Saturday v. Sunday

[highpeaksdrifter]

I ski some week nights, 2 weeks of ski vacations, holidays and a few hooky days from work, but the vast majority of my ski days are Saturday and Sunday at Whiteface.

Saturday

Whiteface never really gets too crowded non holiday weekends compared to other Northeast ski areas, but there are more people skiing and riding Saturday then there are on Sunday (snow conditions being relatively equal.)

There’s also a kinda energy Saturday morning, everyone is jazzed to be there and get going.

Even though I’m excited to get started I don’t feel rushed cause I know I have the whole weekend ahead of me.

I also like knowing I’ll have a few drinks and dinner later with family and/or friends.

Sunday

There are less people there and the vibe is more laid back then Saturday.

There seem to be more people arriving later.

After lunch the place clears out, I guess cause those who traveled far for the weekend want to get a head start getting home.

Around 3:30 I know we have to start getting ready to leave for the soulless suburban wasteland we call home.

So IMO Sunday is usually the better skiing experience, because there is less people, but I like Saturdays better. As I’m typing this I realize the main reason I like Saturday is cause I know I’ll have Sunday too; weird.

What do you other weekend warriors think?

 

[campgottagopee]

I work Satuday's so I'm all about Sunday/Funday!!!! However, my fav ski day is Tuesday---it's just me and 6 old retired guys who have the place to ourselves---i really get into my solo Tuesdays.

 

[Dr Skimeister]

I work Satuday's so I'm all about Sunday/Funday!!!! However, my fav ski day is Tuesday---it's just me and 6 old retired guys who have the place to ourselves---i really get into my solo Tuesdays.

Identical situation here-I usually work Saturday morning and have off every Tuesday. I arrange my schedule to have one full weekend off in January/February/March and drive north to either VT or ADK for a full weekend. On those weekends, I mirror HPD's take-I enjoy the *psych* of Saturday morning and knowing that typically a fun Saturday night lies ahead, but the skiing is usually much better on Sunday due to more sparse crowds and having had Saturday as a "warm-up" day.

 

[skiadikt]

sunday usually the better ski day. more laid back. less, late arriving and early leaving crowd. snow stays better longer. unfortunately sunday's we usually leave the mtn by 2-2:30. so yeah saturday's we leave it on the hill. high adrenaline day. nice meal w/ some alcohol consumed.

 

[deadheadskier]

Outside of a few weekends a season, I typically ski one day per weekend. The other is spent with my non-skiing SO. That's not her mandate, it's my choice. I anticipate skiing both days more often this winter with a pass to Ragged, which is only 1.5 hours away. That's close enough that I can get in 2-3 hours of skiing on a Saturday morning, make it home for lunch and have the rest of the day to spend with J who typically sleeps in until 11 anyways on Saturday mornings.

I usually shoot for Sundays as they tend to be less crowded, but not always. Determining factors of which day I'll ski are in the following order.

1. Which day looks to have the better weather / snow.

2. Previous evenings plans.

3. Cost - it's more likely that Sunday will have a deal going on somewhere.

 

[Glenn]

We usually ski Sunday. We were at Mt. Snow a few times on a Saturday and it seemed generally busier. But that was just a few random Saturdays.

 

[mattchuck2]

The better day is the day that has the better snow conditions.

I always ski both weekend days, and you're right about everybody clearing out by Sunday afternoon. Unfortunately, the mountain is not generally in the best shape by that time either (skied off and icy in spots, dark and cold in mid winter, few remaining skiers, but a lot of people skiing above their ability levels) (brash generalizations, I'm aware).

However, if it's a sweet spring weekend, or we got a nice storm on Friday/Saturday morning (or even a day with 3 to 4 inches), Sunday is usually a pretty good bet for the combination of less people/still good skiing. . .

But still, nothing beats a nice midweek powder day.

 

[mattchuck2]

Also, while Clifton Park may be a Suburban wasteland, it's not a bad place to live . . . Five Guys/Shane's/Moe's in the same mini mall is EPIC. ;-)

 

[Johnskiismore]

I work Saturdays so Sunday is it for me on the weekend! Monday and Tuesday off too which is great.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Around 3:30 I know we have to start getting ready to leave for the soulless suburban wasteland we call home.

I thought you lived near Whiteface..

Anyway for me at Blue mountain Saturday and Sunday mornings are pretty identical..small crowds until 9AM..moderate crowds until 10AM..followed by a shitstorm. Early season, late season and rainy/poor weather days are pretty uncrowded..and I rarely ski into the afternoon unless it's a social day...3 hours of laps at Blue the true is plenty..especially when I'm there everyday.

Up north on a weekend trip Saturdays are way better because after skiing I don't have to drive home...I rarely ski past 130PM-2PM on a Sunday up north because I like to do alot of my drive in daylight and still have a few hours of the weekend left when I get back..taking off Monday at work makes things better..

At destination resorts..Saturdays are often a travel day so the slopes aren't crazy crowded..

 

[Riverskier]

Sunday- Less crowds and I am usually wiped from working all week and like to sleep in on Saturdays. Skiing both days would be ideal, but like DHS I have a non-skiing SO who I choose to spend the other weekend day with.

 

[highpeaksdrifter]

I thought you lived near Whiteface..
..

I have a house by WF, but it’s not my primary residence yet. Our primary residence is 2 hours south.

 

[riverc0il]

Sunday is indeed less crowded. But unless it snows Saturday sometime into Sunday morning, Saturday will usually have the better conditions as Sunday you get to ski what everyone skied up yesterday. This is more particular to natural snow trails. Saturday is the day that ski areas get hammered the most and natural snow trails take the worst beating. So unless there is new snow or a weather event to suggest otherwise, Saturday is the better day for natural snow conditions one almost any given weekend.

I tend to ski one or the other unless conditions are really good. Saturday tends to be my preference. I worked all week and I am ready to go play. I don't want to spend Saturday thinking that I could be skiing. Whereas Sunday, I can rest easily knowing I hit it hard Saturday and conditions won't be as good the next day. If it is a powder weekend, I'll be up both days. I like getting to the area for first chair regardless. I love how I have already skied half my runs by the time most skiers take their first run (especially on a powder day).

 

[snowmonster]

I prefer Saturday because, as a day-tripper, you need Sunday to rest from the drive.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

reminds me of the Ludacris song Saturdays..

 

[billski]

It always amazes me that people miss a perfectly good afternoon of skiing on Sunday. You've traveled all that way and you're blowing off great skiing. Hmmm.
I've had a lot of great Sunday afternoons. I'm getting to old to worry about competing for the best snow by racing for the first chair any more. I used to do that drill and enjoyed myself for about the first couple of hours. As I've gotten slower (and testosterone levels have reduced), I take things easier and don't stress about getting out first. It just makes the day a lot more relaxing. I also have invested a lot of time exploring what mountains have to offer and most often seek out the least popular routes. I have many reasons for skiing and not all of them involve pristine, steep, great trails. I've even been known to ski greens and do slack country when the resort is overloaded and Plan B calls for a Plan C. I remain pretty flexible in terms of where I'm destined to. I often don't even make up my mind on what resort I'm going to until about 5AM, which is largely based on snow conditions and expected popularity. Even on Sunday afternoons, I can usually find fun, non-crappy things to ski at Stowe, Bush, MRG, Bolton.

 

[BackLoafRiver]

I try and hit up both days. My pass is blacked out on several Saturdays so I try and hit up a smaller mountain to get smaller crowds and better conditions, then to either the Loaf or Sunday River on Sundays. There is a lot of truth that the conditions on Sunday afternoons can be gross depending on the time of year. I remember early on this season when some of my favorite stuff at SR was quite nasty (and for me, uber dangerous) as there had been no new snow and it had packed down to ice.

By about 2:30 on Sunday, my legs feel like jelly anyway. (since I usually am up for first chair)

 

[Geoff]

I've never been a day tripper so I can't relate to only skiing one day on a weekend. When I'm in weekend warrior mode, I rarely miss many days when I'm not working and the lifts are spinning. My lifetime average is probably around 50 days per year. You don't get to that kind of number by agonizing over whether to ski Saturday against a Sunday or trying to appease the non-skier part of your flatland life for those 6 months. Everybody in my life accepts this since it's a fundamantal part of my identity.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

It always amazes me that people miss a perfectly good afternoon of skiing on Sunday. You've traveled all that way and you're blowing off great skiing. Hmmm.
I've had a lot of great Sunday afternoons. I'm getting to old to worry about competing for the best snow by racing for the first chair any more. I used to do that drill and enjoyed myself for about the first couple of hours. As I've gotten slower (and testosterone levels have reduced), I take things easier and don't stress about getting out first. It just makes the day a lot more relaxing. I also have invested a lot of time exploring what mountains have to offer and most often seek out the least popular routes. I have many reasons for skiing and not all of them involve pristine, steep, great trails. I've even been known to ski greens and do slack country when the resort is overloaded and Plan B calls for a Plan C. I remain pretty flexible in terms of where I'm destined to. I often don't even make up my mind on what resort I'm going to until about 5AM, which is largely based on snow conditions and expected popularity. Even on Sunday afternoons, I can usually find fun, non-crappy things to ski at Stowe, Bush, MRG, Bolton.

I love the frantic nature of trying to get to the freshies before the masses..if I wanted a relaxing hobby, I'd knit. I'm totally a morning person..after 2PM I'm pretty much worthless at work or skiing..except when I go night skiing..If I ski Stowe until 1PM on a Sunday..I get home at 830PM or so..If I would stay until 4PM..then I don't get home until almost midnight so leaving early on a Sunday when I'm up in the North Country makes a huge difference...here in PA..after noon on weekends can be utter crap..solid ice and piles of sugar..

 

[drjeff]

Also, while Clifton Park may be a Suburban wasteland, it's not a bad place to live . . . Five Guys/Shane's/Moe's in the same mini mall is EPIC. ;-)

Just watch out in the CP area this weekend, there's a bunch of folks that graduated from that "puny" school district 20 years ago that are reappearring and pretending that we were actually cool back in the day I just hope that some of my classmates have long since lost the parachute pants and mullets! :lol: