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Phatair News!
12-06-2004 - Mount Baker in full operations -
Mount Baker got a nice dumping of snow this weekend and they have commenced full operations.
11-14-2004 - Site opens for business -
Phatair.org is now open for business. Please take the time to explore the site and send me feedback. If you have people that are interested in joining our group, please direct them to this site for signup.
10-31-2004 - Email migration completed.
All of our existing members were migrated from Yahoogroups.com to Phatair.org. What does this mean? It means that our email alias is no longer subject to random deletions by yahoo.com. Also since this domain is privately owned your email name can't be harvested for marketing purposes. Finally, advertisements won't be appended to our emails when they are sent out.
10-25-2004 - Recruitment time!
Do you have someone that's interested in learning to ski or snowboard. Please get them to signup for phatair right away. To signup for phatair. Click here or send an email to xxxxx@phatair.org and I will manually add you to our distribution alias.
Pray for snow!!!!
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Mountain information:
This is a summary of the local mountains in the Seattle area. Washington is home to some of the best skiing in the United States, and we have a variety of options available to us. You simply need to decide on your commitment level. If your looking for weekday night skiing: then try the Summit at Snoqualmie, if you are looking for a fantastic 3 day getaway then you should consider Whistler/Blackcomb. Hopefully this guide will help you to make an informed decision.
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Crystal Mountain  |
Travel Time From Seattle: 1.5-2.0 hours.
Quality of hills: Top quality
Crowds: Extremely dense - weekdays preferred
Vertical Drop: 3100 ft. Runs: 50 Lifts: 10
Avg Snowfall: 380 in. Trail area: 2300 Acres
Pro's - Wonderful terrain, amazing views of Mount Ranier
Cons - Horrible crowds, no terrain park
Notes: Crystal Mountain sits in the shadow of Mount Rainer and provides boarders with extremely long runs. The quality of the facilities is top notch and the resort features several high capacity-high speed ski lifts. Crystal is one of the busiest mountains in the area and should be avoided on weekends.
Resort Web site: http://www.skicrystal.com/
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Mount Baker  |
Travel Time From Seattle: 3.0 hours.
Quality of hills: Top quality
Crowds: Sparse! No wait at the lifts
Vertical Drop: 1500 ft. Runs: 38 Lifts: 10
Avg Snowfall: 647 in. Trail area: 1000 Acres
Pros - No lines, amazing terrain, best snowfall in the area
Con - Closes early, long drive
Notes: Mount Baker is considered one of the birthplaces of snowboarding. While the facilities are a tad bit primitive the runs are super long and the lines are nearly non existent. The drive is a bit long it's more than worth it given the lack of wait times on the hill. Lastly Mount Baker has set world records for snowfall. If you are looking for powder, this is the place.
Resort Web site: http://www.mtbakerskiarea.com/
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Steven's Pass 
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Travel Time From Seattle: 60 minutes to 1.25 hours.
Quality of hills: Medium Grade
Crowds: Crowded
Vertical Drop: 1774 ft. Runs: 37 Lifts: 10
Avg Snowfall: 450 in. Trail area: 1125 Acres
Pros - Nice facilities, diverse terrain
Cons - Crowded, horrible parking
Notes: Steven's Pass is the mountain of choice for a quick day on the hill. It's relatively close and provides decent trails coupled with excellent facilities. Stevens is also the resort of choice for those considering taking up Snowboarding. Stevens can get a bit crowded though. If the lift lines and crowds get to be too much, be sure to head to the back side of the mountain.
Resort Web site: http://www.stevenspass.com/html/index.shtml
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Summit At Snoqualmie
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Travel Time From Seattle: 20-30 minutes.
Quality of hills: Poor quality
Crowds: Moderate to heavy Crowds
Vertical Drop: 2200 ft Runs: 96 Lifts: 29
Avg Snowfall: 450 in Trail area: 1916 Acres
Pros - Close to Seattle, great night skiing
Cons - Poor conditions, short runs
Notes: While the Summit is certainly convenient in terms of travel time it is also home to some of the worst ice in the NW. Don't go to the summit unless the mountain has accumulated at least 6 inches of fresh snow, or you are in for a world of hurt. The location is convenient though. Especially if you are looking for a place to snowboard at night after work.
Resort Web Site: http://www.summit-at-snoqualmie.com/ |
Whistler Blackcomb
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Travel Time From Seattle: 5 hours.
Quality of hills: Best in the nation!
Crowds: Crowded
Vertical Drop: 1600m Runs: 200 Lifts: 33
Avg Snowfall: 914 cm. Trail area: 2,861 hectares
Pro's - Best boarding in North America, exchange rate
Cons - Long dive, overnight stay necessary
Notes: Every year Whistler is named one of the top resorts in the world. It features an enormous number of runs over a huge area. Seattle locals should be visiting Whistler at least 2x a year.
Resort Web Site: http://www.whistler-blackcomb.com/ |
Mission Ridge
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Travel Time From Seattle: 1.5-2.0 hours.
Quality of hills: Medium Quality
Crowds: Dense but not as bad as Stevens or Crystal
Vertical Drop: 2200 Runs: 35 Lifts:6
Avg Snowfall: 200in Trail area: 2000 Acres
Notes: Mission Ridge is worth the trip if you are interested in a change of scenery. They don't have a lot of lifts but the trail area is roughly 2x that of Stevens. Snowfall is a bit light, and you should only visit Mission ridge after a heavy snowfall.
Resort Web Site:http://www.missionridge.com/ |
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