Why do some people not like to ski groomers

[slowrider]

When conditions prevent skiing off piste where else can you go. Between young male french fries, the kiddie pizzas & rest of the brush turners going every direction. A carver has no business on the hill.

 

[Carl Kuck]

Groomers vs. bumps. Le Mans vs. the Baja 1000. Mountain bikes vs. road bikes. It just all depends on preference. I happen to prefer Le Mans, road bikes, and groomers on carver skis but then I'm 63 so what do I know... I do know if you're bored on groomers you're going to slow.

 

[SSSdave]

... I do know if you're bored on groomers you're going too slow.

...or are not able to ski slow making short dynamic fall line turns.

 

[tinymoose]

For me, it really depends on my mood. Sometimes, if you can find a nice, open groomer that's not scraped off, it can be pure bliss. A groomer with corduroy is just *muah*. That being said, sure endless groomer skiing can also get old. It's just a very different feel on a groomer with my race skis vs. in some soft snow off-piste. Both are good in their own way.

 

[ARL67]

Contrary to this thread title, I've come to realize that my wife ONLY likes groomers, and she has admitted as much during our recent trip to Killington. She *could* get down a nicely groomed black run, but does not like chunky snow, bumps, a lot of fresh snow, etc. She does not want to do any ski maneuvers that require a bit of aggression, for lack of a better word.

 

[cantunamunch]

"Groomer Rope Drop!"

Until you've said it and meant it I don't believe any one of you.

 

[LiquidFeet]

Some years back I would spend all day at Wachusett Mountain (MA) on Wednesdays. I'd ski from 9:00 am till around 9:00 pm. I stayed to ski with the night race league, which I think is the biggest race league program in the nation. They certainly had a large number of skiers at night all over the mountain, not just on the competition slope.

Around 5:00, mountain ops would run groomers on some trails to refresh the surface for the night session, depending on which trails needed it the most. Most of the mountain was lit up at night for night skiing, so some trails would definitely need grooming if the day had been crowded.

Ski patrol would put up a rope while the groomer did its thing on each targeted trail. Large numbers of skiers would congregate at each of the ropes, waiting for the drop. Patrol would station their people at the top to guard that rope until the very last moment, and when they dropped it there was a genuine Chinese downhill. It was crazy. These were adults.

I assume Wachusett still does this, and that skiers still do this too.

 

[dbostedo]

"Groomer Rope Drop!"

Until you've said it and meant it I don't believe any one of you.

Does getting to be first of the season on the South Face lift at Okemo with only groomers available count?

 

[Ogg]

Does getting to be first of the season on the South Face lift at Okemo with only groomers available count?

Sure, it's Okemo. You have to lower your expectations accordingly.

 

[DanoT]

"Groomer Rope Drop!"

Until you've said it and meant it I don't believe any one of you.

Nothing like fresh groomed (dry western version), soft and silky before it gets a chance to firm up.

 

[Wallace]

I love the smell of fresh corduroy in the morning.

 

[cantunamunch]

Does getting to be first of the season on the South Face lift at Okemo with only groomers available count?

Hmmm. I'll take it but only 'coz I know you bought those skinny Stocklis.

 

[Tricia]

"Groomer Rope Drop!"

Until you've said it and meant it I don't believe any one of you.

I will say, there is something satisfying about making the first trenches in fresh corduroy

 

[Slim]

Am I the only one who likes groomers more than powder?

I think so .
All the better, spreads the skiers out.

 

[Chef23]

I skied some fresh corduroy last week at Sugarbush and I do love it. I love the feeling of that clean arc through the snow and the special feeling it makes when it is freshly groomed.

 

[Andy Mink]

Had a blast on the big, wide, fairly low angle groomers at June yesterday. Hard surface, yet the edges could get in. Fun stuff!

 

[Tom K.]

Had one of my most memorable days skiing Sun Valley on perfect groom and light rain (?!?!)

No people. HERO snow. Rode the gondola to stay out of the drizzle, until it quit just before noon.

Found out later that there were less than 500 people skiing that day.

 

[Marker]

Because groomers dominate the terrain at most eastern resorts, I keep an eye out for ungroomed runs or sides of runs to practice on. I suck at moguls, but am working on them, but just plain ole ungroomed messes are fun to ski! Since I've become a Killington skier, there are a lot more options for ungroomed and moguls due to the culture here that encourages it. But I have no problem taking out my carvers for a firm groomer zoomer day when it presents itself.

 

[Vcize]

Just did back to back trips with the same group of friends and got to experience both sets of conditions. First trip was 2 weekends ago at Copper Mountain where there were pretty perfect groomer conditions. Anything off peak was frozen and crusted up, but the hard pack on the trails was in good shape, not really icy or anything. The groomers were fun but they can really only hold my attention for so long. A different trail isn't really different per say. You're doing the same thing regardless. So we got out there at 10-11 each day, were done by 3ish, and made lots of stops for beer in between. It was an enjoyable weekend.

The following weekend we were at Snowbasin with lots of new snow. Albeit very wet, dense snow (it was raining on the bottom of the mountain). It was a totally different experience. We were out there for first chair and were begging the lifties to let us on for one more ride at 4. Whooping and hollaring all day long. No stops for beers or lunch, we ate candy bars for our meals that day. We wanted to get it in every second of skiing we could and explore every new area that we could and find all the new snow that we could. And keep in mind this was with really poor "powder", but powder nonetheless.

They are both fun experiences, but the latter is just so much more fun for me. And with actual good snow that would only be magnified more. Obviously that's just for me and it's not my intent to tell anyone else what they should enjoy. If anything I'm envious of those that prefer ripping groomers all day because that's much easier to find.

 

[dbostedo]

You're doing the same thing regardless.

Maybe you're letting the terrain dictate how you ski, rather than skiing how you want on the terrain? Could be a different thought process to the skiing. Of course YMMV... I'm not trying to tell you what to enjoy. But if you think groomers are all the same, or you're just doing the same thing, maybe you could work on how to vary things and modify how you ski on them?