Digging Out

New England got snow, as did much of the Eastern Corridor. NYC set a record, logging the most snowfall in the 140+ years it has been recorded in the city. Boston got hammered, 19 inches on my back porch. It was extreme outside on Sunday. Like a scene from a movie, the usually busy streets were desolate. I walked out of my apartment armed with the ski goggles and the digital camera, they both came in useful.

This storm never had me convinced, I wished it to turn north for our mountains, but then again, why should it? My doubt dictated my weekend ski plans. Here is how it played out…

Hanover Street around 12:30 on Sunday

The Plan of attack: Up and at em early Saturday morning, skiing with a couple friends. Hit the slopes all afternoon. Later that evening catch up with some friends in town and sit down for something to eat. Depart first thing Sunday and drive toward the storm for some Powder skiing on the way home to the Hub. Dazzling!
We made great time on the trip to Stowe, VT and found ourselves sitting in the gondola for the first run by noon. It was a magnificent day; the views, sunshine, no wind and a temperature of 5°F at the summit. There were stashes of fun snow hidden amongst the areas vast terrain (Star – top was closed so you had to traverse across National form the top of Lift Line) and the edges of the trails were in good shape. I am not going to lie, the centers of some runs were getting a tad skied off by 3:00 o’clock, let’s settle on very challenging conditions for strong intermediate skiers.
Looking up at the Chin, crystal clear on Saturday

By Saturday night around 7:00 after consulting various weather resources, we altered the plan. All indications were that the storm was slowing down and gaining strength. This meant we would not ski any powder Sunday during the morning and early afternoon. The storm would reach the mountains in tardy fashion, if at all. Always a tough decision, we packed up and drove home Saturday night. It was the correct call. The two areas we had sized up for Sunday only picked up 4 inches each.
Sunday: The Olympics were showing on the television. The Men’s Downhill is without a doubt the Guru’s favorite event. I could not resist checking the results earlier in the day online, but watching these guys ski is a thrill. The Angel Jump, the first on the course, provided some fantastic imagery of racers soaring through the air. I really thought K. AAmodt (NOR – 4th) was going to land on his back and steal the show with a spectacular fall. Somehow he got the tails of his skis in the snow.
When H. Maier (AUT – 6th) took his run it was mentioned several times that he had been fighting the flu. I would have never picked up on this had it not been for the dinner conversation I was part of on Friday night. I went out with some friends in the ski biz, one of whom owns her own US Gold Medal from Nagano – 1998. An interesting topic that came up was the drug testing policies these athletes must abide by and how it controls their lives. Catching a cold can be detrimental to an Olympian’s hopes. Any over the counter medication or inhaler will trigger a positive result. Cold medicine! The list of banned substances is filled with things that we use in our day to day lives. The competitors sacrifice many things while representing their countries, which should be respected as we watch them battle from our couches.
Noteworthy quote from B. Miller (USA – 5th) on what defines a good skier, “Their ability to make really good decisions really quickly.”
The Americans both looked like they had clean runs. The broadcasters were pretty much blaming the disappointment of their results on equipment, specifically skis, a controversy no doubt in the making. The same announcers had also written off the last racer and all but handed M. Walchoffer (AUT 2nd – World Cup Point leader) the Gold Medal. Turned out the underdog from France was the real show stopper. A. Deneriaz posted the fastest time of the day and forever earned his place in both Ski and Olympic history. He also now has a new piece of jewelry.
There are many more Skiing and Snowboarding events still to come. Check out this link to NBC for the schedule. Go USA!
another look at Stowe from the top of Nose Dive, taken 02/12/06

That Blizzard was awesome! I love the severe weather. I was actually very glad to be at home in Boston for the event—the alternative, pulled over somewhere on 93 with the hazard lights on in a whiteout. Granted, I would rather be shoveling at a house near a ski area rather than my back porch, but it was not to be this time. The imagination of what could have been had it hit the mountains leads to better thoughts of storms to come.
There are still plenty of days left for snow this season.
Keep the faith,
Pics ~ S.G.
19 inches on my back porch