Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Gone 'Til November?

Sunday was one of those days we all need more of. Sleeping with the windows open left me feeling amazingly refreshed in the morning when I woke up sans alarm. Then I looked at the clock and it was only 6. Ben, my ride to the mountain, wouldn't get here 'til 8. Another hour and a half snooze and I was taking that so familiar trip down 26. This time we cut out early and headed up the Timberline road, seeing as it's the only resort that's still open. We were greeted by the mountain in all her glory as we pulled into the lot.

Beautiful day (likewise for the shirt and 'stache?) B-Tru photo

It was a hot one. The 7am report said 50° and I wouldn't doubt 70° by the afternoon. The conditions matched, getting softer and then slushier as the day progressed.

Yeah, she skied in that, too. B-Tru on the guerrilla photo

A parking lot full of cars didn't bode well, but it turned out to be a lot of climbers. So many, in fact, that it was harmfully crowded. We witnessed a heli evacuation of one who had something fall from above and go right through his helmet. I forget whether it was ice or a crampon.

The riding was actually pretty fun. The natural features are still there and Timberline knows how to build a park. Unfortunately, most of their man-made features are beyond my skill level. One thing I was pleasantly surprised by was their mini-pipe. I'm no halfpipe rider, but when I made a run through this scaled-down tube (but still with vert), I realized why people like it. Something about starting out on an 18-footer is just counter-productive to fun. If the first jump or cliff I ever had to hit was a pro-sized 80 feet, I probably wouldn't do those either. Just another thing Meadows could learn from Timberline on the park front.

OK, the windows are down now, Ben.
(Check the Oakley-down-the-leg pants!)

After a trip back to the car for a rub-on wax job we made our final foray. We soaked in the clear view from the top of Palmer. We hiked a particularly fun hip (pictured above). We poked fun at the clothes people wear on such hot days at the mountain (pictured farther above). We turned shades of red reminiscent of Rush's face mid-rant. And I didn't even need to use my AK. Well, you know the rest. Still not sure whether I'll get another day in, but if that was the final chapter, I'm OK with it. Fun, friends, ridiculous moustache, sun, Hawaiian shirt; who could ask for more?


  1. cool. i've been thinking about a Hood trip only to ride pipe. we never had a pipe this year up at Snoqualmie--so im jonesn'

  2. Timberline knows how to build a park? Lies, all lies!! Hahaha. My bf and I went in March, he told me many great things about Hood (I've never been, he's only been in the summers), so we got there... Govy was a ghost town lol. And there was no park. :( FUN FUN FUN natural terrian though!! They did have like 3 boxes set up though,but they didn't open them until our last day we rode T-Line. The pipe you hit, was it actually built or was it a natural pipe? There was one, like a gulley, by the jumps when I went, and it was so damn fun!

  3. Drex, the superpipe is super and the mini pipe is even better in my opinion. In the immortal words of Rod Roddy, come on down.
    Lauren, I'm confused. Unless they had the parks shut down for a high school contest or they just got dumped on (in which case you should be riding natural terrain anyway =) they should be hard to miss. The pipe I wrote about was machine cut, but the natural ones are far more fun. Govy is pretty quiet generally. I mean the whole town is smaller than some of your Colorado base areas. Summertime it's a whole different popsicle stand.