This is an interesting strategy - maybe Mammoth actually lost money on the 09-10 season pass offer and current attendance trends indicate they will make a better margin on keeping the MVP exclusive to current participants?  They did announce they’re raising prices next year to $92/day - what the hell… is this Vail?

I for one will be buying my MVP for sure… at those lift ticket prices, you get your money’s worth after just 7 days on the hill.  Check out the e-mail announcement I received:

First up is Damian - he was out and about on my last night in Vail.  I always manage to meet fun people, including him!  He caught my eye with his cool beanie & Burton sweatshirt.  He is regular foot, and rides a 157 Burton x8, mostly in the parks.  He has been riding 9 seasons.  Cheers Damian, I hope your Super Bowl party was fun, thanks for the invite!

Then there’s Bill - we met him coming back from Blue Sky Basin on one of the chair lifts as we made our way back towards Lionshead.  Anyone knows I am a sucker for a full beard on a guy… so naturally I struck up a convo.  Bill was on skis and he said he has been skiing his “entire life…”  He works in the Patagonia store in Lionshead Village, so stop by and say hello to him!  It was nice meeting you Bill!

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We stayed at Mammoth Estates condos, right in the neighborhood where the gondola passes over

The sky stayed like this all weekend, no new snow but we didn’t care!

Posing with Shayboarder.com stickers

This lifty at Chair 23 was rocking the dookie chain old skool style

Headed down to Dave’s Run

Never seen it this warm and NOT windy at the top

The crew about to head down Upper Road Runner on the back side

On Sunday we met the “Mammoth Monkey” handing out Valentines at Steeps Bar at McCoy Station

Moe’s was started in Vail by some transplanted Alabamians who perfected their BBQ’ing techniques in college at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.  They serve fantastic pulled pork, grilled ribs, smoked turkey, and fish, as well as generous portions of Southern-style side dishes such as mac & cheese,  collard greens, baked beans, and cole slaw.

It’s a really casual place - you walk in and order at the cashier stand, then they call your name when the food is ready. They post the daily specials where you order - today they had a shrimp “Mo Boy” served with two sides of your choice.

Seating is fairly limited, just a few benches in the restaurant.  The crowd is friendly though, and you could find a way to squeeze in or borrow a few chairs among the customers.

There’s an outdoor patio as well, which is enjoyable when it’s not too cold.  Even this day, when it was pretty cold out and had started snowing slightly, there were quite a few people hanging out.

The best part about Moe’s was the prices - I got a medium sized order (1/2 pint) of their delicious mac & cheese, a small container of their baked beans, a slab of jalapeno cornbread fried up on the grill, and a can of Newcastle - all of this was only $9. The mac & cheese was so amazingly good - you could even see chunks of melted cheese among the pasta.  So rich and filling!

It may not seem like a bargain to many but in this ritzy ski town Moe’s seemed a great value.  Heck, a beer alone would probably cost $7 in any other bar!   My friends all drank tallboy PBRs and I think they were around $3 apiece.

Check out Moe’s to avoid the throngs of tourists, gapers, and misbehaved children at slopeside, and instead enjoy a hearty BBQ meal with some delicious and filling sides and a cool local crowd.

Moe’s Bar-B-Que is located in Lionshead Village, at 675 W Lionshead Cir.  Call for more details at (970) 479-7888. Check out their menu or visit their web site at moesoriginalbbq.com.

I like how they’ve integrated athlete Tweets and leveraged lots of video from past Olympic games.

Be sure to check out these features in the Snowboarding section of the site:

• Slideshow of the 2010 US Snowboard Team
• “Tweet Sheet” - a live feed of tweets from Olympic athletes who use Twitter
• Snowboarding Basics - Background on the different snowboarding events, from halfpipe to Boardercross
• “Model Olympians” - OK there are quite a few hotties in our chosen sport - check out these great photo shoots from stars such as Shaun White, Gretchen Bleiler, and Seth Wescott

Well done NBC!

Saturday morning dawned cloudy and lightly snowing with the sun peeking through at times.  We had a great plan that day to head up the hill and BBQ on the communal grills at Belle’s Camp at the top of Blue Sky Basin.

We woke up early after a mellow dinner at Bully Ranch and headed to the City Market to pick up our essential shopping list for our BBQ:  beer, brats, and buns!  (Insider tip: City Market staff are much friendlier than the Safeway folks - check them out!)

We bought tasty whole wheat buns, and some “Beddar with Cheddar” cheese-stuffed bratwursts.  Do not miss these delicious dogs!  City Market also had a really cool liquor store attendant and we picked up some local brews from Oskar Blues (Dales Pale Ale and Mama’s Little Yellow Pils.)

We packed everything into James’ lightweight backpack and started off on our trek from Lionshead to Blue Sky Basin.  Note that if you are making this trip, especially on a weekend, give yourself an hour!  We waited in some pretty nasty lift lines at Mid-Vail.  We finally arrived at the BBQ spot around noon.

The BBQs were already full of fun loving grillin’ peeps - we met this group of skiers who have been friends for decades who come up to the BBQs every Saturday!  They had an amazing array of food and offered us to come by and graze… smoked salmon, sushi, hot wings, red wine, smoked sausage, oatmeal cookies… they were really prepared!

If you make it up here on a Saturday, look for these guys and say Hi.  You will recognize Pat in the white, orange, and black ski jacket (he’s here at the right with Lauren and Leah):

You don’t need to bring charcoal, gas, fluid, or anything, Belles Camp has grills ready to go. You just need to bring what you plan on eating. And be ready to jockey for position on the grills (but friendly of course) as everyone comes up laden with meats and other grilling goodies and they want to cook and EAT after that long trek to Blue Sky!

Don’t forget your utensils -this guy was eating a giant steak with his bare hands.  How very Coloradan!

I highly recommend the BBQ experience at Belle’s Camp in Vail - it’s a must-do for any visit to Vail. Stick your beers in the snow to keep ‘em cold, mingle with your fellow riders and skiers in the crisp air, and mack down on a delicious grilled meal (sharing or trading if you can) at 11,000 feet!

To get to Belle’s Camp, make your way over from the front side of Vail Mountain over to Skyline Express - Chair 37. Belle’s is at the top of Chair 37. (Ask your friendly lifties how to get there, because I can’t remember…)

Name: Sara C.
Hometown: Orange County
Current Location: Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Alter Ego: Office Manager
Home Resort: Mountain High
Years Riding: 4-5 seasons
Years Instructing: 2 seasons
Certifications: PSIA-AASI Level 1 Snowboard Instructor Certification, Level 1 Children’s Specialist, currently working on Level 2 Certification
Current Ride: Forum Craft 146cm, Ride Sigma Bindings
Other Gear: I’m a total gear whore, i have at LEAST two of everything, what girl rider doesnt, right? I just got a new Bern Muse Priscilla Levac helmet that I absolutely LOVE!
Where I see myself in 5 years: Have an impact in the snow sports industry as an Instructor having earned the highest certification available and spreading my wings into different aspects of snowboarding.

QUESTIONS:

What’s your own personal style of riding? (or what’s your favorite terrain- freeriding, parks, halfpipe…)
my personal style is the fun style! i enjoy them all =)

What do you like most about snowboarding?
it’s a sport. a sport that takes you from place to place and meeting new people. it takes you away from the stresses of the real world. its my zen.

What skill level of students do you teach?
i teach mostly beginner to intermediate riders. i’m just learning tricks myself but i do have my lil’ bag of tricks i like to use that keeps the learning experience fun for my students

How are your classes set up - do you do private lessons or groups?
i teach both group lessons and private lessons.

Who usually attends your classes - girls or guys?
i get a pretty good mix of both girls and guys

Have you ever had a situation where someone was intimidated or gave you attitude because you’re a female instructor?
surprisingly, i have not had any issues with that! i think most of the students respect you regardless of gender because they know that there’s a reason why you’re the instructor and they’re the student. even the teenage boys show me respect.

How are your coworkers’ attitudes when it comes to being a female instructor - I assume you work with instructors of both genders, do you notice any differences in how people interact w/ you?
honestly, i work with an awesome group of instructors. when i started working as an instructor, i was the one who had the misperception that you had to be in your early to mid 20’s and riding for 10+ years and doing tricks off features to be an instructor. but i was soooo wrong! good instructors come in all ages, sizes, ethnicity, levels, and lots of different personalities!

What is the #1 pointer you give your students who are brand new learners?
BEND YOUR KNEES!

What’s the biggest mistake you have to correct?
back leg steering. a lot of people don’t know that the most efficient and correct way to turn is to pivot with their front foot.

I usually tell people give themselves at least 2 days of getting beat up on the hill when they’re learning before they will feel really confident and ready to venture off the bunny hills. In your experience, what’s the average learning curve of new riders to get to that level and how can they accelerate that time if at all?
there’s really no “time frame” that you can give to any beginning rider for them to be able to ride down any level of terrain because some students are quick learners, and there are those who take much longer. as an instructor, we are trained to identify what and how we deliver the lessons but we can’t control how they use the information we give them. i always tell my students snowboarding is not easy but its also not hard if you just apply what you learn in the lessons in how you ride. there are riders who have been snowboarding for years who are still learning. i remind them of my three P’s: Practice, Patience, and Play! Practice what you learn, have Patience and never give up, and lastly….Play and have fun!

I also suggest new riders absolutely take a lesson first to get the basics.   Do you agree or do you think some people can just “pick it up” without any initial tips? Why or why not?
absolutely, there are people out there who are just naturally athletic and can pick up a sport quickly without lessons.  but even instructors take educational clinics to get better season after season. do you think shaun white goes out there and trains by himself with no one’s help because he’s a multiple gold medalist? athletes of all levels need some type of direction.

What are some of the perks you get from being employed at a resort?
season pass (of course) and super discount for dependent passes too.

What are some insider tips you’d give to Mt High visitors?
parking - get there early, it gets packed early! lift tix - get the 6 pack or point passes for best value. check out the east resort for wide open runs and big jumps (when we get tons of snow). your lift tickets are good at both east and west resorts, use the free shuttle. we have one of the BEST Winter Sports School, so take lessons! =)

Which of the other SoCal “local” mountains do you go to?
bear mountain

What’s your favorite part of the job?
i get paid to snowboard!

What’s the process for becoming a snowboard instructor? What tips do you have for anyone who wants to do this job?
apply early and don’t just expect a free pass for the season, it’s still a job and you still have responsibilities!

And just for fun, what would be your Jersey Shore nickname?
S-Pow

Thanks Sara!

Check out Sara’s snowboarding blog at www.Gurlryder.com, where she blogs about women’s snowboarding news, reviews and everything in between!  You can also follow her tweets at @Gurlryder. 

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They took me through some deep powder tree runs; with all the recent snow there was still a few stashes to be found.  They also knew the mountain really well and so we went on some hidden little trails and secret spots..

Roger’s, runs under Chair 21, tree stashes way off the far side of Chair 5, the high side of China Bowl… lots of fun hidden and empty trails that I hope I remember how to get to another time.

The trip was also fun because I broke out of my usual routine and we checked out some new places for apres ski, dinner, and nightlife:  Hyde Lounge, Lakanuki, Gomez’s… I’ll be posting details on those separately.

The weather was great (except for some clouds on Fri and then snow showers on Saturday afternoon)… we had almost NO wind, and mostly blue skies.

It was also cold enough that the show stayed fresh feeling and there was not a lot of ice or crust on the runs.  Except for Chair 23 going down to Scotty’s.  Joana and I played a little human bowling with one another on that one.

But the weekend highlight for me - we ran in to Woolly, the Mammoth Mountain Mascot, TWICE this weekend!  Great photo ops at the top of Gold Rush and at McCoy Station.