I've been thinking about last night.
At shift change I asked "How's my little cow? Is she ready to jump over the moon?" "She's good to go" was the short answer...then came the rest of the story. The tiller is rattling something fierce! They put some new parts in, they're waiting for more parts to arrive...call it a work in progress.
I fired up my trusty steed, and got organized while she warmed up...after some radio chatter, I released the E-Brake and coaxed the sticks forward, and launched the tiller. Holy Jesus! It was shaking like a paint mixer at the Paint Store! I did some nanosecond figuring in my head and lifted the tiller...I parked her, plugged her in and grabbed a Bison.
This season has been all about the tiller on my favorite BR350. We had about a month of electronic gremlins that kept our attention while the tiller's cutter bars got more and more out of true. When they get untrue, they start to shake, and slowly they get worse and worse. Left to their own devices, eventually they'll shake the tiller clean apart. This is where my cat is today. The electrical gremlins were traced to an ECU that was starting to fail. That problem is history.
The Bombardier Flex Tiller is the state of the art. It's a perfectly balanced piece made from aluminum and steel. As long as you treat it right, it will make acres of the most beautiful corduroy without complaint. Let the thing start vibrating too much, and it will self destruct in no time. All that shaking fatigues the aluminum bits until cracks form and failure is at hand.
Alas, lots of stuff is broken back there now. The Head Mechanic said they'd have her all fixed in time for Swing Shift Thursday. I have my fingers crossed.
Here's the deal...short term fixes keep the fleet on the snow, but the damage continues to mount. These cutter bars are like tumors...they just keep damaging the tillers...keep adding to the list of broken parts...and keep sapping the fleet's productivity. Worse, they make more work for the Vehicle Mechanics. Nobody on my Mountain suffers from lack of work...there's more than enough already.
I guess it's hard to see the Long View when you're just trying to get enough cats ready to roll by Swing Shift.
Last night we had Hero Snow, and we made tons of sweet corduroy. It was supposed to be warm today, but looking at the temps assures me it wasn't exactly Spring-Like. Should be good grooming again tonight. Cold temps and the next winter storm are on tap for Friday.
Good gravy! Winter-style grooming continues...life is good.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Home Again, Home Again
I needed that! I'm pale, I'm rested, and I'm ready! Hell yeah!
I'm ready for some serious Mountain Grinding after a restorative three day weekend at the Ancestral Digs!
Waddya know? I won $10 in the Super Lotto, even!
I'm all fired up about my Corned Beef Project...my festive holiday morsel should come outta the brine and into the stockpot just in time for St Patrick's Day! Tuesday's Luncheon at my Mom's Church featured Corned Beef with all the fixin's...I can't wait to taste mine!
I pulled into the DaveCave's driveway still wearing shorts...there was some champagne powder on the driveway...maybe an inch, but the sun was blazing, and spring was in full force. I pulled on some nylon sweats to make the many trips up and down the stairs...until all the goodies were schlepped to their homes.
I knocked out a solid 4 1/2 hours of sacktime, so I shouldn't suffer tonight, either.
A quick look at the Reno AFD shows cold, cold, cold tonight, with warming days through the week, when more high winds herald the next wave of winter weather. Folks we're looking for March to "go out like a lion" here...too much room in California's reservoirs for comfort.
I noticed an interesting story over at Anthony Watts. site. February 2010 was the first February since records have been kept, without a single Tornado. The recipe for tornadoes is cold Artic airmass meets warm gulf air over North America's Midwest and South...my guess is: MIA in 2010 is the Warm Gulf Airmass...
I also noticed that the first decade of the 21st Century was the snowiest on record too. Not in California, from where I sit...more to come as the numbers shake out...
I'm ready for some serious Mountain Grinding after a restorative three day weekend at the Ancestral Digs!
Waddya know? I won $10 in the Super Lotto, even!
I'm all fired up about my Corned Beef Project...my festive holiday morsel should come outta the brine and into the stockpot just in time for St Patrick's Day! Tuesday's Luncheon at my Mom's Church featured Corned Beef with all the fixin's...I can't wait to taste mine!
I pulled into the DaveCave's driveway still wearing shorts...there was some champagne powder on the driveway...maybe an inch, but the sun was blazing, and spring was in full force. I pulled on some nylon sweats to make the many trips up and down the stairs...until all the goodies were schlepped to their homes.
I knocked out a solid 4 1/2 hours of sacktime, so I shouldn't suffer tonight, either.
A quick look at the Reno AFD shows cold, cold, cold tonight, with warming days through the week, when more high winds herald the next wave of winter weather. Folks we're looking for March to "go out like a lion" here...too much room in California's reservoirs for comfort.
I noticed an interesting story over at Anthony Watts. site. February 2010 was the first February since records have been kept, without a single Tornado. The recipe for tornadoes is cold Artic airmass meets warm gulf air over North America's Midwest and South...my guess is: MIA in 2010 is the Warm Gulf Airmass...
I also noticed that the first decade of the 21st Century was the snowiest on record too. Not in California, from where I sit...more to come as the numbers shake out...
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Springing Up
I enjoyed my preview of Springtime at the Ancestral Digs!
When I left Truckee Monday morning, it was just starting to snow...by the time I made it down to Auburn, my world had turned Technicolor...no longer white, but showing the first blush of life.
Later, white knuckles were the order of the day as I skirted the Delta while the winds associated with the system howled...it's a wonder that everyone kept their vehicles in their own lanes. Fortunately, a potential ""D-Day on The Freeway was averted!
Once I crossed the Sacramento River at Benecia, the Contra Costa Hills were alive in vibrant green, and fruit trees everywhere were all in bloom. Beautiful! I breathed it all in, and felt a restorative wave course through my winter-weary body...I felt my disposition turn sunny in the span of a few hundred yards.
Mom made dinner while I napped, and I managed to stay up late enough to avoid Sleep Schedule Havoc later this week. I lounged around until 0900, before I hit the Garage to do some carpenter chores.
As I opened the garage door, and warmed up the Toyota, I heard the serpentine belt making noise...still. (I thought I fixed that last time I was in town!) Parking the car on the street, I realized that the noise wasn't the belt, but trees and hedges full of songbirds celebrating a warm morning! I instantly felt stupid...but sunny at the same time!
I knocked out my project, woke Mom up and jumped in the shower. Then it was off to the Church Luncheon. Of course St Patrick's Day was this month's theme. That meant one thing: Corned Beef and Cabbage, with carrots and home made Soda Bread on the side. Jacky, the dynamo who puts on the monthly luncheons did her usual bang-up job, and was suitably impressed when I told her of my Corned Beef Project in the brine back at the DaveCave. Bless her! Desert was a Mint Ice Cream Cake with a delicious Graham Cracker Crust...mmm, mmm, mmm!
Back at the digs, I made a couple of lists, and headed out to re-provision the Digs and the DaveCave. COSTCO, Health Food Store, Trader Joe's, Asian Market...Safeway can wait! Restocked with plenty of baking goodies, and ingredients for another Corned Beef (should the current experiment yield decent results), I hit the rack for a nap before making dinner.
After dinner, I touched bases with Sister Sweetly, and SturgUrge, who regaled me with his story of Pheasant Hunting in that "Delta Breeze" that bleached my knuckles on my drive down...yikes!
There's a few flurries in tonight's forecast, but the weatherman says no problem traveling up the hill in the afternoon Wednesday. These days off really have realigned my psyche, I even remember that I'm a Solar Powered Achiever now. Spring is less than two weeks away on the calendar, but we "Spring Forward" Sunday with Daylight Savings Time...
Spring Fever...here I come!
When I left Truckee Monday morning, it was just starting to snow...by the time I made it down to Auburn, my world had turned Technicolor...no longer white, but showing the first blush of life.
Later, white knuckles were the order of the day as I skirted the Delta while the winds associated with the system howled...it's a wonder that everyone kept their vehicles in their own lanes. Fortunately, a potential ""D-Day on The Freeway was averted!
Once I crossed the Sacramento River at Benecia, the Contra Costa Hills were alive in vibrant green, and fruit trees everywhere were all in bloom. Beautiful! I breathed it all in, and felt a restorative wave course through my winter-weary body...I felt my disposition turn sunny in the span of a few hundred yards.
Mom made dinner while I napped, and I managed to stay up late enough to avoid Sleep Schedule Havoc later this week. I lounged around until 0900, before I hit the Garage to do some carpenter chores.
As I opened the garage door, and warmed up the Toyota, I heard the serpentine belt making noise...still. (I thought I fixed that last time I was in town!) Parking the car on the street, I realized that the noise wasn't the belt, but trees and hedges full of songbirds celebrating a warm morning! I instantly felt stupid...but sunny at the same time!
I knocked out my project, woke Mom up and jumped in the shower. Then it was off to the Church Luncheon. Of course St Patrick's Day was this month's theme. That meant one thing: Corned Beef and Cabbage, with carrots and home made Soda Bread on the side. Jacky, the dynamo who puts on the monthly luncheons did her usual bang-up job, and was suitably impressed when I told her of my Corned Beef Project in the brine back at the DaveCave. Bless her! Desert was a Mint Ice Cream Cake with a delicious Graham Cracker Crust...mmm, mmm, mmm!
Back at the digs, I made a couple of lists, and headed out to re-provision the Digs and the DaveCave. COSTCO, Health Food Store, Trader Joe's, Asian Market...Safeway can wait! Restocked with plenty of baking goodies, and ingredients for another Corned Beef (should the current experiment yield decent results), I hit the rack for a nap before making dinner.
After dinner, I touched bases with Sister Sweetly, and SturgUrge, who regaled me with his story of Pheasant Hunting in that "Delta Breeze" that bleached my knuckles on my drive down...yikes!
There's a few flurries in tonight's forecast, but the weatherman says no problem traveling up the hill in the afternoon Wednesday. These days off really have realigned my psyche, I even remember that I'm a Solar Powered Achiever now. Spring is less than two weeks away on the calendar, but we "Spring Forward" Sunday with Daylight Savings Time...
Spring Fever...here I come!
Saturday, March 6, 2010
False Alarm
I woke up after a whole day's sleep, and fired up the internet to catch the weather forecast. I went to bed thinking the next system was going to scud by to our South. The WX sites I looked at both said Scattered Snow Showers. I looked at the animated Nexrad Radar and saw the Classic Back Door Storm Signature approaching the DaveCave. I clicked on my Mountain's Webcam, and was surprised to see...nothing. No flakes, no accumulation, zip, zero, zilch, nada.
I turned on the porch light, and threw open the front door, more nothing.
This so-called "Wrap Around" system is taking it's sweet time gettin' here.
These Back Door deals are usually small producers, but the snow is of the finest quality.
The exception? The dreaded Tonapah Low...these are as rare as hen's teeth, but when one does come knockin'...look out. I Wikied Tonapah to check my spelling, and there isn't even a "Tonapah Low" page.
I've lived up here for 30 years come October. I can honestly remember two Tonapah Low events in three decades.
My Apologies
My head is empty...I've got no bee in my bonnet, nothing's got my goat, and try as I might, I can't make something from nothing.
Strangely, I've nothing to say tonight.
That's it, I'm taking a three day weekend, headed down to the Ancestral Digs to visit Early Spring. CorduroyPlanet returns on Wednesday as usual.
I turned on the porch light, and threw open the front door, more nothing.
This so-called "Wrap Around" system is taking it's sweet time gettin' here.
These Back Door deals are usually small producers, but the snow is of the finest quality.
The exception? The dreaded Tonapah Low...these are as rare as hen's teeth, but when one does come knockin'...look out. I Wikied Tonapah to check my spelling, and there isn't even a "Tonapah Low" page.
I've lived up here for 30 years come October. I can honestly remember two Tonapah Low events in three decades.
My Apologies
My head is empty...I've got no bee in my bonnet, nothing's got my goat, and try as I might, I can't make something from nothing.
Strangely, I've nothing to say tonight.
That's it, I'm taking a three day weekend, headed down to the Ancestral Digs to visit Early Spring. CorduroyPlanet returns on Wednesday as usual.
Feelin' Alright In the 21st Century
I'm sorry if I'm sounding like a stuck record, but my crew enjoyed another Great Night
last night!
My rookies don't know how great they've got it! My formative years in snowcats should have been so divine!
If today's rookies had to endure my rookie years, I wouldn't have a crew today! The hassles we endured back in "The Good Old Days" are so far removed from the supposed travails of today's 21st Century Grooming Realities as to put a coda on disbelief.
Today, Grooming has become just another instant gratification transaction in the New Paradigm...business as usual in our Post-Modern Societal Construct, where perceived reality carries more weight than actual blood and guts reality.
Here in the 21st Century West, everything has become automatic...too predictable...nothing that matters fails anymore. Most outlying anomalies have been mitigated. Success is assured, failure is almost foreign in the West today. The playing field is tilted...in favor of success now.
The New Paradigm is still just a construct...an illusion, if you will. Comfortable in the abstract, but not reliably concrete...Failure is still an option...and more often than not, it is the result of our Western success lulling us into complacency. Yet today, it's easier than ever to bank on the false security of the West's powerhouse dominance to put our fears to rest.
Thirty years ago, when I was a Rookie, the mountain usually held the upper hand. On the rare occasion that we were in the driver's seat, invariably our fleet would betray us. Every night was like Sir Edmund Hillary gazing up at Mt Everest from 3000 feet below Camp One.
Night in and night out, we set out to tame the Mountain..."because it was there"...on our best nights, we fought Mother Nature to a draw.
Today, the tables have turned...the field of battle is truly level, though when Mother Nature is aroused, there isn't much we can do to dominate her.
last night!
My rookies don't know how great they've got it! My formative years in snowcats should have been so divine!
If today's rookies had to endure my rookie years, I wouldn't have a crew today! The hassles we endured back in "The Good Old Days" are so far removed from the supposed travails of today's 21st Century Grooming Realities as to put a coda on disbelief.
Today, Grooming has become just another instant gratification transaction in the New Paradigm...business as usual in our Post-Modern Societal Construct, where perceived reality carries more weight than actual blood and guts reality.
Here in the 21st Century West, everything has become automatic...too predictable...nothing that matters fails anymore. Most outlying anomalies have been mitigated. Success is assured, failure is almost foreign in the West today. The playing field is tilted...in favor of success now.
The New Paradigm is still just a construct...an illusion, if you will. Comfortable in the abstract, but not reliably concrete...Failure is still an option...and more often than not, it is the result of our Western success lulling us into complacency. Yet today, it's easier than ever to bank on the false security of the West's powerhouse dominance to put our fears to rest.
Thirty years ago, when I was a Rookie, the mountain usually held the upper hand. On the rare occasion that we were in the driver's seat, invariably our fleet would betray us. Every night was like Sir Edmund Hillary gazing up at Mt Everest from 3000 feet below Camp One.
Night in and night out, we set out to tame the Mountain..."because it was there"...on our best nights, we fought Mother Nature to a draw.
Today, the tables have turned...the field of battle is truly level, though when Mother Nature is aroused, there isn't much we can do to dominate her.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Perfect
Pretty much perfect...what a lovely night we had!
Only the finest ingredients:
One foot of Hero Snow
One clear, star-filled Winter Sky
Hold the Wind
No breakdowns
When I pulled up to the fuel dock at the end of our shift, I noticed that I was feeling nothing but joy.
I yelled to the guys: "That's what I'm talkin' about"! Everyone enjoyed last night...nothin' but net, as they say.
The Hero Snow wasn't 100%...climbing wasn't as easy as flying upslope, full stick, but climbing was OK. Good enough. Visibility was awesome, half a Waning Moon illuminated the Mountain in magical light. Even the Mountain's WiFi Cloud pitched in...all the hotspots were working great, so I could stream my favorite morning talk show while grooming the Lower Mountain and Lodges!
Axeman pulled a double for us in his Sherpa Winch, taking one for the team, he hit the fuel dock just before 0600...my radioed thanks seemed inadequate, knowing he stayed an extra six hours on his Monday! With Axeman winching up a storm, we knocked out the Work Orders and threw in some major extra trails, before helping the Park Groomers finish up their projects...and we were off the mountain at 8:30!
Walking down the shop road to drive home, I didn't even wear my jacket! Instead I was wearing a Carhartt long sleeve shirt, sunglasses and a big ol' smile.
Dare I say it? I was feeling smug once again! The forecast is for another blast Friday night and into the weekend. Judging by the happy crowd arriving as I headed home, nothing but good can come with more new snow!
Only the finest ingredients:
One foot of Hero Snow
One clear, star-filled Winter Sky
Hold the Wind
No breakdowns
When I pulled up to the fuel dock at the end of our shift, I noticed that I was feeling nothing but joy.
I yelled to the guys: "That's what I'm talkin' about"! Everyone enjoyed last night...nothin' but net, as they say.
The Hero Snow wasn't 100%...climbing wasn't as easy as flying upslope, full stick, but climbing was OK. Good enough. Visibility was awesome, half a Waning Moon illuminated the Mountain in magical light. Even the Mountain's WiFi Cloud pitched in...all the hotspots were working great, so I could stream my favorite morning talk show while grooming the Lower Mountain and Lodges!
Axeman pulled a double for us in his Sherpa Winch, taking one for the team, he hit the fuel dock just before 0600...my radioed thanks seemed inadequate, knowing he stayed an extra six hours on his Monday! With Axeman winching up a storm, we knocked out the Work Orders and threw in some major extra trails, before helping the Park Groomers finish up their projects...and we were off the mountain at 8:30!
Walking down the shop road to drive home, I didn't even wear my jacket! Instead I was wearing a Carhartt long sleeve shirt, sunglasses and a big ol' smile.
Dare I say it? I was feeling smug once again! The forecast is for another blast Friday night and into the weekend. Judging by the happy crowd arriving as I headed home, nothing but good can come with more new snow!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Suffering for My Craft
Man did I even suffer last night. Once again I failed to follow my usually Fascist Bedtime Rules. The shimmer and shine of the new computer disrupted my sleep schedule, and I let my computer travails arouse me enough that I got all of one half hour of sleep going into my Monday.
Bad mistake. My shift was downright painful. Even with a good 10 minute catnap, I could barely keep my blood red eyes open...even though they felt like there was sand in them.
I pulled into my Mountain's WiFi Cloud and looked at the Radar on the iPod. At 4AM, Weather Planet (Weather Underground's iPhone App) showed that it was all over but the shouting. In fact, as the sun started rising, the snowfall ended after flurries were the order of the night post-midnight.
Half an hour later, it was like God switched on the snow generators...it came in like a squall line crossing Lake Tahoe, and kicked it for the next several hours. Clearly this was the system touted for Wednesday afternoon/evening, come early with it's 2000ft snow levels and dry powder.
My drive home was a total white knuckler...the Old Highway was narrow with berms, and near white-out conditions made the drive a stress-fest instead of my usual decompression drive home.
The snow on the steps to the DaveCave looked like huge flakes of mica...so dry that it didn't clump together when I swept it off my stairs with the shovel. I was too beat to deploy the camera and snap some macros anyway.
Deploying pillows and my comforter was all I could muster. Mission accomplished.
Bad mistake. My shift was downright painful. Even with a good 10 minute catnap, I could barely keep my blood red eyes open...even though they felt like there was sand in them.
I pulled into my Mountain's WiFi Cloud and looked at the Radar on the iPod. At 4AM, Weather Planet (Weather Underground's iPhone App) showed that it was all over but the shouting. In fact, as the sun started rising, the snowfall ended after flurries were the order of the night post-midnight.
Half an hour later, it was like God switched on the snow generators...it came in like a squall line crossing Lake Tahoe, and kicked it for the next several hours. Clearly this was the system touted for Wednesday afternoon/evening, come early with it's 2000ft snow levels and dry powder.
My drive home was a total white knuckler...the Old Highway was narrow with berms, and near white-out conditions made the drive a stress-fest instead of my usual decompression drive home.
The snow on the steps to the DaveCave looked like huge flakes of mica...so dry that it didn't clump together when I swept it off my stairs with the shovel. I was too beat to deploy the camera and snap some macros anyway.
Deploying pillows and my comforter was all I could muster. Mission accomplished.
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