 Posted: Sun Mar 30, 2008 8:36 pm |
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Beautiful Blue Bird morning. JackTheRipper, Dust Buster and I kept doing laps on the Summit Chair waiting for the Slides to open. Liftie Salis told us they’d be open after the sun softened them up. Finally around 11:00 they did. They opened when we where about 10 chairs from the top so we got in with the first group.
First Run – we where told by a patroller Slide 4 was in good shape so we decided to do. The traverse across was tricky, in part because it was still icy on top and also because everyone in the first group was bypassing 1 and 2 and taking the traverse over, but some kept stopping. When we made it to four we found the top portion icy and broken ice and challenging to hold an edge so I was glad I choose my Mach 3 Power’s to start the day. As we made our way down the snow got better and better, but as those of you who have done it know it gets pretty narrow as you go down, and the snow was great. Slide Out and we where done with Round 1. We where all hungry and decided to grab a quick lunch at the Bestro, refill our Camel Backs and let the sun work the snow. I called S4L and he said he’d meet us at the base of the Summit Chair after our next run.
Second Run – we met up with TJF at the chair and he told us he already had 3 runs under his belt and that Slide 2 was skiing very well. As we started down 2 I knew TJF was right, very soft and easy to link turns. Then we went off 2 into the waterfall. Icy but doable, TJF was digging it. Slide out and back down Lower Sky to Chair 6.
Third Run – we met S4L at the base of the left and up we went. We had a brief wait to get in behind another group and while we where waiting WhiteWilly showed up. Once we got in TJF and Jack wanted 1, Dust and S4L wanted 2 and Willy and I wanted 3 so we went our own ways. 3 is my favorite, but this run it kicked my a**. Up top it’s tight because of small spruce in spots and small mandatory and not a lot of room to maneuver. I got down the first tight spot. At the second I thought I’d drop and go uphill a little to a small open spot, back out and have clear sailing. When I landed I went forward into the uphill hard and had a double release. One ski stayed with me, but the other headed down hill. It’s so steep there that the brakes where useless. Willy was below me and made an effort, but missed the ski, it went out of my sight and I know it’s either going in the woods and getting smashed up or in the woods and probably hard to find. Either way I’m screwed. Then out of my sight I hear someone yell out Owww. A snowboarder had been sltting about 75 yards below and it hit him and stooped. I never saw the boarder, but he rode away OK. Walking down was difficult and I was hot and sweating bullets cause I was still in the same gear I started with at 8:30 in the morning and the sun was warming things up good. I wanted to go all the way to the bottom and layer down and grab my Hellcats, but I figured if I did it might cost me a run so i didn't.
Got my skis on and finished the run, but I was beat. We met up with S4L. Willy wanted to go down the Gulch skiers left of Slide out, but I had heard it was great to start, but too tight to ski farther down. Normally I’d be up for trying something I never did before, but I was too beat. Slide Out to 6.
Forth Run – S4L and I went up for one more hoping to beat the 2:00 close which we did. We went down 1. He cut to 2 which was the plan, but I stayed on 1 and did the falls again. I got them, but probably should have stayed on 2. We met Willy after Slideout.
As I type this my neck is sore from the fall on 3, but it was a great day in the Slides and I totally enjoyed it. BTW, I did take my camera, but didn’t check the batteries first, bad move.
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