Sugarbush, VT 11/14/99

<I>(Note from the Administrator: This report was originally posted on 11/14/99. Due to our move to new servers, the date and time attributed to this post is incorrect.)</I> <BR> <BR>Fog and and the look of rain transformed Canned Food Day from what is usually a ride on the NJ Turnpike into a reasonable imitation of midweek winter day. Couple of small jam ups around 11 AM, but from 9 until 1:30 the skiing was generally pleasant, with soft snow and moderate temperatures. <BR> <BR>Despite the fog, Jumpin' Jimmy, Mr. Rogers and I were able to distinguish many a skivtler face sharing the trail: Jspin, E, and the ubiquitous Matt Duffy. <BR> <BR>Used the day to launch my new favorite skis. Since I was a lad in junior high school, my most coveted ski model of all time was the Völkl Zebra. As a young skiing nerd, I even built a special high-tech model rocket featuring a Zebra paint job and named after my dream ski. <BR> <BR>Well, you'd think that 25 years of waiting to ski you first puppy-love ski -- in this age of young curvaceous vixen skis dangling from every boot and Rubenesque powder Volkls in my own basement playing the temptress -- the actual ride on the grande dames would be rather a let down. <BR> <BR>Not at all, my friends. A tad hefty, a little slow from edge to edge, but all in all the Zebras were every bit as fun as I had fantasized <BR>they would be when I used to lie in my boyhood bed at night and dream Zebra dreams beneath my Suzy Chaffee/White Stage Freestyle Poster. <BR> <BR>Hold onto you dreams!

<I>(Note from the Administrator: This report was originally posted on 11/21/99. Due to our move to new servers, the date and time attributed to this post is incorrect.)</I> <BR> <BR>> Wesley writes: <BR>> <BR>> > <BR>> >Fog and and the look of rain transformed Canned Food Day from what is <BR>> >usually a ride on the NJ Turnpike into a reasonable imitation of <BR>> >midweek winter day. <BR> <BR> <BR>It was one of those loooong days for me; the first one of those in a while and I think it showed. Although the fog added to the effect, I was in a cloud that was unrelated to the weather... <BR> <BR>Sitting next to Wes on the lift, I kept getting hypnotized by his skis. Staring at them for more than a few seconds was entrancing. I was like Mowgli looking into the eyes of Kaa, 'ssssailing on a silvery mist... slowly but surely... senses cease to resist'. <BR> <BR>Looking at those ssskis and lost in a lack of thought, I was startled on one occasion when Wesley asked if I was ready to raise the safety <BR>bar. When I saw we were at the top, I felt like I had just leaned too far back in a chair and caught myself at the last second. Whoa! <BR> <BR>As was reported, the soft snow and lack of crowd made for skiing that was generally pleasing. Maybe it was skis I'm not used to, or that I'm not yet acclimized to sleepless skiing again; but at times my turns were all out of whack while Wesleys looked smooth and enjoyable. Didn't look like he had much trouble going edge to edge to me! <BR> <BR>I wouldn't have guessed the era from which those Zebras came as they look timeless. The construction and shape looked similar to the P20 and if they ski anything like that, I want a pair. Any ideas on where to find them?????