Why Bump?

[56fish]

Serenity & Ego.

Bumps...bumps in trees....require elevated skills to enjoy.

Cuts down on the crowds.

Sel(56)fish.

[cps27]

Part of being a well-rounded skier.

[JimG.]

If I lived from the MRV north I might feel like you do...but I would still love bumps.

It's easy to say you don't care for bumps when you have tree/OB/powder options regularly. There are others in this forum who say the same thing.

That's not the case at Hunter.

So I ski bumps as often as possible to make skiing fun and challenging. And those bumps keep me frosty and in shape for when the snow does fall or I do go to the MRV and north.

That said, you will not find me skiing bumps too often when there is powder and trees to ski or hike to.

[Greg]

Originally Posted by JD

Never really understood the draw. Can someone explain it to me?

Bumps are rather addicting for me. It's a constant struggle to improve and the progress, while slow at times, is very rewarding. The first time you stick a line top-to-bottom, the first time you feel A&E, once you trust yourself to look 3 or 4 bumps ahead, etc. are all "ah-ha" moments that feel awesome. I equate them to the first time you successfully linked arcing turns. Good A&E has that same brief period of weightlessness. It's definitely not something I nail each run which is why I keep going back. If you haven't progressed to a certain level of bump skiing, you simply won't "get it".

It takes a bit of dedication to learn to ski bumps and the bumps (pun intended) and bruises early on can be discouraging. That's part of why it's so enjoyable once you can navigate down a run with some semblance of skill; you sometimes think you're never going to get there. Still, you're never 100% happy with your run; sort of the curse of bump skiing.

While probably the most demanding work-out you can have on skis, the challenge is equally as mental as it is physical which is another draw. Finally, as a somewhat geographically challenged Northeast skier, I don't have the luxury of scoring untracked lines in the woods all that often. Bumps are always around. If it's dumping, or a powder day, I find myself in the woods more and more, and the skills I've learned skiing bumps are pretty helpful there.

[Greg]

Originally Posted by JimG.

If I lived from the MRV north I might feel like you do...but I would still love bumps.

It's easy to say you don't care for bumps when you have tree/OB/powder options regularly. There are others in this forum who say the same thing.

That's not the case at Hunter.

So I ski bumps as often as possible to make skiing fun and challenging. And those bumps keep me frosty and in shape for when the snow does fall or I do go to the MRV and north.

That said, you will not find me skiing bumps too often when there is powder and trees to ski or hike to.

Originally Posted by Greg

Finally, as a somewhat geographically challenged Northeast skier, I don't have the luxury of scoring untracked lines in the woods all that often. Bumps are always around. If it's dumping, or a powder day, I find myself in the woods more and more, and the skills I've learned skiing bumps are pretty helpful there.

Funny how we were saying almost the same thing at the same time...

[2knees]

the feeling from maintaining a tight line at speed is one i get from no other aspect of skiing.

[JD]

I'm down.

[PA Ridge Racer]

I really don't see the draw, but thats probably because I'm bad at them I do believe like others have mentioned that it does take an extra level of skill to ski them flawlessly. I'm working on them but I would rather be on a different surface, not necessarily a groomer, but just a plain old ungroomed surface after snowfall is nice. But like Greg had mentioned, when I do get down a bumped up trail unscathed there is that sense of accomplishment which is nice and keeps you coming back for more.

[riverc0il]

Originally Posted by highpeaksdrifter

It’s more challenging and a better workout IMO. That said, anytime I can get fresh I could care less about bumps.

What the man said! Beats the heck out of a groomer, builds muscle, makes technique errors more glaring, etc. but when there is fresh, bumps definitely mean "played out, look else where for the good stuff."

[Marc]

Originally Posted by Greg

While probably the most demanding work-out you can have on skis, the challenge is equally as mental as it is physical which is another draw.

Skinning?