Our first days skiing at Mnut were Jan. 4-6. Pretty good conditions considering they didn't really start making snow that would actually get stay long enough for skiers and boarders until Dec. 21. DJ was open at the top so that they could hold a race on Sunday. The Mnut ski/board teams were probably very happy to be training on snow since they missed out in Dec.
I brought a friend and her kids for their first ski weekend. All of them learned to ski with the help of Mnut's great ski school. The 4yo girl and 6yo boy did great. Their mom needed a few extra sessions for first-timers, but she learned to ski and likes it! The way the Pathway program for first-timers works is that they can repeat the initial session as many times as necessary on the same day for no extra charge. Session 1 is in the teaching area using the two magic carpets. The goal is for a skier to learn to turn and stop with a wedge (snowplow, pizza) well enough to make going up the beginner chair a reasonable idea. Session 2 is a few runs on Southern Comfort. Definitely helps that the chairlift for Southern Comfort (long easy green) has conveyor loading.
The weather was perfect for beginners, in the high 30's. Cold enough for good snow, but warm enough during the day that there were no worries about cold hands, feet, or faces. Per usual, no lift lines to worry about at Mnut on a non-holiday weekend.
My daughter had fun meeting up with her friend from Richmond. They thought the snow guns were annoying on Sat morning, but I was glad it was cold enough for a little daytime snowmaking. DJ was a bit icy on Sat, which is normal with warmer daytime temps.
I had fun confirming that skiing without an ACL won't be a problem. Ruptured an ACL in early June (not skiing) but no other long term damage to anything else in the knee. Did PT for a couple months to re-train to improve proprioception (balance) and start building hamstring strength. Been doing ski conditioning exercises since late summer. Probably stronger than I've been in years. That makes me a "coper" who doesn't need ACL reconstruction surgery. Couldn't wait until Sat, so did a few runs on the short green Nuttin-To-It on Friday night under the lights. Showtime was nice on Sunday morning. No ice anywhere.
Enough talk . . . on to a few pics. The last three were taken around 11am Sunday. See what I mean about no lines?
Lodge, looking towards ski school training area, bottom of Lift 3 (conveyor loading) for Geronimo, Nuttin-To-It at 2:30 Saturday
Southern Comfort (long green) on right, bottom of Showtime (blue) far left
The crowd, if you call it that, at 11am Sunday was watching the race at the top on DJ
6yo 2nd day in the Yellow group for Slopesliders (9:30-2:00) on Sunday
Diamond Jim (black) at the top of Massanutten in the distance, still a little natural snow left from a few days ago, taken from Lift 5 (triple new in 2011-12) next to Showtime (blue)
DONE
