UTMC

So another winter is upon us in the PNW. I know of a select NW few who like to indulge in the winter sports of snowboarding and skiing that frequent this board. I would like to possibly use this thread as a place to make plans to meet on a chairlift and talk about motorcycles over beers whilst suspended over an icy barren landscape. It's safe... just don't tell your mom.

I would like to extend any knowledge that I have to any UTMC folk that are looking to get up on the hill this year. Hell, lets share a beer and some turns and if you would like, I can give some pointers to improve your riding. Even if you are coming from out of state, I may be able to meet you at any mountain in the greater oregon/idaho/montana/washington area. LET'S SHRED!

I want to see the PNW on hill this year!!!!!!!

There you go getting my hopes up, and whammo!

There you go, getting my hopes up and then diverting them to something I love just as much, if not more, than supermoto.

Sadly, it's just not often available to me anymore.
I. fucking. love. to. snowboard.
I've been very lucky, though, that the few times I've gotten to do it over the past couple of years have generally all been seriously epic.
As in, "lobbing blind airs off of 20 foot drops into fields of untouched, neck deep powder" epic.

Funny the way that's gone. Percentage wise, I've probably got the best snowboarding life of any amateur anywhere in the world. It's just at a very low frequency.

(OK, damn, gotta tell the story about that air I'm talking about up there: Me and two buddies were riding some trees at Copper Mountain a few years ago. It was the first day of my season, and it had just dumped something like six or seven feet over the previous ten days, which is absurd for Colorado. Not only was it the first day of my season, it was the first RUN of my season.

The dude I knew the most was my friend Johnny, who had taken the low line and gotten a bit split up from me nd the other dude. I forget his name, because we only hung out like, twice, and this was one of the times. I remember that, whatever his name was, people just called him flipper, because he had a deformed hand.

Anyway, Flipper and I are having a pretty magical session, where we each see the same exact line in two totally different ways, so our paths keeping weaving and intertwining in this awesome snow-bromance sort of dance, and each of us gets to see the other person doing something sweet on our way to doing something sweet of our own. In the midst of all of this, we come up on a wind lip that had blown up in between two trees.
The thing looked like a fucking tombstone about four feet tall, and all we could see on the other side of it was the opposite side of the valley. We both see it and stop, because neither of us has any clue what's on the down slope.
I look at him, and jokingly say "Hey man, you got health insurance?"
He says "No man, I don't."
So I say back "Damn, coz if you did, I was going to let you drop it first."

Now again, this is my FIRST RUN of the season. FIRST. RUN. I was only joking around about who was gonna drop it first, coz this dude's already got like, 25 days in him, but before I get the chance to say anything else, he goes "Alright, I'll go scope the landing" and slides off through the trees.
Shit. Alright.

A few moments later I hear him yell something, but I can't tell what. I shout out "How is it?" and all I hear back is "...it's clear."

Shit. Alright.
I don't have health insurance, either.

Fuck it.

"DROPPING!"

I try to turn my way into the right line, almost blow it because the snow is deep, blurt out some curse word or another, and manage to get myself on track at just the last moment. Thank god for that accidental speed check, because I boosted off of that wind lip into nothing but blue sky and sunshine, with what looked like forever to fall. I had jumped out into a big, steep clearing. The sun was at my back, and I remember seeing my shadow waaaay off in front of me. I snatched up an indy grab, poked the nose way out off to the side, and just held it there. I remember flipper giving that quintessential half talk, half shout: "Niiice," and still having what seemed like eternity to hold that pose, perfectly on balance, perfectly still.

I let go of the grab, stomped the landing in a big poof of powder, and warped my way into a braking heelside turn, right past Johnny (who as it turns out, was in just the right spot to see the whole thing from below) and onto a trail leading out of the clearing.

I never even got a chance to look back up the hill and see what the hell it was I had just boosted off of. The guys caught up with some pretty exuberant "Holy shit dude, that was fucking SICK!" statements, and I felt like I was king of the fucking world. According to them, it was a solid 25 footer. A height I've jumped before, but not without great trepidation. And this one, blind, on my first run of the season, was the smoothest, best one of them all.

...)

Have fun out there.
I wish I could join you.

knuckle dragging, mogul ruining, single planker, white wannabe's . . .

goose wrote:knuckle dragging, mogul ruining, single planker, white wannabe's . . .

I love to drag the knuck.

My faves was always dragging the hip on a heelside carve. It was always a treat, because my feets are big, so I'd often put my heel cups into the ground and lose my edge. Every once in a while, though, I'd manage to get the buttcheek down whilst laying out some fat carves, and it was glorious. Much the same feeling as dragging a knee, only way harder to accomplish.

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Here was a quick vid I we shot on opening day.

I am with you wafs, dragging ass and trying to touch your chest to the ground is bitchin. The cool part about snowboarding is that you can turn so hard on solid groomers that your brain feels like it is getting sucked out your feet. Then there are 45 foot park hits and pow slashes and hiking and nature and mountain babes and apres beers and on chair beers and all around awesomeness. Snowboarding rules.

Fuck yes it does.