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The Thanksgiving Weekend Snow Report

Big downy flakes stack up on the deck all through dinner and into dessert. By the time I drive home my stomach is bursting and about an inch of snow covers the roads in Black Forest, Colorado. The only thing I can think about -- besides not wanting to eat again for a week -- is getting up into the mountains. Here’s a quick rundown of what’s happening in my neck of the woods. [more]

Plunging Into the World of Alpine Touring

I had never heard of Randonnee skiing (Alpine Touring, AT) until this season. I currently work part-time at a shop that sells AT equipment, and after playing with the gear and talking about the joys of AT skiing with one of my co-workers, an expert in winter mountaineering and Alpine Touring, visions of untracked backcountry bowls dance in my head. [more]

snowblog

Yesterday it was 68 degrees and sunny outside. Today it’s 27 and gray. That’s Colorado for you. Today is a good day to sit inside with a pot of coffee and a book and my dog sleeping on my feet. But which book?

[more]

Why do we long for snow?

I’m snow hungry.

You know what I mean. You stand in front of your house as the sun sets over the mountains, watching for clouds, testing the wind direction, sniffing the air. You’re like a wolf nosing the atmosphere for the scent of prey, and when you catch it, when your nose tingles with that faint sting of cold-wet you howl and grab your gear and sprint to the high country, hungry for snow. [more]

Until Next Season

It’s only the first week of April in Albuquerque, but the temperature is already in the sixties and seventies. The trees have already budded and blossomed; my street is suddenly green again. Last week I planted an herb garden. The sun is bright, the days are warm.

I already miss skiing.
[more]

A sampling of this weekend's ski activities

The season is winding down. (Or up, depending on how you look at it.)

The way I look at it, there are some wicked cool things happening in the Colorado and New Mexico ski mountains this weekend. Don't pack up your gear quite yet.

[more]

Exhausting Ourselves for Charity Since 1997

What could possibly motivate two-person teams to hike the ridge at Taos as many times as humanly possible in a five hour period? (Besides, maybe, being chased by a guy with a gun?) The answer may surprise you – the motivating factor is charity.

This is the 12th annual Ben Myers Ridge-A-Thon, folks. Originally established in 1997 as a fundraiser for an extreme skier from Taos to offset the cost of his cancer treatments, the Ridge-A-Thon continues in Ben Myers’ memory. This year, on March 28 and 29, all proceeds will benefit the Taos Community Foundation’s Emergency Medicines Fund. According to the Taos News, the EMF “provides vouchers for the purchase of prescription medications at wholesale cost from local pharmacies, with the intention of providing free prescription medicines to eligible individuals.” [more]

And Then There Were Three

It finally happened. One of the last remaining skiers-only strongholds has fallen. Now only three mountains, Deer Valley and Alta in Utah, and Mad River Glen in Vermont still ban snowboarders. On Wednesday, March 19, 2008, Taos Ski Valley opened its lifts to our single-planked brethren.

We’ve been talking about it on this blog since the season began and the folks at Taos announced their plan to allow boarders in March. Skiers were stunned. The announcement was the only subject of conversation at Taos on December 14. At the top of every run: “Those boarders are going to completely f*** up this run.” On the lifts: “Enjoy the smooth ride now. Snowboarders don’t know how to ride a chair without either jamming up the bottom or falling off the top.” Hiking the ridge: “Patrol is going to have to watch out for boarders up here. They can’t do this steep stuff. They’re just going to hurt themselves.” In the bar: “When the boarders get here, this place is going to be too crowded and noisy.” And on and on. [more]

A Little Harder Than it Looks

I’ve been skiing since I was four years old. I’m 28 now, and I’m just starting to get good at it. Why, then, did I decide to try snowboarding? Why did I decide to effectively revert back to a puerile state of snow-sport competence? Well, I thought it would be easy. I thought snowboarders snowboarded because they couldn’t be bothered to learn the art form that is skiing. I thought I would prove a point.

Not so. [more]

Many Resorts Open Through April

It’s true, this year’s ski season started slowly for those of us in the Southwest. But then December came, the snow started to fly, and in many places it still hasn’t stopped. Ski areas in New Mexico and Colorado have seen record years, epic base depths, and more skiers and boarders than expected. In fact, most of the resorts in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico are extending their seasons into April.

A few updated closing dates after the jump. [more]

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