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How difficult is Western Territory (Snowshoe WV)

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jacksonhwall
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Hey friends!

Me and my wife are heading up to Snowshoe this week for the second time ever and were stoked! I'd rate myself as a "cautious" intermediate rider while my wife would still be a beginner. I was oping that while she was taking some breaks this trip I'd head over and try Cupp Run (and possibly upper shays to lower Cupp. definitely not lower shays). Last season was the first time I had ever attempted some black runs but by the end of the day I was able to hit Widow-maker fairly okay lol

my questions is 1. how difficult is Cupp Run for an intermediate rider? and If I'm doing decent on the black in the main basin, is it worth been trying out Western Territory? I'd just not want to be in over my head. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, thanks!
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marzski
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Are you going to be there midweek? If so, if you take your time then probably worth checking out Cupp, assuming snow conditions aren't icy. Perhaps practice making relatively short turns for a bit beforehand. Cupp has some narrow sections.
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spydeeTJB
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Smart you're asking this as most intermediates just go for it. Two factors that can make Cupp & Shays out of reach for intermediates....ice & crowds. With that in mind, if it's Fri-Sun, get over to WT NLT 930 to avoid crowds. If there's fresh snow (natural or gun) then the difficulty will be similar to Widowmaker. Keep in mind it is much longer so pace yourself. If no fresh snow then ask patrol or someone coming off the lift what the surface conditions are. Most everything is groomed nightly except lwr Shays. Avoid a hard/frozen surface, typically from warm previous day followed by a very cold & windy night. The forecast this week looks ideal for you. I suggest starting with Upr Shays & Lwr Cupp.

During weekends the traffic starts ramping up around 11am so be prepared to exit for the basin or Silvercreek.
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theKENDOG
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Disregarding Lower Shay's (it's legit steep for this area), the runs over there are more difficult usually due to ice and crowds. If you can get over there with good snow and low crowds you'd probably enjoy it.
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brigand
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Neither Cupp nor UPPER Shays are bad - relatively mellow for black diamonds. Ice, as KenDOG/marzski/spydee mentioned, is the most challenging thing about these runs, so it's hard to say until you know what conditions are like. If it's soft/powder, go for it - they are definitely not Whoopdeedoo steep (if you're familiar with Sugar) - I would say it's not even as steep as Gunther's Way at that part right at the bottom before the runout. Plus Cupp and Upper Shay's are quite wide, so you can make sweeping turns to control your speed.

Lower Shay's, however, can be quite intimidating (at least for me) if they leave it ungroomed/moguled, which they do from time to time - it was moguled this past Christmas, and I wasn't aware until I was standing at the top looking down. Plus, I was snowboarding, so lets just say there was a lot of heel slipping between moguls until it leveled out near the bottom :)

Not to get you in a bad position, but as long as you avoid Lower Shays, you should be able to hack your way down. That being said, if you find it too much, it's a LONG way to the bottom.
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jacksonhwall
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Thank yall for the feedback I really appreciate it!! I'm going mid week! Our pass is Tuesday-Friday. As far as fresh pow they're not calling for too much accumulation but they have things looking really solid right now (probably like a 3"-ish top dusting).

I may try Cupp if im feeling confident enough, I also just don't want to be "that guy" that keeps heel-sliding and ruining the run. I really appreciate the feedback!
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jacksonhwall
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Wanted to thank yall for the feedback! I ran through every single black diamond that was open this past week. Cupp was immensely fun, especially in the morning with a fresh 3" of pow. I feel like this was the single most progressive trip Ive done where I progressed more as a rider than I have the entire time ive been snowboarding! Thank you everyone for your advice!
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theKENDOG
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jacksonhwall wrote:Wanted to thank yall for the feedback! I ran through every single black diamond that was open this past week. Cupp was immensely fun, especially in the morning with a fresh 3" of pow. I feel like this was the single most progressive trip Ive done where I progressed more as a rider than I have the entire time ive been snowboarding! Thank you everyone for your advice!
Good job dude! Cup was prob in perfect shape.
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OldSchool
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1200 ft of hell yeah!
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brigand
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jacksonhwall wrote: ↑Mon Feb 03, 2020 4:13 pm Wanted to thank yall for the feedback! I ran through every single black diamond that was open this past week. Cupp was immensely fun, especially in the morning with a fresh 3" of pow. I feel like this was the single most progressive trip Ive done where I progressed more as a rider than I have the entire time ive been snowboarding! Thank you everyone for your advice!
Sweet - glad you made some good turns in the WT! Pretty much the best terrain at Snowshoe, not least so because it less crowded than the main side of the mountain. I can safely predict you will head back there next year :)
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