Re: Conundrum Couloir
Posted: Sun Mar 28, 2021 10:48 am
Alec, sorry that you got hurt. I wish you a speedy recovery.
I do have a much lower risk tolerance than a lot of folks, but I don't tire of emphasizing that I am a strong in-bounds skier who loves resort expert terrain and 40-50 degree slopes, but I stick firmly to blue-equivalent terrain in the backcountry. Probably max out around D7, which is how bergsteigen ranks Castle's north couloir, and that ski really got my attention...I skied it, but realized I had a lot to improve to feel comfortable on that kind of backcountry terrain. (That said, she says Peak 10 4th of July bowl is D7 too, and I loved that, so maybe skiing in shorts makes me braver).cottonmountaineering wrote: ↑Fri Mar 26, 2021 5:40 pm D1– Easy low angled terrain such as beginner run at ski resort.
D4 – Similar to an easier "Expert" run at a resort. Slope angles usually around 30 degrees.
D5 – Similar to an "Expert" run at a resort, steeper (35 degree range) or more terrain obstacles than previous rating.
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D12 Conundrum Couloir
Annaliese, the snow is soooo much different. No one is out there controlling the terrain or chopping up the snow to make consistent. BC snow can be a mix of breaking crust, winter powder, corn and hard sastrugi all in the same run. unfortunetly, skiing groomers doesnt help you be a good skier "off piste". A good BC ski doesn't ski as well nor is the boot as stiff. You have to be much lighter on your skis otherwise you'll break your leg. Being a good ski mountaineer requires skill, but also a fair amount of fitness, a lot of folks don't want to do the uphill work and cross fitness to make it happen. Anyway thats a rant, unrelated to CaptCO's shoulder injury.AnnaG22 wrote: ↑Sun Mar 28, 2021 12:50 pmI do have a much lower risk tolerance than a lot of folks, but I don't tire of emphasizing that I am a strong in-bounds skier who loves resort expert terrain and 40-50 degree slopes, but I stick firmly to blue-equivalent terrain in the backcountry. Probably max out around D7, which is how bergsteigen ranks Castle's north couloir, and that ski really got my attention...I skied it, but realized I had a lot to improve to feel comfortable on that kind of backcountry terrain. (That said, she says Peak 10 4th of July bowl is D7 too, and I loved that, so maybe skiing in shorts makes me braver).cottonmountaineering wrote: ↑Fri Mar 26, 2021 5:40 pm D1– Easy low angled terrain such as beginner run at ski resort.
D4 – Similar to an easier "Expert" run at a resort. Slope angles usually around 30 degrees.
D5 – Similar to an "Expert" run at a resort, steeper (35 degree range) or more terrain obstacles than previous rating.
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D12 Conundrum Couloir
Long story short: we're all different, but the advice these folks are offering is well-intentioned with experience to back it up. They're not saying you can't do it, they're just offering perspective and insight, for which you did ask.
Those D ratings are estimated at best. How well a line skis will depend heavily on the snow conditions. Hero corn/powder is very different than punchy, variable, sustrugi or even ice. When I skied Blanca, it was an incredibly technical descent, whereas when BillM skied it in powder, he didn’t encounter the terrain like I did - so our ratings will be very different! An estimated rating is better than nothing IMO.AnnaG22 wrote: ↑Sun Mar 28, 2021 12:50 pm
I do have a much lower risk tolerance than a lot of folks, but I don't tire of emphasizing that I am a strong in-bounds skier who loves resort expert terrain and 40-50 degree slopes, but I stick firmly to blue-equivalent terrain in the backcountry. Probably max out around D7, which is how bergsteigen ranks Castle's north couloir, and that ski really got my attention...I skied it, but realized I had a lot to improve to feel comfortable on that kind of backcountry terrain. (That said, she says Peak 10 4th of July bowl is D7 too, and I loved that, so maybe skiing in shorts makes me braver).
Long story short: we're all different, but the advice these folks are offering is well-intentioned with experience to back it up. They're not saying you can't do it, they're just offering perspective and insight, for which you did ask.
EDIT: sorry to hear about your shoulder. Once it heals, I promise D2-D4 grade backcountry turns are super fun. It's amazing what unlimited pow can do to compensate for mellower slopes.
Is that Highline?
I would agree with that 100%. I’ve been riding spring lines on the mountains since 2015 (shorter than many of y’all here, but still quite a while now) and I don’t think I’ve ever looked at the D ratings to judge whether I’d ride something or not. In fact, I don’t even know the D ratings of anything I’ve done. Pictures, other people’s reports, seeing the routes first hand from other peaks or whatever. Then like Otina said, conditions can make an easy route super difficult/terrible and great conditions can make a difficult route.. I won’t say easy, but we’ll go with “less spicy”. In good corn, you make the first turn and there’s no slip, you’re confidence sky rockets. If it’s firm and you get that little slip, you automatically are in survival mode. If there’s a good runout and it’s not narrow, not as big of deal. Narrow or above cliffs, big deal. Some days you just aren’t feeling it either, I’ve climbed up some steeper lines before but I’ve picked something different once I got there for whatever reason (windy, tired, low mojo, iffy firm snow, etc). Depending on your mental state and snow conditions, there are days where a D12 can feel like a D5 or vice versa. Just like any sport out there. Some days the quarterback is on target and nails his spots, other days he’s way ahead or behind on timing. Skiing is no different, we are just humans performing a skill we have developed and some days we are firing on all cylinders and some days we feel like a rook.