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hollyberry

Putting on skis
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Baltimore, MD
Hey everyone! I immigrated here from epic ski.

A little about me: I’m 29, from NYC, started skiing four years ago. The first three seasons started with a bang- I went from skiing East Coast greens my first day to West Coast steeps, moguls and glades my third year and managed to ski 20-30 days each season, with some lessons in the mix. This year stunk. No skiing, no money, no time off because of grad school applications. The good news is that my husband and I landed dream financial packages at the same university for grad school. The bad news: it’s in Cincinnati, Ohio. So goodbye skiing?

We are both wondering if it will be feasible to ski at all while doing our Masters in Ohio. Are there any decent slopes within driving distance? It looks like the only thing even remotely interesting is Snowshoe (about a 6.5 hr drive,) and it’s about the same size as Hunter Mt in NY, not the most exciting ski hill.

What are the best bang-for your buck ski areas we could fly to? We are two skiers who like steep, gladed, ungroomed terrain (plus cheap housing and food!) We don’t care about shopping, nightlife, fancy ammenities, etc.

Also, does XC skiing improve your downhill skiing? It seems like XC is pretty popular in Cincinnati. Maybe I could join a club. Anybody know of one there?

Thanks!

-Holly
 

Philpug

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Hello...Holly. There is some pretty good skiing in western New York like Holiday Valley and Bristol, you might want to check those distances from where you are. Past that...flights to Denver ot SLC? It might just be easier to fly west and maybe go for quality over quantity.
 

dbostedo

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If you're not excited by Snowshoe, the western NY areas likely are less exciting for you.

About 5.5 hours drive would get you to Seven Springs... which also won't excite you.

Flying to Denver or SLC is your best bet. Particularly if you can find cheap flights. How prevalent is Southwest in Cincinnati?

There are a few small ski slopes in Ohio which would be closer. You might want to make peace with not having steeps, trees, or off piste, and try to love just being on snow.
 
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hollyberry

hollyberry

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Re making peace, that’s why I figured I might just take up XC skiing while I’m there. That way I can still be out on the snow, keeping up my nimbleness and balance on skis even if it isn’t exactly the same as alpine. Plus maybe I’ll get some exercise : )

Anybody know of any ski passes or deals that would be a good value for someone planning to ski in SLC or Colorado a couple times per year?

On the flip side, my sister and her husband live in Odessa, TX within (admittedly, a long) drive of Angelfire & Taos in NM or some Colorado resorts. So that’s also an option for a yearly trip. They also ski!
 

mdf

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Re making peace, that’s why I figured I might just take up XC skiing while I’m there.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news....
I grew up near Cincinnati. It does snow, but I remember it being a big deal when the snow lasted long enough that we could play in it after we got home from school.

My wife grew up in Columbus, which is a couple of hours North. That was just far enough that snow that hung around was common.

On the other hand, https://perfectnorth.com/ is less than an hour away in Indiana. I've never been.

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hollyberry

hollyberry

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Oh well. I guess I’ll just get a lot of use out of the rollerblades I just bought ; )

I refuse to use those roller ski things. I see people using those in Central Park sometimes and have to restrain myself from laughing out loud. I’m sure they can be useul for off-season training, but man do they look silly!
 

surfsnowgirl

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Hi and welcome!!

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to get to one of the bumps mentioned just to do some sliding on snow, perfect north for example. You can save your serious skiing for your trips out west but just take advantage of the hills within driving distance just so you can keep moving. I live in CT which has a few bumps. I drive to vermont to do my skiing but if CT was all I had I'd be out there every weekend for the 3 months they are open and then fly to ski the rest of the time.

I always say a bad day of skiing is better than a good day doing just about anything else.
 

Wendy

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Oh well. I guess I’ll just get a lot of use out of the rollerblades I just bought ; )

I refuse to use those roller ski things. I see people using those in Central Park sometimes and have to restrain myself from laughing out loud. I’m sure they can be useul for off-season training, but man do they look silly!

Congrats to you and your husband on your grad school acceptances, and your financial packages. You are fortunate.

You might be busier in grad school than you think, which *might* keep your mind off skiing. Otherwise, go ski a bump. Perfect North doesn’t look so bad and it’s pretty close. We here in PA ski plenty of them and still have fun! Keep in mind, a Master’s program is temporary. ogsmile

If you like to be super active, Perfect North has a Spartan Race in the summer.

Roller skis look funny in places where people don’t competitively XC ski (like Central Park), but they are *cool* in places that do, like Lake Placid. They offer a great upper body workout that rollerblades don’t. I use mine periodically in PA and welcome the weird askew glances:D

Explore Kentucky while you’re in Cincinnati. There is some beautiful country there.
 
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hollyberry

hollyberry

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Hahah I’m sure I’ll be insanely busy in grad school, but I’ll still be dreaming about skiing. Hell, my husband and I were even fantasizing about going skiing in Chile this summer to make up for the fact that we had to practice violin 7+ hrs per day and travel for grad auditions during all of ski season. (We are both classical musicians.) Then we thought, ‘Oh yeah, wait. We’re broke musicians. Nah.’ Haha. Hence the ‘cheap lodging and food’ part if we fly somewhere.
 
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hollyberry

hollyberry

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Anybody from OH or IN know if it’a cheaper to fly from Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago or Indianapolis to ski destinations? (West coast, Alps, etc.) I would guess flights from Chicago would be the cheapest because it’s the biggest city?

Also, I’ve noticed that lift tickets can be SIGNIICANTLY cheaper for European resorts vs West coast resorts, esp the fancy CO resorts. (Vail, Aspen, etc.) Like 6 day pass for $360 USD at Chamonix vs nearly $700 at Aspen or something like that. Is it possible that even with a flight to France vs CO a ski trip to Chamonix could be cheaper? I have skiied in Switzerland in the Jüngfrau region. The lift tickets were shockingly even cheaper there than at most major US resorts, but then everything else (food, lodging) ended up being SOOO expensive that it more than made up for the cheap lift tickets hahah.

I never thought I would pay 12 Euros for a top ramen... until I went to Switzerland!!!

Luckily on that trip I didn’t have to pay for the flight, because I was there on tour with my music ensemble! : )
 
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hollyberry

hollyberry

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Congrats to you and your husband on your grad school acceptances, and your financial packages. You are fortunate.

You might be busier in grad school than you think, which *might* keep your mind off skiing. Otherwise, go ski a bump. Perfect North doesn’t look so bad and it’s pretty close. We here in PA ski plenty of them and still have fun! Keep in mind, a Master’s program is temporary. ogsmile

If you like to be super active, Perfect North has a Spartan Race in the summer.

Roller skis look funny in places where people don’t competitively XC ski (like Central Park), but they are *cool* in places that do, like Lake Placid. They offer a great upper body workout that rollerblades don’t. I use mine periodically in PA and welcome the weird askew glances:D

Explore Kentucky while you’re in Cincinnati. There is some beautiful country there.


Man, you would have to be brave to roller-ski in Lake Placid!!! I am trying to get back into roller blading after not doing it for years and hills are currently my nemesis... so much easier on skis and snow!!
 

James

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Anybody from OH or IN know if it’a cheaper to fly from Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago or Indianapolis to ski destinations? (West coast, Alps, etc.) I would guess flights from Chicago would be the cheapest because it’s the biggest city?

Also, I’ve noticed that lift tickets can be SIGNIICANTLY cheaper for European resorts vs West coast resorts, esp the fancy CO resorts. (Vail, Aspen, etc.) Like 6 day pass for $360 USD at Chamonix vs nearly $700 at Aspen or something like that. Is it possible that even with a flight to France vs CO a ski trip to Chamonix could be cheaper? I have skiied in Switzerland in the Jüngfrau region. The lift tickets were shockingly even cheaper there than at most major US resorts, but then everything else (food, lodging) ended up being SOOO expensive that it more than made up for the cheap lift tickets hahah.

I never thought I would pay 12 Euros for a top ramen... until I went to Switzerland!!!

Luckily on that trip I didn’t have to pay for the flight, because I was there on tour with my music ensemble! : )
I've stayed in Cham for 45€ including breakfast. Well, not in the center but a 20 min walk if you don't time it right and catch the bus.
 

skix

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...
I ski Perfect North a few times a year which is very close to Cincinnati. It does have a few steep areas that approximate a western blue but they only last a few hundred feet. The main run is "Center Stage" which can actually get fairly gnarly after it gets chopped up. Quite often it's a parking lot with bodies, skis, and boards everywhere. Mayhem. But it's usually not like that and I find I get some exercise and an enjoyable 20 seconds down for the 5 minute ride. They also have a couple of nice terrain parks and are proud to point out that Olympic champion Nick Goepper developed there.

For skiing out west we drive to Colorado. For that there's nothing closer or better than buying a season pass at somewhere like Arapahoe Basin or Loveland. You give up a day each way for the drive though so it's not going to work for a weekend. Speaking personally I've found that A-Basin always has something waiting on me as I get better so I've been buying my pass there. Others love Loveland and Winter Park. Each is 1000% better than Perfect North.
 
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hollyberry

hollyberry

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I ski Perfect North a few times a year which is very close to Cincinnati. It does have a few steep areas that approximate a western blue but they only last a few hundred feet. The main run is "Center Stage" which can actually get fairly gnarly after it gets chopped up. Quite often it's a parking lot with bodies, skis, and boards everywhere. Mayhem. But it's usually not like that and I find I get some exercise and an enjoyable 20 seconds down for the 5 minute ride. They also have a couple of nice terrain parks and are proud to point out that Olympic champion Nick Goepper developed there.

For skiing out west we drive to Colorado. For that there's nothing closer or better than buying a season pass at somewhere like Arapahoe Basin or Loveland. You give up a day each way for the drive though so it's not going to work for a weekend. Speaking personally I've found that A-Basin always has something waiting on me as I get better so I've been buying my pass there. Others love Loveland and Winter Park. Each is 1000% better than Perfect North.
Checked out Perfect North. It looks like it could be fun. Do they let any of the runs get moguls?
 

skix

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...
Checked out Perfect North. It looks like it could be fun. Do they let any of the runs get moguls?

They don't groom throughout the day so on a typical day small moguls will form pretty early. On Center Stage medium-sized moguls also show up when conditions are soft. Other times it's an ice rink and no moguls form but the norm is for it to get chopped up pretty severely. Deception and Tough Enough get moguls too. They also had some nice high rollers over on Runway this season that gave the terrain some variety.

Bottom line you won't for a second think you are at a big mountain but you will be on skis and there's enough room to have fun.
 
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hollyberry

hollyberry

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I ski Perfect North a few times a year which is very close to Cincinnati. It does have a few steep areas that approximate a western blue but they only last a few hundred feet. The main run is "Center Stage" which can actually get fairly gnarly after it gets chopped up. Quite often it's a parking lot with bodies, skis, and boards everywhere. Mayhem. But it's usually not like that and I find I get some exercise and an enjoyable 20 seconds down for the 5 minute ride. They also have a couple of nice terrain parks and are proud to point out that Olympic champion Nick Goepper developed there.

For skiing out west we drive to Colorado. For that there's nothing closer or better than buying a season pass at somewhere like Arapahoe Basin or Loveland. You give up a day each way for the drive though so it's not going to work for a weekend. Speaking personally I've found that A-Basin always has something waiting on me as I get better so I've been buying my pass there. Others love Loveland and Winter Park. Each is 1000% better than Perfect North.
OMG you drive to Colorado from Cincinnati!!!???? Wow!!! Do you really do it in one day??!!!
 

Uncle Louie

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OMG you drive to Colorado from Cincinnati!!!???? Wow!!! Do you really do it in one day??!!!

There's a few of us from this area that do that. If you don't waste time on the highway you can make Denver in 17 hours. Sleep there at lower altitude for the night and head up to ski early the next morning. There have been times when I have left around 1 AM and picked my wife up (coming in from another location) at Denver Intl Airport around 5 PM local time after dropping the gear at our hotel. Nice to have the 2 hour time difference heading west, but it really sucks heading home an losing 2 hours. And yes....it'a a VERY boring drive.


Anybody from OH or IN know if it’a cheaper to fly from Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago or Indianapolis to ski destinations? (West coast, Alps, etc.) I would guess flights from Chicago would be the cheapest because it’s the biggest city?

Both Detroit and Chicago are a considerable drive to get to (4-5 hours) and winter conditions that far north by the lakes can be brutal. I would focus on Indi and Cincinnati Regional (it's actually in KY) for the best mix of convenience and price.

Finally, Perfect North is a fun little place all things considered and it's really close.
 

wallyk

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Maybe see if there is a recreational (Night league) racing program? Racing is a good way to spend time at a smaller mtn. And beers in the bar after are always fun too ...

Great advice.......I relocate my family from Hoboken to Minneapolis after living there and NYC for 18 years. My daughter and I skied CBK every weekend for 5 years which compared to the local areas here was very good. Skiing and corn/soy bean fields don't mix very well. But you know that going into it.

While we ski in the twin cities area every weekend, I found that doing a race league one night a week was a blast. People were friendly ( some more competitive than others) it was fun to ski fast, talk skiing with like minded people, and enjoy the atmosphere in the bar. Obviously, to each their own and I'm not sure how competitive you are, but being able to ski with others in a fun environment was enjoyable.

I also increased the frequency of trips to the Rockies, which was much more enjoyable that VT (sorry Vermonters). I went every month this year, and took the kids from school twice to ski Breck and Big Sky. If you have a decent compensation package like you mention, then work those direct flights into Denver next season.
 

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