Most overrated ski trails

[Greg]

Gotta have the antithesis to this thread...

 

[skibum1321]

White Heat, Outer Limits, Superstar, Ripcord (Mt Snow)

Those are the big ones off the top of my head

 

[SkiDog]

I agree with Superstar as well as Outer Limits...they are hardly even challenging IMHO......

The "FIDDLE" has some nice pitches to it......but slightly overrated too and now that they BLOW snow on it (grrrrrrr) kinda defeats the old purpose it served.....the way they've changed Bear Mtn at ole Kmart pains me......how did it do a complete 180? from a "hippie/hardcore skier" area to a "new school" pipe and terrain park...???

Darned you ASC....

M

 

[skibum1321]

How could I forget about Liftline and National from the Front Four of Stowe. They're wide and kind of steep but nothing special.

Black Hole at Smuggs is overrated simply because they call it a triple diamond. It's a great double diamond tree run, but that's all.

 

[Greg]

I agree with Superstar as well as Outer Limits...they are hardly even challenging IMHO......

You must be a great bump skier. I wouldn't say Outer Limits is not challenging. Granted, I haven't been on it in several years, but I've been on OL with some huge bumps and it was certainly a challenge. Overall, it is overrated though. Anything wide enough that lets you traverse if you need to reduces the difficulty factor a lot.

 

[kcyanks1]

I'd say Liftline and Nosedive at Stowe, though I realize that they, probably moreso Nosedive, acquired their reputations when they were different trails than they are now. The one time I went to Stowe Goat and National were only partially open, and Starr was completely closed, so I can't comment on those.

Re: Superstar, I wouldn't say it's overrated in my view, since I never really thought of it as a trail with much hype aside from being open late. I never heard people talk about it as an especially challenging or particularly fun trail. It's just the trail that was open "until May, and oftentimes June" (paraphrasing). And there was a time when that was at at least almost true (maybe "May, and occasionally June" would've been better).

I might throw in some of the Canyon trails at Killington as being some-what overrated, though because they aren't hyped like Outer Limits, White Heat, or the Front Four or even Nosedive, I wouldn't say they are the "most" overrated in my mind. I would've though Cascade, Downdraft, East Fall, and Double Dipper would've been more challenging to deserve the double diamond ratings (well, I think East Fall has been changed to a single diamond, but it was once a double). I guess these trails have also been widened over the years, and Double Dipper I don't even think existed before the Canyon Quad or much before the Canyon Quad.

Outer Limits I think lives up to it's reputation as a premier mogul run. Whether it's truly the "steepest mogul run in the east" I doubt, so it could be somewhat overrated, but I've never felt disappointed by it. It's not my favorite type of run (very wide, manmade snow, etc.), but I wasn't misled to believe it was a narrow, natural snow trail This year when I went to Killington in late-January it actually was the only trail that I had muich fun on. Conditions were overall very poor, but they were making snow on OL, I was very impressed with the quality of the manmade snow.

 

[thetrailboss]

How could I forget about Liftline and National from the Front Four of Stowe. They're wide and kind of steep but nothing special.

Not the upper part of Liftline...requires mandatory air just above the Goat crossover. Looked kinda intense. Lower Liftline has some good pitch.

I find some of the other trails listed here to be entertaining and indeed challenging. White Heat, if ungroomed, would be an interesting trail. Outer Limits the other day was pretty intense, especially perched precariously at the top of it in ski boots trying to step in! No trail is ever going to be everything to everybody.

My nomination for overrated run is Goosebumps at Sunapee. Rated double black and has pitches that are the same as Burke's blue square Willoughby! Nice run, but overrated.

 

[Greg]

Nice run, but overrated.

Good point. Just because a run is overrated, doesn't mean it can't be a great run. I guess clarifying overrated is important too. Overrated in terms of trail difficulty designation (blue, black, double black, etc.) or simply reputation. If trail designation, Jericho (a double black at Jiminy) is overrated. Sure it's steep for the bottom third, but it's always groomed which I think makes it only as difficult as Whitetail (a single black). Just marketing, I guess.

 

[kcyanks1]

Good point. Just because a run is overrated, doesn't mean it can't be a great run. I guess clarifying overrated is important too. Overrated in terms of trail difficulty designation (blue, black, double black, etc.) or simply reputation. If trail designation, Jericho (a double black at Jiminy) is overrated. Sure it's steep for the bottom third, but it's always groomed which I think makes it only as difficult as Whitetail (a single black). Just marketing, I guess.

I agree the trail rating vs. reputation distinction is important, but often I think they are almost the same thing. A lof the trails we've been mentioning are double diamonds that are also marketed as being some of the most challenging terrain in the east.

 

[Greg]

I agree the trail rating vs. reputation distinction is important, but often I think they are almost the same thing. A lof the trails we've been mentioning are double diamonds that are also marketed as being some of the most challenging terrain in the east.

Agreed. In Jericho's case, it's actually often times a blessing in disguise. Usually it's the next run to open up after Whitetail and while they are of relatively similar pitch, Jericho usually skis better. This may be partially because of its double-black designation, which may scare off some "experts" which have no problem skiing the single-black Whitetail.

 

[eatskisleep]

Ptarmigan @ Attitash.

 

[skiadikt]

black diamonds at stratton ...

i remember the hoopla about white heat at sunday river-steepest, longest, widest mogul run. when i skied it i was very unimpressed.

i'd agree about national & liftline at stowe. nice constant pitch but not as tough as advertised although liftline from the very top is narrow with an interesting fall line.

at k, sure calling the outer limits the steepest mogul run in the east is hype, but when bumped, that thing keeps coming at you. the fact they blow tons of snow on it, usually groom part of it and it's warm, sunny orientation take some of the sting out of it. on any given weekend, after about 10 am, the canyon runs all ski more difficult than ol.

 

[hammer]

My nomination for overrated run is Goosebumps at Sunapee. Rated double black and has pitches that are the same as Burke's blue square Willoughby! Nice run, but overrated.

I think it goes back to the saying that "trail ratings are relative"...would you agree that Goosebumps is harder than the blacks at Sunapee, even if the blacks aren't steep (at least by your standards ;-))?

 

[Tin Woodsman]

Any expert run south of Sugarbush in VT, excluding all of Magic and Vertigo at K-Mart.

 

[ski_resort_observer]

I think it goes back to the saying that "trail ratings are relative"...would you agree that Goosebumps is harder than the blacks at Sunapee, even if the blacks aren't steep (at least by your standards ;-))?

Since trail ratings are relative to the other trails on that mountain/resort ONLY, comparing trails and their respective ratings between resorts cannot be compared in this way.

 

[loafer89]

Any expert run south of Sugarbush in VT, excluding all of Magic and Vertigo at K-Mart.

There is plenty of challenging terrain in the Catskills at Hunter and Plattekill. Bobcat also had some interesting narrow and steep trails. Berkshire East has great glade skiing and legitimate black diamond skiing.

Even the skiing at Montage has challenge, the lower 500' vertical has some steep double diamond trails.

 

[2knees]

Any expert run south of Sugarbush in VT, excluding all of Magic and Vertigo at K-Mart.

vertigo huh. With the exception of the steep but very short headwall, i wouldnt think of this as anything more than a nice practice bump run. I love it myself, but until this year, the lower half was actually rated blue. It does, however, often have the sweetest lines to be found.

 

[AdironRider]

Lies at Gore. The headwall of Rumor was damn steep but after that Lies seemed like a cakewalk.

 

[Tin Woodsman]

vertigo huh. With the exception of the steep but very short headwall, i wouldnt think of this as anything more than a nice practice bump run. I love it myself, but until this year, the lower half was actually rated blue. It does, however, often have the sweetest lines to be found.

Agreed, but that headwall is probably the steepest on-trail pitch at K, and the trail in general gets just about zero pub, therefore my "underrated" tag.

 

[Greg]

I've only skied it once, but I think Slide of Hans at Magic was really pretty easy. It's rated double black but I wouldn't put it in the same class as other Magic double blacks. I've never skied Redline, Upper Lucifer or Master Magician, but they certainly looked more difficult. I would say that Goniff and Twlight were harder too. SOH is a cool run though, somewhat removed from the rest of the trail layout.