Last 100+ degree day PREDICTIONS! (Phoenix, Flagstaff: motel, trip , work)

[MotleyCrew]

Originally Posted by Mattias

How could you guys live in hot climate?!

How can you stand those property taxes? Oh. October 3rd.

[borborygmi]

Originally Posted by twiggy

For real skiing snow you have to go out of the state.

Amen to that. I love it when someone posts about how close Flagstaff is to Phoenix, in case you want to drive up and experience cooler weather in the summer, or "skiing" in the winter. Yeah, not so much.

First of all, Flag is not an easy or a short drive on weekends. It's connected to both Tucson and Phoenix via the same narrow, old and outdated 2-lane interstate that really becomes treacherous in bad weather, and weekend traffic during both the summer and winter months on I-17 can be terrible. It can honestly take 5+ hours to get up to Flagstaff from Phoenix if you drive during peak times of the year, say Friday afternoons or Sundays- I know, I've experienced it.

Secondly, Snowbowl is a joke, and very rarely even open anymore, it seems. For the real deal, you have to go to Colorado or Utah.

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by borborygmi

Secondly, Snowbowl is a joke, and very rarely even open anymore, it seems. For the real deal, you have to go to Colorado or Utah.

Agreed that Colorado and Utah have better skiing. However, you can't blame Snow Bowl for being closed so many times. Calling it a "joke" is a little over the top because there were valid reasons why it was closed so often: the lack of snow! Only two out of the past ten winters had abundant snowfall to keep the resort in business ... but the other winters were unusually dry.

The resort wanted to use snow making techniques, but the Indian tribes raised a fuss against it ... even though the resort and the peaks don't sit on tribal land! The Ninth Circuit Court decided in favor of the Snow Bowl recently that it could go ahead and make its own snow. So I'm hoping that this ruling will keep the resort open more often and draw in more business than they have in many of the recent winters.

[borborygmi]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

Agreed that Colorado and Utah have better skiing. However, you can't blame Snow Bowl for being closed so many times. Calling it a "joke" is a little over the top because there were valid reasons why it was closed so often: the lack of snow!

Valid reasons or not, snow, and lots of it, is sort of a prerequisite for any kind of quality skiing, wouldn't you agree? And anyway, there are other reasons I'd call it a joke- it's flat, tiny, outdated and extremely crowded when there actually is any snow- all those reasons are accurate criticisms.

If you're a beginner, maybe it's OK. OTOH, if you're an experienced skier and have spent time at any of the larger and more challenging places in Utah, CO, CA, BC, WY, etc., then it's hard not to be extremely disappointed in Snowbowl. I know the first time I saw it, I just about fell over laughing.

[fcorrales80]

Originally Posted by borborygmi

Valid reasons or not, snow, and lots of it, is sort of a prerequisite for any kind of quality skiing, wouldn't you agree? And anyway, there are other reasons I'd call it a joke- it's flat, tiny, outdated and extremely crowded when there actually is any snow- all those reasons are accurate criticisms.

If you're a beginner, maybe it's OK. OTOH, if you're an experienced skier and have spent time at any of the larger and more challenging places in Utah, CO, CA, BC, WY, etc., then it's hard not to be extremely disappointed in Snowbowl. I know the first time I saw it, I just about fell over laughing.

Actually, snowbowl was open longer than some CO resorts this last winter, and 2 winters before. This winter, Snowbowl had over 200' of powder and very good conditions into April. While the resorts in Uhat, CO, NORTHERN CA, BC, WY are often better, that is not always the case. Sunrise is many times larger than Snowbowl and has been open EVERY year. It is in the White Mountains and the conditions there are amazing, especially this winter. TONS of snow. It has NEVER taken me longer than 2 hours to get to Flagstaff, except when the weather is bad; but thats true of any ski town. Snowbowl is not flat, it actually has a vertical drop that is very steep. While it is small, it can accommadate huge crowds and the lifts are designed very efficiently.

[borborygmi]

Originally Posted by fcorrales80

Actually, snowbowl was open longer than some CO resorts this last winter, and 2 winters before. This winter, Snowbowl had over 200' of powder and very good conditions into April. While the resorts in Uhat, CO, NORTHERN CA, BC, WY are often better, that is not always the case. Sunrise is many times larger than Snowbowl and has been open EVERY year. It is in the White Mountains and the conditions there are amazing, especially this winter. TONS of snow. It has NEVER taken me longer than 2 hours to get to Flagstaff, except when the weather is bad; but thats true of any ski town. Snowbowl is not flat, it actually has a vertical drop that is very steep. While it is small, it can accommadate huge crowds and the lifts are designed very efficiently.

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dude, I've been skiing for 25 years, I grew up in Colorado and have been to every resort from Summit County to Little Cottonwood Canyon to Mammoth, Telluride, Whistler, Jackson Hole and everywhere in between. And I will attest personally that Snowbowl compares with none of those places in any way! It's not even close! Are you kidding me?

Want some comparisons? Whistler, for instance, has about 5,500 vertical feet of drop and over 7,000 skiable acres. Snowbird and Alta get over 500 inches a year of natural snow and are routinely open for 6 months or longer, without interruption. All the aforementioned places have double digit numbers of open and natural, double black hike-to bowls and natural terrain. Snowbowl covers 777 acres, only 140 of which are actually skiable, and it's reported to have 2300 feet of vertical, but this is assuming that you take the Agassiz lift to the top and ski all the way to the parking lot- when most of the last 1000 feet or so are flat, boring green runs. So I'd guess that the interesting, challenging vertical is only about 1000 feet. There is no comparison. And I say that not just based on the stats, I speak from experience.

Sunrise I've never been to, but I've seen trail maps, and I'd be absolutely shocked if it was significantly better than Snowbowl. More snow, perhaps, but it's still tiny.

[ScoutAZ]

October 11

[fcorrales80]

Originally Posted by borborygmi

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dude, I've been skiing for 25 years, I grew up in Colorado and have been to every resort from Summit County to Little Cottonwood Canyon to Mammoth, Telluride, Whistler, Jackson Hole and everywhere in between. And I will attest personally that Snowbowl compares with none of those places in any way! It's not even close! Are you kidding me?

Want some comparisons? Whistler, for instance, has about 5,500 vertical feet of drop and over 7,000 skiable acres. Snowbird and Alta get over 500 inches a year of natural snow and are routinely open for 6 months or longer, without interruption. All the aforementioned places have double digit numbers of open and natural, double black hike-to bowls and natural terrain. Snowbowl covers 777 acres, only 140 of which are actually skiable, and it's reported to have 2300 feet of vertical, but this is assuming that you take the Agassiz lift to the top and ski all the way to the parking lot- when most of the last 1000 feet or so are flat, boring green runs. So I'd guess that the interesting, challenging vertical is only about 1000 feet. There is no comparison. And I say that not just based on the stats, I speak from experience.

Sunrise I've never been to, but I've seen trail maps, and I'd be absolutely shocked if it was significantly better than Snowbowl. More snow, perhaps, but it's still tiny.

I know all about Whistler-Blackcomb, I lived in Seattle for many years and been myself. I've also lived in Europe and stationed at Aviano, Italy...close to the Alps. I never said that Snow Bowl compared in size, but how you tried to describe it was WAY off. And Sunrise is much better than Snowbowl in terms of size and amenities and actual acreage.

Snowbowl has the 54th highest vertical drop; many of the runs that are longer than Snowbowls 2300 vertical are not a continuous run and have breaks. Snowbowls Agassiz is continuous, starts at 11,500 and ends at 9,200. The parking lot is below Hart Prairie which sits below 8900 ft. Average snowfall at Hart Prairie is 260' and is closer to 300' at Agassiz Lodge. The runs above Agassiz average well over 300'. Snowbowl is also one of the oldest, continuously run ski resort in North America and has operated since the 1930's.

Having the 54th highest vertical is not really a bragging right, but then Europeans laugh at North America's largest vertical at Blackcomb which is 5,133ft. Chamonix Mont-Blanc has a 9,209 ft. vertical, Les Arcs, 6,500, Davos, 6,600, Cortina, 6,000. My point is, very few skiers and snowboarders experience anything above 2,500. A small percentage actually Ski from the top of Blackcomb. I've seen the runs at Chamonix Mont-Blanc, and trust me, Whistler looks like a HILL compared to those monster runs and mountains. I don't think a 4,000ft vertical is important to most since the majority of people don't take advantage of the entire hill.

Oh, so back on topic; has it still been over 100? Haven't had a chance to watch the news, LOL. It seems cooler...maybe because the mornings and nights are

[twiggy]

We all love snow sports so I spend most of the winter waiting for that snow to build enough to do something on. This year might be different, with this wonderful summer, hopefully it will be snowier up North. But AZ's skiing is just sort of a family fun thing, not for a real skier. Which is ok for us but the snow doesn't last long enough to plan a winter vaca, and sometimes it doesn't come until Feb.

The length of time to get up North depends for us on a lot of things. If it was just me, I was pushing the speed limit and the roads were clear maybe. But with 3 kids, traffic, and snow, it takes us at least 4. I should stick a porta potty to the back of my car, that would speed things up a little. lol

Its hit a 100 this week, so maybe next week. It does look promising this year to be an early fall. I hate when they anounce fall on the news and I'm sweating outside, it's weird. But this year is cooler than it's been for awhile. Keeping figures crossed.

[fcorrales80]

Originally Posted by twiggy

We all love snow sports so I spend most of the winter waiting for that snow to build enough to do something on. This year might be different, with this wonderful summer, hopefully it will be snowier up North. But AZ's skiing is just sort of a family fun thing, not for a real skier. Which is ok for us but the snow doesn't last long enough to plan a winter vaca, and sometimes it doesn't come until Feb.

The length of time to get up North depends for us on a lot of things. If it was just me, I was pushing the speed limit and the roads were clear maybe. But with 3 kids, traffic, and snow, it takes us at least 4. I should stick a porta potty to the back of my car, that would speed things up a little. lol

Its hit a 100 this week, so maybe next week. It does look promising this year to be an early fall. I hate when they anounce fall on the news and I'm sweating outside, it's weird. But this year is cooler than it's been for awhile. Keeping figures crossed.

Did you live in Arizona this past winter? It was open for more than 130 days...from mid-Dec. until late April (26-27). The 2006-2007 season had a similar schedule. NOW, 2005-2006 WAS horrible; the first snow feel in February and were only open for a few weeks! Awful, that darned drought! Sunrise, however, has opened every year for a significant amount of time.

Aren't most ski areas, even Vail, Aspen, and Tahoe really just a family fun thing? All those kids must be orphaned ski bunnies in Whistler too, LOL! I kid. Try one of the more difficult runs and then get back to us in one piece please. They have runs of varying difficulty for everyone, even real skiiers. I am with you...I hope that the snow comes on an "average" schedule this year. Which in Arizona usually means Thanksgivings.