Great thread. Kudos to the OP!
I ski mostly mid-Atlantic so my options are very limited. We had no bumps at all last season due to lack of snow, but I got to polish my pouring-rain-technique to perfection. Probably the most instructive few days I had consisted of executing "forced" turns to avoid the mud patches in Snowshoe, WV.
Fortunately,
@marzNC and I share a great instructor at our home hill who has the skill and desire to show anyone how to learn and have fun in literally any condition. I skied a lot of slush and man-made ice w/him last year and actually learned oodles.
The one condition I truly HATE ---- that sticky man-made snow that stops you cold in your tracks. So, so dangerous. When it gets sticky I go in and maybe try again a bit later if the temp or humidity changes.
Re preferred conditions/terrain? I'll take whatever I can get. I love skiing out west, and even a bad snow year in CO or UT would be considered exceptional in the mid-Atlantic. I don't have a lot of experience in powder, so on serious powder days, I usually fork over the $$$ for a lesson. It has always been worth it and it gets me skiing terrain I wouldn't otherwise venture into on my own.
I enjoy blue and black groomers but I find that I get the most satisfaction from linking 3 or 4 good turns on a black bump run. It is an amazing day when I don't have to slow and regroup after a few turns, but that doesn't happen often enough (yet). I just don't get the opportunity to practice bumps at home. Drills are great and I dedicate hours to pivot slips, etc. but, unfortunately, drills can't teach you how to pick a line. I'm an inveterate turn shopper in the bumps. One great tip I learned in a bumps clinic a few years ago, however, was "never stop." It is fine to slow, do a falling leaf to reorient, or traverse a bump or two, but never come to a full stop. I loved that advice.
I have 3 trips planned this season: (i) Snowshoe WV in January (ii) Steamboat in February, and (iii) Revelstoke, BC in March. All 3 are six days of skiing. The remainder of my season will be local, so I'm praying to the weather gods.
but believe it or not, they all ski very differently and have their purpose! Those katanas have zero float but they destroy crud!
