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December to remember...

A rather dry December Ski Trip to Mammoth Mountain back in 1998 has dissuaded me from going back there that early in the winter season ever since (after the fantastic El Nino 1997 Season... my first year). And I can still hear the mocking murmurs from Stan and Alfred "Man what is this Marc. Who the hell goes to Mammoth in these conditions?". Of course in my defense, none of them so-called avid snowboarders had bothered to check the forecast neither. Of course that was over a decade ago, or, a forgotten era in which we needn't good conditions to have a reason to ski. In fact I remember saying I preferred the hard-packed man made snow over the soft powder, but of course that was only because I didn't know how to...

In this day and age, and after a decade of practice, you couldn't pay me to ski the rather cramped Mt. High (tall sure but who cares?), and I wouldn't bother with Big Bear Mountain at least until the snow accumulation went north of 12 inches... Sure sure call me an elitist, but I would rather ski three select perfect days throughout a winter season than to wade through slush every weekend...

This upcoming Winter is going to be another El Nino year, and we've already seen early signs of it throughout the Sierras and the Rockies, to name a few. Mammoth Mountain was even so bold as to open the gates an ambitious one month ahead of schedule... Only to walk away three days later with their tails between their legs, but hey that's not necessarily bad because we think it was a sign of good things to come! And right now as you read this, the Southern California Ski Resorts are already open and Ski Dazzle kicked off last night.... Wohoo!

Be that as it may, some of the El Nino years of recent past did show spottiness. Some started far too early and tapered off, while some had slow starts and finished very strong. Case in point? Yes the El Nino winter of 2004-2005... It finished off the year with 8 straight weeks of amazing conditions, yielding sometimes 2 or more impressive storms per week. And of course I was there along for the ride in each and every week! It was capped off by a nice 1 footer on the same week in which the Long Beach Gran Prix ran its annual course, and the MLB Spring Training. Yep in ran that long... It certainly was a wonderful wonderful winter. Late start notwithstanding...

I, along with a very many great faithfuls, are hoping and praying that this years El Nino, to be quite good. In fact I am banking on it because I wanna go for an early Mammoth Mountain visit this winter. Yes back to December... And for what after all these years of fantastic Jan and Feb trips? Well there is an inkling that is too difficult for me to ignore...

And for whatever reason my feelings differ this year about December than years past. I am positive it is largely because of El Nino and perhaps partly because I am hopeful. I am hopeful that whether or not El Nino precedes its spotty reputation, that December will be something to remember (as corny as that might sound...). And maybe in part because of the mocking murmurs from the 1998 December trip... And as stated in my email proposal for this possible trip "I remember dying last year waiting for the January Trip to come as I watched December pass on by yielding enormous amounts of snow onto our beloved Mammoth Mountain, and all I could do was watch in agony". And perhaps this year could be a better soliloquy?

Posted by: Marc Gabay
Friday, October 30, 2009