My first TR: Steamboat with pics

[xboat]

it all started off with california getting a big storm and the forecast calling for more storms lining up in the pacific. i went into full storm chaser mode and let work know that i was leaving in a few days for a week in steamboat. i was not dissapointed, as if on cue it started to dump the quarter sized flakes upon my arrival to town and didn't stop for the next 2 days. life is good.

about a half hour after getting to my buddy's place -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/dumpin1.jpg

sunday, feb. 29th was my first day skiing. my buddy brad had spent saturday slednecking on buffalo pass just outside steamboat springs and said it was deeeep.

"don't go to the ski area and come up buff with my wife and i to ski backcountry" he says. "it's going to go off"

so i rolled the dice and met up with them sunday morning to rally up buff pass. did i mention that it was still dumping?

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/buff_sled2.jpg
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/buff_sled3.jpg

this is what i was looking at for my first run of the day -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/buff_first.jpg

brad's wife with the money shot and a huge smile :D
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/chelsea_4.jpg

[xboat]

i got 2 unbelievable runs in before the shit hit the fan :(
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/buff_sled4.jpg

brad's sled broke down and we couldn't get it running again. bad thing is, we were 5 plus miles into the backcountry and stranded at the main drop off point for the powdercat operation up there. good thing was there were plenty of people around. we had to ski out of there on the cat roads that involved quite a bit of hiking and going across some flats. yeah, it sucked the life right out of this flatlander.

the next mornings ski report said the mountain had got 17" sunday and sunday night. we head up to press glass at the gondola and am amazed that there were only about a hundred people there. the mountain was as empty as i ever remember seeing it that day. everywhere we went was deeeeep!

me -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/chad_2.jpg

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/chad_1.jpg

mmmm...my kind of moguls - served with pow
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/whiteout.jpg


tele-buddy in steamboat b/c
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/jonis_air.jpg
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/jonis_air2.jpg
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/mtn_jonis2.jpg

[xboat]

i skied 6 straight days while there - every day i was in town. popping advil like tic-tacs to relieve my aching calves. what's up with that anyway? i don't remember ever being in so much pain in the morning. guess i'm getting old and outta shape.

on wednesday a good friend took me back to do the "keyhole" line into fish creek canyon. i lived there 4 years and never made it back there this far. amazing area. getting in there was the hardest thing that i have ever had to do on skis. one friend made it look easy on a snowboard and the other tele'd his way into it nicely. it was a bitch to get in and out of there but damn was it cool as hell.

the keyhole is the only line into the talus field that doesn't involve big air to enter. looking up -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_7.jpg

looking down into the boulder field -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_2.jpg

freefallin' -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_andre1.jpg

shows the steepness a little -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_1.jpg

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_4.jpg

[xboat]

that's me gaping down. i would tell my friends to wait until i got closer to take pics but it would never happen :(
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/chad_5.jpg

hells wall -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_3.jpg

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_6.jpg

let's play name those skis -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_5.jpg

the hike/traverse out. looking back up the canyon -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/hikeout_1.jpg

[ulty_guy]

SCHAWING!

[Flash]

Sweet pics. Keep 'em coming! :)

[Viva]

Bravo!

[CS]

Well done.

[glademaster]

Great stuff Xboat! Every time I fianlly decide that it would make more sense to move to a bigger ski town with more ski areas around it, someone has to post pics like that of the 'boat that make me wanna drop everything and run there. Oh well, every descision should have to be so hard, yet so rewarding. Keep 'em coming'

-Ben

[xboat]

some random pics and i'm outta here!

hope you enjoy...have a great day. :cool:

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/buff_sled5.jpg

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/bw2.jpg

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/buff_bw1.jpg

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/sun_1.jpg

http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/sunset_1.jpg

[xboat]

Originally posted by glademaster
Great stuff Xboat! Every time I fianlly decide that it would make more sense to move to a bigger ski town with more ski areas around it, someone has to post pics like that of the 'boat that make me wanna drop everything and run there. Oh well, every descision should have to be so hard, yet so rewarding. Keep 'em coming'

-Ben

yeah ben, i love that town. i haven't lived there for 7 years now and everywhere i go i see familiar faces in town from back in the day. during the week the place can be virtually empty which is always good. i didn't wait in a lift line all week long.

[Woodsy]

HA HA my man
:D

glad you got it & got it good!

[365wp]

Sick pics!

[Crinkle]

Damn xboat, that was nice. Super stoke and it looks like you got a ton of pow.

[splat]

Schweet. Ya did the right thing. Obviously.

[xboat]

can anyone tell what kind of skis those are -
http://www.tetongravity.com/usergalleries/albums/userpics/10283/canyon_5.jpg

[Crinkle]

Scotty bob's??

[xboat]

nice. you're right.

the first pair i'd seen. nothing special, just thought it would be good trivia...

[sick.bird]

CAW! CAW!!

[meatdrink9]

Great stuff dood.

[iskibc]

nice pics, great location, sweet TR, way to get after it for a week straight! Too bad I missed ya man, give me a holler next time you roll into town.

[Ireallyliketoski]

Great pics. Simply beautiful. Looks like a nice place to ski. Snow looked really good.

[GT40]

Way to score on the pow man. Glad you timed it so well. The pics are great and make it easy to re-live your trip. I can see why you like the Boat so much. :cool:

[SSSdave]

Great TR, thanks for sharing. Image with brad's wife in red with those great trees super loaded with fluff is quite a winner. -dave