Just made my first top-to bottom run of the season at Sunday River! On Saturday afternoon, just three days after they opened the T2 trail at the top of Locke Mountain, they dropped the rope on Lower Sunday Punch to allow skiers and riders to make the full circuit of the Locke Mountain triple.
When I started the week, I had no idea that I would be skiing by the end of it. But when Sunday River opened on Wednesday afternoon, my boss told me to get there as soon as possible and check it out. Sometimes you just have to do what the boss says…
So there I was on Saturday, flying down Locke Mountain on what felt like a warm spring day. I had never skied in October before. It had never really crossed my mind. I mean October is Columbus Day, Halloween, and My Birthday (not in order of importance!), not skiing . . .or so I thought!
On my way up to Sunday River, I was both excited and embarrassed. Here I was driving around with skis on top of my car when it was 45 to 50 degrees outside with no snow on the ground anywhere; I think people thought I was crazy To top things off I passed a car with two mountain bikes going in the opposite direction. Think about it: while I was going skiing, other people were mountain biking on other trails!
When I arrived, I was blown away by the fact that I could see people skiing down the mountain on real snow. I moved as quickly as possible to get on that chairlift! T2 at the top of Locke was the only trail open, although they opened Sunday Punch in time for my last run.
In terms of conditions, well, it was what to be expected this early in the season. With large differences in temperatures between night and day, and lots of traffic on limited terrain, the snow had become a little hard at the top of the mountain. Don’t get me wrong, it was more than acceptable! As you made your way down T2 the snow got softer and more like what you would expect mid winter, and if you decided to go down Sunday Punch, well, you were floating on soft, fluffy snow…crazy quality for this time of year! They had even set up a small terrain park. Overall, it was great skiing and tons of fun, especially for October. The best part is that skiing now is going to help me enjoy early winter conditions even more, with my legs already in better shape and more “feel” for the snow.
Coming off the mountain was weird; I felt like i was rejoining the rest of society and trying to enjoy a snowless october, fall foliage, normal things like that.
A word to the wise, though (Sunday River has been warning everyone of this!) : this skiing is for Intermediate and Advanced skiers/riders only. T2 is a black diamond in perfect conditions. Add in some ice on parts of the trail and the difficulty increases. If you are just an average skier, consider waiting for more terrain. But if you’re more experienced, get out there and get some bragging rights for skiing in October. Check out the video to see how much fun everyone was having…what a great scene!
Video:
Pictures:
[nggallery id=1]
Related posts:
