Simply Rain
It is so frustrating to have to dissect every bit
The Unofficial Alpine Meadows Ski Report
Produced by Andy Wertheim
Tahoe/Truckee Realtor
email: andyw@sierra.net
Our real estate website: www.tahoeriverfrontrealty.com
Hello skiers,
It is so frustrating to have to dissect every bit of information that is thrown our way by the marketing machines that work 24 hours a day to twist our minds into believing something that is only half true, or perhaps not true at all. This morning I sat gazing out my window, located at the 7000 foot elevation, watching rain fall. The temperature appeared to be 38 degrees. Weather reports from many sources all appeared to agree that a warm storm, from deep to the south of us, was bringing rain and flood warning to the area. The projected snow level varied depending on the weather person reporting, but most seem to agree that rain would be falling between 8000 feet and 8500 feet today. Given this information, a rational person would deduct that rain would be falling to within a hundred feet of the top of Alpine Meadows. This would not be a good day to ski. High winds and heavy rain are not the best mixture for skiers. Just for fun, I called the Alpine Meadows snow phone this morning. The report at six o’clock reported cloudy skies, perhaps true at that very moment in time, with winds blowing between 20 mph at the base and over 50 mph at the summit, most likely also true. Next they reported that all lifts were scheduled to open, maybe they were all scheduled to open. Then, they reported the forecast for the day was for 2 to 3 inches of snow to all at the upper elevations. There was no mention of rain. Anyone listening to this report, and did not know better, might think it was going to be a good day to ski and hit a little new snow in the late morning. It is now 8:30 in the morning. I took a look at the website. Alpine reports 2 to 3 inches of new snow at the top. This is great, so I checked to see what lifts were open. Sherwood, Lakeview, Alpine Bowl, Summit and Scot were shown as closed for the day. Roundhouse and Yellow are on stand-by.
On a day when wind and flood warning are posted and rain is forecast to the higher elevations, why not just close. At least tell customers that the forecast is for rain, heavy at times, and that any snow on the upper mountain will not be accessible, as the upper mountain lifts are closed.
Sunday the light was flat, winds were blowing at a steady pace, and temperatures were above freezing. However, a pretty good number of skiers showed up to take advantage of nicely groomed slopes that were topped with relatively good soft snow. I took a few runs, mostly those that were groomed, but we did hit lower Our Father and Gentian. Both of these were in nice winter condition.
I found a description of rain in a skiing pocket dictionary a friend left me over the weekend. Rain: Unwelcome form of precipitation variously referred to by ski resort personnel as liquid snow, thawed granular, dissolved powder, loose hydrous, aquapack, washed potatoes, creamed corn, or mountain dew.
From my dry office, enjoy your day. Andy
