[gemini2k]

So, kind of a weird question. I was skiing at Heavenly today in Lake Tahoe, and while I was on the lift with my friend we saw some snowboarder eat sh*t fairly hard below us. He got up quickly and I gave him a big cheer. To which my friends replied "Don't be an asshole". For some reason the snowboarder friends I was with interpreted as me mocking him.

Now, I'm kind of an asshole in general, but I feel like I give random people cheers all the time when I biking, if they save a potential fall, or get up quickly after a fall. For some reason the snowboarder friends I was with interpreted as me mocking him. My riding friends do this all the time as well and I've NEVER had anyone interpret it as anything but positive. Anyways, I was kinda like WTF. But am I just inept? Or is the ski/snowboard culture just that much douchey-er? I've always kind of assumed the later was true to some extent, but this would mean its far worse than I thought.

 

[bdamschen]

Most hardcore skiers/boarders I know do nothing on the lift BUT talk s**t. Maybe they couldn't fathom anyone doing anything else?

 

[KavuRider]

I thought that was the point of the lift/shuttle up...
I mean, you burn through the flask and something else only halfway up, have to fill the rest of the time with something.

Seriously though, never encountered that attitude, but then our riding community in AZ is pretty small, especially on the lift hill. Haven't been skiing in years.

 

[NWS]

I wiped out real good under the lift a few years ago and someone on a chair yelled out:

"ARE YOU OK?"

"Yeah, I'm fine!"

"DO IT AGAIN!"

I laughed my ass off. Now I use that line every chance I get (the "do it again" line, not the line I was riding).

Your friends take things way too seriously.

 

[bobsten]

they don't call me 'lift dick' for nothing... heckle, heckle, heckle

 

[slowitdown]

at a lift-served ski hill near a metro area (i.e. a big, modern "resort") you'll see the same stuff that you see at a lift-served MTB facility that also serves a metro area.

and I think you will see the same similarities among MTB riders who prefer long backcountry alpine rides, and skiers who like to skin up to get high alpine goods.

I don't think there's as much interbreeding though. I don't think people who are primarily endurance athletes that have the skill to participate at high levels are the same as beer-soaked lift riders in either sport.

where I ski it's super-laid-back and they run MTB lift service in the summer. there isn't enough of a scene vibe for it to attract loud, vocal heckling. but that doesn't mean people don't spend the lift ride up saying funny crap to each other about what they're seeing down below. we just don't have the same vocal heckling from chairs down to the hill. that seems more a modern "resort" kind of thing, more a big urban/suburbia thing.

I thought when I opened this thread it was going to ask about the bad rap skiers give snowboarders, and how that might play out in the MTB world.

 

[PatBranch]

Your friends are weird.

 

[blackohio]

I think a fundamental aspect of downhill thoough is the crowd aspect to racing. Everyone yells and gets yelled at, noises to pump us up, noises to startle us and cheers to get us up after the crash.

 

[Bikael Molton]

you should check out surfing sometime.



Or maybe you shouldn't.

 

[MDJ]

Your first mistake was to go all the way to Tahoe, and then choose to ski at Heavenly. That's like going to Whistler and riding the paved bike paths.

 

[sanjuro]

If they guy isn't badly hurt, laughing is no big deal.

I hope my crashes amuse people.

 

[rockofullr]

Don't let your sandy vag crew go to Squaw. They will cry.

 

[sanjuro]

Don't let your sandy vag crew go to Squaw. They will cry.

bhwhahahahhahahhhha

 

[NAYR]

Don't let your sandy vag crew go to Squaw. They will cry.

http://unofficialnetworks.com/gnar/

 

[jasonvelocity]

I never understood our tradition of cheering for people when they get up or get an ambulance ride. When I fall, I prefer a moment of silence.

Once I give the thumbs up, you may all laugh and point.

 

[Hesh To Steel]

I don't participate in any sort of snowsports but I always assumed, probably due to the media, that skiers would be similar to the road/XC MTB types and that snowboarders would be more like the FR/DH segment of the bike world.

My first reaction to my own crashes is usually laughter, unless the wind gets knocked out of me. I guess I could understand people being sensitive about stuff like that since people are sensitive about all kinds of silly things. Mostly female people. Haha.

 

[kidwoo]

I don't participate in any sort of snowsports but I always assumed, probably due to the media, that skiers would be similar to the road/XC MTB types and that snowboarders would be more like the FR/DH segment of the bike world.

And you would be incorrect. At least in the last 15 years.


I don't know anybody who would cheer seeing someone's bone sticking out of their leg. But I know hundreds of people who heckle and get heckled when they have an entertaining wreck in plain view of a lift. Snow is good like that. You can eat shlt in spectacular ways and not get a scratch. I've ragdolled underneath a lift before and heckled guys on the lift for being silent for christ's sake.

Many (most) of those same people heckling would also jump off the lift to help someone if they were buried upside down in snow and possibly suffocating........and I know this because I've seen it happen. Or if that's not possible, start screaming like mad at other people above the person in trouble. It's not malice, it's people out having a good time in a common activity. There aren't a whole lot of people reveling in the injuries of strangers.


Also.........come on you're skiing at heavenly. You should see what goes on at real ski areas.


As far as it relates to biking, when I see someone I know flailing, I make sure they can hear me through the full face.

 

[rockofullr]

http://unofficialnetworks.com/gnar/

If any of you serious cali skiers don't own Gaffney's book Squallywood do yourself a favor and buy a copy.

Then turn to the back and start playing GNAR (Gaffney's Numerical Assessment of Radness). Many lulz are to be had eg: one day after riding the lift with McShlonky my brother told him "I can't beleive you a are a pro, I am so much better than you!" and then skied away. Can't remember how many points that was worth but he won for the day.

Edit: Just for the official record Immersion is the greatest ski movie ever created.

 

[dfinn]

Also.........come on you're skiing at heavenly. You should see what goes on at real ski areas.

We need a like button. Unfortunately it's difficult to heckle from the tram, they should open the windows and give us megaphones.

 

[Summit]

Edit: Just for the official record Immersion is the greatest ski movie ever created.

Immersion is nice, but a little slow. Go watch 1999 if you haven't seen it.

 

[FlipFantasia]

I laughed at more than a few people from the lift this morning.

 

[Big J]

In sking/snowboarding folks on the lift usually don't say anything unless the guy that just ate it is one of your buddys...if that's the case say as much s#$% as possible before he skis away.

J

 

[rockofullr]

Immersion is nice, but a little slow. Go watch 1999 if you haven't seen it.

1999 was indeed a good one.

I like how immersion really gets into the "vibe" or whatever you want to call it.

 

[kidwoo]

In sking/snowboarding folks on the lift usually don't say anything unless the guy that just ate it is one of your buddys

Where do you ski?


Sounds boring.

 

[marshalolson]

this thread is pretty awesome.

 

[nh dude]

There are so many people at the mountain in the winter. I hate it. They jam up the unloading area at the top of the lift. They fall and dont get up. They get in the way. They stand on lips. They stand in landings. Talking texting while standing mid trail.Sometimes their t shirt is longer than their poles. Sometimes I can't tell if its a group of people are skiing or if it is a pack of skittles that opened up and spilled downhill.

I have way more respect/patience for a person on a bike because if you fall on a bike it will hurt most of the time perhaps injured. If you fall on skis/snowboard you can but may not get hurt as often. I can fall all day snowboarding and I might get bruised. Off road riding is a little more serious. Skiing/Snowboarding appeals to more people. They way I see it 20% suck and can be stuck with a Gaper sticker. About 65% can manage themselves accordingly this includes me. Then the other 15% are learning or are sick riders already.

Most people on a mt bike have a general idea how to fix it. Most people on a mt bike know that if they go into the woods they may get lost and understand that not everything brings you back to your car. For some reason people don't think about this in the winter.

" Where do you guys keep the snow that comes out of those guns"
"Is this tram going up?"
"Is the golf course open in the winter?"

done.

 

[rockofullr]

I think that many people (myself included) pass up golden opportunities to heckle before the crash. Just remember that if someone is scoping out a line it maybe necessary to help him get the courage to shred.

"do it pussy" is the standard line but a few seasons back I was witness to a truly inspirational moment.

One my friends was standing on top of some unnamed chute back in the woods of Granite Chief. Everyone else had already sent the line but my buddy was over thinking it and nearly ready to bail.

In that moment of fear and indecision a booming voice came down from the lift as if God himself was speaking. The voice commanded "Do it now! If you don't go now you will never conquer your fears!"

Without thinking about it my friend dropped in and shredded.

So the next time you are out on the lifts remember heckling is part of the fun and get creative with it.

 

[demo 9]

NASCAR rules apply, get heckled-put em into the wall

 

[kidwoo]

unnamed

Granite Chief.

the lift

As if..........

 

[TheTruth]

Abandon your friends. Get new friends and heckle them from the lift.

 

[slowitdown]

I don't participate in any sort of snowsports but I always assumed, probably due to the media, that skiers would be similar to the road/XC MTB types and that snowboarders would be more like the FR/DH segment of the bike world.

It's not really that simple. Here's how it looks in my town. We have a good number of XC serious-dude/-chica riders here, super low-key lift-served but no DH race scene, a good variety of trails that I guess folks would call "all-mountain", and a good variety of riders who don't race but have spent time in racing in the past. We have some freeriders too.

Our best alpine skiers at the local ski hill are mostly big mountain skiers but we have some hot shee-ite mogul and aerial skiers... no real park scene. There's an alpine race scene and that's produced some good skiers too. The hill has some good snowboarders too. And then the usual mix of weekend warriors on skis or snowboards.

XC racer types seem attracted to several kinds of skiing: nordic skate skiing seems to be the biggest, then nordic diagonal, then pinner-light rando-race AT, and then finally a few alpine skiers.

Average MTB rider types = average alpine skier, average snowboarder.

There isn't really an analog in alpine skiing to MTB DH racing. The nearest might be a super-technical SuperG race or very fast, long, supertech GS race. Maybe someone else could say if/where I'm wrong there?

To me DH racing on skis seems a lot more flat-out, huge-line than current DH MTB racing. I think the old Mammoth Kamikaze DH might have been the closest thing to alpine DH ski racing.

Freeriders from MTB? I don't do that stuff any more so I don't know what the equivalents are, but I'd recognize some big mountain (like Red Bull Rampage), some park/pipe (like slopestyle) I guess.

I ski the same way I ride, which makes me...???

 

[marshalolson]

mtb dh racing and the super-d racing is most close to the freeskiing competition circuit. you really don;t need to be some awesomeness to get in and have fun, and the average contest skier is about as good as your average sport class hero. the same usual suspects are going to be 1,2,3 on the podiums, and the real deal WC pros are really at the same level and that much better than even local pros, just like the freeride world tour freeski dudes. and just like mountain biking, alot of the truly ripping cats are just not into competition.

alpine racing these days in skiing is (has already) fading. but its all cyclical. sure it will come back eventually. "freeriding" dominated for 10 years, park and pipe dominatated skiing for 10 years... both those are fading in the saturation of the sport.

back country soul skiing is where the mainstream skiing sport is headed... and well, that is where the bike market is headed, like it or not too... specialized enduro, giant reign, trek remedy land. that is what the "average high end" consumer is going for. its about being fast and efficient up, and just straight shredding on the way back down.

DH ski racing is reserved for such an elite level skier, it does not really correlate to biking IMO. a real WC bike track is much more similar to a freeride ski venue, you could just as easily score a DH track on style, and a freeride venue on time. racing DH skiing is more like racing a 2500 vertical, 45degree, with jumps with similar consequence as that of a slope-style course, but made out of concrete, and no brakes to slow you down, fully pinned.

 

[kidwoo]

^What the hell does that have to do with the snowball or pocket change I'm throwing at your head for wadding up under the lift in any given season???

 

[slyfink]

Lot's of bike free-riders are also ski and snowboard free-riders. Think Schley, Tippie, and probably most of the interior BC guys and gals too. I think the arrival of fat skis with "fun shapes" has drawn more of the people who would have otherwise been into snowboarding back to skiing.

as for heckling from the lift, it's probably a local-mountain thing. it really depends on the vibe of the place you're at. I think for the most part, around here, people don't really care what others are doing.... they're too self-absorbed.

 

[slowitdown]

^What the hell does that have to do with the snowball or pocket change I'm throwing at your head for wadding up under the lift in any given season???

It means you're gonna need to create disposable $50 debit cards that you'll throw instead of the pocket change or snowball (or snowball containing pocket change).

 

[marshalolson]

^What the hell does that have to do with the snowball or pocket change I'm throwing at your head for wadding up under the lift in any given season???

wait what were we talking about?

heckling? if your friends heckle you for heckling, you need new friends. nothing to do with sports. and if you ski heavenly, you need a new mountain.

 

[gemini2k]

wait what were we talking about?

heckling? if your friends heckle you for heckling, you need new friends. nothing to do with sports. and if you ski heavenly, you need a new mountain.

Ha ha. Well I'm a pretty novice skier so I don't think it really matters what hill I ski on. I just got wherever I can jew my way into cheap/free passes. If I appear to ever ski at an intermidate level, it's only because I'm too agressive for my own good and skill lever. That's probably why I'm the only person wearing a full face and POC armor on the single black runs

Edit: Don't worry, I resumed full heckling output at Northstar the next day. Great Success. I should try throwing things at people though. I like cranking things up a notch.

 

[MDJ]

Lot's of bike free-riders are also ski and snowboard free-riders. Think Schley, Tippie, and probably most of the interior BC guys and gals too. I think the arrival of fat skis with "fun shapes" has drawn more of the people who would have otherwise been into snowboarding back to skiing.

Once the skis got fat and all the kooks started snowboarding, I switched back to skiing. I used to only board on powder days but the new skis are so good that I now only board when I'm with my son.

Someone that actually lives at Tahoe can confirm or deny this but to me is seems like every year I see less snowboards on the mountains, at least at Kirkwood.

Oh wait, the OP went to Northstar after he went to Heavenly?? The two worst resorts in Tahoe. We should be heckling him....

 

[ChrisKring]

Dan: try Alpine Meadows. Squaw has nice terrain but also gets the overflow of rude people from Heavenly. I haven't really liked Northstar when I have been there. My wife liked it since they groom well. I don't like skiing carpet all day.