sports-girl-
Diva in Training
Are un-groomed blue squares in any way similar to groomed black diamonds. What do you guys think?
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Question: un-groomed blues and groomed black
- Thread starter sports-girl-
- Start date
sports-girl-
Diva in Training
I'm wondering about the easier black diamonds being compared to the harder blue squares? Or no.....
nopoleskier
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
?? skiing anything ungroomed to me is totally different than groomed.
Sometimes (early mornings east coast) Ungroomed Greens can be more difficult than a steep groomed black (all the frozen yester-gack is hard to turn on- been there done that)
ALSO Black trails on each Mt are "Most difficult to that Mountain" All black trails are NOT The same.. depending where you are skiing is a major factor.. for instance there are 3 Green trails at the top of Sun Valley they are steeper than Many Black trails at smaller Eastern Mts (Even some of the bigger Mts)
Where do you ski.. If you mention the MT perhaps other locals to that Mt can compare to blues you are skiing well?
Sometimes (early mornings east coast) Ungroomed Greens can be more difficult than a steep groomed black (all the frozen yester-gack is hard to turn on- been there done that)
ALSO Black trails on each Mt are "Most difficult to that Mountain" All black trails are NOT The same.. depending where you are skiing is a major factor.. for instance there are 3 Green trails at the top of Sun Valley they are steeper than Many Black trails at smaller Eastern Mts (Even some of the bigger Mts)
Where do you ski.. If you mention the MT perhaps other locals to that Mt can compare to blues you are skiing well?
sports-girl-
Diva in Training
I skied at Sierra-at-Tahoe yesterday. I went most of West Bowl area. Powderhouse, a blue square, was very steep and powdery. I believe it was groomed, but by the time I went down it, it was late in the day. Maybe 3:00 pm. And it was not as nice as it was earlier in the day.
sports-girl-
Diva in Training
Searched it up, if you didn't already know, yester is referring to yesterday, and back can mean is disgust. Maybe it means the ungroomed icy-slushy snow from the day before... just a guess. but it doesn't need much explanation i guess, because you can already make a guess of what it means.
sports-girl-
Diva in Training
sorry, gack*
sports-girl-
Diva in Training
thx.. just wondering
sports-girl-
Diva in Training
sorry, this makes no sense.....
bounceswoosh
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
nopoleskier
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Sports girl needs the Tahoe Divas to compare trails-
LOL Yes I do have terminology that is not 'the norm"
Since you skied a Steep blue early then after it was skied out you do know what you like and don't like and what you are comfortable skiing.. that said if you have any short black trails or blacks that you can escape off of via side road (if too hard) perhaps try one of the those early in the day when the trail is pristine. and you can always side slip or side step down any terrain you are not comfortable skiing.. Don't get hurt!
Personally I love steep groomed trails, I Would rather ski that than a bumped up blue (my old knees)
And the amount of fresh snow on a trail makes a difference. Yesterday at Jay the Blacks became Double blacks by Noon (5-8 New wet Snow)so what was groomed w/new on top became major bump runs and since steep I would say became Dbl Blacks.. and like wise by noon the Blues were Black..
LOL Yes I do have terminology that is not 'the norm"
Since you skied a Steep blue early then after it was skied out you do know what you like and don't like and what you are comfortable skiing.. that said if you have any short black trails or blacks that you can escape off of via side road (if too hard) perhaps try one of the those early in the day when the trail is pristine. and you can always side slip or side step down any terrain you are not comfortable skiing.. Don't get hurt!
Personally I love steep groomed trails, I Would rather ski that than a bumped up blue (my old knees)
And the amount of fresh snow on a trail makes a difference. Yesterday at Jay the Blacks became Double blacks by Noon (5-8 New wet Snow)so what was groomed w/new on top became major bump runs and since steep I would say became Dbl Blacks.. and like wise by noon the Blues were Black..
vanhoskier
Angel Diva
Albertan ski girl
Angel Diva
I think even ungroomed conditions can very greatly - i think it's hard to generalize and say that ungroomed makes a run harder. Sometimes it makes me easier. For example, I first tried steeper blacks here on powder days because I knew that the extra snow would slow me down. So a super steep black I would have been afraid of then became accessible to me. So, yes, ungroomed can be harder - getting used to powder, chop, big bumps. But all of those things can also open up new terrain to advancing skiers, so I think it's hard to generalize. When I'm at a new (or even old) mountain, I find it's best to just chat with locals and ask what they think of certain runs...they often offer very insightful advice.
Terrain that starts out groomed on a powder day can develop bumps by the end of the day due to traffic. Groomed doesn't mean the snow is packed down. Rather, the snow is planed so that the surface is uniform. So, if it's snowing or the snow is substantial and soft, mounds will form during the day because people are skiing, turning, and pushing the snow around, giving previously groomed terrain an ungroomed feel.
You'll often see this happening at the bottom of a mountain on a powder day where people funnel in. Yes, the easier runs were groomed yesterday and then snow fell on them, but after about 20 people have skied on the same run, it looks like hasn't been groomed in days.
Although, I don't think this answered the question. I'd say in general, at a particular resort in Tahoe, the black diamonds are either all steeper than the blue squares OR, if the trail is not steeper, it leads to terrain that is only expert terrain. Whether a skier finds groomed or ungroomed easier depends on, well, flaws and inefficiencies in one's own skiing.
You'll often see this happening at the bottom of a mountain on a powder day where people funnel in. Yes, the easier runs were groomed yesterday and then snow fell on them, but after about 20 people have skied on the same run, it looks like hasn't been groomed in days.
Although, I don't think this answered the question. I'd say in general, at a particular resort in Tahoe, the black diamonds are either all steeper than the blue squares OR, if the trail is not steeper, it leads to terrain that is only expert terrain. Whether a skier finds groomed or ungroomed easier depends on, well, flaws and inefficiencies in one's own skiing.
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santacruz skier
Angel Diva
So you take a "blue" run and it snows a foot and many skiers are skiing down it. By the afternoon it can be more difficult than a groomed black. Personally I don't always care for groomed blacks. I find ungroomed blacks that haven't been skied to death more fun and sometimes easier ...
Sierra at Tahoe rates runs pretty right on. Like they have that long 3 mile green run that might be more than a green but pretty easy. The West Bowl is mostly blue runs that are to me an average blue run. For instance, Heavenly's Nevada side has easier blues than the California side. But Mott Canyon at Heavenly is a pretty decent double black. So decent I've only skied it a few times as I prefer steep blacks with some bumps rather than steep double blacks with bumps. Gun barrel is rated double black I think but with soft snow is not a double black. It can be quite fun. It's all relative and depends on conditions. One thing I have seen at Heavenly and Squaw is a "blue" run that has a sign "advanced skiers only" because the conditions change the run from a blue to a black. It scares people away but sometimes rocks showing and limited snow coverage mean you have to know how to get around obstacles so therefore no longer blue.
Northstar has easy blues IMHO and easy blacks.... @DRG would probably agree BUT Lookout Mtn blues could scare an intermediate skier. And the blacks are pretty steep like Stampede and Boca because after a foot of snow all chopped up, not so easy to get down. Skied Prosser Tuesday (black on Lookout Mtn) in a foot of tracked up snow on the Sambas. Got down fine but not always pretty.
So no 2 blues or blacks are alike.
Sierra at Tahoe rates runs pretty right on. Like they have that long 3 mile green run that might be more than a green but pretty easy. The West Bowl is mostly blue runs that are to me an average blue run. For instance, Heavenly's Nevada side has easier blues than the California side. But Mott Canyon at Heavenly is a pretty decent double black. So decent I've only skied it a few times as I prefer steep blacks with some bumps rather than steep double blacks with bumps. Gun barrel is rated double black I think but with soft snow is not a double black. It can be quite fun. It's all relative and depends on conditions. One thing I have seen at Heavenly and Squaw is a "blue" run that has a sign "advanced skiers only" because the conditions change the run from a blue to a black. It scares people away but sometimes rocks showing and limited snow coverage mean you have to know how to get around obstacles so therefore no longer blue.
Northstar has easy blues IMHO and easy blacks.... @DRG would probably agree BUT Lookout Mtn blues could scare an intermediate skier. And the blacks are pretty steep like Stampede and Boca because after a foot of snow all chopped up, not so easy to get down. Skied Prosser Tuesday (black on Lookout Mtn) in a foot of tracked up snow on the Sambas. Got down fine but not always pretty.
So no 2 blues or blacks are alike.
BethL
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I like blue bump bump runs (ungroomed) way better than steep groomed black runs. I do not like going too fast, and bumps give me an excuse to go slower. I might even like black bump runs better than groomed black runs, as long as the bumps are nice and powdery and not icy. I'm a CO skier.
santacruz skier
Angel Diva
Yeah because we can - I usually don't gravitate towards groomed runs unless I'm feeling like cruising....but IMHO ungroomed blacks are more fun than groomed blacks. Most of the time. Last season our only choice in Tahoe was mostly groomed runs with snowmaking but not this season.... It's good to diversify. If you only ski groomed runs, what happens when it snows and gets tracked up?
