I didn’t hear a rooster crow when the sun rose over Mammoth Mountain this morning, but it might as well have.
The fiery ball of light in the sky kissed the wind-blown slopes as groomers were wrapping up their shifts, and ski instructors were prepping for the day.
I had some work to finish up before I could actually get out on the mountain, but I’ll never forget watching Mammoth come to life by the light of the sun.
If you couldn’t tell already, the day was highlighted by glorious, unfettered sunshine.
Winds battered Mammoth over the last few days, so nearly all of the ungroomed terrain was unfortunately pretty choppy, but the groomers were absolutely fantastic.
To be honest, it was a bit of a bummer to not ski many ‘off-piste’ runs (as the Euros say) considering Mammoth has been slammed by more than 500 inches of snow already this season, but Mother Nature works in mysterious ways.
Rather than sulk over what I couldn’t ski, I focused on what IÂ could ski, and it made all of the difference.
The pair of Stöckli Stormrider 102s I demoed from Mammoth’s ski shop were fricken fantastic on Mammoth’s fantastic groomed terrain.
I focused on laying big GS carves in between quick and fast edge to edge turns, and I couldn’t stop smiling.
I couldn’t help but contrast today’s sunny and warm ski day to the wet and wild days I had at Whistler a couple of weeks back.
It was refreshing to ski in the sunshine and go balls-to-the-wall down immaculate groomers. The snow was grippy, but fast, and the corduroy made me feel like I was driving a Ferrari down the Autobahn.
The trails of the day were Cornice Bowl, Back For More, and Roller Coaster.
I’ve titled this report ‘Classic Cali Conditions’ because skiing in California is all about skiing in the sunshine in between mega-storms, right?
Let this quick report serve as a reminder that your ski day is what you make of it.
You could be a stuck-up-picky-skier who complains about conditions all the time, OR you could take what Mother Nature has given you and rip the absolute living sh*t out of it.
Too far? Sorry. I’m still amped up after today. It was that much fun.
Stay tuned here with me at Unofficial Networks for more ski reports from Mammoth over the next few days!