Magic Mountain VT, 24-Feb-10 Uber-Pow-Day

[billski]

Here are the pics. The story will have to wait. The other guys may want to fill you in should they be able to shake powder rigarmortos.


Route 11, 8AM

One foot and getting better:

First chair for me. No need to rush for first tracks.

Where's Waldo?

The green trail I hit by mistake was impossible to ski. I can't believe I'm saying it needs to be groomed!

Cutting 2' first tracks was common:

It snowed relentlessly, about two inches an hour all day.

Porch could take no more:

The infamous "avalanche" - That cut is two feet+ deep. It was a natural break - no tracks in that entire section.

Where's the liftie? Is it Matt?

The only time I touched bottom was on the lower runout (not shown).

Too shallow a pitch to navigate:

You needed the blacks to deal with the massive amounts of pow. I'm glad I had 96 underfoot, but at times wished
for more.

Continued...

 

[billski]

Continuing

Pics Continuing:

no, I was not crouching. I believe I was about waist deep when I flicked this one:

Day's end chop, but places to make fresh tracks abound. I overdosed.

The woods are waiting for you.

The bus that couldn't. If only Ms. Frizzle was driving. Matt the Tractor Man to the rescue.

The best way to clear 26" of pow off the road:

What I found at day's end. No, I'm not plowed in. The lot was clear at the beginning of the day.

 

[salsgang]

There we go. Shoot! Score! Win!

 

[riverc0il]

Never thought I would ever be saying this, but 96 underfoot was not enough for yesterday. How does a 130 tip dive? Truly bottomless. I might have hit one rock on one of our two trips down Master (which were both simply unreal). First time I have skied Black Magic and it was practically a joke. roark and I skied what I would consider to be the hardest shot on the mountain without batting an eye, a shot that I needed to sidestep down a few feet here and there and take measured 'one turn at a time' jump turns just a month ago. We just blasted it. Everything was go go go and everything was epic. Sucked getting stuck in completely untracked when the pitch was not steep enough. Never thought I would see that day that someone would need to break trail on a black diamond before it would be skiable. But once that first track was laid, it was game on, big time.

I do hope Magic takes this opportunity and grooms out the run outs, green circles, and most of the blue squares. Firstly, they are not skiable unless you ski someone else's track. But more importantly, they need to do it for snow preservation. Even if Magic gets any NCP from the second round of this storm cycle, they have enough snow to last to the end of March and beyond at this point.

 

[pepperdawg]

Glad you guys got some!!! - great stuff!!!!!. X-rossing finger/toes it doenst crust up today.(antijinx)

 

[sledhaulingmedic]

No understatement here, it was the best East Coast Ski day for me and really one of the top three anywhere. (That being said, I wish it came in a season that I had more days in on real terrain...damn I miss being able to get 30 days a year in at Magic.)

Even late in the day, upper Black was super-skiable (although my legs had long since clocked out).

I'm pretty beat up. I think I'll have a second helping of ibuprophen for breakfast.

 

[TheBEast]

Outstanding!! Any hints of NCP through the day??

 

[Warp Daddy]

Wow -------------just freakin wow-- good 4 u guys

 

[bvibert]

I think I'm gonna be sick...

 

[roark]

Even a dedicated powder ski (praxis powders) couldn't cope if there wasn't enough pitch. Absolutely unreal day, best I've had on the EC.

 

[billski]

more pics

Roark's Pics
and
Sledhaulingmedic's

http://forums.alpinezone.com/showthread.php?t=72534&page=3

 

[rocojerry]

way to get after it, thanks for the pics and stories!

If yesterday wasn't my first day back in the office after being out two weeks, I would have been there!

 

[Greg]

Congrats billski and others. Looks like you all picked the right day to hit Magic.

 

[billski]

I will write up something on Magic later today. I'm too bogged down at work right now.

 

[bigbog]

Congrats billski and others. Looks like you all picked the right day to hit Magic.

+1

HA!...so much for Black Phantom's "Stick with the mid-fats for this trip"..
..What are friends for on a powder day!!

 

[billski]

My words

The best restaurants get plowed first. On powder days, that matters.
I arrived in Chester VT, the night before the anticipated dumpage, having seen the rain change to snow along the way. As pulled into the driveway of Motel in the Meadow and stepped out of the car, it became immediately clear that hiking boots would be insufficient. The car door pushed away the snow as it opened.

The motel was perfect for the purpose at hand: a good night sleep in a quiet locale, fresh linens, clean and warm. Awaking the next morning early, I peeked out the window like a kid awaiting Santa. About a foot of snow was down, no snowplow to be seen. The clock was blinking; power had already been out at least once during the night.

Needing a full breakfast before a busy day ahead and since the lifts don’t start at Magic till 9, I headed back towards Jacks Restaurant, on the east side of Chester. The lot was jammed with plow drivers, utility crews and locals. The place had been hopping since 6AM. I ate a hearty breakfast and spent far too long talking with electric crews who had spent the night restoring power throughout the region. The power went out again for a few minutes. I had not been served, but the crew laughed and said that's OK, they’d already gotten their breakfast! I swapped stories with Louie about how dairy farming has changed since the 60s. A real interesting group. I lingered far too long, said goodbye and headed up the road.

Route 11 was covered in loose snow, probably 2-4” on the road, my company was mostly pickup trucks out plowing and other maintenance trucks. School had been canceled. The plows had operated all night to keep on top of this. My snow tires earned their keep, as I bobbed and weaved my way through the snow to the mountain. As I arrived at Magic, there were already 40 or so cars in the Magic lot, but the pace seemed less frenetic than most powder days. Matt was already out on the mountain “checking out things” while Jim sold tickets. The snow was already half up the ski racks. It appeared that those who had that Viking need to “slay the pow” were already out and at work. I was in no hurry, as it was pretty clear at the rate it was snowing; there was no need to hurry. I’d be burnt out soon enough anyways.

Magic is very generous on weekday powder days with regard to grooming. In general, they leave most of the mountain alone for the day, since most who cancel their day’s plans to be here are looking for the ungroomed. While they had made a pass along the green and select blue trails, by mid morning, it was clear the grooming had been lost between several inches of new fallen. One AZer had recommended midfats, but with the entire quiver in the car, it was a no brainer to pull the widest boards I had out.

Heading to the lift, the snow continued to fall steadily, at a rate of about two inches an hour, which continued until about 2PM. Do the math. That’s a lot of new snow. The snow did not look as heavy or moisture-laden as I feared. My acid make-a-snowball test failed, giving me certain relief. The snow moved under foot, although this was not blower-powder. On the ride up, everything looked delectable. A few tracks were here and there across trails, but nothing had yet been chopped. I selected Witch, a double-diamond trail for my warm-up run. Hell with the warm up, I was looking for the biggest gift under the tree first! And indeed it was. The pow was to my knees in most places as I smashed pillows left and right. These old bones run me at a slower pace than the folks half my age, but even at that, I began to experience something long since forgotten in the east: face shots. Down through black line. What was all over my face? Could it be true? Am I in a movie? Again, and again.

Could it get any better? It did. Every hour, more, and more snow came. Tracks were covered quickly and the snow built deeper. Talisman, Sorcerer, Twilight, Heart, again and again, with tons of places to make first tracks. As I stood trailside on Black Line to catch my breath, a guy pulls up to me and says “There’s more snow here than back home in Utah!” That’s great I thought to myself, I need the practice for my trip out west next month. By early afternoon, I was hitting snow that was thigh and waist deep consistently. On all the blacks there were pockets of snow that were chest-deep. When I hit them, the snow exploded above and around me. The warm 30 degree temps made the melting snow on my face not at all uncomfortable; though keeping the goggles clear was a constant challenge. My ski clothing was not up to the challenge – it was pretty soaked fairly early on. Even my gloves wrung out water, though the inside remained dry and toasty.

Stopping in the lodge for breaks, the mood was not at all like the uber-competitive tone I so often see on a rare east coast powder day. There was plenty of snow for everyone. Everyone was smiling and laughing, ready and willing to talk to a strange face; many new acquaintances were made that day and AZ was well-represented. Sledhaulingmechanic was brave enough to don a Patrol Jacket, though he did warn me “Don’t make work for patrol on a powder day”, making it clear he was enjoying himself as much as anyone.
I met a couple of refugees from Stratton who were turned away when cars couldn’t make it up the access road. I have the impression things were great at all the resorts.

While we grabbed some grub, the conversations were brief and nobody lingered long in the lodge. Families started to show up around noon, as school had been canceled in the region.

Back to the lift, another 2-3” of pow on the chair, just like every ride up. A nice “problem” to have. The run outs posed a problem, as Rivercoil suggested: you had to sustain a long single track or risk stalling. I was still getting used to my 96-under foot skis and lost it on one point on the run out, wandering off and getting sucked into about 3’ of pow on the side, making as nice Michael Phelps dive as the tips dove. Even 96’s had a hard time keeping tips up. 96’s were not feeling very fat on Wednesday. I shared Rivercoil’s sentiment on desiring greater width. But an old fart like me has limited strength, and indeed the wider the skis the heavier, while holding you higher, still require more strength.

Like river, I became bogged down in snow when I misjudged the pitch and stalled. It was one of those days when skiing double blacks was no cause for concern. If you fell, there was little worry about getting hurt. The biggest issue was how to get back up!
I decided to go a bit afield and explore the rest of the property, feeling like I might have been missing something. I took on some blue trails, which surprisingly seemed to be more effort than the black trails due to the lesser pitch. There were a few novices out; including one woman taking what appeared to be a lesson. What a great day to take a lesson and learn the pow – although I suppose the instructor might not have been too pleased that he couldn’t be free-skiing!

A mis-judged turn landed me on a green trail, which was a huge mistake. Steady at first, but soon the pitch was too shallow. Try as I may the tips just pointed down and stalled. It was a long 15 minutes on fixed heels to get myself back to something steeper. I oddly thought to myself, this needs to be groomed! OK, back on black.
Mid day power was lost for several minutes.

I was particularly pleased to see the aforementioned “avalanche” under the closed section of Red Line. The avalanche, about a two-foot deep break, was naturally caused, which made it noteworthy.
As the day went on, my legs began to turn to rubber. I didn’t want to quit, I was enjoying the day too much. The spirit was willing but the flesh was weak.

And for those who find powder a bit much - there IS GOOD NEWS in all of this. All of this snow is the basis for a substantial base at Magic. Once they get those greens and blues groomed, you WILL have an uber-good time. It will be an excellent opportunity for you to get out there and see just how good Magic can be for novices and intermediates - uncrowded, pleasant trails, accessible and inexpensive. There is snow for EVERYONE!

Huge props to Magic for opening on a closed day, quickly assembling a crew and even getting the kitchen operating. Matt was taking on all jobs, from marketing, reporting, web updates, filling in for lift ops, running the machinery – all those “little things” needed to keep a place running. It hummed all day. Staying ahead of the snow was nearly impossible.

I am going to hold off on using the word “epic” and use the word “orgasmic” to describe the day. It’s only because I’m defining “epic” to be a nearly once in a lifetime experience, nearly unrepeatable. I’d like to think days like yesterday are repeatable. It gives me something to look forward to. However, it does rank up there as one of my best ski days anywhere, at any point in my 32 years of skiing.

As the day ended and skiers stumbled inside, it was clear Magic had a lot of snow to deal with that night. I got out to the parking lot and a full-sized school bus, painted white and repurposed, had slid sideways in front of the lodge, blocking the road perpendicularly and wedged into snow banks on both sides of the road. In the can-do spirit that Magic has, Matt brought the tractor and yanked the fellow out. If you’ve never been to Magic you owe it to yourself and to all of us. We need to preserve this gem of a mountain.

I got to my car and found a new foot of snow on the car, and snow up to the doors. It was still snowing. The ride down route 11 was fun- there were some pretty moderate frost heaves, combined with 2-4” of loose snow made for a no-admissions amusement ride. As I got down to about elevation 500’ nearing I-91, the rain changeover began to. I-91 was generally wet to the south, with few cars. As I approached Boston on Rte 2, it got browner, wetter and uglier.

Northeast weather is fickle. As I fished around my trunk this morning for an umbrella, I found it remarkable and surreal to recall that yesterday I was standing in waist-deep snow. The rain is pouring sheets across the windows right now. It seems the best strategy in the northeast is to be opportunistic. Few can actually do that; I’m a little lucky that I have a window of life that permits this. As Matt said, “this one will go down in the collective memory.”

 

[WoodCore]

Awesome!!! Looking forward to harvesting some powder myself out in the Catskills tomorrow.

 

[riverc0il]

Excellent write up billski.

Reading that report makes me reflect back on yesterday and suddenly realize it was one of the few days in which every run just kept on getting better and better. Until that last run at least. :lol:

 

[roark]

Great write up Bill!

vvv I especially liked this vvv

I am going to hold off on using the word “epic” and use the word “orgasmic” to describe the day.

 

[billski]

Thank you Rivercoil and Roak. You guys were there, I can count on your peer review and know you'll call it as you see it. I tried to capture it accurately, so a compliment from two accomplished skiers who saw what I saw, is the highest of compliments!

And for those who find powder a bit much - there IS GOOD NEWS in all of this. All of this snow is the basis for a substantial base at Magic. Once they get those greens and blues groomed, you WILL have an uber-good time. It will be an excellent opportunity for you to get out there and see just how good Magic can be for novices and intermediates - uncrowded, pleasant trails, accessible and inexpensive. Go for it!
(Think I'll insert this in the TR body - gives a better balance.)