iPhone post

The plane has been gate waiting for 45 minutes! Argh. Layover long enough tho. Bye!

Here Goes - A Quick Video

Blue Bird Day #2!

5 AM. Yipp! Yipp! Ooooooo!

Coyotes out on the golf course. Confirmed later as one coyote hunted in the grass, repeatedly leaping into the air, and pouncing down on unsuspecting breakfast morsels. A ski instructor later confirmed that they were common, and that he had seen two wolves on the golf course earlier this year, plus one next to the spur road to Big Sky! Cool! Canine predators keeping the herbivores in check. I like it!

The Big Sky weather report was once again deceptive. Partly cloudy, showers, r, questionable skiing weather, at the very least. NOT. It was a clear blue sky that greeted us at the mountain, followed by more clear blue sky, and more.

Ann and I skied together all morning, and I broke out my best Warren Miller impression, capturing her snowboarding prowess in the magnificent scenery of Big Sky. For those of you in the know, I am constantly teased about how she NEVER appears in my videos. [NOT TRUE. SHE'S FEATURED IN 'MOONLIGHTING IN MONTANA', A VIDEO YOU CAN SEE ON YOUTUBE, but the myth persists]. Well, I captured lots of footage yesterday, trying to highlight her smooth snowboarding style with backdrops of Spanish Peaks and Lone Peak everywhere we went. The day was so gorgeous, I'm sure the video will be a splash hit, and Warren will be calling me up to sub any day from his Yellowstone Club hideout.

Sorry I have no pictures to go with this blog; it's all video. Perhaps I'll try to download a snippet for ya...but for now, try to imagine the splendor of Big Sky with a blue backdrop!

Introducing Wesley to Big Mountain Skiing...

It's always fun to show Big Sky to someone who hasn't been here before. Here's Wesley at the summit, raring to go. And another picture, where his father is introducing him to the pleasures of Apres-ski at Bambu Bar and Grill. Don't they look happy!!!

Thursday - odd forecast, bluebird day!

The forecast for today kept changing all the past week. Sunny. Then snowy. Then snowy/r'y. Then mixed. We didn't know what to expect, but this morning, they predicted 45 and fair, so I donned less clothing - took the liner out of my coat, donned my new Summit Series ski pants (30% off courtesy of Gallatin Alpine Sports), and we all headed to the mountain at a reasonable hour. The mountain indeed looked brilliant as we headed up. Tip for the wise - they sell tickets inside the ticket building sometimes anyway - this morning it saved me 10 minutes - go to guest services! Being spring break week, it was busy outside, but I was out in moments, and on swifty heading toward the tram. I was determined to make it a tram day if the weather was good. Skiing so much this week, I didn't mind waiting in line. My first trip, though, I only waited 3 trams and was whooshed up the mountain. I skied Lenin, and it was nice, so after a few fine turns on windpacked powder, I curved right into one of the dictator chutes. I had never done this before, but it was great - nice and steep. Came to the bottom of that to face another choice - curve back to Lenin or head over a precipice and past a caution sign with promising looking powder field below. I swallowed deep (because I was skiing by myself) and went over the precipice. It was very steep, but the snow was good and I saw only one or 2 rocks. The powder field below was a little 'set up', but quite skiable as there were few tracks. I was grinning ear to ear.

After a few more morning runs, I met the crew for lunch and recruited Wesley for a tram ride..which turned into 3, when he enjoyed the first one so much, despite the 30 minute wait. A rapid descent of Marx soon gave me to know that he was ready for the big boy stuff. And he was game, so we waited in line again (shorter this time), and did Lenin, which was in great shape - even smoother than Marx, and steeper of course. I pulled out my iphone clinometer to discover that it was 41 degrees about half way down - well past the steepest part! We were psyched to do another tram run - the line this time was 30 minutes again, but it was worth it. I had been watching people ski the 1st gully all day, and decided it would be memorable for Wesley, so that was our next triumph. We skied between the two large rock outcrops at the top (2nd gully?) then slipped over to first below, going all the way into the bowl. I traversed over to steeps I had done before on the far left side, and snagged some more good turns there, but the turkey traverse was a bit rough this time. Tired out by now, it was time for some fast groomers to end a memorable 4-tram day. Mr. K nonstop, 2 Elk Park Ridges nonstop, and Silver Knife ended my day on a high note - all the groomers are in great shape now, thanks to the snow on Tuesday.

It's been a fine week of skiing so far. Bambu Bar and Grill for apres ski was nice (tho no music til Saturday), and Jim's Burritos for dinner tonight. I'll add pics in a bit.

Another Different Photo

On assignment in Big Sky. If you click on this photo and look at the wood grain in the hut at the bottom of Challenger, you suddenly realize it's a very beautiful log structure. Festooned with snow, surrounded by mountain scenery, the effect is a snippet of what you see every time you ski this lift. Hope you like this photo.

Andiamo's

Big Sky was known for a long time as a great place to ski, with nice lodging options, but very little in the way of restaurant options and nightlife. Still not too sure about the latter, but we're increasingly impressed with the restaurant options. Lotus Pad was a great addition, one which we try to visit at least once per Big Sky trip. Tonight, Ann and I enjoyed Andiamo's, a new Italian restaurant up at the mountain. Ann had a nice home made ravioli and I had a chicken pasta dish, both very good. Accompanied by nice wine, a spinach salad, and asparagus, the unusual and elegant atmosphere of the place made for a memorable evening. Ann and I brainstormed about how to talk about the main challenges of HSTA, articulating them in 2 sentences, for the press. That was fun! Here's a shot of the inside of the restaurant.

One more Shumway try...

Shumways

The Shumways await their turns at Big Sky

Happy Saint Patty's Day

Kevin wanted me to try an artsy photo today, so here is one I think captures some interesting contrasts, between the swooping steel lines of the chair cable on Challenger, with the sideways swooping lines of skiers on the sunlit slopes below. Let me know what you think.

I had nary a bit of green to wear today, but with the early morning weather report from Big Sky, I was wearing a smile, and I know a couple people were green with envy! For it had snowed '6 - 8 inches' overnight. I knew this likely meant more, at least up high. And sure enough, it was more like 8 - 12, with places flowing over the knees. The snow was unusual - it was soft, relatively light, but also dense (is that possible?) such that you bounced in it very easily. Slight up and down motions translated into gyrations like you were on one of those huge Pilates balls! Except you were careening down 30 - 40 degree pitches, spraying snow, and grinning ear to ear. After each of about 4 of these runs in the morning, I found myself just giggling uncontrollably! For those in the Big Sky know, I was the first down the part of the bowl under the chair. Silly locals were waiting in the tram line (which didn't take anyone for over an hour according to one). Second run was 'Never Sweat', a secret trail we always love doing - surprisingly 3 skiers beat me to it, leaving only a few acres to myself. I decided to head for Challenger, skiing BRTs (deep fluff, as always, with untracked below), Moonlight to Bad Dog (heaps of soft snow), and Country Club to Mr. K. Finally, I danced Blue Room before an early lunch.

Wesley and I spent the afternoon exploring more runs in the bowl, challenger, and then several glade runs off Andesite, managing to find powder to the end. Things were beginning to set up out in the open toward the end of the day.

I'm looking to the next few days of weather with a bit of trepidation. Not sure what we're in store for. I only hope it is good, because Ann arrives tonight, and I know she's in need of a vacation.

Blue Moon pizza tonight. I may have to buy new ski pants at last - mine have started splitting at the crotch. Of course, I could duct tape them! Cheers to all.

Day 1 - expecting snow

The weather forecast. Skiers minds respond to it with hope or despair. It is so hard to maintain an objective sensibility when the forecast is a projection of ski conditions. So when I read it would snow 4 - 7" during the day today, but encountered sunlit slopes on the drive up to the mountain, I wondered, when would it arrive? All day, i wondered that, as the snow did not arrive, and still it did not arrive. After we stopped skiing just after 3:30, the flakes began to fall. And the falling accelerated, but then let up, but then accelerated to a deluge, then stopped. Nature was teasing us. So we went home, fixed a spaghetti dinner and waited for the weather to give further indications of its intentions. Three times I have checked the weather forecast. Still predicting snow tonight, and more tomorrow. But the radar picture looks dubious. In the end, we'll just have to wait. Summon patience. Try to re-train our brains to mountain time, staying up to normal bedtimes despite fatigue. Write entries to the Winter Blog, trying to stay awake. Yawn.....

Spring Break, 2009

OK OK, I know. I was just here 10 days ago. But where can I get free lodging, free tickets (already paid for), and some of the best skiing in the country? There's only one place! So yes, friends and family, I am back in Big Sky. The only blemish on the trip was when the grocery store rejected my credit card. Seems some miscreant was trying to pass themselves off as me in NYC at a restaurant to the tune of $270 some dollars! That card is cancelled and I'm living off cash.

But there's 6 - 12" in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow, so I'm happy as a clam. Jamie and Wesley just arrived and are unpacking upstairs. They've already been up to the mountain to purchase tix. And it's clouding over quickly....stay tuned.

Work trip

Of course, this trip to Big Sky was entirely a work trip. Day in and day out, we endeavored to repair, rebuild, upgrade, enhance, and otherwise further transmogrify Big Sky Dream into the renter's paradise it already is. So here are some photos to show how hard we were working, aimed specifically at the wonderful wives we left at home.