Guided Winter Hike on Mount Washington

by ml242

Mount Washington is a long way from New York City in more ways than one. The gulf between the two landmarks is greater than the 380 miles that separates them: the northern Appalachians tallest peak has one of the most challenging environments in the east. The drive feels especially long if you’re a young guide entrusted with a group of city dwellers who've never faced the challenges of an alpine zone.

Recently, I made the journey with a group of inexperienced adventurers from the city. I tried some bad snowboarder jokes to try to lighten the mood and help speed the trip; but the only true cure for lingering anxiety is diligent preparation. Once you’ve prepared, success hinges on determination and knowing when to abandon a summit bid. If you do make it, the reward is significant. Nothing beats the feeling of standing on top of Mount Washington in the dead of winter surrounded by teammates.

Coach Z: Improving your Short Radius Turns

Good skiers know that the best snow late in the day on groomed trails is always right along the edge; however you need solid short radius turn to hang there. If you want to ski in the woods or bumps, it's the same deal, you need those short turns. We don’t live in the land of the large open bowl, so if you want to be a good skier in the northeast, you need rock solid short turns.

Do this “corridor drill” in the morning when the groomer tracks are still fresh. Find a nice moderate pitch and make short turns staying inside the track of one groomer width. Work on keeping your belly button pointed downhill with your legs turning under a stable upper body accompanied by rhythmic pole touches.

Go West (Mountain), Young Man!

by ml242

I've wanted to ski West Mountain for a long time. When I was a kid, every time we drove to Vermont my dad would look over from the highway and say "we should stop there sometime." On my most recent trip north, I saw the lights from the highway, and remembered those childhood car rides. On the return trip, I decided to stop, and what I found surprised me.

For me, showing up at a ski area in the late afternoon was unique and memorable. When we arrived, we were greeted on the triple side by a couple of friendly snowmobilers who gave us directions to the proper base area. The young lady at the ticket counter could have been the owner's niece judging by the way she carefully sharpied the expiration time on our lift tickets.

Mount Peter, NY: 1/21/12

by Jamesdeluxe

Everyone knows that being a skier based in the tri-state area is not for the weak of heart. To get to any high-profile mountain — either in New York or in New England — you're looking at a lot of time on the interstates. But on the plus side, if you're the parent of a young skier who doesn't need thousands of uninterrupted vertical feet, there are quite a few ski areas that fit the bill and are only a short drive away.

This morning, the first measurable snow to hit our region since the day before Halloween got me motivated to check out a classic downstate family ski hill: Mount Peter in Warwick, NY. Mount Peter has three chairlifts to cover its 400 vertical feet, so even though there was a good crowd today, we never waited in a lift line.

Is the Subaru Outback the Ultimate Ski Car?

We've been thinking about replacing our 2006 Honda CRV. While I have always been a "drive it into the ground" kind of guy, our last two mountain cars, both CRVs, have shown more rust than I'd like after six years. Both cars looked fine, but upon close inspection, it was evident that to get value on the trade-in, it was time to sell.

2012 Subaru Outback 2.5i

After owning six consecutive Hondas, we've been considering switching to a Subaru Outback. While I'm not a fan of the styling, the Outback would fit our need for a high-mileage highway car, with the traction to negotiate our steep driveway, and a state-of-the-art automatic transmission to make Sunday night traffic more tolerable.

Snow in New York

When we arrived last night, the first thing I did was shovel the porch. Our porch is our snow measurement device providing a record of what's fallen since our last visit — so shoveling is a job I relish. The harder the job the better.

This week's haul was seven inches of snow, an inch of sneet, topped with another three inches of snow. It wasn't the 18 inches of upslope blower that Vermont got, but it was perfect base-building snow for tree skiing, or any snow sport.

Coach Z: Getting Your 3 Year Old Skiing

One of the questions I get asked the most is how and when to start a young child skiing. The answer requires some parental intuition. Does your child enjoy playing outside in the snow? How do your child respond to people he or she doesn't know? At Whiteface, where I teach, children must be four years old to participate in a group lesson environment like our Play and Ski program. Younger kids learn best one-on-one.

The choice between using a ski instructor for private lessons and teaching your child yourself depends on several factors. How comfortable are you skiing in a wedge with your child? Children learn by watching. Young kids may not be comfortable with anyone other than a parent, so that may limit your options. Trying to teach a young child to ski while snowboarding simply doesn't work. Be honest with yourself about your patience, temperament, and experience to pull it off.

NY Ski Magazine: The Road to Alta, UT

Last season, we posted an interview with Bob Peters, which told the story of an Iowan who moved to Jackson Hole in the mid-1970s and witnessed that mountain's transformation into a world-renown resort.

Marc Guido at Powder Mountain, UT

To kick off the new year, here's another inspirational tale of a skier who found his promised land. Seven years ago, Marc Guido relocated from the northeast to Salt Lake City, where he routinely scores more powder days in one season than many of us get in a decade.

Lest you launch into a "some-guys-have-all-the-luck" rant, don’t think that he didn’t pay his dues. Before moving to the Wasatch Front, Guido developed the first full-service online skiing magazine while being based at several less advantageous locations, including Boston, Albany NY, and most improbably, eight long years on Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Read this issue of NY Ski Magazine:

Searching For First Tracks: The Road to Alta, UT

The Dark Side Opens at Gore Mountain

Our plans for Saturday night B+B stay in the Catskills went south Friday morning when both my wife and daughter woke up with colds. With my two ski days at Plattekill put on hold, I called an audible, and left work for the Adirondacks at 2pm.

When I arrived in the mountains, I heard reports of good conditions at both Whiteface and Gore. I haven't been to Whiteface this season, and it seemed like a logical choice for Saturday. But a call from a valued ski partner convinced me to ski my "home mountain." Temps were going to be warm enough to ensure good skiing on primarily manmade snow. And the trail report called for the opening of the Dark Side.

Liftopia's Ron Schneidermann

There are some basic truths that human beings are eventually forced to recognize — day follows night; winter is the best season; and lift-served skiing is a really expensive sport. After overcoming the hurdles of paying for equipment, clothing, gas, lodging, food, lessons, and lift tickets, it’s a wonder that we’re psychically capable of strapping on our boots at the base lodge.

As a survival technique, skiers and boarders are genetically wired to look for deals, and one of the most obvious places is lift tickets. 2-for-1 coupons, season passes, and buying at offsite ski shops are some of the time-tested ways to take a small bite out of this unavoidable cost.

Six years ago, Evan Reece and Ron Schneidermann figured out another way — one that benefits both the supply and demand end of the equation. By using a variation of congestion pricing, their popular website Liftopia enables skiers to score discounts and at the same time helps resorts sell tickets during off-peak periods. Harvey spoke to Ron about the company's business model and core markets.

NYSkiBlog: How did Liftopia start? Is the company run by skiers?

Ron: Evan Reece and I started Liftopia back in 2005. We met while working together at the online travel website Hotwire.com. I worked in Business Development and Evan worked on the Supplier Team doing revenue management for hotels in ski areas. The whole idea originated over an IM conversation about whether to head up to Tahoe to ski despite the lack of fresh snow, and we quickly realized that there was a huge opportunity to help ski areas sell things like lift tickets, lessons, and rentals online and in advance with prices that change depending on the demand for any given date.

Snow Ridge Powder Day (Video)

The just released video from Tuesday's Powder Day at Snow Ridge...

See the full photo trip report: Snow Ridge, NY: 1/3/12

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Powder Turns at Snow Ridge!

Over the past month, fresh snow has been a scarce commodity in New York State, the northeast and across most of the continent. After a long drought, Ullr pushed some cold arctic air across Lake Ontario and dropped a foot of lake-effect blower on the Tug Hill Plateau.

Tuesday morning, two diehard New York skiers rose before dawn, and made the trek across the Adirondacks to slay fresh lines at Snow Ridge in Turin, NY. See the full photo report: Snow Ridge, NY: 1/3/12

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MegaHarv Snow Totals 11/12

Gore Mountain Snow Totals 2011-2012