Colorado in April?

On Tuesday, February 11, 2014 1:56:36 PM UTC-6, pigo wrote:
On Tuesday, February 11, 2014 8:21:29 AM UTC-7, Walt wrote:



Despite the opinions of some here that black runs must remain ungroomed,

the Beav has its fair share of long groomed black runs. It's a good choice.



I don't remember seeing anyone say that "blacks" must remain ungroomed. I
think that the point is that once groomed they are no longer black. And
technically a run with 1 degree slope could be "black" if the rest of their
slopes were less than that. Black=most difficult as compared to the others.
Of course there are excecptions but groomed=Blue.


Wouldn't you say it's more likely that "can't be groomed" is a better correlation with "black" than "isn't groomed"? I usually equate "black" with "cannot even be navigated by a groomer without a winch or a helicopter to assist."

Granted, some hills like Heavenly will occasionally winch-cat Gunbarrel, their signature front slope that's so hairy that most folks ride the lift back down rather than attempt to ski down. And other hills, whether or not they CAN or DO groom their "blacks," will rate their trails based on difficulty -- and that's always been problematic for people who can ski easy blacks at one hill and then assume that lift-served terrain at another hill is of comparable difficulty.

For example, one would not want to assume that if they can ski some of the blacks at Sierra-at-Tahoe, they can hop on a different bus the next morning and ski any black at Squaw Valley. KT-22 isn't THAT difficult, but there sure is a lot of it compared to anything at Sierra-at-Tahoe.

I'm sure all of us can come up with our own examples of widely varying difficulties at nearby ski areas.

wrote:
On Tuesday, February 11, 2014 1:56:36 PM UTC-6, pigo wrote:
On Tuesday, February 11, 2014 8:21:29 AM UTC-7, Walt wrote:



Despite the opinions of some here that black runs must remain
ungroomed,

the Beav has its fair share of long groomed black runs. It's a
good choice.



I don't remember seeing anyone say that "blacks" must remain
ungroomed. I think that the point is that once groomed they are no
longer black. And technically a run with 1 degree slope could be
"black" if the rest of their slopes were less than that. Black=most
difficult as compared to the others. Of course there are excecptions
but groomed=Blue.


Wouldn't you say it's more likely that "can't be groomed" is a better
correlation with "black" than "isn't groomed"? I usually equate
"black" with "cannot even be navigated by a groomer without a winch
or a helicopter to assist."

I would not agree with that. Blacks may be slopes that usually are not groomed,
and therefore get more difficult. They may be groomed occasionally when
conditions get such they they are not being used or are too dangerous due to
groomable conditions such as ice. A steep enough slope that is groomed regularly
may also be a black. Certainly, a 50 degree groomed slope would not be a blue.

On 2/11/14 2:43 PM, Bob F wrote:
Certainly, a 50 degree groomed slope would not be a blue.

Is the time ripe to resurrect a degree versus percent slope steepness
measurement thread?

On Tuesday, February 11, 2014 1:22:06 PM UTC-7, wrote:

Just as with helmets and 99.9% of skiers. It's about their perceptions of themselves. To wear a helmet skiing gives them the impression that they are "good enough" to need one. To wear one skiing and not to the supermarket is a joke. Likewise to define yourself as anymore than low intermediate because you can ski blacks if they are groomed is just self aggrandizement.

That said; If someone wants to go out and ski a "groomed black" because it's the top of their skill level, it's a push for them, go for it. It may be difficult for "you", but in the scheme of things, it's really not a tough run.

On 2/11/14 3:43 PM, pigo wrote:
To wear a helmet skiing gives them the impression that they are "good enough" to need one.

I like the twits who wear a video camera - their every run is worth
recording for posterity. I'm seeing a lot of those silly cameras these days.

lal_truckee wrote:
On 2/11/14 2:43 PM, Bob F wrote:
Certainly, a 50 degree groomed slope would not be a blue.

Is the time ripe to resurrect a degree versus percent slope steepness
measurement thread?

No.

lal_truckee wrote:
On 2/11/14 3:43 PM, pigo wrote:
To wear a helmet skiing gives them the impression that they are
"good enough" to need one.

I like the twits who wear a video camera - their every run is worth
recording for posterity. I'm seeing a lot of those silly cameras
these days.

They are all over the place. If your buddy has one, you can get a great
opportunity to see yourself ski. I got an opportunity recently to watch myself
in slow motion and could easily see some of what I needed to improve. Don't
knock it. I've got some very good short videos that are useful if somone asks me
if I can ski or snowboard.