California Spring Riding -Sherpa Style !

[jjue]

Today it was 91 degrees in Sacramento but beautiful with a nice cool breeze up at 10,000 feet at the top of Heavenly valley ... Nice Spring conditions with immaculate groomers becoming very soft and slushy quickly ... I set up my Sherpa with an iron on Spring one ball jay wax and then added some structure to the wax job by brushing with a fine steel brush , this seemed to work pretty good ... One of the keys to riding with our fat skiboards in spring slush , besides the wax .. , I think , is to make sure you are carving right up on edge.. you want your edge slicing through the slush and not so much of the bottom of the board to slow you down .. in the low angle nasty stuff , I concentrated on just powering through the downhill edge while lightening up or even lifting my uphill skiboard out of the snow .. this let me slice through at speed without slowing down too much ..

One of the cool things about riding in the Spring , is there is no one there ! the slopes are empty there is absolutely no lift line and you can make high speed carves all over the place without running into folks , you can easily get a place to sit down at lunch and there is no lunch line !
Also the weather is fabulous and you can ride in a tee shirt !

Now here is the secret part ,most every one was staying on the groomers but off to the side of most of these groomers were tight steep trees . these are popular in the winter as there is very nice pow there , but in the spring must folks take one look at the nasty looking snow , which is all pockmarked with snow melt cups and lumpy snow , and decide to stay on the groomers... with the Sherpa , that stuff is a private playground .. it never , ever ceases to amaze me as I drive the Sherpa into this kind of stuff , that it is the absolute most stable snowriding platform I have ever ridden.. . those huge 160 tips and the added length , create a magical ride that just smooths out all the bumps... It is funny .. I have ridden all kinds of skiboards and when ever I venture into this stuff with the Sherpa , I am just waiting to have a rough, rocky ,time of it , but nothing , just one hell of a smooth ride , the snow had softened nicely in the trees and riding the corn snow and slushy stuff in there was the stuff of magic ! fabulous .. and no one else there at all ! I am also constantly suprised at how manuervable the Sherpa is for how fat and long it is .. one hella of a board for sure !

[rgzip]

How well do you think the Lacroix 125's would do in those conditions?

[Manlenium]

So jealous of the guys that get sunny days and solid enough snow.....:(

[jjue]

Originally posted by rgzip
How well do you think the Lacroix 125's would do in those conditions?

rgzip, I have ridden the Lacroix 125 off piste, and the Sherpa is better for several reasons .. the wider tips really make a difference and is noticeable in riding variable off piste conditions , and while the Sherpa is quite stiff , it is certainly more flexible than the Lacroix . The more flexible nature of the Sherpa soaks up some of the vibration in off piste spring stuff which is often a mixed bag of firm chunky, icy snow in the dark spots and soft stuff in the more sun exposed area. Also although the Sherpa is longer and wider in the tip , it seems for some reason more manuverable to me and easy to get around quickly .. it probably has to do with the tighter turn radius , and more flexible flex.. , Also the Sherpa seems to be easier to get on and off carve easier and drift or slide , then the Lacroix , which is a fearsome carver...

Actually , one of the signature features of both the Spruce boards , the 120 and the 130 is the ability of both of these boards to go on and off carve very easily , and go into the "soft edge" drift mode which makes both boards very nice in challengeing variable off piste terrain ...

[bobcastle]

Hey JJue,

I always enjoy your posts about riding. You are so descriptive that I can almost picture you carving down the slopes!

Do you mind sharing which of the Spruce 120 models that you ride? Are they the green & white model? Or, are they the softer flexing blue & white model? Also, I'm curious as to why you chose one model over the other.

Thanks!

Bob Castle

[pinkkid]

Jack, sure glad you got to get more riding in, especially in Heavenly with the views of Tahoe Lake and the valleys all around, breathtaking. Great review on the Sherpa and those conditions with some good hints on spring riding. I do enjoy spring riding too because of no crowds and light weight gear/clothes(nooooo, I don't wear shorts or a bathing suit top though it has crossed my mind;) and yes girls do ski like that in CA!). Spruce makes a good board, looking forward to the 120's for next season and putting a review up.
Thank you for your ever so helpful posts!
Shelley

[jjue]

Originally posted by bobcastle
Hey JJue,

I always enjoy your posts about riding. You are so descriptive that I can almost picture you carving down the slopes!

Do you mind sharing which of the Spruce 120 models that you ride? Are they the green & white model? Or, are they the softer flexing blue & white model? Also, I'm curious as to why you chose one model over the other.

Thanks!

Bob Castle

Hi Bob Castle , there is a bit of confusion about the two Spruce 120 models and I think the Spruce Mountain web site has a slight inaccuracy on it .. saying the blue and white is softer .

The green and white version , has a biaxial fiberglass lay up and is slightly softer , then the blue and white version which has a triaxial fiberglass lay up and is stiffer. I have both versions . and to tell the truth I don't notice much difference in the ride between them ... I do prefer somewhat stiffer boards , so I mostly ride the Blue and white version ... although other folks who do a lot of park like the green and white version better
Actually , I think most riders would be hard pressed to tell the two versions apart...

[bobcastle]

Hey Jack,

Thanks for the good information!

[mahatma]

bobcastle,

I own and ride all 3 flavors of the Spruce 120's (the original all blue, blue/white and green/white) and swear I can tell no difference. jjue is all about the search for the perfect ride and although I've never met the man I believe him without reservation. My bank account also believes that I believe him. jjue will make you buy skiboards! For what it's worth I'm 6'2, weigh 220 lbs. and am all about the feel of skiboarding.

[pinkkid]

You will (we all will) have that pleasure of meeting Jack (and many others) and compare notes etc at the Tahoe Skiboard Meet next season! :) It really will be alot fun to just literally play on the slopes with everyone. I am sure some will be all about the parks, and I certainly wanna watch some(might even do a box or jump myself); others will be all about the trees off piste or doing 'cliff' jumps etc.. I shall for-go that type of jump(yikes, but looks awesome!); some will be ready for seeing who gets down the run first & fastest(I may partake in that one); others will be laying down some sweet steep carves(yes!); some of us may be trying out other boards from the new friends they met and trading stories; but most of us will be simply enjoying the blue & black groomers and Tahoe Scenery... and trying out Ring Around the Rosey with each other :D
oops, sorry I should post that elsewhere.

[mahatma]

Shelley,

If you can promise that good coffee and a good bakery (I'm addicted to bakery's) is nearby then I'm there. Will need assistance making hotel reservations. Oh yea, wanting to meet all of you, too. Ha ha.

[pinkkid]

boy, that is heavy I don't drink coffee!! But.. my husband does! They have at South Shore bakeries but they have theeee Nestle Toll House Cookie store & Bakery! LOL! Everyone is gonna need help with accomodation's not sure what to do there, I am so not wealthy enough to have a cabin or rent a cabin for everyone. I have stayed at the Motel 6 before but usually stay at the casino's or a timeshare unit or something. Heck, If I have to I'll haul or RV trailer up there! noooo too snowy.