Portillo...Gary meets Joe

[Gary]

Hey Gang...having just returned from Chile' skiing in Portillo, the smile from the spring snow, the sun and the goals I accomplished is still beaming across my face. The big plus was meeting Joe from our Real Skiers site there with his wife. Great people with a passion for skiing.

The Clendenin Clinic was again amazing. John was skiing great and teaching better. His other coach Chino, well known in Chile' is also a fantastic coach. Porillo is his backyard playground where he grew up skiing and he knows the ins and outs on how to find the best terrain and how to get to it. We had spring snow, frozen granular, monster soft bumps, sweet high speed groomed runs the US Olympic team was working out on. On top of this we had fantastic food.

Did a little boot work that helped me feel even more of the ski underfoot. Had the heel of the zeppa board ground down 1mm and wow....huge difference for me. The big? plus was how well the Kastle MX78's performed for both ALice and me. I truly love that ski and find it so versatile front side and and up to shin high snow. Favorite ski to date for me.

Overall, the trip was fantastic, a long ride back...guess it felt shorter going cause of the thoughts of skiing....but I brought back a nasty respitory bug that's just starting to go back to the depths of hell from whence it came.

Now...I'm just aching to get back on the snow. I feel my ski skills moved up a notch. As much as doing slow drills seems mundane...boy once ingrained and taken into the steeps and broken snow...they become automatic.? It was a great camp...Clendenin who now rep's Kastle, is still got what it takes. Seeing the improvment in people after the 1 week camp was truly amazing. Alice accomplished a great deal this camp and the video and still shots show how much.

We're pumped and ready to go....let' get it on! Best, G

[jbotti]

Very nice Gary. Glad you had such a great trip!!

[midwif]

Sounds like a blast!
Portillo is on the bucket list.

There is an edge of coolness starting to break into the weather here.
A few trees have snippets of yellow and red leaves.
Just a hint of the smell of snow coming???

DonDenver posted pics on Epic of the new lift being built at A-Basin.
And of all the snow guns positioned to begin the WROD.

Looking forward to skiing with you folks this winter.

Lynn

[Ron]

Ahh, yes the WROD!  A real sign of winter to come. it seems to be the new bell weather test of winter now. How many view that web cam to see the first guns of the season blazing... 

[Gary]

Thanks J and Lynn...So Lynn, maybe next year you could treat yourself to Portillo followed by a trip to another nation in need....NICE!

Skiing sping snow or any snow during our summer is truly a great opportunity.....and like a drug you can't do without!

J....a lot to be said about working on tactics or skill sets. I know you're a big believer as well. Pays off in huge dividends when conditions get more complicated.....hug e confidence boost.

Making turns with Joe and Nancy I know their skiing improved too by weeks end.? What was fun was that at the end of each day and with only 11 in our group, we'd meet to discuss the days events and what we got out of the day.  We'd meet in the morning to review video and discuss technique and indvidual goals. The approach was open and light hearted but with total focus on trying to meet each of our clinics goals.

There were lots of laughs and teasing of the coaches which they took in good humor. We had a lovely lady from Canada who never skied before and after 1 hour with Chino, she was making parallel entry turns. Another couple of hours between Chino and John, she was skiing blue terrain with great turns. She was one happy lady for sure.

Now the wait for the snow to fall. My skis got rocked up pretty good and now are repaired best I could without a base grind...they too are ready to slide and glide...the JJ"s.... they still await their call for steep and deep! I look forward to that day to apply some way cool skills to pilot the big boards!
G

[jbotti]

On the subject of base grinds... I am one who would rarely get my bases ground. I have had too many bad ones and often the skis never ski the same. When I started skiing with Thor a few years ago he would ski my skis and insist that I get the bases ground. I explained my past issues with bad grinds and he took my skis to guys he knew would do it right. Now I am only using Willi Wiltz (WC Tuner for Darren Rahlves, Bode and Tommy Moe to name a few) for base grinds and they are actually better than what comes off the factory machine. Now as soon as I feel my skis start to get base high, I get them ground and they ski great again. I will also say that having Willi grind them is not always that easy. Sometimes I ship him the skis, and sometimes if I am headed up to Tahoe I will bring the skis up. It's a bit of a pain lugging them from MT, but well worth the effort. I set Willi up at the ski shop in MT and he is going out to give them a clinic on how to properly grind and tune skis. Hopefully this means that there will be someone in MT that I can trust to do base grinds.

This is all a long winded way of saying everyone needs someone good to do base grinds. And.. sometimes you have to go out of your way to use them. It is well worth the effort and the cost. There is nothing worse than base high skis!!!

I will a say that I had some pretty beat up skis that Willi worked on and after a base grind and his edge work, they look brand new. I can't do work anywhere close to this quality.

Best for everyone to find someone really good and use them when the skis need it. Just my $0.02.

Ron of course has figured out how to never need a base grind. He sells his skis before he comes close to getting them base high. That also works!!

[Ron]

Thanks!? I dont' worry much about bases. AS long as they are true to start I will maintain and have any shots repaired but lets be honest, unless we are Ralves, it's not that important.......

but i have had brand new skis with the bases off a fair amount for sure. 

[Gary]

Well I would totally agree that if you're going to get a base grind...it better be done right or the results are not pretty. Over the years, I think I've done one pair.

My biggest concern is that after spring skiing, the bases look like Freddie Krugar used them to deturne his nails. Yes, I've p-texed and waxed...but they just never look the same. Honestly skiing all mountain with them, I don't think I notice the difference even on some fun high speed groomers. Maybe skiing side by side with bases as "smooth as a babies behind" I might notice but there's no money or trophy involved with my skiing. Still...I wonder if these new laser tune machines can put a flat base grind on a pair of skis so they look pretty again.

I'm guessing I'll keep the Kastle 78's till they wear out...probably 4 seasons of hard skiing. Still I want the edges to be right as well as the bases.

Questions is...do the new fangled laser machines providing that "just factory tuned" ...really do just that?

THoughts, g

[Ron]

I will say that the tune that Start Haus (also works on Ralves skis) put on my 88's was incredible. the bases after a week at Vn were nicked and scratched but the structure is still very visible and they still had decent glide. I didn't touch them all week, nothing, I didn't even wipe down after skiing. The edges were burred (by the end of the week, you could notice the change on edgehold on the AM boilerplate) but i will just hit them with a diamond stone. I will hit the bases with a coat of wax but I wouldn't hesitate to send them to Utah once a season for a proper tune up. I have to believe a good tune like that will hold up for quite a while with just some maintanance. 

[jbotti]

unless we are Ralves, it's not that important.......

I really can notice base high skis immedaitely and they drive me crazy. I feel like I have to tip twice as far and twice as hard just to get the skis engaged. At higher speeds they feel dangerous to me because I have to work so hard and wait so long for the edges to engage.

Start Haus does a great job and that is another place that I would have do my base grinds. Obviously easier for me than for people on the East Coast. Having said that Iif I had no one I could trust on the east coast I would ship my skis to Schaffner/Start Haus or to Willi.

[Ron]

can't agree more! I had a pair of Piglrims that were off on the base and even I had a real issue with them, squirrely as hell!

[jbotti]

The Race Place out of Bend OR is another place that I have been told does a solid job with base grinds. Wish I had 2-3 reccs for the east coasters. Maybe Phil knows someone good.

[LivingProof]

G,
Glad to hear your trip was great and both you and Alice did not succumb to the same eating devil that Ron encountered. Any pics we can view?

Did you participate as an secondary instructor with JC this year? Out of curiosity, Mostly I remember your skiing as a GS carver lover, and, I wounder if you've transitioned more to Clendenin 4 magic words turn associated with his bump skiing school.

For sure, gonna be harder to keep up with Alice, never could keep up with you!

Somewhere in the bucket is a trip to Chile, now, what trade-offs can I make with my wife to let me do it?

And on the minor subject of base repair, my Kastle 88's will be done by Starthaus this winter when I'm there to ski with Phil. My skis were demo's and it would be great to have them restored to "as new" conditions. If they are out of the quiver for more than a day, Phil will just have to come up with something for me to demo!   Hmm, on second thought, that's how the 88's came into my quiver. Damn it, Phil, it's expensive hanging out with you!

[jbotti]

LP, when are you coming to Tahoe? If I am available I will come up and ski with you and Phil (assuming I am invited).

[LivingProof]

JB,

All I know right now is that I have a standing invite from Phil, and, hell yes, if we can link up, I'd love to make some turns with you. The thought did come to get in touch with you and see if Phil/you and I can make some turns. I'm pretty flexible in scheduling, but, need to resolve where/when to ski this winter. Present thinking is Tahoe in the spring, but, I need to resolve where to go in Jan or Feb first. Decisions, Decisions!

I've never been to Tahoe and this trip will be one less to-do in the bucket.

It will be a pleasure to go 2 on 1 with Phil about converting to PMTS!