Well the one two punch that the weather service called for last week was a swing and a miss.  A few inches of the funkiness up above 9000′ lots of graupel and dense wet snow, otherwise the system that was supposed to dump eight to sixteen limped on through.  Ever notice when they call for 12+ inches we usually get a lower amount?  Converesely, my favorite forecast is the one to three variety, some of the biggest dumps I’ve seen have come from the storms that are only supposed to be glancing blows.  Probably just the psychology of  ski bum perception and logic, but hey if the shoe fits…

 Opening day at vail was pretty average, with warm temps and a few screamers to satisfy the jones.  The afternoon became a zoo. After getting stuck in the aftermath of a fatal accident on Gitalong Road of all places, I decided it  was time to get out of the way of those  looking to cram an entire season of near season ending experiences in one day,all hopped up on red bull and ski porn.  It was great to ride some lifts, face in the sun, and ski a couple runs with ski friends just emerging from off-season  hibernation.  Feeling the edges on the first groomer of the year there is  a sense of awakening, of the purpose of the next seven months.  Each season develops uniquely and writes its own story.  What will this year bring?

The snow is back briefly this weekend and should hopefully provide the extra snow needed to open the next series of lifts and terrain, getting our access farther east and filling in the terrain hazards in and out of vail boundaries.  It’s the waiting after the waiting, and it’s good to see the snow falling outside the window again.  EVI will be out digging in the snow as soon as its warranted and let you know what we find.  Stay calm and move along.