Grooming

[highpeaksdrifter]

Grooming is the practice of conditioning the trails

It breaks up ice and hard-packed snow
Smooths out the surface
Churns the top layer of snow to leave a couple inches of soft, smooth, good-turning snow

If you knew little about skiing and began to frequent ski forums I think you would get the idea that grooming is a bad practice if not down right evil.

I also think that people who like groomed surfaces are afraid to say so in ski forums for fear they will be looked upon as inferior skiers/riders.

I like to make big, fast GS turns on fresh cord in the morning. I would be bored with that if I had to do it all day, but for a couple of runs it’s fun.

I know a lot of very good skiers in real life who think the same way.

Threads are started about great bumps, pow, trees, steeps, etc, all for good reason. I’ve never seen a thread started about great grooming. One reason might be the person starting it might be made to feel like a pansy for doing so and would be scorned brutally.

I bet there are a lot of people here who find a groomed surface their most enjoyable, because of skill level, conditioning, physical problems, or because speed is their thing, etc., but we’ll never know because they are ashamed to admit it because of ski forum culture.

Maybe it’s not just forums. I’ve skied with people who at the end of the day where saying how great the bumps or pow was after a few drinks. Those same people where dying in those conditions during the day cause they didn’t have the skills and/or conditioning to enjoy it.

Anyways all that is just a thought that crossed my mind last night.

Your thoughts?

 

[roark]

Fresh cord in the morning is great. However when all the trails on the hill have been flattened as is common practice at too many eastern hills it gets boring very quickly.

 

[thetrailboss]

Grooming is necessary to push the snow back onto the upper parts of the trail or from the sides. I enjoy a nice groomed run.

 

[deadheadskier]

I will take good grooming over crappy bumps any day. I too enjoy ripping some groomers or not even ripping them actually. One of my favorite runs in all of New England is a leisurely run down Polecat at Wildcat. I'll do that run at least twice every time I'm at Wildcat.

Unless a mountain gets 200 plus inches of snow a year, they better have some good grooming equipment and the talent to use it, otherwise they will be at a major competitive disadvantage.

 

[Glenn]

I like ripping down groomed trails...and I'm not ashamed to admit it. Nothing like laying out some good trenches...and reaching out to touch the face of the trail.

 

[RootDKJ]

I like ripping down groomed trails...and I'm not ashamed to admit it. Nothing like laying out some good trenches...and reaching out to touch the face of the trail.

+1

I also do a lot of solo skiing so trips into the woods isn't the safest of ideas. If I'm out on a solo trip, I'm sure to make some mental notes of what trails were groomed the night before.

 

[Puck it]

Throw on the 177cm iRaces and let them rip for the five or so runs when nobody is on the trails yet.


e.g. - Top to bottom on Wingding at Sunapee. Or Tramway to Bypass to Extension to Avalanche for the Tram laps.

 

[WWF-VT]

Nothing wrong with enjoying skiing on groomers. Some days groomers are the best option of any trails on the mountain especially after a thaw/freeze when bump runs and the woods are rock solid.

 

[eastcoastpowderhound]

Making big GS turns on a buffed out groomer is one of my favorite things to do on skis...totally give in to gravity, letting the skis sidecut and edge pressure control your speed...fun stuff. Its also great training for everything else we want to do on the hill. Good grooming is essential at most eastern resorts...its one of the reasons I like sunday river. Anyone who thinks that makes me a pansy or less of a skier...well, come ski with me then decide.

 

[Riverskier]

Interesting question. I never understood the groomer hate you see on many ski sites. Skiing groomers is one of my favorite aspects of skiing. Arcing huge turns at 40+ miles an hour is as much of a rush as any other type of skiing, for me anyway. Of course, skiing the trees (on or off map) and soft bumps are still my favorite, but I like the variety. Not to mention, living in New England with off snow years and freeze/thaw cycles, many days the groomers are the only thing skiable. For anyone that trully dislikes skiing groomers, I think living in New England would be quite frustrating.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Fresh cord is great..it's like skiing on a carpet..so smooth..I like more hardpacked cord as opposed to softer cord generally found out west or up north after a dump. In college I went through that phase where I only wanted to ski natural terrain and bumps but I like speed and fresh cord is where you can get mad steezy speed either by straight running in a tuck or cranking out Super G turns..Blue mountain regrooms several runs everyday late afternoon and at least 50-60 people myself included line up at the rope and wait for the groomers to pass..within 10 minutes all the cord is trashed but the conditions remain good for an hour or so before it's back to sugar piles and ice...good grooming is important..bad grooming leads to divots and death cookies..and really 90% of allo skiers are only comfortable on groomers..

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

I will take good grooming over crappy bumps any day. I too enjoy ripping some groomers or not even ripping them actually. One of my favorite runs in all of New England is a leisurely run down Polecat at Wildcat. I'll do that run at least twice every time I'm at Wildcat.

Unless a mountain gets 200 plus inches of snow a year, they better have some good grooming equipment and the talent to use it, otherwise they will be at a major competitive disadvantage.

I agree because when the bumps are rock solid at Blue..I just bail to the groomed..path of least resistance..and I enjoy mellow cruisers where I don't really ski but just stand and let my skis do the work..

When I ski at Jackson Hole, one of my guilty pleasures on non powder days is getting the first gondola and ripping the 2740 vert down Sundance...top to bottom in under 3 minutes and maybe 15 turns max..with a couple spots to get mad steezy air off cat-tracks..it was so good the one day and empty..I did it 7 times in a row in an hour and a half!!!!!

 

[Johnskiismore]

Can't have fresh POW I will take the cord, fun to sink your edges and fly

 

[2knees]

great thread HPD. You hit upon alot of points, the biggest being the macho culture people like to perpetuate on ski forums.

I'm not a fan of groomers for the most part. Fresh cord packed powder groomers are a blast though. What i hate are the typical groomers we find. Alternating patches of ice and then the softer snow buildup from the scrape jobs everyone has done. I cant lay down tracks and my skis really really dont like to make big fast turns. (could it be, I dont know how to do it and its not the skis? :razz

I find watching people who can really accelerate out of turns in that perfect form fascinating to watch. Last year at killington Skibum9995 was railing turns on the groomers and i couldnt have kept up with him if i had been straightlining.

 

[madskier6]

I like hitting groomers, laying down some arcs & getting some speed thrills. I couldn't do it all day but it is fun from time to time. My preferred terrain is trees & powder with some bumps thrown in but good groomers are always a lot of fun for me.

 

[drjeff]

When mother nature stops throwing 40+ degree ra$n storms followed by a flash freeze and temps in the single digits just hours later, then I might come around to the "groomer hate" that some have. Until then, no way.

Plus, IMHO "Pisten Bully RED" is one of the coolest colors in existance!

 

[roark]

Last year at killington Skibum9995 was railing turns on the groomers and i couldnt have kept up with him if i had been straightlining.

I love trying to match him turn for turn... I can't... but it is great carving practice.

 

[Trekchick]

Is it time to post the proper grooming pic?

 

[tjf67]

I dont really like grommers per say but first tracks on fresh cord is a different story. Going down MR first track is great. You get half way down and stop. You can look up and review your turns. See which side you are favoring and making adjustments to get them looking like a million bucks. Then there is the flat out speed turn thing when you know what you are gettin into. You make the turns with no slip and let the ski do the turning and control the speed with the amount of pressure you put on the ski.

 

[marcski]

I swear, I opened this thread thinking it was about DOG grooming.