Skiing Jay Peak
Saturday March 15th, 2025
Runs: 15
Distance: 18.45 miles
Elevation: 19,131 feet
Max Speed: 30.2 mph
Avg. Speed: 11.8 mph
Moving Time: 1 hour, 34 minutes, 19 seconds
Total Time: 7 hours, 21 minutes, 3 seconds
Time for another weekend skiing with friends (which has become the name of our shared iCloud album)! I drove up after school, sat through an hour of traffic in Concord, and eventually landed at Emma's house, where we watched Ski School to prep (pretty dumb, not horrible though) while enjoying our Stone's Throw Pizza! Tragically, my spring allergies had officially landed so I was having a rough time breathing, especially with the dog, but it was a fun night in. We were up early the next day to get to Jay Peak for Emma's patrol shift. We saw the sunrise from the parking lot, I got my pass from Emma (thank you!), and I was suited in time to get the first chair on the Taxi Quad! Sarah and her mom were about an hour behind me, as were Linnea and Andrew. I was looking forward to a could of quiet runs before the fun really took off! It was a warm day, too. I left the lodge with googles, mittens, and a puffy, and immediately turned around to take all three of those off (first Pip Viper day of the season!).
Snow Report
March 15th 7:21am
Number of sad faces seen yesterday: probably zero.
Number of sad faces expected today: even more zero.
Highs will top out around 50, with a few clouds and more breezy than yesterday. Tomorrow brings an abrupt shift in the weather pattern (which is a nicer way of saying that it's going to rain) that will last into Monday morning, so come get that corn hot from the pot. 9/9 lifts spinning to 72 trails; upper mountain rolls 8:30a-4p, lower 8a-4p.
Weekend happenings? We got 'em. The IFSA Big Mountain Extreme throws it down on Saturday and Sunday, which will close Middle and Lower Exhibition. A Saturday guided snowshoe tour on our beautifully groomed Nordic trails is the perfect way to enjoy this spring day. When you're ready to throw off that final layer and roll up the pantlegs, rock out to Tim Comings at the Tower Bar 4-7p, House Rockers at the Bullwheel Bar 4-7p, and the Wendell Hughes Duo 5-8p at the Clubhouse Grille. Music bumping, firepits blazing, lawn chairs warm from the sun, and peak spring conditions? Snag those tickets online now and get out to the party sooner.
Runs 1-4
Run 1: Taxi Quad - Queen's Highway
[0.74 mi; 2:49; 522 ft; 30.2 mph max; 15.7 mph avg]
Run 2: Tram - Vermonter - Northway - Purgatory - Hell's Crossing - Sweetheart
[1.61 mi; 6:46; 1,831 ft; 23.7 mph max; 14.3 mph avg]
Run 3: Jet Triple - Jet
[0.67 mi; 2:33; 1,122 ft; 26.5 mph max; 15.8 mph avg]
Run 4: Jet Triple - Haynes - Lower Jet
[0.72 mi; 3:23; 1,125 ft; 26.5 mph max; 12.8 mph avg]
I made my way up the hill to the singles line for the Taxi, which was still getting set up at 7:58am. Two guys who were first in line invited me to join them to get in front of some rowdy kids. The head lifty was my arch nemesis, which the guys next to me also despised. They referred to him in some colorful terms, which brought me immense joy! He said he was waiting for the green light from patrol to open the lift, but I knew that wasn't true because Emma already said lower mountian was cleared. ANYWAY. The first run of the day was also the fastest run of the day - a classic trip down Queen's Highway and into the line for the tram!
I was SO CLOSE to getting on the first tram too, but I was two people too late! I did let a father and his kid ahead of me, which would have solidified me on, but I guess I'm just such a nice person... I rode the second tram up for the day, which was a windy ride! At one point, I was nervous we were going to swing into the tower. From the top, I had a nice ride down Vermonter. I didn't ski my best on this run, but it was fun to finally get back to the tippy top! From Vermonter, I continued onto Northway and then down Purgatory, which I hadn't skied yet this season. Next was Hell's Crossing and then a DELIGHTFUL jaunt down Sweetheart to the Jet.
By now, both sets of friends were in the lodge, so I decided I'd just lap the Jet Triple while I waited for them. I skied right on for Run #3 and went right on down the Jet, which had it's best conditions all season (at least for me!). I also set a Strava PR - how fun! Next up was Haynes, but Mont l'Entripede was closed for a race (I was bummed). I cut across to Lower Jet and had officially remembered how to ski! I waited at the bottom now for Linnea and Andrew and Sarah and Mom, and we were reunited once again!
Runs 5-7
Run 5: Jet Triple - Montrealer - Taxi - Bonaventure Glade - Lower Milk Run - Kangaroo Trail
[1.29 mi; 8:07; 1,145 ft; 28.4 mph max; 9.5 mph avg]
Run 6: Bonaventure Quad - Goat Run - Buck Woods - Queen's Highway - Grammy Jay
[1.57 mi; 9:19; 1,542 ft; 23.3 mph max; 10.1 mph avg]
Run 7: Village Chair - Queen's Highway
[0.17 mi; 1:18; 289 ft; 19.4 mph max; 8.0 mph avg]
I rode up the Jet again with Sarah and Mom, but Mom went off with some extended family while Sarah, Linnea, Andrew, and I went down Montrealer (not before taking a pole picture, though!). We hopped onto the Taxi and then jumped into the Bonaventure Glade, which I was nervous about, but it was delightfully soft and forgiving - I think these are my favorite glades on the mountain so far! I was feeling more confident, still not looking good, but feeling better about my tree skiing! Bonnie Glades spat us out onto Lower Milk Run and Kangaroo Trail, bringing us to the Bonnie.
Run #6 was up the Bonnie, which was incurring a solid line at this point of the morning. We planned to meet Emma and Patrol Sarah up top, but they used their patrol perks of skipping the line and got too far ahead of us, so we went off without them. We followed Goat Run into Buck Woods, which was a little steeper than Bonnie Glades, but still not too bad. Once back on the outside, we followed Queen's Highway and then I introduced Sarah to my favorite run, Grammy Jay! She crushed the headwall.
Run #7 was a gentle ride up the Village Chair and then we followed Queen's Highway over to the very busy Tramside base area and hopped in the impressively long line for the Flyer. I was surprised the crowds were still heavy in mid-March, but I guess it makes since considering how much snow Jay has gotten plus how much press that snow brought!
Runs 8-10
Run 8: Flyer Express Quad - Wedelmaster - Ullr's Dream - Kokomo - Ullr's Dream
[1.88 mi; 7:38; 1,621 ft; 25.2 mph max; 14.7 mph avg]
Run 9: Flyer Express Quad - Northway - Hell's Crossing - Sweetheart
[1.57 mi; 7:38; 1,440 ft; 24.0 mph max; 12.3 mph avg]
Run 10: Jet Triple - Montrealer - Northway - Hell's Crossing - Hell's Woods - Hell's Crossing - Paradise Meadows
[1.17 mi; 8:48; 1,145 ft; 25.4 mph max; 8.0 mph avg]
Onto the Flyer for only my second time this season, I had one goal: find Wedelmaster! I'm at the point where I'm trying to scope out any greens or blues that I have never skied on the mountain (blacks will become a later problem). Turns out it was super easy to find and a super easy trail, just a little confusing where it criss-crosses with JFK. It had a really nice flat section that was a little narrower through some trees, and then it spat out halfway down the Ullr's headwall. The advanced team went into the Beaver Pond/Andre's Paradise glades while I continued down to my beloved Kokomo, which was comically slow in the warm conditions.
Run #9 was back up the Flyer, but the goal was to get down to the Jet to meet Emma, who had her sit shift on that side. We followed Northway for a bit, which was slow and had a head wind, which slowed things down to a comical stroll. We continued onto Hell's Crossing (advanced team went into Hell's Woods) and then to beloved Sweetheart to get to the insanely long line for the Jet.
Since the Jet is a triple, we had to split up. Sarah and I were on one chair and Linnea/Andrew in another. To make things fun, we picked different lanes to wait in, and somehow Sarah and I won that race by a long-shot. By the time she and I got off the lift, Linnea and Andrew just got on! We watched Emma and Patrol Sarah play Banagrams while yelling at people for clogging up the unloading zone, and then we got a friendship photo on the back porch of the patrol shack.
Once we got our photo, us non-patrollers went down Montrealer to Hell's Crossing, and I bravely went into Hell's Woods, which was a bit steeper than Bonaventure Woods, but nothing too crazy. We continued down Hell's Crossing to Paradise Meadows to the most important destination of the day - the rice ball shack! Sarah went inside to join her family for lunch while Linnea, Andrew, and I got our rice balls. It was still super busy so we ate outside, making sure to hydrate because we were WARM now. I shamelessly made a seat out of snow that actually felt great to sit in (also fun to note that I had my old, orange snow pants on so I could wear St. Patrick's Day colors with my green Burgeon fleece, but the old snowpants simply are not water resistant anymore, so I had a soaked bum). Eventually, Emma and Patrol Sarah finished their shift and we hung out with them for a few minutes while they got their respective rice balls before heading back to the Bonnie. I had planned to hang with team patrol to help decorate for the St. Patrick's Day party, but I wanted to keep skiing.
Runs 11-13
Run 11: Bonaventure Quad - Goat Run - Buckaroo Bonzai - Taxi - Queen's Highway
[1.40 mi; 8:41; 1,490 ft; 24.0 mph max; 9.7 mph avg]
Run 12: Flyer Express Quad - Ullr's Dream - Kokomo - Ullr's Dream
[1.77 mi; 7:52; 1,611 ft; 25.6 mph max; 13.5 mph avg]
Run 13: Flyer Express Quad - Alligator Alley - Green Mountain Boys - Deer Run
[1.48 mi; 7:16; 1,594 ft; 25.0 mph max; 12.2 mph avg]
Run #11 wasn't my best, but I made it down unscathed! Sarah was skiing wtih her family now, so the rest of us took the Bonnie up and continued onto Goat Run, which was in a WILD condition. There were so many people skiing of all different abilities, especially at the S curves. We then went into Buckaroo Bonzai - some more glades - that humbled me! At one point, I made a turn and wanted to stop above a tree, but only one foot went above, so the ski popped off and I slightly launched myself into the unknown, but then somehow spectacularly landed on my bottom on what I can best describe as a slush-couch. It was actually a lovely fall! Only issue was that when I went to get my skis back on, the brakes didn't go down, so one ski slid a solid 20 feet away from me downhill. I had to buttslide down, holding a ski and poles, to the other ski, and then maneuver myself back into them. Thankfully, or rudely, Linnea got a video! Once the skis were back on we exited the woods and made our way back to the Flyer.
Linnea requested a full Ullr's run, which I happily obliged! It was actually in pretty good shape with a few deeper corn pockets. Kokomo was super slow but still lovely.
Run #13 was per my request - I wanted to ski some more trails I had never skied before, so we decided to hit Alligator Alley to Green Mountain Boys. Alligator Alley was more fun than I thought it would be, only requiring a little bit of skating at the end. Poor Andrew got stuck behind a Telemark skier for the second run in a row, which was a little funny... The upper part of Green Mountain Boys was fun with some manageable bumps. The lower part was the same, but steeper with smaller bumps (I kind of wish they were bigger!). From there, Linnea hit Harmony Lane while Andrew and I went down Deer Run - lovely!
Runs 14-15
Run 14: Flyer Express Quad - Northway - Upper Milk Run - Taxi - Bonaventure Glade - Lower Milk Run - Kangaroo Trail
[1.35 mi; 9:25; 1,404 ft; 24.6 mph max; 8.6 mph avg]
Run 15: Bonaventure Quad - Goat Run - Lower River Quai - Perry Merril Ave - Shakedown
[1.04 mi; 5:23: 1,247; 28.7 mph max; 11.6 mph avg]
At this point it was around 3:20, so we knew we needed to head back to Stateside. The three of us went up the Flyer to Northway and then onto Upper Milk Run, who's bumps were MUCH bigger than last time! I was a bit overwhelemed and did not ski as well as I had planned to (a classic tale). We then followed Taxi into the Bonnie Glades, where I was still not sking as well as I had planned to (I guess it WAS the end of the day...). Thankfully, I CRUSHED it on the last bit of Kangaroo Run!
Our last run was back up the Bonnie at 3:45. Linnea and Andrew both wanted to hit Can Am, which I told them I support them but not for me on this day! I do think it's within my skillset now (they agreed, too), but I simply did not need to flirt with death on my last run of a beautiful, warm day! Instead, we went back over to Goat, which was in even wildier shape than before, and zoomed down Lower River Quai to the Shakedown Park. Linnea got an insane video of my hitting a box at 0.3mph and screaming in fear of my life. Classic!
The Bullwheel was PACKED at 4:00pm, so grabbed my stuff and changed at Emma's car. Plus, we all planned to apres in the parking lot to enjoy the weather and get away from the crowds. As I carried my stuff down the stairs, some woman walked directly into my skis, and was NOT pleased with me when I checked if she was okay (I was walking straight, it was fully on her). I got changed, Linnea moved her truck right neaby, and we had a LOVELY apres! Eventually, Emma and Patrol Sarah stopped by for a drink and some yapping before I followed them into the patrol room to say hi to some patrollers that I had met at last year's banquet (and decided we were best friends). Emma forced me to do a shot ski Irish Car Bomb (didn't take much forcing) and we hung out for about an hour before heading to Howie's for an apres apres drink. I had a lovely Shirley Temple while the patrollers kept the good times rolling (I figured I'd be the one driving home anyway).
After the long drive back to Fairfax, we dropped Patrol Sarah off and Emma and I enjoyed our leftover pizza and Drag Race before bed. I wanted to go to Waterville Valley the next day, but the forecast vetoed that plan. Sarah and Mom planned to hit Saskadena 6, which I wasn't over excited about, but I am easily peer pressured into skiing with friends (it took zero peer-pressuring).
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