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Skiboarding in the fog

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  • Skiboarding in the fog

    I wish I had a helmet cam for this past night of riding.

    The fog was so thick, you could only see the chairlifts immediately in front and behind of you, the rest were obscured.
    On the trail, moving at about average speed for me (full throttle) I had 2-4 seconds of vision of the terrain in front of me. And that is a high estimate.
    Wickedly fun.
    This was a very good learning experience for me. The conditions forced me to hit all of the anomalies in the terrain that most people (including myself) would avoid. Why? Because I couldn't see them until they were right in front of me.
    One of the best parts was breaking out of the fog bank into the clear air about halfway down the slope. It would take me a few seconds before I realized that I was no longer in the fog, it was a new experience everytime.

    Anyhow. I hope I get to do this again.

  • #2
    Hah, slow it down. It's fun in the fog for sure, but you never know when someone will be stationary. There's a good chance you'll run someone over if you're going 40 MPH with 2 foot of visibility. Not only does that hurt, but you're liable.

    Boards: Revel8 Revolt "Trees" / Revel8 2008 KTPs / Line Jedi
    Bindings: Bombers / FF Pros
    Boots: Raichle 125s



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    • #3
      Haha, there was literally no one there. It was freaky how empty the resort was. I never waited in line or shared a chairlift. I think I passed a total of 15 people on the slopes. There was maybe 150 people there tops.

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      • #4
        Still, good idea to be safe. Don't want someone coming after you, that'll ruin the fun pretty damn quick.

        Boards: Revel8 Revolt "Trees" / Revel8 2008 KTPs / Line Jedi
        Bindings: Bombers / FF Pros
        Boots: Raichle 125s



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        • #5
          I've had a couple of days where I just had to slowly skiboard sideways across a trail until I could see the trees because there would be a minute or two of about 5 feet of visibility. Definitely a creepy feeling.
          I do it because I can.
          I can because I want to.
          I want to because you said I couldn't.

          "The butterflies in my stomach have flown up through my throat and learned to love the open air." - World/Inferno

          Spruce Sherpas with Prime Pros
          '08 KTPs

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          • #6
            A year ago December I had a surprise birthday party planned at a slope side resort for my middle child. The party was due to start at 1130 if I remember correctly so at 1100 we took the gondola to the top of the resort for what was supposed to be a 10 minute fun run to the restaurant. When we got off the gondola we were met by fog so thick that putting your hand in front of your face barely changed your view. It was absolutely impossible to see your feet. What was supposed to be 10 minutes took 2 hours with me snowboarding backwards, my 3 kids in the middle and my wife bringing up the rear. We sang the whole time so we could stay together and of course relieve the totally creepy feelings the kids were suffering. I actually ran into the restaurant steps backwards before I knew we were there. On the upside, the party went off without a hitch and the kids were total troopers.
            "It's no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society" Jiddu Krisnamurti

            Spruce Sherpa - RVL8 KTP - RVL8 Blunt XL

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            • #7
              I had this kind of happen to me a couple weeks ago. It was snowing really hard and the wind was blowing so strong that they shut the gondola down after I got off. Being a Monday and no way to get to the top of the mountain anymore I was pretty much by myself. But it was total white out conditions, could only see maybe 2 feet in front of you if that, and only between wind gusts. The wind was blowing up the mountain so hard that it, in part because I’m as aerodynamic as a brick, it would make you come to a stop going downhill if you let it.

              Anyway I could not see anyone, and no one could see me, so I just went my normal pace (slower than the second coming) down the hill. About 1/3 of the way I saw a flashing red light about 20 feet in front of me. Could not see anything else but this red light dimly through the snow and wind (and thank goodness I’m not epileptic because I was totally staring at it the whole way down).

              I thought it was a snowmobile tail light or something, and at this point I was lost anyway because you could not see the trail signs, so I tried to catch up to it. When I got about five feet from it I could totally see it, and at like 3 feet I saw what it was. One guy had one of those bicycle flashing red lights on his backpack and a white bike light on his helmet. He was leading a group of people down. I could not see the other people until I was on top of them, if I was going fast and without the light I could have run into them. I thought the flashing red light was a great idea for bad conditions. I might get one and keep it in my pack for days like that.
              ’07 Spruce Blue 120
              ’09 ALP 110
              ’09 Revolt “Condor” 105
              ’09 Rumspringa Rockets 103
              ’09 Spruce Pro Prime Bindings (x2)

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              • #8
                Good idea.

                My fog wasn't that thick though, so it was more enjoyable

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                • #9
                  Matthies,

                  That's actually a hell of an idea. A bike light with a clip. Love it. Got one and will immediately attach it to my Heli Pro. Cool. Thanks.
                  "It's no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society" Jiddu Krisnamurti

                  Spruce Sherpa - RVL8 KTP - RVL8 Blunt XL

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                  • #10
                    Lot of people wear those for night skiing up on one of my local mountains.

                    Boards: Revel8 Revolt "Trees" / Revel8 2008 KTPs / Line Jedi
                    Bindings: Bombers / FF Pros
                    Boots: Raichle 125s



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                    • #11
                      might wanna look into a yellow lens for fog.


                      ONE TIME I HUNG OUT WITH DAVE LYNAM IN PERSON

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                      • #12
                        I consider a set of goggles with high-vis yellow lenses to be absolute necessity. I always go out with a set of high-vis yellow Dragons and mirrored Smiths. Both companies seem to fit my face well and the mirrors work in most conditions with the high-vis perfect for foggy and overcast snow days. I always carry both because the high-vis becomes literally painful if the sun pokes out to any real degree in which case I just head back to the bus or my locker and swap out. I carry 2 sets of separate goggles because I've never had good luck swapping out lenses slope side. Just retarded in that way I suppose. Always buy goggles in the off season when 60% discount is easily obtained even for popular models like Dragon. Perfect suggestion.
                        "It's no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society" Jiddu Krisnamurti

                        Spruce Sherpa - RVL8 KTP - RVL8 Blunt XL

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                        • #13
                          Hey is there a link anywhere for what the google colors match the day conditions. I have Oakley with an oranegy lense ones, I did not know you used diffrent colrs for diffrent days.
                          ’07 Spruce Blue 120
                          ’09 ALP 110
                          ’09 Revolt “Condor” 105
                          ’09 Rumspringa Rockets 103
                          ’09 Spruce Pro Prime Bindings (x2)

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                          • #14
                            hi yellow is a must.....its almost blinding when the sun comes up too.


                            Boards:

                            Spruce 120s(x2), ALPs(x3), Lacroix 99's, BWPs.

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                            Pro Prime Riser/Rossi Bindings(x2).

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                            • #15
                              Matthies,

                              I think this link http://www.allaboutvision.com/buysmart/goggles.htm does a pretty honest job of explaining thins in a very basic sense. Although, I disagree with their assessment about mirrored goggles. They state it is mostly fashion. I've tried mirrors and regular amber on a sunny day and the difference was incredible from a glare standpoint. Mirrors work. At least quality mirroring does. Yellow is my preferred color for low visibility but I just purchased pink to replaced my now scratched hi-vis yellows and pink does the job too. My Smith mirrors actually have a rose tint on the inside and it seems to be the best of both worlds in most conditions. The mirrors cut down even the most abusive, reflective sunlight and the rose tint keeps everything looking clear, bright and defined. The hi-vis yellows I've used the last few seasons were the bomb in low light or low visibility conditions and night skiing but if things cleared up I was essentially required to swap over as they did their job a little too well and caused pain.
                              "It's no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society" Jiddu Krisnamurti

                              Spruce Sherpa - RVL8 KTP - RVL8 Blunt XL

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