Okemo is Primo 12/22/03

Dec 22, 2003, 7:28 PM

Date(s) Skied: Monday 12/22/03

Resort or Ski Area: Okemo Mountain, Ludlow Vermont

Conditions: Packed Powder, a little crud

Trip Report:

I took advantage of my Christmas time off and the good weather and hoped the crowds in Vermont would be minimal given that it is Christmas week. Living in north central Massachusetts right on Rt 119 I left my house this morning at 6:00AM and took Rt 119 north through Rindge NH into Fitzwilliams and then Rt 12N to Keene, through Keene to Bellows Falls VT. Crossing the Connecticut and leaving Bellows Falls on Rt 103 towards Chester VT I am always reminded of the Joni Mitchell song "..wish I had a river.." beautiful country. I met my buddy, who lives in Vermont, over at City Slickers in Chester, where we had a great breakfast and then headed out for Okemo.

$59 for a day ticket.

We were on the lifts by 9:30 and the snow was perfect. As one guy said as we were going up a lift. "Hero snow".. so nice it's hard to do anything wrong. Okemo really does a LOT of grooming. I know a lot of folks don't care for that, but I do, being an old fart with knees that squeek and upper thigh muscles that are less than in tip-top shape. The skiing just couldn't have been nicer. Packed powder, hardly any scratchiness and very little crud. By the end of the day it got a little scratchy in the middle of some of the single diamonds (which are arguably blue squares in reality) and blue squares from so many boarders side-slipping as much as they do.

There were minimal lift lines. Okemo has that one main quad that takes you from the main lodge to the top and that quad had a 5 minute wait at most. The other chairs were "ski up and hop on", which is what we did most of the day.

With conditions like this, and only a 30 minute break for lunch my legs were like rubber by 3:15 and we called it a day by 3:30. the sun never really broke through the clouds all day and the flat light was difficult, without good goggles. My yellow Smith's need replacing..they're 10 years old and the rubber foam is deteriorating, but the yellow was pretty good in the very flat light.

Okemo has Jackson Gore open, which I hear is pretty good, but we never made it over there today. Maybe next time. We were told it had a number of washed out trails and there were probably only 50% of the trails open on Okemo proper now that I think about it, but it was always enough for the small crowd.

My buddy has a Okemo weekday pass. $300 bucks before a certain date and it is good for Okemo and Stratton. I'm not sure that price is still available, but I thought that was pretty decent.

My only complaint with Okemo is that many of the trails run into each other at the bottom and there is a lot of traffic. Guess where the ski school sets up all their beginner lessons.. yep.. and then the instructors "dirty look" you when you got to thread your way through their snowplow train. They really ought to make some other arrangements for their beginner lessons, which they seemed to have a lot of.

Total travel time from my Okemo back to my house and the luxxury of 3.5M Comcast interent; 1.45 hours.

I'll post some pics, once Greg gives me permission.

Pics are now in the gallery.
http://forums.alpinezone.com/modules...view_album.php

**Greg** · Dec 23, 2003, 7:35 AM

Well written report and great pics, Steve. Keep 'em coming...Thanks!

ChileMass · Dec 23, 2003, 8:06 AM

Steve -

Great pictures - the snow looks terrific.

Q: Helmet on the slopes but not on your bike - ? What's up with that???

Dec 23, 2003, 8:45 AM

Actually, it's the opposite.. I'm the OTHER old hippie.. the one in the red jacket, without the ski helmet.

As for the bike, I would never ride my bike without a helmet. I have at least 3 different helmets that I use when I ride, everything from "full face" to a state trooper like 2/3rds. A helmet saved my life. I am a big believer in Motorcycle helmets.

I haven't quite gotten there yet for skiing. This may be the year. Old habbits die hard and putting a helmet on to go skiing ..well, I'm not quite there yet. I don't ski really fast, and never out of control. I know accidents can happen anytime, but I just haven't gotten there yet. But, this may be the year.

Has there been a helmet thread here recently? Might be an interesting thread if there hasn't. I'm open to the helmet option.. but PLEASE DON"T MAKE IT A LAW!!! LOL!!

If I do get a helmet, can I put stickers all over it that say "Helmets Laws ***K"?? LOL!!

Seriously, how long before helmets become mandatory at ski areas?

**Greg** · Dec 23, 2003, 8:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldhippie

Has there been a helmet thread here recently? Might be an interesting thread if there hasn't.

Oh yeah. A few of them:

http://forums.alpinezone.com/viewtopic.php?t=713
http://forums.alpinezone.com/viewtopic.php?t=667
http://forums.alpinezone.com/viewtopic.php?t=11

Dec 23, 2003, 9:17 AM

I am not against helmets. A helmet saved my life when I went down on my motorcycle. Helmets are an excellent idea and I take personal repsonsibility for my safety.

I am against helment laws. Do we really want pliticians dictating our lifestyle choices? Where does it end?

ChileMass · Dec 23, 2003, 9:25 AM

I don't ski with a helmet either. My kids do and my father in law does now that he's older and feels less secure on his skis. Years ago it was probably a good idea when I did a lot more tree skiing and showing off, but now it's not really necessary since I basically stick to cruising and a few bumps......

Dec 22, 2003, 7:28 PM	#1 (permalink)
oldhippie Guest Posts: n/a	Okemo is Primo 12/22/03 Date(s) Skied: Monday 12/22/03 Resort or Ski Area: Okemo Mountain, Ludlow Vermont Conditions: Packed Powder, a little crud Trip Report: I took advantage of my Christmas time off and the good weather and hoped the crowds in Vermont would be minimal given that it is Christmas week. Living in north central Massachusetts right on Rt 119 I left my house this morning at 6:00AM and took Rt 119 north through Rindge NH into Fitzwilliams and then Rt 12N to Keene, through Keene to Bellows Falls VT. Crossing the Connecticut and leaving Bellows Falls on Rt 103 towards Chester VT I am always reminded of the Joni Mitchell song "..wish I had a river.." beautiful country. I met my buddy, who lives in Vermont, over at City Slickers in Chester, where we had a great breakfast and then headed out for Okemo. $59 for a day ticket. We were on the lifts by 9:30 and the snow was perfect. As one guy said as we were going up a lift. "Hero snow".. so nice it's hard to do anything wrong. Okemo really does a LOT of grooming. I know a lot of folks don't care for that, but I do, being an old fart with knees that squeek and upper thigh muscles that are less than in tip-top shape. The skiing just couldn't have been nicer. Packed powder, hardly any scratchiness and very little crud. By the end of the day it got a little scratchy in the middle of some of the single diamonds (which are arguably blue squares in reality) and blue squares from so many boarders side-slipping as much as they do. There were minimal lift lines. Okemo has that one main quad that takes you from the main lodge to the top and that quad had a 5 minute wait at most. The other chairs were "ski up and hop on", which is what we did most of the day. With conditions like this, and only a 30 minute break for lunch my legs were like rubber by 3:15 and we called it a day by 3:30. the sun never really broke through the clouds all day and the flat light was difficult, without good goggles. My yellow Smith's need replacing..they're 10 years old and the rubber foam is deteriorating, but the yellow was pretty good in the very flat light. Okemo has Jackson Gore open, which I hear is pretty good, but we never made it over there today. Maybe next time. We were told it had a number of washed out trails and there were probably only 50% of the trails open on Okemo proper now that I think about it, but it was always enough for the small crowd. My buddy has a Okemo weekday pass. $300 bucks before a certain date and it is good for Okemo and Stratton. I'm not sure that price is still available, but I thought that was pretty decent. My only complaint with Okemo is that many of the trails run into each other at the bottom and there is a lot of traffic. Guess where the ski school sets up all their beginner lessons.. yep.. and then the instructors "dirty look" you when you got to thread your way through their snowplow train. They really ought to make some other arrangements for their beginner lessons, which they seemed to have a lot of. Total travel time from my Okemo back to my house and the luxxury of 3.5M Comcast interent; 1.45 hours. I'll post some pics, once Greg gives me permission. Pics are now in the gallery. http://forums.alpinezone.com/modules...view_album.php

Dec 23, 2003, 7:35 AM	#2 (permalink)
Greg Nassahegan, CT: 9/20 Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Thomaston, CT Posts: 20,989	Well written report and great pics, Steve. Keep 'em coming...Thanks! __________________ Greg 2007-08, 2006-07, 2005-06, 2004-05 Life's too short for warm up runs.

Dec 23, 2003, 8:45 AM	#4 (permalink)
oldhippie Guest Posts: n/a	Helmet on the slopes? Actually, it's the opposite.. I'm the OTHER old hippie.. the one in the red jacket, without the ski helmet. As for the bike, I would never ride my bike without a helmet. I have at least 3 different helmets that I use when I ride, everything from "full face" to a state trooper like 2/3rds. A helmet saved my life. I am a big believer in Motorcycle helmets. I haven't quite gotten there yet for skiing. This may be the year. Old habbits die hard and putting a helmet on to go skiing ..well, I'm not quite there yet. I don't ski really fast, and never out of control. I know accidents can happen anytime, but I just haven't gotten there yet. But, this may be the year. Has there been a helmet thread here recently? Might be an interesting thread if there hasn't. I'm open to the helmet option.. but PLEASE DON"T MAKE IT A LAW!!! LOL!! If I do get a helmet, can I put stickers all over it that say "Helmets Laws ***K"?? LOL!! Seriously, how long before helmets become mandatory at ski areas?

Dec 23, 2003, 9:17 AM	#6 (permalink)
oldhippie Guest Posts: n/a	Helmet Laws I am not against helmets. A helmet saved my life when I went down on my motorcycle. Helmets are an excellent idea and I take personal repsonsibility for my safety. I am against helment laws. Do we really want pliticians dictating our lifestyle choices? Where does it end?

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Dec 23, 2003, 8:06 AM	#3 (permalink)
ChileMass In the Whites Aug 2008 Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: East/Central MA Posts: 2,286	Steve - Great pictures - the snow looks terrific. Q: Helmet on the slopes but not on your bike - ? What's up with that???

Dec 23, 2003, 9:25 AM	#7 (permalink)
ChileMass In the Whites Aug 2008 Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: East/Central MA Posts: 2,286	I don't ski with a helmet either. My kids do and my father in law does now that he's older and feels less secure on his skis. Years ago it was probably a good idea when I did a lot more tree skiing and showing off, but now it's not really necessary since I basically stick to cruising and a few bumps......