Was going to post this yesterday but I was too tired to write anything when I got home... took my first ski trip of the year to Whitetail on Tuesday. Granted this was before the rain we got today but I'd say it was an outstanding first outing of the year! The snow conditions were marginal along the edges of Limelight but after a couple rock chunks on the sides of the trail I got the hint and moved to the center-- which didn't matter, because there MIGHT have been 500 people TOTAL at the ski area yesterday. A bluebird day and Whitetail deserted... what is there to complain about???

Angel Drop had really good coverage and it is quite the sight to stop halfway down that run and see one skier about 200 yards ahead of you and no one at all behind you. That trail normally is more crowded than the Beltway on Saturdays. The Stalker run (the slow quad) had the best snow the whole day thanks to its northern-ish exposure; but this time of year the sun is low enough to really only bake the slopes for a few hours. It did a little damage to Limelight but I think Angel Drop and the Terrain Park fared pretty well.

Didn't get much sense of how much snow had been laid down on the "expert" side of Whitetail, but the Ridge Runner trail looked decently covered. If the temps stay cold over the next three days, they might get enough snow on Exhibition and Drop In to get that side open; on the other hand they claimed to have been making snow on Fanciful too and it was hard to see any proof of that.

What else? There were deer grazing in the tall grass on Fancifull at four p.m., while across the road a farmer was shooting his shotgun and down in the parking lot a car alarm went off. That's the fringe suburbs of DC in a nutshell! There was about six inches of snow on the ground overall so there was a nice wintry feel to the day despite the 45 degree temps. I knocked off 39 runs in six hours and had to stop because I was exhausted; probably could have done another 4-5 runs if it was later in the season (this mentioned to show how empty the place was-- and they were running the summit lift slow)!

The only complaint I have is the damn prices at the Whitetail cafeteria. At the end of the ski day I always like a cup of coffee. I bought a small coffee at the Whitetail cafeteria for TWO DOLLARS AND ELEVEN CENTS. The overpriced Starbucks small coffee is 1.47. The small coffee I got at the gas station on the way up was 73 cents. This confirms that I will never eat lunch or any other meal at Whitetail as long as a I ski there. Fortunately the lunch room was empty yesterday so no one minded that I was eating a "picnic lunch" there; though it was nice enough to eat outside too.

On the whole, though, if you're in the DC area and can play hookie during the week, Whitetail is as good a place to be as any!

Roger:

Nice report. Based on it, a friend of mine will be taking his family to WT.

One bone to pick. $2.00 may be a lot for a small coffee, but you have to remember that the cafeteria is a big revenue center for a resort. More importantly, it's a cost center that a skier can avoid. I'd rather see a resort charge high food prices than see it try to pass more costs on to the consumer via higher priced lift tickets. If you don't like the prices at the WT cafeteria, you have the option of getting in your car and driving to the Golden Arches. As for me, I'll gladly pay $2 for the convenience of enjoying a hot drink right at the ski resort. If I feel cheap, I'll stash a few cold drinks from home in my pockets and live off of them.

Resorts like 7 Springs can charge less for food because they do a higher volume business and also because they sell beer. Beer sales bring in a lot of revenue.
WT, because it is in a dry town, can not make as much from drink sales because they do not sell hard drinks so give the place a break on the coffee prices.

[This message has been edited by johnfmh (edited 12-18-2003).]

Another idea, John, might be for WT to continue to charge 2.11 for a coffee (actually, that was the price of a "small beverage" no matter what you got-- perhaps next time I'll get the fake cappucino and feel better about the price) but franchise a space to Starbucks or Caribou or some other coffee shop. Prohibiting the coffee shop from selling lunches would cause a minimal loss in coffee sales in the cafeteria that would probably be made up for through the franchise fee. Yes that would mean a more expensive cup of coffee at the Coffee Shop, but I'll bet it would still come in less than what I paid on Tuesday.

Speaking of cheap eats, though: there is a Ruby Tuesday in Hagerstown (take I-70 to I-81 N, get off on the first exit, make a right at the stop light and a left at the next light; you'll see the Ruby Tuesday on the right) that runs a near-permanent 2-1 beer special. Buy a 12 ounce draft and get the second draft for a penny. Yuengling never tastes better than after a day outdoors... except when it's cheaper per drink than the coffee you just bought.

Hope your friend and his family have a good time getting nearly first tracks over on the Experts Choice Quad!

whitetail is opening bold decision and exhibition tomorrow!!!

Cool. I also hear that Bushwaller's pub also offers good food and atmosphere.

To be honest, though, I generally just want to get home after skiing and am not that interested in apres ski. A quick soda in the Whitetail cafeteria suits me fine.

Question: how did you manage to do 39 runs on your first day? That's an impressive achievement.

[This message has been edited by johnfmh (edited 12-19-2003).]

What is impressive is that he was able to keep a count of his runs...all 39...I lose track after 7 or 8.

Thanks for the compliment! Okay, let's start with an admission: not every run was from the summit. I did about 12 of them on the Stalker Quad and, yes, 3 over on the Northern Lights chair (yes, those probably shouldn't count). The other 24 runs came on sheer determination to get in shape, quick. My parents and I are going out west the first week of January so I don't have the month of Jan to shape up like usual. I was yo-yoing the high speed quad on several runs to work on my legs, including a few non-stop top to bottom slalom runs (pure leg burning madness). Giant slalom turns down Limelight-- and I've come to realize that Limelight might be one of the best runs south of Vermont for just letting it all out-- weren't so hard.

I've also been running 2 1/2 miles twice a week. Doesn't do much for ski muscles but it helps for stamina. And, finally, Whitetail really was THAT empty. I don't think I stopped behind another person in line once on the high speed quad.

Also spent a lot of time just trying to get form back. I have a bad habit of turning with my hips, which leaves you leaning back with your legs extended going into your next turn. It is also, as I have discovered in the past, a very good way to get yourself flipped around backward tumbling head over heels when the pitch is greater than 35 degrees. Would rather work that problem out now than when the stakes are a little higher.

Its easy to measure runs with the AVOCET ski watch. My kids gave me one about 10 years ago, and it keeps track of daily vertical skied and number of runs, as well as keeping track of seasonal totals. Oh, and it keeps time also. I have had Avocet folks tune mine once. A little on the expensive side, but a great Christmas gift.

runs,runs,runs..hopefully the expensive coffee didn't add to your count!!(the runs get it?)

Update: Whitetail Sat 12/20:

Conditions were good but not quite as nice as this time last year. One icy spot on Limelight underneath a gun and an icy patch on the Snowpark (big green hill) slightly marred both runs. Angledrop had nice soft snow to bottom, not counting the jump side of things which I only briefly meandered through as a spectator.

Drop-In had plenty of soft snow, and Exhibition was firm, and took an edge nicely. Unfortunately electrical problems on that side of things left them closed until around 1pm (that's when i heard they were open)

Can't see that they have enough coverage to really open any of the other blues, and definitely not Farside. Bold Decision possibly could be opened but looked ungroomed.

I look forward to some more skiing early week and hope the brief warmup doesn't make a big dent...
:-(

Crowds were manageable, lifts line minimal at least under high speed quad & expert side. No complaints really!

:-)

Thanks KevR. The brief warm-up should melt a little snow but we're into that point of the season where unless it's a major warm front, the net impact will be minimal (eg no trails closed). They had some baby snow piles at the summit a week ago at Whitetail-- those are the reserves for precisely the warm spell we're coming into. Were they still there yesterday?

My little brothers and dad are up from Florida this year and they want to ski. They went to Liberty a couple years ago but I might try to talk them into Whitetail. The only catch is two or my three brothers are beginner/novice skiers. Anyone know which local hill (Liberty, Roundtop, Whitetail) has the least deadly beginner terrain? I was teaching my girlfriend last year to ski at Roundtop and we spent more time looking over our shoulders for oncoming six-year old rockets than we did actually learning how to ski. Sometimes I think the most dangerous run on the mountains are the beginner trails.

Roger,

Actually, I think statistics back up your hunch that more accidents happen on beginner trails. They're often smaller and more crowded with inexperienced skiers/boarders, and that's a perfect recipe for accidents. Beginners really need more space to themselves, and unfortunately you have to go out west to get really long, wide, uncrowded beginner slopes.

Whitetail has pretty wide slopes, and a nice separation from beginner to advanced. (It's very easy to understand the layout of the mountain -- easiest trails on the left, growing steeper as you go right.) My only concern about Whitetail for beginners is that there's a big jump in difficulty between Velvet and Snow Park. Velvet is a mostly-flat bunny hill, but Snow Park, while still a beginner, is quite a bit steeper than Velvet. It would be nice if there was something in between -- I think skiers often master Velvet but aren't quite ready to take on Snow Park.

However, with shaped skis it might be easier to make that jump than when I was teaching some beginners a few years ago. The best advice I can offer is to go on an uncrowded weekday. (And by that, I mean almost any weekday except probably not between Christmas and New Year's.) Monday and Tuesday *should* be pretty light on crowds at local resorts, I would guess. On weekdays you might have the slopes almost all to yourselves, which is much less intimidating (and less dangerous) for beginners.

Wisp -- a bit farther away -- has the great Wisp Trail and Possum trails, which are very long beginner trails. Those are two good trails for teaching because it gives beginners a good chance to link a lot of turns without making a short run, riding the lift, making a short run, etc.

- Scott

Thanks for the reply Scott. You're right about Wisp, but it's probably too far of a drive. Unfortunately they are only here for the next several days (Christmas/New Years) so we'll have to make the best of one of the Christmas break days it seems. They've all skied before so I suspect that-- although Snow Park is indeed a lot harder than Velvet-- they should be able to handle the novice terrain at Whitetail as well. Perhaps someday Whitetail will build a beginner trail off the summit and a connector from the Snow Park quad, which would probably be a good medium between the beginner and low intermediate terrain.

Liberty is the best place for beginners of the 3 closest resorts.

Their bunny hill (for never ever's & learning how to turn) is the best terrain I have ever seen. Very WIDE, completely secluded slope with a slow-moving quad. They also just added 2 magic carpets for the stages before turning.

After they master that run - take them to the mid-station of the "Alpine Quad". This will get them to an excellent "Step 2" area that is usually very empty.

Next in the succession is the "Dipsy Double" chair. It's the small double lift that only goes part way up the hill next to the beginner hill. Again - nice terrain. If you turn left off of the chair traffic is rather low & a bit less difficult terrain. Off of the right side, you'll catch the bottom half of blue-streak. Consider this the 4th stage. The only problem with lower blue, is you have to watch for the occasional "blue bombers" who don't seem to realize how much speed they can carry coming down the upper half.

My next step is to grap the "Alpine Quad" again to go hit Dipsey Doodle from the top. however - that's usually only for a run or 2 since it can get a bit crowded.

After that - head back to the top of the mountain. Take the first part of Dipsey Doodle, but immediately after the big S-turn at the top, take the small cut-away over to "Whitney's Way". Whitney's Way is a great next step and is not only a "Family Ski Area" with extra ski patrol to keep the speeds lower - but doesn't see as much traffic, since the entrance is a bit narrow (don't worry - it opens up quickly).

The best part of that run is that it leads them to the back side with the shorter lift lines, etc.

I've always wondered why Whitetail has not added another green run or so off to the sides of Snowpark (or possibly behind it?)

In my mind I always roughly rate Whitetail as having 2 bunnies, 1 green run (snow park), 4 blue runs, and 3 black runs... liberally adding drop-in as a run, adds another black.

So it does seem short on the beginner side really & when they moved the jumps and everything onto lower Angledrop, one side effect was the huge influx of beginner-ish boarders onto that trail just to get to the jump area...

It *seems* like they could put in a puma tow just up to the jump area and that would drop 50% of the traffic down on that trail as well as take the load of the main quad...

KevR I don't know if you've been skiing at Whitetail a while, but wwwwaaaaaayyyyyy back in the day (1993 or so) they used to have a map in their front office of the proposed build-out of Whitetail. It included three or four new lifts and another 15-20 trail or something like that, including a beginners run off the summit. The map struck me as a bit implausible, given the altitude and predominant east-southeast exposure of the hill.

I'm betting Sno-time is looking at higher return-on-value investments right now. Probably adding another couple trails-- as much as we all would like it-- would not do nearly as much to stabilize and/or improve revenue as ramping up snowmaking and grooming and building new condo units. I think we'll see some new runs with time (I can think of four new runs on the front face that, without additional lifts, would probably take care of a lot of the trail overcrowding on the weekends there. Couple that with a new drop-in to the expert side and that should alleviate Angel Drop a bit as well), but probably not in the next couple years.

I like your idea about adding a surface lift for the terrain park. That would be pretty inexpensive a great way to improve the skiing/riding experience for everyone on the mountain. Something for Snotime to think about...

RZ/JL -- we all agree! Ok, how do we get them to put it in? I haven't the vaguest clue how much a puma tow costs, having only been a user of them at some other resorts. Can they follow curves? I know that trail there hooks a bit at the bottom and it would be cheaper (i'm guessing) to follow the existing trail vs chopping down trees. Also, I am vaguely aware of their original expansion plans but even if it was just a grandiose dream waiting for the viability of above freezing temp snow, I'd still think another beginner trail or so would be completely feasable...

guys, its a great idea. at roundtop, we have a jbar in both halfpipe and that really maximizes your runs a nd helps keep regualr lift lines down. your best bet is to organize and then work with the WT management. one option might be to scrounge a used jbar from one of the other snowtime mts.

guys, its a great idea. at roundtop, we have a jbar in both halfpipe and that really maximizes your runs a nd helps keep regualr lift lines down. your best bet is to organize and then work with the WT management. one option might be to scrounge a used jbar from one of the other snowtime mts.

I'm 99% certain that Poma lifts can follow curves. I know that T-Bars can. (The one at Breckenridge has a pretty severe dog-leg in it.)

Surface lifts are probably trickier/harder on the legs for snowboarders than skiers. But I'm sure a lot of the boarders would prefer to avoid waiting in line @ the quad.

On the DCSki Poll, I posted several recommendations for improvements to Whitetail's terrain park. A surface lift is a great idea that I hadn't thought about.

I think the terrain park will become more and more important to Whitetail's business. Hopefully they'll pick up on some of the improvements suggested on DCSki.

[This message has been edited by JohnL (edited 12-23-2003).]

Ah, POMA not Puma, no wonder I couldn't find it on the web! BUT I found this: http://www.magiccarpet.rmce.com/index.html

Yes, a belt conveyor lift that comes in sections, and can accomodate a variety of terrain. I'd say three or four 10 M sections should do it...

So, if they roped off the top part of the trail head there, and then took the little pass-thru lane out, and put these things in, they'd have it...

Plus its removable post snow... cool. Now, I bet they install it for free and PAY YOU. Yep, it can't get any better! ;-)

(no i don't have anything to do with these people...)

Finsoutoc: are you the guy that belongs to the Roundtop Riders advocacy group (that might not be their official name)? I just saw a post the other day from someone who belongs to an organization like that. It was either you or Ibotta. Probably a similar group for Whitetail would be the best advocacy group... unless someone has direct ties to management there. If you do, can you ask them why the charge 2.11 for a cup of coffee? (just kidding)

Seems Snotime should be able to shift a J-bar over pretty easily from Roundtop or Liberty if the length is comparable. The other thing they could do is instead of running the lift from the base, run it only in the terrain park area. That would still mean people initially lining up in the quad but would slow down those that were looping just to hit the park.

However, all this discussion still leaves the half pipe sitting awkwardly and alone over on the Snowpark lift...

Oh and KevR I also think a beginner trail off the summit and a connector coming into it from the Snowpark lift is feasible as well. But that's longer term...

RZ -- no I am not involved in or even heard of them. I am just a customer who has skied there a lot for the past few years. On the one hand, I am very happy to have relatively easy to enjoyable and mostly decent day skiing here in the tropics.. I mean DC. On the other hand, I do think things could be better ... even if only in small ways!
Now on to that pesky half-pipe. Well if they roped off lower-Angle drop at the split, installed some sort of tow from the base area, I think they'd have PLENTY of room to put in a pipe as well...

I also agree that a surface lift for the terrain park is a great idea. It would reduce the lift lines on the high-speed quad and the terrain park users would get in many more runs.

[This message has been edited by JohnL (edited 12-23-2003).]

roger, thats me. we formed RRA last season as a way to leverage the more extreme user at RT to get the mgmt to talk to us about things like the pipe and park. this really grew out of frustration with RT listening to people who had no clue what they were talking about when making pipe/park decisions. we have a website on geocities (search roundtop riders association) with a message board similar to this one so we all keep in touch and post ideas, criticisms and whatnot. i have to say, it seems to be working. many of the RT mgmt will now discuss ideas with us and if they cant be done, we will at least get a truthful explaination of why not (obviously, they can't do everything). we are pretty informal, but id guess we have about 50 to 75 'members'. if you want stuff done, get organized then meet with WT mgmt. develop an ally preferably the mt mgr since that person usually gets things done. prior to RRA the only way we got things done was through complaints. this way is much better. we already got a lift served super pipe (so you won't get a j-bar from RT!!!) and our next big push if for an area only season pass (only good at RT for a much lower price) or a season pass rewards program so that if you bought a pass for X number of years, you get a discount.

Finsoutoc: apart from my sock drawer, I have never successfully organized anything in my life. Funny thing is Roundtop is my favorite local hill, so it feels odd to be getting this wrapped up in Whitetail. Nevertheless I'd like to talk to you about how to get organized some time to discuss things with Whtietail. Perhaps I'll go over to your geocities site to see how things are done.

Happy Holidays!

Maybe there should a whitetail version of this group?

Another thing I'd like to see is a lift card system similiar to the Peaks program Vail Ski Company has. In that way, I could simply pre-pay for some number of ski days and then just enter at the lifts, where they scan the card.

Maybe for advantage card holders, you pre-pay for 5 8 hour days and they put 6 days worth on there. (or is it 6 days and the 7th is free?)

In fact, I'd maybe even argue to have the whole thing done as total hours. The hours count down as you use it. If you ski two hours, (say it rounds up to nearest hour or something), then its two hours out of your credits. If you ski for 10, well that's 10.

Anyway, regardless of that little idea. The electronic ticket works great. For example, I just happen to have a Peaks card from a previous trip, and last year when I decided to take a brief detour to Tahoe on a business trip, I simply bought my 2 days of skiing online using my peaks card. Then, the day of, I simply showed up at the gondola and was scanned in, ready to go.

No ticket window lines or anything, nice!

kev, all great ideas, but snotime tends to think mostly in terms of beginner. that IS a big revenue source, but i think they havent quite gotten with the time to understand the with pipes and park, you don't have to be a 'big' mt to attract more advanced users. so users groups can give them a resource to bounce ideas off of. to be honest, RRA was (and still can be) very adversarial with RT mainly because our primary mission is to represent the user, not the mt. however, our approach is that when the user benefits, the mt benefits too. my advise would be to make sure you have a few dedicated folks to keep things active and moving forward and just get the word out. i did flyers in the pipe and park but word of mouth is the best approach. once you have those people id'd approach WT as an offer of help. if they have a pipe/park crew, get them on board if they are cool people who are willing ot give info and listen to you. summer meetings with mgmt are great cause it shows them that you are serious even in the off season. let me know if you need some help.

roger, if you get to RT this weekend, im always in the pipe in the mornings. jsut ask around. i'll probably have on a hoodie with black pants, black misfits beanie and a red and black gian simmons santa cruz board. if not, my email address is in the rra site.

Are you going to be there New Years Eve? Thinking of another hookie day on the 31st and I've yet to encounter crowds at RT on New Years Eve (knock on wood)...

RZ & friends -- are you suggesting a Whitetail group similiar to RT's? I am often up on Saturdays at Whitetail - tentatively considering some slush skiing this sat! :-). I will just happen to be at RT next Sat (Jan 3) also... could meet up if that's the interest...
??

i'll be there on the 3rd for sure but doubtful on the 31st. the morning of the first is usually pretty good too. so far this weekend was good for the pipe but i heard the rest of RT was a little firm. they still ahve really good coverage though and temps should be cold enough to blow tonight.

I just came back from Whitetail and I hate to report conditions have deterioted since last weekend -- ALTHOUGH it was still quite skiable and enjoyable.

Overall the conditions were soft but not slushy and made for easy skiing. Underneath this in places was hard-pack, semi-ice. It took an edge fine though (no falls) -- so no real ice.

Soft spots here and there and exposed rocks in a few places on Bold Decision and possibly other trails.

A few big bumps cropped up on Bold Decision and by the end of the day the beginnings of some bumps on Exhibition -- likely all mowed over to redistribute snow during grooming (?)

Coverage was about 75% of trail (width) on Limelight and Exhibition. Bold Decision and Angledrop area were completely covered however (less direct sun). Everything else had pretty good snow (didn't ski on them however so just from looking), except of course any previously unopened trails which were down to grass.

The warm spring-like conditions were actually quite fun and a nice break from the winter duds I thought.

Still I hope they can make enough spot coverage over the next few days to keep what is open, open...

Well the relatives are finally heading out of town so I can start burying myself in DCSki discussions again. Thanks for the update KevR. I've noticed Whitetail usually has a tough go of it covering the sides of their runs, even in very good weather (for instance, natural snow is almost the only coverage on Exhibition underneath the chair). On Limelight the far left side doesn't get covered very well either-- I've always wondered if it would help if they planted white pines or some other coniferous tree along the southern edges of their runs to provide a little extra sun shielding.

Looks like Wednesday will be at RT for a last warm-up day before heading out to Utah next weekend, which I am proud to say we've finally seemed to synch the vacation up with the snowstorms: four feet of new snow in the last three days with another 1-2 feet on the way tomorrow and more again on Thursday. Going to RT or WT will be an interesting experience in compare/contrast!

Hoping our cold weather comes back soon. I'd love to meet you for Jan 1 skiing but that's probably not the best idea after staying up until one a.m. drinking. Thinking of heading to Annapolis for New Years Eve but am not committed yet.

Hope everyone had a good Christmas!

See Roger if you guys organized, you could suggest that through your group rode RT the last 4 days and things are still looking ok. basically frozen granular on top of ice. there may be some limited snowmaking this week but i wouldnt bet on too much.

Weather outlook seems horribly HORRIFIC for the next week or two. Hello, this SUCKS big time. Will be at RT on Saturday unless the melt is so bad that there is nuttin' to ski on. RZ -- good idea, maybe meet up at Annapolis, could happen.

Well maybe we should all just head West, I'm up for it!!!

BTW, anyone know how to sharpen skis? Maybe I should start a new thread...

Kev, i THINK they will be ok. THe park is closed but other than that, they are in fairly good shape. we are supposed to get soem rain tonight but the should have snowmaking tomorrow night and possibly wed and thrusday night but those night will be close. i know they will make snow at any possible time. look for me in the pipe in the a.m.

Well I signed up for a lesson so I don't quite know when it will be over... have to be there by 830am though - UGH! :-)

Still depressed 'bout the weather although it helps my golf game I suppose...

Well we're not skiing tomorrow. Hard to get enthusiastic in this weather. Anyway long range forecasts are promising for a return to better conditions next week so hopefully WT and RT will be able to get the guns cranking again soon.

Yeah LRF is showing a return to more traditional Jan temps next week. Hopefully it will pan out and the snow will be nice. I recall last year at this time that the snow was quite nice the first week or two of Jan. AND NO ONE was skiing, or so it seemed. No complaints really I guess...

Now, about that above freezing temp snow... ;-)

BTW, I decided to haul my skis over to Ski Chalet and have them replace the factory grind and sharpen the edges back to factory spec. My local ski shop last winter flat sanded the bottom, and knocked the edges down quite a bit on the tip & tail which ticked me off. On the other hand, I really couldn't tell one hoot of difference on the slopes and the edges were sharp at all other points... So we'll see how it goes. But this is the last TIME before I learn to do this myself, except of course I can't replicate the factory grind at home I don't think (the bottom had a very shallow "dimpling" or scalloping, visible when held at an angle, assume this makes 'em faster, kinda around the same principle as is used on boat hulls these days... (shark skin) )

Kev, your lesson will start at around 10:00 and last for about an hour (if its a class lesson). rock on over to the pipe and ask for 'blake'. we'll talk. i am cautiously optimistic the RT will be able to make a decent amount of snow tonight to get them to an ok level and see them thru the weekend.

if it doesnt, im going surfing instead. nice balmy 40 degree water.....

Actually I quite enjoyed skiing in the relative warmth last Sat at WT. It was a nice change of pace, now if only the snow would hold up. Imagine if you could ski at 40 degree or 45, I mean the snow would hold up for days or could be made at those temps. In this area it would greatly lengthen the season, and resorts could be closer into the city... oh, well, enough fantasizing...

Blake -- check. Not sure how it will pan out but I will definitely give it try.

Because I signed up for the Diann Roffe thing. I have taken lessons from her for 2 seasons and have really enjoyed it. So, I thought, why not again? there was even some mention of video taping the skier, which means I get to see myself flailing around like an idiot on the slopes -- not sure this is a good thing.

Brings to mind the other day, just happened to flip it to OLN and they had some SuperG thing on -- women's superG. First time an american made the podium in like 5 yrs they said (i guess this would be some part of the super-g circuit?) Anyway, slow-mo video playback was really cool. I mean those chicks can ski, no doubt. And the skis, wow, they oscillate all over the place at those speeds, amazing they work at all!
Oh well, for a moment, I thought it was winter time...
:-)