techniques and skills that I need to work on, and the order in which I need to learn them. They are:

- Hop off (jumping off the bike to the side, when it's about to go bad)
- Hopping in place (balancing while standing still)
- Pumping
- Wheelies
- Manuals
- Rear wheel lift
- Bunny hop

There are lots more techniques, of course, but they all build on these ones. And some of these build on earlier ones.

And one other thing that is more a question of form: apparently I put too much weight on my hands when riding, which causes my hands to tingle. Have to work on that.

I'm now officially a bike nut.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've now purchased a street bike--a Trek 520--thereby completing my conversion to the dark side. Or, well, since it's summer stuff, maybe the bright side?

Regardless, I did a couple of short highway rides in Whistler this week on the new bike. It took some getting used to. Street cycles have changed _a lot_ since back in the day. The biggest single item is the location of the shifters. My first ten-speed (and my second street bike, an 18-speed) had the shifters on the down tube, and you shifted by feel because there was no index shifting. Now, the shifters are integrated with the brake levers -- you push a small lever inwards to go to a smaller sprocket, and you push the shifter itself inwards to go to a larger sprocket. It's weird, and I'm still not sure I like it.

Another change is the conformation of the handlebar. The bar is tilted upwards now, creating a gripping point behind the top of the brake levers. The gripping point isn't new--I used to use it back in the day--but the fact that it's bolstered by the upper side of the brake levers is definitely a change for the better. The downside of this, though, is that the brake levers are a little farther up out of reach when you're in the sprint position. I guess the idea is that if you're sprinting, you shouldn't be thinking of braking. But shifting is equally awkward.

I was going to take a hex wrench to my handlebars and adjust them downwards, but then it occurred to me that I'll probably be in the more upward position a lot more often than I'll be in the sprint position. So for now, I'm leaving it.

Street biking is definitely a different critter from mountain biking. Other than the obvious differences in danger, I mean. With street, it feels more like a marathon jog. With MTB, it feels more like a series of sprints. By the time I was finished with my street rides, I felt like I'd been to the gym and done leg work.

But whatever. The whole point of this summer exercise is to get me in better condition for snowboarding, and I think this will help. I'll leave the street bike up in Whistler though. Highway 99 in the Whistler area has nice, wide, smooth shoulders and a lot of other bikes, so I actually feel quite safe, despite the large trucks thundering past at highway speeds. It's a lot different from riding in the Lower Mainland, which feels a lot like Running Man or Thunderdome, or something equally lethal.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I took my MTB to the shop to get a tune-up and checkover, in anticipation of the bike camp in September (Yes, I'm going to a bike camp). That left me without a bike on what is turning out to be a very nice day. So, I went for a walk.

Not just any boring street walk. I decided to walk around the Bert Flinn trails and investigate some of the trail offshoots that I've noticed from time to time, or that I've been reluctant to try. And wow, was it worth it! The trails that show up on Trailforks are far outnumbered by the trails that don't. And there are some great ones! I didn't bring my Garmin with me, and I really should have. it would have helped make a record of where I went. But I did note a couple of trailheads worth checking out on the bike, and I'll be going there are soon as I get it back.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today is Sept 1st, which means we're on the downhill run to the beginning of snowboarding season. Yes, it's still MTB season, and I'll post a few more things on that subject, but it's now also the part of the year where I start to ramp up my obsessive pre-snowboarding-season behavior.

As part of said behavior, I just re-read the last couple of years of blog entries. I'm kind of surprised at how useful they are. They give me an insight into my attitudes in previous seasons, and what events were shaping those attitudes. The takeaway for me is that, over the last couple of years, I've snowboarded less and been less aggressive when I was boarding. Part of that is a couple of bad seasons, part of that is a couple of injuries, and part is simple fear. And less snowboarding means stagnation, which means less fun, which means less inclination to get up the damned hill.

So what's in store for this year?

First, if there's one thing that mountain-biking has taught me, it's that the injury risks in snowboarding are way less. That's not to say that you can't get injured snowboarding, but it takes a little more effort. If nothing else, falling on snow doesn't embed gravel and twigs in your skin. The point here is that I can be more aggressive than I have been the last couple of years.

Another issue with stagnation is that I've stopped practicing techniques like switch riding and ollies. I have to get back to working on those things. They're important, and the lack of skill in those areas impacts everything else. So I _will_ take time out to go to the beginner slope or whatever and practice small techniques.

One of the several things that has helped cause stagnation for me is being out of shape. Getting tired quicker means shorter sessions on the mountain, means less benefit from mountain days overall. Well, I'm definitely doing something about that this year. Mountain biking turns out to be not only fun, but also a great conditioning mechanism. I've started losing weight, I'm a lot more fit, I'm deliberately doing regular stretching to avoid injuries, and as a side benefit mountain biking also gives me practice at desensitizing to speed and slope.

Another of my many problems is a tendency to get into a rut, figuratively. I tend to ride the same runs in the same way unless I make an effort to dig myself out. So the cure for that is to make a conscious decision to start at a different place every day.

Weather is also a factor. Bad weather on the locals is not really something you can get away from in any meaningful way. If it's raining in the Lower Mainland, it'll be raining on all of Cypress and all of Seymour. Not so on Whistler. You can go up the top area or down to the bottom slopes and get different weather, whether that be precip or fog or icy conditions. So rather than just throw my hands up in disgust, I'll try heading for a different part of the mountain to see what's what.

One of the things I'll be doing this year to help myself out is getting a Season's Lesson Pass at Whistler. I haven't decided between the Max-15 or the Unlimited yet, but either way--bypass the lift lines on powder days, get lessons whenever I want, get pushed outside my comfort zone... It's basically no-downside. Okay, it costs money, but other than that.

I also have to make sure to buy the First Trax tickets this year. They are a great way to get up the mountain early, and get some food without having to make it myself. The only downside to them, and it's an irritation more than anything, is that on powder days, the line-up is already huge by the time the first bus drops me off. So on those days, I think I'm going to have to drive to the parking lot. Fortunately, there's a monthly pass for Whistler parking.

Jeez, this is an expensive sport.

On the plus side, I've now got so much gear and soft goods that I really can't come up with much of an excuse to buy more shit. So that justifies things like the lesson pass. (Yeah, yeah, that's the ticket.)

The point of all this rambling, though, is that this is the year that I get serious. This is the year that I put 50+ days under my belt, as an absolute minimum. This is the year that I hit moguls, blacks, jumps, park lines, learn to ride switch, and all the other stuff I've been moaning about for years.

A couple of other items to keep in mind, though...

First, I will have to put some skiing time in. My family skis, and I'll likely ski when I'm with them. That'll be mostly Seymour, since that's where they are the most comfortable. But I'll also be hitting the mountain with friends this year. They ski, so the same logic applies, more or less. And they'll have Cypress passes, so there's that. However, that probably won't be more than once a week, so I still have four days a week to snowboard.

And on the subject of passes, I will once again have passes at Seymour, Cypress, and Whistler. So there really is. No. Excuse.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I have a number of things I want to cover, not all bike-related.

First, I weighed in at 205 today. I haven't seen the south side of 206 since the fall of 2016, so that is a huge, huge win for me. And my weight is trending downwards as I continue to get lots of exercise with the MTB. :dance1:

Second, on my ride today, I did my laps backwards, and ended up accidentally going down the connector that's been freaking me out all this time. Sort of an "oops, okay I'm dead, might as well relax," kind of thing. And I nailed it. So on the next lap, I did it again. There are still a couple of connectors that I'm giving the side-eye to, but mostly they involve either thick bush or branches or crap across the trail. :dance1:

Third, I ended up buying the unlimited Max-4 lesson pass. Honestly, if I use it every day in the morning, I can beat the line-ups. And if it doesn't work out, then lesson learned. :dance1:

Fourth, this Friday is the Trek Dirt Series bike seminar. I'm really stoked for that. :dance1:

Those are the major things. I also have some minor items...

I've gone back to starting my rides in the park under the power-lines again. I do a little technique practice every time, before continuing on to Bert Flinn. So far, not much to report, but it'll come. I'm concentrating on track stands and manuals for now.

Anyway, I'm having a lot of fun with MTBing, and this means my whole friggin' year is now fun, not just the winter. :dance1:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did the day-camp yesterday. Trek hosts one-day and two-day camps, but the two-day was already booked solid. The one-day, however, was under-booked, to the point where we had 5 students for 4 trainers in our group in the morning, and 3 students for 2 trainers in the afternoon. So a win right off the bat.

The Dirt Series advertises that they will tailor the course to your level, and I believe it. One of the reasons we had so few people in our group was because they were splitting people up. I think there might have been two MTB groups and two DH groups overall. I don't know how the other groups fared, but ours was a blast!

As any good learning environment should be, the training was just outside my comfort zone, but not so much that I was scared shitless. Well, there was this one bridge, but I walked it. Six to eight foot drop on one side of a sloped, curved bridge was just a little too much for me.

But I learned a lot about wheelies, manuals, pops, drops, picking lines, and controlling the bike. Oh, and I won a Smith helmet in the draw. So a very good day.

Except for the part _after_ the day, you know, the part where you sit down on the couch and can't get up. Yeah, eight hours of biking can leave you pretty stiff. Better today, though, which leads me to believe that my conditioning strategy is working. That bodes well for snowboarding this year.

I also stopped in at Whistler client services and verified that the lesson pass is attached to my season's pass. The only reason I was worried was a phrase in the confirmation email that implied I'd have to go in and redeem it. Nope, all good.

On the minus side, it's been raining for about a week straight, and the forecast is for at least another week of downpour. On the upside, that cools things off faster and maybe means a good, cold winter. On the downside, it's raining fucking all the time.

Oh, well. Every day of rain is one day closer to snowboarding season, I guess.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've been riding a couple of times since the last posting, but mostly nothing special. I continue to hit things that I crawled over or even walked in the past, so I keep improving. I'm also hitting the trails faster.

Unfortunately, it's been pretty much 100% cage match rainfall for the last ten days at least. THIS is the Coquitlam I remember from my youth -- rain from the end of summer until the beginning of the next summer, with lead-gray skies in between. Okay, that might be one of those "In my day" things. But still.

So I have lately discovered bike skills parks. There's the Burnaby Mountain one on the Barnett Highway at Takeda, there's one in Mundy Park near Chilko, there's one on Shaughnessy near Lincoln, and there's one in Leigh Park on Soball. They have various features, and are in various stages of repair, but I think all are worth visiting for one reason or another. 

I visited the Burnaby Mountain one last weekend. It has some interesting stuff, but not really a lot of flow. Each feature kind of just sits out in the field, and you figure out what you want to hit. One of the items is a raised wooden pump track. I tried it out, but as usual with raised features, I was tentative, and I ended up going off the side, unfortunately high up on one of the bumps. Exactly what I'm most afraid of, and the result was exactly what I'm most afraid of. I went down nose-first and almost went over the bars. It brought into focus, though, exactly what I should be working on. The way to handle that type of situation is to either manual up the front tire so you land flat, or wheelie up the front tire for the same result. Of course, I haven't really worked drops at speed, except at the Trek bike camp, and that was just for long enough to get a taste.

So today I went to the Mundy Park bike park. They have a couple of circuits, one green and one blue (supposedly). They were both a little on the easy side, except for the matter of drops. In particular the green circuit had a couple of drops that I could choose from--not more than a foot to fifteen inches, so I could inch down them if I had to. But the point is to learn to do drops at speed. It took a good half-dozen attempts before I got the timing right on pumping the front, but eventually I was coming off horizontally and landing on both wheels. It's a great feeling. My concern, though, is that I'm not shifting back enough, instead depending on the front fork rebound. That's not good when I get into bigger drops.

I'll be going back there, and also trying out a few of the other ones. The Shaughnessy bike park is close enough to cycle to--in fact I've been cycling to the trails in that area without even realizing it was there. Unfortunately it's the least well maintained bike park, and turns into a swamp when it rains, so I'll have to wait for enough good weather to drain it.

Meanwhile, though, I have a list of techniques that I'm working on, and I'm gradually making progress on them. Incremental improvements--the older biker's mantra.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The weather here just abruptly transitioned from summer to winter, with very little in the way of autumn. A week ago it was warm, if rainy. Yesterday when I went out for a ride, I got cold enough to stiffen up a little. This might be temporary, of course. On the other hand, it snowed on Whistler right down to the top of the Emerald chair, it snowed on the Coquihalla, and looking at the Seymour webcams this morning, it either snowed a little bit or they had some vicious frost overnight. Something white, anyway.

So yeah, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

I guess I'm going to have to accept that I won't nail bunny hops this year. That's fine, though. I have made progress on wheelies, track-stands, and the beginning of manuals. I may or may not have a few sessions left this year, of course--maybe not full-on trail rides, but at least some time out on the grassy field working on techniques.

I had a lot of fun with MTBing this year, and have definitely upped my fitness level. An additional benefit, which should have been obvious, is strengthened joints. Knees in particular. I was having knee pain early on in the MTB season, but that's long since gone away. And that will help going into snowboarding season.

We probably have a few more days of biking in Whistler, since it tends to warm up faster during the day (Continental climate vs Oceanic), but it still looks like there will be a gap of a month or so between seasons. I guess that's my autumn.

It's also just about time to check with the Boardroom if they have new stock in for winter. I'm not positive at this point that I want to buy the new Heritage or something else. Or nothing, since I already have a lot of boards. Maybe bindings instead. Hmmmm.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's time for a snowboarding-related post.

I'm at Whistler for a few days, and I just saw an announcement for the Blackcomb Turkey Sale. Which, despite the name, is a huge winter-goods sale. I'm not sure if it's clearing last year's stuff or featuring this year's stuff. Maybe both. But worth checking out anyway.

I bought a new Burton jacket yesterday. I didn't like last year's colorways, but this one is nice. It's this one in blue/amber/red. TBH, I'd promised myself I'd take it easy this year with the Visa. Not a good start.










I've just downloaded the EpicMix app, which was mentioned on the Turkey Sale web page. The reviews of the app are not good (mostly one-star) but they are A) a couple of years old, and B) directed more at Vail Resorts than at the app. So I'll give it a fair shot. One feature it has that has already got me interested is a mountain trail map that shows me my current position. That's something the Slopes app needs. In Slopes, you can't check your current position on the fly.

When we got to Whistler yesterday, I was pleasantly surprised to see snow halfway down the visible runs. I knew there was snow up top, but assumed it ended maybe around the bottom of the Emerald Express. Nope. Clearly visible from the village.

As well, the forecast is predicting snow for several days later this week. Notwithstanding the tendency for such predictions to evaporate like mirages when you get close, I'm still excited. I mean, it's still _September_ FFS. They're calling it 'Wintember' in Alberta. One can only hope this will continue to deepen. Side note: my wife disagrees strongly.

So, yeah, looks like it's gonna be a great season.

ETA: The Epic Mix app is actually pretty damned good, so fuck people who leave reviews based on their politics instead of the actual item.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's the end of MTB season and coming up on the beginning of snow season, so this will be a bit of a crossover post.

First, on the MTB front, I came closer to killing myself yesterday than I think I ever have on a bike. I generally do the Hett Creek / Lower Backyard trail combo on my rides, and there's one stretch about twenty yards long that runs long the edge of a ravine. I usually walk the bike there because it's a risky section with a huge downside. Yesterday for some reason I was feeling brave/foolish and I tried to ride it out. And I got exactly what I should have expected--got stopped by a root and started to go over the embankment. I was able to grab a tree with one hand and my bike with the other and recover, but it still scared the crap out of me. I have to conquer that stretch eventually, but it probably won't happen this season.

On the subject of MTB stuff I haven't done, I still have my list of techniques that I have to master. I spent a few minutes in the park under the power-lines today, working on trackstands and wheelies, and I was very pleased with my improvement, but I've still got a long way to go. Next spring I'm going to have to come up with a schedule that includes time to work on techniques. Maybe I'll start every ride with a few minutes in the power-line park, or maybe I'll go down to the Coquitlam River trails once a week. The trails there are wide and easy, and perfect for practicing wheelies, manuals, and such. But for now, it looks like it's winding down. There's some interesting weather coming in this week, and I don't think I'll be worried about biking if things pan out.

Starting on Tuesday, and for most of the rest of the week, we've got some kind of system coming in from the arctic, and the predictors are for snow on all the mountains for several days running. And not just a few sprinkles. Over the course of several days, snow-forecast.com is talking about over a meter total. Of course, as previous years have shown, predictions are one thing, reality is another. But one can hope.

I went to my first Whistler Turkey Sale event on Friday. Or tried to. I arrived to find a line-up several hundred yards long. The line-up was coming up on a quarter mile long by the time I gave up and left, the line not having moved in the slightest. We drove by the area later, and there was _still_ a huge line-up. I theorize that they only let a certain number of people in at a time, probably due to fire regulations or something. But there is nothing that I need or want that would justify standing in a line-up for several hours. I'd rather pay retail.

Not that I'd have to. A lot of the shops in the village were having mini-Turkey-Day sales of their own, so if I'd actually needed something I probably could have picked it up. But as far as the Turkey Day sale itself, I'll be ignoring that in the future.

I've pulled the winter equipment storage tubs out, and I'll be making room for everything over the next little while. And packing away the summer stuff, which will likely include my biking clothing and equipment. Kind of a sad/happy thing. But meanwhile, we've got all our passes and we're ready to go as soon as the snow gets deep enough. Let the season begin!


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

For track stands.... try practicing on grass. Preferably with the bike pointed up a slight (...or even significant) uphill grade. It's like the difference between doing a balance board on pavement or carpet. The grass sort of grips the tires compared to asphalt and keeps the tires from rolling/turning too quick. 

Pointing the bike up a grassy slope to practice lets you correct quickly by rolling back slightly when you feather the brake lever. 

I got very good at track stands starting this way. I can balance both seated and standing and stay upright without dabbing thru just about any length stoplight.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This is weird. My 400-post blog is now 400 threads. I predict chaos.


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## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

I was working my ass off getting a business started this summer so my MTB is sitting in the garage with two flat tires. I didn't ride a single time this summer.


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## mjayvee (Nov 18, 2015)

Do you really have to go skiing also? If you want to get better at snowboarding, why spend time on skis? Just bring your board while your family and friends ski.


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## D_Andrei (Jun 13, 2019)

Donutz said:


> On the plus side, I've now got so much gear and soft goods that I really can't come up with much of an excuse to buy more shit.


Yeah.... that's not gonna fly
There's always an excuse to buy more stuff.... oh look, portable usb charged boot dryers. Like I'm gonna use them more than once. And that's only a small part of my shopping extravaganza...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

D_Andrei said:


> Yeah.... that's not gonna fly
> There's always an excuse to buy more stuff.... oh look, portable usb charged boot dryers. Like I'm gonna use them more than once. And that's only a small part of my shopping extravaganza...


Sadly you are correct. I've bought two jackets since that post.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*The New System*

This is my first blog post under the new forum software. Unfortunately as part of the conversion, they had to convert blogs to threads, as this software doesn't support private blogs. After the conversion I discovered that I had, instead of one 380-post blog, 380 1-post threads. Plus a couple of responses from people. I've just finished merging them all, and I now have a super-long thread.

In the process, though, all my titles disappeared, so I'm going to have to get in the habit of adding a title at the top of each post.

I've asked the administrators to create a proper blogs section, perhaps under "Snowboarding Lounge" or something, but so far no luck.

Anyway, on to actual news.

First, I was premature about writing off the MTB season. This is a lesson for next year. Yes, the weather gets crap, and things get cold. But you can get around that with a bit of kit. And there will still be nice days well into November. In principle, I should be able to overlap MTB and snowboarding season, at both ends. We'll see how that goes in April, and next fall.

I mentioned early snows a few posts up. Well, they were an anomaly. There's been diddly since then, and all the snow from those early falls has melted. On the other hand, there's some indication of snow over the next week or so. It'd be nice if that actually happened--last year, Whistler opened on Nov 22nd, and so far that looks like a long shot for this year. But all it really takes is one good dump.

Now, on to the question of equipment. I have lots of shit, but I have to cover two locations. Things got a little mixed up at the end of last season, and whatever system I had worked out seems to have gotten broken. I'm going to have to do a quick inventory at both locations, work out what needs to be stocked up, and get to it.

So, yeah. More spending.

One last thing--a small rant. I went looking for some gloves the other day. I walked from one end of Whistler village to the other, trying on gloves. Now I know that I have larger than average hands, but I'm not friggin' Andre the Giant. How is it that I was only able to find one single pair of gloves that actually fit me? And just to be clear, I was trying on nothing but XLs. But most of them either had itty bitty fingers or a palm so small that I couldn't open my hand fully--or both. XLs for midgets? Is that what they're stocking?

Anyway, I found some gloves, and they're Goretex, but they're also a brand I've never heard of, so I'm taking a chance. Maybe there'll be more stock once the season gets going.

I may or may not be buying another set of boots. Stay tuned.

And I still haven't decided if I'm going to buy this year's Heritage. It's a nice board, but I doubt it handles significantly different from the 2019. I have enough boards. Seriously.

So that's it. Season approaches, hilarity ensues.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*A few updates*

Whistler has announced their opening day to be November 28th. I thought that was mighty presumptuous since they had no snow and no prospect of snow at the time. However, freezing levels are dropping, and there are some encouraging predictions coming up. Still, it'll probably be beater-board-only for a while.

None of the locals have announced anything yet, and none of the predictors are looking encouraging. If this turns into one of those years where there's sweet diddly on the locals until January, I'll be spending the holidays up at Whistler. Even if I have to go alone.

I've moved equipment and soft goods around, and I think I have good representation at both locations. I've decided I'm not going to get the new Heritage, at least not yet. I want to spend some quality time on each of my existing boards this year. I'll decide if I want to get rid of any of them before I think about bringing in a new one.

We were up at Whistler the last couple of days, and there are still people mountain-biking. Definitely I jumped the gun there. Well, I know better for next year.

Hmm, that looks like about it. It's all about the waiting game, now.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Late season biking*

After all my earlier kvetching about having put away the cycling stuff too quickly, I decided today to do something about it. I went to Trek and bought some cold-weather gear (which worked well, BTW) then went for a ride. Nothing particularly aggressive or ambitious--I did the basic two-lap Bert Flinn ride and left it at that. However, I was unpleasantly surprised to discover that I've already lost fitness, just from a couple of weeks of relative inactivity. I guess it's an age thing. I'm still way more fit than I was six months ago, but still, I had to shift down sooner, I couldn't do laps as quickly, and I was more tentative on the trails.

Actually, that last bit might not be fitness. Everything was still pretty wet, even after a couple of dry weather days. The waterlogged trail surface, at least in Black Dog, was noticeably dragging on the wheels, making steering harder and dragging down speed, and therefore requiring me to pedal through sections I'd normally coast through.

I don't know how long I'll be continuing to bike this year. Lower mainland weather is all over the place, of course, so I could conceivably be doing it all the way through to spring. Not so much in Whistler, though. Once winter hits there, it's sub-zero pretty much the whole winter season.

I ogled the more expensive bikes when I was in Trek today, too. I'm seriously thinking of having a bike here and a bike there for next year, so I don't have to keep hauling it back and forth. Good Lord, I'm lazy when it comes to athletics. Now _that's_ irony.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Snow. Finally.*

Yeah, it finally snowed on the locals. Not that early October skim that melted immediately. This is an actual blanket. Maybe not more than an inch or two, but at least it's in the right direction.

The next week or so is all cold, and I mean freezing at street level, but clear and snowless. The next step is to keep it that cold and import some clouds. It may be time to start an Ullr dance.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*It's on, bitches.*

The season has started. Whistler opened on the 28th, Cypress on the 29th. So have I gone snowboarding? Nope, not yet. Cypress's open run consists of a single track all the way down one lift. I get why people would still want to go, but I think I'll wait until there's a bit more.

Whistler is a little better, although not much. I'll probably go up next week when I'm in Whistler, just to see what early-season stuff looks like. But I think I'll bring my old Heritage for a rock-board.

I have to say I'm impressed with Whistler's snow-blowing prowess. They don't have shit-diddly for natural snow (I think they got 12 cm total) but they've managed to fill several runs on Emerald chair. They're also blowing snow right down to the village, I guess with the intention of allowing clients to ski/ride all the way down.

There are snow predictions for next week. We'll see how that goes. I'm a little concerned that we're getting into a receding-predictions kind of weather pattern. Here's hoping we get some actual results, soon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Day*

First snowboarding of the season!

And it started with the same rage-inducing incident as last year. Last year, on my first day, I discovered in the line-up to get on the lift that I had forgotten to bring my pass. This year, I discovered in the line-up to get on the lift that I had grabbed the Cypress pass by mistake.

Next year, I'm going to have at least two people independently verify that I have the right pass before I leave the house. Fuck!

Anyway, other than that one hiccup, it was a pretty good morning, at least until the wind and the crowds got really bad. But my legs were okay, so I guess all that mountain biking this summer helped.

I used my 2018 Heritage with the Flow bindings this morning. And I didn't realize it until I was on the way down, but I had absolutely no problem with with my hip or with flexibility. Looking good!

Now, as for the actual snowboarding. Well, I didn't expect much, and the mountain delivered exactly that. They've only got a few runs open, and it's mostly manufactured snow anyway, which tends to turn to ice really fast. So it was mostly a thin coat of fluffy stuff over polished snowcrete. Still, it means the season is officially underway for me. I'm hoping to go up for a couple of hours tomorrow morning as well before we head for home.

Meanwhile, the snow predictions are looking pretty good for Whistler, and not really terrible for the lower mainland either. Could be a good season for Days On Hill.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Second Day*

So the first fail is that I forgot to turn on Slopes when I first got to the top. Slopes does pop up a notification, but if you don't notice the notification, it's not much help. Today I was too busy being consumed by a red haze of uncontrolled rage, so I probably missed it.

Yeah, today's fiasco involved my red Volcom jacket and a missing zipper slider that later turned out to be not missing, just jammed way up at the top. Seriously, if this happens a third time, I'm just going to stay home and hide under the bed.

Anyway, today had to be a short day because we had to leave before noon to get home. Just as well. The snow wasn't any better than yesterday, despite the rosy predictions. And around 10am is when it starts to get really busy, as all the lessons hit the slopes. So that was fine, left just before 10.

I did notice that I am already more steady on the board, especially at speed. I still have the early season issue with handling unexpected bumps and tosses. That happens every year, and it takes me maybe 3-4 sessions to get over it. However, I haven't wiped out yet, which is a good sign. I'm working on the stance issues that Marius identified last year, and it does seem to help. Unfortunately, there's not a lot of room right now to really open up, but I can only do what I can do.

I'll be up all next week, so 4-5 days in a row of snowboarding. Should be great. Or at least tolerable, depending on whether any of those snow predictions pan out.


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## timmytard (Mar 19, 2009)

Donutz said:


> *First Day*
> 
> First snowboarding of the season!
> 
> ...


You mentioned you have a few boards now.
What sizes are they, all pretty close to each other?
Instead of getting a new Heritage, cause you have the years before.
Get something long, like 10 cm longer than your biggest board & get a board that excels in just carving, not spinning, not jumps, definitely not a twin.

A big ole Cadillac.
Have you driven in a big ole Cadillac Dennis?
They're a pretty nice ride, aren't they
That's what a big long board feels like.

I have a board, a few years old.
That Mig helped design, before Fullbag boards.
He told me he still has the prototype

That's only been ridden once, by me.
And I put a few strips of packing tape over the inserts.
So I'm pretty sure there's no trace of binding rash even.

This is the board you bring out on those icy days. 
And first thing in the morning, on those perfectly groomed runs @ whistler 
Hell, there's not many days you shouldn't be bringing this thing out.
Cadillac, I'm tellin' ya

You can't find this caliber of board for the price I'll let chya have it for.


TT


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*The Fun Continues*

I got up to Whistler yesterday. Did a few hours in the afternoon, on the Heritage again with the Flows. Today I went up first thing, with the Burton FA and the Burton bindings. The FA for some reason always requires some adjustment when I first start using it. It _feels_ different in some undefinable way. I don't get that with the Yes or any of the NS boards. The good news is that it only takes part of one run to get used to it.

The FA is, I think, my go-to downhill board. It has that stable feel, and when you dig in an edge it pays attention. But it's not a nimble board, at least compared to my other ones. Still, I had a pretty good day, all in all. It was icy as shit first thing in the morning, due to the complete lack of delivery of those snowfall prediction. I think they got between 1 and 2 SFAs overnight. But it softened up over the course of the morning, or maybe the crowds just ground it down to snowcones. Not entirely sure.

I finally asked a liftey how to get to the red chair runs. Turns out you have to go left at the Chick Pea hut at the bottom of Upper Whiskey Jack. A small left takes you to the bottom of the Big Red chair, and a harder left takes you to the bottom of Franz's chair. Let me just say that Franz's chair is maybe the slowest chair I've ever had the displeasure of being on. Even the Lodge chair on Seymour isn't that bad. I think I spent half my morning going up that chair, just the once. Never again.

But once I discovered the route to the Red Chair, I stuck to that for the rest of the day. It's longer, has more variety, and is more than just a ribbon of ice.

My mojo started to come back today. It's probably a combination of two snow days in a row, and being on the mountain for longer than an hour or two. I've found this in previous seasons, but it bears repeating: nothing beats concentrated time on the mountain for improving fast. Hours on the mountain plus days in a row equals training the muscle memory.

I'm still not bombing steeps yet, although I'm starting to straight-line towards the bottom of them. Just a matter of practice and desensitization. I_ am_ really getting an early start at handling C turns on steeps, thanks mostly to that lesson with Marius last season. Both my heelside and my toeside carves are way better, and I don't feel like I'm sliding out of control down steeps.

I think starting tomorrow, I'm going to start practicing things like ollies during my runs. Time to step it up.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Better Day*

There was some new snow for Thursday's ride. Not a lot, but enough to cover the ice, and enough to produce a soft-groomed run. It was revelatory, though, all out of proportion to the actual amount of fresh. For my first run, I headed down to the Red Chair from the top of Emerald, and had a fantastic run. I was fast, I was aggressive, I was hitting all the turns. But as the morning went on, and the runs became more scraped and more chopped up, I became slower and more tentative.

Now obviously to a certain extent this is normal and expected behavior. Unless you're a total crazy, you'll be more circumspect in cruddier conditions. But I think I'm dialing it down a bit more than is really necessary. Caution? Timidity? Lack of skill? Dunno. Maybe some of each. There was one point towards the end of my day where I got into a rhythm or something while going down Orange Peel, and just hammered it! It might be as simple as needing to aggressively attack the slope.

I took the Peak-to-Peak over to Blackcomb partway through the morning. The first thing I noticed is that the snow is better--dryer and fluffier. However, it isn't any less crowded or any less chopped up. It might even be more of both on Blackcomb. After a couple of runs I moved back to Whistler to finish the day.

My legs are definitely in better shape this year. Having said that, though, I still had to stop and rest from time to time. Interesting thing, though--I ended up with more leg burn when I wasn't squatting enough on heelsides. It looks like holding myself up into a high squat is more work than just going low. Something similar happens with toesides. If I do the hip-thrust thing, it's a lot easier on my thighs than if I try to dig in with my knees out.

And one last item--heelside chatter. Three things contribute to that problem: 1) Turning too sharply into a cross-hill vector; 2) putting too much weight onto my forward foot; 3) not enough edge. I'm working on all three aspects, and it's showing results.

So, one last day of snowboarding before I have to head home. Unfortunately there's been no overnight snow, although there's supposed to be some morning stuff. On the plus side, that should mean a smaller line-up at the gondola.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*And wrapping up the week...*

I forgot to mention it in the previous post, but yesterday and today I used the Yes PYL. It is definitely a lively, responsive board, far lighter than the FA and even more responsive than the Heritage. It is, however, kind of squirrelly on hardpack or, even worse, polished snow. After using all three boards this week, I'd say the FA is the best on hardpack, and the PYL is the better board for just playing around when the snow is reasonably soft. The Heritage is kind of a compromise board, somewhere in the middle. I'm still waiting for an opportunity to try the FA in deep, new stuff, so the jury will remain out for the moment.

I also used my Ride Lasso boots today. I've moved away from the big, stiff 32 Focus Boa boots. I have K2 Maysis boots and the Rides up in Whistler, both of which are a softer boot with a considerably smaller profile. The K2s are very comfortable, but they don't stay tight around the ankle and lower calf because the inserts are only held closed by velcro, and that's just not good enough. The Ride has an actual tensioning lace, which seems to make just enough difference to make the boot feel more solid. Not _quite_ as comfortable, though.

Today on Whistler was a bit of a madhouse. No new snow, so more of the hardpack and polished sections. Fog with freezing temps everywhere below the bottom of Emerald express meant constantly wiping my goggles. And _busy!_ I think they must have booked every lesson class they could for today. The slopes were as crowded in some sections as the base area normally is, where everyone is walking around.

I put up with it for two hours and a bit, then decided it wasn't going to get any better. I was feeling pretty good about my progress for this week anyway, so might as well leave on a high. And one plus is that, although I was starting to get a bit of burn here and there, my legs still had plenty of gas left. That bodes well for the rest of the season, assuming we ever get any proper snow.

Actually, on that subject, we've gotten a good 15 cm on the locals in the last 24 hours--not enough to open Seymour, but enough for them to start making noise. Another dump or two is all it'll take. Meanwhile, if I'm in town during the week, I can go to Cypress and ride the beginner slope and practice switch and stuff. So I'm in good shape, all things being equal.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*I am getting lots of days*

We're up in Whistler again. I went boarding yesterday and today, so I'm def getting the hours in.

Yesterday was a really good day overall. The snow wasn't great first thing in the morning, but it snowed all day, so it was getting gradually filled in. The snow schools were out in force between 9:30 and 11:30, as usual, creating something reminiscent of the village square just after the mountain closes. At one point I thought about stopping and getting a picture, and I now regret that I didn't. But once they break for lunch, it clears out significantly. And most of the classes seem to be half-day, so they don't come back.

My skills continue to improve. I can now:


handle steeps in control. By which I mean I can do C turns and stay in control rather than sliding sideways down the slope.
handle ice without dying (as long as it's not a skating-rink-sized patch, anyway).
do toeside and heelside turns properly. On toesides I didn't used to be able to get enough edge, and on heelsides I always did that stutter-slide thing.
handle trashed slopes. I'm more able to see the slope ahead of me and react, and I'm also able to _use_ the state of the snow to my advantage, banking off moguls and such.
bomb down steeps. Not right from the top, quite yet, but I can start straightlining a lot sooner than I used to. This is mostly about desensitization, but also about feeling confident in my ability to handle uneven snow.
On my turns, I still wouldn't say I've _conquered _my problems, but I have at least identified the issues and the solutions. Now it's just a matter of practice. And when I'm concentrating on doing it right, it works.

And a small bonus -- halfway through the day, they opened the ski-out from Olympic station, so I could go all the way down to the village.

Today, unfortunately, was far less fun. Mostly I think I overdid it a bit yesterday, and my muscles started protesting on the third run. And there's maybe a little bit of getting tired of the same couple of runs again and again. Hopefully by the next time we're up, they'll have a lot more open.

I tried my Rylo with my special backpack today. I'll write a separate post about that.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Rylo - Not so much*

The Rylo camera has been a bit of a disappointment all around. Between the battery dying, the camera being apparently unable to record more than a twenty-minute video (even in summer conditions), the poor technical support, and the terrible remote control app, it's become kind of like beating your head with a hammer.

First, the battery--I grant that this is probably at least partly a technology issue, since I know for a fact that GoPro has a similar issue. But the Insta sells a battery that is cold-weather-optimized, so I have some hope.

Second, recording time--I can't even begin to explain this. Even though I have a 128 GB card that is more than big enough for hours of video, the Rylo terminates a recording after 22 minutes. I tried it several days in a row, being careful to start with a fully charged battery, and it cut out at about the same point each time. So it's not random. My theory is that the battery charge drops too low at that point and the camera stops recording, then the battery recovers. So by the time I notice and look at the status panel, the battery is showing two bars. No mention is made of this limitation, and it's a _huge_ problem.

Third, the technical support issue was about my attempts to upload a 360 video to youtube. The quality was terrible, and tech support couldn't help at all. They just kept telling me to try the same things over and over. I finally gave up.

Fourth and last, the remote control app. First, using an app instead of having a hardware remote is a fail. I don't want to have to pull my phone out every time I want to start or stop recording. Between having to remove my gloves, the zippers I have to go through, and having to unlock the phone then move to the right app, it's a huge PITA. Add to that the problem that sometimes (like today) you simply can't get the app to connect to the camera no matter what you try, and it's just a total fail.

An additional fail, but one that wasn't a surprise to me, is that you can't review your footage in any way on the mountain. In order to look at footage, you have to physically connect the Rylo to your phone with a cable and fire up the app. It doesn't sound like much, but it can create issues like recording an entire session with the lens covered in crap, and not realizing it.

So anyway, I've gotten an Insta360 One X for an early xmas present. I ordered the remote control fob as well.

I will be the first to admit that I don't like the form factor of the Insta. It looks like the designers went out of their way to make it as awkward-looking as possible. Sure as hell, no one is ever going to put that Teletubbie accessory on a helmet.

But the specs are good. The Insta has a hardware remote available, as mentioned. It allows you to review your footage with your phone via wifi--it'll even allow you to monitor what's actually being recorded. That's a huge plus. It has a PC-based version of the editing app. And it has more setting options, including things like a timer.

So anyway, I have all the parts I want, so I'll be testing it out over the next little while. More news as it happens.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Seymour is opening*

Tomorrow (Thurs Dec 19) at 1 pm. It's just snowing like stink up there, and the snow-forecast prediction says days of the same. Woo hoo!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Seymour Day*

Seymour opened yesterday, but I wasn't able to go until today. The snow was kind of soggy, and the stuff in the parking lot was melting. I think the temps had come up and there'd been some rain either overnight or in the morning. But it started snowing as I arrived, and snowed for the rest of the time I was there. Unfortunately, the damage had been done. The soggy surface snow had a bad case of stiction going, which kinda ruined the day.

They had Mystery and Manning open, as well as the bunny hill, but there wasn't enough depth for any off-piste activity. And this year, they have the new RFID lift gates to check your pass. Quite neat, actually.

I brought up two boards: the Chairman and the Proto. I think the Chairman needed a wax--it suffered from the stiction a lot more than the Proto. But other than that, I noticed the difference in handling between the two boards immediately. The Chairman is definitely better in choppy conditions. I'm still not convinced it's as battleship-like as the Heritage, but it definitely has it over the Proto. The Proto is probably better for quick turns, trees, and moguls, but I didn't really get a chance to test that.

I think I did 8 runs, which really doesn't take long on Seymour. And it confirmed my theory that the short runs and long waits are the reason why I rarely had a leg-burn problem when Seymour was my main mountain.

Anyway, all the mountains are looking at more snow over the next several days, but I won't have any free time until after Christmas.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler and first lesson day*

I did a trip to Whistler and boarded Thursday and yesterday. Thursday was good, in that there was a good supply of new snow, but not great in that there wasn't enough to open most of the closed runs. They did open a few new ones, but not the real performers.

I did some rope-jumping to get on one of the almost-ready runs, and didn't regret it. Lots of fun, and I handled the ungroomed terrain well. All in all, I enjoyed Thursday.

Friday was my first full-day lesson with the Max-4 season pass. Unfortunately, the storm that has been bringing all this snow decided to bring some truly impressive winds as well. I had gone up with the First Tracks pass, but by the time the mountain was due to open, the winds were just too strong. We ended up standing around for about 3/4 hour, watching the mountain staff discussing things on their radios. Even the gondolas from the village were on hold for a while, so no one could get to the top.

One of the effects of this was that maybe half of the Max-4 students weren't able to get up the mountain in time. I'm sure most of them would have cancelled and rebooked for another day. But it meant I effectively got a private lesson. One-on-ones are both good and bad. Good in that you get an instructor's concentrated attention. Bad in that you don't get a lot of opportunity to rest. On top of the instructor being able to put all his attention to torturing you on the way down, you're able to skip most of the line-up at the bottom, thus ensuring more torture more often. To say that I was tired at the end of the day would be a significant understatement.

However, Andre gave me some good pointers, which made a difference as soon as I tried them. The best items were:

I tend to rush my turns, in that I shift to the downhill edge and immediately start a hard turn. This is both a major source of my getting tossed around on chunder and a reason for loss of control. Instead, he had me shift edges and ease into a more sweeping turn. I immediately felt myself get tossed around less.
I still tend to go bent-over on my toeside turns if I stop concentrating. One of the reasons for this is how I initiate my turns. Instead of starting the turn from my upper body (not a counter-rotation, but still problematic), he had me start the turn from my hips. The physical mnemonic was achieved by keeping the lead hand slightly behind my board axis on the turn. This forced me to keep the shoulders still. It was immediately smoother and less work.
Another technique that keeps me from sticking my butt out on toeside is to try to keep my horizon level. This forces me to keep my head level, which forces me to stick my chest out, which forces me to stick my hips forward, et voila!
So all in all, well worth it. Also, we went down Dave Murray Downhill, which was my first black (as far as I know). So now I feel a lot better about that.

Unfortunately, the freezing level rose in mid-afternoon, so by the time we rode down to the village, it was raining from about the bottom of Emerald Express. Still, that's just one run.

I did have to call it about an hour early, partly due to being totally out of gas, exacerbated by my boots starting to hurt around the right heel. I think I'll have to get them heat molded.

Couple of other items:

I asked Comor to try to bring in a Rome Blur for me. They'll call me back.

I wasn't thrilled with my Union Force bindings. They're significantly harder to strap into when there's lots of snow. I'm not talking about the obvious stuff like snow getting on the base-plate. It's more about the rather flimsy toe-straps getting interfered with, and the relatively small buckles being hard to thread. I'm not going to panic and replace them, but I will be paying attention to this when choosing new bindings for the Blur.

I used the PYL for the lesson, and in retrospect I'm not sure if it was the best choice. The FA or the Heritage might have handled the deeps and chunder better. Certainly the FA would have floated better. We'll see how that plays out over the rest of the season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Seymour, blech!*

I have a love/hate thing going with Seymour, as anyone who has read my blog can see. Well, today did nothing to reduce the hate part.

The snow predictions showed excellent weather for Seymour today. The freezing level was to be way down, and lots of snow was predicted. On the plus side, the predictions were right. It was snowing down to halfway between the parking lot and street level, so no issues with rain.

Knowing that it would be a busy day (weekend, last day of xmas holidays), I left home at 7am and got there by 7:40. No problem getting a parking spot. Again, going well. The mountain was due to open at 8:30, which would have meant some extra time before the late-morning crowds started showing up.

Yeah.

So right at 8:30, they announced that Mystery chair had a problem and would be delayed an hour. And what happens when Mystery chair is closed? Everyone goes to Lodge. And what happens when everyone goes to Lodge? The line-up at the bottom becomes a minimum 20-minute wait. For a 2-minute run. And what happens when the Lodge chair line-up gets that long? Everyone goes to Goldie, creating a 20-minute wait for the magic carpet. And what happens when there's a 20-minute wait for all the still-working lifts? Everyone goes back to Mystery to stand in line, on the assumption that it's moving almost as fast as the line-ups for the working lifts. (Not wrong, BTW). At that point, there's no point.

Went home, cursing under my breath.

There will be some discussion about next year, but my immediate feeling is that I'm going to get a Gold pass for Cypress so I'm not locked out of some days. I'll still buy a Seymour pass, since the senior pass costs like two day passes. But I want the option to go elsewhere.

On a different subject, since I'm writing a post anyway, I'm beginning to think I should go down a half-size on my boots. They've packed out, and there's toe room, so I may need to go boot shopping.

And my Anons really got fogged quickly this morning. I recognize that the air and snow at Seymour is very wet, so if I'm going to fog up anywhere, that'll be it. Still, it concerns me. I was able to get some short-term relief by running the lens through the hand dryer, but a better solution would be to bring some spares in the future. And maybe look around for some alternatives, like those goggles that have a fan built in.

It may also be time to replace my camo jacket. It got wet pretty fast. Mind you, given what happened with the goggles, it may simply have been a very, very wet day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler part-day*

We're up in Whistler, and I went up the mountain for a morning's snowboarding. I've booked a lesson for tomorrow, so today was going to be a bit of prep and some random testing.

For one, I took the FA just to see how it would handle the conditions. There's been no snow in 24 hrs on Whistler, and the temps were down to about -12 c, so the ground was pretty hard first thing. Also, the groomers for some reason leave golf-ball-sized snow gravel on a lot of the steep parts. The morning confirmed two things for me: 1-I don't like icy conditions, and 2-I don't like the FA. Number 1 is no real surprise, but number 2 just mystifies me. It is definitely a slightly heavier board--you can feel it just lifting it. But the feel of the board is also weird. I've mentioned before that it seems to really prefer to be heelside--it takes significantly more effort to go toeside. Of course, going toeside is my Achilles Heel, so this just amplifies my riding issues.

As usual, I did better where the snow was less 'crispy', but even so, I always felt like I was fighting to bring the FA into position. I checked the binding setup after the session, thinking maybe it was still set up biased to heelside, but no joy. My bindings are literally as far toeside as they can go. It is still possible that the board has a place in my quiver for deep snow days, so I'll hold onto it until I have the chance to test that. But if it doesn't shine, I think I'm going to be getting rid of it.

I have some stuff to get rid of, then. I'm going to be dumping the NS West--I've given it lots of chances and it consistently fails to impress me. I'll likely get rid of my 32 Focus Boas as well. I don't wear them anymore, and they're just taking up shelf space.

On the subject of boards, I mentioned last post that I was wondering if my Ride boots were too big. Today I went into Showcase and bought a pair of Ride Lassos in a 9.5 . They felt really good, especially after heat-molding. I'm going to take a chance and use them tomorrow with the Heritage and the Flow bindings, and if it works out, I guess I need another pair for Coquitlam. I've also got the K2 Maysis boots, which are also unfortunately a 10, but they haven't packed out yet so they still feel pretty good.

I also bought all the fixings for waxing my boards, plus wax for Whistler temps and for lower mainland temps. All set in that dept.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Another lesson day*

I took my second group lesson on Whistler yesterday. It was an exercise in humility (and humiliation). The day started out well enough--kept up with the instructor no problem, and was feeling pretty good about myself. Then we went over to Blackcomb and started hitting some of the 'less travelled' stuff. First, let me say that was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, it was also a lot of work, whereupon I discovered just how out of shape I really am.

First, I'm old. Let's get that out of the way. Fitness declines with age, and recovery declines with age. Second, I'm overweight. That means the muscles work harder to do the same job. And third, I'm just plain damned out of shape, in terms of cardiac capacity. Maybe not for my age, but that's really not reassuring.

The problem is that when you start to get tired, your form starts to suffer, and your ability to catch and recover starts to suffer. You fall more, which means more work digging yourself out and getting back up (especially in the shitloads of new snow we had yesterday). It becomes a death spiral, feeding upon itself and making the situation worse and worse. By lunch, I was pretty much done.

On the other hand, I had a blast, and discovered some really cool areas that I didn't know anything about. I also tried some terrain that I would never have gone near on my own. That's really what I was hoping for when I bought the lesson pass, so I can't call it a fail. The conditioning thing? That's on me.

I'm really discovering the value of the Slopes app now, as well. I have a complete record of everywhere we went, so I can replicate it (carefully) at a later date. I just have to transcribe the run names from a trail map, since Slopes doesn't include that handy little detail on its maps.

One thing that really surprised me was the lack of crowds on Friday. Thursday had been a real shitshow of overcrowding, despite the snow quality being much lower. Weird. I asked about it, and got several answers that really were not convincing. Paul, the instructor, commented that Blackcomb is the better side for avoiding crowds. Probably true, it was definitely less crowded on the Blackcomb side, but I've been on Blackcomb when it's crowded. And that doesn't explain why Whistler was less crowded than expected. Someone in the group commented that it's a weekday. Um, I only snowboard weekdays, and I've seen plenty of shitshow days. Like Thursday. So I dunno. Interestingly, I checked the Sundial webcam this morning (this is a Saturday) at about 8am, and there was almost no line-up at all. So something else is at play, but I don't know what.

Oh well. All in all, it's better than the opposite problem.

I rode on the Heritage with the Flows, and my new, smaller boots. Boots were a good idea. Much nicer fit, although my toes started to press on the front partway through the day. I think that might have just been lack of tightening. Paul wouldn't stop long enough for me to do any adjusting. Friggin' energizer bunny, as soon as he had all of us, off he went.

I had a discussion with Andre (my instructor from last week) on the way down at the end of the day, about levels. If you use fractional levels, the Friday class was probably doing level 5.5 stuff, and I'm probably a 4.5 . So, definitely being pushed. Again, that's not a complaint, because that's exactly what I want from the lessons. But my two main focuses for the short-term future are going to have to be conditioning/weight-loss and working on my toe-side turns and general form. Especially when it gets steeper, which is when I seem to fall apart.

We're back up here next week, and hopefully the conditions will continue to be as sweet. Meanwhile, it snowed 42 cm on Seymour overnight, and the temps are still below zero and it's still snowing. Yeesh. Pretty good season, if a little late starting.

More next week.


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## jrec87 (Jan 18, 2019)

i can retire at 50. probably move close to a small hill and become a 50 lifty. hahaha


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Cypress day*

My first Cypress day of the year. They haven't quite got _everything _open yet--in particular, some of the more interesting Raven chair runs are still closed--but it's a lot better than it was in December.

I left at 7:20 am, and got to the mountain at 9:00. So almost as long to get to Cypress as it normally takes to get to Whistler. But with the weather in the Lower Mainland right now, I should probably consider myself lucky I'm not still driving.

I tested my Flight Attendant by swapping the bindings around to goofy, then spent an hour practicing switch riding. I wouldn't say I'm an expert yet, but I definitely improved. Well worth doing, and I think it resolved the issues I was having with the FA as well.

I did some runs with the Chairman, and one run with the FA once the bindings were swapped back. Still not feeling it yet. I'm starting to consider the idea of bringing the Heritage back home. I tried out the mogul runs, and I'm still having problems with toesides. I didn't have a chance to spend long enough on it to resolve the issue. Maybe next time. I _think _the problem is that I start the turn with my weight too far back.

I got a chance to test my mid-layer as well, since the temps are down around -10 C on the mountain right now. Worked well.

Anyway, not a long day, but I was glad to get out there. I won't bother trying to get out so early next time. There were very few people on the mountain, so no rush.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Some Updates on the Season*

We've had insane snowfall for the last week, both on the mountains and at street level. To the point where we had to cancel our Whistler trip last week because of roads. And I couldn't get to the mountains during the 'worst' of it because roads. Note that in the Lower Mainland, it's not the snow on the roads that's the problem--it's the morons on the roads. Same result, though. You're not going anywhere.

Anyway, I finally went up to Seymour on Monday the 20th. Sigh. I don't know why I bother. It had been raining, and although there are at least a couple feet of new snow, it was all soggy snowcones. One run was all it took to send me home.

Note to self: The predictors, both on the mountain website and on snow-forecast.com, are optimistic. Always. Always assume the temps are two degrees higher, and always assume precip will be more than predicted. If over zero, it will be rain. Just accept that.

Yesterday, Tuesday, we took off for Whistler. Today, Wednesday, I headed up the mountain at the beginning of the day with the Flight Attendant. I wanted to test out the FA on chundery conditions with lots of fresh snow, plus I wanted to use the Whistler Demo Center to test out some other boards for comparison. Well, I certainly did that. Details here. But the short form is that I now own another board: a Lib Tech E-Jack-knife.

And I think I now have to get serious about getting rid of some of my extra equipment. If I leave the LibTech and the Heritage in Whistler, and keep the PYL and the Proto in Coquitlam, I can sell the FA, the West, and the Chairman. I can also get rid of the extra boots: The 32 Focus Boas, the two pairs of size 10 Lassos, and the Maysis. That will leave me with only one set of boots at each location, but I went for years with only one set of boots, so jeez.

I think I'm also going to arrange my goggles so that I use the M4 sets in Whistler and the M3 sets in Coquitlam. That way I can use all my extra lenses. Fortunately I kept the M3 magnetic inserts.

On the actual snowboarding side of things: I kept to the Whistler side today, since I was limited to 2 hours per demo board and I didn't want to spend half that on the Peak-to-Peak going there and back. But it was a great day. The snow was good, the crowds were really reasonable, and the waits were short. I discovered that part of the problem I'm having with moguls has to do with which board I'm using. When I was using the Jackknife, I was able to do my toesides a lot more quickly and dependably. Now I'm self-aware enough to understand that this is a commentary on my skills as much as it's about the boards. But however I 'score' my skill level, it's easier on some boards than on others.

I'm going up again tomorrow morning, and on Friday. Going to be some good days. Assuming I can still bend my limbs by that point.


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## F1EA (Oct 25, 2013)

You're doing things right with the lessons. For fitness, just go more. Hit the slopes early and build up strength by riding groomers and turning a lot. No lunch break.

Tons of snow right now. It's crazy. I'm going tomorrow but I hope they open the higher lifts as i don't want to ride the wet stuff...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*A Crap Day on Whistler?*

Yeah, turns out Whistler can have crap days as well. There was 30 cm of new snow overnight, but then the temps went up and the rain started falling. Yes, even at the Emerald Express level. It produced some of the stickiest snow I've ever experienced. Someone at the bus stop referred to it as "peanut butter" and he ain't wrong. I did two runs and quit.

I did get a little bit of opportunity to exercise the eknife, and liked what it did. Hopefully next time I can give it the full workout.


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## F1EA (Oct 25, 2013)

Donutz said:


> *A Crap Day on Whistler?*
> 
> Yeah, turns out Whistler can have crap days as well. There was 30 cm of new snow overnight, but then the temps went up and the rain started falling. Yes, even at the Emerald Express level. It produced some of the stickiest snow I've ever experienced. Someone at the bus stop referred to it as "peanut butter" and he ain't wrong. I did two runs and quit.
> 
> I did get a little bit of opportunity to exercise the eknife, and liked what it did. Hopefully next time I can give it the full workout.


Yep, I woke up 6am... saw the freezing levels and went back to sleep. No alpine for sure with the wet snow and warm temps...

Going tomorrow instead


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Stormy Weather*

And I'm not singing it, either. This January has been a son of a bitch for weather. It has, I believe, rained every single day this month. We've broken precip records, probably by about 50% by the time we get to the end of the month. There's been a shit-ton of snow, both on the locals and on Whistler, but there's also been a shit-ton of rain to wash it away. So the net result is pretty mediocre conditions locally.

If you can get the timing just right, you can get on the mountain when there's a bunch of fresh, and that's heaven on Earth. But so far, I seem to be in Whistler when the locals get dumped on, and in Coquitlam when Whistler gets the dump. No problem being there for the rainstorms, though.  I am seriously thinking of phoning the mountains and asking for protection money to stay away.

I'll probably hit my goal of 40+ days this winter, but they're sure not going to be quality days, unless things improve in February and on. And I'm going to have to be a little more militant about getting out there. We're going up for a solid week upcoming, and unless I'm so sore I can't move, I'm going up every day.

As a general statement, the advantage of Whistler seems to be that even when the snowfall is lacking, Whistler mostly manages to keep what's already there. It takes a significantly crappy weather pattern to cause rain at Roundhouse level and above. (Of course, that's exactly what I got last time up.  )

On another subject, I've finally gotten my butt going and placed some equipment in craigslist. I sold the West and the FA first day. The Chairman doesn't seem to be as popular, and I haven't had so much as a bite on the boots. Not surprising, really. Buying used boots seems like it would be such a total crapshoot. You have to drive somewhere else to try on each pair. Probably pay more for gas than you would just buying new boots.

I may end up asking around for suitable donation venues for them. There must be some group that could benefit from some free equipment.

Anyway, kvetching aside, when I'm done I'll end up with the PYL and the Proto locally, and the EJack and the Heritage in Whistler. Size 9.5 Ride Lassos in both, and with the purchase of a Volcom jacket and bib combo last week, I have enough clothing in both locations. Although I probably need a second set of bib pants in Whistler.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler Day*

We're up in Whistler for the week, but I started out with a really bad cold, to the point where yesterday (Monday) I elected to stay home. Probably just as well. I still felt a little wheezy today.

It also gave the mountain time to build up some snow cover. From what I'm told, last week was Armageddon around here. According to the waitress at Dublin Gate (yeah, I'm spelling it wrong. Tough), a creek actually ate its way right through the snow cover in the family bowl, and they had to stake around it. It's been snowing moderately the last couple of days, but it's over top of some pretty scritchy stuff.

I started the day on Blackcomb, and it was honestly kind of meh. Visibility wasn't great, with some light fog/mist and some really flat light areas. And for some reason I was very tentative on my board--maybe because of the gap since my last good session. Partway through the morning I took the Peak-to-Peak over to Whistler, and found the snow to be considerably better. Between that and just getting more into it, I was eventually able to get moving and start enjoying myself. I also did a couple of lines in the small jump park, which was gratifying.

I've been complaining a lot about how little snowboarding I've been able to do, mostly because of the really terrible December. But the latest version of Slopes will actually do a side-by-side comparison of your stats for current and previous seasons, both totals and YTD. According to the YTD numbers, I'm doing significantly better this year on just about everything. _That _made me feel considerably better. That means I'm on track for a potentially really good season, especially since late last season was kind of crappy, especially getting into late March and early April.

I had a couple of bad moments with my Lib Tech where I felt a rear edge catch when initiating a couple of right turns (to toeside). Then I remembered that I was getting the same thing last season on the PYL while doing Old Man. Yep. Same problem--a tendency to commit late to the toeside edge. And as soon as I started working that, my toeside turns improved (and stopped catching). My mogul running, in fact, was much improved today, even on some of the steeper sections.

I left about noon, partly because of thigh burn and partly because it was getting friggin' cold. Tomorrow I'm going to wear a mid-layer as well.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*These are the days that make it all worthwhile*

I was up the mountain at opening today. It was surprisingly un-crowded, not only at opening, but all morning as well. It had been snowing for about the previous 12-18 hours (off and on), and there was a good 6+ inches of new snow. This put the icy layer mentioned in the last post far enough under for most runs, although the lower parts were still pretty scritchy in places.

I kept the "late commitment" issue with my toeside turns in mind and it made a huge, huge difference. The opposite of late commitment isn't really "early commitment" either--it's simply _commitment_. Once I started committing to the transition to toe edge, everything fell into place. I took one bad spill on Cougar when I lost focus on that, which just reinforced the point. From there on, toesides absolutely were not a problem.

I also applied another bit of advice from my lessons, which is to un-weight when going into the turns and push down into the rut rather than allowing myself to 'fall' into it. All of this educational goodness made the difference to my day. Granted, I'm still not great at moguls, especially on steeps, but I can handle them now. And practice will help.

Another item that I re-learned today is that it's not enough to bend your knees--you also have to keep your legs loose. Legs with bent knees held rigidly really aren't much better than straight legs. Once I started relaxing into the bumps and bounces, I started to notice an increased ability to stay in control.

There are certain techniques and bullet points like this that I seem to have to keep re-learning every season. I really need to make a list of these at the end of this season as a reference for the beginning of next season, to save some time.

I started doing the jump line today, as a regular part of my routine. I'm still a little tentative, and I haven't hit any boxes yet, but it's coming along. It's kind of funny, though--in a couple of cases I thought I'd come in too fast and I was going to overshoot the landing, only to find that I landed right in the sweet spot. I never came close to an overshoot. Another lesson, but this is one I haven't really learned yet. I continually struggle with over-braking.

I think I'm finally starting to get a handle on my chattering problem with my heelside turns as well. It's not just that I turn too sharply to heelside, although that's part of it. I also give it too much edge, which sounds like an odd problem to have. And I have my weight too far forward and don't shift it back on heelsides. I worked on this for a few runs, and some really, really good turn series came out of it.

I worked on my quick 'S' turns as well, with shallow turns. I still lose those on steeps, converting into more of a 'C' turn, but on less steep runs, I think I have them now.

And lastly, I love my E-Jack Knife. I'm going to put up a separate review, but TLDR: the EJack and the PYL are my new primary boards.

Edit: Review here.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Last two days of Whistler*

For this trip, anyway. Yesterday (Thursday) started out a little icy, but a steady snowfall began filling things in nicely by mid-morning. Today began the same way, but the snow turned to freezing rain after an hour. After I found myself scraping my goggles several times per run, I decided enough was enough and left early.

I do have several notes I need to write down, though. First, I continue to have a (small) problem with low-speed edge catches on the EJack. I think it's nothing more than the degree of camber on the board, which just means I need to work a little harder to adapt. It also creates a problem when skating off the lift, which is a low-speed skate. I always do a hard heelside turn to stop, but a couple of times the board has refused to go along with the hard turn, and my back foot has just slid right off. I suppose I could put a stomp pad on it, but it would be cheaper and quicker to just figure out how to maneuver the board. I think I just need a little more toe lift. The EJack seems to be a little more torsionally stiff than the specs would indicate, so my twisting techniques will have to be a little less subtle.

Next, moguls. I really feel like I have the basic techniques nailed, or at least substantially so. But I continue to have a problem with icy conditions and steep mogul fields. That's just a matter of practice, I think. Of more potential concern is that sometimes I just seem to forget the techniques that work. The two main items are: Un-weight to start the turn and commit on the toe-side edge. Legs bent and loose helps a lot too.

And finally, hard charging on slopes. I still have a reluctance to turn downhill and let it go, but I notice that this is mostly in icy conditions. When there's some loose or new snow, I'm much braver. I'm not sure that's actually a bad thing. But on moderate slopes, I found myself today doing hard S-curves for long distances and staying completely in control. It felt damned good.

I also did some more park runs today, but between the iciness and the fact that the park crew hadn't marked the jumps with that blue dye, I was really having trouble judging the approach speed. I notice that I still have a tendency to come down heelside-heavy, and I need to work on that.

On the subject of my rear-leg burn, a couple of things: first, it's getting better as I get in better shape. However, I don't want to end up with a right leg that's two inches thicker than my left, so I've been trying to investigate why I'm getting so much burn. Today, I had a revelation. I've been assuming that it was my heelside turns that were causing it, because most of the burn pain comes when I squat on the heelside. But it's not the squat that's tiring my leg, it's putting my weight tailwards on _toeside_ turns. There is, of course, a technique in C turns where you shift your weight back through the turn to engage the edge more, but I'm not doing C turns all the way down the hill. And on normal turns, weight shifting is not required. So instead, I'm concentrating on keeping my weight centered through all of my turns, both heel and toeside. Seems to be helping.

While on the subject of turns, I think I've just about completely cured my heelside chatter. It really, in the end, comes down to skidding my heelsides more than my toesides, but I've discovered that the skid starts even earlier than I thought. When I go into a toeside turn, it's a smooth transition to the toeside edge and a smooth turn on the sidecut. But when I go heelside, the transition is more abrupt, and I immediately jerk the board around like I'm rushing to get the turn done. I don't think the board is able to re-engage the edge after this maneuver, so the whole turn becomes a skid, but bouncing because I'm trying to engage the edge late rather than slow down. So today I made a point of smoothing out the transition to the heelside edge and _not _immediately throwing the board into the turn. Much smoother, no chatter.

Today was, as mentioned, my last snowboarding day for this trip. I'd have to rate the trip as a resounding success. From here on through to the end of the season, I can hope to hit new milestones in progression.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*A week's worth*

I've been up the mountain three times this week--once with the family to Seymour, and twice to Cypress on my own.

The family trip on Monday was a skiing session. We all stayed on Goldie. It wasn't exciting for me, but it's good to get the wife and daughter out to the mountain, so I'll still count it as a win. I did a couple of runs after they went to the restaurant, but it wasn't great snow, so I bagged it.

Tuesday on Cypress wasn't much better. There was supposed to have been snow overnight, and maybe a cm fell, but it was sketchy and foggy. I still did seven runs, but I never felt good about any of them. It was what I'd call survival mode.

Thursday was considerably better, as it was snowing for real for most of the morning. I got in some good runs, and pushed my limits a bit. In particular, I was able to do some real high-speed (for me) charging. I'm a bit surprised at how persistent my speed aversion has become, but I'm battling back and finally making some progress. I also did a lot of S-carving, which does a lot to make me feel in more control.

Mogul-riding wasn't so good, but the only good mogul fields on Cypress right now are big and steep, which I already know I have trouble with. And the two jumps on the side of the magic chair had gone unmaintained, so they had deep ruts on the landing that made it out-and-out dangerous to use the jumps. Unfortunate. After one attempt, I avoided them.

Unfortunately, just before lunch the snow turned to freezing rain. When I realized water was literally dripping off me, I packed it in.

I guess any snowboarding is better than no snowboarding, mostly, but I've been spoiled by Whistler. Going to the locals is just a kind of practice run now. Maybe if the weather was more consistent it would help.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler Day*

I'm in Whistler for a couple of days, and I did a morning on the mountain. Only a morning, because I had commitments including a podcast interview this afternoon. I got up to the Family Bowl pretty much at 8:30, to very small crowds and not terrible snow. I was expecting hardpack because, well, the website said so. But hardpack on Whistler is not like hardpack on the locals. On Seymour or Cypress, freeze/thaw cycles combined with repeated squishing from groomers quickly produces something with the forgiving bounciness of concrete. On Whistler, it's more like snowball texture. Don't get me wrong, Whistler ice is indistinguishable from Seymour ice, but hardpack is not ice.

Anyway, it wasn't all fun and games. Moguls do not go well with many days of no new snow. They _do _turn to ice and concrete. Plus the ruts turn into canyons. Even the very mild moguls beside the Enchanted Forest trail were pretty much unusable.

I spent most of the morning doing the small jump line, which has spawned another note for next year--it really only takes 3-4 runs through the jump line to start to feel comfortable with it. So next year, get that done early.

The last thing worth mentioning is that my quick S-turns, and my hard S and C turns are continuing to improve. I'm also getting a lot more comfortable with downhills. Some of the steeper sections that I used to go around, or used to C-turn all the way down, I'm now straight-lining or at worst S-turning. And today wasn't the greatest of conditions. I'm not sure how much of this is just getting the hours in and how much of it is the feeling of confidence I'm getting from a board that I can trust (The EJack). Or maybe a combination of those. I'm even handling the approach to the Emerald Chair at speed, and that is a combination of hacked up and crowded with slow-moving beginners.

I had one eye-opening moment when I took off down Orange Peel, heading for Big Red chair. Just past the Chick Pea hut, the snow was so polished that my board started to turn off my line because of a slight side slope. I handled it, but it's a reminder that you're never totally in control.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*And Day 2*

It snowed overnight, so I decided to get a couple of hours on the mountain before heading home. I did the First Tracks or Fresh Tracks or whatever the fuck it is, so I got a (pretty crappy) breakfast and an 8:30 start. There was somewhere around 6" of new snow on everything, which made for a nice feel to the runs. I did all the usual stuff, but I also decided on my last run to "lose myself" and just basically pick random runs until I ended up at the bottom. I _think _I ended up on ptarmigan, but I can't tell for sure even with the Slopes app.  Still, the important takeaway is that I can handle different random runs and I should be branching out now. My turns really are under control, and my only remaining problems are making sure I don't get sloppy with my technique, and making sure I rest if I'm getting too tired.

I did have one alarming incident at the bottom of the Family Bowl partway through the morning. As I reached the "Slow the Fuck Down!" area and slowed down to pass through the gate to the line-up, some asshole skier (natch) tried to pass me on my heelside. Apparently he miscalculated, or maybe I changed direction--not really sure--but anyway, he rammed right into my back. I could feel the equipment tangling, so I basically shrugged him off me and sat down. We both almost but not quite bowled over some other people who were already lined up. I was honestly so completely enraged that I didn't say a thing. I think if I had, it would have turned to violence. No one was hurt, fortunately.

But all in all, other than being really short, it was a great session. I continued to improve on my turns and my control on steeps, and I had a chance to hit some moguls today without the icy surface. I think my biggest remaining problem with moguls is that I have a tendency to want to carve the turns, and I should instead be trying to scrape off speed on each turn. I'll have to work on that next.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*FFS*

So everyone got snow overnight on the locals. Why is all the snowfall happening on weekends now that I snowboard on weekdays?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler Day 1*

No new snow for today (well, maybe a cm) but Whistler hardpack is better than locals hardpack by a wide margin. There'd been some snowmaking in this or that corner as well. I absolutely tore through all the runs around the Emerald chair, and even tried a couple of mogul runs. I did great on the steeps and decently on the moguls, so I took a couple of different runs down to the bottom of the Red chair. Even tried out Old Man, which is mostly open. It wasn't particularly impressive--not enough snow is attracting not enough people, and it is roped off about 2/3 of the way down. Another couple of snow dumps and I think it'll be great.

I eventually decided to rip down to the village and take the Excalibur up to Blackcomb--the Epic Mix app is brilliant for indicating wait times at various lifts, so I knew there wouldn't be a line-up. Unfortunately, I got a call from my wife that there was water coming out of the walls--le sigh--so off to home to deal with the emergency. It turned out the unit above us flooded the washer so that it overflowed the drain pipe. Or something. But a washer worth of water was far less than a broken pipe would have been. Still, insurance will be involved. 

I'll be going up again tomorrow, and I hope to make a full day of it. The great news for today is that I didn't suffer rear leg burn, even on the long run down to the village. And they're predicting some snow overnight--not a lot, but anything will soften things up.

Oh, and the whoring has started up again. I found a pair of K2 Maysis in size 9.5, and couldn't resist.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Damn, I rule!*

Yeah, okay, poke fun. But today was easily my best day of the season, despite the snow being mostly meh. There was a bit of snowfall at the beginning of the day, but it didn't keep up long enough to add much of a layer. Nevertheless, the snow wasn't terrible in general, except for the polished cat tracks which have achieved the consistency of glass by this point. There are actual translucent patches now where the stuff has been compressed to literal ice.

I had a bit of a slow start on moguls this morning. Couldn't seem to make the toeside turn (my usual problem). Eventually I got it going again, though. Just a matter of paying attention to the techniques. Weight forward, commit with upper body, unweight the board. By the afternoon I actually did one run where I aggressively attacked the mogul field, trying to take it as quickly as possible. Didn't die, either.

One small problem for the day--my new Maysis boots (yes, I bought new Maysis boots, in 9.5 this time) weren't heat-molded and they began bothering my back foot. I think a molding will allow a little more space for the widest part of my foot, which appears to be a little wider on my right foot. I think I might also have that neuroma thing that Neni has mentioned, but maybe in mild form.

Anyway, the biggest thing about today is that I snowboarded from 8:30 until 2:15 or so, almost a full day. And honestly, I could have lasted until close, but the fog rolled in in the afternoon, and I really don't need that shit.

I also finally tried out Dave Murray Downhill, and managed it, although unfortunately the steepest section was also the foggiest section, so that didn't go well. But on better days, I'm ready for it.

And the second-biggest thing (and most fun) that happened today is that I found myself going down Upper Olympic with a group of pretty good snowboarders. They were weaving in and out of traffic and really booting it. And I kept up the whole way, until they turned off for Garbanzo. Great stuff.

So I have a couple of hours of snowboarding planned for tomorrow first thing before heading home. What I do will depend on weather. It's supposed to dump a ton overnight, but then it was supposed to snow significantly today. We'll see.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*And day 3*

Not really a lot of significance to post. I got to the gondola base at about 8 am and I was the first person in the singles line. Got to the top, and got a few good runs in before the rest of the mob arrived. And I do mean mob. I'm not sure if everyone got the 24-hr flu because snow was predicted, or if this is just a normal friday crowd, but it was hella busier than Wed and Thur were. It did start to snow too, but it was just at the edge of being rain. In fact, partway down to Olympic Station, it became rain.

As usual, I had trouble with moguls on my first attempt or two. That's partly just warm-up, but TBH the two areas that I usually like to do moguls are especially rutted right now. Small, tight turns, eroded to the point of being gullies rather than valleys. I guess that's the next thing for me to work on. But I went over to what I think is Ratfink, where the moguls are steeper but also 'rounder', and had a much better time. Like yesterday, I did a round or two where I was aggressively attacking my track instead of just trying to survive.

I was intending to leave at 10:30 in any case, because we had to head home, but the snow started getting sticky (there's that freezing level thing) and that was just one thing too many. Off I went. Still, it was a great three days, although my thighs beg to differ.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Three days on Whistler*

I did three days of snowboarding, Wed-Fri, on Whistler this week. Wednesday was on mostly old snow, with a couple of inches of new. It was a fun day nevertheless. I didn't do much moguls, because the mogul fields had been cut into to the point of gullies.

Thursday was to be the big day. Up to 18-20 cm of snow predicted. Unfortunately, the snowstorm included some wicked winds that whipped up a near white-out close to the ground. And the snow was coming in horizontally, with the result that it mostly accumulated up against tree stands instead of accumulating on the runs. Over the course of the day, Whistler also ended up closing a lot of lifts. Sadly, not a great day.

Friday was my best day, even if short (leaving on Friday). The snow had accumulated sufficiently over the course of Thursday's storm, so there was a lot of fresh fun to be had. I found the Back Bowl and did one run. Man, that is some mogul field. I think I'll need more practice on the likes of Cougar before I'm ready for that one. Still, I'm happy I had the guts to hit an unknown black. And survive.

So this has been a great season for me in a lot of ways. My two remaining issues are steeps, i.e. really steep runs like Raven, and fitness. I'm still bagged by lunch or so, although not in sore-legs agony like early in the season. I think I could make it through a whole day, even if I had to dial it back in the afternoon. I just need a really nice day with no commitments to be able to test the theory.

I bought a pair of Maysis boots the other day, in 9.5 this time. Turns out they aren't quite as comfortable in the proper size. My right foot (as usual) gets sore after a while. I think my right must be slightly wider than my left, resulting in squeezing across the ball of the foot. But I've been leaving my Lassos in the car, and haven't felt the need to go swap out boots, so it can't be that bad.

I'm up to Whistler again this coming week, and hopefully I'll have some good, long days.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Interesting Times*

Yeah, no kidding. I've been up Whistler three times since the last posting, having gone up last week. It was supposed to be a good week according to the snow forecasts, but alas the big dumps never materialized. We got something like 2-3 cm a couple of times, but nothing that would make you go woo-hoo! And it was on top of frozen crunchy stuff, so there was never that butter feeling.

And now, the corona virus pandemic has finally hit the snow industry. Vail has closed all its mountains, including Whistler, for at least March 16-22. I say at least because they will 're-evaluate' by the end of that time. I'm not sure there will be enough season left to make it worth their while to ramp up again.

And Cypress just announced this morning that they are closing until further notice. Same commentary applies, IMO. Only Seymour and Grouse are left, and the Seymour webcams show not a lot of people, even on a weekend. If we don't go up to Whistler this week, I'll do a session or two up on Seymour, just for nostalgia's sake.

Meanwhile, I think it's time to start unpacking the biking accessories. MTB season is coming early this year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Season Recap*

I suppose the word 'memorable' applies, although some of the other words I could use wouldn't be allowed on TV. All the mountains are now closed for the season. And I mean _all. _The covid-19 scare has produced a global shutdown. Self-isolate. Social distancing. Shelter in place. A lot of businesses shut down, a lot of people out of work.

But this is a snowboard blog, not a news outlet. There are plenty of other places to get pandemic news. So on with it...

My total for the season is 38 days, up to March 16th, which is when Whistler closed down. They weren't great days--mostly they were short, which is due in large part to my fitness level. I will point out yet again that you need a lot more fitness to ride Whistler than Seymour, so I probably got more total vert in Whistler in two hours than on a full day at Seymour (or even Cypress) but that doesn't change the fact that, if I was in better shape, I could get a lot _more_ vert in a day. So my primary resolution is to get in better shape and lose weight before next year. Starting now, this time, not in November. Mountain biking will help, but I'm also going to take up running again. And I'll start going to the gym again, once the pandemic is past.

So, what are my takeaways for this season, in terms of stuff to remember and stuff to work on?


First, turns. On toesides, I need to make sure I'm humping the air. And keeping my horizon level will help with that. And I need to keep my weight centered, unless specifically doing C turns.
On heelsides, I need to carve the turn rather than throwing myself into an immediate braking maneuver. My toeside and heelsides should be symmetrical. And on heelsides, squat more to save the thighs.
At speed, I need to fight the slope less. If I'm carving my turns, great, but don't turn to more than 45 degrees to the slope. If I need to slow down, do a slash-brake.
Fast S-turns on moderate slopes work well. C-turns on steeper slopes. and bombing steep sections is about strategy. There has to be a place ahead to slow down.
Do turns from the hip, not from the shoulders. Keep the lead hand slightly heelside. A slightly forward-rotated stance is not a sin, it's a technique.
Accept that I don't do well in poor visibility or icy conditions. Don't think of it as a failure, but as adapting to conditions. It's okay to go slow, and to stop to survey what's ahead.
On moguls, I need to keep weight forward and avoid leaning back in fear. Ride the side of the mogul rather than just riding in the valleys. Unweight the board to initiate the turn, and commit to toeside edge early rather than late. Try to perfect windshield-wiper turns to reduce speed. And look ahead to plan my path. That seems to make a huge difference.
Don't quit after two hours, even if tired. Take a break, then start riding somewhere else. Go to Blackcomb side.
Try to occasionally follow other snowboarders. I can mostly keep up, at least for short distances now. It's a good opportunity to pick up some of the more subtle techniques.
Start riding bumpy terrain and side-hits early. Getting the legs loose is a huge thing, and requires early practice.
Start early practicing techniques like penguin walk and ollies. I really should have those nailed by now. Also nose rolls.
I need a lot more switch practice. I wonder if I should have a board set up in goofy just for that.
The jump line is intimidating in early season, but it only takes 3-4 runs through it to get comfortable. Make the effort. Also, wear armor so I can hit the features.
Order some spare Anon lenses early. Especially pick up at least one more clear lens.
Next season, buy the lesson pass _only_ if I'm in much better shape. Otherwise there's really no point.
I'd like to find a Rome Blur or Fullbag Diamond Blade just to try out. And/or make sure I hit the demo hut a number of times.
That's a big list, but it's all important stuff. I don't want to forget all this and then find myself having to re-learn it next season. This time I want to pick up right where I left off, and be _much _better by the end of the 2020/21 season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First MTB Day*

Yup, finally got everything organized in my office, got the MTB stuff our of storage (and the snowboarding stuff _into_ storage  ) and finally got the bike out onto the road. I did a very simple, basic Bert Flinn run, although given the crowds it wasn't as simple as it should have been. Really, people are _barely_ obeying the social distancing rules.

Anyway, I'm out of shape for biking, no surprise. It's a different workout from snowboarding in that there's less static resistance involved but more aerobics. I was pleasantly surprised, though, to discover that my cycling shorts fit looser this year, even if my weight isn't down. Shifting I guess, and apparently _not _into my butt. So a good thing.

I discovered that I'd forgotten to charge my various devices, though. The tail light was dead, dead, dead, but the garmin still had 30% charge or so, after a winter of sitting in a drawer. Impressive.

One little piece of, I dunno, good news? gratification? Whatever, anyway there's a steep little drop/gully down from the end of the trail back onto the gravel access road that took me weeks to get up the nerve to hit, last year. Today, as I came to the end, there was a couple talking to (possibly) their son on his bike, who was looking down this drop, obviously reluctant. I wasn't sure if I was going to have to wait or pick another route, but just as I came up, he moved out of the way. Without missing a beat, I went down it and rode off.

So yeah, I showed up a ten-year-old. Big tough man.  But more to the point, it's not just me who looked down that thing and said, "eep!" I feel vindicated.

I got back home maybe only a few minutes off the pace, but with my lungs burning a bit despite having made a point of not pushing it. That'll pass, of course. Oh, and it started raining right after I got in. Finally, something going my way. 

Anyway, MTB season is on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Biking*

Last week was crap weather, but starting on the weekend it began to clear up and get warmer. I've managed to ride five days in a row now. I've added Mama Bear to my regular route as well. It's a little harder than Black Dog, with some tighter corners and a couple of minor drops. And one log drop that I don't really remember from last year. Maybe I'm blocking it out. Anyway, I'm still walking that one, although I may only be a few runs from taking a charge at it.

The crowds continue to be pretty bad along the main trail, but people are trying harder to distance. The message may be getting through, finally. Oh and the government has closed all the provincial parks for the Easter weekend. Not a terrible idea--it only takes a small percentage of assholes to fill the park with scofflaws. And judging from some of the comments on the Vancouver Sun website under the article about this--we've definitely got a population of assholes.

Anyhoo, I almost went down the Hett Creek trail today, but decided I shouldn't push it too much. Maybe tomorrow. After that, I'm going to branch out into some of the Starz trails. I really want to get a good cross-section of experience this season.

Oh, and one last thing. The power-line field was dry enough today for me to go and do a few techniques. Again, I took it very easy. Just a single circuit of trackstands and wheelies, enough to remind my lizard brain what it needs to be concerned about.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Morton's Neuroma*

Just posting this as a personal reminder. Neni brought this up, and I think I may have to visit a podiatrist. Symptoms match what happens with my right foot on occasion.


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## Rip154 (Sep 23, 2017)

Stretching and footmassage helps.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*For beginning of next season*

At the beginning of next snowboarding season (which is hopefully this fall), I need to go back and re-read the following posts:

18/19 season recap
Beginning of 19/20 season expectations and plans
19/20 season recap

These are the things I need to think about and plan for in the next season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Oops*

Well, I bought a Rome Blur, used, off craigslist. So much for not expanding my quiver. ?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Biking*

Today is Easter Sunday, and the province closed all the provincial parks, expecting people to converge on them en masse. Not an unreasonable expectation, I think. Of course the municipal parks are the second choice, so Coquitlam (or is it Port Moody?) has put up signs in Bert Flinn making the loop trail one-way. Again, not unreasonable, except they made it the opposite of what I normally do. Interestingly, I kinda like it going that way, so I might just start alternate.

The crowds weren't as bad as expected, though. Not sure if that's because everyone was going the same way or if it's because I was there early, when a lot of people are still at church. I did Black Dog and Hett Creek/Backyard Bikes today. I was intending to do Mama Bear and hit that rollover log, but changed my mind at the last moment. I notice that I'm doing my trails a lot faster than I was last year. And that murderous uphill part on Backyard Bikes, while still painful, didn't kill me (even on the first time of the season). So definitely ahead of the game. And I'm rolling over obstacles at speed that I was braking for last year. I even did that narrow section that almost sent me into the gully last year.

All in all, pretty good day. Not a long session, but it's still early days. And if I can keep up the pace, I should be in much better shape come next winter.

*Camera*

I've used the Insta 360 One X a couple of times on a handlebar mount. This is definitely a better camera in most respects than the Rylo. First, it doesn't cut out after 22 minutes like the Rylo. The Insta recorded one entire session yesterday. It seems to split the video at 30 minutes and start a new one, but the point is that it starts a new one--it doesn't just quit. Today, I think it quit a bit early, but then I don't think I charged it up completely before the session. The battery seems to be good for about an hour at spring temps. Probably less on the slopes.

The control panel on the Insta isn't any better than the Rylo, but you can get a hardware remote and the phone app acts as a pretty good remote as well. On top of that, you can preview through the app without requiring a cable hookup, which puts it head and shoulders above the Rylo. I haven't heard of any updates from Rylo in a while as well, so I think they're probably done anyway.

The one place where I think the Insta is a fail is with the form factor. The fudgecicle shape is exactly wrong for things like handlebar and helmet mount, since the height creates an exaggerated moment arm which causes excessive shaking in any kind of rough conditions. That's the one area where I thought the Rylo really shone.

Of course, now Insta has the One R which has a much more Rylo-like shape. And it's waterproof without requiring a bulky case, which puts it one up on both the Rylo and the One X. Does it sound like I'm working myself up to ordering a One R? That's probably not coincidence. Maybe next major royalty cheque.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*More Biking*

We were up in Whistler for a few days, and didn't bring the bikes, so there's a bit of a gap in my riding this past week. However, I went riding yesterday and today, once we were back. Yesterday I finally cleaned that log roll on Mama Bear that's been freaking me out. I'm now rolling the entire trail without stopping, so call that one conquered.

Today, I did the usual trio, then hit Jo-Jo Finn's Green Spectacles. No, I don't know how it got the name. But if Mama Bear is a little harder than Black Dog, then Jo-Jo is a little harder than Mama Bear. Right off the bat, the entrance to the trail goes between two trees and is literally too narrow for my bars. I'm not sure if I can get through by turning them, or if I'm always going to have to walk it through. Time will tell.

Jo-Jo also dumps you out onto one of the Starz runs, with some pretty intimidating features. Fortunately you can go around them. But I think I'm at the point where I can start doing the Starz runs as well. I'm going to have to figure out a sequence, though. Maybe on the last one I'll go down the Backyard Trail right from the walking path.

Whatever. It was a good day for trail riding. The rest of this week, according to the weather app, is crap. But we'll see.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*A very little bit of MTB*

It rained yesterday, but stopped long enough for things to dry out this morning, so I went for a ride in Bert Flinn. I ended up truncating the ride, though. It seems roots are a worse problem than puddles. Fucking slippery. Both wheels kept going _zzooop_ in random directions. And lemme tell ya, that's not a good feeling on a bike. So after one round through Black Dog, I called it a day.

The weather is going to be 'unsettled' for the next couple of days, which is code for _who the fuck knows_. And sadly I am a fair-weather rider, especially off-road. Well, I guess I can always consider suiting up and going for a run.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Rain, rain, rain*

Man, it is wet. The end of April and all of May so far are turning into how I remember lower mainland weather from when I was young--great for ducks. And of course, we're getting pretty much the same in Whistler, so there's no escaping it. If it wasn't for COVID-19 I could at least go to the gym. But no.

This is what stir-crazy feels like.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First street session*

Today I pulled my street bike out and did my first road ride of the year. I intended to keep it short and not push too hard--maybe a half hour out and half hour back. I didn't quite make that because just after Function Junction, a cyclist on the opposite side called out to me that there were bears (note the plural) foraging on the side of the road up ahead. Well, I don't feel like having Yogi inspect me for picnic baskets, so I did a quick about-face. Ended up just short of an hour all-told, but still good exercise.

I have to get a few things set up for the bike, though. I can't find my taillight, and I still need a headlight. I haven't installed the Blendr mounts yet, and the front derailleur doesn't seem to be indexing quite right on the center sprocket. Jeez, it's always something.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Second (or third?) bike*

The gear whorage continues with bike-related stuff. I've finally come to accept that hauling the MTB back and forth is too much trouble, so I'm going to get a second bike for Whistler. Or for home. I'm not sure yet which bike will go where. Anyway, I'm aiming for something in the same price range as the Trek Fuel EX 7, as I'm really not good enough to justify some of the more high-end bikes. I started out with the idea of buying some other brand, just to expand my horizons, but that didn't work out well. Some of the brands are poorly represented in my price range, some have a small range of models period, and some (I'm looking at you, Norco) are already sold out until late summer. So in the end, I'm back to Trek.

Actually, I _think _I'm back to Trek. I haven't checked with the shop yet. For all I know, they may be out of stock as well. If so, the swearage will be epic, and I'll be back to waiting for a Norco Sight A3. But assuming Trek does a better job of keeping their stock up, I'm looking at the Fuel EX 8. It's essentially the same bike as the 7, but with slightly more upscale parts. There are also a few design changes between 2018 and 2020, but I don't think it'll make a huge difference to me.

The mountain biking is definitely making a difference to my fitness level, and I'm finally starting to lose weight and girth. Just moderate gains so far, but if I keep it up all summer and fall, I should be in good shape for snowboarding season. That means I should be able to actually do full-day sessions on Whistler, which means my skillz will improve that much faster. Win-win-win, as far as I'm concerned.

The COVID thing lends some uncertainty to the future, of course, but I think there will be at least _some _kind of season, even if with modifications.The most likely effect IMO would be fewer people allowed on each chair or gondola, which would mean longer wait times. Heh. Just occurred to me that on Seymour, that might mean one run per day. They really can't afford to have more of a backup than they already do.

I've settled on Rome Katanas for bindings for my Blur. Of course, they're completely sold out everywhere for this year, but I'll grab some at full retail in the fall. I'm looking forward to testing out the new board, and I'm looking forward to visiting the Demo Centre on multiple occasions.

Fun times will be had.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*And, new bike*










Trek Fuel EX 8. I got it in a size ML, which their sizing chart says is good for me. I'd be at the low end of the L frame, but the ML has one overwhelming advantage: they had it in stock 😁. Seems I'd otherwise be waiting until end of June for the new stock.

I took it out today for a quick run through Bert Flinn trails. It's not ultra-different from the 7, but there are some things I'll have to get used to. Or maybe adjust. It definitely feels bouncier, and I was having more trouble with low speed maneuvering. To the point where I almost fell off the bike a couple of times. That is probably just a familiarity thing, though.

The bike also feels livelier and lighter, although physically it's about the same weight as the 7. The gearing is definitely different, though. The 7 has 32 teeth up front paired with an 11-42 cassette. The 8 has 30 up front, with a 10-50 cassette. That gives the 8 a much lower low gear, and a very slightly higher high gear, which means a greater gear range when shifting. A couple of spots where I normally ride in 2nd, I was doing in 3rd today.

The 8 also feels slightly shorter, although it's hard to see any difference when they're side by side. But I felt like I could sit up straighter, just a bit.

Have to replace the handles, though. I'd forgotten how much the OEM ones suck. and the controls need to be moved around just a bit. All good, though.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

Donutz said:


> *And, new bike*
> 
> View attachment 154119
> 
> ...


Nice!!!

...My bike has a chain & pedals, with knobbley tires. 😉😂😂


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## t21 (Dec 29, 2010)

Donutz said:


> *Morton's Neuroma*
> 
> Just posting this as a personal reminder. Neni brought this up, and I think I may have to visit a podiatrist. Symptoms match what happens with my right foot on occasion.


yeah,that sucks!i i too have one since January of this year on my right foot. bought a step on boot size 9.5 standard,,It was tight on the toe box and hoped to break it in,nope..it broke my foot instead


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Waiting...*

I've finally gotten the new bike tricked up like the old one--bell, mirror, Garmin mount, fenders, light mounts. I'll probably take some abuse at some point for a few of those additions, something along the line of a suggestion to add tassels to the end of the bars. But I'm quite prepared to defend any of my choices, and I'm long past the point of needing to look cool. Although tassels are probably just a step too far. 

In particular, very few mountain bikers seem to bother with a bell, even those who ride trails that are dual-use. Over the few years that I've been riding MTB, I've had many hikers actually thank me as I ride by for having warned them of my approach. People _do not like _being brushed back by a bike that they didn't even know was there. And people _do _like having a chance to collect their off-leash dog who generally isn't as well-behaved as they'd like to believe. So I _ding _as I approach, and generally people move aside, and everyone is happy. I just wish more riders had the same level of consideration.

The tail light is more a case of me having to do a fair bit of road-riding to get to the trails. And I don't trust cars any farther than I can throw them. From the didn't-see-you careless types, to the assholes who think bikes don't have a right to ride on the road because we don't pay insurance (morons), riding street is probably more dangerous overall than riding trail. At least at the level that I ride.

Anyway, rants aside, yesterday was crap weather and today's not looking great so far. Although the predictors are for clearing, so I'm kinda hopeful. But looking at my ride history on Garmin Connect, there are more off-days than riding days. Some of that is travel, of course. On a day driving to or from Whistler, I likely won't have time to ride. But even with that, there are a lot of off-days. It seems to come down to weather. Granted, I'm a fair-weather rider and therefore a wuss, but there does seem to be a lot of crap weather this year. And it's cooler than average, I think. It'll be interesting to look back and see if this is a weather blip caused by the massive slowdowns in activity due to the COVID crisis. I say that with no actual evidence, but intuitively it seems likely. After all, China's climate improved dramatically the year they hosted the Olympics, just due to them making an effort to reduce pollution that year.

Lastly, I bought the second bike to have one in Whistler full-time, of course. But now I have to decide which one goes where. I can't honestly say that I'll be riding significantly more in one place than the other, so no help there. It might even end up being an insurance decision.

Oh, well. First-world problems. Must remember, the whole point is conditioning and weight loss. Everything else is bonus.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Some good riding*

I was up at Whistler this week, and got in some riding. Not some _good_ riding (that comes later), since the best trails like Tin Pants and Gypsy Drum are closed right now for underbrush clearing. It's a fire prevention/amelioration thing, and I guess I can understand and appreciate the intent. But it still pisses me off whenever I ride past the tape and the metal fence section. I've sort of been making do with some of the other trails, but all the ones that butt up to the closed ones are partially closed as well. Dwarf Nebula is kind of neat, and I've checked out a few others that I haven't hit before. But I'm reluctant to travel west of the highway since they've reported a grizzly in that area. Grizzly encounter no bueno, fer shur. I don't need to ride _that_ bad.

Anyway, my second day was a street ride. I did 20 miles--10 out, 10 back. The 10 out were much more difficult because I had a head wind, then the 10 back were much more difficult because it's fucking uphill. Still, good exercise. And Jesus, my butt was sore. I'm going to have to use the padded shorts in the future.

Today, back at home, I did the Bert Flinn trails. They were drier than they've been for the entire month of May, which means not very. But at least there were no lakes at the low points. Although some of the roots were still a little zzzzzzzzzip! I did okay on the trails, no major screwups, although I did hammer my mirror a couple of times. That seems to be par for the course, though. Some of the squeezes are just too tight for a MTB with a mirrcycle.

But, highlight of my day, I cleaned that log feature on Mama Bear that's been mocking me, and I did it with authority! No hesitation, no wobble, just up, over, and fuck you.

Good day.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

Donutz said:


> *Some good riding*
> 
> I was up at Whistler this week, and got in some riding. Not some _good_ riding (that comes later), since the best trails like Tin Pants and Gypsy Drum are closed right now for underbrush clearing. It's a fire prevention/amelioration thing, and I guess I can understand and appreciate the intent. But it still pisses me off whenever I ride past the tape and the metal fence section. I've sort of been making do with some of the other trails, but all the ones that butt up to the closed ones are partially closed as well. Dwarf Nebula is kind of neat, and I've checked out a few others that I haven't hit before. But I'm reluctant to travel west of the highway since they've reported a grizzly in that area. Grizzly encounter no bueno, fer shur. I don't need to ride _that_ bad.
> 
> Anyway, my second day was a street ride. I did 20 miles--10 out, 10 back. The 10 out were much more difficult because I had a head wind, then the 10 back were much more difficult because it's fucking uphill. Still, good exercise. And Jesus, my butt was sore. *I'm going to have to use the padded shorts in the future....*


I didn't like any of the padded bike shorts I tried. I either didn't like the looks, or the way the pads were positioned in them, 

I went with the padded boxer briefs instead!. the pads stay positioned _right_ where I need them without shifting,.. and I can ride with any shorts I like while wearing them! 



Donutz said:


> .....Today, back at home, I did the Bert Flinn trails. They were drier than they've been for the entire month of May, which means not very. But at least there were no lakes at the low points. Although some of the roots were still a little zzzzzzzzzip! I did okay on the trails, no major screwups, although *I did hammer my mirror a couple of times.* That seems to be par for the course, though. Some of the squeezes are just too tight for a MTB with a mirrcycle.
> 
> But, highlight of my day, I cleaned that log feature on Mama Bear that's been mocking me, and I did it with authority! No hesitation, no wobble, just up, over, and fuck you.
> 
> Good day.


WTF,.. *a mirror???* 

😆 😆 😆


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## Snow Hound (Jul 21, 2012)

chomps1211 said:


> WTF,.. *a mirror???*
> 
> [emoji38] [emoji38] [emoji38]


Got to stay vigilant on the trails incase some weirdo with a fluffy mutt in a backpack comes up behind you.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I actually got the mirror partly because I have to ride street to get to the trails (I also have a tail light) and partly because I'm a pretty slow rider. If I see someone coming up behind me I can move aside.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

Snow Hound said:


> Got to stay vigilant on the trails incase some weirdo with a fluffy mutt in a backpack comes up behind you.


Bwaahahaahahshahaahhahagahhha,..... Deeeeeeep breath,..
Aaaahhahahaahahahahahaahaha!!!!

Dude,..! Thanks. I REALLY needed that laugh this week! Seriously. Thanks. 😂😂😂😂

(Edit)
Coincidentally,.. I read this just as I was fettin ready to go for a quick warm up ride with Chewy!! Lol. 😂😂

Damn i needed that. Lol


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Some more riding*

I've now gone riding 5 days in a row, which feels damned good. However, yesterday was so muddy that I ended up going down to the Coquitlam River, and today wasn't a lot better. I stuck to the trails, but cut it short. Way too much slipping and sliding.

Riding continues to be fun, and I continue to improve physically. No downside here.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Fucking Weather*

Yesterday was supposed to be sunny with cloudy periods. Or possibly cloudy with sunny periods. What it actually was, was rainy with non-rainy periods. Today was supposed to be rain. What it actually is, is continuous downpour. What is it with the weather that optimistic predictions are always wrong, and pessimistic predictions are always optimistic? Of course the rest of the week looks shitty, so it's guaranteed to be shittier. WTF?

Junuary, my ass. This is more like November.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Rain*

Rain. Rain. Rain.

Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain Rain.

Rain rain.

Rain.

Wait. Oh, look. It's...

Nope. More rain.  🤬 😡


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Finally, FFS*

Finally got some reasonable (not great, but reasonable) weather yesterday, and I took advantage of it. After the previous 40 days and 40 nights of deluge, the trails were in no condition to ride on, of course. Plus you'd have to dodge all the ducks swimming in the puddles. But I was able to do the walking trail, then down to Coquitlam River, which is at least a good conditioning run.

I also checked out the baseball field above the school, which turns out to be a lot better drained field than the morass below the tennis courts. Less than a day after the deluge, it was dry and firm enough to ride on. I think that'll be my practice field from now on.

On that subject, I spent maybe twenty minutes working on basic techniques like track stands, tight-radius turns, and wheelies. I'm hoping to make this a regular part of my ride. Eventually I'd like to work my way through all the basic techniques for mountain bike riding, including the dreaded bunny hop. We'll see.

The rest of the week is also looking good for weather, so maybe I'll be able to get in some exercise before the next month-long storm front moves in. 😡


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Three in a row*

That's three sunny days in a row, which is far more surprising than the fact that I got three days of riding in. Right now, the weather is looking pretty good on the predictions, with only some limited showers on Saturday and Sunday, and sun/cloud the rest of the time. If only it could be true...

So I went up to the baseball field again, and did some trackstands and wheelies. And I am, amazingly, seeing progress. Not quantum leaps, but a little bit better each day is more than acceptable. I forgot to work on tight turns, but I'll get into a routine eventually.

The trails were still a little mucky, but not wallows any more. And my riding is also detectably improving, thanks to frequent rides. I'd be happier if I could be more consistent about hitting _all_ my fave trails, but on days like today, time is limited. Still, a ride is a ride, and way more fun in the sun.

Also, I've now lost 10 lbs and 2" off my waist since the beginning of May. And that's without dieting, although I am paying attention to snacking and second helpings.

And apropos of nothing in particular, I love my Bell SuperDH helmet. Being able to unsnap the chin section is very handy.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler Day*

Whistler has closed a number of trails around Lost Lake for maintenance and fire prevention. Which is political speak for getting rid of underbrush and logs and stumps and such to reduce the dangers of fire. It's not a terrible idea, but of course the trails they've closed are some of my favorites, and the ones I always start with when riding in Whis.

So I did some research and came up with a course that would give me a good workout. The full course starts with Dwarf Nebula, which is accessed just off the Lower Panorama fire road. Then on to Zoot Allures, followed by Toads of the Short Forest, Gee I Like Your Pants, Son of Mr. Green Genes, and finally Jellyroll Gumdrop. Jellyroll lets me off at the small bridge onto Old Mill Road as it runs back to town, so it's a nice flat ride to cool off.

Man, you sure can tell the people who named these trails were stoned at the time .

I tried Dwarf Nebula last time I was in Whis, and it kicked my ass, sadly. I did a lot better today, possibly at least partly because I tuned my suspension before I set out. It was a little under-pressure, and rebound was set low. Anyway, today I cleaned a lot of the sections that stopped me last time.

I continued on through Zoot and onto Toads. Unfortunately near the end of Toads, I took a wrong turn and ended up climbing Treacherous Cretins and Central Scrutinizer up to Muffin Man. Insane climb, insane downhill. Won't be doing that again for a while.

I'm having trouble with wood bridges, though. For whatever reason, they freak me out, especially when they're raised up more than a foot or two. After almost riding off one on Toads, I ended up walking all but the shortest ones. I need to find a relatively long, relatively flat bridge with small consequences and just ride back and forth on it until I'm desensitized. I haven't found one yet, but then I haven't visited all the trails by any means.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Local day*

Came back home early yesterday, but there was no hope of a ride. Maybe some canoeing down the street. Today was much better in that it wasn't raining, and there were even a couple of glimpses of blue sky. Everything's still doubtless soaked in the trails, though, so today was a practice and conditioning day.

I started off up at the baseball field, practicing techniques. Still doing the basic three, wheelies, trackstands, and tight S turns. And they continue to improve. I think if I spent an hour or two solid at the field, I could nail those once and for all. Unfortunately, my boredom threshold won't allow that.

While I was riding down around Coquitlam River, I tried doing manuals--well, wheel lifts, really. I'm a long way from a manual--using advice from this youtube video. And I pulled a couple of the highest wheel lifts I've ever done. Turns out it's as simple as dipping a little forward over the bars at the beginning of the move, which gives you more room when pulling back. Of course, I also clubbed it several times. But as with most techniques, the first couple of successes are the biggest deal. After that it's just practice.


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## MountainMystic (Apr 24, 2019)

Donutz said:


> *Whistler Day*
> 
> Whistler has closed a number of trails around Lost Lake for maintenance and fire prevention. Which is political speak for getting rid of underbrush and logs and stumps and such to reduce the dangers of fire. It's not a terrible idea, but of course the trails they've closed are some of my favorites, and the ones I always start with when riding in Whis.
> 
> ...


re trail names... Dude...Canada..Eh! I spent a winter in Whistler back in the 90's, primo weed was everywhere then, I can't imagine what it's like now 

Wood bridges... you talking about skinnies? I hate those things. I get why they would build them to connect sections of trail though, especially when the area they would need to clear is choked with boulders and fallen trees.
Sometimes they can be a bit contrived, IMO. no need to build one if there's no actual requirement, I say.

Great reading about your progression, esp with bunny-hops. Ollies on a bike. Manuals are super useful too. still working on those.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Skinnies seems to involve more along the lines of logs with their topsides flattened, or 2x8 boards. I've seen a few wood bridges under 'skinnies' but they're really narrow. The wood bridges I'm looking at are 18" to 24" wide. And honestly, I can ride that narrow easily when there isn't a drop on the side. But add some consequence and I'm just not confident enough yet. Thus the need for desensitization.

Next time I'm up to Whistler (there are very few bridges in Coquitlam that I can find), I'm going to locate a bridge that's long, reasonably flat, and low to the ground and just ride back and forth on it until I'm bored silly. It's the only way.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Getting some good days in*

So this was three days in a row since I've gotten back from Whis. Today was almost aborted, as it rained a bit in the morning and spit a few times otherwise. But I got out there. Got rained on a little, but with the humidity right now it felt good. The trails weren't too bad--very little open water, just a lot of mud wallows. Of course it started to pour after I got back home, and it's going to rain the rest of today and all of tomorrow according to the predictors.

Junuary. Urgh.

But hey, I did get those three days. And my wheelies are coming along. Two things I learned today: 1) more speed helps. I've been slowing almost to a stop before popping, thinking it would give me more pop, but I can get enough pop with a higher starting speed _and_ more stability. 2) When I pull back on the pop, I have to go back until my arms are straight. If I stop short while my elbows are still bent, is no bueno. It's not earth-shaking, but this is supposed to be pretty basic. And hey, I'm getting more strokes on my wheelies before I drop the front, so improvements.

The trails also are going well. I'm hitting all of my regular trails faster, not only because I'm getting better with the terrain but also because my fitness is improving and I can just plain maintain a better pace for longer. The log roll on Mama Bear isn't really even a problem any more, nor is that steep pitch coming out of the Loop trail. All in all, feeling good.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Grrrrr*

Well, I'm up in Whistler, and oh look, it started raining. It's predicted to rain until the day I leave. Quelle surprise. So there won't be any bridge/skinny practice this time around. Too bad, as I'm feeling pretty optimistic about it.

I'm relatively happy with my progress on wheelies, as mentioned before. I'm just about managing 4 strokes now before the front end drops. But I'm not spending enough time practicing. Yesterday I only did two laps in the field before taking off. The other thing I'm bugged about is that there are a number of things I should be practicing. They are:


Wheelies
Trackstands
Trackstarts
Manuals
Rear wheel lifts
Bunny hops

Probably in that order. Trackstarts, BTW, is my own name for a technique where you get on the bike and up on the pedals with the brakes on, then release the brakes and go. It's useful for getting going on a trail after you've dabbed. Anyway, I probably should pick a day where I spend most of my session on the field instead of just using it as a warm-up.

I could also set up a fake skinny using rope and practice staying inside the rope area. And I could also take a drive out to one or more of the bike parks. Of course, knowing me, that's unlikely to happen. Too much inertia and laziness.

Anyway, this is a whiny, grousing post for today because it's raining. Did I mention that it's raining? This is, after all, the wet coast.


.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Finally back in the saddle*

After four days in a row of rain, I finally was able to get a riding day. So of course, to make up for lost time I overdid it. Did three hours of hard riding, and I'm feeling it a little right now.

In addition to my usual Bert Flinn trails, I did the Coquitlam RIver Trail, both north and south of David. The south side is nothing, of course. Wide walking trails, really only useful for conditioning sprints. But the trail north of David, even when the trail is dry and firm, has some really varied terrain. Don't get me wrong, it's mostly green with some blue sections, but it's interesting at least. Today, though, was not dry. The first day after four solid days of rain? Mud-bath. And when I say mud-bath, I mean going through mud wallows where the tire is acting more like a snow tire, basically flinging mud backwards from the tread. And a couple of puddles so deep that they submerged my feet on the downstrokes.

I haven't done this trail since last year, and I had to get off and walk a fair bit of it, especially the steep rock-gardeny part near the south end. Today, while I didn't ace the whole thing, I did considerably more of the trail on the bike. So I'll call that a win.

But the real win from my point of view is my waist is down to 40" exactly, which is a new low since I don't know when; and my weight is down to 204. Still lots of room to improve, but I'm heading in the right direction.

I just hope all the moaning in pain tonight doesn't keep my wife awake. Advil is your friend, and I think a couple are on the menu for bedtime. 😣😖


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Practice makes... better, anyway*

One of my items for next snowboarding season is to get lots of hours of lots of days on the slopes, the idea being that nothing improves your riding like hours on the hill. Well, I'm getting a really good illustration of that with my mountain biking as well. Despite my whining about rain (which is entirely deserved, I might add), I've been getting a lot of days in a row on the trails. And surprise, surprise, it's having an effect. I'm handling steeps better, rocky and rooty stuff better, features that were previously freaking me out are now all but routine, my riding is getting more precise as in able to follow and stay on a line, and I'm just all-round getting more confident.

In particular, ladder bridges have been my big fear this season, but I think I'll find I'm pretty much over that once I get back to Whistler. There's a bridge on Jo-Jo Flinn that I've been hitting every time. It's got a bit of a lip coming onto it, and I have to give a slight hop with the front wheel to avoid too much of a thump. Yesterday I bobbled the hop and started going off the bridge, but corrected myself and just rode on through. My fear of course has been that I'd be unable to correct if I went off my line and I'd go over the side. So not an issue any more.

There's also a short skinny on the same run that I've been hitting each time as well. I still don't think I'm ready for skinnies of any real length, but I do feel like I'm getting there, especially if they're low-consequence. The log roll on Mama Bear isn't even an event any more. I just hit it and continue on.

There are a few things on Jo-Jo that I'm still having problems with, or avoiding entirely. But I think that's coming.

On the skillz front, I got up to 5 strokes on wheelies today, so I'm really starting to feel like I'll be able to just hold those pretty soon. OTOH, my front wheel lifts have tanked. I think it's at least partly due to my sore right elbow, which I'm favoring a bit. But still, I should be able to do better. I think it's time to bring the camera with me for a session on the field, just to see what my attempts at a manual look like.

Also, the other day I did Bert Flinn then Black Dog then Mama Bear then Jo-Jo then Hett Creek. I was pretty much done by the end of that, but damn what a good day. Next I have to start investigating the North Starz area. I did them once last year then never went back, for some reason. I think it's time.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Finally, a Whistler Day*

After what feels like forever, we finally got back up to Whistler for a few days. And nice days, at least according to the predictors. I went out for a bike ride, of course. I wanted to try out some of the trails that I've identified on Trailforks as interesting blues. The trouble, though, is that RMOW has closed off a bunch of trails around the Passivhaus for firebreak clearing, and the easiest way to get going on the Lost Lake trails is normally to start from there. So after some scrutinizing of the maps, I managed to figure out that I would have to start with Dwarf Nebula.

So I took Molly Hogan to get down to the other end of the trails, then came back along the fire roads to get to the Dwarf Nebula trailhead. I'm definitely handling blue trails better, but they're by no means routine yet. I did Dwarf Nebula, Zoot Allures, Toads of the Short Forest, got lost, continued with Gee I Like Your Pants, Son of Mr. Green Genes, and Jellyroll Gumdrop. The part about getting lost was because right about where Toads connects to Zappa, there was a mountain biking class. Or maybe two classes. Lotta bikes, anyway, and all milling around at the top of the rock roll. I couldn't figure out where the trail continued, so I guessed. And guessed wrong, of course. I ended up going down a rock roll that was WAY steeper than I was prepared for. I handled it, but my life was flashing before my eyes for a few moments there.

I fooled with Trailforks for a few minutes, but it was acting funny--it kept insisting that I was facing a quarter turn left, and I'm pretty sure it was a hundred yards or so off-base. Weird. But eventually I walked the bike back up to the top of the rock roll, and found the rest of the right trail.

I think I did about half of the ladders that I came upon, today. I also dropped my back wheel off of one when I cut a corner. That actually turned out to be kind of a good thing as it was really a non-event, so made me feel better about them. My big concern, I think, is keeping up my speed on the flat or uphill ladders. If I stop, I can't get going again.

One other thing happened that was noteworthy. As I was peddling slowly along one of the fire roads, I saw movement to my left. I turned my head to see a brown bear contentedly munching on some berries on a bush, not even twenty feet from me. The bear ignored me, and I tried to return the favor.

I finally found the rock roll that we practiced on at last year's Trek bike school. It's on Jellyroll Gumdrop. I remember being terrified by that thing. Now, if I hadn't specifically been looking for it, it would barely have registered. Funny how things change.

But the exercise is real. The course, even the abbreviated one with the closures, is a lot of work. I'm looking forward to the time when I can start at Passivhaus and go all the way through to the end.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Another Ride Through Bert Flinn*

Like the title says. I did everything except Hett Creek, because I had limited time today. However, I did go up to the Bramblewood field and practice some techniques. Based on a comment on a youtube video, I tried one gear higher when doing wheelies, and it worked quite well. I managed six strokes before putting it down, a new high. Unfortunately I also came close to looping out a couple of times and freaked myself out to the point where I couldn't get the wheel off the ground any more. I have to practice using the rear brake to bring it down, just to prove to my hindbrain that I have control.

I also practice rear wheel lifts. Just the first attempts, no real huge results, but I did get the wheel off the ground. So with some manuals, I'm that much closer to bunny hops. But I have to stay in the habit of hitting the field before my rides. It would be nice to be able to do at least crappy bunny hops by the end of the season.

I rode Bert Flinn, as mentioned. My average speed is gradually increasing as I get more confidence on the blues. The only thing still making me dab is that one rise just before the jumps on Jo-Jo. It's not just the amount of speed needed going into it; it's also that I have to jog left at the apex to avoid that big root. It keeps throwing me off. But I'll get it. I've done it once or twice, so I know it's doable.

I've also mastered the pyramid ladder towards the end of Jo-Jo. Really not a big deal once you commit. My next goal is the small drop/jump just after that. For that one, I just need to evaluate the landing enough to feel confident. Right now I'm just blowing through the whole area, having worked up a head of steam.

The rock gardens and steeps just below the intersection of Jo-Jo and Starz is now also fairly routine, except for the first drop which needs a jog to the right to get through. Still dabbing that sometimes. But overall, I'm very happy with my riding. The ladder bridge and small skinny are routine now, although I'm sure I'm going to flub one or the other at some point, and that'll be a whole new mental block to overcome.

One other thing, I hit 203 today, which is a new low for weight. Very happy about that.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*The weather is finally cooperating*

Of course, I've probably jinxed it by saying that, but it had to be said. We're finally getting some kind of actual summer, consisting of days in a row of sunshine. The mud wallows have turned into some kind of hard substance that looks like mud but doesn't go 'squish'. I'm going to call it 'dirt.' Naturally, there's a downside, because I wouldn't be me if I didn't have something to complain about. The humidity is still a bit up there, since there's a huge remaining water load that hasn't drained off yet. The forested trails are definitely cooler than being out in the sun (it hit 29 c yesterday), but it can be a bit sauna-like.

Nevertheless, I continue to get out every chance I can, and I continue to improve. I nailed that rise just before the jumps today. The trick seems to be to keep pedaling instead of letting up before the apex. I think that was the same lesson I had to learn for the log roll on Black Dog, come to think of it. Oh well.

I've also started hitting more of the skinnies on Jo-Jo. Not the long one yet, but I did the intermediate length skinny, and made it. I didn't do the drop toward the end of Jo-Jo today--had a poor run-up and decided to abort. I think I'm going to have to session that just to get used to it.

I took a look at the ladder roll that I keep going around (just where Jo-Jo intersects Starz), and honestly it doesn't seem as intimidating as I remember it. I visualized it as being a crank killer, but it isn't--not even close. I think I may try that after I get the drop squared away.

So the rest of this week is looking pretty good. Lots of biking in my future. Maybe not enough writing though. Hmph.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Great Whistler Day*

I did a morning ride in Whistler today, and it was great. I had to keep it short because we are getting a dishwasher delivered and I needed to be around during the delivery window, but that still allowed a 90 minute ride. So I started with Molly Hogan, as usual, then up Old Mill Road to hit some of my favorite trails. Whereupon I found, to my chagrin, that they have closed Son of Mr. Green Genes for tree felling and clearing. On the one hand, fauck, _another_ trail closed? On the other hand, Green Genes is at the north end of the area that RMOW is clearing this spring/summer, so it feels like the last leg of the project.

Swallowing my disappointment, I slogged my way up to Dwarf Nebula, to do as much of the trail route as I could manage. And (drum roll, please) I cleaned that insane ladder bridge that's been scaring the pee out of me. That's the one that snakes around a rock outcropping, with a 4-8 foot drop on the left. In fact, I hit and cleaned _every_ ladder today, except for one short one on Grand Wazoo that appeared out of nowhere at the top of a climb through a rock garden. I was just too tired, so I rolled the bike through it. I also had to session the first long one on Toads, but once I cleaned that one, there was no stopping me.

So let's be honest, ladder bridges still make me nervous, and will for a while. But it's practice, just like everything else.

The bridges on Toads are in some ways the hardest, since they're long, slightly uphill, and have rollers. But they're also the full 24" wide, which makes life a little easier. The bridges on Grand Wazoo are more level to downhill, with fewer rollers, but they're the 18" version, which is a little more nervous-making.

One thing that does worry me a little, though, is the EX 8. I am simply not as steady on the 8 as I am on the 7, and I bobbled a few sections on the former that I'm sure I would have cleared on the latter. That might simply be because I ride the 7 a lot more, but it might also have something to do with frame size or geometry. I'm not sure, but I'm going to investigate it. The 8 is certainly a better bike, component-wise, but I'm just not as comfortable on it so far.

One last thing. My Garmin glitched on me somehow today. It only started recording my route about halfway through the ride, about at the bottom of Hookender. No explanation forthcoming, although I suspect it wasn't able to lock into GPS until then. It's no huge deal, but annoying.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Another Great Day*

Also another short one, as the dishwasher was to be installed today (it was, although not without issues). But I still rode Toads through Green Genes. I managed to handle some of the rock areas that I dabbed on yesterday, while finding whole new areas to fail on. Again, it's just practice. Also, I forgot to mention on the previous blog entry that I did much better on the entry section of Grand Wazoo, which features several switchbacks combined with rocky sections. So practice is working.

Another thing I forgot to mention earlier is the number of mosquito bites I've picked up. I think I've been riding through literal clouds of them, and of course a certain number hitch a ride each time. My right shoulder has about a dozen separate bites, and my left has five. Benedryl is your friend, but it's still driving me nuts at night.

I may or may not be doing a ride today. It's ugly weather right now, although there's some indication that it's supposed to clear up.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Stuff and Things*

First item of news: The Garmin site has been down for a couple of days. Seems Garmin got hit by a ransomware attack, and they're rebuilding rather than paying the ransom. Well, good on them. But meanwhile, no one can upload their rides to Garmin or Strava. That's more a minor annoyance than the end of the world, but just the same, I'm annoyed. Minorly.

My ride today, back in Coquitlam, was through Bert Flinn. I did the full package, including Jo-Jo and Hett. Had some minor problems with some features, did well with others. For instance, I cleaned the pyramid just before Starz, but dabbed the drop beside that large ladder roll. I took the small drop near the end of Jo-Jo, but landed way too nose-heavy for my taste. Need to work on that. I fell off the mid-size skinny, but handled it. So I'm not really sure how to score the day. Survived, though, so maybe that's enough.

I took my EX 8 into Trek for service today. I get a free service with the new bike, so I figured I might as well get it all looked at. The tech pointed out that the nut holding the front wheel was loose and showed me how to tighten it (that seemed a little condescending, but I figured I should be polite until after I get the bike back). But now I'm wondering if that allowed some play in the front wheel which might be why the 8 feels a little less definite on tight turns.

On a different subject, sort of, I had an AH HAH moment today when coming back up to home. On the final couple of blocks, I always practice my skinny balancing by trying to stay within the expansion lines on driveways. All the driveways along our street have the lines molded into the sidewalk ramp, leaving a bunch of 'slats' maybe 4-6 inches wide. It makes for totally no-consequence practice on holding a line, and because it's uphill, it's just that much harder.

Anyway, I realized that the proper way to balance on a skinny is not to do small turn movements of the front wheel (as you normally do when riding), but to use small sideways movements of my center of mass, as you do when holding a trackstand. When I concentrated on keeping balance using the latter method, I was much more successful at holding a line. Noted for future practice.

Oh, and my wheelies--I think I'm going to have to take them off the field. The grass is definitely causing too much natural braking. I need less rolling resistance.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Woo-hoo!*

Lost Lake trails reopened– 

Fuel thinning work along the western boundary of Lost Lake Park was completed July 25.

Wildfire fuel thinning within Lost Lake Park resumed April 30 and was completed July 25.
Thank you to the community for your patience with and respect for trail closures while fuel thinning work was completed in Spruce Grove and White Gold neighborhoods along the western boundary of Lost Lake Park. 
*Effective July 25, the following trails have reopened in Lost Lake Park*:

White Gold Traverse 
Centennial Trail between PassivHaus and Spruce Grove
Tin Pants
Gypsy Drum
Peaches En Regalia
And about fucking time!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Best. Day. Evahhhh.*

Or sure felt like it anyway. Up in Whistler, and I went out early (around 9am) to the Lost Lake trails to check out all the reopened stuff. Went up Tin Pants, found Dinah Moe Hum, Took a wrong turn and ended up on Gypsy Drum, Went down Peaches En Regalia, then had to go back _up_ Peaches because that's where White Gold Traverse is. Did that, then hit my usuals: Dwarf Nebula, Toads, Green Genes, Like Your Pants, Jellyroll, etc. I handled all the ladder bridges, and I'm starting to get less terrified of them. I even did the Dwarf Nebula nightmare bridge with something almost approaching casualness.

It wasn't busy, but it wasn't deserted either. There were enough other people to make things interesting without it becoming a rage-inducing mob scene. It turns out that I'm not the best, but not the worst -- somewhere in the middle, and probably able to more or less keep up with other people on most trails. Given that it's only my second season and I'm old as fuck, I'll take it as a win.

One place that I do have an advantage is in low-gear powering over obstacles. The instructor at the Trek lesson last year commented on it, and I keep improving. Today, I overheard a group instructor at the entrance to Dwarf Nebula using me as an example (a good one) on how to power through the rough crap. That felt damned good.

I brought along my Insta360 One R and mounted it on the handlebar. I took videos until the battery finally gave up, which was about an hour, so pretty happy about that. I have a spare battery on order, and that'll help, but it occurs to me that I could also put my power bank in my top-tube carrier and use it to power the camera for an entire day. Hmm...

Anyway, it's recharging right now, and I'll have a look at what I got later.

ETA:

The 1R does a nice job, although the last video had some kind of goop on the lens (probably tree sap or something). That's one of those things that can ruin a whole session's worth of vids, so the lesson is to check the lens often.

One thing that bothers me a bit is that, since I mount the camera about halfway up one handlebar, the POV ends up a little off-center. It's not a killer, but it is annoying. I'm going to look into some kind of stem mount or something similar that will center the camera. I'm also going to consider bringing the power bank along tomorrow to do exactly what I said above.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*More of Same*

Yeah, another great day. Today I tried out The Torture Never Stops, which dumps into Disco Boy, then rode Donkey Puncher. I realized today that I've been conflating Donkey Puncher with Molly Hogan in my memory, since they have very similar flow. But Donkey Puncher is much shorter, and a little trickier, with trail segments that fall off into a side ditch and some pretty tight turns. Was fun, though.

I tried Peaches again, and got lost again. I'm really going to have to make a point of memorizing that trail, because I keep ending up down Gypsy Drum. I realized though, while riding Peaches, that the fuel thinning project has really taken a lot of the magic out of the west trails. Instead of winding through forest, they're winding through a thin copse of trees. You can see all the trails, you can see other riders... it's like the homogenized version of mountain biking.

Anyway, I saved Fountain of Love and Pinocchio's Furniture for next time. Those are probably about the hardest blues in the Lost Lake area, based on youtube videos anyway. Lots and lots of ladder bridges, and Fountain has a very large rock dome--which I think may actually be the slab that we practiced on at the Trek lesson day. Jellyroll just doesn't seem intimidating enough to have been what we rode.

I'm continuing to use my insta360 camera on my runs, and I'm learning some processes to make things easier. But the elephant in the room, so to speak, is still the question of how I get the raw footy to the desktop app. I tried using the camera as a mountable HD today, and no joy. I may end up having to pop the memory card and directly read it. What a PITA. Maybe I'll contact tech support. Because tech support is _always _very supportive, right?  

Meanwhile, I've gotten down to 202.2 lbs, which I don't think I've seen since 2015. Happy times.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Some random updates*

First, on the question of getting the footy onto the PC--it really does turn out to be as simple as pulling the memory card and reading it on the PC. I say "simple", but honestly in this day and age, should we still have to muck around with hardware like that? The Insta really should be able to serve out its storage like a USB thumb drive. Nevertheless, I was able to load the files onto the desktop app and fool with them. Trouble is, I'm not really sure the desktop app is any more powerful than the phone app, so it may be moot.

Meanwhile, I've purchased a number of different options for handlebar mounts. I'll mix and match until I come up with something that holds my Garmin and my camera without looking like a fighter cockpit. I'll post up a pic once I've settled on a final layout.

I've been riding Bert Flinn for the last several sessions. I'm doing the full course, including Jo-Jo and Hett Creek now, and I'm doing them faster. Still haven't cracked a couple of features, but it's mostly just a matter of sessioning them.

The Great Bicycle Shortage of 2020 extends to accessories, as it turns out. I ordered a few things a couple of weeks ago, and they still can't give me an ETA. Apparently things are so back-ordered that they haven't even scheduled production for some of the outstanding orders. I guess that's a good thing, business-wise. Just wish it didn't come at so high a price for everyone else.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Dammit*

Went for a ride yesterday, and my bike started to squeak. Got worse and worse over the course of the ride. I determined pretty quickly that it was the rear brake, and a close inspection showed that one of the brake pucks was frozen, causing the brake pad to rub lightly all the time. Thus the squeal.

Trek PoCo is backlogged well into the second half of August for servicing, and they don't seem to have any mechanism for emergencies. Fortunately, Trek Maple Ridge had an opening next day (today, as I write this). And the whole thing went far more smoothly than last time, to the point where I'm rethinking my general negative impression of that location. Maybe everyone (including me) was just having a bad day last time.

Anyway, it's in for service, and I'm getting a Level 1 done at the same time. Now that I know "ready Wednesday" means ready _end of day_ Wednesday, I'm able to plan better. I'm going up to Whistler for a few days, and will be back Thursday, so that works out perfectly for me, and in Whistler I can ride the EX 8.

On a somewhat related subject, while I was in the shop I noticed several bikes hanging from hooks. New bikes. I commented, and the service guy said sure, but those are the "over $3K" bikes, and you don't stay in business selling those. So I glean from this that they're mostly deficient in the more "budget" inventory and that's what's killing them. Interesting.

As a side-bar, I'm pretty sure one of those hanging bikes was the new Fuel EX 8 XT, and I drooled. I also began mentally running through my finances, which is never a good sign. I wonder if I should phone them?

No. (slap). Bad.

I am such a gear whore.

Edit: Oh, Jesus, I just checked the website, and it _is_ a Fuel EX 8 XT, _and_ it's in my size (ML). No, no, no, no, no, make it stop...

Edit edit: For some reason, this post is way out of sequence. I bought the EX 8 back in May. Not sure what happened. It should be before post #429


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler Riding*

I'm up in Whistler for a couple of days, and went riding yesterday and today. Yesterday I did all the 'usual' trails, plus White Gold Traverse and Peaches en Regalia. Those two definitely are ass-kickers. Not hugely difficult, but enough twists and switchbacks and steep sections to make you work. Plus White Gold is quite long, so definitely a workout.

Today I finally got up the nerve to seek out Fountain of Love and Pinocchio's Furniture. I'd been hesitant about them because they looked pretty brutal on the videos on Trailforks. And, as it turns out, I was right. Those are possibly the hardest blue trails so far. The rock gardens on Fountain of Love are many and difficult, and Pinocchio's Furniture consists of mostly ladder bridges. I'm sure there are at least a half-dozen, including one that combines significant altitude with a tight right-hand turn. I walked that one.

Actually, I walked a lot of sections. Or at least dabbed and had to restart. Of course, I've done that with a lot of trails the first couple of times, so it doesn't particularly worry me. But I've definitely got a hierarchy of difficulty going in Whistler. I think there might still be two or three blue trails I haven't seen yet, and I'll check them out over the next couple of weeks, but I'll probably be starting to investigate blacks by the end of this season. That's not bad. Not bad at all.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*More Random Updates*

I'm back in Coquitlam, and went to Bert Flinn this morning. Several items...

First, I took a look at the ladder roll near the bottom of Jo-Jo, and for some reason it looks less steep each time I eyeball it. I'm probably a half-dozen rides away from trying it.

Second, I hit the long skinny today, and aced it. As I long suspected, speed is your friend when doing skinnies.

Third, I did that freaky section just before the bridge on Hett Creek and _almost_ aced it. Unfortunately, _almost_ does not count in mountain biking. I hit a root right at the end and went OTB. On the one hand, argh! On the other hand, I discovered that I can still roll out of a fall properly. No damage to anything but my pride. Interestingly, it happened right at the tree that I grabbed when I went over the embankment that last time, so that's obviously the trouble point. However, the big takeaway is that I successfully traversed most of the section, and just need to get over those especially impressive roots right at that tree. I'll know for next time.

I also went up to the field today and did a brief technique practice. Sadly, I think that field isn't really the best place to practice. The grass is beautiful, thick, and lush. Too thick. It's impossible to coast for any distance, and when doing wheelies I'm constantly fighting the friction. I think I'm going to have to go back to the field under the power lines, at least when it's dry.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Donutz said:


> The Great Bicycle Shortage of 2020 extends to accessories, as it turns out. I ordered a few things a couple of weeks ago, and they still can't give me an ETA. Apparently things are so back-ordered that they haven't even scheduled production for some of the outstanding orders. I guess that's a good thing, business-wise. Just wish it didn't come at so high a price for everyone else.


It's brutal. We're strictly bike rental, no hardgoods retail, and we have access to 3 separate suppliers for parts and we're struggling just to keep our rental fleet operational! Things as simple as a snapped chain could sideline a bike, luckily some _*real* _local bike shops have had those essential items in stock to keep us going. But still it's frustrating not being able to buy 10 of everything that breaks often at cost so we're more prepared for the inevitable.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So I have no idea what happened here. I heard a regular 'thwap' sound as I headed off to my morning ride. Eventually I spotted this on my front tire. Interestingly, although this was the biggest, there were about a half-dozen or so bubbles clustered around this big one, all along the center line of the tire. You can see another one just to the left of the biggie.

The Trek techs looked at it and were all like 'WTF?' as well. I think the inner wall probably was failing, like an aortic dissection or a hernia or something. This is the original tire, so I got a couple of good years out of it. Unfortunately they didn't have quite the same one in stock, so I had to get the next model down, which has smaller knobblies. Good enough for the level of riding I do, though.










ETA: Someone on the pinkbike forum opined that it's a casing failure, which is basically what I thought. My theory is that my unfortunate encounter with a tree the other day split the casing in one spot and it spread. That would explain why all the dimples are around the same location.

Oh and BTW, Trek is backlogged for weeks to months for my particular tire. FML.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I was a little off today, for some reason. Might have been the heat--it's pretty hot in BC right now. We're actually having an actual summer! And so far, without any haze from massive wildfires. Fingers crossed.

Anyway, yeah, a bit off. I dabbed several times where I shouldn't have dabbed, wobbled where I normally wouldn't have wobbled, put down one really heinous peddle strike where I should have known better... Oh, and fell off the long skinny on Jo-Jo.

That last item was both scary and kind of reassuring. Scary that I fell off (at the worst possible spot, too--ran right into a support log) but reassuring in that I survived. Didn't even really go down--just hopped on one foot for a few moments, trying to recover the bike.

I'm glad I got the ride in, though.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm starting to realize that the reason I'm "off" occasionally isn't from being off my game--it's from being winded. I've started pushing my pace and degree of difficulty lately, and I'm having trouble keeping up with my ambition. It was really brought home to me today in Whistler. I did the Fountain of Love route, which goes Fountain of Love, Pinocchio's Furniture, Dwarf Nebula, etc. When I start with Dwarf Nebula, I'm pretty good with it. But starting with Fountain, by the time I got to Dwarf I was puffing and blowing, and dabbed several times. Not to mention that I'd already done a lap that included Grand Wazoo. So next session, I'm just going to go up Tin Pants and hit Dwarf Nebula and the rest directly. We'll see if that makes a difference.

On a different front, I've tried the Insta360 with several mounting options: Handlebar, helmet, backpack strap, and chest mount. Helmet and backpack strap are out of the running right off the bat for lousy POV. My complaint with handlebar is that the camera's stabilization smooths out the ride until it looks like I'm riding a paved trail--even when I'm going through a rock garden. The problem with the chest mount is that I get a lot of body in the shot--weird elongated arms, occasional head dip into frame, and constant pumping knees. I can probably get rid of that with an extender, and in fact may try one (I have one around somewhere). I might also consider trying the extender with the helmet mount--maybe just getting it forward of the visor will be enough to improve the view. I just hope the helmet mount will handle it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Some updates...

First, I went for a ride today and tried out Lower Backyard Trail all the way from the Jo-Jo exit. That's where you turn right at the electrical box instead of going all the way up the hill to the dog walk. The last time I did that was last year, I think, and I was pretty tentative. This time I just bashed my way through it. It takes a large gap between rides like that to really illustrate the level of improvement. It's not a bad trail at all, although as a blue it's pretty teal.

On Jo-Jo, I did both of the skinnies, and aced both. I still haven't quite gotten up the nerve to do the ladder roll, but I think if it had been dry today I might have done it. As it is, a surprise rainstorm overnight left everything a little slimy.

I continue to experiment with the insta360 and mounts. I've discovered that when I export to flat video, I can change the framing to the point where I just get handlebars and hands (like in the Lost Lake Trails video). That looks pretty damned good, and shows the bounce and jounce from rough trails well. I tried a helmet mount with an extender today, to get the camera past the helmet brim. It worked okay, but I'm not sure if the slightly wider view is enough to justify the more exposed camera. I'll want to give it a try on a trail before making up my mind once and for all. Either way, I think I will have arrived at a good mounting technique.

I've also nailed down the video editor. OpenShot is an open-source freeware app, which honestly is _way, way, way_ better than the free Microsoft app that comes with Windows. I might also try iMovie for Apple products, since the video files start their life on my iphone. But that's for another day. I actually produced a (pretty bad) video of my Molly Hogan ride from last week. Very snoringly boring, but it's a proof of concept. I will re-shoot at some point, just so I have a complete set of trail rides on video.

Lastly, I've bought a couple of XR4 29x2.4 tires (or tyres, as they say on GMBN) for my EX 7. I'll start by replacing the front tire (they put on an XR3) for practice. The second tire is for a spare, since when you need one you generally need it _NOW_. I'll also have to pick up a 29x2.6 for my EX 8. It's a project for one of those rainy days when I can't ride.

My weight is now hovering just a pound or so either way of 200, fluctuating randomly. Or maybe based on pizza consumption . My waist is still shrinking slowly. I'm starting to consider the possibility that my snowboarding clothes might be _too big for me_ by the time the season hits. Wouldn't that be funny? (no.) OTOH, I've recently purchased a Bionic Action Jacket, which has all the armour I could possibly want. With less of me, there would be more room for that under my jacket. I still have to figure out some good armoured shorts, but there's lots of time. Meanwhile, if I'm wearing the full-face helmet, knee pads, and the Bionic jacket, I think I could tackle some of those bike features that are still freaking me out.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Stinger!*

Today I decided to go straight onto Backyard Bikes again, but I took a wrong turn and ended up on Stinger. Wooh! If Backyard is kind of teal, then Stinger is more midnight blue. Lots more drops, lots more rock gardens and rutty rolls, and all of them hard. I even walked one or two spots, although I'll probably ride them next time. Assuming there's a next time.

There's a fork at one point that's called "Stinger Exit." I wasn't sure why that would exist until I rode through the rest of Stinger. Wow. From that point on, it's black diamond. And kind of hard to find in places, honestly. So if I do Stinger again, I'll get off at Stinger Exit. I say _if_ because the biggest problem with the trail is that it dumps you into Ioco, on Ioco road, which is basically sea level. No, literally. It runs along the side of the Burrard Inlet, which is salt water. So, sea level. Lots of _up_ to get back home.

But other than that, I had a lot of fun. Burned over a thousand calories according to my Garmin, hit the two skinnies again, and didn't dab at all on my regular trails. So, a good day overall.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm back in Whistler today. I went for a ride this morning, and tested the Insta360 with the helmet mount. First, it doesn't work well with a half-shell helmet (I think I've mentioned that already). The combo kept pressing the front of the helmet down my forehead into my glasses. As far as the image goes, though, it isn't bad. It's very similar to the chest-cam image, but from a higher angle. The biggest problem is that I move my head a lot more than I move my chest, so the image will be tossed around a bit more, even with the stabilization.

However, I couldn't re-test the chest mount as I forgot part of the mounting hardware. At that point (long story), I wasn't going back home for one more part, so I just packed it all and went for a ride. All in all, I did pretty well. I only dabbed once or twice, and I notice that I'm a lot less scared of bridges.

I stuck to easier trails today, Torture Never Stops, Disco Boy, Dinah Moe Humm, and White Gold Traverse. Had fun, got exercise. And that's really what the whole thing is about.

Tomorrow, I'll do it all again, but with the chest mount.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Got back to Coquitlam today. I went riding in Whis yesterday, but decided not to drag the camera around. I had a pretty good day, hitting the harder trails. I will say that I believe Pinocchio's Furniture is the single hardest blue in the Lost Lake Trails area. At least the hardest one I've tried.

Today, I decided to take it easy since I went late in the afternoon and it was quite warm by that point. Instead of my usual Bert Flinn route, I went to the Coquitlam River. I did the south side trails, which are just essentially fire-roads. They weren't too bad. Then I went to the north side, to the trail up to Crystal Falls. Big mistake. Honestly, I think everyone on the planet went for a walk there today. I don't think I was able to hit a single feature or tough section without having to dodge one or more pedestrians. As a result, of course, I dabbed constantly. It was frustrating beyond belief. I even just fell over sideways at one point when I was trying to get around a hiker while avoiding rocks and roots, and I went up the side of a small incline with my front wheel. Zoop! Wheel slid out to the left, and I went down to the right. Interestingly, it didn't hurt (except my pride, of course). I've become terrified of falls and injuries, and I think I may have exaggerated the consequences in my mind. So a learning moment.

Regardless, I got my exercise in, so no loss overall.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*One of the better days*

Today was great! For some reason I was just feeling ready to attack anything. So I hit the ladder roll at the intersection of Starz and Jo-Jo. I remember when I hit the bottom of it, I thought "Is that it? That's all?" Seriously, I had obviously been overthinking it. Turned out to be a total non-event.

But I was so pumped, I also hit the medium jump (technically I think it's actually a drop) at the bottom of Jo-Jo. That didn't get the same reaction, though. There's definitely a _thump_ when I land, although today I think I managed to keep the front wheel up enough to almost land flat. Ima call that a success too. So between those two and hitting the skinnies again, it was my first complete Jo-Jo run (I don't count the log skinnies -- _no one_ does those).

I also did Lower Backyard Trail from the off-leash trail, being careful this time not to turn off onto Stinger. Another successful run.

Really, the only outstanding item is that short stretch on Hett Creek just before it intersects with the Backyard Trail, where I've wiped out twice, wrecked one tire, and almost slid into the ravine. But no biggie. 😬 

Maybe next time.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*A perfect day*

Seriously, today I did everything right. No dabs, no unexpected falls, not even any pedal strikes worth mentioning. I even did all the features, _including _getting through that hard section at the bottom of Hett Creek that I usually walk. I nailed all the Jo-Jo features, including doing the drop at the bottom. I'm still coming down a little nose-first on that, but I think it's just a matter of getting the timing right on the launch. And I've confirmed that I have enough room on the landing to slow down for the corner, so I think I'll be okay on that one in the future. The ladder roll isn't even an event any more.

So for local stuff, I think my next goal is one of the drops at one of the bike parks. But there will be a full-face helmet and probably some upper-body armor for that.

On another subject, I've overheard several (positive) comments on my bikes as I've ridden by hikers, both here and in Whistler. I'm not sure if they just don't get out much, or if it's because I've started washing the bikes  . But either way, I guess the Trek Fuels really are nice-looking bikes.

On yet another subject, I'm still getting some numbness on my left hand after a while of riding. I'm fooling with the brake lever placement a bit to see if it will further alleviate things.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Some misc updates*

I moved the left brake lever around a bit, but it doesn't really seem to have helped. Might even be making it a bit worse. I'll try moving it in another direction to see if that works.

There were a couple of cyclists in the downhill section below the ladder roll, probably scoping out all the rock gardens and stuff. But I had to slow down to check that they weren't in my landing, so I hit the ladder roll a little slower than I should. No biffs, thank dog, but I felt my front wheel turn sideways for a moment as I went over the lip. So an item for the future--there is a minimum safe speed for going over things like that.

I'm not doing the weight shifting right going over the drop at the bottom of Jo-Jo. Instead of shifting back, I'm pulling up. it's still at least partially effective, but I really have to correct that. Interestingly, I was able to see myself come in for the landing today, whereas previously it was just jump/blur/land. So I think there's an aspect of habituation of the senses. Cool.

Going up Heritage Mountain blvd, I have a routine where I start in 3rd, shift to 2nd at a specific spot, and try to stay in 2nd as long as I can. Then I finish the climb in 1st, gasping and panting. Today I seemed to be having trouble. I couldn't get all the way to my spot to shift into 2nd, then I was struggling even with shifting early. When I finally gave up and shifted down to 1st, the bike shifted 2 gears. Derp. Started in the wrong gear. 🥴. OTOH, looked at as 4th, 3rd, 2nd, I did pretty damned good.

I got chased by a tribble on the trail today. Someone's small fluffy dog thought it was She-Ra, queen of the jungle, bringing down the mighty prey. Or something like that. The thing is, most of Bert Flinn is on-leash, except for the fire road. Most people have their dogs off-leash anyway, and I mostly couldn't care less because most people's dogs are well behaved or at worst too stupid to move. But if you have a dog you can't control in an on-leash area and it takes off after someone and bites them, you're looking at a world of trouble.

Mind you in this case, I think the tribble literally couldn't reach my legs.


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## Snowdaddy (Feb 2, 2018)

More pictures


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I took a kind of an odd spill today. More embarrassing than painful, really. I was going up the longer skinny near the bottom of Jo-Jo and I dropped off it to the left. No biggie, that's the shallow side. But then my right foot got caught between the bike and the edge of the skinny, and I went over the skinny to the right. Couldn't get my foot out to catch myself, so I just landed on my side.

So here's the thing. I wasn't hurt, except the back of my heel where I think I the pedal dug in when I was trying to pull my foot out. I wasn't even winded. I know this because I was able to swear fluently immediately. No blood, no bruises (so far), although I do expect to be sore later.

The point is, as I mentioned a few posts upstream, I'm way more concerned about consequences than I should be. I know you _can_ get badly hurt mountain biking, but let's face it, you can get badly hurt street biking. Or driving a car. At the level that I ride, and assuming I don't start doing those elevated log skinnies and North Shore ladders, I should really be okay. Mostly.

Anyway, other than that it was a mostly uneventful ride, except there were a half-dozen riders scattered around the ladder roll area for some reason. They stayed out of the way, though. And no tribble chases today.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I was right about being sore later. Looks like I bruised my hip in the fall, but not to the point where I'm limping or anything. Just can't sleep on my right side right now.

I took yesterday off, both to rest the hip and because I was on a roll with the writing. Today I was back out there, but I added North Starz to my route. It's not a supremely hard trail features-wise, just a couple of bridges and one rock drop that I may have to work my way up to. But it's kind of like Mama Bear in that it's twisty and rooty and technical. It also has some quick, steep climbs that were kicking my ass today. But that's okay--that's just practice.

And with the addition, my full route hits thirteen miles and just under a thousand calories.

I'll admit I was a little nervous about Jo-Jo today, after the spill the other day. But by the time I got there, I was thoroughly warmed up. I whipped through both skinnies, and even did the drop near the end. And it was a little less nose-heavy than last time. Hopefully I'll continue to improve on the weight-shifting.

I also went down Hett Creek and did the scary part again. I think one or two more disaster-free run-throughs and I'll be considering that one routine as well.

And I'm still getting more fit, I noticed today. Both the steep part of Backyard Bikes (just after the bridge) and the climb up Heritage Mtn Blvd are easier than previously. On the street climb, I'm going a little farther in 2nd each time before having to shift down.

There were a lot of bikes in the trails today. Not surprising, it being Labor Day weekend, I guess. But it wasn't really a problem.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm up in Whistler again. I've only gone riding twice this week, due to circumstances having nothing to do with biking. Wednesday was a pretty good ride, and not crowded at all. I'm amazed at _how much _the body count has dropped off since labor day.

There's a slight whiff of smoke in the air from the U.S. West Coast fires today; nothing like what we were getting last summer, and as long as it doesn't get worse, no biggie. But we're getting great weather right now, and I'd hate to have to skip on rides because of air quality.

Today I decided to wear my Insta360 on a chest mount and go ride some trails. The chest mount really isn't uncomfortable or obtrusive after about 2 minutes. And with the Apple Watch remote control app, controlling the camera is dead easy. The only downside is that when you're done for the day, you have to reboot the watch to get rid of the app as it won't go away on its own and it keeps trying to reconnect to the camera and sucking battery.

No big items to note on the ride, except it was over two and a quarter hours and I was pretty bagged by the end of it. Also, I dabbed on a couple of rock features that I seem to have a 50/50 success rate with. No real reason for it. I've decided, though, that I'm going to session any of those that I bail on next time. It's just practice.

I was also going to do No Horses today, but ran out of time. Maybe tomorrow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, sadly, the smoke seems to have made its way to Whistler. I went out early this morning to get in a ride, just in case. Given the state of the lower mainland, it seemed a reasonable concern--and justified as it turned out. The air was okay at 8am, but by 10-10:30 or so it was starting to haze up. I think it's just going to get worse over the course of the day.

I sessioned the entrance to Toads of the Short Forest, where that switchback makes it difficult to get around without dabbing. Finally nailed it, although I may not be done with that stretch. I also made the climb up to the top of the rock face on Toads without issue this time. First gear and a bit of standing did it.

I still failed on that hard section of Dwarf Nebula, though. Didn't session it, although I should have. Maybe next time.

I did have time to try a couple of new trails. I tried No Horses, and honestly I can ride the whole thing except about a fifty-foot section that was just narrow and rooty with deep drops. I walked that stretch, although with practice I think I could probably manage it.

I also went up and investigated Packard Goose, I'm Not Satisfied, and Why Johnny Can't Read. They are not as hard as Pinocchio's Furniture, although I'd say the first two are harder than Fountain of Love. But nothing beats the insane ladder bridges on Pinocchio, at least not in the blue trails.

Packard starts right off with an insane steep entrance, at least if you're following the 'preferred' direction from Trailforks. Satisfied has some wicked short, sharp climbs and turns. All are narrow. But I'm quite happy with how I handled them, all in all.

Anyway, I cut the ride short, and I will probably not go out tomorrow, unless the winds shift and everything magically clears up.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Smoky, not the bear*

It's smoky in Whistler. Not anything like the lower mainland, though--they're rated as some of the worst air in North America. That's insane. The predictors are saying it's going to lighten up a little over the rest of today, possibly helped by some rain tonight. Personally, I'm not heading back home until the air is as good (or at least as not bad) as Whistler.

So this is my second day with no riding, and I'm really antsy because I wanted to try No Horses again. There's also a small jump line at the skills park that I'd like to try out. But none of that is going to happen until the air's better.

I'm continuing to get better videos with the Insta360 as I learn more about what works and what doesn't. The next thing I want to do is try out the high-res module on a handlebar mount.

Waiting...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Some Stuff*

Well, I did manage to get a couple of rides in on Tuesday and yesterday (Wednesday), after checking the air quality advisories. Unfortunately today the air quality in Whistler has graduated to shitty. Predictions aren't looking great for the next couple of days, so we've made the decision to head home. If we're going to be stuck inside because of the air, we might as well be stuck where all of our stuff is.

The ride yesterday, Sept 16th, was my 100th riding day this year, which is a pretty cool milestone for me. Last year I have only 67 days recorded, although I don't appear to have started before June. Odd.

Anyway, I've avoided too strenuous of riding, because even though the air quality has been moderate, that's still not great. And I can feel the difference. I run out of wind that much sooner, and it takes that much longer to get it back. I also avoided No Horses because it's been a bit wet, and I don't think my first black trail should be attempted with the additional issue of wet roots and rocks. (The other day doesn't really count as I made a wrong turn and missed most of the trail.)

I'm also seriously eyeing that rock roll at the top of the Toads rock dome. I seem to be just this side of ready to try out rolls like that. Really, having mastered the ladder roll on Jo-Jo, I shouldn't have a problem.

So I don't know what the next couple of days (or weeks?) are going to be like. I can't go riding when the air is crappy. There's some rain come up in the forecast, which is good for the smoke and fires, but bad for the trails. Who knows?

On another subject, I bought the family passes for Seymour today. So now I'm covered for all three mountains: Seymour, Cypress, Whistler. Only Whistler has announced the reservation system, so far. I might conceivably end up staying in the lower mainland for most of the winter if things work out a certain way.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Things are getting better*

They've lifted the air quality advisory for the lower mainland as of today. The rain the last couple of days helped a lot, no doubt. Fortunately, it wasn't the normal biblical all-or-nothing deluge that we normally seem to get around here. A couple of showers, some overnight rain, no biggie. And more importantly, no puddles and mud on the trails--although the roots were a little zippy.

I'm continuing to fool around with my Insta360, trying to find the perfect way to take videos. I 've discovered that the 4K module takes really great videos, even if I can't pick a POV. I tried mounting it in front of the handlebars this morning on my ride. The result is pretty good, although the brake and dropper post cables ended up getting in the way. I'll try again with an extender to get the camera in front of the cables. I'll also try the 360 module in that position. I also need to try the chest mount and helmet mount again, although as mentioned, the helmet mount only really works with a full-face helmet.

Anyway, the actual ride was pretty good. I fell off the long skinny on Jo-Jo, but 'fell off' just means dropped off the side this time--no spill involved. The drop at the bottom of Jo-Jo was a good news / bad news kind of thing. I landed flat, which was good, but I landed almost off the right hand side of the trail while struggling to get my left foot back on the pedal properly. So a kind of a close call there. Nevertheless, the landing felt good, so I think I'm getting it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Another good day. I did the usual trails, and hit all the features that I normally try, and nailed all of them. I'm becoming more comfortable with the ladder roll, the two skinnies, and the drop on Jo-Jo. I'm even becoming, well let's say 'less uncomfortable' with the section of Hett Creek just above the bridge. I've nailed that something like 3 of the last 5 times, and the two fails were just dabs, not falling into the creek.

I mounted the camera at the front using the short extender, and that makes a difference not only to the video but also to convenience accessing the camera. Unfortunately, it still looks like a stroll in the park because of the stabilization, so I'll wear the chest mount the next time out, just for comparison.

I still need to add North Starz to my regular ride route. There's no reason I haven't already, except inertia. It's not even particularly difficult, except in the getting-out-of-breath sense. And speaking of which, I did the entire ride up Heritage Mountain Boulevard in 2nd today. That's a new high.

Sadly, there may or may not be any more rides this week. The predictors are not looking optimistic. Even actual thunderstorms. We shall see.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I managed to get in one last ride before the waters of hell descended upon us. I did the full route including North Starz, which was great.

Now we have what looks like a week worth of rain, in the form of several storm fronts coming in one after the other. There will be no trail-riding for a few days, I think.

I did manage to get in some Insta360 videos on my most recent ride. I really don't think a handlebar-mounted camera is the way to go. It just doesn't give the proper flavor. The chest mount is much better, but not perfect in that the front of the bike blocks some trail detail. I will be trying out a helmet mount with the unicorn/rhino extension. That might do better, but as mentioned before, it requires a full-face helmet to prevent wobble.

More to come.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, so assuming I can ride tomorrow (the predictors are optimistic), then I'll have gone 4 days between rides. Jeez, I'm even more addicted to mountain biking than I am to snowboarding, I think. Of course, my early snowboarding career involved waiting 5 days between snowboarding sessions every week, so maybe I've got herd immunity to that. Or something. 🥴

Something I forgot to mention in my previous post though... I discovered a technique while riding up the hill towards home on my last ride. As I've mentioned previously, I practice precision riding by trying to stay between the expansion joint lines on driveways as I ride up on the sidewalk. I think they're maybe 4-6 " across. Some days I've been really good, some days I've sucked. But the other day I figured out the variable. I suck when I sit up straight with my arms mostly straight, and I do much better when I'm crouched down (even when seated). Mechanically, it makes sense. Being crouched gives me more slack with which to extend my arms to the right or left to make adjustments. I just never realized it was that important. Note for the future.

I'm currently watching rock roll videos on youtube. There are a couple of rock rolls, one in Whis, one in Coquitlam, that I've been avoiding because rock roll. But at some point, I have to bite the bullet. I'd be happier if I could watch someone go down them first, but I have to accept the fact that my timing is never that good. So, videos. So far it doesn't look bad. The Coquitlam roll is probably the preferred starter, since the bottom is mostly loam, which should be relatively painless to stop my face with if I bugger it up.

And one last item, I did manage to get all the way up Heritage in second gear the ride before last. So the improvements are real.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Argh!*

Riding through Bert Flinn today, and my rear brake started to squeak again. Same as last time. I cut my ride short and headed home before it got too bad. I washed the bike, just in case dirt was involved, and played with the pads. The pads are definitely both moving, so it's not a seized puck. Or maybe it was seized and has released. Either way, I rode it around the parking lot afterward, and no squeak. But if it starts to go again, I'm going to ask the tech to just replace the entire assembly.

I made a decision today while riding to not avoid rocks and shit any more. I've tended to ride around them whenever possible, and I think that timidity has slowed my progress. Yesterday I saw a guy deliberately roll over the rock that's dead center in the walking trail. And he wasn't that good otherwise. So now I'm running over everything. Hopefully I'll gradually get more aggressive with what I aim at, and hopefully it'll help my stability.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The wash didn't fix the squeak, sadly. However, I've figured out the pattern. Hard peddling and/or compression of the rear suspension seems to cause the squeak. That leads me to believe that the caliper is slightly misaligned and/or the wheel has some play. I'm going to try the following:

1. Realign the caliper.
2. Check the wheel for tightness and play.
3. Remove the brake pads and clean them.

If none of that fixes it (I am not going to disassemble the brake system to the point where I'd need to bleed it), I'll take it in to Trek and just ask them to replace the entire rear brake assembly. (As mentioned earlier).

This is a long shot, but there's a zip strap around some of my cables in front of the handlebars. If that's causing some kind of change of geometry that forces the hydraulic fluid to close the pucks... Yeah, I dunno, it sounds dumb to me too. But I'm going to cut off the strap anyway. It was there for keeping the cables out of the way of the camera, and I've given up on that option anyway.

On the subject of my actual ride today...

I did North Starz again. Wow, that trail is an ass-kicker. It's not a particularly hard blue overall, but it has several short, punchy first-gear climbs with switchbacks. Those will work the skillz, you bet. I spun my rear tire on the first one, but learned to modulate a bit after that. There's also a pretty impressive rock roll at one point in the trail, which strangely doesn't look quite as big as it did the first time I examined it. The ride-out worries me a little, though.

There's another rock roll on Starz Line 2, which isn't quite as big and has a better ride-out. I finally hit that one today. As usual with such things, the reality wasn't as scary as my imagination painted it. I don't think I'll have trouble with that one. And with a little bit more desensitization, I'll probably be able to do the one on North Starz soon.

Other than that, I did all the usuals, except Hett Creek, because the squeak was getting bad. But that's okay, I was pretty wiped after the North Starz ride. I think the drop at the bottom of Jo-Jo is getting to be routine, and there's another drop on Starz Line 2 that I'll be trying out in the future. It's a bit close to the rock roll though, so I have to make sure I can come out of that feature dependably, so I can get the momentum going.

One last very small issue... the trails in the Starz Line area are all interconnected, and I think some of them don't show up on Trailforks. So I've gotten lost a time or two, although I do always seem to end up down at the bottom of Jo-Jo anyway.

And I'm now dependably coming in under 195 and 38" waist, so that's another milestone.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Donutz said:


> 1. Realign the caliper.
> 2. Check the wheel for tightness and play.
> 3. Remove the brake pads and clean them.


Take some fine sandpaper to the brake pads for just a few passes, and cleaning the rotors themselves with some isopropyl alcohol should do the trick. Make sure to re-bed in the brakes though, just a few roll downs gentle on the brakes to get pad material back onto the calipers, trying not to come to any abrupt stops.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Phedder said:


> Take some fine sandpaper to the brake pads for just a few passes, and cleaning the rotors themselves with some isopropyl alcohol should do the trick. Make sure to re-bed in the brakes though, just a few roll downs gentle on the brakes to get pad material back onto the calipers, trying not to come to any abrupt stops.


I did a close examination of the whole caliper, and the inside puck is definitely not retracting. Not quite frozen, but definitely has its range of motion reduced. New calipers aren't expensive, so I think I'll probably just ask the shop to swap it. About time for new pads anyway.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, the smoke is back. Not nearly as bad as before, I think mostly because this wave is coming all the way up from California and probably thins a little over that distance. But it's enough to make the horizon disappear into a haze, and it's enough to make riding hard uncomfortable. I could feel it this morning whenever I started panting. After a while I just packed it in. I think if I go out at all tomorrow, it'll just be up to the school field to do some techniques. And maybe Coquitlam river and back.


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## NT.Thunder (Jan 4, 2020)

The fires look really bad, seeing them on the telly most nights here in Oz so here's hoping they're under control soon enough.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The air is better today, at least down at ground level. The high-altitude haze is definitely there, but it seems to be staying aloft. I went for a ride today and didn't feel it in my lungs. I even did the extended route that includes North Starz. I did the rock roll again on Starz Line 2, but couldn't bring myself to launch off the rollable drop. I may have to session that one.

Did all the features on Jo-Jo, including the drop at the bottom--which, come to think of it, is possibly higher than the one on Starz Line 2. Derp. Oh, well, one thing at a time.

I'm regularly pedaling up Heritage Mtn Blvd in 2nd now, and today I did my home stretch in 3rd. So definitely getting stronger and more stamina. My weight is stuck around 195 right now, but I've plateaued every 5 pounds or so since I started keeping track. No biggie, I have another month and a half to two months of riding before the mountains open. And even at 195, I think I'll feel a lot better about my boarding this year.

I checked my rear suspension today because I've felt like it was bottoming out lately. Pressure is right, and my sag is right, but the little ring was close to the bottom of the range when I got back, so I've turned up my rebound speed a bit. Unfortunately, the EX 7 doesn't have a lot of adjustment on the compression setting. It's on medium, and it's basically that or full off or full on. I'll check what the EX 8 has the next time I'm up in Whistler. This might be the excuse I need to buy a new bike. Assuming I can find one.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm up in Whistler for a couple of days, and I went biking this morning. I'm trying out the Insta360 on a helmet mount. I've used my old Giro full-face because it has about the best camera mount accessory I've ever seen--the thing is solid and doesn't vibrate at all, and mounts toward the front. Unfortunately, the Giro collects my breath a little too much, so my glasses are always on the edge of fogging up, so I don't think it's a useful long-term strategy.

The Bell helmets have a camera mount that honestly makes me less confident--both in terms of wobble and in terms of staying put. I'll probably try it tomorrow, but really just for completeness. I did the helmet-mount videos today and while they're an interestingly different perspective, they're not what I'd call compelling. For starters, they work best in portrait mode--in landscape, you either focus on the ground in front of the bike or the middle distance. The former doesn't give you the bigger picture, and the latter might as well be a handlebar mount.

All in all, I haven't been able to come up with anything that's better than a chest mount. It seems to give the best combination of a view of upcoming terrain plus a feel for what the bike is going over, thanks to the handlebars bouncing in the foreground. And landscape mode works best.

And on that subject, I found a site that sells a backpack with a chest mount adapter available for the straps. The ideal merging of both worlds, as far as I'm concerned. I think the only unknown at this point is whether I should use one of my short extenders to stick the camera a little farther forward to get a better view. Something I'll have to try.

Oh, and I got an underwater shell for the Insta360. It's an aftermarket job from Telesin, and honestly, it's better than what Insta is trying to foist on us. One foible I learned this morning, though--condensation is a thing. I did some videos only to discover a big ol' foggy patch right in the middle of the forward lens. Of course. The solution is to put the camera and shell out on the patio for a few minutes to let temps equalize, then seal it in. There are also drying packets that I can stick in with the camera if I want to bother.

So getting around to my actual ride, which is really what the whole thing is about... I didn't do anything excessive, just Molly Hogan and Tin Pants and the route down from Dwarf Nebula. However, I sessioned Dwarf four times, circling around on the fire road, because I just couldn't get through some of the moves today for some reason. Sessioning is definitely the way to go, though. By the fourth try I was able to get all the way through.

And, big news of the day (drum roll), I did the drop at the top of Toads. As with most of the other stuff, the reality wasn't nearly as bad as my anticipatory terror. This drop is actually worse (steeper and deeper) than the one on North Starz in Bert Flinn, so there really is no excuse any longer.

Overall, a fun morning, although I have to say, it's getting cold quickly in Whistler. Temp was around 11c when I left. But that's okay, I have the kit for it.


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## BoardieK (Dec 21, 2015)

Any snow up there yet?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

BoardieK said:


> Any snow up there yet?


A little bit at the top.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Second day in Whistler. Went riding again today, but I decided to not bother with the camera and just have some fun. I did a lot of the usual trails, and was much better at handling natural features today. I really can't decide if my first-day problem is from switching bikes, or because the terrain in Whistler is fundamentally different from the terrain in Coquitlam. I suspect it might be a bit of both.

Interestingly, I'm really starting to warm up to the EX 8. I know I was a little ambivalent about it when I first got it, being more used to the EX 7. But I find now that the 8 is just more solid and predictable, and the brakes and transmission are simply smoother. More expensive parts, I guess. I suspect I may be subconsciously trying to convince myself that it's time for a new bike. 🤨

I did the rock roll on Toads again, so I'm now convinced the first time wasn't a fluke. I also slipped a bit on the rocky section just after the rock roll--nothing to do with the roll, just a slippery patch of rock. It clued me in to the fact that morning dew is going to be an increasingly important consideration, though. Between that and the temps, I will probably have to ride a little later in the morning in the future.

I also did No Horses beginning to end. I got off the bike twice; once to check a drop for chain-ring clearance, and once because the roll-down was a wet combination of rock, loam, and pine needles. No bueno, big time. I don't think I'd have a problem with that feature in better conditions, but I don't think my first attempt should happen when conditions are sketchy. Other than that, No Horses is an interesting trail and not too difficult for a black.

I found today that I'm getting a lot more comfortable with ladder bridges. I'm still cautious with them, but I'm relaxing enough to be able to take them sitting or standing, seat up or down.

Anyway, back to Coquitlam tomorrow, just in time to avoid some crap weather here.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm back in Coquitlam, and I went riding this afternoon before the rain sets in. The current predictors are for several days of meh to yech weather, so I'm not really sure what to expect.

I brought the EX 8 back from Whistler so I'd have something to ride while the EX 7 is in the shop. I've asked them to look at that squeaky rear brake and do something about it, but I'm also getting a full service done at the same time because why not.

Meanwhile, this is the first time that I've been able to ride the 8 on the same trails as the 7 since I first bought it. And being used to both bikes means I can really feel and appreciate the differences. And boy, are there differences. The EX 8 is definitely a better-riding bike. It's quicker and more responsive yet at the same time more stable. The brakes and transmission are obviously better since they make up the lion's share of the difference in price between the two models. But what was a revelation to me is how much of a perceptible difference that makes. I rode the same trails quicker, with less wobble and more confidence. And my manuals are better, which is probably down to the suspension.

Now I really need to buy another bike. 🤬


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Camera work*

Things cleared up this morning just enough to be able to go for a ride. Lots of puddles of course after yesterday's monsoon, and the roots are pretty zippy. But I did the main trail, Black Dog, then went down to Coquitlam River park and back up. It's not a challenging ride, but it _is_ exercise.

I wore the new USWE backpack with the camera chest mount adapter. I used the day to test a couple of different options: camera with or without the Telesin diving case, camera with or without the 3" extension on the mount, and 360 lens vs 4K lens.

So, first takeaway: chest mounts are simply the best mount point. Nothing I've been able to come up with even comes close. I suppose a camera suspended on a pole over my shoulder might do a good POV video, but the chance of the camera tangling with the foliage is just too high. So, chest mount.

Second, diving case. The Telesin diving case causes a slight issue with stitching. Not horrible, but noticeable. But unless you're swinging the POV around like a drunken sailor, it really isn't much of an issue. The diving case also has a small tendency to fog up if you install the camera in a warm room, then go outdoors where it's cooler. A simple fix is to open the case once you're outside and let the temps equalize. I think the image is slightly more clear without the diving case, but the case really protects the camera. This one comes down to personal choice, I think.

Third, extension arm. Totally unnecessary. Honestly, if I hadn't announced the build at the beginning of the videos, I wouldn't be able to tell. So I'm going without the extender.

And last, lens type. The 4K image is definitely way more clear. You can't pick or adjust POV, which may or may not end up being a major issue. Based on my small experience from today, the POV is perfectly fine for picking up the details of the ride. The 360 image, of course, lets you pick your POV, but with the chest mount there isn't really a lot of flexibility beyond up and down. So ultimately it'll be a choice of better quality overall image or better fine-tuning of the image framing.

The dashboard items, it turns out, are only available if the camera is being controlled by something with a built-in GPS. The phone obviously works fine. I have to test if the watch works. And there's some indication that the Insta remote might work as well. More testing. But one way or the other, being able to add slope, speed, compass direction, and path to the video is a huge bonus.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Rain*

I went out yesterday morning, hoping to get a ride in before the next wave or rain came in. I almost made it. Partway down Jo-Jo it started to rain, and by the time I got back up to the top it was pouring. So, short ride. Today I went late in the afternoon, when the weather finally cleared up enough. Again, short ride. I guess they're good for exercise, so not a waste, but I'm not getting any technique practice to speak of.

I am, however, starting to wear cold-weather kit. So I guess we've reached that point in the season.

It's also worth mentioning that all three local mountains got snow yesterday (Oct 11). That's got to be some kind of record. Of course it melted right away, but the first snowfall always does. It's symbolic. With Whistler, maybe less so. There's a layer of snow at the top of the Whistler Gondola, and it looks like it's going to stay. If this is at all representative, we may be looking at an actual good snow year.

I've got a lot going on right now. I've got the EX 7 in for a Level 3 tune-up, which is the expensive one. But I've been riding the bike hard for 3 years now, and it's about time for some TLC. After this, the bike will probably be good for another couple of seasons, then it's trade-up time.

I've also ordered the USWE backpack with the back protection. I'll see how that does as a combination back-protection/backpack/hydration holder/camera mount.

I'm going to test the Insta remote with the camera tonight or tomorrow, to see if it supplies the GPS and other stats. If it does, I think that'll be my preferred controller.

On the snowboarding front, I've checked with the Boardroom, and they think they'll have all their snowboarding stuff in by the end of next week. But meanwhile, I'm going up to Whistler, so I may find stuff there. What I'm primarily looking for are bindings. I need a new set to go with the Rome Blur, but I also need to replace the Union bindings that I seem to have ended up with after unloading some of my boards last season. I've come to the conclusion that I like Flow, Now, and Rome bindings, and will probably stick with those brands until and unless I get direct evidence that something else should be considered.

I'm also trying to get hold of some of the new Anon kit, like masks and particular lenses. But the Burton site is an absolute shit-show. Stuff goes from 'coming soon' to 'out of stock' with nothing in the middle. I've written them an email, and I actually expect an answer. Their customer service is quite responsive, if totally ineffectual against some really stupid-ass management decisions.

I shouldn't need much in the way of new stuff this year. I've got plenty of clothing, layers, socks, boots, boards, etc. after my spending spree last year. And I've lost enough weight that everything will fit me 'well' to 'loose'. That's great, because it leaves room for the protective gear, which I also have lots of.

Going to be a great season. I'm going to keep biking as long as possible and start boarding as soon as possible. Not sure when I'll have time to sleep, but oh well.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Camera Notes*

This is for the Insta360 One R. As mentioned in previous posts, I've been trying to work out the conditions under which I can add GPS stats to a recording, such as path, elevation, slope, etc. Having completed my research, this is what I've found:

1. You have to turn on GPS tracking. You do this using the phone app. While in viewfinder mode, press the hexagon at the top right, then turn on the GPS icon. As far as I can tell, this sets it in the camera, so once it's on, it's on.
2. You have to be controlling the camera using either the GPS remote, Apple Watch, or iPhone app. If you use the camera buttons, you don't get GPS tracking, even if the phone is connected.
3. In the case of the GPS remote, you have to wait for it to pick up the GPS signals and get 3 bars. It's very similar to my old Garmin watch, in that I'd be standing on a street corner for up to a couple of minutes until the watch latched onto the signals.
4. In the case of the phone app (and possibly the watch app as well), the app has to _always_ have access to your location. _When Using App_ isn't good enough, because as soon as the phone goes to lock screen or black screen, you lose the GPS tracking.

If you have it working properly, a _Stats_ option will be available when viewing a recorded video, along with _Download_, _Trim_, _Speed_, etc. If _Stats_ isn't available, you didn't record GPS.

That is all.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Damn it's cold*

I got up this morning to go riding, then looked at the temps. 3.5c. Holy God. Waited an extra hour, and finally went out when it hit 5c. I'm wearing the long riding pants now, which helps a bit, and a merino overlayer. Did okay mostly, although I might have to consider a lower base layer as well. When I was done, my abdomen was that bright red that I used to get when running in the winter.

I'm ready to ride as late into the year as possible, but boy I gotta tell ya, I don't like the cold. I might even start wearing the full-face just for the extra insulation. I'm more concerned, though, about wet rocks, roots, and ladders. Granted, we're just getting off some rainstorms, but everything was damp today. I was careful, but it's concerning.

Two things of significance happened. First, my right shoe's lace randomly got snarled with the pedals and started wrapping with each stroke, until suddenly I couldn't pedal any farther. Of course, I started going over to the right, with my foot literally tied to the pedal. Fortunately I thought to do a dismount to that side and saved it. But irritating.

The second thing happened on the rock roll at the top of the Toads rock dome. It was a little damp (as mentioned) so I had to be careful about braking, so I almost didn't handle the transition out. But again, saved it. Not so irritating, more like reassuring.

All in all, a relatively uneventful ride (the best kind), and most importantly, I got my exercise.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Snowboarding!*

It's coming up on snowboarding season, so I have to start transferring my obsession from mountain biking to snowboarding. So here goes...

It's looking like a good season coming up. There was snow on the locals back on Oct 11th, which is probably a record of some kind. Whistler's already got snow at the top of the gondola, and the other day I could see snow on the lower runs from village level. Sure, there's always the possibility of a warm front moving in, but the overall trend looks good.

I'm concerned about my Whistler pass, though. It's on auto-renew, but they haven't taken the payment yet. I can't get through to customer service because the Whistler customer service office is closed and the 800 number just thanks me for my interest and hangs up. I've sent an email, that being the only remaining option, but no joy so far.

I posted this six months ago, and it's time to reiterate: I need to read these old posts at the beginning of the season, to remind myself what this season is going to be about:


18/19 season recap
Beginning of 19/20 season expectations and plans
19/20 season recap

And the last item--gear. I've got all the clothing I need. I got rid of about half my boards last season, and bought a Rome Blur. Unfortunately I sold a couple of my boards with my Rome DOD and Targa bindings. I should have swapped the Unions onto them, since I've found I don't much care for the Unions. I'll make a point of re-trying the Unions before I make a final decision, but I think I'm going to try to replace them. And I don't have a binding at all for the Blur. I'm hoping to pick up some Rome Katanas for that board, and I think I'll move it to Whistler. Maybe bring the Heritage with the Flows back to the lower mainland.

And that's about it, for now. Season is a'coming!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Mountain Biking recap*

It's probably a bit early to do this, as mountain biking season isn't really over. However, the weather is getting wetter and colder, which means I will be riding more conservatively from here on in, concentrating more on keeping my conditioning up rather than trying for new highs.

For me, this was an excellent MTB season. For some reason, everything started to click this year. I've started doing rock rolls, rock gardens, drops, skinnies, ladders, and while I'm still not doing trails at speed, I'm certainly not creeping down them any more. I think my only regret is that I never visited the Burnaby Mountain Air Skills Park. And really, that was just a case of not wanting to go to the trouble.

Next year, I hope to start doing jumps (small ones), drops (slightly bigger ones), and taking on more challenging trails. Two trails that are good harbingers are No Horses and Pinocchio's Furniture in Whistler. If I can get to the point of doing those routinely, I think I'll call that a good season.

I'm also considering again the idea of doing some Whistler Bike Park. I still don't think I want to spend the $$ on a downhill bike and season pass, but maybe a couple of day lessons would be good. There are skills I think I could pick up that I'm just not getting on my own. Or alternatively, there are some bike clinics and private coaching companies that I could consider. Dunno, I'll have to see.

But one thing's for sure. This is my summer snowboarding replacement. And I'm not entirely sure I can call it my 'off-season' sport any more.


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## Easyrider17 (Oct 9, 2020)

Sweet, biking season for me starts when the weather gets above 40 degrees and stops when it gets below that. I definitely do both snowboarding and biking during shoulder seasons.

You don't need a dedicated DH bike for Whistler. Any decent, modern trail bike will do until you want to do the more rough and difficult double blacks. Even then you can do them on a trail bike, but they get even more difficult.

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went for a bike ride this morning. I really needed it after two days off. It's all about weather, these days. The weather report says this is an unusually cold October, and a lot of that probably has to do with the levels of cloud/precip. I'm conflicted on this, because while a cold fall is bad for mountain biking, it's good for an early snowboarding season.

But the important thing is that I _did _get that ride in, because as I write this, it's pouring rain. WTF? The problem with even scattered rain or occasional showers is that it keeps the roots wet. And far more than wet rocks or mud wallows, wet roots are the bane of mountain biking.

I did the full meal deal today, except that I substituted Starz Line 2 for upper Jo-Jo. I wanted to try the small rock roll again, and take a shot at the drop just past it. I did the rock roll with no trouble, and I think I'm going to have to categorize that particular feature as _routine_ now. The drop was a tiny bit more interesting. I scoped it out, and it didn't look bad at all, so I backed up and took a run at it. I did everything right except that I came down a little too far to the left on the trail. I'm not sure if I went in crooked or if the drop is pointed a bit left of trail center, but whatever. The result was that I almost went over a log that marks the left edge of the trail. Braked just in time, but had to hop off and almost dropped the bike.

I actually had a pretty bad day, fail-wise, at least in terms of count. I had the dab mentioned above, plus I screwed the pooch on one of the rock garden sections on lower Jo-Jo and ended up putting the bike down. I didn't go down, and I'm beginning to think I may be learning how to recover from those kinds of bails. I also dropped off the second skinny, but again recovered fine. The high point of the Jo-Jo run, though, was that I executed the final drop beautifully. So that one isn't quite routine, since I still have trepidation, but it's essentially mastered.

I finished the day with the Hett Creek run. When I got to the root garden before the bridge, I initially had some crazy idea of trying to ride it out. Nope. The moment my tires hit the first roots, the bike started picking random compass headings. Ended up walking it, and I think that should be official policy. That section is _dangerous_ when wet.

Other than that, it was a nice ride, if a bit cold.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*SNOW!!*

It's snowing in Whistler, at village level. It's snowing on all three locals. Woot!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Brrrrrr!*

While it is possible that the temps are going to come up again, it seems unlikely, at least for more than a day or two here or there. At this point, the trails are all wet and slimy, and at these temps they don't dry quickly. Essentially, the mountain biking season is over, although I may still be able to get in the occasional limited ride. I _will _keep practicing techniques in front of the house, using my Insta camera to track my progress. But although that's exercise, it's not the same as a full ride.

Meanwhile, all the mountains with snow guns are running them full-tilt right now. Even though the predictors are showing a temps bump in a couple of days, it still helps to have a bunch of snow on the ground to keep the ground temp down. It's time to start breaking out the snowboarding gear.

Some small items to aim for next spring when MTB season comes around again:

1. Finally hit that rock roll on North Starz. This really isn't much of an issue--the one on Toads is scarier.
2. Start hitting bike skills parks. I visited Burnaby a few days ago and there's lots of opportunity there.
3. Practice jumps. Both Burnaby Mtn and Whistler have a beginner tabletop jump line. No reason not to.
4. Work on techniques. Now that I've figured out the Insta and the tripod, it's both easy and very, very informative.
5. Start practicing going down trails with less braking.
6. Nail bunny hops.

That's it. I'm really not going to commit to a ton of aggressive resolutions. If I can end 2021 having done all these things, I will consider it a complete success.

For my snowboarding goals, post #502 above lists the old posts that I need to reference. I'll do a recap of the items in those posts as soon as I've reviewed and digested them.

This may just turn out to be my best snowboarding season yet.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Plans for this season*

Okay, so let’s get started on summarizing the 2020/21 snowboarding goals.

First, general technique items:

On toesides, I need to make sure my form is good. Hump the air, keep horizon level, keep weight centered.
On heelsides, don’t kick into a braking maneuver. Try to make my heelside turns symmetrical with my toesides. Squat and bend the knees to save the quads.
At speed, fight the slope less. No cross-slope turns more than 45 degrees. If I need to slow, do a slash-brake.
Fast S-turns on moderate slopes, C-turns on steeper slopes as necessary. Bombing steep sections is about strategy.
Do turns from the hip, not the shoulders. Keep the lead hand slightly heelside of center.
Modify my expectations to match the conditions. Going slow in fog and icy conditions is not failure.
On moguls, work on keeping weight forward. Leaning back is doom. Try to carve the sides of the moguls instead of following the troughs. Try to use windshield-wiper turns to scrub speed. Plan my path instead of just blindly charging in.
Strategy items:

Decide when to hit the mountain. In icy conditions, going up first thing is pointless and not really enjoyable anyway.
Vary my location. Don’t hit family bowl all the time. Make a list of runs on the mountain, and hit at least one new one every session.
Don’t quit after two hours, no matter how tired I am. Change locale, or work on small techniques, or take a break.
Try to follow other snowboarders that seem a little faster than me. This forces me outside my comfort zone.
Ride bumpy terrain and side-hits whenever possible. In and out of the trees. Getting used to being tossed around is excellent for improving balance.
Explore a little. Some of the stuff we visited on my lessons are runs I'd probably never find on my own normally.
Specific techniques:

Practice things like penguin walk, ollies, nose rolls, nose and tail manuals. Maybe even ground-spins.
Practice switch. A lot. I should pick a slope and practice going down the entire way switch. Up the ante once I’m successful.
Do the jump line early. It only takes 3-4 times through it to start to get the rhythm, and once I’m comfortable, I will hit it regularly. Wear armour those days if desired to make it a little easier.
Other plans:

Use the Insta360. Getting vids of my technique is incredibly valuable.
Desensitize myself to speed early. It makes a huge difference to my riding once I start bombing without chickening out. Don’t wait for it to just “come naturally” this year.
Get low, and keep legs loose. I always start the year with stiff, straight legs. Get over that. Following undulating terrain requires loose legs, bent knees.
Try to move up slightly in park features. Larger jumps, boxes, maybe a pipe.
Try to wear armour whenever possible. It makes a difference to my confidence. And with the weight I’ve managed to shed this year, I should be able to do it without feeling bulky.
Watch some snowboarding videos as obsessively as I’ve been watching MTB videos. Try out the techniques presented therein.
I have passes for Whistler, Seymour, and Cypress. Seymour is the default goto for weekday riding in the lower mainland, since they aren't busy and have no restrictions for pass holders. Cypress is unknown at the moment. For Whistler, it is conceivable that pandemic restrictions will make weekends tolerable. Test it out.

I will edit this post to add things if I think of them, so I’ll have it all in one place.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Nope*

Well, I have put away all the summer and biking stuff at Whistler, and brought out all the winter/snowboarding stuff. It may be possible to ride bike into November in the lower mainland, but not in Whis. Temps come up above 6 degrees for about one hour a day, if it's reasonable weather. And the snow is sticking now, so the trails aren't going to be in wonderful condition anyway. I'll keep both bikes at home and hope for the occasional day there.

Meanwhile in Whis, the snow line keeps going up and down. In Whistler Creek, there's at least some snow almost all the way to the bottom. IIRC, Whistler announced a Nov 18 opening. I don't know how they figure they can do that, but last year they surprised me. Whatever, I'll take what I can get.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Huh.*

I managed to get rides in yesterday and today, which brings my total for the month of October to 18. That's not great, but it's not terrible either. I think my biggest month had 22 rides. So I don't feel so bad, now. Of course, all my rides for November will be in Coquitlam.

Yesterday it was wet and greasy and splashy and damp. And wet. Very, very wet. Today, not so bad, although I still had to hose off my bike at the end. I did the full run, including Jo-Jo, and did all features except the drop at the end. Just wasn't feeling that one.

So far at least, my fitness doesn't seem to be dropping off. If I can manage to get rides in on one out of three days between now and opening of any mountain, I'll be happy. Once I'm able to get on the mountain, I can let that take over for fitness.

I got tired of waiting for my Park Tool bike stand and ordered a no-name from Amazon. I've already used it a couple of times, and it is more than good enough for my purposes. Makes washing the bike dead easy, whether it's just a hosing or a full scrub-down. It's also good for things like adjusting the transmission. If and when the Park Tool comes in, I can put one of them in Whistler, continuing my policy of having full resources in both places.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Memorable Day*

And not in a good way. I went riding today. Beautiful day, blue sky, warm for Nov 1st. Hell, warm for September. Stuff was even drying out. Everything was good until I was riding out Mama Bear. I met a rider and his (off-leash) dog coming the other way, and squeezed over so we could get past each other. I felt a nip on my calf, looked down, and the goddam dog had bitten me. The owner fortunately didn't go with defiance as a tactic or I think I would have stuffed the dog down his throat. Instead I mentioned the reality of lawsuits and moved on. Didn't see him around after that, so I assume he did the smart thing and took his dog home.

But it's a real problem around Bert Flinn. Either no one knows where the off-leash area is, or no one cares. I've written twice to the city about it now. But I think my tolerance for unruly dogs has just come to an end.

The other thing that happened today was more interesting. In the Chinese way. I was riding Jo-Jo, just past the big A-frame and coming up to the last drop, and I came face to face with a very large, fat, black bear. My wife thinks it was the one that destroyed a car last night in Port Moody. Anyway, I scared the bear more than it scared me, because it went straight up a tree. Fuck, those things can climb fast. Twenty-five feet up a tree faster than I could brake. So i turned the bike around, did a "nothing to see here", and rode on up the trail. I met another group just coming down, and we all decided to go down together while making lots of noise. Seemed to work.

The irritating thing is that I was thinking of wearing my camera today and decided not to. Dammit, first the deer, now the bear. I think maybe I should wear it at all times from now on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Misc things*

First, biking. I went for a couple of rides today and yesterday. Yesterday was still too wet and too damned cold, so it was a short one. Today was the full course, although I'm still avoiding roots. Zipped on a couple, too. But I've still got most of my stamina, as measured by going up the 12% grade at the bottom of Hett Creek, and going back up Heritage Blvd afterwards. Nothing in particular to report--it was fun but uneventful. I'm going to miss biking this winter, I think.

On the Seymour side of things, they've got a new web sales system and it looks like they lost my season pass from last year. No catastrophe, they have my purchases for this season, and wife and daughter will be auto-loaded (for some reason, they could find _their_ cards). I've uploaded a new pic and I'll probably have to re-sign the release, and I'll get a new card mailed to me. Oh, well.

Cypress released their COVID policies for this winter. Honestly, it's an amazing exercise in vagueness. As far as I can tell, they're going to do things, and it'll result in things. Oh, there are some specifics, relating to no cash transactions and lift-line etiquette and such. But I came away after reading the article thinking _whaaaaaat?_ As near as I can tell, though, no reservation system for season pass holders. So that means both Seymour and Cypress should be more or less the same as ever on weekdays. Works for me.

Whistler's reservation system opened today. By the time I got on, there were more than 100K people ahead of me. Moment of panic, then I realized that's for _all _Vail properties. Once I got my turn (took 3 hours), I found the Whistler reservations to be pretty much open. I could have booked the Xmas week if I'd wanted to, but I already talked that out with my wife. We're going to avoid Whistler around Christmas this year. Instead I booked 7 days in Spring Break, which actually is usually a really good time to go. I've still got to experience the rolling-reservation system. We'll see how that goes.

And Whistler is expecting to open on Nov 28th, which will probably be mostly a man-made WROD. But maybe not... predictors are looking pretty good, and it's damned cold out there.

Yesterday and today, I spent some time converting from MTB season to snowboarding season. All the winter stuff is out, all the bike stuff is going into storage. Or _almost_ all. I've kept out a day or two of kit, just in case I find I can get some riding in.

Oh, and I have ordered a set of Katanas through Comor and a set of Cleavers through Rome Canada. The Cleavers arrived yesterday and I've installed them on the Blur. It looks great, and I love the straps on the Cleavers. Should be no slippage at all. I seriously might consider ordering some extra toe straps and trying them out on the Now bindings, if the 3D caps don't work well.

The Blur is going up to Whistler. I'll have the Blur, the EJack, and the Heritage there; and the PYL and the Proto HD here. Depending on how well the Blur does for me, there might be some shuffling later.

I am so looking forward to snowboarding season this year, for so many reasons. 1) It is just possible that the COVID thing will result in lower attendance on the mountains; 2) I'm in better shape this year than I have been for at least 5 years; 3) I really have a good grip on what my deficiencies are and what I need to work on; 4) Because of mountain biking, I think my risk aversion will be down a lot; and 5) I've got three fucking mountains available and what looks like a good snow season coming up.

Game on!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*More misc things*

Alex Trebek is dead.

Yeah, not snowboard or biking related, but still sad. Howie Meeker died as well. Also sad.

The province and Dr. Henry have clamped down again because of the alarming rise in COVID cases. No unnecessary travel, bubble includes only immediate family, etc for 2 weeks. I don't mind 2 weeks, but I hope it doesn't extend into the actual ski season. Actually, it's not clear if the current level of restrictions would affect the hills, but still...

It's snowing at home as I write this. Piddly little flakes and they aren't sticking, but any snow is good snow.

I went for a bike ride yesterday. It was right at the edge of the temps where I say _fuck that_, but I put on an underlayer up top and went anyway. Note for next time: use a thicker underlayer, and also wear a lower. Still fun and good exercise, though.

I'm still trying to get in touch with Whistler customer service about my locker at Blackcomb base. Still seems to be closed.

I feel like I'm sitting on hold. Everything is paused. I sure hope 2020 hasn't been saving the best for last, like an asteroid strike or something.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Opening Day on Cypress*

Queue the trumpets...

I left a couple of hours before the opening bell, hoping to get there early and get a good parking spot. Damn good thing I did, too. It took an hour just to get to the freeway. But smooth sailing after that, and I did pretty good with the parking.

The snow was terrific. If we got snow like that all the time, it would be a great season. Obviously more would be preferable, but I didn't actually see any bare patches on the sections that were open.

I brought the Blur with me, and also the PYL as backup in case the Blur turned out to be a problem. Almost switched to the PYL, but I stuck it out. It's too soon to do any kind of review of the Blur, as I'm still getting my snowboarding legs back. I think I'd have to put in a full day first. But an initial impression is that it can carve like crazy, but is perhaps not too forgiving of bad form. In particular, my heelsides mostly didn't go well.

I had to leave after an hour and a half, not because I was tired but because it just got too crazy busy. I think that's just an opening-day thing; I hope weekdays won't be like that all the time. The other problem though is that the crowds were completely ignoring COVID protocol rules for the lift lines. Cypress is going to have to get that under control or there will be an outbreak traceable back to them and it won't go well.

My goggles really gave me trouble today. Lenses fogged up badly and wouldn't clear up, so I swapped in another lens, which immediately fogged up just as bad. I noticed when I got home that the goggles themselves were soaked, even including the foam liners. Not sure what happened there, but I'm considering possible fixes.

Anyway, all in all it was an underwhelming day in many respects. But it was also opening day for snowboarding season, and _that_ trumps everything.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Seymour*

And Seymour has just announced a Dec 1st opening. Great start to the season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Day 2*

Today was day 2 of snowboarding season--on Cypress again, since literally nobody else is open yet. Today was a far, far better day than Friday, though. First, not as many bodies. I think a lot of people took Friday off for the first day of the season, whereas today was just a normal weekday. Not that it was any kind of picnic. Waits in the line-up were about 20 minutes after about 10am or so. Of course, the big problem is that there's only one main lift operating (Easy Rider hardly counts). Once the Lions Express chair opens, and maybe even the Raven chair, things will ease up considerably. They were actually running Lions off and on today, probably testing it. It might be open next time I'm up. They have a couple of small park features off Easy Rider, and I was tempted, but I'm not quite there yet. Still a little unsteady with unexpected bumps and shifts.

They had Panorama open today as well, which helped with the hill crowding, at least. I did several runs on Panorama. Since it's a green, I desensitize to speed much more easily on it. And I did a couple of blistering runs, too. In all, I did 10 runs, with maybe 50% of my time spent standing in line or going uphill. That's not bad, actually.

On the subject of fitness, I'm lighter and have better flexibility this year, and I could feel it--pants aren't as tight, buckling up is easier, and I didn't get out of breath. Hopefully I won't start gaining that weight back.

I'm really consciously pushing myself this year to get up to speed as quickly as possible. As such, I'm wiping out a little more, although only butt-plants so far. I'm making a point of working on my heelside stutter and slide early, and today I could really feel myself carve those heelsides. I started doing an ollie or two at the top of each run. Didn't always remember, but it's a start, and like any habit, you have to reinforce it. Hopefully I can keep that up, and start learning those small techniques this year. What I really should do, though, is practice them a little at the end of my sessions, if I'm leaving because of crowding rather than exhaustion.

I've been exclusively riding the Rome Blur with the Rome Cleaver bindings. The bindings are nice in the way that matters the most--they don't make me notice them. They're comfortable, they fit, the straps don't give me trouble, and they seem responsive. I'm going to call that a pass.

The Blur took a little getting used to. It doesn't really seem to want to do tight, slow turns like C turns. Rather, it feels like it's made for medium to high-speed carving. Whenever I cut loose on a run and just started doing sweeping S turns, that's when it felt like it was cruising in its zone. This board may just have to go up to Whistler, where it can do justice to the runs.

I mentioned that last time I had a real problem with condensation on my goggles. Well, I think I've figured out the problem, and it seems to be something that's been contributing to my fogging issue since time immemorial. When I get to the lift line, I tend to put my goggles up on my helmet, just above the brim. Turns out that the vents on the top of the Smith helmet are just directing my forehead sweat straight onto the inside of the goggles, where it accumulates and condenses. Seriously. I resolved the problem by the simple expedient of leaving the goggles loose on top of my helmet instead of under tension, and I had _not one incident of fogging_ after that. Not sure what I'll do on snowy or rainy days. Maybe it's better to leave them on my face in those conditions. I may also experiment with having two lenses, with one stored in my coat's goggle pocket, and swap them occasionally.



Anyway, all in all, a really good session today. Hopefully I can get in another one on Thursday or Friday.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Storm shutdown*

It seems to be that this happens at least once every season, usually before New Years. A wicked storm blows in, with warm air and high winds. Shuts the mountains down, washes any new snow away. Well, we had that yesterday. Interestingly, Cypress just announced a shutdown in advance. I guess they recognize the pattern too.

And we got exactly what I said. The storm even put off Cypress' opening of the Lions chair. Apparently it ripped up fences and such, which will have to be reinstalled. However, the predictors are showing snow for the next six days, so hopefully we'll get it all back.

Unfortunately, the weather is carrying over to ground level--nothing but rain, rain, rain, off into the indefinite future. So no relief by way of mountain bike. Yes, I'm a fair-weather wuss. Sue me.

In semi-related news, today is opening day for the Whistler rolling-reservation system, for opening day on the 26th. Now, if the system is going to be constantly six days in advance, that'll mean a little more pre-planning will be required. It will also mean that I can't keep a continuous rolling reservation. There will always be gaps. I'll update this post or add one as soon as I know more.

Edit: So it looks like it's only a week in advance, because I was only able to pre-book two days. I'll know more next time I'm able to get on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Yech!*

I went to Cypress today. I knew I was taking a chance. The freezing level, though between top and bottom, was pretty high. The aforementioned storm had washed away a lot of snow, so I wasn't optimistic--and just as well. It was raining at the bottom and wet snow at the top, and everything in between in between, if you get my drift. Which, sadly, included peanut butter about halfway down. Oh, and foggy as fuck. I did two runs and came home.

On the plus side, I'm pretty sure my explanation above for my goggle-fogging is solid. Made a point of following the new protocol today and I didn't have any inside-goggle fog.

I was trying one of the new Anon masks, today--the ones with the bigger vent area. Worked quite well. I have more of them on order, and I think they may just become my default masks.

One irritating oopsie today, though--One of my daughter's sets of gloves somehow ended up in my snowboarding drawer, and guess which set of gloves I grabbed? They're large instead of my XL, so I could get them on, but it wasn't comfortable. In fact my hands are still a little sore as I type this. It did highlight one other thing, though--I need to print off an updated snowboarding prep list, which should include spare mask, spare gloves, and spare goggles. Oh, and check for proper pass. I almost forgot my Cypress pass in my other jacket. 🤬

In other news, Grouse is opening today. Not that I'll ever go there, but it will cut the line-ups if people have two mountains to choose from. And come Dec 1st, three mountains. Looking forward to that.

Oh, and it looks like the Lions chair has opened on Cypress. They must have done that mid-morning, because it wasn't open while I was there. More good news in terms of line-ups.

We will be going to Whistler next week, but later in the week. The new blinds are being installed in the condo, and I've given the guy a code so we don't have to be there. When he's gone, we'll head up, and we'll spray the bejesus out of the place. Then, Thursday and Friday are opening day and opening day + 1 at Whistler. I've got them booked. Woot!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Yyyyyeah...*

Another Cypress day. This one looked good on paper (snow-forecast.com) and turned out to be every bit as good in person. At least the first two hours. It was snowing lightly all morning, right down to parking lot level, which is always a good thing. No fog, also good. Crowds not bad at opening--I even got a parking spot in the top section that they sometimes charge for. Lions chair was scheduled to be open as well as Eagle. Everything looking good for a fun session.

So first, Lions didn't open on time, because the ski patrol hadn't reported in. I was near the front of the line so I stayed put, but lots of people took off for Eagle. For once I made the right decision, as it opened within 5 minutes. Did several runs down Collins over the course of the morning. It's fun for a green run.

The snow was good, not mushy or runny. Perfect snowball snow, although it got trashed up pretty fast. Why? Because it was the busiest I think I've ever seen Cypress, weekday, weekend, or Christmas break. Seriously. Now, in fact there've been more cars in the overflow parking lots, like that time that Mike and I had to hike in from the next postal code. But it was busy enough that by the time I left, they were holding traffic and only letting in a car for each car that left. And with only two lifts and limited runs open, everyone was in the same limited area. If the Sky Chair and Raven chair were open, for instance, that would spread out the bodies more. I just hope they don't increase their allowable population when they open those chairs.

The problem, of course, is the distancing rules on the lifts. In normal years, you can fill every chair and get people up the hill in volume. Now, with bubbles only and max 2 singles per chair, throughput is somewhere between 50% and 75% of normal. Which means, if you can handle the math, somewhere between one third longer and twice as long as other years. I actually snarled at one single who tried to join our chair as a third person. The liftie stepped in and explained the rules to him, fortunately. BTW, Cypress now has signs in the lift line, and they're pretty clear. I don't know if I caused that or if they were going to do it anyway, but happy either way.

So I should post a little about the actual snowboarding, I guess... I started the day on the Blur, and I have to say I'm definitely making good progress on desensitization to speed, correcting my heelsides, and getting my balance back for bumps and side-hits. I was having a bit of rear-leg burn first thing in the morning, but I worked on correcting my form and it disappeared. A good reminder that it's all about form.

I switched to the PYL late in the morning, and lemme tell you, I could feel the difference. If the Blur is a great big highway sedan, the PYL is a sports car. That's probably not a fair analogy, but the Blur is definitely a lot happier with high-speed straights and curves, and the PYL is absolutely a lot happier with short, snappy turns and ins-and-outs. C turns in particular, which aren't great with the Blur, are dead easy on the PYL. So I think the Blur definitely has to go to Whistler, where it can take advantage of the long, sweeping runs. Either the Heritage or the Ejack will have to come back. Probably the Heritage. With the Blur and Ejack in Whistler, I don't see the Heritage ever getting any play time up there.

I confirmed that I don't like the Union bindings. They aren't horrible, but I could feel the difference, both when strapping in and when riding. Fortunately, the Katanas will be in at Comor this week, so I can pick those up and put them on the PYL. The Proto HD is also getting a set of Katanas to replace the other set of Unions. Don't know what I'll do with the bindings afterwards.

I did some experimenting with the goggles, and I eventually ended up with a real moisture problem after having put them up on my head. So that's a definite confirmation. I do get some fogging if I'm standing around and running a little hot, but it goes away on the lift when the air is moving. But once I get actual dripping moisture on the inside, I'm hooped. I think I'm going to have to try carrying around multiple lenses to see if that helps.

So around 11am, the line-ups got so bad that I just gave up. Lions was backed up right out of the gates; Eagle was backed up on both sides right up the slope; and even Easy Rider had a line-up. This is a bit of a concern, because Grouse is open, and I'd hoped that this would split the crowds. Especially on a weekday. Seymour opens next week, and I sure hope it isn't also going to be like a weekend during the week. If that happens, this could turn from a great season into one of the worst. And it remains to be seen what Whistler is going to look like.

Well, at least we're getting lots of snow. Sure hope that holds up. I don't need another 2010.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Opening Day on Whistler*

And it wasn't nearly as bad as I feared it might be.

I started the day by trying to find the end of the Whistler Gondola line. They'd rejiggered things just a bit, and it was actually around the corner. But the liftie that I talked to suggested I use Fitzsimmons instead, as it handles singles better--singles in the Gondola get their own car, which really slows things down. On chairs, they put singles at either end of the chair. I did as he said, switched to Garbanzo, and ended up at the same place. A little faster, I think, honestly. I may use that route in the future if the Gondola line-up is too long, even after covid.

It was a pretty good start day, too. Lots of fresh snow, maybe eight inches deep where it was untouched. Of course, everything got scraped off or blown off eventually, but it was fun while it lasted. But the scraping and trashing wasn't as quick as normal, because of the covid situation.

Whistler is letting up a limited number of people per day, based on reservations. Until Dec 8th, it's season pass holders only as well. The result? Lift lines were probably a little slower than a typical year, because they can't fill up every chair, but there are far fewer people going downhill at any particular time. So less crowding, less trashing of snow. It's a pretty good trade-off, IMO.

So how'd I do? Pretty good, all in all. I still have some problem with speed, but since there's a lot of snowcrete, I don't feel bad about that. As the fresh stuff gradually replaces the hardpack, I'll be able to open up more. But my turns, control, and bumps handling are in good shape--more or less starting from the end of last season. So I think I can look forward to a really good progression season this year.

I adjusted my highback lean partway through the morning, and I felt it immediately. I think I'm going to have to check all my bindings and make sure there's no play between the boot and the highback in rest position. I still have that issue with heelsides, but since I'm consciously on it this year, I think I'll be able to conquer it. I was also able to do some work on commitment on my toesides in mogully conditions, and that's coming along as well. All in all, very happy with my first day.

A couple of negatives though, inevitably. One, I had to quit at noon due to leg burn. I've done a lot better than last year already, but still needs work. The other thing is that I'm still not putting enough effort into learning ollies and penguin walk. I did a little bit of it today, but I really need to put more concerted attention to it.

I picked up my new Katanas today from Comor. They were intended for my PYL, but I've put them on my Ejack instead. The Pilots kind of pissed me off today--even with the new toecaps, the damn things slip off. So I will probably bring the Pilots home, put them on the PYL, and use the toe straps over the top of the boot.

More tomorrow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Third day up at Whistler today. The weather was a bit odd--there was an inversion, so it was warmer up the mountain than at village level. About 4 degrees C at the roundhouse meant that the snow, while groomed to corduroy, wasn't crispy. Although even with the above-zero temps, some areas are definitely getting well-polished. We need some fresh to cover that up.

I rode the Ejack with the new Katanas last Friday and today. Last time I wasn't really happy with my riding, which had me concerned that I might not be happy with the Katanas. Today, however, was much better. Two things were different--one was the boots I was using, the other was the snow, which was colder and harder last time. I'll give the Maysis boots another try, probably tomorrow--I have to admit, I may not have had the Maysis adjusted properly last time.

I'm going to make a point of icing and massaging my foot tonight. I think I may really have that Morton's Neuroma thing in my right foot. Irritating but not agonizing so far, but these things always get worse over time.

So how'm I doing overall? Really well. I followed some better riders today, including one staff person (probably an instructor). I could keep up with him, although my carves aren't anywhere near as clean. But interestingly, when I'm following someone, I'm quite happy to go a lot faster than I am otherwise comfortable with. So it's obviously a confidence thing more than anything. My form is good, mostly, although I occasionally lose the toeside form and go back to my old style. It's easy to catch, though, because as soon as I do that, my toeside carve suffers.

On the other side, I don't think I did the heelside stutter even once today. A couple of times it felt like I was close to it, but again I was able to catch myself. And even if I'm not up to my full speed downhill form yet, I'm damned close.

The only place I'm not happy is with my toeside turns in mogully conditions. I flubbed the turn twice today in a mogul field, and the second time I almost did a swan dive. Ungood. Unfortunately there isn't a good, consistent mogul field for me to work with yet (the stuff I was trying today barely qualifies as a _field_), so I'm going to have to wait for more snow on that one. However, given how well I'm doing on the other stuff, I have high hopes.

I'm also making progress on penguin walk, but still not practicing ollies nearly enough.

Tomorrow, I'm going up with the Blur with the Cleavers. Should be a blast!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Conditions were a little different today. The inversion has either weakened or left entirely. It was below zero in the morning, although barely, and continued to get colder over the course of the day--although the sun was out too, so not quickly. I rode the Blur with the Cleavers and my Ride Lassos, not wanting to trust the Maysis boots until I've done some more testing.

One thing I'll say right now--the Blur is not the best choice for hardpack or crispy snow. It's not terrible, but the Ejack is so much better in those conditions that I don't see why you'd bother. The Blur also has a tendency to get a little squirrelly and catchy on polished snow, which Whistler has plenty of right now. I had a couple of scary 'almosts' around the Chick Pea hut where it leads off to Orange Peel.

I will say about the Blur though, it does love to go fast. I had a little trouble getting used to it first thing in the morning, and almost decided to head down and swap it out for the Ejack. But I stuck with it and soon got the rhythm. There was one point that really made my day as well. Going down Orange Peel, and I was really getting into the hard C carves, and I actually lifted off into the air transitioning from a toeside to a heelside. That was great. I've felt that unweighting before in those circumstances, but I've never actually lost contact with the snow before. New high for me.

I only did six runs, but five of them were long. I did the Orange Peel, Pony Trail, Expressway run that takes me down to the Red Chair then on down to Olympic station. It's not a particularly difficult run, but it's long (as mentioned) and I get lots of opportunity to do S carves and get my speed up. And I think most importantly right now, I work on my stamina. My biggest limiting factor last year was running out of gas, and I've spent the entire off-season getting my fitness level up. And having fun mountain biking. I think I've been successful--I started to get some rear-leg burn a couple of times, but just adjusted my form and it went away. I also had some foot pain on the first couple of runs, but got past that as well.

In summary, not great snow, but a good day snowboarding anyway.


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## BoardieK (Dec 21, 2015)

That's odd because I find that the Blur excels on hard snow, the grip amazes me. But then I've spent near 50 days on it, I ride it with a very forward stance and very stiff boots and bindings.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

BoardieK said:


> That's odd because I find that the Blur excels on hard snow, the grip amazes me. But then I've spent near 50 days on it, I ride it with a very forward stance and very stiff boots and bindings.


It may be because I'm comparing it to my Ejack, which completely blows any other board I've ever ridden out of the water for grip on hard snow. Like I said in the post, the Blur wasn't terrible, and I _was_ railing some nice arcs, but on a day like today, I think I'd grab the Ejack.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler day*

Bleah! Yeah, that's right. Whistler. Bleah. There've been predictions of heavy snowfall all week, but just as it always does, such a prediction stays in the future and never arrives. So I went up the mountain to find hard, hard, hardpack. I suppose if I wanted to look for an upside, it would be that I'm getting early practice on boarding in these conditions, but honestly I'd rather not.

Interestingly, about mid-morning it started to snow, heavily enough to accumulate. And I started riding more aggressively almost right away--far too soon for there to be an actual difference in conditions. It kind of proves that a lot of it is psychological.

Unfortunately the snowfall stopped and we went back to crap.

I did get four hours of riding in, and my legs weren't screaming, so I'm definitely getting fit enough for a good full day of riding. My feet hurt, though, especially my back foot. Might be partly too tight boots, but I was also wearing the Morton's Neuroma pad that I bought. The good news is it stopped the neuroma pinch; the bad news is it messed with my boot fit. I'll try tomorrow without it and with boots less tight.

One significant event today--going down below the Red Chair base towards Olympic station, I "found" an unmarked obstacle in the form of a snow sinkhole over some running water. Not a big one, but in trying to avoid it I lost control and wiped out. Turns out wiping out on hardpack does kind of hurt.

Anyway, not a great day overall. I sure hope the snow starts falling for real, soon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler half-day*

If that. I wasn't expecting much for my second day, since it hadn't snowed or anything overnight. But I also wasn't expecting fog, just to throw another bleah into the mix. I'll say one thing for Whistler, when you get fog it isn't the all-encompassing, becalmed-in-hell blanket that you get on the locals. In Whis, it comes and goes either by altitude or by moving to another part of the mountain. But it's still fog, and boarding on icy hardpack in fog when you can't see ahead of you is terrifying.

For some reason though, some patches of snow were softer and actually carvable. I think it might have been manufactured snow, because it had that creamy, textureless feel. I was able to open up when a soft patch coincided with a clear patch, but overall it was just too stressful. Quit after six runs.

Still, I'm making good progress on my technique. One ironic thing I've noticed is that my heelside carve is now actually better than my toeside. I now have a technique issue on my toeside carve where my front leg is straighter than my rear leg, resulting in less edge on the front. I've noticed this issue in previous years, but it was swamped by all the other bad things I was doing. Now it stands out. The problem is a combination of shifting weight back and rotating too much to look downhill, both of which contribute to a straighter knee. When I get it right, my toeside carves are great.

Work continues.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Seymour Day, and Other Stuff*

First day up on Seymour. I had high hopes, for some reason, and got the shaft, as usual.

Okay, that sounds way negative, but Seymour and I have a love/hate relationship going back more than a decade. It's the mountain I learned to snowboard on, and for years I would do full days on the weekend regardless of the weather. Not so much, anymore. I guess I've been spoiled a bit, and I'm getting old and crotchety a bit, and most importantly I can just come back another day. So my tolerance for crap weather and crap snow is low.

The predictors looked good on snow-forecast.com, and Seymour's website said it was snowing. The reality was a fine drizzle that occasionally turned to wet snow for a minute or two, combined with in-and-out fog. The snow was snow-cone consistency. Unfortunately, after that great start at the end of November, it's been poor pickin's since--for all the locals, and even for Whistler. So the boarding itself was no great shakes, but there were some other things worth mentioning.

I do want to take a moment to give kudos to the Seymour lifties though, for keeping on top of people about masks. They had a guy who would single out people in the line-up and tell them to put on a mask. He also wasn't impressed with Airhole masks, and would tell people to adjust them so they weren't breathing through the hole. Makes sense, right? What's the point of a mask with a hole in the middle? He also commented at one point to one of his co-workers to not let a particular customer on the lift if the guy took his mask off. So they're on top of it. Good.

So now on to the other stuff. First, helmet. I've bought a new helmet, a Giro, to go with my new wireless ODTs (more on them later). The Giro has individual Velcro-sealed earflaps instead of the stupid godawful zipper on the Smith. _Way _easier to deal with. However, I'm right at the top end of medium or the bottom end of large for the Giro sizing. I went with the medium, and I may be regretting it. Not sure yet. It's a comfortable helmet overall, though.

Gloves. I wore the Dakines today. They were soaked by the end of the session. Or at least they felt soaked from the outside. My hands weren't wet or cold, so I'm not quite sure how to score that. I'm sure I'll get other opportunities, though.

ODTs. I bought the new wireless ODTs, the ones that don't have a wire connecting them either. The jury is still out, but first impressions aren't favorable. First, you have to turn each earpiece on individually. I guess that shouldn't surprise me, really. There's a whole lot of announcing from each earpiece until everyone is synched up with each other and with the phone. Each time you press a button, though, you get a high-pitched beep by way of feedback. It's unnecessary and irritating. And the damned things automatically power off after five minutes of idle time. Maybe there's a way to adjust that, but I haven't seen it yet, and it isn't mentioned. And last, my left earpiece abruptly stopped working partway through the morning. Couldn't get it back for anything. It started working again after I popped them in the charger, but if that's going to be a habit, they'll get a 0/5 rating from me in my loudest voice.

Meanwhile, I took the older ODTs out of my Smith and put them in the Giro. You can thread the cable connecting the earpieces around under the padding, and charging is _way _easier since I only have to pull on the Velcro to get the right earpiece out. This may end up being my preferred solution, since so far I liked the UI on the older model better.

Goggles. I had a real fogging problem this morning, and it would be tempting to blame it on the new helmet, but I think I've finally figured out what's going on. When I put the goggles up over my helmet in rainy or snowy weather, moisture accumulates along the top of the goggle--along the foam that covers the vents. Once that foam is soaked, I'm screwed. Riding forces air down through the vents (and consequently through the soaked foam) which forces moisture into the goggle interior. And voila, fog. I brought a spare lens, and swapping it didn't help. I dried the second lens in the bathroom using the Dyson hand dryer--didn't help, at least not for more than a few minutes, and I'm concerned about whether blasting the lens like that might damage the anti-fog coating. The solution, sadly, seems to be to keep the goggles on my face at all times in crap weather so the foam can't get wet. Or maybe I should bring several spare goggle frames.

The new Perceive lens from Anon is impressive, BTW. I quite like it. May buy more.

So one last bit of good news--Seymour has started populating Mushroom park with features, and I really like what they've done. No, I mean _really_. There are several ride-on features, including a ride-on tube and an almost-ride-on tube. Also, two small to medium jumps. I avoided the equipment today, as it's still early season, but I ran the jumps a few times. Felt good. I may go back just for that. I sure hope they don't disassemble this stuff in a week, though.

I also took a few minutes to practice riding switch. I do okay on Goldy, but I'm pretty shaky on Chuck's. But hey, first day, right?

Oh, and this was my first trip up the mountain with the new car. It was funny--going up Seymour Parkway, I used up about 70 km of charge, then coming back down I got back about 50. So start with a full battery and everything will be fine.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've just finished two days in Whistler. Yesterday was okay, semi-cloudy with a bit of recent snow, and not too busy. Today it snowed all morning, and unfortunately that brought out the crowds. Or maybe it was just Friday. Hard to tell.

I've used the Blur both days, and I have to say, that board is definitely growing on me. It isn't as maneuverable as the Ejack, but it's way better for long, swooping carves. And TBH, I did some moguls on the Blur today, and it's not impossible--you just have to be a little more on your game.

The mountain is gradually getting filled in, and the mogul fields in Lower Ratfink are now usable, if a little freaky still. They've also got the Enchanted Forest trail open now. That was really bumpy yesterday, but they smoothed it out overnight. Kind of boring today. There are sections and stretches where you can find semi-untouched snow if you're early enough and a bit adventurous. I found a few, although I'm still a little tentative with unknown terrain. But it'll come.

As mentioned above in passing, my large S turns are coming along well, and I'm getting used to speed. Actually, my real issue with speed is in icy conditions. As soon as it gets even a little snowy, I get a lot braver. My biggest issue is actually still conditioning. I'm not getting the rear-leg burn any more, which is partly being in better shape and partly using better form. But I still get sore feet after a while, and my legs do still get tired. When that happens, I just don't have the jam to be as aggressive and quick on the board. Going to have to keep working on that. On the positive side, I weighed myself today, which I haven't done since biking season shut down, and I'm at 199, so only a couple of pounds off my low point. And with the treadmill for off days, I should be able to continue to work it off. And get my endurance up.

I had one big minus today -- I forgot my Anon face mask. I've printed and mounted a checklist for snowboarding now, so I won't forget anything again. The other big item on it is to clip in my keys and zip up my pocket. I found my left pocket wide open after a couple of runs this morning. Fortunately I _had_ clipped in my keys, but it still scared me. Anyway, I had to use my walking-around mask, and it forces all exhaled air up into the goggles. So fogging was an extra-special bonus issue today.

I packed it in earlier than I would have liked, because A) the wind was picking up, which meant B) the lifts were stopping or running in slow mode, which meant C) huge line-ups. And I wasn't interested in ending up trapped in a gondola or on a chair for twenty minutes or so if things got too breezy.

One last good item--Olympic is now open all the way to the village, although the stuff is pretty brown towards the bottom. One or two good snows and that'll be fixed, though.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*I really, really, really fucking hate Seymour.*

Today could very likely be the best snow day so far this season. I mean it was _pounding_ down, all the way up Seymour Parkway. _Pounding _down in the parking lot. Expectations were high. So were the crowds, unfortunately, but I was willing to put up with that for a piece of this. Got in line, got to the gate, and....

Bzzzzzzzz. No reservation found.

What the actual fuck?

Well, the tl;dr version is that Seymour has instituted weekend-and-holiday rules starting today. A Monday. A non-stat, before-Christmas, not-yet-xmas-holidays Monday. Which means that from now until Jan 4th, I have to reserve a four hour block in order to ride on Seymour. Well, my fault, right? They told me, right? Actually, no. The original announcement of the reservation system made no mention of this. The website has no front-page announcement. There is a box with a button with some really unobtrusive text, and if you're looking for it you can follow the link to an explanation, but it's very much an after-the-fact thing. Pull notification in its worst form.

So fuck that. And fuck them. I am done. I'm going to get my wife and daughter up to Cypress and sell them on the Easy Rider bunny hill there. No more Mt. Seymour. Fuck them.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went to Cypress Mtn today. Much better, in that they haven't changed the rules without notice. I left very early (6:38am), and a good thing too, as a lot of other people seem to have had the same idea.

I somehow managed to get on first chair for the Lions chair, so I got first run down Collins. That was, however, the only regular run I did all morning. Spent the rest of my time on the bunny slope, practicing my switch riding. It's coming along, and another day or two of practice will probably be enough.

Unfortunately, the entire planet descended on Cypress, resulting in stupidly long line-ups. The line for Lions at one point stretched literally back to the entrance to the ski area, and even the line-up for Easy Rider was getting out of hand. Finally at 11am, I packed it in. On the way down the road, I drove past all the people waiting to get into the parking area. And drove past, and drove past, and drove past... honestly, some of those people will get parked just in time for dinner. How much do you have to love skiing or boarding to put up with that kind of a wait?

I won't be going up Cypress again until after New Years. Ditto Seymour (if at all). Hopefully once the holidays are over, things will calm down a little.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Apparently Cypress Mtn believes that a significant percentage of the traffic from the other day was non-skier/snowboarder provincial park users. Today they put out an email where they've now implemented a parking fee for anyone not able to show proof of ski pass. Damned good idea. They also talked about the volume levels and such, and about how the road up to Cypress is the provincial government's responsibility.

TBH, I found their email to be proactive and informative. At least Cypress is taking an active part in the whole COVID control thing (after a questionable start). This was way the hell better than Seymour's "oh by the way" handling of the xmas break.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Holidays update*

Not much to update, really. I have not been snowboarding since Cypress on the 22nd. Xmas break is always insane, but this year brings a whole new level of whack to things. I _will _be going on Monday the 4th (still not sure if Seymour or Cypress), and hopefully things will be back to something like normal.

It's frustrating, because in theory I could ride every day, but snowboarding is just not like mountain biking, even in normal times. But I will persevere. There's no question my riding is way ahead of previous years, and if I can get up the mountain a lot for the rest of the season, I should end up at a new level. And being in better shape is helping, too.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Update for several days*

Monday, Cypress: Went up, parked, looked at the torrential rain coming down, went home.

Wednesday: Whistler. It dumped Tuesday night, so there was significant new snow Wednesday morning. And then, although snow-forecast.com didn't really predict it, it snowed all morning. Great day. I stayed out there until 2pm.

Thursday: Whistler. Snow all tracked out, nothing new since Wednesday a.m. Cold. Plus, I think I overdid it a bit on Wednesday. Found myself running out of gas by 11am and had to pack it in.

So that's the short version. Longer version: Wednesday morning, there was untouched freshies everywhere. I did my requisite burying-it thing once. Buried the nose, and had to dig down to find the snowboard so I could unstrap. Then when I stepped off, I sunk up to chest level. I gotta tell ya, that was a scary few seconds. I got myself out by crawling on my knees, pulling myself along by the snowboard. And the thing is, that wasn't off-piste--it was just to the right of Ego Bowl, just above Cougar.

I used the Blur both days. I'm really loving this board more and more. It is definitely not happy at low speeds, though. Just have to remember to be conservative until I get up to speed.

I did a lot of moguls both days, and I think I'm now ahead of or at least even with where I was last year near end of season. So that's a great thing. I've got the toeside turn issues completely figured out. That doesn't mean I've got them conquered, but when I do screw up I know exactly what I did wrong.

My carving was insanely on-point on Wednesday, and I had a blast. Thursday (today), not so much. There was some aspect of fatigue, of course, but it was mostly the fact that today was hardpacked groomed snow. I'm just not having fun on that stuff.

On Wednesday I left home at 7:05, and ended up having to take the Fitzsimmons lift because the gondola line-up was just too crazy. Today, I left at 6:45 and managed to get into the gondola line-up before it got out of hand. But that tells you that the lining up is still frantic, even after Xmas holidays are over. Hoping that will peter off a little, as I'm finding myself less and less patient with the idea of getting up so early to go boarding.

I'll be going up to Whistler every week this month, so should be getting some good boarding in. That doesn't leave a lot of days for boarding on the locals, but if I have to choose, Whistler is the easy winner.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First of two days at Whistler today, and wow, was it ever a blast! The day started out inauspiciously, when I drove out of the parking lot to find a driving rain. I asked myself if I really wanted to stand in the rain for an hour and a half, and myself said _no fucking way_. So I went back inside, intending to go up later in the morning. But around 7:45 the village cam showed a not-bad line-up, so off I went. And it worked out well--I ended up top at about 8:30.

It was not busy today, even around 10:30 which is usually peak line-up on the Emerald Express. Talking to a guy on the lift, he said this is probably normal for non-holiday weekdays. Sure hope he's right. This was just about ideal.

Anyway, on to the conditions. There had been snow in the last 24 hours, and especially overnight. Typical of Whistler, it comes down unevenly on one face vs another, so while the Red Chair side had maybe 6-8" on average, the Family Bowl side had a foot to 16". And I was able to enjoy a lot of untracked runs before it finally began to get chopped up. I am now equal or better than my skill level at the end of last season, which really bodes well for the rest of this one. Unless they shut things down, or I get covid, or I break a leg. All of which are possible. 

I might add that I wiped out 3-4 times today, include one complete ass-over-teakettle on the moguls. But the snow was so deep and so soft, t'were no biggie.

Interesting thing, though--on the way up the lift, I glanced over at some boarders who were riding the tree lines, and I realized that I've kind of given up on some kinds of riding. I don't do side hits as much, and I don't do tree lines as much. Of course, it might be different if I rode Seymour more. Their side hits are better and more abundant, while their runs are meh compared to Whistler. So there's that.

I had a couple of bad times over the course of the morning, though. For one, when I went down Olympic below Red Chair, I found pea soup fog so thick I had to stop to figure which way was uphill. Eventually got down, but wow, it was bad.

For another, I tried out a black diamond run today -- Goat's Gully. Won't be doing that again soon. That's a level of moguls and steeps that I'm not ready for just yet. I survived, but there was a lot of side-slipping.

Last thing... I don't think Whistler is going to put up the park or jump lines this year in the Family Bowl. They have enough snow now, but there's nothing. Maybe it's a COVID thing.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Jesus, why can't I get 2 days in a row of good boarding? Went up today--and understand, I was 4th person in line for the gondola, so a magnificent setup for a great day--to discover that the snow is elephant snot. It's probably okay uphill from the roundhouse, but downhill from there, it's like riding on contact cement. I did two unscheduled tamedogs before I gave up.

On the plus side, I've confirmed that the lineups aren't forming as early now, so 7:30 arrival is probably sufficient.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Aaaaaaand, another shitty day. This time, high winds combined with a sudden drop in temps froze the snow from yesterday, and high winds blew any new stuff off into the trees. So a skating rink with ice gravel everywhere.

I have learned one thing from the last two days, though. If it looks like it's going to be something like this, arrive late--like 10:30 or so--after it's warmed up and the early birds have "conditioned" the snow.


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## BoardieK (Dec 21, 2015)

Your last couple of posts make me feel so much better about missing an entire season..... "Keep it up please"!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So this is turning out to be a pretty mediocre season, all in all. There've been some good snows, like the beginning of the season and the Christmas holidays (of course). And some individual really good days. But I've been to the locals maybe, what, a half dozen times? And that's not because I'm always at Whistler. My Slopes app says I've done 21 days, but most of them haven't been what I'd call _quality. _Although I'll admit, the ones that have been quality have been _really_ good.

I went up Whistler today. Didn't really expect a lot, since it's been almost two weeks I think since they've had any significant snowfall. Of course, hardpack on Whistler isn't as hard as hardpack on Seymour, since you don't generally have the same freeze/thaw cycle to put down layers of ice. But hard is hard, and I am still more tentative on those conditions.

I did three runs and called it a day. You can only really ride where it's sunny, because the shaded areas are both hard as fuck and have extremely poor light conditions. And with the distinct lack of new snow (and not much of a base, either), a lot of the otherwise rideable areas aren't necessarily so right now. Bottom line, not having a lot of fun, better things to do.

I did take the Insta360 up, finally. I used it with the helmet mount. The Insta is a great camera, but I don't think any camera can turn a helmet mount into something useful. Maybe with a unicorn mount, but I'm just not up for that. Next time, I'll bring up more equipment in a backpack and play with configurations. I'll also make sure I bring and use the wrist-strap and control. Too much of a PITA to constantly take the phone out to control the camera.

More next week.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Lower Mainland Boarding*

I did Cypress yesterday and Seymour today, and wow, talk about a world of difference.

First, the setup. It snowed Sunday through Sunday night and Monday morning, accumulating more than a foot of new. I left home early (I thought), at 7:20 for Cypress. I knew I was in trouble when I was fighting a pack of cars all the way up Cypress Mountain Parkway. I even ended up about halfway back on the first parking lot. What I didn't realize at the time was that Monday was a Pro-D day for a lot of school districts, so it was a day off for a lot of students.

And yeah, it was busy. The wait times for the lifts resembled what I used to get at Seymour on weekends, i.e. 2/3 of my time spent waiting or lifting, and only 1/3 going downhill. But the snow was great, at least for the first hour or so. Then the crowds kinda thrashed every available square foot, and after that it was all chunder and moguls. I left before noon, swearing never to go back. But now that I know about the Pro-D day, I'll give it another try, especially with the day I had at Seymour today.

But not to get ahead of myself. I brought up the Yes PYL and the new Heritage. The PYL has the Now Pilots on it, and the Heritage has my Flow NX2s. I had some trouble with the PYL, mostly on heel turns, which I thought was odd, but I stuck with it. Turned out I was basically reverting to bad old habits. Concentrating on getting the heelside form and shape right helped. Nevertheless, the PYL felt off.

I switched to the Heritage mid-morning. It is definitely a different board. It feels a little more forgiving because of the rocker in the middle, but also like a bit of a boat compared to the PYL. I also found that I'm not as enamored with the Flow bindings as I used to be. They might just need some adjustment, but they felt loose. I'll check and tighten before the next time I take the board out.

Today I decided to try Seymour. I left a little earlier, not wanting to get caught in the same crush (I hadn't found out about the Pro-D day yet). Left at 7:10, got there at 7:50, and had to wait until 9:30 when they open the lifts. Well, at least I got first chair!  

The crowds weren't huge--they were more than typical weekdays in past seasons, but not as bad as a weekend. And strangely, most of the crowding was on the Mystery chair. Lodge never really got a crowd the whole day, and in fact in a couple of cases I rode right up the line to the chair.

I brought up the PYL and the Proto HD this time. The Proto has one of my 2 new pairs of Katanas on it. The PYL continued to feel funny, which was really beginning to bug me. Either it's 1) the board, or 2) the bindings, or 3) both. I finally decided to get a wax and sharpen, so dropped it off at the service desk. I'll pick it up on Thursday. I do think there's a good chance that the edge sharpening will help, as the PYL hasn't been tuned in a couple of years. And that far back, I was still skidding my heelsides, so I could conceivably have a really bad heel edge. The other possibility is that the board doesn't really go well with the Now Pilots. I'd find that to be a bit of a stretch, considering how well the Pilots paired with the EJack, but you never know...

Meanwhile, I switched to the Proto, and it was wild! My heelsides improved immediately, which unfortunately could be due to 1, 2, or 3, so no help there. Still, I felt much better. Mostly I stuck to the groomers today, as I was still trying to get my Seymour legs. But they did have a couple of good jumps in Mushroom park, and I gave them a couple of runs. But I did go down Unicorn several times, and although the first couple of runs were tentative, by the time I was on the Proto I was just ripping it.

And the last thing--I stayed until about 1:30, and left only because of obligations at home. Could have still gone for a couple more hours. And that's just like the ol' days when I was working weekdays. So it really is the run/wait/lift ratio that's killing me at Whistler. Good to know.

Couple of misc comments:

The gates at Cypress are either overloaded with the volume or are crappy quality. They were mis-reading people's passes all morning and having to be reset by the lifties. The Seymour gates, on the other hand, work great--possibly too great. You don't even have to wave your pass at them, just walk by and they open for you. It's a little creepy.

I used the Insta 360 at Cypress yesterday at filmed my carves. I may be deep-carving in my mind, but as it turns out, not in reality. Lots of work still needed.

I'll be going up to Seymour on Thursday, and I'll try using the 360 in the backpack to get video. We'll see how that works out.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Seymour Again*

I left a little later this morning, just after 7:30. Still made it early enough to get a choice parking spot. I picked up the PYL for the shop (they open at 8am). I also brought the old Heritage (the 2010) and the Proto.

First, my theory about the heel edge being dull was spot on. With the tune-up, the PYL ran beautifully. I still want to replace the bindings in the long-term, but it's not as much a critical thing now. I also tried out the Proto again, which also performed wonderfully, UNTIL things started to get polished. Then the Proto basically fell apart. I guess that's some of that rocker-vs-camber stuff, but the Proto is not my best polished-hardpack board.

I also tried the Heritage. Um. I know that used to be my favorite board, but I'm not sure why. It performed like a tugboat. And not the overpowered ones, either. But since the PYL benefited so greatly from a tune-up, I figured I'd give the Heritage a chance as well. In it went, and I'll pick it up tomorrow morning.

I'm also going to bring the new Heritage up tomorrow, along with the PYL. We'll see how the new Heritage behaves. It already has a tune-up from a few weeks ago at Whistler, so I should be getting its best game. When I'm done, one of these boards will be going bye-bye. I think it'll probably be the old Heritage.

I should mention that I've just ordered a Rome Speed Freak with Cleaver bindings. It should be here early next week. Thus the need to make room by getting rid of one of my old boards. If the Speed Freak turns out to be even better than the Blur, I'll probably swap them. Whistler is where you really need the big-mountain action. Lower mainland is where we just need a big mountain (nyuk nyuk).

I need to spend some time in Mushroom park, though. My jumps were a little wobbly today, and I still haven't hit the boxes and other features. I have my Race Face pads, and I have the USWE back-protection backpack, so I should be okay.

Speaking of the backpack, I set up the Insta 360 on the backpack and tried it out on a couple of runs. It's okay. It gives a sort of "following drone" look, but it's no good for examining my form. I did a couple more runs with the selfie stick, and that worked much better. For all the screwing around, it looks like old school is still best. I'll be bringing the camera up tomorrow as well, and try to get some action shots.

Regarding my "carving", I definitely need a lot of improvement, but I need the visual feedback to do that. This should work for me.

All in all, a really good day on Seymour. Occasional snow showers, no fog, good snow. And not crowded, except the Mystery line-up.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yech! Definitely not as good a day as the previous two. I mentioned in the last post that things were getting polished yesterday. That unfortunately was a prelude to hardpack verging on icy conditions today. No new snow, and I think there was at least one thaw/freeze cycle, so not great snow. In addition, being a Friday, the crowds were thicker to begin with and just got worse over the course of the morning. Even Lodge chair turned into a 10-minute wait just to get on. Hell, even the magic carpet had a backlog, so I couldn't even do park laps.

Oh, and Lodge was also dead this morning when I came down from Unicorn on first run.

One funny tidbit--I rode up first chair with the same guy I rode up first chair with the other day. Apparently we have similar habits.  

I picked up the old Heritage from the shop this morning, and I also brought up the new Heritage and the PYL today. Interestingly, riding the two Heritages one after the other, I was able to notice that they ride very similarly. Even though I had Union Forces on one and Flow NX2s on the other, the boards' characteristics dominated.

And not in a good way. Sigh. I know the old Heritage was my go-to board for years, but after a year or two of predominantly camber-dominant boards, going back to the aggressive rocker on the Heritage was just a bridge too far. It felt like riding a small canoe. There was a perceptible lag between when I'd leave one edge and when the other edge would engage, and I found that extremely disquieting. The Heritages do track well when you _are _on edge, and do a good carve. But it's extra effort to get to that point, and I didn't like it. Sadly, both Heritages are going to be on the chopping block. That will leave me with the PYL, the Proto, and the Speed Freak in Coquitlam--so a downhill board, a park board, and a maneuverable generalist board.

In Whistler, should I ever get a chance to go there, I have the Blur and the EJack. I might swap the Blur and the Speed Freak if it seems appropriate.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

New board. Ready to go. And I'll be going tomorrow. Seymour or Cypress? Not sure yet.

Edit: Reviewed here.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Some stuff*

I do love living around here. Thursday I went boarding on Cypress, today I went mountain-biking, and tomorrow I'm going boarding on Seymour.

The Thursday session was with the new Rome Speed Freak. As mentioned above, I did a review. I'm not sure yet if I really like the board. I'll take it up to Seymour tomorrow and try it some more. If it goes like the Blur, I'll end up liking it once I get used to it, but I'm a little concerned that it might be just too stiff for my tastes. Well, more news as it comes.

As I mentioned in the review, I had some really nice runs with the SF, but once I got tired and off my game, it kind of went to hell. If I'd brought a second board on Thurday, maybe switching would have been a good idea. That's the plan for Seymour tomorrow, though. Bringing up the SF and the PYL. It's supposed to be cold, and possibly snowing lightly. I just hope it isn't concrete.

Meanwhile, I took the EX8 out today for my first MTB rip of the year. It wasn't much of a rip, actually. I've gained about 7 lbs and 2 inches back from last fall--not surprising, really. I haven't been snowboarding anywhere near as much as I was hoping to.

It was cold today, and the trail were muddy. However, I wore my merino base layers and that works really well. Something to note for the future. I think I'm going to try to do some kind of exercise every day, whether it's mountain-biking or boarding or just using the treadmill. But _something_.

Covid continues to be an issue at the forefront of everything. Whistler has gotten something like 500+ cases in January, and everyone's freaking out, and justifiably so. We've got 2 confirmed cases in our condo complex, so we're putting Whistler trips on hiatus for 2 weeks minimum. We'll see after that. But even if we do start going again, I'll be wearing a double-layer of masks in the line-ups. Actually, I'll be doing that locally as well. This is not the time for fooling around.

So far, 2021 isn't going much better than 2020, except for the change of administration in the USA.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Seymour with the Speed Freak*

Weird day today. First, it was snowing when I left home. And completely unexpected, as it turns out. The news was calling it a 'freak storm', all the more freaky because it _only _hit the tri-cities. Seriously, halfway along the Barnet, there was nothing. But of course every single commuter route from the valley goes through the tri-cities, so the commute this morning was a disaster.

Interestingly, that seems to have helped with the locals. It was almost deserted on Seymour this morning. Never had to wait more than 5 minutes in the line. Snow was good, if a little hard, and it kept trying to snow. Unfortunately a fog rolled in mid-morning--one of those pea-soup types where you end up sideslipping down the run because you can't see a frickin' thing. Seriously, I eventually had to give up even doing jumps because when I hit the tranny I _still _couldn't see the lip. That's just a little too much hail-Mary for me.

Anyway, as mentioned, I brought up the SF and the PYL. Started the day on the SF and never switched. As I kind of half-expected, once I got used to the characteristics of the board, I found I quite like it. Torsional low-speed turns and skating turns take a little more care and concentration, but that comes quickly. I took the board down Mystery several times and found myself going faster and faster each run. The board is confidence-inspiring because of the stability at speed. And I was even feeling the heelsides today. It's just possible I've been going _too _low, given my insipid board angles.

I also did the Mushroom Park jump line a half-dozen or so times. What really made it memorable, though, is that I finally got over my approach-fear and hit the second jump at the proper speed. Multiple times. There's no better feeling than landing in the sweet spot on the slope and just kind of settling in, rather than the BAM of a near-knuckle. I say second jump because it was basically not possible to get enough approach speed for the first jump, even straight-lining it. Oh, well, still not a loss.

Had a lot of fun, left about noon due to fog.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Second day on Seymour*

Went up again today. It was colder than yesterday, not much more crowded, but far, far less foggy. Actually, no fog at all. Clouds and sun. It was, in other words, an almost perfect day.

I brought just the SF, figuring I'd spend the day on it and really give it a workout. And I have to say, I've now fallen in love with the board, and I think it'll be my primary pick for riding the locals.

I started out the day a little shaky, and ended up doing a lot of speed-checking on my first run down Unicorn. But by mid-day I was straight-lining a good portion of the run, and in fact passed a couple of people who were just too slow. The SF really rockets, too. My carves are better, even my heelsides , and I'm getting a lot more comfortable with the low-speed maneuvering as well. The only issue I've noticed is that on short, quick carves, I'm a lot slower coming off my heelside. In other words, I hold the heelside much longer than the toeside curve. Just practice, though.

So on reflection, I think there are three types of boards. 1) The ones you don't like, 2) the ones you like right away, and 3) the ones you grow to like. The EJack was a type 2 board. I knew by halfway down the first run that I'd be buying the board. The Blur and the SF are type 3s. Wasn't quite sure about them at first, but they both grew on me.

I used the squishy plastic support pad that I bought for my Morton's Neuroma foot pain today. Yeah, the correct one this time. And it works. It doesn't completely get rid of the pain, but what used to be agonizing after two hours is now mildly uncomfortable after three. I'll take it.

Oh, and a funny aside--I machine-washed and dried my Seymour pass yesterday (forgot to take it out of the sleeve pocket), so it's a bit warped. Works on the gates, though. I also discovered that it fits quite nicely into the hand-warmer pocket on the back of my Dakine gloves. You can't get any more convenient than that. Now my Dakines have gone from meh to favorites. I'll have to check if my gloves in Whistler have pockets.

And lastly, I ended up on first chair with the same guy for the fourth time. Apparently he likes to get up there early too.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went snowboarding yesterday (Thursday). It was a coin flip between Seymour and Cypress. Sadly, I chose Cypress. Sorry, but for all that Cypress has more and bigger runs than Seymour, it's just not enjoyable riding there, for these reasons: 1) The snow tends to be more hard-packed and/or icy on any equivalent day, and 2) It gets trashed really quickly, because 3) It's far busier on any equivalent day. Now I'll grant that #3 might be at least partly due to the pandemic. I do remember weekdays on Cypress in previous years where the line-up was a minute or two at most. So I can't permanently write it off. But for this year, I think I'm done with Cypress except for extraordinary situations.

Ironically, today is just such a situation. If I'd gone to Seymour yesterday, I'd be going to Cypress today. But I can't go to Seymour today, because for some reason they've deemed today to be part of the Family Day long weekend, and they've implemented their four-hour reservation system. Now, whether that's justified in terms of people having the day off or not, I don't know. I'll be watching the cameras today. But if it is, of course, Cypress would a zoo as well. So maybe staying home and getting some work done is the best choice overall.

Now, about yesterday's session...

I start the day, first run, going down Collins behind some guy who was definitely better than me. Good carves, good lines, good form. And although I'm pretty sure my carves were not as good, I kept up with him until he started eurocarving, then I passed him. Felt pretty good about that, but it does raise the issue of my carves. I think my toesides draw a pretty nice pencil line, but I'm almost certain my heelsides are still scarves. I'm definitely not as stable, and I've stuttered out several times. I need to either get the camera and pole out, or get a private lesson, or both. Maybe I should be talking to Cypress about that, since they do two-hour lessons, unlike Whistler. Something to think about.

My biggest problem right now though is fear. When I get onto a sketchy steep section, my form goes to hell, and I know I can handle those conditions, because I have in the past. As usual, it's a case of desensitization. What I really need to do is pick a run that freaks me out and just do that run again and again and again until I get bored. Then pick another one.

On Cypress, Raven Chair is the place to go, now that it's more or less fully open.

Notes for the future.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Rode MTB yesterday, went up Seymour today. I do love the Lower Mainland. MTBing was kind of meh, though. Still a lot of frost heaves, mud wallows here and there. Right now it's more about the exercise than the fun.

Seymour today was excellent, though. For some reason, it was not busy, even at peak time. And it snowed all morning. I finally left about 1pm when it started to fog up, but I got a _lot_ of runs in before that.

The Speed Freak is now my goto board to the point where I think I'm going to bring it up to Whistler next time I go up. Early issues with the stiffness are gone, although it still isn't as nimble in tight spaces. I am also no longer chattering on heelsides. That may be partly the board, but I think it's also partly getting a chance to work on my form. And I need to take this opportunity to reiterate that nothing beats time on the mountain for getting better, and longer sessions are better than shorter sessions (as long as you quit before you fall over).

I am now rocketing down Unicorn in a way I don't think I've ever managed in previous years. Actually, all the way down from the top of Mystery chair to the bottom of Lodge.

Great days.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First of Three*

First day of three in Whistler. Only traces of new snow overnight, but there's been dribs and drabs over the last week, so it's not re-processed ice. And Whistler's version of "hardpacked" is laughably soft compared to the concrete substitute they offer as snow in the Lower Mainland. This is just a long-winded way of saying the conditions weren't bad at all.

And even more important, it was _dead_. The entire morning, I don't think I waited more than 2 minutes in a line-up. Except the gondola, and even that was maybe 5.

I brought the EJack, knowing that I was going to be riding on old snow. That board never disappoints. It digs through everything. And interestingly, my carving has improved greatly since the last time I used it. I guess all the practice with the Freak and the Blur is making me more aware of things. The biggest changes I've made in my heelside form are the degree of squat, and shifting my weight a little farther back. On some turns, I also drive the board into the snow through the turn and that seems to improve my edging even more. I glanced down at my board a couple of times during heelsides today, and I'm definitely getting the board up on edge. It's not just in my mind any more.

One other small item I noticed later in the session, when I was getting tired and starting to get sloppy: One of my issues of form is a tendency to transfer from heelside to toeside slowly. Almost as I'm doing it in two steps. This only happens when I'm getting tired (I think), and I believe it's the reason why I start to have problems on steeps. If I transfer too slowly, the toeside edge doesn't dig in right away, and I go into a downhill slide that is very difficult to recover from. Something to be aware of, I guess.

Today was friggin' cold first thing in the morning, although it did warm up later. But I started the day putting on a mid-layer and that weird Burton neck-muff that I bought a while back. I always felt like it was too big to wear, but interestingly it is really good for keeping my body warmth from leaving through my neck. I think it's going to be part of my new routine on cold days.

I did some moguls and I did some side hits today--and did okay on both--but I spent most of my day working on my downhilling. And I'm definitely getting more comfortable with speed and steeps. I'm ahead of last year, but not by as much as I'd like. Ideally, I'd like to get back to this level by the end of December in any given season. I think for that to happen, I'm going to have to go more often early in the season, and stay up longer in each session.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Two and three*

Not a lot of specifics to report on for days two and three. Day two had a bunch of snow overnight (8" or so) and it snowed all morning. That was a fun time.

Day three had no new snow, but it was a Friday, which is apparently always busy no matter what. Frenzied Friday, I started calling it. I also quit after four runs.

What's really memorable about both days, though, is that I've got my turns under control. Mostly. I still lose the plot occasionally, but I know immediately when I'm doing it. I can feel it when I start transitioning too slowly from heelside to toeside; I can feel it when I start turning too sharply on heelside or staying too long on heelside; I can feel it when I start standing too tall on toesides and not digging in my edge. And I'm getting far more comfortable with speed.

So even with the truncated day on Friday, it was an awesome three days.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm up in Whistler again for another three-day session. And once again, hardpack.

Let's review, shall we? Last week, snowed until the day before I came up. Did not snow while I was there. Started snowing THE AFTERNOON OF THE DAY THAT I LEFT. Didn't stop snowing until the day before I came back up. Hasn't snowed while I'm up here, and isn't predicted to. BUT, it is predicted to snow by this weekend.

What the actual fuck?

Well, snow-grousing aside, it hasn't been terrible. I mean, it could be ice at the end of a freeze/thaw cycle, or it could be foggy, or gale-force winds, or so cold that gasses start to condense out of the air. So there's that.

In any case, my session on Monday was pretty long because there was still untouched stuff lying around, and there was still quite a bit of soft stuff on the mogul fields. Made for an interesting morning. Today, not so much. Everyone else who has been looking for the loose snow same as me has ground it into the hardpack. Same as me, I guess. So today was really just hardpacked, groomed runs. On the other hand, I'm getting lots of high-speed carving practice, so again, there's that.

And speaking of, my stats on the Slopes app have been skewing weirdly. Even though the line-ups have been moderate to non-existent, my riding/lifts ratio has been getting smaller and smaller. I finally figured it out today. I'm going down the runs a lot faster as my carving gets better and I desensitize to speed. And since I can't make the lifts run any faster no matter how hard I frown, the ratio goes down. Simple math. And a good sign, paradoxically.

I talked to a staffer today who informed me that there are park features set up on Blackcomb, something I'd been wondering about but hadn't bothered to check. I may do that tomorrow morning, just to be different.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I knew today would be a short session, just an hour or two, so I decided to make it a journey of exploration on Blackcomb. In particular, I wanted to find out if they had any park setups.

So the first thing I found out is that I should start from Blackcomb base, not Whistler Village. The Excalibur took me in the wrong direction, and it took a couple of rides to get where I wanted. Of course, when I got there, I discovered that there were some jumps, but the jump line was closed for maintenance. 🤬 Not that it mattered--I wasn't going to try anything on that crust.

And crust it was. If I had forgotten why I don't like Blackcomb, this morning reminded me. First, poor visibility is far, far more of a problem on Blackcomb. I'm not sure why that should be, but fog is almost a certainty on at least some parts of the mountain, on all but the sunniest of days. And like Franz's, for some reason the snow is always icier on Blackcomb for any given conditions. All in all, I think I should stay away from Blackcomb except during spring conditions or when it's cold and snowing so that fog is unlikely. I've _been _on Blackcomb when conditions were great, so I know it's possible.

Oh, and I checked out the Magic Chair beginner's run on the way down... just as icy as the rest of the mountain. Not even close to good conditions for learning switch.

All in all, a total waste of time except for the _learned my lesson_ part.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Mountain Biking*

Yeah. Early March, and I'm mountain biking. Just finished two in a row, and I'll be going tomorrow as well. It's not _quite_ t-shirt weather in that I wear an extra layer, but c'mon. And I've started right up where I left off last fall, skill-wise. A little wobbly here and there, but that'll pass.

Oh, and I put a deposit on a Trek Fuel EX 9.8 XT. God, I'm a gear whore. The sports shortage this year being what it is though, I may not get it before summer.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*BEST. DAY. EVER.*

Yeah, I say that too often. And yet, not often enough. Whistler today had a largely unexpected snow dump. The snow-forecast website had predicted _some _new, but nothing like what we got. And it all came late night/early morning, so webcam-watchers were taken by surprise as well. I happened to be scheduled to come anyway, so I was at the base at 7:30 am, which on a snow day would normally put me in the next postal code but today put me in the gondola maze. I got in a good 3-4 runs before the line-ups started getting busy. By 11am, though, it was reaching the level of silly.

But while it lasted, wow. I brought up the Blur, which is certainly a better pow board than the EJack. I found some 1-2 foot deep stashes, although most of the stuff around the piste was in the 8-12" range. Still, wow. And I ripped! I am now officially happy with my advancement this season. Still some stuff to work on of course, but when you run out of room to improve it's probably time to hang it up.

No particular wipe-outs or craziness with other users to report, either. And the biking I've done the last week seems to have made a difference to my endurance. I really wasn't anywhere near as tired when I finally quit, and freshie days tend to be harder on the back leg. So another plus.

Great day, all in all.


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## smellysell (Oct 29, 2018)

Donutz said:


> *BEST. DAY. EVER.*
> 
> Yeah, I say that too often. And yet, not often enough. Whistler today had a largely unexpected snow dump. The snow-forecast website had predicted _some _new, but nothing like what we got. And it all came late night/early morning, so webcam-watchers were taken by surprise as well. I happened to be scheduled to come anyway, so I was at the base at 7:30 am, which on a snow day would normally put me in the next postal code but today put me in the gondola maze. I got in a good 3-4 runs before the line-ups started getting busy. By 11am, though, it was reaching the level of silly.
> 
> ...


Fuck yeah! Hoping for similar fire me tomorrow! [emoji1696]

Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Of Things, Stuff, and Other Matters*

First, news: We just got our offer accepted on the Blueberry property. Moving up! Two bedrooms, and my stuff not all over the dining room table. Woot!

I broke 40 days some time in the last week or so. Last Friday was day 41. So anything from here on in is absolute bonus. Most mountains will close down by mid-April, including Whistler, but Blackcomb is scheduled to be open until May 24. I don't know how much I'll take advantage of that, but I really should try it at least once.

Seymour is on spring-break hours for most of the second half of March, which means their moronic 4-hour reservation system is active. I've seen announcements from them that imply that this is a permanent thing. If so, I'll have to seriously think about whether I even want to bother with them next year. I barely went a half-dozen times (just checked--the actual number is 10), and they weren't life-defining. Wife and daughter haven't gone at all. I really don't see the point, especially if I'm going to be spending more and more time at Whistler. I might be good with the Cypress and Whistler passes and leave it at that.

It's maybe a little early, but I feel the need to do a little navel-gazing about my season so far. First, my days were too short. I'm still quitting by about noon or so, and I shouldn't need to. So more biking this summer means better fitness for snowboarding season next year. Plus I get to do more biking, so win-win. Second, I did no park this year, for the very simple reason that Whistler didn't set up anything in the Family Bowl this year. I did a couple of sessions on Seymour and Cypress, but nothing concerted, so Ima call that a no-show.

I also did next to nothing on techniques, specifically ollies and penguin-walking. FFS, all it would take is a half-hour once in a while, but no... I see the big white downhill in front of me and it's like a dog seeing a squirrel. Oh, well. Still fun.

But my snowboarding technique is a huge win for the season. Finally, finally, finally, I have toesides and heelsides both under control with proper technique. I can do long sweeping carves or short over-unders, or tight scarves for icy conditions. I've got moguls nailed, at least up to intermediate size. The mountainous, steep ones still freak me out, but that's just practice. I can handle deep freshies (I still remember my first experience with embarrassment), and I can handle chopped-up conditions now. I can even straight-line with reasonable confidence, although depending on snow conditions I might not actually flat-base. So all-in-all, a very gratifying season.

Next year, thanks to the new place we'll be able to stay in Whistler for longer periods of time, which means less wasted days going back and forth. Which means more session days, which has no downside except the hit on the Advil inventory.

And I'm seriously eyeing a Stranda Cheater for next season, especially for those freshies days. The Blur is better than the EJack for deep new stuff, but it's still not ideal. I need something with a lot of nose, and the Stranda looks about perfect. Or perhaps the Shorty Blk. Hmmm.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!*

They've just closed down Whistler Blackcomb--'they' being the BC government. COVID cases have spiked and they've decided it's time to put the brakes on. So, hello, last year. The mountain will be closed until April 18 or 19, which is past Whistler's original expected closing date, so a reopening is unlikely. Blackcomb was going to be open until May 24, but I don't see them reopening in mid-April. By then the staff will have all left.

So I may or may not get a chance to do a little more snowboarding on the locals, but failing that, the season is done.


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## smellysell (Oct 29, 2018)

Donutz said:


> *Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!*
> 
> They've just closed down Whistler Blackcomb--'they' being the BC government. COVID cases have spiked and they've decided it's time to put the brakes on. So, hello, last year. The mountain will be closed until April 18 or 19, which is past Whistler's original expected closing date, so a reopening is unlikely. Blackcomb was going to be open until May 24, but I don't see them reopening in mid-April. By then the staff will have all left.
> 
> So I may or may not get a chance to do a little more snowboarding on the locals, but failing that, the season is done.


Do you have a split? 

Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

smellysell said:


> Do you have a split?
> 
> Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk


No, don't have the patience. If it comes down to it, I'll just switch to mountain biking early.

That's the great thing about having a summer and a winter sport!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*End of Season Recap*

I might as well get this out of the way since it looks like the season is effectively over. Oh, I might get a couple of days in on the locals, but they won't amount to much.

So here's my goals for this season as written up last fall, and how I actually did.

First, general technique items:

On toesides, I need to make sure my form is good. Hump the air, keep horizon level, keep weight centered.
*NAILED*
On heelsides, don’t kick into a braking maneuver. Try to make my heelside turns symmetrical with my toesides. Squat and bend the knees to save the quads.
*NAILED*
At speed, fight the slope less. No cross-slope turns more than 45 degrees. If I need to slow, do a slash-brake.
*NAILED*
Fast S-turns on moderate slopes, C-turns on steeper slopes as necessary. Bombing steep sections is about strategy.
*NAILED*
Do turns from the hip, not the shoulders. Keep the lead hand slightly heelside of center.
*NAILED*
Modify my expectations to match the conditions. Going slow in fog and icy conditions is not failure.
*Meh. I realize it intellectually now, but still not feeling it.*
On moguls, work on keeping weight forward. Leaning back is doom. Try to carve the sides of the moguls instead of following the troughs. Try to use windshield-wiper turns to scrub speed. Plan my path instead of just blindly charging in.
*Not quite nailed, but way the hell better this year.*
Strategy items:

Decide when to hit the mountain. In icy conditions, going up first thing is pointless and not really enjoyable anyway.
*Easy to say until the mountain calls.*
Vary my location. Don’t hit family bowl all the time. Make a list of runs on the mountain, and hit at least one new one every session.
*Nope. Not even close.*
Don’t quit after two hours, no matter how tired I am. Change locale, or work on small techniques, or take a break.
*Moderate success, but still lots of room for improvement.*
Try to follow other snowboarders that seem a little faster than me. This forces me outside my comfort zone.
*I did this a couple of times and was pleased with the results. Do more often next year.*
Ride bumpy terrain and side-hits whenever possible. In and out of the trees. Getting used to being tossed around is excellent for improving balance.
*I didn't do this as much as I could or as early as I should. Start right at beginning of season next year.*
Explore a little. Some of the stuff we visited on my lessons are runs I'd probably never find on my own normally.
*Didn't do any of this. Try again next season.*
Specific techniques:

Practice things like penguin walk, ollies, nose rolls, nose and tail manuals. Maybe even ground-spins.
*Nope.*
Practice switch. A lot. I should pick a slope and practice going down the entire way switch. Up the ante once I’m successful.
*I made a couple of half-hearted attempts. Really need to get this done.*
Do the jump line early. It only takes 3-4 times through it to start to get the rhythm, and once I’m comfortable, I will hit it regularly. Wear armour those days if desired to make it a little easier.
*Sadly, Whistler didn't build a park in the Family Bowl at all this year. The one time I went over to Blackcomb, I found the park closed.*
Other plans:

Use the Insta360. Getting vids of my technique is incredibly valuable.
*I made one or two attempts, but nothing concerted.*
Desensitize myself to speed early. It makes a huge difference to my riding once I start bombing without chickening out. Don’t wait for it to just “come naturally” this year.
*I wasn't as focused on this as I should have been, so it took most of the season to get there. Next year, be more focused.*
Get low, and keep legs loose. I always start the year with stiff, straight legs. Get over that. Following undulating terrain requires loose legs, bent knees.
*NAILED*
Try to move up slightly in park features. Larger jumps, boxes, maybe a pipe.
*Nope. See above note.*
Try to wear armour whenever possible. It makes a difference to my confidence. And with the weight I’ve managed to shed this year, I should be able to do it without feeling bulky.
*No park, no point.*
Watch some snowboarding videos as obsessively as I’ve been watching MTB videos. Try out the techniques presented therein.
*Nope.*

So there it is. There's a lot of 'NAILED' showing, which feels very, very good. The stuff that was more 'meh' had mostly to do with my concentration, focus, and resolve. I think the root problem is that the whole season felt like it was borrowed time, as if it could end any second and I had to get in all the boarding possible while the getting was good. Next season, I think the biggest thing I can do for my riding is to be organized in terms of when and how often I go up. If I _know_ I have so many days guaranteed, maybe I'll feel more like I have the luxury to take on some of those learning projects.

Having the new place will help. Being able to take the whole family up without us being on top of each other will make it far easier to get up to Whistler for a week at a time. But more than that, I have to establish a schedule and stick to it. No more winging it.

I've purged all my equipment down to the boards and bindings that I like best and use the most. About the only thing I might want to investigate is the question of gloves, either heated ones or ones with the zipper pocket on the back of the hand for heat packs. Other than that, I'm completely gear-whored-out.

So now I have a season of mountain biking to enjoy and to use to get in shape for next snowboarding season. Bring it on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just took the ski rack off the car. I haz a sad.

But, let's face it, we're going to be way the hell too busy over the next couple of weeks with the new place for me to have any hope of getting up the locals. Might as well just call it, and hit the bike trails whenever possible.

For the record, the Whistler Lost Lake trails aren't _quite _ready for mountain biking.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Weather changes fast in Coquitlam. Last week, we had snow. Today, shirt-sleeve-and-shorts weather. I went for a ride in Bert Flinn and actually felt too hot in my long-sleeve jersey. Also felt exhausted, since I seem to be unable to grok the simple concept of working back into it.

Good session, though. Did everything except the small jump at the bottom of Jo-jo. I even did the rooty section at the bridge that normally freaks me out. Walking it a few times helped. I think I have the proper line nailed now.

All the locals are closed now, I think (haven't actually heard from Grouse). The COVID variants just have people too freaked out. I think it's just as well. I'm good with moving on to the summer sports.

I did my end-of-season navel-gazing a couple of posts up, so no need to revisit that. But I will say that I turned some kind of corner this year. I seemed to be stagnating for a while, but I've broken through that plateau, mainly due to working out technique issues that were holding me back. Next year, I'll be challenging myself on harder runs and higher speeds, as well as rougher terrain including moguls.

Meanwhile, for the MTB season, other than having gotten a bit out of shape I'm pretty much picking up where I left off. So I can look forward to some significant improvements this season. I've booked a Trek Dirt Series day for early summer, which will help significantly. And depending on how the pandemic thing goes in Whistler, I may take a day-lesson or two on downhilling. Granted it's not my preferred niche, but you still learn a lot of techniques on the downhill sessions that translate into cross-country biking.

And the new place is on the other side of the highway, which puts me closer to some of the trails that I haven't been bothering with because of distance. On the other hand, grizzlies tend to hang out more on the west side... grizzly encounter definitely no bueno. And pepper spray just adds spice.

Well, we'll see. It'll be an eventful summer one way or the other. I just hope it's one way and not the other, know what I mean?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Definitely sad I didn't bring my bike to Whis. Mid-April is when you can start riding the valley trails.

On the other hand, I'm so sore by the end of the day from all the humping boxes around and cleaning, I'm not sure I'd be able to get my leg over my bike. 😢 

Next time, we get professionals.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Updates*

Well, we're more or less moved into the new place, and we have an accepted offer on the old place (still a few subjects on it). So things are looking good from that point of view. In addition, my new bike has arrived at Trek. Not in time for me to pick it up, but that's okay. I have the EX 8 up here, so I'll probably go for a ride today if the weather doesn't go to shit.

And that's the bad news. We seem to be in a _blech _weather cycle right now. Basically a solid week forward of clouds and rain in both Whistler and Coquitlam. So no getting away from it.

Meanwhile, the snow is melting at a frightening rate on Blackcomb. I honestly don't see how Vail could have kept skiing open until May 24th. Of course this means that downhill biking could be ready to go soon, assuming they were allowed to open soon.

Shoulder season. Waiting for everything. Sigh.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

New bike. The gear whorage continues into the off-season.

I took it for its first ride today. It definitely feels lighter than the 8, and by more than the 2 pounds that the specs indicate. Weird. But it feels great. Good braking, solid shifting, and the suspension is really accommodating. I'm probably going to end up bringing it up to Whistler when the lock-down is over, but for now I can enjoy it in Coquitlam.

I've gotten in 13 days of riding now in 2021, which is pretty damned good. My riding is also already better than I ended with last season, so even damned better. Once the weather gets dependable enough, I hope to really make good progress this year. It'll help as well that the Lost Lake trails will be open all season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've done two days of rides, Tuesday and today. Both really felt good. I'm still being a little careful, not attacking the hardest runs that I was doing last year. Right now, I'm still more worried about getting my conditioning back into condition. I am still a little short on wind, but I'm concentrating on stand-up pedalling, and so far it feels like I'm doing better than last year. I've also found myself doing short sprints where I wouldn't have before. All in all, very happy with how it's going.

I've got 16 rides in so far in 2021, compared to 19 by this point in 2020--which surprised me. But apparently I did a lot of cycling in April of 2020, compared to a handful last month. Probably to do with weather--this April was kind of crap. But from here on, I'm all in.

Today I added a lap on Starz in the Bert Flinn trails, so I ended up hitting the skinnies at the bottom of Jo-Jo twice. Aced them both, both times. I think the practice on driveway ramp strips going up Lansdowne is making a huge difference. I also charged through the root garden on Hett Creek. That feature might be about to become routine. The only things I'm still having trouble with are drops. There are two--one at the bottom of Jo-Jo, and one on the Starz run. I'm not sure why I'm hesitating, other than simple cowardice. But I should be able to do them--I did them last year, many times. I just need to break the ice.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yesterday I did Bert Flinn trails and added the bottom part of Backyard Bikes--the one that dumps onto Ioco road. It's the first time I've tried that segment, and overall I'm very happy with my handling of the trail. It's significantly harder than the upper parts, both narrower and with more drops, roots, and rocks. I dabbed once and got off my bike twice, but even in those two cases I think I could handle it with some time to review the stretch of trail. Overall, it's about the same level as No Horses, which means I could now handle all of No Horses.

Now, the bad news. I way overdid it yesterday, both in terms of pushing my pace and by climbing all the way from Newport village to David. Last night I was so sore I kept waking up, and that was _with _Advil. I'm not sure what I'll do today. One option would be to go to the grassy field and practice techniques instead. Another would be to take a rest day.

I'll be bringing my new EX 9.8 up to Whistler and returning my EX 8 to Coquitlam. I'll also need to take the 8 in for a service. There are a _lot_ of noises coming from it, and they make me nervous.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Excellent day in Whistler yesterday. I did the full route -- Fountain of Love, Pinocchio's Furniture, Dwarf Nebula, Zoot Allures, Toads of the Short Forest, Gee I Like Your Pants, Son of Mr Green Genes, and Jellyroll Gumdrop. I even did that 180 degree ladder bridge on Pinocchio that's been terrifying me. I dabbed several times, at places that I generally have trouble. I'll want to session those spots eventually to figure out the best attack strategy. I also dropped my rear tire off a short ladder bridge on Dwarf Nebula, which kind of surprised me. It's a straight bridge, so it must have just been carelessness. No harm, though.

My fitness is coming back, and my weight is coming down. Both too slowly for my liking. I just have to keep at it. OTOH, that can be hard to do the way the weather keeps changing. Yesterday was gorgeous, but today is low overcast and raining. The next couple of days are weather soup, so who knows if I'll get another opportunity while I'm up here. Oh, well, I _did_ come up to get some work done for the move, so maybe it's for the better.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Back in Coquitlam today. I did a Bert Flinn ride, and added the first half of North Starz to the mix. I'm still dabbing here and there, especially on North Starz which has some very technical steep, switchy climbs. But I'm also doing all my trails faster. The weird-ass leaning technique that I used to find so offensive actually works, in that it shortens your turning radius _and _allows you to get the bike way over without committing your upper body.

I managed to get the cadence sensor on to the 9.8, and I added a handlebar mount for the Garmin. I'm going to try putting the phone holder back on at the top of the steering stem. I really don't like the Rockbros bike bag on the 9.8. I'm not sure what the problem is, but it's probably geometry. The bag just seems a lot more in the way on this bike.

The 8 is in the shop. The guy thinks most of the noise is just joints that need to be lubed and tightened. He'll take the front fork and stem apart just to be sure, though. He also says I need a new cassette, chain, and possibly chainstay. The cassette is $370. Yeesh. But I knew this was coming. The tech in Maple Ridge warned me last fall that it was coming up on needing to be replaced. I'm just surprised that I've used the 8 so much more than the 7 that the 8's cassette wore out first.

This also makes me wonder if I should be selling the 7. I need a bike in Whis and a bike here, and a spare for when I bugger one of them up. OTOH, I've been eyeing the 9.8 NX, which uses SRAM parts instead of Shimano. Yes, I am a gear whore. But the difference between the XT and NX is just the brand of the shifting and braking bits, so it would be really cool to be able to compare them that way. And the 8 could become my spare, and the 7 could go.

Last thing, and a note to myself--I'm able to lift the front tire pretty good these days. Manuals are becoming easier. But I still need to learn to lift the rear tire before I can have any hope of doing bunny hops. I need to make a point of practicing a rear-wheel lift a couple of times per ride. It's what got the manuals going, it should work for this as well.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Normally I wouldn't update this frequently, but honestly I'm improving day by day right now. There's a rock between the two short bridges on the Bert Flinn Loop that I've started riding over this season. Except today I started using it as a jump ramp. I'm getting actual air. And today I did the drop at the bottom of Jo-Jo's for the first time this season.

_And _I've finally tried the rock roll on North Starz. It isn't a big or nasty roll, but the run-out is really short and the obvious fall-line doesn't point at the way out, instead runs you into the trees. So unless I can find a slightly different line, I'm always going to really have to be on my brakes quickly at the bottom of the roll. Something to work on.

And last, today I blasted through Hett Creek at speed, standing all the way. I'm really feeling good so far this season.

That is all.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm back up in Whistler with the EX 9.8. I went for a ride this morning, trying to squeeze in some time between the overnight showers and the expected afternoon showers. I mostly nailed it, although the wind was a little scary. It felt at times like there was a real biblical storm coming--there was even the occasional howling wind noise. So far, as I write this, it seems to have backed off a little.

The BC government has announced their post-pandemic plan. Wisely, they've tied it to deliverables rather than committed dates, i.e. we'll move to step 2 when first-shot immunization reaches 60% _and _hospitalizations continue to trend down. Same for steps 3 and 4. So if people start jumping the gun and things go pear-shaped, we don't advance and maybe even go back a step. That might, just might, register with the morons who think this is all just a plot to inconvenience them.

But the immediate upside is that travel within health authority boundaries is okay without an excuse. Step 2 will allow travel within BC, but that's less interesting to me. Whistler has announced that they will be opening up things as of May 31st, _including_ getting the bike park going. Sadly no lessons last time I looked, but that could change. And there are always the several third-party coaching companies.

Meanwhile, I still have my Trek Dirt Series booking at the end of July to look forward to. Although at this point I'm beginning to wonder if I'll have advanced past the level I registered for by that time. No, seriously. I did two hours this morning which included the full blue trail-line, and whereas I wouldn't say it's 'routine' just yet, it's certainly damned close. I'm still dabbing here and there, but about half the time I sessioned those spots and nailed them within 2-3 attempts. There's just that one rock outcropping about 2/3 of the way along Pinocchio that's still kicking my ass, and I bet I can successfully session that if put my mind to it.

I don't want to give the impression that I'm breathing down Blake Samson's neck or anything like that. I'm still a low-intermediate rider, and blacks still give me trepidation. But I've passed that cusp in progression where you have accumulated enough skills that they start building on each other. I'm by no means fearless, but I at least can go into new situations with the expectation that I will come out alive, if I'm careful. And interestingly I hit that same cusp in my snowboarding last season. Odd. I think it simply comes down to having enough time to spend on my obsessions hobbies. Which comes back to my mantra: nothing ups your game like time on the hill.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

(copied from forum post)

The BC Gov't has loosened up on COVID restrictions, and Whistler has announced they'll be opening the bike park May 31st (if all goes well). First, woo-hoo because mountain bikers in the bike park are mountain bikers not on the trails (more for me). Second, woo-hoo++ because it looks like they'll be doing group lessons after all. I'd been hoping to get a few downhill lessons this year as the skills translate pretty well into trail-riding.

It looks like they'll be enforcing the health-region limitations until June 15th, so this'll be a strictly locals-only thing for now.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did a Bert Flinn ride today. Did all the usuals plus North Starz. Also did all the features, including the rock roll. That roll isn't a problem for me any more in terms of fear or capability, but it really is poorly laid out. It's almost impossible to go down it and aim at the exit, so you really do have to hammer on the brakes as soon as you're down. I'll probably keep doing it sometimes, but I'm not going to consider it a _required _feature.

I did the drop at the bottom of Jo-Jos again, and the root garden at the bottom of Hett Creek. So those can be considered more or less routine now. There was a tree down on the climb up Lower Backyard Trail just before it intersects Parkside Drive. I tried to move it but no joy. I'll have to do a report on Trailforks and hope they clean it up.

I continue to dab here and there, but that's mostly a combination of not being totally back up to snuff and not being totally back into shape. I had one scary moment though, on Hett Creek just above the root garden. I'm still not sure what happened, although I think it involved my front wheel, but I suddenly found myself aimed to the side of the trail pointed right at a large rock. I hit the binders and it was all good, but WTF?

Anyway, the most significant event of the day was that I forgot my water bottle. The swearing was epic and inventive. No, scratch that, it was kind of repetitive, actually. But definitely heartfelt. The takeaway though is that I really have to create and post up a checklist, because I still am managing to forget something almost every time.

And the EX 8 is definitely heavier than the 9.8. I can feel it.

On that subject, I got the 8 back from Trek after they did the level 1 service. Makes a huge difference.

So anyway, progress continues.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Whistler day today, _and_ the first day of Whistler Downhill Bike Park. And man, did it show. People started lining up at 8am (opens at 10). By the time I visited the village on my way to my ride, the maze was full and the line snaked around Carleton Lodge on the way to Spaghetti Factory. I took a couple of pictures, but they don't really do it justice.

I did my usual trails, except I went down The Torture Never Stops and Disco Boy, then came back around Tin Pants to get to Fountain of Love. It worked quite well, and may form my new routine when I'm doing that line.

I made a point of sessioning every dab today, even if it took multiple attempts to clean. I even managed the two rock outcroppings that have been eluding me, on Dwarf Nebula and near the end of Pinocchio's Furniture. I'm definitely taking trails faster, and more often standing up. Which both fortunately and unfortunately is killing me, wind-wise.

I still haven't started doing that rock roll at the top of the dome on Toads of the Short Forest. I think I'd like to wait until things are a little busier, just in case I mess up. Paranoid? Maybe.

Some guy caught up to me on Pinocchio, and I let him by because first, he caught up to me, and second, I was sessioning things. However, I found myself catching up to him several times over the course of the runs, and he was walking a fair number of features. Most of the same stuff that has freaked me out in the past, as a matter of fact. It felt like it validated my learning experiences.

So, as mentioned earlier, Whistler is doing downhill lessons this year after all. But after discussion with my wife, I've decided that I won't attempt a lesson or any downhilling until 2 weeks after my second shot. Since the Astra-Zeneca vaccine has been approved for a 1-month extension to its expiry, they'll be working extra-hard to get them all used up. Bodes well for my chances.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Second Whistler day, and second day of Whistler bike park. Yesterday they started lining up at 8am. Today, I rode by just a little after 9am and there was no-one. So I guess there was some opening-day-frenzy in play yesterday. As I write this (early afternoon), there's only one lane of the maze full of bikers. And this is a beautiful day, better than yesterday, so WTF? I guess everyone took a long weekend yesterday or something.

Anyway, on to my morning. I decided to do White Gold Traverse this morning. First time this year, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I did better than I could have hoped. Didn't dab even once all the way down to the bridge at the exit of Jellyroll Gumdrop. Then I rode Hookender back up to Molly Hogan, and took my first try of the year at Grand Wazoo.

Yyyyyeahhhhh... That didn't go quite so well. First, I did a lot of dabbing, because there are a lot of spots on Grand Wazoo that you have to get just right in order to have any hope of getting through. There's also that short bridge at the top of the hill that I honestly haven't figured out how to attack yet. By the time I get to it, I have pretty much zero momentum left, and I really don't feel like trying to power my way across a narrow ladder bridge. But the coup de grace was when I fell off the downhill side of a long bridge. Yep. Right over the edge, bike going sideways. Fortunately it was only about a three-foot drop, and I managed to partially dismount before I hit. Although I did put a foot in some shallow swamp. Ew! The problem was that I'd gone onto the bridge in too low a gear and couldn't keep my momentum going. But I went back and cleaned the bridge right away, otherwise I'd have probably ended up with a mental block about it.

Other than that one spill, it was a great morning. I'd like to be able to ride every day this week, but I think Friday may be going downhill, weather-wise. We'll see.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So I've now gone riding four days in a row, and should be able to get a fifth in tomorrow before the afternoon rain settles in. I continue to session any obstacles that give me grief, and it's really helping. Although I'm worried about starting a forest fire with the swearing. I'm not what you'd call _philosophical_ when it's not going well . I'm trying to keep my bike rides to a minimum of two hours, as that seems to be about the point where I really feel it the rest of the day. Strangely, my weight's been going _up_ for the last several days, although my girth is going down. So maybe more muscle mass? Would be nice. I am stand-up-pedaling a lot more, which I would think contributes to that. I'm standing up for all of _Son of Mr. Green Genes, _for instance, and even pedaling to get up speed.

Interestingly, I've discovered that it's possible to enter my weight into the Garmin Connect app after every ride, although I don't seem to be able to go back and enter previous rides. Not sure if I'll make use of that or not. The Notes file on my phone seems to be good enough for my purposes.

I did the rock roll at the top of the rock dome on Toads today. First time this season. It's actually an easier feature than the one on North Starz, despite being higher, longer, and made mostly of rock. It's because of the ride-out--it's much easier on Toads.

I think I'm going to try No Horses tomorrow if the weather stays dry long enough. It'd be nice to add that to my routine.

Eventually I want to get into that whole _Why Johnny Can't Read _to _Grand Wazoo_ course as well. I remember that whole run as being a real ass-kicker. And I do want to work up some variety. I think, of all the Lost Lake trails, I only have Muffin Man, Central Scrutinizer, and Treacherous Cretins left to explore. And all the fire roads, of course. Maybe the Trek Dirt Series course this July will give me some other options.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did an abbreviated ride today, because it started raining at about the one-hour point. If I had rain gear I might consider staying out longer, but in a T and sunglasses it just doesn't work.

Still a good session, though. I did some of the usuals for warmup, then at Pinocchio I turned off onto No Horses. I bobbled a bit in places, but I didn't get off my bike for any of it. That felt damned good.

Heading back home today, so this was my last Whistler ride. But I'll be back next week for a day or two, as we're getting new blinds installed.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Sigh. I need help.











In my defense, it's probably the last new downhill bike available in the lower mainland.


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## Eivind så klart (Aug 30, 2020)

Congrats! Awesome bike ✌🏻


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Weather roulette continues in both Coquitlam and Whistler. Rain, wind, sun, cloud, rain, cloud, rain, sun, rain... sometimes rain and sun at the same time . I was up in Whistler for a very short time--just long enough to find out the blinds guy had to cancel. That was okay, the weather was crap anyway. I got back to Coquitlam, dropped the 9.8 off for its complimentary tune, and went to Bert Flinn on the 8.

I finally got around to trying out the Garmin heartrate chest strap with the Garmin bike computer. Unsurprisingly, they are compatible. Having the chest strap adds a shit-ton of new stats to the Garmin recording, including breaths-per-minute, which was a total surprise. I'm going to have to spend some time analyzing. My heart rate is surprisingly high, and consistently so. I'll have to check, but I'm pretty sure I'm out of the zones for my age bracket. Not sure if that's good or bad.

So the big news for today--I did my first bunny hop. It wasn't high, or particularly good, but I definitely lofted the bike. It was that rock on the loop trail that I'm always jumping. Up until now, I've been manualing the front tire then just letting the back tire bash over it, but today I cleared with both tires. Of course I couldn't do it again to save my life, which is pretty typical. But it's a start.

It was hella wet today after all the recent rain, and I did a lot of root-zipping. But I only had to do a dab-save once. On the other hand, I spun several times when I lost traction, but that's not the same IMO.

All in all, a damn fine day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Another Bert Flinn day yesterday, but it didn't really go well. Part of the problem was that it was wet as hell after several days of rain, but I was determined to get out there and get some exercise. Unfortunately zippy roots and boggy soil caused a lot of spinning and dabbing. I failed on almost every steep climb. I think I was also suffering aftereffects from my second AZ shot, though. I just felt tired and heavy, and ran out of breath even quicker than normal. I ended up truncating the ride. Still got exercise, though, and I have to remind myself that that's my main reason for biking.

On a more positive note, I did another successful bunny hop over that same rock on the Loop trail. Then I failed on the next two attempts, actually losing a pedal on one of them. I know what I should be doing, and I know what I'm doing when I screw it up. The goal is to push the handlebars forward to rotate the bike around the pedals. I have to avoid any motion that will tend to make me unweight the pedals. It's just practice, but I think I'm going to have to dedicate some time to it on the grassy field.

I've looked into the max heart rate thing, and based on my reading your max heart rate isn't just some arbitrary number, but is the actual maximum rate at which your heart should be able to beat at your age. So if I am able to go over my putative max, then by definition it's not my max heart rate. That's not to say it's a good idea, but it does mean I don't have to religiously avoid going into the 150's. There's a lot of argument about whether or not you can increase your max through fitness or exercise, but there at least seems to be a consensus that the max varies by individual. Given all this, I will pay attention to what my Garmin is saying, but I won't panic the moment I go into my zone 5.

As mentioned above, I got my second jab on Thursday, so in two weeks I can think about booking that downhill lesson. I'm not going to book it until much closer to the day, though, as I want good weather for my first time. Based on what I'm seeing on the Whistler website, you can pretty much book right up until the day before. I will probably also want to stick to a Mon-Thur booking, given the usage patterns this year.

Meanwhile, Junuary has settled in, and we have nothing but crap weather off into the indefinite future, both here and in Whistler. Yeehah.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Updates...

First, I got my EX 9.8 back today. Unfortunately, It's not completely fixed. They've had to order a new chainstay assembly. Apparently the hole where the wheel bearing goes in is just a little too big and the bearing moves around. Fortunately it's under warranty. I have to say, so far my experience with Trek has been all very positive.

I went for a ride today on the EX 7--first time I've taken it out since I did the level 3 service. It rode well, no noise, etc. Unfortunately, it's still an EX-7, which includes a 42-tooth first gear. That's about third on my 8 and 9.8. Mostly that was okay, just threw me off a little with the shifting, but there are a couple of spots on North Starz in particular where I really need that low second gear. I didn't even _try_ Backyard Bikes.

I did however do a couple of good jumps, a couple of not bad bunny hops, and I aced the skinnies and the drops. I had to session a couple of features, but no biggie.

I also paid close attention to my heartrate, and I think the posts on MTBR forum are right--you can't take the zone ranges and the max heart rate calculation too literally. I used the new Wahoo Tikrfit that I bought recently. It goes around your upper forearm either on the inside or outside. I think it could use a stretchy armband, but it works. It also measures breaths per minute which _really_ surprised me. I can understand how the chest strap does that, but your forearm?

Anyway, I now have two chest straps and a forearm strap. Good for one in each location and a spare. I just have to decide if I want to use a chest strap or armband.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We're in the middle of a dry spell and mini heat wave in the Lower Mainland right now, which means riding every day if I want to. Honestly, I'm not sure if that's the best idea though. My Garmin has a whole bunch of new training functionality with the latest firmware upload, and one of the things it does now is tell me how hard I worked out relative to my fitness level, and how long I should rest to recuperate. I tend to view those things as overly conservative, but even if I don't do 72 hours of recovery, taking a day off is not a terrible idea--especially if I have stuff to do.

Anyway, I took yesterday off after several days of hard sessions (for me), and damned if I didn't notice a difference in my aerobic capacity. I do have to be careful here, because I also tend to do better with early morning rides, and this could be nothing more than that. Still, it was nice to get to the top of the Backyard Bikes steep climb and just be somewhat winded instead of about to fall over. So fitness-wise, I'm doing well. My weight continues to decrease, along with my waistline. All good.

Today's ride was significant in other ways, as well. Mostly good. First, I did an absolutely flawless bunny hop over my favorite bunny-hop rock. Cleared it completely. As usual, I couldn't duplicate it, but even my flubs are better now.

Second, my manuals clicked--at least the front-wheel-lifting part. I'd watched a video yesterday by a guy who was just learning to manual and something he said clicked with me. I tried it, and it worked. Essentially, think of a rowing motion when in the pulling-back part of the lift. That works for me. It works to the point where I _really _have to work on my rear-wheel lifts now, because that's the part that's blocking me from full-on at-will bunny hops.

And the last thing today (and not a good one), I did an OTB on North Starz. I had just finished cleaning the whole climb at the beginning of North Starz right up to the rock roll--including that really stupid ladder bridge--so I was feeling pretty cocky. As I went down the trail after the rock roll, there's a rock jutting up to form a small kicker that I usually go around. Instead I decided _at the last moment_ to give it a try. Of course I screwed the pooch on un-weighting my front wheel, came down nose-heavy, went OTB and landed in the bushes. I got a small scrape on my cheek (face, not butt) and got covered in leaves, dirt, and dead insects, but I was otherwise okay. Turns out I can still do a pretty good shoulder roll.

Actually, my third and fourth fingers on my right hand are a little sore, but they don't appear to be broken. Probably just hyperextended the joints a little. The other thing that was interesting was that both my watch and my Garmin activated their incident detection systems. I had to cancel both or my wife would have gotten a call. Eep! Good to know, though.

I rode a little more conservatively after that, and in fact my ride stats are down a little for today. But it's still exercise, and it's still fun.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Donutz said:


> But it's still exercise, and it's still fun.


This has become a bit of a mantra for myself. Especially after really slow/boring days at work I tend to go out trying to burn off some energy, lift my mood and at least achieve _something_ for the day. When things don't go quite to plan instead of letting myself feel a little defeated, hey I still got outside, did some exercise, and had fun. That's always a win!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We're well into our heat wave now. I'm sure places like Arizona would laugh at us, but for Lower Mainlanders this is like a preview of hell. It still beats steady rain, though.

I'm taking the day off, partly because I think I'm due for a rest day. I was really sore yesterday after my ride. It didn't seem like a particularly hard one, but it was a little longer because I did an extra lap of Black Dog. But whatever. It's hot, it's a Saturday so the trails will be packed, so what the hell.

It looks like we won't be able to get up to Whistler for another week due to family issues. Normally that wouldn't matter that much either way, as I have a lot of good riding I can do around here. But I've been wanting to book that Beginners Downhill thing, and the weather is cooperating right now.

July 16th is approaching, which is my Trek Dirt Series course day. Trek will be getting the part in for my 9.8, so I'll be dropping it off on the 6th. That means I can use the 9.8 on my course. Cool beans!

Not much new news on the actual riding front, really. I continue to improve, my weight continues to go down. My new goal is to successfully jump that kicker on North Starz that sent me OTB. Incremental strategy applies. For now I'm just rolling it. I also want to start using the Starz Line trail entrance again. There are a couple of features in upper Starz that I should be starting to hit.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The temps are coming down to something reasonable for June, as of today. I went for a ride this morning and was able to do the whole course. My Garmin wasn't, though. For some reason my Garmin kept self-activating selections, as if a phantom hand was poking at it. I ended up with only half of my ride recorded. Not a fatal issue in the long term, of course. The most important thing is that I show myself having ridden on the calendar. But still, WTF?

I'm continuing to have dabbing issues on a couple of spots on North Starz and on the Black Dog connector. This morning I got angry and walked back the bike to session the connector and got it the second time. I think what's causing my problems is a tendency to slow down in the more technical sections if I start to lose my line. When I just bull ahead at speed and bash over things, I actually do better. 

I think I need to take a break though and work on my bunny hop components for an entire session. Front wheel lifts, rear wheel lifts, and then bunny hop. I'm really like that close. I can do them, but not dependably.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Eeeeeeeek!*

Met another bear today, this time on the North Starz trail. Or maybe it was the same bear as last fall. Definitely as fat.

But neither of us was happy about it. He went his way and I went mine.

Oh, and of course I didn't have my camera. 💩


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Not much hugely new. I've gone on a couple of rides using the EX 7 while the 9.8 was in the shop getting the swing arm replaced. Took a bit of getting used to, but I can do pretty much everything on the 7. Interestingly, I'm finding some things are actually _easier _with the 7's limited gearing. That tells me I'm gearing down too low on some features. Huh. What I really miss on the 7 though are the bell (!) and the cadence sensor. Of the two, I miss the bell more. I've become quite used to dinging people as I approach.

I'm also finding I get a lot more left-hand tingle on the 7. Not sure if that's a configuration issue or if I'm just squeezing the handlebars harder.

I did an absolutely perfect bunny hop today, the kind I wish I had on video. I'm still flubbing some, but my percentage is way up. I'm also much better with tail lifts, and may be ready to combine them soon.

There seems to be some kind of kids' mountain biking program going on in Bert Flynn. I've met several gaggles of kids being led around by a couple of adults. This morning I ran into a group at the bottom of the rock garden section on Jo-Jo. That's pretty narrow down there, and typical kids didn't think they really needed to move over. Grrrrr.

Anyway, my good bike is back, so things should go back to relatively normal now. My next problem is deciding if I want to bring the 9.8 up to Whistler for the Trek Dirt Series day. If I do, I'll need another of those expensive Kryptonite locks.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I added a lap onto my course today by going through the Starz line before Jo-Jo. It was fun, interesting, and I kinda got lost a time or two. There are a lot of interconnecting trails in there. I even ended up turned around and found myself going back _up_ a trail at one point. But the extra effort really made me feel the session. I think I'm going to start mixing in some different Starz lines, and maybe do the Backyard Bikes trail instead of Hett Creek from time to time.

I did have a couple of minor milestones today. First, I managed that entire first climb on North Starz and didn't have to rest at the top. Second, when crossing Parkside Drive on the Hett Creek trail run, I was able to climb the curb cleanly using a manual/rear wheel lift. This sounds like a very minor thing, but it's one step short of a full bunny hop up. Meanwhile I continue to bunny hop my rock on the loop, but I'm starting to get sloppy with it. I need to spend a session just doing bunny hops--and maybe manuals and wheelies and stuff. Maybe on one of my 'rest' days I'll just do an easy session in the park.

I'm now working on the Heritage Blvd climb in 4th gear. I can make it about halfway before I have to shift down. But a little better every day.

Looking forward to the Trek Dirt Series day this week and being in Whistler for a few days next week.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did the Trek Dirt Series session on Friday. It followed the same format as the last time--morning session on a grassy field practicing techniques, and an afternoon session on the trails. This time, the morning session was at Myrtle field, and the afternoon session was on a couple of trails on the west side--Old 99er and Danimal. The camp was interesting, all in all, but ultimately disappointing. The two items I wanted more than anything else to work on were drops and jumps. And the two items we didn't cover were drops and jumps.

I should qualify that a bit. They had some jump ramps in the morning session for practicing technique. That would have been perfect for me, but we ran out of time before our group got to them. So no jumps. We did some drop practice off of boxes, but I've done that before and it was meh at best. I wanted to practice drops to a downslope and there was nothing like that. So I'm disappointed in the morning session.

The afternoon was a bit of an ass-kicker, though. First, we had to ride uphill quite a distance to get to the first trail, Old 99er. Then another uphill ride to get to Danimal. This doesn't sound like a big deal, but I've been wondering if I'd be able to handle climbs for something like Seymour or Burke Mtn. I feel a lot more confident of that now.

Second, those two trails are blacks, and deservedly so. The features on them are scary as hell, and in fact I went around one of the rock rolls. Not because of the rock roll itself--I'd have done it if it had a better run-out. Not even because of the run-out either, really. The problem was that the run-out did a sharp right turn and on the other side was a vertical drop, so the consequence of failure would be a 20-30 foot fall. Sorry, no. I'm too aware of consequences to take on something like that.

Anyway, like I said, black diamond trails. Rocky, rooty, bumpy, droppy, climby, with narrow passages and sharp corners. And other difficult features. I feel pretty good about how I did, though. I was in a very similar position to when I started the harder blues in Bert Flinn and Lost Lake trails--I can ride the trail, but may have to walk some features, and probably will dab a lot. So I'll probably start picking occasional blacks to try out here and there.

Oh, and one last thing. Mosquitos. Holy fuck, they were everywhere. I'm covered in bites. I hate mosquitos.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

A few thoughts on the Trek bike camp, now that I've had a day or two to think about it...

Like that private snowboarding lesson with Marius a few years ago, the most valuable takeaway from the Trek camp is that my form needs work. I became really aware of it on today's run. In situations where I should be in attack position, I tend to shift back on the bike way too much and way too soon. This usually results in me going over a drop or rock with straight arms, and _that _results in a head-rattling pull from the handlebars. My attack position has to be more forward and lower, with arms still bent, rather than sitting behind the seat getting wheel-burn on my ass. When I made a point of doing it properly today, I didn't get the neck-wrenching pull on the drop. In addition, I went over the rock roll at the top of Toads with this in mind, and didn't have a catastrophe. So lesson learned, although I'll be practicing it for quite a while before it becomes automatic.

Today was a hard session in that I really pushed myself. I ended up with a 2:40 total time instead of my usual less-than-two-hour outings. And my Garmin says I 'overreached', which just means I worked hard enough to push myself into out-of-breath rest breaks. There were a freak-load of bike classes today, all with little kids. And what do little kids have in common with dogs? Neither has any concept of sharing the trail. The instructors did their best to get the kids to move over, but it's an uphill battle.

I did the full No Horses today, although I had to session that really technical section 4-5 times before I got it. I'm going to try to make that trail a regular part of my route now. In addition, I'm going to try to work in _Why Johnny Can't Read_ through _Grand Wazoo_. Eventually I'd like to be able to do a 2-3 hour session without duplicating any trails.

It's good to be back biking in Whistler, though.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Downhill biking*

I did (or re-did) the beginner's lesson for Whistler downhill park today. There were only 2 of us in the class, which meant a lot of individual instruction.

It's funny, though. I remember it being harder. I think it's because I was just starting out with mountain biking in general when I did the lesson the first time, and _everything _was new. This time it was interesting, but there was never any feeling that I was in over my head. And that despite us ending up on B-Line, which is a blue flow trail with a little bit of light technical.

All in all, we did Easy Does It, Golden Triangle, and B-Line--multiple times in a few cases. But because it's a beginner lesson they stick to the flow trails, so mostly berms with some occasional rough stuff and a small tabletop or two. I never really had a problem with anything, and doing B-Line on my first day really rocked.

One small, minor irritation though. Myself and the other student were given enduro bikes rather than downhill bikes. I discussed it with our instructor, and it seems that non-downhill bikes are quite common, at least for the flowier trails and greens and blues in general. Not that it matters. I have my Santa Cruz for next time. But I could conceivably at some point in the future go for a bike ride and either start or end the day in the park.

All in all though, it's less physically demanding than trail-riding, at least from an aerobic POV. Isometrically, standing all the way down should be good for my snowboarding endurance. So there's that.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*And second day*

I went downhill biking again today. I wanted to do a second session as soon as possible after my lesson to help cement everything in my brain. Plus I wanted to finally try out my Santa Cruz DH bike.

The session went very well, overall. I did a number of greens and blues, and even ended up on A-Line for a very short stretch (eek!). I'm still a little tentative with berms, but a lot better than yesterday. I'm also hesitant about letting the Santa Cruz get off the ground, but toward the end of the session I was beginning to hop just a bit on tabletops.

I kept it short, maybe an hour and a half total. As with snowboarding in Whistler, the lines and lifts move fast enough that you don't really get a lot of chance to rest. By the end of the session my legs were sore but not screaming. My biggest issue, ironically, is riding the Santa Cruz to and from home, because of the seat height.

Anyway, my suppositions have been proven correct--mountain biking is a lot more aerobic, but DH is more of an isometric workout. This means that DH will actually be better for preparing me for snowboard season than MTB.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've bought myself a Garmin Edge 1030+, mostly for the bigger screen, since my aging eyes are having more trouble seeing the 830 screen detail these days. It's a nice unit, and was no problem at all to set up. However, it seems to have a very different opinion about my riding, in the specific area of aerobic and anaerobic benefit. The aerobic is down a little from what the 830 would tell me, but the anaerobic is almost non-existent. The 830 would give me scores in the low twos, but the 1030 gives me scores below 0.5 . WTF? And no, I'm not suddenly dogging it. Weird. But it's not the main reason for having the thing, so oh well.

I was having a lot of trouble with dabbing today, especially on the first climb on North Starz. I couldn't get around the first right-hand switchback to save my life. After a half-dozen sessions I finally managed it, only to dab again on the next switchback. At that point I just said fukit and continued on.

I was also having some problems with my bunny hops over my bunny-hop rock today. I'm not sure if the problem was being tired or being thrown off a little because I was wearing the full-face helmet today. Well, whatev. There will be good days and bad days, but only as long as I keep riding.

The one real positive note today was that I did the climb from hell at the bottom of Backyard Bikes in third gear. I think it may actually be the preferred method. I was pretty winded at the top of course, but not as much as I might have expected. Between that and doing Heritage Mountain Blvd in fourth, I'm getting some good strength training.

On another subject, based on a short YouTube video by Ryan Leech, I've tried changing my jumping form just slightly (and cautiously), and it seems to make a difference. Based on just that, I think I may try out his paid channel.

I'm heading up to Whistler for a few days without the family. I have to do some work in the condo, and it's sometimes beneficial to be on my own for that. But it's also an opportunity to get a couple of days of downhilling in. Woo hah!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Another downhill session in Whistler. I did 2.5 hrs this time, and could have gone longer if it had been a little cooler. We're entering another heat wave, hopefully not quite as bad as the last one, but still expected to be cookin'.

I've decided I'll look into using the hydration bladder with my backpack. Waiting to get to the bottom to use the water tap is just a little too big of a gap for me on a day like this. If I decide to armor up completely, I can switch to the fanny pack and a water bottle.

So I finally found the three drops that I keep seeing in the Trek pictures:










Turns out they're in the Wednesday Night Skills Park, which is just at the top of Ho Chi Min. I did the smallest drop a couple of times just to get a feel for it. Next time up I'll try to graduate to the bigger ones.

I tried to cover quite a few trails today, mostly flow, all the way up to Heart of Darkness. That one has some table-top jumps, so I think my next Whistler session is going to involve the table-top jump line down at Fitzsimmons Creek. I'm starting to go airborne just slightly on some kickers, but fear of flying is very real right now. That's my next challenge.

Anyway, a fun session all in all. I've gotten used to the lifts (at both ends) and I've figured out the etiquette. So now I'm a park rat.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, it looks like the smoke from the wildfires may be finally about to make an appearance. It's overcast today, but the sun is partially shining through and it has a distinctive orange cast to it. I've seen that particular shade of sunlight before, and it means trouble. So far, no smell, but if whatever's aloft starts to settle, that's it for any strenuous activity until it clears.

Meanwhile, I went for a ride today that started with a session up at the school grass field to practice some of the exercises from the Ryan Leech website. Ultimately I'm trying to get my bunny hops working, but to do that you really have to get manuals going, at least basic ones. I did the requisite exercises, slowly circling the field on the walking path. Eventually I was just doing manual after manual. Well, attempting anyway. Although I did do a couple in there that were pretty damned close to perfect. On one I actually felt myself come just shy of the balance point.

A 'good' manual is when the front wheel doesn't just go up then immediately down, but actually floats for a moment before starting the descent. I have three main things to worry about: 1) Getting the initial compression, 2) going back low, and 3) going back with my arms straight and my hips back. My problem is mostly #3, with #2 being an occasional issue.

I think though that if I can do this exercise on every outing, I will get it in fairly short order. Assuming the smoke doesn't sideline everything. Which is even more of a concern this week, as we're going up to Whistler and I'm looking forward to a couple of downhill days and a couple of good trail ride days.

Boy, if we ever needed rain, it's now.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Two days in Whistler so far, one on the trails and one in the park. The air seems to be mostly okay. It dipped into moderate territory yesterday, but is good today and predicted to stay good for the rest of the week.

Yesterday's trail ride was unfortunately infested with kids' camp classes. It seemed like every trail had a pack of rugrats taking up maximum space. The instructors would apologize and I'd say "no prob", because let's face it, their life is shit enough without snarky cyclists.

I did No Horses and cleaned the scary section on the first try. Then of course I clubbed the hard turn where it intersects Pinocchio  . But all in all, I did very well on the trail and felt pretty good about it.

I ended my session at the Fitzsimmons skills park where I tried to do some jump practice. I say "tried" because the park was infested with family groups, which _always_ included rugrats. After two runs I gave up. Just too many little moving traffic cones to battle past. However, I _did _get in those two runs. I will say that the table-top line in the Fitzsimmons park is _way_ peaky, almost BMX-level.

Today I decided to do the bike park. I left home a little early and hit the Fitzsimmons skills park again, on the theory that the family groups wouldn't be up and about yet. Turns out I was right. I did 3-4 runs, and was just starting to get the feel for it. I think I'll keep hitting the tabletop run whenever I go for a ride.

I did much better on the jumps in the downhill park today. I wasn't scrubbing the jumps at all, although I'm still keeping my approach speed down. But I was getting air on most of them, and good air on some. I have an occasional dead-sailor jump, and I started to go nose-heavy once, but that's just a matter of practice.

Several issues today, though. First, I did the drops again at the Wednesday Night skills park. Today I did the middle drop. I'm sure I did it properly--I didn't feel rattled or off-balance or land heavily on one wheel or the other--but for some reason, it triggered the incident detection on my Garmin. So lo and behold, I had to figure out how to cancel it on my watch, on the Garmin, and on my phone. I managed two out of three . Next thing I know, I'm getting a call from my wife. "Are you okay?"

Obviously this needs some adjustment. I can't be freaking out my spouse every time I go over a drop (but not a jump for some reason).

The last thing is that I prepped and packed my Insta360 today for videos. So what did I forget? Because you _know _I forgot something. I forgot the thumbscrew that attaches the camera to the harness. Derp. Well, next time.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Another couple of days of biking—trail riding yesterday and bike park today. I did the Fitzsimmons tabletop line again yesterday. It’s still too poppy, but I’m kinda starting to get it. Didn’t have anything in particular happen on my ride, except I had a couple of bikers stop to watch me take that tight ladder bridge on Pinocchio. That always feels a little weird. I feel like I should stop and tell them I’ve only been doing it for 10 minutes longer than them. 

Bike park today was a blast. For starters, it rained a bit overnight, which packed down a lot of the dust. And for some reason, scared off a lot of the riders, I think. It certainly wasn’t as busy as usual, and this is a Friday! I’m definitely continuing to improve. I did several jumps where I got definite air, although I have to admit I’m still clearing only the smallest tables. But I did Heart of Darkness again and felt pretty good. I may be just about ready to try Crank it Up next time I’m up here. First I’m going to spend a day in the Burnaby Mountain Air skills park, where the tabletop jump run is quite well built.

I also had my Insta360 working today, and got some good footage. I tried pausing my Garmin on every lift, and it seems to help in terms of calculating the total calories and such. Doesn’t pause the LiveTrack feed, though, which I guess is good. Part of the point of putting a Garmin mount on the V10, though, was to be able to access the map on the 1030+. So far I haven’t really done that. If I don’t start using it, I may just go back to the Felix. OTOH, I use the Apple Watch for the Insta360 remote, so there’s that. God. Too many gadgets, not enough wrists.


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## NT.Thunder (Jan 4, 2020)

Really interested in hearing the feedback on the Garmin. I'm coming off the mountain today and will jump back on the bike when home and should have an 830 waiting fur me to try. Was looking at the 1030 also but the price difference I couldn't justify for his much riding I do. 
I've been using my Garmin Fenix watch with trailforks loaded but that isn't practical to use whilst riding but I do like the metrics it provides at the end. 
Do you ride with a chest strap heart monitor? And I'm assuming this can be linked to the 830 and/or 1030.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I have a couple of 830s and they did fine for me for years. As long as you can make out the map without glasses you're fine. I use the Wahoo arm strap instead of the Garmin chest strap. Either will mate with the Garmin, but the Wahoo is more convenient. The only trouble I'm having with it is it gets in the way of my elbow pads.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was a downhill day. I started the day by doing the Fitzsimmons tabletop line before the crowds descended. I brought my Insta360 so I could record my attempts. I did about 10 runs, then discovered that I'd left the lens cap on the Insta. Sigh. I'm too disgusted to even conjure up an emoticon.

On the other hand, the repetitions had very positive results. By the end of the session I was clearing most of the tables, the final few in the line being the biggest problem as I lost speed. The line really doesn't have enough of a gap between jumps to pedal up to speed so what you start with is what you got.

The downhill session started out okay, fairly routine. But today is the first day that the border is open to Americans, and guess who showed up for their version of Whismas? Yeah. Every single biker in Washington state. By 11:30 or so, it looked like a weekend, and a busy one. Still, I stuck with it and finally left about 12:30, having gotten in six runs.

I did use the Insta a lot today (with the lens cap off this time), and if I have any runs worth showing, I'll post them up on my youtube channel. One of the things I noted today though is that I catch up to people a lot on the greens. And "people" doesn't just mean some mom and pop following their ten-year-old noob (although that does happen). I'm also catching up to kids who you'd expect would be trying A-Line (and probably killing themselves). The point is that I am a fairly aggressive downhill rider.

On that subject, I continue to get better at jumps (at least the kicker and tabletop variety). I'm getting more and more air each time. I even cleared a tabletop on B-Line and got a 21-foot air-time on Heart of Darkness. Woot! I've almost lost a pedal a couple of times and I've found myself rotating nose-heavy once or twice, but in all cases that came down to technique. And this is important, because if it was a random thing that you really have no control over, I'd have to avoid jumps. But I can do technique. Slow, incremental progress. That's the mantra.

I wanted to add at least one trail to my 'done' list today, and I decided Shady Acres was the one. Except every time I went down Golden Triangle, I couldn't find it. Finally on my fourth run, I figured it out. Shady Acres branches off right exactly where one of my favorite booters is located, so I'm always in the air when I go past it. Well, I did the trail, and I doubt I'll feel a need to do it again. It's short and forgettable.

Some other miscellaneous comments and events:

I failed to set up the bladder in my backpack again, and regretted it again. WTF? I have to get that done. It's not rocket science, FFS.

I think I found that park jump line that Trek Dirt Series uses. I just caught a glance at it as I was riding to the top of B-Line. It seems to be just below the beginner ski/snowboard training center. I'll check that out at some future opportunity.

I did the biggest of the three drops at the end of Wednesday Night Delight. No biggie at all. Didn't really notice a difference. It really does just seem to be a matter of getting enough speed and manualling back at the right time. But I should be going _through_ Wednesday Night Delight to get there. It branches off of B-Line, so it's easy to do. Next time.

And lastly, I have set up a "Progress the Park" lesson for tomorrow. I'm going to try for jump lessons. I should also try to put together a set of questions for the instructor.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Downhill Lesson*

I took the "Progressing the Park" lesson today. I ended up with a private lesson because there were only 3 of us, and the other two were far enough above my level that I'd be slowing them down. So right away, woo-hoo! We discussed my goals and decided on a schedule for the day, which would consist of general techniques in the morning and jumps in the afternoon. I gotta say, it was a really productive day. A lot of stuff was review, some items were clarification, and I had one a-hah! technique revelation, which is to use the rear-brake only when doing tight, twisty trails. That keeps the front fork from diving, which keeps your steering geometry from changing abruptly (probably more of a problem on a downhill bike). I felt far more in control.

Another item that Sandy had me work on was using no brake at all in the berms. That was scary at first because I'd speed up through the curve, but I gradually got used to it.

In the afternoon, we practiced jumps on The Gentle Giant, which is a tabletop exactly where I thought the Trek lessons were for jumps. Confirmed! It's a good location because you can just session the jump and keep riding back up to the launch point.

After that, we went and hit Crank It Up. The first run was deliberately slow, rolling or casing all the jumps, just to get a feel. The second run I opened it up a little, although I still mostly cased or scrubbed. But the important thing is that I've seen the run, I've done it, and I can do it routinely now.

So, the bad news: I crashed twice. Not high-speed stuff or off of jumps or anything that would leave a scar I could brag about. Oh, no....... I have to wipe out at low speed on loose gravel while just tooling along. Seriously, I still cannot figure out why I wiped out in those places. Momentary loss of concentration? Poor line choice? Gremlins? Who knows. I'm sore and I have some spots I needed to polysporin, but no real injuries. It does though make me look at my Troy Lee upper body armour and say hmmmmmmm...

In any case, it'll be a while. Today was my last Whistler riding day. We head back tomorrow. Just as well. I'm going to be sore.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So the smoke has finally settled in. I've been expecting it for a while--one of those "any minute now" things--but it's still irritating when it finally happens. Today's conditions are categorized as "unhealthy" in Coquitlam, so I'm not even going outside, let alone going for a ride. Things are apparently "moderate" in Whistler. Not that that helps me at all.

I was eyeing a Santa Cruz Megatower down at Kinetic Cycles. Unfortunately it's an XL frame and I need L, according to the website. I could probably get away with the XL, but I'd have to change the dropper as it goes up too high for me, even set to its lowest. Not worth it.

I'm seriously considering an enduro bike for Whistler now. The downhill bike is great for downhill, but as soon as you need to start pedalling, especially uphill, it gets really really old quickly. And enduro would be a perfect compromise. Santa Cruz is my preferred option, but there are others that are good. Unfortunately, they're probably just about as hard to find right now, so FML.

This is what "becalmed in hell" means. No actual pain, just no positive movement.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I haven't posted in a few days, and stuff has happened. So, updates...

First, it's raining as I write this, both in Coquitlam and in Whistler. And man, do we need it. So no complaints from me.

Second, I bought an enduro bike. Not the Santa Cruz Megatower, but a Specialized Enduro Expert. It's the same class of bike as the Megatower (read: same price range) and has a pretty good reputation, looking at the reviews. I'll post a pic as soon as I take one. Not sure about the name, though. An enduro bike with a model name of 'Enduro' ? Yeah, not a lot of effort showing there.

Anyway, I found it up in Whistler earlier in the week, at Village Sports. Brought it home and did my usual tweaks to get it personalized. The suspension is quite involved, and for the 2021 model Specialized didn't even include a tuning page, instead just referring you to the Fox website. Not a good look for a $10k bike, honestly. I'm not sure why they did that, since they have a page for their 2020 and for other 2021s. Someone really seems to have gone lazy on this particular model year.

In any case, I got the suspension dialed, tweaked the transmission a little (it was skipping in a few gears), and added a bell and a mirror--and yes, I expect to be mocked at the bike park for those two items. But experience has taught me that any bike being used on the trails really benefits from those items.

Overall, it's a solid, quality bike, and I've taken it through Bert Flinn, but I have to admit I prefer the riding characteristics of the Treks. The Enduro feels a little twitchy and not as stable at low speeds (although strangely, I can trackstand quite well on it). If only I could get rid of that bottom bracket knock on the 9.8, it would be my best bike.

Speaking of other bikes, I'm going to have to purge to make room for the Enduro. I think I'm going to get rid of the street bike, since I really don't see myself doing much of that. Also the Trek EX 7, since it's now my #4 mountain bike, not even including the DH.

I took the Enduro to the Burnaby Mountain Air skills park this morning and practiced on the tabletop jumps. As expected, I started out kludgey but got better. I've gotten to the point where I'm tucking in midflight, which is what you need in order to avoid a dead sailor jump. And that means I'm probably just about ready for the jumps on B-Line and Crank it Up. Nevertheless, I'm going to do a session on Gentle Giant beforehand.

I wore my Alpinestars upper body armor at the skills park, just in case. And I find I really, really like the jacket. It fits well, and the padding is _very_ confidence-inspiring. I can't remember where I bought it but I'm going to try to find another one. The front zipper and chest padding is much more comfortable than the Leatt.

Oh, and one final thing--my Mountain Bike Hopper Lite arrived today. I think that may end up being the death of me.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I broke the chain on the 9.8 today. Not even doing anything bizarre, just riding along David Ave on the way to Bert Flinn. I walked the bike back home and went out on the Enduro.

After my ride, I went looking for a new chain. Trek said I was looking at Dec - Feb 2022 for a replacement. Fortunately Kinetic had one, so I did my first chain replacement. Honestly, I could have fixed it with a master link, but guess what, they're backordered too. Jeebus.

Anyway, not much other than that. The ride was routine.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Followup: I went for a ride this morning on the 9.8 and guess what? That annoying click is gone. Turns out it was the chain, not the bottom bracket. Who knew? So now my 9.8 is completely quiet and is back to being my best bike. I guess the Enduro can go up to Whistler with a clean conscience.

And I started out the ride doing manuals around the Bramblewood baseball field. Manuals continue to improve incrementally. And I did two full-on, perfect bunny hops. Not high ones, but they were textbook L-move manual-to-jump bunny hops. And as usual, couldn't do them again to save my life. But it's a start.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Two days in Whistler*

I went trail riding yesterday. Lots of fun, felt really good about my riding. Nothing really noteworthy happened, _except_ that I started and ended the ride with a short session at the Fitzsimmons jump line. And I was really amazed at how much better I was jumping. Has to be because of the session at Burnaby Mountain Air park last week. But whatever--I cleared every tabletop, even overshot slightly a couple of times.

Today, I went to the bike park. I took my SC DH again, but this time I armored up thoroughly. Troy Lee long-sleeve upper, Troy Lee padded lower, Fox armored full-finger gloves, Race Face knee-pads, full-face helmet and goggles. Unfortunately I could _not_ wear the Fox knee/shin pads, as they are simply too tight to be comfortable. I don't know if they shrunk a little in the wash or if I've bulked up a bit, but they just don't fit anymore (they barely fit in the first place). Thing is, Fox doesn't make an XL for these pads, and they should. The L just leaves a whole segment of the market out of luck.

I tried using the Evoc hip pack instead of a backpack as well. The water tasted a little funny, but I put that down to the bladder needing to be washed. The fannypack seems to work well, mostly. I like the fact that there is Velcro and a snap holding the pack in place. What I don't like is that the pack doesn't really have a place to keep the nipple by default. I used the magnetic clasp from my USWE, and that worked for a while until it flew off and fell between the boards at the loading station. I kid you not, it went for that crack like a chipmunk diving for cover. I'm going to contact USWE about a replacement and check Amazon as well for some kind of equivalent, but man that's irritating.

It was busy today. I mean weekend-level busy. The crowds followed the usual pattern--a surge of bodies around 11, peaking around 12, then starting to taper. But the tapering was minimal, out to 1:30 which is when I packed it in. Lots of beginner classes on the runs, but also lots of rogue noobs. Including an obviously married couple who took EZ at just over a walking pace. Maybe they just wanted to say they'd done the Whistler bike park, but I guarantee they didn't get their money's worth. They're probably still going down.

I did 7 laps--the first 5 were variations on EZ Does It/Golden Triangle, and the last 2 were B-Line and Crank it Up. I did 88 jumps (of course many of those are false positives or just barely qualify as jumps), but the biggest one was 30 feet. Woot! I definitely still need practice though. I dead-soldiered a couple, did the standing-tall thing on a couple of the bigger ones, came down a little nose-heavy on one or two, and came down back-wheel first on at least a half-dozen. So I still have to work on my body position in the air. Also, Garmin claims I burned about 2500 calories. Granted it was a long session, but that still seems high.

While standing in line, I looked at other people's bikes, and I'm amazed at how many non-DH bikes are being used now. A lot are enduros, but by no means all of them. I'm going to have to take the Specialized up the hill soon, otherwise what's the point of having bought it? At the level that I ride, it's not like I'm going to be pushing it to its engineering limits anyway.


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## NT.Thunder (Jan 4, 2020)

Had my first decent crash today, I knew it was just a matter of when really as I build confidence on the bike. Came of a kicker on a downhill section of the local track in a rocky section and front wheel landed smack on a lone loose good sized rock that just kicked the front end out and the rest was history. At least the Garmin crash alert worked a treat, cancelled it, brushed myself off and had a mellow ride back to the truck.

A couple of lessons learned, confidence works both for and against you, the bike has way more skill level than the rider, launching off tight downhill rock garden sections at my experience level towards the end of a ride when tired isn't the smartest thing to do and even though I own fox elbow and knee guards, I probably should wear them, My new Troy Lee MTB pants are awesome but now have holes LOL. Whilst I also love my Garmin 830, it isn't helpful in the fact that it keeps telling me what times I need to beat on each of the sections which continues to puch me.

I don't remember snow hurting as much as rocks!!!

It is addictive though, might invest in a decent helmet now.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

NT.Thunder said:


> I don't remember snow hurting as much as rocks!!!


I was thinking about this the other day--how much MTB and especially downhilling will improve my snowboarding game. After banging my way through a couple of berms with braking bumps the whole way, snowboarding just doesn't seem as dangerous. Jumping will not only desensitize me to free fall, but will also help with estimating approach speeds. And of course, I get desensitized to simple downhill speed.

And having crashed twice on gravel, I laugh at the idea of crashing on snow.

Plus I think I'll wear my Troy Lee upper under my jacket.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went for a ride in Bert Flinn today, and I completely cleaned that first climb in North Starz, including hitting the rock roll at the top of it, without stopping at all. Of course I was pretty winded after that, and my Garmin says I hit a high of 165 BPM. Actually felt a little queasy for a few moments, so I know I pushed it.

I did the whole usual route. I think I'm ready to start adding on some more, like maybe the second half of Lower Backyard Trail down the hill. And maybe I'll take the Backyard Trail right from the off-leash area near the exit from Starz Line 1, instead of climbing all the way back up to Hett Creek. The other option is to do an extra loop in the park, taking Starz Line 2 or 3 to Jo-Jo. That last one is attractive because 2 and 3 have some interesting features.

That is all.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Some Misc updates:

Vail has announced Whistler opening for ski season as Nov 25th. They also have no intention of bringing the reservation system back, at least not for the moment. That can change depending on provincial mandates. The bike park closes Oct 11, so I have a month and a half to stew. I guess I'll have to get my cold-weather gear together and do trails.

On the biking front, I'm starting to be able to do random bunny hops. The issue seems to be that I have to have something specific to hop over. I can't just do a bunny hop for the fun of it. Doesn't work. However, I think there's a lot of English in my bunny hops--not a lot of manual going on. I tried to do one the other day coming up a curb and really hammered my back tire, so more practice required before I do one that needs commitment.

The click is back on the 9.8, but my current theory is that it's actually the cables going to the rear brake and derailleur. It would make sense that the noise would only be while under load, since the rear suspension would be flexing if I'm pedaling hard. I think my rear shock may also be underinflated, since I bottomed out today on a jump. I'll check all that when I get a chance.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've been riding several times since the last post, a couple of trail rides and a park day in Whistler. But the weather really seems to have shifted, and shifted fast. It's full-on fall weather now, cool and rainy. I've been told that we're expecting a La Nina weather pattern this winter, which means cold and lots of precip. Here's hoping.

On my last park day, I was having problems with my jumps. Dead-sailored a bunch of times, actually came down off my line once or twice. No crashes, but it is worrying. As a result, I'm a little tentative, and was even undershooting my jumps on the Fitzsimmons skills park line.

I'll be going downhilling tomorrow, and we'll see what happens.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We've definitely entered an autumn weather cycle. Last week was more ugly than nice, and this week is shaping up to be worse. If I want to continue to get enough exercise, I'm going to have to settle for street-level riding, with rain gear. Otherwise it's two months to the beginning of snowboarding season, and that's just too much.

I did get a couple of trail rides in last week, and a couple of park days. The trail rides are fine. I'm gradually improving my endurance, and mostly avoiding dabs and pedal slips. Downhill is not going quite as well. For some reason, I've lost the proper form on jumps. I've gone in and landed tilted a couple of times, and though I saved it, it was scary. I'm also doing a lot of dead sailors and landing either tail-heavy or nose-heavy. That last one is the most scary, but seems to happen when I don't preload my jump. It's affected my confidence a little, and I'm back to approaching the jumps too slowly. I think I have to spend a couple of hours on Gentle Giant, just practicing and desensitizing.

I've left my SC with the good folks at Village Sports for a brake bleed and general check-over. The rear brake lever was reaching my knuckle, even with the adjuster cranked up as far as possible. Don't know why Kynetic didn't catch that. But their service on the sale was so excellent, I'm going to give them a by on this one.

The Troy Lee upper armour is amazing--light, thin, breathable. No, I haven't crashed in it yet. That'll be the test. But the upper and the shorts are so comfy and low-profile that I think I'm going to wear both when snowboarding. I might even consider wearing the full-face helmet on park days, if I'm going to be doing boxes or (heaven forbid) rails. Or any other feature made of non-snow.

And speaking of snowboarding, I think I've reached that point in my biking season where I'm starting to get tired of biking and impatient for winter. Hopefully that's more about weather frustration than anything, but if I slack off on biking, I'll have to start using the treadmill more. I cannot afford to have my weight climb back up before snowboarding season even starts.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went downhill biking today, sliding in between one crap weather system and the next (tomorrow is supposed to be a monsoon). Even though the sky was mostly clear and the sun was shining, it was surprisingly cold. I was wearing my Troy Lee upper but was still feeling the temps for at least the first couple of runs, before it started to warm up. Can't imagine going up Garbanzo.

My main goal for today was to figure out what's going on with my jumps, which (as mentioned above) had completely fallen apart. I did a warmup on each of Easy Does It and Golden Triangle, then went over to Gentle Giant and did some sessioning. It quickly became apparent that I wasn't even jumping as well as I had my first day. I eventually figured out that I'm trying too hard, forcing the stomp and the launch. This means my timing is off, I'm pulling on the bars, and launching unevenly in some cases, resulting in dead sailors.

The solution? Stop trying so hard. Let's face it, the real problem is that I'm trying to put extra launch into my launch to compensate for coming in too slowly due to my fear of speed. So instead of trying to rush things, I have to get my form right and accept that I'll case jumps until I get the approach speed right.

After my jumping session, I did B-Line once and Crank It Up twice. By this point I really was doing better on Crank It Up, even throwing a couple of perfect jumps. So, as usual, the answer is more practice. Sadly I probably won't be getting that many more sessions before the Oct 11 shutdown. So I'm pre-loading for snowboard season and for next spring when the bike park opens up again. Interestingly, this means I'll be working on speed, approaches, and jumps virtually all year from now on. That's got to help.

The braking bumps are getting worse. It's not just the gouges taken out of the berms--I've actually gotten to the point where I can mostly handle those. What really gets to me are the washboard sections that make me feel like I've just grabbed the wrong end of a jackhammer. Today one section of Heart of Darkness was bad enough to out-and-out _hurt_. And that's with a DH bike. I can't imagine how people with shorter-travel bikes must feel. I went out and bought a new set of handles after the ride. Hopefully that'll make a difference.

I also did a couple of technical trails here and there. I really don't have a problem with the blue techs. I should spend a little time checking some of these off of my to-do list. In particular, Fantastik and Out Of Sight start up by B-Line and empty out onto Crank It Up partway down. Or Ninja Cougar splits off from B-Line near the top (just above that right-turn berm) and leads straight into Karate Monkey, then Samurai Pizza Cat or World Cup Singletrack, then Ho Chi Min or Devil's Club. Or a little farther down B-Line, there's Funshine Rolly Drops then Smoke and Mirrors then Blueseum. All of these are doable.

Some other miscellaneous items...

I forgot to mention in my previous post that I started up the Garmin in the wrong mode, in Stationary Bike instead of Mountain Bike. I couldn't figure out why it wasn't registering my speed, distance, or jumps. Derp.

And today was about some celebrity spotting. First, I spotted Jason Lucas setting up to take pics on Family Cross (or is it Joy Cross, now?). Second, I spotted Christina Chappetta in the line-up--not with Jason, but since they seem to work together sometimes, I suspect there'll be a video of some kind out soon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Start of Season Recap*

Yes, kiddies, it's arrived--time to start navel-gazing and obsessing about snowboarding. The Family Bowl area got snow this week, and even though it melted pretty much right away, it's officially the first snow of the season.

The first issue I need to address is any and all of the COVID-related B.S. Seymour instituted a reservation system last season which they will be implementing again this year. It may be a permanent thing. Honestly, I'll be the first to admit that Seymour is just way too busy on weekends, which is why I don't go there on weekends. I can even admit the need for a system on major holidays. However, they are a little too liberal with what they define as a 'holiday', which is what kept catching me last year. I've already bought season passes because my wife and daughter love Seymour for some reason, but we'll only be going weekdays, and only nondescript weekdays at that.

Cypress has no info on their web page about how the season will be handled. Not surprising. Last year they waited until the last minute as well. But last year they only limited day-tickets. Season pass holders were unrestricted. Hopefully they'll do that again.

Whistler has announced that they won't be using last year's reservation system, but with the caveat that they reserve the right to change their collective mind based on provincial mandates. Reasonable.

The big unknown for all of these mountains of course is how much the COVID situation will affect attendance. Last year, a lot of people were off work, and a lot of people were on reduced hours, and a lot of people were working from home, and schools were, well, who the fuck knows. But the point is that a lot (and I mean a _lot_) of people found themselves with free time during the week. This year appears to be shaping up to be a little more normal, which may mean more normal weekday attendance. That'd be nice.

As usual, I'll be avoiding weekends like the plague.

Now, on to equipment.

I purged my inventory last year, leaving me with:

The Blur and the EJack Knife in Whistler, and

The Speed Freak, the Proto HD, the PYL, and the Heritage in the lower mainland.

There may be some binding purchases this year and a little swapping around, but for the most part, I think I'm happy with the line-up. Of course if they open the demo hut, I'll be trying things out, and you never know...

I shouldn't need any new clothing. I have several sets of protection from biking that will fit under my snow clothes as well, so I can armour up for those park days.

Which brings us to the last item, goals. For reference, my end-of-season recap from last spring is here.

Last year, I wasn't able to do any park because Whistler didn't build one, and the locals didn't really do diddly either. Hopefully this year that'll get back to normal a little bit. My park experience tends to mostly be about jumps and pyramids anyway, with only the occasional box thrown in for variety. I think biking will have desensitized me to speed and air, to the point where I should see some big improvements.

For the actual on-the-snow stuff, I'd like to work on some of the basic techniques this year, like penguin walk, switch riding, and ollies. If I can do those, I'm happy. And again, my success with working on biking techniques during the summer should motivate me to spend the time.

For the rest, here's my list from last year, showing the items I want to work on this year:

*General technique items:*

Modify my expectations to match the conditions. Going slow in fog and icy conditions is not failure.
On moguls, work on keeping weight forward. Leaning back is doom. Try to carve the sides of the moguls instead of following the troughs. Try to use windshield-wiper turns to scrub speed. Plan my path instead of just blindly charging in.
*Strategy items:*

Decide when to hit the mountain. In icy conditions, going up first thing is pointless and not really enjoyable anyway.
Vary my location. Don’t hit family bowl all the time. Make a list of runs on the mountain, and hit at least one new one every session.
Don’t quit after two hours, no matter how tired I am. Change locale, or work on small techniques, or take a break.
Try to follow other snowboarders that seem a little faster than me. This forces me outside my comfort zone.
Ride bumpy terrain and side-hits whenever possible. In and out of the trees. Getting used to being tossed around is excellent for improving balance.
Explore a little. Some of the stuff we visited on my lessons are runs I'd probably never find on my own normally.
*Specific techniques:*

Practice things like penguin walk, ollies, nose rolls, nose and tail manuals. Maybe even ground-spins.
Practice switch. A lot. I should pick a slope and practice going down the entire way switch. Up the ante once I’m successful.
Do the jump line early. It only takes 3-4 times through it to start to get the rhythm, and once I’m comfortable, I will hit it regularly. Wear armour those days if desired to make it a little easier.
*Other plans:*

Use the Insta360. Getting vids of my technique is incredibly valuable.
Desensitize myself to speed early. It makes a huge difference to my riding once I start bombing without chickening out. Don’t wait for it to just “come naturally” this year.
Try to move up slightly in park features. Larger jumps, boxes, maybe a pipe.
Try to wear armour whenever possible. It makes a difference to my confidence. And with the weight I’ve managed to shed this year, I should be able to do it without feeling bulky.
Watch some snowboarding videos as obsessively as I’ve been watching MTB videos. Try out the techniques presented therein.

It begins.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Man, it is _ugly_ out right now, with a capital UG. I did manage to get in a day of trail riding and a day of downhill park this last week, but suitable days are getting scarce. Someone told me it is supposed to be a La Nina winter this year (I think I mentioned that a few posts up), and so far it sure as hell is shaping up that way.

The downhill sesh was quite gratifying as A) I seem to have regained my jumping mojo, and B) I did that long tech trail sequence I was talking about. It's a lot of fun, and I rode it all the way, although there are a couple of features that gave me the willies. If I can get another session in before the park closes, I'll try a couple of the variations on routes.

I'm still doing a bit of bike-gear-obsessing since the snowboard gear hasn't really hit the market yet. But it's really just filling in the gaps. I don't know how much, if any, snowboarding stuff I'll be loading up on this year. Depends on what's good, I guess.

Anyway, waiting for it to either clear up or get cold.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went downhilling yesterday, but in the afternoon due to scheduling issues. Unfortunately Fridays don’t really die down in the afternoon, so I only got three runs in before the lineups got nuts. Nevertheless, they were very much worthwhile. I felt solid and confident on the bike, despite the conditions being fairly soupy from recent rains. My jumps went well, including me clearing the tabletops on the first two jumps of Heart of Darkness.

Sadly, this is the last week of bike park coming up. The park closes Oct 11, and we're only here for the first part of the week. I might get another one or possibly two sessions in, then that's it until spring. Now mind you, the end of bike season leads to the beginning of snowboard season, so it's a kind of a good news/bad news thing, but if I'd had a little more time--even another couple of weeks--I could have gotten myself fully desensitized to speed and jumps on the bike. That would have been really great for my snowboard park sessions. But who knows, maybe I've already gotten enough of a start. Here's hoping Whistler puts in the park this year, though. Otherwise it's a whole lot of kvetching for nothing.

In other news, I bought myself a GoPro Hero 10 today. I had used the Insta360 on yesterday's session with the 4K mod installed, and it looked really good. Better than the reframed 360 videos, honestly. But the Insta is too high-maintenance for my liking. I was constantly fiddling with it and checking it, the watch remote kept disconnecting, and I lost the last video of the day which was an excellent B-Line run, due to the camera locking up at the bottom and corrupting the file.

So we'll see how the GoPro does. The 10 just came out, and has really good specs. And so far, the user experience is far more polished and confidence-inspiring. If I'm able to get another session in, it'll be with the GoPro. Stay tuned.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Aaaaand... that's a wrap. Probably. I went downhilling yesterday and today, and unless something changes drastically, that's it for me for the season. Yesterday was a Sunday, but I decided I'd give it a try to see what the weekend crowd is like from the inside. I did three runs, and when I came down on the third lap I found the line-ups extending right out of the maze. 'Nuff said as far as I'm concerned.

Today, a Monday, was pretty much exactly the opposite. It simply never got busy. In fact, for 3 out of my 5 runs, I rode straight through the singles line and right onto the lift. So why the sudden abandonment? A-Line was closed today. Well, that's my theory anyway.

Over the two days, I tested my new GoPro Hero 10. There will be a separate review of that item. I did the Easy Does It/Golden Triangle loop several times, did a couple of tech trails, and managed to do a couple of B-Line and Crank It Up runs.

I think I'm still having problems with my jumps, in that I haven't quite got the technique down correctly. I definitely can't pump rollers yet. Two items for next year, I guess. I'll be starting right at the beginning of the downhill season, and I should improve greatly.

Meanwhile, there's still trail riding (weather permitting) and snowboarding is coming up quickly.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We're now well into shoulder season. Weather has gone completely to crap both in Coquitlam and Whistler, so there's no biking to be had. OTOH, the snow on Whistler is visible from village level, which I think is ahead of schedule. Regular dumps happening up at Roundhouse are actually making me feel fairly optimistic about this season.

I've put away the biking stuff in Whistler, but haven't pulled out the winter stuff yet. Haven't done anything at home. I really don't look forward to the whole bin-swapping business. But it has to be done. I may have to do a little purging this year, though. Too much shit.

And speaking of too much shit, I literally am unable to come up with anything that I really need to buy this year. I've been eyeing the Rome Black Label bindings--except they went straight from "Coming Soon" to "Sold Out". I've also been playing with the idea of buying a specialty board, like maybe a Stranda, but I'm not sure I need the distraction this year.

This season is going to be epic, assuming we get the requisite dumps. Not only have I finally figured out all my technique issues, but I have a full season of mountain and downhill biking to give me perspective on the whole speed and danger thing in snowboarding (as mentioned farther up the thread). And in addition, we may be spending most of a solid month in Whistler this winter, which means boarding every friggin' day. 

Well, here's hoping.

Edit: Ordered a Cheater, and some Now Drives to mount on it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm about halfway between the end of biking season and the beginning of snowboarding season, and I'm really feeling antsy. Biking season ended like running into a brick wall this year. The weather went to crap and has remained that way, with only the occasional part of a day with sunshine. Far too short to dry the trails at all. Oh, and cold. That all bodes well for snowboarding season, but leaves me with mostly no outlet. I've taken to doing an 8 k walk around our neighborhood, just to burn some calories, but it's weak sauce.

As mentioned above, I ordered a Stranda Cheater and some Now Drives to go on it. The Drives arrived right away, the board, not so much. I imagine I probably ordered before they were starting their production runs for the season or something, but it took ten days for them to ship the board, when their website claims you'll receive it within 5 business days. This is just random grousing, understand. As long as I get the board before the season opens, who really cares?

But I have noticed that ordering and shipping in general is more problematic these days. Partly that's COVID and supply-chain issues, no question. But some of it isn't easily explainable as such. For instance, I tried to order a camera and some accessories from the GoPro site last week. The order failed three times with some bullshit message, but the site still managed to authorize my card three times. I went through customer support and they were very supportive, but the only thing they did was remove the authorizations. Still can't order through the site. I guess that settles the question of whether I should get the GoPro subscription--until they fix their site, I physically can't.

On the subject of GoPros though--I bought the Hero 10 Black a month ago, and in general I have to say it's a more usable camera than the Insta360 One R. Not hugely so--you could use an Insta and be mostly satisfied, as long as it didn't lock up on you. But things like the more accessible battery compartment, the much better sound (even without an external mike), the ability to easily attach an external mike (the Insta solution is an obvious kludge), and the much better remote control (the Insta constantly loses the connection). Huh. Reading that, it kinda sounds a little more huge than expected.

Anyway, I'm going to buy the MAX, GoPro's 360 camera, to see how that does. Given the website's issues though, I guess I'll be buying it from a brick-and-mortar. And that's fine--support your local store, right?

Further to the subject of supply-chain issues, I mentioned the Black Label bindings in the previous post. Still out of stock, along with a lot of Rome's other stuff. And the Anon lenses that I've been watching on--straight from "Less than a week" to "Out of stock". Again. Goddamit I hate Burton. Or at least their website.

So getting back to snowboarding, the stoke is building. I've started obsessively watching the snow-forecast site and the webcams on the various mountains. I'm starting to watch more snowboarding videos and fewer mountain biking videos. And my itchy VISA-finger is pointing more at snow stuff. We're heading up to Whistler this week, and I bet the shops will all have fully converted to winter. Time for a small spree. Woot!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Oh, yeah...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Updates...*

I think I've mentioned previously that Whistler has set a Nov 25th opening day. That looked optimistic at the time they announced it, but it's looking pretty realistic right now. Come to think of it, I think that happened last year as well.

And as I was checking the local webcams today, I discovered that Cypress is opening tomorrow, Friday Nov 19th. Only Easy Rider, but hell, it's something.

All the locals are getting snow as I type this. So is Whistler. It begins.

In other news, I received my Stranda Cheater. Nice board. I've installed the bindings in my normal duck stance, but I'll be adjusting the angles when I get the board on the mountain, to find my best +/+ stance.

I've also purchased a GoPro MAX. Nice camera. I'm looking at the GO 2 as well. It's only a 180 camera, but the ability to just clip it to your clothing is possibly a huge convenience. We'll see.

Oh, and the Whistler shops were _not_ completely converted to winter goods, although they're well on their way. But supply issues continue to be a problem. I talked to a sales guy at Showcase about the Burton stock--looking for a Swash jacket--and he wasn't hopeful. I'll keep trying, though.

And last thing, both vehicles now have the ski racks installed. We are ready to go.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Opening Day!*

No, I'm not there. God, if there's one day to avoid, it's opening day. People are insane.

Watching the line-ups on the village cams, though. It's not as bad as Bike Park opening day by any stretch, but still way out of line for what's available. Granted it's snowing, but this isn't going to be any kind of a pow day. The snow is right down to village level, and in fact it's showing on the DriveBC highway cams. So the drive would be insane as well.

Still, next year I might just consider being in Whistler so I can do opening day, just to experience the insanity.

We've got another atmospheric river coming in over the next day or so, so it's not clear what the effect on the mountains will be. It'll be a lot of precip, of course, but snow or rain?


Edit: checked the cams a little later in the morning, and it's almost deserted. No line-ups at the bottom either. And it's snowing like stink. Argh!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So as it turns out, going on opening day would have been great! It snowed pretty much all day, and the crowds overall weren't terrible. It's mandatory downloads still, so that limits what you can do. And most runs of most lifts are still closed, so even more so. But what _is_ open would have been worth it.

Also, small update: the latest Pique email mentions in an article about the slopes that there _will_ be park features this year. A little limited--XS and S on Whistler in the family bowl area, and everything bigger on Blackcomb in the Catskinner area. But hey, that works for me!

Meanwhile, the atmospheric river continues its steamroller approach. But the freezing level keeps bouncing around, so if it swings the right way at the right time, this could end up being a ginormous dump--even if it's wet crud, it'll still build the base and fill in the dips. Here's hoping.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

No such luck. The atmospheric river has just about rinsed Whistler clean. Even around the snow stake, there's a bit of ground showing now. We need a good foot of dump just to recover.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Day of the Season*

I'm up in Whistler due to condo commitments (Air conditioner maintenance, fireplace replacement), and things are working out for me to have several mornings in a row free to go up the mountain. So today marks the beginning of my 2021/22 season. I'll go up tomorrow and Thursday as well. I may even be able to get back here next week, which would be great as the snow predictions for the weekend are insane!

But enough about that. How was my first day? Well, kind of a good news/bad news thing. The bad news is that the snow wasn't great. There was a couple of centimeters of new snow and a bit of recent snow, covering a base with the consistency of collapsed neutronium. I know this because I fell once and it knocked the wind out of me.

But that's really it for bad news. One or two snows and that's gone. Now, on the good news side... First, it was not busy. With all the first-day fucking around, I got to the gondola line-up about 8:10, to discover that A) they have a singles line again, and B) there were only 4-5 people in it. So they opened the gondola at 8:15 and I was on within 5 minutes. And that non-busy-ness continued on the mountain. I never had to wait more than a minute or so to get on a lift the whole morning.

Of course, not all that much is open yet, but so what? I'm never at the top of my form first day anyway. I'm concentrating far more on getting back up to speed rather than worrying about getting over to Crystal Ridge or something. And on that subject, I am _very_ pleased with where I'm picking up again, skills-wise. First day, and my top speed was only 1.5 km/hr slower than my record for all of last season. So first item, desensitization to speed, well in hand. And so far, at least, I still seem to have all the techniques on lock. I only skittered on heelsides once, and I think I can credit the sudden patch of ice for that.

I also did some mogul fields, although with the hardpack I wasn't really happy about it. But I did pretty good. One wipeout, a number of bobbles, but a couple of days of practice and I'll be in new territory skills-wise. One item of note though--I don't remember if I commented on this last year, but when doing moguls I have a tendency to turn way too hard on heelsides, to the point where it's more of a braking maneuver. This is similar to the problem I was having with my heelside turns in general, and is probably the same root problem--fear of the hill. I started to overcome it a little today, but I think that's going to be one of my big goals for this year.

But all in all, as I said, a very encouraging first day. I'm starting basically where I left off last year, with only a bit of first-day shakiness to overcome.

Side note: no park setup in sight today, but that's not a surprise. They'll need considerably more snow first.

Other things: I managed to get hold of some Nitro Team Pro bindings at the snow shop in Creekside. Not sure what I'm going to put them on. Maybe a new board for the new bindings? 

Also, my Morton's was really bad. I actually ended up quitting a little after 11 because the pain in my foot was getting too distracting. That may be at least partly because I was wearing the new Lasso Pros and I didn't get them heat-molded while wearing the foot support. I may have to get the right boot re-done. But there's some hidden good news in that statement as well--I did almost three hours with only the slightest trace of leg burn. In fact, if not for the foot pain, I could have gone a couple more hours. I credit the hard summer of mountain biking for my improved stamina.


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## ridethecliche (Feb 27, 2019)

Congrats on getting out there and ripping your first day bandaid off!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Second day. Went up, did two runs, went home. Icy AF, combined with high winds stripping what little loose snow was there, created a skating rink. Getting off the lift the first time, I discovered that the landing was so icy that I couldn't get an edge at all. I ended up sliding about 20-30 feet, totally out of control, hoping my board wouldn't suddenly dig in and cause a faceplant. Anyway, there's nothing fun about those kind of conditions.

On a side note, I put on the Morton's appliance again, this time with my Maysis boots, and still got significant pain. Took it off, and all was good. Not sure what that means--maybe my Morton's has stopped being an issue?

EDIT: I can see from the webcams that a lot of people agree with me. Very little activity.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Two things that shouldn't logically be related, but are, given that Murphy is an asshole:

1. Whistler got 40 cm of snow overnight
2. I'm heading home and don't have time to hit the slopes.

Uh huh. Yeah. The dump has hit. On the plus side, the locals got at least a foot of snow as well. And the weather predictions have the freezing level staying low. So maybe Monday or Tuesday I'll be able to get in a morning on Cypress.

On that subject, Seymour is opening today, Goldie only, but surely will open everything up soon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Some additions:

1. Just got an email from Seymour that they're opening up the Mystery chair tomorrow.

2. I was in Whistler village this morning, getting my COVID booster, and I took this video:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Cypress Day*

I went up to Cypress today. It was a bit of a Clown Car event for me. First, I was up well before my alarm, so I left really early. Got to the parking lot at about 7:30 for a 9 am opening. Well, the good news is I got a spot in the first row, anyway  .

Then I discovered I'd forgotten my helmet  . So I go check out the store, which doesn't open until 8:30. Well, no problem, I'll sit and have a hot chocolate while I wait. Nope. They open at 8:30. Well, there's the Rock Chute upstai-- Nope, 8:30. Okay, at least I can go to customer service and check my pa-- Nope, 9 am.

Sigh.

Anyway, I was eventually able to buy a helmet--thank dog that's the only thing I forgot--and get on the slopes. Snow wasn't great. Cypress, as usual, took a whole ton of new, fresh dump and turned it into compressed corduroy. On the other hand, it was only starting to get a little busy by the time I left at 11. I got 10 runs in though.

So I may be overanalyzing this, but first impressions are that this isn't going to be a shitshow like last year. As mentioned, it wasn't busy, and with them being able to fill the chairs, there isn't going to be the same backlog.

I rode the Speed Freak today, and it was mostly pretty good, except I'm getting some stutter on heelsides. I tried a couple of variations to get rid of it, but it may simply come down to practice. Also, if I can bring a camera on a selfie stick, maybe I can get an outside look at my heelside form vs my toeside.

Anyway, Dec 14th and 3 days under my belt isn't great, but it isn't terrible either.


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## Oldman (Mar 7, 2012)

Heel side stutter. I dare say, for me, one of the most challenging of issues to deal with. I too was able to get out yesterday ( second day for this guy ) and was riding a lot of chudder given the recent, and continuing, tropical spell. ( Projected high 16C tomorrow, WTF?) Heel side stutter was an issue, but I did try a few things that did reduce it and produce more stability. Focus was to stay more "on top" of the board / edge:

Bend knees more
More weight on front foot
and the biggest helper:
Reaching across the board with my lead shoulder.

I am coming to conclusion that at this point in my riding career, heel side will be "the" aspect of riding that I will always have to focus on. Especially on less than ideal conditions where one can get "bucked" by the terrain. Simply cannot adjust and react as quickly on heel side as I can on toe. Getting older has it's drawbacks, but I ain't tossing in the towel yet, not by a long shot!


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## WigMar (Mar 17, 2019)

I get chatter when my weight is back too far over the tail or if I'm forcing the board into a radius of turn it doesn't like.

Kijima's deep carving thread changed my heelsides forever. You don't have to aspire to deep carving to address heelside turns, but it certainly fixed mine. I really think body positioning and rotation are key. 

Great news on the lack of crowding vs. last year.


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## Scalpelman (Dec 5, 2017)

As above. Deep carving heel side chatter for me is from too much weight on back foot. Nowadays I ride heel side with my leading arm behind my back. It forces the rear shoulder to turn toward the nose and drive the front foot weight. Thanks kijima. But if you’re riding duck, the back knee may feel some medial collateral ligament stress. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, thanks guys. I did some fiddling with posture and position, and I'm pretty sure I'm farther back on the board on heelsides than I should be. Also I found that turning my upper body a little helped. Another big issue I face is that my heelside and toeside turns are asymmetrical. I bleed off most of my speed on heelsides because I don't bleed off enough on toesides, which of course places more stress on the board. This is more of a psychological thing, so a question of tactics. If I try a little harder to bleed off speed on toesides, I won't have to work as hard on heelsides.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Worst. Day. Ever.*

And on Whistler. Who'da thought? Of course my problems really had nothing to do with Whistler per se.

The day started out reasonably okay. Got a parking spot at a charger (always a plus), got to the gondola on time, got on a gondola within minutes.

And that's where the good stuff ends.

I was strapping into my board (the EJack with the Katanas), got my front foot in, stepped in with my rear foot, and the toe strap ladder snapped. Just snapped. About halfway down the length. Now, I very probably pushed on the end of it with my boot, but I do that all the time. They don't usually react like uncooked spaghetti. I was so absolutely, monumentally stunned that I didn't even swear. Just stared at the piece of ladder sitting on the snow and thought, "You have GOT to be shitting me."

Picked everything up, went to the gondola and downloaded. Went home, got my Stranda Cheater with the brand spanking new Now Drive bindings. I figured I might as well take today to try out +/+ angles. I did one run on the Cheater at my normal 15/-9 to get a feel for the board, then set about changing the angles.

So first, changing the angles on your board on the slopes isn't recommended. Even more so with Now bindings, because you really have to bear down to get the bolts to engage. But I got them in at a 24/6 setting, and set off down the run.

It wasn't great. Of course, there's a learning curve, and I was ready to take a couple of runs to get used to it. Except at the bottom, I discovered that I couldn't get my right ankle strap to release. I ended up having to unscrew the adjustment screw to get my foot out. Strangely, with no bend on the strap, the buckle will release. It's not about tension, either. Running the ladder into the buckle without my boot in the binding still won't release. But with the strap detached on the adjustment side, it will release. Weird. Definitely broken, but weird.

So three and a half hours on the slopes, and I got a grand total of two runs in. And now I have to do warranty requests for two sets of bindings, leaving me with only one working board in Whistler.

No, I'm not going back up today. What I _am_ going to do is stay home and hide under the bed until tomorrow. Don't touch anything, don't try anything, don't look at anything. This day is fucked.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Progress?*

I haven't been snowboarding since the "worst day ever" post above. We've been way too busy getting ready for the renovations. Now everything finally seems to have settled in and I may actually have some breathing space. There's been a lot of snow in the last week or two, both on the locals and on Whistler. However -- of course there had to be a _however_ -- there's some kind of arctic front settled in which is bringing literally record-breaking cold temps. The temp on Whistler at Roundhouse is below -20 c every morning, and it never gets much above -15 c at street level. I've taken to wearing my neck warmer over my face, or wearing my surgical mask outside. Yeah, I can't see snowboarding being a lot of fun under these circumstances.

The good news, though, is that the front appears to be dissipating, and some new snow is coming in starting tomorrow. I've swapped out both sets of bad bindings until I can get the replacement parts, so I'm good to go. I have my new Nitro Team Pros on the EJack, and I bought a pair of last year's Black Labels to try out as well. Should be fun. If I don't freeze my nuts off.


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## deagol (Mar 26, 2014)

Donutz said:


> Some additions:
> 
> 1. Just got an email from Seymour that they're opening up the Mystery chair tomorrow.
> 
> 2. I was in Whistler village this morning, getting my COVID booster, and I took this video:


worst.
lift.
line.
ever.

😟 🤮


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

OMFG what a day! Both in good and bad ways.

I decided to take a chance and hit the mountain this morning, despite today being a stat and the last day of Christmas break. But 80-odd cm in the last 48 hours was just too much temptation. And it really has not stopped snowing for more than a couple of minutes in the last 3-4 days.

So I got to the lift line at 7am, and there were already people starting to line up. So not unnecessarily early. But not too many people, so not unreasonably late. I got to the top of the Whistler Gondola without issue, _didn't_ break a binding  and managed to get 8 really good runs in over the course of the morning. I brought the EJack Knife with a set of Nitro Team Pros to replace the broken Katana binding. I didn't want to throw too many curves at myself on what amounts to my first non-WROD session. The EJack performed as dependably as ever. The Nitros seemed okay, but I'm not sure if I don't like the Romes better. I'm going to swap around some bindings over the next couple of sessions, then do some comparison reviews.

Anyway, the snow was easily a couple of feet deep in places, and never less than about 8", until it got trashed, of course. In keeping with my resolutions for this season, I pushed myself instead of playing it safe. I think I fell at least a half-dozen times, but on fresh pow that's not really painful. I did a lot of mogul fields, and confirmed that my primary problem when I lose control on moguls is leaning back and failing to commit to the edge transition. Today I forced myself to deal with those issues and I really did well.

Anyway, great day all in all, although busy as hell. The line-ups just kept getting longer and longer as the morning progressed. I finally quit around 11:30 when they extended right out past the ropes at the bottom of the Emerald chair. When I finally rode down to the village, the line-up at the Gondola was as bad as first thing in the morning. For some reason, Fitzsimmons lift was closed today, which meant the gondola was the only way up to Family Bowl, therefore way the hell busier than it needed to be. Not that I was really seriously contemplating going back up by that point. The only real negative about a lot of fresh pow is that it is tiring to deal with, especially once it gets chewed up.

On a side note, I wore my Burton Swash jacket, merino underlayer, bib pants, a merino mid-layer, neck gaiter, and MFI mask. In retrospect, that may have been too much. Would have been perfect when the temps were down around -20, but today they were only around -7. I guess I'm going to have to re-learn all my layering skills.

So, now the really unpleasant (if maybe somewhat amusing) part. I mentioned above that this was the last day of Xmas Break. It was also one of the best pow days so far this season. So I expect a lot of people who were due to head home today probably said, "Hey, let's get in a morning of skiing, then we'll leave after lunch." Uh-huh. So every single person on the planet tried to leave Whistler at pretty much the same time. The result? Sea to Sky Highway southbound completely stopped. Traffic trying to get out of Whistler Village via Whistler Gate completely stopped. Traffic trying to get out of Whistler village via Lorimer completely stopped. Blackcomb Way northbound was also a parking lot, as I imagine a lot of people got the idea of going north to Nancy Greene Way then heading south. I say this because the backlog on the highway extended north of Lorimer. It was carmageddon. Seriously gridlock. Nothing moving for light after light. It took us an hour to get home, and we live within walking distance of the village.

I'll bet real money it'll be on the news tonight.

Anyway, Christmas break is over, so now starts the "regular season" stretch, where I may be able to get in some good sessions.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Lots of things*

I've been riding a couple of times, and testing some new equipment, so I have quite a bit to write about.

First, conditions on Whistler... It seems the curse is still on me. While I've been at Whistler, the locals have been getting pounded with snow. Literally, they're getting more average snow than Whistler. If it wasn't for one or two days where Whistler got nuked, the locals would be ahead overall. WTF, dude?

I've gone up a couple of times, but the last one (on Friday) was especially memorable, and not really in a good way. The mountain had gotten a reasonable amount of snow, so there were deep, untouched pockets--but there was also a lot of wind, which stripped the snow from every exposed location. The groomed runs ended up being hardpack, almost icy, while as soon as you go off-piste, you'd be up to your waist. Great, except that I was trying out a new board, and results weren't great. But more on that when I get to it.

Interesting thing--since I've been using my Lasso Pro boots, my Morton's Neuroma symptoms have subsided to the point where I almost don't notice it. And this is without using the toe-support appliance. So I've bought a second set of the same boots for the lower mainland. I'll be getting rid of my other boots, I think. I would guess this is about having a toe-box that's wide enough to not squeeze my foot-bones together.

I bought a new set of ODT headphones last week. They're labelled as Chips 3.0 . They look pretty much identical to my Chips 2.0, except for the bright red color. And in most ways, there's not a lot of difference. But the things that are different are significant. For one thing, ODT has gone to a USB type C power connection, which means no more proprietary headphone jack cable. I'd have bought them just based on that. But in addition, they've improved the command structure. Most of the clicks and pushes are the same, but the right button now supports one click for pause/resume, two clicks for skip forward (next song) and three clicks for skip back. On the 2.0s, skip forward is a right-button hold, IIRC, and there is no skip back. So a huge improvement as far as I'm concerned. I've pulled one set of 2.0s, and I'm going to get another set for home.

I bought a new board. Yes, another new board. Based on some good reviews, I bought a Ride Algorhythm. I wanted a board that would be similar to the EJack, but without the Magnetraction. Not that I dislike the Mag, but it does slow me down in certain circumstances, and it doesn't add anything in soft-pack conditions.

Anyway, initial impressions aren't good. It's a fast board for bombing, but has no edging capability to speak of on hardpack. I found myself constantly slipping on hard turns. Now, I realize that different boards require different riding technique, and I do remember that I had to adapt to my Speed Freak, for instance. But I'm not sure that the Algorhythm offers me anything that would make the effort worthwhile. I'll give the board one more session, but if I'm still not impressed, it'll have to go.

I had a minor revelation this week about goggles. And I feel a little stupid about it actually. On Friday I put my goggles in my inside goggle pocket while waiting at the bottom, instead of leaving them up on my helmet as I usually do. And when I got to the top and started my session, I discovered that the goggles were not only nice and dry, but didn't have nearly as much of a tendency to get wet and foggy. I think it's both a matter of keeping them dry until I'm ready to use them, AND warming them up so I don't get condensation. In any case, it's now part of my routine.

And the last item, bindings. I'm going to a separate post for this subject, given how much I have to say.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Bindings*

I've managed to accumulate quite a few sets of bindings over the years (but mostly the last two years). Right now I have:


Flow NX2
Union Contact Pro
Rome Katana
Rome Cleaver
Rome Black Label
Now Pilot
Now Drive
Nitro Team Pro

I've also owned other Unions, Flows, Rome, and Ride bindings in the past.

I've been swapping my bindings around a lot lately, especially with two binding failures in the same day. I'm not any kind of professional evaluator or anything even close to that, but I have accumulated some impressions.

*Flow*
I really like Flows, and stuck with them for years. But one of the downsides to them is the difficulty of keeping them adjusted properly. Even with the lock-down ratchets, they seem to drift, and then I have to spend time setting them up again. The other issue that drives me insane is that the highbacks flop down when you unlatch, and if I forget to latch them back up, I'll trip over the highback when skating. Strangely, the highbacks tend to automatically snap upright when the bindings are new, but once they've been broken in, they flop.

*Union*
I don't like them. I really can't put my finger on why, either. I've owned Contact Pro and Strata, and both gave me the same feeling. They feel dead, and not in a good way. Assuming there's a good way to be dead. Which is too bad, because they are a well-built binding.

*Ride*
Rides are a well built binding, light and strong, and I really liked them until they started falling apart. The problem was a design issue--the bolts that held the straps onto the binding weren't isolated with a bushing, so the bolts would rotate with the strap when you moved it. That meant the bolt was continually loosening and tightening in the nut. Eventually, they strip. I have noticed that the new Ride bindings now have a bushing, so this is no longer a problem. Likely they got a lot of complaints. I might try them again some time, now that the design issue has been resolved.

*Now*
These are nice bindings in most respects. Comfortable, responsive, easy to ratchet and release. But the toe strap is total shit. I even ordered a different toe strap last year (the 3D one) and tried it. Still no joy. It might not be a problem with other boots, but with Ride boots, the toe straps slip off constantly. I'm still fooling with them, trying to find a way to prevent it, but really I shouldn't have to put in this much effort just to use them.

*Nitro*
This is a nice binding. Very well built. Probably the smoothest ratchets of any that I've tried. There's also a nice feature with the disks where they actually snap into the binding. So you can set your angle, snap them in, and not have to worry about the angle drifting while you're installing them. These are probably my second-favorite, after the Romes.

*Rome*
The Rome bindings are the kings of adjustability. There is literally no adjustment available on any other binding that isn't also available on the Rome. And the ankle strap angle adjustment, which is Rome-only, is pure genius. I like mine nice and high up on the boot, which gives me extra toe-side leverage. My biggest complaint about the Romes is that the ratchets are kind of catchy when you're releasing them.

The Romes are my "safe" binding, for when I don't feel like being adventurous. They're a known quantity, dependable, and consistent.

*Conclusions*
I still want to try the Flows again, especially on Seymour where quick in-and-out is an advantage. I'd like to get another set of Rides to try them out again. And if I could just get the toe straps to stay put, I would love the Nows.

I bought a set of Rome Black Labels this season. I tried them on the Algorhythm, and hated it. But I think that's the board, not the bindings. I'll give the Black Labels another chance, maybe on the EJack. Everything on paper says they should be ideal for me.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This is a great season so far for snowfall, but a not-so-great season in terms of weather variability. After a couple of weeks of friggin' cold weather (cold enough to make our complex's elevator break down), we now have another atmospheric river coming in. Temps are above freezing in Whistler, even up on the mountain. We got 15 cm of snow overnight at the snow stake, then it started to rain. So spongecake. No thanks. Been there, tried that.

I had a great day yesterday, though. I didn't get up early to get first gondola, because there'd been no new snow. But when I sauntered up to the mountain after 9 or so, it was starting to snow. And it pounded all morning, to the point it buried the hardpack. I had the EJack (for the aforementioned hardpack) so I was in great shape for the day. Ended up doing nine runs, including going to the bottom a couple of times.

I'm still not completely caught up to last year end-of-season. Notwithstanding my comments in other posts, it doesn't all come back quickly. I can get to about 90-95 % in a day or two, but some of the fine techniques take time to come back. One of these is moguls. I spent a significant amount of time yesterday working on them, and I've come out with some areas requiring improvement.

1. Look ahead. Looking at just the current mogul is a recipe for eating shit. I do much better when I know what's coming up and can set myself up better.
2. The best movement for handling moguls seems to be: Go in leaning significantly forward. As I go into the turn, shift my weight back. At the point where I'm about to turn, suck legs in and shift forward again. Push down into the turn, again leaning forward.
3. Turn a little sooner. I tend to leave it just a hair too long.
4. The most important part, because this is causing me problems... I tend to turn too much on heelsides until I'm pointing right across the hill. This causes me to need a bigger turn to toeside in order to recover. I know what I'm doing, I'm panic braking on the heelside turn. Have to break that.

Anyway, it's an ongoing process. But my speed desensitization is well in hand, as is my quick S carving. I'm still unsteady on chopped up terrain, and I end up having to brake every once in a while.

I ran the jump line in the family bowl a couple of times as well. Small jumps, but good enough. I did overshoot one, panic braked, and ended up sitting down. But like everything else, it's a process.

Unfortunately, with the atmospheric river coming in, I'll be sitting it out for a few days. Oh well. More time for writing, I guess.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I decided that today I would concentrate on practicing +/+ angles with the Cheater. I went to the Magic Chair a little after 9:30 and did several runs, changing the angles on my board a couple of times. I eventually got to the point where I figured I could go up to the Roundhouse and hit the bigger runs. But partway down to the Red Chair base, I finally gave up and put my bindings back to my normal +12/-9 angles.

So what happened? First, I couldn't find a +/+ angle that I liked and that seemed to bring anything to the table. Second, double-plus angles were hurting my back knee. Third, there's a complication with +/+ angles that I hadn't really anticipated--because of the mechanics of the situation, bending your knees (or alternatively, straightening up) shifts your weight forward/back a little, changing the turn physics. All in all, I simply came to the conclusion that changing my angles wasn't going to pay off in any way that mattered.

So I finished the run down to the village with my traditional angles. And the Cheater is fine with duck. In fact, it's quite a rippin' board. Fast, stable, and great edging. Honestly, I think this might be my favorite board for conditions that don't favor magnetraction (I'll still use the EJack for hardpack/icy days).


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Un-fucking-believable. This season really seems to be jinxed.

I decided to hit the mountain on Sunday--something I'd never normally do, but the crowds have been non-existent the last couple of days, mostly due to the crappy conditions created by the latest atmospheric river. Plus I was really excited to try my Cheater on a full morning's riding without worrying about bindings or angles or whatever.

There was a bit of a line-up for the gondola. so I decided to take Fitzsimmons/Garbanzo, just for a change of pace. Got to the top of Fitzsimmons, started skating over to the Garbanzo loading line-up, and all of a sudden my back knee popped. Agony. I had to just stand there, breathing, for several minutes before I could even think about moving. Ended up going up Garbanzo, then down to Emerald loading, up Emerald, then downloaded on the gondola.

Anyway, my knee is screwed, and I've spent the last couple of days hooked on Advil, ice, and heat. And using a cane, FFS.

Interestingly, I had very similar problems with my left knee back in 2016--see here for details--which culminated in a _pop_ and a hiatus to the season. I've been getting much the same thing the last month or so on my right knee, which I think was exacerbated by my efforts to change my binding angles on the Stranda. Hopefully it is just an IT band problem, and it'll heal up now. I'm going to see about a knee brace today as well.

Sigh. Just one thing after another, some years.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Updates...*

The knee is getting better. Still just a bit of soreness when I move it certain ways. A knee brace really helps, far more than I would have expected. Maybe it's the compression? Anyway, I'll be ready to go again on Monday, I think. And I haven't really missed anything. This week has been a washout for snow conditions. Yes, even at Whistler. I hope this improves and things get back to something like normal winter patterns. I'd hate for this season to end up as a fail. Actually, come to think of it, this is kind of a normal winter pattern. I think January is typically not great for snow, while February gets nuked. Here's hoping.

The last of the stuff I ordered from Burton has finally arrived. I now have _way_ too many Burton jackets and bib pants. I'll need to redistribute items between here and home. Eventually.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First day back after the knee injury. I still felt a tweak here and there, mostly when trying to drive my heel down, but it didn't affect my riding. In any case, I took it easy. I spent most of my morning on the bunny slope, with one run down from the Roundhouse to close out the day.

I used the Stranda Cheater, which I am beginning to like more every time I use it. It definitely isn't a freestyle board--no good for quick turns, moguls, or trees. But for bombing runs, it's easily my best board. Holds my heelside carves, and is actually pretty good on hardpack/icy conditions as well.

I also took the GoPro MAX to the hill with me and got some recordings. Turns out I still am going way up on edge mostly just in my head. Granted I was being more aggressive before I brought out the camera, but even so, I'm barely crouching at all, never mind being in danger of dragging my ass on the snow. So there's something to work on, and preferably with the camera, since it gives me immediate feedback with no guesswork.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Second day. Conditions were pretty much the same, hardpack and ice, and snow-cones once things started getting scraped up. I used the Cheater again as I was favorably impressed with it yesterday. I've posted a review here. Bottom line, I love this board. Maybe more than my EJack.

Based on my videos from yesterday, I tried to make a point of getting lower today, both during turns and just while riding in general. It made a _huge_ difference. My control was better, not getting bucked around as much; my control was better, not feeling like I'd lost the edge; I didn't get as much muscle fatigue, especially below the knee; and my turns were far more railed. Basically, no downside. I think this is one of those things that I give lip service to every year, but have to effectively re-discover each season. Hopefully I can make the point to start doing this on day one next season.

The Cheater is a very stable board at speed, maybe not surprising considering the length and effective edge. This added to my confidence and, along with getting lower on the board, allowed me to really cut loose today. I was well and truly over the speed sensitivity thing. I broke my personal best top speed--in the usual spot, of course. I also found myself blowing past other riders and skiers in a lot of cases, so I'm no longer the slow half of the population, at least on intermediate runs.

On steeps where I go to C turns to cope, the Cheater really excelled, even though those slopes were hardpack to icy. Of course, some of that might be due to my technique improving, but either way I'll take it. I rode Roundhouse to Village three times, and didn't have to stop to rest on the third run, because getting low for some reason relieves muscle fatigue. Or maybe just doesn't create it in the first place. I ended up having one of the better days this season, despite the conditions.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Nothing much happening today. I'm staying home because the fireplace guy is supposed to show up this morning. I'm not sure I'd be heading up in any case. Still no new snow, and the runs are really looking kind of sad. Even so, the line-ups at the bottom are still significant. And yesterday there were lessons everywhere. I'm sure today will be as bad or worse.

OTOH, the predictions are starting to look hopeful. Snow starts on Saturday, and we should get significant new stuff over the weekend (of course), plus on-and-off snow all of next week. I'll be going up Monday, so I should be able to enjoy the benefits of a weekend dump anyway.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went snowboarding this morning, and I took the EJack, just for a change of pace. And wow, does it make a difference! After several days of the Cheater, I actually had problems with the EJack on my first run. It felt squirrelly, I felt out of balance, and I almost regretted picking the board. Then on the second run, I got my legs back, and after that it was all good. Better than good, really. I guess I learned a few things while pushing the Cheater around, because controlling the EJack was a dream. I did several mogul runs over the course of the morning, and pretty much aced them. Well, if acing them can include three head-over-heels falls  .

Interestingly, all three falls and all of my almost-fails on moguls were from failed attempts to turn to toeside. It seems in all cases, I did some combination of standing too tall, leaning back (or not forward enough, anyway), and failing to bend my knees to engage the toe edge. So basically, a failure to commit. If I can just get past that, and my tendency to turn too far to heelside, I'll have moguls nailed.

Other than that, it was a pretty good morning. Not terribly crowded, although the 10:30 peak still showed up. But it thinned out just as quickly as it showed up, and after that I was basically sliding right up to the chair.

The snow wasn't great, but not terrible either. Some patches of ice have been scraped clean, and the contrast between sunny and shaded areas made me lose sight of the snow a couple of times. But nothing insurmountable.

Tomorrow is supposed to snow a bit, so it should be even better. I'm hoping to hit all five days this week.


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## Craig64 (Jul 16, 2015)

Donutz said:


> Went snowboarding this morning, and I took the EJack, just for a change of pace. And wow, does it make a difference! After several days of the Cheater, I actually had problems with the EJack on my first run. It felt squirrelly, I felt out of balance, and I almost regretted picking the board. Then on the second run, I got my legs back, and after that it was all good. Better than good, really. I guess I learned a few things while pushing the Cheater around, because controlling the EJack was a dream. I did several mogul runs over the course of the morning, and pretty much aced them. Well, if acing them can include three head-over-heels falls  .
> 
> Interestingly, all three falls and all of my almost-fails on moguls were from failed attempts to turn to toeside. It seems in all cases, I did some combination of standing too tall, leaning back (or not forward enough, anyway), and failing to bend my knees to engage the toe edge. So basically, a failure to commit. If I can just get past that, and my tendency to turn too far to heelside, I'll have moguls nailed.
> 
> ...


Donutz aren't you 64yrs....., still out there charging hard. Eligible for pensioner concession lift pass soon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Craig64 said:


> Donutz aren't you 64yrs....., still out there charging hard. Eligible for pensioner concession lift pass soon.


Yup. Another month and I'm officially a senior citizen. I should check the price on the Whistler pass...


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## Craig64 (Jul 16, 2015)

Donutz said:


> Yup. Another month and I'm officially a senior citizen. I should check the price on the Whistler pass...


Proud of you.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

There was supposed to be a bit of snow today. And there was. A bit. Not enough to make a difference, although I kept hoping. The snow was sort of the opposite of fluffy today. Where it wasn't ice or hardpack (or groomer) it looked like new snow, maybe chopped up a bit, but it was heavy and hard to turn in. Very weird feeling, not really elephant snot, but maybe just heavy without being wet.

I did the park today. Did one box and ended up sitting down. I did the jump line 3 times, and sucked at all 3. The problem right now is that the park is all ice or snowcrete. There's no give whatsoever when you land, and any edging or directional control has to be exaggerated to get any effect. So not a good day. I'll try again when conditions are better.

General riding was pretty good, though. I'm continuing to home in on my form issues, and improving a bit every run.

And lastly: wow, the feel of the EJack is different from the Cheater. I feel so much more stable on the Stranda.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did manage to go snowboarding every weekday last week. Skipped yesterday (Monday) and went up today. I'm getting the numbers, in terms of days on the hill, but wow is the quality ever low. We had a short period of good snow between mid-December and mid-January, more or less, but other than that it's been ugly. Several atmospheric rivers haven't helped the overall snow base either.

Today I decided to try something a little different and went down Franz to Whistler Creek. I can see how that could be a fun run in good conditions, but today was not that day. Lower Franz in particular seems to be one of those runs that they groom only sporadically, and it also seems to share the weather patterns with Upper Franz, i.e. foggy and icy with a lot of freeze/thaw cycles. Combine that with the uninspired grooming and you end up with a run that is a base of rough and chundery ice, covered with icy chunder and death cookies, and hidden by pea soup fog. I was fucking terrified going down that thing, and it's only supposed to be a blue run.

There was no line-up at the Creekside gondola, which doesn't really surprise me. I imagine people use the gondola only first thing in the morning to get up the mountain, then never go near it again until quitting time, where I bet a significant number will download rather than ride that WROD to the bottom.

It didn't help of course that I was trying out my Ride Algorythm for the second time, so I was a bit tentative to begin with. But even with the EJack, I wouldn't have been bombing any of that shit.

The Algorythm continues to not impress, although I think I have established what the proper conditions are for it. I'll put up a review on the main forum and post a link here when I'm done. (Edit: here )

I am hoping that this is just a weather pattern like 2010, where massive dumps started in late Feb and continued until season end, rather than an honest to God end of the season where things are just going to get warmer and warmer. And yes, that would mean an early start to mountain biking season, so it's not all downside, but I _would_ like to get my money's worth out of the snowboarding season as well.


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## Eivind så klart (Aug 30, 2020)

Donutz said:


> Yup. Another month and I'm officially a senior citizen. I should check the price on the Whistler pass...


Hope to be as active as you when/if i reach that age.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So far this week I have only been up once, and conditions were not impressive. Honestly, I'm getting worried. There's still a chance this is going to be a repeat of 2010, with huge dumps starting in late February. The beginning of the season certainly has matched the pattern--initial huge dumps, followed by sweet fuck all.

If we _do_ get the 2010 dumpage, I'm going to take full advantage of it to the greatest extent possible while it lasts. But if things continue the way they are, I'm going to be getting my bikes tuned up a lot sooner than expected.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We're now at the 20th and I still haven't been up since the 8th. There's been miniscule snowfalls here and there -- measured in a cm or two. Seven cm over the last week, woohoo! 💩

My knee has started bothering me again, but I think it's at least partly because I got complacent and thought I had it under control. So I'm back to advil, a cane, and wrapping the knee. Also rolling, which seems to be the most effective therapy. And the one that I drop first, sadly.

Still waiting for that late Feb dump. It actually looks like it might be starting to happen this weekend. We'll see.

And I've started taking my bikes in for early-season tune-ups. Just hedging my bets.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Wow, March 3rd. Almost a whole month since I've been up. Mind you, in terms of timing this actually has worked out okay, since my knee has been really bothering me the last couple of weeks. Turns out I was right in the previous post, and failure to do the required exercises is my primary problem. As soon as I got religious about it, the leg improved rapidly. So a lesson for next time my ITB starts acting up.

It's been snowing semi-regularly since about the last week of February. The Whistler website is showing 60+ cm in the last 7 days (2 feet for the imperialists among us). It's not great snow--temps are hovering around freezing, so the snow has very much the consistency of spring snowcones. I mad a point of putting on a Tensor brace on my right knee, just in case, but it really didn't bother me, other than being a bit weak, probably from me favoring that leg for several weeks.

I took the Ride Algorythm, just in case this is my last chance to try it out. I have to admit I'm liking it a little better than the first time. It's still way down the list of my favorite boards, but I'm not waving my fists and screaming about selling it any more.

Essentially, this is a board that's at its best when it's up on edge, and the more so the better. Flat-basing is still not confidence-inspiring, although with some new snow on the ground it was a little less terror-inducing. The board can handle hardpack/ice, but you really have to work on getting it up onto the edges. Any laziness or bad form and you're just sliding sideways down the hill. From that POV, this is actually a good training board. It's not catchy, but it _will _punish you for bad form, by simply behaving badly. I found that I really had to concentrate on staying low and keeping my upper body from counter-rotating downhill, or my turns suffered immediately. On the other hand, when I was doing it right, the results were so much better. Instant gratification is a good inducement.

I'm going up again tomorrow, but I think I'll be taking the Cheater.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went up a couple of times this week, riding my Rome Blur. First time this season I've used the board, and I'd forgotten what a blast it is to ride. This is the board that will fling me into the air coming out of aggressive turns. This is the board that will follow whatever radius of turn I command without complaint. And this is the board that doesn't get squirrelly on icy flats. It's also, for some reason, the board that's the first to cut loose when trying to skate on hardpack, but no board is perfect, I guess.

Anyway, yesterday was the same hardpack we've had for weeks, but today there was a couple of inches of new snow to play with. Plus the temps were up so the base hardpack was not as hard. I had a lot of fun, but didn't get too adventurous. I'm still taking it easy on my rear knee, more out of caution than anything at this point.

Had an interesting realization today. I went top to bottom of the gondola run three times today, without stopping to rest on the way down. That's both gratifying and a little irritating, since it shows that I do have a conditioning problem at the beginning of the season.

Other than that, nothing special happened. Just a good riding day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Welp, it's the end of an era, and the beginning of another. Today I made the decision to _not_ renew my Seymour season pass. The reservation system that Seymour has implemented is just too stupid to deal with, plus they've cranked the pass cost up to the point where even the early bird price is close to the same as Cypress (which doesn't have a stupid reservation system). And let's face it, I didn't go to Seymour even once this season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today felt like possibly the best day of the season, for no particular reason that I can come up with. It hadn't snowed overnight (well, a cm or two) and it was still pretty chopped up from yesterday. It's spring break, so it's crowded AF--my snowboarding ratio is running about 1/3, where it's usually closer to 1/2 on Whistler during the week. So really, it could have been a crappy day. But for some reason I was totally on my game today. Hit several mogul runs well enough to feel proud of myself. Sailed down a bunch of steeper runs at speed. Bounced through the chunder and crud without losing control. And managed to get in more than three hours of riding, only quitting because of scheduling.

That last item is interesting, in an I'm-not-sure-it's-a-good-way way. I theorized some time back in my blog that the reason I'm having conditioning issues with Whistler is because I don't spend as much time (relatively) in the line and on the lift. Higher snowboarding ratio equals more work per unit time equals a tired snowboarder. And today does kind of bear out that theory. I spent a _lot_ of time in the line-up today. It was back to the end of the ropes the whole time I was up there. Never let up. So yeah, lots of time standing around.

Still, I do think I'm also getting better conditioned as the season progresses as well. And for next season, I have biking for as long as the weather lasts, then a treadmill and weights to bridge the gap. And who knows, the pandemic might be done to the point where I'm comfortable going back to the gym.

Meanwhile, though, the snow is disappearing quickly at village level. I bet I could bike the Lost Lake trails by now. Sure as hell there's not going to be any cross-country skiing going on there at this point, not if you value your skis. It's still a little cold, but merino layers and long pants are good for that. Bring it on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Even Better Day!*

Yeah, I lucked out today. There had been a cm or so of snow overnight, and there was no snow or just flurries in the forecast, so I guess most people decided to do something else today. Well, imagine my surprise when I looked out my window this morning and it was snowing! So I hurried off to the gondola, and got to the top just before nine. I did just short of four hours today, finally having to quit because my Morton's was hurting too much. I'll have to take the pad with me tomorrow.

Because the crowds were relatively lighter, I spent less time today in the lift lines, and therefore more time riding. I went down Dave Murray Downhill twice, and I have to say, it's way the hell more fun with a topping of fresh snow. The important thing though is that I went down the run in control, even on the steeper parts.

I also spent considerable time on moguls. Still have some trouble when the hill gets steeper or the moguls get larger, but I'm starting to chip away at the bottom of the range. I'm also able to handle chundery runs much better. The ideal trajectory seems to be something between straightlining and S carves. To the extent that I can articulate it, it's about finding the 'grain' of the slope from all the previous users and getting into the same rhythm. Kind of like riding moguls, but on a larger scale.

I even did one jump run today, although I really shouldn't have with my knee issues. No problem though. I was shaky of course, not having practiced all season, but I pulled it off. I also did a flat box and a rainbow box while I was in the jump line. Again, probably not my smartest moments since I wasn't wearing any padding today, but oh well.

Anyway, 4 hours and 11 runs. Pretty good day.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*And, we're done.*

I think, anyway. I went up yesterday and it was terrible. Then the temps dropped overnight, and I went up today, and it was more terrible. Seriously, it's either slush and mashed potatoes or ice and death cookies. There's no "winter" left. And the snow-forecast predictors bear this out. A few supposed snow showers here and there, but nothing hefty enough to save the slopes. And the temps are regularly soaring above the peak, so rain is now common, which just hastens the melt. I came down Olympic today, and on Lower Olympic I found a whole section of the run had turned into bare rocks.

There's still snow if you're stubborn, and ten years ago I would have been that stubborn. But it's not fun at that point--it's work. I'm ready to switch over to biking. The Valley Trail is long since bare concrete, and Whistler announced yesterday that they were shutting down the Lost Lake cross-country skiing as of the 23rd. So the trails are now open to bikes. Now having said that, most of the gravel road around Lost Lake is still snow-covered, so cycling will be an adventure. I'm not sure what the hill trails will look like.

I'm back home now, but we're back up to Whistler next week, and I think I'm going to pack up all the snow stuff and bring out the summer stuff. Time to start pedaling.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Post-Season Recap*

Whether or not I get one or two more snowboarding sessions in (unlikely), the season is over. I'm not going to learn anything new or do anything new, so it's time to sum it up.

In terms of snow, this was a crap season. Oh, we got a lot of snow between mid-December and mid-January, but then we got several atmospheric rivers that washed it all away. And there was never a real concerted comeback. A couple of relatively okay snow cycles, but nothing that could be said to have replenished things. Essentially, we had one good month this season. And I missed half of it because of the renos, so FML! I'm ending this season with 29 session days, which is abysmal. Only that year where we got virtually no snow was worse.

Because of all that, I did no switch practice, no park (even though there was a jump run this year), and no exploration of the greater resort areas. Essentially, I stuck to Family Bowl and the immediate area.

Now, having said that, the season wasn't at all a dead loss. All my technique issues finally came together this season. I've figured out moguls, I've figured out steeps, I've figured out speed, and I've figured out carving. I still glitch sometimes, but that's just a question of practice. At least now I know what I _should_ be doing and can recognize it when I do it wrong. Next season I have to make a point of working on the things I didn't get done, such as switch riding and park. Also finally learning to penguin walk and ollie.

As an aside, I caved and purchased the Seymour pass. Let's face it, $200 for a seasons pass is a no-brainer, and sometimes Seymour is the way to go. At least I have the flexibility.

And I'm now a senior citizen at all my mountains. So $200 for the Seymour pass, $220 or so for the Cypress pass, $815 for the Whistler pass, and $665 for the bike park pass. That last one is a bit of a slap in the face. Basically $65 off, so like 10%. But I'm ready to go.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

...And that's a wrap. Today I bundled up all the snowboards and took them to storage. All the bikes are downstairs ready to go. Just need to swap the winter clothing for the summer clothing and the changeover is complete.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

And just to make sure I truly, truly understand what a bastard the universe is, Whistler got 77 cm of new snow in the last 48 hours. And good snow, too. Not the barely-freezing snot. This is -4 temps. On a weekday. For perhaps the first time this season.

So memo for next year, don't quit until the mountain actually closes.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I broke down this week and pulled one set of kit from storage. Went up Whistler on Wednesday, and Seymour today. Whistler wasn't great--they had a freeze/thaw cycle or two since the big dump, and it was -7 when I was there, so it was armor-plated. OTOH, the new snow _had_ filled in the holes.

Seymour was a lot better, because the temps were slightly above freezing. Real spring riding. Foggy AF, though. Nevertheless, I got a good morning's riding in. And I think that really is it for the season now.

One thing I need to add to my season recap above is that this year I didn't spend enough time in the roughs, so I never really regained that level of balance where you can take unexpected bumps and tosses without losing control. That, along with speed desensitization, is something I'll need to work on early next season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Biking Season Begins*

First ride of the year today. I took it very easy, being unsure of how my knee would handle it. There was a bit of soreness, and I still can't bend the leg as much as my good one, but other than that I felt good. For someone who is drastically out of shape, anyway.

I note on the Garmin that last year I had 8 rides by this point, two of them in Feb 🥶. Must have been a warm month or something, last year. This is April and today I had a frigid headwind all the way to Bert Flinn. Should have worn a hoodie.

Anyway, kvetching aside, it's properly begun. I'll gradually crank up the intensity over the next few weeks.

Edit: I also did a test-assembly of my MTB Hopper jump ramp. Not bad, took about 10 minutes. The lowest setting is a little more aggressive than I hoped for, though. I'll probably stick to that setting for a while.

Also, the day after the ride, my knee feels pretty good. A little sore, but a little less sore than it has been. I think the cycling really is good for it, just as the physio said.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Second biking day. I did 3 laps this time--kind of reminiscent of my first year. Two noteworthy things happened. First, I did a perfect bunny hop over my bunny hop rock, first time. A better bunny hop than I think I was doing all of last year. Second thing, the second time I tried it, I did more of a ramp jump, which I pulled off okay, but snapped off my tail light. I didn't realize it until the next lap. Someone must have picked up the light and placed it on a rock facing up-trail, because I could see it flashing as I approached. Derp. Oh well, those plastic seat mounts are probably only good for a year or two. Methinks I'll stock up at Trek.

Anyway, lungs are burning, I'm realizing that my butt-callus has disappeared over the winter, and I still can't really stand-pedal for any distance. That last is more about the knee than anything, but it's something I'll have to work on.

But it was a beautiful day, no wind, just warm enough.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Don't get cocky*

That should be my mantra for the near future anyway. I went for a ride today. Did the 3 laps per last time, and added in Jo Jo Finn. Everything was going well until the second skinny. I made it _almost_ all the way across it. Fell off to the left right at the end and hit the very last root with my front tire. The bike stopped, I did not. Complete OTB with the bike ending up on top of me like a turtle that's been flipped on its back. I wasn't hurt (except my pride), but sadly my bike did not escape unscathed. Broke the front brake lever and twisted the front fork slightly. I guess she's going into Trek for a checkup and fixit.

Still, other than that small detail, it was a good ride. I did several _really_ good bunny hops today, and drove my heartrate up to my max area. The knee felt pretty good overall. I've almost got full range of motion when bending it, too.

The activity tracker still isn't working though. Seems like it can't connect to my phone or something. I'll have to diagnose.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Went riding again. I'm up to 7 rides for the year so far, which sux compared to last year, but whatayagonnado? I'm still avoiding that second skinny, so I'm going to have to man up at some point. Ironically, I'm going over the drop at the bottom of Jo Jo with no hesitation at all, and that used to be my most feared feature. As a small aside, I went over that drop while some day-hikers were there (they moved to the side for me) and I heard an "Oh my GOD" behind me as I rode away. Felt good. Would have felt considerably less good if I'd screwed it up, but fortunately no.

I had to skip Hett Creek because the weather was starting to go ugly, so a shorter session today. But I was seriously considering adding North Starz to the line-up (weather permitting) so I'm feeling pretty good.

And the good news is my knee is a lot better. I got x-rays last week and went to visit the doctor afterwards, and he said other than a bit of age-appropriate arthritis, my knees are fine. Therefore, soft-tissue damage of some kind. After some discussion, we settled on inflammation of the medial collateral ligament as a likely culprit. This would explain why Advil seems to take care of it for several hours, over and above dulling the pain. Anyway, got some prescription anti-inflammatory medication and so far it's looking good. I'm noticing that I'm able to stand-up pedal more and more, and apply more heavy pedal action.

And a damned good thing. Bike park opens in 2 weeks. Whismas, bitches!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Something different today*

Today's weather was looking ominous--the kind of ominous where any second now, the skies can open up. On the other hand, it was dry (so far). So I decided that a full-on ride to Bert Flinn was too risky, but a quick trip up to the field under the power lines would be okay.

I had bought a set of adjustable jump bars late last year but hadn't yet gotten around to trying them. So I took one of the units up to the field, set it up, and proceeded to try out my bunny hops. The good news is I can actually do bunny hops now. The bad news is it's a very small bunny.

I started out at the very lowest setting, but was eventually able to raise it a couple of inches. At the end there, I was clearing a full six inch bar height! Wowzers. Seriously though, my favorite bunny hopping rock on the Loop trail is almost a foot high and I clear that regularly, but...
1. I'm going faster when I clear the rock
2. I've been doing that for quite a while now, and it's become almost automatic
3. I'm not entirely sure I'm completely clearing it. If I tap the rock with either wheel, I might not even notice. With the jump bar, the bar pops off.

None of this really matters, though. Large or small, I'm getting bunny hopping air!! And if I keep practicing this way, I'll get more air. The jump bar set comes with 4 units, so eventually (on a better day) I could set up all 4 in a row and practice sequences.

Oh, and my knee survived the ordeal, although it was kind of sore for a little while afterwards. But an ice pack and some anti-inflammatory gel helped a lot. They say the best thing for a knee injury is to exercise it and strengthen the muscles and ligaments. Ima go with that.

Bike park, 9 days. Not that I'm going up on Opening Day, of course. But I have every intention of being there on the 13th to sit down with a drink at the Dublin Gate and laugh at the people in line.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Bike park, now 14 days. Whuuuuuutttt? Yeah, too much snow means they've had to push the date.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

This has really been a shitty 2022 so far. First, the snowboarding season--well, I've commented a fair bit about that. But just to add insult to injury, it's _still_ snowing regularly on Whistler. In fact, the freezing level and precip are far, far more steady and dependable right now than they were for most of the winter. All of which is of course dumping extra snow on the bike park when the park guys are trying to clear the trails for bike season.

Meanwhile, the lower mainland seems to have been made a part of the Prince Rupert weather pattern. Cold and wet alternates with wet and cold. I've done 9 rides in Coquitlam this season. Last year I'd done 18 by this date. WTF, dude? I can't even blame my bum knee because it doesn't really interfere that much with riding--just with going up and down stairs.

I suppose it could be worse. We could be still in full COVID lockdown with nothing to do because the weather is crap. At least last year the great outdoors was available.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Update... They're talking about the weather patterns on the news now. It's creating significant concern about excessive snow melt on top of the continuous rain, creating a significant danger of floods around the province.

And other than a couple of hours a couple of days ago, it's been basically all rain and clouds for weeks. And the forecast is for more of the same right out to the limits of the forecasts. Jeebus, I hope this isn't the shape of things to come.

On the good news front, my knee seems to have almost completely recovered. I'm using the treadmill now until the weather improves, although I'm being careful to not ramp up too quickly. I'm still going to go to the sports doctor, because I still want to know what's going on.


ETA: Oh, FFS.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

WTF, God?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Whistler got 22 cm of new snow overnight, on the eve of Whismas. 💩


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Second day of Whistler bike park, first day for me. Yesterday was Whismas, and it was surprisingly un-busy. But today is the Friday before the Victoria Day long weekend, and a bunch of school districts have declared it a Pro-D day (total coincidence, of course), so I expected half the mallrats on the planet to be in Whistler. Not so. Today was no busier than yesterday. In fact, I got first chair when the park opened and never waited the whole morning--straight to the bottom, in the line, on the lift, back to the top. I don't know how many laps I did yet, because my Garmin is refusing to upload the session right now. But by 12:30 I was bagged. First day, out of shape, very little riding so far this year... all the excuses.

I took the Specialized Enduro today, because A) I wanted to try it out in the park, and B) I was concerned about my knee giving out from all the stand-up-pedaling, and C) if the park was insanely busy, I'd just go to the Lost Lake trails. The park turned out to be insanely non-busy, as mentioned above, so a non-issue there. Regarding the knee, either I needn't have worried, or the Enduro did its job as planned, because my knee was also a total non-issue. Mud, on the other hand, was an issue. Wow. I expect this is probably a regular early-season thing, especially through Juneuary which is always wet, but last year I didn't start park riding until July, and that was just getting into that extended dry spell.

Still. That's a lot of mud.

I stuck to Easy Does It for most of the morning, with occasional forays off to some of the tech trails like Del Boca Vista or blues like Longhorn. My last run of the day I did B-Line, which was, strangely, very muddy. Hmm. TBH, until they open a few more trails and dry out some of the mud, I'm not going to consider the park a priority. There are a lot of valley trails like around Lost Lake that can be explored.

Back to the subject of the Enduro. It certainly was able to handle the park trails (at least the easy ones that I did) and I don't think I really felt the bumps that much more than on a DH. But the bike feels short compared to the V10, and I always felt like I was too far forward somehow. I guess that's why they design DH bikes the way they do. I will definitely preferentially take the Santa Cruz V10 to the bike park in the future.

Oh, and I did crash once. Just a small crash off a side hit, and I knew it was coming when I landed wrong, and I managed to slow down quite a bit by the time my wheels finally slid out, and it was onto side-loam rather than gravel, so no biggie. But still. Jeez. But a reminder that anytime is a good time to wear armor.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

We're now in June. I've gone riding several times around home, although still not as often as I'd like. Weather continues to be March-like, although the average temp is at least coming up a little. I'm way behind on my total rides for the year, and I'm way behind on my fitness goals. And now I have an additional thing to worry about--my cholesterol is too high. Almost but not quite to the point where I'll need to go on medication. My doc has given me three months to get it down. At the end of that, I do a blood test (he's already given me the requisition), and we see where I'm at.

I've made some significant changes to my diet, mostly in the area of sugar. No more coke, no more candy, no more random snacking on packaged snacks, no more sugar in coffee. I'm also avoiding fast foods for the moment. But what I'm _not_ doing is restricting calories. That would be just a step too far. And despite that, I lost 5 lbs in the first week without even trying. So hey, this might be worthwhile for reasons other than doctor's orders. If I can get my fighting weight down, it affects all my sports.

On the positive side, my knee issue is pretty much gone. I can still get some soreness from long walks of all things, but one dose of Advil takes that down. I'm still being kinda careful, i.e. not jogging around, but I can SUP now and drop the seat without worrying about which pedal is up.

Meanwhile... I went for a ride today in Bert Flinn and did the North Starz line for the first time this year. I actually overdid it, charging hard up that first steep section, and had to sit down for a few minutes at the top. Not terrible, though--it means I got good exercise. But I need to hit the trails way more often from here on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Junuary continues into June, unfortunately. Just one weather cell after another, pounding the west coast. Half a day to a day of good weather between each one, just to tease us with the memory of what the sun looks like. And of course because I can't just spontaneously take off and go riding, I'm missing most of those breaks . But there is some slight bit of good news: the freezing level has climbed off the top of Whistler, so the rain is melting the snow on the bike trails. I just checked and everything in my skill zone except two blue tech trails is now open. So if we could just get a little dry weather, I'd be good to go.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Hmm, looks like the Whistler bike park is finally starting to pick up.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I haven't posted in a couple of weeks, so there are a few updates. First, the weather may finally have turned around. It's been nice the last couple of days, and it's mostly nice for the next 10 or so. A bit of short-term ugly around next Tuesday or Wednesday, but nothing major. I've now gone riding several days in a row, and it sure does feel good.

In most respects, I'm pretty much back up to where I left off last fall skills-wise, with one exception. I took a fall on the second skinny on Jo-Jo this spring, and now I'm freaked out by both skinnies. I'm going to have to bite the bullet and session them both until I'm over it. OTOH, I'm having no problem at all with the drop at the bottom of Jo-Jo (they've bermed it as well-bonus!) and I'm already rolling the big rock-roll at the top of North Starz.

The Whistler bike park has had a slow start because of the weather, and they just finally opened Garbanzo on Wednesday. And I use the word "opened" generously. There's like 3 or 4 runs open and you have to use connector roads a lot. But on the other hand, the weather predictors are for hot and sunny, so the snow might finally start disappearing.

On that subject, it's a bit ironic--I bought my park pass last year mid-July so that's when I started using the park. This year I bought it before opening, but to this point I've only been in the park once. And since I won't be back up to Whistler before the first week of July, looks like I'm running true to form. The only consolation is that I'm already mostly trained up, so won't be starting from scratch.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The weather looked like it was turning bad really quickly this morning, so I opted to go to the park with my jump kit instead of doing a normal ride. My jump kit consists of my GoPro Max and a tripod, and an adjustable hurdle which is usually for dog skills competitions, but is surprisingly ideal for practicing hops. The whole thing goes into a cheap duffel that I bought on Amazon and I can carry like a backpack.

Anyway, I spent about an hour at it and got lots of footage (wow, there's a doubly obsolete term). But the big takeaway is that I'm not getting low enough when pulling back on the manual part of the bunny hop. Simple as that. Nothing deep, nothing mysterious. Instead of going down and back, I'm kinda going down then back and up at an angle--and I don't even get that low on the initial pump. The consequence is that there's very little room for lifting the back tire during the second half of the hop. And sure enough, every time I knocked the bar off, it was with my back tire, which never went as high as the front.

So my homework for the next little while is manuals. Never mind practicing hops, 'coz I'm not doing them right anyway. Practice manuals. Do them slow to get the feel of where my butt should end up, then gradually speed them up. I can do videos of this in front of my garage, so quick setup.

Addendum: A little more info on the manual issues... first, I'm definitely going back up at an angle with my butt, which dilutes the pull. Second, I'm not letting my arms go straight, which means I'm stopping the pull-back early. I need to work on doing the full down-then-back motion with my whole body and all the way back until my arms are straight.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've had a pretty good week or so for rides, with the weather having suddenly turned into actual summer. Of course yesterday and today we're back to 'normal', but I think that might just be a short-term glitch. Here's hoping.

I've definitely gotten my mojo back as far as stamina is concerned. I'm a little surprised though that I'm not losing more weight, considering that I'm combining good fitness with a much-improved diet. Might just be that I'm not consistent enough yet with the rides.

My major hurdle continues to be the skinnies down at the bottom of Jo-Jo. I am now officially psyched out by them, I think. Which is irritating mostly because I was doing them all last year while I was freaked out by the drop at the bottom of Jo-Jo and the rock roll at the top of North Starz. Both of which I'm now doing routinely .

In related news, I had a spill the other day right at the top of Hett Creek. I mean literally on the first turn past the entrance. My front wheel rolled over a loose branch, front went that way, I went this way. On my way down, I distinctly remember seeing an approaching stump and thinking "I probably should avoid landing on that." Seriously, I actually feel like I had time to evaluate my landing, which is kinda impressive, really. Anyway, I deliberately didn't try to catch my fall to ensure that I'd hit the dirt before the stump instead of landing on it. It almost worked, but sideways motion still slid me into the stump. But that's still way better than landing on it. I took the impact in my kidney area, which is generally speaking not a good idea, but fortunately I have a lot of extra padding around the middle. And no, I don't mean armour. Anyway, I've got a godawful bruise, but nothing more than a little soreness otherwise. Just as well that the weather's crap right now, I guess.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, a bunch of things to talk about. First, we're in Whistler right now for a few days. Second, I bought another bike. Fuck me, I've got a problem. This one is a Trek Session. Not the top end model--you can't find that to save your life. This is the mid-range aluminum frame unit. Still a good bike. I bought it because I've been having misgivings about my V10, mostly relating to brakes and handling. This gives me another perspective on how DHs behave.

Yeah, yeah, that's the ticket. Research. Yeah. 

Anyway, I took it for a ride yesterday. Second day in the bike park this year, and it's friggin' July now. They've finally opened Garbanzo, but I was talking to a guy yesterday and he said that the runs are in horrible shape. Apparently it takes longer for them to dry out higher up. Makes sense, I guess--they're closer to the snow melt.

The Session is a shorter bike than the V10. That's the first thing I noticed. I feel like I'm a lot closer to the handlebars when riding. I guess the V10 is either a bigger frame or it's incredibly slack. I actually feel safer on the V10 from that POV, but in terms of handling the Session definitely feels more nimble. I was very conservative on my jumps the first couple of runs, fearing an OTB if the rear suspension had been set up wrong, but no issues. So far, I like the bike.

Given the scare the other day with my fall into a stump (the bruise is wicked, BTW), I've decided to get serious about wearing all the armor I've bought over the years. One piece of good news is that it's fitting better than it used to. I went up yesterday with my Leatt armored jacket and padded undershorts. Didn't have to test them, thank dog, but I feel better for having them on.

I discovered that this year Whistler has put a drinking fountain in the singles line, so there's really not much reason to use the water bladders, except maybe on very hot days.

And it's busy, BTW. Weekend-level busy, even on weekdays. I only managed to get 4 runs in over a 2.5 hour period. And the Garmin app shows a bigger gap between each run as the morning progresses. The busyness seems to peak around noon, then peter off a bit, but it takes until midafternoon before it's back down to mid-morning levels. Around the peak, the singles line stretches right out of the maze and wraps around the ticket kiosk. I hope that's just temporary, but I have a bad feeling it's related to Creekside being closed this year.

Still, by the time I quit, my legs were pretty tired. I hope I can condition myself past that this season.

I'm going to be coming up again next week, since the weather predictors are looking pretty good. I need to get caught up on my session count.

Addendum: I measured the wait times in the line-up on my Garmin recording. They were: 11 minutes, 19 minutes, and 32 minutes. The 4th wait would have been longer, but I said screwit.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Rode the park today. First, omigod was it busy! I was up on second chair when they opened, but when I got to the bottom of my first run, the line-ups were already at what you'd expect around 11-11:30. Interestingly, the park crew has extended the singles line-up around the maze counter-clockwise so you enter closer to the lesson pavilions than the Blackcomb gondola base station. OTOH, by a little after 11 it was starting to die off a bit. Almost as if everyone decided to get some early laps in before it got too hot.

And not an unreasonable plan. I'm wearing my Garmin Fenix watch these days when doing the Whistler bike park, mostly because it records heart rate. I can't use the Wahoo arm strap or the Garmin chest strap with all the armour, so that's my only option. And truthfully, the Fenix is a pretty good item once you get used to the UI. Anyway, one of the fields I'm displaying on my main screen is temperature. And it was hitting 88+ F standing in the line-up. According to the session recording, I hit 99 F at some point in the morning. Yeesh.

So the big news is I finally tried Garbanzo and went down Blue Velvet. I gotta say, it's in rough shape. I don't know if that's early season wear because of all the runoff or what, but right now it feels like late, late season on B-Line.

It was my very first time on Blue Velvet, so I rode extremely conservatively. Scrubbed every jump, took the easiest path on every feature. And pulled over regularly to let others by, to keep the muttered curses to a minimum  . It's a long trail, and not really well marked in some spots. I got lost once and had to hoof it back up to where I went off-track. It's also the hardest blue flow trail in the park, so I don't feel bad for being a little freaked out. I think I'll try to find Blueberry Bathtub next time, which is supposed to be considerably easier.

So all in all, I did Easy Does It, Golden Treasure, Del Boca Vista, Longhorn, Blue Velvet, B-Line, and Crank It Up for the day. That's a pretty good session.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Another day in the bike park. Nothing really dramatic to report, except that I finally figured out pumping today







. Turns out I was pushing down too early, probably before my rear wheel had cleared the apex. I was actually able to pump my way up Easy Does It to that bridge. It's a series of rollers on a generally uphill section of trail, so it is really obvious whether or not you're adding momentum.

OTOH, for some reason my jumps just weren't clicking today. I think I may have to spend a half hour on Gentle Giant just to get the feel back.

Oh, and an unexpected risk of mountain biking: Full-face-helmet tan. I haz it. Getting some sunscreen this afternoon.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Fourth day in a row of downhill biking. It's been fun, but tomorrow is Saturday, which is never a good time to go. Plus the weather is looking a little iffy. It actually started to rain mid-morning today, so my last ride was a little wet. In any case, I had an appointment in early afternoon so there was no decision to make.

Still, I got a good 4 runs in. And they were good runs. I'm still warming up on Easy Does It or Golden Treasure, and I'm not quite ready to skip that warm-up run just yet. But today, I only did one warm-up, then a run down B-Line, then two on Crank It Up. And there's nothing like being faced with jump after jump after jump to give you an opportunity to work out your issues. My second run on Crank was absolutely aces. Cleared or just barely cased on every jump, and starting to hit the approaches with enough speed so I'm not forcing it.

It's too bad I'm not going to be able to ride the park again for a while, because as I've learned with snowboarding, repetition and reinforcement is the key to improvement. Ideally, I'd really need another day or two in the park, doing mostly Crank It Up, to really nail down the techniques. But now looking at the predictors, the weather is going to crap for the entire weekend.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Crap weather Saturday, crap weather Sunday, crap weather today. What a lovely summer.


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## BoardieK (Dec 21, 2015)

Right latitude, wrong longitude.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, that was us last year.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've been going on rides fairly regularly and I'm noticing my fitness improving each ride. I'm doing the full course that last year would leave me exhausted for the afternoon, and I'm only moderately tired by the end of it.

I've finally gotten around the freak-out about skinnies. I know that most people do skinnies while standing, but I haven't bothered up 'till now, preferring to do it seated. So just to change it up a little, I started doing the skinnies standing. Made a significant difference. I can come to an almost complete stop and correct, rather than just bailing. And it feels safer going over some ladder bridges as well. So a win-win all around.

I did Starz Line 1 yesterday, which I haven't seen since last year. I noticed that I flew through it rather than the slow and careful creeping that I used to do. So I tried Lower Backyard Trail instead of doing the usual Hett Creek run. Same thing--I basically bombed through it. I've definitely improved significantly since this time last year. Feels good.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just did two days in the Whistler bike park. The first day (yesterday), I rode the Trek Session. I'd brought the Code RSC brake levers with me, and at the end of my morning I dropped the bike off at the shop to have the work done. And no, I'm not going to do it myself. Swapping the brake levers, no big deal. Doing two brake bleeds in a condo with my wife within shouting distance, no bueno big time.

Anyway, that meant I was using the Santa Cruz V10 today. I used that bike all last season and did fine. Today, I hated it. It was heavy, it was dead, it felt like it wandered, the brakes were iffy... Jeez, I hadn't realized how much of a different bike the Session is until today. And better.

So I'm going to sell the V10. And as long as I'm on that roller coaster, I might as well get rid of the EX 7 and the 520 road bike.

Anyway, back to the Session. The new brake levers have more adjustability and as I understand it, better braking power. So good all-around. The other thing I want to do soonest on the bike is install better handle grips. The stock Bontragers feel a little thin, and I need more cushioning for those braking bumps.

Other than that, I think I'm a confirmed Session fan now.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I did a bike park session today. The weather was cooler due to partial overcast in the morning, and unfortunately everyone decided to get in a session, so it was weekend-level busy.

I picked up my Trek Session from the shop with the new Code RSC brake levers installed. And I gotta tell ya, that was a totally justified upgrade. The difference in braking power and control is just amazing. And just riding the Session was incredibly satisfying after the last sesh with the Santa Cruz.

Today was a bit of an experimental day. I had bought the Insta360 3rd Person POV backpack mount and this was the day to try it out. I did 4 runs: Golden Treasure, B-Line, and 2 x Crank It Up. As I write this, I'm waiting for the footy to be downloaded to my phone so I can take a look at what I have. The mount is supposed to produce a drone-like POV somewhat similar to my home-brew backpack mount for snowboarding. Well, we'll see.

Meanwhile, GoPro experimentation aside, I really had a blast again. But there's an aspect of frustration involved here. Even going during the week this year, I can't get more than 4 runs in before the line-up just gets too ludicrous. Generally that means I can't get more than 2 runs of Crank It Up. But I think if I could just session that mofo a bunch of times, I could nail it. One option might be to do an afternoon session, starting at maybe 1 pm. I wouldn't exactly call it deserted, but the attendance is down from the 11 - 1 peak. If I committed to all afternoon, I could conceivably get a 4-hour session in with better lap times than I'm getting right now. But it would have to be a cooler day. I don't think I could take full-on afternoon heat with that Alpinestars armor I use.

Oh, and one funny (not really) thing to relate... I finally found a Trek Session 9 in stock, at Fineline Bikes in Whistler. $9K. The credit card bill hasn't even come in yet for the Session 8. Do I dare?


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Donutz said:


> The other thing I want to do soonest on the bike is install better handle grips. The stock Bontragers feel a little thin, and I need more cushioning for those braking bumps.
> 
> Other than that, I think I'm a confirmed Session fan now.


I thoroughly recommend the DMR Deathgrips in the thick size. https://www.dmrbikes.com/Catalogue/Grips/DeathGrip/DeathGrip



Donutz said:


> Oh, and one funny (not really) thing to relate... I finally found a Trek Session 9 in stock, at Fineline Bikes in Whistler. $9K. The credit card bill hasn't even come in yet for the Session 8. Do I dare?


Not being one to dissuades others from new bikes (N+1 and all, I just bought a gravel bike  ) But what would you really be gaining going from the session 8 to 9? Throw a carbon handlebar and better grips on your 8, you've already got the RSC levers, do you need the fanciest highest end suspension?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Phedder said:


> Not being one to dissuades others from new bikes (N+1 and all, I just bought a gravel bike  ) But what would you really be gaining going from the session 8 to 9? Throw a carbon handlebar and better grips on your 8, you've already got the RSC levers, do you need the fanciest highest end suspension?


Sadly true. I did the compare function on the Trek website and the biggest difference is the brake levers, which I've already taken care of.


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## arbroadbent (Sep 14, 2019)

Donutz said:


> home-brew backpack mount for snowboarding.


Please post a picture....this sounds intriguing....


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

arbroadbent said:


> Please post a picture....this sounds intriguing....


The backpack is in storage for the summer. I'll have to wait until I hit the storage unit.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, updates...

First, I ended up buying the Session 9. Because I'm a gear whore. I'll be selling the Session 8 and the Santa Cruz V10 to make room in the bike room. I'm not sure about the Specialized Enduro. I've used it a half-dozen times, and I'm not sure if that's going to increase. I'll have to think about it.

Meanwhile, I'm in Whistler for the entire week. I went to the park Sunday, Monday and today, and did trail riding yesterday. The trail riding kind of kicked my ass because it's a whole 'nother level of exercise compared to Bert Flinn. But other than almost puking up a lung, I did pretty good, skills-wise. Dabbed a couple of times, which is inevitable, but I also took a lot of features like ladder bridges with a lot more confidence than last year. Stand-up pedaling helps a lot with that. I did two laps of the Fitzsimmons skills park but really didn't do well. I should have checked the suspension on the EX 8 before I left. I have the feeling it's a bit flat.

The bike park has been great fun and very gratifying. The first two sessions were very busy and I only got 4 laps in, and they were sunny and hot. Today was overcast and less busy, so I got 5 laps and felt better overall. As with snowboarding, I'm finding that a bunch of sessions in a row has a great effect on my training, resulting in quick improvements. I did 3 laps on Crank It Up today and by the third one I was totally clearing most of the jumps. I actually overshot one or two, which is unusual for me. The only jumps I really continue to have trouble with are the ones with very little room for setup--either they closely follow another jump, or they closely follow a berm. I still need a relatively large lead-in to set up for the jump. That'll come, but meanwhile I'm either scrubbing those jumps or braking to give myself more time.

But all in all, I'm very happy with my park riding. I'm also more fit this year, strangely. Doing 5 laps last year would have left me half-dead. This year, I could have done another one, except for the line-ups.

I think I'm at the point where I can try C-More. Probably won't go full gonzo, but I should be able to do the run without killing myself. Next time.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just did a couple of days up in Whistler. Wednesday I had to go in the afternoon because we were getting a new window installed in the morning. The afternoon was hot--not just the sun, which is always a problem, but by afternoon even the air is hot so there's no escape. Plus the sun is shining right down the corridor for the Fitzsimmons lift, so there's not even any shade there. I did three runs and called it a day.

Today was much better. I did the morning session, and it was not busy. Six runs total and the longest I waited in the line-up was 7 minutes. I did three runs on Crank It Up, and I have noticed a huge improvement on my jumping. Not just consistency or distance, although those are good. I've actually started to be able to do the jump without the stomp. Instead I'm doing the lift from the transition and it seems to work very well. Most of the time, anyway. New technique, consistency is a little spotty.

I actually intended to to C-More on my last run, but realized I was running late for the day so I did a quick bomb down the beginner run. I gotta say, if there's one complaint I have about the last couple of sessions, it's the number of slow-moving noobs on the trails. Not so much on Easy Does It and Golden Treasure--after all, those _are_ beginner runs, so where else are they supposed to go? But when you get some parent shepherding their grom slowly down B-Line or something similar, it's a little irritating.

Anyway, great couple of sessions. I'm going back next week for 3 days, and I shouldn't have any trouble hitting C-More at least once.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I went out for a ride today. Mostly a nothing-burger, except for one item: I've got real, proper bunny hops working, finally. Up until now, what I've been doing is more like a British bunny hop. There's a bit of anti-row at the end, but there's also very little row at the beginning. But I've been going to the Bramblewood playing field and practicing manuals and such at the beginning of my rides, and today it clicked. After a couple of false starts, I was able to do proper bunny hops. Not big ones, of course. It comes with practice. But I was doing a proper down-and-back row followed by a stand and anti-row. Probably only getting a couple of inches of height, but then I'm going pretty slow as well. Practice.

I also briefly tried practicing endos. Didn't go well. I almost OTBed on my first attempt. That seems like something I'm going to have to sneak up on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

First of 4 days in Whistler, and I did the bike park this morning. It didn't start auspiciously. They were short one lifty at the top of Fitz so they were loading only 2 people per chair. Needless to say, the line-up was growing fast. But on my third line-up, they must have found someone because they started full loading. After that it was in-and-out. I did a total of seven runs today--wooh! And I believe I got myself snapped by bikeparkphotos. At least I got the flash. I'll see tomorrow if there's a picture and if it's worth buying.

So all in all, I did Golden Treasure, B-Line, 2 x tech lines, 2 x Crank It Up, and 1 x _C-More! _Yessir, finally tried it out. And ya know, it wasn't that bad. I kind of expected the jumps to be longer and less lofty, but they weren't. Mostly they were the same shape, just a bit bigger. There were a couple that actually scared me when I first saw them. But here's the thing--I hit every jump, and actually cleared about half of them. Blind! So yeah, feeling pretty good about that one. Now I think I'll be alternating Crank It Up and C-More from now on.

I also did Monkey Hands as I promised myself I would. It's really not that hard of a run, and I'm not sure why it's rated a black diamond. I found Funshine Rolly Drops (which I also did today) to be harder. And that's rated blue.

Oh, and while waiting in the line, I spotted a guy with a Trek Session 9 just like mine--same year and everything--but with a 10-50 cassette on the back (or something close to that). I couldn't go over to talk to him, but now I know it can be done.

In summary, an excellent day. I probably could have gone longer. I can't go long tomorrow as I have a facetime meeting at 2, but Wednesday I think the whole day is available. Thursday I'll do a quick morning trail ride then head home.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Second Whistler day, and a pretty damn good one. As expected, I cut out early so only did 5 runs, but they were pretty good. I did B-Line once, 3 x Crank It Up, and ended the day with C-More. Interestingly, I'm more confident on the C-More jumps in general. I think those small, sharp jumps on Crank, especially towards the bottom, are a little nervous-making.

Line-ups were non-existent today. I basically walked right through to the load point every time. And even the main line-up stayed short.

I'm now at the point in my jumping where I'm less concerned about raw survival and starting to try to fine-tune my jumps. I have three main problems. Actually, with three problems, I basically have nothing but problems, I guess.  Anyway, I'm working on them. They are:

1. I tend to hold my breath when hitting the jump. This is a problem I've always had in various sports, so it's not a surprise. But it is a problem. And when I try to _not_ hold my breath, it throws off my launch. Still, it's worth fixing. So, practice.
2. On the steeper jumps, my launch isn't vertical, but is a little back from the lip. This robs me of forward momentum and causes me to work harder than I need to.
3. On my launch, I have a tendency to halt my standing up partway through and try to pull the bike up. This just doesn't work, and it's a bad habit. When I follow through properly, I get a much better loft.

Other than those items, I'm still working on landing the bike with all wheels at the same time. I tend to land tail heavy more often than nose heavy, mostly because I'm terrified of OTB.

Oh, and I got my picture from yesterday.


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## Etienne (Apr 2, 2021)

Do you practice your bhops and manuals on BMX at all? We used to teach kids to just push beyond the balance point and jump off the bike, to have them feel where it is and get away with the fear of backflipping. Then we had them old a bit more, use the break etc. but still flipping back every time, until they it clicked. Once you get that balance point all kinds of manuals and bhops are more natural, wether you push through a double, take off or just on flat. But that's much easier on a 20" than a DH.

Stomping landings, there isn't much you can do except do a lot of them. You have to bring your bar closer to you, and push back a little.Still your body must be in the right place, it's your pelvis that drives, arms and legs are just for adjusting, and that's the difficult part. On small ones- and I mean really, really small ones, barely bhop - you can try to point your front wheel just where you should land and have your back wheel hit the exact same place. You just try to do that with minimal effort, super smooth, on bigger and bigger jumps. Again easier on a 20" than a DH… but doable


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

No BMX. I have no reason to own one. Regarding the looping-out practice, I've been intending to do that when I start practicing wheelies again. Right now I'm chasing the balance point and I'll never get it that way.


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## Etienne (Apr 2, 2021)

No if you don't own one and don't feel like, it, no reason to force one indeed. But if you're chasing the balance point on you should be flipping out - or breaking when you're used to it - a good amount of your tries. It'll have your brain realize it's no big deal to be *behind *the balance point, else you're just won't commit enough and always be in front of the balance point. I had kids chasing their manual for years until they accepted the possibility of flipping back. Another good exercise is to manual over a bump from further and further away, the reference point really helps.

Good luck with learning all of that! I'm a bit jealous seeing you riding Whistler now that I sold my old DH…


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Third day at Whistler, and my very first flat. No idea what I did, rear tire was just flat at the end of the first run. Kudos to Fanatyk Ski & Cycle for fixing it right away.

I did six runs today, three of which were on C-More. Riding that trail is really helping my jumps, mostly because it's making me less hesitant about approach speed. I'm actually clearing my Crank it Up jumps. And that first jump after the Crank it Up rope bridge which I used to brake for on the approach--I'm now hitting full speed. The one right after that I've actually over-jumped a couple of times.

I did on one occasion this morning get stuck behind the slowest cyclist in the world. Actually, that should be The Slowest Cyclist _in the World_. Totally oblivious, riding the berms in the trough, slooooooooowwly rolling over jumps, and never pulled over to let the ever-growing train behind him get by. On Crank It Up, FFS.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

No biking today. I'm at home, and I've taken my 9.8 into the shop to get the rear tire replaced. No emergency, I just noticed that it's worn down in the center. That's due to the pavement ride to and from Bert Flinn, of course. The front tire still has some life in it, although I've already purchased a replacement. I'll get the bike back tomorrow, but meanwhile no ride today. That's okay, as there was a lot to do today.

I'm sitting outside on the patio right now, ruminating on mountain and downhill biking. There's a certain level of satisfaction on my level of improvement this year, and I'm kind of curious about how this is going to affect my snowboarding this winter. For starters, I'm _way _desensitized to jumps by now. And I've got several sets of armor and padding that will easily translate to snowboarding gear. And I've lost enough weight to be able to get them on underneath my outerwear. So all good.

However, I'm not anywhere near ready to flip the mental switch. It's still biking season, dammit. And for whatever reason, I've decided that downhilling at Whistler is the thing to do this season. Oh, I'm still trail riding, although mostly at home. And on that subject, I need to go trail riding in Whistler a little more often. Now _that's_ exercise.

But it's interesting the parallels between my biking and snowboarding behavior. I am 1) obsessive about details, 2) a gear whore, and 3) highly motivated to conquer techniques. And they're both fun as hell.

So at the moment, the bike park is slated to close Oct 10, and the mountain is slated to open for snow sports Nov 24. That's 45 days--a month and a half--of shoulder season. I'm hoping that I'll be able to trail ride during that period. I can take cold--I have cold weather gear--but driving rain tends to demotivate me. And where do I live? The wet coast, of course. So, we'll see. If the weather goes to crap though, I have my treadmill. I guess.

In the spring, Whistler closes mid-April (absent unexpected pandemics) and Blackcomb keeps going until mid-May or thereabouts. The bike park also opens somewhere around mid-May, so in principle snowboarding and downhill biking could overlap, if just a little. But I have more hope for trail riding, which let's face it, is better exercise overall. And if there's one thing this year taught me, it's how much of a difference exercise and fitness makes.

So bring it on. I don't know how many years of active life I have left, but by God if you want to take that away from me, you'll have to catch me first!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've been at Whistler for a couple of days now. Getting a lot of DH biking in, as the line-ups have evaporated with the return to school . My riding continues to improve. On jumps, I think I made a breakthrough today. I seems like I'm stomping just a little too late. Going for a bigger stomp helped because I would have to start the stomp a little earlier to get in the additional amplitude. But it looks like it wasn't the amplitude that was important, it was the earlier start. I'll have to keep practicing, but if I'm right about this, it's really just down to practice now.

I've also gotten bucked a couple of times in the last couple of days, not to the point of actual OTB, but certainly that feeling. The good news on that is that I've identified exactly what goes on that causes the situation. It's essentially a matter of going into a jump with no setup, i.e. just passively rolling into it. The peakier the jump, the worse it'll be. So the lesson is: don't do that .

The other item that I'm improving on is drops. I've gone from the second drop to the third one on Joyride jump park. And I'm now doing the rightmost drop on Wednesday Night Delight. A little scary, and some fine tuning is still required, but I think I've got them locked.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Two more days in the bike park. I got a new picture yesterday on B-Line, and I got one today on Easy Does It. The B-Line one is pretty good and has replaced the Samurai Pizza Cat picture as my wallpaper. We'll see what the Easy Does It one comes out like. It was taken in mid-berm, so could be quite dramatic.

On more important subjects, I'm continuing to learn about my jumping. The other thing I think I tend to do wrong on the stomp is not put enough hip into it. My stomp is mostly upper body, which would explain why I come down tail heavy--too much front fork involvement. When I time the stomp correctly and use my whole body, I get massive loft. I just can't do it dependably. Practice, practice.

I spent quite a bit of time on tech trails today, including Funshine Rolly Drops. I've conquered that weird rock pyramid thing that stopped me last time, so I'm good on Funshine now. I did the full sequence from Funshine on down, and also did the full Ninja Cougar run yesterday. I'm still not what you'd call _fast_ on tech, but that's mostly about lack of practice. I'm really not as engaged by tech as I am by flow, especially jumpy flow. Oh, and I'm also doing Monkey Hands regularly. I should probably try out the whole Angry Pirate run at some point, soon.

Still having a barrel of fun on Crank It Up and C-More, although I gotta say, both trails are getting pretty chewed up this late in the season. It's almost to the point where Blue Velvet isn't looking so bad.

Oh, and school being back hasn't really done anything to blunt the Saturday line-ups. I only got 3 runs in before I quit in disgust. I think I'm going to give tomorrow a pass and go back up on Monday.











ETA: And today's pic:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

arbroadbent said:


> Please post a picture....this sounds intriguing....


Finally got a chance to get some:


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Updates, folks!

We finally got our summer forest fire smoke. Came in Sunday, was really bad Monday, and faded by Tuesday. Seriously, compared to some years, that's a gift. So anyway, no riding Monday and we ended up going home.

I came back today to get a few things done and pick up wife's e-bike to take to Trek for repairs. And got a quick riding session in, of course. So the bad news--I tweaked my knee slightly. It's nothing like what I got last winter, but still kind of scary when it happens. I think it'll be gone in a day or two though.

I fell on Smoke and Mirrors--sort of. It was barely a fall, and only counts as one because I touched the ground with something other than my feet. No scrapes, no bruises, no harm. I think I might have been tired and a little groggy by that point. No biggie, though. I saw it coming as soon as my front wheel went the wrong way and managed to be almost stopped by the time I tipped over.

Far more infuriating (okay, irritating) is that I forgot the mounting hardware for my GoPro so couldn't use it today. The whole time I was getting ready and then riding to the park I had that feeling like "what did I forget". Well, that was it. Too bad, too. I did some incredible lofts today, especially on C-More.

I didn't do either of the two things I've been thinking about--hitting Cat's Meow and Angry Pirate. I think I'm ready for both, but checking them out is an investment of time when I only have so much time on any given day. But I think I have to make the commitment. Next time.


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## arbroadbent (Sep 14, 2019)

Donutz said:


> Finally got a chance to get some:


This might be a dumb question, but what is the pole for?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

arbroadbent said:


> This might be a dumb question, but what is the pole for?


GoPro MAX camera mounts on the end. Here's a video from the rig. You can see the camera in the shadow.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Well, it's down to the last couple of weeks of downhill bike season. I've been telling myself that there's still trail riding until snowboard season starts, but if so, I'd better have good cold-weather gear. Today was the first ugly day that we've had in Whistler in quite a while, and frig, it was cold! Granted I wasn't really prepared, just wearing the normal sunny-day stuff. But wow, the temp swings in Whistler are brutal!

So I took off after one run. I could have ridden home and gotten more layers, but by the time I'd done all that, the rain would have arrived, so screw it. I'm back up here for Tuesday anyway, hopefully to get in a few more days.

Yesterday though, was a really good day. Did 8 runs and felt pretty good at the end of it. I also scoped out Cat's Meow, which is actually probably doable. At least the smaller of the two ramps on the first jump isn't any worse than some of the jumps on C-More. The rollers and last jump didn't really look that bad either. I may or may not try it out before the end of the season.

I've definitely concluded that my issues with jumps are all down to technique on the preload. Sometimes I get it right, and sometimes I get it _just exactly _right, and on the latter, I generally overjump. So it's all me. Just need to work on that.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Just finished two days in Whistler, hitting the bike park both days. Today I did the afternoon because the fireplace guy came in in the morning. For a wonder, he actually finally found the problem--cracked ceramic insulator resulting in the spark jumping the wrong gap. Put in a new cable and insulator and it seems to work now. Woot! Just in time for cold season, too.

Anyway, bike park. As mentioned in earlier posts, there really doesn't seem to be any mystical secret to jumps. It's technique, and it has to be learned the hard way. Same with judging approach speeds, learning how much to boost and/or scrub, and so on. I'm starting to scrub that second jump after the rope bridge on Crank it Up, because if I don't, I now can overjump it significantly. I'm hitting more and more of the jumps on both Crank it Up and C-More properly, at least when I get the technique right. Today I discovered that I may still be boosting a little too much away from the jump, which may be why I'm doing the tail-heavy landings. When I made a point of A) stomping with my hips as well as my upper body, and B) coming up a little more forward, I ended up with a nice, graceful front-wheel-first landing. And I don't mean an OTB in the making, I mean a properly executed arc. But it _is_ scary, which may be why I've been unconsciously doing it the other way.

My suspension made a couple of clunks today on particularly vicious bumps. I hope it's just a matter of upping the pressure a little. But if my rebound is set a little too slow, the suspension might be ratcheting on those long braking bump sequences. Will have to check.

Speaking of the bike, I've begun the frankenbiking process. I have all the parts to get the gears done, but this week I installed the dropper post and required shim. The dropper has a lever below the seat, so no remote and therefore no cable routing issues. The downsides are A) I can't really manipulate the dropper while riding, unless it's at a _very_ sedate pace, and B) the lever gets in the way of hanging the bike for washing, so I have to hang it from the back of the seat. Slightly less secure, but still works.

The point of it is for riding to and from the bike park. The QR clamp works after a fashion with a standard seat post, but I always have to fiddle with it to get the right height. The dropper post, on the other hand, just pops into place.

We're down to less than two weeks from closing of the park, and I haz a sad, a bit. But snowboard season is coming! I'll be getting some good days in next week, then I think that's about it. Of significantly more concern to me though is the news that Vail will be replacing the Fitz and Jersey Cream chairs next year. As in, next summer. As in, bike park season. The Jersey Cream chair, who cares. But the Fitz chair is _the_ chair for getting into the park. WTF are they going to do? Channel everyone through the Whistler gondola? Yeah, cuz the line-ups aren't bad enough already. Maybe I'll have to go to Creekside to get up the mountain.

Stay tuned. I feel a tantrum coming on.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I've finally taken a video I'm reasonably happy with.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm in Whistler for the week--effectively the last week of downhill bike park. Yesterday I got in 8 runs, mostly Crank it Up and C-More. A lot of fun, and I'm now clearing most jumps. There are still a couple that I have trouble with, but it's always because of location or sequence or something that makes it difficult to set up for the jump. Like the first one on C-More, which I don't have time to get up to speed for.

Today, in addition to my regular runs, I tried a couple of new trails: Angry Pirate and Cat's Meow.

Angry Pirate is definitely worthy of its black diamond rating. It has a series of berms and a couple of rock rolls that are fairly scary. But right now, the big problem is that the dust is literally several inches deep. All it would need is a rainfall or a good hosing to get the trail back into shape, but right now it's a death trap. The rock rolls are also partly covered in the dust, so traction would be minimal. I'll happily hit it next spring when the ground is better, but not this season.

Cat's Meow is a new skills park just off Fantastic. It's got some jumps that are just the next level up from C-More, including two large tabletops, a double-roller jump, and a relatively small gap jump at the end. Not really much of a gap, either. I think it might be technically a step-down. Anyway, the great thing about the two big tabletops is that they are side by side, and they are sessionable. There's a path to walk your bike up to the top of the run-in and it gives you just the right amount of speed. I cleared the smaller jump on my second attempt and had it nailed after that. When I took the path out though, I cased all the exit jumps. But next time. Maybe tomorrow I'll try the larger tabletop as well.

I'm also able to occasionally clear that gap jump at the top of Heart of Darkness now. It just requires some frantic pedaling on the run-in.

My brakes on the Session 9 are starting to squeal a lot, and when I checked them, there's not a lot of brake left. Apparently I use them a lot . But I'll have to get it serviced as soon as the season is over. I'm going to check with Fineline Bikes and see if they do end-of-season servicing. It would be easier than hauling the bikes back to Coquitlam just for this. I will say though, that I'm reconsidering selling the Session 8 (or possibly the Santa Cruz V10). I think I need to have a backup bike available.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Today was the final day of bike park season for me, and it went out with both a bang _and_ a whimper. The bang was the sound of my back tire going flat, and the whimper came from me as I realized my season was over.

It really was a messed-up, jinxed day, all in all. So first, I knocked my GoPro off my chest protector in the line-up, mounting bracket and all. No way to re-mount (not dependably, anyway) and no alternative. So the video recording was over. Then I discovered that my front wheel was loose. My fault, I'd taken it off the day before to check my brakes, and apparently hadn't tightened it enough. Good catch, but scary. Then of course, the flat, and the subsequent walk of shame halfway down the mountain. Then after dropping the bike off at Fanatyk Cycle (they really are accommodating--great shop to deal with) I realized that I had no money, no credit card, and I'd taken my Apple Watch off and left it at home. So the big hike back to the apartment to get required payment methods, then back to the village, then realize that I _did_ have my phone all along and it does do tap. In my defence, I can't remember the last time I used the function with the phone, but I'm still a moron.

Anyway, the day was over by the time the flat was fixed, because I'd had limited time for the riding session in the first place. Plus, as expected, the beginning of the long weekend and closing weekend for the bike park was extremely nuts. Back to mid-summer-level nuts. I'm sure Saturday through Monday will be even more insane, but I'm not going to be around for it.

So, I guess a recap of the season is in order.

Short version: I haven't had this much fun since my early days of snowboarding. Long version: Goddammit, this was a fun season! What it comes down to is that I learned a lot (I mean A LOT) and didn't kill myself in the process--two very good goals for anyone, anytime. I had an absolute blast, and I got a shit-ton of exercise and lost a bunch of weight. It remains to be seen if I can keep that weight off until snowboarding season, but the way the weather is right now, A) I'll probably be trail riding right up until snowboarding season, and B) there might not be any snow for snowboarding season. (I don't like that second one).

Anyway, I learned to drop, I learned to jump, I did trails that I would never have thought I'd ever go anywhere near, and I actually feel at this point that A-Line is within reach next season. Assuming it's open next season, of course. As mentioned a few posts back, Vail has announced that they're replacing Fitz chair next summer. Now, they've released some more info that gives me some hope, including A) the Whistler Gondola will be dedicated to bike park uploading. No touristas. And B) Closures will be _rolling closures_, which I guess means they'll try to impact things as little as possible consistent with safety. Meanwhile, the whole Creekside side will be open, and that's all virgin territory to me, so there'll be no lack of exploration. And Una Moss will be fully open, and Blue Velvet will maybe be in better shape, so more fun stuff. And if it comes down to it, Crank it Up and C-More don't pass under Fitz, so probably will be open all the time.

All in all, lots of stuff to look forward to for next year. Next up - Pre-snowboard-season kvetching.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Snowboarding season is coming up. Theoretically, anyway. We're in the middle of an unseasonably warm and dry autumn, both characteristics that don't bode well for snow. Whistler has pegged opening day at Nov 24th, which is close to last year. I thought it was hopelessly optimistic then, but was pleasantly surprised to find sufficient snow for at least limited operations by opening day. Here's hoping that's a repeat.

So what's on the menu for this season? For starters, I don't think I need any new equipment. I _want_ some stuff, but that's a different matter. Specifically, I'd like to replace either or both of my Yes and Lib Tech boards, with newer versions of the same. They are at the moment my oldest boards, and the ones I use the most, strangely. I also want to get hold of the new Nidecker Supermatic bindings, but I have a strange feeling they'll be in and out of stock in maybe thirty seconds. So it might be next year. And let's face it, I have 4 extra sets of bindings sitting in storage right now, so I am the king of superfluous bindings.

I have season passes to Seymour, Cypress, and Whistler, and I'm going to follow my plan from previous years. Avoid weekends to the greatest extent possible, hit Whistler to the greatest extent possible, and console myself with the two locals the rest of the time. Seymour in particular seems to have made their reservation system permanent, so I won't even be trying them on a weekend.

This year, I feel like I have all my ducks in a row. As mentioned above, I'm in better than usual shape, I think I've figured out all the things I've been doing wrong in the past, and thanks to bike park, I'm greatly desensitized to both speed and altitude. So bring it on!

Goals? The only one I'm prepared to publish this season is to get out of my rut and try different runs. Maybe I'll learn some new techniques, maybe I won't. But I _will_ investigate more of the mountain(s) than previous seasons.

Bring it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Small update on biking season... It remains unseasonably warm, which is bad for snowboarding but good for biking. Of course the bike park is closed, so it's all trail riding from here on in. I did Bert Flinn today, my first ride in a week (and the previous one was abbreviated), and I felt it. Mind you, there's smoke in the air from the Cypress Mountain wildfire, but even so--less than two weeks break and I've lost fitness. Price of being old, I guess.

Exercise isn't optional this year, though. I had my 3-month checkup with the doctor, and although my cholesterol is down, it's not down enough. I have another 3 months to get my weight down another 13 lbs or so to 180, then we'll have another look. Honestly, I wouldn't mind that--I haven't seen 180 since 2008 when I was able to hit the gym at work every single day.

So, exercise will continue right up until Whistler opening day, whether it's biking or treadmill.

Oh, and on the 'small victories' front, I was able for the first time to ride the entrance to Jo-Jo Finn without putting a foot down.


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## Mike256 (Oct 13, 2013)

Hey donutz just looking at that photo of you on the berm and what i could gather from the video is youre leaning with your body to much. Once you start getting faster it will end up slowing you down and bight you in the arse. when you start drifting and you’re inline with your bike, when you start to slide you wont be able to decrease the bikes angle to catch it. If youre more on top of the bike it will hold better and when it doesnt a quick lift of the bars will bring traction back rather than having to try to ride it out with your weight in line with the bike. Just mentioning as making that change myself has made a big change to my riding. 90% shit corners to 85% shit corners.

edit: as for the cholesterol, best solution for high cholesterol is to stop checking it.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I am working on the leaning thing. Unfortunately, I have years of street riding (both bike and motorcycle) where you _are _supposed to stay centered or even lean inside on extreme turns. Hard habits to break.

But leaning the bike with bike/body separation has a bunch of benefits, not the least of which is that you can make instant trajectory changes without having to shift weight. In the case of the pic though, that berm is at the top of Easy Does It, and barely qualifies. There's one berm on Heart of Darkness where if I don't practice bike/body separation, I simply can't make the turn in time to line up for the jump.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*SNOW!!!*

Yep. We got some. And by 'some' I mean barely enough to show on the webcams. Both Seymour and Whistler got a scut of snow this morning. It's not only significant as snow (and ahead of schedule), but it's significant as maybe the only precipitation we've gotten in the last two months. The lower mainland is actually getting full-on rain, and absolutely no one is complaining. Whistler should be getting some a little later in the day. Here's hoping.

But getting back to the S-word, this really officially begins the pre-season obsessing.

ETA: next day


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

The snow has come!

Seymour this morning:











Whistler:










And Whistler Village:











Mind you, October snow rarely sticks around, especially on the locals. There's usually at least one heavy rainstorm to wash everything away. But it's at least an indication that we're into a relatively normal weather pattern now. So Ullr dance begins.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Miscellaneous*

It's five days later, and surprisingly the snow on Seymour is sticking so far. I think it'll be gone today, though. An atmospheric river is coming in and is supposed to dump monsoon levels of rain on everything. That's pretty normal for this time of year, so no biggie. As long as it doesn't happen in-season, like last year.

I've mentioned above that I don't really need any new equipment this year, but I'm still getting the itch. I may buy a board just to have bought something. My PYL definitely needs replacing.

I have so many spare sets of bindings that it occurred to me I could franken-mod my NOWs with a different toe strap. I'll have to try it out.

The kvetching and obsessing is definitely in full swing. Watching the webcams, checking the weather predictions, perusing the new snowboarding gear... And writing miscellaneous posts on my blog just to be doing something 😏 .

So I've mentioned above that I only have one goal this year--to explore more of the mountain--but I also have a bunch of things that I _hope _to be able to do. I'd still like to work on techniques like switch riding and ollying; I definitely want to hit park more often, and especially jumps. I of course want to explore more of the mountain. I want to go a little more off-piste, not back-country or jumping the ropes, but at least some of the less groomed sections. If I'm feeling fit enough, I might even book a private lesson and see what they can do for me.

On Seymour, I think my skill level is now high enough to hit pretty much everything Seymour has, and I'd like to start doing just that. Joel's Flight, Devil's Drop, and the steep parts off of Mystery and under the chair. Speaking of Seymour, they've announced their opening day as Dec 9th. Hey, here's hoping.

As an aside, and I think I may have mentioned this before, but even with snowboard season coming up, I haven't entirely stopped thinking about biking. I'm already looking forward to next spring and the bike park opening. Fortunately it's not an either/or thing, but it's great to have things to do almost the full year--the fall period between close of bike park and opening ski season being the only dead spot.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's two weeks later, and the Seymour snow _has not melted!_ I am not kidding, the snow that fell on the 24th never went away, and more has been added. There've been a couple of "atmospheric river" scares, but they've mostly been torrential rain at street level. So far, just more snow on the mountains. Sure would be nice if that was the pattern for this year, instead of, you know, the usual shit.

In other but related news, I've been convinced by no one in particular to get a Jones Aviator 2.0 this year as my new quiver addition. If I can get the Supermatics, that'll make a nice package. If not, I've still got about a half-dozen extra sets of bindings sitting around. (Yeesh)


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

And another one.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

So, updates...

First, Cypress has announced they are opening Sat Nov 12th. That's got to be some kind of a record. Not surprising this year, though. Temps have been consistently low on the mountains, and Cypress has likely been working the snow guns overtime. They are always aggressive about opening as early as possible, even if all they're offering is a WROD on man-made snow.

Whistler was looking a little worrisome for a while there. While temps have been low so they've been blowing snow like crazy, they haven't been getting the natural snowfall they need, beyond that two-day storm a week or so ago. But next weekend looks like it's going to be a pounder, just in time for opening day. Here's hoping.

Over the last couple of days, I've put my summer stuff in storage and pulled out all my winter stuff, both here and in Whistler. Of the many sets of spare bindings that I had in the storage, two were Union (which I'm getting rid of), two were defective (broken bindings from last year), and one was the Nitro Team Pro's. I've tossed the defective sets--I just don't have it in me to order parts and wait and fix, etc. The Nitros will go on my new Jones, and that accounts for all my bindings unless I manage to get hold of a set of Nidecker Supermatics. Still checking, still not out.

Next up, getting all my boards sharpened and waxed for the season.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's the 16th, which is pretty damned close to the 24th, and still no new snow falling in Whistler. There are snow predictions for later this week and into the weekend, but they keep doing the _fading away_ thing, which is making me nervous. Of course it's cold enough to blow snow, and they're doing so (as is Cypress, FWIW). Which means we may be riding a WROD on opening day in Whistler. Well, I'll take it.

I bought a new EJack, same size as the old one. The old board is getting kind of dinged up, so I'll be retiring it to the lower mainland for locals days. With the addition of the Jones in Whistler, I now have too many boards here, I think. I have the new Libtech EJack, the new Jones Aviator, the Stranda Cheater, the Rome Blur, and the Ride Algorithm. The Algorithm is by far my least favorite board at the moment, but I'm going to take the time this season to give the Algorithm a second chance and to get to know the Aviator. Very probably one of them will end up in the lower mainland.

In the lower mainland, I currently have a Yes PYL that is really showing its age, a Rome Speed Freak that I've never really fallen in love with, a NS Proto HD, and a NS Heritage. Plus the old EJack will be relegated there. Honestly, I'll probably end up mostly riding the EJack and the PYL. None of the others really turns my crank.

I do have some room for bindings additions. I know I said earlier that I had lots of extra pairs, but two of them were Unions that I've been holding onto for no good reason, so they went to Value Village. And two more were broken versions, so I tossed them. The only pair I kept were the Nitro Team Pros, which went on the Jones Aviator 2.0. I'm currently hoping to get hold of a set of Nidecker Supermatics, and once I do I'll reshuffle things. Until then, I have to take the bindings off the old EJack and put them on the new one.

Meanwhile, back to waiting for Ullr to deliver.


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## Craig64 (Jul 16, 2015)

Donutz said:


> It's the 16th, which is pretty damned close to the 24th, and still no new snow falling in Whistler. There are snow predictions for later this week and into the weekend, but they keep doing the _fading away_ thing, which is making me nervous. Of course it's cold enough to blow snow, and they're doing so (as is Cypress, FWIW). Which means we may be riding a WROD on opening day in Whistler. Well, I'll take it.
> 
> I bought a new EJack, same size as the old one. The old board is getting kind of dinged up, so I'll be retiring it to the lower mainland for locals days. With the addition of the Jones in Whistler, I now have too many boards here, I think. I have the new Libtech EJack, the new Jones Aviator, the Stranda Cheater, the Rome Blur, and the Ride Algorithm. The Algorithm is by far my least favorite board at the moment, but I'm going to take the time this season to give the Algorithm a second chance and to get to know the Aviator. Very probably one of them will end up in the lower mainland.
> 
> ...


Snow still falling down here in Oz.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

It's the 22nd, two days to Whistler opening, and finally a bit of snow. Not a ton, but most of a foot anyway. It's right at the cusp in the village, as it's raining at the Whistler Gondola but snowing at the Olympic Plaza. That's good, I guess--means it's snow not very far up the hill.

It's also snowing like stink right now at the Family Bowl. That's actually better than snow-forecast is telling me, so that's a double-plus good thing. There's still snow in the predictions, but it will have to basically keep pounding like that for the next two days in order to make a difference. Again, here's hoping.

Cypress is holding its own locally, although it's raining right now. But all it'll take is a slight drop in temps and they'll start getting snow again. And be able to blow more.

All of which is to say that the season is starting off with a whimper, and it's going to be a series of stutter-starts until we finally have enough snow. But all it'll take is one really, really good dump followed by NO atmospheric river.

Meanwhile, the cable is installed on the Creekside Gondola. A day or two for splicing, installing the cabins, and so forth, then it's all tests and inspections. The latest post by Whistler says they're hoping to have it operational by Christmas season. Wow, that's a lot longer than I would have expected. And the Red Chair is also going to be late, although not nearly as much. All in all, pretty much a clusterfuck, but in the long term it'll definitely pay off.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Day*

Today was opening day for Whistler. So how was it? Well, not really very good. The snow was crap, and there wasn't a lot of it. But hey, opening day!

I did 6 runs, two of which were ducking the ropes. Big mistake. The relatively untouched snow that was tempting me over to the dark side turned out to be a combination of crusty and elephant snot. I was in danger of getting pitched forward every moment. I did two ass-over-teakettles, in fact. Got stranded I don't know how many times. I guess I can understand the first one being ignorance, but why the frig did I do it the second time? 

Early season problems, too--the Emerald lift kept stopping. I actually spent more than half of my session _on the lift_, not waiting in line but actually sitting on the lift not moving.

One small bit of good news. I rode my new Jones Aviator 2.0 today, and it has all the indications of being a rockin' good board. I was doing tight cross-unders by the second run, which is pretty good. And speaking of, yes there will be getting back into it over the next couple of sessions, but I don't have concern about my fitness level this time around. Although I was feeling it a little by the time I quit, that was more a matter of the unaccustomed use of different muscles, rather than just being unable to keep up the pace. And my knee so far does not look like it's going to be a problem.

Tonight, there's supposed to be a snow dump, so tomorrow should be a lot better. In theory. We'll see.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Donutz said:


> And speaking of, yes there will be getting back into it over the next couple of sessions, but I don't have concern about my fitness level this time around. Although I was feeling it a little by the time I quit, that was more a matter of the unaccustomed use of different muscles.


So it's now the next day...how are those muscles feeling? I had the same thoughts first day, starting the season fitter than I've been in a long time, legs strong, next morning...who took a hammer to my groin!?


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Phedder said:


> So it's now the next day...how are those muscles feeling? I had the same thoughts first day, starting the season fitter than I've been in a long time, legs strong, next morning...who took a hammer to my groin!?


No, really not bad. However, I've found that taking an Advil after a day of exercise really reduces the next day's soreness.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Day 2*

So the bad news is we didn't get the overnight heavy snow. The good news is it did start snowing about 6am and pounded down until about 11. It was enough to add some texture to the polished skating rink from yesterday. There was also enough of a temp drop to disable the elephant snot. As a result I was able to do those line-ducking runs today without being stopped dead. And I was very happy with my technique--but more about that later.

I bought a new pair of Lasso Pros yesterday, size 9s this time. Unfortunately, the half size down seems to be just enough to squeeze my foot so the Morton's acts up. I'll try the appliance next time, and maybe take a chance on some good inserts as well, I really feel like it's the lack of sufficient support right under the middle of the ball of my foot that aggravates the nerve.

Today I used the new EJack, which is kind of cool right after the Aviator yesterday. It's a close race, but so far I think I still like the EJack a little more.

I'm doing well with technique so far. As usual, I was a little shaky at first, but as usual, that's from standing up too tall. At the end of last season I did a deep dive analysis of all the things I've done wrong in the past and all the things I need to do in order to continue to progress. One of my major shortcomings is a tendency to stand up too tall. Another is my form on unforced turns--I'm a little counterrotated going to toeside, and my weight shifts are inconsistent between toeside and heelside. And the third is a tendency to go tall and backseat turning to toeside on steeps and moguls. I made a point of working on all these items today, and it made a significant difference.

I ended up leaving just around 11am because A) it stopped snowing and B) there aren't very many runs to choose from. And my foot was really beginning to bother me. But it was a very good second day for snowboarding season, and I think I've set a high bar for my progress this year.


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## Elevation212 (Apr 21, 2019)

Phedder said:


> So it's now the next day...how are those muscles feeling? I had the same thoughts first day, starting the season fitter than I've been in a long time, legs strong, next morning...who took a hammer to my groin!?


The pain can be real, went into the season sloppy this year, no stretching or leg/core strengthening, went down hotdogging throwing a heel side carve and immediately pulled my left ass muscle, felt like someone jabbed me with a hot poker and not in the good call me daddy way. Any who tried to go day 2, got a few runs and went for a euro and immediately reaggrevated. Now I am sitting on a ice pad watching the snow fall.

word to the wise kids, take it easy in early days and remember that daily stretch sesh, especially the hips and torso


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Some misc updates...

For some reason, this year the snow is falling more dependably in the lower mainland than in Whistler. Seymour opened today, a week ahead of their original announcement. It's snowing as I type this, both at street level and on the locals. And Whistler? Still "low snowfall" conditions. The problem is the usual "retreating predictions", where massive snowfall is predicted a week away, then gradually moves forward a day or two while evaporating into moderate then mild snowfall, then not actually showing up.

I still only have two days under my belt, which is mildly irritating, except it's only December 2nd. The problem is that every single day seems to have some event or other that I have to be present for. I've booked Monday for Seymour, though. And I'll throw a fit if anyone tries to book something else in there.

I'm still thinking about mountain biking. Yes, I admit this. I'll probably mentally switch over once the season is properly underway, but for now I'm still in bike mode. I was watching some Van Girl Yuka videos, and OMG does that woman crash a lot! I don't understand how she's still alive, let alone biking. Makes me feel like a wimp. I'll try to remember that when I have my first major wipe-out.

That's about it. Still obsessively watching the webcams and the forecasts. Still shopping for snow stuff, even though I have freakin' everything. Le sigh...


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## Elevation212 (Apr 21, 2019)

Donutz said:


> Some misc updates...
> 
> For some reason, this year the snow is falling more dependably in the lower mainland than in Whistler. Seymour opened today, a week ahead of their original announcement. It's snowing as I type this, both at street level and on the locals. And Whistler? Still "low snowfall" conditions. The problem is the usual "retreating predictions", where massive snowfall is predicted a week away, then gradually moves forward a day or two while evaporating into moderate then mild snowfall, then not actually showing up.
> 
> ...


I feel you on the mountain biking, really got into it for the first time since high school this year and it’s taken up rent free residence in my brain. Was out today for a bit of off piste and kept having thoughts of what lines would be sweet on my enduro


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Cypress*

I went for my first session at the locals today. It was almost a coin flip, but I ended up going to Cypress. The snow was actually pretty good. Temps have stayed below freezing, so no slush and lots of opportunity to run the guns. Still pretty skimpy coverage in most places, though. We really need a good dump or two to fill things in.

The day wasn't without its drama though. First, I manage to fall over twice before my first run. Nerves? Not sure, but I got over it quickly and ended up doing quite well. I did several runs on Collins, upping the ante each time until I was really flying by the end. I've definitely gotten past the speed sensitivity thing. As with my Whistler sessions, I could tell when my riding went to crap that I was doing something wrong and I could correct it immediately.

I was having a lot of problems with my pass again this year. Finally a liftie looked at it and told me to go get it replaced at customer service. Apparently it's an old technology pass and doesn't play well with the new gates. Once I did that, things went much better.

My Morton's started acting up, despite me wearing Lasso Pros in a 9.5, which last year was fine. It may be the case where if the nerve is already a little swollen it gets aggravated. In any case, I had the foresight to bring the appliance, and once I put it on, things were a lot better. My foot is still a little sore though, even now. It's probably a little inflamed right now. I'll ice it later. I'll also try those size 9s in Whistler with the appliance before I go and buy some 9 wides.

As mentioned, I did several runs down Collins, but eventually I moved to Runway, the bunny slope, to practice switch riding. I'm going to be serious this year about nailing some of those techniques that I've always just been talking about. Ideally I'd like to spend some time every session on the bunny slope, working on switch, switching, ollies, and so forth.

My first attempt today was a combination of scary and embarrassing. I looked like a first-day noob, windmilling and ruddering. I didn't actually fall, but it was close a couple of times. But by my fifth run or so, I was doing nice S-turns with proper balance and actively avoiding other skiers. I think a couple more sessions and I'll be able to ride some of the regular runs switch.

There's a small park setup beside Runway, with two jumps, a ride-on box, and a ride-on pipe. I did the jump run once. It was miserably small and unimpressive, and not worth doing again unless they build it up a little. Likewise the box was nothing impressive, but the pipe was tempting, since I don't have any experience riding them. Maybe next time.

All in all, it was a fun day, more fun than it had a right to be, considering the crappy snow coverage. But, early season, take what you can get.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whoo!*

For a change, I actually got to Whistler at the right time! Yesterday's session started with 8" or so of new snow, and it snowed like stink all morning. Best day so far this season! (Of course, it's a low bar)

I took the Jones Aviator 2.0 up the hill with me, and I'm glad I did. The Aviator rails, turns on a dime, and responds predictably. It is now competing with my EJack for favorite go-to board. I'll post a review and add a link below later.

The session was positive in many ways. First, Lower Olympic is open all the way to the bottom, so I did two full runs. What's significant is that I didn't have to stop to rest, so I still have a lot of the improved stamina that I earned during biking season. That's great, because it's still just the beginning of December, so I should be able to hold and even improve my fitness this season.

Second, I've retained all my skills. I mentioned this in an earlier post, but yesterday I had more opportunity to test myself. Even moguls are still working. If we can get good snow coverage this season, I should be able to cover the entire mountain (except for the double blacks--forget that!).

Sadly, we're leaving today, otherwise I'd be doing another session, as it's continued to snow for the last 24 hours. Instead, I'll have to settle for knowing that the base is being built up for next time.

ETA: Aviator review


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*First Seymour Day*

I went up Seymour today. Shouldn't have bothered. It's still early season snow, although I have to admit that for early December it's pretty good. Part of the reason is the continuous low temps which are keeping the snow from melting away. On the other hand, they could sure use a couple of new dumps.

For instance, I went down Unicorn at one point. Big mistake. Bare rocks, bushes, small trees sticking up all over the place. It was an obstacle course. They really shouldn't be opening it yet.

Foggy, too. In Whistler, it's rarely foggy over the whole mountain. You can just go up or down a chair and get out of it. But the locals don't have that vertical range, so when it's foggy, it's ALL foggy.

Anyway, I won't be hitting Seymour until January now, since they're starting holiday hours next week, which means reservations and four-hour blocks. Not interested.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I haven't posted in a while, mostly because I haven't done a lot. I went up Whistler on the 16th and Cypress on the 20th. The Whistler session was exactly 2 runs long before I quit in disgust. They hadn't (and still haven't) gotten a lot of snow, and it was down to regroomed hardpack. Combine that with not a lot of cover so most things are a no-go, and it was just not worth my time.

Cypress was better. I went the day after a massive 2-day dump, so there was a lot of new stuff. Unfortunately, everyone in the universe had the same idea. It was like the worst weekend crush, but on a weekday. Wait times were almost Seymour-like, and they were shortstaffed, so it was a bit of a circus. Still, had a lot of fun and I got in some switch practice on Runway. That's coming along, and by the end of the season I hope to be going down some blues in switch. I also am making progress on penguin walk for some reason, despite not really making a concerted effort. Oh well, I'll take it.

Whistler's Creekside Gondola is up as of today, BTW. I should check the webcams and see how it's doing. So everything's back to normal at Whis, at least until spring when they take down the Fitz chair .

So this hasn't been an awesome season so far in terms of days on mountain, but I'm hoping in January it'll improve now that we have some base to work with.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

*Whistler Day*

I'm in Whistler for two days, just in time for a string of snow storms. It started overnight, and by the time I got on the hill this morning there were a couple of inches covering the polished scritch. The Whistler Weather page isn't saying "low snowfall" anymore, but I'm pretty sure we're still way behind on total snowfall for the season.

But at least we have enough for a couple of jumps and some park features. I spent about half the morning going through the S park, just gradually getting back into it. All ride-on features, but I did hit a pipe once. And the two jumps are really meh, but better than nothing.

I did quite a bit of moguls today, and generally did quite well. But my form fell apart later in the morning when I started to get tired. I've identified the problem though. When I hit this point, I was no longer driving my front knee on toesides, probably due to standing up too straight. Once I forced my knee out, things settled back in.

I had a great session all in all, 12 runs and 4 hours, but even with the 9.5 boots, my Mortons was beginning to bug me. I'm really hoping my appointment next week will be productive.


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