Can I earn turns at MRG with a splitboard?

[JD]

I never voted for it but I would if it came up again. I never portrayed it as spiritual and I think my post had elements of your last sentence in it and I completely agree. And it is part of the mountain now.

By this reasoning we would still live in segregation, women would not have the right to vote, and we would never have an african american president.....Not to attack you RC. But this excuse for a status quo that has elements of hate and exculsion repulses me. I hear it about every mality that afflict the human race. Past behavior should not dictate how we live in the present or we would never evolve as a society.

 

[millerm277]

By this reasoning we would still live in segregation, women would not have the right to vote, and we would never have an african american president.....Not to attack you RC. But this excuse for a status quo that has elements of hate and exculsion repulses me. I hear it about every mality that afflict the human race. Past behavior should not dictate how we live in the present or we would never evolve as a society.

It's a private group, they can decide whatever they want. Also, like it or not...but snowboarding vs. skiing isn't exactly comparable to civil rights. :lol:

This isn't even remotely uncommon in other sports/outdoor activities. I can't ride my bike on a lot of the trails around here, because they're for walking only, even though my bike would work perfectly well on it and not be any more dangerous or hurt the pavement. Do I complain about it? A bit. Do I go around feeling slighted because those evil people that don't want to walk/run with bikes nearby won't let me ride a bike on the trails? Not so much...I just find another place that I can do what I want to.

 

[BigJay]

Do I go around feeling slighted because those evil people that don't want to walk/run with bikes nearby won't let me ride a bike on the trails? Not so much...I just find another place that I can do what I want to.

That's complete BS... you're not taking about the same 2 things... Yes, they are both active mode of transportation but they don't have the same speed, same goals, same character.

On the other hand, snowboarding, tele and alpine are the same. Slidding on snow... one has a freeheel, one has both foot locked on one single board, one is locked on two different boards... But then you mix teleboarding and monoskis in there... And somehow, they're all allowed on the lift except for one group in the bunch... Based on what?

 

[Talisman]

By this reasoning we would still live in segregation, women would not have the right to vote, and we would never have an african american president.

So I'll disagree, the MRG ban on snow boards is more like going to club that doesn't allow jeans or a fancy restaurant that requires jacket and tie. You can choose clothing, or what you slide on, but segregation based on race, and voting on gender are based on differences that can't be changed. I find the comparing recreational sliding to race or gender discrimination a poor argument.

I actually don't care if MRG has a ban on what is attached to peoples feet or not, I bum out on the 45 minute lift line on the single on weekends if the hill has 'soul' or not.

 

[JD]

It's a private group, they can decide whatever they want. Also, like it or not...but snowboarding vs. skiing isn't exactly comparable to civil rights. :lol:

This isn't even remotely uncommon in other sports/outdoor activities. I can't ride my bike on a lot of the trails around here, because they're for walking only, even though my bike would work perfectly well on it and not be any more dangerous or hurt the pavement. Do I complain about it? A bit. Do I go around feeling slighted because those evil people that don't want to walk/run with bikes nearby won't let me ride a bike on the trails? Not so much...I just find another place that I can do what I want to.

Yea, I don't think that's right either.

I don't feel at all slighted. MRG is the only place I would consider riding a lift....although it's been a coupla years...Still, I see it as a bunch of old people who are affraid of change desperately holding on to some late 80's knee-jerk response to the latest version of slidin on snow. Personally. I think they should ban Alpine skis. They ruin the bump lines and push all the snow off by allowing intermediate skiers to get into tight expert terrain where they then side slip. If it was a tele only place everything would be much better really.

 

[JD]

So I'll disagree, the MRG ban on snow boards is more like going to club that doesn't allow jeans or a fancy restaurant that requires jacket and tie. You can choose clothing, or what you slide on, but segregation based on race, and voting on gender are based on differences that can't be changed. I find the comparing recreational sliding to race or gender discrimination a poor argument.

I actually don't care if MRG has a ban on what is attached to peoples feet or not, I bum out on the 45 minute lift line on the single on weekends if the hill has 'soul' or not.

Fair enough. But you analogies imply that snow boarding is like "Jeans" while skiing is like wearing a jacket and tie. This shows that you look down your nose as snowboarders at least on a subconcious level. MRG is open to the public. It excludes people for no GOOD reason...just becuase some bitter old woman didn't like the implications of a coupla young snowboarders 20 years ago....get over it allready.

 

[millerm277]

On the other hand, snowboarding, tele and alpine are the same. Slidding on snow... one has a freeheel, one has both foot locked on one single board, one is locked on two different boards... But then you mix teleboarding and monoskis in there... And somehow, they're all allowed on the lift except for one group in the bunch... Based on what?

On the surface: Foot position, and size/shape of the device used to go down the hill.

Less openly stated: Snowboarding's perception with the average person. To put it more bluntly, the public image of snowboarding, sucks. What do most people, especially the 30-50 year old age range that is actually in charge of MRG, associate with snowboarding? The group of teenagers with the bandanas, bad language, that sits all over the damn trails, and doesn't obey any rules. Is it true? Not necessarily. It's a stereotype. But it's still the image in people's minds, and the snowboard ban provides an easy way to keep much of that group out of MRG without regulating appearance and behavior directly, or at least is perceived to.

Secondly: MRG isn't exactly hurting for business. Think of that massive amount of free marketing the ban generates every single year for them. News stories, continuous threads on ski forums, etc. Would they really get that much publicity from just being "natural" and having good terrain? I'm not entirely sure. Magic and Hickory get raves for their "natural" mountains and good terrain as well, but they haven't exactly been too successful in the recent past. (I know there's a lot of other differences between those places and MRG, but you get the point.). Does that offset the difference in revenue from not having snowboarders? Probably not entirely, but, I'd say it certainly would provide a notch in the "Pro" column for the effects of the ban to the mountain.

 

[riverc0il]

By this reasoning we would still live in segregation, women would not have the right to vote, and we would never have an african american president.....Not to attack you RC. But this excuse for a status quo that has elements of hate and exculsion repulses me. I hear it about every mality that afflict the human race. Past behavior should not dictate how we live in the present or we would never evolve as a society.

Oh give me an F'ing break. Now you are not arguing logically and drawing a false parallel. Country club exclusivity does not mean it is a form of discrimination or "hate". No more than a private club having dress code restrictions such as no jeans/sneakers at a night club or at a golf club (in which members or management have determined a requirement of entrance--not involving a protected class such as color, sex, sexual orientation, etc.--due to the desire to have a certain culture or character presented inside said club). Your insinuation that the ban at MRG has elements of discrimination is not only wrong but offensive.

So, how about split boarding at the mountain when the lifts are not turning? :x

 

[STREETSKIER]

I was one of the boarders at
Mrg that's where I learned. I learned to ski there too ive moved on. It's a club. I ride next door. went up mrg yesterday nice vibe on mt. Windy nice slab to. Slash no matter what you slide on enjoy. Ps I gave up using my split I boot. Whenits to deep. I go ride lifts next door. Splits are tankers compared to. My set up. Snow shoes I prefer want to buy a split?? Pm me

 

[JD]

Oh give me an F'ing break. Now you are not arguing logically and drawing a false parallel. Country club exclusivity does not mean it is a form of discrimination or "hate". No more than a private club having dress code restrictions such as no jeans/sneakers at a night club or at a golf club (in which members or management have determined a requirement of entrance--not involving a protected class such as color, sex, sexual orientation, etc.--due to the desire to have a certain culture or character presented inside said club). Your insinuation that the ban at MRG has elements of discrimination is not only wrong but offensive.

So, how about split boarding at the mountain when the lifts are not turning? :x

It is a form of exclusion based on the fact that an old women got mad when some young folks called her out on being out of touch and stubborn. IMO, it's not an issue on the same level as exclusion based on race or gender, but from a completely neutral standpoint, the very idea of deciding to exclude any user group that is completely accepted by the rest of the know universe becuase of a personal grudge reeks of steriotype generalizations which, from a stantpoint of openess and inclusion, is the first step in the direction of negativity....and it's pretty darn lame. Like I said, why allow Alpine skiers there? In the 40s, that was the new thing designed to make skiing easy so the masses could enjoy it...It allowed people who couldn't slide on the exsisting gear new access...increased crowds....it's an identical situation...if you were exculded for locking down your heels, would you be so passive about such a negative management plan?

 

[dmc]

wait... they allow teleboarding? Thats just snowboarding with a free heel...

And monoskiing? wow.... thats just gay.... sorry.. I wouldnt let that crap on a hill out of principal...

 

[polski]

MRG isn't exactly hurting for business. Think of that massive amount of free marketing the ban generates every single year for them. News stories, continuous threads on ski forums, etc. [snip] Does that offset the difference in revenue from not having snowboarders? Probably not entirely, but, I'd say it certainly would provide a notch in the "Pro" column for the effects of the ban to the mountain.

Along these lines, I was musing to what extent there might be a net gain in share sales because of the ban. Obviously those who only ride have no reason to buy a share but do even more who only ski buy shares at least in part because it's ski-only? In my case, there were far more important reasons why I decided to buy a share but to be honest the ban didn't hurt.

That said, I have mixed feelings about this.
- Big picture, the development of snowboarding helped save many ski areas in the '80s/'90s, including at least one I ski regularly.
- I respect serious snowboarding skillz, like those 30 or so guys in Tyvek suits who poached MRG the day the new single chair was christened. They *whaled* on Chute and anyone who can do that gets props from me, whether they're riding two planks or one.
- My kids have taken it up and I fine with that (buying them the gear and all) though I encourage them not to drop skiing, and I don't think they will, in part because they love MRG.
- I dislike the *stereotypical* snowboarder but figure those individuals who fit the stereotype would be a-holes on skis too (except they probably wouldn't be sitting down all over the slopes). I've certainly seen rude behavior by skiers too; as the old saying goes, it's what's in your head, not what's on your feet.

 

[Greg]

MRG snowboard ban threads always deliver... :lol:

 

[JD]

MRG snowboard ban threads always deliver... :lol:

lol.

 

[noski]

Eric had mentioned about doing a Boarder Day in the 05 AZ Challenge and said "...My idea was to do it on April Fools Day! The idea kind of went over 'like a fart in church'." I need to remember to mention to him that as Confucius said, "He who fart in church, sit in own pew"

 

[polski]

Greg: :-D but I think this is my first time participating in one so I'll continue

It is a form of exclusion based on the fact that an old women got mad when some young folks called her out on being out of touch and stubborn.

FWIW, the party line is the ban initially stemmed from safety issues with snowboards on the Single. To unload you have to scoot off to the side rather than ride down a ramp, which may make it tougher for less accomplished boarders, I don't know.

That said, it's clear Betsy Pratt is, shall we say, strong-minded, and she has an aesthetic problem with snowboards on a "ski mountain," per her quotes in this very entertaining article.

But I'd humbly suggest the language you use in describing the situation is exactly the sort of thing that would get a stubborn person's (or cooperative's) back up rather than having any chance of being persuasive - "old woman got mad when some young folks called her out" just screams CONFRONTATIONAL. You lament her "personal grudge" but if people got in her face and were rude to her -- which is as legend has it, though I thought I read somewhere the decisive confrontation happened at Mehuron's, not the Barn ;-) -- and she OWNED the mountain, well, guess who loses? Welcome to human nature. "You catch more flies with honey than vinegar."

 

[JD]

Greg: :-D but I think this is my first time participating in one so I'll continue


FWIW, the party line is the ban initially stemmed from safety issues with snowboards on the Single. To unload you have to scoot off to the side rather than ride down a ramp, which may make it tougher for less accomplished boarders, I don't know.

That said, it's clear Betsy Pratt is, shall we say, strong-minded, and she has an aesthetic problem with snowboards on a "ski mountain," per her quotes in this very entertaining article.

But I'd humbly suggest the language you use in describing the situation is exactly the sort of thing that would get a stubborn person's (or cooperative's) back up rather than having any chance of being persuasive - "old woman got mad when some young folks called her out" just screams CONFRONTATIONAL. You lament her "personal grudge" but if people got in her face and were rude to her -- which is as legend has it, though I thought I read somewhere the decisive confrontation happened at Mehuron's, not the Barn ;-) -- and she OWNED the mountain, well, guess who loses? Welcome to human nature. "You catch more flies with honey than vinegar."

I used to think that too, but was corrected by one of the two snowboarders involved in the conversation where she ultimately banned riding, while doing laundry down at the Barn. The NEVER allowed riders on the single even when it was legal from my understanding, so how could they have a safety issue. That was an excuse they used to keep riders off the single while it was legal on the double side. Rob and his buddy went to talk to betsy about that...one thing led to another and the "snowboarding at MRG is like being black in the 50s" comment came out...she flipped. I agree that they might have been a bit confrontational with her, can't say for sure. I know Rob is one heck of a nice guy and can't see him being disrepectful. Betsy is, as is know throughout the valley, closeminded. Why let her hangup dictate policy?

 

[dbking]

Long live mad river glen

 

[abc]

Fair enough. But you analogies imply that snow boarding is like "Jeans" while skiing is like wearing a jacket and tie. This shows that you look down your nose as snowboarders at least on a subconcious level. MRG is open to the public. It excludes people for no GOOD reason...just becuase some bitter old woman didn't like the implications of a coupla young snowboarders 20 years ago....get over it allready.

Do I detect an inferiority-superiority complex?

Buy your own mountain and ban skiers from it!!!

 

[polski]

...one thing led to another and the "snowboarding at MRG is like being black in the 50s" comment came out

:-o :-o :-o

...she flipped.

Now there's a shocker.