bdog

So even though it is May there are still reports coming in. A lot of the western US, including Colorado in particular, have had very poor refreezing and lack a good melt-freeze base layer. This is also true in the Northwest where the weather is clearing in another day or two. If people venture onto steep slopes in these areas we will see more incident reports. The spring seems unusual many places, as was the winter. Jim The above was posted by Jim Frankenfield, Director of CSAC (Cyberspace Avalanche Center www.csac.org) on 5/22/05. The conditions in the Northwest this past weekend were pretty clear to those who understand snow. It is also true that unless one was there it is not possible to really know why this group made the decision to descend the Thayer. Still, it was poor judgement regardless.

fifteen year old wax?!!!?? Dude, you need to ski more! It should be fine really. Hydrocarbon wax dosn't loose much over the years.

Cold wax is harder, so it is better to error on the side of colder wax. you can always apply a softer (warmer) wax on top of harder, but it does not work well to go harder on top of a layer of softer. For all practical purposes in recreational skiing it hardly matters. If you are off by 10 or even 20 degrees the difference in glide is measured in 10ths of a second. Wax on and point 'em down.

Cold or rub on wax is faster in that it takes less time to apply. Definately better than no wax at all. Hot wax is best because it allows the wax to be absorbed into the pores of the base material. It will last longer and glide faster. A broad spectrum temperature or universal wax is most suitable for recreational resort skiing and BC applications.

It is still there. Now run by Oz. Diamond Lake Resort still holds the permit. Here is the NEW website: http://www.catskimtbailey.com/

Not ALL base's are sintered. Many are extruded. Both are polyethelene. All start the process as extruded. Extruded base material is less expensive, softer , less durable has a lower molecular density (weight) and absorbs less wax. Sintered base material has a higher molelecular density (UHMW - ultra high molecular weight). It is more durable, absorbs wax better, is faster and more expensive. As posted above, AT, Tele, Nordic and Alpine skis all have polyethelene bases. All require glide wax. Wax often. When using skins, don't scrape as much as you would for a lift served pair of skis. As mentioned previously, the wax helps keep the skin adhesive from coating the ski base.

It is and will be a total joey fest! Like second week of Christmas vacation, but a much odder crowd. These are people who ski one day a year ...THIS ONE!!! Best to stay far away.

So, how is the skiing up there right now? Say what you will about bachy, at least we have been slidin' eh?

Free ski day is usually a joey fest supremo. Still, if you do come over stop in the shop and say howdy. Stick around for the evening and we can get brews, i am sure timmy and duck the rope would be in on that.

I'll be eatin' corn in July!

Bachy big? Perhaps not. In a normal year the glades and trees are superb. this year, well lets see... we still be skiing while most of the other PNW areas have thrown in the towl.

NOAA REPORTS DECEMBER WARMER THAN AVERAGE, GLOBAL TEMPERATURE WARMER THAN AVERAGE. The national average temperature for December 2004 was above normal for the contiguous United States, according to scientists at NOAA Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C. While much of the western half of the nation was warmer than average, a brief period of very cold temperatures and heavy snowfall occurred in the Midwest and parts of the South, where temperatures averaged near the long-term mean (1895-2003).

hey Bro' your only as old as you feel. LTD (livin' the dream) is as real as it gets at Bachy. we here are keepin' it real 24/7

The warm winter and unprecidented low snow pack in the Pacific Northwest is a result of the current El Nino. El Nino IS a warming of Pacific Ocean currents and may be natural. Ocean current temperatures are not isolated events. Human caused environmental actions such as logging of temperate and tropical rain forest ecosystems has a very real impact. Particulates found in glacial ice have a very real effect on increased temperatures of glacial ice which contributes to glacial shrinking. That too has a very real effect on climatic warming. Current weather in the Pacific Northwest is not an isolated event.

It is THE SAME El Ninio effect that has caused the considerable snow in the Sierra. The Sierra's are higher elevation and as the warm moist air from the South Pacific uplift they cool and precip forms as snow. It is all related. Yep, human created particulate and pollution have nothing to do with any global weather events.