SnowballFighters.co.ukTravel Blog

Airline seating

2006-02-21T02:53:00.000Z

Rather than fly back to the UK and then out to Canada, I'm going to fly straight from Hartford. This means I won't be suffering from jet lag on arrival and best of all I won't have to endure the Monarch flight out.

Came across this quote on the web earlier.

http://www.airlinequality.com/Spcl/seat_tip.htm

"If you are 6ft in height do not contemplate flying Monarch Airlines out of London Gatwick. My partner who is 6ft 2" cannot physically place his feet on the floor of the aircraft in Monarch's 29" pitch seats."

At 6"5, a few hours might be possible, but an 8 hour flight would be a complete nightmare! I've opted to pay an extra £30 on the return flight for an exit seat. It's a joke that airlines are disregarding passengers comfort for a few more $$$$$

One point worth noting thaI i was not aware of previously. If you have a return ticket and you fail to use the outward portion of the flight, the airlines will cancel the entire ticket. Luckily i got wind of this and contacted the airline, who agreed to honour my return ticket.

Seat Guru

When travelling, i find this web site very useful for checking what seats to avoid on particular aircraft and airlines.

www.seatguru.com

They graphically show the seating plan, outlining the best and worst seats. Very useful.

Okemo Report

2006-02-21T02:08:00.000Z

I was really spoilt by the conditions at Mount Snow last weekend!

Following the partial thaw, extreme temperature drop and lack of snow last week - I wasn't surprised to find less than favorable conditions at Okemo.

The surface snow was man made and very granular, the base was packed ice and the light was very flat. All in all, not the greatest day on snow.

I changed my stance again!!! Moved the front foot further forwards, creating a perfectly balanced stance over the board. This definitely helped with my edging, but the conditions still punished my less than perfect edge control. By lunch time I had given up trying to carve and opted for the slide and grind approach :)

Okemo resort is far more family oriented than Mount Snow, the terrain is suited mainly for the intermediate. Lift queues at the base were very busy, which forced me to keep doing top to middle runs. I also found the runs a bit on the narrow side.
The full face mask proved a great investment as it was bitterly cold on the chair.

Getting out of the carpark was also a bit of a nightmare! All in all, I much preferred Mount Snow. But I'd give Okemo another shot if conditions improved.

It wasn't all bad though, the drive up was very easy on the eye. Great scenery - with picture postcard views around every corner. Didn't get any snaps though, as i wanted to get there first thing.

I also picked up a new Marmot Jacket in the Sales. 40% off RRP. The Removable MarmoLoft liner is sooooo warm! Apparently I can fall in a river and the liner will still keep me warm despite being wet! Not sure I want to test that just yet.

Check out this number plate i spotted on the way back!

oh dear!

To Flow Or Not to Flow

2006-02-18T18:57:00.000Z

I'm not going to stoke the great flow debate - except to say, they work for some and don't work for others. Horses for courses and all that.

Having huge US 15 feet, my setup is limited. Currently I have a 168 Ride Mountain board, coupled with US 15 Vans BFB boots and Flow Pro FR bindings. My main issue with this set up, is the weight. Flows are strong, but very heavy. The board is huge and thus very heavy. Weight causes fatigue and coupled with a wide board, equates to slower response.

Flows big plus point for me is comfort. I get stacks of support and no pressure points at all, unlike conventional strap bindings.

The other issue with Flows is boot compatibility, some work better than others. Take a look at the below picture.

The base of my boot should stay flat to the bindings at all times, but I've noticed that when on my toe edge, the heel of my boot is sliding upwards in the binding. This is obviously adding to lack of response.

I can't hold Flow fully responsible for this, my boots are obviously bigger than what their bindings were designed to cater for. You can see from the image above, there are gaps between the side of my boots and the binding. This can result in the following.

That's a lot of movement!! When in this position the boot / binding fit is perfect, there boot will not move any higher. However, as soon as I go back to my heel edge the boot will slide back down again.

possible solutions

I) place a spacer tab on the base of my binding - to raise my boot heel into the preferred higher position. This will prevent any unwanted movement, but will also upset my natural balance over the board.

ii) Add a hook to the underside of my boot, similar to a clicker set up. Would require major modifications to bindings and boots - risky to say the least!

iii) If you look at the first image, if I had a raised area on the back of the boot just below the edge the binding high back. It would prevent the boot from riding up. The problem here, is how do I secure the raised area? Glue would not be strong enough.

The option I decided on, is the simplest and appears to work. I simply stuck on some self adhesive pads to the high backs. Creating a better fit between my boots and bindings.

I will continue experimenting with pad placement this weekend in Okemo.

It's worth noting I have tried using conventional straps. Last year in Jackson Hole I picked up a pair of these puppies.

The Burton P1 Carbons, looked great and I'd heard good things about them. Sadly the binding heel was too narrow and they caused major discomfort when riding. In order to get the same level of support as my Flows, I had to crank them really tight, which just added to the discomfort. My other issue with them was the length of the straps. Due to my huge boots, it was a struggle to get the straps in the ratchet's.

If I can find some bigger strap bindings, with longer straps, I will definitely give them another shot, plus I'd couple them up with a narrower board and riser plates.

What's the biggest binding out there? And can I get longer straps?

Okemo

2006-02-18T18:38:00.000Z

I had planned on going to Okemo today, but after a crazy working week of one too many 12 hour days, i opted for a day of relaxing. I will hit Okemo tommorrow morning first thing.

Looking at the trail map, i've got plenty of terrain to cover! Lets hope we have some fresh tonight!

Crazy Crazy Weather

2006-02-18T17:37:00.000Z

It's been the warmest winter on record out here. Last week the temperature dropped to below freezing, then climbed to spring like conditions. Then this morning i awoke to find it snowing!

Temps are due to drop by 40 degrees this weekend!!! Back in Blighty, conditions are fairly constant, you don't get the extremes and changeability like out here.

I discovered this great weather site earlier.

http://www.bestskiweather.com/

Jim has a passion for snow sports and weather. His reports are accurate and informative.

Powder, but oh so cold!

2006-02-13T05:38:00.000Z

I awoke at 4 am with a searing cramp in my right calf!! After hopping round the room for a few minutes, I checked outside expecting snow - there was nothing! 2 hours later my alarm went off and this time I looked out to see a couple of inches of fresh!

I had hoped to get to Mount Snow for first tracks, but the roads were a complete mess, took me nearly 90 minutes. The scenery was fantastic though, picture postcard scenes a plenty.

Despite near blizzard conditions, visibility was still fairly good. It was seriously cold though. Initial slope conditions consisted of dust on crust, but after a few hours, some good powder could be found. The snow was bucketing down!

The South bowl tree line had some seriously good powder, hardly anyone seemed to be hitting it! I must have done that same run a dozen times today!

I experimented with my bindings - reduced my extreme duck foot angles and moved the back foot nearer to the center. It helped with board balance and I was able to pressure the board edge better on toe side turns.

Total snow accumulation was 5 inches, no where near as more coastal areas such as NYC and Boston, which received nearly 2 feet!

Mount snow is a great local hill, a days boarding costs $69, which equates to roughly £40! Very good value when you think that only gets you a few hours boarding at one of the UK snowdomes! Having covered most runs at Mount Snow, the plan is to head further north next weekend. Many people have recommended Okemo Resort, which is bigger, has quiet slopes, good snow and more challenging terrain.

Think my body needs a week to recover! Pushed it real hard this weekend. Shock to the system or what!

Heading home, one last look at Mount Snow.

Feels good to be back on the snow.

2006-02-12T03:45:00.000Z

I spent the day at Mount Snow - what a day! I wasn't expecting much, considering the lack of snow in Vermont, but was pleasantly surprised with how good conditions were. There was a nice layer of fresh and it wasn't until late afternoon that the runs got icey.

I've decided snowboarding is like riding a bike! You never forget! It's been 12 months since i was last on the board, but first run down felt fantastic, despite not having the helmet with me, I was clocking a good speed from the off.

Lift lines were to be expected on a weekend, but the singles line was very quick. The improved fitness made a big difference, I was enjoying myself so much, I skipped lunch and boarded right through to the last lift. The legs were burning like fire on that last run! Feeling it now too! I'm beat!

Digging out the pipe.

Top of Mount Snow.

The Northeaster is gonna kick in tonight, dumping pow all day tomorrow. Coastal areas will be hit the hardest, Boston is expecting 2 feet of snow! Vermont is expecting 3-6 inches.

It should be white over when I wake up tomorrow morning! The plan is to hit Mount Snow again. Going to change my stance - felt like i was boarding too much on the tail. Moving the rear binding forward, will create a narrower more central stance, which in theory should allow more flex of the board, resulting in better carving. Having said that, if there's stacks of snow tommorrow i won't bother!

Gearing up!

2006-02-11T04:42:00.000Z

Got the board out in preparation for the weekend. The flows are on and set up. The boots are on my feet and the bag is packed for tommorrow. Just need to decide where i'm going first thing.

I'd forgotten how heavy my board and flows were!!! It weighs a blinkin ton!

I've made a few prototype modifications to my flows - will blog about them later in the weekend.

Winter Olympics opens in Torino

2006-02-11T04:33:00.000Z

For once I actually watched the opening ceremony - quite impressive. Looking forward to watching the coverage, just hope the American networks do a better job than they did with the Athens coverage, which was dire.

People definitely seem more pumped up for it here than back in the UK. I guess this partly due to lack of expected success and representation in most events. Shame really, as to me it's an amazing spectacle regardless of who competes and who takes gold.

The mens downhill and halfpipe competition starts on sunday.

for a full scedule of events check here

Storm headed for the East Coast

2006-02-10T04:29:00.000Z

I'm watching the weather channel like a hawk. After much discussion, the meteorologists have issued a weather warning for the east coast. We could be looking at 1 foot of snow!

I had planned to drive to the local snow resort "Mount Snow" this weekend, but in light of the projected storm, I'm going to sit tight and make a last minute decision depending on conditions.

The following weekend is a 3 day weekend - due to Presidents Day. A trip to some of the northern Vermont resorts could be on the cards. (Jays Peak, Smugglers ...etc)

Fingers crossed for the weekend!

Bit chilly out

2006-02-10T04:08:00.000Z

Bit late with this blog - been a tad busy!

Flight over went fairly smoothly. The united Airlines flight was barely half full, so there was stacks of room to spread out. It's not often I get 3 seats to myself. Thankfully my board was waiting for me at Washington. I then had a short flight to Hartford Connecticut, the plane was an ERJ 145, which is very small - 1 seat on the left and 2 seats on the right. There was barely room for me, never mind my board. I was expecting the worst on arrival at Hartford.

I needn't had worried though. Despite looking like it had been used for a wheel break, my luggage was waiting for me on the carousel! wooohoo!

I had planned to get a compact car, but on seeing the weather and the need for trunk space, I opted for a Toyota Landcruiser. I was glad of the 4 wheel drive, as I hit a fairly bad snow storm on route to Brattleboro.

This winter has been the warmest on record, hence snow conditions pale in comparison to this time last year. Due to the cold, there is plenty of snow piled up in carparks and at the side of the road from a previous storm. But there should be snow everywhere at this time of the year!

Brattleboro is your typical New England style rural town. The scenery and architecture is very easy on the eye. Plus the locals are very laid back and friendly.

Vermont for 3 weeks

2006-02-06T00:04:00.000Z

Working out in Brattleboro, Vermont for 3 weeks. Flying into Hartford CT, picking up the hire car and then travelling up the I91 to Brattleboro. I'm taking the board with me, so providing my weekends are work free, i should get some snow time. Vermont has plenty of hills on offer.

[1] Bolton Valley Resort
[2] Bromley Mountain
[3] Burke Mountain
[4] Jay Peak
[5] Killington
[5] Pico Mountain
[6] Mad River Glen
[6] Sugarbush Resort
[7] Ascutney
[8] Mount Snow
[9] Okemo Mountain Resort
[10] Magic Mountain
[10] Stratton Mountain Resort
[11] Cochran Ski Area
[12] Middlebury College Snow
[14] Smugglers' Notch Resort
[15] Suicide Six

Mount snow is my local hill, but conditions are not looking that good. I aim to to visit Killington and depending on time, hopefully Stowe or Jay Peak. The east coast resorts are definately in need of some fresh snow - fingers crossed for my stay.

I had originally planned to fly back to the UK, stay for 2 days and then fly out to Canada for my Banff trip. However it seems that i can now fly straight from Hartford to Calgary via Salt Lake City in 8 hours. This will make life much easier and i won't be such a wreck from the jet lag. Plus i won't have to endure the chartered flight from the UK with Monarch Airlines!!! ( 29 inches of leg room!!! )

Providing the customer gives me the go ahead to do the above, i intend to use the Banff Airporter to get from Calgary to Banff

http://www.banffairporter.com/

I'll post more details once i'm in Vermont. Flight leaves in 7 hours :) Lets just hope i don't get any grief from the airline due to my huuuuge Dakine 180 board bag.

Jamie Pierre sets a new world record in Grand Targhee

2006-01-30T22:32:00.000Z

Jamie has a reputation for throwing himself off cliffs. Looks like he excelled himself this time.

He got 4 seconds of hang time and was reported to have landed on his head! He sites his faith in the Lord for still being alive.

Big respect to the dude, but he's obviously neurally challenged. His wife and family were not impressed for the obvious risks involved. There's a movie of a previous, slightly smaller jump here. Make your own mind up!

How to Ollie?

2006-01-30T21:48:00.000Z

Someone asked me the other day how to ollie. Pictures always speak louder than words. Check out this link to a movie ollie tutorial.

how to ollie

You need to use the tail of the board as a spring. A stiff board can produce bags of pop!

West Coast Story

2006-01-29T21:40:00.000Z

Los Angeles

California is one place I've always wanted to visit, during the end of my stay in Houston, I made a last minute decision to take a weeks holiday before xmas and fly over to the west coast. I flew into Los Angeles LAX and traveled round for 5 days. Whilst the weather was not brilliant, 70 degrees in December still makes a welcome change.

Driving in LA is certainly an experience, it's comparable to London, except everything is much bigger! Houston may be home of the truck, but LA is certainly home to the SUV! I seriously did not feel safe in my little Chevy hire car. With petrol so cheap in the states, I can see why they all drive round in gas guzzling tanks - there really is no incentive to go green. I can imagine the smog being an issue during the summer months.
It's crazy to be on a 16 lane highway heading downtown and still be in a traffic jam, although to be fair, they have some neat traffic calming measures - some of which I'd like to see in the UK!

I stayed in Inglewood, which was conveniently close to LAX, but also gave me great access to the local beaches. Being so close to fantastic beaches and snowcapped mountains is a massive draw to Los Angeles. Sadly I didn't make it to Malibu beach, but I did visit Redondo, Hermossa, Manhatten and Venice Beach. Despite still being warm, it appears the locals stay clear of the beaches during the winter months. I'd definitely visit during the summer months, but it was still great to have the beaches to myself - especially during sunset.

Hollywood Boulevard was as I expected, a bit naff, but still worthy of a visit to see the Hollywood hills and tourist attractions.

With half a day left, I opted for Universal Studios. A full day would have been better, but the visit comes highly recommended. Some of the attractions are looking a little dated, but the newer 3d ones are seriously cutting edge. The Terminator 2 show was a particular stand out, those 3d goggles might look naff, but the effects were anything but.

I barely scratched the surface of LA, never mind the rest of CA. I will definitely be back!

Las Vegas

Before heading back to blighty, I jumped on a plane and headed over to Nevada. Las Vegas was to be home for the next 2 days. Despite not being a gambler, I was pleasantly surprised. It's no where near as tacky or seedy as I was expecting. As with most of America, everywhere is clean and well maintained. You cannot appreciate how big these casinos are until you get lost inside one! Comfortable footwear is paramount. It's worth noting Vegas is a 24 hour town, Casinos are happy to bleed you dry night and day, not that you know when night and day is mind! I swear I saw the same old woman at the same fruit machine over an 18 hour period! My only gripe, was the lack of a no smoking policy.

The food in Vegas is fantastic, even the all you can eat buffets are top notch.

Sky Diving In Vegas

My last day in Vegas was a bit hectic. I've always wanted to do a skydive jump. Whilst in Houston a work colleague had suggested I check out Vegas Extreme Skydiving . I woke up on that last day and decided if the weather looked good I would go for it. Conditions were perfect! Making the initial phone call to put down the deposit was definitely the hardest part - talk about nerve racking! I knew there was no going back once I'd handed over my money. I got picked up from the hotel and met 3 other nutters! Alex was Brazilian and had just turned 18, so was now legally entitled to make his first jump. Joanne and Nicki were Canadian and were back for their second jump, having only made there first jump 3 weeks earlier!!! Death wish huh!

On arrival we were handed a waiver that was a single piece of paper but nevertheless had about 500,000 lines to initial, including our promise not to sue the Parachute Center’s owners, our tandem partner, the airplane pilot, Charles Lindberg, George Washington, the Red Baron, et al.

Then we were escorted into what felt like a broom cupboard and instructed to watch a safety video. The video must have been made about 25 years ago. I say this because 1) the speaker on it had a haircut and beard that seemed to be a cross between Bin Laden's and one of the Fab 5's, and 2) this speaker went on to proclaim how tandem jumping was still in an experimental phase which was the only way it could be legal under the FAA's rules.

Then the speaker went on to emphatically point out that, yes, one COULD DIE during this. As if this point wasn't clear enough, an ambulance was shown racing to an accident scene where, unfortunately, a parachuter did not quite make it. YIKES !

Following the video we were given our less than fashionable jump suits and shown the basic position to assume once out of the plane. That was it! We then had 10 minutes to contemplate our fate whilst the instructors geared up. You only have to look at the profile of these guys on the web site to realise how experienced they are. Despite their massive jump tally, they were still very modest, professional and yes they still looked apprehensive!

My instructor Kevin Purdy led me out to the plane whilst pointing the camera in my face and expecting me to say something poignant! The Cessna aircraft was small as you can see from the below picture.

Myself, Kevin, Jason the pilot, Alex and his instructor Troy were on our way to 17,000 feet which was our jump altitude. It was all kinda surreal at this point, your running on pure adrenaline and your brain is running a million miles an hour. There simply wasn't time to be nervous.

Without warning the door flung open and a blast of cold air hit me. I instinctively grabbed hold of the door, which put a big grin on Kevs face! Bitch! It was at this point I realised we were going to be first out. Kev clipped his harness onto mine and we maneuvered into position, despite the view being fantastic, there really wasn't time to sit and take it in. Kev pointed to the ledge on the undercarriage wheel and instructed me to place my right foot on it. This is pretty tricky, the wind is trying to blow you out of the plane and your leg isn't exactly cooperating with your brain! Kev then asked me to lean forward, it seemed like I was half hanging from the plane for an age! Were we really 17,000 feet? It didn't look that high! The desert floor looked pretty close to me :)

Then with a push from behind we were airborne! The initial fall is completely bizarre, it's like your brain shuts down for a split second. Then when it reboots, it's total adrenaline overload! Freefall is nothing like a rollercoaster, you feel like your floating on a bed of air, but with lots of wind blowing in your face. Kev tapped me on the shoulder which was the cue to stick my arms out infront of me.

After around 20 seconds of 120 mph freefall, there was a sudden jolt as the main parachute deployed. Descending under the canopy allows you to soak up the view and comprehend what just happened! Kev put us in a few tight spins and then handed the controls over to me. The canopy was surprisingly maneourverable.

Landing consisted of lifting your legs and sliding in on your butt. Kudos to Kev, we landed smack in the middle of the small square landing zone. It was at this point that I realised the landing site was just 30 meters from a busy freeway!

It wasn't until we arrived back at the base and reviewed the DVD camera footage that we realised the plane exit hadn't been that smooth. I'd caught my left leg which was still in the plane, on the door on exit. This had actually flipped us - which kev countered expertly. I'd been totally unaware due to the adrenaline that my leg was actually pretty badly bruised! Ah well, I'll know for next time :)

Talking of next time - would I do it again? I'm tempted to say yes.

Houston I've landed!

2006-01-29T21:03:00.000Z

I spent 3 months working in Houston from October to December 05. It gets very very hot in Houston, both in terms of heat and humidity. Fortunately my arrival was after the worst of the heat. Temps of 75-80 and cloudless blue skies were the norm. Being able to wear a t-shirt in December is kinda freaky, especially as friends back in blighty were complaining of the bitter cold and rain :)

Houston is the 4th largest city in the USA and has been consistently voted the no.1 fattest city ( based on the number of fast food restaurants to population ratio ). Granted there are a crazy amount of restaurants and bars, but to be honest I didn't see that many fat people! Perhaps they're so fat, they're all stuck at home!?

Special mention goes out to the Fox and Hound pub, it's your typical yank sports bar, but they had a great selection of beers, pool tables, decent music and a Katie Holmes look a like! She was even called Katie!

Houston was good, it plays host to many different cultures and nationalities. I'm used to walking everywhere, but you really need a car in Houston. It doesn't have that city feel as everything is so spread out. My main disappointed was the lack of good beaches, it appears the local oil industry is to blame for this.

You can check out pictures from my trip in the gallery section "other pics".

Blog On

2006-01-29T20:26:00.000Z

Welcome to the blog. I've opted to switch from the normal layout and colour scheme used on the rest of my site. I took one of Bloggers default templates and modified it to get the desired result. Gotta say i'm impressed with Bloggers interface and hosting options. I can't promise regular updates, but if there's anything to report travel or snow related, i'll be sure to post it.