DEEP WEEK may not have lived up to the pre storm hype that had storm totals forecasted in the twelve foot range but the storm made up for the modest snow totals (8 feet) with one of the best snow qualities I have ever floated threw.  The snow came in wet and ended cold and dry.  There were days of waist to chest deep snow all the way to lake level. The other major bonus was that because we were only getting a foot a night, the resorts were able to stay open and the roads were manageable.  By the 5 ft mark the pack was so perfect that the Avalanche forecast was moderate even though we were in the thick of the storm cycle.  By the end of the storm we were riding steep, bottomless trees and face shot management skills normally reserved for Alaskan Spines or Teton Blower had to be beckoned. 

What Dreams are made of.  “A deep area of low pressure remains entrenched off the California coast and will continue to spin waves of energy into the Sierra for the rest of this week.” -NOAA“The best pillow line of my life,”Ryland Bell after he cleared his mouth of snow at the bottom of this stack.

The pillows were so soft and deep that getting off the ground was really hard.  Forrest Shearer doing his best.

I started Jones Snowboards because I wanted to build innovative snowboards for riding mountains.  One of these is the Hovercraft. It has the float of a 178cm classic powder board stuffed into 156cm rocket ship.  After 8 days of rigorous testing I can confidently say “mission accomplished.”

Voice mail is full, emails are unchecked, my house is a wreck, everything is soaked, and I am totally content.  Most of the year we have to walk for days to score descent snow.  During these storm cycles perfect snow is sitting right under the lift or on the side of the road.