I ventured up to Prospect Mountain this Saturday for their opening
day. They could definitely use MUCH more snow, but since this was my
first ski of the season on the real stuff it was still well worth the
trip. I skied classic for 2 hours and skate for 1 hour --- and I'm finding
today that lots of off-season cycling, roller skiing, and Nordic Tracking
still do not totally prepare the body for the rigors of skiing hills and
uneven surfaces. The trails had been rolled out with a snowmobile but no
tracks were set. Skating was probably the best option, but I've been
working a lot on classic technique with the roller skis so I was quite
anxious to do the real thing. All the trails were skiable, but you had to
be alert for the occasional exposed rock. A few bus-loads of high-school
kids were there, along with some of the "regulars", and everybody seemed to
be having a great time in spite of the sparse snow cover. Presumably it
will only get better for the next few months.

Jim

========================================
Jim Grau
Schlumberger-Doll Research
36 Old Quarry Road
Ridgefield, CT 06877
Office: 203-431-5303
Fax: 203-438-3819