Quality vs. Quantity

[Vortex]

I would not pay for a bad day of skiing, but if my pass is paid for I'll go out on a rainy Day. Ya I like groomers, So I do meet a profile you mentioned Steve. No issue. Made me think though.

 

[riverc0il]

Very simple. I don't believe you need quantity for quality; rather quality is often a result of quantity. I've had some days of simply fantastic skiing, for whatever reason, and not necessarily due to epic surface conditions. It might be a result of the company I'm with, a great bump line, or simply just being out on a bluebird day. Austin - you're too young to be caught up with quality only. Life is too short for that.

nah, see, we are talking different languages like i said. company, great bump lines, and bluebird days ARE aspects of quality. quality is never the result of quantity but rather the result of well chosen days when the quality is there. if you go often enough, you eventually get quality every once in a while. but that is irrelevent, that was not the question. the question was which is more important, not which begets the other (and i would argue that chasing after quality eventually DOES lead to quantity if your pursue enough).

take this season for instance. i only have 15 or so days so far, but it has been an AWESOME season. rules and it still continues to rule. how many people who have lots of quantity agree that this has been a great season? most people think this season sucked (or sucks if they are still skiing) or at the least that it wasn't that great. my powder day ratio though is better than one third my total days, and on top of that, i had several awesome quality days skiing with other folks or when things went really well.

let us not draw the line in the sand that quality is knee deep powder untracked only. quality is whatever makes the day a 10 for you, or at least close to it. i would trade all my 1's and 2's type days for a single one easily.

 

[Greg]

nah, see, we are talking different languages like i said. company, great bump lines, and bluebird days ARE aspects of quality. quality is never the result of quantity but rather the result of well chosen days when the quality is there. if you go often enough, you eventually get quality every once in a while. but that is irrelevent, that was not the question. the question was which is more important, not which begets the other (and i would argue that chasing after quality eventually DOES lead to quantity if your pursue enough).

take this season for instance. i only have 15 or so days so far, but it has been an AWESOME season. rules and it still continues to rule. how many people who have lots of quantity agree that this has been a great season? most people think this season sucked (or sucks if they are still skiing) or at the least that it wasn't that great. my powder day ratio though is better than one third my total days, and on top of that, i had several awesome quality days skiing with other folks or when things went really well.

let us not draw the line in the sand that quality is knee deep powder untracked only. quality is whatever makes the day a 10 for you, or at least close to it. i would trade all my 1's and 2's type days for a single one easily.

¿Dónde está el baño?

 

[JimG.]

I usually stay out of these discussions about quality and quantity; my solution is simple:

As a season passholder, my goal is to ski at my home mountain as much as possible. In this equation, quantity is the main goal. As a corollary, there will be several quality days gotten just because of sheer number of days skied unless we're talking about this season.

As a day ticket skier, I want to plan my trips based on quality, not quantity. If I go the extra mile to ski somewhere, I'm looking for a quality condition payoff or I might as well stay home.

It's easy to emphasize quality over quantity when you live out west or even northern VT. This season in the NE has been a model for that statement...unless you live in the northern Greens, there hasn't been too much to write home about in terms of quality.

So, I fall back on my quantity. I'm gonna ski even if the weather or conditions suck because I have a season's pass. However, I'm not going to drive an extra few hours to get that quantity.

You will never see this skier staying home and not skiing because conditions aren't just right.

 

[JD]

Because you bought the pass and feel somewhat obligated to get x number of days, even if conditions suck, as they did most of this year?

 

[njdrumrun]

i vote quality but for differenrt reasons than most of you

Quality-->staying off the ground vs. Quantity---> hitting the ground too many times!!

 

[JimG.]

Because you bought the pass and feel somewhat obligated to get x number of days, even if conditions suck, as they did most of this year?

I don't think so...I don't feel obligated to ski because I have the pass. I buy the pass because Hunter is the best ski area close to my home (an hour and 15 away) and I know I want to ski at least 50 days a season no matter what. The pass facilitates that, and the closeness of the hill makes it easy to go skiing even if the weather sucks.

Simply put, I'm not going to sit home when the weather sucks, but I'm not going to pay extra to ski in it. The pass kind of makes it easier to just go and ski.

Of course JD, I'd rather join you for dawn patrol. But I don't live near Mansfield, or Jay or Smuggs. It's not that I wouldn't like to, but my current job/family circumstances make it unlikely right now. So I make due with what I've got. If I had waited for quality snow conditions before skiing in my neck of the woods, I wouldn't have too many days in.

I hope that makes some kind of sense.

 

[Vortex]

Jim i'm just going to let you post for me for a while. What he said.:beer:

 

[awf170]

my powder day ratio though is better than one third my total days,

Hah, in your face I'm at almost 50% percent... 7 for 15.:lol:
Actually does lynn woods count? If it does then I'm 9 for 17 which puts me over 50%.

 

[JD]

Totally makes sense.

 

[dmc]

Simply put, I'm not going to sit home when the weather sucks, but I'm not going to pay extra to ski in it.
I hope that makes some kind of sense.

Makes sense to a guy that always runs into you on the hill on a crappy day... me..

 

[JimG.]

Makes sense to a guy that always runs into you on the hill on a crappy day... me..

This is true...and don't forget Karl who seems to enjoy skiing in rain.

 

[Greg]

Lots of Quality vs. Quantity references lately so I figured it is fitting the bump this thread.

 

[JD]

Quality, for sure.

 

[JimG.]

I do only both.

 

[scharny]

It depends on how early or how late the turns are.

Mid-season I would consider a day spent plowing through breakable crust in the BC or blue ice under the lifts to be a waste of time that could be much better spent.

Way early or way late season is another matter entirely. Last Tues AM I skied combat refrozen corn-crud on Chinclip at Stowe while watching a spectacular sunrise and loved every minute of it. It was also day 10 for me for the season so far, so that made it an added bonus as well.

A few years ago a buddy of mine & I skied the top 1/2 of Teardrop after a surprise dump in early May and, even tho we scratched our bases and had to walk in and out a LONG ways to get to the turns, once again, I was totally psyched to have done it.

All of that said, I think the statement "there is no bad skiing" was probably invented as a way to market lift-serve on the East Coast.

 

[JD]

No day in the BC is better spent any other way. The descent is only a small part of the overall experience.

 

[Jay's Dip Powcher]

No day in the BC is better spent any other way. The descent is only a small part of the overall experience.

true

 

[mattchuck2]

This seems like a ridiculous thread . . . nobody would be arguing for quality if they only got 2 days a year and everyone else was skiing 60-70 days a year.

I'd rather have 100 decent days over 1 epic day . . . because within those 100 days, there are bound to be some very near epic days.

 

[riverc0il]

This seems like a ridiculous thread . . . nobody would be arguing for quality if they only got 2 days a year and everyone else was skiing 60-70 days a year.

I'd rather have 100 decent days over 1 epic day . . . because within those 100 days, there are bound to be some very near epic days.

i don't think any one is arguing for absolutism here, of course there is a balance to be had between quantity and quality. that really isn't the perspective that even the most hard core backcountry only folks on this board are taken. i would not sacrifice an entire season for a single epic day most people dream of... but i would be VERY happy with spending one day earning one run compared to 30 lift serviced. and if i was lift serviced, i would be very happy having 5-10 awesome runs compared to lapping a HSQ 30-40 times in one day. and i would definitely sacrifice a few days at not that good areas to save up a bit for the higher quality areas. there is a balance to be struck, everyone has their own preferences and tolerances, but "quality" is a broad word that can describe an amazing amount of days.