Category: Winter
Guns, skis and the push for biathlon at Tahoe
With the lung-bursting cardio of Nordic skiing and the precise, cool-headed aim of marksmanship, biathlon is a clear case of “opposites attract.” Though biathlon’s origins are rooted in Norwegian military training and its fan following is staunchly European, its coming-of-age took place in Tahoe. The discipline was first included in the 1960 Winter Olympic Games, [...]
Getting kids on Tahoe’s slopes
To many families, winter in Tahoe means ski lessons, season passes and bluebird days together at a favorite resort. But not to all: With rising poverty rates, teenage obesity at an all-time high and more single-parent homes than ever before, not all kids have the means or opportunity to learn a winter sport. Fortunately, there [...]
Q&A with Julia Mancuso; talking lingerie, tiaras, podiums and Sochi
Raised on the slopes of Squaw Valley USA, skier Julia Mancuso has three Olympic medals (more than any other American female alpine skier) and a fistful of World Championship and World Cup podium finishes to her name. When not flying down a snow-covered mountain, “Super Jules,” as she is known to her fellow U.S. Ski [...]
Snowmaking in Tahoe: Northstar and Heavenly Pump up The Best Christmas Snow Conditions
Despite the sparse natural snow, Tahoe’s two Vail-owned resorts are pumping up their snowmaking muscle for Christmas week. We rode both of them on Friday, and have ridden three more resorts since. Northstar California Northstar is rolling out the white carpet to skiers and snowboarders in time for the holidays. Vail’s Sierra Nevada [...]
Magic Mountain
Northstar-at-Tahoe’s Lookout Mountain is a “best” for multiple reasons. It’s undoubtedly the “Best Ski Resort Improvement” in Tahoe this century. Now featuring steep and varied terrain served by a speedy lift, the Lookout expansion added teeth to Northstar’s otherwise intermediate fare, as well as enough vert for even the deepest Tahoe powder days. Although it [...]
War of the Roses
By defining the division between opposing sides with an actual physical or geographic border—the proverbial “line in the sand”—in the hope of promoting resolution through separation, the discourse may only become darker. Consider the symbolism of the Mason-Dixon Line or the Tug Fork of the Big Sandy River, dividing the Hatfields and McCoys during their [...]
Heli-Skiing Takes Off in Tahoe
Has heli-skiing been a long-standing item on your bucket list, but the cost and distance too much to manage? This might be the year that your deep powder dreams come true. Pacific Crest Heli-Guides has launched a helicopter skiing and snowboard service at Lake Tahoe this season, with access to more than 100,000 acres of [...]
The Slopes Beyond the Ropes
Loosely defined, sidecountry is legal out-of-bounds areas or backcountry terrain that is accessed from a ski resort. Over the past decade, sidecountry skiing and riding has exploded in popularity in North America. Liberal boundary policies, the proliferation of fat skis (which increase flotation in deep snow) and improved avalanche awareness have helped fuel the rapid [...]
Natural Rhythms: Winter
Animal instincts Animals have three basic strategies for coping with Tahoe winters: leave the region, stay active and struggle to find food and stay warm, or shut down. Some animals combine strategies, and black bears are a great example. In colder parts of North America, bears retreat to a den and become inactive, but few [...]
Do-it-Yourself Skis
In search of summer snow, I’ve traded Tahoe for Mt. Shasta’s south face in mid-June. I’m teetering atop a pair of skis I’ve lovingly handcrafted from sustainably harvested wood, about to tilt them into their maiden voyage down Avalanche Gulch. I briefly wonder if my quest is sheer folly: riding a pair of unproven skis [...]
