Tag Archive for: Mt. Rose

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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To some extent, skiing is a fashion statement. Current trends have an impact in what we wear, the equipment we purchase, and the way we ski. 

Over the past several seasons, I’ve noticed skiers taking run-after-run using the same high speed, up-on-their-edges, race turns. It reminds me of the 60s when people were wedeling straight down the hill, or the 70s when extreme bump skiing was the rage.

Good technique is the foundation upon which we develop a well-rounded repertoire of turns; one than can evolve into your own skiing style.

I know two people who raced in college and continued to use race techniques whenever and wherever they skied. I never learned to race and admire those who have. But the need to be first to the bottom, regardless of terrain, can lead to disaster. Both had serious breaks.  

Skiing is not a one-turn-fits-all sport. Endless terrain and condition changes require us to draw from a repertoire of moves. 

Age and physical limitations are changing the way I ski. But when I’m in the groove, each run becomes a form of personal expression: Mixing short and wide turns. Playing with the fall line. Slowly descending a cascade of bumps. Entering powder for a few weightless turns.

It’s not skiing to a template or keeping up or showing off. It is personal choreography, and it feels very good.

Jon in an undated photo with more hair and less waist.

 

It Wouldn’t Hurt to Take a Lesson

That’s the title of Jackson Hogen’s most recent Realskiers.com Revelation (click here to access). He builds a strong case for improving skiing skills in order to move beyond your comfort zone.

Vermont Boomerangs Back

Following a devastating January thaw, Vermont areas had an outstanding MLK weekend. A Ski Vermont news release reported that on Sunday, Sugarbush had the biggest day in its 61-year history and Jay Peak’s 600 room capacity was 100% sold out. Some of the mountains got about 2’ and temps dropped to form ideal snow-making conditions.

Alta’s New Website

Alta’s New Website

One of the many wonderful things about Alta is that when it makes a rare change, it does so thoughtfully. The classic Utah ski resort just introduced a new web design featuring simplified navigation, an improved mobile experience and interactive weather features. Some of the old features such as Photo of the Day remain. Click here to visit.

Mt Rose (NV): Free Lessons for 50+

Mt Rose on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe offers Silver Ski Clinics designed for experienced skiers ages 50 and older at skill levels of lower-intermediate to advanced. The Monday and Friday clinics are free to season pass holders or $25 with lift tickets. Click here for details.

Aussie Crosses Antarctica on Skis

Dr Geoff Wilson Source: Facebook

Australian adventurer, Dr. Geoff Wilson, 49, skied 3,300 miles across Antarctica in 58 days. He used a kite and a sled in the historic trek, completing the journey with five weeks of rations remaining.

New Utah Training Facility

Utah Olympic Park at Kimball Junction in Park City opened the Mountain Expansion, a training facility for the state’s ski and snowboard teams. It features 5 alpine training lanes, a mogul lane, expanded terrain for freeski and board athletes, 11 acres of lighted terrain, high-efficiency snowmaking and a fixed grip quad. The facility is expected to expand in coming years.

A Different Hand Warmer Perspective

Last week, I advised placing hand warmers on top of the hands. That, on the advice of a ski shop sales person who told me that heating the hand’s blood supply would help warm the fingers. Nice concept but wrong anatomy lesson. The superficial veins on top of our hands carries blood back to the heart. Thanks to SeniorsSkiing.com subscriber, Roger Skugrud, for making the correction. A resident of frigid Minnesota, he advises positioning warmers in the palms where they’ll warm the blood feeding the hand and allow you to grasp the warmth when riding the lift.

New Pocket Instruction Guide

Bill Hernon’s Modern “A” Frame Ski Technique is a 45-page, small format paperback describing an approach to skiing based on a variety of “A” shapes. It is short and to the point and an interesting approach for self-learners. The book covers basic turns, skiing powder, bumps and Telemark turns. The author also recommends professional instruction. Click here to learn more and/or to purchase.

 

seniorsskiing

This Week In SeniorsSkiing.com (January 15)

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Finally Snow In The Sierra, Mt. Rose and The Chutes, Road Scholar Report, Product Ideas, Action Camera Reviews and All About Nordic Ski Binding Choices.

You can't see it but these folks are smiling as they skip to the lifts at Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows

You can’t see it but these folks are smiling as they skip to the lifts at Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows.

Thankfully this week, the snow began to fall and the temperature dip in the Northeast.  New England snow machines are making the “cold gold” and snow sport seniors are in full swing.  Meanwhile, the West has been experiencing huge dumps of snow.  Our San Francisco-based correspondent Rose Marie Cleese brings us news of the very happily snow-covered Sierras in her round-up of resort snow conditions.

Gate to a chute on Mt. Rose, double-black, steep, and fun. Credit: Pat McCloskey

Gate to the Chutes at Mt. Rose. Steepness ahead. Credit: Pat McCloskey

In another in our series of SeniorsSkiing Guides, our new contributor Pat McCloskey recounts his first trip to Mt. Rose with its challenging Chute collection of steeps. Find out how seniors can economize on the price of a day ticket.

Correspondent Steve Hines is an avid outdoorsman, Wilderness First Responder and knowledgeable REI staff person.  For seniors who are contemplating starting or returning to Nordic skiing, Steve outlines the basic kinds of bindings currently on the market and rates them in terms of “ease of use.”

SLC-based Jan Brunvand recollects his experience with ElderHostel, now Roads Scholar.  There are several different learn-and-ski Alpine and Nordic Road Scholar trips available; the groups are small, the prices reasonable and the friendship fast and firm.  Check out his past trips with the group, and, if you’ve been on one of these, tell us about it.

SeniorsSkiing.com regular correspondent Harriet Wallis was at the OR (Outdoor Retail) Show in SLC last week and scoured the floor for interesting and useful products for seniors.  She collected five good product ideas for you to contemplate.  Here’s her on-the-scene report.

Finally, we had a chance to review the TomTom Bandit action camera, the newest entry in the “stick on your helmet” field.  It has excellent optics and a cool “shake-and-edit” feature that allows you to create an instant video ready for sending to friends and family via cyberspace.

Watch Out For Our Subscriber’s Survey

You can expect to see our Second Annual Subscriber Survey to appear in your inbox shortly after you receive this week’s issue of SeniorsSkiing.com.  This year, we’re offering a few incentives for you to complete this short (five minutes, honest) survey.  Last year, we had an incredible 50 percent response rate.  Come on, guys and gals, let’s hear from you.

Pat McCloskey

SeniorsSkiing Guide: Mt. Rose and The Chutes

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Tahoe Area Has A Big Surprise For An Eastern Newbie.

Gate to a chute on Mt. Rose, double-black, steep, and fun. Credit: Pat McCloskey

Gate to a chute on Mt. Rose, double-black, steep, and fun.
Credit: Pat McCloskey

For many years, I drove up the Mt. Rose Highway out of Reno and passed the Mt. Rose Ski Area on my way to Incline Village, Nevada. It seems like Mt. Rose has been a favorite of the Reno locals for years and when I finally skied it a couple of years ago for the first time, I was pleasantly surprised. It has become a regular stop on my ski trips to the Tahoe region in Nevada.

Lift To Lot Access 

Personally, I like areas where you can drive into the parking lot, put on your boots, walk a couple of hundred feet and get on the lift. You can do that at Rose.

Snow and Terrain

The area has a nice family feel to it. Great groomers to warm up with and then you can make your way to a series of lift-serviced chutes aptly named, “The Chutes”. This skiing is not for the faint of heart and if you can’t make quick turns on some pretty steep vertical, you really should not pass through the gates. Every year I go there, it is the first wake up call for me that I am once again out West on non- groomed steep terrain where you better be paying attention. If we are fortunate enough to have powder conditions, The Chutes are wonderful. They are steep enough that you have to view the snow report and make sure that the avalanche conditions are in check. Not often do you get steep terrain like this inside the boundaries of a ski area.

Culture

The Mt. Rose chutes from a distance. Credit: Pat McCloskey

The Mt. Rose chutes from a distance.
Credit: Pat McCloskey

One day, a few years back, we saw a group of guys with baggy clothes and full-face helmets blasting down the Chutes howling and laughing and having a great time. We saw them at lunch in the lodge and when they took off their helmets, there were gray beards and gray hairs everywhere. I introduced myself and remarked that we thought they were a bunch of kids with their garb and how well they skied. They appreciated the comments and said that they have been skiing together since they were 16 years old. These guys were all in their 60s. They motocross together all summer. Great bunch of guys who have called Rose their winter home for close to 50 years. Similar groups like these are common at Rose especially the retired set from Reno who only travel 25 minutes to the ski area.

Bottom Line

Mt. Rose has special Silver Ski Clinics designed for wiser, more experienced skiers ages 50 and older who are at skill level of lower intermediate to advanced, interested in the newer movement patterns used with shaped skis and/or improving their skiing technique. That’s on Fridays and Mondays in the morning for $25 plus the price of a lift ticket.

Mt Rose also has other specials if you look for them. The standard $104.00 day ticket ($94 if you buy online) is not the only option. Midweek specials include Two Fer Tuesdays ($104.00 for two adult tickets), and Ladies Day Thursdays ($29.00 per adult ticket), great pre-season pass rates and a $20 shuttle from Reno. Check the web site for specials and more information.