Spring Rituals
Sunday, March 21st, 2010
Hitting soft jumps, Parking Lot BBQ’s, spring events, the list goes on…
One classic New England spring ritual is heading to Tuck’s. To do Tuck’s right, you keep your eye on the weather and try to grab the first sunny 60 degree day of Spring.
Due to the awesome weather we have been having in March, that happened earlier than ever this year (for me)…probably any day from Tuesday through Saturday would work this week…so where I would normally take that day off and run to New Hampshire, this year I was able to hold out until Saturday, which enabled Justin from Warranty to come along.
I had the wrong setting on my camera so I don’t have many good pics of the terrain… but check the pics on Tuck’s site here
We left Waterbury at 4:45 to reach NH and get a spot in the parking lot…Safe to say we were powered by Red Bull
So I was smart enough to bring a couple cans of Bud up…I was smart enough to hide them in the snow…in the end I wasn’t very smart and stepped on them with my crampons
The below picture has seemed to get a response from people…I think it’s because a lot of the pics don’t do justice to how steep it is there…this clearly demonstrates once you roll over the edge there is no looking back.
Here’s Justin ready to drop…he was testing next year’s Blitz pack… I love the sky in these pictures…it looks painted
Fortunately we had some more Bud’s hidden back at the truck…Here’s Justin handling some hard earned rest
Definitely a great day all around.
If you want to go, personally I recommend going with someone who has gone before. Additionally you need a mindset that recognizes the dangers of the mountain environment. I saw about five things yesterday that people didn’t get hurt solely due to dumb luck.
Most importantly, read the updates on the tuckerman.org and also read the morning postings on the avalanche board. It is your responsibility to make sure you understand every word; they have plenty of rangers and ski patrollers around as well to ask.
Now that I’ve gotten through that all, I do recommend that you go. It is an unforgettable experience that will challenge you in a variety of ways and it will keep you coming back for more…
My Equipment: Design 58, 2011 United Bindings, 2011 Libertine Pureflex, Insurgent Backpack, Cordova Jacket & Pants , Hoss Gloves (going down) Emblem Gloves (going up)
