The snow is melting rapidly and the high country is opening up nicely for mountain biking. The Shady Rest and Knolls area are in prime condition for some fun hill climbing and sneaky single track descents. Snowmelt is keeping the dust down and the traction up. Meanwhile the combination of empty roads and moderate weather conditions are making for some of the best road riding in the country. The shoulder seasons of spring and fall equal low volume traffic both around town and especially on the backcountry roads. If you like to ride for hours without seeing a car this is time and Mammoth is the place.  

 It’s time for the Footloose Women’s Bike Night event once again. Come and join the festivities on Wednesday the 14th at 6. Last years event was a fun mixture of clinics, give aways, and wine drinking that kicked off the bike season with a bang. This year we planed the night to coincide with the Eastside Velo sponsored Pamper Pedal ride on Saturday. Both evens are open to riders of all ages and levels of experience. Come on out! Both events should be a rollicking good time for all the ladies.     

Do we love Spring.  If you are a mountain person, spring is the time to be in Mammoth!

Where else can you enjoy great spring conditions in the morning with sunny skies and bike rides  in the afternoon to complete your day of fitness.  Actually not quite complete until you’ve had your cocktail at the end of the day.

True spring conditions.  Be on the hill early and follow the sun around the mountain to keep up with the corn snow.  Yes by 1:00 or 2:00 it gets a little soft up there but they are salting the lower slopes to keep the spring mush under control.  Better yet, bring your mountain bike and ride Lower Rock Creek Trail.   It’s a fast, windy, single track that you won’t be able to get enough of.  Knolls area and loop are open as well as the Indian Caves trail.

Mountain biking isn’t your deal?  Road biking in the area is unbelievable.  Rides from 18 miles up to 65 miles (or more) with lots of climbing if you so choose.  We also have a fun bike club in town (eastsidevelo.org). Check out the road cycling board in Footloose.

If you need information on any rides, stop by Footloose.  We have the maps!

Our bike shop is in full operation.

Point being,  it only gets better as the season progresses.

So my sister Didi comes down off the mountain Thursday late afternoon. “You didn’t miss much!” she states, “it’s like  styrofoam on top of coral reef.” Sounds interesting. She did say that lower Dry Creek and Rogers was good so I’ll do some slope evaluation Friday and relay the results upon my return. It is supposed to warm up this weekend so my hope is that conditions will settle down into something more predictable and spring-like.

52 degrees and sunny. Slight winds

Mountain received enough snow that on the top of the mountain employee’s reported boot high freshies in some spots.

Great time of year to ski in the morning and jump on the road or mountain bike in the afternoon. Especially with the late afternoon sunshine.

I skied the last four days on the mountain and have to say the conditions are unreal.  The wind has been blowing and the snow is as good as Mammoth has to offer.  Utah might be known for its light powder, but no place can beat Mammoth when it comes to windblown.  I woke up Thursday morning to a bluebird day with no wind and morning temperatures in the 20’s.  The snow had held up great from the little bit of snow we got the weekend before.  No wind but great variable snow conditions up top and no one on the mountain.  Friday through Sunday the wind kept picking up and the snow just kept getting softer and smoother.  If you like skiing fast, smooth steeps now is the time to be in Mammoth.  On Lincoln mountain the Avy Chutes have been holding up great and with only a few weeks left until Little Eagle and Canyon Lodge close, get it while you can.  The lower mountain still had decent coverage but with warmer temperatures the snow at the base areas has been getting pretty slushy.  We are expecting cooler temperatures and the potential for snow flurries during this week and then an above average temps for this coming weekend.  Enjoy the great snow while it’s here.  Before you know it, it will be bike season.   See you on the hill.     

You know that Spring is just around the corner when you see runners on the road, people in shorts and Corty Lawrence on his road bike.

Footloose has just received a new shipment of RUNNING SHOES. Asics, Brookes, New Balance, Adidas, Nike have all just arrived. Come check out the great selection of trail and road running shoes from all these major brands.

Shirley, T.K., Doug, Van, Julien, Gavin and Brett are all happy to get you in the correct shoes for the right condition.

Coming soon: Merrell and hiking boots from Asolo, Lowa, Hi Tec.

Ski conditions are great this week! The top is wind blown. As usual Dave’s is fantastic! Snow is corning up in the afternoon. Weather has been sunny and warm. Temps have been in the 5o’s. So get the spring wax out. Come on in a get a spring structure on your skis and boards!

Happy Easter!

Hey everybody. I was having a conversation last week with Randy the Demo Shop manager about my favorites skis of all time. I don’t know how we got started down this particular conversational path but It gave me an Idea. Before we head into the mind twisting adventure of choosing which of next years skis to carry why not ask everybody out there about their ultimate ski list. Mine has accumulated over the last 25 years of involvement of all kinds in the ski industry.  I don’t know if this will help us pick the next great ski but it couldn’t hurt to know. At the very least it’s a fun trip down memory lane.Here’s mine: Volkl Rentiger R circa 1988- Great do it all ski and owning a Volkl in the 80’s was so hot.Atomic Bumblebee 215- You know, the black and yellow ones that had the length marked on the tail. This was my first DH ski and I’ll never forget my first run on them. It change everything I thought I new about skiing.Salomon Force 9 2s- Salomons revolutionary cap construction turned out to be just another ski design but this model was soft and floaty in the pow. Combine that with the ElNino years of the early 90’s and powder skiing went to a level I never knew existed. This is the ski that first sparked my belief that softer skis are better in most off trail conditions.K2 GS race and DH race- These are the skis that showed me the way to real skiing. Stable and smooth without being too stiff. They saw me through the gnarliest lines of my life during my indestructible years. I had about 7 pairs because they would always break in the same spot and K2 would faithfully send me a new pair.K2 AK Launcher- This was my first true fat ski. It felt flimsy and light at speed but the combination of extra width, easy flex, straighter side cut, and simple construction where the foundation for all of K2’s great skis to come.(i.e. the Recon and the Coomba.) The launcher and the Chubb are the skis that, for better of for worse, brought the skinny ski era to an end.Volkl Sanouk- This totally under appreciated ski is simply one of the greatest powder skis of all time. Soft, straight, wide, and yes virginia swallowtails really do work. This ski should be studied by every manufacture who wants to make a true powder ski. No gimmicks like rocker, just design elements that truly work for all around powder days.Thats it. Lets see yours.   

Another Trade show has come and gone this past week and boy are my legs tired. The On Snow Trade Show is held at Mammoth Mountain every year to help retailers get a better idea of what exciting new products to introduce to their customers the following season. This event is met buy your Footloose Testing Team with a mixture of Christmas time excitement and eagle eyed criticism. Skiing nearly every 2009 ski in 3 short days is no easy ask. Just ask newbie to the team, 19 year half pipe aficionado Beau Silva, who’s quote at the end of day three pretty much summed things up for everybody, ” I’m tired and hungry.” I know it’s good work if you can get it, but you have to bring a game time determination and a brown bag if you want to ski as many skis as our most prolific testers. Bobby Lichen averages 20 skis a day. ” I ski with two different skis on each foot so I can double my productivity,” bobby says, with a wry grin that leaves you feeling like he’s only half joking. Ok, ok. I know your all dying for me to cut the chit cat and get to the point. “What’s the best ski for 2009,” is the question everybody asks when they catch wind of what’s happening in the chair 2 parking lot. I think I can sum things up with the classic statement, “Evolutionary not revolutionary”. Many skis come back unchanged or only slightly modified for 2009. Even the worlds most popular ski, the K2 Recon, only sees slight modifications. Believe it or not, this is a great thing because skis haven’t been this good across the board… ever. My advice is to buy now. Skis are at the best prices they have been all year and with a similar set of products coming out next season take your discount now and use the money you saved to go skiing.