Skiing in July

Today Boreal turned their Castle Peak Quad chair Saturday, ferrying skiers and snowboarders to the top of a ribbon of bulldozed snow that snaked down the hill from top to bottom. Boreal ran the lift from 10AM 'till 2PM for the first day of their weekend Shred Fest.

I saw the story tweeted by Watts Up With That linking a Sacramento Bee story published Friday. From the photo evidence, it looks like three or four passes wide max, with some terrain features down on the flats. I missed the story on KCRA3's 6PM News, but I think they said Boreal sold 250 tickets at $20 per.

The remote data reveals 72F at 10AM rising to 75F by 2PM...what wax would you use? What SPF for your sunscreen? A/C on full blast? Ouch!

Boreal flexed their marketing muscles, TV caught some interesting video, and the patrons got a random fun fact for their personal histories.

It was hot in France Saturday too. The Tour entered the Alps in humid, hot conditions that surely taxed the riders who were trying to stay out of trouble while hoping to conserve their energy for Sunday's Stage 8, the first serious Alpine Stage. Frenchman Sylvain Chavanel recaptured the lead after three flat tires on the pavé of Stage 3 caused him to lose the leader's Yellow Jersey. There could be some fireworks Sunday on the big passes, though analysts say the real drama will be Tuesday after the first Rest Day.

Tuesday's Stage 9 will be a grinder with two 1st Category Climbs and an Hors Categorie (Above Category, or in American English, Off the Charts!) These are the Legendary Alpine Passes... the Col de la Columbiere and Col des Saises come early in the stage, with the giant HC Col de la Madeleine only 30Km from the finish. The last climb doesn't suit Contador's explosive climbing style, so his weapons may be somewhat dulled...perhaps benefiting his rivals. All will be tested.

We'll know Tuesday who the real contenders for the overall win are...there's nowhere to hide on the Col de la Madeleine!

In Great Britain, Formula One Qualifying for Sunday's British Grand Prix was hot, hot, hot! Silverstone is a very fast, flowing track that suits the Red Bull Racing stable. RBR didn't disappoint, grabbing pole and 2nd place to lock out the front row again. Ferrari may have been sandbagging Friday, as 2-Time World Champion Fernando Alonso starts 3rd in the Ferrari, alongside British fave, Lewis Hamilton in the first McClaren. The fabled track hosted 80 thousand fans for Qualifying Saturday, and expects Sunday's Race Day crowd to reach 160 thousand! That's one hot ticket!

Last hot news...I promise. The San Francisco Giants' bats have turned hot on their current Road Trip...today they came from behind 5-4 in the 6th Inning, to win 10-5 on the strength of three Giants' homers.

It's gonna be hot in the Inland Valley Sunday...I'll be coolin' my heels in front of the TV watching Le Tour, the British GP, and my Giants...good times...play ball!