Kirkwood 2007-08
Sierra Cement Slay Session – 05/26/08
Date:
May 26th, 2008
Location:
Kirkwood, California (closed for about a month)
Weather:
With a temp of 34 F, 18" new of glorious Californian Sierra Cement, flat light, no sun, no sky, fog, mist, snow, and plenty of free parking.
Skinning Social Club
666, gimpy, Sierra Cement, Zippy, Buddy, AKbruin, & Ottime
Soul Capturers:
666, Zippy, & Sierra Cement
Electronic Music: Ellen Allien & Apparat – ‘Way Out’
Synopsis: Late Season Freshies
Well, its snowing at the end of May. Maybe not as blower as say…er…Snowbird as of late, but its a decent amount of snow nonetheless. Even before the storm, Kirkwood had top to bottom coverage. Therefore, after a report that Sierra Cement and Gimpy found around 12" of fluffiness on Saturday, we figured a resort skinning slay session was in order for the national holiday…the holiday that marks the ‘start’ of summer.
Here’s photographic evidence of the Saturday powder from a local ski paparazzi…
On mid-day Sunday, the Mrs. and I decided to roll up "to the snow." And snowing it was on Echo Summit….
Monday morning, Sierra Cement put chains on all his four tires, and we carpooled to Kirkwood…
Hope Valley showcased the snow level from the previous night…
More colors this time of year….
We came early so we were guaranteed to beat the….uh…crowds….
Zippy is SO ready to Skin up the Wall….
Skinning from the tailgate…not too shabby…
Zippy stops to up the volume on his cassette Walkman…
No, its not San Francisco….
At this point, I think I heard Buddy laughing….
At the summit, Sierra Cement shows what he has learned from his new muscle dvd’s…
Zippy collapsed out of sheer enlightenment…
Sierra Cement checks to see if anyone is home…
He found Zippy waiting to download…
Bull wheel steeze…
Can you send up the mechanic, I think the power is out
The mechanic showed up, but he didn’t resolve any issues…
Once the mechanic was airlifted to the local hospital, 666 de-skinned…
Akbruin showed up to see what all the commotion was about…
He arrived to see this….
Got to give him credit for line choice….
Once we were re-hydrated…it was time to SLAY!
Zippy cranks the bass….
…as usual, takes flight…
ANGLE #2!
…and watches all his uphill effort whiz by…
Gimpy & Buddy drop into TeH WaLL….
Neck deep for Buddy!
Sierra Cement skis steeps by braille with ease…
I think he’s down there…..
‘Gimpy, you want to see a guy flail like there’s no tomorrow? I think 666 is on his way down…’
Skier666 wearing Black & White lenses….
Zippy starts fishing for a face shot…
Well, he got one…
Sierra Cement says he can do better….
Gimpy glides through the glades….
Zippy is having a GOOD time….
BLoW3r?
Gimpy is a seasoned slayer…
666 is another story…
Sierra Cement shows why 112mm underfoot was his pick for the day…
Huh, what? The lifts are on wind-hold?
Zippy exhumes his demons….
666 shows the cross….
Zippy has a leap of faith….
666 ruins this face for everyone else…
Zippy slutting…
At least he’s a promising young skier….heh
YAY! BUCKBOARD!!!!!!
Buddy GS’ing…..
Sierra Cement helps set the foundation for next season….
No comment….
On the way home, our favorite homeowner off of Ridge Road displayed some new statues….uhhhhhhhhhhhhh…..
EPIC!
Long Live Ludicrous Long Board Day – Kirkwoodin’ 04/26/08
Date:
April 26th, 2008
Location:
Kirkwood, California – the metropolis of springtime mountain enjoyment
Weather:
BLUEBIRD, NO WIND, 60F!
The Dedicated to the LONG!:
666, Tyrone Shoelaces, Seanyob, Spats, Gerome, Ottime, Snowranger, Slim, Mrs. Slim, hop, AKbruin, Dhelihker, Madturtle, Deutschmark, Boobarella, powdork, snow7…and others.
Point and Shoot Warriors:
666, hop, seanyob, slim, Mrs. Slim, Spats, Deutschmark, powdork, etc….
DnB Music: Herbie Hancock – Rock it
Synopsis: OMFG, the RADNESS!
ThIs IS hOw LonG bOArd DaY iz Done!!!!!
Teaser vid by Gerome….
Hop’s Norcal lair is located on the other side of this bridge…
We make it to Folsom on a quarter of a tank….barely.
At a secret location in Slim’s house, the 250cm’s get alpine 20 din binderz…
Does it really say 250? OMFG!
The Dynamics are 223cm…
The rack is loaded with candy for the children of the corn….
Won’t be calm for long….
Tallac looking tasty…
Holy shit!
Caltrans helped out with the crowds…
These things have no edges…long live TeH MetAL!
hop mute…
Deutschmark et al…
You have got to be kidding…
This was hard to do…
Scared isn’t the right word…
Yep, its a Spats non-finger-real-hair mustache..
SLIM…on 223s
Tyrone is on 240s….
Spats…
Snow7 made an appearance…
Tyrone carving the 240s….
Snowranger was my favorite of the day…you’ll see why.
666 can barely ski these damn 250s…its just dumb.
Retro to the extreme…
Fake hair…
Real hair…
‘yes, that is correct, a 10 year life insurance policy please’
Screw the piste….we’re taking it OFF PISTE!
666 says ‘Fuck it’
hop getting hella crazy on the 217 derby-teles…
Ok, so this was the highlight of the day…
Thank god Powdork got this…
Snowranger is one hell of a trooper…
It was one of the best falls EVER!
Deutschmark with a License to Thrill…
Spats is determined….
Oh hell yes!
Slim actually skis better on 223s…..
See, you can carve on 250s without edges…
AKbruin showing his mad skillz today…on 215s
Powdork was using skis from the 1800s….yep, they didn’t last long.
Spats getting the usual LBD Air…
AKbruin looking sexy…
hop is just hot!
Snowranger…
Seanyob kicking some ass on the 222s…
Tyrone rolls into the fingers….
…on 240s
OMG…
Long Board Day is such a dumb idea,,,
Snowranger is just out of hand I tell you….
hop hoppin’
Akbruin straightlinin’
Madturtle getting mad…
666 scared…
250 steeze (these things weigh around 200lbs)
Time for drinky drink…
Seanyob wants to hit the Cirque…
Table steeze…
Ah so cute…
Not so cute…
‘yes Tyrone, hop’s hair is real’
…but some other things are not.
Time for some EpiCne55 on the groomers…
Skiing on 250s…
Skiing on 240s…
Slim slaying…
Mrs Slim carving…
Snow7 laying down a finger…
Seanyob loves the ValdezXtremes….
Madturtle…still mad
hop bends at the toe….
Deutschmark inflating….
What the hell?
Did I mention that these things are super stiff?
Gerome transforms….
Kills some winter snow on the Wall…
…then airs between two bananas
Slim slims through a slot…
STEEP!
Well done sir…
AKbruin is a damn fine skier….
hop is ok at tele’ing on DH boards…
Tyrone loves dropping in with 240s….
hop in a pickle…
Slim skiing….
Tyrone tearing…all the cartilage in his body
Gerome is going ape wild…
666 wishing he was on 222s…
Jesus….those skis!
666 on the 215s gets crazy…
hop acts like a bunny…
Critter lineup…
Deutschmark flying…
Tyrone is getting comfortable…
So is Slim….
But it soon goes to his head….
Hey, its Glen Plake!
AKbruin again…
Dhelihker makes an appearance….
Ottime finally gets photographed…
Madturtle….yep, still mad at turtles
Tyrone goes for another one…
Snowranger is TeH radical…
Gerome is TeH MonKey…
hop is TeH Non-hippy-hippy…
Slim sours…
Hop is horrible…
Madturtle…mad at yep, turtles.
Tyrone in the air….
Ottime, like he just don’t care…
Deutschmark making his fanny pack mark…
Seanyob….sucks at jumping
666 360…
Seayob is a tool….
Ottime earning his wings…
AKbruin takes the 250s for a spin…
hop does the cockroach…
Gerome…monkeying around the haunted rock.
I think our day is complete…
Cirque needs to be open to the public, and it is because KW is closed!
Full circle in 24 hours…
Harnessing Hardpack of the Hellions – 03/08/08
Date:
March 8th, 2008
Location:
Fermented Firmpack, Tahoe, CA, Sidecountry, USA
Weather:
40′s on the Fahrenheit scale, sun, and moderate breeze on the ridges.
Hellions:
666, Zippy, Slim, Jrosen32, Mishap, Greydon Clark, Walter Sobchak, Steve from Boulder, MomentSkiEO, dookey67, Corky, Papa Skimoore, and others…
Still Slayage:
666, Zippy, and Jrosen32
<actual camera used>
Music: DJ FEXOMAT – "SLAYER tribute mix" (right click, save target as)
http://nsf.dnb-music.com/sounds/Fexo…TributeMix.mp3
Video: Courtesy of Mishap
Synopsis: Hardpack
Two weeks, and no snow. Warm weather, and no fluffly flow. Time to hit the sidecountry and see what’s happening on the northern aspects. Oh, and amazing early morning groomers. I’m still in awe that a ski 112mm underfoot can carve so well, but I digress.
WELCOME TO THE TERRORDOME:
A few things to do before departure…I guess we’ve hit that $4 threshold.
Cruised to Whole Wallet for a $32 burrito for the drive. Thank god for cellphone cameras, or you would have never believed me that I saw our finest president to date shopping for white asparagus…
Who knew 25 mph could look so fast…
I took my Segway to Kirkwood, and yep, it handles turns like a dream…
Papa Skimoore and I scored perfect corduroy due to our early arrival…
Jrosen32 gets some pockets of winter in Lower Cirque…
Zippy goes EXTREME SKIING!
By looking at the old tracks, I wonder who has been hitting this line everyday?
Zippy GOES FOR IT!
0 points for taking the same line….
Get ready for a fast exit…
Mishap SKIING THE THUNDER and RIDING THE LIGHTNING…
Greydon Clark came all the way from Seattle to make this turn…
Leaving the resort behind, the group starts walking toward Mammoth…
But first, we must make it to that hotel up on the ridge…
I think they’d rather build robots…sorry for promoting exercise <sigh>
Zippy waits for the ski shop to open to buy some sunscreen…
Here is a pic of Mt. Rose that I failed to crop….
Sierra Nevada Mountain Range of California…
When the shop failed to open, Zippy left in disgust….
This shot reminds of me of the Antarctic tundra…
How do I know? Well….I’ve got the shirt to prove it!
666 took a bid for the summit, but failed miserably.
This was my goal. It was going to be either glacier ice or winter wind packed powder. Yep, it was a little of both.
Mishap followed my lead…on some 2011 Volants.
Ski the Steel, Ski for Real!
Zippy also decides to go for a personal first descent up and above West Shore…
I think he’s eyeing something…
Perfect spot to land in shitty snow…
Doesn’t look too horrible…
He’s having fun now….
Slim and Jrosen32 decided to make us wait as they skied from the top of California Chute…
Slim slices the slim shady pickings…
Jrosen32 airs over George Bush…
….and gets rewarded with neck deep pow turns down to the bottom
After a quick slog up to West Shore proper, the cameraman deserves first tracks…
Zippy makes a pretty turn…
And proves that the snow is always good at Kirkwood…
and takes a Moment in Tahoe to show his new bases…
Slashing the blind rollover…
The snow is so good that Slim takes the casual approach…
…at this point, he was forced to get snow on his hoodie
Jrosen32 emulates skiing in the Sahara…
OMG *&^ LOOK HOW DEEP!, his TURN MAKES IT LOOK DEEP!!! LOL
Did you know that he had a yellow helmet?
I got a phone call on Friday evening…he told me West Shore was skiing surprisingly well….now I know why God called.
STEEP SKIING SESSION VOL 666
This shot is to prove that Slim skied the whole thing…
Mishap Volant’ing the shit out of this….
BEST SHOT EVER!!!!
666 was skiing too…gosh.
Hulk pants getting angry…tries to get me all SNOWY!
Crux’ing the crux…
GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!
Thank god they invented edges….
Over to the CASTLE OF DOOM!
Always fun to watch brotherly competition…
Next…TeH THUND3R of SADDLE!
Jrosen shows that jumping cliffs onto hardpack is SO much fun…
MomentSkiEO feels the peer pressure…
And with the wonders of technology, we have TWO angles OMG!
Papa Skimoore, Greydon, and Walter Sobchak took a few laps in and around West Shore while we dicked around by California Chute. On the third lap, Greydon hit Da Diagonal…
He was being such a sweetheart, that he even made a tele-turn for me…yay!
Its Walter’s turn….
I think he made 63 controlled GS turns down the whole thing…BADASS!
Steve from Boulder was having a rough day…so we decided to bring him along to make his day….
STOKED!
On my ride home, I always pass the gates to this property…and finally took a photo.
Happy Cows are from California…
Funny how good the pics come out when driving 80mph…
Got to love the backroads…
Sadly, not many backroad bridges…
But they do take you to Sushi Ran…
Where I found out that you can get 33 oz cans of Asahi
Bye for now…
Beckoning Bluebird Boostin’ & Mismanaged Mountain Mayhem – 02/25/08
Date:
February 23-25th, 2008
Location:
A well-known, rare, yet mismanaged ski resort south of Lake Tahoe
Weather:
Another 5 feet of classic Sierra Sea-ment came crashing to this rare part of the planet. The weekend was riddled with madness on the highways and interstates, coupled with wind held warriors wishfully waiting for the sun to be born again. Monday was that day. Bluebird, warm, and smooth.
Skiing Skiers:
666, Zippy, Skimoore, Powdork, Mishap, DJ Sapp, Telenater, Supu, Skiin’ Ian, JMetzler & Jrosen32.
Photographers:
666, Zippy, Jrosen32, JMetzler, Powdork & Skimoore.
Music: Concord Dawn – ‘Don’t Tell Me’
Synopsis:Good skiing….perhaps. Resort’s management? HA! LOL!
Skiing was good, super fast, more Sierra Cement than Utah blower, but just rippin’ snow. But what about everything else? (some facts taken from other threads on the issue)
1) Chair 7 wasn’t running (for no apparent reason) first thing.
2) I arrive at Chair 6 at 8:00AM, after leaving SF at 4:30 AM, to get in line for 2nd chair. At 8:40, the maintenance crew is replacing a shiv/wheel on the first tower. People leave the Wall chair. At around 9:00 AM, a guy in a black Kirkwood coat takes two civilians for a lap. Hmmmm, some guy asks the liftie ‘who’s that guy?’, she replies ‘maintenance.’ That’s funny, the other guys are in rental gear. Another 10 minutes goes by, and the group is back, taking another lap….definitely not maintenance. My thoughts…its after 9 AM, I woke up at 4:15 to secure a damn fine first run, and I’m not even skiing yet. They almost NEVER open the mountain on time when it snow 1” or more. By this time 10 is already raped (opened before chair 6).
3) Shuttles not running/sporadic.
4) Bulldozer broken down in the middle of the road.
5) At around 11:15 AM, the backside still isn’t open (big surprise). There is a lineup of around 200 people up and down the ridge waiting for patrol to give the OK. We wait a few minutes, and then the SAME guy in the BLACK Kirkwood coat with the two gapers goes through the line and starts skiing to the backside. We were standing more towards chair 3, so when we saw everyone follow them, everyone ASSUMED it was officially open.
Now at the bottom of chair 4, the lifties get all agro and tell everyone to leave, as if everyone KNEW it was still closed. At this point, the Kirkwood guy in the BLACK coat starts raising his voice to people, telling them ‘you don’t belong here, leave’. Meanwhile, his two guests are out in the distance away from the crowd. Patrol comes down, and tells us that he’s ‘going to starting clipping passes’ if we don’t get the hell out of here. Patrol was mandating everyone to take chair 3 back up and wait for the ‘re-opening.’ AT NO TIME, did any employee say anything like ‘look, there was a misunderstanding, and its actually not open.’ Every employee was hostile and accusatory for the get go. Especially, when 200 people all decided to ‘poach’ to the backside. Give me a freaking break. We got pissed, and just headed to chair 6. Nice way to keep customers eh?
6) Even after they opened Chair 2, it was on/off/on/off. Horrendous grinding noise at the bottom bullwheel at around 2 pm.
7) Clueless lifties from Argentina….I mean CLUELESS!
No electricity (whole place run on diesel)
9) Proposed lifts going to areas that only require a 15 min hike….wtf?
I’ve grown up skiing here, and in the last couple of years, the place has gone to utter shit. Lifts, parking, employees, not enough patrol to open the mountain at a reasonable time, it goes on and on. No wonder more and more people ski the backcountry.
RANT OVER, NOW FOR THE FUN SKI PICTURES
Some Storm Day shots over the weekend….
Jrosen32 funnels through Once is Enough….
One of Reno’s finest, Mishap is very comfortable in these rare parts….
Mishap ups the ante…goes big in Lower Sisters…
Jrosen32 takes cheese-grater alley…
Over to Waterfall area, Jrosen finds a coin slot…
And gets 1,000,000 points on his first man…
Again, the YellowHelmet gets some goods…
And hot on his heels, Mishap shows that even a guy named Mishap can fly…
This IS Mishap’s TR…he is killing it almost as much as Basom did in 05′…
Upper Chamoix is finally good to go….
JMetzler always finds the unique lines…even more weird is that he wears He-Man underpants.
The new Starbucks Bailey’s ‘n’ Cream drink really shouldn’t be released…
Skimoore eats some fog…
MONDAY!!!
OMFG…its going to be a good day!
This road has been groomed…I bet the Kirkwood groomer is still asleep.
Actually, its a balmy 8 F…
Vid capture shot from the Supu episode on Cheaters….
I’m sure it will open eventually…..
OH YEAH!
HELL YEAH! JMetzler getting SOME…
Skimoore stayed an extra day…cause’ 88 was closed the night before….true yet pathetic.
Over to Once…BOO YEAH!
Zippy’s turn…(Powdork angle)
ME LIKEY!
His air carvability is mind-blowing…
The TR’s would be more exciting if he fell more often…oh well
Skimoore drops in…looks lame from here. I was talking about Skimoore’s ass by the way.
Now this is more like it….
Teh CaMeRa maN…..skiing with camera around his neck. He was going to drop Hospital Air, but remembered that he had the best camera.
Zippy…earning Delta miles
Skimoore hits a 90 footer…
Top of the Wall is often equated to good times…
Especially before the 9 foot traverse tracks are set below the launch ramps…
Powdork has some photo skillzzzzzz…..
Jrosen skis down a WALL! OMG!!!!
666 having fun…with pockets full of shit.
Zippy finds a smooth air for everyone to enjoy…
and then the Lemmings followed…
PPPPPPPPPPPowdork as well…
Zippy yells for me to ‘air over the cave’…OK. Didn’t know people were actually tokin’ the super dank until I landed. Classic.
Zippy back in Waterfall area, looks like it snowed overnight…
Even Skimoore slayed it, and THAT’S saying something…
Zippy in Lower Cirque trying to fuck up his skis…
On days like this you can let the bass kick…
I didn’t pick this shot to showcase Skimoore’s epic air steeze. Rather, look at Thunder Saddle in the background…MMMMMMMMMMMM!
No Comment (photo by Powdork)…
LAME…
LAMER…..
LAMEST………
The Cirque…put that damn surface lift up there and open it up. Do that, and I’ll forgot the management and power issues, seriously.
Skimoore in outer Palisades…he’s been skiing behind me WAY too long. He actually looks like a great skier in this photo…thank you Adobe!
Zippy shows what happens to the Tahoe powder 4 hours after opening bell…
OK, he poured his heart out to make it look deep…
Jrosen on Norm’s left nostril…
….and from above. Man, the shit we do to get shots for these TRs…unbelievable.
Zippy tries to gain extra altitude…or one up his older brother.
New skis anyone….08/09 Comi, Ruby, & Donner Party.
Zippy goes Eddie the Eagle style…
His older brother finds a run called ‘splinter’….
His smiles tells me that he is ‘having a good time’…
Barely making to Kirkwood after an Early morning man-whore session at the Mustang Ranch, Supu skis through a shaft….
And comes flying into a white stash…
666 really likes his new Rubys…..mucho likey!
Zippy gets hella close to that cliff thingy…
Jrosen32 airs over it…
Supu makes a hard turn next to that super erect tree….
666 in a slasher film…..
Moment Ruby – the movie….
Hells Bells…..
JMetzler only skis powder….
Skiin’ Ian, Skiin’…
Supu sucks some Sierra SemenT…
He’s covered in the stuff…
Zippy is going the wrong way…
DJ Sapp isn’t….
Telenater gets his Alpinater on’…
Zippy in the meat of Oops…..
The guy in the red pants follows….
Its a Unidentified Flying….Zippy
Supu loves getting the hidden deep on a sunny afternoon…
The Spur is holding snow nicely….
And to think, just 80 miles away the grapes are starting to grow…
What home already? That’s to and from in under 6 hours 30 minutes. It took Shugs 7 hours to drive HOME from Squaw a day earlier.
This TR is brought to you by…
And…
Sidecountry Slayer (Sunny Session of Shredding) – 02/18/08
Dates:
February 17-18th, 2008
Location:
A place near Lake Tahoe during the Dark Ages….
Weather:
Snowless for about 3 weeks, temps in the mid 40′s, and blazing sunshine dominated the holiday weekend. Surely, it would be impossible to find some winter snow eh? The Plague, however, is just around the corner. 
Ski Slaying Sessioners:
666, Zippy, Skimoore, Papa Skimoore, Papa Skimoore’s buddy, Slim, Mrs. Slim, Slim siblings, & Jrosen32.
Esteemed Photographers:
666, Zippy, & Skimoore.
Music: Benga – ‘Night’ (the new album is AMAzING)
Synopsis:Summer Ski Slay Camp or February?
Gorgeous groomers to silent, sunny, sidecountry sessions…well, it is California 
SUNDAY: SKIING IS FUN!
Early morning teleporting is always entertaining…
666 is happy when the sign gives ACCESS to the Sidecountry….
First turn in the area before Thunderbowl, a cliff gets in the way….Skimoore slays it:
666 finds an edge sharpener…
Skimoore’s father’s best friend’s sister’s buddy came along…but what is that white stuff he is slaying?????Can it be winter snow?
666 practicing for the slayage (sp)…
The snow wasn’t all good times….death wind ripples are beckoning in the background:
Skimoore is definitely learning how to ski for the camera….
666 follows and has one Moment (an M1)….
The snow was so beautiful looking….to bad we had to KILL it!
Back over to the Spur’….the snow has definitely changed in a weeks time in the sun….
Skimoore slaying the upper Spur dragon….
I think the older generation needs some slaying representation as well….
666 finds a nice spot to make a killing….
Skimoore should change his name to Slaymoore….
We came across this guy while waiting for the shuttle…and sadly, we lost Skimoore. RIP.
Zippy took Skimoore’s place…and the slaying returns in Eagle Bowl:
After slaying a dragon in the trees above, he straightlined out in Victory!
Slim attempts to leap over Panzer’s Cave….he didn’t survive.
The Ghost of Skimoore past, makes one last run…
Dragons hate ski ballet….Zippy begins the taunt:
666 models next to a dragon-crushing machine while it napped in the afternoon sun…
Zippy loves the funnel area…but who doesn’t?
Oblivious to the fact that he was skiing over dragon eggs, Jrosen32 gets STEEP!
And then slays the EXTREME!
Zippy is forced over to Sister’s Chute to gain access to the Dragon’s Den…
He came too close, and this thing flew out:
Jrosen32 has mad skills and turned the meat into a tasty treat….
But tomorrow is another day…..
MONDAY: A Holiday for Slaying
Oh yeah! Pre-9AM groomed goodness….
Especially good when testing some Moment protos (09′ Ruby)
Jrosen32 searches for dragons off the Wall….
Known to have dragons, Zippy kills a line in Oops…
The Dragon lookout…
Under Norm’s Nose, Dragons are a reality of life….
Jrosen32 tamed the dragon that Zippy skied over…
On a side note…Walgreens is like a dragon. They try to trick you into thinking ChapAid is actually Chapstick, by emulating the design.
Normally a place of solitude, Fawn Ridge displayed some dragon prints…
Jrosen32 stopped to listen to the loud roar coming from the Diagonal chute in West Shore sidecountry…
He heads his way over to the area making the noises….
He is certain its coming from the chute on skier’s right…
Zippy arrives for backup…
666 brings the magical potion…
The Lair is down there…(best pic of the weekend in my opinion)
Zippy…BE CAREFUL!
THERE HE IS!
666 must save them…
He must bring down that dragon….
The Dragon’s flaming breath was starting to split the snow inside the chute…
Zippy survived and found some winter pow….
Now he’s showing off…by leaping over a Dragon’s Lair. Typical.
Jrosen32 carves above the lair…
666′s point of view…I think I take better photos 
666 finds some ice to leap over…
Of course Zippy decides to slay a better line….
Meanwhile, back in the safety of the ‘resort’, Jrosen32 gets funky…
On the drive home, I saw something….what is that thing eating? Could it be the large Red Horse Panda?
Raddest drawbridge ever!
I even passed New Zealand on the return….
Urban jungle transport skyway…
Kirkwood Chronicles of Gnarnia – 02/11/08
Dates:
February 1st-11th, 2008
Location:
GNARNIA, Tahoe, Sidecountry
Weather:
Mid 40′s on the Fahrenheit scale. Spring conditions on most aspects, while winter conditions grasped the northern facing aspects. Deep magic could be found everywhere.
Centaur Warriors:
666, Zippy, Skimoore, LPH, Supu, Lou, Tyrone Shoelaces, Mrs. Ty, Slim, Mrs. Slim, Runethechamp, & Jrosen32.
Spirit Capturers:
666, Zippy, LPH, Slim, JMetzler & Skimoore.
Music: PANACEA – "The Evil Seed" (German madness)
Synopsis:Summer Skiin’ in February
The Chronicles are moral and magical tales of gnar while descending the jagged peaks of the Sierra Mountain Range. On one level, there is the delight of traveling in realm of wonderful imagination. The other magic is the deeper sort that comes out of faith, obedience and love of Father Gnar and acceptance of Gnarus’s (son of gnar) wonderful sacrifice through skiing. Gnarnia takes us beautifully through that journey.
Gnar of Late: The Search for Gnar Begins……a few weeks back
Aslan summons his children through the rain…
666 finds gnar on the most obvious of places…
One of the fellow minions is hard to miss…
Skimoore searches for hidden jewels…
Jrosen32 in a mid-air slaying….
Runethechamp on a reconnaissance mission through the trees…
666 was being followed by the White Witch…
…narrowly escaped.
666′s Moment Skis are made out of the World Ash Tree….
Over at Sugar Bowl, Father Christmas wished for a record end to January…
While the rest of us studied the Deeper Magic from Before the Dawn of Time, Zippy was in full swing during the week….
He skied this line under Aslan’s watch….
SATURDAY:
Gnarnia’s vineyards are glorious in the early morning….
666 leaps over the cave of the Fenris Ulf…
Zippy lays a turn above the Cair Paravel…
While enjoying his Turkish Delight, Zippy makes a turn in some snow…
Zippy hops over Gnar in Gnarnia….
Darkness loses hold of Gnarnia and light returns for Slim….
Skimoore’s magical powers are legendary….
Zippy, definitely in the MOMENT….
The land of Gnarnia has been in terrible darkness and cold a very long time, but when the creatures get word that Zippy is coming the light appeared…
But unfortunately, only for an instant…
666 macerated the creature’s lair……
Zippy follows the scent of Aslan down a precarious chute…
Tyrone arrives as backup…
LPH brings in the artillery….
While Tyrone locates his firing position…
666 was under assault from the magic fairies….
Intensity is his darkest magical power…
Skimoore hides under the snow for cover…
After the coast was clear, Slim emerges from his rocky cave…
His specialty —– white magic….
666 is literally a lost sheep who must return to God’s flock to be forgiven after his line choice…
However, he found a line that represents the possibility of salvation even after sin…
Slim never sins, and always takes the best line (while wearing Norrona)
Zippy symbolizes how easily even caring, but naïve, people can be lead along the path of the devil…
His line choice is a prime example…
Because he has struck a deal with the Witch, Tyrone is in grave danger…
So for him, quick exits are the name of the game…
Zippy shows the league his magical weapons…
…however, the bases hold all of the magic, so I am told.
LPH embraces fresh tracks in the land of Gnarnia….
Zippy recharges his magical powers over the ice goddess…
Slim met the Gnarnians accidentally with no prior knowledge of Gnarnia, and was lulled into trusting their new acquaintances by food and drink…
Skimoore mistrusted the Witch until his greed overwhelmed his instincts…
Zippy suggests that while individuals may be safe in their own abode, danger is never far and can be found over any cliff…
Zippy illustrates how difficult it can be to perform a 180 even in the wake of the work of the devil….
Because, as Skimoore displays, Satan keeps to the shadows and the dark places, even in Gnarnia…
Ultimately, and to his detriment, Skimoore has a strong taste for the White Magic…
Lph keeps to the dark places and the shadows as he hunts for the children…
666 packs the time capturing device and heads for the gnar near the bottom of Chair 4…
Zippy is the first person to encounter Maugrim….
Zippy has the weakest faith and is the most vulnerable to the influence of Satan…
….so naturally he is the first of the children that Maugrim threatens.
Skimoore, off on his own, is attacked but takes refuge above the trees…
666 represents the dark, recognizable face of evil. He is terrifying and brutal so he is easily recognized for what he is…
So we survived Saturday. Back in Meyers, the sun glistened on the 5 feet of settled snowfall on Slim’s front lawn.
SUNDAY: The Final Battle…
All of the minions sleep under the ice to avoid any conflict before the final battle…
Armed with shovels tipped with Black Magic, even the ski patrol was on the darkside…
However, the M1′s don’t follow the law of magic, and 666 gave up on the possible attack…
Now deep in Gnarnia, Skimoore slays some in the trenches of Thunder Bowl….
Slim follows Skimoore’s flute to the desired location…
Mrs. Slim, on board for battle, straightlines to the barracks…
Zippy is swift and deadly especially under rays of sunshine…
But he remains in the shadows,
…ever stalking the righteous creatures, until he sees a weakness.
Regarded as one of the Special Forces, Lou comes in for battle. Well, after dropping his kids off at ski school…..
…if only his wife knew of his true identity (Gnarnia Slayer)
Lou does not attack openly; he only strikes at the weakest point…
Supu does attack openly; he only strikes at the strongest point
Supu’s virtue and faith allow him to face evil and prevail…
Tyrone narrowly escapes his own death and flees back to the White Witch…
666 illustrates how difficult it can be to spot the work of the devil….
Because Satan keeps to the shadows and the dark places, even in Gnarnia
Fortunately for the children the snow masks their scent, and 666 forgoes a battle with the devil…
Lou leads the entire group on a long, dark trek through the forest…
Supu keeps to the lower valleys and the undergrowth where the White Witch can’t follow him.
Here it is….G N A R N I A !
Zippy summons the sun god…
TO BRING WARMTH TO GNARNIA!
However, the minions have one last battle. Located in the Spur, the battle will test the minions might. Skimoore leads the charge…
The Witch uses the tools of trickery and illusion to fool the good creatures of Gnarnia into skiing Powder days after the last storm…
Tyrone moves into position…
Supu follows as a lookout…
Mrs. Slim tests for stability…
Slim makes noises by the White Witch’s lair…
Followed by loud insults by Zippy…
Zippy LAYS down the gauntlet…
Supu LAYS down his patented fabrizzo death carve…
Zippy KILLS an ice-fall straightline….
With the White Witch at her knees, 666 puts the nail in her coffin…
Good always prevails!
Zippy still being followed….
Off to Thunder Saddle, Zippy decides to enter the Death Star….
Gnarnia will be saved if its done properly…
Zippy saves the world…
Tyrone gets the feeling as well…
EL FIN
3 the Hardway – Firmpack Chronicles Vol I – 01/20/08
Dates:
January 18th, 19th, & 20th, 2008
Locations:
Mammoth & Kirkwood, California – Home of the worlds finest firmpack
Weather:
Still firm, but the decent snow under the crust layer is starting to come back to the surface. Firm, sunny, windy, more sun, no wind, no sun, flat-light, firm, then snow showers on departure. I’ll give you a link to that day at the end…….it wasn’t THAT good.
Masons:
666, Zippy, Skimoore, JMetzler, Supu, Gerome, Lou, JJ, AKbruin and others
Surveyors:
666, Zippy, JMetzler, and Skimoore.
Music: Burial – Archangel
—————————————————————-
Synopsis:3 Days of Sierra Skiin’
Zippy and I decided to roll to Mammoth on Friday…well…just to ski something different. You know, to get some new point of views and perspectives on life and mountains. After delivering some M1s to some Kirkwoodo extremo contesto dude named Craig, we headed to the land where LA meets the rest of the world. We found most of all the steep lines blown to bits, but managed to ride from one boundary to the other.
The next day we were off to Kirkwood, the place that ometimes time forgets. With friends in town, the groomers make up most of the morning plot until Zippy arrives to test my might for flight. Conditions are firm, but much better than expected….so basically, not as firm.
Sunday, the ‘spin cycled cut off low’ is approaching but the firm is still in effect. JMetzler, skimoore, gerome, supu, JJ all make it out to burn the rust off their edges.
MAMMOTH:
The cold, crisp view from Bridgeport…
The drive leads us to a fog-laden lair near Mono Lake….
Zippy heads for a Dragon’s Back…
But finds some windblown instead…
Did I mention that it was really windy on the ridgetop?
At least there’s no moguls….
Zippy finds some winter snow…leveled by the wind.
Over near the boundary…Zippy finds some untracked POWDER!
But he’d rather jump over it….
The view from chair 23…..always nice, always evil.
Zippy near Philippes….
666 gets thirsty for Steeps…
…Steep concrete that is!
yep, a failed parking lot carve….
Saturday:
Hello Kirkwood Marketing Dept, my name is 666, and I take photos of Zippy in RAW
This shot is from the kids or, adult, or………well, the Kirkwood halfpipe…
666 likes exposure…
because that’s where the best snow is located…
Zippy likes carving down steeps too…
Even in firm conditions, we still hit jumps…
DOESN’T THIS LOOK SOFT?????????
‘No Zippy, that’s not a quarter down there, keep traversing….’
We rolled everywhere….how’s some Big Jims for a change?
Kids halfpipe….wHy NoT?
Last piece of powder before the next storm? Sure!
Rails after tuning your skis the night before? Priceless……
666 tests to see if the concrete is dry….
He finds an air bubble that needs to be flattened…
Got it…
Sunday:
On the chair at 8:55am doesn’t disappoint…
JMetzler getting GnArLy……..
He erupts out of the rock….
666 gets some pixelated air via skimoore’s camera skillz…..
JMetzler was on a roll from 9:00AM….what was in his cup of java?
The aliens arrived….
Skimoore finds great snow under Norm’s on a bulletproof day…
666 does his best to soften his landing….
JMetzler emulates Eric Pehota….
666 needs some more tricks…
This one is pretty Zbo-ish……
Zippy gets in one last turn before suicide…
Skimoore, again, proving that he can carve…..
Zippy located a launch pad…
Zippy summons Big Air Moseley…
Steep winter snow in Oops? Hell ya’
JJ flashes a line in a Moment (s) time…..
Skimoore scares me….
…because look at his takeoff tracks on the flat little number…
But the guy sure gets a lot of support from Lou…
Park? Why not!
Sisters Chute…A twisted angle for this sister.
Surprise…today is turning out to be FUN@#$%
Supu shows us what he learned in Indo….
Gerome then exhibits the new 10-11 Tanker without edges….
"How firm is it?"
Zippy, meet Scott Schmidt…
Gerome is on tele….for the first time….what does he do here?
Kids halfpipe…..why not!
First off-piste tele turn….YESSS!
Zippy has trouble staying on the ground….too many cola Shot Bloks
Supu helps the oncoming storm by throwing some snow into the air…
A couple cars trying to leave town without chains….
P I Z Z A H H H H H H H H H H H !
Oh, and the next day went like this……
FULL TR by SUPU……
http://tetongravity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=110026
Damn Supu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Over and out….
…
..
.
Crusty Demons of Snow (KW) – 01/13/08
Date:
January 12th and 13th, 2008
Location:
DA WOOD! Western North America
Weather:
Saturday was a flat-light fortress, while Sunday led to bountiful bluebird radness onto frozen GNARular. New Snow = -12", New Crust layer = 4".
Children of the Crust:
666, Shugs, Zippy, DaveP, skiergirl, dblatto, Jrosen32, Mischa, seanyob, mouthole, RunetheChamp, Lou, Tyrone Shoelaces, Arty50, etc…
Photographers:
666, Zippy, Seanyob, & skiergirl.
Music: Oh no he didn’t…….
ALF METAL!!!!!!!!!!
Synopsis:
It rained on Thursday….then it froze. That’s really all I have to tell you. But that really didn’t stop us from having a good time.
Disclaimer:
*All the following shots show skiers skiing on shitty snow. On only a few select locations, did the talent ‘ski off’ the crust layer, and able reach winter snow. Remember, pictures are deceiving.
SATURDAY:
DEMOLISH THE DEATH CRUST!
Hmmm, I’ve never been backed up on the Spur prior to the 9 AM hour before…
Here lies the best representation of the snow sliding surface….
Mischa and Dblatto start breaking off a layer on Wagon Wheel….
Rune performs a mid-air contemplation about airing onto ice….
Early morning flat-light and slick steeps for Jrosen32…
Zippy drops in…..
Meanwhile Mischa tames the beast…
Zippy makes a margarita….
Then, jumps into oblivion….
On Waterfall, Zippy goes for exposure…
666 get the hi-speed exit leftovers….
Tyrone tucks for chunks….
Zippy goes big for absolutely no reason….
Back over by Ski School, Jrosen32 gets GNAR BAR!
Zippy’s POV…
Mischa has the License to Thrill….
DaveP gets roped into another line….
Dblatto performs a DIN test…..
666 crawls up above Ski School to find bluebird skies…
Tryone warps down into Sub-Sentinel…
Jrosen32 prefers this area…
But so does his younger brother….the conditions are beyond EPIC!!!!
666 drops into the same line….
and decides to jump into ice-cubes that results in a cracked goggle lens…
Arty50 gets the rare ‘last but the best snow’ line….
Back at SNK headquarters, someone breaks out the NEO*GEO!
SUNDAY SUN DAY!:
Tallac….
Stevens, and a nice little playground among the rocks…
Zippy found this guy preparing the powder leash on the Force9′s for the steep and deep…..granular.
Most of the snow firmed up quite a bit overnight, but with sunny skies, Zippy pretends its bottomless pow…
666 finds a log to straightline in Chamoix….
With the north facing shade creeping onto Wagon Wheel, 666 gets in one last lap….
Luckily he’s one obese American and is able to break the CRUST…
We head over to Palisades to ski the ‘breakable-ish crust’….
DaveP gets the dead-tree air….
Zippy tries his damnest to make the snow look remarkable…
His facial expression tells the story…
I wonder where Zippy’s line will take him…..?
More and more I feel like I also need a pair of the Moment Tahoe….
666 on the opposite side of TEH CAVE!
Same line, photo by Skiergirl…
Next, we decide to go for a 1.9 minute hike to Sisters Chute…
‘How is it?"….LOL
Zippy links up a couple semi-winter-crust-north-facing turns…
Seanyob takes a pic of the TR_KReaT0r from the exit…
Back over to above Ski School, Zippy locates some snow near some rocks…
This is the Kirkwood Bobsled course…
666 in the same line…
Next up, the Fingers. The runout below was closest thing to death for the both of us…
The ‘Air B4 the Scare’….
Final run in Palisades, Zippy checks his edges for damage…
A roadside tree…
Roadside power lines near the Delta….
Sunset over Berkeley…
Big thanks to everyone who took pics (seanyob, skiergirl, and zippy)!!!!!!!!!!
B
Y
E
………………………………………….. ……
TAHOE Wants Your SOUL (KW) – 01/09/08!!!!
Date:
January 7th and 9th, 2008
Location:
INBOUNDS KIRKWOOD, CALIFORNIA
Weather:
Over 12 feet of base-building snow fell onto the slopes above 7,800 ft in only a few days. Monday was ridiculous blower, while Wednesday was classic, yet buttery, Sierra cement.
Dummies:
666, Shugs, Zippy, Pimpin’ Frog, MomentSkiEO, JMulens, JJ, and others…
Still picture creators:
666, Zippy, Lph.
Music:
Adam Freeland – ‘We want your soul’ (Ed Rush & Optical Remix)
Synopsis:
SICKTOR!
The Serpent storm rolled into the area on Friday and created some much needed chaos in Northern California. Power was lost, trees fell on parked cars, rains delivered flooding, crap flew everywhere and all over the major highways, and oh, yeah, tons of precipitation.
TAHOE WANTS YOUR SOUL!
The Friday work commute…
Monday: (photos courtesy of lph….because my new thing is TR’s when I’m not there)
Zippy airs over pencil chute…
Zippy with his patented cliff hucking steeze off of Kodak…
Seeing all the powder, JJ flips out…literally!
Zippy in a backwards flip thing….
Back in Lower T-Saddle, Zippy keeps skiing…
But wait….there’s got to be at least one token pow shot eh? Found it!
Wednesday:
Early morning…..
I should be asleep….
Great, now my shoes are wet….
Random hero jumping near Little Jims….
Moment SkiEO doubles near the cave….
Shugs gets funky via WLAN…..
I hit the singles line just for a MOMENT at the Wall Chair, and ended up with this guy on wierd waterski looking snow skis…
Zippy off the top ridge of the Wall, goes for greatness prior to traverse track creation….
JMullens….exposure carve!
Meanwhile, down in the lower Cirque, Zippy goes for some flat-light FUN!
TWO….
THREE….Gosh! I’m glad he’s OK.
666 didn’t have to look far for a pow turn…
but to reach more pow, his inner soul led him off a ledge….
…I heard ‘twister-spreads’ are coming back this year.
Zippy, finds a loose soul in lower Sisters…
But then drops it trying to perform a daffy off of this cliff…
Pimpin’ Frog had a rough day. He broke up with his girlfriend, used the wrong google lens color for the given light, and lost his Canon point and chute. But he still managed to slay some fluff!
Shugs rolls into Ski School chute…
‘Don’t worry Shugs, I’m sure that mound of rock on your right is soft’…..
ZIppY straightlines over Otis Spunkmeyer face…
Zippy has soul….
…soul for POWDAH!!!!!!!!!!!
Shugs goes retro gaming….
Shugs rolls into a stash….
Zippy finds an untracked exposure soul in Oops…
666 summons an above exposure faceshot…
…to a souless cliff
Norm’s Nose is known for taking body limbs off our peers. Zippy decides to flash the upper death chamber to heavenly high speed pow carve…
666 looking for Pimpin Frog’s ‘point and shoot’….
Transmission
Is
Over
;;;
;;
;
.
OMG SNOW IN TAHOE (KW) LOL! – 12/08/07
Date:
December 8-9th, 2007 AD
Location:
KIRKWOOD (diesel powered and luv’n it)
Weather:
The weather came to a halt on Saturday, and the temperature plummeted to 1 F (Hope Valley), which is pretty damn cold for California. Of course, on Sunday in South Lake, people started hitting the beaches when it warmed up to around 28 F.
Test Subjects:
666, Slim, Mrs. Slim,dblatto, DaveP, skiergirl, Zippy, Mrs Zippy, Jrosen, Jmetzler, and a brief Storm Day appearance.
Still picture creators:
666, dblatto, & Zippy
Music:
Joy Division – Love will tear us apart (classic newelectrowavestep)
Synopsis:
Finally! Two feet of snow! Yay! Awesome! First stump-pow turns of the season!
But we need base building snow? Why? Because the Eastern wind will blow it away. And that’s exactly what happened on Saturday night.
Anyway, solid groomering on chair 5, pow turns underneath chair 6, and some cold temps.
GnARn355!:
Driving into Meyers…
Always a scenic drive when rolling on "Brian Boitano" tires…
Man, even the upper mountain is looking good! LOL, that snow blew away later that night….Ah shucks!
dblatto makes some low angle pow look fun…
Armpit deep near the bottom!!!!
Brain-deep on the way to the drain!
After dblatto schralped the pow, it was the rest of the crew’s turn. Dblatto wasn’t too thrilled…
666 gets lower-ear-lobe deep on Lookout Janek!
That’s weird…its snowing when its bluebird…
Jrosen loves skiing super deep pow pow…
Especially when his bases are dragging against the rare earth beneath him…
Jmetzler is back this season with his first elbow deep tree turn…
Slim is anti-pow skiing, so he decides to pop an ollie instead….
dblatto cried his heart out for one more pow turn…I folded and gave him this turn…
DaveP makes an appearance and gets MSPaint-deep! SICK!
But don’t forget Skiergirl….she’s shows everyone up with the cleanest form!
Zippy was screaming for pow. I told him that the closer we get to Oops the deeper it will be. I hate always being right.
Skiergirl again…milking the first storm of the season.
Slim gets really emotional when he skis shots like this….
The Apres-ski party was at Zippy’s. Deep subterranean beats, fantastic sweaters, and of course, some Voltron….
It didn’t take long for the See’s Candies to take effect…
Melee summons the beings….
And finally captures a picture to show the non-believers…
Casey of Moment Skis won the most awesome sweater award, but when Melee put on the dog’s sweater…it was time to leave.
….why not a shot of East Bowl at Heavenly at 1 AM? Melee should have hiked it but it was too cold to bring out his Kodak courage.
Sunday morning….a couple hours of groomers, and go home. Here is a pretty shot of Tallac on Sunday morning….
One Run, One Chair = Immense Chaos! – KW 12/01/07
Date:
December 1st, 2007 (the first and last December 1st, 2007 ever…think about it)
Location:
KIRKWOOD, CALIFORNIA
Weather:
The temperature ranged from about 18 F, with warm up to around 18 F. Then, a freakish snow storm dumped around two to three MASSIVE inches of the white stuff. The real estate sales team had the snow gunzzzzzzz a blazin’, and there was a nifty cloud layer with four beams of sunshine.
Riderz of da’ Rare Earth:
666, Slim, Tyrone ‘whitey’ Shoelaces, & Arty50….oh and the other 14 people that didn’t flip their ride on the drive out this morning.
Camera Operation Management Team:
666, Slim (waiting for pics), and Arty50
Music: Photek – ni ten ichi ryu (some famous dnb beats)
Synopsis:
Forecast is for sun. I look out the window and its snowing. I check the radar, and see nothing. Weird. Snow/Ice packed roads made the one cop way too busy dealing with the spinouts. The tow truck guy, of course, was fully stoked.
Chair 5 was rolling with one run. A couple inches new created a complete midwinter surface. Met up with some jokers, skied a few hours, and then bailed. It was a rare experience indeed.
RARE:
The Y – some rare snow
A white Carson Pass…very rare.
Snow trench madness…
Parking lot POWDUR!
Here’s a rare sight….snowmaking at Kirkwood
LOOK at that BASE AREA!!!! Its so buzzin’
Billy Xmas spreads Xmas cheer…
Tyrone in a stealth mode carve…
Bro Model model carve….
Slim is having a "good time"
Tyrone makes a turn…
And then another…..
666′s uses his good Karma to spread some carves…..
Slim gets some POW POW POW!!!!!!!!!!!!
