Plattekill Conditions (2016 - 2017)

Harvey wrote

As far as keeping it a secret... that's a conundrum. There is a long way to go before Plattekill is crowded, and we want the mountain to survive, so don't guard that secret too closely.

You have nothing to fear (until they get a marketing budget).

Seriously though, it's a niche market, but that's one of the best things about the place.  Their clientele is, in general, pretty awesome.

BenedictGomez wrote

Their clientele is, in general, pretty awesome.

I have to agree.  

Plattekill wrote

Don't keep it a secret please.....thanks for the positive review, glad you liked our snowmaking.

I tell every skier I know. I can't help myself.

plattekill skied really well today. remnants of the ice storm are gone. the sun came out after 11 and everything soften up.the base is hanging in there. shout out to the plattekill faithful who  gave me tele tips all day.

sig wrote

plattekill skied really well today. remnants of the ice storm are gone. the sun came out after 11 and everything soften up.the base is hanging in there. shout out to the plattekill faithful who  gave me tele tips all day.

Today was great. As you said, the fog lifted and it was a bluebird, soft snow day. Totally awesome. I believe I saw you today... I was skiing mostly with my daughter, not the usual tele crew, aince she was racing today. Were in blue?

Yes that was me. My second time on tele setup. I got a few pointers from some of the tele skiers.   one of the plattekill  instructors gave me a tip which really helped . Were u on tele skies?

Yeah, today was great! My original plan was to ski with my two buddies up at Mount Snow today.  I couldn't get a straight answer out of them if they were going last night, so I slept in (until 7:00) and headed to Plattekill this morning. On my way, I got a text from my friend saying "we just arrived, where are you?"  Very, Very poor communication their part, but what the hell. I'll ski with real people at Plattekill.

The soft snow at Plattekill definitely did not disappoint. 5" deep trenches could easily be laid.  Because the skiable terrain was limited I decided to try something different, and I pulled out the "big Foot" today. I always thought of these things as silly, or not for for real skiers, but my position has changed.



These things force you to find your balance point or "sweet spot" and definitely make you a better skier  They are actually very difficult to ski on, because if you don't stay over that balance point you will crash.  I started with Sundown then moved to Upper Face then Blockbuster followed by Plunge then two more upper and lower Face. After 6 runs, I went back to my 184 CM Fischers and it felt like wearing magic on my feet. They felt like wearing a boat on my feet in comparison, but they seemed to do all the work me, and it definitely made me fast. Really understanding the balance point over your skis gives you a huge advantage in Alpine.

And you can fit these things in a suitcase.

I used ski blades back in the 90s when I was making the transition to shaped skis. That up hill wiggle really got you to properly distribute the weight on the skis and edge them. It speeded up my transition immensely to where I was carving and laying railroad track in short order. I still have a pair in the garage - haven't used them in over 15 years.

Ethan Snow wrote

Because the skiable terrain was limited I decided to try something different, and I pulled out the "big Foot" today. I always thought of these things as silly, or not for for real skiers, but my position has changed.
These things force you to find your balance point or "sweet spot" and definitely make you a better skier  They are actually very difficult to ski on, because if you don't stay over that balance point you will crash.  Really understanding the balance point over your skis gives you a huge advantage in Alpine.

 i saw you wearing those today and laughed to myself. those things will break you neck not make you a better skier. skiing more and challening yourself makes you better. if you are bored alpine skiing on limited terrian try tele skiing

sig wrote

 i saw you wearing those today and laughed to myself. those things will break you neck not make you a better skier. skiing more and challening yourself makes you better. if you are bored alpine skiing on limited terrian try tele skiing

I do want to try Tele skiing someday, but there's no doubt in my mind ski blades make you a better alpine skier. I experienced it first hand, and most likely you have never tried them.  I ski hard and challenge myself all the time, and balancing on those things IS challenging, and a good a exercise. If you're a tele skier, that's a whole different discipline, and it probably won't do anything for you.

And, I never said I was bored. Just said the terrain was limited.

sig wrote

Yes that was me. My second time on tele setup. I got a few pointers from some of the tele skiers.   one of the plattekill  instructors gave me a tip which really helped . Were u on tele skies?

Yes, I'm completely converted now.  NTN for me.  I don't forsee my heels ever being locked down again.  

I started 2 seasons ago and went 100% last year. I'm about to purchase my 2nd setup so I can have a backup.

Ethan Snow wrote

If you're a tele skier, that's a whole different discipline, and it probably won't do anything for you.

I never skied alpine... what do you mean?

I *think* that alpine and tele have the basics in common?  

I do wonder about the fore/aft balance thing when doing parallel turns. Is that bad alpine form?

I think you can basically turn the same way by essentially shifting your weight from one ski to another with either discipline. I do this while decending on XC the same way I learned alpine. With Alpine  you can also keep your weight equal on both skis, and simply turn them on edge to use the parabolic shape of the ski to turn, and lean into the turn. This technique is what leaves behind the perfect "railroad track" that requires a little speed, and I rarely see it created by tele skiers. Not to say it can never happen.  

Using this technique, its important to be balanced. With Tele skiing, I don't think foward/back balance is as important because you are constantly lungung foward into your turns anyway. It's just a different discipline. Although the more I think about it, I guess if you were perfectly balanced, having your heel tied down wouldn't matter and you could learn to Tele without picking up your heel.  

I don't Tele, so I could be totally wrong but these are just my thoughts. Either way, I think ski blades are a great balancing excercise, and could probably benefit anybody. My apologies for excluding the freeheel guys.  

It was a stunning morning with some fog in the valley that burned off very quickly and now it is a warm, sunny, bluebird day.

Went Saturday the 28th. Lots of new terrain officially opened today( no ropes to duck). The usual trails skiied great including Block,Plunge,North Face,Face. Ventured throughout the blues off the double. They had typical east coast early season natural cover. Overlook even had a nice base the whole way. Saw some tracks in and out of the trees. IMHO it's still quite dicey to commit to a full on in.
Platty never disappoints me.

Pretty crowded

Awesome time at Platty today; couldn't be happier



Almost everything was officially open . Junior got to ski a bunch of stuff off the double he hasn't gotten to before. He also skied Blockbuster for the first time. He liked it. He really liked Chute also. Snow squalls kept rolling through, giving way to blue skies in between. These are from the same lift ride.




We had fun. The weather was great, the snow was great, it seemed like the mountain was doing some good business. All good stuff.

I mentioned in the Trip Report thread that I've been driving out rt 17 lately instead of 87 and rt 28 (coming from metro area) but I didn't want to muck up somebody else's TR with immediate thread drift so I came here. On my phones navigator my new route always comes up as being a little longer but I'm finding I shave a few minutes off my ETA that way, whereas I usually miss by a few on rt 28. I like it better because I find rt 28 slow and the scenery on my new route (much more remote) is way better. I take 17 to Roscoe (exit 94) and then follow some state roads up to and around Pepacton Resevoir to the Margaretville area and get on rt 30 there. Anybody else go this way?

interesting...I usually go the exit 19 rt 28 rt past bell..

many state troopers on this route?