Tips for Canons in deep powder??

[radikal]

Looks like I am gonna get to take a trip to Whistler here in a couple weeks. I am gonna be ridin with a bunch of skiers and snowboarders who are locals up there. I expect we'll get into some good powder there

I am in the midwest, so normally the only powder I get is off in the woods. I've never really bombed deep powder in the middle of a run. Does anyone have any tips for deep powder besides lean back a little more? I do not want to get smoked by my freinds on their skiis and boards!

On the groomed trails I am used to in michigan. I just lean low and clasp my arms behind me, and I am rarely passed. However, I have a feeling that trying that in powder will result in a faceplant...

I am riding Canon m7 pros.... Any tips will be appreciated!!

[McShane]

i'm sorry, but no tips from my side...
but i would love to hear your comments when you get back. i'm hypothetically planning on hitting high-mountain "nobody's-been-here" powder, but haven't heard any experiences on skiboards....

[Freedom 35]

I'm really interested in how suitable your M7 Pros are for Whistler.

I might have a chance to go there for a week next winter. I've had no problem with my M7's on Ontario and Quebec hills but I'm not sure they'll do the job out in Whistler.

[CrazyDave]

Set your bindings back towards the rear of the boards as much possible. Lean back, go fast and don't stop. With the dimenished surface area of skiboards you need to maximize your front float which means keeping weight off the front of the boards and keeping up enough speed to keep them from sinking. It works for me but I've never done really deep powder yet just 6-10" stuff. Good luck, let us know how you make out.

[adamlynam]

absolutely nothing against skiboards....
but.. from personal whistler experience, and the fact that your going to be riding with skiiers and snowboarders, i would suggest renting twintips.. there are a few shops in town that will hook you up with some pocket rockets or other powder twins...
please take my advice, you will have a much better time and make more of your trip to whistler..

west coast powder rules.. hit up the harmony chair for some nice bowls and cliffs that end in tree skiing.

have a sick time and dont take whistler for granted.

-lynam

[Greco]

when i lived back in tahoe i rode some seriously deep powder on skiboards all the time, i loved it. it does require some serious leg work however to stay on your tails with your tips up and like with snowboarding the terrain must be steep or you'll be sunk.
so, keep your tips up and stay on the steeps and you'll have a blast.

g

[zenderfall]

I went to Whistler for a few days during the middle of January, and I did hit powder with my BG pro's.

No problems at all. A lot of moguls and choppy snow but the BG's handled them fine. I handled a few diamonds, and even went down the Blackcomb Glacier easily. Most of my 5 hour day was spent near the peaks of the two mountains.

Not to disappoint, but personally I think other mountains offer better powder than Whistler. You see, while Whistler certainly is BIG (7000+ acres!) it doesn't have the greatest weather. It rains a lot. The peaks are only about 8000 ft high. And when weather is like that, the snow turns out to be wet snow. There's many mountains elsewhere in the Rockies and West Coast that not only are higher, but have better weather. The best powder is found near the peaks of the mountains, (which is pretty good)

I had a blast in Whistler, it really was fun being able to make about 2-3 runs a day (which ends at about 3:00 PM BTW) The sheer length and scope of the mountains impress, but remember, no mountain's perfect. Be aware of the flaws and have a great time!

[radikal]

I have about a million different answers to my question :) Everything from adjust your bindings, to just lean back, to don't even try the skiboards at all :)

I will be interested to see what happens. I have never really skiied powder before, as there is never much up in michigan where we usually go. I've been out to CO a couple of times, but never managed to hit it when there was a big dump!

I guess I will just have to go with an open mind, and see what happens. I'll give my neil lyons a try, and if they don't work, I'll go rent some skiis.

In theory though, with the m7's having the surface area of a 165 cm pair of skiis, it should be possible. The main concern would just be weight distribution, I would think -- too much on the nose, and they'll dig in.

I guess I will just have to see what happens when I get there. Of course the thing that would suck is if I get way up to the top of a hill and can't get down because I am stuck :)

Thanks to everyone for all the tips. I will be sure to post my resuts after the trip! And then I will know if I made a good call buying a pair of skiboards instead of skiis!

[McShane]

greco, zender! - what was the powder like you used to hit? i mean, how dry/soft and how deep it was?

[Greco]

sierra cement (very high water content) and very deep sometimes.

i shot this pic one day after a dump. that's dave rees on some 1998 mike nicks...

G

[Bentfilms]

as a huge advocate of skiboarding, im gonna have to echo adams advice.

first day in whistler, we got a huge dump, at least 3 feet of fresh. i hadnt been on skis for the past 4 years, so i figured i'd be alright.... well, i wasnt. i may as well been in sneakers..... you should definatly get a pair of skis, pocket rockets or something fat will ensure the best ride in stuff thats deep..... sure skiboards can do the job on the steeps... but you have to traverse sometime, and you dont want to be walking around..... whistler is the greatest place in the world.... take in everything when your there, from the snow, the people the atmosphere and just being in the mountains is something that far to many people take for granted...

have a sick time dude, report back

b

[McShane]

Originally posted by Bentfilms
as a huge advocate of skiboarding, im gonna have to echo adams advice.

first day in whistler, we got a huge dump, at least 3 feet of fresh. i hadnt been on skis for the past 4 years, so i figured i'd be alright.... well, i wasnt. i may as well been in sneakers..... you should definatly get a pair of skis, pocket rockets or something fat will ensure the best ride in stuff thats deep..... sure skiboards can do the job on the steeps... but you have to traverse sometime, and you dont want to be walking around..... whistler is the greatest place in the world.... take in everything when your there, from the snow, the people the atmosphere and just being in the mountains is something that far to many people take for granted...

have a sick time dude, report back

b

this one is convincing here. if i plan on heliskiing, then the powder would be from 3 feet up for sure