[RJM]

I was working yesterday thinking about how cool it would be to road trip to some of the better resorts in the US Mainland. I have been to whistler a few times, it is great, but I always like to sample everything with an open mind to see what is really out there. So I was wondering do the Colorado area resorts and/or the Northeast resorts compare?

Have they cought up yet or is whistler still the place to be?

 

[John P.]

Whistler's still years ahead of everyone right now, mostly because they have a perfect mix of years of experience, huge terrain, and an awesome village. You're not going to find anything in the U.S. (maybe the world?) that can compare in terms of a total experience.

In terms of pure riding, there are lots of places catching up. A couple buddies and I did a 5-day/5-mountain road trip last summer in the Northeast that was awesome. We hit up Highland Mountain (small mountain, but trails and stunts that rival Whistler in build quality), Attitash (typical east coast tech), Bromont (probably the best of the bunch), Whiteface (huge mountain with great trails and tons more untapped potential), and Killington (another big mountain that's getting better every year). I don't think we were ever in the car more than 3 hours between each place, and it was a trip we're planning to do again next summer.

To sum up, you're not going to find anything that beats Whistler from a total-package type experience, but there's great riding and tons of fun to be had if you're willing to string together a road trip.

--JP

 

[boogenman]

Whistler may be all fancy and fun but I would go for a East Coast trip if you have done Whistler already. You can do an East Coast trip and get A TON of different riding in, something that whistler can't exactly do.

Example:

Ride Whiteface for 2 days. Super fast and fun with some great trails. Really fast lift. Lake Placid is a kick ass town. Ride here on weekdays, they are open 7 days a week.
Whiteface is up north so maybe hit up one of the Canadian places(Bromont, Mt. Ste. Anne) or highland while out that way.

Head south for a few hours(3?) and ride Plattekill for a weekend. PLATTY is a MUST DO if you have never been there. They don't have stunts, they don't have fast lifts and they are real laid back but the riding is like nothing else on Earth. The trails are super steep, super loose shale that slides with you and there are some crazy technical spots. They also have more trails than you can ride in a weekend.

After the weekend at Platty head a bit farther south to Diablow for the closest thing you are goinh to get to Whistler without the elevation. They have stunts, jumps, berms, fanboys and some pretty good rock gardens too.

 

[Sandwich]

whistler is still THE best place...but come to the northeast and do a road trip to experience a huge variety of terrain. super steep at plattekill, mini-whistler at diablo, wc downhills at bromont, slopestyle galore at bermland mountain. even the smaller mountains offer good riding, like jiminy peak.

 

[buckoW]

Come to Switzerland. Behind my house there are 25 lifts for bikes. You can try out 7 different spots without ever touching the car. Whistler locals usually love it when they come over.

 

[nowlan]

Mont St Anne is killer, however it rains a hell of alot there like anywhere else on the East Coast of Canada. Theres alot more there then just the WC track and its all sick. Nice Gondola to boot.

 

[Kntr]

Where was the pic taken?

I would do a trup in BC. Start with Fernie, Panorama, Kicking Horse, Sun Peaks, Silver Star.

As far as the PNW, Silver Mountain in Kellogg is ok and Big Mountain in Whitefish is ok.

 

[Uruk-hai]

Come to Switzerland. Behind my house there are 25 lifts for bikes. You can try out 7 different spots without ever touching the car. Whistler locals usually love it when they come over.

Switzerland is pretty much the best place on earth. Seriously.