Abbi
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I haven't skied Pico before and it's on my Maxx Pass. Just sayin'! Of course I just looked at the snow report. All open, not half groomed.
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FEAR!
- Thread starter lmbotr825
- Start date
I haven't skied Pico before and it's on my Maxx Pass. Just sayin'! Of course I just looked at the snow report. All open, not half groomed.
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
With these temps plus holiday crowds, I'm actually thinking of heading back to PA a bit earlier than planned. At least it'll be a bit warmer of not just as crowded!
You'd enjoy Suicide Six! It's small and old-school, but there are some fun trails and you don't have a 45-minute drive home from Okemo or Killington.
newboots
Angel Diva
Are you here? ;-)
Abbi
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
During hell week?!!! I'm driving back up on January 2.
newboots
Angel Diva
Be in touch!
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@nopoleskier and @newboots when people in New England make fun of Poconos skiing, I like to say "well, it's not great skiing, but there is a LOT of it" meaning that 7-day-a-week night skiing gets you on the snow literally as often as you want, which is great if you're learning. And normally weeknights are not at all crowded, so it's really the only bearable time to ski if you work during the day.
But yes, it does make the occasional yahoo harder to see coming.
But yes, it does make the occasional yahoo harder to see coming.
marzNC
Angel Diva
Since Pico has been mentioned a few times, for those who haven't been there check out this video from Jan 2015 by the Alba family. Ray and his wife and two kids are from NYC but call Pico home. They do a seasonal rental of a small cabin nearby. As the kids have grown, they started exploring other mountains more.
https://www.albaadventures.com/winter/the-gifts-of-winter-pico-mountain-vt-season-2-ep-6/
I don't know how the crowds are during the holidays, but I certainly enjoyed the day that I checked out Pico. Seems like a good place for an intermediate or someone interested in starting to explore mellow trees.
https://www.albaadventures.com/winter/the-gifts-of-winter-pico-mountain-vt-season-2-ep-6/
I don't know how the crowds are during the holidays, but I certainly enjoyed the day that I checked out Pico. Seems like a good place for an intermediate or someone interested in starting to explore mellow trees.
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I will be at Pico tomorrow; I've been there once before, late last season, and really enjoyed it.
I have a MAX pass, but I want to hold off using the Killington days so that I can use them in the spring when other mountains start to shut down.
I'm secretly hoping that this brutal weather keeps people inside and limits crowds. But of course this is the vacation window, so we'll probably all go out and make the best of it. I predict that conditions at the bar will be mild and pleasant anyway.
nopoleskier
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
this just popped up on my FB page. discounts for Pico.. have fun!
https://www.picomountain.com/site/p...ebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=winter-2018
https://www.picomountain.com/site/p...ebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=winter-2018
newboots
Angel Diva
I really liked Pico, and since I have a Killington season pass, I have a new mountain to ski on all winter. And @SallyCat is as much fun in person as she is here online! And - there was a very gentle slope, and nobody was near me, so I thought I'd try once again to tip my skis and let them do the work. Presto! Just as promised, the skis turned themselves! SallyCat was kind enough to point out my railroad tracks.
New mountain = unfamiliar trails. It was daunting at first, but I was in control, even on scary stuff. (meaning, steep parts of blue trails) I'm beginning to feel like I did at the end of last spring - competent. It's great.
New mountain = unfamiliar trails. It was daunting at first, but I was in control, even on scary stuff. (meaning, steep parts of blue trails) I'm beginning to feel like I did at the end of last spring - competent. It's great.
marzNC
Angel Diva
Sounds like a great day!
One of the basic principles we covered during the mountain bike clinic I did in the fall seems appropriate for skiing as well. Especially at a new mountain. For biking, the terminology is Pre-Ride, Re-Ride, and finally Free Ride. In Pre-Ride, the pace is very slow and can include stopping to walk to take a look at a feature on the trail. During Re-Ride, the pace is very controlled but usually no stopping. By the third time, the pace is as fast as the biker is comfortable with for the given terrain and features.
It can be tempting to want to explore multiple trails the first time at a new mountain. But in the morning there are advantages to repeating a trail that has proven to be fun at least once before moving elsewhere.
newboots
Angel Diva
@marzNC - yes! I think we skied a total of four trails repeatedly - @SallyCat can correct me. All of them were new to me, and the second (or 3rd, 4th) time down was always better. I skied Monday and yesterday, too, so my legs turned to jelly by 2 pm and I had to quit. Lucky I did, since climbing up the stairs at home was extremely hard!
Pico seemed to have plenty of business, unsurprising because of the holidays. Perhaps the cold kept the really big crowds away. I took SallyCat's lead in stopping to wait for other skiers and riders to go by, which helped diminish the fear, too. Bad enough worrying about your own skills, without being scared of the little torpedoes behind you.
Pico seemed to have plenty of business, unsurprising because of the holidays. Perhaps the cold kept the really big crowds away. I took SallyCat's lead in stopping to wait for other skiers and riders to go by, which helped diminish the fear, too. Bad enough worrying about your own skills, without being scared of the little torpedoes behind you.
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I honestly had no idea you were anxious today! You seemed very confident and skied very well: poised and in control.
newboots
Angel Diva
Aww, geez! You're so kind! I think beginning to intermediate skiing is a roller coaster. The narrative in my brain goes something like this:
Here we go, look at that nice turn SallyCat is making. Turn uphill a little. WHOOOOA - whew! [sharp skidding]. Okay, down the hill, keep hands forward, lean forward, remember the femurs, WHOOOOOA! WHOA! WHOA! Whew. Okay, down the hill. Femurs! This is fun! WHOOOOA! [etc.]
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Completely agree.* If you want to get good at mountain biking, it helps to spend a lot of time just messing around on the bike. The fancy term I guess is "sessioning." Boys do this without a thought--track stands, jumping curbs, doing wheelies, etc.-- that sort of thing is less common for girls in my experience. So when women take up the sport later in life, I think it often doesn't occur to us to just goof around for two hours in the driveway or on one section of trail or feature. But that builds balance and confidence.
I spend a fair bit of time trying to learn to ski backward, hitting little jumps and going through the baby terrain park for the same reason. Fore-aft balance and flat-to-edge control--I can't imagine the goofing off wouldn't help with that. I mean, if you hit a jump or a box leaning back, you definitely get instant "feedback."
Plus it's a nice change of pace when the main trails get scraped off.
*Killington's bike park is a fantastic place to learn. The trails offer a very even progression in difficulty and they are really fun to do over and over.
kiki
Angel Diva
Oooh, so jealous!!
