MRG absolutely kicks my arse each time I visit. Today was no exception. <BR> <BR>Buddy Ben kicked my arse, too. He was the tour guide du jour, linking one off-piste section with another. FTO contributors Dan Barron and Michael Bernstein were also along for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, as were a couple of Mike's friends. An adrenaline-charged rat pack. <BR> <BR>Ben standing atop a drop in the trees: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3439.jpg" ALT="Ben standing atop a drop in the trees"> <BR> <BR>We started off on Donkey. "This is called Donkey?" I asked. <BR> <BR>"Yep," Ben verified. "It's called Donkey because halfway down, you feel like an ass." <BR> <BR>What a warm-up! <BR> <BR>The rest of it was a blur. Trees whizzing by in a blur. A couple of those woods lines were, ahem, "technical." "Technical" as in "What the hell am I supposed to do now?" <BR> <BR>I told Ben that I needed to rechannel my nerves into some positive energy. "Visualize yourself skiing your chosen line," Ben advised. OK, plant my pole there, turn right around that tree, make another left before that tree, then ride it out in that space filled with nothing but saplings to burn off the speed. OK, check, got it. Push off...plant, turn, turn, ...yeah!! <BR> <BR>Toward the end of the day, Ben turned to me. "You know," he said, "ski more often with me and your wife will either love me or hate me. Love me for getting you out of her hair, or hate me for getting you killed." <BR> <BR>Ben's other line of the day, uttered while deciding where to go: "So, how adventurous do you feel?" <BR> <BR>Anything groomed flat today was fast and hard, and anything bumped was chalky and pleasant, but firm. Some bump lines had little nasties lurking in some of the troughs. We actually found some fresh lines off the map, but if I told you where they were I'd have to kill you. <BR> <BR>Fast groomed on Liftline: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3440.jpg" ALT="Fast groomed on Liftline"> <BR> <BR>Chalky bumps beneath the single on Chute: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3441.jpg" ALT="Chalky bumps beneath the single on Chute"> <BR> <BR>The winner in the cold category this morning was Fort Ann, New York, where it was -19F as I passed through the village at 7:30 a.m. It was about -4F when I pulled into the parking lot at 9 a.m. sharp, and the first few rides up the single chair were, uh...a wee bit nippy with a breeze in the face. The day progressed to bordering on comfortable in the afternoon. <BR> <BR>The best part of the weather, though, were the skies today. Not a cloud in 'em. Views across the Lake Champlain valley to the Adirondacks beyond were stunning, and in the other direction New Hampshire's Presidential Range was clearly visible. <BR> <BR>Looking across the Champlain Valley at the Adirondack High Peaks: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3442.jpg" ALT="Looking across the Champlain Valley at the Adirondack High Peaks"> <BR> <BR>Views north toward Camel's Hump: <BR><IMG SRC="http://www.firsttracksonline.com/discus2/messages/8/3443.jpg" ALT="Views north toward Camel's Hump"> <BR> <BR>I've got a bit of a fat nose tonight from a battle with a very unforgiving sapling. For the record, the sapling won. OK, somebody grab me the bottle of Vitamin I!!
"> <BR> <BR>I guess the area between Beaver and Lower Antelope should be full of B/C places, but I'm better to not ask more, cause I could be killed 
