Cascadia/WA Pow Farming ‘23/‘24

[Garbowski]

I hadn't heard about this event prior to today:
https://www.seattletimes.com/life/ou...ed-for-winter/

In case you get paywalled the basic info is there's a ski show at Magnuson Park Hangar 30 on October 18th and 19th called "Snowvana."

We were there Sunday as we happened to be riding by... it kind of sucked. Mainly old beat up demo gear and some sad local vendor stalls. Spin the wheel and win a pencil. Some of the ski shops seemed willing to deal though. Fortunately we got 2-for 1 tickets so I only wasted $20.

[BaseFloopy]

Volcano point forecast is revving up, and so begins the worst four weeks of the year: Habitual webcam checking; precipitation of elation followed by bitter disappointment as everything melts before the next snowfall.

[waveshello]

We were there Sunday as we happened to be riding by... it kind of sucked. Mainly old beat up demo gear and some sad local vendor stalls. Spin the wheel and win a pencil. Some of the ski shops seemed willing to deal though. Fortunately we got 2-for 1 tickets so I only wasted $20.

You must have missed the giant ski chair or something It was pretty fun on Friday. I'm temporarily living right up the road so I stopped by with my daughter.

[Huskier]

Beta request: I haven't been up Glacier creek road since the washout. Where exactly is it? Are we talking completely impassible by motorcar? How about motorbike? Thinking about banging rocks Thursday for my October turns, debating the most likely/ lowest hanging fruit around the northern zone. Company always welcome, of course.

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[Going Coastal]

IDK when the washout was, but here is a screenshot of the last onx offroad report.

[ptavv]

They put a temporary one lane bypass around the 2023 washout. Was there a more recent one?

The Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie NF Road and Trail Conditions arcgis doesn't show any new problems with any of the FSR 39 segments.

[kamtron]

It was fine in spring for any car with the usual caution for potholes. FS doesn't do anything to maintain it, just volunteers.

Be careful if it's snowy or icy on the road

[Jeb McHardman]

Beta request: I haven't been up Glacier creek road since the washout. Where exactly is it? Are we talking completely impassible by motorcar? How about motorbike? Thinking about banging rocks Thursday for my October turns, debating the most likely/ lowest hanging fruit around the northern zone. Company always welcome, of course.

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The road was fine all summer, but I haven't been up it since August. I also might be up there Thursday with some folks

[PNWbrit]

Mount Rainier National Park announces winter recreational access for 2024-25 season: Paradise Road open to vehicles Fridays through Mondays starting November 12.

News Release: https://go.nps.gov/1qvv6g

Beginning Tuesday, November 12, the park will open vehicle access to the Paradise area four days per week, Fridays through Mondays. The road will be closed to public vehicle access Tuesdays through Thursdays. Park staff will continue to revisit the Paradise access schedule should staffing levels change during the winter season. The Longmire area will remain open seven days a week barring any major storm events or emergency situations.

Winter camping at Paradise will be available Friday through Sunday nights only, conditions permitting. The sledding runs at Paradise will not be open for the 2024-2025 winter season, as available staff members will be focused on plowing roads and parking lots to maintain access into the area. Sledding is not permitted elsewhere in the park. More information about Paradise winter access is available on the park website.

Winter recreation access in the rest of the park remains unchanged. Annual winter season closures of State Routes 410 and 123 will be enacted soon at the northeast, east, and southeast park boundaries. The east side of the park is open for visitor use throughout the winter, including overnight winter camping with a valid permit.

[bfree]

So, one less day a week than last year? I'd call it a good tradeoff if it meant the remaining four days would have more reliable and timely gate openings, but it's hard to be optimistic about that.

[Gunder]

Hey guys, I am now doing binding mounts here in Bellingham for the general public now, instead of just for the athletes I work with. I have a full set of Factory jigs (including the ATK one), so can mount any binding.




I haven't added it to the website yet, https://pnwsuspensionservice.com mounts run $75 and mounts with a full set of binding freedom inserts run an extra $75. I'll do a TGR forum discount for $60 a mount too.

And here is some ski stoke from last season. Had a couple guys come in that have already been skiing the road up by artist point and Heliotrope. I don have a crystal ball ,but it sure feels like we are in for a decent season this year!

[kamtron]

^ Grant did a good job mounting up my new Dynafit touring skis with ATK bindings. Thanks!

Things are looking good over the next week

[kamtron]

Honestly, despite TGR tradition to mount your own damn skis, I'm glad I had someone else do it with a real jig

[austin.barta46@gmail.com]

FKNA !!!!

[CHAIR_97]

Honestly, despite TGR tradition to mount your own damn skis, I'm glad I had someone else do it with a real jig

75 bucks holy fuck that's half the price of a jig

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[S_jenks]

75 bucks holy fuck that's half the price of a jig

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It’s a sellers market baby!

Plus it’s snowing out. That means skiing draws near. Praise be.

[Brasso]

Have you seen shop prices? Standard rate is $100 now, it's insanity. If I didn't MMOFS, I'd be happy to give the money to Grant down the road.

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[Brasso]

Skiing is already here btw. Went for a little walk yesterday by the Winchester Mt parking lot.

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[S_jenks]

This demands a new thread then, no?

[Brasso]

Very true!

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[californiagrown]

This demands a new thread then, no?

Not at pass level. Was not skied switch to the road. does not qualify.



The last time i was looking at getting skis mounted was back in 2017ish probably, and $60-$70 was pretty SOP from what i remember. Thats what made me start doing it in my garage. So with inflation taken into account, $60 seems like its a pretty good deal these days. If i was mounting QK into skis, i would also have a trusted shop do it because i wouldnt trust myself to do it perfectly with my harbor freight cordless drill.

[Gunder]

75 bucks holy fuck that's half the price of a jig

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Haha. You aren’t buying factory jigs for $150 and you sure aren’t buying an ATK factory jig for anywhere close to that.

I’m happy to help anyone that wants to learn to do it themselves but at $60 it’s probably not worth your time to F around with a paper template and do it at home.

Plus I’m testing all of the bindings with my binding tester. It’s actually surprising how many bindings test high.

[kamtron]

Doing a tech mount is a lot trickier than a standard mount. I've done 4 or 5 tech mounts and there's always some amount of cursing and faff. If I end up getting one of those nice 3d-printed jigs, it would change things.

[NW_SKIER]

Bindings aren't rocket science. Of the dozens of skis mounted with jigs, paper templates off this forum, or homemade paper stencils using the binding footprint, they're all doable. Just takes a little thinking occasionally.

I care about my shit too much to pay shops to hide spinners and misdrills under my bindings.

Mount your own f'ing skis!




PS: tech binders or otherwise aren't any tougher. Just different processes. Hone your craft, dudes.

[Jason4]

Doing a tech mount is a lot trickier than a standard mount. I've done 4 or 5 tech mounts and there's always some amount of cursing and faff. If I end up getting one of those nice 3d-printed jigs, it would change things.

I have one of the nice 3D printed jigs for ATK if you’re ever tempted to roll your own.

FWIW, I would trust Gunder to do a good job on any mount. He’s a meticulous professional at everything else I’ve seen him do, I expect ski mounts are the same.