The snow today was unbelieveable -- was like skiing on silk, even on the catwalks! After yesterday's rather disappointing conditions, today turned out to be a great powder day: not exactly 15:1 "Champagne snow", but maybe 10-12:1 powder, definitely soft and fluffy enough. After getting another 5" or so last night, it was a perfect depth; I used my Sheeva 9's, and I absolutely loved how they performed. While I could have possibly used my 107mm Backlands firts thing in the AM, the Sheeva's did a good job in the powder, and I was glad I had them as soon as the snow started getting tracked up and the bumps started forming. It was a little colder than expected before lunch, d/t the low clouds covering everything, and the front side was pretty windy, but I headed right for the back side (Lift 4 opened at 10), and the trees surrounding all the trails completely broke the wind and made the conditions excellent. Then, after around noon, the sun started breaking thru, the clouds lifted off the ground, and the afternoon was perfect!
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Today's Ridge-A-Thon participants, starting out (upper right, starting to hike): they lapped the hike-to terrain to raise donations for the Emergency Medicine Fund @ Taos Community Foundation.
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Among the first tracks on Maxie's, looking uphill...
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...and downhill
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Bumps were hard to find in the morning -- these are the "bumps" on Shalako!
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In the Shalako bump field -- no pole-planting here!
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Here is the Japanese Flag Glade bump field.
After lunch the bumps started forming again, and I had a great time trying to hit as many soft bump fields as my little legs could bear! I managed to get to Shalako, Japanese Flag Glade, Tell Glade, Topa Papa and Papa Bear, Mucho Gusto, Maxie's, and Bambi. Not to mention all the unnamed bumps that sprang up everywhere. I'm hoping tomorrow will be really nice, too, as the sun will be out more, and it will be warmer.