Need advice on a plan for next season

[Sharon]

Patrick gave some good sound advice:

If you're looking for powder, don't mind exploring, going backcountry and ski without paying $70 lift ticket without hearing a bunch of newcomers yell so much, you should fly into Northwest BC.

People are friendly and willing to share and show you the goods (a bit like Admin - except they all like Admin and they just love skiing so much and sharing it). Lucky Luke liked his 2 wks so much that he wouldn't mind moving there, before his retirement. I wouldn't, but it's a nice place to spend some time.

Yeah, I've been to BC 4 times and absolutely loved it. It is by far my favorite ski destination, and if I could afford to go there for a month I would. Do you know of anyone there who would put me up for a month?

Lodging is a big expense.

The reason why SLC is where I am chosing to go is because I have friends there who enjoy my presence and wouldn't mind me staying for a full month. I wouldn't totally freeload...I have already offered to pay, clean, shop, cook, whatever makes sense. I'd like to make my host's life easier by my being there. I also have a group of friends there whom I enjoy skiing with, even the ever-loud and obnoxious Skidog :lol: . Community is pretty important to me. I don't want to go some place all alone and not know anyone. Sure, I can meet people and make friends wherever, but I already have a ski community in Utah, so why not take advantage of that?

I plan to get back to BC in the future...maybe in 10 years....when the US dollar has more value there 8)

 

[Patrick]

Yeah, I've been to BC 4 times and absolutely loved it. It is by far my favorite ski destination, and if I could afford to go there for a month I would. Do you know of anyone there who would put me up for a month?

Lodging is a big expense.

The reason why SLC is where I am chosing to go is because I have friends there who enjoy my presence and wouldn't mind me staying for a full month. I wouldn't totally freeload...(...). I don't want to go some place all alone and not know anyone. Sure, I can meet people and make friends wherever, but I already have a ski community in Utah, so why not take advantage of that?

I plan to get back to BC in the future...maybe in 10 years....when the US dollar has more value there 8)

First off, your point about freeloading :wink: (I mean staying at a friend's place) and being with them is totally understandable.

Lodging is a real expense. If it wouldn't be for the Utah friend/freeloading, I would say my suggestion would be fine. Northwest BC is so off the beaten path than you're looking at cheap lodging and lift tickets with amazing mountains and snow (okay, not necessarily Utah light powder). The other negative (by some) is the lack of lifts.

HOWEVER for real accomodations/skiing, some parts of South America are pretty good I hear. :wink:

 

[Skidog]

HOWEVER for real accomodations/skiing, some parts of South America are pretty good I hear. :wink:

I actually hear lately with the weak dollar this option has lost SOME of its luster.....though still I bet pretty cheap by most vacation standards..

Lots of self service lifts though (your own legs). I'll get there someday!

M

 

[Patrick]

I actually hear lately with the weak dollar this option has lost SOME of its luster.....though still I bet pretty cheap by most vacation standards..

You're talking to a Canadian that was paying 50-60% more for skiing when I choose the US based on dollar-per-dollar cost. I'm not even talking about the difference in price of lift tickets regardless of the value of the dollar. The same logic applies to South America, regardless of the value of the US dollar, you can still get ticket/lodging at much lower cost.

Lots of self service lifts though (your own legs). I'll get there someday!

It's not that bad.

 

[Skidog]

I actually hear lately with the weak dollar this option has lost SOME of its luster.....though still I bet pretty cheap by most vacation standards..

You're talking to a Canadian that was paying 50-60% more for skiing when I choose the US based on dollar-per-dollar cost. I'm not even talking about the difference in price of lift tickets regardless of the value of the dollar. The same logic applies to South America, regardless of the value of the US dollar, you can still get ticket/lodging at much lower cost.

Lots of self service lifts though (your own legs). I'll get there someday!

It's not that bad.

true dat.....ive just heard some complaining that the value isnt as good as its been in the past with a strong US dollar....

you're doing pretty good coming over here now though no??? Damn american dollar...

Can we just go back to bead trading?

M

 

[Patrick]

you're doing pretty good coming over here now though no??? Damn american dollar...

I've never really stopped, however when it's not the dollar, it's the gas prices. :wink:
I believe that I probably spent at least $100 is gas this weekend, at least the lift ticket was cheap. :roll: :lol:

 

[Skidog]

you're doing pretty good coming over here now though no??? Damn american dollar...

I've never really stopped, however when it's not the dollar, it's the gas prices. :wink:
I believe that I probably spent at least $100 is gas this weekend, at least the lift ticket was cheap. :roll: :lol:

what you guys paying up there for gas...

Sorry....its my fault... this thread has taken a bad turn....totally my fault...

To get back to topic...:

Sharon you know basically any "timeframe" you pick you'll have TONS OF FUN.....put em both on a piece of paper on the wall...throw a dart and whichever the dart is closest to is the dates you come out. That or flip a coin..

M

 

[Patrick]

what you guys paying up there for gas...

Well, $45 of that amount was paid in the US. I did a bit of driving this weekend, yesterday I drove 875km and 200km on Saturday evening. Wife had to go to Montreal (200), I just went a bit further to have fun and go skiing. It could have been worst if I didn't have my small Mazda Protege.

 

[icelanticskier]

. I woud also hope to find a part time job in the evenings to help cover the costs of my skiing, or maybe work somewhere that offers a seasons pass...or maybe be a ski host. I'm looking into all the options. If any of you people out there have a viable idea in that department, please send it my way. And Skidog, no, I will not babysit your kid while you ski

check out the alta lodge for part time work for lodging/food/skiing. when i worked and lived there a friend of mine was coming out for 3 weeks and for a few hours of work per night, he stayed, skied and ate for free. not a bad deal. solitude is also a great place to work part time and their pretty generous with employee pass which gives you free bus up and train in the valley. some of the shuttle services are good also like canyon or executive which you could drive a couple of nights and ski days. i won't be workin when i come out but, i won't be buying lift tickets either due to touring daily and if ya wanna do some touring we'll hook up and i can guarantee you'll ski untracked every day storms or no storms every day. such a friggin playground that foofsatch is.
rog

 

[Tony Crocker]

I see I've been around here long enough that people can predict my answers.

When to Go
No question in my mind that Jan-Feb is the better option. Most of the time the snow will preserve. Sharon can hit the big dumps at wherever she likes best, then go ski leftover but still good untracked at Powder Mt. a few days later. Even the Park City group may be worthy of attention midwinter, while in April it's usually slop anywhere in Utah outside the Cottonwoods.

The local comments about April make sense. The powder days are still great, but it doesn't seem to settle into corn that often until when, early-to-mid-May on average? This is actually what Mammoth was like this weekend. You had to stay in skier-packed lines, because the rest of the ungroomed was unconsolidated mashed potatoes from the Memorial Day storm. So April in Utah it's great during/right after storms or if after a week of clear weather. Not so good with the in-between conditions. If it were me in April, I'd bet on the clear weather and go to Mammoth (or maybe Bachelor when still in full operating mode).

Patrick and I are in disagreement about value of ski days, as evidenced by his ongoing ski streak of 32 months. I do not buy that a restricted operation ski day in April/May/June is the equivalent of a midwinter day in Utah, just because it extends your season. Therefore I will drive to Mammoth for the latter, but save the premium airfare $ for bell-to-bell full operation skiing, with at least some chance for powder.

Where to Go
Utah is probably first choice even without the price/social considerations. One key point is having the multiple areas within close range to give you options depending upon snow/crowd conditions (one of Riverc0il's favorite points). I love interior B.C. too, but these places are quite spread out from one another, so you probably going to be doing just a few of them on any given trip. And the places Patrick went are frankly too small for an extended trip unless you're the serious backcountry type like Luke or icelantic. If Sharon makes the one-month trip an annual event, sure she should mix it up and go other places some years.

And MarcC is right about the job thing. You have a full time job at home and this is your vacation. Don't even think about doing anything that would cut into potential ski time. The powder is not going to show up timed with your work schedule. When you're retired and spending several months in Utah, then maybe try to find part-time work.

Sharon's Overall Ski Strategy
I rag on several of the easterners here about the quality of their skiing. But Sharon is definitely not one of them. I have always thought that she maximizes quality fairly well given location and time/$ available. With abundant vacation time, some of it taken with fairly short notice to time the weather, and full retirement coming at age 55, she would be crazy to uproot now.

I have for some time advocated that Easterners who cannot hit the Northern Vermont snowbelt conveniently (due to distance or inflexible schedules) are better off spending their vacation time on western trips. Sharon has already been doing this for a significant fraction of her ski days with IIRC one December week in Washington State and one midwinter week in Utah. The new proposed strategy is just an expansion of this.

Given Sharon's obvious physical conditioning (windsurfing, mountain biking, etc.) she is likely to have a fairly long ski career after age 55. Just this past March at Snowbird I skied with two groups of 50's/60's retirees, most of whom were not living in Utah full time. Some live there the whole ski season, returning to their original homes for the other 5-7 months of the year. Others come in for one or two months of the season. Either of these are viable options for Sharon when she retires. She can retain her CNY roots and still be a powder pig in the winter if that's what she wants.

In some ways I may be a preview for Sharon's ski future. I'm 55 and will be retired by next ski season.

 

[jamesdeluxe]

dude...do you EVER contribute anything of substance or just leech onto others???

I admit it... I laughed.

 

[Patrick]

I see I've been around here long enough that people can predict my answers.

No question in mind that Jan-Feb is the better option.

That's if powder seeking is the number #1 for that person. I personally loved skiing Mammoth in June/July TWICE. 8) It wasn't about the powder, it wasn't streak related. It was Spring/Summer skiing and atmosphere. However I concede Tony's expertise on the Utah April conditions.

Patrick and I are in disagreement about value of ski days, as evidenced by his ongoing ski streak of 32 months.

Yes, I'm going a streak and if I would ski only once a month, you would be correct, however I'm having biggest ski season now during the main months of the season than only 5 years ago when I skied 40 days Nov/Dec-May. Ski streak just adds a few days of silliness.

I do not buy that a restricted operation ski day in April/May/June is the equivalent of a midwinter day in Utah, just because it extends your season.

I have a different view. I would probably agree if the skiing really sucked during those extra months, but I've rarely found that. I would prefer skiing 30 days spread out over 6 months than skiing 30 "potentially" amazing days in 1 month and not skiing for 11.

Regarding my ski streak, if I was uniquely concern with making some turns every month, I wouldn't EVEN consider going back to make some June turns next week if I can. Instead of Mammoth for June/July, I could have chosen Tucks in 06. Instead of Chile in 07, I could have returned to Timberline. We are go on forever, but I do think that I'm living the best of both Worlds.

Utah or interior B.C. too

Both would be excellent.

And the places Patrick went are frankly too small for an extended trip unless you're the serious backcountry type like Luke or icelantic.

I mentioned it, because she commented about climbing or hiking. Although I don't know Sharon preferences and what she's looking for? I just wanted to throw it out there in case she was into this. Lucky Luke had been eyeing Shames for a couple of seasons. He knew that if he go two weeks, we would have excellent odds into getting some serious Powder. There is one good thing about these places, you'll be able to find powder days after.

If Sharon makes the one-month trip an annual event, sure she should mix it up and go other places some years.

This is where we agree. Although I've only skied Utah for 4 days, I don't feel any rush to go back. I have a bunch of places that are my wish list in Western Canada, regardless of how strong the Canadian dollar is. For South America, the only place I would consider going back in the short term is Termas.

I rag on several of the easterners here about the quality of their skiing. But Sharon is definitely not one of them. I have always thought that she maximizes quality fairly well given location and time/$ available.

You better not start talked about me again. :wink: Seriously, I cannot believe that Skidog only got 15 days (not flame intended). I would never trade my season with 15 days, regardless how amazing they were. I definitely got 15 amazing days this season, the other 42 days were also pretty good.

I have for some time advocated that Easterners who cannot hit the Northern Vermont snowbelt conveniently (due to distance or inflexible schedules) are better off spending their vacation time on western trips.

Well, I went out West and missed some storm in the East. It might be an anecdote, but you can't necessarily rely on trip either. I have enough points to make 2 trip out West for the next couple of seasons, however I would be running into vacation/boss issues with so many weeks off within a short period (let alone kitchen issue :wink: ).

However If I would be taking one-month off and would get all the green lights (work and home), I would probably leave the East.Why? Because I know the East and they is some many places I want to ski or I haven't skied enough in this World. This wouldn't necessarily be in the West, it could also be in the Alps, Andes or Southern Alps. Of course, all this isn't uniquely ski related.

Just this past March at Snowbird I skied with two groups of 50's/60's retirees, most of whom were not living in Utah full time. Some live there the whole ski season, returning to their original homes for the other 5-7 months of the year.

Although it's great to eye retirement and our skiing days at that time. There is also the factor to live now and don't uniquely really on retirement to start living. This is, of course, not targeted to Sharon and Tony, as they seem to live their lives (at least skiing wise) to the fullest in the Present. I'm thinking more about some people out there that value retirement as I time that they will start living. Everything is gone in their present life with their retirement in mind. Unfortunately, like Snow, life is sometimes unpredictable.

 

[Admin]

Seriously, I cannot believe that Skidog only got 15 days (not flame intended). I would never trade my season with 15 days, regardless how amazing they were.

I'm not quite sure where you got that, but his season's in the 70s, pushing 80 IIRC. He's ahead of me, that's for sure.

 

[Sharon]

Tony made me when he wrote:

Sharon's Overall Ski Strategy
I rag on several of the easterners here about the quality of their skiing. But Sharon is definitely not one of them. I have always thought that she maximizes quality fairly well given location and time/$ available. With abundant vacation time, some of it taken with fairly short notice to time the weather, and full retirement coming at age 55, she would be crazy to uproot now.

I have for some time advocated that Easterners who cannot hit the Northern Vermont snowbelt conveniently (due to distance or inflexible schedules) are better off spending their vacation time on western trips. Sharon has already been doing this for a significant fraction of her ski days with IIRC one December week in Washington State and one midwinter week in Utah. The new proposed strategy is just an expansion of this.

Given Sharon's obvious physical conditioning (windsurfing, mountain biking, etc.) she is likely to have a fairly long ski career after age 55. Just this past March at Snowbird I skied with two groups of 50's/60's retirees, most of whom were not living in Utah full time. Some live there the whole ski season, returning to their original homes for the other 5-7 months of the year. Others come in for one or two months of the season. Either of these are viable options for Sharon when she retires. She can retain her CNY roots and still be a powder pig in the winter if that's what she wants.

Tony also wrote:

And MarcC is right about the job thing. You have a full time job at home and this is your vacation. Don't even think about doing anything that would cut into potential ski time. The powder is not going to show up timed with your work schedule. When you're retired and spending several months in Utah, then maybe try to find part-time work.

I will still find a job while I am there. Maybe working in the evenings. I will need to supplement. I cannot afford to buy a lift ticket every day for a full month. I still will have a mortgage payment and a number of other debts and bills that I will need to pay while I am gone. For a one-week vacation I can manage the cost of lift tix, but it is still quite taxing on my civil servant income especially with the cost of everything rising. I am even considering taking on a second job part time here in the fall, to help pay for some of my rising bills.

I think a month in Utah, while working part time will satisfy my ski-bum jones.

Icelantic wrote:

a friend of mine was coming out for 3 weeks and for a few hours of work per night, he stayed, skied and ate for free.

this is something that might work. I wouldn't need lodging, but I'd work a few hours at night two days a week for a pass at Alta. Or, I could work at night in SLC for cash to supplement.

 

[Patrick]

Seriously, I cannot believe that Skidog only got 15 days (not flame intended). I would never trade my season with 15 days, regardless how amazing they were.

I'm not quite sure where you got that, but his season's in the 70s, pushing 80 IIRC. He's ahead of me, that's for sure.

I saw him mention 76 days somewhere on the first page, however that got lost at some point. I read this pretty quickly when I was at work and I remember seeing 15...which really surprised me at that time. I knew I probably missed something.

I see "skiing on old gear" which implies, TO ME, that I wont have the finances to buy new gear,

Nah. It just means that you'll find it very hard to justify new gear when you're only putting in 10 - 15 days a year. :wink:

 

[Harvey]

With no real knowledge or data - I'd say take the Jan-Feb time frame. Seems to me you are going to rearrange a major part of your life for the year if you are taking a month of vacation at one time. Don't focus on what you might miss - go for making your adventure the most it could be. Sounds like the Utards think that would be mid winter.

 

[Tony Crocker]

Sharon probably knows this, but you can buy 10-day lift tickets at Snowbird (several of our Iron Blosam group do this) at a good discount and the days can be anytime in the season.

With regard to Patrick's comments about spring (applies to both Utah and Mammoth), it's not just powder that calls for midwinter, it's terrain restrictions and limited hours of operation. What makes those June/July trips to Mammoth interesting is the multisport aspects. You can indulge a summer hobby on the same trip: hiking, rafting, golf, rock climbing, fishing, etc. Bend before Powdr Corp was the hands-down capital of the multisport spring/summer sweepstakes.

Since Patrick was pretty much just skiing on those trips, and Mammoth is a real PITA to get to from Ottawa, I do question the value per $ vs. February in interior B.C.

My opinion is the same about Southern Hemisphere. That's a major commitment in both time and $, and the ski conditions are not particularly dependable. So all 5 of my trips south have included at least a week of "something else" along with the skiing.

 

[Sharon]

Tony wrote:

Sharon probably knows this, but you can buy 10-day lift tickets at Snowbird (several of our Iron Blosam group do this) at a good discount and the days can be anytime in the season.

nope didn't know that. I know there are pre-season deals, and Amy is going to keep me posted when those come up, but I am not sure about what kind of deals they are. I'd like to know about discounted Alta lift tix, since that is where I will likely spend most of my time and since that is where most of my friends ski regularly. I would take 10 Snowbird tix as well. I would likely hit The Bird during the week when everyone is working. Working in the evenings at an Alta locale would really be a nice way to get a pass there, but not having a car may make this a difficult proposition. I may end up working at the Smith's across the street from Amy's just to earn a little beer money, just because it is convenient and a no-brainer.

I would not have a car, so I would be limited to LCC because it is on the bus route from where I would stay. I would travel with my friends to other ski areas when they want to come pick me up at Amy's. I was quite fortunate to have Admin, Marc_C and Tele-Jon pick me up last season. When Amy is skiing she'll drive us wherever we decide to go. This is one of the luxuries of staying with Amy. She is conveniently located in Cottonwood Heights. Now if Steve would fix the hot tub, it would be perfect

 

[Admin]

I would not have a car, so I would be limited to LCC because it is on the bus route from where I would stay.

No, buses to BCC go by there as well (just go the other way on Wasatch).

Now if Steve would fix the hot tub, it would be perfect

Gettin' mighty picky now, aren't you? :roll:

 

[Sharon]

No, buses to BCC go by there as well (just go the other way on Wasatch).

we learned last season that the buses won't pick up in the morning going down the hill.