spinbackwards
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Howdy,
This year pond skimming officially opened - defined as Lake Reveal at A-basin opening and when Al says it's opened!
Looks like the first reveal was June 1.
https://www.arapahoebasin.com/als-blog/page-5096/
I got there last Saturday June 7. It was a challenging pond crossing, here's why.
The entrance to Lake Reveal had a drop to it. If you just let your skis take you across, your tips would sink and you'd fall in. Because as you can see, the entrance had a drop off this year. So what you had to do, is just before hitting the water, jump up a little on your skis so the tails would hit first. Here's a picture of a pond skimmer trying to smooth out the entrance and exit ramp (more on this).
The exit ramp was tricky too, because it was steep. Making it across required much more speed as it got warmer. If not, your tips would hit the exit and you'd fall backwards into Lake Reveal. This guy barely made it. That's yours truly, hamming it up for the picture.
Here's another picture of a dedicated skimmer contributing to making things smoother.
As always, the crowd of bystanders and skimmers was convivial. Such a cool vibe.
Here's a picture of the exit ramp.
So did I make it across? Yes. But it took 3 tries. Not because I fell. Because so many others were falling. I'd make the last turn, I'd see someone in the Lake. Abort. Me right after the crossing.
So while Lake Reveal wasn't near as big as it usually is this time of year, getting across was more challenging. To get across you had to start just below the top of the Lenawee lift, then hope you don't have to slow down. The last turn was bumpy and there wasn't much time to recover before hitting the entrance. Tricky. I'd say 1/3 of the attempts I watched were unsuccessful crossings.
I then celebrated my crossing by lounging at Black Mountain Lodge, taking it some people watching.
I'll be there for closing day this Sunday, for more pond skimming.
Folks, there's a reason why they call A-basin "the legend". Nothing else like it that I've seen. It's epic!
This year pond skimming officially opened - defined as Lake Reveal at A-basin opening and when Al says it's opened!
Looks like the first reveal was June 1.
https://www.arapahoebasin.com/als-blog/page-5096/
I got there last Saturday June 7. It was a challenging pond crossing, here's why.
The entrance to Lake Reveal had a drop to it. If you just let your skis take you across, your tips would sink and you'd fall in. Because as you can see, the entrance had a drop off this year. So what you had to do, is just before hitting the water, jump up a little on your skis so the tails would hit first. Here's a picture of a pond skimmer trying to smooth out the entrance and exit ramp (more on this).
The exit ramp was tricky too, because it was steep. Making it across required much more speed as it got warmer. If not, your tips would hit the exit and you'd fall backwards into Lake Reveal. This guy barely made it. That's yours truly, hamming it up for the picture.
Here's another picture of a dedicated skimmer contributing to making things smoother.
As always, the crowd of bystanders and skimmers was convivial. Such a cool vibe.
Here's a picture of the exit ramp.
So did I make it across? Yes. But it took 3 tries. Not because I fell. Because so many others were falling. I'd make the last turn, I'd see someone in the Lake. Abort. Me right after the crossing.
So while Lake Reveal wasn't near as big as it usually is this time of year, getting across was more challenging. To get across you had to start just below the top of the Lenawee lift, then hope you don't have to slow down. The last turn was bumpy and there wasn't much time to recover before hitting the entrance. Tricky. I'd say 1/3 of the attempts I watched were unsuccessful crossings.
I then celebrated my crossing by lounging at Black Mountain Lodge, taking it some people watching.
I'll be there for closing day this Sunday, for more pond skimming.
Folks, there's a reason why they call A-basin "the legend". Nothing else like it that I've seen. It's epic!
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