Grooming report 1/31

John finished up Skyway/County Line late in the afternoon on Friday. Temps. warmed up nicely compared to Thurs., so expect the tilled snow to set up firm.
John may 'touch-up' at County Line with the grader this afternoon if he has enough daylight after his work with the dog sledding race at Mesa Top.

Next grooming at both Skyway/County Line and Ward will be mid-week.

WRobertson

Grooming report 1/29

Skyway had 3"-4" of new snow overnight for a 52" base making it difficult for skating but good classic skiing, with afternoon temps in the upper teens.
Similar conditions at Ward with Al grooming the Ward Trail today.

Skyway/County Line will be groomed on Friday beginning around 12:30 P.M.

WRobertson

Quick Weather Update...Pick days Friday and Saturday

GMNCers,

 

It was a cold day on the Mesa Tuesday with Jerry and Marci Nolan reporting -2F at 1PM. The promised warming trend is on hold for a few days.

 

For the next few days, a 100kt jet streak connects Alaska to Western Colorado. So Wednesday and Thursday afternoon highs offer only a little improvement (if you are an optimist) climbing to the 5-10F range along with gusty frigid NW winds. A little light snowfall is expected mainly Wednesday night, probably an inch or three.

 

Friday looks like a lovely bluebird day under fleeting High pressure, with sunny skies, light winds, and afternoon temperatures back into the 20s.

Saturday, NW winds begin to increase again as the next northern Pacific disturbance approaches. Afternoon highs in the 20s but it won't be as warm-feeling as Friday. 

Sunday, the cold NW flow is back. Brisk winds, some clouds and showers, and afternoon highs in the teens. Only light snow accumulations.

Then dry and mild High pressure builds in for much of next week, which should provide some lovely ski opportunities.

 

No weather updates will be available from me until next week when I return from the Silverton Avalanche School. See all the latest weather info, specifically for the Grand Mesa, here: http://home.mesastate.edu/~jerry/gmnc/weather/weather.htm

 

Mojo

Grooming for week 1/27-31

For Skyway/County Line, Kenton will groom Wed. A.M. and if it's not too windy finish both trail systems. We will groom again either FRi. P.M. or Sat. in the morning, depending on the condition of the trails.

At Ward, Al will groom the Ward Trail on Thurs. morning.

WRobertson

Grand Mesa Classic Race Results and Photos!

Results and photos of the Grand Mesa 10km classic race are now posted on the GMNC website.

Direct link here: http://home.mesastate.edu/~jerry/gmnc/races/Races08-09/2009-01-25%20Classic/GMClassic2009.htm

Thanks to Jerry Nolan for the photos and fine website work!

Thundersnow on the Arctic Express

GMNCers,

 

Monday is another 'blow and go' day on the Mesa with strong SW winds, light showers, and temperatures struggling into the 20s. An arctic front is languishing just north of the Roan Plateau on Monday. As the sun begins to go down, the front will begin to push south again, perhaps producing some magically scary thundersnow as it passes early Monday evening. Thundersnow can produce amazingly big local dumps, so there might be large snowfall variation.

 

The Mesa should get some decent snowfall Monday evening through Tuesday, favoring Powderhorn to County Line. Ward Lake trails should get less. Temperatures on Tuesday will struggle to make the teens as snow showers diminish thru the afternoon. This is that magical dendrite crystal growth temperature regime that I talked about here recently. So look for big fluffy flakes that have sharp crystals. If your skis are slow, stop for a moment and examine the beautifully branched snow flakes falling on your gloves and eyelashes. If that doesn't make you say Wow, then look around at the pattern of snow on the tree branches, or the lovely organic shapes of the drifts in the open areas. That should should make the slow skis not as bothersome.

 

After a cold start Wednesday, temperatures will slowly climb through the week, promising a nice upcoming weekend for skiing. Generally for Wednesday onward, the snow will be cold. But afternoon temperatures will climb into the 20s with northwest light breezes and little chance of new snowfall.

Life is short. The snow and all of us will soon be gone.

Enjoy!

Mojo

Ela Family Gets It Done!

Today marked yet another successful event in the GMNC race series. Tom or Jerry will have results posted shortly, but in the meantime, here is a tribute to the volunteers who make these fun events possible, Tom Ela and his mom, Shirley.

While Shirley greeted skiers with a smile and kept the soup hot, the rest of the Ela family raced. Bill Ela continues to show the rest of us how it's done..he's still racing (and skiing strong) at age 85. His sons Tom, Steve and Dan also raced. They're going to have to keep skiing hard if they want to keep up with their dad.

Thanks to Lee Gelatt for the photos.