Adiós a las Pistas

Good-bye to the piste runs. Thredbo closed the resort for skiing and boarding yesterday afternoon after extending the season a week longer than all other Aussie resorts.

Saturday was just another of those blue-sky, light-breeze, perfect days. After a couple of Basin runs, Marion and I headed off towards Signature Hill. The snow was great - soft on top of firm without being slow or sticky. There were a lot of others out enjoying the main range in various forms. Amongst those were Jax, Traktorman and Button, who I spotted snowshoeing up Pyramid.

Marion and I skied most facets of Signature Hill and some I rarely get to do. After five glorious runs we headed back for a well-deserved lunch at Eagles Nest and, as I had to download Kosi chair, a cold beer. I went back on Sunday (yesterday) morning for last turns on piste in the resort for 2010. Most of the 'tragics' were there for the same reason :-) For the first time in many weeks the weather was grey and the light very flat. Five runs on the Basin and I was back down in time to catch the start of the Bathurst car race.

There's still a lot of touring to come. Fresh snow and a mini return to winter are forecast for the end of the week after some rain. Murphy's law dictates that we always receive a decent snowfall shortly after the resort is closed.

Alina sets the mood for the last weekend on piste

There were crowds going in all directions out back

Amongst the crowds; Jax, Traktorman & Button climbing Pyramid on snowshoes

Their descent was faster when the cloud rolled in

Things to be aware of when out back
a sink hole or saucer site?
very close to the Kosi walking track

Cloud on the western range seen from the top of the North Face of Signature Hill

I passed my camera to Marion while I went for that extra run

The descent was well worth the climb

I couldn't help myself when I found this special effect for
our tracks on Signature Hill

Sunday: Ski In-Ski Out Corner and High Noon after the resort was closed

THE ANALYSIS

I ended up skiing on 107 days out of a possible 121 days. That's a record for me for in-resort skiing in a single season but as that includes one day skiing in Perisher, I've only done 106 in-resort days in Thredbo. Much better than that is Daveo's stunning result of 121 out of 121 possible days. Even on his days off, he hit the slopes for at least one run in order to set this unbeatable record. Ben and some of the other mountain staff may also be close. I noticed Ben and Alina out skiing on their days off as well.

So after all this time on the mountain, how did the season work out? It was quite amazing and there are numerous things that have never occurred before. First the weather: it is the least windy season that I can remember with the most sunny days that I can remember. Secondly the snow: a very slow start with a massive middle and a long and lingering finish.

It was the biggest snowmaking season ever. The only shortfall was the Evil Way (aka Eagle Way) that is to be rectified this summer. Despite those still subscribing to the global warming farce, the future never looked better for Thredbo.

That old saying I used to hear in the 70s & 80s "Thredbo's only good when you can ski to the bottom" - well hello, with the super snowmaking now installed, we do that all season every season, even beyond the official season when all other Australian resorts had closed.

Much improved on last year was the minimal delay for lift de-icing and there were very few breakdowns. The initial breakdown of The Cruiser on day 1 of the season was a blessing in disguise as we had High Noon open shortly after, providing skiing to the bottom on opening weekend.

So in my opinion, it was a fabulous season and much of this was thanks to the snow makers, pro patrol, volley patrol, lifties, maintenance, groomers, ticket checkers, management and so many more support staff that keep the resort running and of course, YOU, the enjoyer of the resort without whom there would be no resort.


*** Expect fewer reports over the coming months while I wait for the return of winter and slowly extract the last turn out of the main range cover ***

PS: Rosco has offered to send reports and photos from Japan over the Australian Summer that I will relay here.

PPS: Happy Birthday to Francesca, Britta & Annie - a busy week for the girls.