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Skiing Stoke from Lake Tahoe

Author: Rob (Page 24 of 27)

Product Review – Syma Metal Series RC Mini Helicopter (Model S107)

January 29, 2011 / / 3 Comments

By Rob McCormick

The bad news is I turned 41 this month. The good news is that I am still alive, I have an awesome family, and for my birthday they gave me the coolest toy ever…a metal series miniature remote control helicopter by SYMA. The S107 Model is a small, durable, fully operational helicopter that actually flies wherever you want it to go.

The infrared remote control is powered by 6 AA batteries and has a throttle that allows for lift (up and down) and another lever that allows you to shift direction and drive the ship forward or backward with the tail rotor. It also has a rudder trim that allows you to correct rotation until the copter hovers on a steady axis.

The main chassis and skids are lightweight, durable, alloy which protect it from hard landings. The body is stylish plastic and houses blinking LED disco lights that make it fun to fly in the dark. The rotor blades are made of extremely durable plastic. I cringe every time I drop it from 10 feet up or fly it into a wall at full power but I have yet to break it. A metal balance bar located above the rotor blades allows the ship to hover perfectly using gyroscope technology. The helicopter charges with a USB cord for your computer and flies for about 5 to 7 minutes per charge…the perfect amount of time for a work break or as a reward for your kid brushing his teeth before bedtime. As the copter loses charge it flies only a few feet off the ground which makes it OK for my two year old to fly it over carpet.

The helicopter takes practice to fly well. Part of what makes it fun is that you don’t just pick up the remote and own the thing. By logging in flight time you are rewarded with better navigation skills and less crashes. As skill level improves you can walk around the house flying it right in front of your face. You can also impress your friends with dicey, high consequence landings on tall objects. My son and I set up a couch pillow as a heli-pad for realistic takeoffs and landings.

If you told me five years ago that a product of this precision, suitable for indoor flying would be available I would not have believed it. Or I would have guessed the price to be in the hundreds of dollars. Thankfully engineers somewhere worked diligently to design this ridiculously cool product that could be delivered to the consumer at a price point of around $35. At this price every aviation or technology enthusiast should have one. Have fun!

Junuary Continues

January 25, 2011 / / 0 Comments

This January hasn’t been the best month for skiing. But it hasn’t been the worst either. Still been some nice corn on south facing aspects at the right time of day. Sunny skies and balmy temps are expected for the rest of the week. Looks as though we may finish the month with less than a foot of new snow. Thankfully the early season snowpack is holding strong.

Here’s some footy from the past month or so:

It’s Time to Get G.N.A.R.

January 16, 2011 / / 0 Comments

If you live in North Lake Tahoe and are not yet familiar with the game of GNAR you must be living in a vacuum. The acronym G.N.A.R. stands for Gaffney’s Numerical Assessment of Radness and provides a sound method for proving how much better you are than everyone else at Squaw Valley. What started as a bonus chapter in Robb Gaffney’s Squallywood book eventually became a real contest where the winner would take $25,000. What happened during this monumental event? Unofficial Networks proudly presents the feature film…GNAR…the Movie! Check it out here:

GNAR…the Movie!

Product Review and Video: The Dynafit Stoke Ski, TLT Vertical binding and custom skins

December 27, 2010 / / 0 Comments

By Rob McCormick

Fifteen years ago 90% of my ski days were at ski areas and 10% were in the backcountry. Today 90% of my days are in the backcountry and 10% are at ski areas. Having been on the same touring setup since 2006, I decided I needed to upgrade. My primary motivation was to get something stable and floaty in powder yet versatile enough for all conditions. I wanted a setup that would inspire me for multiple laps when touring and allow me to handle long approaches and big vertical involved with ski mountaineering. I am not a techy guy who spends hours studying product specs and reviews so I spoke with a few friends who tour and the Dynafit name kept popping up. My wife made good on her Christmas present offer of new touring gear by picking up the Stoke ski, the TLT Vertical binding and custom Dynafit skins at the BackCountry in Truckee. I was not disappointed.

The first thing I noticed when I clicked in was the weight, or lack there of. It felt like I had nothing on my feet. The bindings are very minimalistic in design which is durable and practical, but has nothing extra to add weight. The range of motion on the bindings is unbelievable. They pivot so far forward you can literally kneel on the fronts of your skis. This allows for much less wasted effort when skinning. The heelpiece can be adjusted by rotating to different heights depending on the slope you are climbing. The toepiece has two pins that lock into each side of the front of the ski boot. I have the Garmont Radium boot which is Dynafit compatible. Many companies now make boots that are compatible with the Dynafit binding which says something about the direction they think skiers are headed with touring bindings.

The custom precut speedskins are awesome because you don’t have to measure, stencil and cut the skins manually. More importantly, they provide great traction when climbing. The adhesive sides are way more user friendly than my past skins that I had to battle to pull apart at the bottom of every run. The skins have a unique rubber pulltab that integrates perfectly with the metal tips of the Stokes. Combined with the tremendous forward range of the bindings, the tab allows you to easily remove the skins while the skis are still on your feet. I didn’t think I would be able to do it but was pulling it off my first day without taking my skis off at the top. This feature is especially handy since the one drawback to the bindings is the four point attachment system can be tricky to engage at first. It is essential to bring a pointed tool or something you can use to clear ice and snow from the bindings and/or boot pin holes to allow them to engage properly.

Now for the fun part…the skis! The Stokes are amazing! The core is made of bamboo and beech which keeps it very light for climbing. A slightly rockered tip keeps it from diving in pow. The ski handles dreamy at speed yet turns when it needs to. I didn’t think I could get freeride performance and stability out of something so light yet the Stoke does it with authority. It’s only 106 cm underfoot but I found it well suited for climbing up and out of deep snow when setting a track and the perfect dimensions for shredding the backcountry. My wife got me these things for riding pow and it looks like she hit the bullseye.

OK enough chitchat from a non techhead who doesn’t really know much about gear but knows what he likes to ski. Here’s POV footage of my first legit backcountry run on the Stoke. The skier I am following is Jason Mack who is also on the Dynafit binding setup.

Merry Christmas!

December 24, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Merry Christmas to riders everywhere! What a great start to the ski season we’ve had. One can only hope it continues and perhaps holds its own against last years outstanding season. Below is a look back to March of 2010. The footage is from an independent ski film project called Exit Strategy. Limited copies of the movie will be available on SBDC next month. Happy Holidays!

Just a taste

December 16, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Tahoe received a nice taste of sweet n’ low yesterday with a perfect rightside up storm. Backcountry enthusiasts should be sensitive to a rain crust layer that formed on December 10. This layer has the potential to create deep slab instabilities that the Sierra Avalanche Center is reporting as a concern.  Let’s sit back and see what happens as the big one rolls in this weekend.

G.N.A.R. Movie to Premier Friday, December 17 at Alpine Meadows

December 7, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Lake Tahoe, CA – Skiers and snowboarders worth their salt have certainly descended an expert-rated run, naked, while simultaneously talking on a cell phone with their mom; however, this act has rarely been captured on film as well as it has in the new movie, G.N.A.R. 

See for yourself by attending the World Premier of G.N.A.R. at the Alpine Meadows Ski Resort base lodge Friday, December 17 at 9pm.  Doors open at 8pm, and the entry fee is a suggested donation. 

What started as a game featuring 20 riders vying for a winner-take-all purse of $25,000 has transferred into a film that’ll likely be dubbed “instant classic.” Edited by filmmaker Scott Gaffney, the movie stars a bevy of local skiers and snowboarders including Ralph Backstrom, Chuck Mumford, George Hjelte, Greg Lindsey, Spencer Cordovano, Mattias Sullivan, Kevin O’Meara, Alex Cox, and Dr. Robb Gaffney; and features archived footage of the inventor of the game and inspiration for the movie, Shane McConkey.  On-camera interviews with the Gaffney brothers, Mrs. Sherry McConkey, and renowned photographer, Grant Kaye, set the bar for what is sure to become the ski and snowboard industry’s all-time funniest movie.

G.N.A.R. the movie was inspired by G.N.A.R. the game.  Included as the final chapter of the book, Squallywood (penned by ski legend Robb Gaffney), G.N.A.R. was written by the late great Shane McConkey as a way to simultaneously celebrate and make a parody of skiing and snowboarding’s most treasured holy grails: hilarious antics, shellacked bravado, embarrassing your friends and yourself for a laugh, good-natured competition, and of course, naked skiing. 

Also consistent with the game, G.N.A.R. documents some of the west coast’s most coveted steep lines and deep powder stashes guaranteed to resonate through the audience.  

Important movie premier details:

G.N.A.R. is intended for mature audiences, due to nudity (albeit good natured), the “s” word (used 79 times excluding opening credits), and a few acts which have resulted and will continue to result in arrest (please do not scale the wooly mammoth statue at a certain central California resort).  Those who have aversion to snowlerblading or monoboarding should also not attend.  Movie-goers can look forward to delicious beverages presented at the Alpine Meadows lodge, with names honoring various attributes of G.N.A.R., the game.   

For additional information about the movie premier, G.N.A.R., please call the Alpine Meadows events department at 530.581.8332 or visit SkiAlpine.com. 

Ranked as a top winter resort by SKI Magazine, Alpine Meadows Ski Resort blends an authentic mountain experience with cutting-edge technology to enhance the guest experience.  Focusing on online savings programs, Alpine Meadows offers guests everyday ticket savings with adult prices starting at $50 for winter 2010/2011.  Alpine is situated in the picturesque Tahoe National Forest and offers skiers and snowboarders 2,400 acres of terrain.  With 14 lifts, more than 100 trails, and majestic views of Lake Tahoe, Alpine Meadows is accessed via Interstate 80, 45 miles west of Reno, NV and 200 miles east of San Francisco, CA.  Alpine Meadows’ parent company is San Francisco, California based JMA Ventures, LLC.  JMA is a full service real estate investment firm, serving as managing member of over $500 million in existing projects. Visit SkiAlpine.com or call 530-583-4232 for more information about Alpine Meadows.

State of the Backcountry…It’s On!

November 29, 2010 / / 0 Comments

By Rob McCormick

I spent Thanksgiving week in Florida soaking up eighty degree temps while salivating over Tahoe weather reports as storm after storm pounded the Sierra Nevada. I heard rumors of “chest deep to rocks”, patrol sleds stuck on Mountain Run, a six foot crown in Chute 75, Kirkwood and Alpine pushing the 100 inch mark and cars so buried you could not identify them. By the middle of the week it became obvious something special was happening. Many resorts reported some of the highest November snowfall totals on record. By Thanksgiving Day the Tahoe Region stood at roughly 25% of its average annual snowfall.

The abundance of early season snow implied the backcountry might be worth a taste test to see if things were getting underway ahead of schedule. Upon my return Friday night I made plans with my touring buddies, packed my gear and prepared to head to our favorite stash on Saturday with the possibility of an encore visit on Sunday.

We began skinning from elevation 6,100 at around 10:30 Saturday morning.  An hour and a half later, and 1,800 vertical feet higher, it was snowing heavily with winds gusting from the southwest. The Sierra Avalanche Center (www.sierraavalanchecenter.org) had reported north and northeast aspects most likely for slide conditions. We dug a pit that showed an unstable layer at about 8 to 10 inches. Based on conditions (heavy snow with rapid loading) we opted to ski mostly lower angle north facing terrain. It was fantastic powder! Surface sloughs were common on anything over thirty degrees. We experienced one skier triggered slab avalanche with about a 6 to 8 inch crown.  It ran a short distance onto more gradual terrain. It was definitely a day to play it safe so we stuck to the trees and stayed away from tempting yet dicey steeper terrain and open faces. It was an awesome first backcountry day of the year.  So good in fact that we decided to return the following day.

Sunday brought colder temps, sunshine and a far more stable snowpack. We were able to ski steeper lines with minimal movement. The snow was wispy, dry and delightful. After a couple juicy laps we headed into Truckee for burritos and beers at Bills. Our early season teaser was a smashing success. We found that not only is the backcountry ready to go…it’s about as good as it gets. So go get some!

Jeff Wright does some eye level snow scanning (photo by Grant Kaye)

The author samples November pow (photo by Grant Kaye)


The State of the Backcountry November 27 and 28, 2010

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