Shortest Run of the Season

Hanging in the locker room trying to decide whether we should wait an hour or two for winds to die down or come back tomorrow

It was disappointing to arrive at Alpine this morning on the second to the last day of the 2020-2021 season to find Summit on Wind Hold. The early morning ski group that often gathers in locker room 3, with our Covid 19 masks, stood ready to boot-up only to discover that winds were blowing over 50 miles per hour at the top of Summit. There was some discussion about waiting around for the winds to diminish, but most of us decided to leave with our heads bowed and smiles missing from our faces.

The end of the shortest run of the season.  Mark and I walked to tower two of Summit Chair before being turned around and sent back to the lodge.  We did get 10 turns or so in before having to take our skis off.

Mark was specifically concerned as he could only stay for a little while to get a couple of turns in before heading off to celebrate an early Mother’s Day with his family. If Summit were to open later in the day his string of skiing everyday for the entire season would have been broken. This was unacceptable. The solution was to boot-up and walk up the hill just far enough to grab a few turns on a run that is recorded on the Squaw app. We thought we could walk up to Sandy’s Corner and ski down. Not much of a run, but a trail that counts.

I offered to accompany Mark on this quest so he could count today as a day of skiing. We headed up the hill from the base of Summit Chair only to be stopped dead in our tracks shortly after by a Groomer who made it clear that walking uphill was not an option. We put our skis on and made as many turns as we could on the perfectly groomed soft corduroy and counted it as a day. The air was cool this morning and the snow felt good under foot. Too bad that the winds were blowing on top as I am sure skiing would have been pretty good.

                                                                                           Okay Mark we can count this day as a ski day

Winds did die down and Summit opened around 11, but we were long gone.
The last day of the season for Alpine is tomorrow.

Hopefully this will be the last day we have to wear a mask inside at the ski resort.

Enjoy your day,

Andy

Editor’s Note: Well, there’s going to have to be a little asterisk next to my record. I did ski today at Alpine Meadows, a total distance of about 300 yards with a vertical drop of 51 feet. But it was not for lack of effort. My mother was super happy to have the family together for the first time since her birthday parade back in November. Today, family needed to be prioritized. It’s just skiing. Hopefully tomorrow will be a smoother day. See you out there.   – Mark