Help me plan my first trip out west! (From Ohio)

[jdang307]

Originally Posted by mojo maestro

Aspen......4 mountains, 1 pass, gondola, "stuff" for mom, less crowded.

My target for 2012-2013 season. Maybe even this year if $$$ flows right.

Is it four mountains in one? Only ever heard of Snowmass, which looks totally awesome.

[mdc]

I still say Utah. Go to Snowbird, stay at the cliff lodge. You walk out the door to the slopes and mom chills at the spa, in the rooftop hot tub and pool. She can go to all the shit that goes along with a spa. The rooftop hot tub and pool are very cool. Mom may even find you a new daddy!

[mojo maestro]

Snowmass...Aspen Highlands....Aspen Mountain....and Buttermilk

[p-hat in cincy]

Originally Posted by neednsnow

If money truely isn't an issue, then hit Aspen. Check out lodging on VRBO.com for a decent place to stay. Have fun! It should be quite a scene over New Years.

I agree! Aspen will have something for everyone. Hopping the free shuttle to any of the 4 mtns is awesome. I had a blast there.

With that said, my two snowboard trips West this year will be to Utah. The convenience of the resorts from SLC is hard to beat. You can stay in Park City and access the Town Lift to Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) or take a quick car/bus trip over to Canyons. As others stated, other resorts are within a reasonable drive.

Staying in Park City gives everyone stuff to do and virtually gives you walk-out convenience to PCMR...and nightlife afterwards.

The wife and I will hit Powder Mountain & Snowbasin (staying in Eden) the week after Christmas (hoping to minimize crowds). Since we'll have the kids when we head back out the end of Feb., we'll stay in Park City (ride PCMR , Canyons, ...?) because it opens up options after we get off the mtns.

Wherever you decide, you should have a blast! It took 1 trip 2 seasons ago to hook me.

I also suggest vrbo.com for lodging.

Thread of PC trip:
http://www.snowboardingforum.com/tri...arch-11-a.html

[uninc.mike]

Originally Posted by mdc

I still say Utah. Go to Snowbird, stay at the cliff lodge. You walk out the door to the slopes and mom chills at the spa, in the rooftop hot tub and pool. She can go to all the shit that goes along with a spa. The rooftop hot tub and pool are very cool. Mom may even find you a new daddy!

LMAO

Thanks guys, I think It's looking like aspen is gonna be the ONE. Nice mountain, plenty of shit to do for mom ect. I think regardless of where I go im going to love it... bad news is now i have to find a new board bc mine is cracked oh wells

[Sudden_Death]

Originally Posted by uninc.mike

LMAO

Thanks guys, I think It's looking like aspen is gonna be the ONE. Nice mountain, plenty of shit to do for mom ect. I think regardless of where I go im going to love it... bad news is now i have to find a new board bc mine is cracked oh wells

Wait so you get to go to Aspen and get a new board and you end that with a a frown? Mom should be spending that money on a shrink if you are still frowning after that!

[nevrsumrrider]

hold the boat, or plane, or whatever you are taking. Your mom is just going to chill, and you want to ride a good mountain on the 1st. Here is a short list.
1.Jackson Hole- because it is the best mountain in the states, and your mom will love it too.
2. Big Sky- another amazing mtn, less for your mom but still decent.
3.Telluride- tons of snow already and your mom will love it too.
5.what has been said about utah, don't skip powder mountain if you go.

Where to avoid, unless your mom wants to be puked on and you want to spend your first 4 days of riding a real mountain in a lift line.
1. All of summit county and Vail.
2. Park City- normally awesome, but not the week you are going.
3.Brighton is awesome for a purist, but your mom is going to be bored off her arse there.

I have been to every resort on your list during or near the time you are going. They are all awesome, but I would choose a charming mountain town with little to no lift lines so I can actually ride. central colorado is going to be packed. Hence my list. If I was from Ohio, I would definitely want to go to a mountain that would impress me for a lifetime. Jackson, Big Sky, and Telluride will do that.

[ClevelandSB]

ohio rider here.

went with the fam to vail last year during spring break (around march 5th I think?) so I can give you a little insight into vail and what it was like coming from Ohio. Before going to Vail the biggest place I'd ever been was Holiday Valley (about 300 acres versus vail's 5000 acres). The snow there was absolutely terrible. ZERO powder, not even close. The weather was in the mid 50s every single day and not a drop of precipitation. It got below 32 overnight so everything was iced over in the morning and in the afternoon it was wet, heavy shit.

Aside from the terrible snow, the mountain was pretty awesome. I'll always remember the first ride up. I wanted to get the full experience on my first run so I made sure to take the lift straight to the summit and do a full run from top to bottom. The majority of the terrain was pretty easy for me, even having only ridden in ohio. Vail for the most part is not very steep. Additionally, the crowd was mostly skiers and the terrain park was only decent. Looking back, it was still my favorite trip of all time but I'm itching to get into some powder and a more down-to-earth, snowboard-centric crowd. You can ride groomers in ohio and NY all day. Find where the pow is.

[wvbms]

As a former east coaster, I know what it's like to have those powder dreams of the west. But the fact is, you can't plan a trip in advance and expect to ride powder. If it works out that way, consider yourself lucky. Just like the east coast, you aren't going to ride powder unless it snows. And unless you are riding backcountry, then you aren't going to find many powder stashes if you happen to arrive a day or two after a storm (at any major resorts anyway). It's all about your timing. We had a record season in Tahoe last year with some resorts getting 700+ inches of snow. However, there was a 6 week period from the beginning of Jan through mid Fed where we didn't get a single storm, and it was pretty warm... so the conditions were pretty terrible. Conditions can suck in the west at times just like the east. I know this seems like pretty no-brainer stuff, but I just see a lot of people planning trips out west asking "where can I ride powder?", or being disappointed after a trip because there wasn't any powder. I'm just saying, if you're booking your trip in advance instead of on the fly as storms are forecasted, you pretty much just have to cross your fingers. My advice is, just move west and let the storms come to you!

[rc_moe2000]

Originally Posted by ClevelandSB

ohio rider here.

went with the fam to vail last year during spring break (around march 5th I think?) so I can give you a little insight into vail and what it was like coming from Ohio. Before going to Vail the biggest place I'd ever been was Holiday Valley (about 300 acres versus vail's 5000 acres). The snow there was absolutely terrible. ZERO powder, not even close. The weather was in the mid 50s every single day and not a drop of precipitation. It got below 32 overnight so everything was iced over in the morning and in the afternoon it was wet, heavy shit.

Aside from the terrible snow, the mountain was pretty awesome. I'll always remember the first ride up. I wanted to get the full experience on my first run so I made sure to take the lift straight to the summit and do a full run from top to bottom. The majority of the terrain was pretty easy for me, even having only ridden in ohio. Vail for the most part is not very steep. Additionally, the crowd was mostly skiers and the terrain park was only decent. Looking back, it was still my favorite trip of all time but I'm itching to get into some powder and a more down-to-earth, snowboard-centric crowd. You can ride groomers in ohio and NY all day. Find where the pow is.

I am from ohio as well and years ago was bitten by the west coast pow bug as well. So we planned a trip and to vail we went. Needless to say i have been to colorado two more times and moved to portland to ride mt hood for a year. Like said above, if you don't get a storm you will be ridding crust, but if it hits you could be riding in waist deep powder.

where ever you go, your not going to want to come back, that is for sure.
Just remember

1 have fun
2 pray to the snow gods every night
3 saftey third