A.P.B. - Jay Needs Snow
01.05.04 - The FC staff (equipped with new digital cameras, wide-angle lenses, printers, snowboards, two-way radios, etc.) charged up to Jay Peak to ring in the New Year. We had everything from Grandma’s Lasagna to Theo’s Spanakopita and enough beer to wash down anything in between. Only one problem: no snow. The warming trend over the last week saw periods of fog, rain, and freezing rain effectively ruining the mountain for any off-piste travelers.
The mixed bag of precipitation and warm temperatures have allowed for the creation of oddly placed frozen moguls all over the extensive glade network we call home. The saddle chute is exposed beyond recognition and the ‘machine groomed and frozen granular’ trail surfaces (brought to you by the always updated Jay Peak Jeep Snow phone) are large sheets of ice. Jay Peak regular Jeremy Kamm couldn’t get enough. “You missed out on possibly the fastest conditions you’ll see all year! I was able to get first tracks all day. I would take a couple turns, look back up and sure enough, no tracks. Unbelievable bullet proof.”
Our season has taken a turn for the worse, as do all east coast winters at one point or another. The record breaking 200 inches of December fluff is only a memory (preserved in part by firstchairmag.com) and I worry we took all that snow for granted. However, we have been able to put the time spent off the mountain to good use. Our terrain park has taken shape nicely. The warmer temps allowed for serious construction on Saturday. The take off ramp has doubled in size and a newly built quarter pipe may yield the best jibbing of the season. Once darkness fell, a small photo shoot took place in order to test all of the park’s features. Ideally, some sort of jib-based party should be ready to go off in February. Stay tuned for the party specs and prepare for a back yard jib-jam/huckfest complete with a turkey fry, grilling, and lots of brew. Just bring your boards and your skills. A detailed video tour of the park will be available soon.
As my extended ski weekend came to an end, I was talking to Nick (a long time friend and skier) about our upcoming hut tour in the Adirondacks. At the end of our conversation he gave me some sad news. Regrettably, I do not have all of the details but apparently a young skier was killed this past weekend in the terrain park of Loon Mountain; despite safely choosing to ride with a helmet, it could not prevent his death. Although people are killed skiing worldwide, probably more frequently than less frequently, this tragedy hits closer to home for the staff here at First Chair. We pass Loon Mountain on our way to Jay and have friends with season passes there. We are all attempting new things in the terrain park and Jay Peak could be a real-life pinball machine for anyone unfortunate enough to crash in the trees. This weekend’s accident is an extremely unfortunate by-product of this sport we love.
The horrible news put my personal ski weekend into perspective. Any day you walk away from the mountain is a good day skiing. I spend time complaining about lack of snowfall when I should be thinking of how lucky I am not only knowing how to ski, but to do it regularly with most of my good friends and relatively injury free. We should all take a minute to think of the family and friends of this weekend’s fallen Loon Mountain skier. We should then consider the dangers of skiing (which are its attraction for most of us) and make sure that we treat this sport with the respect it commands. This goes for anyone skiing any mountain, Squaw Valley and Jay Peak included.
~BP
12.07.03 - Over the past 24 hours, the NOAA (www.noaa.gov) weather radio station forecasted 16"-24" of fresh snow for Jay Peak, VT. When we left for the Belfry early Saturday evening the snow was falling at 3" per hour. The anticipation of the following day's powder filled turns sent us to bed early and stoked...
10 Ideas to
Kick the Pre-Season Blues
11.22.03 - Jay Peak may open December 4, 5, or 6. This is what I read on the Jay website today. Last week President Bill told us we could get our boards ready to go right after we finished our turkey dinner, November 28th. And before that, we were promised we could hit the snow on the 22nd. And so goes the waiting game we play every season.
Skiing, more than any other sport, leaves it’s participants waiting for the coveted ‘Opening Day’. From watching the weather channel to bouncing from .com to .com, we attempt to guess when Mother Nature will start up her snowmaking guns...
Tech Tip #1: Pre-Season Tune-Up
11.01.03 - Many skiers and riders drastically underestimate the importance of tuning
their equipment. Maintaining gear not only improves your day on the mountain
but also goes a long way towards prolonging the life of your skis and snowboards.
Dull, rusty edges and dried-out bases cause sacrifices in speed and control,
which are essential to beginners, intermediates, and experts. This first edition
of Tech Tips offers preseason advice for tuning your equipment. I will provide
basic approaches to maintenance and things to keep in mind early in the year,
leaving in-depth tuning advice for later discussions...
Tenney Mountain Opens – October 4th
10.04.03
- Tenney Mountain promised an early opening to the 2003/2004-ski
season and on October 4th, they delivered. Breaking Killington's
41year history of providing the first turns of the east coast
ski season, Tenney hooked up 200 skiers and riders with spring
corn snow. Incorporating
state-of-the-art Japanese snowmaking technology into this mid-
New Hampshire ski mountain, owner-operator Dan Egan built a
terrain park
worthy of the jib scene that converged on it...
FC Magazine Launches Online Winter Home
09.01.03 - As we look past the fall season and start gearing up for another winter, we're excited to announce the launch of our new ski and ride website: 'First Chair - On Line Magazine' (http://www.firstchairmag.com). This site will actively serve as an on-line epicenter of the 2003 East Coast powder movement, which exists at Jay Peak, VT. Our Boston-based ski and ride brain trust developed this site as a definitive resource for a multimedia, interactive destination to prepare for, document, and remember the 03/04-winter season. Full completion is scheduled for Nov. 1st, ideally coinciding with the first turns of the season...