The Wasatch

For people living or skiing at Whistler or Vail/Aspen, there is a distinct us versus them rivalry but if you are a real skier, you go to Utah. Last year while living in Aspen, I needed to get away, I needed a ski vacation. My roommate and I skipped off work early one day, piled into my small hatchback with four pairs of skis covering the entire roof and drove to Salt Lake City. The home of Joseph Smith and his Mormon clan also hosts gnarly mountains and as it says on Utah license plates, "The greatest snow on earth." The plates don't lie. One day we got 13 inches and it was no big deal for the residents. In fact the mountain was practically empty because many of the residents were in Church.

The resorts of Snowbird and Alta are six and eight miles respectively away from Salt Lake City. Certainly much different than two hours spent on the Sea to Sky Highway going to Whistler. So after sleeping in and enjoying a relaxing breakfast in the city, we hopped in the car for a 20-minute jaunt up the winding roads of Little Cottonwood Canyon.
One mother from Massachusetts explained that her family members were real skiers. They don't bother going anywhere else for ski vacations. Compared to the rolling hills that are called rockies in Colorado, Little Cottonwood Canyon is endless jagged peaks. Compared to the heavy snow of Whistler, their snow is fluffy enough to blow up in the air and it won't land for hours.
For skiing, Utah is the place to go. What Snowbird and Alta lack is everything else. One big hotel, no bars and really nothing else to do. But with that terrain and snow, everyone who is serious about skiing needs to check out Utah.

Them vs. us

You may have noticed that most of my skiing-related subjects are directly connected to either Whistler or mountains in Colorado. That is because on the North American ski scene there is 'us' and 'them' fighting for ski resort supremacy. When ski magazines such as Powder pick their top choices for resorts each year, it is almost gauranteed that Whistler, one or two of the Vail-owned mountains and one or two of the Aspen-owned mountains will all be in the top 10. For people that live in Whistler, such as Pique newsmagazine's G.D. Maxwell, going to ski in Colorado meant getting over his Coloradophobia. For those who have spent their whole lives in one of the resorts, the hatred runs deep and the stereotypes are plentiful although a number of them are true.
Said by a Whistlerite: "They may have higher mountains, but the terrain isn't challenging, they hardly get any snow and Aspen is everything we don't want to become."
Said by a Coloradan: "They may get way more snow, but its the wet, heavy, rain-like stuff and the lifts are always crowded.
As someone who has held seasons passes to all these mountains and as someone who had to get over his own Whistlerphobia when moving here, I'm going to give you the brief run down of the differences. Vail owns five resorts in Colorado and Aspen owns four. In both cases the mountains are close to each other and one pass gets you access to all of the mountains with either of the companies. Whistler has one mountain, but has way more terrain between the two peaks that you can never get bored. Whistler gets way more snow, but Colorado gets the soft fluffy stuff that is superior for skiing.
Maxwell finally concedes in his article to saying that Colorado isn't an avoid-at-any-costs kind of place. He even goes on to say that they're not the kind of places they are made out to be around towns like Whistler. While people in both towns will poke fun at the other, Maxwell and pretty much every skier I've ever met realizes at the end of the day that skiing is skiing and the more place you can ski the better.
These places may fight for tourists and skiing supremacy, but next time I'll tell you about the place that really should be the 'them' for everyone who lives in every ski resort around the world.

Resort goes green to save the white

It has been told to me a number of times that the only thing that would keep Colorado drivers from purchasing SUV's was if the ski season was visibly cut short. It is hard not to notice the sheer number of SUV's when driving up the I-70 corridor which connects Denver to Vail and numerous other ski resorts. It is a three and then two-lane divided highway covered with gas guzzlers that apparently thought they were an Indy car in a past life. The number of cars is limited on highway 99, but that still doesn't mean that a good percentage aren't SUV's. I sometimes feel that my little warrior of a VW Golf called the Green Bean is going to be eaten alive. But over the past few years, I have felt more secure on the roads. People are realizing that they don't need a million cubic feet of space for a family of four to enjoy a day of skiing. You can call me a hypocrit because I still drive to the mountains every weekend, but I honestly feel that I'm doing my part. If only everyone drove a more fuel efficient car, the CO2 that would stay out of the atmosphere would be amazing. Luckily, it looks like things are going that way.
Skiers and their driving habits are not the only ones that will feel the effects of global warming. The ones who have the most to lose economically are the ski resorts. Just ask one of the thousands of workers who were told they didn't have a job at the beginning of this season on the East Coast of Canada or the U.S.
I can't speak for every resort, but I will tell you what my former employer is doing to lead the industry. Aspen Skiing Company (ASC) employees have the option of donating two dollars from every pay cheque to an environmental cause. This is something that almost every employee takes part in. Vending machines have sensors so when they are not used for a bit of time such as at night they automatically turn off saving electricity. But the biggest effort is the Cirque, a lift that was built without using any emissions and runs off of 100% wind power.
ASC is also the first resort company to vow to reduce it's CO2 emissions annually in compliance with the Chicago Climate Exchange and this past fall launched it's 'Save Snow Campaign' designed to spur debate and encourage people to act. Guests can also purchase SkiGreen tags making their day on the hill CO2 neutral. The proceeds support new local renewable energy projects. All of this makes ASC a leader in the ski industry. They are keeping the world green and the mountains white.

The end of skiing

My Grandfather loved to ski. When my mom was little he purchased a chalet in Collingwood near the biggest moutain range in Ontario to increase his ski days. I love to ski and have had the fortune to ski at some of the best places in the world, but a new report suggests that my great grandchildren won't be sharing this joy. A new report released last month in Park City, Utah is projecting the temperature to rise between six and 15 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century. While a number of residents packed an auditorium and bit their nails waiting to hear the results, I think everyone knew what was going to be said. We may not be skiing in 2100. The evidence is all around us. World Cup races were canceled earlier this year in Val d'Isere, France and St. Moritz, Switzerland due to a lack of snow. Closer to home, there was barely any skiing to be done over Christmas vacation in the Eastern parts of Canada and the U.S. Even if we change all of our habits, there is still a lag that will eventually hit us.
In response to a comment made a few weeks ago about Saudi Prince Al-Waleed purchasing the chain of Fairmont Hotels including Chateau Whistler, I would agree that he has competing interests. The more oil he sells, the more global warming therefore shorter ski seasons. People are already saying that in a few decades it will only extend from Christmas to President's Day in the middle of February. To give a comparison, I have skied from October until June in Colorado before.
What would make good economic sense for the Prince would be to invest in ways to extend the ski season.
What would make sense for all skiers would be to do somethings that reduce greenhouse emitions. The problem I have found is that skiers won't start to care until the snow stops falling. Whistler has been having one of the greatest seasons ever so why should we do anything now? It is only time before it catches up to us. The report shows that the rockies are warming up at twice the rate as low lying areas. This all may look bleak, but next week I will bring you what skiers are saying and what resorts and skiers are doing to ensure my great grandchildren will be enjoying the white fluffy stuff just like I do.

The snow decides the equipment

When I wake up in the morning on a ski day, I get dressed and then spend some time looking in my toy chest trying to decide what kind of day it is going to be. I have set-ups for all three disciplines (alpine skiing, telemarking and snowboarding) and therefore some choices to make. What ultimately makes the decision for me is the snow conditions. When the snow is falling or the powder is deep the only boards i consider riding are the tele skis. Its hard to explain, but the feeling of slicing through deep powder on what is essentially one long ski with two edges is definitely the best thing in skiing.
But not everyday includes face shots courtesy of the fluffy white snow. For those days when the mountain hasn't received snow for a few days and all the fresh powder is gone, its good to switch it up a bit. When you can get up early and hit the fresh corduroy/machine groomed snow (the time right after the hill has been groomed), its nice to have alpine skis on, especially carving skis that will allow you to rip. If the crowds are down, a good day of going really fast on less steep terrain is often in order. It reminds me again what it means to let the skis go with no fear. While I can't reach speeds near what athletes on the World Cup reach, it feels great to go fast. The other great aspect of alpine skis is their versatility in the terrain park and superpipe. Having your heels locked down gives you more balance when landing in the pipe or landing switch (backwards) that just can't be done on teles, although some of the best tele skiers are attempting such feats. These days often contain lots of sunshine and early apres beers.
For the days when there will be little snow, not much corduroy, little visibility for the park and varied snow conditions, I grab the snowboard. Those warm days when the snow resembles the slush we often find in Vancouver also call for the snowboard. It is similar to wakeboarding and the single edge can really carve through the slush. Granted I am still not at the level on my snowboard to truly enjoy the park or the deep powder, hopefully i will be one day.
But for now it is tele in powder, alpine on groomers and in the park and snowboard all other times.

Becoming a triple threat

The term triple treat can be used to define a lot of things. But, I'm going to use it to define the creme de la creme of snowriders - the men and women that have mastered all terrains on alpine skis, telemark skis and a snowboard. Lots of people are good at one of the disciplines, but not many can do all three really well. One person who I got some tele tips from is Terry "T-Bone" Bannon of the Aspen ski school. He teaches all three, but said he prefers teaching teleing. He said it increases his teaching opportunities and allows him to mix it up once in a while. As with a number of people who live in a mountain town, if you have the chance to learn something new, you mind as well do it. He is not alone. Mountainzone.com profiles a triple theat instructor in Washington. Snowriders tend to be adventurous. We see someone do something cool and we want in. I saw some friends tele for a couple years before I finally learned and after not snowboarding for nine years, I finally got back on one and took a lesson last year. While my snowboarding leaves a lot to be desired, I am on the brink of calling myself a triple threat.
The lure of having that arsenal of equipment is too much. Every morning you get to chose your weapon and rip. Each is different and amazingly fun while providing pros and cons based on the snow conditions and personal preferences. Each day is a different challenge when you have no shortage of toys in the toy chest. The hardest decision when you have so many options is choosing. Next week I will detail my snow choices for each discipline.