Let it snnnoooowwww!!!

Here is the latest Winter Storm Warning.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has our snow accumulation at a solid 8-12 inches. Mike, from rentals, who is an amateur meteorologist, was yesterday calling for a solid 14 inches of new accumulation, but was not ruling out new snowfall of up to 20 inches. Mike backed up his predication by describing the characteristics of the 2010-2011 winters storm patterns as one where the coastal storms are lined up to slam us early, but then drift to sea about 72 hours ahead of arrival, before being sucked back up over southern New England, where they then dump their goods on the very humble and the very thankful Berkshire East ski community who is very willing to do whatever needed to keep the weather gods satiated. 

No matter what snow we get, (NWS 8-12, or Mike K. 14-20), or snow more, or snow less than those predicted totals, any new amount of snow will really lock down the mountain for a great weekend of skiing. The long range forecast has a beautiful weekend queued up for us, with sunny temps expected to climb into upper twenties, which compared to the dearth of blood in my extremities since the frigid freeze of two nights ago, could be a considered a long needed heat wave. 

To me, the difference of being out in 10 degrees, to 0 degrees, to minus 10 or 20 degrees isn't necessarily how it feels on your skin, but how much more effort it takes to stay warm as the mercury falls. At those low temps, layering and bundling up stacks of clothes are pretty much useless, its all about how much cold air and frostbite you can take. 

The coldest weather I have been in was at Lake Placid in 1996. I was at my first FIS GS race at the old Olympic hill and in the main base lodge on the morning of the race, the aging dial thermometer was resting gently on -35 degrees Fahrenheit. Three things made this dramatic. 1) The temp couldn't go any lower, the thermometer was literally resting on a metal that was positioned at -35 degrees Fahrenheit 2) The wind gauge on the right was gusting from 15-35 miles an hour 3) I had to go out and race in my skin tight GS suit. 

That day the mountain had a professional photographer and on every shot he took, any racer with an exposed patch of ski had a golf ball sized patch of frost bite. That weather was very, very extreme. I think I only took four runs.

One last anecdote about cold weather. At 5:15 am, as I was on my way to Berkshire East and the radio guy told me it was a negative 18 degrees at his station. It occurred to me that minus 18 is 50 degrees below freezing. Add 50 to 32 and you get positive 82 degrees, or a hot summers day. Yesterdays minus 18 was exactly the same difference in temperature from freezing a balmy 82, just in the opposite direction; I don't care where you are from, that is stinking COLD!!!

Have fun everybody. 

PS. Who is meeting me for turns this week?