Mammoth: April 2011: Day 3

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Snowboard all fixed, time to hit Cornice on a beautiful bluebird day!

No screwing around, straight up to the top, a few pictures, then we proceeded to rocket down. Fresh snow, groomed powder, and a beautiful day? Albert, Kevin, and I hit the afterburners.

(ok, I did stop to take some video. Not yet crazy enough to go down Cornice while filming...)

Posed for some pictures while waiting for June to take the gondola back down, then raced off to the backside. The massive mounds of powder there six weeks ago were gone, but there was still tons of great snow. Lots of fast runs for Kevin and I to blast straight down while the others took, umm, more prudent lines.

Made it over to Chair 12, lost everyone a few times (make up your minds, people!), then started to head back to Canyon. Saw them setting up for races at Main Lodge (drool!), then lost a few more people again as we tried to hit Chair 5. Turns out that cut-off has to be taken high, and, yeah, we failed. Half of us decreed we were done hiking, so we went the other way...

Finished things off on Chair 8, where the Mammoth mascot, Wooly Mammoth, was encountered. I got my picture, then pulled out the camera and foolishly tried to record myself skiing after him. After all, how fast can a guy in a Mammoth suit ski? Turns out... pretty damned fast. I did a semi-pathetic job keeping up all the way down to Blue Jay's last stretch, where I ate it. Guess I need to improve a little more!

The gondola operator chastised us for leaving so early. "Do you know what time it is? It's only 1:30PM!" All we could do was hang our heads in shame and *ahem* say that someone had to go home early *cough*...

It worked out, though. The line at Schat's Bakery in Bishop was short, we loaded up on bread and sandwiches, had some very interesting and entertaining conversations, and made it home before dark. Woohoo! Although we did murder a few million bugs on the car and on our skis and boards on the roof. It could be said they died for a good cause: an awesome weekend at Mammoth!